in his abilities. But he hadn’t fought Jonas yet, either. Nor had he snuck out at night to work on strengthening exercises and to go through the forms until they were second nature. But Jonas had, and this relentless practice for over a year had honed his muscles, his mind, and his sword work. Torgan believed he couldn’t be beaten, but Jonas believed otherwise.
Slowly Jonas began to pick up the pace, moving his feet and his wooden sword faster and faster. Torgan matched his speed, but Jonas recognized the slow rise of fear on his face. They were both sweating profusely and Torgan was beginning to tire. Jonas’s powerful lungs and muscles, strengthened from constant training, kept him moving lightly on his feet.
Jonas remembered Allindrian’s words about fighting a warrior who was stronger and in better shape… swordsmen must first master their strength, not their blade. A strong back, stomach, and arms will mean faster and more powerful strokes and those muscles are also needed to maintain balance. Your lungs must be strong in order to fight long drawn out battles
Her advice rang in his head as he picked up the pace. Torgan lunged at him, slightly off balance, and Jonas thought he had him. He smacked his blade down hard but simultaneously he realized it was just a clever feint. Torgan, spinning his blade under Jonas’s strike, went to hit his exposed left thigh.
Torgan would have had him if Jonas hadn’t reacted on instinct alone. He remembered the move Allindrian had taught him, flipping his wooden sword to his left hand and pivoting his left leg away from Torgan’s strike. Jonas was ambidextrous and he could use his left arm as well as his right.
Torgan’s blade found only air as Jonas’s wooden sword struck him hard in the side. Torgan stumbled forward, but regained his balance quickly, glaring at Jonas with hatred. He launched a ferocious attack, swinging his wooden sword with all his strength. He was angry, which gave Jonas the advantage. He was able to calmly apply basic defensive moves to counter the ferocious attacks.
Jonas waited for Torgan to tire before striking offensively again. Torgan lunged with his sword right at Jonas’s abdomen. He was tired and his strike was clumsy. Jonas sidestepped the blade, using his left leg to trip Torgan, who was already off balance, while simultaneously bringing his wooden sword down hard on Torgan’s back. Torgan, stumbling, hit the ground with a thud.
Torgan slowly stood, glaring at Jonas with insurmountable fury. Jonas barely had time to react as Torgan, dropping his sword, tackled him. Torgan’s body barreled into his stomach, knocking the wind out of him as they both landed on the ground. Jonas got his hands up to his face to protect it from the strikes that he was sure were coming.
Torgan’s fists beat down on him repeatedly, but they could not break through Jonas’s defenses. Jonas had learned from Master Morgan that if you get into a hand to hand fight, and end up on the ground, that you want to reduce the distance between you and your opponent. It will minimize the damage that they can do to you.
So Jonas, in a brief lull between Torgan’s strikes at his face, quickly reached up, wrapped his arms around Torgan’s neck, and pulled his head down hard towards him, forcing their bodies together and making Torgan’s fists useless. Then Jonas pivoted, arched his neck, and used the ground as leverage to twist their bodies so he was now on top of Torgan. Immediately Jonas let go, leaping away from the enraged boy. By this time a crowd of apprentices had formed and Master Morgan had just made his way toward them.
“You dirty peasant! You don’t even deserve to have the chance to fight me!” Torgan screamed, charging a second time.
Master Morgan moved in a blur, striking Torgan hard in the shins with his wooden practice sword. Torgan, bellowing in pain, tripped face first onto the grass, holding his bruised and bleeding shins.
“What are you doing, Torgan?” Morgan raged. “You are acting beneath your station. You are all apprentices to be knights of Finarth!” Morgan raised his voice as he addressed the group. “Someday you may be fighting next to each other, your swords protecting one another! How can you trust each other if you behave like this?”
“I’m sorry, Master Morgan, I did not mean for it to happen. It will not happen again,” replied Jonas calmly.