An update since at least two people are reading it.
Thank you justme2134 and scarletflamedance for the alert and yellowhorse for putting me in their C2. You people are awesome.
Alessandro walked into the inn. It was supposed to be one of the more popular places for the guards to spend their leisure time at.
Some he found odd, due to the fact they always lost money gambling.
A few times he could write off as bad luck.
Except it was almost every time.
The few times a guard won it was just a large enough purse to make everyone keep coming back.
He was certain that the gambling was rigged somehow.
But if the guards couldn't figure that out for themselves... Well, it was their money they were wasting.
He had better things to spend his on.
The only reason he was here now was because his fellow guards had all but dragged him along.
He was on light duty due to his injuries.
And everyone believed it was the followers of Romulus that he had been fighting.
The lie sat heavy on him.
He had been brought up to be honest but what else was he supposed to have said?
He wasn't going to start a witch-hunt for the very person who had saved his life.
And the guards weren't likely to believe what had started the fight anyway.
Not to mention he really didn't want to make enemies.
There were to many ways that a fellow guard could 'accidentally' end up dead and he didn't trust his comrades anymore.
So Alessandro sat in a relatively quiet corner nursing a drink.
His 'friends' were somewhere spending all their money on things they likely wouldn't remember the next morning anyway.
The sounds of cheering and someone's rather creative swearing penetrated his depressed mood.
He looked over to the source of all the noise. Instantly his attention sharpened.
Alessandro decided to investigate further since he really had nothing better to do with his time. He left his drink at the table, with all the movement and people packed so close he would only spill it anyway. If it was who he thought it was then this might just be a good night after all.
Alessandro watched the mostly friendly match with interest.
They weren't using weapons which was probably a good thing since most of the patrons were completely drunk.
Where the rest of the crowd seemed intent to watch the spar for the violence and entertainment it provided, Alessandro was trying to figure out the tactics.
He recognized the one man as the assassin from a few days ago. Not that he was wearing the same robes, likely to avoid being noticed.
Alessandro watched as time after time the other man would charge and the assassin would effortlessly dodge. Or another man would throw a punch and somehow miss completely. At first it baffled him. But then Alessandro started looking at individual pieces instead of the whole.
The way the assassin would duck and pivot under a punch before throwing one of his own. Or how he would deflect a kick to the side to avoid harm and then counterattack while his opponent was off balance.
He was starting to see a rhythm to the way the man fought. A pattern that just barely escaped his full comprehension.
Another man went tumbling out of the circle. Aside from a few bruises, Alessandro noticed that Ezio's opponents weren't coming to any real harm.
•_•
Ezio circled his latest opponent. It was child's play to dodge the attacks of the half drunk man.
It had taken him a few moments to realize that someone in the crowd was actually taking the time to study him, rather then the usual drunken cheering. It was that very silence amongst the loud drunken crowd that had allowed Ezio to notice the man in the first place.
It took him a moment longer to realize why the man seemed familiar. It wasn't that Ezio had forgotten the young guard who had gotten himself into trouble earlier that week, but rather he hadn't expected the man to show up here of all places.
But then again, maybe he shouldn't be so surprised after all. Plenty of the guards came here to lose their wages in either gambling or alcohol.
Ezio watched the guard, Alessandro if he recalled correctly, out of the peripheral of his vision. He noticed that he seemed entirely disinterested in the gambling and was probably the only one besides himself who was still sober.
Someone in the guards uniform came up to drunkenly slur something at the younger man who shrugged off his fellow guard's hand with a grimace.
Ah, that made more sense then. Some of his fellow guards must have dragged him out to celebrate or something and he had withdrawn into a corner because the situation was uncomfortable for him.
Ezio had only part of his mind focused on the next fight in front of him. A particularly large guard, a captain by his uniform, and very very drunk.
Ezio rolled his eyes as the captain threw an exaggerated and overextended punch at him. He didn't even have to do anything except not stand still. The captain overbalanced and Ezio simply helped him with a gentle shove behind his shoulder, which knocked him straight into a group of his friends.
