Knights Apocalyptica

Once the moon went down and Sir Matt dragged Erec back from their latest round of training to the tiny farmhouse on the surface, Erec finally took a deep sip. It was a credit to whatever Gem’s talent that he could go for so long. But after each round of healing, he began to feel more worn down and weak.

So, it was with great relief when Matt announced they were done for the night, did he celebrate.

Gem healed him, then escorted him to a tiny cot near the fire, sucking on her teeth and shooting the occasional glare at Matt as she prepared a mulled wine.

Erec accepted the cup generously, finding it hard to talk or think as the full depth of the exhaustion began to sink in.

“You’re staying the night, then?” she asked, her eyes directed at Matt.

“If you don’t mind.”

“If I don’t mind.” She repeated while shaking her head, “Where else would you stay.”

“Could drag him back to Azure Tower bunks, suppose.”

“You could buy a house.”

“Mhmm. You know Grandmaster Towers has said enough: the new one and the one before. Not a year goes by before she tries to give me land and an estate,” Matt chuckled, “Don’t care for it though. Didn’t start as a noble, not going to end as a noble either.”

Gem glared at him, “It isn’t wrong to be paid for what you’ve earned.”

“Sure, I don’t disagree. I think they should pay me in peace, not in more work,” Matt settled into a chair near the fire, an oversized thing that must have been custom-made for him. Still, even with that in mind, the legs squeaked, and it protested having such a massive weight suddenly put onto it. Gem sighed and pulled another plush chair next to him, setting one of her hands on his.

“When are you going to be done?”

“We’ve had this conversation already,” Matt answered sharply.

Erec took a deep sip of the mulled wine, his eyes heavy as he listened to the two. At this point, he realized they’d gone into their own little world. Not dissimilar at all to those brief but precious moments he got with Enide, when the seconds seemed to blur together, and the moment and emotions took overall. It was like stepping into your own private little bubble, isolated from everything outside and, thankfully, only with that person.

No doubt about it then, these two were together, and that much was painfully obvious.

“And I told you, we won’t stop having this conversation until you pick a day. This isn’t a job you can keep doing forever, love,” Gem answered.

“It isn’t forever, nothing is.”

“And I don’t want your end to be at the hands of a monster. Retire before then. Some Knights do. You’re talking about being paid in peace, but you can’t be paid if you’re dead.”

Matt shrugged. “What kind of life is there for a man like me? I’m meant for this, and if I’m not doing it, then what is the point?”

To this, the woman didn’t respond, only clutching his overgrown hand tighter. The flames in front of them in the fire popped and cracked, the warmth touching even Erec, further away on his borrowed cot. The silence stretched in the room, though Erec knew he was long forgotten in their minds. Compared to the problems they faced together, he was but a footnote.

Erec took one last sip of the warmed wine, feeling the popping flavor of cinnamon, cloves, and apple; his eyes rested on the fire, swearing that he could see little flecks of silver in it.

Just as he began to slip away to sleep, he finally let his curiosity win and willed the notification in the corner of his vision to expand.

Soul (Aspect: Fire): Rank C - Tier 4 → Rank C - Tier 6

Strength: Rank C - Tier 8 → Rank C - Tier 9

Vigor: Rank D - Tier 9 → Rank C - Tier 3

Agility: Rank D - Tier 7 → Rank C - Tier 1

Cognition: Rank E - Tier 6 → Rank E - Tier 8

Psyche: Rank D - Tier 1 → Rank D - Tier 3

Perception: Rank E - Tier 7 → Rank E - Tier 9

A small thrill of success from the effort ran through him, followed by a profound slumber.

— - ☢ - — - ☼ - — - ☢ - —

The first thing Erec felt when waking up was pain, along with a thump as his body hit the dirt. Next came the overwhelming sounds of people chattering, hammering, and working away in the distance. He groaned, pushing himself up from the ground; his eyes blurred as he tried to make sense of what was happening. The corner of his eyes ran with tears as he wished for nothing else but to be able to sleep just a little bit longer.

Next, he realized that he was no longer tucked away in a cozy farmhouse; it should have been obvious, given the sound around him. But the whiplash from watching the embers of the fire while curled up on a cot to finding himself thrust into the middle of a public space and in the dirt was making him slow.

“Come on, rust-bucket. Get up.” Colin hissed to his side, grabbing him by the arm and helping haul him to his feet.

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Matt stood in front of them. The stoic Master Knight had his hands tucked behind his back and not even a smirk on his face. Next to him was the sour old man from the day before who’d taken Colin. He, however, kept shooting angry looks at the boy.

“Don’t offer him assistance,” The old man commanded.

Colin scowled, “You are no longer in charge of me.”

“Care to test that again? Do you need another reminder of how inferior your spell-slinging is to this old master? Or do I need to put you out again and reintroduce you to the waste facilities?”

At that, and to Erec’s surprise, Colin balked and let him go. Erec stumbled, barely avoiding falling onto his face again on the dirt below. He took a moment, blinking out the tiredness and soreness of his entire body, to understand just what was happening.

They were back where Boldwick had left them the day before. Around them were the workers hammering away at fixing the tournament ground. More than a few were looking their way, and to Erec’s embarrassment, he could still see the remains of where Matt had fought him the day before—some holes being filled in with sand and dirt hauled by a team of men and women.

His eyes ran over the large Knight, who, if he had to guess, had been the one to haul him here and toss him onto the dirt.

