So, I've returned. There is a modified Chapter 20. I recommend you'd read that first.
If you already have, then let's get moving!
Chapter 20: Like Children
Haar and Jill were pleasantly snoozing in bed. Ike glanced uneasily at Tauroneo: "Should we disturb them?"
"They sleep so much... It gets irritating, especially when we have a duty to fulfill. Let us awaken them..." Tauroneo replied.
Tormod's head suddenly popped in between them. "Excellent! I want a chance to show both of you my talents! Blizzard!" Tormod shouted.
A hail of ice pounded the couple, yet they remained sleeping. Tormod stepped closer toward Haar. "That's funny, they should be awake by... Urk!" Haar's arm darted forward and held Tormod's neck in a tight grip.
"Never wake me up again... Do you hear me?" Haar glared at Tormod, and when he saw Tormod begin to turn blue, released him .
"Wait a second, you have both of your eyes!" Tormod shouted. Haar's eyepatch lay neatly on Jill's side of the bed.
"Haar has both of his eyes? That's amazing!" Boyd blurted out.
"Wait, does that mean everyone else is awake?" Ike spoke.
The others began to emerge from their respective rooms. "Hsss... Thanks to Tormod's spell, we've all been roused. Curses... I need by catnap..." Lethe snarled.
"Tormod, has it ever occurred to you that you will have ample retribution for awakening me?" Soren glared.
"Um, well, I could take you... Yeah, Calill taught me plenty of spells." Tormod lifted his head and looked up at Soren, eye to eye.
"Calill? Calill, did you seriously spend time trying to teach this runt?" Soren began to laugh.
"Um, yes... But don't call him that, alright?" Calill glanced at them uneasily.
"I wouldn't have done so had he not tried to challenge me. So, boy, do you think you could really face Soren in magical combat?" Soren glanced at Tormod.
"I'm quite willing to try." Tormod glared back.
"Then don't cry when you begin to feel the pain." Soren readied his Elthunder tome.
Several blasts later...
"... Owie... And to think, you aren't a Spirit Charmer!" Tormod groaned as he lay on the floor.
"What did you say?!" Soren glanced at him.
"Calill... Told me 'bout them... Said that being a Branded meant that you weren't so magically powerful... Yet you beat me." Tormod groaned.
"Calill... Hmn, just because I am a branded, she thinks I am unable to face her?" Soren's right eye began to twitch.
"No, Soren, it's not that at all. I thought you were a Spirit Charmer. I had no idea that you are..." Calill looked at him uneasily.
"You're speaking the truth. I trust you. You thought I was the kind of person who would sell my soul to a spirit? Heh, what idiot do you think I am? One who would be desperate enough to do such a thing merely leads to one's own demise! I would never sell my soul to a spirit. You know of the curse of the Spirit Charmer... They allow themselves to be slowly consumed until they are fully possessed. I would never let that happen! But I guess that, like everyone else I've met over the years, you take things by face value... Hah, no wonder why you keep so much attention onto your stupid 'pretty' robe!" Soren laughed.
"Take that back!" Calill readied her Thoron tome.
"Try me." Soren laughed as he readied Elthunder.
"You're using weaker magic than me..." Calill's eyes narrowed.
"So?" Soren smirked.
"So I'll teach you not to despise me, child!" Calill yelled as she blasted him with Thoron.
"Oooh... A fight! Go, Soren! Show that pathetic woman what you've got!" Kieran yelled.
Oscar looked at him and began to back away.
"Alright... Who should kill him first?" Marcia shouted.
"I will..." Titania stepped forward. "I am a Paladin, after all."
"Go ahead, Titania. Once you've knocked him unconscious, we'll take turns waiting for him to wake up so that we can all teach him a lesson." Mia smirked.
As Soren and Calill exchanged 'friendly' fire, Kieran found himself
facing Titania, with all his female comrades cheering her on.
"What have I done now?" Kieran groaned.
"Kieran, you claim to be one of the most powerful Axe-wielders on
Tellius. Well, I started out as an Axe Knight, just like
you. You chose swords as your secondary weapon, didn't you?
Well, let's start out with our secondary weapons, then." Titania
readied her Knight Killer.
"Well, that means I'll take this." Kieran muttered as he readied a Longsword.
After hurling powerful spells at one another, Soren and Calill found themselves covered in the burned remains of their own clothing... Both were literally fried by each other's Thunder class spells. Since Soren was much more gentlemanly than Gatrie, he had not used any Wind class spells to take advantage of Calill during this unfortunate situation. "My clothes!" Calill shrieked, trying to cover herself. "You didn't see anything!" She glared.
"No, I didn't... And I wouldn't want to..." Soren looked away in disgust. Calill covered herself in the remains of her clothing and flew back to her tent. Soren saw that though they were badly burned, his robes were virtually the same color, and decided to calmly stroll back to his tent.
Ike looked at the scene with surprise: "Well, I've learned two things. One, that I have two sages in my army strong enough to wipe out a legion, and two, that the male one is not perverted, a rare breed of man!"
