Arc 6. A seemingly endless loss
Road to a Hero:
Three Chances in Another World
Chapter 27. I’ll pass
Before Gray had met with Rupert, The Duke, Jimmy, Smolder, and the now-dead Dorothy, Peter and the rest of the group were waiting at the cottage. Lance, Edward, and Soku are waiting for Peter to get ready, but unknown to them, he has completely forgotten about their plans to go out, he’s just working on his gadgets outside.
Lance: “UGG! Can you go get him?”
Edward: “Okay, I’ll go make sure he’s okay.”
Edward steps into the backyard, watching Peter throw his rope dart at a tree, obviously practicing. The distracted Peter continues to reel in the rope dart and throw it at the tree again, trying to get it to stick into the thick tree bark. Edward takes a second to let him continue, watching Peter finally train. Peter pulls the rope dart back and, enraged because he can’t get it to pierce the wood, he pulls back as hard as he can. While doing this, the dart flies toward his face, and then on impulse, he ducks, narrowly dodging the fatal blow to the face. Edward, standing behind him, catches the dart, scaring Peter.
Peter: “AHHHH! WHAT THE HELL!”
Peter falls to the ground, embarrassed that Edward is watching him.
Edward: “You’re training! And not with a blade, bow, spear, or anything like that. I figured you’d train with a bow or a short sword, not this, it’s impressive.”
Peter stands up, reeling in the rope dart as he does so. He then scoffs at Edward's claim, seeing it as condescending.
Peter: “I’m too weak for a spear, too slow for a sword, I have my rifle so I don’t need a bow, and I tried training with a whip, but those aren’t really effective. Dark elves are known to fight with these though, so I’ve been training with it pretty off and on for a while now. I’ve just been doing it when I get stuck on something.”
Edward walks backward, sitting down on a stone bench.
Edward: “I could help you train, or Lincoln, or Gray, hell any of us could.”
Peter: “I don’t wanna waste your guy’s time. You all need to grow stronger, I’m stuck like this…what am I doing? Sorry for being all pessimistic.”
Edward: “Calm down, it’s okay. I know it must feel like you’re not growing, but we all have abilities. My body grows stronger faster than most, Gray’s heals, Rosemary has a set goal with her stages, and Soku has an absolute affinity. It makes sense they’d grow faster, but don’t let that distract from your work.”
Peter clenches his fist, dropping the dart, and then falling along with it.
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Peter: “You don’t get it…I’m a Dark elf, we’re all supposed to be superhumans…strong, fast, and have amazing senses, and I have none of that. I’m weak, lazy, stupid, and I keep making all of you mad. I’m no good at this.”
Edward: “Come on, you think I don’t get it? I’m a Helsing, at my age I should be ten times stronger, have my white hair, and be unstoppable. But I don’t have that, I’m so far behind it kills me, but I’m still pushing forward. And saying that you’re stupid, is stupid because you’re the smartest man I’ve ever met.”
Peter: “Yeah right, all my gadgets are Gray’s ideas. I just make them.”
Edward: “Well that’s a feat itself, and Gray didn’t tell you to how to make your explosives or your explosive launcher. And you made a car, I don’t even know how you managed it. Even if Gray helped, you two still did it.”
Peter throws himself up, enraged by Edward's words.
Peter: “SHUT UP! You don’t know that, it broke…it failed, we almost died…we were almost late…I just kept messing up man…I embarrassed Soku and I made you lose your mother's drawing…and…oh.”
Edward is stunned by Peter’s knowledge of the photo, the only thing he had left of his mothers, which was placed in the bag that got stolen in Mier. Edward had kept that a secret from everyone that isn’t Gray, but Peter somehow knows. Peter quickly covers his mouth, falling back to the ground.
Edward: “You knew about that? Don’t worry, it’s alright, you couldn’t have done anything, it’s fine.”
Peter: “THAT’S THE PROBLEM! I CAN’T DO ANYTHING! I BEING WEAK, PITIFUL! AND I JUST KEEP MAKING A FOOL OF MYSELF!”
Edward goes to say something, but he doesn't, staying silent. And so does Peter, just sitting there while the wind whistles in the air.
Peter: “Do you know why I keep getting so mad at Lance when he calls me a rabbit? Why did I even take the mask…”
Edward: “No…I don’t. Why?”
Peter: “Because…because of my mother. She said I was jumpy, so she called me her little rabbit…and Lance keeps rubbing it in my face.”
Edward: “Oh. I’m sorry for that. But he doesn't know this, you have to tell him so he stops doing it.”
Peter: “Hell no, he’d just keep making fun of me…OH! We’re supposed to go out for the party stuff and I forgot…and I’m still wasting our time.”
Edward stands up, patting Peter on his head.
Edward: “Just stay here, get some alone time okay? Keep training. You can go out next week”
Peter: “Alright, have fun.”
Peter watches as Edward walks away, leaving the cottage with Lance and Soku. Throughout the night, all Peter does is work on the Silver Chariot. He uses the parts he had bought. Looking at his sketchbook, which holds notes, designs, and various other miscellaneous things, he just stares longingly at a blank page.
Peter: “Edward…he just left when he got nervous…they aren’t family, they don’t even treat themselves like it. They have groups, Rosemary only talks to Gray and Soku, hell she doesn’t even have anything in common with Gray, she just thinks he’s hot. Gray and Soku hang out, hell they’re the only ones who seem like real friends. And then there’s Edward, training all day and night not saying a word. He and Gray are supposed to be brothers in the war, yet they hardly talk. This whole thing is a lie.”
In a fit of rage, he throws his book across the backyard, slamming his fist onto the hood of the Silver Chariot.
Peter: “All I've done is help. I made the communicator, I made the Silver Chariot, and I made the explosives that wounded Arthur. And I’ve never gotten more than casual thanks…I’ve carried them with no strength at all…EVERYTHING WOULD BE USELESS WITHOUT ME! I could sell my ideas to Rupert and get rich. I could rub in their faces, and they’d be looked upon as the guys that knew me!”
Peter continues to slam his fist into the hood, but he suddenly stops, He then turns around, rubbing his hand, and goes to get his sketchbook mumbling to himself.
Peter: “Soku got mad at me when I told her not to rush into things, that she wasn’t ready. I’m the bad guy for being right because I didn’t lie. She should be the one getting shunned, not me.”
He flips the page to his current rifle design, staring into it.
Peter: “But…I don’t want to leave them. I have a shot here, a shot to have friends, a family again…BUT I SHOULD HAVE GONE TO SEA WITH LEO! I HAVE BEEN SO STUPID!”
Drops of tears fall onto the page, coming from Peter’s distraught eyes.
Peter: “If Lance says one more thing about the rabbit mask…I’ll shove his words down his throat, and an explosive along with it.”
So the grudge grows bigger. His anger, embarrassment, pride, greed, and desire to just understand grows to another height. Though for now, even if he’d say different, it’s all talk. But if you were to give him a few weeks, he could be in a completely different country. That’s just how far his hate has grown, his want to grow is greater than anybody in the group, but he’d be the one to work towards it the least.
End of Chapter Twenty-seven