To speak of War

~Tiberious walked to the entrance of the Keep and nodded to the guards outside.~

"Can you please ask Duke Leto if he is available for a discussion with Lieutenant Tiberious Farstrider."

~He wasn't sure he needed to tell the guards who he was, most of the military on the island knew him by sight and reputation.~

(As soon as the guard had notified him,Leto went out to meet Tiberious. When he got thete, he offered an outstretched hand)

"Good day to you Lieutenant. How can I help you?"

~He shook the hand back in return.~

"I was hoping to talk to you about this upcoming war. I have a few thoughts I thought you might be interested in."

~He kept his voice low, in case others didn't know about any upcoming war. It wasn't his place to tell them, or get them gossiping.~

(He nodded approvingly, gesturing for him to follow into the keep)

"I'm very interested to hear what you have on your mind. Come, walk with me."

~He followed the man until they were somewhere a little more private.~

"The Paladins of Aurura are well trained, disciplined and excellent fighters. The Aegis Military, while outnumbering them, are less well prepared for sustained combat. I don't know if you know much about me, but I'm a trainer in the academy in Grorr, responsible for churning out the lumps of flesh the island depends on to safeguard it's shores."

"Now, I appreciate you can't authorise this on your own, and I'll probably be better off speaking to Duke Swyftblade, but I would like to propose a change to the way the academy is run, with the view of tightening up our military forces."

~While he didn't want to admit it, he had been inspired by Artimus's home made forest training area.~

"Perhaps for a more immediate action, I could assemble a group of 100 or 200 soldiers already serving in the Military, and together we can form an elite squadron, ready as a first line of defence for this war?"

"Perhaps the squadron can be crafted so it can work well as smaller units, maybe 25 or 30 man units, with each single person working in perfect harmony with everyone else in unit, complimenting their skills and abilities."

~He remained standing totally still as he spoke, although a little enthusiasm entered his voice~

(He considered what Tiberious was saying, calculating this in his mind as the Lieutenant spoke)

"I like this idea. 100 elite soldiers to do the job of a bataillion, very clever. I could recommend a few candidates from my detatchment here as well. Do you propose that we train them here? It may be a good idea to keep them seperate from the main bulk of the military."

~He nodded his head, glad the Duke was willing to listen and not send him away.~

"It would be good to train somewhere new. I already know of a few potential candidates from the people I've personally trained."

~He paused for a moment~

"I'm still officially training a group - although with what they've been through in the past couple of days I'm ready to declare them trained. I'll have to speak with my superiors at the academy in Grorr, but I can't see their being a problem with me transfering over to here."

~Truth be told, he was fairly sure they would be glad to see the back of him. His training methods weren't always appreciated with some of the others. He tended to go for quality rather than quantity.~

(He nodded again)

"I'm sure I could pull some strings - if that's what you wanted Lieutenant. I'd hate to pull you away from a post you were happy in at the moment."

(He pondered for a second, and then a small smile crept on to his face)

"You're an honorable military man Lieutenant, and I know you respect the chain of command. However, i;m not as nieve to think that I should command your unquestioning respect. Happy circumstance bestowed me this title, and i'm not one to think i'm above my station. I would like the opportunity to prove my honour to you. Would you be interested in a friendly contest? I want you to know you're not led by some poltician who hides behind his desk. True, there is a time for that - but I suspect the time for that will be over soon - perhaps for good."

(He awaited the response)

~He shook his head at the first comment~

"I would be more than happy to leave the charming city of Grorr. Cape Salarain was where I was born, and will always be Home for me."

~And as for the second part...~

"I never for one second thought you would hide behind a desk. But if you wish to challenge me to a fight, then I accept. Me and my squad will be in the city for a few more days. Please let me know what time would be convenient for you."

~The where wasn't important. There was ample room in the main courtyard. Hell, Tiberious had fought Mac several times there in the past.~

(He looked around casually before replying)

"No time like the present."

