Norbert looked at Lily as she stood up from her chair, walked away and opened the door. "Well, you two coming?" She asked Norbert and Count von Count.
The two men looked at each other before shrugging, standing up, and leaving; at the door entrance, Norbert saluted Sally, "Until next time." He said to her.
She only giving a nod in response as she picked up the papers again, starting to comb through the information. The door closed behind Norbert as he followed; Obsius made it through it before it closed on her, pecking Norbert on the head for nearly forgetting her.
Walking through the hallway again, Norbert noted it was getting busier and busier the further along they went; Lily unexpectedly stopped at a doorway, presenting her card as he heard it unlock with a thud before opening it and walking in.
Norbert looked around, seeing the wooden desk he had seen last time and the two seats with the plush cushions. Sitting behind the desk, she kicked her feet on the table, instructing two guests to sit on the other chairs in the room.
Sitting down in the chair, it creaking slightly under his weight, Lily stared at him before leaning forward, placing her elbows on the table, one of her hands idly fiddling with the controls of the display on the table to change it to what she wanted.
"So, you still can't do magic or use devices?" Lily asked Norbert.
Nodding in response, Norbert waited patiently for the next question.
"Then how are you the most voted in your group, or able to do half the stuff you can? Before the purple, I remember that whatever was good but not that good." Lily asked him.
Norbert nods in confirmation. "You're right. Justly relying on that would not allow me to take on this guy." Norbert said, patting Count von Count back before continuing, "My secret is a lot of elixirs. And before you ask, a lot as at least fifteen; I lost track now, though of the exact number."
Lily stared at him, mouth agape. "Man, you went hard with that, and no side effects were noticed?" She asked him.
Norbert just shook his head. "Still as fit as a fiddle, and I haven't turned into a sludge monster yet or gone crazy, or at least I hope I'm not crazy. I Was Crazy Once. They Locked Me In A Room. A Rubber Room. A Rubber Room With Rats. And Rats Make Me Crazy." Norbert finished, tilting his head to the side as he rolled his tongue out of his mouth.
Lily just staring at Norbert. Obsius pecks Norbert on the head in response to his clowning. Sitting straight, Norbert consoled Lily, "Ah, only pulling your leg. But seriously, I haven't found any issues with it."
Lily nodded in response. "Ok, time to test how good you are", Lily said, pushing herself out of the chair and exiting the room. Norbert and Count von Count quickly followed behind, Norbert making sure not to leave the bird out this time.
She was heading down the hallway to the far end, reaching the portals. Lily typed into the terminal there, selecting the coordinates needed. Turning to Count von Count, he says, "You should probably rap up vamps; don't want to get sunburned." She said, before the portal opened before her, the blue lines were shining. Stepping through, Norbert quickly followed her, not wanting to be left on the other side. Count von Count quickly wrapped himself before also joining.
Norbert stepped through, feeling himself extending again toward the right, feeling his footstep out the other side. Walking through, Norbert instantly felt the dust and sand picked up in the wind pelt his face.
Turning around, Norbert donned his mask, stopping the worst of it from hitting him, pulling his clothes, and covering all skin. Norbert looked across, seeing Lily running off in the distance. Besides him, Count von Count stepped out of the portal, and a second later, it closed behind him, only the gate being present.
This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.
Both looking at the figure of Lily as she disappeared, Count von Count turned Norbert. "The last one to reach her buys the other a round." He said, not even waiting for a response from Norbert before the vampire shot off through the desert.
Norbert grabbed hold of Obsius and tucked her in his backpack; not wanting to lose the bird in the wind, he took off after the vampire, thinking of the free beer. Pushing the energy through his body, Norbert quickly caught up with Count von Count, looking ahead, the figure of Lily still far off and getting slowly further away.
"Looks like you need to up your pace," Norbert said to Count von Count before shooting off; the vampire breathed hard before catching up to Norbert, not wanting to be beaten in their race.
The two competed with each other, pushing themselves further forward. Norbert continued to push energy throughout his body, not knowing how long he would be running out there.
The ground was now a blur on his feet; when impacting the dirt, he did so with such force that it became solid underneath him, allowing him to be propelled even further. Norbert lost himself in the act of running, the freedom as he remembered this was his job as a scout, to purely scout and look upon the world. Not facing off against anyone, him and the wind blowing through his hair, a simple objective to find the target, and that's it.
Before he realised it, Norbert and Count von Count had caught up with Lily, just seeing her several meters ahead; what surprised him was how she was travelling. She wondered why it had taken him so long to catch up, not realising. With each step, a wave of dust blew below her, swirling around like the air going out of a turbine, pushing her forward.
Now, tasting the dust on the back of his throat, his eyes tearing up the dust into them. Closing his eyes, Norbert pushed the last bit of energy through him, ensuring he would get in front of Lily.
The wind now abated. Norbert opened his eyes, and no more dust pestering him. Continuing to jog, Norbert didn't see Lily ahead. Turning behind himself, he saw Lily, Count von Count, beside her.
Norbert jogged back, waving at her. "Took you long enough," Lily said to him.
"Hey, I still made it first, and anyway, what was it with you boosting yourself with the wind?" He asked her.
Lily turned around, whipping her hood off and brushing her hand through her hair. Shaking it out, she turned to Norbert. "Not everyone has over ten elixirs in their system; we all need to do what we can. And anyway, everyone else will be doing stuff like that in the tournament." Lily explained to him.
Norbert raised his finger to interject, only to lower it, knowing that she would be correct with the assessment. "So now what?" Norbert asked her.
Lily chucked a cube on the ground; Norbert saw the dust start to swirl around, forming in size as it grew, until he was face to face with a giant squirrel again. Staring down the scharve, the familiar site to the last time he fought against the creature.
Resting his hand on his blade as he sized up his opponent, trying to remember the details about the scharve the last time he faced it. Coming up with a blank, Norbert switched his vision to magical, wondering if anything was enlightening.
Nodding his head at what he saw, the cube the creature came out from now as clear as day in the duller sand. A brown colour comes out of the cube, a bright colour compared to the rest, the brightest part being the cube bouncing around inside the creature.
Leaving his sword on his belt, wanting to grab the cube out of the creature and squash it. A plan having formed in his head, Norbert charged forward. The scharve noticed him do the same as he charged forward.
The two met in the centre, Norbert holding the head of the scharve out of the way, keeping track of the cube as it bounced around the back of the creature. Bringing his arm back, Norbert punched forward, feeling like he had just smashed into a brick wall and not hit the dust.
His other arm slipped on the scharve, and Norbert dashed backwards, out of the way of the charging scharve. Ducking to the side, Norbert saw the cube bounce over to the other side of him. He was leaping into the air, following after the cube as it made its way to the back of the picture.
Landing on the ground, hand reaching out to grab onto the cube, seeing it dash out of the way to the head again. Going back and forth, Norbert waited for it to continue to see if neither of them was getting an advantage.
Fed up with it, Norbert slid under the creature, standing up as he lifted it into the air, feeling it crawl against him, keeping track of the cube, and seeing its light start to dim. His arms felt heavy from the weight, seeing it extend out, trying to encase himself in the dust.
He was staring up at the scharve, seeing as it started to boil, dust billowing out of the creature in plumes. The creature now feels lighter and lighter, shrinking in size underneath him. Norbert held it up until an object plopped into his open palm.