Valtorex at the Academy: Enchanted Frogs and Angry Admin
“Rebellion can do wonders. It can also get you killed.”
Over the next month, Valtorex slowly recovers. He continues his meetings with Stemius and continues his habit of getting into fights. He and Valinor compete for the title of best student in Tyberus’s class. Valtorex, Valrie, Valen, and Valinor become more and more like a team. Arianna begins teaching Valtorex about the history of the Draconic Empire. Rōdenthall continues trying to kill either Valtorex or Myrstaline. Stemius makes progress on Valtorex and Valtorex slowly learns to join with nature. Lord Kemos helps Valtorex control his emotions.
The end of the month finds Valtorex and Myrstaline, who are now lab partners, in a dimly lit room in the Tower of the Arcane. They are sitting at a table with a metal pan in front of them. At the table next to theirs are the two dark robed mages. (From the last chapter) Rōdenthall is in the front of the room teaching. He says, “We will be working with frogs today. I will give you a collection of frogs for you to experiment with. Your goal is to augment the abilities of your frogs. You will select your best result to compete against theirs. You have three hours before the competition. Begin!” Two boxes appear, one on each table. In the boxes are hundreds of frogs. Valtorex and Myrstaline look in the box. Valtorex is mildly interested by the sight of over a hundred frogs, apparently paralyzed, lying on top of one another. Myrstaline is nearly sick. Valtorex reaches in a pulls out a frog. He places it on the tray. He says, “First, we need to figure out how the frog works. We can’t improve it unless we know what systems it uses.” Myrstaline, already paler than normal, nods. Valtorex mutters some words and a sharp blade appears in his hand. He is lowering the blade to the frog when Myrstaline screams, “No! Don’t kill it!” Valtorex sighs. He has already become tired of her kind-hearted, ‘don’t kill anything’ ways. He asks, “So how do you suppose we win?” Myrstaline asks, “Couldn’t we improve it without cutting it open?” Valtorex is about to say no when an idea pops into his head. He says, “Well, there is one thing we know could use improving…the brain.” Myrstaline nods. They spend the next two hours working out a spell. They cast the spell on the frog and then unparalyze it. The frog turns over and looks at them. They are expecting the frog to hop away, but it surprises them by staying in place. The frog croaks loudly and hops onto Valtorex’s head. Myrstaline laughs at the spectacle. Valtorex shakes his head and the frog is sent flying. To their amazement, the frog croaks and stops in midair. It rights itself and floats back to the table. The frog lands on the table and croaks. Valtorex leans close to Myrstaline and whispers, “I think we just won.” They spend the next hour training the frog with magic.
The time of competition arrives. Rōdenthall summons a table in the center of the room. The black robed mages carry a box over and place it on the table. Valtorex gently places their frog on the table. Rōdenthall commands, “Begin!” The black robes’ box begins shaking. After a few moments, a hideous beast, the size of a small dog, rips out. The creature is still green, but now it is scaly instead of having frog skin. It has a large maw with fangs dripping venom. An unnatural wrath glows in its eyes. The two mages each point and laugh at Valtorex and Myrstaline’s frog. Rōdenthall is considering laughing too, but he can tell Valtorex has something up his sleeve. The drooling beast lumbers forward. When it is about to sweep at Valtorex’s frog, it croaks and the beast stops moving, mid-swing. The two mages are shocked. The frog then croaks again. The beast’s eyes glaze over. The frog croaks a final time and the creature unfreezes. The beast turns and leaps off the table towards the two mages. The mages don’t know what’s happening until the beast bites into one of their arms. The mage screams as the burning poison spreads through his veins. The beast unlatches and jumps at the other mage. The mage looses a hissing blast of steam. The beast roars in agony as it flies through the steam. The beast bites the leg of the other mage and he too screams. Rōdenthall sends Silvanos off for the Nurse. Rōdenthall then says, “Well, it looks like Valtorex and Myrstaline win again. What should I do with the beast?” Valtorex’s frog croaks and a portal appears on the table. The frog croaks again and the beast along with all of the remaining frogs begin hopping onto the table and going through the portal. Valtorex’s frog turns to Valtorex and spits out a rolled up scroll. It then turns and hops through the portal. The portal closes behind it. Valtorex takes the scroll and unrolls it. It reads, “My name is Dumblefrog, thank you for creating me. I have decided to aid you in your journeys. Just use the spell below to summon me and I will come to help you. Until then, I will be in the swamps collecting an army of frogs and other creatures to eventually conquer the planet.” Valtorex memorizes the short and relatively simple spell. He then places the scroll in his pouch. Valtorex and Myrstaline leave the class.
Valtorex goes to Elite Training and meets up with Valrie, Valen, and Valinor. Lord Kemos walks out of the Hall of Trials. He says, “Alright, today we are going to test you with ranging. Meet me at the Archery Range.” Lord Kemos disappears. The four of them walk to the Archery Range and find him waiting with four bows. He says, “You will be using these bows with standard iron tipped arrows. You will start firing from the edge of the green,” About 250 feet away from the targets. “and will move out ten feet after every shot. You must get at least five hits to pass the test.” The four of them take the bows and the arrows. They stand at the edge of the grass and draw their bowstrings. Valen is the first to fire. He hits the center of the target and runs back ten feet. The rest begin. By the time they are on their third shot, Valen has already gotten twenty bull’s eyes, using all of his arrows. Valinor manages to get his fifth hit on his eighth shot, and Valrie takes ten. Valtorex uses his twentieth arrow and has not hit the target once. Lord Kemos begins yelling, “You call that shooting? I thought you could fight! Where’s that power you’re supposed to have? You can’t even make one shot! How pathetic!” The repetitive misses have frustrated Valtorex and this berating causes him to lose his calm. He yells, “So you want to see a direct hit? Fine! I’ll destroy all five of the targets to get my hits!” Valtorex drops the bow and raises his hands. Fire swirls around him and five flaming bolts fly fourth in a blazing arc. The bolts each find their marks and all five of the targets burst into flame. Lord Kemos begins laughing as the targets burn. He roars out, “That’s great! Just keep doing that and you won’t need to learn how to shoot!” His face quickly sobers and he says, “But you still fail.”
Valtorex is shocked. So are Valrie, Valen, and Valinor. Lord Kemos explains, “The task was to shoot the targets with arrows. You destroyed the targets, so there is no way of scoring your hits. Valen got a perfect score, Valrie was acceptable, and Valinor was decent. You, however, could not be scored, so I have to fail you.” Valtorex says, “Let me try again.” Lord Kemos just laughs at him before saying, “Alright, I’ll let you try again. You must get perfect or I will fail you twice. Are you ready?” Valtorex nods and picks up his bow. Lord Kemos gives him more arrows. He then murmurs a string of words and the targets reappear. Valtorex returns to the edge of the grass and takes careful aim. He breathes deeply and goes into a meditative state. He can feel the wind blowing and see the exact path his arrow will take. He slowly adjusts his aim until he sees that his arrow will hit the center. He looses the string and the arrow is sent flying down the field. It hits the target dead center. He repeats this eighteen more times. On his twentieth shot, he fires, but his arrow explodes in midflight. He opens his eyes to see Silvanos standing on the field.
Silvanos says, “Oh, looks like you fail. Too bad.” Lord Kemos hands Valtorex another arrow and says, “I’ll pass you if you hit the bastard.” Valtorex knocks the arrow and takes aim. He feels the air currents and sees every possible move of Silvanos’s. He finds a path that Silvanos can neither block nor dodge. He fires. The arrow flies straight and true. At first, Silvanos tries to block, but he finds the arrow is at an angle he can’t hit. Then he tries to dodge and jumps out of the way. He is too slow, and the arrow pierces his ankle. Silvanos hisses a harsh curse and Valtorex is blasted off his feet, his bow shattered. Valtorex lands on the ground five feet back. Silvanos tries to get up, but finds he is immobilized by his wound. He notices Valrie and Valinor knocking their arrows and casts a curse that disintegrates their arrows and shatters their bows. Valtorex gets up and walks over to Silvanos. Silvanos begins casting Finger of Death, but the spell is cut short by a harsh kick to the chest from Valtorex. Silvanos coughs weakly afterwards. Valtorex picks him up by his robe collar and drags him back to Lord Kemos. Valtorex drops him at Lord Kemos’s feet. Lord Kemos raises his heavy steel boot and is about to crush Silvanos’s head, when Rōdenthall appears. Rōdenthall mutters in Archon and both he and Silvanos disappear. Lord Kemos shakes his head and curses under his breath.
Lord Kemos says, “Alright, now we will practice with artillery.” He leads them to the back of the range to the catapults. He says, “You see those three wooden structures back there? You have these three catapults to destroy them.” Valtorex says, “Alright, aim all three at the central one. I can get the two on the sides.” Valen, Valrie, and Valinor move the catapults and aim them at the central structure. Valtorex raises his hands and begins chanting. Valen, Valrie, and Valinor cut their boulders loose simultaneously. Valtorex finishes his spell and twin fireballs come into being. He fires one from each palm. The fireballs hurtle towards the structures to the right and the left as the three boulders soar towards the center one. The fireballs and boulder strike at the same time. A concussive blast ensues and the archery targets are knocked down by the shock wave. Gouts of flame erupt from the side structures and the central structure is reduced to a pile of rubble. Lord Kemos yells, “That is thinking outside of the box! Keep that up and you will go far. Not in the Orange Army, but still far (The Orange Army is the engineer/artillery division). Class dismissed.”
Valen, Valrie, and Valinor return to the cabin. Valtorex goes to Stemius’s grove for meditation. Stemius meets him and asks, “How is your connection with nature today?” Valtorex replies, “Very good. Nature actually helped me get a perfect score on my archery test and hit Silvanos.” Stemius gasps. “You used nature to harm?” Valtorex replies, “Yes, you could say that, but nature offered. I just tried to calm myself to make a better shot, but then I went into meditation and I could feel all of the air currents and predict exactly where my arrow would go.” Stemius sighs. He says, “Very well. Let’s just get to meditation. I want you to try to merge yourself with nature today. To help you, I’ve asked one of my best students to come here today. She doesn’t know why I asked her, if she did, she probably wouldn’t come.” Just then, the student he is speaking of walks into the clearing. She is wearing a light blue, elven dress. Valtorex shakes his head. She gasps before exclaiming, “Valtorex! What are you doing here?” Valtorex replies, “The Druid Master has been training me in meditation. I take it you are the prized student he was talking about?” Myrstaline blushes. Stemius is shocked and awed. (No U.S. military strikeJ) He asks, “You know each other?” Valtorex replies, “Of course. We’re partners in Rōdenthall’s class. Oh, and I’ve saved her life, what is it? Three times?” Myrstaline nods, a bit embarrassed. Stemius says, “Well, since you two like each other, this may go more smoothly. Myrstaline, you are to help Valtorex here meditate and find peace with nature. Valtorex, do as she says and try to avoid burning the forest down.” Stemius seems to think for a moment before saying, “Oh, yes, you need a place to go. I suggest the Glade of Tranquility.” Myrstaline nods. Stemius sits down and begins meditating. Myrstaline walks off into the forest and Valtorex follows. They arrive at the spring Valtorex had found at the beginning of the year. (No, the Glade won’t go away. It will even come back in later books. Muahahaha)
Myrstaline sits down on a log and says, “Sit down beside me.” (Remember that logJ) Valtorex sits down next to Myrstaline. Myrstaline says, “Well, it appears we can help each other. You help me survive Rōdenthall’s class and I’ll help you commune with nature. We both benefit.” Valtorex nods in agreement. Myrstaline says, with a sigh, “Well I guess I have to teach you now.” Valtorex looks at her and sees she is grinning. Valtorex laughs, and says, “I guess so.” Myrstaline says, “Alright, first, you have to clear your mind. Just let yourself drift free.” Valtorex says, “I know how to meditate, it’s the communing with nature that I have a problem with.” Myrstaline is confused. She voices this by asking, “How can you meditate and not become one with nature?” Valtorex replies, “Becoming one with nature means being equal to it. It case you haven’t noticed, I tend to dominate everything around me.” Myrstaline says, “But you can’t dominate nature…” Valtorex cuts her off by jumping to his feet and holding his hand out for her. She is taken off guard and takes his hand. He pulls her up and says, “Let me show you.” He gestures at the log and it changes and morphs. Over the course of a minute, it has become a bench. He says, “Go ahead; sit down.” Myrstaline sits down and Valtorex sits beside her. He says, “You see, you and Stemius, and the others all conform to nature. I force nature to conform to me.” Myrstaline is frightened by what he says and every alarm in her mind is triggered. She asks, “How do you exist? Nature is all powerful and yet you exist in opposition to it.” Valtorex laughs. He says, “As I just proved, nature is not all powerful. Actually, nature is quite weak. It has a lot of force and energy, but it has no direction. Nature relies on others to channel its power for it. I happen to do exactly that, just as druids do. The only difference is they ask for specific taps and I drill them myself.” Myrstaline jumps to her feet, affronted by the very thought of him dominating nature. Valtorex sees her fists clench and her jaw lock. He sees the fury and indignation and even hurt in her eyes. He decides now’s as good a time as any to start practicing. He closes his eyes and lets his mind drift. He allows his consciousness to drift throughout the Glade. He can see her life light, (The energy that life naturally gives off. Normally invisible, spells like Detect Life or deep meditation allow it to be seen.) he can also see the lights of thousands of organisms in the Glade. He can see the lights of fish swimming in the water and ants crawling along the ground. He can see a family of mice in their den and a snake creeping up on them. He sees grass as it grows and the trees as they stretch towards the sky. He sees all of this and realizes what it is that Myrstaline and Stemius are talking about.
He then sees the thin lines of light between all of the organisms and realizes what they are. He then looks at the creatures again. He realizes they are not part of nature. Nature is the force that links them together, but the creatures and plants are independent of it. He then looks at himself and sees he has no thread. He is worried and looks at Myrstaline. He sees that she does have threads, thousands of them, connecting her to all of the plants and animals in the Glade. Valtorex returns to his conscious mind. He opens his eyes to find Myrstaline still standing there, her face red in anger. She yells, “How dare you! You just close your eyes and ignore me? What in the Abyss was that?” Valtorex shakes his head before saying, “I was meditating. I tried to connect with nature, but I can not.” He then explains what he saw and how he had no connection with nature. Her face takes on a troubled look. She says, “Let me try. I will go into the Spring. Being in water always helps me meditate.” Myrstaline wades into the water and closes her eyes. Valtorex, feeling uneasy, returns the log to its original shape. Valtorex looks around at the fast approaching night. He hears Myrstaline gasp. He looks at her and sees fear in her eyes. She mouths, “We’re not alone.” Valtorex mouths back, “How many and where?” Myrstaline mouths, “Five, three behind you and two coming on me.” Valtorex nods and mouths, “Three…Two…One.” On one, Myrstaline turns and shoots twin spears of searing light, striking both assailants.
Valtorex turns to find three humans, two male, and one female. He then realizes they’re not quite human. He looks into their eyes and sees a burning lust. A lust for blood. He then recognizes the female. He whispers, “Trish…” (Trishtessa, see timeline) Trish smiles and says, “Hey, Valt (Pronounced Vault) how ya been?” Valtorex, overcoming the initial shock, replies, “I was doing great after I buried you and the other leeches.” Trish laughs and says, “I guess I deserved that. Can’t remember why though.” Valtorex replies, “Could it possibly be the six months I spent as cattle to your clan, the torture I endured at your hands, or maybe the fact that you’re a backstabbing bitch that only cared about my blood? I think the latter, but what do you think?” Trish fakes a hurt look. She says, “Yes, well, you did destroy my home and most of my clan. So I guess we’re even.” Valtorex’s response is to draw his swords and stab each male vampire with one. He then says, “Now we are even.” Trish chuckles. “Still a fiery, stab-happy, nut job I see.” Valtorex crosses his swords at her throat and says, “I decapitate too.” Trish shakes her head, cutting her neck a little and drawing a small amount of blood. She dares him, “You wouldn’t. You still have a soft spot for me.” Valtorex replies, “You’ll find that I have less softness left than one of your vamps.” Trish says, “Alright, then prove it. Decapitate your first and only love, right here, right now.” Valtorex is all too happy to oblige. (I find this is a great way to talk about Valtorex’s past. By the way, the next sentence should give you a hint as to where this is going.) Valtorex looks down and is mildly surprised to see the body fade and disappear. He realizes it was a very good duplicate. He also notices the four vampires weren’t.
He turns to see that Myrstaline saw and heard the entire thing. He says, “I would like to point out that she told me to.” Myrstaline is paler than normal and Valtorex is slightly worried. He walks out into the water and sees that Myrstaline isn’t moving and is barely breathing. He touches her neck and feels that her pulse is slow. He remembers the aura of fear that paralyzes the vampire’s victims. He picks her up and notices she is frigid. He carries her onto the ground and places her on the log. He gathers some dead wood and piles it in front of the log. He starts a fire and summons a blanket and pillow. He puts the pillow under her head and covers her in the blanket. Then he leans against the log and casts Alarm. He drifts off to sleep. The next morning, he awakes at dawn. He checks Myrstaline and finds she has returned to normal. She wakes up and looks around, surprised to not be in her cabin. She sits up on the log and makes room for Valtorex. Valtorex sits beside her and asks, “Fish?” Myrstaline looks at him, confused, and then catches on. She says, “Yes, please.” Valtorex nods and raises his hand. Two fish float out of the Spring and float towards them. (The type of fish is not important, is it?) Valtorex uses Telekinesis to snap their spines. He then floats them above the fire for a couple of minutes before using Telekinesis to remove all of the inedible parts. He tosses those parts into the water and floats the meat of one fish to Myrstaline. She catches it and eats. Valtorex finishes his fish and stands. He says, “Well, I have to be off. I’ll see you in third.” Myrstaline nods. Before he leaves, she says, “Thank you…for taking care of me. I just froze up with fear.” Valtorex replies, “Well, vampires are nothing to be afraid of. What you need to fear is what your cabinmates will say when they realize you spent the entire night out here…with me.” Myrstaline gasps, realizing that he’s exactly right. She looks at his face and realizes he’s not worried. She asks, “Why don’t you care what they say?” Valtorex replies “Look at yourself sometime. Everything they’ll say about me will be good.” (Ah, the rumor mill. The greatest device in the history of making up shi…I mean historyJ) Myrstaline puzzles this over as he walks away.
Valtorex arrives in Warrior Training to find Valinor waiting for him. Valinor seems relieved to see him. He asks, “Where were you last night?” Valtorex replies, with a smile, “Contrary to what will be popular belief by third, I was helping a disabled classmate.” Valinor is asking, “Wha-” when Tyberus walks up. Valtorex whispers, “Ask someone from Myrstaline’s cabin.” Tyberus asks what they are talking about and Valtorex quickly assures him nothing important. The other two students arrive. Silvanos glares at Valtorex. Valtorex returns the look. Tyberus notices this and says, “I can see that there is some unresolved tension between Silvanos and Valtorex. Very well, it will be Rogard Granite-Fist against Valinor and Silvanos against Valtorex. Now I expect a fair fight, meaning, no mercy.”
Silvanos and Valtorex face off. Valtorex bows to Silvanos and Silvanos replies with a magical blast. Valtorex is caught off guard and is sent sprawling back. Silvanos cackles evilly and moves in for the kill. He raises his hand and begins chanting the spell that will destroy Valtorex once and for all. Before the fatal spell can be cast, however, Valtorex is up and his swords are out. Silvanos fires the arc of deadly shadow energy, but Valtorex raises his blades and deflects the attack. Silvanos curses bitterly. Valtorex charges. Silvanos draws the rapier at his side and backs up slowly. Valtorex reaches him and begins swinging, trying to find a hole in his defense. Silvanos, aided by Haste, blocks every attack. Valtorex and Silvanos attack, parry, block and thrust for several minutes. They both jump back, panting. Silvanos casts a spell of rejuvenation on himself. Valtorex digs down in his well of anger. They charge each other again. They keep fighting until finally Tyberus breaks them up. He says, “Valtorex, you are the most gifted first year I have seen in quite a while. Silvanos, you are the sneakiest bastard I’ve ever taught, and you’re not even a student! You’re just here to kill Valtorex. Well, if you two are so intent on gutting each other, I won’t stop you. Actually, I’ll pair you two against each other in every match. Silvanos, I won’t train you, but I also won’t prevent you from using magic. Valtorex, I will train you like I would train any other student, but the no interference on magic rule applies to you as well, as long as you are fighting Silvanos. Now, the rest of the class will be spent on drills.” True to his word, Tyberus drills his three students for three and a half hours and Silvanos watches. Silvanos only speaks to jeer Valtorex during a particularly difficult exercise. Valtorex pauses, shoots a Flame Bolt at him, and turns back to the exercise. Silvanos easily blocks the attack, but the message is still conveyed clearly enough.
Class ends and Valtorex goes to the Glade (Great how I keep bringing it up, huh?) and meets Arianna. He realizes with a twinge of guilt that he never cleared the bodies. Arianna seems angry about something. It could be the bodies that are still lying on the ground, but Valtorex is pretty sure it’s the blanket clutched in her white knuckled grip. Arianna asks, her voice tense with anger, “Apprentice, this blanket is drenched in your magic, but it has the scent of a female on it, and as if that’s not enough, there are four dead vampires in my Glade! How do you explain yourself?” Valtorex is about to say a witty response when he thinks better of pissing off his superior even more. He begins, “Well, the explanation for both is linked…” He goes on to tell her of his meeting with Trish and Myrstaline’s affliction with the Aura of Fear. Arianna, after careful consideration, says, “Very well, apprentice, I believe you, but if I ever find out you are involved with anyone, I’ll castrate you personally. You’ll have plenty of time for love when you are old and married. Now you are young and need to be on the battlefield, not in the bedroom.” Valtorex cannot figure out whether she’s joking or not. Arianna moves on and says, “Well, I think it is time for you to learn what it means to be an apprentice.” She reaches into the pocket of her red robes and pulls out an amulet. She murmurs the words of a spell and the amulet disappears in a flash. Arianna says, “Okay, apprentice, your mission is to find that amulet. It is still in the Glade, but you will be given no further assistance. You have, oh, three and a half hours to find it before I fail you.”
Valtorex wastes no time. He casts a spell of magic detection. The entire Glade glows. He curses under his breath and goes to the edge of the Glade. He begins searching through the brush and grass. After about two hours, he has not found it and he has searched through the entire Glade. He decides to check the Spring and dives in. He casts a spell allowing him to breathe water; then he casts a spell allowing him to see in reduced light. He searches under every stone and through all of the silt. After another hour, he still has not found it. He can feel the time slipping away and knows he has no hope of finding it. He tries one last method. He closes his eyes, still under water so Arianna doesn’t know what he’s doing, and he begins to meditate. He manages to drift into that state where he could see all of the life. He looks through the Glade, but he doesn’t see anything not alive or part of the earth. With ten minutes left, he turns his gaze on Arianna. He concentrates and he can feel the tug of magic from her pouches. He tries something, a combination of magic and meditation, and he manages to look into her pouches. He sees the usual rings and components one would expect on a mage, but in one pouch, he sees the amulet. He immediately returns to his body and scrambles out of the water. He says, “I found the amulet.” Arianna raises an eyebrow. She asks, “And where is it?” Valtorex, out of breath, replies, “It’s in your back center pouch.” Arianna goes into a frenzy. She yells, “How dare you search the property of a superior! How dare you violate my privacy like that! The purpose of the test is to see if you will keep looking even if the search is hopeless. It is not to find the drasked (see LNS, I think, Valtorex’s rant to Stemius) amulet!” Valtorex, keeping his cool even though he fears the prospect of failure, responds, “If you wish me to fail, don’t assign me a task.” Arianna seems to be caught off guard by this. She was expecting him to grovel or beg for forgiveness. She is not used to a student being so confidant or willing to stand up to her. She smiles as she feels pride in him. She then says, “I see your point. I forgot you are in Elite Training. You don’t give up and will complete the mission no matter what. Kemos would be proud. Well, class is almost over.” She reaches behind her and pulls out the amulet. She tosses it to him and says, “That’s an Amulet of Mental Resistance. I don’t think you need any help in that department, but you can give it to that elf you seem to care about so much, but remember my warning.” Valtorex thanks her and leaves.
