Hard Knocks {Cad}

[Rugs]

Nieraan allowed a few moments to pass in silence between the two of them. He watched the boy, who looked at him quietly. Thinking, no doubt.

What Cadyren saw in Nieraan's scars, Nieraan couldn't know. But there was more that they had in common than he knew. Kamirille's training had been brutal, and Nieraan hated her for it, but it'd paid off in the long run. Now he was powerful. Very powerful, one of the strongest among the Initiates. And only growing stronger.

But there were differences that separated them. Kamirille's training hadn't been a choice for Nieraan. He tried to run, and he'd been beaten for it. He tried to fight back, and he'd been beaten for it. Perhaps, if Ared had been able to make him stronger before Kamirille ambushed them... Then, perhaps he could've run away.

But he hadn't. He tried to fight her, and he got the scars that still crossed his back.

Cadyren, on the other hand, had been warned of the risks. Nieraan had told him flat out that he would be a hard master, and his actions would follow. The boy would be strong. That was a certainty. But Nieraan would be sure he retained his edge.

He knew what resentment turned into.

“So we’re going to practice unarmed combat, correct? Let’s get started then.”

Nieraan shrugged. "As you wish."

He moved out to the area where they'd fought the day before and waited for Cadyren to follow. He was a skilled unarmed fighter. Kamirille was better yet, but she'd imparted a good deal of ability into him before he killed her and escaped.

The style she taught him was strong, but it was also very fast. It was a variant of Teras Kasi, and made use of quick, hard strikes as well as holds. Nieraan doubted Cadyren had seen anything like it, but he wasn't looking to make an unarmed juggernaut of the boy. Just someone who could hold his own.

Nieraan set his feet, adjusted his stance slightly and stood relaxed across from Cadyren. "Before I can teach you anything, I have to know what you know." A simple nod to the boy was all the gesture he needed to give. "Come on."

[Cadyren]

"Before I can teach you anything, I have to know what you know."

Cadyren let out a sigh, he expected as much. So far Nieraan hadn’t stopped to give him any real lessons, just thrown him in a situation and watched to see how he did. He didn’t expect that to change anytime soon.

Taking a deep breath, Cad tried to analyze Nieraan’s form as he got into position. It didn’t look anything like any form of combat he was familiar with, though to be honest most of his hand to hand experience was against drunks at bars. This is not going to end well…

Cadyren had learned a bit about unarmed combat when he was a youngling, and that had been enough to take on idiots and drunks on Tatooine. Would it be enough to fight Nieraan? He doubted it. From Nieraan’s stance Cadyren guessed this wasn’t his first time fighting someone hand to hand, that he had received more training then Cad had.

Let’s get this over with then.

Cadyren approached cautiously, trying to think of some form of attack. He didn’t want to over commit though, or else Nieraan would exploit the opening and probably beat him to a pulp.

This will probably end badly no matter how you attack, he’s faster then you, at least just as strong, and more then likely better trained then you. I’m f*cked no matter what, so let’s just get this over with. Cadyren sighed, him and Nieraan were just a few feet away before they would be in arms reach of each other, he had to move now if he wanted any hope of gaining the advantage.

Cadyren tried to move fast, closing the remaining distance between them in a mere second. His fist flew outward, aimed for Nieraan’s throat, maybe he would get lucky and catch Nieraan off guard with his sudden change from a cautious approach to an all out attack. The punch was horribly executed however. He had overcommitted, it would be easy for Nieraan to just push his fist off to the side and send him stumbling, assuming that he didn’t counter attack before Cad even had the chance to do that.

[Rugs]

Nieraan watched as Cadyren began to advance. The boy moved cautiously; nervously, even. Even without feeling through the Force, Nieraan could see the doubt that lingered in Cadyren's movements and doubtless clouded his mind.

Nieraan couldn't blame the boy. After all, he knew the difference in ability between them. Realistically, Cadyren had about as many options as a Nerf staring down a hostile Nexu. Nieraan felt the same way, when Kamirille put him through her ruthless training.

Frightfulness would get him nowhere, though. Neither would fighting with a mind hazed with doubt--no matter how well founded those doubts were.

The boy drew nearer, and suddenly, he lunged. Not a bad tactic, growing suddenly aggressive from his overly-cautious movements. Nieraan wouldn't be surprised if the move found some success against one of Cadyren's peers.

Unfortunately, Nieraan was not one of Cadyren's peers.

There was a technical flaw to answer every strength the timing of his punch might have given him. It was telegraphed, and the follow-through was bad. His stance was poor, and he'd put too much strength behind the blow. Nieraan often made the same mistake as a boy against his mother, and he'd been punished repeatedly for it until he got it right.

Cadyren would get the same.

Nieraan stepped toward Cadyren as the punch closed in on him. He brought his hands up in front of him, knocking Cadyren's blow off-course as the distance between them vanished. As Cad's fist flew harmlessly by the side of his face, Nieraan's arms came up to the boy's neck. Quick as a snake, one came up from underneath Cadyren's extended arm and wrapped around the front of his throat. Nieraan's other hand braced against Cadyren's back.

Nieraan's leading leg came down firmly behind Cadyren's trailing one, and with simple force applied to the ankle and a push up high with his harms, he sent the boy down unceremoniously to the ground.

