Lincoln wasn't sure if it was because he trained a lot yesterday or if he just wanted to sleep in and never get up again, but getting out of his bed had to be the hardest part of his day by far. The sun slowly spilled in through the windows and covered the floor just as Lincoln finally sat up. He swung his feet over the side of the bed and looked behind him at Leni who leaned against a spare pillow.
"Good morning Lincy." she said
"Oh, didn't realize that you were already awake. Morning Leni." he greeted
"You should probably get a start on your day. Yesterday was just the beginning." she said
She was right, the minute he began to slack off he knew that it wouldn't end well. She told him to hurry and eat breakfast, he'd need all the energy he could muster up for today. Since Leni couldn't come with him, for obvious reasons, he left her in a fairly hidden spot as he went to go to the common area. When he was finished he would have to sneak back up and come retrieve her. His arms ached at the thought of how many times he'd be sneaking in and out through that window. Sighing he went down to the first floor and grabbed a plate for his breakfast, today though something was different. In the midst of everything there were all eyes on where he normally sat, his spot that was usually empty had a new resident. A small girl with light brown skin that looked to be around his age. With rugged short white hair that somehow still covered her eyes she wore a large t-shirt and presumably shorts since he couldn't see. As he made his way there he heard the gossip of the other children. They didn't seem like they were trying to hide the fact that they were speaking about him though.
"Poor new kid,"
"Well she chose to sit there, it's her own fault if something happens,"
He tuned them out, sure he used to have violent tendencies in the past but they had calmed down... there was nothing to be worried about. He took his seat and the sudden movement cause the new girl to flinch in surprise. She sat with a large assortment of food on a plate in front of her, although most of it was barely touched. He started on his own plate and made his way through it in record time. Glancing off to his right he saw the girl fidgeting and wondered if he should say anything, he wasn't really much of a conversationalist though.
"Hey, you're new here right,"
Once again the suddenness of his actions caused her to jump, she quickly nodded in response. Not a talker huh, fine he could understand that. She turned her body away from him and once again started to fidget. "If you've heard anything about me, I can reassure you that… most of them are just rumors," he said calmly. She settled down if only slightly and started to look as if she had something she wanted to say. However when she finally worked up the nerve to speak, Lincoln had already gotten up and left. Well there was always later, right? Back upstairs in his room Lincoln got dressed and decided to make his life a tad bit easier by making something he could carry Leni in. Taking a spare blanket he wrapped it around her blade only leaving the hilt slightly exposed.
"It's not exactly the best but it'll hold. Sorry if it's not comfortable." he said as he took the makeshift strap and slung it over his shoulder
He fell directly to the ground below and awaited for today's training instructions. Leni was quick and to the point with her explanation, today he would be hunting. While that vote of confidence was reassuring hunting might still be a bit out of his league. But it all depended fully on what exactly he was hunting, something simply probably, Leni wouldn't put him in harm's way intentionally... right? The two walked their normal route through the forest as Leni guided him somewhere he had previously avoided. Beyond the brush of trees that stood before him Lincoln witnessed his first extermination assignment as a novice sword fighter.
"An Orc?!" Lincoln whisper shouted
"Yep, but this one looks a little too weak. I'm sure if we keep looking we could find a stronger one though." she said
"No, no... this one's fine." Lincoln hurried to tack on
Staring at the orc from a distance it wore an assortment of light body armor and wielded a large stone battleaxe. Quickly finding an opening was the first plan of action, if he struck first then it assured his victory. So when the orc's back was fully turned towards him he had rushed to go on the offense with a quick forward slash. The wound he left was a lot deeper than he was initially going for, in fact it ended up slashing the orc in half. Lincoln seemed bewildered by this as he looked from Leni to the orc.
"Was... was it actually that weak?" he asked
"See I told you. Let's look for another." Leni said
While they did find more orc's deeper into the forests brush none of them seemed to hold up well, one slash and they all ended up the same: dead on the ground. Even when they moved in packs it was simple, Lincoln's size allowed him to move fast enough to avoid detection and evade any attacks that made it through. It had been a few hours as Lincoln had rounded up any and all loot he had gathered and began sorting it by usefulness.
