(A/N: No matter what the year is in this story, it is not what matters as Cressida Cowell said it best herself that HTTYD is fiction pretending to be history; this applies to the events that take place here in the solo-prequel that's supposed to build a universe based off around the Trials of the King's Lost Treasures. Cortés will die in the same year that he died in real life but there are sacrifices to reality as such because this is the same thing, fiction that's pretending to be a event in historical archives; each mythology like Norse are all separated from one another, in the case that it becomes a contradiction from what happens is coincidental. It does not apply to reality as I've mentioned before, we begin on the same year that he was defeated and it's focused around him being a child to becoming a teenager that attends Barbara's Academy of Swordsmanship. This story is meant to flesh him out more and fix some things that are quite unaccounted for like brothers he mentioned, a jacket he was given to and the compass that's supposed to be built by him long after when he's searching for the King's Lost Treasures. So it is gonna be made clear that Tiburonkolt is a less pleasant man here than he was portrayed, he was actually lying the whole time but he's exaggerating the truth; an abridged form he tells it in fact. Let us get on with the childhood that surrounds him, Enjoy)
Trentino Alto, North Italian-Romanian Border. Golden Age of Discovery, Year 1523
Sun in the clear morning-midday skies above that was a cerulean to sky blue color with a nice but faint crepe to blush pink shade on the lower half of the skies, occupied with a splinter of cumulonimbus and altostratus clouds that had the cirrus clouds higher in the air; where their sun's rays split into countless beams surrounding the entire star to shine down on the hero of the Aztecan Empire that was Rultherhuskton. He held his son in his arms who was wrapped in his cradle that he never grew out of, but his upperbody was more exposed which showed off a faint exotic tan undertone to his skin thanks to exposure to the sunlight after being born. A walk over to the small rock had him lay his back down against it, gathering up some distance; as he got down to his knees. "Tiburonkolt" He spoke his name as Xiuhcoyota held him upward in order to stand on both feet, stabilizing her son as he began to walk towards his father; with his first few steps nice and easy
He was wearing nothing but the bundle that wrapped around his lower waist to cover all that had to be hidden so there's that, he started out slow but as he got better control over his legs he became quicker with further steps as he was nearly there to his father; holding his opened arms to him. He was breaking out into a short jog and soon he was running as he jumped into Rultherhuskton's arms, carried back to the tent while his mother followed her husband inside as it's here that they played with him for awhile; putting him to sleep as he was awakened in the early morning to try out his first steps. Khantreijan entered inside to lay the blanket atop of his upperbody before leaving, rubbing it's snout against his forehead afterwards like a kiss as it turned tail to walk outside. Rultherhuskton returned to his blacksmithing duties while as for Xiuhcoyota, she practiced with her sword of choice and firearm she had on hand. It was far out of hearing range so it's not to prematurely awaken their son from the loud bang of a rifle, only a mother could be so cautious like that. Even as a infant he wore a Aztec medallion from his neck as it was given to him when he was first born, nibbling on it when he was a toddler
Following his first steps he eventually became a toddler who wore a vest on his upperbody as such who wobbled his way over to his parents, brushing himself off whenever he tripped and stopped when he saw a Spanish Imperial hayabusa skull on the sand; he didn't think much of it as he passed by instead picking up a stick to swing like a sword which Rultherhuskton took notice of. "A swordsman like me already, if there's one thing you must have it's a secondary weapon of choice as it will act like your greatest tool to live another day" He told him as he wobbled away from his father, sitting down on the rock while looking at Xiuhcoyota who is tending to the line of bushes that were growing with sunflowers and roses; smiling at him just as he picked up the skull finding a imprint on the sand. It was like a teardrop that had a curved line underneath it in which had a upward trapezoid spike pointing towards the shape itself
At the age of being a preschooler Xiuhcoyota was speaking to the other child's mother in the settlement of Bolzano when her son came in bleeding with a scar, reacting with a immediate response as every mother would do: "Tiburonkolt, you're bleeding" Having the medical herbs and styptic to slow the flow of blood in order to stop the bleeding from his scar that would in no time heal
The child of the mother she was speaking to told her what happened: "Gaeton hit him with a stick but he wouldn't fight back, he just stood there trying not to react" While his mother told him to inform Gaeton's parents about what he did, Xiuhcoyota dealt with her son's wounds in the meantime and finished up. Being kissed on the forehead before going back out to play in the courtyard of the home, though she had to ask her. "Didn't make a sound at all, any others would've been running with swollen dried eyes to tell their parents what happened"
"That's our son alright, he's been like that growing up; a big and brave boy" She could look on to see the young Tiburonkolt roleplaying with the others but as soon as a Terrible Terror flew down, the other kids scattered but he just held it in his arms; canoodling the reptile while he began sniffing like a dog. Letting it fly off before he followed the other children
Flashing forward to the night on Christmas where the snow was less than what falls upon the settlements, Rultherhuskton was spending his time with their son while his wife watched on smiling and as for dinner it is nearly ready as Khantrejian would inform him; he's the one who cooks for the family so she doesn't have to strain herself by having a burden on her shoulders though she does insist that she cooks so Tiburonkolt can bond with each of them evenly, that was something he didn't complain about and neither did he fear his own wife. There was one gift that was left unopened as the rest were but it seems he forgotten about the last one, it's reasonable because he had one big day ahead of him for someone so special. Opening it up it was revealed to be a Leviatharon and Kraken as this happened next:
"What's it gonna be? Look at that, want the Leviatharon? Come on then, let's have a fight. You don't scare me" Fight they did as there was a beatdown between the two beasts, the tent had been expanded to be more spacious like a house and the heat from the grill was contained as it would not kill the residents inside with the high levels of smoke that vaporized from within and meanwhile it looked like the former was winning as Tiburonkolt was growling. "That's an delicious looking underbelly that I'll bite into so I can rip your ribcage out, you're big, mean and scary; I'll run away in fear of the beast from the seas" That part was true as the Leviatharon had a right to be frightening for it was longer than any longship of the Vikings, but also slept from in the deep and murky seas in the Archipelago that's southwest of where he lived at
