Chapter 77 – Sparring
On a still somewhat cold morning, just as the sun was halfway up, Siu was already occupying one of the training fields, slowly finding time and peace to return to his previous routine while also paying attention to the Wardens' daily actions. Even though he didn't want to admit it, the experience was still great and helped him learn to manage and multitask multiple responsibilities, including advancing his own cultivation. It was as such that he stood barefoot on the packed earth of one of the training circles, slowly moving through the Wild Cat form.
But if someone had at least the same proficiency as he did, they would immediately be able to tell that he wasn't just using the Cat, as his actions were influenced by the Fox's deception. Take a step, but in reality, use it to turn and then swipe out with a claw-strike. By now, each of his motions flowed perfectly into the next, without any conscious effort on his part. Just as he had done the final pivot that let him flow through the last movement, ending in a high-kick with the Ox's power behind it, only then did he notice the audience he suddenly got.
It wasn't a big one, but three people stood just outside the circle, watching him... If not for the fact that he recognized all of them as Wardens, he would have thought someone from Stone Ward was here to pick a fight with him. Which... may still be the case.
“When did you get there?”
"Not that long ago," Varren raised one hand in greeting, doing it pretty awkwardly. “About ten minutes ago, we simply didn't want to interrupt you.”
As he was speaking, the two others stood beside him, looking a bit stiff. One was a tall young man with wide shoulders and dark hair tied into a topknot. Glancing at the other, she was a girl slightly shorter than Siu, her posture showing a bit of her nervousness, but she was clearly more excited than the rest. What made Siu frown slightly was that he knew that the boy was one of the other Stone Ward spies, and as he looked at Varren, his eyes immediately told Siu that something was going on in the background... oh well. Why not entertain the plot Stone Ward had cooked up?
“You could have said something,” Siu said in the end, shrugging, walking up to them.
“No, as he said, we didn’t want to interrupt,” the girl said suddenly, making him think back, recalling her name... Kira... One of the newer Wardens who had been surprisingly active in missions, joining up right after they returned with the Ironcrow Stag. She was someone with a clean backstory, joining the sect only a year before Siu, but, aside from that, doing nothing noteworthy, per Lorean's report.
“Yeah, we were waiting.” The large young man beside her grinned, “And it's fun to see and try to read the styles of others,” he added, making Siu tilt his head, raising an eyebrow, remembering that his name was... Baun... He just didn't know how to say it out... Boon? Baan? Buun? Eh... it was easier not to care.
“And... Why is that?” He asked in the end, holding back a smile.
"Um," Varren scratched the back of his neck, the black eyes already mellowing out by now, returning his face to how it looked when he first joined the Hollow Song, “Well…”
“We want to spar.” Kira stepped forward instead, showing why she was so excited, "It was Baun's idea, and I caught him explaining it to Varren, and if we train, I wanted to be here. I watched your fight against Nue, and I was inspired, so I wanted to have a match against you too!"
"Flattering," Siu said as he stared at them, trying to read Varren's eyes again, but not long enough to make Baun suspicious. “But... You know there are better fighters in the sect, right?”
“Sure,” the big man laughed, jumping on the comment, making Siu almost snort, as he answered so quickly it was like an actual insult directly into his supposed leader's face.
“Are you sure about that?” Kira questioned him, snorting in Siu's stead as she also caught onto it, raising a brow in surprise.
"It's the truth," Siu shrugged, waving a hand, “I don't know how I would fare against Kae'Lin or Cal'Fia for starters. Anyway!" For a moment, Siu considered refusing, because he had come here to train alone and to refine the forms he was working with, but with Stone Ward doing whatever they were planning, it was better to entertain them a little. Plus, fighting real opponents would reveal weaknesses in his forms faster than empty air ever could... so, in the end, he just rolled his shoulders. "Fine.”
"Thanks!" Kira's face immediately brightened, hearing that, watching Siu raise a hand before she could enter the ring.
