Slip of the tongue, Slam of the hammer

John’s bones and muscles ached and groaned with every movement. His body, though getting healthier, hated every action that John called for it to do. A hot shower helped, but his body demanded more rest and video games and potentially a bag of chips.

And John couldn’t help but be excited to get back to training.

Sure, his body was screaming in pain, but he also knew that meant he was getting better! He was actually training, actually getting something out of having Erik as his teacher! Right now, he had to deal with pain and problems, but in a few days or weeks, he would be far stronger and far healthier. Plus, once he got strong enough, he could learn new fighting styles! That was honestly the real motivator for him, as he had done a bit of research last night while relaxing in bed. Not only did he have several boxing styles that looked effective and fun to try out, but there were martial arts styles that he could try and pick up. Hell, if he went full monk, he might even be able to learn some different weapons. The classic quarter staff, nunchucks, sickle, the possibilities were endless!

The bus pulled up in front of John and, after a bit of slow movement to get his body into the flow of moving, he boarded and grabbed a seat near the fron-

“Oh. Shit. Welcome back, Frank.”

John smirked, and Frank was clearly seething. He was a few seats back with bandages on his nose and a black eye, looking far worse than John did even directly after the fight. John could only assume that he actually managed to break Frank’s nose with his punch. “Glad to see you’re back.”

“You’re fuggin’ dead, Newman. You hear me?” Frank growled, his speech still a bit muddled from the bandages. “The segond I see you out of school, I’m gonna gick your ass so hard that you-”

“Sounds nice, Frank, but I can’t quite hear you. Wanna speak up?” John said, leaning back against the window, making sure that Frank could see the bus driver behind him. “I’m sure everyone wants to hear what you wanna say.”

Frank just growled before going silent, turning away and just staring out the window. John’s grin grew, knowing that he was potentially making it worse for himself when Frank finally caught up with him, but he didn’t care. He was making Frank pissed and kicking him down a few more pegs. John was feeling on top of the world. When the bus pulled into school, John couldn’t be bothered to care about the dirty looks that Frank was giving him. Hell, even the astonished looks of students that would rapidly shift between John and Frank’s busted face didn’t bother him. His body was sore and his hated bully wanted to do nothing but kill him, and god, did John love every second of it.

Time passed by in a blur, and in no-time flat John found himself in chemistry with the usual suspects.

“Well, someone is in a good mood today,” Moira remarked with a smile.

“Damn right I am!” John said, leaning back in his chair. “Trained with a new instructor last night and got a proper workout, and on top of that, Frank clearly learned a few lessons from our last bout. And I’ll be damned if seeing him upset doesn’t make me pleased as punch.”

Titus chuckled. “Just be careful with that. Frank is one to hold a grudge, and you might have to deal with it sooner rather than later.”

“Oh, I know,” John said, waving a bit dismissively. “Frank is more than likely going to try to jump me out and about. But he doesn’t know where I’m going to train, and jumping me at home is a quick way to have the cops called on him by my mom. Any way you slice it, Frank is going to have to seethe and cope. Meanwhile I get to feel accomplished, if a little sore.”

“Sorry I couldn’t offer you better lessons,” Moira said a bit sheepishly. “Though I am glad what I taught you was of good use so far.”

“Oh, for sure!” John assured her. “Hell, Erik was impressed with what I had learned from you. That was the only reason he agreed to teach me in the first place!”

“Erik? You have a teacher just called Erik?” Kelli commented. “Aren’t proper fighting teachers like… Asian or something?”

“Okay, first off, racist,” John said with an eyeroll. “Secondly, his name is Erik Castellan and trust me, he’s properly strong! Really taught me a lot about fight… ing…” John felt the hair on the back of his neck stand up. He turned to look at Moira, realizing something as he turned towards her. ‘I just said the name of a magical teacher to someone I know is magical,’ John thought, and he mentally slapped himself. ‘Fuck.’

“This, uh, Erik guy. You got him to agree to teach you?” Moira asked.

John nodded. “He said he was retired from teaching, but seemed okay with teaching me. Do you know him?”