After that it was all a matter of time as the food was fantastic and he enjoyed the holiday for there will be more to come as he grows up with the ones he loved around him, especially as he grows into a little boy; no longer wearing cloth that wrapped around his waist but instead a comfortable shendyt from Egypt that was a dark mahogany to barn and merlot red color for the fact that he had a good body shape. He was mostly ate meat but didn't eat as much so he can be both fast and strong like his father and mother, he wore sandals based off his mother's with added additions to make them look like jackal sandals like his ancestor years later. As of course his hair was a long and quill spiked sharp bladed mullet that blew in the wind, he was scholared under his father through being taught to read several different kinds of languages; such as Aztecan, French, Russian, Chinese and Egyptian as well as Norse should he go to any of these places as he knows how to speak Italian for it was his foreign tongue. Xiuhcoyota in the meantime was preforming unique akwete igbo weaving from South Nigeria, Africa so she can not only make a beautiful tailcoat jacket that's the length of a coat. Their son saw through the threads before coming behind to caress her mother's back and arms when he sat behind her, just to give her some comfort while he pulled down the weaving bar and brought it up to show off the design of the heraldry sun
That night when Tiburonkolt was fast asleep Xiuhcoyota pulled back the tent covers to bathe him in the moonlight as he held onto that medallion he gave to him, coming down to him and bidding him a goodnight before walking to her husband. Khantrejian laid down next to him as well while covering his upperbody with his head, that's how it always went for him as his dad loved their horse and so did he. Rultherhuskton continued to build armor for Khantrejian and Xiuhcoyota went to continue weaving the cloth that had the reflective sun on the back, using her sunflowers to add underneath as well as using that Spanish Imperial hayabusa that had a distinct look based off the Indian begnal rock-owl with salamander orange eyes and dark face markings of a short eared one; braking in mid-air while flying towards the onlookers behind in between the sun and the sunflowers. Finishing up before she went to call it a night
One day, Tiburonkolt was climbing a tree using the branches as elevation and walked towards the well where some nomads were using their staffs and buckets to grow their grains; load of water in both buckets on their shoulders he dropped down from the branch he hung on. Took a few seconds as he thought of something, using one of the staffs near the tree he dug a hole from the grain field, and drew it near to the well in order to make it into a river and draw out the crows that were feasting on their food source. None of the nomads minded him but took notice when he started to lift the rock with dust of pebbles falling as well as leaks coming out down. "What are you up to-" At last he lifted the rock sideways and poured it into the trench, drawing out the crows that were eating the grains and starving them. Another time was when they were spearfishing which made him run and pole vault overhead with a splashing land as he managed to get three in a row. That's all thanks to Xiuhcoyota teaching him how to hunt as well as get more than one fish in the water, dropping them into the basket before hunting for more in the meantime
Overall the family life went well as Tiburonkolt turned seventeen and on the first day of that age, he was given a coat that Rultherhuskton and Xiuhcoyota wanted him to have which is not only made out of the bundle he once had around him as a infant but it was made of scales out of which were shedded; vampire squirrel tails and chinchilla pelts for the fluffiest fur for that fact. On the back while the sunflowers were lined up to the front all around, there was quite a trio of of structures that represented the three Great Pyramids of Giza; but also had a shinto gate on the lower bottom of the middle pyramid with two tigerphats on the land. On his arms was the spirit of Quetzalcoatl coiling around him along with Camazotz and Anubis statues that were built in front of the two side pyramids. The edges were made of a gold and bronze mix for the arms, upper and lower half. He wore it with pride as he could see the palm trees and the sago palm bushes also on the back and sides as well, he couldn't be more happier as atop of the edges was the same meandros pattern involving various alphabet letters consisting of straightened half opened squares with them having dots in them or not to short lines that also had dots in them or not. Tiburonkolt responded to his parents as they were both near Khantrejian at their expanded bedouin tent that was striped horizontally on the walls
"Father, this is the greatest coat/jacket that my mother has ever made for me; thanks for this present. Is there more to this special compleanno (birthday) of mine? I do not want to sound greedy unlike that Aztecan slaying conquistador that you both defeated so he would not lay another blade on her people" Tiburonkolt asked them as he now wore the coat around him along with the medallion around his neck, it was designed like this as he held it on the palm of his hand: it's connected into a string consisted of small and thin cylinder rods with a ring on each end in order reach the hook that slid into the larger ring on the end. While that sounded easily basic enough the actual engraved design was a mouthful to explain, so it had to be separated and here it is below the string of rods and rings:
It consisted of a pair of two thin parallel borders with the diagonal edges having dual upward As, the rest of them had the outer As curl into each other on the top and all of them were thicker than the lower ones. In between the two types of As was a roman numeral number two with a outlined dot on top of them, in the inner rectangular slots were all the twelve birthstones of the zodiac; the skull in the center of it all was exquisitely detailed in fact with thirteen large feathers all around the back behind thirty smaller feathers, in front of them was a round of twelve egg shaped plates that stood atop the fanged headdress of the main leader of the pantheon and feathered serpent Quetzalcoatl featuring a human skull wearing it. It had earrings on either side and five round pendants going from the left to right which had three beads on nine rods consisting of three segments and three beads on the bottom; all connected to the bottom of the two fanged necklaces connected to the beads and the flower plates on the front was all made up of twenty rods to form a circular plate with eight dots surrounding the ninth one in the middle. There were also some rainbow gemstones from the darkest garnet to the darkest amethyst that all of them that surrounded them were very saturated to the core, but not only that there was also a dual branched thick swirling white and black pearl stone that acted like a yin yang behind the skull; having a light and dark bronze color respectively for the white to black colors. Finally, this medallion was entirely a dark and light saturated golden color that shined brightly in the radiant sun while remaining hidden in the shrouded darkness
"Your mother and I wanted you to join Barbara's Academy of Swordsmanship for the following month to learn the best of the best from there, Barbara the Barbarian will expecting your arrival in a few days time but you will return here. Though I digress it will be lonely here for a month without you but once you've returned, I can get back to scholaring you about the languages, hieroglyphics and runes of places you might come to enter soon. We'll be right behind you in every step" Rultherhuskton informed him
