Archery Practice

Kirin wandered out onto the huge Battle Arena. The sun was shinning though it was still quite cold. Kirin wore the traditional outfit of her ancestors, a sort of robe that was actually a shirt with fluffy red pants. She had her bow and some arrows with her and set them on the ground. She dragged a couple of straw training dummies she had found on her way up, and set them on the far end of the plateau. Thankfully, the arena was void of snow and it didn't take much effort at all to set them up. Kirin moved back to her bow and slung her quiver of arrows across her back. She faced the first dummy and drew an arrow, rising both the arrow and the bow into the air. As she brought them both down to eye level, she drew on the string. The would creaked under the stress of being bent so far and the cold. She held fast for a few moments, taking aim at the dummy, and let loose the arrow. She draw arm slinging straight back, not falling or rising from its current height. Kirin exhaled before drawing a new arrow.

Gage walked up the battle arena platform, sporting a simple blue jacket and some jean pants. It may have been sunny, but the air was quite chilly. This was evident by the small puffs of air that shown every time he exhaled. Today seemed like the perfect time to train at the battle arena. His usual training location was the forest, but a change of scenery felt nice. He hadn't been to the battle arena since he came to Beata a few months ago; it surely peaked his interest.

Upon walking up to the wooden platform, he noticed a girl was already there. She appeared to be training with a bow. Observing from where he stood, he watched as she took form and shot one arrow. She surely knew what she was doing. This wasn't her first time shooting a bow at a target. "That was a nice shot. He called out to the girl as he approached her. "How long have you been training with a bow?"

Kirin jumped at the sound of the boy's voice. She wasn't expecting there to be anyone around since she had managed to set up without seeing anyone else. She turned her head to look at who it was and found a handsome blonde boy walking towards her. She let her arm down, the bow resting comfortably by her side and put the arrow back in her quiver. "Oh, I didn't think there would be anyone here. My name is Kirin. I've been trained with a bow, among other weapons, since I was strong enough to hold them."

Among other weapons? Gage wondered what else she was able to use. He had been trained to use certain weapons as well, but he never liked using them. "Sorry if I interrupted you. My name is Gage. It's a pleasure to meet you." he greeted. He had stopped a few feet before Kirin and turned toward the dummy. Raising his arm and extending it in the direction of the wooden dummy; his index finger pointing straight at it. "When I was little, I had to learn how to shoot a bow as well. I never much cared for it though. The only reason why I really practiced it was because it helped me become more accurate with my ability."

After the summer was done talking, thin blue streams oh energy flowed to the tip of his index finger. Forming a small circular orb that seemed to float near the tip. Without any warning or hesitation, a thin blue beam of energy shot out and headed directly for the dummy. It pierced it dead center of its chest, causing a small hole that went through the dummy. The boy smiled before relaxing his arm and then turning back to Kirin.  "How about we train together?"

Kirin watched as the blonde boy shot a blue beam of energy from his finger. "That's pretty impressive." she smiled at him and turned toward the other dummy. She held the bow up in the air, now arrow in hand, and slowly brought it down. As she did, an arrow materialized on the string and rested on the rest. She let the arrow flew and watched as it veered off course and slammed into the other dummy. She was still having trouble with her power, but she was improving; slowly. "I'd be delighted to have your company." she gave Gage a sheepish smile.

Gage watched as she turned her focus to another dummy. Bow pointing directly up into the air with no arrow on it. What was she up to? As the red headed girl brought it down, an arrow appeared on the bow. Did she just materialize an arrow out of thin air? Once it was shot off, he followed the arrow with his eyes as it hit the dummy. "Well that was unique.." He had said in a low voice. After Kirin agreed that they could train, he let out a small grin. "How good can you hit a moving target?" The blonde questioned. Facing his right palm up and gather natural energy. Once a decent amount was gathered, it began to form itself into a light blue dove. The energy construct began flapping it's wings and cocking his head.

Kirin smiled at the challenge presented before her. She drew an arrow and readied to fire it. She nodded at him, determination burning in her eyes. She watched the blue bird flit around the arena, patiently waiting for just the right moment. She drew on the bow, wood creaking, she followed the bird with a lead on it. She waited until it passed just in front of the dummy. The string ached as it sent the arrow on a death path, but none followed. The bird had been pinned to the dummy by it's wings. Kirin turned back to Gage, "A neat trick, but how well do you fair against such a target?" Kirin slung the bow across her chest and cupped her hands in front of her. She concentrated, careful not to make a mistake this time. A gray ooze filled her hands quickly and it began to bubble. The ooze rose in her hands just a few inches before much of it fell away, revealing a small golden finch. The bird took in it's surroundings with quick, sharp movements before flitting off into the air.

The bird flew normally in the arena, Gage watched as Kirin readied herself. He had the construct fly in a simple path, wondering when she would shoot at it. As it began to fly near the dummy, the arrow shot out and struck the bird dead in the wings. The force causing the bird to be pinned down on the dummy. "Wow, you're pretty accurate." he said impressively. He looked over to the pinned blue construct and watched as it wilted away, eventually there was no trace of it ever being there.

