*** Conor, Jinstain. ***
Colonel Eli proved to be a vicious task master. The second he learned that Kerrigan was able to walk on her own, he ordered that she come to the roof to be tested. "If the dragons cannot aid you, you must be able to defend them at all costs. It is our sacred duty." He had said.
Eli had paired Conor and Kerrigan up, along with Parker and Reilynn, Gabriella and Evelynn. As they began their initial warm ups, it became evident that while Kerrigan had training and skill, she was still suffering from her injury. She would guard her leg and cringe if her shoulder was struck.
"Does it hurt?" Conor asked.
"Not really. It's more the fear of pain now. Let's go again."
Conor enjoyed working with her. It was certainly easier than his bouts with Parker. The ease of training didn't last long however. Soon, Eli swapped him to Reilynn, who looked like she was ready to pound him into the roof.
"Begin!"
Reilynn darted forward and the next thing he knew, he was looking up at a cloudless sky, with the edges of his vision going dark as Reilynn's forearm dug into his throat.
"Ouch," he gasped.
"Again! This time, Brantley, actually defend yourself! If you are afraid of her because she is a woman, you have lost already." Eli yelled.
Conor grimaced but squared off again with Reilynn. He thought back over the training he had done with Parker and what Celia had shown him of Eli's training of his mother. While Celia's power may not be bolstering his strength and speed now, she had given him the skills. Instinct and memory took over and when Eli called "Begin!" Conor found his focus sharpen, and he centered his weight.
Reilynn saw his motion and a weary look came over her as she lunged for him. Conor saw her motion as if time has slowed to a fraction of its normal speed. Reilynn's punch drifted slowly toward his face and he glided effortlessly to the side, allowing it to pass a mere inch from his face. His body dropped low as Reilynn's body carried forward, now off balance with the missed punch, and he thrust both palms forward and up into her midsection, lifting her over his head with her own momentum making the motion fluid.
Time resumed and Reilynn slammed hard into the roof, the breath being knocked out of her. She clutched at her chest, gasping for air. Conor stared, shocked at what he had done. Kerrigan rushed over to Reilynn, while Parker and Eli watched Conor with calculating eyes.
Kerrigan turned burning eyes on Conor, "What the hell was that?"
It was Eli who answered her, "That was Frul-Sul-Tafiir. The time thief. Priestess Rania was especially skilled at that move. It uses your opponents momentum and energy against them. Even you, Kerrigan, could throw much larger men such as myself, or Parker, with that move. I believe Reilynn also learned a valuable lesson too."
Reilynn clutched at her ribs with a grimace but nodded to Eli. "Ya, not to underestimate a Kendov."
"Or anyone." Eli corrected. "You never know what skills an opponent may be hiding. Now, Conor, lets see if you can show Kerrigan that one."
Conor wasn't sure if he could teach the technique, being it was Celia who had shown him through dream and mind meld. He hesitated and tried to reach out to Celia.
'I know you are weak, but can you help me connect with Kerrigan?'
A gentle hum of pleasure greeted him and a small trickle of images flowed through his mind. He opened his eyes and looked to Kerrigan, "May I?"
She stood, a be weary, but nodded. Conor came and stood behind her and wrapped his arms around her, placing her arms above his. "Follow my motion." He whispered.
He tried to ignore the red blush creeping up her neck as he guided her through a series of flowing forms. "Feel the flow of time around you and slide between the moments." He slid himself into one of those slivers of time, and felt the world slow around him. He danced in front of Kerrigan and took up a fighting stance as time resumed.
She gasped as her focus jarred her, "How? You were just behind me!"
"Pay attention!" Snapped Eli.
"If you can track him, then you get over here!" Kerrigan snapped.
Conor grinned, knowing she likely shouldn't have done that with Colonel Eli. He was not one to take such a challenge lightly. However, his grin faded when he realized Colonel Eli was happy to show Kerrigan her mistake, by facing off with HIM!
Eli grinned as he looked at Conor, "Your mother was a master at this. Let's see how you do against me."
Conor let his center of gravity drop low, as Eli advanced on him, and then shifted forward. He slid between moments of time as a drop of water on a wave. To his shock, Eli slid into a similar frame of time, and matched his speed and attack power. They fought as violently as any training session Eli had ever put him through, while those around them moved at a snails pace.
Eli's fist collided with a metal wall of an air duct, denting the metal before they spun to the other side of the roof, where Conor tried to kick Eli's side but missed, instead connecting with a small chair Parker had been sitting in moments before.
Eli finally was able to take advantage of Conor's missed kick and slam a fist into his chest, knocking him back into normal time as Conor slammed against the stairwell door.
"Good." Eli called as time clicked back into normal speed. "You are fast. You still have much to learn but if you can learn to defend at that speed, you will do well."
"WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK!" said Parker.
Conor turned to see several sets of slack jawed onlookers staring at him. "What?"
Kerrigan gestured to the dented vent and then to a chair almost thirty feet away from it and then to the door Conor was leaning against. "I saw that get dented, a chair over there flew off the roof and then you slammed into the door."
"So?"
Parker looked at him sternly, "It took seconds mate, bloody seconds. I blinked and things flew."
Eli nodded, "That is the power and danger of Frul-Sul-Tafiir. It is not a state one can maintain, but a mindset and way of attacking at such speed that the mortal eye cannot track."
"So, what, someone skilled in this could be standing right here?" Reilynn asked, horror crossing her face as she darted her glance all around.
"No, that is not how it works. It is not a separate reality or plane or anything like that. it is simply flowing with time in the most efficient ways possible. True someone could run at you using this method. However, if they were to stand still you would see them. It is not a method for sneaking up on someone."
"How many people are likely to know this method?" Reilynn asked.
"Honestly? I believe of those of us here, the Kendov will master it, Reilynn is likely to be capable, given practice, and Parker may be able to get some benefit out of it due to your prior training. However, without the direct training of the Dovari, it is next to impossible to learn or even know of it. It was Abraxas who imparted the knowledge, so without his guidance, it is unlikely others can master it."
"Well, that is a relief." Evelynn said.
"Now, back to training. Conor, you are with Kerrigan again."
Conor faced Kerrigan again, and held his palms out again. "follow my motion?"
She looked at him speculatively and his heart sped up as he looked deep into her green eyes. As she placed her hands gently atop his, he felt a slight shock as Celia helped him share memory. He then flowed into motion as together they began a series of fluid forms, the motion a dance of deadly precision.
Kerrigan was able to match him now and reacted without thought, deflecting his punch and quickly flowing into the next attack. She swept a leg at him and he pivoted up on his right foot, their bodies nearly forming to each other as they continued to flow around each other. Time slowed around them as Conor gazed down into those mesmerizing eyes. He swept them back upright and tried his own leg sweep. Kerrigan missed the dodge this time and as she fell, his arm shot out and he wrapped her in his arm mere inches from the ground.
Her breath caught and she looked up at him as time resumed. She cleared her throat, "Hem, you can let me go now."
"Oh, right." He rather gracelessly let her drop the last few inches to the rooftop.
"Ouch. Perhaps not that suddenly." She said, leveling a glare at him as she rubbed the back of her head and sat up.
Parker and Eli began to clap. "Well done. perhaps we will take dance lessons from you two before the Gala!" Parker jested.
"Ah, shut up." Conor said with a half-hearted smirk.
"Well, rest up. Tomorrow, I bring out the training daggers." Eli called.