"Yeah in the meantime why not show off your new tomahawk you're very passionate about? You told us both that it's dual blades was from the imprint of that Spanish Imperial eagle skull in the sand, that's exotic as for twice the blade; it's twice the hacking and chopping power. I'd really like to see what you've built all by yourself at your father's forge" Xiuhcoyota has been told about the tomahawk and updated sparsely in between before it was finally completed
Tiburonkolt turned tail as he entered the tent taking out his tomahawk that was wrapped in leather and cloth as they watched on, walking towards them to hold out his tomahawk which he proceeded to unravel it; revealing the creation before tomahawk was a little bit more bigger than an double bladed two handed axe and the twin blades of course are based off the Spanish Imperial eagle skull imprint from the sand for example, although was more edged for reasons for his own to allow the blood and organs seep through the teardrop hole in the middle of them. There were two outward hook pikes on the back of the axe heads and as such were given some small serrations for extra stabbing power. The smoothed out shaft of the handle was meant to be wielded with one hand, being made out of makassar ebony, freijo and louro preto wood that were all durable to the maximum edge while the blades are sharpened to the cutting razor's edge. The bottom of the twin laid tomahawk blades had one wide strip of what looked like a snail sporting the crest and triangular border patterns based off the Dragon Trappers, being a peacock and prussian blue with quite some light salamander orange; daffodil yellow to beige tan and clay orange to tawny brown and to top it all off, it is all packed with a carmine red and alabaster white alone with some thin ebony black outlines. This was because of his father's travels into the Archipelago had him draw the crest and sails of the Dragon Trappers which was a Aztec/Mayan elk whose horns went off into an number of multiple branches that filled the upper triangular shaped sails on their yachts, below the strip was a dual coiled jute string with a dark chestnut bodhi head with five other smaller wine and garnet crystal red beads, all ending it off with a pair of twin decorative feathers taken off the same eagle that'll be referred to as a hawk which not only look like a Indian bengal rock owl; but were also painted with the blood of a fallen beast that was a very dark crimson and very deep maroon red, although more infamously known as darkblood of the Dragons. Both right on the front and the back there were five barn stars studded for decoration, as well as pride for being a five star swordsman that he'll be like his father. Finally, the lower handle was all wrapped in diagonally ribbed leather with five pyramid shaped spikes studded individually; with a thick fang on the bottom also for stabbing. There will be more to come when he later upgrades his tomahawk into being something a little more strong and handy as his weapon, for now this was his weapon of choice until he gets the materials needed. "There's so much more to work on this weapon, I wrote it all down in pictures on the wall of the forge so I know what I want to do with this"
Tiburonkolt wanted to do so much more with this like a pair of dual blades on either side with razor blades in between the dual blades, the mace flanges would go in between the razor blades for maximum chopping power while also having dual teardrop shaped holes on the top to bottom on either side to bypass armor when slaying his enemies. For the rest of this day he went with his family to eat at the restaurant of sorts that Tiburonkolt has been visiting to walk around in, checking the prices to ensure that it's not expensive and keeping this place in mind to be served at. He rested his head on top of the folded coat like a pillow as he was ready to leave for the academy, but he'll be back here so he can study with his father some more and train with his mother in firearms
Tiburonkolt bid both his father and mother a farewell as he took off out into the seas to sail west like the young man that he was, as all students were to climb the mountain in order to reach the school. Several tribes in the Archipelago camped on the edge of a cliff for that case and the youngsters had to climb up the mountain the hard way using a steep cliff, while older Vikings are to take the easy way which was a near flat path. This made him infuriated for the lack of treatment towards the younger generation of these Norse people of Norway, Sweden among Scandinavia, Finland and Greenland to name a few. Who is responsible for developing this law? Surely he cannot change it but what he can do is find someone who will take over as leader and bring changes to this place for the treatment of all young Vikings who are born as a runt who is thin boned but is talented with machines or as a meaty intellectual who loves to read. All students have to sail their by themselves and he seems to be doing well, his parents let him sail them around their home and even to different regions of the Italian-Romanian border
There was bound to be trouble afoot as a dangerous typhoon approached in his direction just as he's sailing out of the Indian Ocean, that's just great isn't it? Nothing bad though because it was just a storm. He was in deep shit if he didn't find a way to escape the coming typhoon but he's not about to cancel his trip to Barbara's Academy of Swordsmanship, he's coming out and alive to reach that place; nothing will stop him from doing in his path. He will survive until it's over, stubbornness that has overtaken him. Fearsome winds rocked the ship as lightning struck down onto the boat but did little to tell him to turn back now, the rudder was fighting against his control but he kept and stood his ground; he will not die until his time has come to ascend into the heavens. Raindrops were hitting him and although his red shendyt with his matching subligaculum from the times of the Romans that he might've hated, he's happy they've made this undergardment that was soaking from being splashed by the waves; it was his upperbody that was being pelted the worst but he didn't give a damn now. He was gonna make it out of here
Hitting the flesh that stung his bones and drench the entire boat all around him, he slipped a few times but never let go of the rudder wheel; he was on the right path as he's winning this battle against the rage of the seas. None of the words he spoke was left undeafened by their bellowing galestorms but he would pay with his defiance towards the signs that warned him to turn back now and resistance he offers to the mercy he was given. Lightning struck close to him as the sails set ablaze, suddenly raising the boat itself in which he was sent flying toward the jagged rocks; crashing with impact as instead he was blown away by the violent of all the nastiest tempests that have taken the Archipelago off guard. Tiburonkolt was washed far off from the ruins of his boat, being sent further into the western borders of such; memories of his childhood surfaced as this was not the first time he was injured when Gaeton hit him with the stick. He actually slipped off a short cliff and split his knee, bleeding and limping back just as his father and mother took him back to wrap his wounds; deciding to have him wear a little protection in the form of a chiton that was wrapped around his waist to cover his knees some more and wear a belt to keep on him
