Book 2: Chapter 63 (Patreon)

The next twenty days were some of the longest of Orrin’s life. Silas had brought in the best teachers he could find for Daniel and his daughter. The training was intense.

A handful of the weapon masters turned up their noses at Orrin joining at first but each accepted him as well after a demonstration of [Way of the Water]. His ability to dodge nearly any attack vexed and intrigued even the most stubborn of fighters.

After breakfast, the trio would spend a few hours drilling with different weapons under the watchful eyes of one or more teachers. Madi worked almost exclusively with a [Spear Dancer]. The tiny man made even Orrin feel tall. He had been the only person to actually strike Orrin during their spar. He was also the only teacher to give immediate advice to Orrin after their fight.

“That was well done,” he had said, leaning against his spear towering over his head. “If you had kept yourself inside my range, I would not have been able to touch you. Work hard and learn the range of each weapon. Your skill is impressive but not infallible.”

While Madi worked hard thrusting and stabbing at a straw dummy, Daniel fought with a different sword user. Originally, Silas had brought a [Swordmaster] in to train the [Hero] but the lord of Dey had dismissed the man after he refused to work with Orrin. The new trainer, Sasha, was a [Swordhand], one of the predominant classes for a sword wielder. She refused to let Daniel use Gertrude, drilling him with different swords of regular size. Orrin had joined for a few lessons, learning to use his summoned swords for more than just an overhead slash.

Daniel threw the iron shortsword on the weapons table angrily. “This is stupid. I should be using the weapon I like, not these pieces of shit.”

Orrin sighed and caught a staff that had begun to roll off the table. “You have [Sword Proficiency]. You can use any sword with ease and know the exact way to hold and thrust and all that. I have to learn the hard way. Shut up and stop complaining.”

Daniel took a cup and dunked it in the water barrel used in the training yard. He drank the full cup and slammed it back down. “Exactly. I already know how to use swords. They should be teaching me how to push myself farther, not make me use swords I’ll never use.”

Orrin saw the shadow coming up beyond them and kept his mouth shut.

“I mean, what’s the point?” Daniel continued, oblivious that the [Swordhand] was standing behind him with her hand on the pommel of her longsword. “I’m not going to fight without Gertrude. I’m going to tell Sasha she needs to let me train with my own sword or I’ll get Silas to get another trainer for me.”

The sound of steel being drawn rang across the yard. Sasha tapped Daniel with the flat of her blade.

“Pull out your big sword then, [Hero]. No skills or spells. Sword on sword only. Three touches or drawn blood to win.” Sasha never raised her voice during training. She would put a finger in the air and wait for all sound to cease before she gave instructions and carried herself with an air that Orrin had first thought was disdain. It was only when he’d fought her, he’d realized she was just bored. She had come alive when he dodged more and more, trying to find a way to hit him. Her laughter when she had conceded was the loudest Orrin had heard her be.

“Teacher,” Daniel turned and ducked his head. He had been beaten into the ground over and over. “Gertrude is dangerous to use in a sparring session. I could hurt you.”

Sasha’s eyes widened. “Oh? Then perhaps it should be three touches for me and one for you. Stand ready.”

The ass-beating that Daniel received was astounding.

Sasha disarmed Daniel almost immediately, his giant sword falling to the dirt a few feet away. He moved to pick it up and Sasha slapped his back with the flat of her blade.

“One.”

“I’m not armed. Can you at least wait until I pick up my sword?”

“An enemy will not wait so kindly.” Sasha did however let him pick up Gertrude and settle back into his ready stance.

The second time she disarmed him, Madi left off her training to come watch with Orrin. “Two silver on Sasha.”

“I’m not taking that bet. Daniel isn’t going to win,” Orrin rejected her.

This time, the [Swordhand] moved between Daniel and his sword, holding him at point. Daniel smiled and held his hand up, activating his power [Summon Weapon]. Orrin hadn’t ever watched the skill work. Gertrude faded between blinks, reappearing in Daniel’s outstretched arm.

“The rules were no skills or spells. Do you forfeit the match?”

Daniel frowned. “How else do you expect me to fight? You disarmed me and I use what is at my disposal to win the fight. Isn’t that what you said?”

“Do not use your skill again or it is a forfeit. A resourceful attacker may have countermeasures against you. If you could not reach your sword after being disarmed, what should you do?” Sasha advanced on Daniel, striking with testing feints against his larger sword.

“Run away?”

Sasha tapped Daniel’s sword, drawing it to the side a fraction of an inch. He overcorrected and she darted in, pushing her blade along the hilt. Daniel was forced to drop his sword but avoided her hit.

“You are surrounded by other blades. Your teammate can summon more. You have a knife on your hip. You have many options.” She smiled with a bloodthirsty grin. “But yes, running from me might be your safest choice.”

Orrin was enjoying the cat-and-mouse game. Daniel ran to the weapon table and grabbed up the shortsword he’d abandoned. Sasha disarmed him again, pushing him in the opposite direction. He pulled a longsword from a weapon rack and she disarmed him. He dashed to where Gertrude lay on the ground but she stood on the blade and pointed the tip of her sword at his chest.

“Do you see why we train? You might be best with your big sword but you will know how to use all swords. All blades have similarities. All blades are one. When you can use all of them proficiently, your skill will increase with each individually as well. Do you yield?”

Orrin expected Daniel to keep fighting but his friend used his big brain for once. He bowed his head deeper than before the Sasha.

“I yield to you, teacher. Which sword is next?”

