-Tamly-

“Get your guard up, you are already at a disadvantage against a spear so getting in without being it is difficult so dodge or parry,”

A look of irritation briefly showed on Tamly’s face. She had hair plastered to her face from sweat and a slight flush from the exertion on her cheeks as she got back to position.

Pushing her long brown hair to the side, she focused on her opponent. Farmer Delcia was at least forty years older than her yet he moved with speed and purpose. The practice spear he used, which was essentially a long stick, struck her without mercy. She already had a few bruises on her and although Mr Delcia was very apologetic about it, it still hurt.

Worse still was Lylia. She was going to nine soon but that kid moved fast and when she struck with all her might, ahh, even Mr Delcia didnt dare face it head on. Why was she so fast, strong and powerful at such a young age?! That little girl loved her axe and actually enjoyed smashing her opponents with it. Not to mention that cursed beast that listened to her every word. It was almost like fighting against two opponents but seeing that she was a kid, Tamly couldnt argue against it.

Finally there was Mrs Delcia. She was the easiest to win against. She was alright with her shield and could push Tamly away a few times but almost everyone won against her. Thorwin would constant say things like, “dont be afraid to use your shield!” or “If you turn your shield this way the striker would become unbalanced,” However, Mrs Delcia had never gone on the offensive against us.

Thorwin didn't spar with us. He would normally watch from the sides while meditating.

That man was a mystery and Tamly wasnt sure if she fully trusted him or not. If she was honest with herself, she actually felt both awe and wariness in equal amounts. She remembered that fateful night where Thorwin wrestled against the monster that haunted her brother.

She would always be grateful that the monster that murdered her entire family was punched and held down by Thorwin. But because of that there was an element of disbelief and fear. A twenty-something year old man was able to go toe to toe with a monster. Was that something a human could do?

Tamly wasnt so sure. She stopped her thoughts there and concentrated on the spar.

Mr Delcia was still struggling to bring mana to his spear whereas Lylia, surprisingly, could make her weapon glow for a solid minute. Still, they were not as adept as Tamly.

Tamly leapt at August, her jump this time taking her further and faster than usual. This caught August off-guard. He tried to pierce Tamly but the aim was off, she brought her hands up and the spear was knocked to the side by the training dagger. Tamly landed within a range of August and although he tried to readjust his spear and footing, Tamly swiftly brought the dagger to Augusts’ neck.

“Hehe, well done little lassy, you got me,” said August in a lighthearted fashion. August enjoyed sparring with everyone with maybe the exception of his wife. He always lost to his wife. Tamly gave August a tight lipped smile and helped him up.

“How did you do that?” Asked August.

“Do what?” replied Tamly.

“Ah don't be coy, you know what I'm asking, I saw a glow on your feet. Did you put mana onto your feet?”

“Yea, instead of just pushing mana to your weapon, I tried pushing it to parts of my body and this is the result.”

“Wow, you’re really good. I wish I could even start to sense it,” said August. There was a sense of desperation there.

As Tamly struggled to come up with a reply, a voice came from the side, “Maybe you need a bigger push. I’ve decided, tonight we will initiate a clear out. Here is the plan…”

Everyone gathered around as Thorwin gave directions.

At the end of it, the only one unhappy was Lylia.

“Why do I have to stay in the house?” she said, with her hands on her hips and her lips in a pout.

“I want you to practice your [Heavenly Fire] innate ability. You can do that from the house.”

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“I want to smash their heads,” came the reply

“Next time ok,” said Thorwin.

Tamly saw that exchange and went upstairs to the living room. Those small little exchanges made her ache on the inside. She really missed her family. They were rather close and that made it hurt all the more. She got some water and went to rest on the couch. It was going to be busy soon.

—

Tamly stood with bated breath. The front door was open.

“Go!”

The command came from Thorwin and all of them ran out.

In front of her were zombies. Now that they had seen her, they were moaning and pushing with whatever strength they had. The fences were shaking.

Thorwin was the first to reach the fence.

Swish, Stab, Skirkk

His swordsmanship was immaculate. Each strike he did killed a zombie. But for each zombie he killed, another quickly took its place.

Tamly lunged and stabbed a zombie straight in its head. She retracted and the blade came out smooth. The neighboring zombies tried to grab her but the enhanced dagger gave her the speed to outmaneuver them. So she went to work and stabbed without stopping. She felt words and numbers at the back of her mind.

[Killed rotting zombie…gained 2 EXP]

[Killed decaying zombie…gained 1 EXP]

She had seen her status screen and understood that after a certain number of experience points, you would ‘level up’. Farmer Delcia said it felt good when you leveled, like after waking up from a good night's rest. But Tamly was only interested in the fact that it made you stronger. That was the reason she wanted to live. To get strong, to never have to feel like she had to hide in the basement again.

At her side was Farmer Delcia or maybe she should call him Spearman Delcia instead. His usage of the spear was impressive. Each thrust and stab carried power and accuracy. He had a smile on his face and looked like he was enjoying himself.

Finally Mrs Delcia had a shield and a makeshift club made from a thick piece of wood. She was hammering the zombies but because of her poor form and accuracy, she was also causing collateral damage to the fence.

“Mother, you are damaging the fence, please strike carefully!” came the shout from Thorwin. He sounded exasperated.

‘Uh oh’

The portion of fence in front of Mrs Delcia started to creak dangerously and then BAM it fell to the ground. Like a dam bursting, zombies started flooding in, trampling on each other. Mrs Delcia let out a scream and instantly, both Thorwin and August arrived at her side. She hid behind her shield. With the swordsman and spearman there, the incoming tide was momentarily stopped.

Tamly didn't need to join in. She knew what her role was. A few zombies moved away from the funnel and she quickly dispatched them.

CRACK, BAM

Another portion of fencing fell and zombies began to pour in.

“Ah, I got clawed!” cried August. Mrs Delcia screamed and charged in with her shield raised, successfully pushing the zombies back.

“Pull back! Everyone move carefully to the barn, watch your footing!”

The number of wandering zombies increased and Tamly pushed herself to intercept them. She stabbed, pivoted, stabbed and ducked. She felt like she was dancing to a very strange tune.

With Mrs Delcia at the forefront blocking the zombies, the trio slowly lead the zombies towards the barn. As they passed the house, Tamly turned and saw little Lylia pressed against the window. Tamly gave her a little smile and that got Lylia’s spirits up.

“Now Lylia, use your power!” came the shout from Thorwin.

Immediately, white fire landed on the whole area. Tamly felt like she was in the little sauna her father had built two years ago. The effect on the zombies were much more shocking. Their skins blackened and the black smoke started to emanate from them.

“Lylia, try to control your fire so it only lands on the zombies. There’s no need to cover the entire area with it.”

As the zombies started to fall, Tamly pushed forward and started killing them again.

Success was in sight and the herd had thinned significantly.

“Uh oh…by Bakkers Ballsack, we have more trouble,” said Thorwin. “Look past the gates…there’s a pack of fleetwolves and worse yet, two Loapers!”

Tamly felt herself tense up. She had never seen these creatures before but Lylia had told her about it. About the long-handed Loapers that could magically enter the house past sealed doors. Their strange guttural cries gave Lylia nightmares.

“Listen, I'm going to leave the rest of the zombies to you guys. Stick to the plan!”

And then he burst past all of us, heading towards the gate alone.

The concern on Lylia’s face said it all.

“Hah, it’ll take more than this to down a Delcia! Come on, the sooner we finish these dead men, the sooner we can help Thorwin,” said August, rallying his wife, Tamly and Lylia.

They focused intently on their task then, hoping that Thorwin would last until they arrived.