“No,” Moira answered almost too quickly. “No, no, I was just wondering. I know there are a lot of dojos and stuff in the area.”

“Well, if you’d like, we can keep training together,” John said, trying to smooth things out. Maybe Moira would… he didn’t know. But she was clearly acting weird now. “I mean, I’m a little sore after yesterday’s workout but I’m sure we can keep training once my body gets more used to such a workout.”

Moira gave him a short nod. “Sounds good, John. But I will be a few minutes late getting there. I have to go talk to Mr. Enkleman about one of my missing assignments.”

“Oh. Okay,” John said, and an awkward silence settled over the group. “Uh, I guess we should actually do some chemistry, huh?”

The others agreed, and together they started to churn through the assignments once more. Though John could not shake the idea that Moira was paying far more attention to him than the schoolwork. And that terrified him.

‘Alright, Newman, this is the big moment. You need to say something to Moira. Something to get her to not jump you the second you both are out of school.’

John was making his way to his 4th period training session with Moira. Alex and Cho, who normally would join him, had to actually spend some time doing a project for a class (you know, what study hall was supposed to be for) and thus it would only be John and Moira. Good. John needed to talk to Moira, and if he didn’t do so before the end of school, she might show him exactly what that “Warden of the Golden Rose” title meant.

So he had one chance, one opportunity, to convince her that he wasn’t… actually, John didn’t know what he had to convince her of. She clearly realized that he was magical in some regard due to his slip-up, but what did that mean to her? Erik said the magical world, or the Abyss, was a dog-eat-dog world with lots of evil folks in it. What would that mean for Moira? Was she going to see him as a potential rival? Kill him because of some sort of fight for dominance? Erik didn’t do that. But was he an outlier? Was Moira also going to be an outlier?

As John pushed open the door to the old gym, he had to wonder what Moira was really like. He knew her as a student, but what if she was a far crueler person in the Abyss? Shit, what if John was walking into a tra-

Entering Trap Illusion Barrier

Name: Unknown

Current Occupants: 2

WARNING: Trap Barriers cannot be escaped unless the owner is defeated or the owner allows you to leave!

… Fuck.

John spun around, and behind him was now a strange yellow wall that was glowing and sparkling. It was opaque enough that John could just see the hints of something beyond the barrier wall, but only barely. He gave a tentative push against the wall, and sure enough he couldn’t push through it. He swore under his breath, unsure of what he could possibly do. Moira was far stronger than him and-

“Johnathan Benjamin Newman,” a voice echoed from behind him. John turned, and a feeling of dread crawled up his spine as he saw what he assumed was Moira. However, the Moira he knew would be in workout clothes at this point, or still in her normal outfit of jeans and a sleeveless shirt. This Moira looked like she was ready for the battlefield, ready to launch a crusade into Jerusalem, ready to kill John.

First off, she was helmeted and so John technically couldn’t say that it was Moira for sure. Said helmet looked right out of medieval Europe, silver with a faceplate hiding the identity of the one wearing it. Even the eye holes were dark enough that John couldn’t see the wearer’s eyes. The big discerning motif on said helmet were two roses etched onto the sides of the faceplate, and a small golden ridge traveled along the center of it to the top of the head. The knight’s breastplate had a similar rose right in the center of it, also etched in gold. Said knight also wore dark silvery chainmail, plate mail pauldrons and vambraces, and some plate mail greaves to act as further defense. Every single part that was plate had a golden rose upon it which almost seemed to glow with mystic energy because of course it would be magic. Why wouldn't it be at this point?

This knight wielded in their right hand a big fuck-off warhammer, the head of it blazing with golden fire. On the left arm was a shield, a rather small one but considering that all John had to wield were his fists, he assumed it would get the job done. Said shield was also metal, and continued the whole rose motif by having a rather ornate one in the center of said shield, almost like a house crest.

“I am the Warden of the Order of the Golden Rose,” the knight boomed, their voice echoing throughout the illusion barrier. “It is my duty to hunt rogue mages and those who dare to harm the good people of the world. I have several questions, and by the Lady’s grace, you shall answer all of them. Lest you be taught what the wrath of a Warden can be.”