At Barbara's Academy of Swordsmanship that was the new establishment after overthrowing a impostor who named himself Flashburn who wanted to take over the island to call this area his school of swordfighting, the woman of the hour named Barbara the Barbarian stood at the docks as she awaited the new students here. In the distance she can see several ships coming as her school was comprised of a thick ring built with battlements of a castle with merlon and embrasure flanking towers, having a gateway into the academy itself and eight tall towers of such were found on top of the entrance on either side. This academy was roofed on top and it was placed on the outside with armor to defend against attackers in the time of raids, most of all importantly it was led under a swordswoman who stood proud of herself for great pride of achievement in building such a well earned academy to turn all into an army of swordsmen to swordswomen like herself. She wore a light but thick Joan Jett shag that waved out to either side but never showed her ears, having olive colored lips with a dark golden brown color for her hair; her eyes was a jade green while her slightly dark skin told everyone that she was a natural born irish of the Celtic descent, even then she had a Russian accent in her voice that applied not to her skin but to her nationality. She was born in Ireland and took after her dad who was Russian and her mother who was Irish. She wore a jacket with long quill fur right on the edges underneath her ribbed undershirt with diamond pattern sleeves, wearing a soft as well as triple belted corset on her chest to ensure she's not facing predators along the way; in case there would be some suitors she had to fight off. She wore a ebony black breastplate of the sort with vambraces she had lashed tightly around her arms with razor blades to counter weapon strikes, multiple layers of chainmail laid against her strong animal leather pants and shinguards on her knees with a battleskirt on her waist; it consisted of long studded strips of rows made of pyramid spikes down to her shins. She wore tall steel tipped boots on her legs and a wheel of various swords on her back that spun slowly, acting as decoration as her real one was in her right hand. Finally, the two might not know it yet but she was about to meet her true lover when she looked off to the side and spotted Tiburonkolt laying on the shores; shirtless and wearing a red skirt around him as his own clothing piece
Climbing down the docks she ran over to the fallen Tiburonkolt who looked soaked, cut from more places than one and is at this time unconscious; looking out to the ships of the horizon it came down to taking him upon her back before heading up the nearly flat path for older ones like her to take. This man needed her help and therefore it was her first priority, taking up his body in front of the gates where she entered inside; she put him to rest as and stood near his resting scar inflicted body providing vigil to her new student he will become. She only left as it was time to meet with the rest of her new students at the academy, leading them inside of the building before letting them take this time to get to know their surroundings beforehand for the rest of the months ahead. She returned to Tiburonkolt afterwards in her chambers as he was slowly awakened to find himself inside a building
"That's quite the deadly encounter to the typhoon seven hours ago since my students came, you've taken quite the landing ashore on these beaches. Better to rest for awhile before we get started with what I have to teach" Barbara sat near him before getting up but Tiburonkolt refused, sitting up near the headboard of the bed
"I will not lay here resting until I am taught the skills I require to strike down those who stand against me, a typhoon is no different from a normal shower over the lands. God was with me throughout the voyage over to the Western borders beyond Italy, at least the creator Ptah was as the Hebrew's Yawheh would never take the pantheons of others for he considers inferior to him" Tiburonkolt refused to acknowledge he was in need of recovery as that seven hours gave enough energy for him to train
"I reconsider that option, you are in no condition to participate in the first lessons of what I have to teach-"
"I'm not waiting for my scars on all fronts to heal until I pass out, better to take it or leave it than send me home early because I'm not coming back without the reasons to defend myself should any bandits attack me"
Seeing the defiant and resistant novice swordsman that he was Barbara relented but went on to warn him about this: "The actions that follow in this academy under my teachings were out to teach you what it means to be a swordsman so that I can offer you a place here in these sea swallowing lands of the Vikings. All of the blood that's spilled and feeling like you're near the brink of death is just their thoughts like they're actually going to die here, that fear of feeling like you're near death is a price that all students pay for in the arena when they train with the one and only swordswoman that's me. Remember that"
"It doesn't matter to me, the training will be worth the fear of the real world wars and battles that are fought; your method is the greatest reason for them to have them teach them every tactic you know and mastered" Tiburonkolt showed no care about what kind of trauma he has to face in order to be convinced that he needed Barbara's teachings more than he knows, he's willing to fight her in the end
As Tiburonkolt got to testing out his hand in training he was slowly but steadily making a way up into being one of her finest ranks which consisted of novice to adept which goes there on then apprentice to journeyman into expert and at last master. He subdued his fellow trainees as well as took on the leader a few times for some sparring of course, if it does come down to having no choice but to teach the higher ranked swordsmen and swordswomen; he would be the one to settle the conflict. His skill with one sword alone was remarkable but it seemed he would be the kind to wield a second one in hand, judging how he took a second blade to fight as he's also using his tomahawk to chain his strikes. Barbara watched over him from the arena catwalk without him knowing about her presence, even as a 17 Year Old man she's no older to him either but just a tad bit so there's no reason not to date him when he grows up; if it goes down to the point that she's developed feelings for him. For now they're master and student but he's becoming more than her student
He took out one master after another when a few of them grew jealous that he was reaching their ranks, he was not supposed to reach that rank in a short amount of time and assumed he was offering affectionate aid to their teacher in order to rise up to them. That's half-true as if he's not fighting then he was training on his own alone when Barbara approached him, he did stop when he felt like she wanted to ask him of something. When she did it's about his father and mother as well as his homeland that she was very intrigued into visiting with him, he was starting to bond more as friends to her than a student while she was doing the same. But saw his bravery when she threw a false bomb that had the others heading for cover in a drill, the expert swordsman however just ran to jump and land atop of the bomb; covering it with his upper tunic robes he took off to suppress the blast. Coming out slowly to see that sacrificial act of bravery from him, he would kill himself just so they can live to fight another day and that alone garnered her respect for him