"Where'd they even get this stuff? And why would they want to keep it anyway?" Lincoln asked as he picked through the heap
"You did well today but don't get sidetracked. We should keep going." Leni said
Hands on experience was most definitely the best way to approach his training as he was forced to adapt to the many different situations and environments he was thrown into. Whether the enemy was large and relied solely on their brute strength or fast in nimble relying on speed to gain an opening, he'd have to be ready. Travelling through the entirety of the forest and even somewhat on the outskirts he had seen the largest amount of creatures ever. A total tally of monsters that'd he had slain jumped up to the triple digits. Along the way he had come across a crudely crafted scabbard and used that in place of the sheet, the proportions being slightly off however.
"You've gotten better, advancing quickly is a good sign. It mean's that once we get to the more difficult stuff you'll be able to handle them better." Leni congratulated
"I wouldn't get too excited though. These guys were all weaklings and once you leave this area and start entering dungeons... you'll see what true strength is." Leni warned
All of this was still just the basics, Lincoln had to constantly remind himself of that and keep a level head. Overconfidence wouldn't do anything but get him killed, realize the strength of the enemy and overcome it. Lincoln's stomach began to growl fiercely and Leni had told him to rest for a while to find something to eat.
"Y'know, these monsters might make for a good meal." Leni suggested
Lincoln might've been enjoying the time he spent with Leni but he wasn't exactly up for eating monster meat. Well his stomach thought otherwise as it growled again even louder. Whatever, waste not, want not. Lincoln began a fire and roasted the leg of what he figured was a Kobold. It smelled decent enough and as he bit down he realized just how delicious the taste was. It was just the right amount of firmness and flavor that normal meats couldn't even dream of coming close to. He sat down and ate for a while until he was fully satisfied, the pile of corpses seemingly vanishing along with his hunger.
"I wonder if it was safe to eat those." Lincoln said after the fact
"Hey Lincy, would it be okay if we clean up a bit? All this blood on me is kind of icky." Leni said
Lincoln thought for a second, he couldn't bring her back to the orphanage to be cleaned. An idea suddenly popped into his head as he remembered the strange plain that they found the other day. It had a running source of water, maybe that would be a good spot. They traveled back and walked up to the cave which led to it, sliding down the slope and standing before the fork in the road, Lincoln contemplated. Last time Leni told him to head left so where exactly did the right tunnel go?
"Leni, let's go down this way." Lincoln offered
"Hmm, are you sure Lincy? I feel something much more intense than those monsters from earlier." Leni said
"As long as you're with me it'll be fine."
He nodded and walked through the right side and this time was faced with a decline. Torches strung up on steel holsters lined the pathway down and flickered aimlessly despite the lack of a breeze. Lincoln continued down making sure to grab a torch, not wanting a repeat of last time. It seemed quiet for an eerily long time with nothing jumping out, nothing sneaking up behind him, just the silence of the cave.
"Is there really something down here?" Lincoln asked cautiously
"I'm sure of it. Something big and scary." Leni confirmed
Continuing forward Lincoln walked into something that he could barely see and struggled to remove from his face. Getting a closer look at it it looked to be a spider web, well at least something was alive down here.
"S-spiders?!" Leni sputtered
Despite being a kick ass older sister, Leni still had some things she was afraid of. Spiders being at the very top of that list. Lincoln did his best to calm her down as he delved deeper. After one last turn around the corner the two of them witnessed something horrifying. A large Brood-Mother clinging to the wall, webs had been weaved and stuck to almost every surface. It also seemed to be highly aware of it's territory because as soon as Lincoln made one slight movement it jerked it's head in his direction and opened it's maw.