John gulped in fear, his hand trembling. But he knew who this was, and he had to use every trick he had if he wanted to survive this. “Moira?” he said, sheepishly.

The knight cocked their head to the side. “Moira Brighton is not here. You face the Warden of the Go-”

“Moira, I know it's you,” John interrupted. “My observation magic told me so.”

The paladin stopped, and with the hand that had the shield strapped to it, reached up and took off her helmet. Sure enough, the cascade of red hair and stunning green eyes confirmed that it was Moira under all that armor. However, instead of the kindly face of a friend eager to train and laugh with John, a cold face of disdain met him instead. “So you admit to being a mage.”

John nodded. “Yeah. Became one a couple of days ago.”

Moira stepped forward, pointing her hammer at John. She was only a few feet away, and even from this distance John could feel the heat of that holy fire. “I am the Warden of the Golden Rose. Even if I am your friend, I cannot let that get in the way of my duty. You will still answer all of my questions, John. And if you lie, I shall not hesitate to display the wrath of the Lady.” She then lowered her weapon, and her eyes began to glow a soft golden light. Barely noticeable, but John was a rather observant person when he wanted to be. “Now, you claim to have just awoken to your magical powers two days ago, correct?”

“Yes. And I swear, I am not lying.”

Moira smirked. “The Lady has imbued me with magic to discern lies from truth. So I shall know if you dare to mislead me. But you have told no lie so far. Now, you will tell me what you have done in those past two days regarding your magic. And perhaps I shall let you free from this barrier.”

John took in a deep breath and began to talk. He told her of his powers and the strange way they manifested. He told her of his first quest, though he did leave out the bonus objective. Not lied, just omitted from the story. He told her of Frank and the quest that came along with that. How terrified he was and how happy he was that Moira was willing to train him. He told her of the slew of skills that came with that, and how he was able to use those skills to fight against Frank. He also told her how he used his magic to see that she was, in fact, magic and was able to tell when she healed him in the Nurse’s office. He told her about wanting to find someone to train him more, about how he found the flyer for Erik Castellan’s lessons, and how Gaia herself told him to go there. He told her about his fight to get Erik to train him and how he was so excited about these past couple of days that he let slip Erik’s name, forgetting that Moira probably knew he was magical.

And finally, after all that, John told her that he knew how strong she was and how John had no hope of beating her if she really wanted to take him out.

Moira was mostly silent through this, offering little more than quiet noises in reaction to some of John’s statements. As John concluded his tale, she continued her silent treatment, opting to pace slowly in front of John. Finally, after what felt like an eternity, she spoke up, “Quite the odd tale, John.”

“If I were hearing it, I wouldn’t believe it myself,” John admitted.

“Yet you spoke honestly.” John noticed that the golden glow in her eyes had vanished. “As odd as your story was, it was true. The Lady really did grant you magic in the form of video games.”

“I guess your magic confirmed that I was being honest?”

Moira nodded. “Taught to me by a lord interrogator years ago. I can channel my divine-granted power to see through lies and deceit.”

“Quite the power to have.”

Moira smiled dryly. “It comes with some downsides. But for the Lady, I would face any cost.” She then stood up straighter, resting her hammer on her shoulder. “But now we must decide what to do with you.”

John gave her a sheepish smile. “How about ‘let me go and let me live?’”

Moira chuckled. “John, you have nothing to fear from me. I am not going to hurt you.”

“You were going to at the start of all this!”

Moira nodded. “True. But I didn’t know if you were a threat or not. The Abyss is not a kind place, and the people within it less so. You could have already joined a cruel guild and I would be **** to deal with you. Not to mention you being a rogue mage makes you a threat.”

“How the hell am I a threat? I just learned magic was real a couple days ago!”