He could have kept hold of him if he wanted to--could've taken hold of a wrist a he fell and forced him into an armbar--but the takedown would serve as lesson enough for the moment.

"You can do better than that," Nieraan said, looking with a mentor's critical eye at the boy on the ground in front of him. "I've dealt with homeless and drunks that flail around better than that."

He retreated a few steps, allowing Cadyren space to get back on his feet. "You have the physical strength to be dangerous in close quarters. You are slow, but that can be worked around." Pops echoed loudly in the silent tomb as Nieraan lazily cracked his knuckles and rolled his neck. "But if you're not gonna learn a damn thing if you fight me like some frightened little child."

"Now come again, and make this better than the last time."

[Cadyren]

For a moment Cadyren dared to hope that he might actually hit Nieraan. Maybe he had somehow managed to catch him off guard? That hope was quickly crushed however, Nieraan knocked Cadyren’s fist to the side like it was nothing, and the blow flew past Nieraan’s face without causing any damage.

Cadyren barely had a second to register his failure however, as Nieraan made his counter attack. Cadyren attempted to grab at Nieraan’s arm with the one he had without from his initial attack, while also trying to bring his leading arm around Nieraan’s back. His hope had been to try and flip his master over his shoulder, but he was to slow.

Cadyren landed on the ground with a thud and a grunt. He had been stupid to think he could have outsmarted Nieraan so easily. He wasn’t like Grawn, Cadyren’s previous mentor. He didn’t let his superior skill and power blind him, and he was ready for any petty trick his apprentice tried. Nieraan berated Cadyren for performing so badly, going as far to say that he had seem drunks fight better then him.

Cadyren wasn’t sure if he was glad for that, or if that made him hate Nieraan even more. On the one hand, it was good to have a master that was smart enough not to be easily fooled. On the other, he really wanted to punch Nieraan in the face.

He’s smarter and more powerful then either of my former masters. If he wasn’t such a prick he would be the perfect master. Cadyren thought as he began to force himself back to his feet. He was halfway up when another thought swam through his head, this one bringing a smirk to his lips, Maybe not. As I grow to hate him more, I will strive to become better then him, to have my power eclipse his own. He liked that thought. One day his hatred would help him surpass his master, and then Nieraan would be the one being tortured.

Back on his feet, Cadyren listened as Nieraan evaluated him, "You have the physical strength to be dangerous in close quarters. You are slow, but that can be worked around.”

I’m not slow, you’re just fast.

Against most people, Cadyren might have been able to flip them over his shoulder before they put him on the ground. But Nieraan was fast, ridiculously fast. Cadyren still wasn’t entirely sure as to what Nieraan had done to put him on the ground, it had happened so quickly.

Cadyren had to think of a new plan, but what could he possibly do? Nieraan was faster than him, and far more skilled. He quickly realized that it would be futile to even come up with a plan, he stood no chance against his master.I won’t be able to beat you now, but one day I will. And I will make sure it will hurt.

This time Cadyren approached quickly, and once he got within 2 meters of Nieraan, he lunged. He faked a punch with his right hand. It something that he found caught most people off guard. Most humans were right handed, so when someone began a punch with their right most people didn’t believe it to be a fake. He quickly shifted his weight so that his real attack would be more powerful, a punch with his left hand aimed at Nieraan’s abdomen.

Cadyren doubted that the attack would work. He fully expected Nieraan to put him on the ground again, or toy with him for awhile. But he had to try, to learn from his mistakes so that one day he could beat Nieraan.

[Rugs]

The boy approached again. He was moving a bit more quickly now, obviously trying to show Nieraan that he was not slow. But, to Nieraan, Cadyren's movements seemed to lag. They would work on it.

But form came before speed. And Cadyren's form was lacking.

Once the boy got in range, he lunged. Predictably. He had to do something to get to Nieraan quickly; it was good that he knew that, but his methods...

Mistake would be corrected, as his mother would tell him. How long that took was up to Cadyren.

As Cadyren got close, Nieraan took a half step back. It was a simple tactic, but one that put further distance between them, taking reach away from Cadyren. The boy faked a punch with his right hand, but Nieraan ignored it; his strength wasn't behind it. His weight was shifting in another direction. The boy either didn't know how to throw a punch, or he had something else in mind.

Nieraan gave his apprentice an ounce of credit and went with the former.

True to his suspicion, Cad's punch broke off early and he committed to his real strike; a left-handed strike that came barreling at Nieraan's stomach. Nieraan set his feet, quickly forced the air from his lungs. He forced the hard, ridged muscles of his stomach to tense, and took the punch head on.

Cad's fist slammed into him, smacking loudly against his hardened abs, but Nieraan's stomach didn't give. There wasn't any air to be forced out of him to leave him wheezing for breath. A bit of pain, but pain had been a common companion for the last half of his life. Compared to some other things he'd been through, Cadyren's blow was nothing.

Nieraan smirked as his left hand closed around Cadyren's wrist. The intent of taking the blow had been surprise. Shock Cadyren for a moment. Use the moment as a lesson.

His body turned aside and he pulled on Cadyren's wrist, trying to jerk the apprentice forward while his right elbow came hurtling up at the side of his face.

Hard.