It's a good thing homework has been light the past couple of weeks, I thought to myself as we finished it together via video-call. Dinner had been eaten a while ago, and then Rachel had called me up so we could work on what we had until we got it done, sighing in relief as I made at least some progress in the math problems. When it was done we ended the call, only to meet up again in the virtual world of Panarena minutes later.
As soon as we had loaded in, we went to Harmonia City, making our way to the quieter side of the Market District where Myanihia awaited us. We found her at an out-of-the-way bakery and sweets shop, contentedly eating a plate full of muffins and tarts with a smile of delight on her face. It was such an odd reversal of her usual demeanor that I nearly cracked up. She waved us over, and as we sat down she took a cloth off of the basket in the center, revealing more baked goods. We thanked her at once and dug in heartily.
“Mm-mm!” Ariana happily smiled as she ate up one of the raspberry tarts; I went for one of the classics first, a chocolate chip muffin.
“Speaking of which, how's your cooking skill?” I asked her.
“Nowhere near this good.” my partner returned.
“This one, is the best. Even the cutesy one, isn't as good with their desserts.” Myanihia told us. I remembered the one we had gone too during the tournament, deciding that was the one she meant.
“We need to go back to that fantasy restaurant, speaking of which. Those desserts there looked amazing.” Ari said.
“Oh for sure.” I agreed.
“Oh, you know it,” Myanihia smiled.
“We do now!” Ariana smiled back.
“It is, a good one.” the other girl nodded. “This was just what, I needed, after all that ruckus tonight.” she remarked with a happy sigh as she finished up one of the tarts.
“Sounds rough,” I returned.
“Real life. But, enough of that.” the older girl said. “I found out a few details, about Venomheart.” she continued as a more solemn expression came to her face.
“Oh?” Ariana asked.
“There are only seven of them. I, couldn't get all of their names, but, their leader, is best known, as The Blade.” she told us.
I knew it, I thought as I felt my heart sink.
“Other than her, there are three others, I got the names for. Cyan Idewyll, Venomy, and, Clara Toxin.”
“Wonderful puns.” I grimaced.
“They... are not subtle, are they?” Myanihia vaguely smiled.
“Are they really all poisoners?” Ariana wondered.
“Of one sort or another.” Myanihia nodded back. “The Blade, or Melody; she uses it the least, but she has, the most deadly poisons. Cyan; he is a necromancer, basically, focused on necrotic poisons. Venomy; he is an assassin. That person, is not on the rankings, for shadow warriors; but, Lana, many people think that he is on par with us, and with Rayna.”
“I'll remember that.” I said.
“And, Clara; she... is a witch. A nature witch, focused on using toxins, poisons, or venom, from nature, as well as an arsenal of druid-type skills.” the older girl finished.
“An evil Der, huh? Oh boy,” I sighed. “Thanks for checking on all that, by the way.” I then said to her, and she nodded.
“Of course. And, also, this tome.” Myanihia then said, placing it on the table. Ariana opened it up to take a look.
“Hmm... it's in one of the lore languages, but it looks... off...” she remarked, frowning at her observations.
“I think, it is a code, of some kind.” the Snow Elf returned.
“We'll need Heali for this thing, then. She's best at it.” Ariana said. “Is it a clue to the fifth orb?”
“It is. I found it in Bretony. Perhaps, the orb is hidden there as well.” our friend replied.
“Oh nice,” I said at once.
“Also, Lana...” Myanihia began, her face troubled as she paused. Ariana looked up at her with concern, and I swallowed what I was eating before speaking.
“What's up?” I asked her.
“Djaziim; they used him earlier, to attack in the Wildlands. They, didn't find your outposts, yet, but they did devastate three of Reginleif's, and two of Peaches' as well.” she told me.
I frowned at the news. Valiant Maidens and Dreamers Fables had larger outposts than we did, so losing them cost them more than it would us, even though they had several others for back-up sites and rally points throughout the Wildlands.
“I've marked as many of their holdings as I could find.” Myanihia then said, passing me the map data. I looked it over, the ghost of a smile on my face. “The forum posts, should be quite interesting, tomorrow.” she said with a cat-like smirk.
“You betcha.” I returned with a mischievous tone. “Say, Myanihia...” I then said, putting the map data away for now. “Do you just... wanna join us now?”
Myanihia's cheeks colored, and she looked away for a moment, her expression uncertain.
