Pegasus Tradition
"Mommy, can I? Pleeease?!"
"Are you sure you’re ready? Wing-blade training is a very serious matter."
"Yes ma'am, I'm ready!" Cloud Kicker stood sharply at attention, her wings folded tightly against her body, eyes gleaming with excitement at the prospect of training with her mother.
Nimbus acknowledged her daughter's enthusiasm and replied, "Well, you've certainly got the right spirit. I think it's quite time you began learning. We'll start with a lesson on how to properly secure your wing-blades. Now, I think I have just the set for you." She walked up to a rack hanging on the wall of the family armory and removed a small set of blunted wing-blades. It was easy to see that they had lived through their fair share of use, but were well-maintained nonetheless. "These should do nicely. This was my first set of training blades, I earned my cutie mark with these. They served me well for many years and now I would like for you to have them. Would you like that?"
Cloud Kicker gasped and said, "R-really, you wanna give them to me? Oh, thank you, Mommy! I promise I'll take extra-good care of them, and... and I'll practice hard every day!" The little filly jumped up and down, buzzing her wings excitedly.
Her mother felt a bit of pride welling up, seeing her daughter's excitement and willingness to learn. She was growing up so fast. For the briefest of moments, the mare flashed a tiny, almost indiscernible smile and said, "Well, I'm happy to see that you're so excited, but it will be very difficult to put your wing-blades on while you're trying to fly! Now, let me show you how the straps work." She held the blades up for her daughter to see, and used a wingtip to point at the straps dangling from their frame. "These hold the frame to the ridges of your wings. It straps here..." She pointed to the base of her wing where her own blade was strapped on. "Here..." she pointed to the straps below and above her second wing-joint, "And there are a few smaller straps that go around the thinner part of your wing, too." She motioned to the smaller straps at the end of the frame, then showed her the straps on her own wing. "The frames are jointed so you can still move your wings and fly while wearing them." She moved the joints around to demonstrate the flexibility. "The joints are a very important part of the blade. They limit your wing's range of motion, which helps keep you from getting injured."
Cloud kicker cocked her head with a confused look. "What do you mean?"
Nimbus wrinkled her brow in a moment of thought and replied, "It keeps your wing from bending too much, see?" She flexed her own wings, then pointed at the jointed portion of the smaller set. "They will only let your wings move so far. It helps avoid over-extension when they get tired... But, you'll see soon enough. Now, let’s get these strapped on and we can go outside."
Cloud Kicker extended her wings one at a time and let her mother strap the frames along the crest of her wing-bone. She gave a few experimental flaps and said, "Wow, they're kinda heavy." She pulled her wings tightly against her body and extended them, checking the range of motion and getting used to the extra weight of the padded metal frames. "They feel a little weird, too."
"You'll get used to it; after a few days you won't even notice. Okay, you're all set. Ready to head outside and start your first day of training?"
"Yeah, let’s go, Mommy!" They trotted out the door of the armory and made their way to the training field. Nimbus lifted off with a powerful gust of her wings and hovered in place, then prompted Cloud to do the same.
"Why are we doing this? I already know how to hover!"
"It is always important to warm up your wings before you begin training, especially if it's your first time. You don't want to hurt them because they aren't ready to hold the extra weight. Adding anything heavy to your wings makes them work a lot harder than just moving by themselves."
After a couple of minutes of hovering, the little filly was starting to break a sweat, and began slowly losing altitude. Her mother saw the signs of fatigue and decided she had warmed-up enough. "Alright Cloud, that's good. Let’s set down and rest for a moment." They both descended slowly and landed on the soft bed of clouds. Little Cloud Kicker was panting heavily and let out a sigh of relief as soon as her hooves hit cloud.
"Geez, that's not as easy as it looks. I'm gonna have to practice super-hard to be able to catch up with you!"
Nimbus nodded at her daughter and replied, "It's always tough when you first start, but give it a while and you'll be able to hover without even feeling the extra weight. When you catch your breath, we can start working on a few exercises to get you used to moving with the blades. I'll give you a quick demonstration while we're waiting. Pay close attention, okay? Let’s start with some ground based movements, so you don't have to worry about trying to fly while you're learning the basics."
Cloud Kicker stood up straight and gave her mother a sharp salute, "Yes Ma'am!" Nimbus returned the salute to her daughter and wing-jumped several feet away, giving her plenty of room to move freely.
"We'll start with a simple block and counter motion, assuming that there is a strike coming in toward your head from this direction." She performed a downward swing with her wing-blade to demonstrate, then dug a small arrow-shaped trench in the cloud floor. "Now, watch carefully." She stood facing the arrow, then nodded her head to signify an incoming attack. She envisioned the downward strike coming toward her head. In response to the assumed attack, she stepped back at an angle, then swept her right wing in an upward arc, keeping the metal frame of the training blade facing upward. "The purpose of the first movement is to make distance and avoid the attack, keeping yourself just outside of your opponent's reach. At the same time, you raise your wing and deflect the strike. This causes your opponent's blade to move exactly where you want it. That leaves them vulnerable to your own attack... Like this." She brought her wing back down, continuing the arc in a semicircular motion and drove her whole body forward, wing-first. She repeated the same technique several times, demonstrating the maneuver using both sides of her body. "Now you try."
Cloud Kicker trotted over and stood facing the arrow. "Okay Mommy, I can do this!" She tried her best to mimic her mother's movements, but as expected of any first attempt, it was not exactly stellar. She stumbled through the motions a few more times, then looked back at her mother with an excited grin plastered on her face. "How did I do?"
Nimbus remained patient and responded, "You did very well, especially for your first attempt. This time I'm going to make a few more lines to help you keep track of which way you need to move, and how far." She drew a line that extended from the tip of the arrow about a pony's length, then made two more similar lines extending forty-five degrees on either side. "This middle line represents what we call the line of attack. This is the direction that your opponent's strike is coming from. It is almost always better to avoid or redirect an attack rather than stopping it with sheer force. That's why we have the other two angled lines, here and here. Moving off the line of attack and getting your body out of danger is very important. Almost more important that blocking a strike with your own blade. Let’s do it together. Just follow along with me."
Cloud jumped up next to her mother, and together they stood side by side, practicing the motions one step at a time. Nimbus called out each movement slowly and patiently, helping her daughter learn the proper hoofwork. They worked on this basic movement for almost an hour, Nimbus occasionally pausing to explain the different ways in which the same movement could be applied. "Now that you understand how to perform this basic technique and how it can be used, I want you to feel what it is like to deflect my attack. Would you like to try?"
"I-I don't know Mommy, I don't wanna fight you! We're on the same side, and-and I don't want to hurt you!"
Nimbus stifled a small laugh, the only sign of its existence was the slightly upturned corners of her mouth. She regained her composure after the split-second flash of mirth and replied, "It will be okay Cloud; we aren't fighting. We are helping each other learn. This is the most important part of teamwork! You have to help each other get better, so you can protect your teammates when the time comes. It's much better to train together and compete safely among friends, than risking open combat with an enemy and being unprepared because you didn't train realistically." Nimbus looked into her daughter's eyes and said, "Cloud, I promise you're not going to hurt me, and I certainly will not hurt you. Do you understand? I want you to try your very best for me. We're going to start out really slowly, just do exactly what we practiced and everything will work out perfectly. Can you do that for me?"
"Okay Mommy, I promise I'll do my best... That way we can both be strong! Someday I'll be an awesome guardspony, just like you and Daddy!"
"That's right Cloud, you're going to be be big and strong just like us. Train hard and always do your best. I know you have what it takes to be even better than your father and I; but only if you truly work hard to accomplish your goals. The choice is your's and it starts here, today. Now, are you ready? Remember it's just like we practiced."
Nimbus stood on top of the arrow she drew earlier, raised her wing-blade, and brought it down at a slow pace. Cloud Kicker moved just like she had been trained to, making distance and moving off the line of attack. She raised her wing-blade and deflected the slow strike. Her mother followed through with the swing, and demonstrated how the blade continued in the direction it was deflected. Cloud shuffled forward and gently tapped her mother's side with the wing-blade, barely making any contact at all. Then she jumped back and gave the mare an innocent looking smile.
"Very good, Cloud. You moved almost perfectly, just like I showed you." Cloud Kicker's eyes lit up at her mother's praise and she did a little victory dance. Nimbus's eyes twinkled at her antics, but she kept her usual stoic mask and continued, "Did you see how my blade continued in the direction it was traveling? That is why it's so important to move off the line of attack and deflect the strike. If your opponent is truly convinced that their blade will make contact with the intended target, then they will fully commit all of their body weight to the strike. This allows you to take advantage of their over-extension and move in for your own attack. By the time they realize that they have missed their target, it will be too late for them to react to what is already happening. This principle is known as kata meru among the warriors of Westmarch, it means 'point of no return'. Can you repeat that for me?"
Cloud Kicker's nose scrunched up as she thought about the phrase, "Kaatah meeroo... Is that right?" She flashed the mare a cheesy smile and looked up at her hopefully.
Nimbus nodded her head and replied, "Close enough, it is important for you to understand this. There is much to be learned from the teachings of the griffon warriors, and it is good to keep an open mind when it comes to martial training. Remember, it is always best to learn as much as possible from every source of information you can find. There is no need to reject other methods of training just because they didn't come from the teachings of ancient Pegasopolis. One more thing before we start, don't be afraid to make a little bit of contact with your strikes. I want you to push as hard as you can, so you can develop strength. You're not going to hurt me, I promise."
