Hunter's Beginning (Veller) (42 page)

Carter was the first to fall asleep, but then he was the one that drank most of the mead. It was the first time Kile had ever had anything quite like it, and she didn’t think much of it, but then she was the one that finished off most of the pastries.

Alex was the next to succumb to slumber as he sat there with his back propped up against the door. Daniel and Kile sat up for a little while long and whether it was the fact that he was too tired or that he knew Kile didn’t want to talk about it, he never brought up the conversation she had with Vesper. Eventually they called it a night as Kile snuffed out the candle. She had never celebrated Winter’s Feast before, and she wasn’t sure if this was the way everyone did it, but it was one of the few happier memories she would be able to look back on.

***~~~***

15

“Now you will know what it really means to be a Hunter.” He bellowed as he walked up and down the ranks of the cadets. “Everything that you have come to learn so far will not save you when you are out there, in the wild. Your books and your fancy words, they are not going to keep you alive. Just because you know what the Hunters of the past have done, does not mean you’re ready to join them in the great hall. Even the greatest of strategies fail upon the first stroke of the enemy’s sword.”

Garret Boraro was in his element if ever a man was. He enjoyed being the center of attention, he enjoyed having
power and he loved to make cadets squirm. From his short flat topped military hair cut to the large iron shod boots that he wore, he was not only ready for a fight, he almost demanded it.

Winter gave way to spring, and as the guild had threatened, Academics were put on hold and the combat training began. After breakfast the first year cadets reported to the section of the field known as the List, which some seniors had dubbed the ring of blood, although it was a bit over dramatic, it was intended to unnerve the new cadets. It must have worked better than anyone thought since the day before combat training was to start, six more cadets took the walk of
shame.

The List was divided into three sections, although the first year’s cadets were the only ones occupying the field at the moment. The second year cadets started their horsemanship training, and Kile had given up breakfast to watch Luke lead the new horses out through
the western gate to the open field just beyond the wall. It was a great incentive for her, if she could tolerate Master Boraro until the spring of next year she would be given one of those horses, well, not one of those horses, they were all going to the second year cadets, but when she reached her second year, there would be one waiting for her. Once she had her own mount she would truly be free, or as free as the Guild would allow.

She
forced her mind back to the List, back to the Weapon Master’s speech, although it was far from inspiring. She stood among her fellow cadets with mixed feelings. On one hand she was looking forward to learning how to fight and to actually hold a real weapon, on the other hand she didn’t want to be anywhere near Master Boraro. He, out of all the staff members, had made it quite clear that he did not want her there.

“
During your time here, you will learn to handle, maintain, care for, repair and use a variety of weapons from the battle ax to the war hammer and everything in between. When… or if, you prove sufficiently skilled in any one weapon, you will be given advanced training, but only if we feel you are skilled enough. By the time you graduate to the status of Hunter, if… you graduate, you will be able to handle just about any weapon you come across. This is not the military, you will not be learning to fight in formation, you will not be learning battlefield tactics. The Hunter fights alone, keep that in mind as you undergo your training. You may find yourself fighting alongside a fellow Hunter, but when it comes down to it, really comes down to it, when the enemy comes crashing in on you, you can only trust your own skills and the weapon in your hand. You cannot rely on anyone else to fight your battles for you, you cannot rely on anyone else to come to your aide, you are alone. Only when you come to this realization, only when you embrace the solitude of the Hunter, do you truly have a chance to survive.”

He must have some trust issues to work out Kile thought as she watched
Master Boraro pace the field. This was going to be even harder than she had figured. If her success relied solely upon his training and his approval, she didn’t stand a chance. There was no way he would ever approve her for anything. She could be the greatest swordswoman to ever come through the academy, of course she seriously doubted that, but if she was, he would still say she wasn’t good enough, just for the sake of preventing her from becoming a Hunter. Surely there had to be some way around this ego maniac. And why is it so quiet all of a sudden?

“Good morning.”

Kile looked up to see Boraro looming over her with an evil grin on his face. This was not good.

“Finally, it’s my turn.” He whispered to her under his breath and she knew this would only lead to pain. “Let us see how the flower does among the stones shall we.” He said as he stepped aside with a slight bow.

Kile reluctantly stepped out of line. He wanted her to cower, to cringe, to protest, but she wasn’t going to give him the satisfaction. If she had any hopes of surviving basic training and becoming a Hunter, she would have to prove to this man that she had what it took, she would have to win his respect, which was easier said than done.

“As this is your first time, I will be gentle.” He grinned and pointed to Master West who was holding out what appeared to be a long wooden sword. She walked over to him and took the sword from his hand, there was a knowing smile on his face and she had the sinking feeling that he was in on this too
, whatever it was.

It was a clumsy weapon, or at least it was in Kile’s hands. The blade
seemed too long for the handle, and off balance, but then she really had nothing to compare it to. Was this what all swords were like or just wooden ones, or maybe just this one.

“The first weapon we will study i
s the sword, since this will be, for most of you, your lifeline.”

The announcement sent a wave of approval through the ranks. Most, like Kile, though that they would be starting with something less lethal, such as the staff, and it would be a while before they would ever
hold a sword.

“The sword is your gateway weapon, master it and truly understand the basics and the rest will fall into place. You will hold the sword like this, with your right hand close to the cross guard. The left hand, when needed, rests below the right so you can control the levering action and increase the power of the thrust when required. You will face your opponent squarely, with your hips and your body facing forward and your feet as such.”