You'd think I'd asked her out on a date or something, I quietly thought, rubbing the back of my neck.
“Ahh... if that's rushing you, then I'm sorry,” I said with a gentle laugh.
“N-no, it's fine,” she returned.
I've never heard her stammer before, either... huh.
“La-na. Let's stick to our agreement with her.” Ariana patted my hands.
“Ah--yeah,” I smiled back, and Myanihia's smile returned as she nodded.
“That, will be best for me.” she said, and we smiled. “Now, let's finish all of these before we part ways!” she winked, patting the basket.
“You're on!” I grinned back as the three of us turned our attention to the baked goods in earnest, eagerly devouring them.
***
“Hmm...” Healina mused as she looked over the tome later that night. “This is definitely something to do with Bretony. But more importantly; Myanihia probably told you about what happened in the Wildlands?” she said to us.
“She did.” I nodded.
“What's the plan, boss?” Lizzy asked me at once.
“Need you ask?” I replied as I pulled out the map data Myanihia had given me and sharing a copy with the others. “We've got targets, and we've got a dragon. Actually, one of these is a port-outpost, isn't it?” I mused, looking it over again. At that moment I got message notifications. It was from the other alliance members.
“Yep, they want retribution, quick.” Ariana said as she read the one she got. “Kiana and Reginleif are taking their fleets out now, and Peaches is on her way with her guild to meet up with us near Oakdells.”
“Lizzy, take Fyu and the others and meet up with Peaches. I'm gonna bring Dracuoatlax.” I said to our smith, who nodded back.
“Cheers.” she replied as she and the others headed out to get Fyu and the waggon. I made my way to the wayport and set my destination for the Torching Mount.
“This place doesn't get any friendlier-looking,” I quipped to myself as I materialized inside the mountain. Dracuoatlax was wide awake, half-looking as if he had expected me.
“Master.” the dragon blinked.
“Djaziim attacked our allies.”
“Hmm...”
“Feel like a rampage?” I asked him, and he grinned back, chuckling eagerly.
“Shall we fly, Lady Lana?” he returned, and I grinned in reply as I got on his back.
We set off at once, rising from the Torching Mount and setting off across the map towards the Wildlands. The wind was fierce, but my dragon ally used it to go even faster despite its adverse direction. I looked to the north; it was impossible to know for sure, but I felt like I saw a fleet of longships sailing down from Vinlandia.
“Do our allies also gather? I see the markings of guilds you trust on ships yet far out to sea,” Dracuoatlax remarked as we flew.
“Of course they do; we're the icing on the cake for their retribution, after all.” I said to him.
“Ahh, I see; however, a more appropriate metaphor for a dragon would be to call us the vagräastaf in the midst of a herd of deer,” he replied, and I smiled.
“Either way, it's the tastiest part!” I said.
“Indeed, Lady Lana! Hold fast now; there is a headwind, but it shall not stop Dracuoatlax from reaching his goal!” he called out in a loud voice, and we began flying still faster towards the Wildlands.
“Which one was this?” Lizzy wondered as we started into another fortress.
“Number seven!” Snow Dancer told her.
We had taken down six others so far. More accurately, the previous six had been blasted to ashes and smithereens by Dracuoatlax, and we had finished off the NPC survivors maintaining them, as well as a couple of players that had been checking up on them or lurking nearby. We had gotten a message from Kiana that they had successfully sacked a couple of seaside outposts, including the one Myanihia had found out, and now they were marching inland to help us.
“They'll probably send their navies back, just in case,” I noted when we got the message.
“Oh definitely.” Peaches agreed. “Their harbors are among the most protected, too. Though this little fiasco is certainly an unwelcome drain on resources.”
“That's why we're making sure to carry out the coffers.” I subtly grinned back, and the older woman returned the look.
“Speaking of which--Bubs!” she then said, clapping her hands to summon the gremlin.
“Master, master!” the creature said as he appeared.
“Go find their vault!” the Hauflin guild-leader ordered.
“Right away, right away! Bubs'll have it found in no time!” the gremlin chattered, scurrying off.
“I guess it's big enough to have one,” I said as Dracuoatlax took out a tower with his tail and then thunderously landed upon the ground to eat some of the NPCs that had been guarding the place. Peaches and I watched this scene unfold with nonplussed grins on our faces.
“W-well then,” Peaches remarked with a faint laugh.