"Giant Spider!" Leni squealed
Lincoln dodged as the Brood-Mother came crashing down to the ground, the ground becoming like glass and shattering after a single attack. He hurried to reach for Leni's hilt and unsheathe her from the scabbard but she vehemently rejected, staying put and not wanting to fight at all. Lincoln's heart dropped as another onslaught of attacks rained down slowly getting closer and closer to hitting him.
"Leni, I know you're afraid, but right now if you don't help me we're both going to end up as spider food." Lincoln said evading more swipes
As the attack's from the Brood-Mother's hairy tendrils grew slower she backed away to spawn around ten smaller spiders in order to regain her strength. Stopping her chase, her underlings took her place and quickly too. Leni still refusing to leave her scabbard left Lincoln to fend for himself. He turned around and lifted up his fist striking quick and hard, green blood splattering his fists as he continued the fight. It wasn't long until the Brood-Mother was back in the fray shooting out thick webs that boomed against the walls at it struck them. Taking a step forward with one large swing she knocked Lincoln into the wall, shattering it along with a few of his bones. He coughed up a bit of blood and landed on his knees as he fell.
"If I take anymore damage from this thing I'll die, come on Leni. We can do this, you believed in me and I believe in you," Lincoln urged through his own pain
After hearing her brother's words and sensing his determination Leni's heart(?) twinged and she loosened her grip on the scabbard. Lincoln smiled and successfully pulled her out, he went on the defensive as more webs shot out. Regaining his composure he ran as fast as he could. One slash, two slashes, quickly close the gap. More underlings spawned and Lincoln made quick work of them, making sure to kick at least one just to express his disdain.
"Hate those things." Lincoln spat distastefully
Once in range Lincoln took a quick slash at the base of one of the Brood's eight legs. The wound was deep, green blood gushing out as it snapped underneath her weight. A screech that could pierce the clouds echoed throughout the cave, but Lincoln didn't slow his pace. Although he inflicted some damage she continued to slam her tendrils into the ground aiming to kill. The cave trembled as if it was a frightened child, the ceiling threatening to collapse. Lincoln backed up and tried to catch his breath, he was running out of stamina, fast. Acid had escaped from the Brood-Mother's maw and singed through the ground before him. In a final burst of energy he circled around her and took another slash at her legs, one by one they fell.
"This is it!" Lincoln shouted as he lunged at her head
Something sparked in him and he could feel himself moving faster, feeling stronger. He took a deep stab through one of her eyes and she wailed in pain. With one final heavy side slash he relieved the Brood-mother of her head and watched as her body fell limp. He stood above her and held Leni high as a testament to his victory. The foul air from all the spider corpses pinched his nose and the lack of adrenaline making the pain from earlier all too clear. He thought he was skilled enough but he had been bitten on the leg at least three separate times and felt at least a few broken ribs. He kept himself standing by using Leni as a crutch, if that fight had lasted any longer he was sure he'd be dead.
Moving past that though he heard a shifting noise coming from behind him and saw that a wall had opened up, hobbling over to it he noticed a chest.
Wasn't expecting something like this, wonder what's in it," Lincoln said
He opened it and was equally as surprised by the spoils. A finely crafted scabbard with a gold and black checkered pattern from the tip to the base, the words "Wyvern's Claw" inscribed on it. He looked at Leni and removed her from the old scabbard. This must've been meant for her, he thought as he slipped her into it.
"Perfect fit," Leni giggled
"Alright, now let's go to the more friendly side. I'm beat," Lincoln said
She closed her eyes and covered her ears, the numerous shrieks of her neighbors and friends lingered in the air. The smoke that came abruptly never dissipated and the sky seemed to gain a grayish tint. She laid beside the bloody corpses of her parents hoping that all of this was just a nightmare, that she would soon wake up and be greeted by their warm loving smiles. However upon opening her eyes she looked around at her surroundings and realized that it wasn't.
