Kamda

It was time for Dex to return to her training at last, and Raven didn't waste any time in rousing the foundling bright and early to get started on the day. And then dragging her to one of the rooms set aside for training, with the central floor filled with sand and with an array of practice weapons to choose from.

Armored and with her helmet on, Raven waited to begin her real test as a teacher. The past weeks she'd just been drilling Dex on the language and customs, but this would be different...

When Raven went to collect Dex she was busy doing some warm-ups, push-ups, throwing ghost-punches, hopping on a foot and pivoting in her room. Everything she could think of to test out her body again now that she was back in action. When Raven came in she almost waved, Raven could see it, but excitedly followed along.

Dex didn't have her armor anymore, torn through by the slug-thrower rifle that tore her up as well. Dressed for some training, some ragged clothes she had from before, she at least looked ready if not the part.

"Good to see your spirits have returned with your recovery as well, sister," she gestured for Dex to join her in the circle. "Let me see what you got, and we'll work from there."

This had seemed so much easier when Praxton had been training her.

"Oh, uh, right. Yea, what I got.. so.. should I just like, go at you or something? Gotta be honest when I trained with Tiroc it was mostly.. do this, as I do, or hunt this and I will keep watch, or you know.. that kinda stuff," she said, looking around at the circle. Stepping inside of it and feeling the sand beneath her feet shift and mold around the boot.

"I'm not Tiroc, and I won't be able to train you like he did. And I've not done much teaching before," she admitted honestly. "As your teacher, I need to see how tough you are, how strong you are. And from there I'll help you improve. And so... we spar."

"As my student, I also need you to talk to me when there's something you feel you need to get better at."

"Oh! Yea, of course.." she brought a hand quickly up to the back of her neck. "Totally, I didn't mean to say that your way wasn't good. Just uh, you know, different. So like, I don't really know what I'm doing either. Sparring though, like.. I fight you or something?" she said, glancing around the circle.

Raven nodded. "That's what sparring is. A mock fight, if you will, to test one's abilities and learn new things. It's a way for me, as your teacher, to see what you need to work on."

She assumed a fighting stance. "Now, try punching me a couple of times."

"Alright.. so.." she walked up, casual and without much of a stance but when she came in swinging she had a nice feint that helped her bring in a strong strike against Raven's chestplate.

Sparring with Raven: 1eP+2eA+2eD 1 success

"Not bad," Raven complimented her student, though she didn't really feel the punch. "But you gotta do more if you're going to hurt someone in armor."

"Yea.. think I'd use a weapon or something instead of my fists against someone in armor like you got," she said, flexing her hand a bit. "Bloody hurts otherwise."

"You got skill though. I'm impressed." She figured Dex had lived a rough life to know how to throw a solid punch like that. "Just need to harden your fists with practice, but that's not something I have to teach you."

"Now," she turned her head to some of the training weapons, "since you said you'd prefer a weapon against an opponent like me, show me how good you are with one. Take your pick of one of the practice weapons."

"Aight," she said, grinning. Walking over to the weapon racks she started perusing. "Thanks.. learned the move from my brothers.. n-not like, real brothers. Just other street-kids I grew up with. Quite a few of them started dropping off like flies once I turned sixteen, bout a year ago now. Got into fights they couldn't get out of or just started hangin' with the wrong crowds."

Chuckling at that with half her heart, she rested her hands on a dulled bladed weapon, a knife of some sort, "Should I use one of the metal ones or the plastic?"

"The dull metal ones are fine, since I don't think you're going to mess up and hurt yourself." As she spoke, she was thinking more about what Dex said.

"What about you though? Managed to get out of the fights and stay away from the bad crowds? Or did Tiroc help you out of one of those?" More pieces of the puzzle that was her student was coming together to form a clearer picture.

"Last fight I was in was when Tiroc found me," she said as she looked into the metal sheen of the blade, testing it's dull edge with her thumb. "It was pretty bloody. Split my lip, got roughed up real bad. Was fighting a few other's, mostly punching up I think. Older goons from some outfit or another," she shrugged. Twirled the weapon in her hand once, twice. "Sleemo's really. Don't remember why I started the scrap but I was in it, bloodied and beaten and fighting like hell. Always had been.. guess that's just the way I was, way I am."

"Still," she said, turning about. Happy with her choice she walked back into the pit. "I beat the snot out of every last one of 'em-bastards. Left 'em bloodier than I was and they weren't gettin' back up but I did every time. Found out just after Tiroc was watching, said I had guts but was gonna die on the street like that. I told him to shove it, I could live longer than he could. Asked me if I wanted to prove him wrong. I threw the first hit but.. well, he put me on the ground and unable to fight back without even swinging a punch so.. guess he showed me. Offered me his hand and to come with him. Thought of all the other's that never got off the street and that idea of dying on the streets hit me hard I guess. Wise'd up. Now I'm here."

Her teacher listened with interest, now seeing a clearer picture of who the student was. In some way, they were not too different, yet it was still not a complete resemblance. Raven had mostly steered away from picking fights, and had picked her fights with care, knowing when to intimidate and when to simply stab a 'sleemo'.

Raven had the instincts of a survivor, and it had served her well so far.

"Now you're here. It's good that you met him that day... sometimes we just need someone to give us a chance to be more. It was the same with me, being on my own - Mandalore and Praxton gave me a chance at something better." She assumed her fighting stance again as Dex joined her once more. "Now, show me what you can do."

Dex nodded roughly, brought the weapon up and.. couldn't determine a stance. Getting a little annoyed at that, she shook her head and found something that felt like it would work and then came forward. With a jabbed slash to the side. However, she wasn't able to make contact. Raven being able to stop her strike from landing with ease.

Sparring with Raven: 3eA+2eD 1 failure

"I see you're not as used to fighting with melee weapons," she observed dryly, but now it seemed they found something to work on.

Taking a knife of her own, Raven demonstrated a different grip that might work better for Dex's brawling experience, a reverse-grip. "Try like this. When you hold the blade closer to your arm like so, think of it more as if the side of your arm is a sharp edge." It might help her not think too much about where to direct the blade.

Following her guidance, Dex flipped the blade around and made a sort of punching motion with her arm again. Bringing the dagger slashing out instead of her fist at the end in the air. Trying it again she started to register the movement a bit, tucking up and punching out with the motion.

"Aight.." she moved her wrist a bit, "yea, I get the feel. Like that?" she displayed it with another similar strike.

"Yes, much better," she gave an approving nod to her student. "Weapons are extensions of your body."

"Now try again."

"Aight," she said, nodding her head. Dropping into a somewhat common brawler stance, she approached with the blade of the weapon ready to flash out. Throwing a false punch first into the center, hopping out, and then throwing in another punch for the side as she dropped down to her knee but thrusting out the dull blade so it dragged across the armor near her side. Hearing the sliding of metal against metal before she hopped back.

Sparring with Raven, fitting instruction for Dex: 3eA+2eD+2eB 4 successes, 1 advantage