I looked at Kael as he continued to chatter away.
"You are trying to sense things before they happen but that skill can either be a blessing or a curse."
"It would be a blessing on most days," I answered.
The words were true; the mana only amplified what had already been there and I had trained my senses to be intuned enough to catch nuances in my opponent's movement.
I could even feel rather than hear the scrape of sand beneath boots on the far bench. I felt the smallest sweat drop that would betray a twitch.
He changed tactic then, going from tests to attempts at shaping my moves. He baited me with openings that weren't actually openings.
He drew me onto the edges of the ring, trying to compress my reach and force me to choose between retreat or a desperate strike. He was patient and he was always laying a trap.