(He made his way to the courtyard, assuming that Tiberious would follow)

~He folded his hands behind his back and followed the Duke out into the courtyard.~

"Usually when we have a friendly fight, we fight until one of us draws first blood on the other."

~he realised with a small sense of irony that the weapons they would be using would be the exact same two Louis and Artimus used when they fought. Tiberious had managed to get a good look at the Dukes sword during that fight. Not that Artimus was the best example of how to use a sword.~

(The sun had just set over the city, so Leto was free to discard his robes. He was weaing clothing not unlike something a commoner might wear. He drew his sword, waiting for Tiberious to be ready.)

"Don't hold back on account of my rank Tiberious. As per your terms, first blood shall decide the winner. Are you ready?"

~He was born ready. As he saw the Duke remove his robes, Tiberious removed his coat, leaving his shirt on. It was loose enough to let him move around. He drew his broadsword and swished it in a figure of eight in his left hand before stopping it with the blade pointing upwards. It wasn't quite as sparkling as he would have liked for this sort of fight, but it was too late to stop the fight just to polish his sword.~

"No holding back at all, Leto."

~He wasn't going to use the Dukes rank, because right now they were fighting as equals. He spread his feet, eyes watching the man intently. His sword held in a defensive posture.~

(Leto offered a slight nod, bringing his sword to his face aa he did so. Then he advanced purposfully towards Tiberious. After a few moments of trying to feel his opponent out, he suddenly raised his sword and cut downwardy in a sweeping arc)

~He leaned his body towards the man ((the sword is in his left hand, so his whole left side is towards Leto)), raising his sword to block the incoming blade, and continuing the motion to try and push Leto’s sword back towards him, and away.~

(Leto felt Tiberious' resistance to his attack, but used it to his advantage. As Tiberious pushed, Leto slightly gave way, and allowed the momentum to turn him. He used this to spin around to the side of Tiberious, and quickly aimed a horizontal slash across his body.)

~He stumbled slightly as the Duke moved sidestepped him, putting him on the wrong foot for the incoming attack. His sword was too far in the other direction to be of any use, so instead he reached out with his right hand, grabbing for Leto's wrist~

((Chances are he'll miss. He's got a long reach, but not quite that long...))

(Leto could see that Tiberious was going to catch his wrist, so at the last second abandoned his slash, and instead tried to drive his shoulder straight into his body, hoping to knock him to the floor.)

~Leto did in deed make contact with Tiberious, and Tiberious felt his shoulder take the brunt of the impact. he stood his ground though, having regained his footing. Not wanting to go down the pushing route again, he instead flicks his sword down and around, the blade heading towards Leto's knees.~

(Leto only just caught the glimmer of the sword in the corner of his eye as it was closing in. He hastily stepped back from Tiberious, swinging his sword outwards to meet the oncoming blade as he did so. He wasn't surprised at all by the strength of the Lieutenant - he would have been more surprised if he had been able to overpower him easily)

~The clang of metal on metal rang out as the blades connected, and Tiberious stared at his opponent through narrowed eyes. He swung his blade back up in an arc, moving it towards Letos arm before dropping it back down again and actually going for the shins He didn't know if the feint would work, but it was worth a try~

(Leto very quickly took a quick strafe to his right away from the attack. He then took a few quick steps back from Tiberious, cautious as to what his next move would be.)

~He kept his eyes on Leto, a small hint of a smile on his face. He was clearly enjoying this.~

"You fight well." ~He brought his sword around in a defensive position, but didn't move forward from his spot.~

"As do you - though that doesn't surprise me."

(Leto let his sword drag along at his side as he advanced. Suddenly, he aimed an upward swing towards Tiberious - the dust rising quickly along with the strike.)

~He gripped his sword with both hands, although still letting his left hand dominate the actions. He brought it round to block the swing, then did a reverse action of the Duke's movement, only downwards instead of upwards~

((So he's going back to the aiming for the shins))