Boraro took the stance and motioned for Kile to do the same. It was clear that he wanted someone to square off against and she was his unlucky opponent. She tried to mimic his stance the best she could, but she just couldn’t hold the sword out towards him the way he held it towards her. The point always seemed to dip towards the ground and it was a struggle for her to even keep her arms straight, not to mention the fact that he was prolonging the experience by lecturing to the cadets at the same time.

“The first thing you have to know in a fight is how to defend yourself, and the best way to defend yourself is to avoid being hit. This is not a simple as it sounds. You must keep your opponent at
sword's length. When he strikes, you don’t want to be where his sword is. There is a circle around you and from the center of that circle to the outer edge is the reach of your weapon. When he does break that circle, you want to be prepared. When he cuts, you move, when he thrusts you parry. There is no static motion in combat, it is ebb and flow, and for every attack he launches you counter. Whether that counter grants you a striking blow or just reestablishes the parameter of your circle, it is constant motion. The last thing I want to see when you fight is this sword on sword blocking crap. The only thing that does is rattle your bones and dull your blade.”

He turned back to Kile and that evil grin was still on his face.

“Are you read princess?” He said, and without waiting for an answer, he launched his first attack.

She did manage to block this first blow which was an
overhead cutting attack, but then most of his blows would be over her head since she was a good two foot shorter than he was. The two blades struck wooden edge on wooden edge and she understood what he meant by rattling bones. The sheer force of his strike shook her down to her feet and she realized that he wasn’t going to hold back. He came at her again, this time with a wide sweeping upper cut. She managed to block but her sword was thrown aside by the force and she went with it, he came in on her exposed side, striking her hard against the ribs.

“There are three kinds of Cuts.” He said as he took a step back and waited for her to get up. “There is the power cut that comes from the shoulders and uses the entire upper body.”

He came in again and even though she knew where the attack was coming from, the speed and strength of it still caught her off guard. She managed to get her sword up to block, but she didn’t have the strength to prevent all of it from getting through, it drove her to her knees, her blade and his both striking her on the top of the head, much to the amusement of the class.

“The second kind of cut is a mid range cut and it uses just the elbows.”

Before she could get to her feet he used his so called mid range cuts, they weren’t as powerful as the first blow but they were faster and there were more of them. He kept at it, going from one side to the other and even though she managed to keep most of them off her by constantly backing up and trying to block, a few of them did get through. There were two hits on the left arm, one on the right and one on the left leg that dropped her back to the ground. He just shook his head with a discussed look as he turned his back on her and faced the class.

“The third cutting attack is known as the nuisance or harassing attack and is preformed with the wrist and hands.”

Harassing attacks, he should be great at this she thought as she slowly got to her feet. He came in again but this time he was just too fast. There was nothing she could do as the tip of his wooden blade struck just about every exposed point on her body. It seemed that wherever she was blocking, he wasn’t striking. It was as if he could read her mind and she wondered what his Hunter’s edge was.

“Ideally you use all three cuts to form combinations.” He said without missing a beat, and the attack came faster and harder as he smacked her sword from one side to the other constantly driving her back. It was like the cat playing with Vesper. He could have finished her off any time he wanted, he just enjoyed humiliating her.

“Until untimely you go in for the kill.”

He struck down on her right hand with a sickening crack, causing her to lose the grip on her sword. The second shot stripped the sword from her hand completely and the third shot was actually a thrust to the gut with the tip of his weapon. That was when she doubled over and went down. She was becoming very familiar with the sand in the List.

“It would appear that some of us need a lot more training than others.” Master Boraro said as he picked up Kile’s fallen sword and handed it, not to her, but to Master West. To anyone who was familiar with the protocol of swordsmanship, that action was the worst insult that he could have given her, and he knew it.

“You will all pick up a practice sword and choose a partner to spar with. Master West will evaluate your performance
s.”

Boraro waited until the cadets had moved off to the far side of the field where a barrel stuffed with wooden practice swords stood. When none of the boys were around, he crouched down beside Kile.

“You don’t want this, do you?” He asked in a sickeningly sweet voice. “This isn’t the life for someone like you. Why don’t you go home girl, settled down, get married have kids, who knows. Maybe in a couple of years you’ll have a son of your own who can become a Hunter.”

“Quit… now… while I’m having… so much fun.” Kile said between gasps as she staggered to her feet.

“Oh, you haven’t seen fun yet princess.” Boraro replied. “I’ve only just started.”

“Funny… so have I.” She said as she turned to Master West and took the wooden sword from his hands.

“Do yourself a favor girl; take the walk, while you can still walk.” West told her.

Kile ignored the warnings and the threats as she slowly walked back to where the other cadets were now pairing off.

“You okay?” Daniel asked as she got closer.

“No, not really.” She replied. The pain in her legs was bad, the pain in her gut was worse and the pain in her hand was excruciating.

“Maybe I should take you to the Healers.”

“No.” She answered definitely.

“Kile, I can tell right now that at least two of your fingers are broken, possibly more. You going to tell me they don’t hurt?”

“I wouldn’t tell you any such thing.” She said with a grin. “But I won’t give him the satisfaction.”

“So what? You’re going to just ignore it and continue as if everything’s okay?”