Chapter 2: Chapter 2 - I need more training
Once Michael was fully "hidden" by the bridge, I signaled to Monica letting her know it was safe to swim back upstream just around the turn. Keeping low, she made her way to the far edge of the creek before almost crawling into the cool dark water. With just a dozen strokes under the water, she made it past the point where one could see the tall wooden bridge which allowed carts and people to cross while allowing boats to travel underneath except during flood season. Being midsummer, the current wasn't as fast as it is in the spring, so she didn't have to worry about drifting the few hundred yards where she might be seen. Despite this, Von watched nervously until she crawled out of the water and made her way across the field to him smiling the whole time.
I smiled back at her. "Thank you for saving me again. You always seem to come along at exactly the right time to save me," I said. We had been close friends for years, with her mother and father watching over me while my parents were on campaign. We knew each other so well; we could often finish each other's sentences. Together, we walked back to the well in the center of town where I poured a few buckets of cold water over Monica as she leaned across a trough to get the mud off her clothes and out of her hair. She in turn made sure to playfully splash some on me cooling me from the heat and helping me to relax from the near miss of Michael Duncan.
"You'd have done the same if it was me. Michael is just a big bully. It's a lot of fun to see him take some hits. Besides, Father Mantoc would tan his hide if he thrashed a girl to the point she couldn't walk. Once the priest was done with Michael, he'd have Sir Reginald give him a year in the stables or threaten to excommunicate him so he couldn't be a knight anymore. I wasn't too worried," she said with a mischievous grin. "Are you all nerves yet? Your test is getting close. You only have two weeks."
I didn't want to show it, but I was worried. "I know I'm quick, but I don't know if I'm agile enough to pass. I think I need someone to practice with me. I can dance around the wooden dummy all day, but without someone actively trying to fight me, I won't know how to defend against a golem. I know it isn't likely to break anything, but if I can't dodge, I'll still fail." I was hoping she would help me. After all, Mon's the most agile person I know who isn't an adult. They had both watched the last two years of tests, and knew the golem didn't hit too hard, but being hit too many times would lessen my chances of getting into a noble household and if I got hit in the head enough, I might not pass the knowledge part of the test.
"Let's go to the workshop," she said dashing through the dusty streets toward the Cooper's shop. Her father made barrels, buckets, rakes and a lot more. One of the things he was famous for was making wooden swords. Admittedly, they weren't much different than when he made wooden shovels, but his always seem to have the look of the real thing except they were made out of wood. He could also make them heavy enough to feel like a real sword while practicing. Unfortunately, they still broke after a time, so a new one was always needed.
The advantage of Monica's dad being a cooper meant she, and by virtue of the closeness of our families, I, also never had to pay for a wooden sword. This meant we could practice and be as rough as we desired and could get another sword when ours broke. Even though we sometimes had to fetch the wood Mr. Cooper would use to make the swords, it was still worth it. Unfortunately, this meant there was a possibility of running into Mr. Duncan, and some days into Michael. Because of this, I tried to be extra careful especially since summer knight trials were fast approaching and pages and squires would have the next few weeks off to help "train" their friends to know what they needed to pass the exam. I didn't want a beating from Michael and not be able to take the test.
Today, I will finally get to spar against her, I thought. I watched Monica enter her dad's workshop and pick out a hickory sword. We always sparred on the same team against others, and we almost always won, so this would be new to be. I knew from experience, her hickory sword was heavier than my usual red oak sword, and while stronger, it took more effort to wield. I also knew she could do a lot of damage if she hits me, leaving large bruises, but at the same time, using the hickory sword would make her a little slower, and from memory, the golem used for the test wasn't too fast, so she might have chosen this one intentionally so she could act like the golem.
Walking to the yard beyond the shop, they noticed this part of town was noticeably empty for this time of day. This being the case, the two of them commenced to dueling among the trees in the yard darting in and out among them. He laughed with delight since this was the first time sparring with Mon despite them being friends forever.
Since when we fought against other kids, she was always on my side, it felt odd having to fight against her, but I needed the practice. Focusing on slipping past Mon's guard, I danced around confident that with her heavy weapon she couldn't move as fast as my lighter one. I lunged quickly hoping to hit her slim stomach before her guard was up, but alas, she slashed much faster than I expected, and I missed the opportunity as her sword knocked mine to the side leaving me open to attack. While I was attempting to recover, she maneuvered her slash to return to a guard position, and actually caught my sword in the process and with this stroke of luck managed to disarm the lighter weapon knocking it into the nearby grass. "Yield foul silk-snatcher, and I shall spare your life!" She shouted mockingly.
With that, I knew I was already losing. I attempted to tuck and roll to get my sword as I have seen so many knights do in their demonstrations, only to discover I wasn't as agile as I thought, at least not amidst the roots in the yard where my feet were unsteady. Not only did I trip, falling ungracefully onto my side, but even worse, I scraped my head on the same tree's trunk, leaving a scratch along my cheek and causing a trickle of blood to run down my face. When I went to shake it off, I turned too quickly to reach my sword only to run straight into a branch with my head.
Staggering and falling again, I could hear Monica's giggle. I suddenly felt the fool. Not only was I not going to win this day, but my best friend who wanted nothing to do with swordsmanship other than to build my skill, had not only disarmed me, but got to watch as I beat myself repeatedly against the trees not once but twice.
By the time I reached my weapon where it had lodged among the roots, I could see other shapes moving about. Others had heard the commotion and were gathering to watch our duel. Feeling flustered, I grabbed the hilt of my sword. Unfortunately, I pulled upwards too quickly and it remained lodged under a root causing me to stumble and nearly impale my stomach on the pommel. Once again, I found himself falling to the ground as my ankle twisted and my head smacked off another tree trunk. My head began to swim with dizziness from the beating I was giving myself.
It was bad enough I hadn't landed a single blow on Monica, but what made it all more woeful was other kids were watching my disgraceful performance. I was making an incompetent fool of myself. Recognizing this, I more cautiously pulled the sword out of the roots and raised it over my head. I turned planning to bring it down on Monica's shoulder hopefully disarming her. She was holding her sword in a high guard position, and I intended to knock her sword from her hands from the impact and leave her vulnerable to a tap. Fate, however, was not with me. As my sword passed over my head, I again found a branch looming just low enough to catch the tip of my blade knocking me back causing me to trip over the roots again. I again fell to the dirt amidst the laughter of those watching and, in the process, lost the grip on my sword flinging it into the air.
Looking around through my vertigo, I discovered more people about watching than I thought or at least more than I hoped and pondered to myself, this day can't get any more awful than it has. I have disgraced myself and by the time the rumors hit the knights, I won't be allowed to take the test. That was my last thought before my own sword, which had bounced around the branches, finally plummeted down striking me directly onto the top of my head sending my vision of the world into a narrow tunnel which blurred before me as I could hear those around me laughing, then my blurry vision slowly faded to darkness as I couldn't seem to keep my eyes open.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone