I allow my audits to prick at the sound of her gruff voice suddenly raising up a few octaves. The child-like squeak couldn’t have come from the same mouth that the taunt of me trying to get myself killed had, could it? Apparently, it could, but the eerie sound did little to deter the inner daemons who had the desire to fight, to loosen my muscles. So I would build up the strength which I had been allowing to go by the wayside by replacing it with my mind games.

My frame is built for endurance, and as I shuffle my weight and rattle off the conditions I allow my yellow orbs to soak up all of Agrona’s frame. All the while she seemed to do the same to me. A twisted smirk befalls my maw as I estimate the height difference. She had to be close to sixteen-or-so hands high, only about six inches off of my short frame. A good difference, one that could mean I had the upper hand, with the easiest access to her softer areas - but she had easier access to my skull, to my spine. Both of us would need to be weary of the other’s attacks. This was training, though, so I also had no desire to aim towards arteries, to maim, or horrifically injure her. That would ruin the fun for later, after all. Wouldn’t it?

Her lanky form starts to lock up, face drawing to her chest and the muscles on her neck buldging. In return, my neck raises, holding my carriage higher – more elegantly than before - and I continue to shift my weight left to right. Someone’s having fun, Schwere laughs as the mare tightens her haunches and allows a chuckle to pull a wide smile across her darkened lips. And then, she is lurching forward, lanky legs covering the distance easily as I begin to side-step my way to the left.

The one thing I don’t believe this mare realizes, though, is that I am willing to take a hit should I be able to induce more pain on her in the process. So, allowing my damp hooves (from the earlier dip in the pool) to spin I begin to turn on the forehand, allowing my haunches to line up closer to the mare’s left side. We both have the same idea, though, and as she lashes out with her left limb towards my right shoulder, the only mark it hits is the middle of my barrel. However, since we are in too close proximity it takes all of my will to steel myself and not stumble away, making the next attack more difficult. I let out a huff of air, head turned so that my eyes can lock upon her frame as she spins around. Perhaps she is trying to line up with my head. Instead, she finds exactly what she was just turning away from. My body continues to spin to the right, to offer my own flying hooves to match her's.

Once I feel I have turned enough to line up with her frame, I kick out violently. Both hind legs aim towards her chest or face as long as the mare does not catch on quick enough to move out of the way. The tempered-glass of my hooves glinting in the sunlight acts as the only warning that I’m aiming directly at her front end. In fact, I’m trying to leave hoof prints on her flesh or bruise up the muscle around that area. It’s only fair when I can feel my muscles near my ribs beginning to clench up with the movement. ”Tsk, tsk. Don’t get distracted…”

Then, whether or not I made contact, whether or not I actually gave her back the same bruise, I allowed my haunches to drop to the ground and my bodice to trot a few careful strides forward. Adrenaline was kicking in now and Schwere’s laughter was bubbling to the surface of my mind. Finally. Something to play with!

It is with a splash that I turned towards the east, avoiding the muddy banks. My lithe frame took two canter strides closer to the trees – unwilling to deal with the water should it create mud and attempt to hold me in one place for too long. As fore-hooves landed their second stride I spun around to face where Agrona had been and slowed to a walk, my hooves scraping the mud onto the grass. I was a good twenty-two feet away from the water, and that distance seemed to be sufficient enough for the moment. However, I would either have to inch myself away from that liquid or slyly push her toward it if I didn't want to get stuck in mud later. Make this interesting, Unheil instructed.