THE TIME HAS COME AND SO HAVE I!

Here we go again, my friends. After consulting with (And battling to the death) my neighborhood raccoon, I have finally decided that the newest chapter of this story is ready to be posted up.

And boy, is this story starting to pick up in favs and follows. Thanks to all you guys who reviewed and gave a bit of their thoughts.

A Petty Theif-Can Gwendolyn be a friend to the MC? Seeing Gwendolyn make a friend would be adorable and it would be nice to see how things turn out. I am curious on what the poison is for tho. Maybe it does something else? I don't know what type of fighter you MC is but I would love to see him win a fight with mostly wit and his tools. That's just so badass and might even make people respect him somewhat. it at least makes up for some weaknesses I think. Anyway, Love the story so far. Can't wait for more!

My response- We'll I don't usually like to count my chickens before they hatch, but I'm generally of the mind of going along that route, on both the Gwyndolin topic and Kaylen using hit wit more than anything. I did plan to use the poison as a stepping stone, but nothings really concrete yet other than a few idea's in my head that might be fun when thinking of a human taking on vastly superior beings.

ISleep- Gwynevere was a bitch tbh, tho what really was the kicker was Kaylen being an absolute idiot by Telling a Goddess to their face that he knows how to manipulate them cuz they are so simple.

A Goddess who currently could easily have leverage over him, a Goddess who can probably easily destroy him, a Goddess who is the daughter of the literal king.

Him telling her to her face how he gets away with stuff was Just one of those things that anyone with a brain cell just... Wouldn't do. Like a slave planning to escape, telling their Masters how they plan to escape. Do you really think the Masters would take that knowledge lying down?

My Response- I will admit that I had Kaylen pushing things a bit with his words against Gwynevere, but I meant it to come off as a means of him trying to exaggerate his importance and earn a certain level of respect after having her basically tell him "Its ridiculous for a human to even think of matching our kind.". I just personally dislike characters who lack at least some level of backbone to at least TRY to push back sometimes, but I can definitely see that I may have dipped my toe a hair close to the "Overconfident idiot" waters with the wording.

As For Gwynevere, the whole point with her was that she was snobby and actually kind've a haughty bitch in person. Simply because I thought by this point in her life, she'd probably be well aware of her own beauty and superiority. So even though I didn't want to make her especially cruel, I did think it would make sense for her to be sort of cocky and entitled about herself given who her dad is. Gives me a solid starting point to actually give her some character growth somewhere down the line.

But anyway, thanks for all the feedback guys, both positive and negative. Hope you guys all enjoy the read.

Warning: By reading this chapter, you will have agreed to aid Supreme Gamer in the coming war against his neighborhood raccoons. Apparently, they do not take kindly to being told their Twilight Fanfiction's suck. You have been warned.

Deep within the gilded halls of Anor Londo's Royal Capital, all manner of servant and knight were fearfully getting out of the way of a certain winged goddess, who held a very heated look to her eye, and her masked tag along.

"You're being ridiculous right now." Ciaran commented casually as she kept up with her friend's stride.

"Which room did you put him in?" Velka said as she continued to storm forward, already narrowing down all the free spaces in the castle within her mind.

"I don't think now's a good time to tell you that. You're going to break the poor boy in half."

"Oh, that's just going to be the start of what'll happen when I find him." Velka stated as her eye's scanned the passing halls, hoping to catch a glimpse of her foe's face. "I can't believe you've done something so foolish as offer him a position of knighthood. What, for duping me, he gets rewarded with food, free housing and a position of respect? Not in this lifetime."

"You're seeing this only at its most basic standpoint. Especially when considering the things you have recently discovered about him, this is an opportunity." Ciaran explained calmly as she moved in front of her compatriot, stopping her dead in her track in a completely unafraid fashion and looking directly into her yellowed eye's. "Just hear me out for a moment. Sure, you could go a pummel him and deal out a bit of pain, but would it really be the thorough punishment you want to deliver for his actions? We could be a bit more creative than that, right?"

At this, Velka eye's narrowed with barely contained frustration. It was only after a few moments pause, did she decide to cross her arms and decide to do as she asked and hear her out.

"I'm listening." The goddess said begrudgingly, already feeling her patience wearing out.

"As I knew you would. Once you overcame your initial outrage." Ciaran said pleasantly as she placed a hand over her friend shoulder and pulled her in close. Seemingly completely unperturbed by her grumpy demeanor.

"My patience affords you two minutes, Ciaran. I want to make that human pay for disgracing and manipulating me. There will be no talking me out of paying him back."

"Talk you out of it? Velka, I want to help pay him back. But there's now no need to rush things. The human isn't going anywhere, or he'll forfeit any sort of amnesty he has been given. So, for the next few months, he's yours to do with as you wish. All the humiliation you've suffered and felt, can now be paid back tenfold. Our food? We'll have him scarfing it down so fast he won't be able to enjoy it. His room and board? Heh, he'll barely use them with how little sleep he shall be afforded. His knighthood and the respect given for it? We'll drag him through the mud and make sure he earns every scrap such a position affords." The sly Lords Blade said, painting a picture of all the possibilities now afforded to her friend.

