The Story of the Trees - Sword, Ring, and Crown Book One

Chapter Thirty-One

There were a couple of things that I learned during this training exercise. The foremost thing I learned was that my bike riding was not enough to build the stamina I needed to get through these trials.

The second fact I learned is that Luke is a punitive sadist, and Ciaran is a gleeful sadist. I dubbed them the Brothers de Sade.

Luke had me pull back the string of the bow again. My arm was shaking now, and I felt like my shoulder was on fire. He'd given me a bow with a ten-pound draw, the easiest bow on the rack, but even this was making my fingers ache. My shoulder complained as he forced my elbow out once more. The times I forgot won me nice welts on my arm. I'd hit the target twice, not in the center, but at least in the vicinity, which pleased Luke, at least. But I doubted I could do this to save my life. Chucking a soda or a ball with suitable distance and accuracy wasn't the same as this, even though Luke thought I had promise.

"Okay, stop for now. We will do this every day while on the road to train you," he said, his pride making me stand tall on that mountain again. My weariness made it challenging to keep my shield in place, and I wanted Dom to put his arm around me again.

I heard the object of my thoughts grunt as Ciaran smacked him on the back with a sword, making my friend fall forward. As he did, his sword disappeared, which prevented him from getting skewered when he landed on his knees. His auburn hair was plastered to his skull with sweat, and his tunic was drenched.

"You lack stamina, my friend," Ciaran shouted. 

As Dominic struggled back to his feet, Ciaran smacked him again on his stomach. The shield appeared after the strike, and it was a sputtering glow. Ciaran swung his sword to hit Dominic again, and my friend barely got the shield up to block it. It sputtered away as soon as Ciaran spun.

"You cannot keep your guard or weapon." Smack! Smack! Smack! Ciaran beat Dominic with both the wooden blade and his words.

"If you think you'll be able to stand with Your Lady," Swing! Smack! "and protect her back with your current level of fitness," Ciaran aimed at Dominic's throat, and he put up his sword just in time to parry. Ciaran grinned viciously at him. "You are wrong. Trial one will be the easiest of the trials, and it will be a trail of pain for you if you don't become tougher."

I dropped my bow and arrow and started towards them, meaning to beat up Ciaran. He couldn't treat my friend that way! However, Luke grabbed my arm and whispered, "Stop. You'll destroy Dominic's dignity if you swoop in to save him."

Dominic gulped in his air with great, heaving breaths. He looked over at me, saw my concern, and took note of Luke holding me back.   With a nod at Luke, he readied himself for another beating from Ciaran. "Okay."

Ciaran nodded, "Good. Let's begin again. En Garde!"

I winced as Dominic stumbled and, hating it,  turned to see what was happening with Adrian. He was working with Erick on the climbing walls. The goal of that exercise was to swing across while suspended by a cord to various points on the wall that were spread far apart. Above each point was a target that he needed to throw a knife into or stab if he was close enough. There were plenty of blades on the ground below them.

Sweat drenched Adrian as well. He'd shucked his tunic, and his cocoa-colored skin glistened with sweat. His narrow back tightened before each spring, and his biceps bunched as he pulled back his arm to throw. It was... I swallowed and tore my mesmerized gaze from him. It was... evident that this was a great effort for him. Yeah, that's what I was going to say.

Luis was training independently with weights and running through various katas. He'd proven proficient enough with climbing, vaulting, and the sword, so he was left alone. Not that he'd wanted to be with anyone anyway.