'Booom!'

...

'Booom!'

Konahomaru let the smoke clear, and surveyed the damage. He was practicing his Summon Lightning skill. He had not had to use it in a while, and did not want it to wane. Finally, he had made a hit. How rewarding!

Konahomaru was on the exact opposite end of the arena that he had set up the targets. There were three dummies there, each one with mock swords made of wood, and grey peices of cloth to represent armor. One's head was missing, another was in half and on fire, and the thirds arm was ripped off, the stuffing still falling out. The one with the ripped arm was not his doing, nor was the one with the missing head.

Perhaps Veronna or Ocar had gotten bored. Odd to leave the middle one unscathed. Nevertheless, a fire started inside the temple would not be good. Kona ran across the arena, crossing it quickly. He got up to the dummy, it was now almost entirely engulfed in flame. Kona paused a second to watch the fire, and then removed his coat and smothered it.

Hymwen was riding her horse towards the temple of swords, like Konahomaru had
said. when she got there, she saw smoke. she kicked the sides of her horse to go faster and then she started to go in a canter.

The wind on her face felt nice, it has been awhile since she had last went riding.
when she was at the temple she got off her horse and the horse troted off and startd to eat grass. Hymwen started to head towards where Konahomaru was.

"Trying to set the hole place on fire are you." she said with a little laugh. She smiled
and walked over to Konahomaru. "so what are we going to do today." she still smiled.

She looked at the mess he, She saw his coat on the fire and said "You know that coat
did look good but now its not going to look so good, now that you put it on a fire." she looked at Konahomaru with a smile.

Kona smiled when Hymwen spoke. Something about that young elf made him feel good about himself. And her beauty. Nevertheless, they were here to train, not to observe each other. Konahomaru shook the feeling, and looked at Hymwen. "Welcome to the Temple of Swords." he said, then continued "As curious as it was that you found your way to the arena without help, I am glad you oculd make it. Did you bring your longsword then?" he asked.

Kona lifted his coat off of the burnt dummy. He would have to make a new one, it was ir-repairable. Nevertheless, they were not expensive, and easy to make. His coat however only had some ashes on it, and Kona dusted them off. "Leather is flame resistant." he said to himself.

"Yes I got it." She said. She was Happy that she found this place easly, it was near taras, that to made her happy, since she was staying at taras.

"So this is the temple, I think its a nice place." She smiled. It was a nice place she thought. She looked around and walked to the middle and looked at the place taking in evreything. "So do you came here often." She said still smiling.

"I suppose the goddess is Darkblade." Hymwen said to herself. Then look back at Konahomaru and watched him and waiting for a answer.

"Well, yes it is near Taras. Curious was the part that you found your way to the arena so quickly. No matter!" said Kona, now soundng cheery. Something he had never done before. It felt good, being cheery. But it made him feel stupid as well, and he started to try and supress the feeling.

"The temple is very nice indeed. I only come here to practice, or to meet with my master. Any other time, im somewhere in Taras. I dont exactly have a home. But it is better that way, considering im attracting all sorts of evil lately." Kona said. Referring to his master and god as just 'Darkblade' made him somewhat annoyed however. He viewed it as ignorance and disrespect for Veronna's power. Many people were ignorant of it, and it made him upset. Although, it was partially her fault.

Hymwen noticed that there was a bit cheeryness in his voice and she started to laugh a bit, she had never heard cheeryness in his voice. "Your always stiff you know that right." She said smiling. "So, what are we going to do today so I don't have to stand here for hours doing nothing." She said again still smiling.

She was looking at Konahomaru for him to answer, and, as she thought that she sould be looking for her brother Havax but she shaked the thoght away for awhile, she was still looking at Konahomaru as she got a little bored of standing around she started to play with her hair by useing one of her hands to go in it and out.

(Sorry its not longer but I have to go.)

Konahomaru nodded in agreement at Hymwens comment. Of course he was a stiff, he had only regained somewhere around 3 to 4 of the infinite amount of human emotions. He was getting ready to add 5 to that list, unbeknownst to himself.

