Chapter 2

'With Open Arms'

Lying lazily in the grass was one of my favorite activities. It feels like, when I look at the sky, everything is perfect.

Topaze stood beside me and looked out into the ocean.

"We've got a big adventure ahead of us," I said."You know that right?"

"Of course," said Topaze with some sort of certainty in his voice."Hey, the skies are really clear today bro. You think we can get some practice in?"

"Yeah, let's wait about an hour though," I replied. "Oh, and can we head to the trade district, I need a new bow and some arrows."

"Alright," said Topaze.

After that conversation, it was pretty much silent. On top of the mountain, all your cares just seem to float away.

I soon fell asleep and my mind drifted. Everything that had happened the other day just came back to me. I feel rather confident about myself now. It all makes me wonder.

When I woke up, Topaze and I travelled to the training ground behind the Castle. There were a few kids playing on the other side and a couple instructors sitting on the benches. Instructors were mainly there to make sure nobody gets hurt, which they hardly ever do.

I began shooting my arrows at the target dummy. All the vital areas were labeled in red and the least vital areas in blue. I always aimed for the biggest targets but today I felt lucky. The smaller the target the more damage it would deal so I began aiming for the smaller points.

My first shot, I aimed for the heart and got just outside the target, so I tried again. The second try, I got it a little more outside than my first shot. I tried once more and got a direct hit.

"Three tries until a direct hit… not bad, I'd say," I thought to myself.

After that I started shooting for a different target. Aiming for medium sized targets was a good way to take down an opponent quickly so I began aiming for those.

Medium targets were much easier to hit that the smallest ones so I pretty much got inside the target each time.

Next, it was on to the wooden dummies. They were just wooden blocks which are reinforced by steel. With practice blades you couldn't do much damage but some of the more powerful guys are able to leave heavy marks and cuts. I was happy though because the dummy I was going to train on had hardly any scars.

I begin by practicing my rising strikes. Rising strikes tend to work out my legs and upper body at the same time so I think I get a good work out.

Then, I practice my spinning strikes, which are good against groups.

Then, I go to forward lunges and finish up by combining all of my techniques.

Once I was done with my wooden dummy training I met back up with Topaze and we left the training grounds.

The walk to the trade district wasn't the most pleasant walk ever. We had to climb 2 hills and walk about 2 miles in the process, but besides that it's a pretty straight road. Along the way you have to cross the bridge. I always stop to look at the water for a few minutes during daytime. You'd never realize how awesome it looks but it's truly amazing.

Anyways, when we arrived at the trade district I pulled out my Gil Pouch and checked my money. The bow I wanted was about 520 Gil. It was a classic Yew Bow but it would be much more efficient than the one I'm using now. Arrows are much cheaper around 1 Gil per arrow, but I buy bundles. It's the same price just in a lump sum.

The guy who sells me my equipment was only a little bit away from the center of the trade district. The city was bustling today. There seemed to be many more people than usual, all having conversations and snacking on food.

It kind of made me hungry in a way. But I wasn't in an eating mood at that point.

We arrived at the shop and I purchased my bow and arrows. Then I gave him my old bow. He uses the materials to make new bows. When we make trades like that I get a discount on my bows. He knew my father; I guess that's why he is nice to me.

Oh yeah, I never told you about my dad. He was the leader of a rebellion force about 10 years ago. He formed the group to try and stop the Mechanical Revolution. My dad was the kind of guy that liked to use magic and had a whimsical nature about himself. He and I are much different in that way. I would much rather just use weapons than deal with magic, but I sure do like watching it. During parades, magicians use their spells to make bright, colorful lights. It's an awesome sight to see. Oh yeah, so anyways they stalled the Mechanical Revolution for 2 years by continually stealing random little blueprints and things like that, but at the end of the 2 years, his whole squad got wiped when they tried to attack the main head quarters. He died that day. I tend not to stress it, but I miss him at times.

Anyways, after I bought my bow, Topaze and I went to the town hall for a little while. I don't know what it is about the town hall, but it's a fun place to be. There's so much going on there at night.

After a fun night, Topaze and I went back to the house, cleaned up a little and went to sleep.

The next day, I woke up to see a Viera sitting in the dining room, talking to Topaze.

"Hey," was my greeting to them in a drowsy voice.

"Good morning, sleepyhead," replied the Viera.

"Oh sorry I didn't introduce myself my name is Snowe," I said with a smile on my face.

"Ah, so you're the one Topaze has been talking about," she said delightedly."My name is Camille."