Castle Training Grounds

The sun had barely crested the horizon when Drindle led Lionel into an open space within the castle walls. The open field was almost barren save for a few stands of grass growing here or there. The field appeared to be an archery range, targets could be seen off in the distance. Most likely the open area doubled as a scrimmage field for foot troops. There was one tall building that was a good distance away. It had a low parapet surrounding its upper floor, where commanders could look out over their troops during the mock combat. Lionel could only imagine the many feet that had to traverse the ground in order to make it as barren as it was.

The duo stood about three meters apart in the center of the field. "Right, So first things first" the old man was holding a sheaf of parchment and reading it's contents. "The Queen has given us access to this training field everyday going forward, until the tournament takes place that is." Drindle looked up from the papers. His eyes seemed livelier than Lionel had ever seen them before. "We will work from sun-up until noon on Elemental mastery, from noon until sun-down we will work on your endurance and weapon skills."

Lionel thought Drindle misspoke. "What do you mean weapon skills? What kind of weapons does a mage use?" The boy could tell his face was scrunched up by the look on Drindle's face.

"Honestly boy, What is the point of me giving you the one and only knowledge tablet if you don't use it?" Drindle stood there with an expectant expression on his face as if he was waiting for something.

Lionel reached into the tight fitting tunic he wore and pulled the sheet of paper out. Drindle had provided him with "Training attire", as the geezer put it. Lionel wore tan colored breeches and a tunic that felt one size too small. He unfolded and stared at the sheet of paper in his hands, while thinking of his questions.

The sheet of paper shimmered slightly and words appeared across its surface. "A mage will typically use a weapon specific to the Magic class they specialize in. There are no limits to the types of weapons that a mage can use. Majority of Mages use a weapon that provides a synergy with their magic class. An example of a mage class weapon selection would be: Ranger Class magic with a Bow, crossbow, throwing knives, or other ranged weapon." Lionel didn't quite understand the intricacies of the Magic class to Weapon synergy, the tablet mentioned. The example provided a clear enough depiction that he could grasp its foundation though.

Once he finished reading Lionel looked back at the old man. The geezer had taken his robe off and wore a similar outfit to that of Lionel. The old man stretched his shoulders and clasped his hands in front of him before speaking. "Right, So let's get started with your elemental mastery"

*

*

*

The two practiced for a few hours before Lionel fell forward onto his knees. He was heaving deep breaths in and out while sweating profusely. "Well you lasted longer than I had expected, Hah" Drindle stood with his hands on his hips looking down at the weary boy.

The training had begun by Drindle yelling an element out and Lionel summoning it with the energy from his vervane. That continued on for more than two hours with Drindle yelling for Lionel to change to an element, then to that element's weakness. He did this rapid fire until eventually, the geezer began to call out two elements. Lionel would try to summon them both at the same time. This proved very difficult for the boy and led to the current situation.

The boy was still heaving in and out while holding himself up on his hands and knees. 'I don't get it, Why is it so hard to summon two elements at the same time?' Lionel was thinking to himself, before he stood. He was still breathing deeply but he faced Drindle waiting for the geezer to call two more elements.

The old man didn't appear to be disappointed as he turned from the boy. Lionel watched the old man reach his hand out into the air. He was completely surprised when the wrinkled old extremity vanished from the forearm down. "Well that's it for Elemental training for today." The wizened old man pulled his arm back toward his body. His hand reappeared from the void, it now held a black short sword. "We will start with Swordplay, as soon as you catch your breath of course."

Lionel couldn't believe what he had just seen. He scrambled to grab his knowledge tablet and asked it a question with his mind. 'How did he do that? What magic did he use to summon a sword?'

The geezer had a twinkle in his eye as the sheet of paper shimmered. "The magic is known as slip-space. It allows a user to confine physical objects into folded space" Lionel again was dumbfounded at the new information. He only shook his head as he folded the knowledge tablet and slid it into his breeches pocket.

