Pretending to be unconscious, I let Godric and Agness drag me like a bag of dirt over to one of the empty tents. It was nearly empty. Only containing a single sleeping mat and a wooden basin. Agnes wanted to drag me over to the sleeping mat, yet Capitan dropped me as soon as the flap covered the entrance.
* “What are you doing!?...” Agnes yelled “... that’s not how you treat the wounded!”
* “Aster, how long are you going to just lie over there?!” he asked, kicking me lightly.
* “As long as you would tell me to…” I said getting up, throwing dust which I gathered while being dragged between tents off my shoulders “... how was my performance?” I asked, finally stretching my body and looking at the captain.
* “Heee? HEEE?” the youngest of the knights in the House yelled gazing from me to Godric and back again.
* “Decent, I am not going to lie, I thought that Thomas would get you. Or that Stev, our oldest cadet, would defeat you with sheer experience. That’s actually a problem on its own. I knew these kids still needed their skills polished, but I didn’t know that they needed it THAT much.”
* “Cut them some slack, Captain, I am an undead with endless stamina that was trained by a half-orc… even if I didn’t study for long. Not to mention that I feel dirty…” I admitted, ashmed looking away “... I pretended to be exhausted making all my opponents fight much more aggressively, thinking that all I needed was one last push. That’s not how knights should fight…”
* “Bullshit!...” Godric yelled much to my surprise “... we are adventurers! Keep your honor for the time when you would duel in front of the king! You can’t expect monsters and bandits to fight with honor! They will try to backstab you, attack when you are tired and unprepared! Use dirty methods! Use advantage of numbers or weapons! The sooner they learn it the higher their chances of survival become.”
* “Wait… you weren’t tired?!” Agnes asked, pointing her finger at me “... but you totally acted tired!”
* “I was told that it is better to keep my identity as an undead a secret to the rest of the House… and I agree with it. So I had to pretend that I was getting more and more tired with every passing fight…”
* “So you actually pretend to lose to me!? I want my concern back! I wasted them on you!” she pouted.
* “No! There was no way I would beat you even if I wouldn’t pretend! You were just too fast for me! It was but a coincidence that I decided to give up at that time!”
I tried calming her by raising my hands in a protective gesture.
* “Hmph!” either she didn’t care, didn’t believe me, or was still just offended for me not treating her seriously.
I needed to do something quickly to calm her down, and I hoped that Agnes, as every woman, was fond of compliments.
* “I know that I might not be in any position to ask for this… But I would be really grateful if you would consider showing me your moves another time! I could barely keep track of them!”
* “Phi!... Well, maybe. Since you’re asking so kindly…” she gave up on her annoyed facade “... If I would be in the right mood, I might just consider it!”
* “I thank you in advance!” I bowed my head.
* “Okay, kids, I need to be going, otherwise these lazy bastards won’t resume their training. Aster, stay for some time in the tent, an hour or two. Later, we will need to provide you with personalized training. Stamina and strength training will be useless for you, I think I will just assign some of our instructors for swordsmanship lessons. Agnes!”
* “Yes!” She saluted.
* “Stay with him, try to provide Aster with information on how things work around here.”
* “Sir, yes Sir!” she was quite eager, if you asked me, maybe she is just this energetic type of person - I wanted to believe that this was the case.
After giving his orders, Godric left the tent.
Leaving us alone. I tried making myself at home and sat on the one end of the mat, and I wanted to suggest Agnes sitting on the other side… but I noticed she was already sitting on it. Not on the other end though, she sat body-to-body with me.
* “Fret not! I will tell you everything you need to know! And more! Leave it to me!” she said while quickly fluttering her eyelashes.
I wasn’t quite used to such… “intimacy”. But, maybe knights of the order were a bit closer to one another than I previously thought?
Oh, and no - I wasn't that naive or dense. I was just desperately trying to convince myself that she wasn’t the person that could feel some strange, unholy even, attraction to corpses. Maybe she just felt somewhat full of gratitude for earlier help in the forest? Yes, let’s try our best to convince ourselves that it was indeed the case here!
* “W-well, maybe…” I started a bit awkwardly. I was about to ask her about instructors and missions that she took before the one where we met. That was the best way to get closer, but not too close “... you will tell me a little bit about yourself…”
… Did I just?...
