Some men would have taken offense at that, but Aleifr does not. It's a fact. He'd seen the way she recoiled after absorbing a blow against her shield, the way that she'd favored her shoulder in the moments afterward.
He was strong. Very strong. But not so strong as to completely ruin a man's shoulder with a hit that had been caught by a shield -- not unless the shoulder was wounded to begin with. Nonetheless, the shoulder gave him a target, one he hit without hesitation -- using the beard of his axe to roughly wrench the shield down before thudding a mail fist into the injured joint.
Some had jeered from the stands - showering boos on something that they perceived as dishonorable, but Aleifr was unbothered by it. Only a fool fights by half, and only a fool ignores a path to a quick and decisive victory when risking injury or death. Éowyn would have done the same, he imagines, if the positions had been reversed.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
sforzinda
no subject
Date: 2023-11-22 05:10 am (UTC)Some men would have taken offense at that, but Aleifr does not. It's a fact. He'd seen the way she recoiled after absorbing a blow against her shield, the way that she'd favored her shoulder in the moments afterward.
He was strong. Very strong. But not so strong as to completely ruin a man's shoulder with a hit that had been caught by a shield -- not unless the shoulder was wounded to begin with. Nonetheless, the shoulder gave him a target, one he hit without hesitation -- using the beard of his axe to roughly wrench the shield down before thudding a mail fist into the injured joint.
Some had jeered from the stands - showering boos on something that they perceived as dishonorable, but Aleifr was unbothered by it. Only a fool fights by half, and only a fool ignores a path to a quick and decisive victory when risking injury or death. Éowyn would have done the same, he imagines, if the positions had been reversed.
"Though I'd ask what qualifies as 'worse.'"
What gave her the wound, in as many words.