Very much liking the sound of such a prospect, a devilish light began to make its way upon Velka's face as her mind was already beginning to brim with ideas and punishments suitable for the captured man. Already she could picture him on his knee's begging to be put in a cell, only for her to deny him such reprieve.

But then another thought suddenly occurred to her.

"And what of the poison and all those other concoctions? That human is not who he says he is and could be a danger to those here within the castle." The goddess exclaimed.

"Such a thing is unexpected, but not unmanageable. I will have him monitored around the clock to ensure the safety and wellbeing of the staff and servants. Even if he does step out of line, I doubt any of our kind would have trouble apprehending him." Ciaran said confidently, more that assured the men of the castle were up to the task. "In fact, I'd see his talents as a bonus to our efforts. This alchemy of his could be of great use to the kingdom and its people. A potion that wards away beast? The value of such a thing would be unheard of and we've got the creator firmly within our grasp. Not to mention the many other mixtures you've found at his hideaway that our people don't even recognize. So if he's dangerous and hiding something, we'll find out and put a stop to it. If not, we'll see to it that he reveals how to make such potions and the kingdom will be even greater for the knowledge. It's a situation where everyone wins no matter what happens. Even the human, if he plays his cards right."

At this, Velka would be lying if she said that she wasn't being sold on the idea so far. However, knowing that the woman before her was well versed in the ways of subterfuge and espionage, it should come as no surprise that she was able to talk such ideas into sense.

"For what purpose did you originally do all this for? You did not have such information beforehand and would have no reason to keep him here otherwise. I'd almost think you despised him as much as I do."

"Despise him? Heh, of course not. I hold not a single ounce of hatred for young Kaylen within me." Ciaran chuckled sincerely, meaning every word. "However, I do reserve quite a bit of love for you, Velka. So what I've done is nothing personal. Just aiding a dear friend correct an unjust slight against her."

Hearing such words, Velka would be hard pressed to say that she wasn't touched by the sentiment given. It was no secret that those that she called friend could be counted on one hand, so to have such relationships reassured so openly did touch a soft spot and aided in calming her down.

"Well…I love you too, Ciaran." The goddess said in a somewhat bashful manner. "But I hate it when you try to manipulate me using such cheap tactics. Your little "Friendly speech" isn't fooling anyone. I know you've likely done this out of boredom and getting entertainment out of what I might do to him."

"*Gasp* Such rude accusations. I'm hurt you think so little of me. Saddened, even. Why, I don't my think heart will ever recover." Ciaran said feigning heartache and sorrow in an exaggerated manner, knowing that Velka had hit the nail directly on the head.

"You'll learn to cope, I'm sure. Now stop stalling and tell me where he is. I'll decide whether I'll do things your way only after I've had my say."

"But of course. Right this way." Ciaran said as she released her embrace and lead the winged goddess along the hall. Already more than confident that she'd managed to talk her down sufficiently enough that Kaylen at least wouldn't be beaten into a bloody paste anymore.

Though she was ultimately on Velka's side in this, the Lord's Blade mentally pat herself on the back for somewhat protecting the human from the worst yet again. Now all there was to do was to let things play out.

He'd been ordered to close his eye's and not move a muscle.

"Hm. What do you think? Should a foot massage be the next thing on the agenda tomorrow?" A certain princess said smugly as she dried her body with a towel.

"…."

"Heh, heh, come on now, I want to hear thy thoughts on the matter."

"…Well, I think that-"

"Change my mind. Hold thy tongue." The goddess ordered in a clearly superior manner, taking great joy at further flexing her authority and seeing the frustration written all over his face at her rudeness. "Heh, you know, thou art quite adorable when thou are vexed. Like a rebellious little puppy wanting to bare its fangs, yet knowing that doing so would only upset its master."

She placed her royal robes upon her body with a smile on her lips as Kaylen's brow furrowed that much further at her words. The garb was a mass of flowing white cloth that reveal just enough skin to capture the eyes of any who say it. Finishing her dress with a snow-white shawl embroidered in gold, she turned back to the human with the gentle and caring look that many of her subjects had come to know.

"Now, I've got a great deal to do today, but I wish thee to know that I've thoroughly enjoyed our time together. I'll be sending thy reading material on proper massage techniques to your quarters later this evening. Thou will be expected to read them all and provide me with the appropriate care. Am I clear, young Kaylen?"

"…Crystal clear, Princess." Kaylen said with a sigh.

"Excellent. I sense that we're going to get along just fine, you and I. Now….thank me for gracing you with such an honor."

At this, Kaylen's jaw visibly clenched as he suppressed a bit of annoyance that began to rise up within him. He understood that he might have said a bit too much before, but her attitude in treating him as a complete tool was starting to become grating.

"Th-…Thank you, Princess Gwynevere." Kaylen said with clear displeasure.