He was pushed to his limits when he faced off against all of the older masters in the academy as they went relentless on him, much of them blocked his strikes while others used swiftness to divert his attention away from their allies; though he was able to survive he was left with a brink of collapsing from the hot summer heat. He eventually did after he took out the third of the masters that came back for more, falling to the floor on his stomach before Barbara came to take him back to bed where he recovered his strength. It was interesting as she learned of his father's work: he told her that Rultherhuskton was entrusted by the wardens to beat the hell out of prisoners half to death in a very bloody pulp within a ring, he placed all bets on ones he killed which the French torturers took great pride in his work; giving him everything to become the man that he is before his birth and still kicking ass like the greatest father that he was. Overtime as he defeated his last opponent to earn the rank of master, Barbara gave him seven more tests to perform before graduation day as she was using him as a example to her other pupils
Tiburonkolt's experiences were not without trial and error as there were at least times where he was outclassed, defeated at the hands of the other students as he would either be injured earlier; be overwhelmed with attacks on all fronts he had to take the pain to bleed from, in a case like this it was reaching the brink of collapsing from the strain on his body. He knew that he had to stop and he knows his limits, he's merely increasing them to endure a much longer time until he gives out with his aching bones; tangling steps that burned with brimstone and flashes of colors in his vision before he came down to wanting to sleep so he can rid himself of the strain that's gotten to him. As such he was cut on some of his body but not too much to be there for awhile, he even utilized unarmed kicks to throwing others into the environment to gain the upperhand; but too bad those students retaliated with a sweep and told him off about not fighting fair, if they're not going to fight fair then there's no reason he should too. Jesus he was not wanting to give up when his body was screaming at him to stop, in the end he would adapt from defeats in order to counter them next time and once graduation came; Barbara posed a final challenge for him which was to defeat her using what she taught him
The tinging rhythm of spark searing metal started with Tiburonkolt making the first strike just as his mentor defended her shoulder as it was a vital piece to remain readied to attack should one attempt to disable their swordfighting arm. There was an few deflecting blows off to the side, Tiburonkolt countered his mentor's thrust with a upper slash that struck her; landing the kick toward her stomach to send her slamming up against the wall. Swiping his blade that had her ducking down as it sliced diagonally upward along the wall before sweeping him onto the floor, jumping up to deliver the killing blow as Tiburonkolt tumbled to the side; getting back up on his feet afterwards. Parrying the swing with his tomahawk he allowed her blade to slip through the hole, disarming her of the blade before making a run towards it to dispose of the weapon properly; stabbing it into the floor so hard that it takes a lot of force to take it out. His mentor drew out her backup blade to fight him
Both stood their ground at the ready when building up focus to attack solely on whatever and whenever there was a blind spot for either of them to strike, Barbara had the upper hand due to her skills but she participated that she would be defeated under her master rank students; the two came forward with opposing barrages of sparking metal that scraped the edges into a multitude of sparks that was coming close to heating up but still so far off. Tiburnokolt let her kick him directly in the chest backwards and spiral off toward the side, retaliating with a slash up across her back to her shoulder; throwing her off while drawing some blood from her lips but not letting that distract him. The duel continued with a series of swings that clanged on both swords
The graduation duel unfolded to becoming a series of more rhythmical sword swings toward both of each other's respective blades, the students watched on in awe of this fight between a master student and the main leader of this academy through all of the trials and errors that were experienced. He sent her onto the floor to subdue her when she shoulder charged him with her blade to slash across his chest two times, but blocked the third one with the rest of the following rounds being guarded against. A few number of cuts were landed on his chest to leg and on the shoulders to which strangely it didn't seem to hurt as much
Tiburonkolt blocked her downward helm swing before taking her blade with his bracer so he can land an hit to her side, he then threw himself forward to stab her as it dug a bit through a little bit of skin at first but was struck at his left side. Deflecting another follow up attack with one of his dual blades, he held her at bay before he struck her down to her knees; swept onto the floor to land on his back when she turned the tables on him. He was not defeated, he will hold his ground and survive the pain as that didn't hurt him in the slightest; nevertheless she was coughing up a bit of blood as this battle was being prolonged enough for her to show her injuries that were coming. Still though she came running over to swing her blade against his, begin blocked with a one handed defense while he used his other one to attack her; keeping her on the defense while he went onto the offensive at last
Being subdued at last when her opponent held his blades near the sides of her throat, he had at last became victorious when he stabbed both blades in front of her; holding out his hand in order to help her up from the ground and off her knees. Taking it without looking up to meet his eyes, she was impressed that even though he stayed longer here than the others who has quit their attendance here; preferring to watch all of the fights from the sidelines she's never seen someone so determined to defeat a true master like herself. Slowly removing herself to walk toward the wall a short distance away from her opponent, few minutes of silence came while she fixed her fair and turned to face him; coming over to put her shoulders on his while removed his upper clothing since for all his life he's never worn something on his body other than the shendyt wrapped around his waist that he's been wearing since he was a child. This was when she finally started to speak to him again
"It's worth every trial of errors that were endured to fight with a true master like you are now as I believe you've earned it, but there is so much more I have to teach you and now that you have passed this final challenge that you can always try again should you've failed during this time; you are free to go back home to Italy. But I am disappointed about something, though I rather not say it in front of the other students..." Barbara the Barbarian complimented though she seemed to not be very happy of something, Tiburonkolt looked away but assured him it's nothing to be involved with his skills as clearly he was using those automated sword wielding training dummies inspired by the Chinese Training Dummies; the mu ren zhuangs to be exact
