Chapter 2: RR
I slept in the next morning. Both my body and mind were tired, and the good ten hours I put in allowed for me to recuperate. I woke at eleven the next morning, I could smell lunch cooking. The sunlight was warming my face when I woke, and I slowly pulled myself out of bed and into a hot bath in the bathroom.
Everyone told me good morning when I entered the kitchen a half-hour later, and I thanked my mother as she put a salad and fresh cheese sandwich on rye bread in front of me. I smiled after taking a bite of the sandwich. "Cheddar? I thought I you only kept Swiss around?" I asked playfully.
My mother tweaked my ear, "Your father bought it the other day. Just eat it."
I slowly ate lunch, enjoying the company of my family. After it was over, I asked my father, "Any chores I can tackle?"
He shook his head. "Nothing that we haven't already done or can't be done later, Sparkster. Why don't you take Dover outside and show him some swords work?"
"Couldn't hurt to give him a head start. The term begins in two weeks."
"Exactly. We'll give you a ride back, and you can show him around until then."
I took Dover outside. He was practically jumping with anticipation. I told him to fetch me a pair of good sticks, and he ran off to do the task. My father came out to watch, as did a few of my siblings. As my father lit up a cigar, he said, "Don't wear him out too fast."
"I'll be a little lighter than what he'll get in school, then." I said back.
As Dover was handing one stick to me, I noticed that both were unusually straight and had been sanded down considerably. "You've been expecting this, haven't you, Dover?" I asked.
He nodded. I replied, "The first thing about sword fighting is speed. Not power, speed. It doesn't matter the blade style or type, the fighter who can react and think faster than his opponent wins. All right. I want you, to hit me, if you can."
Dover blinked in disbelief. "Hit you? With the stick?"
"Yes." I stood straight, the stick limp in my right paw as Dover shrugged, and came at me. As any of the other Knights or my instructors would have predicted, he started a huge swing before he came within a few feet. Moving faster than anyone else could follow; I knocked his stick aside, and gave him a small trip. He sprawled, hitting the dirt.
"Again." I said, turning around.
Dover picked up his stick, and tried a similar move. Again, I disabled his swing and he stumbled. After a few more tries, he started to get frustrated. "Do you want to know what you're doing wrong, Dover?" I asked him. He nodded in reply.
"You're taking far too much time and too big of a swing. I can see it before you even reach me; I have ample time to block. Remember, it is your speed that counts."
Dover nodded and charged. This time, he thrust his stick forward, as thought he were trying to run me through. But, he again started the jab way too early; I sidestepped, while I blocked him. He scowled in frustration, while breathing heavily.
"Don't be frustrated, Dover. Swordsmanship is not an easy thing to learn." Before I finished talking, he rushed me again, this time with a quicker attack. I was still able to respond, but not nearly as well.
"Good. You're learning already. The element of surprise is a powerful weapon. Sometimes a little dishonorable, but powerful nonetheless. However, once a trick is used, don't expect an enemy to be fooled a second time."
I continued to improve Dover's skill for the remaining time I was at home. He was learning quickly, and was more determined than Axle or myself back in our academy days. I knew he'd be respected for his growing skill. Towards the end of the five days I was home, I helped Dover get ready.
I told him that as tough as I had been towards him, the instructors were far tougher. I gave him enough do's and don'ts so that he wouldn't incur the wrath of the teachers, and boy some of them were rough. While hits or beatings were rare, push-ups or chores as were common punishments. I resolved to visit him once a week, to make sure he was doing all right.
About twenty recruits were accepted every year, from an application base of about a hundred or so young boys. Naturally I had put in a good word for Dover, but it was his own determination and spirit that won him a position. After the first year, about fifteen or so usually remained; some of the young ones couldn't take the roughness of the instructors. They could be as bad or worse than Petrov had been to me that day.
The other ones learned to take it in stride, and became soldiers. I knew Dover wasn't going to chicken out. He was tougher than Axle or I at that age, and twice as determined. But, I remember the nights I cried the first year, with barely anyone to comfort me. At least Dover would benefit from me being close by, if needed.
At the end of the week, there were a few tears from my mother and youngest sisters as we prepared to leave, but my mother wasn't as bad when I left to the academy. I had promised to watch out for him.
My father hitched up the cart to the small dinosaur we kept for pulling things. The dinosaurs were never ridden, but they had been a staple for centuries as they were used for work. We left early on the day before I had to be back. The journey was uneventful really.
We stopped by Basil and Edna's for some lunch, and then proceeded to the Castle town. Arriving by late afternoon, we looked out of place, with an old farm cart riding through town. Parking outside the Rocket Knights' base, my father and Dover tied up our lizard while I reported into to Petrov's office.
When I entered, he was still smoking a cigar, but was an entirely different opossum that had suspended me last week. "Ah, Corporal Sparkster, back already? I hope you're well-rested from that little vacation?"
"Yes, sir."
"Please, sit down. At ease."
"Thank you sir."
"I hope I didn't appear too gruff last week, corporal. That show and your suspension were merely for appearance; I and the other top officers know that the complaints against you and Axle are almost always his fault. Would you care for something to drink, a beer perhaps?"
"Yes, please."
He laughed, handing me a bottle. "An off-duty Rocket Knight and beer are never far apart."
"Thank you, sir."
"Anyway, to business. I am reassigning you two, at least temporarily. It'll be good to separate you two, just for a while."
"I see. Where am I to be assigned?"
"King's guard. You'll get a few weeks of guarding the princess, probably."
"And Axle, sir?"
"Academy. He'll be an teaching assistant for advanced swordsmanship."
"Hmm…"
"Something concern you?"
"I don't know if Axle is a perfect teacher."
"Believe me, he can be. We've seen him in action, and as long as he has a C.O. watching his movements, he won't step out of line with the cadets."
"I hope so. My little brother's going to be starting there soon."
"Really? When does he arrive?"
"Actually, that's something I meant to ask you myself. He and my father are here now, and I was wondering if it would be possible for him to stay with me until the term begins."
He laughed again. "Of course. You'll be put on duty with the guard the day after tomorrow, and he's welcome to stay with us and in the castle until the term begins."
"Thank you, sir."
"My pleasure, corporal. Why don't you'd bring him and your father in here? I'd like to meet them."
"Yes, sir. I'll just be a minute."
I went and got my father and Dover, and walked them inside Petrov's office. Petrov greeted my father with a hearty handshake and a beer, and laughed as Dover gave him a stiff armed salute. "At ease, cadet." He said.
Dover didn't know what that meant. I nudged him, saying "Relax."
"Corporal, why don't you spend tomorrow showing your family around the castle and the city?" Petrov said
My father took a sip of his beer and said, "Not for me. I've seen enough bringing Sparkster up these years, and I've got to get back home."
"Fair enough. Sparkster, better leave your beer here. If Axle finds out how I treated you today, and why, I suspect he won't be happy."
"Of course, sir." I said, placing the brown bottle in his trashcan, and ushering my family out. My father and I brought in our gear, and put Dover and my father's things in the guest room. My father would spend the night here, and then leave the next morning. Afterwards I took them both to dinner.