"Aw, well that wasn't very convincing. Thou wounds me, dear friend." The goddess said, not losing her loving tone in the slightest. "Try saying it again with a bit of love this time. Show your superior the favor she rightly deserves."

Hearing this, Kaylen paused for a moment to take a deep breath and put his personal feeling aside, before looking the young princess in her eye and producing a friendly smile.

"My apologies, Princes Gwynevere. Thank you for allowing me the chance to serve you and I welcome any orders you may give in the future." Kaylen said brightly, trying his best to really sell his words.

"Heh, heh, now that's more like it. We'll make a proper, obedient servant of you yet. Until tomorrow then, human." Gwynevere compliment as she turned and made to leave at last. However, just as Kaylen was breathing a sigh and thanking the heaven that it was finally over, she gave one last parting comment. "Come to think of it, thou said today is to be thy first official day as a knight, correct? That means thou art expected to partake in the morning formation. Perhaps, I'll spare a minute or two to cheer thee on. Heh, that would certainly raise more than a few eyebrows."

Kaylen let her ramble on as she made her way out, afraid that a single sentence will transform his already undesirable situation into something even worse. She was going to do what she wanted anyway, so there wasn't really a point in asking her not to come.

As she opened the door and left, he wasted little time in quickly scrubbing himself down, getting dressed in the shabby clothes he'd been granted, and making to leave.

Cracking the exit door open to make sure the coast was clear, he rushed free of the washroom. More than glad to put the place behind him, even if it was only till tomorrow apparently.

Though he had originally planned to try talking to a few people and making a few friends, Kaylen was feeling less than sociable at the moment and decided to just keep his head down for now.

Looking out of one of the spotless windows that lined the halls, he saw that daylight was breaking. He had maybe a few minutes before dawn would come and the formation would be held.

"Ugh, great. Not even enough time to head to that dining hall for some breakfast. This day just gets better and better." Kaylen lamented internally, knowing he had to get a move on or he'd be late. In which case, Ornstein would have his head.

Breaking into a small jog, the young human navigated his way through the building until he'd arrived at the central courtyard where they were to gather with just enough time to spare.

The great piece of land held no roof, so as to allow an open view of the sky, and was more than spacious enough to allow for a hundred or so people. At every turn, there were clear windows on each of the castle levels to see down into the training space, making the human view it as some sort of hollowed ground. As one might expect, it was already filled with a few dozen Silver Knights. Each one formed up in several lines and standing at attention, ready and waiting for their superior to arrive and give them their orders for the day.

Just as Kaylen stepped into the hall and made to find a place among these knights, Ornstein stepped through the door right behind him almost immediately.

"You must be very keen to make your life a living hell, boy." The captain said gravely, causing Kaylen to quickly turn in surprise and face him.

"Wha-? No, I can tell by the low sunlight that it should be just about six right now, Sir. I'm on time for-"

Kaylen got no further before Ornstein grabbed him by the front of his shirt and lifted him up to eye level.

"That's the damn problem." Was all the Captain said, before dragging the young human forward until they were both standing in front of the large formation of men. He then roughly released his hold to let the human stand at his side and spoke with a booming voice of authority. "Men! Today we have ourselves a new recruit who wishes to join our ranks! State your name, maggot!"

"Um, Kaylen of Astora."

"You'd better learn to speak up, boy!"

"U-Uh, Kaylen of Astora, Sir!"

"Well, glad you could find your man voice! Now today was meant to be Kaylen's first attendance to my formation, but apparently, he decided that he can show up when he damn well pleases! Apparently, he thinks that we're all on his time!"

At this, Kaylen was confused. He'd arrived with just enough time; he was sure of it.

"But, sir, I wasn't-" Kaylen's words were once again cut off as Ornstein turned a murderous look his way.

"I don't recall asking you to speak!" he bellowed, all but making Kaylen shut his mouth and mentally will it to stay shut at all costs. With that, Ornstein turned back to his men and spoke in volume even louder than before. "One of you with enough brains to not be late tell this dead man what he has done wrong!"

Without missing a beat, one of the Silver Knights stepped forward and roared the answer loud enough for everyone to hear.

"Sir! He did not arrive to formation at the appropriate time as instructed, Sir!" the soldier said.

"And what is the rule of thumb for arriving "On time" for my formation?!"

"Sir! Early is on time, on time is late and late is unacceptable, Sir!" the soldier shouted, causing Kaylen's jaw drop at the explanation as he finally got the problem. When Ornstein told him to be at formation at six, what he truly meant was "Be in formation at six." Not walking through the door and "about to be" in formation.

"That's right! Now get back in formation" The captain ordered harshly, before turning his attention back towards the human at his side.

Staring up at the tall man and knowing he'd screwed up, Kaylen grimaced internally as he questioned whether he would have made it if not for making the idiotic blunder of wandering into the women's bathroom. He couldn't even get angry with Gwynevere for keeping him there longer, as he recognized that their encounter only happened do to a string of mistakes on his part.