"You done studying? Can we get started now?" The twinkle in the old man's eyes remained as he walked over and handed the sword, hilt-first, to Lionel.

"Am I going to fight you?!" The boy stood there incredulous. It wasn't that he thought Drindle was weak, it was just the man was older than anything Lionel thought reasonable. Fighting him didn't seem like a wise choice for the old man's sake.

The old man chuckled loudly before he responded. "Heh heh heh.. Heavens no. You wouldn't stand a chance." Drindle picked up his robe off of the dirt and tossed it into the air. Just before the fabric hit the ground it stopped and hung in midair. The fabric seemed to fill out. the robe looked like someone was wearing it but there were no hands or head that Lionel could see. "Before you grab the knowledge tablet and ask it a question, This is a velthum of mine that you will be fighting. The tablet has no knowledge on this." The old man seemed even more proud as he stood there with his chest poked out.

Lionel turned to look at the robe. He didn't know how he would fight something that didn't have a head or hands. Suddenly the air seemed to vibrate where the being's head would be. Energy seemed to gather at all of the body's exposed parts. That energy then solidified into a black humanoid shell where the eyes would be there were cracks that glowed red. The energy also solidified into a sword that the weird figure wielded with their right hand. Lionel took in the details of the being's face, the shell had no nose or eyebrows. the head appeared to be a round black spherical object with no discerning features.

Lionel felt scared looking at this fiendish black figure. He looked at the old man and shakily spoke. "I.. I thought you said Velthums wanted to kill humans on site?"

"Well at least you listen, Heh" The geezer laughed slightly as he walked over to the black figure. "I call her Baltaz, and don't worry her sword will not do much more than bruise you." Baltaz's eyes narrowed, she turned sharply and struck at Drindle with her sword. The old man didn't even move as the sword collided with his outstretched arm. "See no damage other than a slight tingle" The old man's eyes seemed to glow with pleasure as he looked at the boy. "Now if I were you I would be on guard."

As soon as Drindle finished speaking, Baltaz dashed in Lionel's direction. The fiend met no resistance as its sword slammed into Lionel's abdomen. The boy went flying. He hit the ground and slid a couple of meters before coming to a slow stop.

"ough, ough" The boy rolled on the ground holding his stomach. "Ugh, I.. I.. Thought.. you said it wouldn't hurt?" Lionel could barely see from the pain he felt. He could have sworn someone smacked him with a wooden rod.

"Heh Heh heh" The old man cackled. " Heh.. I bet you will defend a little more next time" Drindle wiped his eyes while continuing to laugh.

Lionel couldn't believe the geezer was laughing like that. It literally felt like Lionel could barely breathe. "But how did you take the hit on your arm?" the boy had seen Baltaz's sword dart quickly and slam into the old man's arm. There was no way Drindle had taken a hit like that without flinching.

"That's for me to know and you to find out" The geezer still had a smile on his face as he helped Lionel up. "We will start out slower now that you realize this is for real"

Lionel stood up and faced towards Baltaz again. He had more fear now as he looked at the fiendish figure. The being walked slowly toward him this time and swung her sword in an arc. Lionel could easily keep up with the sword and he moved to block it.

Drindle began to yell instructions at Lionel as he watched the boy struggling against Baltaz. "Your sword should remain loose but strong... Keep your wrist loose right up until the sword meets yours... Deflecting blows is one of the best defences... Don't try..."

The practice match went on only for a few minutes before Lionel lay panting on the ground again. "Alright Ank, five more minutes of break then back to work" The old man was standing over Lionel. "Not too bad for someone swinging a hunk of metal, Got a long way to go" Drindle looked off into the distance. "I wonder if you would do better with a different weapon?" The old man seemed to be thinking. "Guess we'll use the first week or so to figure out which weapons suit you." Drindle looked back at Lionel. "Come on, go again"

Lionel sighed before standing up. 'What did I get myself into?'