Private Eye of the Tiger

[Katherine Holt]

Location: Niv Hani, Noble Abode
Tags: Aris Noble​

It had been a while since Katherine had just simply hung out with the Nobles, Vera & Aris in particular. These days it was more often than not part of a mission or some type of training. But by chance, the Valkyrie had travelled to Niv Hani at the same time Aris had decided to visit home.

Apparently the young Noble wanted to focus more on his strength, specifically towards handling the more finer elements of it. He had since gotten better at controlling it; reminding Katherine of that duel she had watched between him and Azurine.

Several ideas occurred to Katherine, and she requested a few hours to gather everything that was needed. Going so far as to dive into the depths of Epicanthix’s market to find certain particulars.

By the time she was done, it was late afternoon, just barely breaching into evening. Katherine met Aris outside the back of the Noble abode, a pair of boxing pads on her hands.

“Now, I know you said you’ve got the control down, but I wanna get a good idea of your current ability to determine what to use next.”

At some point it did occur to Katherine this ‘hangout’ ended up becoming training. But it didn’t bother, she was happy to be able to help Aris.

 

[Aris Noble]

"Mostly. I don't bite off forks any more."

That was one of the earlier lessons Aris had. It was odd, seeing Katherine like this. A good kind of odd, but he hadn't thought she'd be able to walk again. Or fly. Or be so incredibly tall compared to what she was. There were a lot of questions and confusion with it all, but what summed it up was essentially, The Force did it. Yeah that still didn't make too much sense for him, but knowing she was better?

That was good. That's all that mattered.

"Are we going to box? Is your new body able to handle that now?"

Katherine Holt

 

[Katherine Holt]

Location: Niv Hani, Noble Abode
Tags: Aris Noble​

“Well, there’s only one way to find out, no?” Katherine replied, a grin on her face. It wasn’t just her appearance that had changed, there was a level of confidence in the redhead that hadn’t been there before. Certainly a stark contrast to how depressed she was confined to a hoverchair.

“I’m not exactly five-six, with oversized wings anymore.” She continued, raising her arms to emphasise her point. Katherine’s training outfit did nothing to hide her physique, a far cry to even the peak of her Padawan years.

The Valkyrie lowered her arms, shifting into a defensive stance. “I’m going to move my hands in a pattern of three movements. After each ‘set’ I want you to gradually increase the strength behind your punches. We stop when you reach your max.”

…

“Begin!”

 

[Aris Noble]

".. Alright."

He couldn't deny she seemed much stronger than she ever had. A faint smile formed as he set on the gloves, prepared himself. Nodded towards her. The gloves should help keep her safe, right? Both hands lifted up as he bent his knees. It was almost like a boxing style, and one he had started to work on some himself. It was an idle curiosity for the sports of martial arts.

Not that he'd be able to participate. He was too strong.

He followed the first three strikes, giving her gloves a quick tap each time. Simple, light. Enough not to hurt the normal person. It was the gradual increase that seemed to stump him. The next strike that came through was the same intensity. The next after that? A sudden jump in strength. The next trio?

The earth breaking max.

Katherine Holt

 

[Katherine Holt]

Location: Niv Hani, Noble Abode
Tags: Aris Noble​

Katherine’s expression grew serious as she braced herself. Confident as she may be, the redhead had seen numerous times the amount of strength Aris had behind his punches. And she knew for a fact the young Noble always held back in fear of causing damage to someone or something.

But I need to get a feel for where his strength and control is right now.

Aris’ first set of punches were light, followed by a second set that were incrementally stronger, just as she had instructed. With each lot, Katherine could feel the different levels of force behind the punches.

Then the sudden jump in strength hit, and Katherine really braced herself for what was to follow. Katherine called upon the Force to bolster her defence, and fanned her wings out just in case.

She was able to hold her ground against the first punch, the second had her skid back slightly, and the third sent her backwards several feet, her boots digging grooves into the ground beneath.

Katherine let out a whistle, clearly impressed. “Now that is some strength.” ‘Some’ putting it quite lightly, as she was fairly certain that would’ve taken down a wall.

 

[Aris Noble]

Well she didn't break.

