The Fan Might Be Mightier Than The Sword

Posted on 07 Nov 2020 @ 7:30pm by Lieutenant Commander Aidan Datari & Lieutenant Xu Chang Lau

Mission: R&R - after facing the Planet Killer
Location: Andromeda Gym
2277 words - 4.6 OF Standard Post Measure

Xu had made it to the gym with time to spare, having replicated a new set of gym gear and grabbing her Tessen which thankfully had been near at hand. She had thrown on the one piece white clothing... instantly regretting it as it looked like she was squeezing herself into a cat suit but had no time to replicate anything different and ran from her quarters to the gym. As it had transpired she could have taken a few more minutes to find something to wear. Still, she was here now so she knotted her hair up into a severe bun, so tight it looked as if she was attempting a home face lift... she didn't care. All she wanted was to feel her Tessen in her hand once more.

She had not been able to fit any time in on Cardassia to train with her Tessen but the delicate stems, ornately decorated even to the tips of the shallow blades. The deep red fabric between each polished black steel stem more familiar to her than her surroundings. Light to hold but when used right could be deadly and beautiful in equal measure. She unfurled one with a snap, dropping into a crouching like position before flicking it into the air, sending it over her head before catching it in the opposite hand, snapping it closed and taking it to hand as it it was a small bladed knife.

This was the most familiar feeling she had experienced since arriving on Andromeda.

Aidan had opted for loose fitting pants and no shirt this time, knowing it would only get in his way. He was barefoot as he was already warming up on the mat, the replicated ushaan'tor lying next to him on the floor. He'd also brought a replica of one of his swords as he wasn't sure which one she might want to go up against. Both were blunted for safety, but could still severely bruise someone if he wasn't careful. He never used his real weapons in a sparring match, considering safety paramount, but he was willing to bring them to an actual battle if needed. He did prefer them over a phaser if he had to be honest.

"Lieutenant... Let me just grab the training Tessen from my case... Here is the real thing though!"
She passed then folded fan to him as she passed by, aiming for the case she kept them in. "Feel free to have a proper look at them. You may find them much lighter than you would think!"

Very carefully, Aidan accepted what seemed to him a very valuable weapon and reverently flipped it open to examine it. "This looks very lethal," he commented as he gave it an experimental wave around. he knew he probably wasn't even close to how it was supposed to be used but then he was a man, what did he know about fans? "Which would you prefer, sword or ushaan?" he asked as he flipped it closed again, getting ready to return it to its owner.

"I have no preference, Its all about the dance for me Lieutenant".
Having retrieved the pair of practise Tessen Xu was now ready. The practise pair just simple bamboo fans slightly larger than the lethal ones. She set herself on the mat, bowed slightly to her opponent before extending one leg before her and bending the other knee a little. One fan before her, open as if being used as a shield, the other raised up behind her, closed and being wielded like a small blade. "Are you ready?"

Preferring the sword over the Ushaan, Aidan readied himself, holding the sword firmly in his two hands, the blade poised just a fraction over his left shoulder. His left foot set just behind his right, ready to step out or pivot as needed. "Ready," he announced, watching her closely, waiting for her to make her first move.

From his stance Xu could tell he was favouring a defensive stance to start with which had been her intension also. Instead she shifted her weight, ready to pounce, snapping open the closed Tessen, this would allow her to switch back to a defensive posture in a flash, or even turn his own counter attack against him if she could time it right.

In the split second before her attack it occurred to her that he may not be aware of the hand to hand element that was inherent to Tessenjutsu but by the time to thought had been fully realised she had already begun. With grace and poise her right leg was brought round with as much force as she could muster aiming to impact with Aidan's shoulder. She knew her own size compared to the larger and leaner science officer would do little to no damage to him, but it might have been enough to throw him off balance.

Aidan quickly sidestepped, pivoting to bring his sword around in a backhanded upward swing as her foot grazed his shoulder. It threw his wing a little as he was forced to readjust his balance. He aimed for her leg as she sailed past, using the flat side of his blade to strike at her. The swing completed, he landed in a crouch, before launching into an attack if his own.

He was quicker than she had anticipated and his side step caught her off guard not to mention his counter attack struck her, sending her off balance. The only way she could recover was to shift her weight and redirect herself into a controlled roll that ended with her assuming a defensive pose, presenting both Tessen in closed positions.
From his strike to her she could also tell he had far more power behind himself than she had anticipated. Her best defence would be deflection and using his own strength against him, but this left her open as it would mean she would be relying on his attacks to fuel her own movements.

"You are stronger than I am accustomed to facing and your speed is astonishing Lieutenant... I'm not done yet but I know I may not be able to best you already!"

Aidan smiled as he paused, taking up a defensive post once more, this time sword pointing down towards the mat. "I thought this was about practice, not so much besting someone?" He asked, "but sure...we can make this a proper match." He grinned as he shifted, preparing to launch another attack.