"Tell me, what's bothering you?" Tiburonkolt asked her, he knows he was assured that she is not talking about his skills since he wants to learn so much more from her
"Ever since I've found you on the shores and took you in to train you to become one what I am, a true master swordsman I haven't gotten to know you too well. I wanted this duel that happened between us to have lasted a little more longer, because there's some things that I've not told you before. Come with me downstairs, I want to explain to you of this academy's secret down below" Barbara the Barbarian took him with her while the students remained in the arena, Tiburonkolt wondered where he was being brought to
She took him into the hidden entry that led down into the academy's lower network walking through the dark tunnels as Tiburonkolt took out a torch that he lit, which was created by his father. Torches built under his work were not only medieval and gothic styled but was thick as well as long enough to be gripped under the hands of others, smooth with two wide ridges and a sharp pommel on the bottom. Head of the torch was shaped into a inverted bell as it's vertical edges went outwards with two horizontal and parallel thick studded strips going around, also sporting the flanges of blunt maces to add in for bashing power; it also featured the infamous merlon and embrasure pattern on the thick vertical strips in between like castle battlements, a sharp ended ship wheel was in the center of the pit with spikes going outwards for bashing to slashing and stabbing as this could be used as a weapon. It was measured at 85cm tall and could be chained to a hanging lantern to light the way, having an hidden knife inside with a sparker inside that was made from an specialized unknown alloy strengthened by the plasma of a Night Fury. In addition there was a octagon brazier shifted and locked inside the pit for a stronger, burning and radiant flame from within. Having the top bar be parallel with medium shaped bars and a thick stripe in between, the lower half had a grate that's diagonally curved inwards into a inverted cone shape with inward slanted glass to see the firesource just from the outside; on all edges were Omega Primal themed bat'leth blades on the edges, all of the blades were three-punched holed as they curved up and outwards. Finally, the braziers were real as these were found back at the home in the wilderness he lived in just outside a Italian city in the Triveneto northeast region
Lighting the path with the fire when he followed her down to navigate the lower mountains of her academy of swordsmanship, it was barren and looked like no one's gone down here for a long time; still it was looking a little young compared to later on when he helps out a boy to become a king to rule this Archipelago. No other students went down here either and aside from him it doesn't look like this was meant to be discovered, being off limits to all of whom were trespassers and restricted to anyone who might've accidentally gotten lost trying to find the right way through the various locations of this tall mountain; where everyone camps just so they can reach the peak but that's just for those who are forced to come here the hard way as that's something which didn't happen to him when he washed ashore on the beaches after a horrible typhoon. As soon as there was a red light in the distance, they climbed down from the slope before sliding the rest of the way to the short cliff steps when the light got stronger than before; eventually reached the deep pit where multiple fires ignited all around the wall surrounding them, lots of burning infernos combusted every now and then while at the end is the resting place of a crown that seemed important. There was a brown beast who guarded that helmet like treasure, entrusted to protect it from all who are not deserving to become a king after the fall of the last one. His name was Wodensfang though his allegiance wasn't clear to him, he chose not to engage in a conversation with him and even if it's supposed to be hot; this time of the year it's become a little less warmer but not by much
"That of which Wodensfang guards is the Crown of the Fallen, it's one of what we call the lost treasures in a series known as the Trials of the King's Lost Treasures. This mountain serves the purpose of holding one of them to ensure that our previous king who has fallen finds the one who can be a better ruler than he ever was. Wodensfang on the other hand is a Seahydramus Tidalmus Maximus, though it's often butchered insultingly as a racial slur, the most infamous of these is the Seadragonus Gigantacus Maximus as if to mock them of their imposing colossal stature that they can never measure up to. Those Vikings are cowards if I ever met the dead man inside that sets foot in my academy. I hope my presence to where you live in Italy does not interfere with your daily life as I want to teach you everything I have left to show you" Barbara explained the lore behind the crown that Wodensfang guarded and wanted to make sure that she would not meddle in the affairs of how he lives his life
"You won't be a obstruction to my everyday life with my mother and father that I love, but a few of the other students were showing signs of jealousy that I was becoming close to you; a second sign was that they were also beginning to think that you loved me. Though I would do anything to learn more of your teachings in return, it's more or less a bit early for the thought of having me find out about who I truly love; I'm not even old enough to reach your standards considering-" His lips were silenced by her finger as she told him directly in the face
"Your bravery for taking the blast of that false bomb I threw is unmatched, as is the truth you have told me after withholding this information from me the following weeks. I have grown to favor you above all for that sacrificial act so we can live to fight another day, and you have an clearly distinctive charm that's grown on me. You may be right about it being a little bit early to think of weather or not you truly love a swordswoman like me, but that's not to say that I'm willing to have a early start so we can have a brightened future ahead of us; in the later years we can turn that into something even better that the commoners around us can only dream of. If this is what you want, I will not stop or deny you that chance" Barbara complimented him for telling the truth and also inspiring him to grasp the thought of being with the one he truly loves for real while the night is still young
"We'll become better suited lovers if we've aged like fine malt and a drink of your choice, but know that I will always return to learn more from you. At least three years from now, all for a time to decide where our loyalties and destinies lie. You understand?" For a 17-Year Old he's shown quite some wisdom that he's learned all from his mother and father, Barbara nodded and agreed with his decision before leaving the firepit; looking back a final time at the small brown guardian Dragon and returned back to the surface
Back above at the arena there was a sudden earthquake that shook them and the students as a watchman came running into the scene, coming over to Barbara he reported the grave news which had her bring her sword out at the first thing she was told. "It's Flashburn, he's back for his conquest of the academy and by Odin's beard he's lost his mind as he's got his armada at the entrance; what shall we do?"
