Paragon of Destruction

Now that he faced a Knight with only his own strength, he could not help but marvel at the vast chasm in ability that lay between them.

It was like sparring against Brightblade. No matter what he did, defeat was never more than a second away, and whenever he thought he was on the verge of winning an exchange, his hopes were inevitably dashed an instant later.

This time, however, he had the chance to study what made Knights so strong, and what he discovered was much as he’d already expected.

His insights gave him no small amount of power, but their use was limited. Although he could strike devastating blows using his insight into severing, that was little use if his opponent could easily dodge or deflect his attacks.

The Knight, by contrast, had a far broader set of insights. And if their quality didn’t quite match that of the few that Arran possessed, their sheer number meant she could use them in every situation.

It was much like in Kaleesh’s writings on tactics, where a capable commander would attack an opponent’s weaknesses rather than his strengths.

Arran had a few great strengths, but he still had many weaknesses. And skilled as the Knight was, she had little difficulty finding and exploiting those weaknesses.

Although the match did little to help Arran’s confidence, he was thankful for the opportunity to learn. If nothing else, knowing his weaknesses would help him avoid fights he had no chance of winning.

Finally, after hours of sparring, the Knight stepped back.

"That’s enough for tonight," she said. She gave Arran an appraising look, then continued, "You have potential. With proper training, you should become a Knight one day — and perhaps even more than that."

Arran looked at her with some surprise. He was well aware of how easily the Knight had defeated him, and he had not expected her to be impressed with his efforts. "You think so?"

Muna smiled as she saw his confused look. "Don’t misunderstand me," she said. "You’re still weak. But then, it’s obvious that you’ve never had proper training. Once you’re exposed to the right teachings, I expect your progress to be most impressive."

There was a hint of curiosity in her eyes, or perhaps anticipation. But whatever it was, Arran sensed an opportunity.

"Perhaps you could teach me," he said. "Now that I’m a citizen of the Imperium, there should be no harm in teaching me a few techniques, should there?"

He half expected her to reject the request outright, but instead, she looked at him with an amused expression for some seconds.

"I suppose I could do that," she finally said. "I cannot teach you any true techniques, of course — you will have to earn those. But I can show you the foundation that Darian children are given, what they build on before they earn the right to enter one of the war colleges."

Arran accepted the offer without hesitation. Even if it was only the foundation Darians taught their children, he instantly recognized that it would be valuable in learning the Darians’ true methods.

After all, the Imperium would not set their offspring on a path that led only to a dead end.

In the hours that followed, Muna patiently taught him a series of movements. Simple and plain, it was obvious that they were intended for training rather than combat, and Arran had little difficulty in learning them.

Yet even as he studied the simple movements, he recognized that they contained hints of insights, albeit distant ones. In that sense, the exercises reminded Arran of the Forms — their value lay not in the movements themselves, but rather in what they taught.

"You’re a quick learner," Muna said eventually. "In just a few hours, you’ve reached a level that takes others years to achieve."

Arran smiled slightly, knowing that it wasn’t much of a compliment. "I’ve had years of practice," he said. "If I didn’t reach a child’s level in a few hours, I’d doubt my talent."

"True enough," she replied. "And with the insights you already have, I assume you’ve already recognized the purpose of these exercises?"

Arran nodded. "They’re meant to build insights." He frowned, then corrected himself, "Or rather, to lay a foundation for gaining insights."

This time, the Knight’s eyes held a trace of approval as she looked at him. "Exactly right," she said. "What you learn from these exercises won’t help you in battle directly, but it will help you prepare for the next step."

"And what is that next step?" Arran asked, his curiosity sparked.

"That," she replied with a small smile, "is something you will discover once you earn the right to do so."

Arran gave her a small nod. "I suppose I’ll find out after I come back from the Desolation?"

Muna shook her head. "Not necessarily. You should consider accepting Lord Rannoc’s offer. With his approval, you would be allowed to learn more, so that you wouldn’t have to face the Blight until you are truly ready."

She gave him a thoughtful gaze, and after a moment of hesitation, she continued, "Someone with your strength and talent could have a bright future in the Imperium. Given time and proper teachers, and with a suitable wife, you might forge a respectable bloodline of your own."

Arran found himself at a loss for words, as he could not escape the idea that she wasn’t merely offering friendly advice. "I’ll consider it," he replied somewhat awkwardly.

"Just something to think about," she said, giving him a meaningful smile.

Arran gave her a small nod, then hurriedly turned his attention back to his practice to escape any further talk of wives and bloodlines.

He wasn’t certain the Knight had truly suggested what he thought she had, but once more he was reminded that there were many aspects of Darian culture he didn’t understand just yet.

He continued his practice until sunrise, taking care to study the movements Muna had taught him as well as he could. Even if they provided nothing but a foundation, it was a foundation he planned to build upon in the future.

When dawn finally came and the others awoke, the large group slowly set into motion once more. And as they did, Arran wasted no time in informing Kaleesh of the things he’d learned.

The captain listened with great interest, and he seemed particularly taken with the idea of no longer needing sleep. "So that blessing — the god’s bloodline. It will grow stronger as we grow more powerful?"

"It should," Arran replied with a nod. "Muna told me that Knights barely require any sleep at all, that they can go weeks or months without rest."

"Muna?" Kaleesh raised an eyebrow as he looked at Arran, amusement written plain across his face. "The two of you get along, then?"

"It’s not..." Arran began, then shook his head. "I don’t know what it is."

Kaleesh laughed. "It’s exactly what you think it is," he said. "Darians value strength more than anything, and no woman would be satisfied with a weak husband. And you... well, as an outsider who’s grown that strong even without proper training, you’ll be sure to catch many eyes."

Arran looked at Kaleesh uneasily. "So what should I do?" he asked. He had little experience with this sort of thing, and he could not escape the feeling that there was danger in acting improperly.

The captain shrugged. "From what you’ve said, her attention has already benefited you no small amount. And Knight or not, she certainly is rather beautiful."

Again, Arran frowned. Though he hadn’t really considered the matter until now, he had to admit that Muna was far from unattractive. With long black hair and big dark eyes, he certainly didn’t mind seeing her.

"Just be careful not to offend her," the captain continued. "And take care that you don’t find yourself married — I doubt a fresh bride would want to see her husband travel into the Desolation."

Arran let out a deep sigh, though he could not help but cast another glance at the Knight at the front of their group. Now that he thought about it, she really was quite pretty.