"Yes, I lack any form of divertation. I see that your very bored, let us do some sparring shall we?" said Kona, taking note of how horridly off gaurd she was. At the same time, it was trangely entreating. Dont attack me, what harm could I do?
Well, with that anger problem f hers, quite a bit. She almost hurt herself, nearly cutting her own blade in half against Konahomarus own.

Still, Kona went on to provoke her. With his trademark inhuman speed, Kona flicked his hand up and a burst of light shot out of his hands and straight to Hymwens eyes. "You were off gaurd! What if I were sent to kill you, and rather than a simple burst of light, I had shot a magic missile at you?" asked Kona, drawing his Katana.

Hymwen fell down as Konahomaru shot a spell at her eyes, and there was a bit of anger in her eyes. She standed up as fast as she could and drew her long sword and standed and waited for the next attack and this time she will be on gaurd. She glared at Konahomaru as she steped a bit closer and waited and waited.

She taked another step closer and was pretty close now. "I can not protect myself from magic, not yet." She said and smiled a bit and steped closer. "So... you aren't going to keep useing magic right." She said watching Konahomaru's every move.

"Liar" said Kona, this time the light burst came from his eyes rather than his hands. It also impaired his vision, but he could fight with his hearing and touch as well. The light burst again went straight for Hymwens eyes.

"Anyone can dodge most spells without any spells themselves. Its a matter of concentration." said Konahomaru, in a matter-of-fact tone. Hymwen was a rough student, and would require this kind of teaching until she started to become much less stubborn.

Kona lifted his katana, she was now in striking range and did not want his guts spilled out on this particular day. He was oddly enough having fun blinding Hymwen multiple times, like a child teasing a sibling.

Hymwen fell again and she got up with grace again and then her smile was gone as she steped closer. Her sword she was holding was in a thight grip her hand turned a bit red as she steped closer and then said "Maybe they can I just have not been able to block spells yet but I will learn with your help or without." She said in anger and then lefted her long sword and charged at him in anger.

She brought her sword down at his head then at his left side then his right side the at his gut. She did this all in anger, she let her anger slowly to go into her body and hopefully she will win this battle and she will try to dodge the next spell that will come next.

Her anger was strong and powerful and she will control it if she can.

Kona raised his katana and block the downward slash, then brought it to his side, and the other, each time succesfully blocking her attacks. "Young one, you are acting unweildy! Allow me to help you." he said, gesturing his hand to use the sword and demonstrate its proper use.

"If you are going to use a weapon, you must use it properly or it will do you no better than a peice of long bread. The longsword is a lunging weapon, not a slashing one." Hopefully she learned this quick. Sparring with a person who did not know proper usage of a weapon could be dangerous for the party weilding the weapon.

"Fine." Was all Hymwen said and she lunged at Konahomaru then steped back. "And juts 'cause am younger doesn't mean you can call me Young one." And she lunged again and hopefully he will get hit but he seems better then her an she knows it to and she knows she is not weak and she will try her best to win this litle battle, and if she can battle a dragon she can battle a humen.

I will get better and find my brother and then go home to my family and then tell them about this land and tell the my storys, and it would be nice to see my family again, Hymwen thought in her head as she lunged at Konahomaru.

Konahomaru smiled when she started to use it properly. "There you go!" he said, knocking the sword astray from its path with his katana when she lunged at him. "Dont owrry about trying to hit me yet. You are a ways off from that, right now, you should worry about your form."

Kona dodged the next lunge by sidestepping. "You must train your body to be eager to move forward. Let the sword become your arm, and lunge at me like your lunging for a priceless item you have just dropped."

"Alright." Said Hymwen and she lunged and she moved her body forward as she lungedthen steped back a bit then lunged and moved her body again and she did like Konahomaru said. She never taked her eyes off Konahomaru as she did all this since she knows that a person in combat that you sould always watch the person your up against no matter what, her father always said that and still says it since Hymwen has been takeing lessons from him for about a year and since on in till the dragon attack.

