The Legion practice ground is a large flat area above the city, outside the gates. Since Calbeyn lines the sides of a narrow gorge, there's no room for anything of that size inside the city itself.
Rotemdol and Lulmyra is accompanied by two people from the temple, a youngish kandar woman called Oluna, and a big human man called Thard. Presumably one has the authority and one has the muscle.
One end of the practice ground is taken up by a some legionnaires performing drill, badly. Rotemdol guesses that these are certainly new recruits being hammered into shape. The drill sergeant in charge has his work cut out with this lot, an equal mix of humans and kandar. Rotemdol remembers from his time in the legion of the practice of encouraging rivalry between human and kandar units as a way of improving the standards of both. The downside of that approach was the number of brawls when off-duty.
After finishing with martial arts training Rotemdol moves his charges to the area where his accomplice Banjo had been setting things up.
"Watch carefully", he says, showing them the rudimentaries of knife throwing, "Each one will pick a knife from the table, make sure that you return them as I am somewhat attached to my knives. I want all of you on the left to work with Banjo, the rest will work with me. Each will try five times to score with his left hand and five times with his right".
"Yes, sir", the soldier reply, used as they are to following orders.
Rotemdol pays attention to Lulmyra choosing a knife to throw. She picks up a well-worn but well-balanced knife; Rotemdol isn't really sure if she's picked up a good one through pure luck, or if she knows something about knives.
Knife-throwing clearly isn't a core skill taught in the Legion, at least not in basic training. Too many of the legionnaires have trouble hitting the board with the target on, let alone the centre of the target.
Lulmyra doesn't appear to have much experience in throwing knives, but she does seem to have a natural talent; although one attempt goes wild she puts the so-called professionals to shame. Her final attempt hits the bull's eye.
Rotemdol dismisses all but the best four soldiers, and tries teaching them to juggle three clubs. Juggling doesn't seem to be as easy as it looks, for Lulmyra is the only one of the five that manages to juggle them successfully from the beginning. Eventually two of the soldiers manage to keep the three clubs in the air, but the other two just don't seem to have the knack. Rotemdol dismisses those two and is left with two soldiers plus Lulmyra when he introduces the burning clubs, switching one club each for a burning one.
Although this isn't anything like as dangerous as it looks, one soldier only manages to keep the burning club in the air only at the expense of the other two. His companion does rather better, keeping the three in the air for a while until it's the burning one he eventually drops, having to jump out of the way to avoid getting his leg singed. Lulmyra of course keeps them in the air until Rotemdol calls a halt.
Rotemdol thanks Boots and prepares to return to the temple, as Banjo collects up the clubs. He's already dismantled the target.
"Talented girl, the young one!", remarks Boots, "And thanks for not damaging any of my men. Even if they're no good at juggling!".
Rotemdol walks next to Lulmyra with the other three also still around.
"This was a very well done", Rotemdol praises, "Can you go over the test and tell me what you found interesting?"
"The flaming torches bit was a bit scary", she says, "I feel sorry for the soldiers, they get taught to march around and are shouted at, then they get sent off to die in the war".
"They're shouted at like that and trained so that they don't die", Banjo interrupts, "If they know what to do in a battle, they will survive long enough to come home again".
Lulmyra and Rotemdol discuss the juggling and knife throwing in more detail.
"I will be happy to have you as my apprentice. The terms will be the regular terms, of course".
"If my sister will let me", she says.
"My regular practice hall is in the Ant-Hill", Rotemdol continues.
Lulmyra gasps.
"But that's not appropriate", Rotemdol adds quickly, "We should find you a place not far from the Dragon and start your training. Do you think your siblings would want to stay with you?".
"We have a house not far from there", she says, "But we're going to lose it; since Ayruna got sick and couldn't work, she can't pay the rent any more".
"Going a bit further from the other three Rotemdol asks her in a lowered voice "Is there anything I should know about your family? do you have enemies? you are with me now so you probably do not have much to worry about in any case, but let me know the situation so I can make the necessary preparations and adjustments".
"Ayruna wouldn't tell me what happened to mother and father", she says in a very timid voice, "One day they were gone".
"Maybe I can pay the rent for it", Rotemdol suggests, "I have to check with Ayruna about that. I do have to keep you somewhere so it might be appropriate".
Lulmyra looks quizically, as if unsure of the implications of this.
"Is there a place to practice in the house or the Yard?." Rotemdol asks "Can you describe it a little?".
"It's very small", she says, "Just a couple of rooms upstairs where we sleep, and the kitchen below at the back without any windows. There isn't a yard".
Not that many places in Calbeyn do have any outdoor space; since the city is cut into the walls of a gorge, flat space is at a premium.
"I will talk to Ayruna and see if we can agree", Rotemdol says, "Do you have any pointers on what I should say, or not say?".
"She doesn't like you", Lulmyra says rather unhelpfully, "She doesn't want me to take up a life like yours".
"Lulmyra, there is a distinction between what a person does and what he is qualified to do. With the skills I will teach you, you could do many things. You could perform with Juggling, knife throwing or martial art displays. You could teach armed and unarmed fighting in any place in the city or maybe become a soldier, a bodyguard or any other sort of mercenary. Bodyguard who can be disguised as companions or servants command very high price. I have certainly performed all of those in the past. Even if you decide to do something totally unrelated you will find that physical and martial training, of the kind I provide, will come in very handy.
The reason I entertain and teach is that I enjoy it. I certainly prefer these vocations to killing people. Which of these alternatives you think your sister will find least objectionable?"
"I don't know", she says, hesitantly "Our family use to make things. My sister hates fighting and killing. She seems to think entertainers are thieves.
"She's a stubborn one, you'll have trouble persuading her", says Oluna, the novice priestess from the temple who's accompanied them. She still doesn't understand how the guild has abandoned them".