"Gather around!" I heard the Master call out to us.
It was my first day of training at my new home in Codrean. It had only been a few days since I left my old home in Kinth behind. I couldn't tell which direction we had gone from there, as it took us the better part of a week to arrive at the fortress.
The sun had barely risen over the distant peaks of the Rhydian Mountains, and even though it had been raining the past few days, the warm, summer air felt more welcoming than I had originally expected it to.
I distinctly remember the awkwardness of the previous night; walking into a cold, stone room with two other boys, Batch and Edryd, already having settled in. I'd not said much that evening, since I was too shy and still getting used to my surroundings, but the following day, I was immediately paired up with them and found myself mimicking their pose as we lined up in front of the Master.
"Everyone, I'd like to introduce you to the latest addition to the New Bloods, Thoma Fayren from Kinth. It's his first day, so I expect you all to help him where he needs it, and make sure he doesn't hurt himself; is that understood?" he asked. "Yes, Master," our group of fourteen, me included, responded in unison.
"Good. Thoma, you will be training with Batch and Edryd today. They have been here a little longer than you have, but not so much to where the difference in skill will be too great. Right now, I just want you to keep up with them as best you can," he said plainly.
It sounded like there's more to it than just that, I thought.
"Yes, Master," I responded with a bow. I had noticed some of the others doing the same when we arrived the day prior, so I figured it was probably a custom they had. He smiled, and nodded his head. "Very well. Go line up with the others. We're going to start off with a short run today," he said, gesturing to a dirt trail that led off somewhere into the forest surrounding the Northern side of the fortress.
"Come on, we don't want to be late," Edryd said, pointing his upturned nose in the general direction of the trail. "A-alright," I said, still feeling a little nervous about having to interact with people on a much more regular basis. "It's not that bad, we promise. It just looks harder than it is," Batch said, patting me on the shoulder.
Both Ed and Batch, the former with dark brown hair and eyes, and the latter with blonde hair and blue eyes, couldn't have been more different in their personalities, as I found out over the course of the day. Batch was a little slow to learn new things, while Ed constantly over-thought them. Nevertheless, they were instrumental in my early days there at Codrean.
During the run that morning, I quickly discovered that I was not in good physical condition. Sure, I had played a lot outside when I was still in Kinth, but ever since my father had taken me to that old bastard in a cottage, my energy levels had simply not been the same.
"Come on, Thoma," Batch said, encouragingly. "Breathe in time with your steps, three counts in; three counts out," he said, briefly and promptly demonstrating what he meant. I followed his advice, and while it helped for a little while, it didn't change the fact that I was still struggling to keep pace.
"Hey, are you alright?" Ed asked, slowing his own pace to match mine. "Yeah, I'm fine. First day and all," I said dismissively through battered breath. I felt something aching in my chest, but it wasn't my lungs, that much I knew.
Not much else to do but try to keep up, I guess, I thought, watching their pace slowly pick back up.
I did what I could to keep up, but over the course of the league-long run, or so I was told the distance was, I had come in last place. As I ran through the large, wooden gate, I was greeted by my two training partners, who were already grabbing their training swords from the rack. As soon as I crossed the threshold of the gate, I doubled over and lost what little was in my stomach.
"Not bad for your first day," Batch said, patting me on the shoulder comfortingly. "I thought you were going to pass out for a second, there," Ed chimed in. Even though I knew these two for all of a night and that part of the morning, I already felt much more comfortable knowing they were going to treat me like an actual person. "Thanks, guys. I'll try to do better in the future," I said, wiping my mouth off.
"You'd better," I heard a familiar voice come from a short distance to my left. I looked up to see a familiar face. His raven-black hair was about as long as mine was at the time, and combed over to the side. His green eyes were a few shades lighter than my own, but in reality, he was just like a five-year-older version of me.
