The Dou-Jin Apprentice of Monsters and Men In the Beginning

Chapter 11 Classes

Chapter 11

A Late Summers Nightmare

The hallway way fairly wide but the floor was covered with a thick whirling mist so that Stephanous couldn't see the floor. For all he knew his next step could drop him into a pit or off a cliff, but he doubted it since he was in a hallway, at least that was his reasoning and he hoped that he was right.

He realized he had a mythril sword in his hand and was as blue as his amulet. He had never seen anything so delicately made. He ran his thumb along the blade and found it to be razor sharp as it dug into his thumb. He quickly put his thumb into his mouth and tasted the iron of his own blood.

"How stupid can I be?" He thought to himself for running his thumb over the blade like some ignorant child.

This was no ornament it was a weapon and an extremely finely honed one at that. Then he noticed that he had a mythril shield as well. Maybe the amulet was protecting him in his dream, but why with such weird stuff. Stephanous had never seen weapons before, not like the sword and shield. He had seen big bulky weapons that mercenaries and soldiers used that traveled through the village, but nothing like he had in his hand now.

The sword and shield he had in his possession were finely crafted and ornately decorated with scrollwork. The blue of the sword and shield were such a light blue that they almost glowed in Stephanous's hands.

His uncles and aunts had bows and arrows, spears, and axes but that was about it. They said you couldn't harvest grain, sheer sheep, skin a cow, or any farm work with a sword. But with an axe you can chop down a tree to build a house, a hammer to work the smithy, a spear to skewer a boar, and arrows to take down a goose or a duck in flight. There was no place for a sword on the farm.

The sword felt great is Stephanous's hand, almost like it was meant to be there even though he had never touched a sword in his life. He waved it around and it glided through the air like nothing he had ever experienced. The leather felt comfortable in his palm like it was meant to be there. He could feel the grooves of the leather in his hand and it was as if it were part of him. He felt like he had been missing the weapon his entire life now that he had the blade in his hand.

Then the darkness enshrouded him like a murky thick cloak. He remembered where he was and fear began to fill his veins like the life's fluid that pulsated through him. There was only a shadowy light that filled the hallway and silhouettes danced across the walls making Stephanous think that he wasn't alone. The dapple shadows were of demons and devils dancing in the fire light, but they were being projected on a wall and he couldn't actually see the monsters, but he could feel their presence. It made him feel like maggots were crawling under his skin and they were burrowing in deeper into his muscles eating their way to the bone.

He brandished the sword in front of himself and tried to focus upon the Spirit for calmness and the sword burst into a purple light, that was light and flame but neither. The brilliance of the blade didn't diminish the specters that flickered upon the walls. The flame of the sword was of little comfort to the young boy as he traversed the endless corridor. The wavering flames glowed brightly and illuminated the fear etched upon Stephanous's face.

Clomp! Clomp! Clomp! Clomp! came the sounds of walking hooves that echoed through the damp misty air. The further Stephanous walked the higher the mist rose until it reached his waist. The young lad still couldn't see anyone. His heart had begun to race and sweat began to trickle down his neck and face. The hoof beats seemed to be coming closer.

He couldn't tell if the hoof falls were from behind him or from in front of him. His chest had begun to pound and he could feel and hear his pulse in his ears. Them something brushed past his right leg and then something past his left.