The assassin was getting bored of this. None of his opponents were even sober enough to warrant paying attention to, let alone skilled enough to make him work for victory.
"Is there anybody else?" Ezio called tauntingly, hoping that someone with at least a small amount of intelligence would try.
•_•
Alessandro felt himself shoved forward. When he turned to look at the offender it was a very drunk guard that he vaguely recalled having seen around the barracks once or twice before. He was grinning like a maniac and making gestures towards the sparring circle in a less then subtle hint.
Alessandro rolled his eyes, he was not going to get beat up for the satisfaction of a drunk guard who probably wouldn't even remember this the next morning. Hell, given how he was drinking the guard would still be drunk the next morning anyway.
Alessandro turned back to the ring. He noticed nobody else seemed willing to come forward either.
His body tensed when he realized the assassin was staring straight at him and had obviously recognized Alessandro.
He debated with himself for a moment. Obviously this was only for fun for the assassin, none of the other guards had anything more then a few bruises and those were mostly their own fault anyway. There wasn't really any risk but there was the possibility to gain much.
As the moment dragged on, drunken whispers started as the crowd picked up on the tension between the two. Someone else pushed Alessandro slightly foreword with some slurred encouragement and this time he let them.
Cautiously he walked into the circle and faced across the deadly assassin. He could remember all too clearly how easily Ezio had taken down the guard patrol before and was really wishing he had had more to drink. Or perhaps not, as he thought back to the drunken stumbling of the previous people.
•_•
Well, this was interesting; Ezio thought to himself.
The man clearly would rather be anywhere else and yet he had entered the ring of his own violation. Cautiously, slightly fearful, but Alessandro had entered all the same. He was sober too which was a welcome change from dodging drunken idiots.
It seemed though that Ezio had made a rather strong first impression. Perhaps too strong. If the man was stiff with fear he wouldn't be any harder then the drunken fools of earlier. He sent an encouraging grin at his opponent hoping to ease his mind some. Not that he thought it would actually work.
He might have to hold back until Alessandro finally got it through his head that he wasn't in any danger but Ezio wasn't about to throw the fight. Even if it would boost the guard's confidence it would be insulting to both of them and would do more damage in the long run anyway.
He noticed the guard take up the same ready to react stance that Ezio himself had been using most of the night. It didn't surprise him so much, if Alessandro had any sense at all he would realize imitating Ezio's previous opponents wasn't going to do any good. But the stance Ezio had been using was almost purely reactive. It was excellent for defence and counters but not the best for attacking straight out.
Well, he would see how quick Alessandro could be.
Ezio shifted into a stance best suited for attacking. He knew the guard wouldn't attack first and he also knew that Alessandro was smart enough to know he didn't actually have a chance if Ezio decided to actually go all out. So defense would be the best strategy for Alessandro to employ.
•_•
For a moment after the fight began the two just stared at each other. Then Ezio stepped to the side, Alessandro followed him with his eyes before realizing that he would have to move or he wouldn't be able to react to an attack. It came too late that he hadn't really seen how Ezio moved in this position as the assassin's previous opponents had never given him a reason to do anything but wait and counter.
Clumsily at first, Alessandro managed to move his feet and still keep his guard up. He imitated his opponent, their stances might be different but the footwork to move was mostly the same. Alessandro knew he would lose so his goal was rather to land one solid blow then to win. To be able to break through Ezio's defences would be a solid victory in Alessandro's eyes.
Suddenly, it seemed, Ezio to a half step foreword and closed the distance between the two. Alessandro reacted instinctively and stepped back which caused Ezio's punch to harmlessly pass by.
He had thought his instinctual move would have broken his stance but he realized he had simply reversed his stance from right foot forward left foot back to left foot forward right foot back.*
He could dodge.
That gave Alessandro more confidence now that he knew he wasn't going to get hit so easily. If he could move back and foreword could he also move side to side using a similar idea? And he couldn't dodge forever either, he had to attack sooner or later. While Alessandro was thinking he was still dodging punches.
