The Blades Hall looked similar to the Aura Hall. It was smaller, and instead of green circles it had several shapes in various colors painted across its floors. Above their heads, in the center of the ceiling, shone a bright red depiction of a blade instead of a gray circle.
Nar found himself alone that morning after breakfast, and somehow still feeling knocked out from the previous day.
Despite being tired, sleep had been elusive, and a pair of dark, harsh eyes had haunted his mind before he finally passed out.
As for the others, everyone had split off to head into their own specific classes.
Gad had headed off to the Tanks Hall, a place Nar hoped to visit soon, to also progress his tanking. Cen had headed back to the Aura Hall with the other casters, and Kur had gone off towards some classroom to get his first Leadership class, whatever that entailed.
As for the others, Mul had gone to the Fists Hall, Jul to the Shadows Hall, Viy to the Polearms Hall, and lastly, Tuk had headed over to the Ranged Hall, where Rel would probably join him, once she was fully recovered.
Kur hadn’t received any more updates about her condition, and no updates probably meant that she was recovering well enough, if slowly.
And thus, they had all split to go their respective ways, to learn about their respective paths, and Nar now found himself standing at attention, his back straight and his arms at his sides, amongst about a hundred of other apprentices.
In front of them, at the same level as them, stood a short human looking man, with an austere scalp-short white haircut, and gray steely eyes set in a weathered face, with a strange, curling white mustache. His skin was some kind of warm tone of dark golden hue, which shimmered very faintly in the bright lights from above them.
Unlike the Master of Aura, Nar got the feeling of the weight of age from behind the man’s unflinching stare. But like her, he had no idea what that meant in terms of actual years.
The man also stood at attention, as did all the instructors, forming a perfect square around the apprentices.
They had been standing in silence for several minutes already.
Nar’s heartbeat thundered. He had the distinctive feeling that the Blades Hall was a much stricter place than the Aura Hall.
“Good morning, apprentices of the Blade,” the man finally spoke, his words clearly enunciated and carrying a touch of something that made Nar straighten his back even more. “I am the Master of Blades, and the teaching of all bladed weapons aboard the Scimitar falls within my purview, with the exception of those in the Shadows Hall, the teaching of which I often share with the Master of Shadows.”
Does that mean that Jul’s going to be here too, after the two weeks? Nar thought, straining to contain his face neutral. It would be great to have a friendly face to train with, amidst all of those strangers.
“The first thing you all need to know is that there are cameras here,” the master explained. “In fact, there are cameras across the entire ship. Their presence is especially heavy in the corridors, canteens, and the many study rooms, training rooms, and every hall spread out across the top twenty-five floors, or decks, to use the proper name, of this ship. These are the faculty decks, where your instruction will be carried out.”
He scanned the silent gathering of apprentices before him for a moment.
“These cameras are not there for the purpose of spying on you. It is simply to aid us in your teaching. You will be receiving periodic footage of your own training and practice, with us, other apprentices, or by yourself. This footage will come with notes on what you are doing well and what you need to improve or change. Know that there are no cameras in any of the toilets or your party rooms.”
Then, he raised his hand, and a sword appeared in it.
To Nar’s untrained eyes, there was nothing special about that sword. Its grip was black, and the blade itself was made of some kind of very light gray, polished metal. The sword was a good several inches smaller than Nar’s, and the grip only had room for one hand.
“This is a common sword,” the master said, considering the weapon in his hand. “With the right wielder, it is capable of dealing almost all of the physical damage types. These were not within your concerns when you were Climbing, but slowly, as you head deeper into the vastness of the Endless Labyrinth, they will become more and more crucial.”
And then, the man flowed.
Wait… What? Nar thought, dazed.
He knew that the man had moved. He knew that the man had performed a slashing motion with the sword, but it had been so beautiful, so perfect, it was like Nar’s brain had missed almost the entirety of what had happened. As though he had seen someone telling him that the Master of Blades had moved, instead of seeing it with his own eyes.
“Slashing damage…” the master said, holding his new pose.