“But,” Siu added, stepping backwards, toward the center of the circle, “we do this properly.”
“Good.” Baun agreed, stepping over the entrance, "We were hoping for that.”
"I bet." Siu smiled, starting to feel maybe this was how Stone Ward wanted to bring in someone to have a crack at his face. Oh well... He would be glad to use the opportunity if that were the case.
"Be careful, Leader," Bau said as he cracked his knuckles casually. “I learned something that is called the Stonebreaker style! It's aimed at dealing with reinforced bones.”
"That explains the shoulders." Siu joked, making Kira giggle, but deep inside, he groaned loudly at that... Stone Ward had sent someone so... obvious. They weren't taking him seriously, were they?
“My name is Kira.” The girl cupped her hands, "But I guess, you knew that, ahaha! Anyway, I trained in something that the sect calls the Whisper Steps.”
Siu nodded, but he had no idea what it even meant. By the name alone, he was sure it had to be some kind of mobility-focused technique. An assassin in the making? Maybe. As for Varren, he looked like he was the only one who brought a training weapon, in the form of a short wooden staff taken from the rack beside the training field.
“I’ll use this.” He said, nodding towards Siu.
“You fight with a staff?” Kira asked, squinting at him, "This is a spar... Aren't you going a bit too far?"
"I'm sorry, but without it, I can't do it properly," Varren spun it once in his hand. "It's the basis of my chosen style." He explained, looking a bit ashamed about it. Yet, as he was twirling it as a warm-up, Siu could tell he had great control over it, making him excited about this morning's training routine.
"If it's part of the form," Baun added, crossing his arms, "It is part of it. There is nothing that one can do about the facts."
"I'm fine with it," Siu also added, smiling at the three, "Outside, nobody will hold back, the Icecrown didn't do it either. Do bring all you have, that's what we are here for, no?"
"Its name is the River Reed style." Varren explained while nodding, "It is mostly a flexible defensive form built around redirection rather than direct attack."
"Tell him how to beat you then," Baun snorted, rolling his eyes, "Don't overshare!"
In the end, they got into their stances, and the moment after three breaths had gone by, it was as if an invisible shout prompted all four of them as they moved immediately, right at the same time... well, almost, because Kira vanished first, being the fastest amongst them. Even at her current level, her Whisper Steps technique carried her silently across the ground as she circled to Siu’s right... while the sound of her movement came from the left. Of course, she was not the only one reaching him, as Baun came at him straight ahead, with no subtlety in his movements, trading it for full, destructive power as his fist shot forward like a hammer.
Siu twisted his upper body, while the Wild Cat form easily shifted his body sideways just enough for the strike to pass, his attention already on the staff that came next, despite being Kira who reached him first. Even if they hadn't talked about it beforehand, it was almost the perfect combination of their abilities, using Kira's speed to make him react to her... which, obviously, didn't work. Siu's senses easily followed all three of them, making it harder to deceive him, so it was not a surprise he could tell how Varren’s weapon swept low across the ground in a wide arc, causing him to jump over it.
And then... Kira was already there.
It was evident they also expected something like this, so she was trying to catch him when he couldn't change positions, with nothing in the air to support him. Siu watched as her palm strike shot toward his ribs, fast but not as fast as the Red-eyed Squirrel was. Just remembering it, he suddenly sensed the familiar thoughts and feelings of Marly, and by reflex, he managed to twist his body midair, as if he were like her, gliding, letting Kira's blow graze his side instead of hitting him.
The next moment, he had already landed, facing Baun as he attacked again, this time with both hands. His Stonebreaker punches struck down one after another, forcing Siu to step backward repeatedly, while each pummel and its impact made crackling noises while passing through the air. Then, one moment later, instead of dodging, Siu parried a strike, redirecting it, opening up a clear point and strike out, his hand in the shape of a beak, striking Baun in the chest.