Ezio moved for a straight punch but Alessandro could already see that he was going to actually follow up this time. He had to do something different or Alessandro had no doubt he'd end up aquatinted with the floor. This time as Ezio punched straight at his face Alessandro stepped forward and pushed against Ezio's elbow to avoid being hit. Seeing the assassin continue to move forward from his own momentum, Alessandro improvised. He let the arm he had used to push away the punch wrap around the assassin's neck. He stepped behind the assassin trying to pull him off balance but failed.** He aimed a punch of his own at the assassin's kidneys which never landed.
Alessandro felt Ezio grab the fist of the arm being used to try to choke him but ignored it. Next thing he knew was the assassin dropping to one knee, doing something with his shoulder and Alessandro was flipped over and on his back completely open.***
Ezio still had a grip on Alessandro's arm and could have ended the fight there but he let go and backed off. Alessandro realized that Ezio was as eager to teach as he was to learn. Alessandro got back to his feet a bit stiff but otherwise alright. He knew something went wrong when he had improvised earlier but he didn't know where he made his mistake. But he knew how he could find out.
Alessandro made to punch Ezio in the face, same as Ezio had done earlier. He saw the assassin's eyes widen in realization and heard the light chuckle as he decided to play along. Ezio brought his forearm, targeting the elbow to deflect the punch to the side and down. Alessandro took note that he was using his forearm near the wrist rather then his palm as Alessandro had done to deflect the punch. Ezio brought his arm across Alessandro's throat, stepped behind him as the guard had earlier. But Ezio tapped Alessandro's lower back before he finished the choke and the guard realized that was where he had gone wrong. The seemingly small move forced Alessandro's weight backwards and he lost leverage where his attempt previous had let Ezio retain his balance. It would be much harder to counter now. To complete the move, Ezio brought his free hand to grab the fist of the arm being used to choke Alessandro locking himself in place.****
Alessandro stood there panicked for a moment as his hand went to try and pry Ezio's arm off. An instinctual and entirely wrong move. The hold was intentionally loose Alessandro knew because he could still breath easily but it didn't help him when the man knew he was stuck.
"Calm down." Ezio said quietly, knowing the crowd would assume that he was merely taunting the guard as they couldn't hear the two over their own noise.
"Grab my fist, not my arm." Ezio instructed quietly. "Good, now press in to keep me from countering."
Alessandro realized that he couldn't use the same throw as Ezio had because of the way he had been grabbed, but that didn't necessarily mean he was defenceless either.
"Now you will turn into the side where my fist is and bow under my arm." He heard Ezio explain. "When you get out from under my hold keep your hand on my wrist and use your free hand to take my elbow."**** Alessandro listened carefully, it didn't sound difficult at all. But then, a lot of things sounded easy but in actuality were very difficult. Alessandro took a deep breath before trying to do as instructed. He realized halfway through that Ezio hadn't been trying to resist and was in fact 'letting' him execute the move. In a few seconds he felt relief for having got out of the choke hold and surprise at seeing the dangerous assassin on the ground.
Alessandro let go and backed quickly away, belatedly remembering the stance he was beginning to think of as his. The guard wasn't the only one to be surprised at the turn of events. He could already hear the whispers and starts of drunken betting.
The crowd got mostly quiet with the anticipation of a good fight for once and not the usual drunken brawler.
The assassin got up with a good natured chuckle. Alessandro didn't really consider it a victory because he had been coached through the take down. He wanted to be able to do it himself. But he had to admit that it made him more confident and it showed. The beginnings of a plan started to form in his mind.
He had noticed quite early that Ezio favoured using his arms, either to block or attack, over his legs. It was a good strategy of course, as it made it much easier to keep your balance in a fast paced fight especially if you or your opponent had sharp things in their hand.
Alessandro knew he was more flexible then most and that he had pretty good balance. Or at least he liked to think he did anyway. He also knew his only way to land a blow would be to do something completely unexpected. Or something desperate. He had also noted how the assassin used the least amount of effort possible to avoid getting hit. Usually that meant redirecting an attack and countering or simply moving slightly out of the way rather then dodging completely.
