Realm of the Runes: Blood Right

Chapter XXXIX

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The platform under her feet felt real, so she opened her eyes , squinting against the familiar gale and driving rain. Velos was standing beside her, and he glanced down, his hand still firmly wrapped around her forearm. Their surroundings were thick with trees, which dampened the force of the wind a little. He released her, and gestured around.

"This is Delos, the old barracks and training ground for Chronos's warriors. All of us Corybantes started our training here," he revealed. She could make out several low buildings on the other side of the glade, and a few paths leading away from the clearing. 

"It hasn't been used for centuries, if not millennia," he observed, the platform matted with moss and lichen that clung to the portal's engravings. The slipperiness threatened the treads of their shoes as they gingerly made their way down to the ground..

"Let's look around and get some idea of how useful this place will be," he suggested, and she nodded, hurrying beside him as he made his way over to the buildings. They were barracks of some kind, she could see, the stonework beginning to crumble underneath the pressure of the ivy that strangled the structures. Velos laid a large hand on the doorpost, almost fondly.

He must have so many memories of this place, she thought, smiling a little despite the stinging rain.

"It's pretty run down. We'll need to do some repairs, but that will be for another day," he said, casting a brief smile her way. They ventured past the buildings, along a path into the forest.

"This is the archery ground," he said presently, the path widening to reveal another glade, long and narrow with target butts set into the ground at the far end. The targets were nothing but square stone frames holding the remnants of rotted wooden slats, and Velos frowned a little as he examined them.

"Next time I will repair them and we'll have proper targets," he said apologetically. "I hadn't considered how long its been since they were used."

"That's okay," she said quickly. "I'll be lucky to get my arrows anywhere near them in this weather."

He smiled a little, a sneaky look entering his eye. 

"That, young Divine, is exactly why I brought you here today. The weather will be a good test of your skill."

She swallowed, accepting the bow and quiver of arrows he handed her as they walked back to the other end of the grounds. She slung the quiver over her shoulder and gripped the bow tightly, turning to face into the wind. Her eyes watered as she tried to discern the targets, the visibility so bad she could barely see.

Velos held his own bow with an arrow already nocked. 

"Ready?"

She reached into the quiver for an arrow, nocking it smoothly, and nodded. He released, a twanging reverberation of his bowstring only just discernible over the howl of the wind. 

She narrowed her eyes, making out the target with difficulty, trying to judge the slant of the wind and how much power she'd need. She drew the string as far back as she could, aiming, and released. It was almost impossible to tell if she'd gotten it within the bounds of the target or not, but she was almost sure she'd had enough power.

"Let's check."

They hurried across the grounds, and she noted with some disappointment that her arrow was stuck in the ground, several meters short of it's intended destination.

At least it's in the right direction, she consoled herself, pulling it out of the dirt resignedly.

"Good aim," Velos said loudly, fighting to be heard over the gale. "We need to work on your strength."