“Alpinism is the way of both moving and surviving on the mountain. It’s something that is very dangerous to learn, and we never bring dead weight when we go up there.” Ranaeril explained with a serious voice. “That’s why you’re here. If you don’t know how to shoot properly, we will never bring you along to cross the Notitia Peaks.”

Ranaeril had brought Mahon and Jorik a few hundreds meters away from the village in a cleaned, open space where multiple trees had been painted. They stood at different distances from where the three men were positioned, bows and arrows in hand.

The chief of the Silent Bow Clan dropped to the ground extra quivers full of munitions before he eyed Jorik.

“Ok, you go first. Show me what you can do.”

Jorik glanced back at him with a strange look. “I’ve never used a bow before.”

Ranaeril stopped abruptly sorting the arrows and threw a look at the duo. “So you’re the archer?” He asked Mahon.

Mahon shook his head. “I’ve never touched a bow before today either.”

“What? But aren’t you guys supposed to be warriors?!” The man exclaimed.

“Yeah.” Mahon answered simply.

“But you… Nevermind.” Ranaeril added once he noticed Mahon and Jorik’s deadpan faces. “We’ll start with the basics then.” He sighed.

He took his own bow and assumed a shooting posture, but he didn’t draw his bow.

“Shooting is a one dimension process. We can simply assume that you and the target are on the same line. The only thing that distinguishes you from the target is the distance between you two. But your arrow won’t go straight at your target most of the time. It’ll curve because of gravity. Which suddenly turns the problems into a two-dimensional one. You added one dimension, which wasn’t really needed in the first time, and thus your solutions, that is the way you can shoot at the target, have an extra dimension. Which means…?” He eyed Mahon and Jorik for an answer.

“There is a full realm of possibilities to shoot at the target?” Mahon tried.

“Exactly! There are as many possibilities to aim at your target than ways to angle your bow arm. You just need to adjust your pull, that is the strength with which you’ll fire your arrow, to accommodate for the distance between you and your target. Angle and pull working together give you an infinite array of possibilities to shoot at your target. That’s the extra dimension. So each time you fire, you’ve got a choice. Either you choose an angle, and then you adapt your pull accordingly, or you choose your pull, and then adapt the angle accordingly.”

“How do we know which one to choose?” Jorik asked.

“That’s the whole deal about archery. With sufficient training, anyone can pull a bow and fire an arrow into the correct direction. But a real archer knows what his options are and can choose the best one for each situation.”

Ranaeril explained with a calm voice the theory of archery, but as Mahon and Jorik grew more curious about it, passion started to creep in in his voice, and he spoke faster and with more enthusiasm.

“Generally, strength is more important than the angle, because strength impacts the speed of the arrow. With more speed, there is less time for your opponent to react, and you also need less focus to anticipate where he would be at the time the arrow reaches him. I’ve made shots that took up to four seconds to reach their target. That’s plenty of time to move, even if the target doesn’t see the arrow coming.”

“So we just pull as hard as possible?” Mahon resumed with a skeptical look.

“Against most simple targets, yes. That’s plenty enough for hunting and dumb people. But if I were to fight against you, wouldn’t you dodge all the arrows? That’s where the angle comes into play. If I change the angle, I need to change the strength, thus I change the speed. If the full strength straight arrow is the fastest you can do, you can usually fire an arrow twice slower with a very wide angle…”

Ranaeril eyed the two men, probing them to continue his sentence again. “And thus, if you’re fast enough, you can fire two arrows one after the other. A slow one and a fast one, such that…”

“They will reach the target at the same time!” Mahon quickly connected the dots.

“Exactly!” Ranaeril nodded excitedly. “And then with experience, you can fire much more than two. It also mainly depends on your firing speed and the distance between you and your target. The more time there is between the fastest and slowest arrow, the more arrows you can shoot. With that, you can corner an opponent that would otherwise dodge a single arrow.”

“Can you show us?” Mahon asked with a tinge of curiosity in his voice.

“Sure.” Ranaeril quickly agreed.

He knew how motivation impacted the speed of learning, and there was nothing as stimulating as seeing an expert archer at work.

“Go near that tree,” Ranaeril pointed to a tree stump eighty meters away, “and watch how the arrows hit it simultaneously.”

