An early morning

Goldenblade is found, as she often in, at the forge that's out in one of the sheds surrounding the open drill field on the Academy grounds. She has just formed something or other and is holding it with a pair of tongs as she plunges it into a tub of water, where it steams tremendously.

Nyanta slips into view quietly. He is not necessarily sneaking; as a cat, his footsteps are naturally light and silent. He notices that Goldenblade is busy with her craft, and he respects that. He leans against the wall closest the door and waits patiently, watching as his ex-student foes through the motion of quenching and tempering.

Goldenblade was, in fact, just finishing up. When she pulls the tool out of the quenching barrel, she inspects it critically, then turns to plunk it down on the workbench, and about jumps when she spots Nyanta right there. Her senses have dulled in this world, or there is more checking vs perception than in RL perhaps. The small tool lands on the workbench with a clank and she gasps, then realizes who it is and smiles.

"Hello, chief," she greets the cat. "Welcome to the Academy."

Nyanta brandishes a smile like a sword: he's a master at both weapons, "Good meowrning, Goldenblade. It seems you are also an early riser, nya?" He gives a glance around the workship, though it's hard to tell what he's thinking as he does so, "You do seem to have quite the setup here, nya."

Goldenblade smiles widely. She is an above average weaponsmith and armorsmith both, as a few samples around the shop will attest, as well as her own gear, which is crafted rather than dropped. That is one of the main aspects in which her skillset differs from the Cat's. "Thank you," she replies. "It doesn't see much use, sadly, but I warm the forge up from time to time so my skills don't atrophy. I've been working on a project for the new King of Uruk, a sword of some kind, I think, that can be what Excalibur was to Arthut. But so far, I can't get the preliminary planning worked out. That is, I can't get in to find what kind of sword he would use."

Nyanta gives a shrug as par of the motion of moving away from the wall, "Being a Meownarch does, typically, involve a busy schedule,nya. I am sure it isn't that he thinks the project unimpurrtant. Especially in a nyew kingdom, there is a lot to do, nya."

Goldenblade nods to Nyanta, "Oh, I know, that's why I'm not pressing him for anything. But when I can set things up, that will be my next major project." She sets her tongs down on the workbench, takes off her heavy work gloves, and says, "Well, you've seen the forge. The main building just outside the shed is the schoolhouse, or would be if we had classes. And the big flat area I call the parade ground, that's where a lot of the physical training takes place."

Nyanta gives a large, toothy grin, "One myahst be careful with the T-word, nya. If Souji were to hear, he may be summyahned, interfering with whatever it is he's doing. That being said, I believe some exercise myaight do myee some good. I have been feeling rusty lately, nya,"

Goldenblade huhs abouit the T-word? "What T-... oh, training?" She shrugs. "He's welcome to come here and train if he likes, but I think he doesn't care for me much because I won't follow after him like some airhead," she grumbles dismissively. "But he can if he likes, I've got nothing against him. He seems like a nice enough guy, and he /does/ take his training seriously."

Nyanta nods once or twice, "Yes, well, the interesting thing is... Souji is a rather innyahcent boy. He pays attention to each of his entourage because he believes it is the polite thing to do, not because he is attempting a harem, nya. In this, it is almost scarier, nya..."

Goldenblade shrugs, "Oh, I know he doesn't have any intentions with any of them. But I don't understand /why/ they do it. Is it just to feel the adoration? That's a bit cheesy. I guess in my day, a girl who couldn't get what she wanted from a guy would go find a guy she could get it from. Nowadays, women with jobs don't need a man for anything, so they can spend time with a guy who doesn't give them anything, and they're fine with it." She sighs at modern times. They've left Goldenblade behind.

Nyanta holds a finger up as if pointing to what she just said, "Ah, but there's the reason. While he does nyat give them anyeething, he also does nyat expect anyeething from THEM, nya. It makes furr a safe space where they may all expurrience the feeling of having an adoring signyihficant other without anyee of the commeowtment, nya."

Goldenblade gives Nyanta a puzzled look. "Yes, that's what I'm complaining about. No one gets anything done and it's all wasted time and wasted lives." She shrugs. "Anyhow, safe spaces are for six-year-olds scared of monsters under their beds. Adults need to get on with their lives and grow up." She shrugs. "Not that me saying so changes anything. It's just disheartening to see kids today that need a safe space to do whatever in." Depressedsigh. "Getting old is better than the alternative, but I feel so lost."

Nyanta looks out the door of GB's shop, out onto the training field, "Well, the world is more dangerous than when I was young - when YOU were young - and we have become somewhat meowre overpurrtective of our children, nya. With the population shortage, each child is meowre purrecious, and is therefore coddled meowre..."

Goldenblade laughs to Nyanta, and says, "More dangerous? I think you might mean /differently/ dangerous or wildly less dangerous, but I grew up with Mister Hitler in Germany and gangs of thugs smashed windows of shops, and lead in paint and gasoline, and no helmets for riding your bicycle and I was twelve when a vaccine for polio came out. So in my experience the world is much safer than the one I grew up in, and now kids are worried about things I didn't have time to spend being worried about."

Nyanta lets off a chuckle, "Ah, yes. Myai apologies. I keep forgetting just how meowch older I am than you, nya. It meowst be that you do nyat let your age slow you, nya." He looks back out toward the training ground. "In regards to that, I have seen a couple of mewves you have purrformed that I did nyat teach you: impurressive ones...?" A twinkle in his eye appears as he throws out his probing question.

Goldenblade smirks to the cat, but nods about moves, and explains, "After you taught me the basics, I taught myself a few advanced techniques, and filled in several gaps in the built-in skill set. I built this Academy so I could pass those techniques on, and of course if you would like me to teach them to you ... well, I suppose in that case we will have come full circle."

Nyanta nods, giving a very cat-like stretch. "I have most definyatly let meowself degrade with myai swordskill during myai time in Cat Food. And circles keep us nyaice and rounded. I would appurriciate any asshisstance that you could give."

Goldenblade laughs, and says, "You, degraded, is I'm sure better than me on a good day, but I'll be willing to teach you any moves I know. A few of the ones I've developed have been distributed so widely now than anyone can take them without training," she explains, and will list off what she can train.

Nyanta rubs his back, "Well, last battle, I was nyat as... limber as I once was, nya. Perhaps we should work on that first, nya..." Last battle, right at the end, Nyanta had been surprised and knocked into a wall. It wasn't a pleasant experience...

Goldenblade has had worse than that, though not recently. It's part and parcel of the game, as far as she sees it, but she's expecting to take a beating in a fight. She's tougher than most blade dancers also, nearly to off-tank status. "Well," she says, "I'll teach you what I can, and we can work from there." She nods sagely.

Nyanta claps his hands together with as much excitement you can expect from the Coolest Cat in ETO, "Purrfect! If you are nyat busy right nyaow..." He gives GB a wink, asking her own brain to finish the sentence.

Goldenblade shrugs, nods, "I'm not particularly busy as you can see," she says, "So I'll show you some of what I've worked out. One of the best is a self-heal, developed after watching US Football games. Do you know the players huff pure oxygen to regain their stamina quickly? I use elemental techniques to compress air into a bottle. And the water makes it work somehow. It's also useful for underwater, though not for very long."

Nyanta nods. "Ah. Having a healing option would be of use in dungeons, nya..."

Goldenblade nods to Nyanta, "And a way to breathe underwater is entirely useful."

Nyanta bows his head. "Well, then, I will be in your care, Teacher, nya..." He shoots GB a wink. "Now the student becomes the myaster."