To Be a Hero {SBI Fantasy AU}

15. A Dire Dilemma

It was honestly way, way too early to be up and about. He knew that he was the one who asked for training in the first place but it was hard to remember his motivations when there was a soft bed calling his name. Tommy had been forced awake even before the sun had risen and little wisps of half-remembered dreamscapes were still stuck in the corners of his mind. Even now, after they'd packed up and gone to an open field to train, he could barely see the pink of the sunrise on the tips of the treetops. Blearily rubbing his eyes, he grumbled, "Did we really have to wake up this early? I mean I know we have to train but can't do this a few hours from now?"

"I could do with a couple extra hours of sleep," Tubbo muttered groggily, "I reckon I'd train better too."

"Quit complainin," Techno scowled, "If we plan on taking down that spider any time soon you two are going to have to train. A tool is useless if you don't know how to use it."

"C'mon, I know how to use a shield," the squire griped.

"Well, yes," Phil acknowledged, "but evidently you need some brushing up on those skills. And a little practice wouldn't hurt anyone."

"Yeah? Well waking up at the crack of dawn is definitely killing my nonexistent sleep schedule," Wilbur lamented, "I sleep late and wake up late, not the other way around."

Techno shook his head, "Whether or not you slept doesn't matter. You can just make it up in a few days. Right now though, we need to practice."

At that the knight shot the berserker a concerned look,  "Uh, mate, that's not really—"

"Aaanyways," the masked man continued, "stop complainin' and ready your weapons." Pulling out his battle axe, he turned to face Tommy. He stated, "The most basic and important usage of the shield is for defense. You have to keep a good grip on it and keep it close to your body for it to work though."

The squire gave a curt nod to show that he was paying attention and gripped his new shield. The leather felt firm under his grasp and he did his best to remember what he'd learned beforehand. He settled into a stance that he was pretty sure was supposed to keep him from toppling over. Bracing for impact, he looked up to see Techno charging at him.

"Gah!" he yelped, stumbling backwards as the berserker slammed into the shield, despite sort of expecting the man to come at him. 

Stroking his chin, his mentor muttered, "You had the right idea, you just flubbed the execution a little."

"Well that was because you startled me!" Tommy huffed, "I would've been able to fend you off easily otherwise."

Straightening up to his full height, Techno crossed his arms and peered down at the squire. A moment of silence passed as he craned his neck, not unlike a hawk that he'd seen once when he and Tubbo had gone to play at the forest's edge. The bone white mask turned so that a single crimson eye could stare into his soul. A chill crept up his spine as the monotone voice slowly uttered, "Are you sure about that?"

He was frozen under the other's hardened ruby gaze. It was a deceptively simple response that somehow managed to send him into a state of primal fear. But just as quickly as it had arrived, the chilling feeling dissipated as his friend slipped back into his typical casual demeanor. 

The berserker leaned back and shrugged lazily, "Well that spider isn't going to wait for you to prepare after it's spotted you. It's trying to kill you, remember?"

Relaxing, the squire sighed, "I know, I know."

"Just widen your stance a little more and try not to jump when something comes at you," he continued, "besides that, you should be good. With a little more experience you should get better at that anyways."