Kaskade

[Allyson Locke]

Ashin went after her, it was different that other times she had seen her fight. The woman was a tank and went in with out a care. The kick moved towards her leg, with arms at her side she moved one to guard against the kick which gave her leg a moment to step back and stabilize herself. As Ashin's kick made contact, Spencer felt the blow in her arm, but she put her weight against the kick and pushed it forcing Ashin's weight to carry her away from Spencer. The punch came next, but with her step back she was able to lean back slightly and avoid the blow to her chin.

Close one, Ashin was adapting to the situation a lot quicker than Spencer had expected yet she should have known this – which deep down she did. With the punch left an opening, lifting her knee waist high, Spencer quickly kicked forward towards Ashin's exposed ribs.

[member="Ashin Varanin"]

 

[Ashin Varanin]

[member="Spencer Jacobs"]
The edge of Spencer's foot crashed into her lowest ribs, torquing her to the right. Her hand came down too late from the uppercut, only smacking Spencer's leg away once the damage was done. She'd tightened her gut and side muscles, taken the hit well enough, but a hit from a Master was a hit from a Master.

Ashin hop-stepped forward, fast as she could manage, though Spencer had always had the advantage when it came to maneuverability. She aimed to slam a quick kick up into the underside of Spencer's retracting leg, maybe with enough force to do what Ashin meant to do: throw off Spencer's balance, knock her back and up a little. The intent was to open her up for the next strike, a side kick to the chest. Higher than Ashin normally liked to kick, but with the right opportunity, it had been known to work. This was, once more, a gamble.

 

[Allyson Locke]

Being over committed was something that she should have known. She went into the kick with her balance off and with Ashin's kick to the underside of her leg as it was tossed aside threw her even more off balance. She was exposed now as she did her best to regain balance her arms cross in front of her chest to take the blow from Ashin's kick. Feet stabilizing from her training of Echani combat and Shii-Cho from Ashin on Naboo she took the hit.

Still despite Ashin being a Padawan, the woman's physical attacks still packed a punch against her nimble body. Grunting, she felt the air escape from her lungs. There was no chance to counter the attack, so instead she took the hit stumbled backwards and raised her hands back up. Taking a few deep sighs she smirked. She didn't attack but waited for another attack from Ashin, this time she was ready with her neutral stance and her arms raised guarding her core.

[member="Ashin Varanin"]

 

[Ashin Varanin]

[member="Spencer Jacobs"]

She'd gone juggernaut until now, throwing committed strikes and tanking counterblows as the acceptable price. This time around she went a bit more cautiously, mirroring Spencer's neutral stance. Their current position put the nearest edge of the circle at Spencer's five o'clock, so Ashin circled right just a little, trying to line up Spencer between her and the near point. She advanced carefully, lancing out another side kick, this one thrown from her front leg, a snap-kick aimed for Spencer's nearest leg just above the knee. Her hands stayed back, defensive, on the assumption that Spencer would move for a mobile counterstrike.

 

[Allyson Locke]

Spencer aware now of Ashin's attacks along with her years of experience with sparring the woman, Spence read the snap kick. Stepping forward, she grasped with both hands grabbing Ashin's leg as she extended it outward. While doing this, Spencer used Ashin's momentum against her allowing Spencer's smaller frame to hold the woman. As she stepped forward with the leg, Spencer crossed her feet quickly and kicked the woman in the back of the leg (which was being used as a base for the previous kick).

If the small kick to the back of Ashin's base leg worked, Spencer would move to grapple the woman on the ground by locking the leg she had grasped in her defense against the kick. [member="Ashin Varanin"]

 

[Ashin Varanin]

[member="Spencer Jacobs"]' foot slipped into the back of Ashin's knee -- noticed, but too late to prevent it -- and Ashin felt herself driven back by her own extended leg. Her hip struck the ground hard, then her elbow, a breakfall gone wrong. Pain lanced through her a moment before Spencer grappled her way on top of Ashin.

"Yield," she said, cradling the arm. "Feth, I used to be better at taking a fall. Can you fix this up for me?"

 

[Allyson Locke]

As much as Spencer wanted to be proud of her victory in the spar, she kept it inside and sat upon Ashin’s waist. Leaning forward to examine the injury better she ran her hand lightly along Ashin’s arm. She knew where the pain was and quickly focused on the strained and damaged muscles. Everything by the will of the force mended and Spencer remained on top of Ashin.

“That was different. A good different. You’re moving really well now that your knee is all patched up. How’s it feeling by the way?” Arching her back, Spencer used her legs to tighten her hold on Ashin’s waist as she turned to touch along the formerly injured knee. “Seems to be all in order, but yeah depends on how it feels really.” [member="Ashin Varanin"]

 

[Ashin Varanin]

[member="Spencer Jacobs"]

She couldn't resist a grin. "How it feels, eh?" Pinned, at least pro forma, Ashin stretched out her arm and pulled it behind her head. No pain -- Spencer knew her work. "It feels pretty fething fantastic, and the knee isn't bad either."