Moira gestured over to the bleachers, and John took the direction to go sit down while she explained. “The Abyss is very much like the wild west. In most regards it is lawless and cruel, with the only true governing law being if you are stronger than someone else. At least, that’s how it is in America. I’ve heard that some large governing bodies exist across the ocean. Rome, Germany, Norway, Japan, and several others. But over here? It’s very unruly.”

Moira took a seat next to him, placing her hammer down and undoing the straps on her shield. “Now, in an effort to combat this, the members of the Abyss with enough power would create guilds and the like for others to join. Then groups with enough influence and power in the Abyss would discuss rules and regulations that these guilds would follow. Currently, America is a loose collection of these guilds only barely held in a sort of peace by the various laws and agreements that keep the peace together. If one guild were to break the rules, then the others would probably seek to put that guild down before everything gets ruined.”

“But why bother listening at all?”

“Because some organizations, like the Order, are strong enough to take out any guild on its own. We can’t take on every criminal guild, but we can easily take each one on one at a time, and if all of them banded together to take us out, we would damage them so badly most may never recover. Or the ones that did would then be a dominant superpower, and take over the other guilds.”

“So they all keep the peace in fear of you or any other guild becoming too strong?”

Moira snapped her fingers and pointed at John. “Precisely. So your issue, as a rogue mage, is that you are not bound by those same laws. If the guilds break a law, we would know about it. If you break one, we would never know and you could easily get away with it. A strong rogue mage can cause far more damage than a strong guild ever could.”

“Are you going to **** me to join a guild?” John asked.

Moira shook her head. “I am not going to **** you. I would ask that you join the Order, but I also know Erik doesn’t have a high opinion of us right now and would stop training you. And honestly, if you want to learn how to fight with your hands alone, he is probably the best teacher you could have.”

John smiled. “Seems you’re familiar with the man.”

“We have… a history. It is best to ask him.” Moira sighed and leaned back, grimacing a bit in pain. “God this armor is uncomfortable.”

“Is it not your normal armor?”

“Not in the slightest. This is just my emergency set that I could get on quickly,” Moira explained. “My normal set is a lot better. But it takes a bit for me to put on and I honestly only break it out for big Order operations. This is just my basic ‘need to kick some butt’ outfit.”

“Pretty damn cool outfit for that,” John remarked before gesturing at himself. “This is my kicking butt outfit. And my going to school outfit. And my video game playing outfit. And my-”

Moira held up her hand, chuckling. “I get the idea, Newman. You really should look into getting some proper armor though. People of the Abyss will see you as an easy target if you don’t have any protection.”

“Eh, my magic gives me dodging. Figure armor would probably slow me down.” John then stood up, stretching his limbs and getting some of the knots out of his joints. “Want to get some proper training in?”

“No thanks,” Moira responded. “I need to change out of this and get to class. Plus, I am going to need to submit a report on you.”

“Hope that doesn’t mean I’ll get more Order knights ambushing me in trap barriers,” John said with a small grin. “Speaking of, how did you make this?”

“The barrier? I have a spellstone that makes it,” Moira said, pulling a small gold stone out of a pouch. “I’ll dispel it once I leave. Thankfully only magical people can enter it, so if Alex and Cho came along they wouldn’t have gotten trapped.”

“You’re lucky they didn’t come with me. Else they would have been wondering why I disappeared.”

“Who do you think reminded them they had homework to do?” Moira asked with a cheeky smile. “Some of us are good at planning.”

“Well played, Brighton,” John said, giving her finger guns as he walked to the entrance of the barrier. Just before pushing through the barrier, he turned and looked back at Moira who was undoing the straps of her armor. “By the way, Moira?”

“Hmm?”

John felt his mouth go a bit dry as he thought the question over, but after a moment asked, “If I were a mage who was doing some… unscrupulous things, would you really have killed me? Even though we are friends?”

Moira looked to John, and for a moment John could see the weight of a thousand sins behind her gaze. He could see the weight on her shoulders, and the grief that lived in her soul. “John, I am the Warden of the Golden Rose. My duty to the Lady goes above all, and my devotion to her is absolute.” She took in a deep breath and turned away, staring at the hammer and shield now resting on the floor.