"So now you've been late twice by my count, boy. That's two times too many for a soldier under my command. But don't worry, we're going to fix this bad habit of yours and instill some discipline in you." The captain all but swore to the young human. "Do you know how to do a push up, boy?"

"Uh, Yes, sir."

"Then why the hell are you still standing and not in the dirt right now?!"

Feeling like he was about to be snapped like a twig, Kaylen didn't waste a single second in doing as expected and getting down on his hands to push. As he watched him put in a bit of effort, Ornstein noted that at least the boys form was decent. Back straight, decent pacing, maintaining his breathing with each repetition.

Good. That spared him further time correcting him.

The Captain then took two heavy, authoritative, steps forward. Making sure he had the undivided attention of each and every one of the men before him. "Now, before I give this boy a reason never to be late again, I want squads A through D out in the forest for land navigation training, your previous time during "Flag Retrieval" was beyond pathetic! Echo squad, return to your post and continue your monitoring and observational duties. Shadow squad, get those reports delivered on the double and remember to prioritize according to rank: Starting with Lord Gwyn and proceeding downward. Everyone else, report to your team leader for guidance. That's all! Now get out of my sight!"

Without wasting a single second, each of the Silver Knight rushed to be the first one out of the courtyard. None of them wanting to draw the attention of their captain and be included in the disciplining that was about to occur to the human. If anything, a few of them offered their condolences for the young man and what he was about to go through.

"You'd better learn to pick up the pace, boy! You put my formation on your time, now you're gonna be on mine!" Ornstein bellowed, making Kaylen push that that much faster. "I've already cleared my schedule today, so I have nowhere to be but on your ass! UP! DOWN! UP! DOWN! UP! DOWN!"

Ornstein wasn't kidding when he said that. He was committed to fulfilling the orders given to him by Gwyn and as Kaylen was quick to learn, was quite unforgiving when it came to discipline. By his count, the knight had him out in that field for hours on end.

When his arms gave out and couldn't do push ups anymore, the captain switched him to squats. When his legs reached the point of collapsing right from under him, he made him do sit ups. When his abs cramped up and the pain became to unbearable, he put him to work sprinting across the courtyard.

On and on this cycle of working different parts of his body went, with only the briefest of breaks in between to allow him to catch his breath.

It reached a point where Kaylen was wondering if he was going to pass out when all was said and done.

"What do you think you're doing?! There's no air down there! Raise your head, boy!" Ornstein ordered as Kaylen gasped for air, fell to his knees and let his head slump downward. "Don't want to come up to breathe?! Not a problem! Push up position, move!"

Taking a few more haggard breaths, Kaylen got down on his hands and only just barely managed to get two push ups out before his arms gave out and he lay sprawled out upon the ground. He was only human, so after hours of being worked like this, it didn't surprise Ornstein in the slightest that he'd reached his limit.

However, that didn't mean he was just going to let him lay down and give up.

Grabbing him by the back of his shirt, the captain easily lifted the human up from the ground and set him back up.

"On your feet, boy. You're not dead yet and I didn't say you could rest. Now straighten up and raise your head." The Knight commanded, of which Kaylen slowly complied. Standing tall before the captain as his breath came in deep, ragged breaths. "That pain you're feeling right now is what discipline feels like. Enjoy it. Welcome it. Because I promise you it is only a taste of the pain you will feel while under my tutelage. Especially if you can't do something as simple as being on time. And before you get the ridiculous idea in your little head that this is because you are human, I tell you now that you are dead wrong! There are no gods or humans under my command, only soldiers. So don't you ever think to use that as an excuse to feel sorry for yourself. Am I clear, boy?!"

"Ye-..*Gasp* Yes, sir."

"Good. Because from this day onward you will be the first man in this field every morning and the last one to leave it. You will train harder and longer than anyone else because you are meant to be the example other humans can look up. Your name will be one spoken with pride and respect by all in this castle, but first I am going to weed out the incompetence in you." Ornstein said aloud, making himself perfectly clear about what he planned to turn the young human into. "For the next month, at the end of every day, you will report to each primary work area within the castle and request that they give you a task. You will help them with anything they may need and only once each of them has finished their jobs for the day are you allowed to even glance at your bed. If the cooks need the dishes washed, you'd better be there. If the servants need the windows polished, you'd better be there. If Andre needs someone to shine his goddamn shoes, You'd. Better. Be there."

At this, Kaylen's face paled a bit.

This castle was huge, with who knows how many working parts and servant bustling around within it. He was supposed to go to every one of them, everyday, for a month, and help them finish their jobs before he could get any sleep? That's insane.

"Do you have a problem with that, boy?"

"N-No, Sir. Eager to get started, Sir." Kaylen said, lying through his teeth. Internally lamenting that he wouldn't be getting much of any rest in the coming days.

However, about one floor up within the castle walls, two women were looking down upon the courtyard with clear interest and amusement.

"Now, this…This is just beautiful." Velka said with a smile and a shake of her head, having fully enjoyed the scene of Ornstein putting the human through the ringer.