His left leg was in an incline and the front leg bore most of his weight with a half-bent knee. The master’s right hand extended in front of him, holding the sword perfectly and utterly still.
“... Is shallow! It is meant, usually, to cut just deep enough to inflict status effects upon your opponent, rather than to maim or outright kill them. Now, a status effect is nothing more than something that affects you or your opponents. The most common status effect there is, is [Bleeding], something you will all have seen at least once during your Climb when profuse bleeding occurs and drains your HP,” he told his captive audience. “However, there are many more status effects. As you uncover your affinities and go through the rapid changes and corrections that that discovery brings to your paths, you will know if your path is one of inflicting status effects or not. One of death by a dozen, shallow slashes, as poison, bleeding and an infinity other array of debilitating, destroying or downright nasty status effects takes hold of your enemy and brings them down.”
The master moved once more. Even though Nar had forced himself to not blink as he had felt the man’s explanation come to an end, he had still missed the whole thing! How? It had happened right in front of him!
The Master of Blades had sunk into a more pronounced, deeper stance, and he now held the sword directly in front of him, thrusting his arm far apart from his body. Even with the shortness of his stature, and of the blade itself, Nar couldn’t help but hold his breath at the impossibly long range that the master achieved.
“Slashing damage is weak, or down right useless against heavily armored enemies,” the master explained. “For that, you need piercing, or thrusting damage, in order to go through your opponent's defenses. This is accomplished through concentrating all of your damage through a single, piercing, point of contact, usually a weak spot in the armor or body of your enemy. Piercing damage is also great for delivering status effects, but it is also equally well suited for delivering critical, maiming hits. Or outright killing blows.”
The master shifted, and Nar could only catch enough of his movements to understand that he had performed a heavy downwards cut.
“Cutting, or hacking damage,” he said. “Heavy blows, large strikes done with the very sharp edge of the blade and with the full might of your attributes behind it. When cutting, you are aiming to sever your opponent’s body parts, or even directly cut them in twain. Your goal is simple. Your opponent must die, and thus, your opponent will die. Should you fail, at very least, they should be left so maimed that you will either easily dispatch them with your follow up strike, or they are already dying, and it's only a matter of moments.”
Then he moved again, and Nar frowned in confusion.
What? Was that… The flat of the blade? Or the pommel?
“Lastly, blunt, or crushing damage,” the master said, straightening back into his original position, and letting the weapon disappear back into his inventory. “To destroy armor, or bring down that which is not fleshy or soft. You will find enemies made of rock, metal, ice and so many other materials, whose hardness will make it very difficult for your blade to slash, cut or pierce through. In those cases, blunt damage, from the pommel of the sword or the flat of the blade, can become your only recourse. Blades, however, by their very nature, are not often suitable for this last type of physical damage… Of course, the great two-handed swords that some of you wield are an exception to this. However, at the same time, creatures who are of a more flexible and/or shock absorbent nature will make blunt damage mostly moot, and will be instead vulnerable to slashing, cutting or thrusting damage, depending on their characteristics. Some creatures are even strong against all types of damage…”
If you come across this story on Amazon, it's taken without permission from the author. Report it.
The master crossed his arms behind his back, and scanned the ranks of silent, unmoving apprentices before him.
“You all have variations of this common sword, and here, you will learn to understand how to use what you have,” the master explained. “You will learn the advantages of your weapons as well as where they fall short, and you will be taught what to do for whatever combat situation you find yourself in. Especially as you unlock your affinities and the new skills that come with it, you will learn that there is always something you can do! No matter what happens, no matter what you face, my apprentices will always contribute to the battle! Is that understood?”
“Yes, master!” Nar shouted, alongside the others, and was surprised by the power in their shout. Their eagerness and desire to learn was evident, and for a moment, a brief touch of a curl touched the master’s mouth.
“Good. Now, [Agility], [Dexterity], [Speed] and [Strength], in various orders of importance and priority, are all crucial for building a path of the blade. However, despite being crucial, you need not concern yourselves with accumulating them. Why is that?”