“I don't even know what to say,” I sighed. The dragon, not noticing our bemused reactions to his rampage and inadvertent or perhaps bonus feasting, carried on as happily as could be, roaring to intimidate the enemy as he began tearing into the fortress once more.
“I thought I heard the sounds of battle in these lands.” a somewhat familiar voice said. We turned around to look, and my eyes widened. A split-second later I drew out my blades.
“Lana?” Peaches asked me.
“Venomheart.” I quickly replied, and Peaches readied her staff.
“Ho-ho? You figured that out, huh? Or maybe it was that lurking shadow which tipped you off,” Melody replied with a grin as she drew out her own sword.
“Anything to watch out for, girlie?” Peaches said.
“That sword is probably coated with a poisonous substance of some kind.” I warned her, remembering Myanihia's words.
“How rude. I always coat it with the finest fast-acting venom money can buy.” she quipped back.
“Good thing we've got two of the best druids, as well as several people who can either heal, increase our resistance to, or ward us from poison!” I retorted.
“Ah! But I didn't come to play for long. I just wanted to test you out.” Melody quickly said, and I assumed a defensive stance.
“Test?” I returned, unsure if she would answer.
“King-Priests hired us to keep a watch on the area, but they didn't give specific orders. If they had, half of you would probably be down by now in this fight.” she told us.
“Youngsters like you tend to bluff in situations like this, but you're not that kind of girl, are you?” Peaches remarked as she fixed the younger girl with a keen eye.
“No, ma'am.” Melody flippantly but respectfully replied.
“What a polite brat,” my fellow guild-leader smirked. “Go ahead then, Lana; I'll keep a lookout, and besides, Dracuoatlax will probably barrel over here if any more show up.” she said to me. I nodded, and then Melody lunged towards me in a thrust.
Just in time I deflected her blade, casting it upward and coming about in a tight turn to try and stab her right side, but she superbly blocked me with a quick reverse grip and then shoved me off as we began clashing in earnest. Her expression showed a brief puzzlement, but she quickly pushed it aside to focus on prodding my defenses. I recognized after a few moments that she wasn't using system skills, but her own fierce swordplay, and she was going all-out here.
“A system-bound player like you going up against a real sword-user like me -- ha!” Melody scoffed, redoubling her efforts.
“Don't mock this world's powers; you chose to be a part of it, too!” I said as I entered the shadows. Her eyes glinted with surprise, and I quickly whirled about to come behind her, but she predicted the move and easily deflected my incoming strike.
“And yet they're so easily seen through,” she shot back.
I then activated Thousand Needle Strike, and that furious flurry of strikes kept her from smirking for a moment. Then I faced her with my own basic swordplay, driving her back a few paces. Again her face subtly scrunched up in confusion, as if trying to recall something.
“You... why does it feel like I've fought you before?” she wondered as we locked blades together. I made no reply, my expression unchanging as I stared back at her impassively. “Hmph! Not gonna say, huh? That works for me, too. I love a good puzzle.” she grinned.
“Lana!” Lizzy called as she came over. “Whoa!”
“Tch!” Melody cursed as the others started to arrive at the scene. She then withdrew, and put her sword away. “You're good, but I'm better. And I'll show it to you over the course of these battles.” she said to me, and then headed off into the forests. Some of our allies from Dreamers were about to give chase, but Peaches stopped them.
“Hold it, kiddos; that one's trouble. And I don't think she was even being serious just now.” she said.
“True,” I agreed as I sheathed my own swords. “What did you want to tell me, Lizzy?” I then asked our smith curiously.
“Huh? Oh right; Bubs found the coffers, and the fortress is ashes. Heh, I bet Drac's gonna have a good night's sleep tonight.” she replied with a cheeky smile.
“Oh for sure,” I nodded, then checked my messages. “The other group took down two so far; they want to meet up at the last one--it's north of us and west of them.”
“Got it!” the reply came.
“All right, form up!” Peaches called. “Get the coffers stowed aboard our waggon and get ready to head north!” she ordered, and her guild let out a rousing cry of affirmation as we returned to the waggons.
“Master,” Fyu nodded as we came over to him.
“Hey, buddy,” I smiled, patting him on the head.
“Our allies' beasts of burden have been remarkably well-behaved, for beasts that cannot speak,” he remarked.