Aris stood straighter for a moment, his eyes watching as Katherine slid back. Curious, calculating. Worry. All in equal measure so he'd know he didn't just break her new body. He hadn't, but he'd still thrown her back. He let out a breath of relief, none the less. No real damage, no hurt. "You asked me not to hold back, so I didn't. You alright?"

Katherine Holt

 

[Katherine Holt]

Location: Niv Hani, Noble Abode
Tags: Aris Noble
​

“Yeah I’m alright,” Katherine said, walking back to the position she was standing at before. “It’s one thing to witness that strength of yours, a whole other to actually feel it.”

She had known and understood why Aris was so focused on managing his strength, but this made the Valkyrie appreciate the level the young Noble had already reached.

And thank the Force for it, fairly certain he could leave a fist-sized dent in beskar.

“Now what about your kicks? Have you been putting equal focus on them?” She asked, shifting into a defensive stance once more. Only this time she held her padded hands in a different orientation.

“Same thing as before, hit me with a series of kicks, increase the strength after each set.”

 

[Aris Noble]

"Some. I haven't felt a need to kick though, outside of practicing Epicanthic forms." Really he hadn't done much with proper forms since a fight never lasted longer than a couple of his punches. He shook out his hands for a moment before readying his stance. Then launched his first kick. There was no control with it, since he hadn't ever thought on controlling it.

Just a single, all his might kick right to Katherine's guard. He was able to aim it at least.

Katherine Holt

 

[Katherine Holt]

Location: Niv Hani, Noble Abode
Tags: Aris Noble
​

This time Katherine braced herself to try and not move, replicating what she had done before both through the Force and her wings. Only this time, she was intending to anticipate the blow.

When Aris’ kick landed, the Valkyrie flapped her wings as hard as she could. And rather than a controlled punch knocking her back, the uncontrolled kick; its kinetic energy, was redirected upwards instead.

“Okay yeah, we’re working on that.” She said, lowering her arms. “Shouldn’t neglect the fact your legs are equally viable as weapons as your hands. What happens if you encounter someone who already knows how you fight? Or can even take a punch or two?”

Katherine let the question linger for several moments as she thought on the next step. When her eyes fell upon a nearby wooden post, an idea seemed to spring to mind. The redhead suddenly dashed into the house itself, seemingly rummaging about in the kitchen.

When she returned however, whatever she was holding in her hand was out of Aris’ line of sight. Even more so as Katherine stopped before the wooden post and kept her back facing the young Noble.

It was only when she stepped away, that it became apparent she had balanced an egg atop the post.

“You’re going to kick that egg into that tree over there.” She said, gesturing towards the one she meant. “But the egg can’t break until it hits the bark.”

 

[Aris Noble]

".. An egg?" Aris stared at the egg before looking up towards Katherine. The kicking side made sense to him, it was something he figured he could do. A round house, most likely, to hit the top of the post without hitting the post. That's what he'd figured the challenge would be. But even he couldn't hide the sheer surprise in his eyes at the idea of kicking an egg without breaking it.

His expression stilled after a moment as he continued to process it. Katherine wasn't going to make something up like this, right? He could do this, right? He stood before the post, tensing his form before launching a kick up and over.

And immediately covering his boot in what little remained of the egg.

".. What's the trick?"

Katherine Holt

 

[Katherine Holt]

Location: Niv Hani, Noble Abode
Tags: Aris Noble
​

It was very rare to draw out an actual reaction from Aris, but even when he was remaining stoic, his expression still, it was clear when something had properly confused him in the moment.

Katherine stopped herself from smirking, instead keeping her expression serious as she folded her arms together. “What do you think the trick is?”

She wanted to explain it, but refrained from doing so. After all, was it not part of being a teacher?

To encourage one’s student to think, evaluate and figure out the answer for themselves.

 

[Aris Noble]

"The easiest way would be to pick up and throw it. If the idea is to just throw it with my foot, that's easy enough. But if the idea is for me to kick it full force, there has to be a trick, right?" There had to be. Logically speaking he couldn't ever kick an egg full force without shattering it. Was he perhaps misunderstanding the task? Maybe. He hummed in thought, looking towards where the scattered remains of the eggs were.

Katherine Holt