Nar’s breaths stuck in his throat.
Why? He asked himself, raking for an answer across his brain, even as the question stumped him. Really? But, without them, how are you going to fight?
He had spent his entire Climb dreading his gains as much as he looked forward to them. After all, without the right attributes, one’s path could go in a completely wrong way… Or was he missing something?
“[Stamina], master,” a female voice said from somewhere. “If you run out of [Stamina] in a fight, you can die.”
A wry smile touched the master’s lips, softening his stern countenance somewhat. “That is a very good answer. Without [Stamina], not only are you useless in combat, but you are very likely dead as well. However, as crucial as it is, [Stamina] is also something that you need not concern yourselves with accumulating either. [Stamina] is something you conserve. Something you manage, but not accumulate, even if it does help to have it in certain quantities… Anyone else?”
Nar had to give it to that apprentice. Not only had she been brave enough to risk answering something incredibly wrong in that setting, she had actually come up with a very good answer. He hadn’t even thought of [Stamina]!
But if it’s not [Stamina] either, what is it? He thought, his stomach clenching further and further as the seconds passed. What else is there?
He briefly considered looking at his status for ideas, but he wasn’t sure if the Master of Blades was able to tell if he did so, just like the Master of Aura had.
“No?” the Master of Blades prodded them.
“B-Bravery, master?” a male voice said, just to Nar’s left.
“Bravery,” the master said, shaking his head. “You needed more bravery there, Fis, not to hesitate in your delivery… But no, it is also not bravery. It is important, yes, to be brave and courageous in the face of the enemy, and to not let fear cloud the clarity and sharpness of your mind and blade. But it is also not it. However, you are moving away from attributes, and that was a step in the right direction.”
Not an attribute? Crystal… What is it then?
Nar looked down discreetly to his right hand, and imagined the sword in his grip.
If not attributes, and if not bravery, but something potentially as intangible as that, what did he need? Knowledge? Positioning? Strategy? Skills? Any of those could be a good answer.
Hmm… Maybe not skills, Nar though.
A low chuckle drew Nar’s attention back to the front.
“I ask this question every two years, and without fail, not one apprentice is capable of answering me,” the master said. “And do you know why? It’s because you’re all Ex-Climbers, and none of you has had the luxury of time or instruction before, in order to be able to even consider the right answer. And the answer, my apprentices, is practice, training, experience, knowledge and understanding.”
He raised a hand with a single finger lifted.
“Practice, so that the right movements, reactions and situations become ingrained in your mind and your bodies. So that you act with your subconscious mind, and not hesitate through active doubts,” he said, and then lifted a second finger. “Training, because you need constant repetition in order for fighting styles to become second nature to you, so that reactions become true reactions and knowledge becomes understanding. Experience, not of the kind you gain from the System, but the kind you gain by having it beaten into your body. The kind you heal and recover from, the kind you suffer and clench your teeth through, so that no matter whatever you face, you will always, always, look for a way forward. Without hesitation, and without giving up.”
He abandoned his counting and spread his arms wide.
“Knowledge, not only of yourself, your path, your fighting style, your abilities, your strengths, your weaknesses, but also that of your enemies! Enemies that are as infinitely varied as are your paths!” he explained. “And understanding, to bring it all together. To wield it alongside your blades whenever you draw upon them, be it here, in your classes, or your own training, or out there, where you’ll face death again and again.”
He clasped his hands behind his back once more.
“If I were to sum these into a single thing, that would be hard work. Hard work is the only thing you need to concern yourselves with on a daily basis,” the Master of Blades said. “Attributes will come. Skills will come. Results will come… But only through building your paths, and your paths will only be built through sheer hard work and will power. This means to give more when you believe you have nothing left to give! To stand back up after you’ve fallen for the hundredth time! To grit your teeth through the pain of a mowed body and do one more rep! And to look in the mirror after the thousandth fail, and say, tomorrow I will try again…”
The Master of Blades touched his forehead. “This controls everything. Not your heart. Not your emotions. Even if they are your weapons or affinities… No. It is your mind, and even above that, your will. And further above that, your discipline!”
