Not that you’d hurt yourself, but the idea of actually cutting open another person… The staff is a devastating weapon, but less… overtly violent.
“It also gives you greater reach than most of the other weapons you’ve tried and is good for defense.”
It also seems more natural in your hands, it flows with you, where you’re just a bit… hesitant and awkward still with a sword.
I stood there hearing both of them and trying to parse the words. Eventually I nodded. “So… a staff then?”
Jack shrugged. “Trouble is, you’re not as strong as Ant. In an all-out battle it would be a good weapon for you, but you’d have trouble killing a foe with it outright and leaving live foes behind you is never a good idea.”
“Not a staff then? What else would work?” I looked at Dove. She’d seem fairly natural with a longsword in her hands, but she also had three extra years of training on me. “Auwei says she thinks I’m hesitant to kill. That I’m more tentative with bladed weapons because they can cut and kill easier.” I shrugged feeling a little disheartened. “Perhaps I shouldn’t be going to war after all.”
Dove came over to give me a hug. “I don’t much like the idea of blades and killing either,” she whispered, then she sighed heavily. “For Hale, I’d make an exception, but otherwise, I’m used to cutting up practice dummies and that’s not the same thing.” A shudder rippled through her. “I don’t know how I would do in a true battle.”
I was hoping she wouldn’t have to find out. I expected we’d be leaving her at Hedgewild. Which led to my next thought. “Perhaps you should just leave us both at Hedgewild,” I said to the others.
“If that’s what you want,” Maverick said. He had a look in his eyes, though, and I thought I could read it well enough.I know you’ll make a great warrior, if you apply yourself.
I sighed, releasing Dove and turning to Amber, who was sitting nearby preparing the evening meal. “What weapons do you use?”
“Good-looks and guile,” she said without hesitation.
“Those won’t help you much in battle.”
She nodded. “True. So, I bring an assortment. My preferred weapons are dual short swords. They don’t have the reach of longer blades, but they’re sturdy and can take a hit from anything. It means I have to get in close, and that gets bloody and nasty.” She gave a fierce grin. “But that’s the way I like it.” She shrugged. “I also carry some throwing knives, which can be used up close in a pinch as well. I’ve been known to use a spear also, if I think I want something with reach.” She grimaced. “Trouble with a spear is sometimes if you’re really aggressive in running someone through, you can’t get the weapon back. You have to give it up and move on to other weapons.”
“She’s so beautiful and yet so… nasty,” Dove whispered.
I was very aware of that.
“Maybe I could try using a staff or two short swords?” I said with a shrug.
Maverick nodded. “Sure, we’ll keep training you and see what you’re comfortable with.”
So, that evening, after we ate, Dove and I got a lesson in fighting with dual short swords from Amber and the two men. I think I took to it a bit more naturally, but with Dove’s extra training she picked it up quickly as well. Then lanterns were lit and hung off the wagon as the others bedded down, but Maverick and I stayed up to train with the staff. I wanted to see how the staff fared against his heavy arming sword. In the end, it was as I expected. I defended well, but had trouble truly stopping him. I managed to swipe his legs out from under him at one point, but I had nothing to follow up with. He’d covered his head and upper torso with this shield. So, I could bash at his legs and such, but nothing that would truly hinder him and he was up again quickly.
When we finished, Maverick suggested, “Perhaps try training with a spear, like Amber. You can use it like a staff, so you’d not be relearning much, but it also has a pointed tip you can use to follow up once you’ve tripped someone.” He shrugged. “Find what works for you, but find it fast, if you are coming with us. This war won’t wait for you.”
I fell asleep with Maverick’s words in my head:This war won’t wait for you, which led to dreams of battle and death.
Needless to say, I didn’t sleep well.
Chapter 16
Sparrow
Sparrow satin her avatar form, hidden amidst the branches of a tall oak tree and watched the comings and goings of the members and servants of the Royal House, Owl House. She had to be very careful. Many members of Owl House were birds, specifically birds of prey. If they caught sight of her, they might consider her a nice light snack. Hence, her hidden position. The oak tree was just outside the walled estate grounds of Owl House, the manor itself was massive, which it had to be for the nearly one hundred members of that House. Even if it hadn’t been the Royal House, Owl would have been a powerful Noble House.
Yet she’d seen nothing untoward in the two days she’d been watching the manor, certainly no signs of Lord Hale in human or avatar form.
Sparrow had always been an odd mix of shy and timid with moments of unsuspecting boldness and bravery. She’d been raised the daughter of a fisherman who plied the Austel Ocean, to the south. He’d been hard on all his kids, drinking a bit too much, never physically violent, but prone to savage outbursts. She’d been scared of him and fearful for her mother, though, her father had never laid a hand upon the woman. Her mother had been a rock, impassive against the storm of her father’s emotions. She sat and mended nets and prepared their meals with stoic silence. She was distant, to everyone, including her children, which wasn’t much better. So, when she’d been old enough, Sparrow had gone for the Choosing and been surprised to find Ahena, her Lumani the first year. She hadn’t known what to do once she’d bonded at Silverveil. She’d heard a few other students were testing for Noble and that sounded interesting, so she’d gone. Again, she’d been surprised to be selected by Maverick. He’d said he saw something in her, a core of something tougher than steel, another surprise.
Her time at Maverick House had brought her out of her shell in slow, small steps, and she’d been made a scout, rarely fighting, but useful by seeing what others couldn’t from her high vantage point while flying.
Yet it hadn’t been until the arrival of Legs, nearly six years later that she’d found the courage to truly show herself to another person. And since then, she’d felt a new strength growing inside her, a surety, a confidence.
So, she wasn’t too worried if any birds of prey came her way. She was fast and agile as a sparrow. And as a person, she was quick with her little knives. She’d only had to use them a few times in true fights with pirates, and her foes had always seemed just a little surprised when they found themselves stuck and bleeding. So had Sparrow, but she’d been trained relentlessly for half-a-dozen years and knew how to defend herself well enough.
As the day drew to a close, she took flight and returned to the small apartment the four of them shared in the city. She landed on the window, then flitted inside before resuming her human form. None of the others had returned from their day’s scouting, so she quickly prepared a meal for them. Ahena was an excellent cook. She loved to bake but could work with nearly anything. So the meal was warm and inviting when the others arrived back.
