Interlude 8: Searching For Tomorrow

Tok eyed his opponent with focused eyes. The mannequin-like doll was featureless, and looked like it would be easily bisected by his axe. He knew it wasn’t, the plastic looking material only had the appearance of its mundane counterpart and was at least as durable as his weapon. It raised its arms, the short swords that replaced its forearms gleaming in the afternoon light.

A brief flash of electric blue ran down the mannequin’s body from head to foot, the only tell before it lunged at him. Tok brought up his axe to guard, one swing blocked by its blade, the other by the shaft. With a grunt of effort, he pushed his enemy back and swung at it. The mannequin didn’t stumble and parried his heavy swing with one of its armblades.

Tok grinned, his heart thumbing in his chest.

“You’re getting better at dueling, Li,” he said, knowing she could hear him wherever she was. The only downside to training with one of her animated constructs was she couldn’t banter back. Not that she was good at that, but if she was willing to help him train, he was perfectly willing to help boost her confidence. That’s what friends did, helped each other when they could.

And also slam the blunted edge of a training sword into another’s guts.

The blow caught Tok while he was lamenting the lack of chances to help the shy girl come out of her shell more and it **** him back, his breath coming in pants.

“Much better at dueling.” He grinned through the sting. “Have you been training with this guy when working?”

The bot’s posture shifted, going from poised with a cool confidence to nervous and unsure. And Tok knew that he hit the nail on the head. And as much as he wanted to help Lita be more assured in herself, he couldn’t pass up the opportunity to strike back.

Before she could shift her focus back into the fight, Tok surged forward and swung his axe in a wide arc. While she was using blunted weapons, his was as sharp as it could be. And even if it wasn’t, the weight was more than enough to crush things.

The blow didn’t cut the machine, as he figured it wouldn’t, but it did knock it off its feet, its abdomen crumpling like a can under foot. For a moment, Tok felt a pang of sympathy. If this had been a fight against a living person, that would have hurt. But against one of the automatons controlled by Lita, that wasn’t an issue and he could bring the full brunt of his strength against them.

Didn’t mean he wasn’t aware that his friend was controlling it and had always been cagey about whether she could feel through them or not. The only thing that let him go all out, even with that ambiguity, was the surety that Lita suffered no damage from such attacks. He’d seen one of her metal models take cookies right out of an oven enough times to know that.

“You okay, Li?” he still asked, unable to shake away the feeling of guilt. The robot jerked an arm up, Lita’s attempt at giving a thumbs up.

“Think you’re going to need to send Stabby in for repairs,” a cheeky voice said from behind Tok. He felt his cheeks warm before he let out a laugh to hide his fluster.

“I suppose I did go a bit hard there,” he said, turning to greet their guest with a cocky grin. Standing just outside the white chalk lines that marked the field of combat was Goe, and his grin lost the cocky edge and became softer as he took in her appearance. It wasn’t anything out of the ordinary for her, a purple kimono that brought out her amethyst eyes, a matching parasol to keep the sun out of her eyes and curly brown hair flowing freely to her lower back. A light application of make-up gave her tanned skin a pop of red.

Goe shook her head, curls bouncing around her ears. “I hope you’re not wasting Lita’s time with all this training.”

“I don’t think anything can waste her time,” Tok said back. “And I’m helping her with some of her display cases later, so it’s not like I’m the only one getting something. Tit for tat, right?”

Goe rolled her eyes. “Just don’t get carried away, you hear? Mom says the leadership council wants you in the best shape you can be in for this farce.”

“It’s not a farce,” Tok protested, his zeal overcoming his crush on Goe.

“I meant the whole turning your trial into some spectacle to determine if a business deal happens,” Goe quickly elaborated.

“Bet you gave your mom your opinion on that,” Tok chuckled.

“Of course I did, she’d be disappointed if I didn’t,” Goe huffed. “What I don’t get is why you’re okay with it. You’ve been waiting to do this for ages.”

Tok shrugged. When his father had told him of the idea to turn his coming of age trial into a showing of those who wanted to do business with them, he hadn’t really thought it was some grand betrayal. Why waste the opportunity? He wasn’t the business-minded sort but even he could see the benefit of a move like that.

“I mean, if we’re being honest, me having the whole trial to myself is kind of a waste, isn’t it?” Tok mused.

“You’re allowed to have things for yourself, Tok,” Goe sighed.

“I know, but why not catch two birds with one cage?” he retorted playfully. “Hell, the crafters might make things a bit harder with three people inside instead of just me.”

Goe’s expression fell and became concerned. “Are you sure that’s going to be okay? We have no idea how competent their chosen representatives will be. I don’t want to see you getting hurt over some bravado move.”

