Tales of a Dead God

Chapter Twenty-Four: The Moon Mourned Your Death

Noah found himself eating a mouth full of dirt again. This would be the fourth time he was put on his ass. However, he wouldn't give up easily. This made for the entertainment of the week. Most of the other soldiers that were supposed to be training had halted to watch this kid have his pride handed to him.

Ciro grunted as he swung his sword downward. Noah had about half a second to react and move before he caught the sword with his face. He rolled to his right as Ciro hit the ground. A unison of groans surrounded the two disappointed spectators. Noah scrambled to his feet and realized his weapon was gone. He searched around him but had no luck.

"Is this what you're looking for?" His eyes shot to Ciro who was smirking as he waved the wooden sword.

A frustrated grunt left Noah's mouth. He dove for his weapon but Ciro was faster and stepped to the side causing Noah to eat dirt. Noah pounded the ground with a fist and went to stand again. This time he felt the dull point of the sword between his shoulder blades.

"And now you're dead."

Noah gave up and lay limp in the dirt as a shadow blocked out the sun. He looked up to Ciro kneeling beside him with a lazy smile.

"Not bad for your first time in the ring." Ciro patted him on the back and held out a hand. "However, you are nowhere near ready to see the battle."

Noah grasped his hand and felt himself leave the dirt and find his feet again. He began dusting off his clothing although that wasn't doing much. "I ate more dirt than I did getting hits in."

Ciro chuckled. "True, but you have a stubbornness about you that can work as an advantage." Noah looked up at Ciro. Not in a million years would he ever think he'd be training to fight. "We have time and are lucky for you." He smirked. "I'm willing to personally train you."

"Oh great." Noah moaned as he rolled his eyes. He twisted for the now abandoned weapon on the ground when a sharp pain shot through his ribs. "Ow."

Concern replaced the smirk on Ciro's face as he leaned in. "You alright? I didn't push you too hard today did I?"

He shook his head. "Still a bit of healing is needed."

"Then we'll call it a day here." He picked the weapons up off the ground. "Go get cleaned up and rest for the rest of the day."

"But..."

"No. I will not have a soldier injured before the battle." Ciro's eyes held an authority about them that Noah hadn't seen before. "That's an order from your leader." He placed a hand on Noah's shoulder. "And from a friend, it's a concern."

Noah nodded. "Alright."

"Good. I will see you this evening and we can go grab some dinner."

Noah hesitated but swallowed the fear that had been churning for quite some time. "Could we try the city tonight?"

A pause and contemplation. Noah couldn't read what Ciro was thinking and stood there awkwardly. Ciro pressed his lips into a thin line as he debated then a smile. "Why not. Got to escape these stuffy halls at some point."

~~~*~~~

Around early afternoon, Lorcán sent for Gabriel and Theo. They were both in the library searching for spells that correlated with those that were in Theo's spell book. It was quite a waste of time as the vast amount of books lining the library walls were useless.

"I don't understand how out of all those books we look through, none of them had answers." Theo looked flabbergasted as he stared at his little worn book. "All spell books hold similar spells right?"