50th Day of Spring, 514 AV
Throughout the City
15th Bell
Throughout the City
15th Bell
NoteRad's permission given
The thwacking of wooden blades and shields rang out throughout the training grounds as squires and knights alike honed their skills in combat. Countless quantities of blood, sweat, and tears had been shed on the rooftop practice area. Orion knew this quite well, having contributed more than his fair share to the count over the previous year. For the elder squire, the particular day had been no exception.
"Why did I bother teaching you how to use that thing, Michaels?"
Miriam Antinous, Syliran Knights Weaponmaster. The youngest to ever attain such a prestigious rank. When it came to daggers and spears, she had no equal. Amongst the weaponmasters she was an excellent teacher as well, spending much of her time working with younger squires. An exception to the norm was made for the blue eyed man, Orion Michaels. Intrigued by his rapid growth, Miriam had taken to training him in her ways of warfare. As quickly as he had picked up the sword and shield, the spear was not following suit.
"Don't worry, Miriam, I've got this." Orion by no means had anything under control. When he'd picked the longsword, he had no bad habits to overcome. With a broadsword in hand, he was able to take what he knew about his primary blade and apply it to the cavalry weapon. When it came to the spear, however, Orion had no idea what he was doing. Beyond 'stick them with the pointy end', the squire was at a loss. Spar after spar with Miriam had left him in awe of how agile she was with her polearm. She maneuvered, deflected, and slapped away at any attacks thrown her way, displaying an ease of movement unlike anything Orion had been witness to. Even Dinah, Captain Knight, had little chance against her might.
Pretty good for a scrawny twenty some year old.
Orion's digits wrapped around the spear, borrowed from the various training weapons available for use. His grip was too high, one hand about two thirds up the shaft, the other a third from the base. If he'd taken time to examine it, he'd have realized that this choked up grip was limiting the natural advantage of the spear; its reach.
Miriam would show him just how fatal his error could be.
The tips of the spears were filed down to be flat, preventing any serious injury in training. Nasty bruises and cuts, however were the norm. The squire had a few already, but the weaponmaster, while covered in dirt, was unscathed. Orion took a few steps towards her, lowering the tip of the spear in order to drive it at her body. His arms extended fully, awkwardly leaving a large amount of the spear wagging wildly behind him. Even in the small, straightforward attack, the thrust was uneven, inaccurate. Miram parried his blow with the side of her own weapon, wood hitting wood as she thrust through his own stab, using her correct form to display his mistake. The flattened tip rested against his throat, leaving the squire speechless.
"You didn't remember a single lesson, did you-"
"Orion!"
A moment of confusion crawled across the weaponmaster's face as a voice very different than her own said the name she was about to speak. Spinning around, the brunette woman sought out the soul who would dare to interrupt her training.
Orion raised an eyebrow as Dinah made her way purposefully towards him, plated boots clanking loudly against the stone floor. She was in a hurry, almost panicked in her expression. "Sera Lorene," Miriam began, resting her spear against her shoulder, "I'm not finished with Orion's training. If you could forgive me, I have a lot more work to do."
Dinah bowed her head in apology as she came to a stop by Orion. "I beg your pardon, Weaponmaster. A situation of the utmost urgency has arisen. I require Orion's presence. By your leave."
As suddenly as she'd arrived, the redheaded woman was leaving, dragging her protege behind her.
"Dinah?" Orion jerked his sleeve free of her as he tossed the spear he'd been carrying off to the side. "What's going on? Talk to me."
Green eyes briefly flashed back at the former doctor, uncertainty apparent in her gaze. "Emily has gone missing and there's a note..for your eyes only."
Orion's heart jumped up into his throat, his eyes widening in shock. Missing? His tongue failed him, leaving the squire able to simply follow his patron, dumbfounded. She'd gone missing before, running off due to her inquisitive spirit. He'd been worried enough dealing with that, but there was a note this time. Presumably people would have thought it to be a 'running away from home' letter, as kids were sometimes known to do. The only problem: Emily didn't know how to write.
Silently squire and patron made their way to residence where his daughter had been staying. Only a few dozen days before had she been taken in by one of the Brock family, easing the burden of caring for the young girl in exchange for being able to groom her for future knighthood. As far as Orion had been able to tell, Emily had loved it there. She had purpose, she had children her age to play with, and she wasn't stuck with the same old nanny every day, season after season.
How had she gone missing? There were so many Brocks in the city, not even mentioning the absurd number of knights patrolling the citadel. It seemed entirely impossible that she could have been taken, but Orion couldn't think of any other explanation. He wanted to be angry, if it were so. He wanted to tear into the foster parents, ask how they could let such a thing happen. Yet all he could do was wordlessly enter the apartment where his smiling child had been playing just the day before.
A knight whom Orion didn't recognize placed a note in his hands almost as soon as he entered the room, gruff voice quietly coming forth. "It's glyphed. Only to be read by you, or it'll be destroyed." Dazed, Orion unfolded the paper and began to read.