“I’m sure that guy’s not going to be some pushover,” Tok said. “I mean, he wasn’t like some muscle head and, yeah, he looked a bit unsure of himself when he went to talk to Dad at the mall, but he didn’t look like the type to just jump into a thing without a plan. Got that brains over brawn look to him.”

“So your opposite?” Goe asked, a sly smile breaking through her concern.

“Never said I wasn’t a muscle head.” Tok laughed heartily. “Don’t got my dad’s eye for numbers, but I think I’ve got his eye for people.”

“I think so too,” Goe softly said before sighing. “Guess there’s no point in trying to stop this rock now it’s rolling down the hill at full speed is there?”

“You could just have faith in me, you know?” Tok teased.

“I do, you jerk,” Goe shot back. “Doesn’t mean I want to watch you walking into a monster and hazard infested wasteland with two people we don’t know and trust everything will just go alright.”

“I doubt those Order folks are going to send someone green,” Tok said. “I’m sure Dad’ll make sure to tell them just what’s going to be happening during the trial and they’ll send someone up for it. Or maybe they’ll try to show off and send someone over-qualified and everything’ll be a breeze to them.”

“Not sure that’ll go over well,” Goe muttered. “Think Mom would blow her top if the Order used our olive branch to showboat.”

“Think all the council would do that.” Tok chuckled at the mental image of Gin losing her composure and shouting at whoever the Order sent. He knew his father wouldn’t hesitate to give them a piece of his mind.

Goe glanced down at her wrist and let out a curse. “I’m going to have to dash. Don’t train yourself to ****, Tok. Lita, make sure he doesn’t, all right?”

Tok forgot Lita’s combat bot was still there and he twisted back to see it nodding.

“I’m not that bad,” he complained as he turned back to Goe.

“You can be,” she said before waving and taking her leave.
“She’s right, you know,” Lara’s voice called out as the halfling marched her way across the field. “You can be a hardheaded idiot.”

“Is it ‘interrupt Tok’ day or something?” Tok asked.

“Suppose it is.” Lara grinned before lifting her hand. A flash of blue-white light surrounded her hand, and when it faded, a water bottle was in her grasp. She tossed it at Tok. “You can take a bit longer of a break. Hydrate. That break applies to you too, Lita.”

The training bot froze in place, akin to someone getting caught doing something they shouldn’t.

“Yes, I know you’re doing about six other things,” Lara scolded Lita and Tok always found it funny how the shortest of them was the one that wrangled them. Even as kids, Lara was the one to bring them to bear. She had a presence far larger than her height and she knew how to use it.

Tok opened the water and began to drink the cool liquid. He was on his second sip when Lara leaned towards him and asked, “So, ask Goe out yet?”

Tok choked on his drink and coughed, water spraying out and down his beard.

“You, cough, can’t just ask that!” he wheezed out.

“I can, I did and I will,” she declared with a grin. “You’ve been dragging your feet for way too long.”

“Like you’re one to talk about stuff like that,” Tok deflected. “You’re single.”

“I’m not the one who goes all moon eyed over someone,” Lara teased. “Honestly, I don’t know how she hasn’t caught on.”

Tok set the bottle down. “I’m not ready. Dad was already managing a team when he courted Mom.”

Lara sighed. “You’re not Vel, you know. You walk your own path.”

“I know,” Tok said firmly. “But I want to show that I can pick a task and stick to it until it’s done. Don’t think being wishy-washy is a good look.”

“Well, that’s probably the smartest thing you’ve ever said,” Lara said fondly. “Almost makes you sound grown up.”

“Haha, laugh it up.” Tok grinned. He knew her teasing was in good fun and wouldn’t cross a line. He knew she wouldn’t let herself live it down should something like that happen. “So, any reason you’re out here, besides hovering over us like a mother hen?”

“Well, I was doing some digging,” Lara answered with a pleased smile, a tablet teleporting into her hand. “Trying to see just who our new partners are. Not a lot to go on, unfortunately, but I was able to call in a favor with an info broker I had something on.”

“That’s a bit scary, you know,” Tok remarked.

“The Abyss is a scary place,” Lara shot back.

“True.”

“Anyway,” Lara continued. “This guy’s got an ear in that neutral territory school in Springfield, so it’s all rumors, but it lines up a bit with what we know. Three students just dropped out, two were loner girls, and the last was some bullied nerd. With a bit more digging I got a description that fits Newman.”

“Didn’t look all that nerdy to me,” Tok said.

“I’d say he was the least in his element during the meeting, but I wouldn’t have called him a, and I have a quote, ‘spinless, perverted nerd’,” Lara read from her report. “Well, perhaps the ‘pervert’ part might have some merit.”