Cloud Kicker nodded, assumed her ready position, and prepared to repeat the technique her mother taught her. The attack came and she stepped off to the left side and moved her wing up to meet and deflect the strike. It skidded harmlessly down the crest of her wing-blade, causing the strike to follow the path of deflection. Then she took a deep breath and pushed hard against her mother's side using her whole body to drive forward, managing to make her take a couple of steps backward. Cloud looked up at her mom with wide eyes and asked, "Are you okay Mommy, I didn't hurt you did I?"
"No Cloud, you didn't hurt me. You did exactly as I asked, and you did it very well. You're quite the strong little filly; with a lot of hard work and dedication, I know you'll be an excellent wing-blade practitioner. That was good, you performed well with a slow attack. Now I want you to feel what it's like when the wing-blades make harder contact. Are you ready?"
"Yeah, I think I can handle that!"
Cloud assumed her ready position once again with a determined look on her face. She was going to do her best and make her Mommy proud; nothing was going to stop her.
"Good, just do exactly what you did last time. Here it comes!"
Nimbus gave her a solid, moderately paced downward swing. Cloud moved back at an angle and repeated the motion of her mother's teachings, raising her wing and receiving the strike with a small *crack*. Just the same as last time, the strike was harmlessly deflected by Cloud's own wing-blade and the momentum continued on the redirected path. She finished her semi-circular movement and drove forward, pushing her mother back a few steps. Nimbus regained her balance and gave the filly a curt nod.
"Very good Cloud, you're doing really well. How did that feel?"
"That was cool! It just bounced right off; I barely even felt it! Can I try it again?"
"Of course you can. Do that a few more times, then we can start going a little faster. Let's go back and forth, I'll attack you and then you can attack me... how about fifty times on each side? That will make for an excellent workout on your first day, what do you think?"
"Okay Mommy, let’s do it!"
They continued to practice until they had reached their quota for the day, and the sun was beginning to sink below the horizon. Though she didn't outwardly show it, Nimbus was very happy to finally have the opportunity to share her knowledge and talent with her daughter; this was a day she had been looking forward to since before little Cloud was even born. By the end of her first training session, the filly had improved by lengths and bounds, and Nimbus couldn't be more proud of her daughter's accomplishments.
"You have worked very hard today young lady. I am really proud of you. Let's go get some food and make sure we're well-rested. That way we can continue our training early tomorrow morning, so we will have more time to train before nightfall. Tomorrow we will start working with some of the training dummies, so you can get a feel for what it's like to strike an actual target. It will help give you some perspective I think."
Even though Cloud was thoroughly exhausted from the hard day of training, she still got really excited by the prospect of working with a training dummy. "Wow, really? I get to use one of those cool pony-kin things? That's gonna be so awesome!"
She began jumping around and swinging her blades at imaginary targets, vanquishing the enemies of her own imagination. Her little theatrics came complete with sound effects and even some monologue.
Nimbus finally allowed herself a genuine smile and said in a slightly teasing tone, "Well Cloud, if you don't join the guard you could always try your hoof at acting. It seems that you're a natural. If I didn't know any better I'd say you were fighting an entire army all by yourself."
Her daughter giggled in response and said, "No way, I'm not gonna be an actor! I wanna be a guardspony just like you and Daddy!" Cloud jumped up and hugged her mother's leg, and she responded in kind by pulling her in for a wing-hug. Cloud leaned in and nuzzled her mother's side and together they began walking back to the house, still sharing a loving embrace. Cloud basked in the small moment of closeness with her mother. This had been the best day ever for her. Even better than the first day her parents started teaching her how to fly.
Nimbus looked back at Cloud and gave her a loving smile. She was proud, so very proud of her daughter. This was a day that they would both remember for the rest of their lives, and she couldn't think of anything else she would rather be doing. All of the memories of her first time training with her mother came flooding back, and she remembered the years of life lessons and bonding moments that she got to share with her own mother. Now that she was gone, Nimbus missed her maternal strength and guidance more than ever. Being in the same position gave her a new-found respect for her mother and the influence that she had on her own life. Her only regret was that the mare who had brought her into this world, and taught her so much, would never get to see her daughter's greatest accomplishment; her little filly, Cloud Kicker.
Nimbus bent down and planted a gentle kiss on little Cloud's forehead. In an extremely rare show of emotion for the perpetually stoic guardspony, she looked down upon her daughter with misty eyes and said, "I love you so much Cloud. You are the best gift I have ever been given... and I am truly blessed to have you as my daughter."
Cloud looked up at her and gave her a peck on the nose. She jumped up and latched her forelegs around her mother's neck, then whispered in her ear, "I love you too, Mommy."
The End