He arrives at the Tower of the Arcane and meets Myrstaline. He hands her the amulet and says, “It’s an amulet of Mental Resistance. As long as you have it on, you’ll be more able to combat mind affecting attacks.” Myrstaline thanks him. Valtorex then realizes what it will look like if they walk in together, after last night, and her wearing a gift from him. He says, “You might want to put that on under your clothes. Having it out won’t help your case.” Myrstaline nods. They walk into the Tower, careful not to be too close. Myrstaline out of fear of public embarrassment, Valtorex out of a combination of respect for Myrstaline and not wanting to deal with the annoying conversations bound to occur. They arrive at Rōdenthall’s fourth level class room. Although they were expecting it, they are surprised at the source of the first comment. Rōdenthall says, “And here come the love birds. So how was it?” Myrstaline flushes from the heat caused by embarrassment. Valtorex flushes from the heat caused by the fire that is suddenly swirling around him. In an ominous voice, he roars, “Nothing happened between the two of us. Remember that or you will regret it. If I catch any of you,” he looks at the two black robed mages, then Silvanos, then rests his gaze on Rōdenthall, “and I mean any, spreading rumors about Myrstaline and I, I will gut (Yes, Word, he will get them, but he will gut them too and that’s the most important verb) you and leave your organs out for the birds. Is this understood?” Rōdenthall is livid. He blasts Valtorex back with a powerful spell intended to stop his heart. Valtorex is smashed against the stone wall and has the breath knocked out of him. Valtorex slumps against the wall, too dazed to move. Rōdenthall is greatly surprised to hear Valtorex groan quietly.
Silvanos’s face is twisted into an evil smile as he stalks forward, hand raised. The words of a spell that will crush Valtorex’s skull are on his lips. Rōdenthall is surprised to see such hatred in his star apprentice for his star pupil. Rōdenthall decides to wait and see how it plays out. Silvanos continues walking forward, right arm raised to a 45°, downward facing position with his left arm in front of him to block attacks. Myrstaline rushes to get between the two. Rōdenthall commands, “Stop!” Myrstaline feels a tug on the back of her mind pulling her back. She feels warmth emanating from the amulet and the tug lessens. She keeps running and interposes herself between the possibly unconscious Valtorex and Silvanos. Silvanos uses his left arm to strike her across the cheek. Myrstaline goes down. Silvanos reaches Valtorex, who is now conscious, and lowers his right hand so the palm rests on Valtorex forehead. He says, “I just have to say one more word and you die. So, how does it feel?” Valtorex replies, “It feels kinda boring. I guess you’re just not very frightening.” Silvanos is infuriated. He barks the final word and Valtorex screams as his skull is slowly crushed by a massive amount of pressure. Silvanos says, malice dripping from his words, “I hope you weren’t counting on that freak ability of yours to save you. It only protects you from death spells. Any physical damage will still get you.” Valtorex’s vision goes red, then black. Myrstaline gets to her feet and sees Silvanos killing Valtorex. She rushes him and attempts a tackle. Silvanos turns and blasts her with a Windblast (And yes, I do make a lot of these up as I go, but I find the names descriptive enough for you to figure it out). Myrstaline is sent crashing into a wall with a sickening crunch. Silvanos promises, “I’ll get to your girlfriend as soon as your brain is reduced to pulp.” Valtorex hears a groan escape from Myrstaline. He feels his consciousness fading and knows he has only seconds to save Myrstaline. He begins rapidly chanting the words to a spell. (In that unknown language, of course) Silvanos backhands him, causing blood to leak out of his mouth. Valtorex keeps chanting. Silvanos uses his left hand and a powerful spell to burn five holes in Valtorex’s chest. Valtorex grits his teeth and keeps going. Starbursts flash in the darkness that has become his vision. He can barely concentrate and knows he will pass out soon. He struggles on, only having a few syllables left. Silvanos knows this and ups the power of his spell. The holes burn deeper into Valtorex, reaching his lungs and heart. Valtorex’s heart is burnt through as the last syllable leaves his lips. Silvanos has no idea what the spell does, but he soon figures out when he sees the holes on Valtorex’s chest healing. He does not see them heal entirely, because a massive pressure suddenly blacks out his vision. He feels the burning in his chest and in the last moments, he figures out what the spell is, and how to counter it. He dispels both of his effects and his vision returns.
He finds that he is too late, however. He begins to distinguish colors again, only to find himself staring into Valtorex’s palm as a powerful spell is about to be released. Rōdenthall commands, “Stop!” Valtorex shakes his head before saying, “No, this bastard deserves to die. I will do so whether you allow it or not.” Rōdenthall replies, “No, you won’t. You two will fight to the death at the end of your four years here. Right now, he would kill you. He is only using a fraction of his power against you. He was only playing with you and that spell you used caught him off guard. If you were dueling, you would have been dead in seconds.” Valtorex sighs before saying, “Very well, I will let him live, this time, but if he ever threatens Myrstaline, myself, or any of my cabinmates, I will not spare him.” Rōdenthall nods. Valtorex drops his hand. Rōdenthall then says, “Now of course, you still must be punished for threatening a teacher. I will assign you a detention to be served after fourth.” Valtorex says, “I can not serve then, I have meditation lessons after fourth. It is under the order of the Head Master. (If he didn’t know this in a previous story, he does now. I love one month long breaksJ) I would be more than happy to serve tonight, though.” Rōdenthall is obviously angry, but he cannot deny the Head Master. He says, very slowly, very angrily, “Alright, you will have a detention with the Head Mistress tonight, from Darkwatch to Firstlight. (Basically, midnight till dawn) She will not be happy and your punishment will be most severe. I do hope you survive.” He then teaches the class for the next hour. After that, he announces a competition, Valtorex and Myrstaline against the two dark robes, Silvanos, and Rōdenthall. Myrstaline is daunted by the challenge. Valtorex looks forward to fighting against the overwhelming odds. He tells Myrstaline, “Just cover yourself and be prepared to get the Nurse. I have a feeling there will be lots of blood.” When Myrstaline protests, Valtorex replies, “I need you alive. This will be a heavy battle. If I go down, I need to be able to rely on you to keep me alive.” Myrstaline nods.
The battle begins. Valtorex raises his arms and begins casting a spell. Rōdenthall and Silvanos stand back as the two black robes charge him, each with the words of a killing spell on their lips. Valtorex finishes his spell in time to be hit by two green blasts of energy (Finger of Death) that force him off his feet and onto the ground. Unfortunately for the two black robes, he did finish his spell. As the bolts hit him, a wave of fire bursts from his hands. The wave of fire sears across the room, burning the desks and striking the two mages. They are instantly made human torches. (Assuming they are humans, I haven’t decided yet) The two mages flail wildly as the fire consumes them. At a signal from Rōdenthall, Myrstaline runs out of the room to fetch the Nurse. Valtorex struggles to his feet as the two hit the ground. Rōdenthall says, “Well, brothers Dethos and Zethos are out. Looks like we’re up.” Silvanos and Rōdenthall come forward, each preparing a different spell. Valtorex goes into his at ready stance. He begins chanting the words to a particular spell he thinks will be useful. Silvanos and Rōdenthall finish their spells simultaneously. From Silvanos’s hands bursts forth a spear of bright green light. Rōdenthall launches a dark blue missile. (Just for reference, the green spear is Lance of Doom and the blue missile is Crippling Chill, both made up on the spot, of course) Valtorex finishes his spell and two magic mirrors appear. The mirrors are slanted to form a wedge pointed at Valtorex. He hopes he got the angle right; otherwise he’ll die from the spells smashing through the weak point. He breathes a sigh of relief seconds later when the spells hit at the perfect angle. The green spear is deflected towards Rōdenthall and the blue missile is sent spiraling towards Silvanos. Valtorex wastes no time in launching dual fireballs, one at each target. The fireballs smash through the mirrors and hurtle towards his opponents. Silvanos and Rōdenthall both manage to block the deflected spells. Rōdenthall manages to catch the fireball on his shield, but Silvanos is too slow. Silvanos is hit full on by the fireball and sent flying back. He smashes into the wall with a crunch and slides down, smoke trailing from his body. Silvanos tries to get up, but he falls over. (I know, Silvanos seems like a total wimp, but just wait till summer, you’ll all see that he’s really more like a fifty percent wimpJ)
Rōdenthall begins a powerful curse as the Nurse rushes into the room, trailed by Myrstaline. The Nurse and Myrstaline drag Dethos and Zethos to the corner to get them out of the way of combat. They go about healing the two. Once they are stabilized, the Nurse goes over and begins healing Silvanos. Myrstaline tries to stand beside Valtorex, but when his eyes flash in warning, she backs away and decides to watch. Rōdenthall returns to the curse and Valtorex prepares his defense. Rōdenthall hisses out the final word and twin beams of pure darkness lance out of his palms. Valtorex raises his shield, too late realizing it is a fruitless effort. The beams become serpents that twist and coil around the shields to strike Valtorex’s unprotected back. Valtorex goes down and his shield dissipates. The serpents wait, poised above him and ready to strike. Every time he tries to rise up, they strike again. After several minutes, Valtorex’s back is riddled with wounds, a trail of shadow drifting out of every one. Valtorex tries to rise up again, and this time, Rōdenthall tries to break him. The serpents drive into him, and Rōdenthall is intent on either crippling or killing him. Valtorex is forced to the ground and the shadow serpents force through his armor and into his flesh. Valtorex screams out as pure darkness drives into him, utterly destroying everything in their path. Myrstaline screams as she runs to him. She casts a shield spell inside the serpents. The shield of shining, pure light cuts the serpents in half and they disappear. Valtorex lies on the ground, shaking as death energy seeps out of the holes in his back. Myrstaline turns on Rōdenthall (She’s pissed now, just in case you couldn’t tellJ) and nearly hisses the words to the most powerful spell she knows. (It’s called Piercing Truth and is a divine spell) A shining javelin of light appears in each of her hands. She hurls both of the javelins at Rōdenthall. He brings up a shield of darkness, but the javelins tear right through them. He then summons a wall of iron in between him and the streaking missiles. The javelins strike the wall and rip through. As his last resort, he opens a gate to the Abyss. The first javelin strikes it and destroys the gate. The second continues through, unhindered. Myrstaline goes down and begins healing Valtorex. Rōdenthall is forced to teleport away. The second javelin flies through the simmering space he just occupied and hurtles on towards the wall. The javelin smashes into the wall, causing massive chunks of stone to explode outward and reducing the window to twinkling flakes of crystal. Rōdenthall returns to the room as Myrstaline finishes healing Valtorex.
Valtorex struggles to his feet. He sees Rōdenthall standing there. Rōdenthall has a furious scowl on his face. He begins snarling out the words of a killing curse. Valtorex realizes it can only have one target. As Rōdenthall finishes the spell and fires out a beam of purest darkness, (Called Drill of Despair, because alliteration is great) Valtorex shoves Myrstaline to the side and snap fires a fireball. The fireball strikes the oncoming beam and explodes. The beam continues through, although somewhat hindered. Valtorex prepares his spell that is similar to this, Flame Rail. The Drill of Despair is about to reach him when Myrstaline, now back on her feet, summons a wall of light. (Conveniently called, Wall of Light because I am too lazy to name every spell I come up with) The Drill smashes into the wall and it is Myrstaline’s will against Rōdenthall’s. The contest’s resolution is, of course, inevitable, and Myrstaline’s wall is destroyed. The Drill continues forward, but the wall provided the delay needed for Valtorex to finish his spell. He lets loose a raging torrent of flame that strikes the Drill. The Drill’s momentum is slowed, and then stopped entirely. Valtorex focuses all of his willpower behind the Flame Rail. Myrstaline focuses on healing him and restoring his energy. The two beams are locked in stalemate for several minutes, but eventually, Rōdenthall’s superior skill, training, and power give him the upper hand. Valtorex feels his strength ebbing and knows he’s done for when Myrstaline collapses, exhausted. He can tell that she gave her all to keep him in there. The Nurse rushes forward to help him, but he yells, “Attend to her! I can handle this!” As soon as the Nurse bends down to help Myrstaline, a surge of power from Rōdenthall smashes through the front created by the two spells. Rōdenthall takes advantage of this and focuses all of his immense power on the attack. The prolific surge of power created drives the Drill straight through the Rail and into Valtorex. Valtorex is blasted back into the wall, but Rōdenthall does not let up. The Drill keeps pounding into Valtorex and only the small buffer created by the Rail and maintained by his flagging strength keep him alive. Rōdenthall can tell he has won and decides to press it in. He pulls back from the attack, reducing the strength of the Drill to the point that it can only keep Valtorex’s attack trapped. He then focuses the rest of his power elsewhere. Valtorex feels a horrible pain in his legs and looks down to see a shadow slowly moving up his body, atrophying his legs from the bottom up. He collapses, his muscles too weak to support him. This, however, works to his advantage. His concentration allows him to maintain his spell and it shoots forward. Rōdenthall is too slow to stop it. The fire streaks across the room and hits him at Valtorex’s head level when he’s on his knees. (Meaning, basically, any children Rōdenthall has will be well accustomed to heat)(And pretty dark skinned)(Ian, that makes no sense. The cells aren’t directly contacted by the flame, so charring wouldn’t occur) Rōdenthall screams in torment as his robes catch ablaze. He douses them with a word and with another, breaks Valtorex’s arms. Valtorex falls to the ground, writhing in pain and unable to stand or even crawl.
The Nurse steps forward and commands, “Stop this! What has gotten into you? You put two first years against you and Silvanos, along with another two first years? Were you trying to kill them?” Rōdenthall’s answer chills her. He calmly, and seemingly without any conscience, says (Can you guess? The suspense must be killing you!) “Yes, of course I wanted to kill the little bastard and the elf wench. They’ve been a pain to me all year.” The Nurse begins yelling, “How dare you try to kill students! You know that is strictly forbidden! Wait until the Head Master hears of this!” Rōdenthall shrinks back a bit at the invocation of that name. After a moment’s thought, however, he puffs pout his chest and says, “No matter, he will be dead by tomorrow anyway. I gave him an all night detention with the Head Mistress. He will not survive that.” Rōdenthall chuckles at the thought of what the Head Mistress will do to Valtorex. The Nurse is furious. She teleports Valtorex and Myrstaline to the Healer’s School. She carefully lays Valtorex down on a bed and begins healing him. After several minutes, the worst of Valtorex’s wounds are cured. He struggles to his feet and whispers, “Thank you.” He slides off the bed and staggers to the door. The Nurse yells, in her matronly voice, “Young man, get back in bed now! You are in no condition to move!” Valtorex replies, still a scratchy whisper, “Tell that to Kemos.” He then staggers out the door.
By the time he reaches the Hall of Trials, he is feeling better and only limping a bit. He instantly whishes he had taken the Nurse’s advice when he sees Valrie’s face. (I guess that old saying is true, ‘Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned’, especially one with a sword) Valrie storms towards him and he sees a look of apology on Valinor’s face and a look of abject terror, yet grim interest on Valen’s. Valrie slaps Valtorex as hard as she can which, after a month of elite training, is a considerable force. Valtorex winds up sprawled on the ground. Just then, Lord Kemos walks up. He laughs heartily at the stunned look on Valtorex’s face. Valrie yells, “You son of a-!” (Censored because I feel like it) Lord Kemos interjects, “Now there’s no call for insulting his mother. Stick to kicking his ass.” Valtorex tries to get up, but he collapses. Valrie still has fury in her eyes and she is about to kick him. Valen rushes her and Valinor charges. Valen, being lighter and in mobility training for a month, easily pulls ahead. Valen tackles her and brings her down. Valrie knocks him back and yells, “Get off me you bastard!” Valrie is up again and draws her sword. When Valen nears her, she slashes at him. Valen is forced back. Valinor arrives and pulls Valtorex to safety. Valen says, “Valrie, look at him. Does he look like he’s in any shape to fight you?” Valrie, for the first time, looks at him and realizes her slap isn’t what really hurt him. Her rage momentarily forgotten, Valrie casts down her sword and runs to him. Valen lets her by and Valinor backs away. Valrie bends down beside him and sees his labored breathing. He tries to get up, but she pushes him back down. She asks, “What happened?” Valtorex whispers quietly. She leans in closer to try to hear. He says, “Rōdenthall. The bastard put me and Myrstaline against him, his apprentice, and two other students.” Suddenly remembering why she was mad, she slaps him. Valtorex asks, annoyed, “What the hell did I do?” Valrie just looks at him, hurt. It suddenly clicks. Valtorex struggles to his feet and says, “Alright, I have some explaining to do.” Valtorex turns to Lord Kemos and asks, “May we have leave so we can discuss this?” Lord Kemos nods. Valtorex leads a still fuming Valrie away.
They reach the woods and walk in. As they are walking, Valtorex says, “Well, tell me what you’ve heard.” Valrie goes into a frenzied retelling of the rumor she heard. All Valtorex can catch are a few snippets like, “Elf tramp” or “Worthless bastard”. Once she is out of breath, Valtorex tries to explain himself. He says, “Okay, the reason I was in the Glade with Myrstaline is because she is training me in meditation. Just ask Stemius. The reason we spent the night there is because we were attacked by vampires, ask Arianna. Myrstaline was frozen by the aura of fear vampires emit to trap their prey. She was standing in the Glade at the time, and me, not wanting her to die, put a blanket on her and started a fire. I promise that nothing happened between us.” Valrie thinks this over for a few moments before deciding to question the instructors he named. They talk for awhile to catch up since they have not been able to see each other for more than a few moments since the year started, except for in Lord Kemo’s brutal training regime. They spend about thirty minutes covering everything that has happened in the past month. (While I used a couple of sentences) Once they are finished talking, they head back to the Hall of Trials.
They arrive to find Lord Kemos drilling Valinor and Valen mercilessly. Lord Kemos looks at them and sees they seem much closer together. He says, “It’s good to see you two getting along again. Now that all the bridges are mended, I want to see you two fight.” Valrie, although less likely to kill Valtorex than before, still doesn’t think she should fight him. She voices her opinion, but Lord Kemos just replies, “You can either fight or fail.” Valtorex says, “We need to fight to pass, besides, it will allow us to relieve some of the tension between us.”
Valrie gives in and they prepare to fight. Valrie draws her mithril rapier, the keen edge shining brightly in the sunlight. Valtorex draws his swords, the left crackling with lightning; the right glowing with fire. Valtorex salutes Valrie and she returns the salute. They begin circling each other, looking for an opportunity. Valrie sees hers and lunges at Valtorex with lightning speed. Valtorex blocks her with his flame sword and slaps her arm with the flat of his lightning one. She jumps as the electricity jolts through her body. She drops her rapier. Valtorex uses the blade of his sword to pick up her rapier by the hand guard. With a quick motion, it is flying through the air. She catches it with surprising reflexes. She rushes him, intent on making up for her previous disarming. She slashes through the air, the swish turning into a clash as her blade meets his. She pulls back and whips her sword through the air, only to be countered by him again. She keeps going, her superior speed from mobility leveling off with his dual wielding. They go at it for several minutes until Valtorex staggers back, panting and sweating, and Valrie falls to one knee, too tired to get back up. Valtorex sheathes his swords and reaches out a hand for her. She replaces her rapier in its scabbard and takes his hand. Valtorex helps Valrie to her feet. When he lets go, she loses her balance and begins to fall back. He reaches his arm around her waist and catches her. For a brief moment, they make eye contact. Valtorex feels the fires within him flare up, but not in anger. He quickly sets her upright and backs away, unaccustomed to this new feeling. Valrie is blushing. Lord Kemos, intent on embarrassing them as much as physically possible, whistles. Valinor seems a bit embarrassed for them and Valen whishes they were still fighting. Valtorex quickly recovers from the awkward moment. He turns to Lord Kemos and says, “So, are you just going to heckle, or can you put your steel well your mouth is?” Lord Kemos laughs before drawing his sword.
Lord Kemos reaches Valtorex is a flash and slashes at him. Valtorex blocks, but barely. Lord Kemos quickly pulls back and strikes his leg. The wicked gash along his leg quickly closes up. Valtorex slashes at Lord Kemos, but in a quick flash, he manages to block both swords separately. Lord Kemos goes in for a lunge, but Valtorex manages to jump back with only minor damage to his chest piece. Valtorex jumps forward, both swords coming in from opposite sides. Just to prove how fast he is, Lord Kemos blocks to the left, then the right, then stabs Valtorex in the chest before he even lands. Lord Kemos rips his blade free of Valtorex and lets him fall to the ground even as his wound heals. Valtorex rolls back and is quickly on his feet. Lord Kemos is forward in a flash. He slices through Valtorex’s neck, skirting the spine. Valtorex freezes for that brief moment that his brain goes without blood or oxygen, but then the wound heals and he breathes again. Valtorex jumps back and tries to block Lord Kemos’s continuous attacks. They go for thirty minutes more, Lord Kemos scoring wound after wound and Valtorex barely blocking anything. Valtorex realizes that he has no chance by just blocking. He decides to stop blocking and only attacks. Lord Kemos strikes him time and time again. Finally, Valtorex gets lucky and makes a deep cut in Lord Kemos’s thigh. The flame cauterizes it quickly and Lord Kemos keeps fighting. As he blocks Valtorex’s attacks he says, “And now you are fighting like an Elite!” Valtorex keeps slashing, stabbing, and lunging, doing his best to not get hit, but doing even better to not care if he does. After about an hour, Valtorex’s attacks have become too feeble to even be considered a threat, but he keeps going. Lord Kemos just keeps knocking his attacks aside with ease, occasionally scoring a hit when he becomes bored. He sees it in Valtorex’s eyes; Valtorex is on the verge of collapse. Minutes later, it happens. Valtorex falls to the ground. He struggles to get back up, but fails. Lord Kemos leans down and says, “Your pride will be your downfall. Do not make challenges you have no hope of succeeding in, or you are set for failure.” Lord Kemos begins slicing away merrily at Valtorex, enjoying the occasional gasps that Valtorex fails to stop.
Valrie, appalled by this, yells, “Stop it!” In reply, Lord Kemos stabs his blade right through Valtorex’s back, then pulls it out and goes back to cutting him. Valrie draws her rapier and charges. She slashes at Lord Kemos who blocks her with ease. Lord Kemos ignores Valtorex as he fights with Valrie. Valrie uses all of her speed, but only manages to block every other one of his attacks. Lord Kemos is brutal. He begins using combination moves. First, he cuts a deep gash in her stomach. When she doubles over, he stabs her through the back. He then rips his sword out and brings it down on her neck. The keen blade bites deep, severing her spine. The only thing preventing her head from coming off is his control. He pulls the sword back and she falls to the ground. He bends down and whispers in her ear, “That love of yours is the most foolish thing for a warrior. Dispose of it or die.” He stands and then mercilessly begins cutting into her. Valrie screams time and again as his rapier bites into her flesh.
Valinor, affronted by this display, pulls his greatsword from his back and charges. Lord Kemos only takes his attention from Valrie long enough to flick his blade through the air and into Valinor’s heart. Valinor, feeling his heart torn open by the cold steel, backs away, breathing shallowly. When he backs off the blade, his heart heals and begins to pump again. He brings up his greatsword and jumps at Lord Kemos, bringing his blade down with all of his strength. Lord Kemos looks up and dully notes Valinor and the giant piece of metal coming at him. Lord Kemos uses his blade to knock away Valinor’s greatsword. The force of the impact sends Valinor’s blade flying and leaves Valinor staggered, but Lord Kemos appears unaffected. Lord Kemos takes this opportunity to stab his blade into Valinor’s chest, once again piercing his heart. He says, “It is not wise to charge an opponent such as I without thought. Learn strategy or you are doomed.” He holds his blade in Valinor’s chest until he blacks out from lack of oxygen. Lord Kemos then whips his blade free and Valinor falls down. Lord Kemos goes back and forth between stabbing Valtorex and slicing into Valrie’s back.