Now it was his turn. He watched eagerly as Kirin made a bird from an oozing substance. Similar to the way he constructed the dove, but it was a bit different. His may have looked and acted like a dove, but it was nothing more then a construct made of energy. Kirin's was a real bird that was created. He didn't want to kill the bird, so he watched it fly aimlessly around the arena, thinking of how to strike it without killing it. When he made up his mind, he lifted his arm up once again. Gathered the energy and shot a small ball the size of a dime in the direction of the finch. The tiny ball slammed straight into it's body, knocking it off its course and slowly falling down toward the earth. Making a small thud as it fell onto the arena floor. It shouldn't be dead...

"I take it your power is creation? Is there a limit to creating something?" the boy asked curiously.

Kirin smiled as the finch crashed down to earth. She had intentionally created the smallest bird she could think of and was pleased to see that Gage's aim was spot on. "Nice shot." The bird then fell apart, becoming a gray ooze once more before dissolving away completely.

Kirin looked down at her hands at Gage's question. "I don't know if there's a limit to what I can create, just that I have to focus on it more when it's more complex." she looked back up to him. "What about your power? Seems pretty useful. What else can you do?"

"Thanks." He gave a nod to her compliment. His gaze fell back on her as she began to talk about her gift. "I see, the same sort of principle applies to my gift as well...sort of. Creating constructs isn't a practical thing to do. It requires major concentration and energy. The only thing I can create is that bird and a shield." he held out his hand in front if him and gathered energy to form an oval shaped shield. "It isn't the most durable, but it gets the job done." Flicking his hand down, causing the shield to disappear instantly. "I can also concentrate the energy and have it explode." Gage pick up his arm, palm raised up, and began gathering once again. A light blue sphere-like ball of energy formed on his hand. It was no bigger than a bowling. Rotating his hand around the sphere until his hand was just above it. Gage grabbed it and flung it across the arena toward a distant dummy. As soon as it made contact with it, a small explosion occurred and bits and chunks of the wooden dummy scattered everywhere. The dummy was no more. The blast wasn't too powerful to where it would affect them. Turning back to the girl before speaking, "That's mainly the gist of it. There are other techniques I can do, but those are a bit more advance." he said with a light smile on.

Kirin watched on with great curiosity. She then furrowed her brow as he finished explaining. "That doesn't sound as useful as it looks. My gift is far more versatile." She held out a hand and created a basic sphere. "Simple shapes are easy to make, though I can make it super dense or incredibly light." She dropped the ball, increasing its density as it fell. Upon impacting the ground, it created a small crater. Quickly after, the light breeze picked it up and carried it away. "I believe that I can create super complex things as well, though it will require more practice. For now, I can create only complex items I have created before, time and time again." Kirin held out her hand and formed a katana with a flame etched into the blade. It looked normal, but you'd be hard pressed to break it.

Not as useful? Gage had to hold back any urge to lash at her for calling his gift useless. His smile slowly faded away into a blank expression. He took a deep breathe and slowly exhaled before speaking, "It may not be as versatile as yours, but it can be more effective." He wanted no part in starting trouble with the girl and decided to just shrug it off. He watched in silence as she further demonstrated her creation abilities. It was rather unique how Kirin was able to change the density of the sphere from dense to light. Afterwards, she created a katana. A katana... Well now she was just showing off and he held every urge to show off as well. "Well isn't that something. I must say, that's quite an ability you got there. I only have one question. How fast are you able to create these things? Seems like it would take a good amount of time."

Kirin nodded in agreement. "For new things, yes. But once I have figured it out, it comes quite easily. This is my favorite sword." she brought it close to her and looked upon it fondly. "I can create this particular sword quite easily and quickly because I have done so quick often." she looked back at him. "Do you feel better, now that you know the weak points in my gift?"

He listened as she answered the question. Her rate of creation is similar to his rate of creating energy constructs. She is able to create the sword at a quick rate because of how often she creates it. The same thing applies for how he is able to create the dove or the shield. His brow raised as she had asked if he felt better. "Do I feel better?" He said blandly. "No.... Just more informed." He finished. Gage looked at one of the dummies that was still intact. "Every gift has it's weaknesses and strengths. From what you have told me, you can almost create anything. I am very limited in what I can create. So would that be considered a weak point? Not really. It just means I have to either improve or find a way to compensate for it. In short, there is no need for me to feel better about your weakness. we are both here for the same thing. Might as well find ways to help each other... You know what I mean?" He finished. He looked back toward Kirin and gave her a reassuring smile.

Kirin smiled, "There is no such thing as weakness, only shortcomings that we invent ourselves. What matters is how we use our gifts." She ran her hand along the edge of the blade, dulling it. She took an offensive stance, bringing the sword over and pointing it at Gage, "Shall we begin real training then?"