"Shouldn't Pearl rest a little bit first?" Jarine asked Eranae, "He just finished his exercises."
"Nope," Pearl said, sweeping back his long hair, which he had kept open for no apparent reason, and then tying it with a cord, "It's alright. Even better, now that my body is all pumped up."
"That's what I wanted to hear." Eranae smiled, prancing forward with her blade, going in for a thrust.
Pearl deflected it with relative ease and fell into a stance similar to Eranae's. He knew that her first move wasn't a serious one because if it was, responding to it wouldn't have been easy.
Eranae brandished her sword, an indication for Pearl to try an attack. He went forward with a slash aimed at her neck which she evaded by stepping back, then sliding ahead with another thrust. This time, the tip of her sword touched Pearl's chest.
"One point to Era," Eranae said, "Zero to Pearl. Just like always."
Pearl smiled and swung the blade in an uphand strike. Eranae blocked the sword and let it slide off to the side, then went for a downhand strike. Pearl immediately pulled back the weapon to deflect Eranae's attack and barely managed to do so in time. For the next few minutes, they exchanged blows and blocks but no one gained a point. Pearl had gotten better with the sword and was learning at an impossibly fast rate. Rel's theory was that it was due to the bond. The binding of spirit essences made it easier for Pearl to grasp Eranae's abilities and vice-versa.
Either way, he hadn't yet gained a point against her in any serious session and this was likely to remain the same. Pearl had begun training with the blade only a week ago while Eranae had been tutored in swordsmanship since she was old enough to walk.
However, today was the first time when Pearl had avoided getting hit for such a long while. He had become a little quicker after switching his Nanar attire for a more practical Temeri vest and skirt, which had helped him bear the rising temperature and also provided him more flexibility. Since the new outfit was more open, Pearl had learned to attune Skysong mid-combat and turn it into lifesong. It was only a miniscule amount but even the smallest of proportions of it could make a large difference.
After sparring for some while, Eranae finally managed to gain a hit on his collar area.
"Two to you," Pearl counted, "Still zero for me."
"It's enough for now," Eranae said, relaxing her stance, "You have gotten better, really better. Take a break. After that I will teach you something new."
"That thing with the Skysong?" Pearl asked with excitement. He always got like that when thinking of learning about the Songs.
"Um...no," Eranae replied, "I will show you a new sword form, which is something that will actually help you when your life's on the line."
"I see," Pearl sighed and walked to the deck's edge. Placing the sword against the railing, he sat down and then drank from his waterskin.
Eranae too slid the sword into her tunic's belt and walked over to Jarine, who was watching the two spar. She averted her gaze on seeing Eranae approach, turning it to the open sea. The deck had gotten busier since when they had started. More crew had come up above and had started performing their duties.
"What is our next stop?" Eranae asked Jarine, who pretended to notice her only recently.
"A small port-city called Binir," Jarine replied, "We will reach there by tomorrow afternoon to resupply drinking water and some rations."
"Oh," Eranae nodded understandingly, "And two days after that we will reach Kanark?"
"Two or three days," Jarine suggested, "But yes."
"Era!" Pearl called out, "Let's begin."
Eranae walked towards him, drawing out her practising sword. "Hold it like this." she said, gripping the sword by the blade with one hand while the other was at the hilt. There was about a feet's gap between the two spots where the hands gripped the sword.
"If I do this with a real sword," Pearl said, imitating Eranae's grip, "Wouldn't my hand get cut?"
"Not if you keep them still." Eranae informed, "This technique is called half-swording. It is a recent invention, made specifically to fight a heavily armored opponent but it's equally effective against someone unarmored. I will show you how. Strike me."
Pearl did so with his favourite uphand slash. Eranae blocked it with the blade of her sword and then slid it against Pearl's blade, moving towards the handle. On reaching the hilt, she interlocked it against her crossguard and pulled back, snatching the sword from Pearl and thus disarming him.
"That was amazing!" Pearl exclaimed, "Let me try."
Era nodded and slashed her sword against him. Pearl replicated Eranae's technique to the best of his ability but emulated the pulling action a bit too hard. As a result, when he snatched the blade from her, it went flying and splashed into the sea.
"Sorry," Pearl said, removing his vest, "I will get it."
Then he dove into the water, which was calm and shallow enough for them to see the coral reefs below.
"I will tell Javius to stop the ship." Jarine said and went to the captain's quarters.
"I will appreciate that," Eranae replied with a smile, and then sighed. She looked at the side of the ship from where Pearl had jumped. In the distance, she saw a ship approach in their direction. Its sails bore no banners.
"Reminds you of something?" Rel spoke eerily, waking up now of all times. But Eranae ignored her, eyeing the ship instead. It was a double masted trireme, accelerating towards them.
"By the Spirits," Eranae said, "Here we go again."