Valen, angry at Lord Kemos’s treatment of his friends and itching for a fight, draws his longknife (Really, the name describes it all. It’s basically a shortsword with only one edge) and his knife (Your average four inch single edged blade). With his knife concealed in his left hand and his longknife held openly in his right, he slowly advances on Lord Kemos. Lord Kemos turns and says, “Have you not seen what I’ve done to them? They are either unconscious or writhing in pain at my feet, and I’m not trying. What chance do you think you have against me?” (This one’s for you, Ryan T.) Valen replies by charging him. Lord Kemos thinks this will be an easy battle, but when Valen is about ten feet away, he suddenly speeds up. Valen flies towards Lord Kemos and slashes with lightning speed. Lord Kemos blocks the longknife, only to realize two things. One, Valen is in 4th level Mobility Training, meaning he is the fastest of the four, and two, his left hand is not empty. Valen stabs Lord Kemos in the gut with his knife before jumping back. Valen, still holding the bloody knife in his left hand, says, “That is for Valinor.” Lord Kemos nods before charging, ignoring the pain in his gut. Lord Kemos reaches Valen and swings with all of his strength this time. Valen’s blade is knocked from his hand and slides to a stop fifteen feet away. Valen, however, jumps and goes over Lord Kemos. As he is going over, he throws his longknife. The knife lands in Lord Kemos’s back, causing him to jump forward. Valen lands and draws his daggers. He turns to see Lord Kemos pulling the knife free from his back. Valen says, “That’s for Valrie.” Lord Kemos, almost dreading the payback for Valtorex, quickly cuts his stomach and back to heal them. Lord Kemos charges Valen, and, his daggers too short to block, let the blade tear through his chest. As Lord Kemos is bringing his blade back up to attack again, he is surprised to feel a sudden pain in his sides. He looks down and sees a dagger’s hilt protruding from each of his sides. The keen daggers designed to pierce armor dug deeply into the flesh and Lord Kemos can already tell they will be difficult to remove. He begins slashing at Valen brutally. As Valen falls to his knees under the onslaught, he says, almost gleefully, “That was for Valtorex, and this, this is for me.” From nowhere, he produces one of his arrows and stabs Lord Kemos in the leg with it. He says, a smile on his face, “I made sure to touch my bow with it, so it will poison you.”
Lord Kemos can already feel the poison working through his leg and coupled with the daggers in his sides, he knows he cannot go for much longer. He mutters the words of a spell and about three minutes later, the Nurse appears. The Nurse pulls the arrow and daggers free of the now collapsed Lord Kemos and removes the poison with a healing spell. Lord Kemos sits up, muttering under his breath. The Nurse then goes through waking up and restoring the energy of the other four. Valtorex stands up and the Nurse chides, “I warned you. Are you going to take my advice now?” Valtorex replies, “No, probably not. I have to go to my meditation training now, then I have a detention with whoever the Head Mistress is.” Lord Kemos’s eyes widen. The Nurse says, “Do you see why I wanted him to rest? Head Mistress Demere is the most brutal person on the staff. She makes Lord Kemos look nice.” Valtorex, who has started to walk towards the forest by now, says over his shoulder, “Then I look forward to meeting her.” (If only he knew)
Valtorex arrives at the Glade to find Myrstaline sitting on the ground, meditating. When he enters the Glade, she jumps up to greet him. Valtorex asks, “So, how was fourth with Stemius?” Myrstaline replies, “He spent like twenty minutes talking about how what I did was natural and normal. Then he spent the rest of the time trying to figure out if I was pregnant.” Valtorex laughs. Myrstaline asks, “How was your fourth?” Valtorex responds, “Lord Kemos was an ass, I had to fight Valrie, then we all fought him. He took me down and tortured me until Valrie attacked him, then he moved to torturing her. He stabbed Valinor in the heart twice before Valen stabbed him five times and poisoned him.” Myrstaline asks, “How did he attack you guys so much without killing you?” Valtorex answers, “Easy, he has this rapier blessed to heal any wounds it causes, so it is very difficult to kill someone with it. That way, he can torture us indefinitely.” For the first time, she notices his torn and nearly destroyed armor. She says, “Let me fix that.” She casts a few mending spells and soon his armor is completely repaired.
Valtorex and Myrstaline then sit down on the log. (And yes, I could be more vague. I could have said they sit on wood or organic matter) Myrstaline says, “I want you to try to focus on this.” She picks up a rock and shows it to Valtorex. She says, “This is how I learned to commune with nature. I want you to turn this rock into a statuette of whatever pops into your mind.” Valtorex nods and closes his eyes. Slowly, the rock begins shifting in her hand. Valtorex tries to come up with something else, but all he can think of is one thing. He hears Myrstaline’s gasp. He opens his eyes to see what he expected. (Can you guess?) In Myrstaline’s hand is a perfect miniature replica of himself, lying there with a sword in its chest. Or at least she thinks it is him. Valtorex can tell it is his evil copy, Kaedros of the Hellfire. Myrstaline exclaims, “The first thing that comes into your head is yourself dead? What type of person are you?” Valtorex says, “That’s not me. Do you remember a month ago when I went through that portal and fought those demons?” Myrstaline nods. Valtorex continues, “I met a copy of myself, formed by an Arch-Devil when my soul merged with a balrog. His name was Kaedros. Kaedros of the Hellfire. I was forced to fight him and I won. He’s not dead, but next time we meet, he will be.” Myrstaline has a spark of brilliance. She says, “That seems to be the main obstacle to your enlightenment and convergence with nature. All of the anger you harbor inside you is keeping you from finding peace. How about we talk about your past so you can get over those feelings?” Valtorex shakes his head. Myrstaline warns, “I am the teacher. You have to do what I say.” Valtorex shoots back, “Or what? Rōdenthall gave me an all night detention already. What can you do that I haven’t already gone through today?” Myrstaline whispers, “This.” She leans forward and kisses him on the cheek. (Aww, how sweet. I know, I know, ruining the moment) Valtorex feels his face go crimson. He says, “Now I’m definitely not telling you about my past. I couldn’t bear to be the one to rob you of sleep for the rest of your life.” Myrstaline counters, “I’m an elf, I meditate.” (Happy Ian?) (Yes) (Background: In a previous chapter, Ian got all uppity because I said one of the elves goes to ‘sleep’ instead of ‘mediates’. I know, I know, but we must be understanding of his OCDJ)
Valtorex shakes his head in defeat. He says, “Very well, I’ll tell you, but tell me when to stop.” Valtorex begins talking about his childhood and how happy he was growing up in his village. Then he reaches the first attack. Myrstaline realizes this must be why he is such a dark person. He goes on…and on…and on. By the time he has reached the battle on the plateau, Myrstaline is nearly shaking in fear of the world and pity for him. He then gets to the village massacre and, wanting to stop before Myrstaline finds out too much, goes into great detail about it. Myrstaline retches when he describes the burning bodies and the screams of the dying. When Myrstaline perseveres, Valtorex decides to go easy on her. He skims over some of the bloodier and gorier accounts and waters down the vital stuff. Then he reaches Trish. He just describes it as, “There was this girl, she turned out to be a vampire and captured me.” He then describes his ordeal with the vampires. After that, he talks about his later mercenary days. By the time he reaches the Academy, Myrstaline is on the verge of tears for him. He finishes by saying, “And that is my life. Good luck ever finding rest again. Myrstaline says, “I will meditate on how to help you through your problems, but it’s getting late and I don’t want to have to deal with my cabinmates.” Valtorex nods and they part ways.
Valtorex decides to hang around in the Glade for a while. (Don’t you love how I combine words so uncommon they’re almost Middle English with everyday slang?) At about four hours before Darkwatch (Some of you may have realized that they have school sixteen hours a day and thus, the amount of time they spend out of class is impossible, but this is a fantasy realm, so I fiat that the day is now 32 hoursJ) Valrie shows up to bathe. She is surprised to find Valtorex there. She asks, “What are you doing here this late?” Valtorex responds, “I have about four hours to kill before I get killed, so I decided I’d wait here for unsuspecting bathers for me to harass.” Valrie laughs at his attempt at humor. (Not the humor itself mind you) She says, “Well, you found one. So, do you want to talk?” Valtorex says, “Not really, I’d rather throw rocks at starving wolves right now.” Valrie, slightly offended, says, “Well, if you don’t want to talk, then can you leave?” Valtorex asks, “Why?” Valrie replies, tersely, “Because I intend on bathing, which requires the removal of clothes. I’m not going to do that with you here.” Valtorex says, “Fine I’ll talk for awhile. So, what’s been going on with you?” Valrie says, “That’s better.” She sits next to Valtorex on the log and replies, “Well, school’s going pretty well. I’m in the top of my class dueling. I can beat two other students at the same time. How’re your classes going?” Valtorex responds, “Well, Tyberus I’m doing fine with, Arianna seems to tolerate me pretty well, Rōdenthall and Silvanos still want me dead, and Lord Kemos, well you know how things with him are.” Valrie nods. They talk with each other for a while before Valrie stands up. She says, “Well, you should probably get going. I need to bathe and you have three hours left before your detention.” Valtorex stands and says, “Yes, that’s probably for the best.” They look into each other’s eyes. Valtorex feels the fire burning inside him flare up as he stares into her dark green eyes. As she looks into his fiery red eyes, she feels a safety and security that she is not used to. The next thing they know, they are embracing. (And the plot thickens) They back away from each other, both blushing, but covered by the shadows caused by the treetops. (It may be night, but there is at least one full moon every night) Before he turns to leave, he plants a quick kiss on Valrie’s cheek. (This may be my most romantic work ever. Kinda scary, huh?)
Valtorex decides to go to the library since it is close to the Main Hall where he’ll be serving his detention. (He knows this because I say so. If I cover everything they learn, then you guys will be reading an additional twenty pages and I’d get nothing else done) In the library, he sees a few lore students, teaches, or bards in secluded corners, nooks, and alcoves, each reading. Valtorex goes over to a section on magic and takes a book titled Advanced Arcane Spells of Fire. He takes the book and goes over to a table in the center of the room. He begins reading and quickly becomes engrossed in the complicated spells. After about two hours, he decides he needs the book. He goes to the librarian and asks if he can check out books. The librarian looks at him as if he is a barbarian. The librarian then realizes that Valtorex is a first year and says, “We don’t check out books at this Library. We sell copies of books to students and teachers. What book are you interested in?” Valtorex asks, “How much does it cost to copy a book? The librarian answers, “Depending on the material, 20 to 100 gold. Why?” After some quick math, Valtorex responds, “I would like to copy the entire section on arcane Spellcasting.” The librarian’s mouth drops open for a second before he calculates it out. He says, “It will cost 1 million gold for that.” Valtorex reaches into his pack and pulls out the chest of drakes. He hands the librarian 100 drakes and says, “This should cover it.” The librarian nods and asks, “Where do you want them delivered?” Valtorex then realizes his cabin has no room for them. He asks, “Can storage be arranged?” The librarian replies, “Well, for a purchase this large, we can provide a Book Carrier of Holding that can carry all of the books you have. I will have one made. Come by tomorrow morning to pick it up.” Valtorex nods and leaves to go to detention. (This entire thing was to get him access to a massive collection of spells. Later he will get other books. Next chapter, you’ll see why I did this)
Valtorex arrives at the Head Mistress’s office and knocks on the door. He is ushered in by two heavily armed guards. The Head Mistress says, “Ah yes, Valtorex, the boy sent to me by Rōdenthall. If I recall correctly, the letter said ‘Show no mercy to the little bastard’. Now, I don’t think you really deserve that, so just fess up and I may reduce your punishment.” The Head Mistress, expecting to hear some story about him disobeying Rōdenthall, is severely surprised when he recounts his story. She says, “Well, then. I guess you do deserve the punishment. Then we may begin.” (Remember the temporary Head Mistress from Harry Potter? This psycho makes her look like Mother Teresa) The punishment starts off simply enough, Valtorex has to write, “I will not threaten staff.” ten thousand times. When he finishes, Head Mistress Demere asks, “So, have you learned your lesson?” Valtorex, feeling a bit irritated, replies, “And what lesson am I supposed to be learning?” Demere screams, “(‘Scuse me?!) You’ve been writing it for two hours! How stupid are you?” Valtorex, taking the offensive, responds, “I must be pretty stupid to be here at this time of night.” Demere yells, “That’s it! You need to learn your lesson!” She has her guards restrain Valtorex and take his weapons. They strip off his leather armor and robe top. She proceeds to take a whip tipped with a metal ball crackling with electricity (A good old fashioned whipping combined with shock therapyJ) out of her desk. She goes behind him and hits him in the back. He screams as electricity shoots through his torso, shocking his heart and nearly stopping it. She keeps this up until he is barely breathing and his back is torn and bleeding. Her guards drop him in a chair and she says, “So, have you learned your lesson?” Valtorex, barely conscious, replies, “No amount…of pain will…break me…you sadistic bitch!” Demere slaps him before saying, “Oh but it will. I have been at this school for twenty years and there has not yet been a student I haven’t broken.”
Six hours later, a bloody, bruised, and unconscious Valtorex is unceremoniously dumped on the Training Ground with his armor and weapons piled next to him. Tyberus arrives to see him lying there. He runs over and checks his pulse. Relieved that Valtorex is still alive, he sends for the Nurse. The Nurse (Possibly the same one from Romeo and JulietJ) comes running. She sees Valtorex and mutters a curse under her breath. She then commences to heal Valtorex. Valtorex slowly regains consciousness. Rogard watches Valtorex, a bit detached. Valinor appears worried about him while he is being healed. Silvanos seems to take pleasure at the sight of the signs of Valtorex’s beating. Once the Nurse has finished, she backs up as Valtorex struggles to his feet. He sees the joy in Silvanos’s face as he grimaces from pain. Tyberus demands, “Who did that and how did they beat you?” Valtorex, still hurting when he breathes, replies, “It was the Head Mistress. She had her guards hold me down while she used some sort of electrified whip on me.” Tyberus seems angered at this. His face takes on a look of pity and he asks, “How long until she broke you?” Valtorex’s reply both amazes him and frightens him. He says, calmly and matter-of-factly, “She didn’t.” (Not something that happens very often) Tyberus stammers, “So…so…she tortured you…all night?” Valtorex nods. Silvanos nearly claps in joy. Valtorex turns and says, “Silvanos, would you like to fight?” Silvanos snorts in derision. He laughs, “You can’t beat me at your prime. You’ve been tortured all night. How in the Abyss do you think you can defeat me?” Valtorex responds, “Remember how when I’m angry, I get much stronger?” Silvanos nods, humoring him. Valtorex continues, “I’ve been beaten all night. I am pissed and would love nothing more than to snap your neck right now. So do you really want to fight?” Silvanos’s response is merely a paling of his face and a nervous look in his eyes. Valtorex says, “I thought so. Stay out of my way for the rest of today and you won’t lose any limbs.” Silvanos nods, seeing the truth in Valtorex’s eyes. (The eyes tell all. I tell you what the eyes tell) Tyberus trains his three students, with Silvanos sitting on the sidelines, careful not to anger Valtorex. (Valtorex needs to piss off Rōdenthall more oftenJ)
Class ends and Valtorex goes to the Glade and meets Arianna. She looks concerned about him. She says, “I heard you got a detention with the Head Mistress. What finally broke you?” Valtorex shakes his head and mutters a curse. He replies, “Why does everyone ask me that? She didn’t break me.” Arianna’s mouth gapes momentarily. She quickly catches herself and says, “That’s great. Worrying, but great. What did she use?” Valtorex responds, with a shudder, “First she just slapped me around, then she pulled out some electrified whip. When that didn’t work, she beat me to the brink of unconsciousness before shoving my face in a bucket of water to wake me up. I figure that when I stopped waking up, she dumped me on the Training Grounds.” Arianna nods, accustomed to hearing that. She says, “I would not be surprised if you get called back. The Head Mistress does not take well to rebellion, especially rebellion she can’t break.” (The Head Mistress is a controlling, brutal, well you know the rest. My goal is to make you guys hate her so much, that you will be begging for what happens in the Insurrection/Graduation chapters) Valtorex asks, “So, how do I beat her?” Arianna replies, “You don’t. She will torture you every night until you surrender. I’ve seen kids die at her hand for disobeying her. What you saw last night was just a warning. The real attack will probably come tonight. (If you have a weak stomach, I suggest you skip that section) If you truly want to beat her, then resist her till you die, although is it really worth it?” Valtorex replies, “Yes, of course. Kaeje ona Morte. I’ve sworn to live my life by it, so I shall.” Arianna nods in approval. She then says, “Very well, I will teach you how to resist torture. Normally it’s not something you learn until year four, but in your case, I think we can make an exception.” The rest of the class is spent with Arianna instructing Valtorex on how to lock away information in his brain. Valtorex thanks her and leaves.
Valtorex arrives at the Tower of the Arcane and goes to the now repaired fourth level class. Rōdenthall is waiting. He says, “I heard that the Head Mistress has yet to break you. I’ve been informed that the Head Mistress expects either a letter of apology or you to be in her office by Darkwatch tonight. It looks like she’s taken a special interest in you.” Valtorex asks, “I don’t suppose you know what I need to apologize for, do you?” Rōdenthall chuckles before asking, “Does it matter? You’ll be apologizing for anything you can think of by the time she’s done with you.” Just then, Dethos, Zethos, and Silvanos walk into the room. Silvanos sees Valtorex and looks as if he is about to say something. When he thinks back to first, he thinks better of it. Class begins, but Myrstaline still has not arrived. Rōdenthall begins a lecture on how to properly articulate a spell for maximum effectiveness. Valtorex pulls out a quill, inkwell, and parchment. (I know, I know, but they need to invade China before they can get paper) Valtorex takes notes on Rōdenthall’s lecture, not for himself, but for Myrstaline. Halfway through class, a messenger arrives. He hands a scroll to Rōdenthall and leaves. Rōdenthall unrolls the parchments and reads out, “To Arch-Mage Rōdenthall, your student, Valtorex, has been issued a private detention with me this night and every night following until further notice. –Head Mistress Demere.” Rōdenthall goes back to lecturing. Class ends and Rōdenthall dismisses them. Valtorex, a bit concerned about Myrstaline, briefly considers blowing off Elite, but decides against it.
He arrives at the Hall of Trials and meets Lord Kemos. Lord Kemos (Yes there is a reason I haven’t dropped the title. Ask if you want to find out) asks, “How are you doing, lad?” Valtorex replies, “Okay, but I have another detention tonight, and apparently every night from now on. I hope she doesn’t intend on breaking me that easily.” Lord Kemos shakes his head before saying, “I don’t think you understand. Demere is brutal. She will stop at nothing to get what she wants. She was fresh out of the Academy when she got a job as a secretary to the then Head Mistress. Within one year, she had become the Enforcer for the Head Mistress. When the Head Mistress died in her sleep, Demere took over and has ruled the students with an iron fist ever since. She was Head Mistress when I came through here. I took the same stance you did, but by my second year, the blood loss and broken bones were affecting my performance and I was forced to submit. What I’m trying to say is this, if you mess with Demere, she will ensure you suffer far more than any annoyance you can cause her. It’s not worth it. Give her what she wants so you can actually learn.” Valtorex resists the powerful urge to slap his instructor. He says, through clenched teeth, “I will never submit. I believe in the oath I took and will follow it in any circumstance. Kaeje ona Morte. (Just so you know, pronounced kai-A-jhay-own-a-more-tay) No surrender. Ever. No matter what the situation, no matter who the foe, an Elite never gives up, never submits.” Lord Kemos realizes he’s right. Lord Kemos shakes his head and begins laughing. When Valtorex raises his eyebrows, Lord Kemos says, “Taught by my student. Never thought it would happen. Well, here comes the rest of the class.” Valrie, Valen, and Valinor walk up to them. Valrie asks, “How was the detention?” Valtorex recounts the story while Valrie listens with growing anger. She says, the anger in her voice barely contained, “I’m going to kill that bitch!” Valtorex quickly, almost fearfully, says, “No, don’t say that! If word reaches her, you’ll end up in her office being beaten for six hours like I was. I suggest you just let me deal with it.”
Lord Kemos claps his hands once, signaling the end of discussion. He says, “Today, I think we will be learning about the history of the Elites. I will start at the beginning.” They go inside and sit at a table. Lord Kemos sits at the head of the table and begins, “Many years ago, the Empire was at war with the Dark Land forces, and we were not doing very well. The Dark Landers were at the Great Southern Wall. Their generals and the Dark Lord were convening a meeting at a hastily constructed fort to plan out the siege. The Emperor realized that the Dark Army was far too powerful to be taken down with force alone. He decided to put together a strike deep into enemy territory to take out the Dark Lord and his generals. The mission was volunteer only, as it was given a low expectation of success. To the surprise of the Emperor and the generals, every captain volunteered and the soldiers almost to the man joined them. The Emperor handpicked the best of the best from the volunteers. To the amazement of the generals, the Emperor, and even the common soldiers, the Arch-General’s of the Blue, Green, and Black armies came forth to lead. It was decided that each Arch-General would lead one hundred volunteers of the fighting style they used. That afternoon, the soldiers prayed, meditated, or did whatever they did to find peace. That night, the soldiers quietly left the castle and silently crossed the battlefield. The mages used illusion magic to obscure the field, preventing them from being spotted. By the time the Dark Army’s sentries realized what was going on, the archers had already loosed the arrows that slid into their necks, destroying their vocal chords and preventing any alarms from being raised. The warriors charged out and into the enemy camp. The warriors slaughtered all of the enemies they encountered in a mad dash to the fort. The mages went along after, destroying siege engines, towers, and tents, ensuring the Dark Army would not quickly recover. The archers decimated the cavalry before it could mount up and continued slaying the wargs under the riders after the first charge started. By the time the wargs reached the archers, half were lying on the field, dead or dying. The archers quickly switched to swords, and although woefully ill equipped to fight cavalry, fought to the man and effectively destroyed the Dark Army’s mounted division. The warriors, through massive losses, cleared a path to the fort. The mages broke into the fort and rushed it, overwhelming the guards with spells. The few remaining warriors stood at the breach and held off the growing counter attack to give the mages time. Within minutes, the warriors had been wiped out and the enemy charged into the breach. In the end, the mages were all killed too, but not before killing all of the generals and severely wounding the Dark Lord. At dawn, the Draconic Armies marched out and met them in the field. With their generals gone and leader disabled, the Dark Army was routed and forced to flee. That was the last time the Dark Army entered Draconic land. After the war, the Emperor personally created the Red Army, the all-volunteer army of Elites sworn to protect the Empire at all costs. Since then, the Elites have been at the forefront of every conflict the Draconic Empire has participated in. If the Dark Army ever invades again, I can guarantee that the Red Army will be the first to meet it on the fields, and if the past holds true, the last.” He then goes on to talk about specific Elites from the Red Army’s history. (I don’t feel like writing out their entire history right now, maybe another time) He talks about various battles the Red Army fought in and great cities they conquered. (Once again, another time) At the end of class, he dismisses them and they go off. Valrie lets Valen and Valinor get ahead and she hangs back with Valtorex. She says, “I’ll come by at the same time tonight so we can talk.” She runs off to the cabin.
Valtorex goes to the Glade and meets Myrstaline. She is sitting on the log, her face buried in her hands as she sobs. He walks over to her, thinking she is just upset about some insult. He then sees the red on her dress and runs to her. She looks up and sees him. He can tell she has been crying for some time by the redness under her eyes and the tear stains on her cheeks. He asks, “What happened?” She replies with only one word, “Demere.” (And now the war begins) Valtorex demands, “What did she do?” Myrstaline declines to answer, but he then sees the cuts in Myrstaline’s dress and realizes exactly what she did. Demere must have a knife similar to Lord Kemos’s rapier. Valtorex sits down next to her and puts his arm around her. He tries to soothe her, but finds he can’t come up with the words. He settles for holding her until her sobbing subsides. He says, “I don’t think you’re up to teaching me today. You should go to your cabin and rest. I have to pick something up from the library anyway.” Myrstaline nods and stands. Valtorex stands. They face each other and before they leave, Valtorex swears, “I won’t let her get away with this.” Myrstaline nods, knowing it’s the truth. (I honestly don’t know whether I’ve done enough work for you guys to be glad Valtorex has started a vendetta against Demere or just feel sorry for her. Let me know so I can adjust her level of cruelty accordingly)
Valtorex goes to the library to pick up his Book Carrier of Holding. The librarian comments, “You were supposed to come by this morning. Why did you not?” Valtorex replies, “The Head Mistress tortured me until first period. I have not had time to come by until now.” The librarian although he lives in the library, he does know of the Head Mistress’s cruelty, nods and says, “That is acceptable. Here are your books. I hope to see you in here again.” Valtorex nods and thanks him. Valtorex returns to the Glade and spends the rest of the time until an hour before Darkwatch reading. At an hour before Darkwatch, Valrie arrives.