* “Myyy! Aster how bold of you! Not that I mind, I adore confident men! Both in words and on the battlefield! Well, I think you will be a bit disappointed though, I am quite a regular girl…” WHICH PART OF YOU IS REGULAR!? “... I am just one of many girls that joined Silver Lion...”
* “Is that so? I didn’t see many women among soldiers of the House.”
* “Oh, there aren’t any among the cadets, but there are quite few among mages and priests, as for knights, there are three among the higher rank Knights, one of them - Natasha, is close to becoming a new Captain! She is gorgeous! Totally cool, I am telling you! She was the one that took me into the cadets as I...” her expression changed “... as my house was…” she tried one more time, after a moment or two, yet gave up.
Her face was clouded with a somewhat grim expression which she quickly cast away after clapping her cheeks.
* “As I said, I am absolutely regular! I just use pole weapons better than most knights, at first I was designated as a second line supporter, ‘cuz, ya know, spears - long range, we could just put it between the shieldbearers and…”
She got quickly graphical, weaving her hands and gesturing everything she was talking about.
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* “Yeah, I get the idea.” I tried to participate in this ‘conversation’ as much as possible, but the sheer tempo in which she kept on talking proved it nearly impossible.
* “... I started with poles because at the very beginning I was simply too weak to use anything else! You should see me! Even short swords were too much! Other friends from the House were mocking me a little because of that, but, later I learned that they were doing that on purpose, because I was a little rebel and the more they were mocking me the harder I was trying… Except for that… Well, you know my name, I am nineteen years old, I love color blue and sweet things! Oh, and one day I want to be as cool as Natasha! And to repay her kindness! And to one day help someone just as she helped me!”
* “That’s really a wonderful goal! You have a reason to be proud of yourself!” I tried to be as nice as possible, for she indeed looked like a nice girl that has her heart in the right place, maybe just a little bit crazy though.
* “No. Not just yet! I still need to work on it! But, how about you? I don’t really know much about you either! Only your name and that you were going north…” quite suggestively she changed her sentence, demanding information instead.
* “Well… I think that I can say that partly I am like you… I also travel to… repay someone.”
* “Oh! Someone who you are looking up to?!”
* “Quite the opposite. The person that killed me and took something… someone important from me. On my deathbed he actually mocked me… He knew that no one would ever punish him for what he did… so… I refused the Mistwalker.”
* “Wow…” she let out a quiet gasp “... you really are cool! To give up on eternal rest just to chase the bad guys!? And not only that! You weren’t obsessed with it! You actually helped a lone damsel in the forest! You really will fit in well here!”
If she had a tail, I was sure that right now she would wag it like an excited puppy.
* “I hope you are right…I really do.”
After that, we kept on discussing the general matters. I asked about instructors, types of quests that one could expect once joining the House as big as Lions and how long does it take for someone to “graduate” from being just a cadet into a regular knight.
I learned many things. For example - how should I talk/treat different instructors if I wanted to learn something new OR to make the training sessions last shorter than usual. I learned that Lions don’t have but a one strict training period, you just train until you are ready, and to become a knight you need to participate in enough successful quests.
And - that Agnes desperately avoided talking about her past. She joined Lions when she was thirteen and she didn’t talk about anything that happened before. It was as if her memories started when Natasha saved her. But where? From who? Anytime we got remotely close to the topic she would just change the subject.
I didn’t notice as the time passed, the two of us were sitting in that tent definitely longer than just an hour or two, and we would sit longer, if not for one of Friedrich's assistants that entered my tent.
* “Are you the warrior known as Alabaster?” the man asked, though his question sounded more like a statement.
If you know it, don’t ask! Tha! He even had that look - “why am I even wasting my precious time on him?”
* “Indeed, that would be me.” I answered, trying to ignore his rude behavior.
* “Captain Friedrich requires your assistance.” I wasn’t the man that was easy to provoke, and since I became an undead, emotions became slightly more distant as well.
Yet, somehow, he still managed to make me want to punch a wall.
* “Of course, I shall see him at once. Thank you for your message.” I bowed with fake gratitude.
Not waiting even a second more, the annoying man left my tent.
* “You need to excuse me, Agnes, but I think that it would be wise if I would leave now. Better not to make Captains wait.” I said as I started getting up.