"I told you this was a far more fitting punishment for him. Heh, the boy looks like he can barely stand." Ciaran commented with a small chuckle, somewhat impressed that Kaylen hadn't fainted yet despite having been worked for hours now. "Ready to go down there now?"

"No, no, not yet. Let's let Ornstein get his pound of flesh first. No need to interrupt such a wonderful show." Velka said as she leaned upon the windowsill to make herself comfortable.

It was just as the words left her mouth did the door to the great hall opened and two individuals walked inside. One looked to be wearing the armor of a Silver Knight, only for swaths of dark blue cloth to break the image and define him as someone much more.

The other was a large, plainly overweight man. His bulging muffin top and flabby arms painting the picture of someone who did not exercise as much as he should and did not hesitate in engorging himself in an extra meal or two.

"Right on time, Artorias. I was just wondering when you'd make your way here." Ornstein said tone that sounded oddly respectful and friendly to Kaylen's ears. "Though when I asked you to bring a sparing partner here, I had other ideas in mind besides Smough."

At this, the behemoth of a man held the look of suppressed anger but did not speak in objection to the captains words.

"Yes, well, I was going to grab one of the others, but found Smough lounging around the dining hall and decided that he could be put to task instead of sitting around doing nothing. A cleric will be here momentarily to oversee any injuries soon." the blue clothed knight, Artorias, replied before turning his gaze towards the clearly exhausted human. "So you're the one, eh? I must say, I never thought there would be an order dedicated to humankind here, but I do agree that it may not be a bad idea to open such paths. My name is Artorias, and I am excited to see just how far you go to attain knighthood. Take pride in being chosen for such a honor, young one."

"Wait, he is to be knighted? A human?" The large man, Smough, said in disbelief. "I have requested repeatedly to be given the chance, but he is allowed the opportunity so readily? He's not even-"

"Hold your tongue, executioner." Ornstein ordered harshly, as he approached the much larger man in a threatening manner. Though he was a head taller than the captain, Smough seemed to hold a bit of fear at his approach and took a step back, before shutting his mouth. "Lord Gwyn has ordered that he be trained and that is what is going to happen. If you sought the chance yourself, the first thing you could do would be to have some initiative and take better care of your body and health. At the very least, the human can run a few laps around this courtyard without having a heart attack."

At this, Kaylen was a bit surprised to hear the minor compliment come from the captain in his defense. However, as Ornstein turned his gaze back to him, he made sure to hide any such emotion.

"Alright, boy, I'm going to test you a bit to see where you stand. You will spar with Smough here in unarmed combat and show me exactly you can do. You may take a few minutes to recuperate your strength and then we shall begin."

Hearing this, Kaylen blinked twice to make sure that he wasn't imagining things when the captain said that. Taking a look at Smough, he saw that the man was practically a wall of flesh and fat. Towering at about double his own height.

"Uh, you want me to fight him, Sir?" Kaylen questioned in disbelief, noticing a very eager look appear in Smough's eyes.

"That is what I said, isn't it? Do you have a problem with my orders?" Ornstein question gravely.

"It's just…he's kinda big, Sir. This isn't exactly a fair fight."

"Fair? You think the enemy will care whether the fight is "fair" in combat? That you will always meet on equal footing?" the captain questioned aloud. "In fact, this most fortuitous that Artorias brought Smough here for this. It is a good way to teach you that in real combat there is no such thing as a fair fight. The enemy will employ whatever tricks and underhanded methods necessary to see you dead. So are you going to complain to them that the fight wasn't fair and die, or are you going to fight to overcome the odds set against you?"

At these words, Kaylen looked back to Smough once again. Noting all the differences between them in every aspect, before sighing wearily and accepting what he had to do.

"…I'm going to fight, sir."

"Good. Then both of you, center of the field."

With that, both Kaylen and Smough did as instructed and made their way directly to the middle of the courtyard, standing directly opposite to one another as they took their places.

Up above them, Velka and Ciaran suddenly lost their smiles and joyful demeanor. If what they were seeing was right, Kaylen was about to fight Smough of all people. Which wasn't good. It was widely known about the castle that the executioner enjoyed his work to a sadistic degree and relished in the act of mistreating humans.

Sure, the two-goddess wanted him to pay for what he'd done and Velka might have roughed him up a bit if given the chance, but neither of them were a bloodthirsty savages. They did not take delight at the thought of seeing the human being beaten to near death in front of them.

"That's quite unfortunate for him. Smough's not going to pull his punches." Ciaran said with a bit of displeasure in her tone. Earning no response from Velka, who simply continued to watch on in silence.

However, unbeknownst to all of them, the scene of the smaller human standing before the goliath that was Smough drew more than a few curious gazes. Servants and knights alike all stopped within the halls to gaze down curiously at the two below.

But even more than that…

"Well, what do we have here? You just can't seem to stay out of trouble, now can you." Gwynevere said with clear interest as she stopped to watch things unfold.