Valrie watches Valtorex as he pours over his books by the light of a shining coin. She watches him for a few moments before stepping into the pale light. Valtorex looks up, his concentration momentarily broken. He closes the book and says, “Hi. So, how have you been?” Valrie replies, “Okay. Are you ready for your detention tonight?” Valtorex nods. He then says, “I’m actually looking forward to it. Demere is in for a big surprise tonight. I found the most exquisite spell for dealing with her. I can describe its effects for you if you like.” Valrie quickly says, “No, no that’s ok. I’d rather not here about it.” Valtorex nods, expecting that answer. He moves the books off the log and replaces them in his book carrier. He motions to the space next to him and Valrie sits. Valtorex dispels the Light spell on the coin and replaces it. They talk for a while about their day, and then they move on to a more personal conversation. (Don’t worry, like all romance I have, it is PG if I bribe people to up the ratingJ) They start talking about their likes and dislikes, what foods they like, their favorite colors, and other miscellaneous things. It turns out Valrie’s favorite food is smoked fish and her favorite color is sea blue. She finds out that Valtorex’s favorite color is, not surprisingly, blood red. His favorite food is rare steak, preferably warg. (Does this surprise you?) They talk more about their interests. Valrie likes to swim, fish, and just relax sometimes. Valtorex’s hobbies are, fighting, training, spell-casting, and experimenting with various compounds. (Or this?)
Valrie, used to people’s hobbies not being something stressful, asks, “But what do you do to relax?” Valtorex, who was expecting this, responds, “I work harder. When I reach the point of complete dedication to an activity and I finish the activity, I am totally relaxed and at peace. In the heat of battle, when the rage and bloodlust takes over, then as soon as the battle ends, I go into a state of calm. When I have no more enemies trying to destroy me, I feel at peace. When there are no more pressing matters demanding my attention, I can reach a state of tranquility.” Valrie blurts, “But that can’t be healthy!” Valtorex replies, “Maybe not, but it must be done. I spent two years as a mercenary, before that, I spent two chasing a demon across the continent, before that, I spent two years training to fight that demon. When you’ve lived a life like I have, you are forced to put survival in front of any possible hobbies.” Valrie, after a moment of bafflement, stammers, “But…but…that’s insane! The stress will kill you before the enemies!” Valtorex shakes his head and sighs. He then says, “That’s the point. So far, that stress has bought me six years. Let’s see how much further I can make it before it takes me down.” Valrie challenges, “You don’t need that stress now. You aren’t hounded by enemies anymore. You can slow down and pick up a hobby or two. I’ll even help you.” Valtorex asks, “How?” Valrie replies, “Easy, I’ll teach you to fish.” Valtorex shrugs as if to say, “Why not?” Valrie says, “Good. I’ll bring two fishing rods tomorrow. Now, I need to bathe, so if you could…” Valtorex takes the hint and says, “Ok. I need to get going anyway. I only have three hours till Darkwatch and I think I need to study a bit more.” Valrie nods. Valtorex, taking the initiative, (That would be an initiative role of 34 please) moves forward and embraces her. After a moment of shock, she returns the embrace. They stay there for a couple of minutes. They back away, blushing like the night before, and also like the night before, the blush is hidden by the treetops. Valtorex leaves and Valrie bathes.
Valtorex arrives at the Main Hall with about two and a half hours left. He goes to the library and looks through the books until he finds one about mental resistance. He goes to the librarian and has a copy made for twenty gold. He then spends the rest of his time reading the book. When Darkwatch arrives, he goes to the Head Mistress’s office. She is sitting behind her desk and looks up at him. Her brown, slightly graying hair, covers her face. She says, sweetly, “Ah, you have arrived. So, have you brought the letter?” Valtorex replies by pulling an envelope out of his pack and tossing it on the desk. It reads:
Dear Head Mistress,
I know you desire an apology from me and wish my surrender. I have written this letter to inform you of my decision. After consulting with my instructors and fellow students, I have come to the conclusion that your request for an apology and surrender is total bullshit and you can kiss my ass.
Yours truly,
Valtorex
Demere is livid by the time she finishes the letter. She screams, (‘Scuse me?) “You little, arrogant bastard! I’ll have your head for this! You will have detention with me until the end of your days! I suggest you start begging now and you may just see tomorrow.” Valtorex replies, “Go to the Abyss.” (Go to hell loses its impact when translated to D&D terminology. Go to the Abyss sounds more like a crappy vacation commercial) Demere stands abruptly and slaps him as hard as she can. After being slapped by Valrie, he is tempted to laugh. He doesn’t particularly like her, so he does. Next thing he knows, Valtorex’s face is pressed against her desk and the two bodyguards who were standing in the corners are holding him down. (Now is the time to scroll down until you see green if you are weak stomached)
Demere has her guards strip his torso. She pulls the electrified whip out of her desk. She flicks her wrist and Valtorex screams as the metal tip bites into his flesh. The electricity tears through his body and strikes his heart. His heart lurches before slowing to a near stop. Right when his heart returns to normal, Demere strikes him again. Valtorex remembers back to the book he just read and begins chanting his mantra. “Kaeje ona Morte. Kaeje ona Morte. Kaeje ona Morte…” Demere’s eyes take on a cruel gleam. She continues whipping him until he is barely breathing. His back is a road map of cuts from the whip. Demere returns her whip to the desk and pulls out a knife. She goes back to Valtorex, still held down by the guards, and slices across his back. He screams as the blade turns crimson. The wound quickly heals, healing the cut it covered, too. She slices again and a few droplets of blood are sent flying. Once again, the wound heals. She continues slicing into his back with the blade until Valtorex has screamed himself hoarse and blood has splattered onto the table and floor.
She returns to her desk drawer and replaces the knife. She pulls out a hammer and goes back to Valtorex. She has her guards tie him down with his arms spread on the desk. She takes the hammer and smashes his left little finger. She moves on to the next finger and smashes that. She moves from finger to finger on that hand before moving to the next hand. Once she is done with his fingers, she smashes his hands, making sure to break all of the bones in his hands. She moves up his arms, breaking the ulna and then the radius until she reaches the shoulders. Valtorex, already hoarse, can only make moaning sounds as she destroys his skeleton systematically. Once she has crushed his shoulders, she goes down to his feet. She swings the hammer and smashes his ankles. She moves up and shatters his tibula and fibula. She then breaks his femur, but the bindings prevent him from falling. She laughs at his pitiful state.
She returns the hammer to her desk and pulls out a diamond bladed knife. She walks over to him and stabs him in the back to the heart. She leaves the blade in his back and casts a quick spell to keep him alive. She says, “I think you have learned your lesson.” She orders her guards, “Dump him at the Training Grounds. Make sure he survives long enough to serve as an example to the rest.” The guards untie Valtorex and drag him to the Training Ground. They drop him and laugh when they hear his piteous moan. They walk off, leaving him to live or die.
(Alright, you can start reading again. BTY, if you’ve been reading the past few paragraphs, I think you can agree Saw’s got nothing on me) (Just a note, Saw has the added advantage of images, so just try to mentalize what I described, otherwise Saw will win) Hours later, Tyberus arrives and sees a barely living Valtorex. He runs and retrieves the Nurse. The Nurse comes running and sees Valtorex. She quickly begins healing him. Once she has finished healing him, she pulls the knife out of his back and heals that wound. (For those of you who didn’t read: if you had read, you would know what I’m talking about. If you did read: bravo) The knife is stained crimson, permanently. Valtorex rolls over, groaning in pain. The Nurse places the knife in her pouch and goes about restoring Valtorex’s strength. Once he feels like he can move, he forces himself into a sitting position. The Nurse orders, “No straining yourself. You should take the week off.” Valtorex counters, “Will the school take a week off? I doubt it, so no, I won’t either.” Valtorex gets to his feet and staggers over to Tyberus. He says, “I am ready to be trained, sir.” Tyberus nods in approval…just before decking him. As his world goes black, Valtorex briefly wonders why it hurts so much.
Hours later, Valtorex wakes up in his cabin. In the cabin are Valen, Valinor, and Myrstaline. The first thing to come out of his mouth is, “Where’s Valrie?” Valinor replies, “She has a detention with Demere. No reason whatsoever. I think whatever you did last night really pissed her off. She said something about giving her the ‘full treatment’. After seeing what she did to you, I wanted to stop her, but she warned us her guards were ordered to kill any trespassers.” Valtorex gets out of bed and says, “I can’t ask any of you to come with me, but I am going to teach that bitch to stay away from my friends. At this point, I don’t care if I win; I just want her to suffer as much as possible.” Valen quickly says, “I’m in!” Valinor nods and says, “Aye.” Myrstaline says, “I guess you will need someone to heal the wounded.” Valtorex chuckles darkly before saying, “I don’t intend on leaving any wounded, but you’re welcome to join us even so.” The four companions gear up and leave the cabin. Shrouded by the night and illuminated by the moonlight, they march towards the Main Hall. They can hear the screams from over five hundred feet away. Valtorex feels the fire burning within him flare up. He sees two guards standing watch. He motions to Valen, and then the guards. Valen nods and knocks to arrows at once. He draws his bow and releases. The arrows fly directly towards their targets. Each sentry goes down soundlessly, and arrow through their necks. (I could have them throw battleaxes and kill the sentries soundlessly, but I think arrows are a bit more believable)
Valtorex motions the small party forward. They arrive at the Main Halls entrance and move past the dead sentries. Valtorex casts a spell and looks through the door. He sees two guards on the other side of the door. He casts another spell, one he recently learned, to cause one guard to have a heart attack. (I love making stuff up. So much more convenient than following rules) The other guard quickly bends down and checks his comrade. He yells, “Nurse! Healer! Man down!” Valtorex motions to Myrstaline, who wearing her white healer’s robes, opens the door and runs in. The guard quickly explains what happened. Myrstaline tells the guard to fetch the Nurse and the guard complies. As he runs out, he is slowed by a long piece of steel in front of his throat. Slowed, but not stopped. The headless guard falls to the ground and Valtorex steps over the corpse to enter. Valtorex casts a spell of life detection and determines there are only four other people in the building. Assuming one is Demere and one Valrie, he says, “There are only two more guards. There and there. Eliminate them and I’ll take on Demere. As soon as they are gone, get out of here. This is my fight.” They nod, knowing they can’t argue. Valen goes through one door, and Myrstaline and Valinor go through another. Valtorex hears a gasp of surprise from Valen’s room. Moments later, Valen comes out, his longknife dripping with blood. From Valinor and Myrstaline’s room comes a flash, a sizzle, and a gurgle. Valinor comes out with a bloodied greatsword and Myrstaline looks as if she’s seen a ghost. Valtorex takes it they were successful. He motions them out the door and they run back to their cabins.
Valtorex then draws his swords and walks up to Demere’s office door. He kicks the door down and walks in. He finds Valrie tied to the desk, her back exposed and cut by the electric whip. Valtorex sees Demere come out with the hammer. He yells, “Drop it! Now!” Demere laughs before swinging the hammer down. Valtorex hears the audible crunch as the hammer crushes Valrie’s little finger. Valrie screams in renewed agony. Valtorex charges forward, swords raised and ready to kill. Demere shouts, “Now!” Valtorex feels his arms pulled back by some unbeatable force. He looks over and sees a ring of shadow around his right wrist. The same is on the left. He feels his legs lose movement and looks down to see the bands on his ankles. Demere cackles before saying, “Maybe seeing your sweetheart tortured will make you see reason!” She then performs the same technique she employed on Valtorex the night before. Valrie screams herself hoarse, but to no avail. The only one that can hear her is a helpless as she is.
Valtorex feels his ire rise, but no matter what he tries, the bonds are too strong. He goes through his mind, pouring over every spell. Finally it clicks. He remembers the short incantation Dumblefrog taught him. He says the incantation, and suddenly, a portal appears in front of him. From out of the portal pour frogs, spiders, rats, cats, and pretty much any other pest. They all congregate on Demere, forcing her down with biting and clawing. Finally, Dumblefrog hops out of the portal. He turns to Valtorex and says, “Hello, father. It has been awhile. Do you need help?” Valtorex nods before saying, “Yes.” Dumblefrog casts a spell and the bonds disappear. Valtorex picks up his swords and goes to Demere. Suddenly, a massive burst of magic sends Dumblefrog’s minions flying. Dumblefrog apologizes, “I’m sorry, father, but I can not waste my army on this fight. Good luck.” Then, Dumblefrog and his army retreat through the portal. Demere stands, seething. Valtorex rushes forward and slices Valrie’s bonds. When she stands to fight, Valtorex commands, “Get the hell out of here! I don’t want you to die needlessly!” Valrie retorts, “And what about you? You’ll die needlessly.” Valtorex’s reply is to cast a spell that teleports her to the cabin. Demere says, “So it is you against me. How sad.” Demere then casts a brutal arc of lightning at him. Valtorex tries to block, but the lightning goes around the shield. The lightning hits Valtorex, stunning him.
By the time he can move again, he is (I’m starting to think Mrs. Mitchell wrote the Word Spellcheck program, because it tried to change the “is” to “be”!) (Three cheers for Word! Hip hip hurray! Hip hip WTF! Delete repeated word? I’m praising you and you try to correct me?) once again in bonds. His torso has been stripped. Demere says, “This time, you will not forget who your master is. You will submit and you will always remember it.” She proceeds to brutally torture him, now with spells. By the end of the night, he is bleeding slowly form multiple wounds, his skin is burnt and blistered, his flesh is cooked, and his extremities are frozen. His nervous system is wracked by an incredibly painful, yet nonlethal poison. To enforce her dominance, Demere pulls a brand out of her desk and uses magic to heat it. She presses the brand into his flesh, burning a large ‘D’ on top of her personal seal, over his heart. Valtorex passes out and Demere leaves him at the Training Ground.
The next morning, Tyberus arrives and, once again, finds Valtorex. He is furious when he sees Demere’s symbol burned into his flesh. He is surprised when the Nurse comes along without being sent for. She goes over to Valtorex and begins healing him. She finds that she cannot remove the brand. Valtorex sits up halfway through treatment and screams in rage. Just then, Demere comes along, carrying a katana. (Any weapon goes, even Japanese ones) Demere orders, “Get up!” The brand on Valtorex’s chest shines with a hellish glow. He screams in pain as the brand burns his very heart. He gets to his feet and the pain subsides. Demere chuckles before saying, “Very effective. Maybe I will brand every student.” Valtorex yells, “Just try it. I dare you.” Demere orders, “Get on your knees before me.” The brand glows and the burning drives him to move forward and kneel before her. (This will come into play often) Demere says, “Good boy. Just obey me and you won’t feel the pain. Now surrender to me.” The brand burns his chest, but Valtorex draws his mental line. Tyberus steps forward, his anger bubbling over. Demere sees this and says to him, “Remember, I control whether you come back next year or not. I suggest you stay out of my way or your tenure just might end.” Demere then looks down at Valtorex, who is still struggling against the pain. She commands, “Surrender or die. That burning will destroy your heart if you do not submit.” Valtorex (Come on, guess what he says) replies, through clenched teeth, “Kaeje…ona…Morte.” Demere is furious. She yells, “So you want to be an Elite? Well then, you will die like an Elite!” Demere brings her sword to bear. The razor-edged katana slices through his chest, leaving a long, bloody gash. Valtorex grunts at the pain.
At about that time, Valinor shows up. He sees Demere’s attack on Valtorex and charges forward. As he sprints towards her, he draws his greatsword. Demere brings her katana to Valtorex’s throat and commands Valinor, “Stay back.” Valinor stops in mid run and backs up. Silvanos and Rogard arrive. Demere presses the katana into Valtorex’s flesh and says, “Surrender.” Valtorex laughs through the pain and the dizziness from blood loss. He says, “I’m going to die anyway. I might as well die with honor.” Demere yells, “I’m sick of you defying me! You will submit, just like all of the others! I demand it!” Valtorex takes advantage of her distraction and plunges the Knife of the Ancestors into her gut. Demere backs away, eyes wide in shock. The Nurse runs forward and Demere is reassured by the fact she won’t die. To her surprise, instead of healing Demere, the Nurse blasts Demere with a wave of magic and heals Valtorex. Demere feels the blade forced deeper into her as she is forced back through the air. Valtorex exhales a sigh of relief as the pain from the brand subsides and the gash on his chest is healed. Valinor interposes himself between Demere and Valtorex. Demere struggles to her feet and tries to yank the knife free. When she touches the hilt, a bright flash of light bursts forth from it and she screams in pain. When her vision returns, she sees that her hand is badly burned. Valtorex stands and not knowing why, motions to the knife. The knife flies out of Demere, cutting her even more, and soars straight into his open palm. Demere’s eyes flash in rage. She abruptly turns and stalks off, her hand over the wound in her gut. Valtorex returns the Knife of the Ancestors to his belt. Tyberus says, “Valtorex, if you keep this up, you won’t last through the year.” Valtorex replies, “If I keep this up, she won’t either.” Tyberus says, “Still, take the day off. I’ll write to the rest of your instructors. You’re of no use to the Empire dead.” (Who knows, I may write a book about Valtorex the Lich, but then he’d be a FredJ) Valtorex asks, “Is that an order?” Tyberus replies, “Only if it needs to be.” Valtorex shrugs and says, “Very well, sir. I will take the day off, but only because I am under orders.”
Valtorex turns to leave, and Silvanos taunts, “Oh, is the baby running away after a little whipping?” Valtorex turns and his eyes flare up. He asks, his voice full of steely resolve, “Permission to kick his ass, sir?” Tyberus, thinking it will do him good, responds, “Permission granted. Cripple, don’t kill.” Valtorex says, “Thank you.” Valtorex draws his swords and charges Silvanos. Silvanos draws his rapier quickly, but not quickly enough. Valtorex slaps Silvanos across the cheek with his lightning sword, causing Silvanos to jump back in shock. Valtorex presses the attack and burns Silvanos’s wrist, forcing him to drop his sword. Valtorex places the blazing edge of his sword at Silvanos’s throat and says, “Remember this. Even at my worst, I can beat you at your best.” Silvanos backs away, his hands in front of him, as if to ward off any blows. Valtorex decides to bear with it and spends the class training with Rogard and Valinor.
At the end of the period, Valtorex goes to the Glade and meets Arianna. She says, “You are injured, apprentice. It was Demere, was it not?” Valtorex replies, “Yes, it was.” Arianna asks, “What did she do this time?” Valtorex replies by exposing his chest. Arianna’s eyes widen briefly as she sees the mark. She then says, “Ok. Well, you will be carrying that for the rest of your life. Now you need to move on.” Valtorex is pissed that she is dismissing this so easily, but out of respect, he says nothing. She continues, “For the next month, I will teach you how to fight.” They spend that period sparring and Valtorex leaves bruised and exhausted. (We’ll be moving a lot faster for the rest of the chapter)
Valtorex arrives at the Tower of the Arcane. He meets Myrstaline and they go in together. Rōdenthall is waiting for them. He says, “Today and every day for the next month, we will be learning about battle magic. Let’s begin.” They spend that class period discussing the various spells reliant upon electricity and their applications. After multiple demonstrations and a lot of charred furniture, the four students are dismissed to their fourth period classes. Valtorex and Myrstaline part, Myrstaline still ignorant of Valtorex’s wound.
Valtorex arrives at the Hall of Trials. He sees Lord Kemos waiting for him. Lord Kemos asks, “Is it true what they’re saying? That you, Valen, and Valinor launched a strike on the office to get Valrie?” Valtorex responds, “No, of course not. That would be against the rules. Everyone knows I am the only one that attacked, and therefore the punishment is mine alone. Feel free to pass that up the chain.” Lord Kemos says, “It is honorable for you to accept the blame for your entire team.” Valtorex replies, “I lead the raid, it is my responsibility.” Lord Kemos nods. He then asks, “So, how were you punished?” Valtorex answers by showing him the brand mark. Lord Kemos is astonished. He stammers out, “She…she…branded you? But…that…that’s been illegal for one-thousand years!” Valtorex asks, “Why? It wasn’t that painful.” Lord Kemos, his normal cool headedness returning replies, “It’s not the branding that’s illegal; it’s the control it allows.” Valtorex nods in sudden understanding. By that time, Valinor, Valen, and Valrie have arrived. Lord Kemos says, “Well, for the rest of the year, you will be learning counter-siege techniques.” (Try to piece together what happens in the next, oh shall we say, three chapters) They spend the rest of the day learning about the weak points on various siege engines. When class is almost over, a messenger arrives informing Valtorex he has detention with Demere that night. Valtorex, having had almost no sleep in the past three days, decides he will spend a few hours meditating after he is done with Myrstaline.
He goes to the Glade and finds Myrstaline waiting. She says, out of the blue, “I don’t know how you can stand it. She only cut me for a while; the rest was just threats and some slapping. She tortures you for eight hours at a time. How do you not go insane or die?” (Valtorex replies, “We all need a better dialogue writer. Jeff can not handle more than three personalities at a time, including his own.”) (And Ian interjects, “Jeff, stop talking to yourself as Valtorex, unless you want to seem schizophrenic.”) (I’m not talking to myself, the red is. And I’m not schizo, just too lazy to be creative with personalities. BTY, 3rd person, very schizo) Valtorex replies, “It’s because I hate her so much the pain doesn’t really get to me.” Myrstaline says, “But I hate her too. It doesn’t make it hurt any less.” Valtorex just shrugs before saying, “No idea. Just so you know, I haven’t slept much in the past three days. Do you think we could take today off so I can rest?” Myrstaline says, “Fine by me. You need the rest. I just have one question. Why haven’t you surrendered yet? I mean, I surrendered within the first twenty minutes.”
Valtorex responds, after some thought, “Remember the Fear Stalkers earlier this year? Well, when we fought them, I swore to live my life to fight those who prey upon the fear of others. Demere is one of those, and thus I am sworn to fight her.” (Crusade timeJ) Myrstaline says, “That sounds like a noble cause. I think I want to join it.” Valtorex counters, “No you don’t. If you wanted to join it, you wouldn’t think, you would know. I don’t think you have the resolve to do it.” Myrstaline, hurt, yells, “Yes I do! I have more resolve than you’ll ever have!” Valtorex sternly challenges, “Prove it. Next time you end up with a detention from Demere, don’t quit just because it hurts. Fight till your last breath. Then you can consider yourself worthy of having a cause.” Myrstaline is on the verge of tears, but she stands straight and faces him directly. She says, “Fine, I accept your challenge. Make sure your resolve can last. Goodbye.” Myrstaline turns and leaves, letting the tears fall. Valtorex can feel her distress, but he holds back his instinctive drive to help. He realizes that her being angry with him is good. Those who like him get hurt.
He tries to meditate, but the look of pain on Myrstaline’s face drives away all peace he can find. He eventually gives up and devotes himself fully to study. Hours later, Valrie arrives. He senses her coming up and leaves before she can see him. He goes to the library and reads for four hours. At the strike of the clock, he goes to Demere’s office. She is waiting for him and says, “Valtorex, you have denied my power for too long. I’m tired of this game. From now on, you will obey me. I may not be able to break you, but I can cycle your friends through here until eventually one of them breaks. Once I get one, the others will be easier to take down. Now of course, if you just submit to my will, that won’t be necessary. So what will it be? Your friends suffering on your behalf for years, or you swallowing your pride?” Valtorex replies, “If you lay a hand on my friends, I will kill you in a very excruciating way. As for swallowing my pride, that’s not the problem. The problem is I’ve sworn to fight those who are too cowardly to fight fairly.” Demere summons the rings to hold him in place. In her fury, she does not notice the smile of triumph on Valtorex’s face as she pulls out the knife.