Nar’s heart beat loudly against his ears, as he devoured every word out of his new master’s mouth with bated breath.
“In my class, I do not demand hard work. I expect it as a matter of fact. And those who do not work hard, will be cut,” the man said. “For these two weeks, your focus will be on your aura training, unlocking your pathways and building up on your [Mastery]. However, when we truly start in two weeks’ time, I expect to never see the Hall of Blades empty, except between the hours of midnight and 6 AM, which you will need to dedicate to proper rest. Outside of that, whether it be practice, training, aura or your studies and preparations for your assignments, I expect my apprentices to always work hard. For those are the ones that make the ranks of the elite… All the way to the ranks of the Named Few. And it is my goal to provide Tsurmirel with as many promising, would be Named Few as I can. Is that understood?”
“Yes, master!” they shouted with their very souls.
Nar swallowed hard, his heartbeat galloping in his chest and sweat coming down the back of his neck, despite having done nothing yet but stand still.
This was the teacher he had been dreaming of finding. This master, right there, was going to show him and teach him things beyond his wildest dreams! With his tutelage, Nar was finally going to turn that lump of useless metal in his hands into a true weapon… He was certain of that! Somehow, deep inside him, he knew it without a shred of a doubt.
“Now, I’ve spoken quite a lot, and I have yet more to say. However, you did not sign up with Tsurmirel just to stand still,” he said, a predatory smile gleaming on his face. “So run…”
“RUN!” one of the instructors roared, making Nar lose his stance.
“Run!” the other instructors joined in, and shaken into action, Nar followed after the other apprentices.
Within seconds, he found himself running around the edges of the hall, with the instructors running amongst them.
“These are your instructors,” the master said, his voice perfectly clear above the noise of their stampeding feet. “You will obey them without question, for they are projections of myself. They have all been with me for at least seven years and were all trained by myself. I trust their decisions, judgment and character without question. And so can and will you. You will address them as instructors whenever you see them, and within this hall, you will raise your hands to get permission to speak, and you will bow whenever you receive their and my instruction.”
“Apprentices, stop! Bow to the Master of Blades!”
Nar crashed into the apprentice in front of him, and someone else did the same into his own back, as they all struggled with the sudden stop and fell into chaos.
“BOW!”
Looking around, he found the instructors all bowing to the master, who now stood in the center of the hall. Nar quickly lowered his head.
“Apprentices, bow to your instructors!” the master then bellowed.
Again, somewhat confused, Nar bowed to the nearest instructor, who looked upon all the apprentices around her.
She did not look down on them, exactly. There was no superiority, or disgust or anything negative in that stare. It was a simple matter of expecting respect from the younger people around her, and knowing that it was simply the way things were.
“Discipline and respect are the backbone of everything in the Hall of Blades,” the master explained, almost as if he had read Nar’s mind. “We do not look down upon you. We do not disrespect or laugh at you, no matter your shortcomings or failings. We look for hard work. We respect hard work and the discipline to not give up. You can bring us your doubts, your worries and fears! I and the instructors will listen to all of those, both pertaining to the blade, other aspects of your instruction, your parties, your studies and even in regards to personal matters. It is our duty to guide you, and we take that duty with the utmost seriousness, discipline and respect! You will only lose that respect when you give up. Now run!”
“RUN!”
Still in a somewhat state of confusion at the sudden change in the atmosphere and the class, Nar got back to running, following after the others.
“Your classes in the Hall of Blades will be split into three. There will be conditioning drills, to improve and strengthen your bodies, and get them used to properly using your attributes. There will be weapon drills and training, to deepen and grow both your knowledge and understanding of your weapons. And lastly, there will be practice classes, where you will put everything you are learning into practice, be it in sparring against each other, the instructors and myself, or our dummy targets,” he explained, scanning them with his unwavering stare. “Now… Instructors, wrist-ankle weights!”
“Apprentices, to the weights!”
“To the weights! Line up!”
“LINE UP!”