“Considering it's been a nearly non-stop battle tonight, yeah,” I agreed.
“Lady Lana, where shall we head next?” Dracuoatlax called.
“We're heading north, to the eastern side of the Murkmere,” I told him in reply.
“Very good! I shall observe the area and await your arrival!” he returned, and then set off into the air.
“We are fortunate, master, that he was not made subservient to an enemy,” the dog-beast remarked as we watched him go.
“You said it, pal.” I nodded in agreement. A few moments after the dragon had taken off, the rest of us hurried northward to meet up with him and our other allies.
***
Moreso than the others, the King-Priests' fortress near the Murkmere was clearly designed to withstand a lot of damage and to repel large assaults. There were all sorts of traps around the place, some obvious and some not, and it had a larger garrison too.
“There's at least ten players here.” I noted as I observed it with Shadow Vision.
“Agreed.” Ariana nodded.
“Kiana and Regin just showed up; they've got forty-two, counting themselves.” Belle said as she came to perch on my shoulder.
“That puts us at sixty-seven, not counting Dracuoatlax.” I said.
“I'm sure he thinks of it as one, not counting all of us,” Belle grinned.
“P-probably,” I allowed with a laugh, and Peaches chuckled.
“Whew!” Kiana said as she and Reginleif came over to join us. “You certainly busted up a lot tonight, huh?”
This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.
“And now we get to do it together,” Ariana replied.
“That is a ridiculous fort.” Nightwing scratched her head. “How do they even get inside it?”
“More importantly, what's it guarding?” Reginleif wondered.
“No no, go back,” I suddenly realized. “There's no door or gate, is there?” I blinked in disbelief.
“Huh?” Reginleif looked over at it in confusion.
“Told you.” Nightwing shrugged.
“Master,” Dracuoatlax began as he joined us, “There are indeed no doors or gates in the outer wall. Something disturbs me mightily about the place; it cannot be Djaziim, but there is certainly some other devilry here.”
“Do you think either you or Fyu might be able to track down where a secret entrance might be?” I asked him.
“Hmm!” he remarked with interest.
“There's a thought.” Nightwing agreed. “But I bet I already know. The Murkmere is home to a certain kind of fish with special scales, and there's apparently a secret dungeon that you can get to by doing a certain quest chain in the Grasslands of Inyan. I bet they fashioned an entrance under the water as well for easy access.”
“It would not be advisable to send me into the lake, Lady Lana.” Dracuoatlax said at once. “Having said so, your comrade's words have stirred my memory of a rumor regarding this fish; it is said to be one that delights in the flesh of prey, and its scales are prized by armor-weavers in Inyan.”
“A tough, man-eating fish. Joy.” I sighed. Then I looked back at him. “Say... this might be really stupid... but... is there any chance your fire could boil away the water? All of it?” I asked, ignoring the flabbergasted and dumbfounded expressions of my friends nearby as the words tumbled out of my mouth.
“Boil away the Murkmere, you say?” the dragon returned with a note of intrigue in his voice.
“Oh Dear God, he's actually considering it,” I heard Barbarianne say.
“W-wouldn't that somehow break the game?” someone else wondered.
“I mean... it'd reset... probably...” a third person said uncertainly.
“Probably?!” the others chorused back. Dracuoatlax then laughed so heartily and so loudly that the ground actually trembled and the players inside the fortress immediately scrambled to the walls to see what was going on.
“Lady Lana, your mind intrigues me as always; yet it would likely take twenty dragons to boil away this entire lake. But I am greatly amused by the idea!” the dragon chuckled. I heard many sighs of relief behind or beside me.
“Ah-heh, that's true... it's a big lake...” I agreed. “So mostly a stupid idea.”
“I will remain on guard for now; I suggest you allow Fyu a chance to aid you here. He is better attuned to the earth than I am, after all.” Dracuoatlax said as he hunkered down.
“Master,” Fyu then broke in, “I can tell you for certain there is a secret passage, but it is likely not in the water. I can still pick up the scent of the enemy leading to it, if we hurry.” he said, and I nodded as we unhitched him.
Fyu then led us unfailingly to the spot in question; beneath the massive roots of an old tree, there was a barely visible door covered with sod. While the larger group readied a couple of catapults to keep the enemy's attention, Derwydd and Peaches used their magic to break open the door. Fyu then barked, and Dracuoatlax came over.
