Blood of the Ancient - The Helix Rebellion saga #1

Chapter 3

Logan crept through the shadows, his wooden sword wrapped in a blanket as dark as his attire. He glanced behind, making sure no one followed, and turned left through a gap in the stone wall at the foot of Willem's Hill. As the rocky incline became more arduous, Logan was surprised by his lack of fitness. By the time he reached the castle archway he was breathing heavily.

He scraped his feet over the threshold of the old stone ruin, awed as always by its majesty. Only seven weathered columns remained of Willem's stronghold, notched and rugged and offering a welcome brace to rest upon. The two most prominent stood adjacent to the archway, secluding a small area inside from the eyes of Rastaban. Logan glanced at a squawking crow at the highest point of the tower; a couple of crumbled slit windows barely remained. A breeze swirled through the castle, enticing reeds and overgrown grass into a frenzied dance.

Logan halted at his usual training corner, unwrapped the darkwood weapon and swung it awkwardly to remind himself of its weight. Well...here goes. He charged at the tree stump, battering it from all angles. Swinging wildly with his sword, there was no form or flow to Logan's attack. An untrained and undisciplined assault, he struck at the bark until his wrist hurt, then paused to wipe the growing perspiration from his brow. This is stupid...I'm never gonna learn!

He thrust the sword at the floor and paced over to the tower. Sitting down on a soft bed of pink moss, he glanced up. Lunis was nowhere to be seen tonight, only an army of twinkling stars filled his crisp night sky. "If only everything in this world was as beautiful as you..."

"Meh, that's pretty impossible," Someone chuckled. Logan jumped.

"Great Lunis, Rhea...I nearly..."

"Ahh...I don't need to know!" she waved a hand frantically as she waltzed over. "So, what'cha doing up here this time of night?"

Logan shuffled, freeing up some room for his guest. "I...just having a walk really."

"A walk, eh?" she raised an eyebrow. "A lot o' noise for someone 'just having a walk'."

"Okay...okay...so I wasn't out having a walk..." he rolled his eyes. "I was trying to...practice."

"Practice what?" she asked, crunching on a sweet apple. "You wanna bite?"

Logan dismissed her offering. "Have you ever wanted something so bad, that you'd do anything to make it work?"

Rhea glanced into his blue eyes, afraid of unveiling hidden feelings. "Yeah..."

"Well it's like that. Jax got me a slot on the next recruit's course, it starts next week!"

"Wow! That's great Logan - congratulations!" she discarded her apple with a quick swing and slapped his thigh. Logan's reaction wasn't as she'd expected. "...so what's up? Aren't you pleased?"

"Yeah, I'm thrilled but..." he threw himself backwards, lying flat on the moss. "I'm a bit...worried, I really want to impress but I'm damned useless with a sword." Rhea chuckled. "Hey...it's not funny - I'm serious!"

"I know...I know, it's not - I'm sorry." Rhea jumped to her feet. "Tell you what, I'll teach you."

Logan raised an eyebrow as he met her dark eyes. "Come...again?"

"What?" she smirked, "you afraid I'll kick your ass?"

"Ooh...yeah..." he chuckled. "Thanks...though."

"I'm serious, now go fetch your fucking stick...your sword fighting sucks."

"What? You were watching!" Logan jumped to his feet. "Where were you hiding?"

"I saw enough to know you've never held a weapon before."

Logan wasn't sure if she was bluffing. "And how do you know? You some secret Marshal in disguise?"

"Maybe...maybe not" she smiled menacingly. "But I did spent many of my early years living at the Temple of Syll."

Logan was taken aback. "You lived at...The Temple of Syll?"

"Yeah, when I was old enough to leave the orphanage. I persuaded my guardians to let me go."

"Wow...how long were you there for?"

"Many years...not my entire childhood though. I came back for school...those were the times I saw you." Rhea reached over, grabbing a suitable stick from a pile of bracken. "I stopped when I was sixteen."

"Great Lunis, Rhea...you kept that quiet."

"Yeah...I guess so. I needed something to take my mind off things, somewhere to go."

"Oh, I see." Logan strolled back to his stump, also aware of the pain caused by not knowing a parent. "Let's go inside the ruins, the walls keep the wind out." Rhea followed him as he plucked his discarded sword from the grass. "So what do I do?"

A huge smile shone on Rhea's face. "That's the attitude I'm looking for, now stand like this...a little more weight on the back leg so you can spring forwards...like this..." Rhea moved like lightening, prodding Logan's chest with her branch before he could respond.

"Woh...that was quick!"

"And when you're close in..." she twirled a graceful pirouette, the branch delicately kissing Logan's throat, "...a spin attack is a nice way to finish off an opponent."

"Can you teach me that?"

"Of course...but it's gonna cost you."

Logan sighed. "How much?"

"Two things actually. We meet here every night until you start your recruits training."

"And?"

Rhea smirked behind her branch. "You bring me more of those sticky fruit pies!"

"Done!" he laughed. "I'll bring a basket of them here tomorrow. But I need to get fit by the way...not fat."

"On my honour as a Tremonde." she held her thumb and forefinger in a crescent against her chest; a gesture of honesty in the name of Lunis.

"Thanks, Rhea...for everything." he embraced her carefully.

"Anytime," she smiled. "Let's get to it...then. Basic stance, feet shoulder width apart with an extra half step...left arm behind for balance...right arm in front, up a bit...wrist loose. Let the weight of the weapon do the work, relax your arm...like this, you're clenching too tight, too rigid and you'll burn too much energy in a fight. The most important element is to relax, tighten your muscles when you strike." she lunged forwards, prodding an imaginary foe. "If you're blocked...or miss, always return to your basic stance.

"With the lunge attack, you need to make up ground quickly, but your leap can leave you vulnerable to be countered. Good practice is to always finish your attack with an outside sweep, like this...that way you'll block any unexpected counter strikes and also be ready for your next attack." she swept her branch upwards again in a blocking motion, and darted back to her basic stance. "See, easy."

"Yeah...right," Logan stepped forward clumsily, almost tripping over his own feet.

"Root yourself to the ground through your toes, solid but ready to pounce, and dance to the next root. Be one with the earth beneath, unyielding." she watched as he tried again. "Better, but this time relax your lead shoulder. Drop the tip of the sword to assist with your lunging momentum...let your weapon lead the movement."

"I'm gonna need a lot of practice with this," he sighed.

"We'll get there, Logan. I can teach you alot in a week. In a few days we'll practice with real swords - you need to know how a blade feels and reacts when it meets another."

"Where on Eridanus are we gonna get swords from?" Rhea grinned at his naivety. "Oh...I should have guessed."

"You just concentrate on turning up here every night, remember what I show you, and I'll sort out the rest." Logan nodded. "Now...let's hit that tree stump properly."