The Riders of Doru Deloi

by SilverOwlDragon

Fifteen years after the war, the Riders are flourishing in their new home. One of the eggs from last year did not hatch, so this year there are three new Riders, two humans and a dwarf. Told mostly from the point of view of Vianna, but the others will come in every once in a while. OC pairing, NasuadaxMurtagh. Mainly an interim project while I work on others.

6. Chapter 6

Chapter Six: "Fun" with Swords

The next day, Vianna and Kata walked to one of the city's smaller sparring arenas for their first lesson in swordplay.

Now that she was living as a Rider, Kata had taken to wearing the long, soft tunics favored by Elves, though hers were tighter and lower-cut than the ones Vianna owned. Her black hair was piled atop her head, as perfectly as it could have been when she was still a noblewoman living in the Empire. On the way to the arena, she talked endlessly, telling Vianna about her own training.

"They keep making us move rocks with our feet and carry sand from one pile to another and it's just all so useless. I thought the Riders would do more worthwhile things!"

Vianna smiled. She remembered the days when she was first learning to use magic. She had been put to many meaningless tasks, too, but eventually she had found her power inside of herself. Kata would, too.

"And we have to memorize these lists of names, and it's just so boring. I want to do something fun."

"Well, maybe the fun parts are coming," Vianna suggested. "Maybe if you're lucky they'll start today."

Kata sighed, but she stopped complaining for the moment.

Whether fun was coming or not, hitting a partner with a stick was not part of it. Terren, the surly dwarf, had wielded a sword before, and so he sparred with more competent partners farther down the field. Kata and Vianna were instructed by a large, grey-skinned Urgal who was a swordsman (swordsUrgal?), not a Rider. He had no patience for Vianna's inability to hold her wooden "sword" correctly and even less for Kata's fear of her opponent.

The morning's first change came when their Urgal instructor was called away to help with something else and an older Rider came to help the two girls instead.

He was definitely human, with the slightly pointed ears of a non-elven Rider. This man was… dashing. Handsome. Rugged. Vianna hated men like that. True to form, it seemed Kata loved them, and they loved her, or at least this one did. His name was Josen, and he taught them less than nothing that morning. Vianna was glad when their Urgal instructor returned: even an impatient instructor was better than an unhelpful and rugged one.

---

Please Review!