This is chapter twenty - nine. Thank you DaniPotterLovesGod, Black Wolf XIII, caitlinkeitorin, and Thaumaturgic Adversary for reviewing last chapter!

Chapter Twenty - Nine: Training

By the time the assassin had managed to put out the fire that raged along her body, her quarry had escaped. She cursed under her breath. He escaped me a second time. If he had been alone, or if she had been more careful, she would've had him. He was weak; she should've been able to kill him. But she'd grown overconfident, and that girl had managed to surprise her. Then she'd let her anger get the best of her.

And then there was that kid. He hadn't seemed like a threat at all. But then…he'd set her on fire. How could he use magic? she asked herself.

She wasn't used to failing.

She didn't like it.

The assassin slowly tried to stand. She winced with pain. The fire had burned through most of her clothes and left behind its marks on her skin. "Damn it," she growled.

She remained still for several moments, turning over her options. She could go after them straight away, but, considering the condition she was currently in, that would be a poor choice. She could wait until she was fully recovered, but that would be even worse; she'd have to start the job completely from scratch. Of course, she could ditch the job, but that would ruin her reputation.

"I'll have to compromise," she decided. Rest for a few days, get new clothes and some burn ointment, then head off after Gillick and his two little companions. It was the best option she had at this point.

She slowly moved forward, cursing with each step. I can't wait to feel my blades sinking into their wretched flesh. As she slowly slunk out of the building, she began to formulate all the horrible things she could inflict on the trio, reveling in gory images that filled her mind.

She noticed something was wrong the moment she entered the alley. There's darkness in the air. It was stifling; it felt almost like it was going to crush her. And she knew that, in her current condition, she didn't have time to get away.

When the Corridor of Darkness opened, she stood up as straight as she could, lifting her chin and narrowing her eyes at the man who soon stood before her. "It seems odd that someone with so many injuries should be wandering an alley, doesn't it?" the man remarked, eyes hidden behind his hair.

She glared at him. "What's it to you, sheep dog?"

She imagined one eyebrow was raised behind the overly-long bangs. "Clever," he conceded to her, "but I'm not here to trade banter."

"Then why are you here, Shep?" She was probably digging herself a grave, but she got the feeling she'd be better off dead than listening to what this man had to say.

"I am Viril," he corrected, a slight edge to his voice, "the leader of the Dark Army."

"I didn't know a mutt could lead Keybladers."

"Enough." This man, this 'leader', sounded like he was finally getting agitated. She thought she could see a flicker of red behind his bangs. Or was she just imagining it? "You're to come with me."

She felt her blood run cold at the command, but she kept her farce as she responded, "Oh, really? I am, am I?"

"Do you imagine you have a choice?"

That was when she decided on a course of action. She jerked the knife on her wrist, cutting it open. Then the hilt fell into her waiting palm and she lunged forward, intended to stab the man with it. She may not be able to kill him in her condition, but she wouldn't go down without a fight.

Viril quickly ducked away from her, catching her arm and twisting it. Her breath hissed out between her teeth, but she didn't care so much about the pain; at the rate her wrist was bleeding, she wouldn't have to wait too long before she bled to death.

Then green light coated her arm, and the gash closed, the supply of blood cut off.

The assassin blinked in surprise at the act, then narrowed her eyes. Keybladers can use magic, she thought darkly. There was no way she could get out of this. She couldn't even take her own life. "Now," Viril said slowly, "are you going to come with me?"

At this point, she didn't really have much choice.

Gillick, Mala, and Riun road in the cart until they reached the next town. During the few days that passed, they made sure to keep themselves from being seen, ducking out of the cart every time it stopped for the night, and jumping back in every morning. They rarely said anything to each other during the times when they were away from the cart, and never spoke at all when they were inside it. Gillick couldn't help but feel relieved at that.

He was relieved to find that he felt no effects of the poison. The ointment Mala had stolen must've worked. And, more than that, it was hurting him less and less to move. Each night he would withdraw his sword and move slowly through various different imaginary battle sequences, testing which movements he could perform and how fast he could perform them. He had to move at a painstakingly slow pace for the more complex attacks, and some he still couldn't perform at all, but he could perform the simple movements which much greater ease and speed than before. It wasn't pretty, and could easily get him killed if he faced a tough opponent, but it was a step in the right direction.

When he wasn't testing and pushing the current limitations of his body, he was thinking. He tried his best not to think about the things from his past that kept wanting to leap into his mind like hungry lions. He thought quite a bit about the assassin, wondering if she were still alive and, if she was, how soon it would be before she found them. He thought about what had happened several nights ago on the new moon, and hesitantly tried to piece together the fragments of his memory and what Mala told him. On the surface, he couldn't make sense of it, and he never quite dared to push further.

However, the thing at the forefront of his mind was Riun's magic.