His schedule falls into a groove. His mornings are spent with Tyberus training at melee, and Arianna studying combat in general. His afternoons involve Battle magic with Rōdenthall and counter siege tactics with Lord Kemos. He continues meditation training with Myrstaline, but they are nowhere near as close as they once were. Every night, Demere tortures him, but he still does not break. He spends weeks avoiding Valrie at night, but eventually the unavoidable happens. Valrie confronts Valtorex one night. She starts off with, “Where in the Abyss have you been? I’ve only seen you in class for the past few weeks! I want the truth and I want it now!” Valtorex sighs, bracing himself for the long talk he knows is coming. He says, “I’ve been avoiding you because I don’t want you to get hurt. The closer you are to me, the more likely you are to be a target for Demere. If we keep seeing each other, we are bound to become very close, which is likely to make you very dead. I would like for you to leave me alone, and please tell the others to do the same. My war with Demere is mine alone.” Valrie is no longer hurt by Valtorex avoiding her. She’s furious. She demands, “Why didn’t you think to ask me first before deciding this? Don’t you think I should have a say in whether or not we stop seeing each other?” Valtorex replies, “I didn’t ask because, frankly, you have no business telling me what to do. Sure, we may have had something a few weeks ago, but now, I see I was foolish to think I could ever have a human relationship. I am a warrior. My life is a mad killing spree to the grave. The fewer people that like me, the fewer to grieve when the inevitable occurs.”
Valrie says, her voice soft and heavy with sadness, “I will still grieve, no matter what you do to try to stop me.” Valtorex laughs at the irony. He then says, “Amazing. Normally I’m the one who tells people they can’t stop me. You are so much like me it’s scary.” Valrie feels the shift back to normalcy and decides to join in to try to push her momentary advantage. She jokes, “Oh no! Me like you! That’s horrible to even think of!” Valtorex laughs, for the second time that month. The laughter is heartfelt, for the first time in six years. They talk for hours, just discussing what they’ve missed in each other’s lives. In the distance, the clock strikes Darkwatch. Valrie jumps up from the log they had occupied and exclaims, “You have to go! You’ll be late!” Valtorex gets up and pulls Valrie close. He says, “Screw her. You’re so much more important.” (I think I’m going to vomit. It may be trying to type on a moving car in the dark, but it’s probably the romance) They stand there in each other’s arms for several minutes. Finally, Valtorex realizes they have to break it off before Demere starts looking for him, so he pats her on the back and lets her go. He says, “Now I can go. I’ll see you tomorrow.” As he is turning to leave, she stops him and kisses him on the cheek. (Ah! My heart is starting to warm a bit! I need liquid nitrogen!) Valtorex kisses her on the cheek in return before running off. (No, I do not have the romantic knowledge of a kindergartener. It’s just that teens on (Insert name of planet, thank you very much) don’t have the reproductive drive of rabbits or at least have the self-control to wait until their parents arrange a marriage) (Curse you, you grammar obsessed psycho! I’s can sez whatever I wants and you ain’t gonna stop me! It isn’t on, it’s in! Muahahaha!)
Valtorex arrives at Demere’s office to find her fuming. She demands, “What in the Abyss took you so long?” Valtorex replies, no hint of emotion showing, “Just wanted to remind you I hold little stock in your authority, miss.” Demere practically roars, (‘Scuse me?”) “Miss! How dare you? I am the Head Mistress! I am to be respected and feared! You will bleed for your insolence!” Valtorex, emboldened by his time with Valrie, laughs in her face before returning, “Whatever you say, little missy. If you want to have a temper tantrum, don’t let me stop you.” (Ooh, looks like someone’s getting a timeout) Demere screams, “I’ll have your head you little conceited bastard!” Valtorex, knowing he’ll pay dearly, and yet, not caring, replies, “Shut up, you stupid, incompetent bitch of an administrator.” (Even in the real world, a student world probably be decapitated for saying that) Demere is ruthless that night.
The next day, Valtorex goes to Valrie, and she tries to teach him how to fish. He quickly becomes frustrated and levitates some fish out of the water. Valrie shakes her head before saying, “It’s not about the fish. It’s about the wait. It gives you time to muse and just relax.” Valtorex counters, “What’s the point in sitting around doing nothing? Aren’t there enemies to fight or battle to win? I should be training, not trying to catch fish.” Valrie counters back, “But on the battlefield, you wouldn’t be able to be with me.” Valtorex smiles a bit and says, “True enough. Alright, I’ll give it a try.”
The strict regimen of training continues for another month. Valrie and Valtorex continue meeting at night, and Valtorex and Myrstaline even restore their friendship. One day, Myrstaline tries to kiss Valtorex again, but Valtorex stops her. When he sees the confusion in her eyes, he says, “I’m sorry, but I can’t. I love you, but as a friend and even a sister. My heart must go to Valrie, but I still care about you. I’m sorry, but we just can’t have a romantic relationship right now. I still want to be friends, but that’s it.” (And the choice is made) Myrstaline feels the tears coming forth, but she controls herself. Just then, Demere comes up flanked by two bodyguards. Demere says, “Myrs’line, you have detention. Now!” Myrstaline’s eyes widen in fear. Valtorex turns on Demere and says, “No, she doesn’t.” Demere shoots him a glare that would cause most to shrink back. He moves forward, his hands on his swords. Valtorex continues, “By the way, her name is Myrs-ta-line. Try to remember that.” Demere is livid. She yells, “You may defy me, but I will not have you undermining my rule over the other students! Guards! Seize him!” The two guards move forward, swords drawn. Valtorex says, challenge in his eyes, “You know those six guards that were killed in a student raid? Guess who did that.” The guards, like true soldiers of Draconia, continue their movement towards him, but they are more wary now. Demere screams, “Charge you idiots! Rush him and take him down!” The guards swallow hard, but follow orders. With a yell, they charge. Within seconds, they are both unconscious on the ground. Valtorex, breathing easily, says, “Leave her alone.” Demere smiles cruelly and says, “Subdue the elf.” Valtorex feels the brand burning hot. He struggles and fights with it for several minutes, and soon, he is on his knees and the leather over his chest has begun smoking. Demere demands, “Seize her now!” The burning is renewed in fury. Moments later, the brand has burnt through the leather and an acrid smell has filled the grove. Valtorex feels the pain overtaking his senses and slowly destroying him. In his last seconds of consciousness, and possibly life, he says one word that carries far more power than the most eloquent speech, “No.” He then falls face down as the brand’s fire overwhelms his nervous system.
Demere laughs evilly as she kicks Valtorex’s unconscious form. Demere then says, “You’re coming with me, elf. If you behave yourself, then you might return.” Myrstaline’s response is to blast her out of the Glade with a furious wave of light. Demere strikes a tree with a sickening crunch. She slumps to the ground and sits dazed for several moments. When her vision finally settles, she gets up. She notes that her arm is broken and one of her legs is wounded. She staggers back to her office. Myrstaline has already started healing Valtorex. That night, Valtorex is punished more severely than usual for his rebellion.
School marches on another month and midterms are fast approaching. Valtorex sets up a program where he, Myrstaline, Valrie, Valen, and Valinor meet in the library two hours after fourth period and study for six hours. They often do more messing around than training, but at least they become closer. (Sorry I’m going so fast, this is going to be an <ahem> 11 chapter book, and I’m on Ch.3, in year one of 5, so I have to skip ahead a bit) Valtorex and Valrie don’t have much time for the intimate moments they shared before, but they still build their friendship. Then one night, Valinor has to go and have his armor repaired, so he can’t show up for the study. Valen needs to buy more arrows, so he is at the armory. Myrstaline was called in by the Healer’s School to treat a mishap at the Tower of the Arcane that hospitalized nearly twenty students. This leaves Valrie and Valtorex alone. Valrie points out that they are alone. Valtorex points out they have nothing to study for. In moments, they are out the door and in the forest, heading towards the Glade. They arrive at the Glade and Valrie digs out their fishing rods. They sit together and cast out their lines. (Of course, it’s not about the fish, otherwise they might just think about using bait) They spend a few hours sitting there, talking and just enjoying being together. With about an hour left, Valtorex looks over and sees Valrie looking at him. He sees her lips part slightly and he leans forward. They spend several moments kissing, but then Valtorex feels a tug on his fishing rod. (Originally rod. I think you guys can guess why I changed it) Valtorex sees a fish biting on his line. He sighs and pulls back. He then yanks the fish out of the water and bludgeons it to death. This kills the mood for Valrie, (Can you blame her?) and they sink into an uncomfortable silence, thinking about the moment they just shared. (Don’t know whether to curse or praise that fishJ) Their time together ends and he goes to Demere. (He has three women in his life. One to get wounds for, one to inflict the wounds, and one to heal the wounds. You figure it out)
Midterms arrive and they begin cramming furiously. (Those of you who were put off by all that romantic crap, don’t worry, the next pages are chock full of magic and steel) The day of midterms is upon them, and they have one night left. They spend it practicing for their various classes against each other. On the day of midterms, Valtorex almost doesn’t wake up. Demere was dead set on killing him or at least hurting him so much he’d fail. She may have succeeded. Tyberus says, “Today, you will be fighting. You will be graded on a scale of one to ten. For every match you win, you will get a one-point bonus. First, it will be Valinor against Silvanos and Valtorex against Rogard. Two fourth year students judging. One will judge one match and one will judge the other. You will be allotted one hour for the first match.” They break off into pairs. Valtorex gets the student judge, who introduces himself as Garrow Dragonblood.
Rogard and Valtorex pair off. Garrow stands, ready to intervene if necessary. Rogard pulls his greataxe off his back and Valtorex draws his swords. They begin circling each other, looking for a weakness. Suddenly, Rogard charges, swinging his axe with all of might. His stocky dwarven frame allows the buildup of a massive amount of force. Valtorex blocks with both swords, but is staggered and nearly falls down. Valtorex quickly recovers and springs at him. Rogard blocks one sword, but the other sword gets through and cuts him. The lighting is barely noticed by the hardy dwarf. (Dwarven magic resistance. Fireball? What fireball?) Rogard swings his axe around above his head, driving Valtorex back. Valtorex knows he cannot lose and charges into the steel whirlwind of death. He uses his left sword to hit the axe in the haft. He is forced to drop his left sword, but he scores a solid hit with his right, the fire singing Rogard’s tunic. Rogard swings his axe whilst [Ah a remotely ME (Middle English) word warms my heart J] (Why the boxing? BTY, I’m almost tempted to change it to while, just for spite. Viva la comma!) jumping forward. Valtorex is forced back. Rogard takes the offensive and begins pushing Valtorex towards the edge of the ring. Valtorex feels his foot hit open air and knows he will go off if he retreats any more. He plants his feet defiantly and raises his swords. He tenses his legs as he prepares to spring. Rogard swings the axe and strikes Valtorex’s guard. Valtorex springs forward at the moment of impact, knocking Rogard off balance. Valtorex presses forward, driving Rogard back until he reaches the edge. He sees the desperate look in Rogard’s eyes and leaves himself open to attack. Rogard, too worried about winning to question his luck, takes the opening and lunges forward, his axe coming down from above his head. Valtorex dodges to the side and winds up behind Rogard. He places the tip of his sword at Rogard’s back and says, “That’s match.”
Garrow commands, “Once more.” Valtorex nods and withdraws the blade. Rogard and Valtorex face off again. They bow to each other and stand straight. Garrow nods his approval. Valtorex charges with a yell and Rogard follows suit. They meet with a clash of steel. Valtorex jumps back as Rogard’s superior strength comes into play. Valtorex circles around him, always countering Rogard’s attacks. Rogard soon grows fatigued and Valtorex strikes. Rogard gets his axe up in time to block, but he is forced to stumble back. Rogard loses his grip on his axe with one hand and it falls to his side. Valtorex recovers quickly and drives forward. Rogard cannot bring his axe up in time and quickly finds himself with Valtorex’s swords crossed at his neck.
Garrow says, “Alright, I will give Rogard a seven, aiming down. Valtorex gets a nine, aiming up. Let us wait until the next round.” The next round arrives. Valtorex finds he has a dark elf judge and he is fighting Valinor. The dark elf introduces herself as Zilandra. She says, “I expect a good, bloody fight. Begin.” Valinor draws his greatsword, the acid flying off in small droplets. (I’m assuming he has some sort of special harness or something) Valtorex draws his swords. They bow to each other. Zilandra makes a mental note to dock a point from each of them for it. They charge each other and steel meets steel. (BTY, a decent song) They stand there for several minutes, slashing at each other. Sparks and acid fly. Back and forth, they slash and stab. Their blades clang and clatter as they fight for supremacy. Valinor brings his sword down on Valtorex, but Valtorex raises his crossed blades to stop it. The acid drops down onto his face, causes him to grunt. His concentration nearly wavers, but he goes on. He forces Valinor back and they keep up the fight. Zilandra watches this, hoping someone will slip up and die. Valtorex loses his footing and goes off balance. Valinor presses the advantage, and after some weak blocks, Valtorex ends up with Valinor’s blade against his throat. Valtorex nods and backs away.
Zilandra demands, “Another.” They bow, and once again Zilandra notes to dock their points. They rise and charge. Valtorex jumps this time, deciding to go all out. Valinor brings his blade up, but he miscalculates and the tip scrapes the ground, slowing it. (No, that isn’t it) He does manage to get it up, but Valtorex’s attack causes him to stagger back. Valinor rushes forward after recovering. Valtorex jumps to the side and ends up behind him. Valinor turns abruptly and swings. Valtorex ducks below the slashing adamantium blade. Once the blade has passed over him, he jumps up. Valinor has already brought his blade back and strikes Valtorex in the chest. Valtorex, however, has crossed his swords at Valinor’s neck.
Zilandra yells, “Again!” Valtorex and Valinor back up. They face each other and bow. Zilandra is very annoyed at this point. If she followed a god, she would pray that they die. They stand up and charge. They meet and they slam their blades against each other. Sparks, flares, little lightning arc, and acid are sent flying. Both of them stagger back from the blow. Valtorex is the first to recover and jumps to the side, rolling and coming up behind him. Valinor turns in time to block Valtorex’s attack. Valinor pushes forward, forcing Valtorex back. Valtorex quickly finds himself at the edge of the ring. Valtorex is forced to make a desperate attack, but fate is with him and his attack forces Valinor back. Valtorex presses the attack, eventually pinning Valinor at the edge of the ring. He keeps Valinor pinned, waiting for his move. It comes when Valinor swings and over-extends himself. With one kick, Valtorex sends Valinor falling out of the ring.
Valtorex sheathes his swords and reaches down to Valinor. He lifts Valinor up and helps him onto the ring. Zilandra comes over and says, “I give Valtorex a 2 going down and Valinor a 1, going down.” Valinor’s eyes widen a bit, but he says nothing. Valtorex does not have that good sense. He challenges, “Why the low scores?” Zilandra retorts, “You are now 1 going down. The low scores were for the pompous actions, the inferior combat, the failure to kill your foes, and that insubordinate attitude.” Valtorex clenches his fists, but just then, Tyberus comes along and says, “It’s time for the last round. It will be Valinor against Rogard for the first half, then Valtorex against Silvanos.”
The first round of finals begins and Valinor draws his sword as Rogard hefts his axe. They salute each other before charging. Rogard jumps as he swings the axe up from below him. Valinor brings his sword down. The blades smash into each other, piercing the air with a sharp clash. They keep fighting both determined to win. They fight and fight, both taking minor wounds, but neither stopping. It ends when Tyberus commands, “Stop! We will now decide.” The two warriors stop and bow to each other before backing away. Garrow starts. He says, “8 going up for Valinor, 7 going up for Rogard.” Zilandra inputs, “3 going down for Valinor and 2 going down for Rogard.” Tyberus says, “I think I’ll abide by Garrow’s decision on this one.” Zilandra huffs and says, “Fine, go ahead.” Tyberus turns on her and threatens, “Learn some respect, girl, or you’ll find yourself a scullery maid in a week.” Zilandra bows and apologizes.
The next fight is Valtorex against Silvanos. Tyberus warns, “Don’t make a mockery of this fight. If you use magic, I will not restrict Valtorex.” Silvanos snidely remarks, “In a straight out magic fight, I would win anyway.” Valtorex counters, “History does not support you on that.” Silvanos’s face goes red before he yells, “Let’s just start the match.” Valtorex replies, “Fine by me.” Tyberus says, “Very well. Begin when you are ready.” Silvanos and Valtorex face off. Valtorex bows, and Silvanos rushes him. Silvanos flashes across the ring and kicks him in the jaw as he rises. Valtorex is sent falling back. Silvanos whips out his blade and presses it against Valtorex’s chest. Valtorex draws his sword. Silvanos presses the tip of his blade into Valtorex, piercing the leather. Valtorex continues drawing his sword and bashes the point away. Silvanos stabs in and the momentum from Valtorex’s blade cuts a gash in Valtorex’s chest. Valtorex rolls and gets up. Silvanos protests, “I won! You can’t get back up!” Tyberus yells, “You cheated. He has every right to kill you, bastard!” Valtorex presses the attack, only holding his flaming sword. Silvanos is forced back, startled by Valtorex’s fury. Their blades flash and clash, Valtorex’s momentum driving Silvanos back. Valtorex finally jumps back and draws his other sword. Silvanos presses forward to try to strike at Valtorex, but he is quickly forced back. Valtorex presses the attack, driving Silvanos towards the edge. Valtorex brings his left blade down on Silvanos, but Silvanos blocks. With a word, a massive pulse of energy from his blade causes Valtorex’s sword to fly out of his grasp. Silvanos then brings his sword back around and slashes into the momentarily stunned Valtorex’s chest.
Valtorex staggers back, clutching his chest. Silvanos jumps forward, steel flashing through the air. Valtorex brings his sword up, just to have it knocked aside. Valtorex is forced back, his sword being knocked to the side again and again. Each time, he brings it up in time to stop Silvanos’s attack. He feels his strength fleeing through his fingers with his blood. Valtorex casts a spell that cauterizes the wound and stops the blood flow. He then focuses fully on blocking. Silvanos’s momentum and superior speed give him an edge over Valtorex, and soon, Valtorex has reached the edge of the ring. Silvanos backs up, and with his blade angled out horizontal the ground in his right hand, and his left in front of and above his head. He begins chanting the words to a curse that will rip Valtorex’s torso to pieces from the inside out. Valtorex looks to Tyberus, who gives a nearly imperceptible nod. Valtorex looks at Silvanos and his face takes on the resoluteness of one prepared to die to win. He brings his sword up and bashes aside Silvanos’s. He continues his mad drive and slashes at Silvanos’s chest. Silvanos jumps back with a barely visible charring of his black robes. Valtorex presses on, battering aside Silvanos’s futile blocks. Silvanos, now on the defensive, lets the words of the spell slip out of his mind as he focuses on staying alive. Silvanos does not notice it, but Valtorex is muttering the words of a lethal spell he recently learned. Silvanos, not expecting any attack they haven’t been taught in class, is greatly surprised when he feels his internal organs begin burning painfully. He faintly recalls the spell and how Rōdenthall taught him to counter it. He keeps blocking, every movement taking considerable effort, and dispels the spell. (It’s lethal because if Silvanos hadn’t dispelled it, his organs would have kept burning till they cooked themselves) Valtorex keeps up his attack, not letting Silvanos regain his footing. Unfortunately, Silvanos does regain his ground and, with a word, paralyzes Valtorex. He then casts various enchantments to ensure the spell holds, to nullify Valtorex’s spellcasting ability, heighten his senses, and sap his strength. Valtorex feels his sword grow heavy in his hand, and he lets it fall. He nearly falls himself, but he finds his body is held up by some invisible force.
Silvanos then begins walking around him, lashing out and making shallow cuts. He begins talking, his voice cold and cruel. He says, “Finally, I can teach you some respect.” He slices into Valtorex’s back. Valtorex does not give him the pleasure of a scream. Silvanos continues, “You know, I actually thought you would make a good mage.” Another slash follows. “But when I saw how you protect the girl, I realized you are just another pathetic fool.” Another slice. “When Rōdenthall ordered me to do everything I could to hurt you, I was overjoyed.” Slice. “When I got to think about it, I realized it would be fun to test my skills against one such as myself.” Slash. “After all, you are the golden boy of this year.” Slash. “Everything just falls into your lap.” Slash, slash. “I wasn’t so lucky. I’ve had to work so hard and sacrifice so much just to get where I am.” Slash. His face takes on a scowl and his voice becomes more of an angry growl. Zilandra is caught up in bloodlust while Tyberus is furious, but too proud to interfere, and Garrow is ready to kill Silvanos himself but wants to give Valtorex a chance. “You know, I had a girl like that.” Slash. “I loved her so much I would die for her.” Slash. “Then I was told to kill her or fail.” Slash. “Within a day, I presented her bleeding heart to Rōdenthall.” Slash. “Since you won’t be able to, I think I’ll do the same thing to your girl, or should I say girls?” Slash, slash. “I kind of like the human though. Perhaps I’ll offer to spare her life in exchange for some, shall we say, favors. What do you think about that?” Slash, slash, slash. “That bleeding heart Myrstaline, I’ll have my fun with, but then I’ll dispose of her.” Slash. “The human I’ll keep for awhile.” Slash. “Then maybe I’ll move on to the barbarian and the archer.” Slash. “I bet the archer will jump high when I stick him.” Slash. “The barbarian won’t be too much fun. I’ll have to bleed him quick.” Slash, slash. “Of course, I could always present Myrstaline to Demere.” Slash. “I bet she would love a new toy to practice on.” Valtorex feels his consciousness slipping away from the loss of blood, but instead of dimming with his mind, his anger burns hotter. He feels his concentration break for the first time in months, and an ancient being full of rage, hatred, and fire emerges. Silvanos keeps cutting and asks, “So, how is the human? Oh, no answer? Oh well, I guess I’ll find out tonight. You don’t mind, do you?”
Silvanos’s heart skips a few beats when Valtorex replies, his voice full of demonic rage and immortal fury, “I think you should run as far away as you can, you drasked bastard! I will enjoy destroying you and seeing your soul burn in the Abyss! Now, join me in my fire!” (The balrog is back) The spells chaining him are now broken as he roars out his fury. His eyes are blazing with fury and his wounds are bleeding fire. In his hands, longswords made of pure flame appear. Silvanos backs away, eyes wide in fear, heart racing. He casts spell after spell at the balrog controlled Valtorex, but they all strike him and dissipate with no effect. As Valtorex is about to reach him, Silvanos teleports away. Valtorex roars and tosses down his swords. He reaches out a hand. He reaches through time and space, his fury enough to force through the currents of magic. His hand curls around Silvanos’s ankle and rips him back into the Material Plane. Valtorex tosses Silvanos down and hears a satisfying snap as his bones break. Valtorex raises his hands and the two swords appear. They merge into one and he swings down. An outside hand reaches out and pulls Silvanos back into the currents of magic, teleporting him far, far away. Valtorex, enraged even more by his prey escaping, slams his sword into the ground time and time again. The stone cracks and shatters. He grows hotter and hotter until the stone below him begins melting. He roars as he begins sinking into the molten rock. With a final roar and downward swing, a massive blast centering around him is released. The blast vaporizes the stone, leaving a crater where he stood. Before the dust even settles, Garrow, Valinor, Zilandra, Rogard, and Tyberus run forward to see the damage.
What they see amazes them. They see Valtorex, his armor burnt away, lying in the center of the crater. He lifts his head, and asks, “What happened?” Zilandra, a killer at heart, doesn’t look away as he gets to his feet. Valtorex notes his nakedness and says, “Damn, I lost my weapons. Good thing I took my pack off.” They are astonished as a portal opens behind Valtorex and a chest falls out. Valtorex turns and sees the chest. He kneels down and opens it. Inside are: four daggers, a knife a staff, two crossbows, and two hundred bolts, all of which look as if they are made of living flame. There is also a sanguine robe, a black hardened leather suit, legs, arm guards, boots, and cuirass, and a plate body that appears to be made of the same living flame as the weapons. He says, “A gift from the balrog.” before putting on the leather armor, then the robe, then the plate body. He puts the weapons on to replace the old ones, although he notices the lack of his special knife and his swords. As he is moving, his foot hits something in the dust. He bends down and finds the Knife of The Ancestors, completely unscathed. He replaces it, the climbs out of the crater with Valinor’s help. He goes over and retrieves his swords. The judging begins.