If Spencer hadn't been distracted and leaning back, Ashin would have popped her hips and rolled to reverse the guard, but gunning for your teacher when they were off the fight clock was an absolute greenhorn move. Instead, she submitted.

"And here I thought you were going to go easy on me."

 

[Allyson Locke]

Straightening up and crossing her arms, Spencer stared at her wife and student for just a moment. Her nose wrinkling up while she did her best to give a stern face. “Why would I go easy on you? You’ve made it quite clear you remember everything – you just need to develop the mechanical skills to do so.” Of course, not being able to remain stern and harsh on Ashin, her face softened and her hands found the training mat besides Ashin’s head.

“You did well, so I guess I can give you a little bit of a reward. I was always into positive reinforcement – unless it was Jared – the boy was too dense…” I swear I was always so close to throwing him into a volcano on Mustafar…Her face frowned as she remembered training Jared, he was so oblivious to the Force. Took Spencer a moment to retreat from her memories and she looked down at the woman she had pinned under her. Giving her a brief kiss, she pulled up and paused. “Though your all or nothing strategy needs to change a bit. I might be a decent healer, but it’s hard to keep up with you.”

[member="Ashin Varanin"]

 

[Ashin Varanin]

[member="Spencer Jacobs"]

"Mm." Her feet found the mat, and she shoved herself upright. "You've got a point. I'm used to getting hit and being able to take it, no matter what it is. This isn't the first time that's gotten me hurt, probably won't be the last. Only question I have now is, which one will happen first? Getting back my strength, or adjusting how I think, how I fight? I'm not that good at self-awareness."

She rolled out the crick in her neck, then did it again until fixed and no longer a distraction. "But I suppose I'll be working on both, so it's anyone's guess. I'm just hoping I'll...get back to where I used to be. Get back to where I can defend you and Ibaris on the off chance you need it."

 

[Allyson Locke]

Spencer nodded and after watching Ashin stand she figured the woman was done with needing her services for healing. Wandering over towards the table that was at the entrance of the training hall, Spencer grabbed a small bottle of water and took a sip. Screwing the top back on she tossed it towards Ashin, then wiped her brow with the towel she grabbed next. “Ashin you've done enough protecting to last you more than ten lifetimes. Though I still smile every time you say it. We both have to protect Ibaris...especially knowing where she came from.”

Wandering back over, she offered a second towel to Ashin and nodded.”She has a lot of potential, just with being near her I could feel how strong she can become. Her interest in exotic and rather dangerous monsters worries me a bit.” Spencer bit her lower lip as she replayed what she had just said, she was starting to sound like her mother. A thought popped into her head mostly to distract from the comment she had just said, Spencer used the force to push against Ashin. She wondered where the woman’s' reflexes were after the force severing. [member="Ashin Varanin"]

 

[Ashin Varanin]

[member="Spencer Jacobs"]

She snagged the bottle absentmindedly, took a swig, accepted the towel. "She and the spawn-"

Her feet shifted, her weight transitioned, but that wasn't enough anymore, not even against a snapshot of a Force push. Her back hit the mat; she rolled out of it, slid to her feet, smashed one back with a grin. She'd never been immensely strong at telekinesis, but her timing had always qualified as pretty decent -- especially when it came to smallish Force pushes on a moment's notice, meant to break concentration while enemies gathered powah for something special. So all things considered, weak as she was now, a quick hard minor Force push was well within the overlap of instinct and current ability.

 

[Allyson Locke]

A smile crossed her face as she felt the force shift around her, there was a counter coming. Spencer settled her feet and with Ashin's counter force push she skidded against the ground, she fell to a knee to stay balanced as she slid a foot or so away from Ashin. Standing back onto her feet she nodded. “So I'm guessing while we discuss Ibaris we move on to force combat?”

Shrugging, Spencer crossed her arms in front of her frame. “Might as well get a work out for myself as well, you can use your lightsaber – full power if you will.” [member="Ashin Varanin"]

 

[Ashin Varanin]

[member="Spencer Jacobs"]

"No point to it," said Ashin with a grin. "I know you can stop a sabre barehanded, I know you can beat whatever I throw at you. At this point, the only halfway intelligent choice is to run. Not that I'm going to, because I like you and I like being around you, but for fight purposes, you can consider me to have run out the door.

"As far as Ibaris goes," she said, falling out of stance, "I don't think her curiosity is evil at all, and I don't think it'd be out of line for her to understand biological alchemy to some level. She loves animals, she'd hate to see them in pain -- she's not about to go out warping them for her own amusement. There's nothing wrong with knowing things, with knowledge. Let's just be sure to do it bit by bit, as she's ready for it. No need to give her more than she can handle, no need to make her a target, though that'll happen once she gets older and people realize that she's had time to learn some of what we do. Who knows -- maybe we'll have gone to the shadows by then, gone underground, retired for real."

She smiled faintly. "Though I doubt it. But speaking of Ibaris-" She tossed a significant glance at the clock and bowed as student to master. It approached mealtime for their constantly hungry kid. "Same time tomorrow? Or tonight?"