Kieran, meanwhile found himself heavily abused by Titania's Knight Killer. "Titania one, Kieran zero!" Mia laughed aloud.
"Since when did you keep score of my defeats?" Kieran sighed.
"Alright, Kieran. Now you use swords while I use Axes. I'm giving you a chance to... protect your cream cheese." Titania gagged at her own joke.
By the time Soren and Calill had finished changing, Kieran was sprawled on the ground, yet again. "You are pathetic..." Titania scoffed.
"You take that back!" Kieran lept back onto his horse and readied a Poleax.
"Ok... Fine... We'll both use Axes. That makes us even!" Titania swung her own Poleax.
"Down with middle aged women believing that they can fight warriors in their mid twenties!" Kieran growled.
"Crude whelp! I'm only thirty-three!" Titania snarled.
After a few strikes, Kieran tumbled off his horse and hit the ground. "Well, that settles it... You are pathetic." Titania glanced at him.
"Best out of seven!" Kieran lept back onto his horse and drew his Longsword.
"Well, you gotta give it to him... He sure is persistent." Marcia spoke.
"Well, Marcia... That jerk is persistent, but persistence is nothing when you suck." Mia smirked.
Kieran was, once again, sprawled on the ground. "In five minutes... Boy... That's a record... For me!" Titania smirked at Kieran.
"So, lad, do you want to be punished again, or have you learned your lesson?" Titania asked. Kieran's face was soon covered in tears:
"I, sniff, have failed! THE GREAT KIERAN IS NO MORE! MY VICTORIES ARE ALL IN VAIN! I've been urinated upon..." Kieran groaned and wept. Titania rolled her eyes and rode away.
Marcia flew up to him. "So, do you completely renounce your statement that women can't beat men?" She asked.
"He'd better! Unless he wants me to rip him apart!" Mia growled.
"Trust me, if she gets to you, you'll finally learn what pain is!" Largo groaned from a distance.
"I never said such a thing... On my name as a royal knight of Crimea, I never said that women were inferior to men... I only thought that Soren was a powerful sage, and wanted to cheer him on... I never intended for it to be a sexist comment. If it was, then I ask that you kill me this instant, for I would be betraying my dignity as a paladin of Crimea, and as... a... a... (sniff) man. (Sniff)"
"Aww... Hold your head up, Kieran. I've never seen you so deeply moved. You were so stuck up, holding your chin up high as though you were better than us. Well, now it's time for you to realize that you're not all that. But don't be so wimpy. You're still a man! Look at all those other guys Titania has beaten, and slain. A lot of them were strong guys! If you're not a man... Then what are they? Besides, look at your records. You are a great warrior, don't belittle yourself! You're just like Gatrie, convulsing over a little defeat! C'mon! Crackers, guys like you make whole armies tremble. If you don't have faith in yourself, how can our army hope to use your talents to emerge victorious?" Marcia smiled.
As he heard her words, Kieran began to smile. "Yes, yes! I am Kieran, Paladin of the Crimean Royal Guard! None of my foes can stand in my way! Thank you, thank you, Marcia. Your words are songs of angels that help revitalize any broken heart!" Kieran cheered.
Marcia looked away in embarrassment.
"Wow. Makalov's going to be pleased. He's going to get a huge sum of money soon: all the money he needs to borrow." Oscar muttered.
"You can't be serious... This can't be what I'm thinking, can it? Well, it wouldn't really affect the situation in battle... Only that Kieran will be running around a lot more." Ike mused aloud.
Meanwhile, back in Haar's room:
"Boyd, why are you still here? Can't you tell that I need to change?" Jill glared at him in her nightgown.
Boyd was about to drool, but when he realized that Haar was present, he immediately corrected himself: "Uh, yeah. I'm gonna leave. By the way, hey, Haar, I never knew you had both your eyes still attached."
"So? You got a problem with it?" Haar asked.
"Oh, it's nothin... Just, why would you wear an eyepatch if you got both your eyes? Don't you need the depth perception?" Boyd asked.
"Well, Boyd, you are a close friend so... A couple years ago, when Haar was on a mission for the Daein army, he was flying on his wyvern when an enemy threw an axe at him. When Haar dodged the axe and turned to attack the enemy, the sun got into his left eye, weakening his eye. Haar wore the eyepatch over his good eye to help train the bad one to see better without the good one's support. That's why he wore an eyepatch." Jill explained.
"Oh... I see... Haar's bad eye, eh? Well, that's why he always missed in combat!" Boyd laughed and bolted from the room.
"I'll go, um, deal with our rat problem." Haar calmly told Jill as he grabbed his Brave Axe.
"Alright, don't waste too much energy on that snail." Jill sighed.
A few minutes later...
"Gaah! No! Please! I plan to give Rolf a nephew... Please! No! Don't! HELP!" Boyd's scream echoed throughout the fort.
"Good riddance..." Muarim muttered.
Don't worry. Boyd's injuries weren't, um, permanent...