Echoes of the Past

Chapter Nine - Part One

Chapter Nine: Sword Training - Part One 

They rounded the side of the tavern and came to a wide dirt path that led into the back alleys of Toolin. A warped and chipped wooden fence ran along their right, with the backs of various buildings on their other side.

Sam and Evan walked ahead, but James fell behind, his legs weakening. The heat of the day, combined with his nerves, caused him to sweat profusely. It's just a training session, he told himself. I need to know how to use a sword, anyway. Reminding himself he was from a warrior race of men, he urged himself forward, strengthening his strides.

"For the purposes of this training session," Sam said, "we'll avoid any magical powers and stick strictly to physical movements."

The pathway opened to a docking bay lined with parked trucks and a retracted crane. A few bo'Breih workers in oil-stained overalls passed by, chattering in their broken language. A large mechanoid stomped behind them, its thick forearm blocks and giant hands swinging with its long strides. The squares of light on its domed head turned to them as it passed, emitting a series of beeps and pops.

James watched the powerful mech turn a corner, and wondered what its use was. They used a few mechs on the Rimas construction sites he'd worked on, but he had never got along well with any of them. The idea of a mindless being that only existed to follow orders had never sat well with him. Maybe it was his own similarity to a mech that made him uneasy, he realised. That's not like how I am, though, he told himself. Even if I do follow people and mostly do what they tell me, I'm still in control of my life.

Sam led them around a grey building to a smaller parking station. Under a metal overhang lay a corroding two-seater spacecraft, its red paint chipped and faded. The glass was missing from its curved window frames, and a section was open on the side, revealing a mess of cables and circuitry. The idea of space travel had always intrigued James. One day he would leave Carnan. A part of him knew it. He tried to ignore the sense of dread that came to him in that moment, thinking of the galaxy out there, and what else was in store for him.

James considered removing his grapple hook so it wouldn't get in his way. He eventually decided to leave it on his belt, guessing that he should get used to moving around with it on.

"You know," James said as they came to a stop, facing Sam. He ran a thumb over the grooves of the grapple hook. "This thing would have come in handy in the Grillock Caves, jumping across that bridge. If I'd remembered it at the time."

Sam shrugged. "Learning to use a grapple hook is a whole other matter. You wouldn't want to use it for the first time with a dark chasm below you. Besides, small jumps like that are no bother for Oneron."

"Right," James said. He did use it in the caves though, just not the way it was meant to be used. He still remembered the jolt up his arm as he shot the hook into the chest of that charging grillock.

Sam drew his sword, and nodded for James to do the same.

"We'll start with the basic grip," Sam said. "Evan, feel free to add any pointers you may have, although at the risk of confusing James, it's best we keep things mostly focused on the Oneron techniques."

Evan nodded and remained silent. He kept his large sword sheathed.

James held his sword up. There was a blue-tint to the silver blade as he turned it in the sunlight, finding it both heavier and somehow more manoeuvrable than he thought. The wrapped handle was padded and easy to grip.