"Nevermind the armada at the entrance it's me that he wants but he'll have to take this place away from my cold and dead hands, focus all firepower on the nearest longships to cut down on their numbers. Get the younger students to safety who can't fight and those who can to an position where they can activate the ballistas" Barbara ordered as she was still weak from the duel thanks to the blood she coughed up a bit from her lips, but she'll survive
Her student who had proven himself to take the secondary title as the King of Swordsmen on the other hand thought otherwise as she their duel prolonged itself a bit thanks to neither of them willing to know their limits. Barbara's slightly heaving a bit with her shortening breaths along with some trembling in her body from fatigue, he can't let fight with those wounds and it ain't worth the risk getting killed. Before he could stop her she headed off with him coming after her but hitting the toe against his sandal in the process which made him trip, hitting the floor just as she disappeared from underneath the stairs
Leaping off the cliff from the academy down onto the sails of the longship armada she ripped through the fabric with her swords to slow her descent to the main deck, the students taking out the left and right flank of ships so they cannot aid Flashburn himself. Walking down along the main deck approaching the man who wanted to take over her academy, slaying any Viking that ran up to take a swing at her; cutting through the armor even with her fatiqued arms that were still shaking a bit. Above her was the man of the hour who held onto the railing with his sword in hand, it was then that he looked down on her to taunt the woman who stole what is to him his rightfully his; glory for building such a innovative school for Vikings of all ages
Flashburn was a Viking who held a proud stature as a professional swordfighter whose hair is straight but slightly curved around the ends, wearing a impractical helmet with horns that are slightly twisted. As he was the so-called pro at swordfighting this earned him much fame and respect throughout the Archipelago, better at taunting and teasing other chieftains as well. A fact that he's also overly heroic in the most obnoxious way possible, every describes him for being the perfect hero when in reality that is the farthest thing away from the truth; he was a terrible swordsman and wanted nothing more than to take over Barbara's academy, claiming that she stole his original school which was to be called Flashburn's School of Swordfighting. What a terrible name that is!
"I knew that witch was right about finding the Crown of the Fallen within the firepit, but your academy is still mine after you left me for dead down there now that I've become more great and skillfully so in swordfighting than you ever are. Not only shall I become the Champion of All Who Stands Above Them and later the leader of this establishment, but yours truly will at last become the one and only King of the Barbaric Tribes" Flashburn indulged himself with his fantasies but Barbara the Barbarian could only dismiss his dreams
"Really? I never thought that being trapped in a spider-web while finding the crown for those failing the aptly called Trials of the King's Lost Treasures is worth such glory, especially for the broken man who lost all hope of ever either getting out of the trap or finding the crown; that is worth a tale to be written about. But to become king of all tribes here, that is a fate for an young boy who deserves it for risking his life to end the kind of corruption that blooms with the Viking Law you'd poison my academy with; forcing young students to take the hard path up while encouraging the adults to take the easy route, it's no better than the sexism of the Uglithugs themselves" Barbara mocked him
Angered, Flashburn vaulted over the railing with his sword drawn ready to duel with an maid who has shown skill in evasive swordsmanship with her speed; but he knew she's in no damn condition to fight and she's not going back on unsheathing her blade to protect what was her establishment. Tiburonkolt came down the steps of the stairs to witness this battle with their cannons leaving none of the ships among Flashburn's armada unsunken, finding Barbara with a blade in her hand when she cannot fight in that state. He followed her down to the fleet of longships to aim the cannons towards the lower armored hulls which sunk them down below the waterline, while taking a crossbow from one of the students who were blasted against the wall from a cannon shot; tightly tying a thick rope on the end before shooting it through the crow's nest down below him. Pinning the extended end of the rope with a heavy rock he ziplined down using the crossbow, he better not be too late to save her from killing herself
Barbara's counterstrikes were being parried off to the sides by Flashburn's obnoxious fencing style that he performed with his blade, though even when fatiqued by the prolonged duel in sparring with one of her greatest students; Flashburn however switched up fighting styles as such when his opponents were at their lowest to a more heavy strike swing against her block, in order to throw her off. When he missed however this gave her the opportunity to strafe to the back in order to take him off guard, hitting him in the back just as Tiburonkolt arrived on the crow's nest; taking his time to climb on down in order to aid his teacher
Flashburn smashed a barrel against the back of her head to stun her before landing just a few more heavy blows to her lower spine, slash against her hip and leave a scar that grazed across her frontal right hip which looked like a scrape wound that bled. Tiburonkolt has had enough when she fell after being slashed from behind, ready to take her as prisoner as Flashburn is a coward to even kill her; he just wants her school and her to suffer the same fate he had when searching for the Crown of the Fallen
A tomahawk in hand for he had no sword on him as he dropped it after tripping, he's a leap away from landing the killing blow on him; and when he was about to raise his sword up in the air to presumingly slay her by cutting her in half with a downwards helm slash, he came to the rescue. Jumping off to swing his tomahawk down on Flashburn's head, chopping down hard with the blades digging in deep until he removed the blood caked Spanish imperial skull shaped teardrop dual blades