“Friend Dragon, thy flames would probably reach to the bowels of that fortress, if you yet feel a thirst for battle and mischief.” the dog-beast said.
“Hmm...” the dragon remarked, examining it for himself. “It is a straight passage for certain; very well! Step back!” he then said, and we did so.
“It's not boiling a lake, but roasting a fortress like a chicken on a grill should still make the forums.” Ariana said to me with a wry grin.
“Ah-heh.”
“You people are crazy.” Peaches quipped.
“What does that make us?” Snow Dancer wondered.
“Accessories to insanity.” the reply came without hesitation.
Anyway. The final fortress collapsed not long after that, and we made off with the spoils of our victories. Undoubtedly the power-balance in the Wildlands would be off for a couple of days, but it would probably be back to normal by next week unless another guild or two came in to join the fray. Some of the ones neutral to us might even swoop in, such as Heavenly Dragons or Night Wolves. I anticipated the latter, mostly because I knew General Mad Dog was definitely going to collect on the favor I owed him.
After we celebrated our all-night rampage at the guildhall of the Valiant Maidens, we returned to our own places to log off and wake up for Tuesday morning.
***
“Da hell you doin' up there in the Wildlands wrecking everything, boy?” Ty said to me on the bus ride to school.
“Retribution.” I shrugged.
“Retribution, snap. Y'all got half the player base talking about it!”
“So nothing unusual, then?” I grinned, and he shook his head, grinning back.
“Man, I'd love to get up there and help; Wild's got us focused on the Waste and Ragnarheim, though he's open to expanding his alliance.”
“Is the old gang back together down your way?”
“'Cept for you losers.” he cheekily replied.
“Heh.” I laughed.
“Yo, Jans and Magisteria'd be thrilled to have y'all helping out again down our way.” he said more seriously.
“I don't think the others would be opposed to adding allies,” I remarked.
“I'll tell Wild tonight. We gotta get our pact together again, Dans. Ain't no one gonna win against that!” he said as he held out his hand.
“You said it, Ty!” I agreed, taking the hand so we could shake on it.
“You find out anything 'bout that Venomheart guild?” he asked in a quieter voice as the handshake ended.
“More than I expected. They're definitely all poisoners of one kind or another.”
“Damn. That's gonna be rough.”
“Right?” I agreed. “I sparred with their leader a bit last night; she's tough.”
“Oh, damn, boy,” Ty said with interest. “How'd that go?”
“Inconclusive.” I said with a shake of my head. “She was just testing me out, after all, and we'd taken care of the last fortress by then.”
“Those KP guys are gonna be on you for sure, now.”
“You're telling me.”
“And I read something on the forums 'bout how the Guardians are gunning for y'all as well. Something about some big @$$ turtle wrecking their ship a couple nights ago.” he said, and I quietly snorted in amusement. “Yo. Save some crazy for us, Dans.”
“W-we'll try,” I said with a laugh.
After we arrived at school we parted company as usual, and as usual I found Rachel waiting at the lockers for me. She smiled as I arrived, and I gave her a smile in return as I got my morning books out.
“That flick seems to get softer every time I see it.” she said to me.
“I guess at this point it's just a gag he wants to keep going,” I grinned.
“Probably!” Rachel laughed back.
“He's gonna ask Wildeye about joining our alliances tonight, so we'll have the Aldholt gang supporting us as well in the future.”
“Oh nice! And it'll be good to have everyone on the same team this time!” she smiled.
“For sure!” I agreed. I finished sorting out my books, and we headed on into class.
“You ready for your fencing training to continue today?” she then asked as we sat down.
“Ehh...” I returned uncertainly, and she gave me a knowing smile.
“It seemed like it really was her, huh? I wonder if she'll figure it out.” Rachel said in a whisper.
“I mean, there's a good chance, for sure. I wonder if Ellie recognized her at all...” I wondered softly, and my girlfriend adopted a thoughtful look.
“She did seem absorbed in thought during our little party afterwards,” she recalled.
“Hmm.”
“I guess we can ask her at lunch.”
“Oh definitely.” I agreed. The bell then rang. Class was now in session.
“Blehh,” Ellie groaned as we arrived in our little club room.
“That won't reverse the grade you got, Elisabeth Drew.” Andrea lightly quipped.
“Still...” the blonde girl sighed wearily, and Anhe smiled sympathetically to her.
