[Training] when the sun goes down

Alys considered the long list of places one could inflict damage on an opponent, committing it to memory, making a mental list of the places Deimos mentioned, noting them on the practice dummy as he continued. She'd never considered that there were so many vulnerable places on the human body before. She would have to become more adept at protecting herself, she thought, as the list dragged on and on. She considered the long, dark curls she'd tied away from her face. Maybe she should cut her own hair to make it harder for someone to hurt her...

Then Deimos was instructing her on the correct stance, and as he took her through the basics, she tried her best to copy him. Balancing on the balls of her feet, shoulder-width apart, dominant leg back; hands lifted to shoulder level, dominant arm back. She wondered, briefly, if anyone ever had a different dominant leg than dominant arm, and how that affected their stance, but dismissed the random thought quickly enough. By the end of Deimos's instruction, she had managed a passable imitation of him, and she glanced his way expectantly, waiting for him to correct any mistakes she might have made.

ALYS GLASSE