Star Wolves - The Tribes of Yggdrasil: Book 1

Chapter 22

The Sleipnir was readied for the thirty-two day journey to Niflheim. President Rukundo had set Hal on a manic cycle of self-pity and angst over the possibility of finding his family alive. He hated her for it, yet at the same time, if there was even the most remote chance, he had to explore it.

O-3 Molly Coogan had been assigned to the Sleipnir as a pilot; her ship had been lost in the battle and there would be no replacement for many months to come, if not a year or more. There were now many more officers than ships. Molly was happy to be assigned to the Sleipnir, Hal had saved her life after all. But she seemed to be displaying a little more than gratitude.

Apparently, in addition to being an avid surfer, Molly was also a reasonable swordswoman. She and Hal both practiced western swordsmanship originating in the fourteenth-century. Their style originated with the German Master, Liechtenauer in the thirteen-eighties. Instead of floppy foils and touch sparring, they used longswords which were blunted for safety. Each was about one-hundred and twenty-eight centimeters long, and contrary to popular myth, were not heavy, unwieldy chunks of metal. Weighing in at only one-point-four kilograms, they were fast and well balanced, usable in one or two hands.

At Molly's urging, Hal had joined her for a sparring session. She said he needed to work off a little tension and hoped this would do the trick.

They were each outfitted in padded armor to dampen the blows from the sparring swords. They also wore a more or less traditional fencing masks, with extra padding at the top and around the edges. Even though these swords were not sharp, and had their tips blunted, they were essentially large metal bars; being hit with one was unpleasant at best, even under armor. But that was one of the allures of this type of martial art-it felt much more real. Getting hit hurt, as it should. This meant opponents were much more cagey, and didn't trade blows recklessly. In a real sword fight, one blow could end an opponent's life.

The two fencers garbed in their black armor, donned their masks, Molly tucking her golden locks up under her helm. Each touched the guard of their sword to their forehead, indicating they were ready to fence.

Molly watched Hal who held his sword pointed down behind him at a forty-five degree angle; the tail guard. This guard made it difficult for the opponent to predict your attack.

Molly held her sword above her head, the pommel over her right shoulder; the high guard, from which a very powerful downward strike could be delivered.

Hal stepped to the side, transitioning to the plow guard; the pommel at his hip and the blade of the sword at a forty-five degree angle, the tip pointing toward Molly's face. That was the key, to threaten the opponent at all times.

Molly also transitioned to the plow guard, as they worked well against each other. Hal then transitioned to the high guard and they circled each other for a moment.

Hal exploded forward with a powerful diagonal downward cut to Molly's left shoulder.

A fraction of a second later, she transitioned from the plow guard, passing her back foot forward as his sword came down. Molly's sword came up horizontally over her head, shielding her from the blow and counter-attacking with a diagonal cut to the back of his neck has he passed her. Hal avoided it as he swung around. And so it continued for few minutes.

Their clashes were rapid and violent. Observers sometimes compared fencing with the longsword to rams rutting. Rams charged and clashed horns, then broke off, circling each other, then engaging again. It was beautiful and awesome to watch.

Molly continued to circle her opponent, and after a few probing blows, committed to a powerful thrust, which Hal parried, then threw his arm over her sword arm, tying her up and wrestled her to the ground. She struggled, but mass was a determining factor when skill was equal. Molly struggled for a moment, but Hal had her, and pulled his sparring dagger from his belt and slid it under her helm toward her exposed throat-the coup de grâce.