Snow drifted gently from the pale morning sky, settling over the training grounds in a quiet, frozen veil. Each exhale came out as mist, and every movement left a soft crunch behind. Trafalgar was currently in a sparring match with Sylis, but his focus was clearly elsewhere.
"Urgh."
A heavy blow struck his side, knocking the air from his lungs. He grunted and dropped to one knee, hand instinctively moving to his ribs.
Sylis stood over him, arms crossed and unimpressed. "You're not focused today. If you don't want to train, don't show up."
From the sidelines, Mordrek's deep voice rang out. "Got your head somewhere else, bastard? You've got a decade of catching up to do. You can't afford this crap."
He strode forward, his coat fluttering slightly in the cold wind.
"Take a break. Drink something. When you're done, I'll teach you an evasion skill. Something that might've saved your sorry hide back when you fought that hunter."