Garrow says, “Straight up ten. Going up, of course.” Tyberus says, “I’ll go nine, going up, too.” Zilandra says, her voice wavering a bit, “I have to say three, going down. He barely did anything but bleed everywhere and destroy part of the ring.” Valtorex says, “You gave me low scores in the last match too. Either you are incredibly hard to please, or you have a vendetta against Valinor and I.” Zilandra counters, “I just hold you to a higher standard. Is that wrong?” Tyberus says, “If I recall, you gave Silvanos a 10, going up.” She then says, “That is my ruling and I stand by it.” Tyberus is about to speak when Valtorex says, “Very well. If you are just holding me to a higher standard, then I must assume it is the standard you hold yourself to.” Zilandra nods and says, “That is right.” Valtorex then continues, “Then I challenge you to prove it.” Garrow interjects, “Valtorex, you don’t know her! I can’t beat her half the time! What chance do you have?” Zilandra glares at Garrow and says, “The challenge has been made. We do not have enough time now, but at a time Sir Tyberus deems appropriate, we will fight to the death.” Tyberus sighs before saying, “Very well.” Class ends. Valtorex goes to the Glade and meets Arianna. She says, “Welcome, apprentice. Your midterm exam will consist of an oral test about the Draconic Empire, and a practical test against me. First question, ‘What is the Draconic Knighthood’s battle-cry?’” Valtorex answers, “Kai Zanaria, Kai Manäïen, Kai Kaeje.” Arianna nods. She then asks, “And what is its purpose?” Valtorex replies, “To protect and serve the Empire and its people from threats both internal and external.” She then asks, “And who does a Draconic Knight answer to?” Valtorex replies, “No one but his direct superiors and the gate keeper of the Abyss.” Arianna asks him several more questions before she seems satisfied.
“Now for the practical test. Your task is to land a blow. I noticed your new armor and weapons. I hope they are as good as they look.” Arianna summons a shaft of blood-red light. She spins it around in her hands. It moves through the air like it doesn’t even have weight. Valtorex draws his staff and attacks. She knocks him back without effort. The staff may move like it’s insubstantial, but it doesn’t feel like it. Valtorex attacks again and again, each time he is forced back without landing a single blow. After several hours, Arianna commands, “Stop. Your time is up.” Valtorex drops his staff, feeling the despair that can only come with failure. Arianna notices this and says, “Don’t worry, you passed.” Valtorex, drenched in sweat from nearly four hours straight of combat after the combat from before, looks up, surprised. Arianna clarifies, “The point of the test wasn’t to hit me. It was to try until time ran out. If that was a battle, sure you wouldn’t have won, but you would have just taken the enemy commander out of the battle for hours. It was a test of loyalty and dedication, and it is my belief you have both in abundance. I am glad to say you will continue on in this course.” (If you fail the midterm, you’re kicked out of the course and have to retake it the following year) Valtorex leaves and goes to third.
Valtorex arrives at the Tower of the Arcane to find Rōdenthall waiting for him. He is holding Myrstaline, bound, up by the hair. He says, “Ah, good, you have arrived. Dethos and Zethos should be here shortly.” As he speaks, the brothers walk up. They see Myrstaline and laugh. Rōdenthall says, “Ok, the midterm is to sacrifice a mortal to summon a demon. Valtorex will go first. The sacrifice will be this elf. You must remove her heart and place it on the pedestal in the Summoning Room. You will then chant the words of a spell I will give you.” Rōdenthall speaks in the incoherent language of Archon and they teleport to the Summoning Room. Myrstaline is on her knees, her arms in chains connected to the floor. Rōdenthall hands Valtorex a knife and says, “Do the job or you will fail the class.” (Just so you know, I shouldn’t be pigeonholed to the lawful guys. Later, I will write a series about a Chaotic or Neutral Evil character named Kelgor Dairee) Valtorex takes the knife and Myrstaline’s eyes widen in fear. He walks up to Myrstaline and casts a spell. When Rōdenthall questions him, he says, “To silence her. She can scream pretty loud, and I don’t want to lose concentration” (Don’t worry, it’ll be okay) Valtorex then bends down. He whispers in her ear, “I cast Brittle on the chains. When the moment is right, break free and help me fight.” He then makes a show of placing the tip against her chest, the point above her heart. He presses in, eliciting a gasp from her. He presses in just enough to draw a tear before pulling it back. He stands and says, “I can not do it. Fail me if you must, but I can’t slay her.” Rōdenthall laughs before saying triumphantly, “I thought so! I knew you didn’t have the guts to do what was needed!” Rōdenthall then hands a knife to Dethos, who moves forward, ready to perform the grisly task. He is rewarded by Valtorex’s knife in his gut. Dethos stumbles back, his hands on the hilt. Zethos casts a killing spell at Valtorex, but Myrstaline breaks free and raises a shield. The spell dissipates, and just then, the Head Master walks in. He says, “Stop for a moment, if you will.” Even Rōdenthall freezes in mid-spell. The Head Master says, “I would like to speak to Valtorex. The midterms will be canceled for this class. I think all four of you are adequately skilled to pass. Well, except maybe you.” He looks at Dethos who is leaning against the wall, his face ashen. The Head Master continues, “Myrstaline, be a dear and save him.” (The Head Master is just everyone’s favorite uncle) (Except Dethos) Myrstaline rushes to help him. The Head Master then says, “Valtorex, come with me. Myrstaline, after you are done here, come to my office.” The Head Master and Valtorex leave.
They arrive at the Head Master’s office. The Head Master gestures Valtorex in. The Head Master sits behind a large, oaken desk and gestures to a seat across from his. Valtorex sits. The Head Master says, “I assume you know why you are here.” Valtorex, honestly liking this man, replies, “No, sir, I do not. I have done multiple things that would warrant a visit here.” The Head Master laughs and says, “Fair enough, fair enough. I was like that at one point too. The reason you are here, however, is your blatant disregard of the Office of the Head Mistress. According to the reports, you have attacked eight of her guards and killed six. Somehow, you managed to use five different weapons, one of which you are not proficient in. Now I know your friends were in on the raid, but by all accounts, you are claiming full responsibility. Very noble, but very stupid. Also, you have outright insulted and overtly threatened Head Mistress Demere on multiple occasions, including pelting her with frogs. Although incredibly humorous, not smart if you want to remain a student. Now obviously there is some conflict between you and my Head Mistress. Of course, her word overrules yours, so what are you going to do from here on out to prevent you from being expelled? Remember, if any official word reaches me of acts you commit against her, then I will be forced to take disciplinary action.” He ends with a wink. Valtorex takes the hint and says, “I will ensure that no word of my actions against her reaches you, sir. If possible, I will ensure that I am in no way linked to any offenses against the Head Mistress.” The Head Master (Not Head Mistress as Jeff put it) (My name ain’t Jaff, Ian. Ian jumps on my typo, then misspells my frickin’ name!) says, “Very good. Now, off the record, give her hell. I’ve seen her hurt too many good students over the years, but I can’t stop her. Maybe you can, but remember my warning.” Just then, there is a knocking on the door. The Head Master says, “Come in.” Myrstaline comes in and the Head Master says, “Good. Now about you and Myrstaline…” They spend the next few hours talking about what really happened. The Head Master promises, “I will ensure Rōdenthall can not do anything underhanded like he did today to try to eliminate you. You will still have to work harder than any other students, but at least you have a shot.” They leave and Valtorex goes to his fourth period.
He arrives to find Lord Kemos drawing circles on the ground. Valtorex stands a few feet behind him and watches as Lord Kemos draws four summoning rings. Lord Kemos stands up and turns around. He blinks twice, but that is all that shows of his surprise. He asks, “How long have you been standing there?” Valtorex replies, “Long enough to see you drew four portals to the…” He cranes his neck and reads the symbols before continuing, “the Abyss.” Lord Kemos says, “So you can read. At least Rōdenthall has managed that.” Valtorex smiles slightly. Lord Kemos begins laughing, then Valtorex joins him. Once they are finished, they realize Valen, Valrie, and Valinor are all staring at them. Lord Kemos regains control and says, “Good. You have all arrived. We can begin the midterm. In a few minutes, I will open up four portals to the Abyss. You are expected to charge in. You will each be sent to a different area. Your mission is to take the fort controlling the area or die trying.” Lord Kemos then begins speaking in Archon and the portals open. Valtorex takes the lead and charges into his portal with a yell. Valinor charges into his with a mighty roar. Valen springs through his. With a brief moment of hesitation, Valrie draws her rapier and runs through.
Valtorex arrives in the Abyss to find himself surrounded by demons. (Alright guys, this is the highpoint of the story for us. After this, it becomes a chick story with some isolated fights) Valtorex draws his swords and the demons just laugh at him. They pull their wicked demonic blades from their belts and rush him. Valtorex readies himself for the fight. They have almost reached him. Valtorex takes a large breath and then breathes out. The demons have reached him. He begins parrying and cutting. He sinks into the tranquil state of peace, hacking and slashing, blood spraying from the wounds his flashing steel creates. The fire turns the blood to poisonous vapors and the lightning does the same. He keeps fighting, the air hot from the flame of the Abyss and acrid from the blood and sweat. As the fight rages on, more demons join the mass surrounding him. He stabs and blocks, thrusts and parries, but for every sword he blocks, another is there. He realizes he has to do something to escape or he will die. He digs down in his well of rage and summons a ball of flame. He launches the Fireball and it tears through the ranks in front of him. A trail of toxic vapor and charred limbs is left in its wake. Valtorex rushes the gap, rending the bodies of any who get in his way. The noxious gas creeps into his lungs, making him nauseous. His breathing becomes labored, but he presses on, killing and killing left and right. As he runs out of breath, he runs all the faster. His thoughts consist of “Kaeje ona Morte” and his actions consist of running and slashing. In moments, the breach has closed before him and he launches another Fireball. It rips through the ranks, but makes the air more toxic. Valtorex keeps running, mercilessly executing the foes jumping at him from both sides. His vision begins to fade and his feet become heavy. Then, he sees the end of his run. He reaches the gates of the fort to find them barred. With a sigh of resignation, he turns and raises his swords in a salute. He yells to the heavens, infinitely far away, “Kai Zanaria! Kai Manäïen! Kai Kaeje!” The demons press in, eager for a fight. Valtorex is more than happy to oblige. He cuts and stabs, slashes and hacks, his swords wet with blood, his back to the gate. Then, Valtorex falls back as the gates open.
Valtorex springs to his feet and turns to face a contingent of demonic guards. With a yell, he charges them, and begins cutting them down without mercy. The demons try to fight back, but Valtorex, so close to his goal, tears through the ranks and reaches the door to the citadel. He kicks the door to find it unlocked. He rushes in, followed by a large group of demons. He finds stairs and runs up to the next floor. He stops at the top of the stairs and remembers back to the burning stairs at his family’s manor the night it was burnt down. He decides this will make a fitting tribute as the first of the demons rush up. Valtorex casts Exploding Fireball, and a ball of fire similar to the two previous ones is launched forth. A knot of demons has already formed at the foot of the stairs. The fireball tears through the line of demons running up to meet him and smashes into the ground at the bottom of the stairs. The fireball explodes with a fierce blast, immolating the group of pursuing demons. He turns as a noxious wave attacks his nostrils and runs down the hall. Floor by floor, he fights his way through the fortress. Finally, he reaches the throne room. (To Ian, thrown room) (Grrr…) He kicks in the door after slicing through the throats of two demons that had been chasing him. As soon as the door is down, a contingent of demons runs up the hallway to meet him. He runs into the room and slays four door guards. (Guess they weren’t too good at their jobs, huh?) When he looks at the throne, he freezes. (Guess who) On the throne sits Kaedros, a bored look on his face. He looks at Valtorex and says, “King of a plane of the Abyss isn’t as fun as you would think. I already miss the kill. I think I’ll launch a little excursion soon, as soon as I’m done with you.” Kaedros stands and draws the swords at his sides. They are pure black and seemingly made of shadow. Valtorex feels an unholy wrongness emanating from the swords that he can’t quite describe. (Coincidentally, neither can I) Kaedros raises the swords in a mock salute and says, “I would like to introduce you to my two dear friends, Despair and Torment. I guess you could say they’re like daughters to me, except for they…Actually, I’ll show you.” Kaedros tosses the blades into the air.
They stop before hitting the ground and right themselves, blades facing down. Vague figures appear, centered on the swords. The figures become more definite and take on a rough humanoid shape. In moments, there are two beautiful dark haired women standing there, the only trace of the swords a dark jewel embedded into their chest on the collar bone. Valtorex feels his guard slip as he stares at the women. They both begin talking simultaneously. They say, “Greetings. You must be a guest of the master. We will be happy to serve you in any way.” Valtorex curses under his breath before asking out loud, “Succubae? Really? You actually think that will work?” Kaedros laughs evilly before saying, “Of course it will! I have all of your memories. I know your weakness for demons of the feminine persuasion. As I recall, you’ve only been captured twice, once by a vampiress and once by a succubus. Face it, you love the bad girls.” Valtorex curses again before saying, “Alright, I guess you know enough about me to set this trap. So what is your plan?” Kaedros snorts in derision before replying, “Do you really think I’m falling for that? You get me to start talking and while I’m distracted by bragging about my success, you figure something out and kill me. Well, like I said, I know your memories, so I won’t fall for your traps like that. That little ego trick you do may work every time, but it won’t work now-“ Valtorex cuts him off by dropping his swords, drawing his crossbows, firing the loaded bolts, replacing his crossbows, and picking his swords up again. The bolts fly forth and strike the succubae in the chest, piercing their dark twisted hearts. Valtorex says, “It just did.” Despair and Torment scream in pain and fall to their knees before slumping to the ground. They begin writhing on the floor, still shrieking and crying. Valtorex feels a sense of unease. Kaedros doesn’t seem too upset by the fate of his succubae, which adds to Valtorex’s unease. After a few moments, Kaedros says, “Alright girls, you can stop acting. Get back up.” Torment and Despair get to their feet and bow to Kaedros. Kaedros says, “Well Valtorex, it appears I have beaten you.” When Valtorex responds by hurling a dagger at him, Kaedros laughs. He raises his hand to destroy it, but to his surprise it continues spinning, unhindered. It strikes Kaedros in the chest and he feels an unholy rage strike at him. Kaedros sinks to his knees and Torment and Despair scream in fury. They both rush Valtorex, intent on ripping out his heart for his attack on their master. Valtorex readies himself, his swords up. Right before they reach him, he hears Kaedros laugh. Kaedros commands, “Girls, stop. I’m ok. Our guest just seems to be in a bad mood today. Maybe I’ll play catch with him and see if that helps.
Valtorex looks at Kaedros and sees him standing, unharmed. He is holding the dagger. Kaedros hurls the dagger at Valtorex. The dagger flies far faster than when Valtorex threw it and reaches him in less than a second. To the surprise of everyone in the room, it stops a foot away from him and floats slowly back to its harness on his thigh. Kaedros quickly recovers from his shock and says, “Fine. I guess this won’t be any fun at all. Girls, kill him, slowly.” Torment and Despair smile wickedly as they advance on Valtorex. Valtorex says, “I may not be able to kill you, but I can make it hurt like, well, your home. How many times do you think you can regrow your limbs? How about organs?” Torment says, “You look tasty. I think I’ll eat you when I’m done ripping you apart!” Despair says, “I call the heart!” They then leap at him, expecting him to jump back in surprise. Instead, he decapitates them with one fluid motion. The headless bodies fall to the ground at his feet; the heads wind up a few feet behind him. The jewels on their chests flash and the heads disappear and reappear on the body. Kaedros says, “You can’t kill them. By the way, that offer I made last time is still open. You can join me in conquering the Material Plane. I’ll even have my demons find you a pair like them. All you have to do is kneel before me.” (Alright, I know this is so predictable, but then again, with me, he could take the offer) Valtorex replies, “I would rather burn in the Abyss for all eternity than serve you for a second.” Kaedros shakes his head, appearing to be truly disappointed. He says, “I guess I expected that, but I still can’t help being disappointed. Alright, if that’s how you want to play, guards, kill him!”
Seemingly out of nowhere come hundreds of demons. They encircle him and begin attacking. Valtorex begins fighting and killing, his only thought to reach Kaedros. He presses forward, the demons falling to his blades in a massive frenzy of death. The bodies press so close that the demons sometimes kill their own with their wild swings. Valtorex takes hit after hit, the blood running from his wounds, but he presses on. He keeps killing, leaving a trail of demon corpses behind him. Finally, he reaches Kaedros. Valtorex faces Kaedros and says, over the roar of the bloodthirsty demons, “I may die this day, but you will die in the end. Whether by my hand or not, you will die. So I can be content with this.” Valtorex then plunges his swords into Kaedros, shoving the blades up to the hilt. Valtorex and Kaedros make eye contact. They stare into each other’s dimming eyes until Kaedros falls from the blades in his heart and lungs and Valtorex falls from his multiple wounds. As Valtorex’s vision fades into black, he thinks, “I hope all of the Abyss is like this.” (Valtorex’s dream vacation: a week on the beach with his friends and an army of enemies)
Valtorex wakes up in the infirmary, severely wounded. The Nurse (I’m just surprised that he and the Nurse aren’t on a first name basis yet!) (Who says she has a name? She could be Nursey the Nurse. She could also be Nurse Joy, although only parents in Pokémon are that cruelJ) is standing above him, casting healing spells to try to sustain his life. After several moments, the Nurse steps back and says, “I’ve done all I can. The wounds were pretty bad. I don’t know if he’ll make it.” Valtorex says, his voice more of a groan than anything else, “I wouldn’t give Demere the satisfaction. Anyway, I’m too hard to kill for some demons to get me.” The Nurse runs over to him and says, “This time, I want you to follow my instructions! I will not let you die because you’re an idiot!” Valtorex responds to her by sitting up with a moan and saying, “And let you have a day without being constantly busy with casualties of my day? Never!” (Students like Valtorex are why the Nurse has a job) The Nurse casts Paralyze on him and he falls back in his bed. He manages to articulate, “Not fair.” Valtorex then goes about breaking the spell, but finds that the Nurse is one of the most powerful magic users he has come across. (Rōdenthall is even afraid of her) There is a knocking on the door of the infirmary. The Nurse goes to the door and opens it. The Nurse gasps and says, “Come in, dear, come in! Lie down and I’ll heal you right away!” From outside, a female voice, weighted by pain and worry, replies, “I’m fine. I’m here to see a patient.” Valtorex feels the spell break and he jumps out of bed, undoing a lot of the Nurse’s work. He staggers over to the door and whispers, “Valrie.” before stumbling. Valrie pushes past the Nurse and goes to Valtorex. The Nurse yells, “What is wrong with this year! I’m going to have to hire an assistant just to keep up with all of you suicidal fools!” She then casts a quick spell to heal the large gash on Valrie’s back. She then shoves Valrie out of the way and begins healing Valtorex. She says, “I wish I could either cure blood loss or idiot. These fools always have both!” Valtorex groans and says, “Help Valrie. I’m fine.” The Nurse says, “No you’re not. You have massive internal bleeding I haven’t fixed yet and you’ve still lost so much blood I’m amazed you’re not dead.” Valtorex says, “I’ll always have blood to spill. Valrie needs help.” The Nurse looks over and sees he’s right. The gash on Valrie’s back was just the most noticeable wound. She is covered in cuts, bruises, and bloody tears. The Nurse runs over and begins healing her. While she is absorbed with this, Valtorex gets up and hobbles over to his armor and weapons. He puts them on and goes over to Valrie. By now the Nurse is done healing her and she looks up to see Valtorex, ashen faced, standing above her. Valrie has lost consciousness and the Nurse decides to keep her over night.
The Nurse says, “You should stay here too. You’re half dead and going to Demere won’t help.” Valtorex replies, “She won’t care that I’m injured. She’ll just come here and get me, and I don’t want to draw attention to Valrie. Just make sure she recovers. Thank you for healing us.” Valtorex then leaves and goes back to the Hall of Trials. He finds Lord Kemos cleaning up the remains of the Abyssal Portals. Lord Kemos looks up at him and says, “You should be dead. Keep it up and you will be. Go back to the infirmary; I’ll tell Demere that I sent you on some special task that is likely to get you killed. That should satisfy her and allow you some rest.” Valtorex says, “No, but thank you. I just wanted to know if I passed.” Lord Kemos chuckles to himself before saying, “Of course you did. All of you did. The test is running into certain death at the hands of demons. The fact that you succeeded only gets you extra points.” Valtorex is shocked. He asks, “Succeeded?” Lord Kemos responds, “Oh, yes, you didn’t know. You didn’t technically capture the fortress, but you did destroy that plane of the Abyss. Good job.” (Kaedros actually destroyed it himself, but they don’t need to know that)
Valtorex thanks him and goes to the Glade to relax for a while. He completely forgets about Myrstaline until he arrives to see her waiting on the log. (Once again, I could be more vague. (No! I will not say vaguer!) I could say she sits on something with cell walls) (I’m glad you didn’t say vaguer) She stands up when he walks in and says, “Late? Not a good way to start off your midterm.” She begins laughing at her joke, but she immediately stops when she sees the pain in Valtorex’s eyes and the pallor of his face. She runs over to him and asks, “What happened?” Valtorex replies by saying, “Let’s sit down. I’ll tell you then.” They sit down on the log. (Yes, “the”, an article used to say there is only one of the following object. But, they could be in a lumberyard and I’m just using “the” incorrectly to mess with you. The worst part is, none of you will ever knowJ) (What’s even more worse is that even if they were in a lumberyard, you could still say the, and you complaining about your vagueness is getting annoying!) (I’m not complaining, I’m tormenting. You know the saying, every time an Ian is annoyed, an angel gets its wings. BTY, it’s not more worse, it’s worse. I’d almost rather you say worser) Valtorex tells her what happened. At the end, Myrstaline says, “That’s horrible! You can’t go to Demere tonight!” Valtorex says, “I still will. I won’t let her have the pleasure of me hiding from her. Ever.” Myrstaline tries to talk him out of it, but in the end, she gives up.
Without Valrie coming to talk to him, Valtorex becomes pretty bored. He does something he hasn’t done in a awhile. He actually begins thinking about his life. He thinks of all of the things he’s missed that normal people experience and all of the things he’s experienced that normal people can’t imagine. He thinks about the fact he’s been to the Abyss more times in his short life than most people in their entire lives, including their afterlife. He thinks about his friends and how he has a balrog’s spirit living inside him that could cause him to hurt them at any time. He comes to the conclusion that he must master himself before he loses control completely. He spends the rest of the night meditating, trying to find himself out. Then, it is Darkwatch and he goes to face Demere, his newfound knowledge of himself bolstering him against the onslaught about to come.
He is tortured all night by Demere, but as always, he refuses to give up. The year continues on as before, he and Valinor training and competing to be the best warrior, Arianna teaching him how to fight and how to do so with honor, Rōdenthall coming up with insane tests to try to eliminate him and Myrstaline, and Lord Kemos pushing him and his cabinmates to their limits on a daily basis. As the year goes on, he finds those limits seem further and further away. He and Valrie continue their romance, (Ah! My eyes! It burns!) becoming closer every day. Valtorex and Myrstaline work together on meditation and magic, Valtorex becoming better at the former while Myrstaline becomes better at the latter. Valen, Valinor, Valrie, and Valtorex continue their nightly study sessions, all of them staying at the top of their classes. The year progresses quickly, (It’s about a paragraph long) and Finals approach far too quickly for the students’ likings. With a month to go, Demere doubles her efforts to break Valtorex, devising ever more cruel ways of torment. Valtorex continues trying to find control over himself. Every night, the cabinmates duel to prepare themselves. Finally, it is the day before Finals.
Valtorex and Myrstaline are sitting in the Glade, going through spellbooks to prepare for Rōdenthall’s test. Myrstaline breaks the silence that had built up by asking, “How do you counter Assassin’s Lightning again?” (Basically a Lightning Bolt spell that follows the target) Valtorex looks up from his book about killing spells and replies, “Two ways. One, you can bring up a lightning shield bent at an angle to deflect it away from you, or two, you can toss an enchanted steel ball with a piece of your hair tied around it to change the bolt’s target. Here, I have a spare.” He tosses her a small steel ball. (I would say pinball, but that would require pinball machines, and that creates a whole ‘nother mess) She catches the ball. She cringes a bit and plucks a hair from her head. She ties it around the ball, the long, gold thread barely visible against the silvery metal. (I couldn’t remember if I told you guys she’s blonde or not. Just making sure) They go back to studying, occasionally asking each other questions or practicing particularly difficult spells. At about five hours till Darkwatch, Valen, Valinor, and Valrie arrive.