It was four days ago when it happened, a nightmare in reality. Her parents did all they could to protect her but in the end, they forgot to protect themselves. All alone she collapsed on the side of the road and then somehow ended up here in this orphanage as the only survivor of her town. She wiped her tear stained eyes as she got up from her bed, she avoided as much contact with people by having her food sent to her door. Well today it didn't come like usual, forcing her to go out and get it herself.
She reached for the door handle and struggled to find it. Her eyes were never that strong and after all that smoke, dust, and debris entered them that was the breaking point. Vibrant colors soon became tasteless grays and she could only slightly see shapes and outlines of what was directly in front of her.
Stepping into the hall she had knocked into at least four people and apologized profusely each time. She held onto the railing and made her way to the breakfast line, she grabbed whatever not knowing exactly what it was and being too shy to ask. She struggled to find a seat to take and somehow ended up at the farthest table. It was empty, so she took a seat. She heard some murmurs from the people around her but couldn't make out what they were saying. She began on her food until someone sat next to her, she flinched in surprise. There was a brief silence before they spoke up.
"Hey you're new here, right?" she heard
She jumped slightly again and nodded her head in response. This was the first child who spoke to her since she arrived here, so forgive her if she was a bit nervous. Not knowing what to say next she turned back around until he spoke again.
"If you've heard anything about me, I can reassure you that… most of them are just rumors."
Well she wasn't sure if she had heard anything but now she was interested. She gathered up the courage to speak but he'd already left, she wasn't even able to get his name. Well she didn't say hers either… or anything for that matter.
"Cecile Lumbridge."
She turned her head at the mention of her name, she saw a person but couldn't make out their faces too well. She squinted, trying to find some distinctive features.
"It's me, Miss Fatima," she said waving her hand "Follow me, I need to speak with you in private."
Cecile nodded and held out her hand, Anna took it and lead her to her office/break room. They sat in two chairs facing each other before Anna spoke.
"So I've made an executive decision to assign you a helper seeing as how you're eyesight isn't the best." she said
She didn't want to burden anyone with the responsibility. It was somewhat like this in the past but at least then she had her mother and father with her. She started to shake her head until Miss Fatima spoke again.
"Don't feel like you're causing anybody any trouble, everyone here has unique circumstances. I'm sure they'll be glad to help." she said
Cecile wasn't much of a speaker but her parents always told her to be grateful, if something this helpful came along she should take it. When she spoke it was no louder than a whisper.
"Thank you, if-if it's not too much, could that boy who sits at the far back table help me?" Cecile asked
Far back, was she referring to Lincoln? He was the only one that sat there. She looked at Cecile who twirled her fingers and fidgeted slightly. Anna wasn't sure what drew her to him but if this was what she wanted she wouldn't mind arranging it.
"But you'll probably have to wait, he goes out to who knows where in the mornings." Anna said
"His name is Lincoln, you should properly greet him next time you see him."
Achoo
"What? Is somebody talking about me?" Lincoln sniffled
"You're probably just a little cold." Leni remarked
Once again they were in the plains and had just finished rinsing off in the river. Lincoln noticed that as soon as he stepped in it felt like his injuries were all washed away, bruises clearing up and pain vanishing. It really made him wonder who or what created this place and where they were now. Walking beside the river the land seemed to stretch on forever filled with all types of beauty.
"This view will never get old." Lincoln admired
"Well we might not be able to admire it for much longer. Eventually we'll need to leave." Leni reminded
Lincoln knew this and he had prepared himself to do so. Once he got enough funds for basic necessities he'd head out on the open road. Before money though came a job and hiring a minor wasn't really the norm. He figured he could just sell monster parts to make due for now. "Come on, let's head back." Lincoln said
"But it's not even four o' clock yet." Leni noticed
"Yeah but I've had enough excitement for one day. I promise I'll train twice as hard tomorrow though." he compromised
He headed home once again and snuck Leni in through the window before coming in through the front. He had normally never come back early so seeing kids roaming about and playing was new. Another unexpected thing was when Miss Fatima approached him asking for a favor. "Lincoln, I wasn't expecting you for hours but since you're here allow me to introduce someone," she said. The girl he saw in the morning had stepped forward with her head down and her hands clasped together behind her back.
