The Passage of Time
Disclaimer: See Chapter One
Chapter Four: The First of Many…
As morning arrived, I had a feeling that this day would be very difficult for me and my Pokemon. Soon, I would find out that I was beyond right.
As I headed up towards the castle, I heard a voice.
"You! New soldier, come here!" a blacksmith, someone who deals in armour and weapons called.
"It seems as though you have no armour to call your own, and yet you claim to be a worthy opponent?"
"Yes, me and my companions are worthy opponents to those whom call themselves warriors."
"Then face me, soldier, and I shall deem your worthiness!" he cried as he pulls out a large two handed sword.
I had not been expecting a battle from one of the local people, but I was prepared for his lumbering overhand attack as I activated the Riot Shield and drew my sword from behind me.
The sword hit harmlessly against the Shield, and the blacksmith exclaimed, "What witchery is this?"
I then decided that these people were used to their Pokemons' special attacks, but had no clue as to what I had used to defend myself. Therefore…
"This is not witchcraft my good blacksmith, this is magic, given to me by the powerful sorcerers of my land. I suggest you halt your attacks against me, or I will be forced to incapacitate you." This was a full-blown lie, as evidenced by my Pokemon looking at each other with smirks, as they knew what I meant by 'magic'.
"Do you take me for a fool? I said I would test your worthiness, and I shall!" he yelled as he prepared for another overhand strike.
(sigh) 'If only he had listened…' I thought as I brought my own blade to bear for an underhanded sweep for his arm.
As his sword hit the Riot Shield, I swept my blade upwards, cleanly cutting his arm in two from the elbow down.
As he screamed in pain, I was overcome by a sudden need to finish what I had started, but I stayed my hand.
"Now, stop your attack, or I will be forced to let my companions deal with you."
"No, I shall not give up, my honour is on the line, as is your life!"
"Lucario, Aura Sphere. Luxray, Thunder."
As the attacks flew towards him, he gave a shout, no doubt surprised that I could calmly tell my Pokemon what to do without having to force them to follow my commands.
As the dust settles, the blacksmith was revealed, in one piece (save his arm), covered in soot and dust.
"Do you admit defeat, or do we have to continue this pointless battle?"
"I…admit defeat. Spare me, for I still have my family to take care of."
I deactivated my Shield, and sheathed my sword.
"Good, now I will be on my way."
As I turned around to head back to the castle, I heard a loud roar behind me, followed by footsteps. 'Not again,' I thought. I quickly turned around, Desert Eagles drawn, pointing at the source of the sound. The blacksmith stopped dead at the sight of the foreign objects.
"What are these – these things?"
"Keep trying to attack me, and you will only live for a few more seconds to find out," I warned.
"You have uncanny poise and honour in defeating opponents," he remarked. "I deem you worthy to fight for the King, and I am honoured to have battled with you."
"But what of your work? Can you continue to make armour and weapons for the troops?"
"I have an apprentice, he can finish the work. I, on the other hand, am of no use, and will retire with my family after I finish teaching the apprentice all that I know."
After that unintentional delay, I went to the King to receive my orders.
"New soldier, it is time to test your skills on the battlefield. I have even heard of your scuffle with one of our blacksmiths. Very nice handiwork, very nice indeed. With these skills, you shall be put on the front lines immediately."
"On the front lines sire? Now?" I wished he would at least remember my name…
"Yes, go South, and you will find a Knight by the name of Andrew. He will give you further orders."
"Thank you, Your Majesty, I shall not fail."
"Good. Now, begone!"
15 minutes later…
I was on the back of my Staraptor, heading due South, looking for the field of battle. As I landed, I was greeted by a Knight.
"Who are you? Speak quickly, or die by my blade!" he said.
"Are you Sir Andrew?" I asked.
"Aye, and who might you be stranger?"
"I was sent by His Majesty of the Stronghold Kingdom, and was told to report to you."
"Ah, you must be the new soldier I heard about. Superior fighting skills, and a few magic weapons to help us win the battle, am I correct?"
"Yes, Milord, along with five other companions including my transportation here -" Staraptor glared at me with a look that plainly said, 'Call me that again, and I'll eat your eyeballs for dessert.' I shuddered, and got on with my explanation. "And we are all honoured to serve under you Sir Andrew."
"Excellent! Can you show me what you can do against those enemies? They are all covered in a Yellow cloth and fighting our troops, who are covered with a Brown cloth. Take care you do not hit any of our men, or you will regret it."
I took out the Barrett Sniper Rifle and loaded a clip into it. Sighting into the scope while lying prone, I spotted a Yellow armoured Knight giving orders to his troops.
"What is that metal bar you are holding?" Sir Andrew asked me.
In response, I asked, "The Yellow armoured Knight. Is he the commander of those troops?"
"Yes, but what does that have to do with anything?"
"Do you see him Milord?"
"Yes, but why are you asking? You should be out fighting those troops!"
"Sir Andrew, prepare to order the yellow troops to surrender."
"Are you joking? They will not surrender as long as their comm -" His protest was silenced as the Barrett gave off a mighty BOOM that saw the Yellow Knight blown in half by the supersonic 50 .cal armour-piercing bullet.
All the troops stopped fighting as the sound echoed off the surrounding hills and all turned, stunned, to look at the blood and gore-spattered hill that the Yellow Knight was once standing on.
"Sir Andrew, the order," I reminded him.
"Erm, yes. Ahem, All Thunder Troops, surrender, or be cut down, like your commander was!"
All of the Yellow armoured troops instantly laid down their weapons and raised their hands, confirming their surrender.
Later in the day…
"Allow me to Knight you, Scott, for I am grateful of your efforts to help win this battle. This will undoubtedly gain the notice of the Thunder Kingdom."
"Thank you Majesty."
"Now, I Knight thee, Sir Scott!" the King exclaimed, as he placed the sword on one shoulder at a time.
That night…
"Are we ready for this kind of horror?"
"I don't know, but I hope we can fix history as we know it as soon as possible."
"I wonder how Scott is holding up? He hasn't said a word to us ever since he let us out for dinner and fresh air."
"Maybe I should go and check on him."
"I think we should be on our guard. Scott said that his actions probably gained the notice of the opposing kingdom."
"So what are you saying, that someone is going to attempt to assassinate him?"
"It's a possibility. In this day and age, anything could happen."
"I'm going to keep him company. I'll give a shout if anything's wrong."
"Be careful Gardevoir, if the other locals see you going in, they may think something's up between you two."
Continued in Chapter 5…
A/N: An assassination attempt? After just one battle, can the opposing kingdom really think that he's that much of a threat? What happens next is just a chapter away…
- UBE Chief