"My Lady, we must continue on. The Priest are expecting you within the church by the hour for the charity and the blessing of the-" One of the Princess's Guards started.

"Those lecherous old men can wait a few minutes to leer at me from behind their pedestals. I wish see this." The Princess said dismissively with a wave of her hand, nonchalantly disregarding any attempts to rush her along.

"Oh~. Looks like the young lad is about to have a go of it." Gwyn said as he looked down from the second level of the castle and took note of the gathered faces doing much the same. "Heh, well I suppose a quick viewing wouldn't hurt my schedule too much. A fight every now and again does make life more interesting."

"Alright. You two ready?" Ornstein said as he stood in between the two men and looked them both square in the eye.

"More than ready." Smough said as he licked his lips.

"Ready, Sir." Kaylen said with a sighed as he glanced over the heavy-set man once more.

"Then I'll clear your ring. The spar will be concluded when one of you concedes or can no longer continue. On my mark, you may begin." Was all the Captain said as he turned to walk off to the side and stand next to the waiting Artorias, who had to admit that he felt a bit of guilt bringing such an unfair opponent for the human to face. When asked to bring a sparing partner, he'd thought it was meant for one of the other Silver Knights.

Looking down on the human before him, Smough was quick to notice that he didn't appear very afraid on the surface. He had seen enough fear and panic from humans in their final moments to be able to spot even a trace of it at a glance.

But much to his chagrin, there wasn't much to be found in this one. If anything, from the look on his face, he could only see a great deal of trepidation and a bit of displeasure.

Surprisingly enough, he even began to circle him before the captain gave the signal to begin.

"Hey, your names Smough, right? Good to meet ya. I'm Kaylen. Listen, I didn't really ask for or want to become a knight and I don't really wanna fight you. So I'm gonna take a dive, okay?" Kaylen whispered lowly as he circled around so that Ornstein and Artorias couldn't see him talking. "Just hit me with a good punch and I'll go down. Make it look convincing, but try to take it easy on me, okay?"

"Oh, no problem. I can make it look real~ convincing." Smough replied with a smile and a chuckle, somewhat amused that his assessment of the human had been off the mark completely. He really was fearful of him.

"BEGIN!"

Now, Kaylen had meant it when he said that he was going to take a dive once given the opportunity. There was nothing truly in it for him to take on the man before him. Better to just take the hit and call it a day.

However, that plan went straight out the window as Smough's shadow eclipsed his body and he watched the goliath of a man wind up a punch that looked to have had all his weight behind it.

With a sharp gasp, Kaylen ducked below it at the last second and felt a heavy breeze roll across the top of his head. It took only an instant for his mind to come to grips with the fact that if that blow had connected to his head uncontested, it would have split skull open like an egg.

Did he just try to kill him?

Quickly retreating backward, Kaylen only just barely managed to get out of the way of a follow up swing. But Smough needed only to take a single step forward to hunt him down and throw straight aimed directly for his nose.

Going wide eyed and raising his arms to protect himself, Kaylen grit his teeth as a blow with the force of a sledgehammer behind it crashed into him. The jarring impact easily lifted him right up off his toes, clearing the ground.

For one long moment, his body hung in the air. Then gravity at last decided to have its say and sent him crashing on his back to the earth below.

His mind in a complete daze and his vision recognizing only stars, the young human had no idea that Smough had stomped forward after him until a massive fist punched down directly into his chest, nearly caving it in completely with his raw power.

But it didn't end there as the behemoth of a man struck down on Kaylen's body again and again, never once holding back in his strength and fracturing few ribs in the process.

All those watching from above could only look at the scene with either a look of concern for the human or anger Smough's needless brutality. Gwynevere flinched uncomfortably each time a blow landed upon the human's body. Artorias, though he trusted Ornstein to handle the situation as he saw fit, placed his hands behind his back with the look of clear displeasure written across his features.

Even Velka, with her own personal grudge against him, was very much on the verge of making her way down and ending such a display of excessive cruelty. However, due to her own trust in Ornstein's decisions, Ciaran placed a hand upon her shoulder as a means to tell her not to interfere. Though she could not suppress a glare of her own at the scene before her.

As for Ornstein, he was a man of his word. The battle would continue until one of them could not continue or yielded. Cruel or not, Kaylen was still conscious and could keep going, so he wasn't going to step in for him and show preferential treatment.

However, that did not mean he was happy about what he was seeing.

Picking his foe up by the collar of his shirt, the executioner seemed to laugh as his knuckles connected with Kaylen's face, splitting the skin over his cheekbone with the force of the blow. Fully enjoying the sight of the blood coming from his mouth and trailing from his injury, he continued to beat the humans limp body.

"Heh, heh, I forgot how fragile they are." Smough laughed as he pulled back his fist for another blow.

However, suddenly there was life in his muscles as Kaylen raised his fist and slammed it down at upon Smough's extended elbow, forcing it to bend and making his grip slacken even so slightly. Then, just as the executioner was about to deliver another punch, he slipped away by relaxing his body and sliding through the loose-fitting shirt given to him.

