confident and over-confident.” He yawned and soaked up the day before continuing, “So long as you know your limits, and you know your own demons, Live Steel can do amazing things. The fun part is that the sword play is almost superfluous.”
That caught Dawn off guard, “But Live Steel is a sword or other weapon. Why wouldn’t swordplay be important?”
“ The swordplay is there to teach confidence as well as to train the body to move. But when it comes down to the meat of it all, a Live Steel sword is just a talisman for a far, far more impressive weapon system.”
“ What do mean just a talisman ? It seemed like a pretty sincere sword to me!”
“ That is just it. Could a sword cut through a rifle? No, a sword couldn’t. Live Steel quite obviously can, but the manifestation of a sword is just a talisman. Something for your mind and body to grasp and try to control.”
“ When you gated, brought me back after the kartivald attack, I saw a huge number of weapons and things surrounding us. They are all part of the Live Steel, yes?”
“ In a manner of speaking, yes. Those are old mental cues for aspects of Live Steel. I don’t need them anymore. When you are in touch with it you can seamlessly swap from one weapon to another without thinking.”
“ Thus your earlier comment on ‘the weapon size game.’”
“ Exactly!” Llewellyn smiled broadly, “Girls are such better students when it comes to Live Steel. They more quickly grasp things and don’t try to rely on brute force and the artificial shape of the weapon at hand. A good fight is like a good song: you set the tempo and dynamics and go with the flow. You change speeds and instruments as needed to round out the piece, but you always remember to keep it fluid. When someone else is playing a different song, you need to get them to play your piece, or you need to merge the two pieces. So long as you are the composer of the song, you control the outcome.”
Dawn laughed, “I never expected a musical metaphor from you. But I guess it does make sense.” She paused to think, “Okay, just how many girls have you trained?”
Llewellyn laughed, “Honestly, you make number four!” He smiled and then quickly changed the subject, “So, you plan on having Gavin over more often?”
Dawn smiled and shrugged, “Well, if I can.”
Llewellyn stretched and laid back on the river bank, “Oh how fast they grow up.”
Chapter 15
Dawn watched Maria as she cooked breakfast, her thoughts were racing. She had rehearsed the question a dozen times, and it seemed so simple a request, until now. “Um… Maria?”
“ Yes, dear?”
“ Can I get a new dress for the dance this weekend? I have a lot of very nice outfits and I’m thankful for all of them but…”
Maria laughed as she cut Dawn short. She composed herself before calling down the hall to Ivy, “Did you catch that? She wants to get a new dress, just for the dance.”
Dawn would have rolled her eyes, but didn’t want to do anything to tarnish her hopes. It had been almost two months since the last dance and she was eager to go this time.
Ivy blinked absentmindedly as she poked her head into the kitchen, “My little Dawn actually wants to go to the dance? Call the doctor and check her temperature; something’s wrong.”
Dawn cocked an eye, “So is that a ‘yes’ or ‘no’?”
Ivy laughed and hugged Dawn lightly, “Of course you can. We are all going this time and there is no reason not to make the most out of it. Oh, that is, of course, if you can tear yourself away from swordplay with Father.”
Dawn beamed, ignoring the last comment, “So can we go in today? It may take a day or two for alterations.”
“ Today? And risk watching sword practice in town?” asked Maria.
“ Well, that just means we need to go sooner rather than later,” replied Dawn.
“ Hmmm. I guess so,” sighed Maria melodramatically, “I’ll just have to struggle and carry Lily all that
That caught Dawn off guard, “But Live Steel is a sword or other weapon. Why wouldn’t swordplay be important?”
“ The swordplay is there to teach confidence as well as to train the body to move. But when it comes down to the meat of it all, a Live Steel sword is just a talisman for a far, far more impressive weapon system.”
“ What do mean just a talisman ? It seemed like a pretty sincere sword to me!”
“ That is just it. Could a sword cut through a rifle? No, a sword couldn’t. Live Steel quite obviously can, but the manifestation of a sword is just a talisman. Something for your mind and body to grasp and try to control.”
“ When you gated, brought me back after the kartivald attack, I saw a huge number of weapons and things surrounding us. They are all part of the Live Steel, yes?”
“ In a manner of speaking, yes. Those are old mental cues for aspects of Live Steel. I don’t need them anymore. When you are in touch with it you can seamlessly swap from one weapon to another without thinking.”
“ Thus your earlier comment on ‘the weapon size game.’”
“ Exactly!” Llewellyn smiled broadly, “Girls are such better students when it comes to Live Steel. They more quickly grasp things and don’t try to rely on brute force and the artificial shape of the weapon at hand. A good fight is like a good song: you set the tempo and dynamics and go with the flow. You change speeds and instruments as needed to round out the piece, but you always remember to keep it fluid. When someone else is playing a different song, you need to get them to play your piece, or you need to merge the two pieces. So long as you are the composer of the song, you control the outcome.”
Dawn laughed, “I never expected a musical metaphor from you. But I guess it does make sense.” She paused to think, “Okay, just how many girls have you trained?”
Llewellyn laughed, “Honestly, you make number four!” He smiled and then quickly changed the subject, “So, you plan on having Gavin over more often?”
Dawn smiled and shrugged, “Well, if I can.”
Llewellyn stretched and laid back on the river bank, “Oh how fast they grow up.”
Chapter 15
Dawn watched Maria as she cooked breakfast, her thoughts were racing. She had rehearsed the question a dozen times, and it seemed so simple a request, until now. “Um… Maria?”
“ Yes, dear?”
“ Can I get a new dress for the dance this weekend? I have a lot of very nice outfits and I’m thankful for all of them but…”
Maria laughed as she cut Dawn short. She composed herself before calling down the hall to Ivy, “Did you catch that? She wants to get a new dress, just for the dance.”
Dawn would have rolled her eyes, but didn’t want to do anything to tarnish her hopes. It had been almost two months since the last dance and she was eager to go this time.
Ivy blinked absentmindedly as she poked her head into the kitchen, “My little Dawn actually wants to go to the dance? Call the doctor and check her temperature; something’s wrong.”
Dawn cocked an eye, “So is that a ‘yes’ or ‘no’?”
Ivy laughed and hugged Dawn lightly, “Of course you can. We are all going this time and there is no reason not to make the most out of it. Oh, that is, of course, if you can tear yourself away from swordplay with Father.”
Dawn beamed, ignoring the last comment, “So can we go in today? It may take a day or two for alterations.”
“ Today? And risk watching sword practice in town?” asked Maria.
“ Well, that just means we need to go sooner rather than later,” replied Dawn.
“ Hmmm. I guess so,” sighed Maria melodramatically, “I’ll just have to struggle and carry Lily all that
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