[Wakey wakey, have no fear; I took care of your unconscious body while you recovered. You should find muscle soreness but no lingering effects. That anomalous energy… Or magic, as you call it, from his wife—wife? You know, I never pieced that together—regardless, it is quite potent. But had I not been there to direct the healing… Well, you might have needed a few days. Lucky you, buckero. Oh, and yes, he carried you here. Rather alarming how out of it you were. Don’t conduct this type of training outside of a safe area. Dangerous.]

Well.

Erec scratched the back of his neck and turned his attention to Colin… Who was burnt worse than any piece of toast, he’d seen the noble cook. Burn marks lanced across all of his clothes; patches were missing from his uniform, and both dirt and…

Oh, goddess.

Erec gagged from the smell.

Colin was positively rancid, and by not paying a bit more attention to the stains on his friend's clothes, he had become human waste.

What kind of training did he go through?

Before he had too much time to examine his friend, the third and last member of their party arrived. Cutting through the groups of civilians at a measured and delicate pace, Garin was likely the least damaged. In fact, he sported a green Verdant Oaks cloak that was definitely not Academy Standard and followed right behind the lady with a bow.

Munchy stood on the head of Garin’s cloak… Somehow, it’s even bigger than a day ago. How such a thing was possible, Erec wasn’t sure.

His friend gave them a grin, sliding into line with Erec and Colin, and then gave a salute to the woman with a bow as she launched into a small, quiet talk with the two instructors.

“Well, we’re all back in one piece. Definitely not fine and healthy, though, dear Goddess. What did the two of you go through?”

Me? Erec looked down, and sure enough, he’d been so consumed with the aches and pains, and then in taking in Colin’s devastated state, he failed to realize he looked quite a sight, too.

Dried blood on what was left of his Academy training uniform—holes missing everywhere—at least one or two bruises that must not have healed since Gem’s talent was more restrained in what she targeted. Yeah, he looked the part of a man who’d been beaten to a pulp multiple times if they somehow evaded the lasting injuries that normally came with such rough treatment.

“It is not fair. You got it easy,” Colin complained, “He made me haul things and took his time torturing me.”

“He tortured you?” Garin asked.

Colin looked at the ground and spat, “According to him, who was born low at birth, it was his job to ‘take me down a peg’ and get the ‘grandiose unaired air of magic out of my mind,’”

Erec grunted, looking at the wizened old man busy discussing with his peers. So, the guy came from low birth and saw it as a chance of revenge… “Did you learn anything?” Erec asked, cautious.

“Yes. He drilled glyphs into me—not the typical ones the Academy teaches. He called it ‘practical shortcuts,’ dangerous magic if you ask me… But effective.” Colin gestured towards the air, calling forth a rune—the lines jutted in odd directions; it was atypical of the normal work he’d seen his friend perform. Before the glowing lines could complete, they vanished. “As well as a few methods of control. So, the torture, in addition to some unique perspectives. He just made me earn everything. Tell me, what sense does that make? Is not learning the goal in itself of this exercise?”

Erec didn’t have anything to say, but taking in his friends… Already, he could see changes in them. Felt changes in himself.

He didn’t know just what these changes might bring to their lives long term, but they were everything he’d asked for. All he could hope was that in the coming days, they would solidify the basis for what they might become.

Garin and Colin were launching into more training details, but Erec decided not to engage, conserving his strength. His mind circled back to the vision.

That table had many seats.

The Knight had said that some mantles could be earned while others were birthrights.

Erec looked at his two friends with a critical eye.

No, he wouldn’t go alone into this; these two would be coming with him. If that meant that they, too, would join him at the round table… Then so be it.

“Attention,” The old man cackled, causing them all to form up—it was clear a second later, as Boldwick strode past the workers at the edge—constructing what appeared to be stands to view the tournament ground; Boldwick looked just about as tired as Erec felt.

Outside of this training, the Master Knight must have been going through quite a lot to make preparations. If Erec had to guess, he and Dame Robin were far more busy than usual, sorting through the problems and logistics; once more, he felt grateful for the Master Knight for making this time to train them amidst what surely must be such a busy time for him.

We’ll make it worthwhile. Erec promised.

“Well,” Boldwick said as he reached the rest of the senior Knights and gave the three initiates a critical eye. “You didn’t hold back with your training regimes. I appreciate it.”

“My pleasure,” Sir Adam grinned wide. Erec felt Colin tense at his side.

“Aye,” Sir Matt agreed.

“You were right, a hidden talent indeed,” Dame Elke said, shifting her gear and giving Garin a pleasant smile, “Just need a bit more confidence and creativity. Don’t forget what we talked about, and train diligently.”

He gave a small nod—Boldwick took them all in, his face a stone mask, and then turned towards their instructors. “As requested, Dame Elke and Sir Able, I think you’ve done a fine duty with this; I’ll be sure to write a favorable report for your goals. I think you would make wonderful mentors for whatever Knight Errant was lucky enough to end up in your charge.”

“Thank you, Sir.” Dame Elke bowed her head.

“Of course, was there to be any other end?” Sir Able added.

Sir Matt stayed quiet because, as Erec knew, unlike the other two, his participation as an instructor came from a favor called into Boldwick and a desire to teach the next generation.

With that, the mentors bid their farewells, with Dame Elke making a special promise to check in with Garin over the next few months. It seemed that she had taken a liking to him as a person and was interested in helping him grow. Another good sign that she is meant to teach, Erec thought to himself as they bid their farewells.

Soon, they were left with Boldwick, who cleared his throat.

“Gather your things—we’re going to run back to Academy. We’ll be needing your Armor for this next stage of training. The last one to reach it owes me a hundred weighted push-ups.”

Giving no more explanation, the Master Knight took off, kicking up dust behind him as he ran.

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