Blade Quest-Strength
From Create Your Own Story
You decide to rely on your strength and make a straight-forward slashing attack. He blocks with his shield and swings at you. You parry two of his hits with your blade before thrusting toward his chest. He blocks you easily and your arm aches from the force of your failed strike. You try a double-sided combo from the left and right, but he bats away your sword and thrusts at you, making you back up. You move forward again and try combination four: left, left, right, down. Unfortunately, he parries each move, keeping your blade from even touching him. You're tired already and you still have many more knights left to go if you hope to win this dueling tournament. You block another hit with your shield and thrust to his exposed right side. However, he clamps his protected arm down on your sword, trapping it between his chest and upper arm. Before you can do anything else, he slams his shield into your right side, making you release your sword and stumble back a bit. He drops your sword, but before you can pick it up he strikes your shoulder with the flat of his blade and then grabs you and holds his sword to your throat. You've lost the duel.
While your opponent waits to fight the next victor, you move to the side to resume drilling combination four over and over with the wooden dummy. It bothers you that your knowledge of the combinations in now way helped you win. You can only hope Sir Rodney wasn't watching, already rethinking his decision to let you train with the castle guard. You are not royalty and for all the other knights know you are your father's little-known nephew from Calif. You remember how you stole your family's credentials from your father's cabinet in order to participate in the miniature trial that would allow the captain of the guard to assess the skills of knights from all over the kingdom. If you were to be found out it would disgrace your family and shame your father, a former knight who'd been placed on temporary leave due to an injury in the last Orc War. The thought makes you strike harder and faster, letting your body slip into the rhythm of the strokes.
Once the duel ends, the defeated knights are called back to the center of the field to hear the winner announced. It comes as no surprise to you that Andrew, a wiry young man about your size and age, has bested all his opponents. He is the son of the Duke of Clapsburg and has been training at the castle as a squire since he was ten. While he has not yet been knighted, he has more than proven himself worthy in the last few tournaments and everyone knows it's only a matter of time before he accomplishes some heroic feat and is officially knighted. You force a pleasant expression onto your face and bite back your jealousy.
Sir Rodney reminds all the knights in training to be on time to escort the prince on his afternoon hunt and then dismisses all of you for lunch. You are about to slink away home when you hear Sir Rodney call to you. You turn back and can see the disappointed expression on his face.
| Status | ||
| Health | 100 | Equipment:
Tunic, Boots, Chain mail, Armor, Sword, Shield |
| MP | None | |
| Level | None | |