Konahomaru thinks am weak, Hymwen thought angerly as she lunged at Konahomaru. But I will someday show him that I will be good at fighting and at tracking better, since that is how I find him and it was easy, Hymwen thought to herself.

Kona watched patiently and dodged and blocked her. She was improivng, but it would take time. As it takes time for all things, as skill never comes immediatyl but with experience. Kona didnt become the Servant of Blades by sitting around and doing nothing, thats for sure.

"You are making steady progress. Lets practice this basic for a little while, and then I will show you the proper way to block, or 'parry' with your longsword." said Kona, satisfied with her progress so far.

He still sensed that anger in her, thought, and it was something to consider. She was trying to prove to herself something, but he could not put his finger on it. Perhaps she was still upset over not being able to dodge a simple beam of light?

Hymwen lunged again and a bit of sweat was on her face as she lunged. She had learned a lot from her father but then after the dragon attack she made her self to forget it but now that she has been learning from Konahomaru she's started to remember and she is good at it since she learned it once and forget it but now she will learn it again.

Father will be proud, Hymwen thought and she lunged again. And my sister will be too and when I go back to show them what I learn I could teach others and then we can protect the town, Hymwen still thought.

Her anger left and she lunged again and she leted her arm guide her as she did so and her body moved forwerd, she leted her arm and hand to guide the weapon she was holding.

Kona felt her anger leave her. Now she understood, her lunges were accurate and forcefull. Hymwen's stance was still a little unweildy, an heir of proudness about it. A modest fighter always succeeded over the proud one, when it came down to it. Kona knew she would realize this in time, with experience however, and chose not to say anything.

"Very well! You have done good. Now, you must practice defending yourself with your sword, as you will not always be on the attack." said Kona, warding off another lunge from her. "You may rest for a brief moment if you wish, or we can get right to it."

"I will like to learn blocking." Hymwen said. "I will not rest." She said not looking at Konahomaru. She remembers what her father told her and it was 'Never rest till you fall dead or till the enemy is dead' She remember these words everyday, if she rests then that means weakness were she comes from. How would you fight a war and have to rest. But you can't rest in a battle.

"Are we going to start." She said looking like she needed rest but she still would not say so. She got in a stance ready to practice defending.

Without any words, Kona got right up to Hymwens face with a vertical slash. He far outsped her, and stopped at her stomach and held the sword firmly against it, but not so firm that it would begin to cut her. Just enough that it would make her realize the seriousness of the situation.

"Tell me how you could have prevented that from happening." said Kona, now letting Hymwen figure out her own mistakes, rather than him telling her. It would make her realize with greater clarity what she needed to do if she said it herself.

Hymwen was a bit taken aback when Konahomaru was away from her and then right in front of her. Hymwen took a step back not lowering her blade but kept it in front of her incase Konahomaru decided to attack her again. "If I moved faster I could of prevented it and I was off my gaurd because I was a bit going in thought." She said looking at Konahomaru.

She stood there waiting to see what Konahomaru was doing. She kept her eyes on him thinking that he was going to attack like he does alot, well thats what Hymwen thought. Her eyes stayed on him and she didn't move but she stood there not making any noise just waiting to see what Konahomaru was going to do.

((Sorry been a bit))

"You were close, Hymwen. Meditate on it, and think about what you have learned today. It has come to my attention that there is a matter elsewhere in the temple that I must attend to. I bid you a fair afternoon, if you need aid leaving the temple call out my name and I will be around shortly." said Kona, and then he sheathed his katana and started to walk away.

This young elf was learning quickly, but to Konahomaru not quickly enough. That, and, there indeed was something important to attend to in the temple. He hadnt slept in 3 days, and it was about time for him to gain some rest before he started to draw on energy that he reserved specifically for fights and life or death situations. Kona had no doubts that Hymwen would be able to find her way out, as well, and slightly hoped that she would not lose her way and disturb his much needed slumber.