He breathed the least he could, knowing that the frigid air would betray his position. He sat silently concealed beneath the branches of a large evergreen. Perfectly still, careful not the disturb the snow. He was being stalked.
A minuscule frozen crunch sounded next to him and instantly he shot his hand out. He grabbed the back of the man's knee and pulled himself out of his hideaway like a shot as his foe collapsed to the side. He vaulted the man and was set to run when a hand snatched his ankle.
He tumbled to the ground but rather than sprawl on his face, he tucked in his chin, locked his knee, and somersaulted out of the man's grasp. He spun around and blocked a jolting uppercut to the right but the man immediately hooked his legs out from under him.
He threw off the attacker with a swift upward kick-and-push. Again, he faced the man but his heel skidded too far outward and the man easily threw him off balance. His foe flipped him quickly onto his back and held his head in a lock, about to break his neck.
"You're dead, Jacov," the man whispered.
Jacov sighed in remorse. "I set my foot wrong, Da. And I was breathing too heavily."
Jacov's father set him back on his feet and stood, brushing the snow off his pants. "No, not the breathing. You knocked an icicle off the branch you used to cover the entrance."
It was an exercise that Jacov's father had taught him. Jacov would hide and his father would try and find him. He was to act with the same caution as someone being tracked for the kill. They had gone over at least one of these exercises every day that week. The new snow had made hiding even more difficult.
His father brushed some snow off Jacov's shoulder. "You did well today, Jacov. Now, what if I'd had a throwing knife?"
"Stay in close grown undergrowth. Do not leave a trail."
"A spear?"
"Fight at the staff and dodge quickly."
"Sword?"
"Disarm as quickly as possible."
"Very good. I also see you took heed of my lesson yesterday."
Jacov nodded.
"Repeat it to me," his father said, more a command than a question.
"'I am larger than you; faster, stronger,' you'd said. 'But you are small and quick. Use that. Dodge if you can dodge and use the attacker's own momentum against him.'"
Jacov's father nodded. "And that's what you did until you set your foot wrong. What have I told you about winter?"
The reply came automatic. "There is ice to trip you up and snow to reveal every footstep."
"Good."
Jacov lay staring at the stars that night by the crackling fire. He thought hard about the lessons if the day, commuting them to memory as he did every night. However, this night he was remembering more than the lessons. He had picked up a genuine pride from his father, even after he messed up his attack. He'd received much more praise than what was typical.
Jacov rolled onto his side and pushed his mind outward, reaching for a warm beating heart or a flitting mind. He grabbed desperately at the glows in the edge of his mind, hating to be inside his own head. Anything was better than being within his thoughts. Ever since his empathetic attack just a year before, he'd spent each night looking for somebody instead of risking breaking his mental barriers.
It scared him to no end that he might succumb to the thousands of minds pressing on his awareness. He no longer let himself feel anything more than quiet seriousness be it alone or training with his father. He would never say it to anyone but he was thoroughly terrified of himself.
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A/N: Is this another short one? Meh, I felt obligated to write it. Any-hoo...next chapter was actually written before this one so it won't be long before it's up xD JigsX Out
Poor Jacov is so cute!
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