Myrstaline gets up to go, but Valtorex invites her to stay and train. He says, “I’ve been needing someone to practice magic on.” He quickly corrects himself when he notices her look of fear. He says, “I meant to say with! Practice magic with.” Myrstaline, not reassured in the slightest, goes into her casting stance. For the next four hours they practice. The five of them wish each other luck on the Finals before splitting off. Valrie and Valtorex stay behind. Valrie and Valtorex talk for a while, just passing the time. After about thirty minutes, they begin to talk seriously about their future. Valrie says, “I’m just worried that over the summer you’ll stop liking me.” Valtorex replies, “That won’t happen. I can’t stop liking you; that would require me to like you now.” He says this with a smile, but Valrie still hits him. Valtorex says, “Ok, I’ll be serious.” He pauses for a few moments before going on. “Valrie, I won’t say you’re the first girl I’ve had a relationship with, but until proven otherwise, I can say you are the first girl I’ve had a relationship with that didn’t try to steal either my blood or soul. I’m not going to risk that. You don’t need to worry about me forgetting you. It will only be a few months and I’ll be doing mercenary work the entire time. I just need to be worried about you. By the way, what are you doing this summer?” Valrie replies, “I don’t know. I can’t get in touch with my mother, but I don’t want to hang around here. Maybe I’ll go with you.” She says that last sentence as more of an offer than a statement. Valtorex resolutely says, “No. You won’t. If you go with me, it will just put both of us in danger. I’ll worry about you and get myself killed and you’ll do the same. It’s best if you stay out of my career. It’s the type of job that doesn’t allow for any of the positive emotions like happiness and caring, and with, you, I feel nothing but.” They talk some more, Valrie deciding she’ll figure it out as she goes. At Darkwatch they stand up and embrace each other. Valtorex whispers, “Good luck.” before he kisses her. They kiss for several moments, still holding each other. When they break off, Valrie says, “You too.” (What no ‘Ow my eyes’ or something?) (Sorry, I forgot. Apparently I’ve desensitized myself thoroughly)
They part ways and Valtorex goes to Demere’s office. He arrives to find Demere waiting, her various instruments of torture on her desk. Demere says, “You’re late again. I think I may have to give that little tramp you spend your time with a few detentions.” Valtorex feels his ire rise and says, “First off, leave Valrie alone. Secondly, I only have two more days left before break, so I really can say, ‘screw the consequences’ because you truthfully cannot do a thing to stop me at this point. So, I would just like to inform you that I won’t be here tomorrow night. I will be celebrating with my friends. Also, you won’t be trying to break me tonight. I’m going to rest for Finals. I hope you don’t have any problems with this, but if you do, I don’t give a damn. Goodbye.” Valtorex turns and begins walking out the door. Demere yells, “Stop! You may only have two days left, but I can still tell you what to do for those two days! Now, stop or I will ensure that you and your friends fail!” Valtorex turns and says, his voice full of newfound authority and command, “Leave my friends and I alone or I will break you.” Demere freezes momentarily, terrified that he’s telling the truth and has the power to do it. She then musters all of the pompous arrogance she can muster and says, “You can’t tell me what to do! For that, you will have detention every day next year too! Now, I’m going to teach you why you don’t cross me!” Demere then summons the magic bonds she uses to hold him in place. With a word, Valtorex escapes the bonds. With another, she is bound. With a third, she is silenced. With a fourth, her memory of the last few hours is wiped. Valtorex leaves and goes to his cabin. He sleeps in his bunk for the first time in months.
The next morning, they wake up. Valinor and Valtorex go to Tyberus’s class, ready for the toughest fight of the year. They arrive to find Rogard and Silvanos already there. (No, Silvanos did not fall off the face of the earth after his fight with Valtorex) Tyberus says, “Today is the most important day of the year. The Final will be staying in the ring with me for an hour. Your fellow students will judge.” Silvanos goes up first. He fights Tyberus, but after several minutes, he is forced out of the ring. Rogard gives him a two, going down. Valinor gives him a three going down. Valtorex, to the amazement of all, give him a five, going up. Next up is Rogard. Rogard lasts a full forty-five minutes before he has to quit due to injuries. Silvanos give him a one going down, but Valinor and Valtorex each give him a nine going up. Next is Valinor. Valinor fights valiantly and actually lasts the entire hour. Rogard gives him a nine going up. Silvanos gives him a one going down, and Valtorex gives him a flat out ten going up. Finally comes Valtorex. Valtorex goes up to Tyberus and bows. Tyberus salutes him and Valtorex rises. (Yay for the fighting! No more romance for now. Yay!)
The fight begins and Tyberus rushes Valtorex with his greatsword. Valtorex, his speed having greatly improved, blocks the attack, and due to his increased strength, does so with one sword. The other sword he uses to scratch Tyberus’s armor. They go back and forth for about ten minutes, exchanging blows. Valtorex keeps up his blocking, but as he slowly becomes fatigued, he has to reduce his amount of attacks. Tyberus shows no signs of fatigue and twenty minutes in is still going strong. As the halfway point passes, Valtorex is losing ground, but he is determined to last the entire time. He keeps falling back, reaching the edge of the ring, and driving forward with a burst of strength. With ten minutes left, he knows he has no bursts left to use. He holds his ground, resolving to win or die trying. (Kaeje ona Morte. Don’t ya love it?J) He blocks and blocks, but it seems like Tyberus’s blade is everywhere at once. When Valtorex blocks low, the next second it’s coming in high. When he blocks to the left, it’s swinging in from the right in moments. Valtorex feels his strength failing and knows he won’t last more than a minute more. He decides to try a desperate strategy and hopes it buys him enough time. He lets the greatsword hit his cuirass and charges Tyberus. He swings his swords from opposite sides, forcing Tyberus to take a hit. His sword (HE SWORD!!!!!? Sometimes I wonder if you do this on purpose) (Maybe I do. If I didn’t, you wouldn’t have a job) just scratches his armor, but Tyberus still acknowledges the hit. He then realizes Valtorex left his lower body open and goes for a cripple strike. The blade hits Valtorex’s leg, but instead of cutting in like Tyberus would expect, the blade stops. He then remembers the leather legs Valtorex wears. Valtorex takes advantage of this and swings both swords, hitting Tyberus in the shoulders. They back away and circle each other, waiting to strike. They then rush each other simultaneously.
Their swords clash, the song of steel ringing through the area. They slash and hack at each other, Tyberus drawing into his reserves of energy at last, Valtorex amazed he’s still on his feet. Tyberus keeps fighting, but every time their weapons strike, Valtorex feels a martial call to arms. He feels the peace of war overtake him and his heart slows, his breathing becomes more regular, and he begins noticing opportunities he would otherwise miss. Tyberus notices this and works all the harder to beat him. Valtorex is silently thankful he has spent so much time getting to know himself. He can now feel every fiber of his being heeding the call to war, every muscle and bone yearning for victory as much as he does. He feels a rush of energy he never has known before and his swords become a blur. Hit after hit, the scratches on Tyberus’s armor increase. Valtorex digs deeper and deeper, desiring to bring more of himself into the fray. As he digs deeper, more and more his body and mind devote themselves to victory. Then, he reaches a bastion of strength and energy at the center of his being. He enters the stronghold, and on a throne sits the balrog he shares his body with. He asks the balrog to join, but the balrog just laughs at him. This refusal destroys his momentum and Tyberus gets a blow in. Valtorex’s concentration snaps and he loses that state of peace. Tyberus places his blade to Valtorex’s throat and says, “Good job, boy.” Valtorex thanks him. Valinor gives him a ten going up, as does Rogard. Valtorex then finds out he spent an hour and forty-five minutes in the ring with Tyberus. When it is Silvanos’s time to announce his decision, he says, “Zero, going down.” Tyberus strides forward and punches him in the gut, causing him to fall to the ground, doubled over. Tyberus then says, “All of Silvanos’s judgments will be removed and replaced with the average of the other two judges for the round. You all pass with flying colors, except for him.” He kicks Silvanos, causing him to moan piteously. None of them pity him in the slightest. Tyberus then says, “I look forward to seeing the three of you next year. Try not to get killed before then.” The three students still able to walk leave and go to their next Final. Valtorex arrives at the Glade to find Arianna waiting. She sees that Valtorex is greatly fatigued and decides to change up the Final a bit.
Arianna says, “Apprentice, today is a great day for you. Today we will find out if you are truly worthy of being a Knight of Draconia. Although I have little doubt in my mind that you are more than capable of completing your duties, the Council of Lords requires all squires to be tested like this. You will be tested on five points essential to any knight. Just make yourself comfortable and we may begin.” Valtorex sits down and goes into his meditative pose. Arianna begins whispering words of magic and Valtorex feels his consciousness slip away. He falls into a deep slumber.
He wakes up on a beach, his armor replaced by a tunic and breeches and his weapons replaced by a small knife. He gets to his feet and a flash of light a few feet in front of him nearly blinds him. When he opens his eyes, he sees Arianna standing there in spectral from. She says, “Apprentice, the spell I cast put you in a dreamworld of sorts. You will be given minimal resources and put to five tests. You will not know when or what the tests are and may pass or fail them without even knowing of their existence. You are expected to conduct yourself in a knightly manor at all times. Good luck.” Arianna fades out of existence. Moments later, Valtorex hears the scream of a panicked woman. Valtorex runs down the beach in the direction of the cry and sees a beautiful woman accosted by two bandits. One of the bandits notices him and says, “A visitor? We’re about to get to know this wench a bit better. Wanta’ join in? There’s more ‘n enough a her to go ‘round.” The other bandit continues terrorizing her. Valtorex sees a look of sheer panic in her eyes as she realizes what the bandits intend to do. Valtorex says, “No. It is wrong for a man to take advantage of a woman. We’re supposed to protect women, not terrorize them. You curs have obviously failed in your duty to her, so I will protect her from you. Prepare to defend yourselves!” Valtorex then pulls his knife from his belt and charges them. The bandits laugh at him. The bandit that was talking draws his sword and runs at Valtorex. The other bandit keeps tormenting the woman. Valtorex reaches the first bandit, who swings his sword wildly, not expecting his opponent to be skilled. Valtorex easily dodges the swing and just as easily rams his knife to the handle into the bandit’s chest, just below the ribcage. The bandit sighs as the life is forced from his body. He drops the sword and Valtorex lets him drop. Valtorex bends down and picks up the sword. The other bandit sees this and realizes that Valtorex is much more dangerous than they originally thought. He pulls out the rapier he had at his side and advances slowly. Valtorex can tell this one is more skilled. He pulls his knife free of the dead bandit and stands ready with the longsword in his right hand, the knife in his left. The bandit suddenly rushes him and Valtorex has to exert some effort to block all of his attacks. Valtorex uses the longsword to block and locks their swords together. He then makes one motion with his left hand and a long, cruel gash is cut along the bandit’s stomach. The bandit stumbles back, his hand over his gut, the crimson liquid that is his life flowing unabated from the wound. Valtorex then decapitates him. He takes the sheathes from the bandits and takes the rapier. Valtorex puts on the sheathes, the longsword at his left hip, the rapier at his right. The lady says, “Thank you sir! I was afraid they would…” She shudders in revulsion. She continues, “You have my undying gratitude. I take it you are a knight.” Valtorex replies, “I am a knight in training.” The lady says, “Well then, squire…” Valtorex supplies, “Valtorex.” She continues, “What an odd name. Oh well. As I was saying, Squire Valtorex, I would like to thank you for your chivalrous treatment of me by asking you to escort me to my father’s castle. I am Princess Isamir.” (Don’t worry, Valrie has nothing to worry about, or at least not from her. Ian, it’s a secret, so don’t tell anyone) (Kay)
Isamir leads Valtorex to a nearby city. He escorts her through the streets to a massive castle. On the way, Valtorex sees at least five beggars or pickpockets killed on the spot by guards. At Princess Isamir’s insistence, Valtorex continues on, deciding to follow the laws of the land. They arrive at the palace. They enter and are greeted by a group of guards that immediately draw their swords and hold them threateningly towards Valtorex. Isamir says, “It’s alright. He saved me from bandits. He’s a squire.” The last sentence is what gets the guards to lower their weapons, but some still glare at him suspiciously. Moments later, a tall, strong man strides into the room, a greatsword at his side. He sees Valtorex and says, “Why is this rabble here, dear?” Isamir replies, “Father, he is a squire that delivered me from the hands of bandits.” The king seems to look at Valtorex in a new light, a calculating one. He seems to measure Valtorex up before saying, “Well, then, I welcome you to stay at my palace as a guest.” Valtorex replies, “Thank you, Lord…” The king supplies, “Derok, and you are?” Valtorex responds, “I am Valtorex. I thank you for your generous offer, Lord Derok.” Derok says, “I can tell by your accent you aren’t from around here. Feel free to look around my capital, although I suggest you stay away from the Southside and the Docks. The rabble there has gotten a bit uppity. Be back at dusk for dinner. Oh here, take this. It will keep the guards from arresting you.” Derok hands Valtorex a pendant on a steel chain. Valtorex thanks him and leaves.
Valtorex roams the streets, remembering Derok’s warning about the Southside and Docks. Inevitably, he ends up walking the back alleys of the Southside. He runs into a guard patrolling the area who has captured a young girl. The girl is on her knees pleading with the guard. The guard backhands her and the girl falls over. The guard kicks her and she curls into the fetal position and begins sobbing. Valtorex yells, “Hold! What offense has she committed?” The guard replies, “None of your business. Move on or-“ He then sees the pendant on Valtorex’s neck and says, “Pardon me milord. I didn’t know you were a knight. Your commoner’s clothing through me off.” Valtorex replies, “It is an understandable mistake. I can not wear clothing more befitting of my rank here because of the increased criminal activity.” The guard nods in understanding. Valtorex then asks, “So what was her crime?” The guard replies, “Begging milord. She was caught asking for bread for her family. She then tried to convince me to reduce her punishment to just fifty lashes.” (This town has a strict no beggar policy) Valtorex asks, “I’m not from this region, what is the current punishment for begging?” The guard responds, “Death of course. We have ‘em tied up in the square and whipped till they die. Very amusing and exactly where this ‘un is headed.” (Very strict) The girl is back on her knees and she realizes her best hope is Valtorex. She pleads, “Please milord, spare me! My brothers are starving and my father is crippled! I had to beg or my family would die! Please milord, reduce the punishment! I’ll do anything!” Valtorex can tell her pleas and tears are genuine. Valtorex says, “Very well. I will reduce your punishment.” The guard swears. Valtorex continues, “Your punishment will be thus. You will serve as my servant and will be paid a modest wage. You will not be whipped, unless I catch you doing anything dishonorable, then I will let him execute you. Remember, you will be expected to live by the code of a knight as long as you serve me. It is either that or the fifty lashes you asked for.” The girl sees her chance to save her family and bows her head. She says, “Yes, milord, I will be your servant.” Valtorex says, “Good, now rise. What is your name?” The girl says, “My name is Julie, milord.”
Valtorex says, “Very well then, Julie, go to your house and wait. I must speak to the king first, but then I will come and get you. Where do you live?” Julie tells him and leaves after bowing. The guard says, “Well if that don’t beat all. A knight taking pity on a beggar. That is a crime against the kingdom, you know. I have ta arrest you now.” Valtorex counters, “You think I’m taking pity on her? She will never beg again or she will be executed for dishonorable behavior and I’ll drive her like a slave master. If she survives, then I guarantee she’ll be the best servant in the kingdom.” The guard says, “I still have to arrest you. I’m sorry milord, but you committed treason.” The guard moves forward, confident that Valtorex will surrender. Valtorex says, “No, I won’t. Truth is, I’m not a knight. I’m just a squire. I’m not even a squire of this kingdom. I belong to the Draconic Empire. Now, you will back down or face the consequences.” The guard yells, “So a traitor and a spy! I will kill you on the spot!” The guard jumps forward, his sword out. In one quick motion, Valtorex blocks him with the longsword and slices him open with the rapier. Valtorex searches the guard and finds he had fifty gold pieces on him. He takes the gold and the guard’s shortsword. Valtorex equips the short sword to the back of his belt and leaves the alley, ensuring the scene looks like a random mugging.
Valtorex goes to the palace and meets the king at the banquet hall. He asks if he can take on a servant. The king, after finding out Valtorex will pay for it himself, agrees. Valtorex then asks him standard wage for a worker and is surprised to find it is one copper per day of work. Valtorex goes to a grocer and finds out a loaf of bread is also one copper. Valtorex goes to the girl’s house in the Docks. As he is (Please tell me you put “is” here on purpose.) (I did. I accidentally put we instead of he, so the verb was correct the noun wasn’t. Fixed now) walking through the neighborhood, he notices many people staring at him from the shadows. He is astonished by the level of neglect and poverty here that makes the worst parts of the Draconic Empire look like paradise. He reaches the girl’s house and knocks on the door. Julie answers the door and she bows to him before inviting him in. She leads him into the main room of the three-room hovel. (Word wants me to change hovel to hotel. I can barely write I’m laughing so hardJ) In the room is a rickety wooden table. At the table is a middle-aged, haggard looking woman, a worn, tired looking man whose leg is gone below the knee and is missing an arm, and three children, all of them look to be about the same age. The man looks up and says, “You must be my daughter’s employer. I thank you for helping our family like this. I also want to thank you for sparing her from Captain Bakarus. May I speak to you alone?” Valtorex replies, “Yes, of course, sir.” The woman and three boys leave and go into the other room, as does Julie. The man says, “I want to thank you for saving her. I’m sorry she was forced to beg. Since my injuries, I have been unable to support my family. I can’t thank you with anything other than this advice. Get out while you can. Retire as early as you can and find a safe job. I was a knight too. That’s how this happened. After my injury leading a battalion against a besieged city, I was kicked out of the knighthood without pay. There is no where I can work and my three boys are too young to get jobs.”
Valtorex asks, “So you have no pension from the knighthood?” The man laughs bitterly before saying, “Pension? The pension is a joke! The only way you can get it is by serving till you can retire at fifty. Ever since Derok took over, the kingdom’s gone down the gutter fast!” He then realizes what he said and pleads, “Please sir! Forgive me! I’m just an old soldier full of bitterness! Please don’t punish my daughter!” Valtorex quickly assures him, “Sir, I have no intention of punishing any of you. I think not providing a pension for injured soldiers is abominable. You have no need to worry, but I do need to get to the palace soon. Now, we need to work out your daughter’s work schedule…” They eventually decide that Julie will stay with Valtorex every day, but will get holidays and prearranged dates off. Julie comes back into the room and so do her brothers and mother. The mother goes to the cupboard to get some food for dinner, but Valtorex sees it is empty. Valtorex says, “Julie, gather the belongings you will need and make ready to leave. I will be back in twenty minutes with your pay for tomorrow. He looks at her mother and asks, “Would you like me to pay in bread?” The mother says, “Yes, please, sir. That would be wonderful.” Valtorex can tell by her accent that she is fallen nobility, robbed of her status by poverty. This corroborates the father’s story and angers Valtorex even more. Valtorex nods to them and leaves the house, going to the nearest grocer, praying to the gods for a fight.
He reaches the grocer and buys five loaves of bread. He goes to the general store nearby and buys a pack for five copper. He puts the bread in the pack and puts the pack on. He then leaves and heads back to the house, still praying for a fight. His prayers are apparently answered as two thugs, each armed with a dagger and a club, walk out of an alley. One says, “Hand over any food and valuables and you won’t get hurt.” Valtorex replies, “Thank you, I’ve been itching for a fight.” He then draws his swords and rushes the closest thug. (Poor guy never stood a chance) Within seconds, both thugs lie dead and Valtorex has claimed two gold and two daggers. He returns to Julie’s house and knocks on the door. Julie lets him in, and he enters the main hall. The family is sitting at the table and Valtorex takes off his pack and sets it down. He takes out the bread and puts it on the table. He says, “I will be paying her five copper a day. I hope this is agreeable.” The family is stunned by this. They were expecting one copper a day at most. Five copper would be enough to pay a mercenary for a day. Valtorex then turns to Julie and asks, “Ready?” Julie bows and says, “Yes, milord.” She then picks up an old, beaten sack and cradles it in her arms. Valtorex nods and Julie says goodbye to her family.
They go to the palace and they are shown to Valtorex’s room. Valtorex instructs Julie to make herself at home and he leaves. He goes down to the banquet hall and meets the king. He asks Derok what the on-staff servants are provided for meals. Derok tells him they are rationed a loaf of bread and a strip of dried meet each day. Valtorex says, “Ok, that is what my servant and I will be eating. That sounds like my usual fare anyway.” Derok is confused by this, but agrees, eager to save whatever money he can.
Valtorex begins training Julie over the following months, teaching her about honor and the tenant of the Knighthood. He teaches her how to fight and gives her the daggers and shortsword. She has to do the cleaning for the suite Valtorex has been given, but he does give her a room to herself. Every day, Valtorex walks the streets and sees the guards brutally killing beggars, thieves, and other desperate citizens. The whippings and beheadings get to him, and he decides he would rather fail than allow this to continue. He gets his chance when the king offers him a position as a full-fledged knight on patrol in the Southside territory. He takes on Julie as his apprentice and increases her pay to one silver a day for the added danger. He deals mercilessly with the thieves, but he secretly helps the beggars. Using the money he is now getting, he substantially improves their armor, buying full plate for himself and a leather combat dress with steel plating for her. He buys her the most masterfully crafted shortswords in the city and buys himself longswords of the same quality. They are so effective in reducing crime in the Southside that his territory is expanded to the Docks, too. Julie begins visiting her family on break on the days that they are in the Docks and Valtorex figures out ways to help the beggars even more.
Two years after his arrival in the kingdom, they find out about a group of rebels. Julie, knowing the reward, is eager to capture them in hopes of restoring her family’s honor. Valtorex has other plans, however. He meets with the rebels and forms a pact with them. He and Julie go to Derok and make a proposition. Valtorex says, “My plan is to create a mercenary group to deal with the crime in the city. This will free up more guards and knights to serve in your armies and it will be much cheaper because we can pay the mercenaries with seized goods.” Derok, always eager to save money, agrees. The guards and knights leave the Southside and Docks and the mercenary unit, known as “The Citizen’s Guard” takes over. The rebels, Valtorex, and Julie comprise the leadership of it. The Guard is very successful at reducing crime, mainly because all of the criminals join it. It is so effective and so inexpensive that Derok gladly cedes control of half the city to it. Four years in, the Guard controls all but Noble’s Plaza and the Palace. Derok, blinded by the bottom line is all too happy to allow this, as long as the profits keep rolling in.
One night, after five years of Valtorex being here, Derok comes to him and says, “Valtorex, you know the queen passed away years ago. I have been very lonely. You servant, Julie, is it? has developed into a stunning young woman, and she is the daughter of a noble lady and one of my knights, so she is of fitting breeding to wed, so I was wondering if you would allow her to marry me.” Valtorex replies, “That is up to her and her father, although I doubt you will be successful. She is set on becoming a knight and her father is still bitter at his rank being stripped from him.” Derok responds, a evil gleam in his eye, “The former can be ignored, the latter can be fixed. Goodbye for now.”
Days later, Julie’s family is killed in a mugging. The first mugging in the Docks for four years. By the laws of the kingdom, Valtorex adopts Julie into his house and Derok makes the same offer. Valtorex asks Julie, but she flat out refuses. (No, Word, her does not flat out refuse, she does) Valtorex informs Derok and he goes into a rage. He has Julie seized and whipped brutally. Valtorex is held back and cannot help; having discovered years earlier his magic is blocked in this realm. She is quickly reduced to a sobbing wreck and dragged off to the dungeons. Valtorex petitions to have her released, but Derok refuses. He says, “As soon as you agree to give her to me, I will let her go.” Valtorex decides the day has come.