“Bad quiz results?” Mary asked with a soft grin as she came in.
“Totally.” the other girl sighed again.
“Ah-heh,” I wryly smiled as we sat down.
“Seeaaann. Give me something fun to talk about.” Ellie called over as she practically melted into her seat.
“Ahh...” I started hesitantly, and then snapped my fingers. “Oh, right; Ellie, what did you think of that girl from last night? The Blade?” I then asked her, and she sat upright again as if pulled by marionette strings to do so, a grin on her face.
“So that was the Blade, huh?” she said.
“Her actual player-name is Melody, but yeah, she's the Blade.” I nodded in reply.
“Well, from just those few moments, I think she looks a heck of a lot like someone I know. I mean, most of us look somewhat similar to our avatars; even Lana looks like your twin a bit. But this one looked almost exactly like the person from real life.” Ellie said with a shrug.
“Hmm? Ahh, Joanna Love, you mean?” Andrea remarked.
“Mm-hm.” her best friend nodded.
“No wonder she got that nickname, then.” Mary said. “I heard that the player called the Blade rarely uses any of the skills provided by the game in favor of using actual combat techniques. The only skills they're said to use are those that 'flow' with her real ones.”
“Like that opening lunge I got last night,” I recalled.
Come to think of it, that was almost exactly the move she used in our first mock-duel...
“Joanna gets a lot of credit for her middle school fencing; but now she's an adjunct member of an actual fencing academy outside of this school, and she's been in a couple of tournaments.” Mary told us.
“How does that work?” I wondered.
“She has a special instructor that comes over every afternoon or evening to train her. Malcolm's talked about it a few times in morning classes.” she answered.
“Hopefully this dork doesn't have any moves to give him away to her for a while,” Ellie then quipped.
“Gyeck!?”
“Joanna's the type who would definitely start talking about it...” Thomas said with a frown. “It's probably best not to fight Melody in-game yourself--to keep Lana a secret, that is.”
“Or at least run-and-gun her if you have to.” Ariana suggested.
“That works too.” Thomas agreed.
“Hrrmm...” I nodded back. We focused on our meals for a few minutes before the conversation picked up again.
“I looked over that tome we got from Myanihia.” Andrea then said. “It's definitely Bretony; most of the clues seem to point to a place in Caer Gwynt, near the border with Hollyland.”
“Sweet!” Ellie clapped enthusiastically.
“But I'll need a bit longer to make sure,” the red-haired girl smile back.
“The Windy Citadel, huh?” Thomas remarked.
“I wonder if the orb has an air or wind element to it, then,” Anhe wondered.
“Well since the Draigod Orb was in the Dragonholt and the Winter Orb was in Ghev'riuln, I wouldn't much doubt it.” I said.
“That last one was a pain though!” Anhe replied with a shake of her head.
“Oh definitely.”
“Who'd have thought the dungeon was a monster's insides?” Ellie grimaced.
“We're eating lunch now. 'Kay? 'Kay.” Andrea said at once.
“I get it, I get it,” the other girl sighed.
“So anyway, about reprisals that might happen tonight...” Thomas then broke in, and we then talked about our immediate strategies for gaming tonight until lunch ended and afternoon classes began.
“Again!” Holly said to Joanna and myself later that afternoon.
We had been choreographing our fight scene for a couple of weeks now, but the two of us were getting a bit hung up over a series of blows that we were planning to do while coming down a set of stairs in Nottingham Castle.
“I'll have to talk to my tutor tonight about duels on uneven terrain.” Joanna remarked as we got back into position. “And you seem to be doing something weird; I'm forcing you down, remember, so don't try to advance upwards.” she said.
“Ahh--right.” I replied.
Force of habit from running dungeons in Panarena, I guess.
“Robin's a good swordsman, but he's also canny. We're trying to lure me into a trap, remember?” Joanna grinned as she effortlessly tossed her sword into the air, catching it by the grip after it spun a couple of times.
“The trick at the end, where we decided Gisbourne would lunge in anger while Robin dodged away to stab him in the side.” I nodded back.
“I think it should be an overhead swing, now that I think about it.” Holly said to the two of us. “That would be a better display of anger than a lunge.”
“Welp, it's theater.” Joanna shrugged, and then got into attack position. I did the same.
“Go!” the aide said, and we started again.
