Fighting Alone

Darcy swung the dagger, striking hard at the dummy. She huffed, unsatisfied. In full battle armour she stood, her short black dyed hair ruffled, a fierce look on her pale face, her stormy grey eyes focused on the dummy. She threw her dagger with accuracy, right into the dummy's 'heart'.

What? Aphrodite's and Athena's training together? That didn't happen every day. Fortunately, Victoria had been told to team up with one of her brothers, so she was with someone on her own level.

He tried to punch her face, she grabbed his wrist and ducked, hooking her arm under his thigh to wheel him over her shoulder. He sensed what was coming though and pushed into the middle of her spine. Victoria stepped out of her half-finished technique and came for his stomach with a punch. He immediately slammed his arm down on hers in a block and grabbed the front of her shirt to head-butt her. She shoved his forehead back then crossed her wrists and rammed them against his throat. Choking noises came from beneath his helmet. Without losing time, she grabbed his hand, twisted it up, and armlocked him. Before she could properly lift his shoulder out of its socket though, he drew his arm back with a twist of his hips and grabbed her around the waist. I know that one, son, she thought as she struggled out of his grasp, but he didn't leave her the time, grabbed her neck, and slammed her face down on his knee. Her nose crunched. Hot liquid oozed out of her nostrils and she hissed air in through her mouth. He lifted her back up by the neckline of her shirt, twisting her arm behind her back. Oh really? In one second, she grabbed the hand that held her wrist and spun to the side, her elbow slamming into his ribs. Crack. Dropping her arm, she grabbed his upper thigh, right on the pressure point, which made him step back a little. Victoria used that to spin underneath his arm, still firmly holding his wrist, before twisting it up against his shoulder blades. He cried out in pain. Moving backwards in a flash, Victoria ripped him off balance so his knees hit the floor. Then she smashed her own knee into the angle of his exposed collarbone, splitting it on impact.

"Time out!" He yelped and Victoria dropped her hands. The lower half of her face was covered in shiny red, the blood slowly dripping off her chin. She wiped it off and went over to the refreshment table, where a son of Apollo immediately tended to her nose. Another crack and it was back in place, then he put a piece of ambrosia in her hand and told her to take a seat on the side. Fresh blood flowing out of her nostrils, the fourteen years old sat down on a bench and bit into the square of godly food. To her, it tasted like a piece of warm olive bread, straight out of the oven.

OOC: She's 14, very athletic for her age, with really bad blonde hair and dark gray eyes. Her sports clothes are covered in hand-scribbled equations and diagrams.

Darcy glanced over at Victoria,her eyes widening in awe. Who was this camper? Oh gods I'm too shy to introduce myself.. She thought

"Switch partners!" Chiron said and the cabin counsellors made different teams. Victoria was put with a black-haired girl, maybe two or three years older than her. People had said she was the new addition to the Aphrodite cabin. "Hi." she simply said and got into fighting stance.

Darcy groaned internally. This girl was great at fighting. Darcy, was not. Her confidence faltered. Even though she was an older camper, she was terrible at most activities, including sword fighting. Darcy sighed. Yes, she could fight a dummy. A camper? Nope.

From her posture and movements, Victoria realized the girl was a total beginner. She dropped her hands. Why did they stick her with me? "Alright. Attack me," she said, her voice completely neutral.

Darcy bit her lip and muttered 'Goddamnit.." She realized that she looked like a stupid baby. She huffed.

"Attack me," Victoria repeated.

In her mind, she played the strategy game in advance. Glancing at the spots she'd use, she imagined multiple ways of getting the girl to the ground as quickly as possible

Darcy gathered her courage, and ran forward, jabbing at the experienced girl with her sword.

Victoria parried with the flat of her blade and spun into her guard, stopping with her other elbow an inch from Darcy's throat. "Trachea crushed," she said. "Don't leave your guard open. Use your shield."

Darcy felt idiotic. "Sorry..'

"Don't apologize."

Victoria went back into fighting stance. Then, she jabbed at Darcy's side. It was a slow, easy move, good to learn parrying.

Darcy parried it easily, trying desperately to imagine that Victoria was a dummy.

Victoria hooked her foot into Darcy's ankle and pulled it back with a twist of her hips, a move that sent opponents off balance enough to often fall backwards.