(no subject)

[wouldratherbecrafting]

"Again!"

Xieathe grunted in frustration, struggling up from her knees. Sweat stung her eyes and blurred her vision, but she could still make out the shape of Pepebehi a few yalms away, his crimson clothes standing in stark contrast to the rocky earth around them. His usual easy expression was gone now, replaced instead with the stern concentration of a teacher.

Xie both hated and appreciated it in equal measure.

The rapier still felt heavy and unwieldy in her hands, but she raised it regardless, tip pointed toward the striking dummy next to Pepebehi. She took a breath, steadied herself, then let loose a flurry of white and black magic, feeling the energy of each building inside the blade until it all but hummed, electric and alive, a conduit for the arcane. When it felt like it would burst, she lunged forward, steel cutting mercilessly into stone and wood, before she jumped back, landing unsteadily on her feet and breathing hard.

Pepebehi watched her expressionlessly. "You cannot keep holding back, my lady," he said. "Were this a real enemy, I fear you would have been cut down mid-swing. You must embrace the rapier, make it your own!"