Tok raised an eyebrow at that. “What do you mean by that?”

“Just pointing out he seems to be in the company of the fairer sex quite often,” Lara said.

“We’ve met the guy twice,” Tok remarked. “You can’t build a profile from two short meetings and school gossip.”

“I’m just trying to cover all our bases,” Lara said matter of factly. “This way, if he’s hiding a deviant side, we can have a counter in place.”

Tok rubbed his forehead. “You let Dad know about this?”

“Not yet,” Lara dismissed. “I’m not going to ruin a deal over something like this. Hell, as long as he’s keeping things in the consensual area, he could have a whole harem for all I care. I just want to know so I can plan things.”

“Just don’t get so wrapped up in your plans and contingencies you miss the simple things,” Tok cautioned.

“I know.” Lara waved a hand dismissively. “Honestly, prepping for whatever the Order sends is probably what I should focus on, but I can’t pass up a good mystery.”

Tok let out a chuckle. “If the stories about the Order are true, they’ll probably send some prim and proper knight. Not as interesting, right?”

Lara shook her head, adopting a posh British tone. “Certainly not.”

Both she and Tok laughed at her impression.

---

The scent of sulfur and smoke filled Rowan’s nose, fighting with the scent of the clean linens of her cot, the faint aroma of her soap and the tang of cleaning oil that always lingered in the air. Meditation was something the sages and medics advised would help her sort through the information the sword she had won in Newman’s game gave her, but now it was helping to calm her nerves, even if she was assailed by sensations stored in the sword.

She had expected a call to the Lord Protector’s office to be for some rebuke, at best, and an imprisonment at worst for some kind of corruption stemming from the sword. She hadn’t expected both a commendation for her efforts in transcribing the techniques she was discovering and an assignment. An assignment that would have her representing the Order in a contest of prowess, all by herself.

She felt she should have been elated for the opportunity to show her mettle, to prove she was worthy of being a knight of the Order. But the nagging feeling of inadequacy kept her from celebrating.

‘How much of this is because Newman’s involved?’ was the question that kept cropping up, breaking her meditation. The details she’d been given painted the whole event as started by him and his group, a concession to get a mining outfit of dwarves to dig into his Kingdom’s mineral resources. A display of strength and a commitment to not abandon the clan should Phantom Reach return and strike back.

And she was expected to stand shoulder to shoulder with Newman and a young dwarven man in this trial. She, who a month ago wasn’t anyone of note, who had luck to thank for her current position.

Her eyes snapped open and she let out a deep breath.

“This life was never going to be easy,” she muttered to herself, trying to banish the negative thoughts. “You joined the Order knowing that. You swore to not let any hardship stop you. This is a chance to prove you belong here. And no cute boy with overpowered magic or ancient other worldly swords are going to stop you. So you’re going to get up and get back to training.”

The fire of determination burned away her worries until they were a faint shadow of what they had been. Still there, but diminished, manageable. She didn’t quite know where the surge of confidence had come from, but it left her energised. She rose from her bed, her legs slightly stiff from her meditation, but yearning to move. There was still some time in the day to hit the training yards.

She didn’t have the time to waste.

---

Verida stepped through the forest with ease. She knew each root, every brush, the patter of each creature that scurried about. And she let that innate understanding guide her to the right place she needed. Cupped in her hands were the shattered remains of John’s original greatsword, the one that had touched her mother’s power with Teri’s aid and had helped him defeat an enemy empowered by foul blood magic.

They were warm to her touch, as if they had been basking in a noon sun all day. A good sign that Yerda’s power lingered in good quality. She stopped short, her body buzzing with energy. She was here.

The currents of magic that ran through Pruzonia were like rivers, some barely present streams, others mighty beasts with great rapids. Where she had been drawn was a place where a strong flow of earth crossed with an equally matched one of water. Around this junction, the plants grew well, trees tall and robust, ferns wide, vines lush. The chattering of animals well fed by the bounty echoed around her.

It was here a sword would be regrown. She knelt down, gathering the splinters in one hand while the other reached into the soil and parted it, digging a hole about half her forearm deep. She brought her hands up to her mouth, held cupped so the splinters were revealed.

“I return these humble fragments, touched by divine grace, to a soil akin to their garden,” she said in a low voice, a heavy weight to them. “May they grow anew into a familiar form to once again be wielded by my champion.”

Her power surged out in time with her breath, flowing into the bits of wood, mingling with Yerda’s. Then she carefully interred them in the hole and returned the displaced dirt above them. She gently patted the spot, already feeling the mana flowing around begin to interact with them.

She could only hope they would grow into a suitable weapon.