The morning moved through its bracket in the rhythm that competition mornings found when they were well organized — clean transitions, adequate time between matches, the MC calling results and next matchups with efficient professionalism.
Patricia watched from the student section with her group and the two Brightwater students who had been absorbed into their social gravity at breakfast.
Cora had opinions about technique that she delivered in a continuous low commentary that was, Patricia discovered, actually useful for understanding what she was watching.
"See the footwork there," Cora said, pointing at the arena. "His weight is too far forward. Against a stronger opponent that's a leverage problem."
"You watch a lot of combat for a precision specialist," Marcus said.
"I watch everything. Understanding adjacent disciplines improves your own." Cora didn't look away from the arena.