"This is Cecile, she has had eyesight issues since birth and has always needed someone to guide her-"
Lincoln could see where this was going from space and wasn't sure if he was up for it. She might just have to find someone else. Well that was until Miss Fatima explained Cecile's situation in more detail. About how demons had overrun her town forcing her into the situation just like him and almost instantly afterwards he accepted. Cecile continued to hang her head but extended her arm forward for a handshake, Lincoln accepted. When the two clasped their hands together, Cecile, for a split second, got the first clear view she had seen since… ever. A flowing river beside a prairie of golden flowers overlooked by a hardy oak tree.
"Well I guess I'll leave you to it. Treat her kindly Lincoln." Miss Fatima said leaving them to do as they pleased
"So is there anything that you want to do?" Lincoln asked
"Books? I haven't had one read to me in a while." Cecile said
Lincoln was a bit taken back by her willingness to speak. He smiled a bit and went over to the "library" with Cecile in tow. The library consisted of three shelves with books scattered throughout along with some across the top and the floor. Picking up a few that might've peaked her interest he took Cecile's hand again. "It's a bit noisy down here, let's go up to my room," he said
Although he had no ill intentions he couldn't help but think of what he just said. He offered for a girl to come sit with him in his room, alone… with each other. Well not fully alone, Leni would be there. Lincoln figured it'd be okay since Cecile couldn't see her. He asked for a second to clean up and in this time had told Leni that they had a guest. She wouldn't have to hide but she couldn't make any noise, Leni agreed and sat by quietly.
Come in," he said
He guided Cecile to sit on his bed while he sat on the floor beside her. He read the titles in his head and picked out the most interesting tale.
"The Shadow, is this an okay one to start with?" Lincoln asked
Cecile nodded not having much prior exposure to fictional literature it would probably all be good. Lincoln flipped to the first page and read aloud. The story began with a creature born of malice that would attach itself to a human host. It soon found a human that it grew fond of and took the place of his shadow. In a dire situation of life and death the shadow revealed itself to the man.
At first the man didn't accept it but having faced more and more trials, he gradually grew to adopt the shadows powers as his own. After a battle and severe loss, the man had nearly died. As a last resort the shadow sacrificed its physical form to save him. The rematch was a crushing victory and the man could seemingly return to his old life. The memories of the shadow had stuck with him for as long as he would live.
"That's the end, you enjoy it?" Lincoln asked
He looked over at Cecile who had tears in her eyes. She wiped them but more seemed to fall. "That was… great, in the beginning with the descent into something much greater than himself, the climax with a daunting enemy, and the self sacrifice at the end," she said. Well Lincoln didn't get all that from reading it but the fight scenes were pretty cool, especially where he ripped that demon wolf in two.
"Well I'm glad you enjoyed it," Lincoln said wholeheartedly. Over the past few hours it had gotten easier to talk to Cecile and he was sure she noticed as well. It had been getting late and Lincoln saw Cecile off to her room.
"Thank you, and if you don't mind could we hang out again tomorrow?" Cecile asked. Well he couldn't skip training but he could make some time for her if need be.
"Yeah that'd be cool," he said simply
Lincoln thought for a second and decided to just do it, he opened his arms for a hug and waited for a return. With all the time that had past he forgot she couldn't see too well. So he moved forward and put his arms around her. She blushed as Lincoln let go and went back to his room.
"Goodnight," she said quietly before stubbing her toe on the bed frame
Leni had been silent for the past three or so hours waiting for a moment to speak. When Lincoln closed the door behind him it seemed like a perfect time.
She was really nice, is she your girlfriend?" Leni asked in a sing song tone
"No, I was just being nice. But yeah she is really cool," Lincoln admitted
She seemed different from anybody who spoke to him. She spoke from her heart and seemed to enjoy his company, no ulterior motives. It would be a bit sad when he would have to leave, so he'd make the most of these moments.