He leaves the Palace and goes to the Guard’s headquarters. He walks in, goes to the leader of the group and says, “It is time. Take the Plaza by storm and march on the Palace. I’ll secure the gate.” Valtorex leaves the Guard to its preparations. He returns to the Palace and goes to the gatehouse. He is relieved to find out the captain of the watch is one he knows to have no good feelings towards the king. He takes the captain to the side and says, “I know you bear ill will towards the king.” The captain becomes nervous and tries to deny it. Valtorex continues, “So do I. He has taken my apprentice hostage and refuses to let her go until I agree to let him marry her. Later tonight, some friends will be coming along to see me. I’ll wait here for them. Just make sure no one you like is on the Palace grounds at the time. Go, I’ll watch here.” The captain nods, obviously eager to see the king fall. He goes to his men and asks a few to go with him to check out a disturbance. He then puts Valtorex in charge of the gatehouse.
At Darkwatch, the sounds of battle erupt from the Plaza as the Guard fights with the guards to the cry of “Death to the False King!” Needless to say, nearly half of the guards desert (No Jeff, they do not eat dessert, they desert.) (Tell that to word! Every time I put desert, it tried to say I was wrong, so I gave up and changed it) and a full quarter join the coup. Within an hour, the Plaza is under the control of the rebels. The Guard leaves a detachment to deal with the private guards of the nobles’, but ninety percent march across the bridge to the Palace. A sergeant, fiercely loyal to the throne, asks, “Orders, milord?” Valtorex replies, “Stand down. It is time this land had a true monarch.” The sergeant yells, “Men! Seize the traitor!” Valtorex grabs the sergeant by the collar and tosses him off the gatehouse, sending him screaming to his death. The second in command cringes when Valtorex looks at him. Valtorex asks, “What are your orders, soldier?” The second in command replies by drawing his sword and charging Valtorex with a cry of, “For the King!” Valtorex shakes his head before saying, “The king will fall. How many of you must go with him?” He then draws his swords and slays the soldier. The rest on the gatehouse split down the middle, half fleeing and half fighting. Valtorex butchers them ruthlessly. When his men reach the gatehouse, he opens the gates and descends to meet them. His second in command, Sir Rufus, greets him. Valtorex orders, “Send three tenths of your men to secure the walls, one fifth to take the barracks, and the rest to seize the castle proper. I have business in the dungeons.” Sir Rufus salutes and implements his orders as Valtorex leaves to rescue Julie.
Valtorex rushes the guards at the dungeon and yells, “Death to the King! Join the fight for freedom!” Two fifths of the guards desert then and there, and the remainders stand ready. Valtorex slaughters the door guards and manages to get through the door before they can close it. He remembers that this installation has two hundred guards and readies himself for battle. A group of guards run up the stairs, five of them in all. The captain in charge asks, “Milord, what is the commotion we heard?” Valtorex replies, “The city is revolting. The Plaza and gates have fallen to the Citizen’s Guard. Now is your chance to fight against the king if you believe his rule is unjust. Spread the word, the coup has begun.” The captain is stunned, as are three of his men. The fourth charges Valtorex with a scream of, “Die traitorous cur!” Valtorex cuts him down without remorse. The rest decide this is too good for to be true and run out to see for themselves. The captain stays behind and asks, “Sir Valtorex, is what you say true? Do the streets really rise against the King?” Valtorex says, “See for yourself. By now, my forces should have secured the walls and barracks. The king has been a fool and will now suffer the consequences.” The captain says, “Very well then, I will spread the word to the men to evacuate as I assume you are here for your squire. Be warned, the king waits with your squire, along with his entire Royal Guard. They will fight to the man and will not betray their liege. Facing them will be certain death.” Valtorex replies, “Let them prove their worth through steel then.” The captain nods and runs down the stairs. Minutes later, a long line of troops runs by Valtorex, most to return home, but some to join the fight.
Valtorex draws his swords and runs down to face certain death. He kills the Royal Guard in his path to a man. He reaches the king and finds him surrounded by one hundred of his elites. Valtorex sees Derok having Julie, suspended from the ceiling by an iron chain, whipped brutally. Valtorex sees the horrible, bloody wounds Derok has had inflicted upon her. Derok turns and sees Valtorex. He says, “You have betrayed me. I will give you one last chance. Swear allegiance to me and I will spare you. Join me and become my top general. I’ll even make you my heir by giving you my daughter. Just stop the rebellion and swear your allegiance.” Valtorex replies, “I have not betrayed you. I never served you. Recall how I’ve always said King Derok or Lord Derok. I have never called you my king or my lord. I serve only one ruler and only one nation. I serve the Emperor of Draconia and the Empire of Fire and Steel. Your own people are rising against you. Surrender and you will be spared; fight and I will slay you.” Derok laughs. He says, “This is a fortress in itself. I can hold it for months. Plenty of time for my legions to reach me. My Royal Guard will fight to the man for me, isn’t that right, boys?” The Royal Guard roars its agreement. Valtorex responds, “And so they shall.” Valtorex lifts his bloody swords and rushes into the fray. Within an hour, they are all dead.
Derok falls to his knees and pleads, “Spare me! I will make you king! Just spare me!” Valtorex removes his head without remorse. He unchains Julie and helps her into her armor. He says, “I know it hurts, but you must put on a brave face for the people. Your people. Your subjects.” Julie is shocked. She stammers, “You m…mean… me?” Valtorex nods. Julie is established as queen of the country. That night, as Valtorex sleeps in his bed, he disappears. (Don’t forget this place)
Valtorex wakes up in the Glade. Arianna is waiting for him. She says, “You completed the test, and in only two hours. I am impressed.” When she sees Valtorex’s bewildered expression, she says, “Look up the spell in your own time. I only have two hours. I’ll break down the test though. You passed the chivalry point when you saved the princess. You passed honor when you saved the beggar girl. You passed cunning when you put together the rebellion. You passed courage when you single handedly charged the Royal Guard. Finally, you passed loyalty when you refused the king’s offer. And yes, I did watch the entire thing. All five years. You behaved like a knight the entire time, which quite honestly, I have never seen before. Congratulations and welcome to the Draconic Knighthood. I look forward to serving with you, Sir Valtorex. Farewell.” (This frees up a full class for next year) Valtorex goes to the Tower of the Arcane for his third Final. (Next is the final FinalJ)
He arrives at the Tower of the Arcane and meets Rōdenthall. Rōdenthall says, “You’re early. Wait here for the rest.” An hour and a half later, Dethos, Zethos, and Myrstaline arrive. Rōdenthall says, “Good let’s begin. We have limited time and a lot to cover. (Actually, it’s the 31st and I have an hour and a half left until I run out of time) First, we will test your combat skill. You will kill a creature I assign you with nothing but magic.” Rōdenthall assigns them each a spot and summons the creatures. Dethos must kill a dust memphit, Zethos has to fight an imp, Myrstaline has to fight a basilisk and Valtorex has to fight a fell beast. (Thank you Tolkien)(Not a good idea Jeff and I mean remove it before you send it out!) (None of these notes will be in the final copy. Besides, what’s wrong with giving him credit?) The fights begin. The fell beast swoops down upon Valtorex, trying to claw him to death. Valtorex fires a barrage of flame bolts that dissipate against the fell beast’s thick hide. Valtorex then fires Finger of Death at it, intent on slaying the thing. The green bolt sizzles out against the skin of the fell beast and it comes down for another attack. As Valtorex is jumping out of the way, he fires Ray of Frost at it, just to annoy it. The beam of freezing air strikes it in the mouth, causing it to roar out. Valtorex then realizes it is vulnerable in any spot not covered by hide. Valtorex draws it after him, taunting it with spells until it dives at him, intent on eating him. When it opens its mouth to roar, Valtorex releases a killing curse from one of his spellbooks and watches as it disintegrates with a screech of pain. All that’s left is a small, black orb that lands at his feet. He picks it up and puts it in his pack. He looks around and sees that, as expected, Dethos and Zethos have won, but to his surprise, he sees Myrstaline panting from exertion and leaning against the statue of a basilisk to rest.
He walks over and Myrstaline says, “It was trying to spit acid at me, and I only had one shield spell left, a very weak one called Mirror Shield. I guess it looked at me, because it turned to stone.” Valtorex pats her on the back and says, “Good job.” Rōdenthall yells, “Don’t get too proud of yourselves quite yet. We still have two more tests. Next is a test of alchemy. Meet me in the alchemy lab.” (Yay chemistry!)
They arrive in the lab and find two stations set up. Rōdenthall is waiting and as soon as they are in, he casts a spell that releases a deadly poison into the room. They all choke as the poison enters their lungs. As the smoke clears, Rōdenthall says, “Oops, that was clumsy of me. Well at least I have five bottles of the antidote. One for me…” He drains the contents of a small vial. He then picks up the other four and makes a big show of ‘accidentally’ dropping them. He says, “Oops, I’m so clumsy today. Well, you have an hour to make the antidote before your organs liquidize. Fortunately, I have the recipes right here.” He goes over and hands a piece of paper to Dethos. He then drops the other and it floats into the fireplace. He says to Valtorex and Myrstaline, “Well, I guess you’d better start from scratch.”
Valtorex and Myrstaline begin working furiously. Valtorex’s skill with alchemy coupled with Myrstaline’s knowledge of herbs and other ingredients allows them to isolate all of the useful materials they’ve been provided with. With thirty minutes left to go, they have created two vials of three different antidotes. Valtorex tries one and feels less tired, but can tell it didn’t stop the poison. He tries the second and vomits uncontrollably. (Trial and error. Works every time, except for the times you die) Myrstaline grabs the third and drinks it. She instantly feels better. She forces Valtorex to drink it, but he vomits it out before it can take effect fully. She frantically tries to create another batch, only to find out they are out of the key ingredient. (Possibly Chemical X. For those of you that get the reference, no I’m not a freak. My sister went through a phase where she liked that show) (Were the others sugar, spice, and everything nice?) (See, I’m not that badJ) She looks over and sees Dethos and Zethos still have some. She doesn’t bother to ask, knowing they won’t help, and uses telekinesis to float it over. Dethos and Zethos prepare to attack her with killing spells, but she finishes the potion and gives it to Valtorex. When Valtorex stands up and looks over at them, the words of the spells instantly leave their lips and flee their minds.
Rōdenthall then says, “Ok, so you all survived, now for the last test. The test of willpower. I will be in the next room to test you individually. Dethos first, then Zethos, then Myrstaline, and then Valtorex.” Dethos and Zethos cycle through pretty quickly, then it is Myrstaline’s turn. Valtorex gives her a quick pep talk before sending her off. When Myrstaline arrives in the room, Rōdenthall casts a spell. A faint glow shows through the front of her dress. Rōdenthall says, “Remove the necklace. Cheating is not allowed.” Myrstaline, fearing what will happen, removes the necklace. Rōdenthall says, “Good, now put it on the table and have a seat…” An hour later, Myrstaline comes out of the room, tears streaming down her face. When Valtorex asks her what happened, she just cries harder. Valtorex sees the necklace dangling from her hand and casts Mental Probe on her. Sickened by what Rōdenthall forced her to do (Minds out of the gutter. If Rōdenthall did that, then Valtorex would kill him and I need him until Ch. 11) Valtorex enters the room. An hour later, Rōdenthall comes out, nearly in tears. When Valtorex follows him and taps him on the shoulder, Rōdenthall says, “Myrstaline, I changed my mind. You pass.” Myrstaline, who has stopped crying by now, almost thanks Rōdenthall, then she instead thanks Valtorex. As they are leaving, Rōdenthall yells to Valtorex, “You bastard! I will slay you for that! (No, Word, he will slay him, not say him!) (No Jeff, slay not “say” you) Valtorex and Myrstaline agree to meet at his cabin after fourth before parting ways.
Valtorex arrives at the Hall of Trials and Lord Kemos says, “Good, you’ve arrived. As soon as the rest- Oh here they are.” Valen, Valrie, and Valinor walk up. Lord Kemos says, “For your Final, we will be sieging a plane of the Abyss. All of us. This time, you will not be saved if you fail. Let’s go.” Lord Kemos opens a portal to the Abyss and they go through. Lord Kemos says, “Ok, Valen, take the lookout tower and give us cover fire. Valrie, take the gate and open it. Valinor, take the bridge. Valtorex, you take the barracks. I’ll take the throne room.” (Thrown room! Muahahaha!) (GRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR…)
Valtorex rushes to the barracks and kicks down the door with a cry of, “Kai Zanaria! Kai Manäïen! Kai Kaeje!” The demons jump out of their beds and race for their swords. They don’t race fast enough. Valtorex quickly slays the demons that are unarmored and then engages in a long fight with the twenty demons that either had their equipment on, or manage to reach their equipment in time. The twenty drops to ten, then five in minutes. Valtorex spent all year training and he wants the demons to know it. He cuts down a lithe demon that was using a rapier; then he slices open a large demon with a scimitar. He skewers a demon with a mace before decapitating a demon that had a greatsword. That leaves him and the garrison commander, a large brute duel-wielding (Plasma riflesJ) bastard swords. Her fights the demon, the contest obviously down to strength versus speed. In the end, magic wins, as Valtorex shoots a magic missile straight through the demon’s chest.
Valtorex secures the barrack’s teleportation portal, making it one way, going out and runs to the throne room. He meets up with Valrie who had locked the gates and broken the control device, Valinor who had taken the bridge and causes it to collapse, and Valen who had collapsed the tower, destroying the fourth route into the keep. They reach the throne room to find Lord Kemos lying on the floor, bleeding, with Kaedros standing above him with a greatsword that’s blade appears to be made of solidified darkness. Kaedros says, “He was boring. I hope you provide a better challenge.” Lord Kemos then rolls away and pulls a vial out. He drinks it and his wounds are healed. He says, “This is serious. I’d say retreat, but we’re Elites, so my order is this. Charge! Slay the bastard and his three bitches! I will watch the rear and keep the demons off your back.” Lord Kemos moves to the back of the room and blocks the door against the demons using the best lock he has. Cold, unyielding steel.
Valtorex looks around and sees a new addition. While Torment and Despair were beautiful in a terrible sort of way, this third woman is gorgeous in a horrible one. Kaedros says, “Ah yes, my newest acquisition, Agony meet Valtorex. Valtorex, prepare to learn agony.” Agony says, “Master, he looks so delicious! Can I play with him before killing him?” Kaedros replies, “Of course, but make sure it doesn’t get too messy.” Agony pouts but bows to him. Valrie asks, “Play with?” then she realizes that Agony and the two others are succubae. She yells, “Stay the hell away from him! He’s mine and if you want him, you have to go through me!” (Ah, jealousy. Such a fun way to start fights) Agony smiles cruelly before saying, “You look delicious too. I’ll keep you both as pets for awhile!” Valrie draws her sword and charges Agony. Valinor shrugs and runs at Torment. Valen attacks Despair. Valtorex and Kaedros face off. They circle around each other before charging each other. As their swords strike, Valtorex feels the ring reverberate in his entire body and knows it is time. He goes into that state of peace and begins digging. He fights Kaedros, finally able to match his amazing, almost godlike skill. As Valtorex digs deeper, he grows stronger. They keep fighting, going back and forth, gaining and losing ground until Valtorex reaches the balrog’s stronghold. This time, when Valtorex enters, the balrog growls, “I will never submit to you, but I hate this abomination more. When you fight him, I and this fortress, your soul, will fight with him.” Valtorex feels the burst of raw strength he always feels when the balrog takes over, but without the all-consuming rage. He has the power from all of his body being directed towards the fight that he gains from his Peaceful War control technique, and the immortal fury of the balrog without losing his sanity to bloodlust.
He fights and fights, every blocked strike, every breath, every heartbeat, making him stronger. Kaedros quickly starts losing ground. The three sisters feel their power diminish as their master’s does. They keep fighting for hours, but eventually and inevitably, Kaedros is forced to retreat. With him go the jewels in the sister’s chests. The succubae are severely weakened and quickly brought down by unforgiving steel. The four of them regroup with Lord Kemos and they fight their way out of the keep. They finally reach the barracks, suffering minor wounds, and fight to the portal. Valtorex opens the portal and they teleport back to the Academy. Lord Kemos says, “Congratulations you four. You made it. You have passed year one of Elite Training. I will see you next year. Go and enjoy yourselves, you’ve earned it!”
The four of them go back to their cabin and clean up. Myrstaline arrives and they go to the tavern. They find it surprisingly empty considering it’s the last day of true school. The tavern, built to house five hundred, is only half full. They find a table and a barmaid, a student they have seen around the Academy, comes up and gets their orders. Valrie has ale, Valinor, Dwarven Spirits, Valen, Draconic Rum, Myrstaline Elven Wine, and Valtorex, water for his special mix. They spend the night talking and drinking, all of them becoming very drunk, except Valtorex (Someone has to be the designated fighter in case of attackJ) but especially Valinor and especially after Rogard came in and challenged him to a Spirit-Off, the noblest contest of the dwarves. (Who would not want to live in the Dwarven Kingdoms?) Valtorex leads them all back to the cabin. Valinor manages to stumble into his bunk, but Valtorex has to help Valen up to his. Valtorex puts the passed out Myrstaline into his bunk and tucks Valrie into hers. Valtorex then spends the rest of the night meditating and studying spells.
The next day, around sun-up, Valtorex wakes them up and forces them out of bed. He pushes and cajoles them into the Spring of Tranquility to bathe. They are woken up a bit by this, just enough to be pissed off. (Never get drunk around me. I’m merciless to hangover victimsJ) After several hours of vomiting and halfhearted attempts to kill Valtorex, they finally recover enough to talk. The discussion inevitably turns to deciding what they will do over the summer. Valrie says, “I still don’t know what I’m doing. I may hop a ship and serve in the Navy for a few months, but I’m not sure. Maybe I’ll try some mercenary work-” Valtorex cuts her off with a sharp, “No!” He then explains, “Either A, you go with me and get me killed like I told you before, or B, you wind up competing with me and driving me out of business. I won’t allow either.” They laugh at the last part, although Valrie seems ready to kill him once she remembers the first part. Valen says, “Well, I’m going back to my village in the Elven Kingdoms. It looks like it will be just another boring summer of babysitting my older sister and dealing with the other kids in town.” Valtorex raises his eyebrows and asks, “Babysitting your older sister?” Valen replies, “Yes, I was found by my parents and raised like one of their own. Unfortunately, they already had a daughter and I just happened to grow as fast as a human, so even though she’s twenty-four, she’s about ten in human aging. She’s also evil. Like Demere evil. Like Kaedros evil.” They laugh, thinking he’s absurd. (Oh, how wrong they are) They keep talking and Valinor says, “I guess I’ll hunt orcs up north. I need to keep in practice or I’ll lose my edge. Maybe I’ll be a mercenary. Don’t worry though; it would be in the Mercenary Empire, not down south where you and Valrie will be.” They talk some more, the four of them coming to the conclusion they will be very bored with their plans.
Valen then gets a spark of brilliance. (And like the guy he’s based on, this is a rare occurrence. Just kidding, RATJ) Valen says, “I know how we can solve all of our problems! You guys can spend the summer in my village! We have some extra rooms and my parents won’t mind. It will give you guys a way to hone your skills without winding up dead and it will give me some chaos to enjoy. It’s perfect!” Valrie, Valinor, and Valtorex agree. When they look at Myrstaline, she says, “I’m sorry, I can’t. I have to return to Tria Lün for court. My father needs me for some diplomatic reason. If I could, I would, but my father would be very angry and I would rather avoid that if I can. On the bright side, I can go with you guys until we have to part ways. I think Valen’s village is on the way to my father’s manor, so I’ll stay with you guys until then.” They talk some more and then decide to go pack.
Valtorex, Valrie, Valen, and Valinor arrive at their cabin and begin packing their belongings. Once they are done, they make ready to leave. On the way out, Valtorex notices a letter addressed to him on the table. He picks it up and reads it. It says,
“Valtorex,
I regret to inform you that your vacation has been canceled. You are expected to unpack your belongings if you have already packed. Please inform your friends of your change of plans and wait for me in your cabin. I have devised some new punishment methods I would like to try, and as you have outstanding offenses, you are the perfect candidate. Arch-Mage Rōdenthall has agreed to forgo his usual trip to the Darklands in order to instruct you. You are not to leave the Academy. To do so will violate Administrative Mandate and will be considered delinquency, punishable by expulsion. Your days will consist of detention with Rōdenthall for the four periods of the day. You will then have detention with me for the remainder of the day. You are expected to remove your armor and weapons and place them in the corner. You are also to wear the ring included in the envelope that you have received. The ring will prevent the use of magic. Violation of this Administrative Mandate will also result in expulsion. You should have a bucket of water ready in your cabin and a fire should be started by the time I arrive. Failure to comply will result in disciplinary action. I would also like to inform you that a classmate of yours, by the name of Silvanos, says he is looking forward to spending the summer with you. I am sure you two will get along as well as you get along with everyone else.
Sincerely,
Head Mistress Demere”
Valtorex turns the letter over and writes a reply. He then puts on his pack and replaces the letter in the envelope. He takes the ring and puts it in his pack to dispose of later. Valrie, Valen, Valinor, and Valtorex walk out the door and go to Myrstaline’s cabin. They meet Myrstaline and talk for a while, planning out their trip. They decide they need to go or risk being stopped by Demere, so Valtorex and Myrstaline prepare the necessary spells to take them to their destination. The five of them teleport to the edge of the Great Forest, ready to start their vacations in earnest. They walk along a path, talking and joking, just enjoying the fact they don’t have to worry about tests, classes, or Demere anymore. They reach the forest and walk in. As they walk under the trees, the feeling of being surrounded by life makes Valtorex forget all about the hell he’ll face from Demere when he gets back. He just decides to enjoy his time off and deal with the consequences later. (Little does he know, he’s marching right into Hellfire’s jaws and the consequences to his actions will be much worse than he could ever imagine)
Hours later, Demere walks into the room and sees the envelope. She opens the envelope up and removes the letter. She scans her letter, once again approving of her work. She then sees ink through the back and turns it over. On the back, Valtorex wrote a letter in reply to hers. His letter, grounds for expulsion should the Head Master ever see it, reads, (Wow, almost done)
“Dearest Head Mistress Demere,
I regret to inform you I will not be able to stay at the Academy over the summer. I have already made plans with my friends and would much rather spend the summer with them than waste it with you, Rōdenthall, and that bastard Silvanos. Also, for all of your warnings of expulsion, they amount to nothing, and I will explain why later on. Furthermore, you cannot punish me for leaving the Academy as the school year is officially over and you have no authority over me. All of your talk is just bombastic bluster (I need another B!) and bullshit. (There it is!) You are nothing but a psychotic tyrant afraid that one day, a student will come along who challenges you and wins. Well, it is time to be afraid because that day has come. In response to your order to stay behind and wait for you so you can spend the summer torturing me, I have to say no. I know that you can’t back up any of your threats, so I can do whatever the hell I want and you can’t stop me. So, I’m going to enjoy my summer off and train. I will come back next year, better prepared and more skilled to deal with you and your little tricks. Now, I know you will spend the rest of the summer plotting and planning on how to get revenge and how to kill me, but I only have one thing to say to that. You will fail miserably every time you attack me because even the teachers hate you. The more you try to oppress us, the more of us that will rise against you. In the end, you will have a full-scale insurrection (Actually Insurrection because it’s a chapter name) that you won’t be able to handle. You can tell Rōdenthall to shove it and deal with the fact I am a far better mage than he will ever be. You can also tell Silvanos that I’m coming for him and if he ever lets his guard down again, I’ll be there to slaughter him. Finally, I will say this, your day has come and your number has been called. It is too late to make amends and it is too late to apologize. We are at war and I will win. By the end of my time here, I will be victorious and you will be dead or insane. Just remember this, you brought it upon yourself. Now to explain why I don’t need to worry about the Head Master seeing this. By now, the spell I cast should have started to take effect. When you smell smoke, don’t worry, it’s just your life going up in flames.
Kaeje ona Morte,
Valtorex”
The letter then bursts into flames, quickly being consumed by the blaze. The envelope burns away, being reduced to ashes quickly. The fire burns away all traces the letter ever existed, and thus, absolves Valtorex of any wrongdoing due to lack of evidence. Demere curses long and bitterly before sitting on a bunk, her head low in defeat. For the first time in years, she knows despair, she knows fear. That is when Kaedros appears…(What about the ring?) (Third sentence after Demere’s letter)
Tags: Chronicles of Valtorex, fantasy, fiction, Jeff Patterson, JPAT, Valtorex