After the first week of swinging his sword around didn’t result in gaining his own [Sword Proficiency], Orrin skipped out on morning practice. He waited until everyone was gone and stepped into one of the bathrooms at the Catanzano manor. Specifically, the one that had a shower. A cistern on the roof filled with water, either from rain or hired [Water Mage]s. The pipes ran into the room and through a magic-activated piece of equipment that could heat the water.

Orrin had given this a lot of thought. He was going to try to level [Way of the Water] again. After the last training season with Styx, he could feel the movement of water if he concentrated. Like a drop of liquid crawling down his neck, it tickled his thoughts if he focused. He was hoping being in moving water would help.

He turned on the shower, stepped in, and quickly pulled up the prompt. There was no reason to waste time or water.

[Way of the   Water]: 20% 4/20 completed. Test your progress and unlock the first Gate?

Warning: Failure three   (3) times will result in all progress being lost.

Let’s go. Orrin accepted.

When he blinked, he found himself back in Styx’s white marble arena with the alcoves. The watery form of his teacher waited in Formless, the initial stance of Orrin’s fighting style.

“Hey Styx, how are you?”

Orrin didn’t expect a response and wasn’t disappointed when the watery figure didn’t so much as move. Unless he asked something important, Styx wouldn’t answer… Actually, sometimes he wouldn’t answer even if Orrin thought it was important.

[Way of the Water] was a defensive and reactive fighting style. As soon as Orrin took the Formless stance, Styx would attack. Orrin felt that he had fully mastered the other stances: River, Ocean, Rain, and Mist. Each stance had its own movements. While in River, Orrin would focus on his footsteps, moving away from an attacker. His hands would flow in circles, brushing attacks to the side with only the smallest margin for error. He knew by now that he could use River to wear an attacker down until they were frustrated or made a misstep.

Ocean stance focused more on meeting the attacks of an enemy. He still would throw the attack to the side, but like the tide, he would rush in to fill the space left by the attack. It wasn’t quite offensive fighting but Ocean was what Orrin used the most when fighting monsters or people trying to kill him. He needed to be able to attack and the moments when he surged forward gave him the opportunity to do so.

Rain and Mist were stances that Orrin had mastered but still didn’t fully understand the use of. Rain was all rapid movements, almost in an unpredictable pattern. It had elements of both River and Ocean to it, letting him retreat and advance on a target but with none of the strength of either. Except in fights against Styx, he had never used it in a real battle.

Mist had taken Orrin the longest to get. Styx had seemed reluctant to continue training in the stance until the last training session. It had been Arandir’s suggestion to train in water that helped him figure it out. The movements themselves didn’t seem hard but Styx had never accepted the stance from Orrin. Feeling the water along his back, Orrin had had a moment of inspiration. Like the beads of water running along his skin, he slid his feet between the movements, never stopping. He skated along the ground in constant motion. The water that made up Styx’s body had positively vibrated in glee and Orrin had learned more of the moves of Mist.

He still felt like there was something about Mist stance that he hadn’t fully grasped but Orrin couldn’t progress with his training until he unlocked the First Gate… whatever that was.

“How do we do this then?” Orrin asked as he stepped into Formless.

Styx didn’t move, waiting silently.

“Are you going to attack me?”

No response from the man of water. The lights from nowhere that lit up the arena splashed through his body, leaving fractal rainbows on the ground.

“Should I attack you?” Orrin asked but didn’t expect an answer. He felt the shower in the real world hitting his back in exaggerated slowness. I bet if I activated the training in the middle of a fight, I could control time.  He banished the thought for now.

Styx remained in the neutral waiting stance of Formless.

Orrin lasted four minutes standing still opposite Styx.

“I need to unlock the Gate, whatever it is. How do I do it Styx?”

When no response came, Orrin moved forward and threw a punch. Styx splashed into a puddle of water all around.

[Way of the   Water]: first Gate Failed.

Warning: Failure two   (2) times will result in all progress being lost.

“What the…” Orrin turned in a circle. Styx was gone. He screamed in frustration and threw punches and kicks at nothing until he felt tired.

[Way of the   Water]: first Gate reset.

Test your progress   and unlock the first Gate?

Breathing heavily, Orrin sat on the ground and put his head in his hands. “Think, stupid. Attacking him wasn’t the answer. He isn’t moving to attack me. How do I test my progress without fighting?”

The water around him churned together and coalesced back into the waiting form of Styx. He stood normally for a moment before dropping into Formless again.

“Test my progress…” Orrin murmured to himself. How could he be so stupid? [Way of the Water] wasn’t about attacking. Honestly, sometimes he felt like it wasn’t a fighting style at all. Dodging all attacks couldn’t be considered a fighting style, could it?

Orrin stood up and fell into Formless. “Let’s see if this works, then.”

He moved into a different stance, taking Ocean. Styx copied his movement. He swung his foot up into one of the first attacks Styx had taught him: Scorpion Fish Strike. Again, the watery teacher mirrored his movements.

Orrin spent hours moving from stance to stance, repeating every attack, move, counter, and dodge that he could remember. He fell into a trance watching Styx watching him. Moving together until they were one. Orrin couldn’t say when their arms connected, dancing through the various elements of [Way of the Water]. His arms pushed while Styx pulled, the attacks speeding up as Styx stopped copying and instead synced with Orrin’s waltz. They gracefully combined moves in a way that Orrin had never thought to try, reading the other’s tiniest movements. Speeding up as the strikes and kicks moved with frantic energy, chaotically missing each other in a frenzy that ended when Styx pulled away violently.

Orrin was dripping with sweat. Styx bowed his head and disappeared.

[Way of the   Water]: First Gate Unlocked.