The man immediately stumbled, coughing and breaking off, surprised that Siu didn't show any pain on his face, even though that parry had to hurt him. Not that Siu had time to worry about that, because Varren's staff flashed again as his style flowed like water, constantly shifting angles as he tried to disrupt Siu’s footwork, aiding the others in their attacks. It also meant that every time Siu tried to move freely, the staff appeared in the way, giving a moment for Kira to strike again.
This time, her attack came as a quick elbow strike that was aimed at the back of Siu’s shoulder. Feeling the wind pushed forward by it, Siu quickly ducked out of the way, into the path of Baun's knee, which was already rising from the front, rejoining the brawl. But he expected it, so Siu rolled out of the way sharply, watching as the strike missed him, allowing it to land on Kira, who groaned and was pushed back, skidding and rolling on the ground. It gave the perfect moment for Siu to strike out again.
Baun was about to guard his vitals, keeping his knee up and his hands up to protect his face, as Siu's leg came towards him... But just then, without notice, Siu planted it down and swiped at him in a claw-like movement. Baun had no chance to react to the sudden change, and he grunted as the strike forced his arm aside, seeing another beak-like strike to aim towards the same spot on his chest... he was about to suffer the same fate as Nue?! But, at the right moment, Varren’s staff slid in between the two, blocking Siu's attack as the wooden stick actually cracked, suffering a visible splinter but not yet broken apart.
Smiling, lowering his hands, looking at the three, Siu stepped back, nodding at mostly Varren.
“Nice coordination.”
"I feel... good again," Varren smirked, while Kira also bounced lightly on her feet, already exhaling the pain, pushing it down and out of mind.
“Again?” She asked, wiping her mouth, clearly fired up to do it one more time.
"Honestly?" Siu grinned, swiping his eyes around them, “Yeah. Again.”
The second exchange was much faster than the first, as he already understood their rhythm. Baun was easy to read, pressing from the front, while Kira hunted for openings... Those were mostly presented to the two by Varren, trying his best to control the space they were given. As for Siu, he acted like prey, mostly reactive, using the opportunity to seamlessly blend the Fox's form into all his other techniques before counterattacking... Which somehow landed multiple times on Baun's chest when his fist missed a hit. Once again, Siu slipped past him and struck him with two quick jabs to the ribs, causing him to grunt, but he refused to fall, staying upright until Varren's staff whipped towards Siu's head, forcing him to duck.
"Eh?!" Varren yelped because suddenly, Siu grabbed the somewhat splintered weapon and twisted on it. His eyes widened as Siu did that, feeling his grip slip, and then the weapon broke, torn apart at the splint, soon spinning in two different directions.
But it was an opportunity, and Kira used the moment to strike and steer a kick toward Siu’s waist... only to swipe at air as he had already dodged... And then grabbed her ankle, swiping out her other leg, making her land on the ground.
"..."
The three Wardens looked at each other, groaning a little, breathing harder now, but smiling, although Braun's was way too insincere.
“Alright...” Varren moaned, helping Kira up, "You are the Boss, after all."
"He did survive being chased by the Icecrown Stag," Kira chuckled, patting herself down. "What are those techniques?"
"It's the basic forms of the Hollow Song Sect," Siu said with a smile.
"Eh?" Baun snorted, rubbing his chest, "The ox and fox and pox or cocks, or whatever it was?"
"Idiot." Kira chortled, rolling her eyes, but Siu could feel the genuine mockery in his voice, knowing it wasn't just a joke.
"Yes, those." He smiled, getting into a ready stance again, "Do you want to see the rest?"
"I do!" Kira yelled, her hand shooting into the air at once, forcing the rest to also agree, attacking each other, only to get laid out on the ground, even faster this time.
By then, it was evident... the more time they gave Siu, the more he read of their techniques, their personalities, and their limits, exploiting them so well that soon they had not even a sliver of a chance to land a hit on him.