A Second Chance

The Bet

Oh crap! she dodged another dangerously close swipe aimed for her head.

When Rae had agreed to learn, she hadn't realized that meant now. She thought that maybe she would have time to go back inside and have a decent breakfast. It didn't have to be anything special, even a bowl of cereal would have been nice, anything to extinguish the hungry tremors that were beginning to ravish her stomach, but no. No she was to train right this instant.

After she had insisted that she climb down without his assistance, Tomak had pointed to the sand under her feet with an insistent jab of his clawed finger, silently commanding her to stay there by the rocky arch. And it wasn't like she could give her two-cents about it because he was off, running back to the house.

She blinked in astonishment as she watched him from a distance leap incredibly high to grab the handrails of her deck and haul himself over like he was posing for one of those parkour videos.

Stunned by his agility she contemplated her own abilities. She was rather proficient in climbing, but that was a pale comparison to what Tomak could clearly do. It rather annoyed her actually. She was so accustomed to beating all the boys in gym class, she was never met with someone that could actually challenge her in anything physical. How the tables had turned.

It was another couple minutes after he entered her home that she wondered just what it was he was up to and why it was so necessary for her to remain here. Her question was later answered when he had reappeared with two objects.

In his left hand was the long metallic barbell from her bench press. In his other clenched hand was a good-sized silver cylinder that with a quick movement of his wrist extended into a spear-like weapon. Holding both staffs Tomak seemed to contemplate and compare the weight between the two before holding out his weapon for her to take.

Surprised, she carefully took it from him, blown-away with the weight of it. It was pretty light, not nearly as heavy as it looked. It probably weighed in at about five or six pounds, not as light as other traditional weapons, but still light.

It made sense why Tomak gave her this instead of the barbell he was holding.

Unlike the usual barbells, Rae was aware hers was a lighter version, roughly between twenty to thirty pounds, which she usually compensated for in the weights she would hang from either side. Using it in a spar, on the other hand, it was plenty heavy, especially if he was going to swing it around like some medieval sword.

After taking a moment to adjust to its length, she looked to Tomak in question.

His response? He flexed his wrist, spinning the barbell lethally before he charged.

So much for introducing her to it. It wasn't like she had training or any expertise in this profession, if she could even call it that. In fact, it was her hope that she could actually learn something from him. Achieving some sort of mastery over this art instead of a toss up as to who was more qualified in this duel would have been satisfactory.

Or a brief introductory lesson! That would have been nice.

Now running and dodging like her life depended on it, she tried to find some way to at least make him back off enough for her to breathe, but he was making that impossible for her, as if he knew her intentions.

No matter how much she ran to put some distance between them, he was right there on top of her, refusing her any mercy.

Growing annoyed with this tiring game of cat and mouse, Rae switched tactics and did something she hoped would be unexpected. Just as he shifted his weight, giving herself a clear view of his flank, she stepped right into his path and went to deliver a blow of her own.