Smough watched him land on his feet and dive away in a relaxed manner. Taking great satisfaction in watching him collapse to a knee and place a hand to his chest. Each breath he took clearly came with a great deal of harsh pain attached to it.

"Heh, heh, what's the matter? I thought you said you were going to take a dive." the executioner mocked openly as ripped the human's dingy shirt in half and threw the pieces to the ground uncaringly.

At his words, Kaylen felt a smoldering resentment build within his chest. But he gritted his teeth and swallowed that anger while it was a fire seed. More than aware that it wouldn't help him here.

Getting to his feet with a tortured grunt, he turned back to face him with a hand still placed against his chest. His gaze ran across the large man's body for a moment, before forcing a smirk to form across his bloodies lips.

"Oh, I was going to...but I didn't expect you to hit like a complete bitch." Kaylen sneered defiantly, despite being clearly injured. "Ugh, maybe stop messing around and try to throw a decent punch, huh? Or was that the best you got?"

"Hmph. Ask and you shall receive, human!" Smough said as he charged forward with his fist raised.

"One shot at this…." Was all Kaylen could think as he lowered his body and did his best to ignore the pain that was about to follow his movements.

He took a step back, balancing his weight on his left foot, and then jerked his head backwards to narrowly avoid the wild swing that came his way. Then immediately ducking the predictable second swing that followed and dancing just out of the reach of the one after that.

Smough was large, but it was plain to see he wasn't exactly a tactician or a trained fighter. He didn't understand the necessity of pacing oneself.

But Kaylen did.

And so, despite feeling like broken glass was rolling around in his lungs, he continued to stay on his feet and evade every blow sent his way. Making sure to keep circling around his much bigger foe and leading him on in expending as much of his stamina as possible. Within a handful of seconds, the exertion was visibly beginning to effect the executioner as he began to breath harder and heavier trying to hit the human once again.

Then finally, when Kaylen was sure that at least most of Smough energy was spent, the young human made his move.

One last punch was sent out, a tired a flailing thing, of which Kaylen was quick to duck beneath. However, this time, instead of retreating, he pushed forward and delivered a right hook with all the strength he could muster directly into the side of Smough's Knee.

"AAGH!' Smough shouted as his leg buckled from the pain and sent him falling upon his uninjured leg, granting Kaylen the one opening he hoped to create.

He knew that he couldn't match the executioner's raw strength and his fat practically served as a thick layer of armor. It was evident that only chance Kaylen had to do any damage was to aim for his head. So without wasting a single moment of hesitation, he stepped atop the giants extended knee and used it as a stepping stone to give him that extra boost he needed to reach the giants head for but a single second.

But that small window of time was more than enough for him to open his palms and slam them directly against both of Smough ear's with a loud clap.

"GAAAAAH!" the executioner bellowed as the excruciatingly sharp ringing assaulted his ears. Lowering his head, shutting his eye's tight and placing his hands over his ears, Smough instinctively focused solely on fighting off the sudden flaring pain that assaulted his eardrums.

It was then that all in attendance perked up in surprise as Kaylen used the giants prone form to Vault atop his back and quickly snaked his arm beneath his chin. Squeezing against the sides of his neck while pushing down on the back of his head with all of his strength, the human held on for dear life and let the sleeper hold work its magic.

Thirty seconds. It takes roughly thirty seconds for someone to fall unconscious from restricted blood flow to the brain.

Amidst his fatigue and still ringing ear's, Smough could only flail about in a panic for a moment as the human held his throat in a vise grip. He then moved to clawing at Kaylen's arm and punching his head trying to get him off. But it was all futile. The human's grip didn't slacken in the slightest, while the fat of his back and arms made it difficult to reach back or land any meaningful blows.

"….Kgh….Kill…you.." Smough choked out as shadows began to dance along the corners of his vision. Soon enough, the floor swayed beneath his feet as he felt his consciousness begin to slip away.

"…Ugh…Just…Go…to sleep…" Kaylen grunted as he tightened his hold that much further, swearing to high heaven that it had been longer than thirty seconds.

It wasn't but a few moments after having this thought did Smough's arms slowly slacken and his eyes rolled to the back of his head.

It was then that Kaylen's body felt completely weightless as the executioner began to topple backward, no longer fighting and no longer having hold of his senses. With everything that had had prior, Kaylen simply didn't have the wherewithal to do anything more than keep holding on to the giant's neck and went along fully for the ride.

The ensuing fall would knock the wind from his lungs and only serve to further damage his already fractured ribs. But he would survive, nonetheless.

After taking a few moments mentally prepare himself for the pain of moving once again, the young human would work his legs out from beneath Smough's body in a very ungraceful fashion and then proceed with the grueling process of crawling back to his feet.

With the thick taste of copper on his tongue, the deep gash on his cheek and the blurring of his vision, Kaylen couldn't quite place his finger on why exactly he knew needed to stand up right now. He just had a very bad feeling that if he stopped struggling and fighting for his senses, that he wouldn't wake up again.

