| From: | Jett <zmjett@*********.COM> |
|---|---|
| Subject: | A different kind of dance |
| Date: | Thu, 28 Jan 1999 03:10:34 -0500 |
>>>>>[+++++start: sword21.vid2
"You got pissed off, and that's when you started to slip," the vampire
says. He removes the sword from her throat, resheathes it, and extends a
hand to Jett. She declines, glaring from the depths of her empty eyes as she
gets to her feet and retrieves her own blade, wiping it on her pants leg and
sliding the dark sword back into its tooled leather scabbard.
"Better," the vampire said, absently wiping spatters of blood from his
hands. It seems a bit odd that he doesn't consider licking it clean, but the
light pink welts on his skin in the shape of the sprays of blood explain:
the dark fluid that passes for Jett's blood is just caustic enough to make
him think twice about ingesting it. Jett hmphs and pulls a bandana from her
back pocket, using it to wipe away the blood spilling from the slash in her
arm. She binds it, tightly, around the wound on the third try. The first
two, the knot seems to slip away between her long, slender fingers.
"You're getting better, Julia, but how many times do I have to tell you,
when you get angry in a fight, you lose your edge."
Jett sighs, and sits on the edge of a crate, undoing her braid and
shaking out her waist-length black hair. "Yeah, I know. I'm sorry, Julian."
She combs her fingers through her hair before sweeping it back behind her.
"I can't help it, though...once I get wounded, the Shade takes over and I
start to beserk."
Julian nods. "You're better than you were before, but you need time and
training. I know it goes against your nature, but raw power only goes so
far. You need to hone your skills to be effective." He places his sword off
to the side. "Remember, when you fight vampires and other supernatural
beings, your playing field is just about level, as far as brute force is
concerned. Which means your only edge is in your skill and your magical
abilities."
Jett slides off the crates, waiting expectantly. She nods, and rubs her
empty socket absently, just as though she were rubbing a real eye, an odd
behavior.
He pauses. "You look tired. And your aura looks strained. Have you been
under a lot of stress lately?"
Jett nods. "Yeah...you could say that."
"Have you been doing any of the exercises I gave you?"
"No." She shakes her head, hair swinging. "Not really...I should be, I
guess."
It's his turn to nod, and when he speaks there's no criticism in his
voice. "If you practice what I taught you, it will help stabilize your
aura." He walks around her, slowly, sizing her up with a distant look in his
eye that suggests he's perceiving astrally. The camera seems to emphasize
Jett's small stature: the vampire has six inches on her, and by the looks of
it an easy 70 pounds. At most, that would put Jett around five-foot-nine and
perhaps a hundred and sixty pounds, not unreasonable, judging by her
well-toned body and relatively broad shoulders.
After a few moments, the vampire nods. "Still, better than I expected."
He reaches over with a hand, and gently touches Jett's cheek. "Something is
grounding you, keeping you connected." He looks into her "eyes", his own
brown and solid. "Your friends. You've been staying in touch?"
Jett replies, wearily, after a moment, "Yeah, I talk to Derek and Jazz a
lot." She glances at the sword belted to her hip, distracted possibly by the
vampire's proximity.
The vampire nods his approval. "You need a sense of purpose, Julia.
Remember that. Your own force of will does more toward keeping you here than
anything I could do." He stops, thoughtfully. "Oh, yes," he says almost
absently. "Something I noticed when we were sparring."
"I know. I dropped my defending arm twice, leavng myself open." She
smiles faintly, as though they've been through this before. "It's strange
fighting with only one blade. I'm used to having a knife in my other hand."
Julian smiles. "Not just that. Something else I noticed." He walks
around to her back and puts his hands on her shoulders. "Relax your
shoulders...draw your sword." She does as told, holding the blade in front
of her. "Kep your back straight and your weight on your back leg..." Jett
moves into a starting stance as he moves her hands, his body pressed against
her back as he adjusts her arm position.
Jett finally glances behind her, seemingly startled by Julian's
closeness, but she doesn't pull away. For a moment, he holds her, then seems
to become aware of the intimacy of the position, and releases her. The
camera catches only a flicker of embarassment on his face, and possibly, a
fleeting moment of wistfulness.
"Good," he says. "Work on not dropping your defending arm."
Jett resheathes her sword, and nods, touching the bandana on her arm. "I
think once I get sliced up enough, I'll finally get it," she says with a wry
smile, then heads to the corner to retrieve her jacket. The last thing the
camera picks up before the screen goes black is Jett's long, slender arms
and the shine off her curtain of dark hair as she shuts it off.
+++++End vid2
+++++videos sword21.vid1 and sword21.vid2 saved to Training archive ]<<<<<
-- Jett <02:59:45/01-27-60>
