Sir Gilander leaned forward, setting his shield in front and resting the tip of the arming sword on his shoulder in a stance that was both an open invitation to attack and a challenge to withstand the counter he'd prepared. Against a man with a long-handled ax, it was a conservative, almost predictable move and one that even a squire could emulate.
For Bors, however, the weaknesses in Sir Gilander's guard made it clear that the other man understood his instructions well, even though not a word of them had been spoken. Gilander's lead foot was too far forward, his shield was angled poorly to receive a blow and while the guard he'd selected for his arming sword should allow him to attack from a number of surprising angles so long as he concealed his sword hand behind the shield, he'd actually positioned his sword hand to the right of his centerline, making his intentions obvious to a warrior as experienced as his opponent.