This time she would allow him to make the first move, judge him on attack and see if she could spot and tell his posture or movements that might give away his intentions within a fight. She couldn't argue that she needed practice, but in many ways the best practice is to face someone in a true match.
She assumed the same post that she had started with, one Tessen in the closed blade like stance, while the other extended before her open as if to shield her.

Equally as she watched him, he studied her too. A headlong attack wouldn't work, he reasoned as he started to circle around her, sword slightly extended in front of him. Then, he stepped out, swinging to strike at her open fanned arm.

With ease she pivoted her entire body around his strike, snapping the open tessen into a closed position before slashing at him with the training fans. If it had been the real thing she would have been pulling the razor sharp blades through flesh and tendons of his right shoulder. Her first opportunity but it was only a glancing blow, and she was aware of it. No sooner had her own assault landed a hit before she was forced do shrink away from him or take another lump herself, once again both Tessen opened in a defensive posture.

Realizing that he would've been very wounded had the fan been the real one, Aidan stepped back, rolling his right shoulder as if to loosen the muscle, to shake off the feeling of possible injury. "Not bad," he praised, circling her again, switching to one-handed use as though to avoid using an injured arm. Had this been real, he wouldn't be able to use his right arm much now. He stepped out, aiming a swing to knock one of the Tessen from her hands.

She saw the attack coming but a fraction to late, managed to side step but put herself off balance. A mistake that could cost her dearly had this been a genuine battle. Instead she toppled over landing on all fours knowing she had just made a common mistake made by the most novice combatants. She really needed to spend more time brushing up.

With his opponent down, Aidan stepped up and aimed the tip of his sword at her. "Do you yield?" he asked before she could get back up to her feet.

The funny side to this situation didn't escape the downed women. On all fours, backside in the air pointed directly at the man pointing a sword at her. She couldn't help but laugh at the positioning and her own blunder. "I yield".

She rolled onto her back, finding the mat a comfy place to remain for a few moments regarding Aidan, his bared chested self looming over her. It was the first time she had really looked at him and one thought popped to mind, 'This ship has nothing but good looking men on board!'
She shook the thought off, she was more than happy for the first time in a long time and that was all down to Oliver. Still, a saying her grandmother used to say often also popped to mind. 'You can look at the menu so long as you don't sample!'

"You're very good Lieutenant. Proving I need to spend a great deal more time brushing up".

Aidan held out his hand to help her back up to her feet. "You did draw first blood," he smiled, "and you did look pretty impressive. I'm sure with the real ones you're a force to reckon with. Perhaps we can test it sometime on the holodeck?"

"Its a date!" she said without even thinking, and then flushing just as quickly. "I must admit I was hoping you would take a lunge at me. I know a very effective way of disarming someone... Given your skill level I think it would have been the only way I would have won!"
Back on her feet she retrieved a towel to dab down her forehead.

The Trill's eyes lit up. "Can you show me?" He asked as he shifted his stance to one ready for an attack. His spots seemed to ripple as he moved, his skin shiny with the sweat he had worked up.

Xu smiled, this was a side of the well mannered science officer she had never thought to have seen. She dropped the towel and brought herself back into the mindset. She once again adopted the slightly crouched position with one Tessen extended before her in the open position.
"Lets walk this through, take a direct lunge at me".

She watched his movements intently but instead of the usual retreating motion that one would expect with a direct attack as this, instead she swiftly moved forwards, sliding the blade between the prongs of her tessen and in one swift motion, snapped it closed so it was encompassing the blade, firmly gripped the opposite side of the blade and then twisted wrenching the blade from his hands in one movement. Her own hands never once touching the weapon she had managed to remove from her sparring partner.

"Impressive... why didn't you do that the first time?" the Trill asked as he was suddenly relieved of his weapon.

"I was caught off guard by your speed and strength. A hearty retreat seemed the wisest course" she chuckled.

"But it won't catch you off guard again," Aidan grinned, "never underestimate your opponent. I got my speed and grace from a different sport to be honest.. I'm not all close combat oriented even though I grew up with bladed weapons. Mostly my sword and the Ushaan, as I was raised by an Andorian. But as where I grew up was pretty frigid, I also learned to skate and trust me you learn speed and agility and balance with that."

Xu couldn't help but feel she had made another good friend here. her own trepidations about shipboard duty had all been blown cleanly out of the water and if anything her life was putting itself back together more rapidly than one would have thought possible. A good collection of people she could call friend, someone she had fallen in love with and a job that she had a feeling she was going to thrive in all thanks to a Captain that knew her better than she knew herself.
"Next time I intend to beat you flat!" she teased.

"I'll hold you to that!" Aidan grinned. "So you want to spar some more? Or are we calling it quits for today?"

"Actually, I would appreciate it if you could help train me. A few years ago I was in the best condition of my life... Cardassia really took it out of me... Plus with the exception of Michael and Oliver you are the only other person here I truly feel comfortable around". She handed him one of the training Tessen. "Maybe I could return the favour and show you the basics to Tessenjutsu".

"That's a deal!" The Trill replied enthusiastically, "let's get to it then."