There's plenty of violence in this chapter, but no blood.
Chapter 3: Critical Trials
Six months after they first met, Tauroneo and Gawain both got their hands on a pair of Iron Swords. They also had an Steel Lance and a Steel Axe on them, respectively. Bryce had an Iron Lance, and was training with a Training Sword. The blade was made of wood, but it looked much more professional than those toys they had been training with months ago.
"Well, Gawain, ready for another round?" Tauroneo laughed as he lifted his Steel Lance.
"Of course. We'll still need to practice more, especially you, Bryce." Gawain lifted his Steel Axe and struck a dramatic fighting pose.
"Thanks to you two, I'm finally able to wield an Iron Lance with ease, but maybe we ought to work on my swordsmanship." Bryce muttered.
"That can be done easily. Come at me, Bryce!" Tauroneo held his Steel Lance.
Bryce charged forward with the Training Sword, and Tauroneo dodged to the side. Tauroneo stabbed forward, but stopped before the tip of his spear touched Bryce's clothes. "1 point for me." Tauroneo muttered grimly.
"Hey, should I be keeping score?" Gawain asked.
"Please, don't!" Bryce moaned.
"Well, maybe not this time, to be fair. Now, Bryce, you can't just expect to get at your opponent from a perfectly vertical angle. Try to come at me swiftly with your blade from whatever angle. If you keep on using one consistent stroke, you might be able to hurt your opponent the first time, and he'll be able to predict your attacks and consistently block them." Tauroneo advised.
"Gah, I'm such an idiot. So, like this?" Bryce came at Tauroneo with an uppercut, and when the other boy dodged the attack, Bryce followed up with a side slash, and nearly cut Tauroneo's clothes.
"Ah, nice! You're getting the hang of this! I guess you don't really want to hurt anyone. To tell the truth, neither do Gawain and I, but in war, you're going to have to kill people. That's just how it works. We all wish that we could talk it out and get the enemy to surrender or ally with us, but life doesn't work that way." Tauroneo nodded.
Bryce smiled: "Soon, I'll be able to enter the academy with you guys!"
"Right you are!" Gawain laughed. "Now, are you ready, Bryce? Here I come!" Gawain spoke as he charged at Bryce with his Steel Axe.
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Finally, a year after they met, Bryce, Gawain, and Tauroneo were all ready for the preliminary examinations for the Daein Military Academy. Bryce and Tauroneo registered as primarily lance wielders, with the ability to use swords. Gawain registered as a skillful axe user who could also use swords.
To begin their training, the three teens had to prove themselves against several instructors of the academy. The first to start fighting was Gawain.
Tauroneo and Bryce watched uneasily as Gawain stepped forward, holding an Iron Sword, with his Steel Axe attached to his back. The instructor readied an Iron Lance, with a Steel Sword equipped to him.
"It looks like they're using the Trinity of Weapons strategy to see how strong Gawain really is. I hope that Gawain is ready for this..." Bryce muttered.
"Well, knowing Gawain, he should definitely be ready. He's had so much practice with that axe, and his swordsmanship has been well polished, thanks to both of us." Tauroneo nodded.
The instructor charged forward with the Iron Lance, and Gawain lept to the side with his Iron Sword. As the Instructor approached, Gawain got up close and slashed at him. The instructor nodded in approval, but swung the lance at Gawain in an attempt to either whack or trip him. Gawain, however, jumped, and the lance flew harmlessly under him. The moment the lance was out of the way, Gawain came at the instructor for a second slash. The instructor lept back and stabbed at Gawain with the lance, and Gawain also lept back, out of the lance's range.
The instructor pulled out his Steel Sword, and came at Gawain. Both weapons clashed, but the Iron Sword was at a clear disadvantage. After several whacks, it became quite weak. The instructor heaved the blade and slashed at Gawain with skull-splitting power, but Gawain hastily blocked the blow, and used his weight to push the sword and cause his opponent to stagger back for a few feet. Gawain pulled out his Steel Axe. As the instructor swung the blade and clashed with Gawain, Gawain countered with a powerful blow, and the sword was knocked out of the instructor's hand. The instructor picked up his lance hastily, for he was quite panicked by Gawain's skill, but Gawain already had the Axe at the Instructor's throat.
The instructor smiled, and shouted: "Passed! You, Trainee, are given the rank of Corporal!"
Gawain was quite stunned. This was abrupt, yet he did not wish to complain about its abruptness. Getting the rank of Corporal the moment you walk in the door was quite refreshing. Gawain looked at Tauroneo, and winked. It was Tauroneo's turn to prove himself.
Tauroneo stepped forward with his Steel Lance and his Iron Sword. His opponent carried a Steel Axe and an Iron Lance.
Tauroneo readied his Iron Sword, while the Instructor prepared his Iron Lance.
The Instructor charged at Tauroneo, but Tauroneo, having dealt with Bryce's attacks so many times, instinctively knew that the Instructor wasn't trying to deliver a killing blow, so he held on to his sword with his right hand, and turned his body to the left. The lance flew past him, and Tauroneo grabbed it with his left hand and pulled it behind him. As the instructor was being yanked forward by Tauroneo, the teen attacked his opponent with the Iron Sword in his right hand.