“Wait.” Mahon intervened. “I thought you were going to shoot at us.”

Ranaeril stared at him with a blank look. “Why would I shoot at you?”

“So I can feel how it’s like to be pressured by multiple arrows.” Mahon explained simply.

Seeing the eagerness and seriousness in Mahon’s eyes, Ranaeril quickly gave in. “I guess I can use blunt arrows…”

“Thanks!” Mahon bowed slightly before he jogged near the stump Ranaeril had pointed to previously.

Jorik went with him, but he moved a few meters away, to give Mahon space to move.

“Let’s deconstruct what I’m doing first.” Ranaeril’s voice carried over the distance. “First, the slow arrow.”

He shot towards the sky without any hesitation, and the trio followed the curve of the arrow until it started falling back down right at Mahon’s face. Mahon stepped to the side at the last time, and the arrow fell into the ground.

“Then, the fastest.”

This time, Ranaeril pointed straight at Mahon, and when he released the string, the arrow seemed to rush instantly at Mahon. Mahon grabbed the arrow with his bare hand a dozen centimeters before it could hit his chest. The arrow almost escaped his hand for how much strength it carried, but the Flow helped him stabilize his grip over it.

From the other side, Ranaeril let out an impressed whistle.

“You’re really something, man! I’ve never seen someone catch an arrow like that… No wonder you wanted to test this. Ok, let’s do it now. Be prepared, it’s not simply the sum of its parts.”

Ranaeril pulled back his bow and fired his first arrow. Then he instantly grabbed another one and readied it on his bow. His move had been so swift and fast that he stopped for a bit afterwards, waiting for the arrow to come down. He then pulled and released his second arrow in the same nimble motion.

Mahon kept track of the two projectiles with his Flow, but even then he immediately felt more pressured. The two arrows weren’t aiming at the same point, otherwise he would have simply dodged to the side both of them at the same time. Instead, they were half a meter apart, just enough that if he dodged one in the wrong direction, he would move into the other.

Without observing longer, Mahon started to move much sooner than previously. He moved away from the most dangerous arrow, the stronger and straighter one, and rolled to the side to move far away enough to dodge the falling one.

He then immediately twisted to the side as a third arrow grazed his chest.

“Hahaha.” Ranaeril’s laugh echoed in the training field. “Sorry for that, I just needed to test it. If you fire one arrow, then your target can move in many directions. It’s hard to predict where it will go. If you fire two at the same time, the choices are reduced, and a third arrow in a second volley can easily find the target unprepared.”

Although they were a long distance apart, Ranaeril’s voice easily reached Mahon and Jorik. The surrounding mountains helped propagate the sound, but it was also clear that the Silent Bow Clan’s chief was very used to having discussions in the archery training field. He wasn’t even screaming, he simply elevated his voice and spoke as if they were just a few meters apart.

“That’s indeed very impressive.” Mahon yelled back at the man.

If not for his Flow, he would have completely missed the third arrow, and even then, caught by surprise, he barely had the time to dodge.

“Impressive? That’s entry level for the Hunters.” Ranaeril teased. “But I admit you got me good. I thought I had you. Mind if we do a little challenge? It’s been some time since I had to use my skills, and it would also be a good opportunity for you to watch what a real archer can do when he knows how to use his bow… and his brain.”

A wide smile spread on Mahon’s lips. He was starting to like Ranaeril more and more. “Sure. I’m up for it! What should we do?”

“Just dodge my arrows.” Ranaeril answered with a predatory face. “To be fair, and also because you should learn from it, I’ll tell you what I’m doing before I shoot.”

Mahon dived deeper into the Flow, becoming immediately aware of his surroundings and up to Ranaeril. In a real battle, he wouldn’t be able to extend his Flow to that distance and fight properly, but he only needed to dodge right now. He raised his hand in the air and gestured to Ranaeril that he was ready. At his side, Jorik’s Flow was also slowly becoming deeper, and the noble moved back not to hinder Mahon.

“Let’s start simple. Two flocks of two.” The archer said.

He stayed immobile for a couple seconds, steadying his breath before he reached for an arrow and started shooting. Although he said he would fire two volleys, he didn’t really mark any pause during his motion. He first shot an arrow almost straight at the sky, before firing another, with a slightly reduced angle.

