"You are late again for my History lesson, I see." Vathek said as he checked the attendance on the corner of the room. "Sir Lyndon of Earth."
"Sorry sir, it will not happen again." Eric panted heavily as he placed his tired body on the edge of the open door of the academe's instruction room.
"It will not happen again for the fourth time?" Vathek questioned. "Sit down."
Eric sighed worryingly and sat the only chair available: the chair adjacent to the aisle across Nigel's. He opened his book and started to flip the pages
"You boys are the next guardians of the universe." Vathek points out. "The Tower of Strength beneath the Kandrkar Palace lies the Legionate Military Academe, where brave men are trained both pshysically and mentally to become legionates, the new guardians of the veil."
"A true guardian does not depend on strength and goodness alone but attitude as well. You as a guardian reflects what your people do." Vathek suddenly looked sternly at Eric. "And simply being late is a bad start."
Eric humiliated, lowered his head down as the students around him looked at an agonizing stare at him.
"Neverthless, anything's not too late for a restart; you just have to jump back again." Vathek grinned at Eric "Is it Eric?"
"Yes sir" Eric smiles shyly.
(During W.I.T.C.H Issue 1, after Halloween incident)
"And I thought you said that no legionate from Earth existed?!" Cedric asks violently at Vathek.
"That's what I knew!" Vathek replies. "Unless—"
"No talking!" Eric replies as he hunches and charges his sword at Cedric. Yet the weight of the sword made him slower than usual and Cedric is able to avoid the attack.
"Too slow!" Cedric says as Eric passes by him, He transfers a powerful energy on his fist and punches to Eric's torso as his head and feet bend to the reaction and he flies backward.
'Too strong!' Yet Eric's feet manage to touch the school roof tiles, he puts his weight on it and manages to drag his feet and it stops him from flying and falling from the building. He then genuflects from the pain on the impact 'That hurt!" he breathes heavily
"You're a young one aren't you?" Cedric asks. "You have no match for us, young legionate!"
"Shut up!" Eric as he postures himself up and he charges once more at Cedric.
"Oh no you don't!" Vathek replies as he charges also too him with his sword, yet stops when an arrow zings across his face by inches away.
Eric passes by Vathek and focuses on Cedric once again yet manages to avoid the slow charge. Eric hastily makes violent and hesitating sword manoeuvres. "You're just too slow boy!" Cedric then counters with an impactful blow one after another on Eric's arms or his face after he lands an unsuccessful blow, yet he still continues to make violent blows.
"You're so stubborn boy—" Cedric says as he is now confused by the slow increase of speed of the slashes and is now caught by it, a scratch to the cheek.
"Yes!" Eric exclaims but his excitement cause his sword to lose speed. By chance, Cedric releases a fast and impregnable energy kick, but Eric manages to brace himself as he crosses his arms from the kick. "Too stronger if that kick would end up at my torso that would be the end my dear life!" but kneels down with his hands to the tiles as the pain staggers on front of him.
"Your arms are now battered and weak!" Cedric notices Eric's arm with large bruise from the kick. He holds his hands up to Eric and prepares for the final blow. "You don't stand a chance against me!"
"You're right. I don't stand a chance." Eric replies heavily and looks to him with a smirk "If I were alone!"
"What do you mean by that?" Cedric asks as he frantically turns around as he sees a barrage of arrows at him "Oh shoot!" The arrows pierce through the air and lands scratch wounds on Cedric shoulder. 'I see' Cedric thinks. 'This young boy's hesitating blows at random was not to create a descisive blow but a distraction from the very start from their true intent!"
Cedric throws his hands off to the arrows and attacks the remaining the height of the distraction of arrows, he remembers the fallen legionate with the sword. 'Damn it! The boy!" He turns and is surprised to see Eric back up at his feet again and preapares to sway his sword in a horizontal attack, hoping for a final blow.
Suddenly, Vathek swoops from behind and blocks the attack successfully. "Shoot he got to me!" Eric swears.
"Go, Cedric!" Vathek commands. "You're injured! I will hold them off!"
Cedric nods slightly as he manages to block the arrows and casts a portal beside him and leaps through it.
"Oh no you don't!" Eric pushes his sword against Vathek but to no avail.
"Oh you will!" Vathek exclaims as he releases the sword from Eric. "Let's see what your true swordsmanship leads you!"
Eric reverses his sword in a reverse-grip as Vathek begins an all-out attack at him but manages to block every attack. The sword fighting continues as each of them get the chance to attack and counter but blocks the other all the way through. Though, the fight may be evenly matched, it seems that the former master gains the higher ground than his pupil as Eric backs up from his skilled attacks. In addition, Eric's body is battered and bruised from Cedric's attack, but still remains his fighting spirit.
"That reverse-grip technique and that fighting style…" Vathek notices. "You're that Lyndon am I right? And the one who pulls the arrows is that Bartholomew? You pulled that strategic offense on Cedric as you did when you were at the academe am I right?"
Although Eric knows that Vathek will eventually remember him from the fight against Cedric and his fighting style, Eric silences himself to reply.
"You can't beat me Lyndon!" Vathek points to him. "I, once a legion, one of the greatest former swordsman of Meridian, you can't defeat me!"
"I will lose against you by skill for sure." Eric grins "but, it doesn't mean anything's too late for a restart! I just have to jump back again!" he charges once more at him.
Vathek then reflects and remembers what he said to him a few years ago. The time when he was an enthusiastic and hopeful master and teacher to his students. Though tired to scold and teach his young students for years, he's still proud and happy for his students who became successful legionates to the universe.
Suddenly, a portal appears underneath his feet, it was from Cedric's and Vathek falls out from it then disappears out of thin air.
"No!" Eric exclaims as Vathek escapes and disappears as he falls to his feet and pants heavily at the fight.
Vathek lands on his bottom on the ground and sees his surrounding; his back at the dark one-lit of the bookstore's basement, their temporary headquarters. "Good thing I saved your life. Those boys should not be taken lightly!" he screams as he heals himself from the wounds. "You are a teacher and master of the legionates, by chance, do you know who those stubborn legionates were?"
Vathek looks at him in the eyes and hesitates. "No, I don't."