Tiburonkolt held him back savagely before chopping into his backplate, kickstomping into his spinal cord to break it and cut into his ankles to disable him from walking; ending it all with a slice of his heels to fully handicap him for the rest of his life if Barbara chooses to spare a life that ain't worth living like his. Barbara the Barbarian stood up with her sword to the side and brought it in front of her raising it against the now-disabled Flashburn coughing up blood on the main deck. Seems like he's begging for mercy and had a few last words to say before his death by both Tiburonkolt and Barbara, the former who was lusting for his blood after hurting her like this
"You took everything away from me, this is my school Barbara; MY SCHOOL TO TEACH THEM IN THE NEXT GENERATION! You're the impostor here, and I was right about the youngsters of the Viking tribes of the Archipelago... They deserve to take the hard path up to the entrance, the adults have the freedom to take the easy path up; and they don't because it is not the way of the law made by Chief Arvidsmund. I had a number of moves to teach them too: the Piercing Lunge, the Destroyer's Defense, the Fighting-Against-Superior-Numbers' maneuver, the Confusing-the-Enemy-Bottoms-Up-Routine, the Arvidsmund Grapple, the Flashburn Lunge and the Deathwatch Parry. But no, you took over the establishment in my absence. Give me back my students, I want my teachings to be used for them in the next future generations!" Oh wait nevermind, Flashburn's still defacing her
"Those are amongst the worst names for swordsman techniques, only a fool would follow an highly uninspired terrible warrior who doesn't deserve such a title. You may have found their untrained minds easy to manipulate into getting killed but never again are you going to teach a series of lies, there is no future for you to send them to their deaths in the next generation; so give up, you have lost" Barbara slowly raised her blade handle first and was ready to stab him
"Oh... I respectfully disagree with you, that man behind me is cursed with that medallion on his neck. One night in the moonlight one day, you will see what he truly is behind that flesh and joins me in Hellheim after he turns against the mentor he loves" Flashburn goaded with Tiburonkolt's anger which caused him to chop into his shoulder to have him open his mouth wide where Barbara gave a mighty thrust down with her blade, tearing his skeleton before releasing her grip to let him drown in his blood. He's dead at last and with the armada about to sink, there was only one escape option left
Tiburonkolt held onto a rope as he cut Barbara's bindings that were cuffed around her wrists to limit her sword skills to stabbing down into Flashburn's throat, giving the order to destroy the flagship he swung off as the cannons laid waist to the last of the longship armada; sinking down below the sea level onto the ocean floor to rot away by time itself. The blast also in the meanwhile propelled them upwards near the entrance, with him covering Barbara using only himself as a human shield to protect her against the blasts that he took down below; but he's still alive so there's that and with all that was settled, he took her inside the academy where he looked after her in bed to make sure she recovered from those wounds
He stayed with her for two weeks holding vigil at her side and never leaving until she stirred in her sleep, waking up to the sight of him. "Morning, as early as it can be. How do you feel now? " Tiburonkolt laid a hand on her wounds, asking her when she replied to him
"I've never felt more recovered with just a little rest to go by, suppose this makes us even on the day I found you on the shores of my academy. But you've graduated now, there is no such reason left to stay here worrying for little old me; I can take you back if you so desire" Barbara suggested as to repay the debt for taking the blast behind them
Tiburonkolt nodded as she got out of bed that he lied in before, coming downstairs to find no one was here as everyone but him left the academy as they've all graduated; going back to all of their respective tribes. Barbara had a vessel waiting outside as he headed on board before sailing off in the direction of his homeland, he went down below the deck and stayed there for awhile before they were in the vicinity of the specific region he lived in. Coming out into the open air to see the morning sky arriving at last, she docked at the shores where his home was just three miles away; not bad as he got off onto solid ground. He start his trek back to his parents although it seemed Barbara would rather go with him, and they did
Passing by and through the settlements the two eventually reached his home, running to his two parents that she identified as Rultherhuskton and Xiuhcoyota respectively; Barbara was also invited to stay seeing how she hasn't gotten herself a break from all this travelling. The rest of the day was spent with her around, getting to know a little more skill from her and as well as using his tomahawk to chain his dual swords against attackers who try to pillage them for being without the protection of the guards in any of the cities. He was also glad to say she loved animals like their armored horse Khantreijan that he started to learn how to ride and in the meantime spent some time with his mother about hunting for food to sell necessary skin pelts, all so they can build up their home which expanded into a even bigger tent than when he came back. Although he told her that they'd be better suited as lovers in a later time, that didn't stop her from kissing him on the cheek which he returned; assuring that they'll meet again in the future
End of her time that she spent with them it was time to go back to the Archipelago, with her student turned lover bidding her a farewell in what looked like Powahatan sign language as his hair blew in the wind; leaves of the Fall season blowing past him as they swirled around her too. It seemed as to her that he had a bit of Apache blood flowing in him but aside from that there's more to his bloodline than what even he knows about, she would soon find out in the future when he speaks of a native warrior he encounters in his adulthood years. "Farewell Barbara... non dimenticare mai chi sono e sarò sempre (never forget who I am and will always be)
His childhood to teenhood served him best and from that point onward, there was bound to be a series of events that would set him off on his journey through the Caribbean...