With his Flow, Mahon was able to deduce easily the trajectory of the two arrows, and he realized they weren’t aiming at the same point, nor arriving at the same time. They were both the first arrows of the two respective volleys.

Ranaeril observed the situation for a short second before he shot two arrows straight at Mahon, one after the other. This time again, the two arrows weren’t aimed at the same spot. The first one paired perfectly with the first curved arrow he had fired, forcing Mahon to dodge left. But the second straight arrow, coupled with the second curved one, covered most of the area Mahon would move to if he dodged the first volley.

With a smile, Mahon walked forward and twisted his shoulders. He weaved between the first volley and grabbed the arrow aiming straight at him from the second one. The last arrow fell at his side, harmlessly.

“Hohoho!” Ranaeril's deep laugh rang around the mountain. “A worthy challenge, indeed. So you were just caught unprepared previously, eh?” The Hunter reached for more arrows in his quiver and his face turned serious, although the joy and happiness of the challenge could still be seen shining in his eyes. “Three flocks of two.”

Mahon danced between the raining arrows, foiling the archer’s plan to get to him.

“Three in one go, and then two flocks of two.” Ranaeril continued displaying his amazing skills with a smile that kept growing wider.

Three arrows were not just fifty percent harder than two. Not only did Ranaeril needed the time to do the physical motion of shooting, but he also had to find the right angle and the perfect pull for his arrows to arrive at the same time. It wasn’t simply firing three arrows before the first one hit. It was firing three arrows such that they would reach their target at the same time.

Mahon stopped playing as well. He started moving right after Ranaeril fired the first arrow. But it seemed the Hunter had taken Mahon’s move into account. Contrary to his previous shots, he didn’t aim as high as he could, and the first curved arrow was actually more straight than curved.

Without missing a bit, and with incredible precision and lightning speed, Ranaeril shot one arrow after the other, grouping them perfectly. Mahon used every ounce of his mobility and explosivity to pass through the first volley, and it was only thanks to the Flow that he managed to dodge the second and third volleys.

“Three-Three-Two.” Ranaeril continued without even looking tired.

Mahon used his spear to deflect some arrows and create a path through.

“Three-Three-Three.”

Mahon didn’t even dare to move from his starting position. Dodging was now becoming more dangerous than being static, and he focused entirely on blocking the arrows with his weapon. His spear spun at incredible speed, and Mahon was able to block the three volleys with difficulty.

“Four-Three-Three.” A drop of sweat started rolling on Ranaeril’s face, but his bow arm remained perfectly steady as he fired arrow after arrow with a motion that was almost invisible to the naked eye.

Only the Twelve Steps of the Lance helped Mahon resist the attack. Barely.

“Four-Four-Three.”

Mahon didn’t use the thirteenth Step, as it would only spoil the exercise. Instead, he dived into that sensation he had felt when fighting Luvon and his two disciples in the arena.

That freedom. That feeling of opening a door to an endless realm of possibilities. A complete lack of rules.

His spear split the air with a light buzz and, for a single instant, it seemed to be at two points at the same time through his Flow. To the naked eye, the spear had simply disappeared while two arrows had been cut down simultaneously.

“Four-Four-Four.”

The arrows reached Mahon before he could even catch his breath.

He created a path through the first volley with the mysterious fourteenth Step he was still practicing with.

His perfect mastery of the other Steps helped him push through the second volley.

The third one caught him out of sync, in a bad posture. Mahon twisted, twirled and rolled, but it didn’t matter. An arrow hit him right in the shoulder.

“Got you!” Ranaeril shouted out happily. “You monstrous slippery eel!” He continued while walking towards them. “I only had five-arrow flocks in stock before I would run out of options and admit defeat. Lucky me, I don’t have to fight you for real!”

Mahon laughed happily at the tension brought by the challenge slowly disappeared. “To be honest, I’ve never held archery in any consideration before today. You changed everything.”

“When can we start learning to that?” Jorik intervened with an eager smile.

He wasn’t the only one who had been hyped by Ranaeril’s demonstration. The chief Hunter observed the two men in turn before he laughed out loud in front of the raw zeal and passion that burned in their eyes.

“It has already started.”