He'd been turning over this point a lot, trying to decide the best course of action. Before, the kid had simply seemed like a nuisance. His display of magic against the assassin had changed things. 'When the Keyblades were released, magic seeped into the land. It gave birth to all sorts of amazing creatures. Occasionally, it rises from the earth and enters a person, but it doesn't alter them physically. No, it allows them to use various special abilities that normal humans can't perform, much like the Keyblades do.' That was what the old tribal shaman had said. She'd said she'd seen a few such people from her own tribe with these abilities. Gillick had never met one…until now.

If Riun could use magic, then he would have to learn how to control it, for several reasons. One was that it would be foolish to waste such a powerful gift. If Riun could use magic, then he'd be better able to protect himself, and wouldn't need either Gillick or Mala to protect him as much. Which meant that - hopefully - Gillick would be rid of both of them sooner.

The other reason was the fact that, if he didn't learn to control his abilities, then he could end up accidentally releasing them. Not only would that attract unwanted attention and cause unneeded extra danger, but during his travels he'd discovered several places that despised anyone who could use magic without a Keyblade. If Riun were to reveal he was one such person, then it could end badly for all three of them…especially since Gillick had never seen anyone around these parts of the world use magic except for Keybladers.

And the Knight. He'd almost forgotten the creature. Thinking about all the discrimination against magic users made him wonder if the Knight wasn't human, after all; if it was a mage who'd become sick of watching the world poke fun at it and its brethren.

Regardless of the issues of the Knight, training Riun would involve him having to delve into magic. Once being a Keyblader, he had extensive experience with it. However, like the weapon, he hadn't touched the subject for two years, and had no inclination to now. After all, the only reason he could use magic was because of that cursed weapon.

But Riun would still need training. Teaching him without revealing he could use magic too could prove…tricky.

When the trio finally slipped off the cart and into the next town, they walked slowly through the streets. Mala looked nervous walking so openly in broad daylight. Gillick felt slightly uncomfortable, but was never going to admit that. Riun was bouncing cheerfully beside them, taking in everything with wonder.

Gillick's eyes strayed to an inn. He nodded towards it, saying, "Let's go in there."

Mala shot him an odd look. "Why? It's still daylight, and we don't need to waste our munny."

"Because we need to talk," Gillick responded. Without waiting for a reply, he stalked towards the building.

He sat down at a table in the far corner once he entered. A few other people huddled around the room, but they paid him no notice. Mala and Riun walked headed towards him from the doorway. Riun looked curious, and Mala looked ill at ease. When they'd both taken their seats, the thief girl blurted, "What's going on? Why did you need to talk to us?"

Gillick was about to answer when another voice interrupted him. "Anything to eat and drink, sirs and madam?"

"No," Gillick said firmly. "We're fine." Mala glared at him for answering for all of them, and Riun looked as if he were about to protest, but the man interrupted before either could make a comment.

"Why, I don't believe it!" The man peered closer at him, and Gillick's amber eyes shifted to glare at him. "Gillick? Gillick Nogard?"

His eyes widened. Shit. A remaining memory from his days as a Keyblader. "Keep it down," Gillick hissed, finally looking at him full on.

The man shook his head in amazement. "It's been forever since I've seen you around. I heard-"

He was cut off when Gillick slapped a hand over his mouth. He leaned closer and whispered to the man, "If you value your life you'll keep quiet." The man's eyes widened, but he didn't make another sound.

"Do you two know each other?" Mala asked, sounding suspicious.

"Oh, yeah," Gillick muttered dryly. "We're good friends."

The man took his warning to heart and nodded vigorously. "Yeah, it's just been…so long." He looked nervously at the former Keyblader before quickly heading off. Gillick continued to watch him, making sure he was really leaving. He didn't think many people would remember him, but apparently his image had lingered in a few people's memories. I wonder what I did, he thought, to be remembered by that man. And I wonder what he's heard. He had a hard time imagining that the Armies would let slip that he'd deserted and become armor-less.

…They'd probably told anyone who cared enough to ask that he'd been killed.

"Didn't you want to talk to us?" Mala queried.

He whipped his head back around to face her. "Riun needs training in magic," he whispered quickly.

"What?" Mala yelped in surprise.

"Yes!" Riun whooped simultaneously.

"Keep it down," Gillick growled.

"But…why does he need training?" Mala protested.

"Do you think it'd be a better idea to let him go without it?" Gillick retorted.

She stopped to think about it for a few moments before shaking her head. "But who's going to train him?"

"I will."

She looked at him in surprise while Riun's grin grew to an incredible size. "You?" Mala sputtered incredulously. "What do you know about magic?"

"I've done a lot of traveling," he dodged. "I'll be able to teach him better than you, and we can't afford to trust anyone else."

That she had no argument for.

"You're really going to teach me?" Riun asked, eyes glittering. He seemed to be over the fact that he was suddenly in the possession of strange inhuman powers.

Gillick nodded. "Tomorrow," he growled, "your training begins."


That's the end of chapter twenty - nine. Please review?