* “Sure thing! We will still see each other quite a lot! Mostly during training!”
I held the flap for her as she left my tent, and followed shortly after.
Once again I headed toward the center of the camp where Captains (and mages) had their tents.
Approaching the tent of the Captain of the mages I noticed two guards (also mages) in front of it, I stopped a few steps in front of them and only said:
* “Hello, friends, I was told that I was expected.”
With a quick nod from one of the guards, I was let inside. Friedrich was indeed inside, together with Captains William and Godric, and three more Lions.
* “Oh, Aster, you came quickly… good, good. We managed to already analyze your training session. As an undead, the classic training methods will be likely useless for you, as there is no need to build up your muscles mass. Instead, we would try focusing mainly on your skills. As an undead, you don’t need to rest, at least not physically, which would allow you to train twenty four hours per day… of course, we are not going to push you that far, as we still need to maintain the misinformation among other members of the House, so you will need to interact with them every now and then… but, in the meantime, you will not only be able to become a more useful tool for our House, but also we will manage to learn more about your kind, for example, can you become mentally fatigued? We have prepared your entire training plan. You will learn from the best instructors. You will learn swordsmanship, tactics, and team maneuvers under the eye of Natasha the Lioness. You will learn about scouting, methods of integrations and tracking from… the person we call Ghost, and we will also try to see to your magical predisposition during your lessons with Maria - my second in command.”
That was… quite a fast reaction on their side.
* “Are you sure about that?” The woman in heavy, silver, beautiful armor asked, taking her helmet off, her hair letting down the cascade of blonde hair “... I will honor the decision of the Captains, but I don’t like the idea of training the undead. He might become our future enemy, if he would know our tactics, he would become a serious threat.” Natasha continued.
* “Are your suspicions regarding his potential betrayal justified, Nat?” The mage asked with a calm tone.
* “I read the report. He already fought against us once, didn't he?”
* “You should know that he was under the control of the Undead Lord, also, once his power weakened, he was one of the two undead that broke from under his control and attacked him. We have also been through a careful examination of his personality using lie-detecting stone. He possesses no grudge against humanity. Also, he appears to have a strong moral code. His betrayal is unlikely…” The other woman, in long grey robes, responded to the warrior's accusations. That must have been Maria.
* “So we will just wait for the time till he will be mind-controlled again?” The Lioness didn’t want to give up that easily.
* “Nat, what do you think, what’s the main reason for his magical classes? Even if he would prove to be unable to use magic, we can still raise his overall resistance toward specific magical sources, for example, mind control.”
Warrioress bowed her head a few times in acknowledgment, finally giving up.
* “I shall consider this answer sufficient for now. You!...” she raised her voice while turning in my direction “Usually I train people until they collapse. Since that will be impossible for you, be prepared to make up for that with dedication and passion!”
* “I shall consider your guidance as another step towards my goal, and you don’t need to worry, for my resolve is strong.”
* “Is it? Is it truly?” I think she tried to either frighten or test me.
* “More than you can imagine.” I answered looking her straight in the eyes.
* “Instead of saying that, you should show me! What proof of your words do you have?!”
I took a step forward.
* “Death tried stopping me before. Twice. Yet, I am still here.”
After a moment, she smiled and gave me a strong pat on the shoulder. A “pat” which could knock down a horse mind you.
* “He speaks with passion. I think I can make a Lion out of this kitty.”
Friedrich nodded contently over the course of this conversation, before turning towards the silent man in the corner of the room.
* “How about you, Ghost? Do you have any questions of your own?”
* “Another mission. Another cadet. Human. Elf. Deadman. Doesn’t matter.” he whispered, yet his words sounded clear, resonating in my head.
* “Great… And Maria?”
The woman courted in front of her Captain.
* “I can’t wait to see the results of examinations and studies.”
* “Great, with that settled, you are all dismissed. Aster, enjoy your first and last peaceful day.”
The old man, who up until now was standing close to the table filled with paper finally sat down on a plain, wooden chair. His face and body betrayed signs of exhaustion, yet his eyes were sparkling with excitement of a young student.
In some strange, weird way, this sight was calming me down.
Still, that was my first day amongst the Silver Lions. Tomorrow shall be my first day of training. So many first-times. That’s actually grotesquely funny. I needed to die to see how much of life one could be living.