So he got back to his feet and turned his mouth to the air as he drew in as much air as his lungs would allow.

However, completely unbeknownst to the Kaylen himself, all around him was a sea smiles and jubilation at his actions this day. The Silver Knight's each gave the young human a silent nod of respect at overcoming his foe despite the difference between them. The servants, many of which were human themselves, were positively ecstatic about what they had just seen. Each one of them already making plans about who they would gossip to of this clash, and each one of them unknowingly going to play a part in the overexaggerated narrative that would soon spread like wildfire amongst the castle walls.

However, none would come to be more impressed by this outcome than a select few gods.

"Well, I'll be damned. He actually managed to secure a victory in his little bout." Ciaran said, unable to stop a pleased smile from forming on her lips at Kaylen's efforts.

"Hmph. Is that what victory looks like? He's been beaten within an inch of his life, probably has a few broken bones alongside a concussion, is now down a shirt and succeeded only because his opponent was a witless oaf. But sure, let's pretend he's done something impressive." Velka critiqued harshly with a cross of her arms. Though Ciaran did not miss that she too sported a smile on her face.

"Have either of you assigned a servant to gather the books and reading material I requested and had them delivered?" Gwynevere questioned as she placed a hand upon the window glass where Kaylen's form met her gaze.

"Apologies, my lady. That task has yet to be done." One of the guards said politely, causing his charge to turn a very sharp look of displeasure his way.

"And why is that, exactly?"

At the highest level up above and all others, the king of the gods clapped slowly in accommodation of the human's struggle. The sight of which warmed his old heart.

"Ah, the fires of youth. Well done, lad, Well done." The king acknowledged to none but himself as he made to return too his duties with a somewhat higher opinion of the exhausted criminal beneath him. "Victory certainly is a thousand times sweeter when your the underdog. Heh, takes me back to the old days."

"Heh, well, the boys got guts, I'll give him that." Artorias said with a respectful nod towards the haggard human.

"Hmph. He got lucky. His stance was weak, his tactics elementary and his execution sluggish. There's a lot to be worked on." Ornstein said without mincing words in the slightest. "And I'm going to tear the head off that cleric for being late getting here. The boy won't improve if he drops dead here."

"Nonsense, humans are more durable than they look, and the cleric was already finishing preparing their supplies when I left them. He'll be fine until-."

THUMP.

Just as Artorias was finishing the sentence, Kaylen fell face first into the dirt and didn't seem to be moving.

"Shit." Was all the blue knights said before dashing through the door of the hall to drag the nearest cleric back there to heal the human.

Meanwhile, at almost the very instant Kaylen's body hit the dirt, Ornstein moved at nearly double the speed of his compatriot and was performing textbook emergency field care within seconds to keep him alive.

WHOOOO THERE, DEAR READERS!

That's all I got for you guys this time around, but let me just get out a few parting comments.

So firstly, I had a complete blast toying around with Ornstien in this chapter. I tried to give off the feel that he's actually dedicated to help Kaylen better himself, but isn't gonna be soft on him in the slightest. This isn't a joke or a game to him. So it was fun to try and explore that kind of "Old solider" way of thinking with him.

Secondly, yes, I had Kaylen win by TKO against Smough. Originally, I wrote a bunch of different ways that he would lose, but then I got to thinking that taking down a bigger opponent like Smough isn't exactly outside of reality for a human. Especially when I considered that beyond his strength, Smough isn't really all that special or exceptional. If it were any of the Silver Knights or Ornstien or Artorias, Kaylen basically wouldn't have much an angle to work from. But I imagine Smough would be big and strong, but slow and easily tired as well. Possibly giving him at least something he could work with.

Though I'm hoping that I didn't take things a little far with their being an audience of servants and knights as well of some of the bigger named gods, watching the whole fight happen. I know its easy to for writers of falling into the position of having "Too many cooks in the kitchen", so I hope I managed to not reach that point here with things. This was meant to be a big moment for Kaylen, but I know including to many faces can sometimes come off as me just "Giving him the win". (I also know that I tend to overthink things even when there fine.)

But anyway, I hope this chapters been a fun little read for you guys.

As always, feel free to leave a review and tell me what you guys thought about this chapter of the story. Was Kaylen winning this fight a bit to much to buy? Was the gods character's a bit too shallow? Should Kaylen have had a bit more reaction to nearly being beaten to a pulp?

Honest opinions are always appreciated as I'm always looking to improve my style of writing to make this story a bit more interesting for you guys. so don't be shy in telling me your thoughts about how things are going so far. Outside opinions will have a huge effect on how this story will play out.

This is Supreme Gamer, Signing out.

P.S. I only realized after finishing writing things up that I completely forgot about HAWKEYE GOUGH. Uuuuuuuuugh. The whole point of this chapter was to introduce the remaining Four Knights of Gwyn and I goofed it, boys.