Tensions were getting hotter at the barracks with the discussion of all the troops being mass recruited and put through their paces. Torsten didn't like the undercurrents going on but he squared his shoulders and headed out with his longsword at his waist. He ducked a little as he made it through the door. At over six feet, it had been reflex since he was seventeen and it was a natural thing thing for him. 

With perfect posture, he entered and scanned the training grounds, searching for someone who might pose a challenge. If something was coming, some harbinger, then Torsten needed to get ready for it, what ever it might be. A few people he knew fairly well, but he dismissed them quickly as he'd already judged their mettle and found them wanting.

Torsten's dark brown eyes discovered and settled on a petite woman who was among one of the shortest he'd ever met. Her expression was calculating, estimating people in most likely the same way he was. He lowered his jaw and made eye contact with Katerina as his gaze swept her from nose to toes. She stood confidently with her legs solidly beneath her shoulders, alert and ready. 

Now there would be a new challenge. 



It seemed that Kat wasn't going to have to wait long for someone to decide to fuck around and find out. Her eyes met the giants, and a smile twitched at her lips. She had a tall partner, and she had never let her height affect her fighting ability. If he wanted to take her, the smaller soldier was glad to oblige.

Without a second thought she walked right up to the guy. "Oi, you looking for a fight or just staring off into the vast unknown of things you don't understand then?" She knew about three big words, vast was one of them, because the vast sea was brought up so many times in Nevermere.

Because she was looking to square up, not to the death of course, but she wasn't going to pull her punches.

Torsten was taken aback at her abrasive tone and fuck off attitude, but he would not be deterred. He'd seen her around a bit and noticed that she was the type to take things even more seriously than he himself did. With large easy strides, he walked toward Kat, keeping his dark eyes locked on her. His posture was on guard, but not nearly as aggressive as the woman before him.

He looked down at the top of her head and answered with his usual curt honesty,

"I'm here to train, just like all the rest." the tall man's emphasis and even tone made his point clearly. Sparring and training weren't a place for aggression because emotions clouded your judgement and learning abilities. If she was bent on provoking someone into a fight, it wasn't something he was looking for. Should the powerful witch be simply looking for a mindless brawl, she could do that at any old tavern, because this wasn't the place for it.

"But unlike you, I'm not paired, so I'm not sure how this would work Miss. I don't have your long experience skills or strong magic." He stated respectfully, knowing that sparring was to train, not fight. There was a vast difference between the two. 

Boring. But he would have to do, no one else was going to step up now. All the same, this boy had some interesting ideas about what training and fighting were. And she was quick to jump on the words he had chosen. "Does that mean you think I don't know how to fight?"

Looking at her hands and looking back at him she rolled her eyes. "Believe it or not training against those who might be better than you is a good thing and not something you should be scared of." She had issued her challenge, it was now up to the soldier if he wanted to back down or square up.

Torsten was ready to raise his sword for training and lowered it. Did the woman honestly not know the basic difference between words? Or did she simply just not care? Much like a confused dog, he tilted his head in confusion at her comments and mistaken assertion. He'd communicated clearly but something was.. off .. about her response. 

"I never even said the word fight. I said train. I don't know or care if you can fight, nor am I here in a -training place- to find out. Training is to learn with an open mind and no antagonism. Fighting is pure animosity toward someone and I made a point of showing the difference. I am NOT here to fight anyone Miss." Her comments were very strange and he wasn't at all sure what she meant. She sounded angry and offended and Tor had no idea why. Was she merely looking for a fight and using the training yard for it? If that was the case, then he did have cause for concern. 

"I stepped forward with the intent to train with you, to learn from you, because you have more experience. I didn't mention or feel any fear, nor should I do so." 

The tall young man clamped down hard on his emotions and clarified his words instead. His dark eyes locked on hers and he asked her slowly and clearly in a toneless voice.

"Miss, do you want to train with me or are you trying to find insult where none was said? I am not here to fight with you or anyone when I'm trying to learn. Just be upfront, honest and don't twist my words please. However, if all you're looking for is just a mindless fight, then no, I'm not interested in one."

His incessant babbling was absolutely not what Kat had signed up for. Honestly some of these new recruits were just entirely too polite and easily offended. The beating she would have gotten, or the teasing she would have given her siblings for the audacity to lecture her about training and fighting.

For her they were the same thing. You trained to fight and you fought to train. They went hand in hand, and it wasn't like she was asking for a fight to the death. "You newbies take everything so fuckin serious. Do you guys even have a fight club in the last year of training anymore?" Shaking her head Kat pinched the bridge of her nose.

"To spell it out in simple words for you I want to spar but don't plan to hold back." Maybe he was just scared. So be it, Kat could find someone else who didn't let his ego or pride get in the way of a good time.

Mosse rolled his eyes at her fight club comment, tried and failed at not letting the woman get under his skin. His temper slipped a little and he snapped back sharply in irritation,

"Yea we did and if you'd just said that upfront, plain and clear from the start, we wouldn't be standing here yapping because of you."

He was sure it wasn't her intention to teach him anything other than a beating, but she had. She didn't like vocabulary words--they made her very defensive and clearly insecure enough to make her more aggressive. She was the kind that had tested his temper beyond limits during early training, always ending in an angry brawl. She was one of the main types of people that aggravated him to no end. All through training, it was exactly that personality type that got to him most. He'd tried to ignore or reason with them, but the only thing they understood was mindless violence. So be it.

That witch was purposely spoiling for a fight with no idea to training, teaching or learning at all and right now, he no longer gave a fuck. There was something about her demeanor that really irked him and his temper rose with each passing minute. In the back of his mind, he knew he was most definitely in for a severe ass-kicking but Mosse no longer cared; he was now openly hostile and made no effort to hide it.

"Fine." he answered curtly, stepping back at an angle and raising his sword to mid height.

There had been zero chance of these two getting along from the start. One a goody, follow the rules type, and the other all about chaos and putting herself first. But Kat hadn't been in the mood to pretend or play nice and thus things had escalated quicker than strictly necessary.

That of course, ended exactly how she wanted it as her fellow soldier stepped back and raised his sword. "Good." Taking a step back herself she swung her naginata in a few practice circles. She wouldn't use her magic, unless she felt like it. Playing by the rules were boring, and they weren't under a watchful eye so why bother.

Never one to sit back Kat made the first move. Stepped forward and slashing forward with her naginata, she cut from the right side towards his hips.