Eastar look at the princess, then to the bow... and then, to the target with the arrows in the center.
— My turn? How do you think I'll do this? — He extended his arms, pointing to what Sindar did before.
— First you need an arrow.
— Ha, ha. Don't tell me.
He grabbed a projectile, hooked it into the bow and pulled, the problem is that he pulled harder than he should. The rope snapped in his hand, whipping his face and leaving a slight cut on his cheek.
— Oh! Great, everything on this planet is: you do it right, or get hurt — complained.
A few archers on the targets next to them began to laugh, and Sindar did not know whether to laugh along or ask if the young star was all right. She stepped forward, took Eastar's face in her hands, and stared at the cut from which bright blue liquid trickled.
She fingered the strange blood and licked.
— What the fu...? — He walked away feeling the wound burning.
The princess ignored him as she thought, then answered with wide eyes and a smile.
— I always wondered if it was true that the stellar blood was so different. I knew it was some kind of liquid energy, which makes sense, since it is the same color as your eyes. But the taste is incredibly sweet!
He raised an eyebrow.
— Are you thinking of using me to sweeten your milk in the morning?
She laughed.
— Of course not, idiot! It just surprised me. The blood of humans and sirions has a metallic taste. The composition must be very different. — She clapped her hands. — This is so cool!
The young star was still confused and she continued:
— And don't worry, the cut was no big deal, you just have to stop being so gross. Learn to control your strength.
She took another rope from the arrow basket and handed it to him.
— This time do the following. — She took another arrow and put it in the bow, still down. — First, look at the target, feel the wind, imagine the trajectory of the arrow and the influence of wind on it. You will get used to the weight of the arrow and the deviation over time. — She took a deep breath, closing her eyes. — Only then arm and shoot.
With a buzz the arrow went straight to the target. The princess smiled proudly and looked back at her companion.
— You will not be able to aim when the cord is pulled to the ear. — She crossed her arms. — Look, I know it may sound abstract, but you'll get better very quickly once you understand that. Now try it.
Eastar rolled his eyes and focused on the task. Looked at the front and felt the wind, loaded the bow, pulled the rope calmly to the ear. Realizing that it was really difficult to aim with the rope pulled, tried to set the course of the bow and released.
The arrow passed the target's left, much higher than it should have been, and plunged into a small red-apple two hundred meters away.
The arrow went halfway down the stem and vibrated there. The star looked downcast.
— Okay, it's harder than I expected.
— Actually, I don't think that 's it. You were fast, the only problem was that you just did what I told you not to do: took aim when you shouldn't.
He frowned and agreed.
— Can I go again or do you want to show off more to me?
— No way! I won't show you everything I know that easy. First you will repeat this until you can hit the center of the target from here, then we will move further away.
— If you say so, that's fine. Take a little step aside, pricess, I don't want to poke you.
Sindar laughed, but walked away, thinking it was a sensible advice for what she had already seen from that stellar... despite leaving this joke only in her head.
Eastar took another arrow, and this time, in addition to pay attention to the wind and the weight of the projectil, he already knew the power of the bow and as was the displacement of the arrow in the air, he had learned all this with the first shot and watching the princess, he knew how to position the bow before pulling it.
He took a deep breath, took the rope to his right ear, and before he could even let it out, released the arrow. It followed fast and hit the straw target, causing it to vibrate, was not in the center, but two feet to the right.
— Damn... — He lowered his bow and frowned.
— What are you complaining about? — Sindar looked at him with raised eyebrows. — I thought it would take longer for you hit the target. Sincerely, it 's kind of frustrating.
— I can't explain, but I seem to learn things much faster since I came down. — He smiled. — My father told me that legionaries usually come to the planet to train, he said that the performance can be much higher, I think it has to do with the passage of time.
— Seriously? — The princess's eyes flashed with curiosity. — Why?
— I have no idea. — He shrugged.
— Ah... — She lowered her head, then sighed and crossed her arms, facing the prodigy student. — Anyway, it means you'll be fine much faster than I anticipated.
— Great, so we'll have more time for fun!
— Don't think it's going to be that easy. — She patted his face twice. — But, actually, I can take you for a walk in the fields outside the city, in a place where I like to play and...
— Cool, playing... yes... playing is cool...
— You have no idea what I mean, do you?
He inclined his head.
— Was not the fun we are talking about?
She laughed and held her hand on his shoulder.
— No, big boy. I'm talking about taking my lute. A musical instrument, I play the strings, and their sound becomes music.
— Aaaahh! I know what this is! My mom said that is amazing. Our kind of music is very different, the music coming through our bodies, we make the internal energy pulsing and... — He broke off, the princess approached more and more of him, more open eyes, expecting more information, then he scratched his head and smiled . — It's hard to explain. You will play for me?
She took a deep breath and held the curiosity about this discovery. Beings with music in their own bodies, was amazing! She crossed the arms and looked at the young star.
— Can be. If you show me how your music works.
— Oh, I can't do it here. On the planet I don't control the flow of my internal energy as in space, the most I can do is shine like yesterday night.
Sindar put his hands on the young star's shoulders and squeezed them.
— You know, you're frustrating me a lot today.
— What did I do? — He widened his eyes.
— Nothing, nothing... — She waved a hand in front of his face and turned away. — Now I have to go. Continue your training from here. If you think you can get farther away, do it. A bow like this can run about four hundred meters. — She raised a hand and gave a small wave. — See you at lunch.
— Yes, ma'am! — He saluted.
Sindar turned around, laughing, and left. That stellar interested her more and more.