CHAPTER THIRTY
"HAWAKAN mo nang mahigpit!" Sigaw ni Flint sa akin. Napa-buntong hininga ako habang nakasimangot.
"I can't do this anymore!" I hysterically fell on the ground and just lay there, exhausted. It's been three freakin' hours since we started the lesson. He gave me a huge sword. I'm not saying just huge, but a huge huge sword. At sobraaaaaang bigat no'n.
"Akala ko ba gusto mong matutong makipaglaban?" Tanong niya saka lumapit sa akin. I sighed and glared at him. My rough hands are already calloused and my arms are numb.
"I wanted to. But this sword is giving me a hard time. Pwede bang 'yong flaming sword na lang ang gamitin ko?" I asked him with a puppy eye and pouted. It always worked with my friends back at Cambridge.
"And then what? You'll burn me alive?" He dismissively said as he lent his hand to me. I took it and he helped me stand up.
"Sige huwag na 'yon. But can I have a lighter sword than this?" I pleaded. I looked up at him and pouted. He surrendered with a sigh and grabbed the huge sword. He handed me a lighter one but smaller. I smiled triumphantly at him.
"Ano? Handa ka na ba?" Tanong niya sa akin at ngumisi. I gripped on my sword and readied myself.
"Lezzgo!" Sigaw ko. Hindi ko pa man tuluyang natatapos ang sasabihin ko ay sumugod na siya sa akin. He taught me how to block attacks and what strikes to make. He also gave me some techniques and tips. Flint is the best mentor ever. He's patient and really a master of swordsmanship.
Sunod-sunod ang naging pag-atake niya na mabuti na lang ay nasasangga ko nang maayos. Syempre sinusunod ko rin ang mga itinuro niyang stances. Kung mahalaga ang defense and offense, mahalaga rin ang stability. He's only using one hand while I use both of my arms because his attacks are heavy. The clinking sound of blades reverberated inside the small training room.
He lunged an overhead attack so I'm fast to parry it with the forte of the sword and pushed him back. Hindi ko na pinalagpas pa ang pagkakataon at sumugod sa kaniya. I tried to use diagonal slices and he all blocked them expertly.
"Lakasan mo!" Sigaw niya. I gritted my teeth to give him an overhead attack so he braced himself for it. But it's a trick. I acted as if I'm about to strike him with the sword but I kicked him in the gut instead. He immediately staggered back and groaned. He smirked at me and took offense again. He tried to lunge a diagonally down to the right but I parried it just in time. We pushed each other and both staggered back.
"Pagod na talaga ako," reklamo ko saka naupo sa sahig. Maging siya ay hinihingal din mula sa duwelo namin.
"Pahinga na muna tayo," deklara niya saka iniabot sa akin ang kamay niya at muli akong tinulungang tumayo. Ibinalik namin ang mga espada sa lalagyan nito sa may mga weaponry sa tabi lang nitong training room. Sabay na kaming nagpunta sa sala pagkatapos.
"Mamayang hapon ulit. Wala ka bang gagawin?" Tanong ko sa kaniya nang abutan niya ako ng tubig.
"Wala naman masyado," sagot niya at naupo sa tabi ko. Ugh! Ang sakit ng mga muscles ko. Pero okay lang. At least ngayon marunong na akong humawak ng espada.
"Since when did you learn how to yield a sword?" I asked him out of the blue.
"Simula nang matutunan kong gamitin ang kapangyarihan ko. Six maybe?" He replied after drinking all the water from his glass. Six? When I was six, all I did was play hide-and-seek with my friends.