Alessandro started with a series of punches meant more to keep focus on his fists then to actually hit anything. Such simple moves would never get through anyway.
Each punch was blocked or dodged, clear question in the assassin's eyes as he knew Ezio was aware he was better then being a straight foreword brawler. He waited until Ezio stepped foreword to block a punch and no doubt throw one of his own. Quickly he shifted his weight and made as though he was going to kick straight out at Ezio's stomach. Predictably the assassin only leaned back to avoid the strike. Except it was a feint and Alessandro, instead of kicking in front, hooked his foot behind the back of Ezio's ankle and around in a pendulum like motion.****** The assassin stumbled and threw a punch along Alessandro's ribs which hurt like hell but the guard was able to keep going. Alessandro learned from that and the next punch was blocked and he was able to counter with a punch of his own at the side of Ezio's face. The assassin stumbled and fell on his back.
Alessandro made to follow up, thinking he might actually win this fight after all, but was to eager. Instead he all but stepped into a kick aimed at his thigh and down Alessandro went. The assassin was on him in a second and he was pinned to the ground arm held behind him.
Not quite ready to give up he tried to twist away and the assassin adjusted his grip, pain let him know if he kept trying he'd end with a dislocated shoulder through no fault but his own.
He lay there defeated and frustrated for a moment. He knew he was finished but just didn't want to admit it yet. He had managed his goal of landing a solid blow. Besides, he was the only one here who had even managed to make the assassin think.
"I yield." The guard said defeated.
Immediately the pressure on his arm was released and Ezio helped him to his feet. Alessandro winced as his ribs protested but they didn't feel cracked. He rotated his shoulder in an attempt to work out the mild pain from being restrained.
"Sorry about that, you surprised me and I struck harder then I meant to." The assassin said offering his hand.
"That's alright, and I should be the one apologizing." Alessandro said wincing in sympathy at the bruise already forming on Ezio's face as he took the proffered hand.
"It was a good match and proof that everyone can stand to learn something new." Ezio said lightheartedly. "If you really want to make it up to me you can explain how you managed to trip me like that."
"And I'll buy you a drink." Another, teasing, voice said. It belonged to a man, cloaked and hooded much like the assassins, but his robes were of a rusty orange red colour instead of the usual white and he lacked the normal red sash. "It has been some time since someone last tossed my friend to the ground."
The assassin groaned, "why do I get the feeling that somehow," and Ezio's disgruntled look at the newcomer said that he knew exactly 'how', "this is going to get back to the recruits?"
"Because you know me too well." The fox said amicably.
Alessandro understood that these two were friends, as they probably intended him to know. Realizing they were still waiting for a reply he spoke up. "Certainly, that would be great actually and the move isn't that hard. I didn't actually expect to succeed as much as I did." He said shy once more. It was obvious that the guard looked up to Ezio rather highly, at least in skill.
As the three sat at a table the man in the hood introduced himself as La Volpe. It didn't take a genius after that to realize he owned the place. Alessandro was introduced by Ezio and the young guard quietly explained what he had been trying to do. With the other two pointing out his mistakes during the spar and what he could do to improve.
He had found it was a better night then expected.
•••••••••••
This was just writing practice for writing fights since I've never actually tried to before. Also rather difficult to write a master vs little skills.
Yes, I did research. The style of fighting I practice personally, assumes your using either a knife/dagger/similar edged weapon or fighting sticks of some kind. I don't have a lot of hand to hand combat besides the very basics with a bit of aikidou and taekwondo that I've learned from friends who actually learn it.
*step forward step back technique, taekwondo.
**improperly executed kubishimi straight punch hold technique, aikidou.
***one of many different kinds of ushiro kubishimi techniques more specifically kata otoshi (from kubishimi) technique, aikidou. Video 4:47 ( /3-BDfQ3YKk0)
****proper kubishimi straight punch hold technique, aikidou.
*****tenkan ojigi hiji otoshi technique, aikidou.
******K4 ( /0i15KA2nDRw), kumite karate.