The Valiant - Michael Jan Friedman [19]
Book Two
Stargazer
CHAPTER
Jean-Luc Picard regarded his opponent through the fine steel mesh of his fencing mask.
Daithan Ruhalter was tall, barrel-chested, and powerfully built and for all of that, quick as a cat. Like Picard, he was clad entirely in whitethe accepted garb for fencers for the last several hundred years.
At first, Ruhalter just stood there on the metallic strip in a half-crouch, only his head moving as he took stock of Picards posture. Then he edged forward with a skip step, lunged full length and extended his point in the direction of his adversarys chest.
It wasnt his best movePicard knew that from experience. It was just an opening salvo, Ruhalters effort to feel his opponent outand Picard, who had been trained by some of the best fencing masters in twenty-fourth-century Europe, didnt overreact. He merely retreated a couple of steps and flicked his opponents point aside.
Undaunted, Ruhalter advanced and lunged againthough this time, he took a lower line. Picard had no more trouble with this attack than the first. In fact, he launched a counterattack just to keep his adversary honest.
Ruhalter chuckled in his mask, his voice deep and resonant. Lets begin in earnest now, eh?
If you say so, Picard rejoined.
Suddenly, the other mans point was everywherehigh, low, sliding in from the left, zagging in from the right. Picard wove an intricate web of protective steel around himself, defending against each incursion as soon as he recognized it.
Ruhalter used his fencing blade the way he commanded his crew. He was aggressive, improvisational, inclined to go with his instincts first and last. Also, he was a devout believer in the philosophy that the best defense is a good offense.
It was an approach that had garnered the man his share of prestigious medals and left more than one hostile species cursing his name. Years earlier, before the landmark Treaty of Algeron, Ruhalter had even gotten the best of the crafty Romulans.
However, Picard was no pushover either. Though his style was to rely on skill, discipline, and a carefully considered game plan, he was so surgically precise that few opponents could prevail against him.
Ruhalter continued to advance against the younger man, relentless in his onslaught. His sword darted like a living thing, a steel predator hungry for a taste of its prey.
Picard had no chance to go on the offensive, no opportunity to drive his opponent back in the other direction. It was all he could do to keep Ruhalters point away from himselfbut he did that admirably well.
And he knew his adversary couldnt keep up his intensity forever. Eventually, Ruhalter would have to falter. If I bide my time, Picard told himself, Ill find the opening I need.
Then, suddenly, there it was the opening .
In an attempt to lunge in under Picards guard, Ruhalter had failed to extend his lead leg quite far enough. As a result, he had dropped his upper body. Off-balance, he was eminently vulnerable.
Heard moved his opponents point out of the way, encountering little resistance. With practiced efficiency, he leaned forward into a forceful but economical counterthrust.
Too late, he saw his error. Ruhalter hadnt made a mistake after all. His overextension had been an act, a ruse designed to draw Picard into a subtle trap and it had worked.
Thwarting the younger mans attack with the polished dome of his guard, Ruhalter came at Picard with a roundhouse right. Before Picard could retreat and erect a new defense, Ruhalters point was pushing against the ribs beneath his left arm.
Alas! the older man barked, making no effort to mask his exuberance.
The best fencing masters in Europe would have been ashamed of him, Picard thought On the other hand, it was devilishly difficult to deal with someone who was so unpredictable.
Your point, Picard conceded drily.
Careful not to forget his manners, he swung his blade up to his mask in