This time we got it mostly right, except for a slight hiccup where I fell backwards off the steps after nearly missing a parry. But I recovered myself so well that Holly wondered if I shouldn't try to do it every time, to which Miss Andrews herself agreed. I faintly smiled at the talk, letting out an inaudible sigh as Joanna glanced over with a grin.
“I think it'd definitely add to the tension.” she remarked to me.
“Oh, for sure,” I agreed. “I'm just not sure how I'll hold up doing it over and over.”
“Pfft! You've got a point,” she chuckled back.
“Come on, you're young; you can take it.” Holly said to me.
“Oy...”
“Let's plan it out so he doesn't actually hurt himself falling over and over again, though.” Miss Andrews said as she held up a cautionary finger. “I'm sure at least one of your instructors taught you how to fall or tumble in a fight?” she looked over at me, and I rubbed the back of my neck as I thought about it.
“Two of them, I think,” I replied.
“Good! So this shouldn't be a stretch, then. Let's plot this out...” our teacher and director then said, and we worked out a tumble for that part of the fight, following it up with Gisbourne's overhead swing and Robin's surprise recovery and counterattack.
We then did that ten more times before she was satisfied, and then it was on to being walloped by Anhe and the others via quarterstaff. Our quiet little friend had become less reserved now, eagerly showing us how to deliver, dodge, or catch a blow. Herby seemed the most adept at picking it up, which I found suitably ironic considering his role of Friar Tuck. We were already practicing on a set-piece for those fights as well; Matthew seemed to have an inordinate amount of fun knocking me off of the log-bridge, whereas Herby was always apologetic about the final whack to the head I would get from him, especially when he forgot to hold back. On our final bout for the day he cracked me a good one, and I actually fell splat on my back. The look of horror on his face when I came to was terribly comical.
“Duuude!! Oh, man, you okay?? Gosh, Sean, I really didn't mean to hit you that hard!!” he chattered at once.
“That was a good one,” I managed to grin back.
“Well, if it happens during the play, we'll just have to roll with it,” I heard Miss Andrews say.
“We can have the Merry Men cover for it, sure,” Holly agreed. “Or maybe Herby'll get lucky and won't hit him so hard!”
“It's fine, Herb, really,” I said to him, patting his shoulder. He looked as if he'd just had a heart-attack; which probably wasn't far from the truth.
Wait a sec, who's holding me up in their lap? I suddenly wondered, looking up to see Anhe supporting me.
“Rachel is doing choreography with Allie, Joanna, and Marcus in another room, but I am sure she will fuss over you later.” she told me, patting me on the head softly.
“Y-yeah,” I said, managing a laugh.
“You should take this up as a real sport, Herbs!” Matthew grinned broadly.
“Ah, shut up, Matt.” the other boy quipped at once.
“No seriously though!” his friend said, and then turned to me. “You gonna make it, buddy?” he said with his usual cheeky smile.
“Think so,” I replied.
“See? He's fine.” Matthew said as I slowly started getting up. My head was still throbbing a bit, but Anhe and Herby managed to get me to my feet and steady me.
“Take a break!” Miss Andrews said at once. “Get some water and relax for a few minutes, Sean.”
“Yes, ma'am.” I replied, and Anhe led me out to the seats, where we sat down together.
“I will have to pay special attention to Herby for the next couple of weeks.” she remarked thoughtfully.
“P-please,” I replied in a quiet voice. “I'm not sure I could take a hit like that again, especially for the actual performance,” I confided.
“This is true. We cannot have you seeing stars while being a star.” she replied with a subtle grin. It took me a moment to realize she had made a joke.
“You're getting good at that,” I said with a laugh, and she smiled back.
“Then I am glad!” she said, also laughing.
After I had sufficiently recovered, we ran through lines and scene choreography for the rest of the afternoon. It was nice getting to interact with parts of the actual set; they had the outlaw's camp and the forest pretty much ready to go, and the castle was coming along nicely. In another room I could hear the sounds of the school's orchestra going over the music. Henry, by the way, who was playing Allan A'Dale, is an actual musician himself, and would be playing a real lute for the performances. I could see him idly plucking away as he sat in the balcony, trying to hear the tuning of the instrument and tweak it as needed.
“Isn't he great?” Leslie remarked to me as she came to watch with me.
“Oh definitely,” I agreed.
“I think either his grandfather or great-uncle taught him how to play it.” Jacob said to us.