"Bernar!" I said, rushing over to him, and giving him a hug. "It's been a while, little brother. I heard you were coming, but I didn't expect to see you training so soon," he said, putting a hand on my shoulder. "I didn't either, and I definitely didn't realize you would be here, too!" I said excitedly. "The Master mentioned you to Father a few days ago, but I didn't think you'd actually be here," I said, pushing my fingers into my hair in astonishment.
"Well, I know it's been almost a year since my last visit, and I'm sorry about that, but there's just been so much going on lately," he said, ushering me over to the training rack. "But we'll talk later. You're here now, and that's all that matters," he said with a bright smile. "Thanks, big brother! I'm so happy I have family here," I said, not realizing just how deep that sentence alone actually went.
"So am I, little brother. But you've got to go. You don't want to be late for your first real lesson, do you?" he asked, gesturing over to where Ed and the others were lining up against a few sets of training dummies. "Here, a little tip before you go so you don't make a fool of yourself on your first day more than you already have," he said, grabbing my hand and my training sword.
He pushed my right hand up near the guard, and pulled my left hand down towards the pommel. "There, now you'll have to use the pommel to help rotate the angle of your sword, since your right hand is, effectively, going to act as a fulcrum for much of its movement, though your hips and arms will do most of the work," he said in a teacher-like voice. "What's a fulcrum?" I asked, genuinely confused.
I don't think it had dawned on him that I had never held a sword before, let alone the fact that it was actually my first day interacting with a weapon.
"Ah, right. Think of it like sticking a rock beneath a stick to help you move something heavy," he explained simply. "Oh, I see," I said, not fully understanding, but at least I had a mental image to go off of. "In any case, you need to get over there before you get yelled at and forced to run a lap around the training yard," he said with a wave of his hand.
"That's something you do here?" I asked, beginning to fear for my life. He quickly nodded a response. "You're right, I should go. Can we talk after dinner?" I asked, half-turned to him as I started moving towards my group. "Yes, of course. Go!" he said, shooing me with the backside of his hand flicking in the air.
I lined up behind Batch, who was next in line for a demonstration of a three-hit combo that we were watching Edryd perform; one from the top-right, then the bottom left, then straight across. A simple combo, sure, but for someone who had never swung a sword before, it felt like it was far more complex than it really was.
I can't make a fool of myself here, I have to pay close attention, I thought, noting Ed's positioning and how he held himself.
I shifted my body a little bit to slightly mimic his movements, but I didn't want to get called out for looking like an idiot.
"One, two, three!" I heard Edryd mutter in unison with his strikes. "Good hits! Excellent form! Again!" the Master called out. Apparently, it was normal for him to train the New Bloods, as he always wanted to instill good habits from the start.
Ed struck the dummy again, but staggered a little on his last hit, having lost a small portion of his footing. "Be mindful of how you're angling your feet when you strike, young Edryd. Keeping your balance could mean the difference between life and death out there; do you understand?" he asked in a warm tone.
"I understand, Master. I'll do better next time," Ed replied with a bow. "I'm sure you will. Now, go to the back of the line and wait for the next round. Think about how you're going to move your body and try it again here in a few moments, okay?" he replied with a light chuckle, tousling Ed's dark brown hair.
Batch was up next, and while his strikes weren't very graceful, he did have a lot of power behind them. "One, two-three!" he said, increasing the speed between the last two strikes. "Very good, Batch! I'm glad you're not only relying on your powerful strikes, but changing the tempo between strikes. It is a good way to throw off your opponent, but it can often leave you open to counter-attacks, as well. Try it again with a consistent tempo, this time," the Master said encouragingly. "One, two, three!" Batch said, having taken the Master's feedback into account. He had, apparently, successfully chained his movements together so well that everyone in our group ooh-ed in unison.
"Much better! If you can keep up that level of physical prowess, I'll waive some of your scores on the written tests," the Master said playfully.
Batch's eyes, of course, lit up at the thought of not having to study as hard.
Next was my turn.