The instructor found himself unable to keep his Iron Lance, so he let go of it and lept back. The instructor grabbed his Steel Axe and prepared himself. Tauroneo began trying to chop the instructor with his Iron Sword, and the two weapons began to clash intensely.
However, Iron is weaker than Steel, so after so many slashes, the Iron Sword became weak. When Tauroneo attacked one last time, the instructor responded with a swipe of the Steel Axe, and the Iron Sword snapped in half.
Tauroneo quickly grabbed his Steel Lance, and lept back. He held on to the Lance as the Instructor charged, but swiftly stabbed forward, making it hard for the instructor to get at him with the Steel Axe. However, the instructor eventually was able to knock the Steel Lance to the side and ran forward. The instructor lifted the axe to smash Tauroneo, but the teen was able to recover fast enough to have his Steel Lance at the instructor's chest when the instructor was about to hack off Tauroneo's shoulder with his Steel Axe.
The instructor pulled back, and spoke: "I would have taken off your arm, even though you would have killed me. However, considering your skill earlier against my spear, and that your sword was broken, which must have made you in a panic, you Pass, and I give you the rank of Private First Class."
"Thank you." Tauroneo nodded as he walked towards Gawain.
"Now you'll have to call me 'sir.'" Gawain chuckled slightly.
Tauroneo nodded, but spoke: "Now we'll have to cheer on Bryce."
"He'll pass, don't worry. Depending on how calm he is, he'll make it to Private. If he's lucky, he might even get your rank..." Gawain glanced at Tauroneo, worried that he might have insulted his friend, but Tauroneo merely nodded. "I hope that Bryce gets the rank he wants." Tauroneo spoke.
Gawain smiled: "Well, now we'll just have to wait and see."
Bryce held his Steel Lance and Iron Sword, shaking all the while. The instructor had the same weapons as Tauroneo's instructor, which supported the theory that they were using the Trinity of Weapons strategy, which stated that Axes have an advantage over Lances, Lances have an advantage over Swords, and Swords have an advantage over Axes, to train new recruits.
Bryce started out with his Steel Lance, and the instructor ran at him with the Steel Axe. Bryce stabbed forward, but the Instructor lept back and knocked the lance aside with the axe. The instructor then closed in, but Bryce quickly drew his Iron Sword with his free hand and blocked the attack. Bryce attacked his instructor with his Iron Sword, but the instructor switched to his Iron Lance.
The instructor stabbed at Bryce, keeping Bryce back, so Bryce took out his Steel Lance and stabbed forward. The two continued fighting in what seemed to be a stalemate.
After some time, the instructor shouted: "Time's up! Boy, if you take too long fighting your opponent, enemy units will arrive, and you'll be outnumbered. You don't want a sniper to be killing you because you failed to kill the enemy General you were dueling with, do you? Yet, you were not defeated, so I Conditionally Pass you. However, you retain the rank of Trainee, but are allowed to attend the Academy and train with your superiors. Good luck."
Bryce shamefacedly looked at Tauroneo and Gawain. "Sorry, guys. I'm not a Private." Bryce sighed.
"Not to worry, Bryce. At least you can attend the academy. Had you failed, you wouldn't have the chance to become an officer. You would have only been able to enlist and start at a lowly trainee. Now, you can become an officer if you work on it, so keep your head up high!" Tauroneo smiled. Gawain nodded and smiled too.
As it turned out, Gawain was the only Corporal that day. Tauroneo was one of three Private First Classes, but the instructors agreed that Tauroneo should be considered the senior to the other two, since he was more skillful than both of them. Bryce was one of forty Trainees who were given the right to attend the Academy. There were eighteen Privates that earned their rank that day as well.
As they began their introduction ceremony, Michael walked over to them. "Well, I started out as a Private this very day. I knew you couldn't make it, Bryce." Michael taunted. "We may be colleagues now, but make one move on Bryce and you'll have Tauroneo lancing your chest and my axe on your neck." Gawain growled. Michael stepped back: "But Tauroneo, I'm quite surprised that you were the best Private First Class today. Maybe they've become more lax in their grading system. Gawain, you made it to Corporal on the first day. I salute you." Michael, who had already achieved the rank of Master Sergeant, saluted Gawain and walked away, ignoring both Tauroneo and Bryce.
"Well, even though he had to ruin our ceremony, we at least can celebrate the fact that all three of us passed." Tauroneo smiled. Bryce beamed and Gawain nodded cheerfully in response. The three teens, quite merry at their personal victories, went to their newly assigned quarters. They had trained hard for this, and now, all three were students of Daein's prestigious Military Academy!
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I hated Shinon as a character. Therefore, I hate Michael...
However, considering that Shinon looked up to Greil, I have decided to show Shinon in the fic later, albiet reluctantly. Shinon will appear when Titania does. And that'll be a while from now.
And so, I bid you adieu for the time being. I won't be able to update for several days due to school, parents, grandparents, and fate. Thus, please read, review, and stay tuned!