“Cool!” Leslie exclaimed.
“Yeah, it's a family thing for him; lucky for us, huh?” Maggie nodded.
“For sure!” Joey said in agreement. “Anyway, we need to get ourselves sorted with Stephanie, Billy, and the others for this number here,” he then said, tapping the page he was holding open. It was a song that was going to be sung with most of the cast for one of the centerpieces of the musical: the archery tournament to rescue Allan A'Dale from the Sheriff of Nottingham.
“Right,” I said, and we went to join the others to do just that.
“I'm beat.” I said later as Rachel and I got into the car with Thomas.
“Figuratively this time, I hope.” Rachel remarked as she looked over at me seriously.
“Definitely.” I replied.
“I don't blame you; that was some overtime we had tonight!” our driver said with a nod. “I'm gonna order a pick-up from Pizza Palace on our way to Andrea's; that's fine with you two, right?”
“Sure!” Rachel agreed.
“As long as Andrea hasn't already made something,” I smiled back.
“Oh she hasn't. I asked just before I finished up with that one set-piece.” Thomas replied. “Let's make it two mediums and a small, some breadsticks... and a two-liter cola.” he said, completing the order on his phone before we set off.
“Nice!” I said as we left the school.
“What set-piece did you finish up?” Rachel then asked him.
“Hmm? Ahh, a throne and dais for the royal palace.” he told us.
“Oh neat!”
“Wow,” the two of us remarked at once.
“Can't have the king and his phony sitting on a barstool, can we?” Thomas grinned, and we all laughed.
About twenty minutes later we were having a pizza-dinner and homework session at Andrea's; fortunately her little cousins were at their parents' home tonight. It felt harder to get through the assignments tonight, but that was probably just because we'd been getting a lot of light homework lately and now the balance was shifting again. There were also the final exams of the year coming up as well, which probably contributed to the load of homework we had gotten, never mind the third-quarter exams two weeks from now.
“That one goes here, and this one goes there, see?” Rachel said to me.
“Huh... oh yeah,” I replied as it dawned on me.
“So a career in nuclear physics is out, I take it?” Thomas joked.
“Oy--!!” I groaned.
“Now, now.” Andrea lightly flicked him, and he laughed.
“This isn't the same without those two brats running around though.” he remarked.
“Please don't run around like they do.” Andrea sighed as she made a pencil mark on his paper.
“Huh? Oh! That's right,” Thomas said as he scratched out part of what he had written down to redo it.
“Aren't they so hopeless?” Andrea smirked to Rachel.
“Only in math for this one.” Rachel patted my head.
“I had to help you for two hours last week on that science conundrum,” Thomas pouted, and Andrea bashfully smiled back.
“Ahh -- that's true... sorry!” she apologized.
“No harm,” he smiled to her.
“Dare I ask how they run around?” I wondered.
“We'll say you did and move on.” Rachel quickly replied.
The shenanigans are strong with those two, huh?
“How's the musical coming along?” Andrea asked us.
“Great!”
“It's okay,” Rachel and I said.
“Which is it?” our friend grinned back.
“Seeaaan.” Rachel tugged my ear. “We're doing great, aren't we?” she adamantly declared with the I'll-hurt-you-otherwise smile on her face as I awkwardly smiled back.
“Let's be fair to him. You're not getting knocked out by Herby and Matthew.” Thomas came to my defense. Rachel let go of my ear then and let out a wry grin.
“Th-that's true... so I guess it's both! It's great for me and okay for him.”
“I'll do better than okay when Anhe sorts out Herby's kill-shot,” I said, and the other three laughed.
“Look at that time.” Thomas then noticed as he looked at the clock. It was almost a quarter 'til nine. “That's the last bit of your homework, right?” he asked me.
“Hm? Oh yeah, it is,” I replied.
“I'll start putting this away for later,” Andrea said as she gathered up what we hadn't eaten.
“And then I'll get this one and then myself home.” Thomas nodded.
“At this rate we should just get an apartment together next year.” Andrea smiled.
“We'll think about it.” he replied, a smile on his own face.
“See? I'm not the only one,” Rachel poked me.
“Heh.” I grinned back.
At eighty-fifty, I was on my way home; around nine, I had gotten myself settled in. and shortly after nine, I had set on the Dream Machine to head into Panarena. Not, however, without thinking that it had been a pretty good day in the real world, for a Tuesday.