Philip did not wait for her to nod. He stepped forward, his body transforming into a storm of motion. The two wooden sticks in his hands moved with a speed that defied his age. He held them in a high guard, one leading and the other tucked beneath his arm, ready to strike from angles that Maddy had never encountered in the wild.
He lashed out with a diagonal strike toward her shoulder. Before she could fully bring her shield up, the second stick whipped around from the opposite side, aiming for her ribs.
"Everything changed!" Maddy thought, her heart racing. "His rhythm is gone. It is as if I am… fighting two men at once!"
She twisted her body, using the edge of her heavy shield to deflect the first blow, but the vibration traveled deep into her marrow. She barely leaned back in time to let the second stick whistle past her chest.
