Gemini

The Phantom...

«Um, Sebas? I don't think now is the time to laugh» I said, worried about the turn this was taking. «What are those?». Those unidentified creatures meanwhile were descending in groups from the trees, encircling us and cutting off all escape routes. Damn it.

«Those are the Acolytes of the Dragon, a rather ancient species said to be descended from dragons themselves. In fact, the older dragons not infrequently use them as their own emissaries and henchmen. Their purpose is probably to keep us here until their master arrives» explained Sebas, who was getting more and more excited in anticipation of an interesting fight.

Or at least I believe. It's not so easy to understand what's going on in his head.

«How do we defeat them? Will we have to fight the dragon? And how come they weren't in the forest a year ago?» asked Nate, voicing my own questions as well.

«As for the first questions: it remains to be seen» Sebas began to say. «If the Acolytes don't attack us, there is a fair chance that the dragon will come to talk to us, and then we might not have to fight it.

If not... well, I guess you can imagine what lies ahead.

As for the latter, I suppose your cloud-disappearing magic act or your "race" scared them off». 

I swallowed in anxiety.

I wasn't exactly happy about facing a dragon on the very first day of training, but then again, I couldn't trust my luck. 

The dragon would have never come to chit-chat.

I am convinced that my state of anxiety was quite evident.

«Don't be nervous Ellie» Nate tried to reassure me. «As long as we are all together nothing bad will happen to us. Besides, we also have the teacher here with us».

Sebas nodded, confirming his words. «Listen to your boyfriend Ellie, as long as I'm here nothing at all will happen to you. 

A miserable dragon cannot hold a candle to me».

I sighed. I was not completely convinced, but I appreciated their attempt to ease the tension: «For the last time Sebas, Nate is not my boyfriend. But I thank you for the words, I feel better now. I guess all we have left to do is wait for the acolytes to make their move». I then leaned against a large boulder, still holding my sword in my fist, waiting patiently for what was to come.

-

Time passed, but the Acolytes did not seem to want to make their move. They had merely come down from the trees and surrounded us. «They will want to wait for their master to arrive» I thought, beginning to feel confident that for once luck had turned on my side.

«Guys» Sebas said softly. «Do you see that? Be on your guard, the dancing starts soon». I blinked several times, his words had left me puzzled. See what?

«They're getting closer» murmured Nate, drawing his sword.

Oh well, mystery solved.

As it was meant to be, once again luck was not on my side.

I rose from the large boulder that had kindly served as my chair and raised my sword, ready for whatever might come.

But spoiler alert: nothing could have prepared me for what was to come.

The Acolytes all let out a cry at the same time that almost gave me a heart attack from fright. As if that were not enough, they all assumed a pose that left little room for doubt.

«Are you all going to dance YMCA?» I blurted out.

The Acolytes had in fact all assumed the classic "Y" pose of the iconic group dance, creating a situation that was surreal.

«This is... peculiar» commented Sebas, evidently also displaced by the turn of events.

«Are they going to attack us?» asked Nate, but Sebas could not give a definitive answer on the matter.

«I don't know, this is the first time I've seen them do something like this. Is it some kind of propitiatory ritual?»

Whatever it was, it was not looking good.

And indeed shortly afterwards a huge number of "Y"s approached us, restricting our room for manoeuvre.

"Guys, we'd better make the first move before they shut us down completely» I proposed. The other two nodded in assent and assumed their fighting pose.

«Children, should the dragon pop up» Sebas began to say. «Remember that Gifts don't...» but was interrupted by Nate with a «Don't worry, we won't use them unless it's a matter of life and death».

«No wait, that's not what...» he tried to continue, but Nate had already left.

«OUT OF MY WAY!» he shouted, launching himself into the attack.

We sighed. Nate is truly hopeless.

And with that we launched into the attack.

The fight thus finally began.

-

Nate's charge didn't seem to catch the Acolytes particularly off guard, they probably expected something like this to happen sooner or later. But from there to dodging Nate's ferocious attacks without any particular concern was a completely other story.

But that was exactly what was happening: as if they were dancing, the Acolytes unceremoniously dodged all the lunges and blows of Nate, who grew more and more impatient every time he struck out.

«Nate, hold your horses and think for once» Sebas intervened very nonchalantly as he duelled with a couple of Acolytes. «Your opponent can easily avoid your attacks based on the Dragon series, which is all about power.

It is therefore clearly not the best strategy. And how do we counter a fast opponent?» he concluded, waiting for our answer.

I had an epiphany: «Just be faster than him. It is time for the old Dragon to make way for the silent Phantom» I exclaimed radiantly.

«Bingo» said Sebas nodding, visibly satisfied with the answer. Nate, on the other hand, seemed heartbroken by the unexpected outcome, but he moved on to the Phantom series.

This time it would be me who would put on a show.

I cleared my mind by taking a deep breath.

In front of me were two or three acolytes.

«I can do it» I thought confidently.

I stretched my sword out behind me, simultaneously leaning forward, taking my time to test something we had never tried during training. I exhaled.

First: close the distance with lightning movements.

Second: duck and move by exploiting blind spots.

Third: dance with the blade through enemies in front of you.

A perfect game.

I executed all the movements to perfection, combining the Phantom Step and Phantom Cut techniques, among the first ones Sebas had taught us.

Without even realising it, I found myself behind the acolyte who was further away from me. «Spectral Flash» I said, sheathing my sword as I had seen Sebas do a thousand times over the past few days.

I turned around: in front of me lay dying at least five Acolytes, far more than I had seen before.

I laughed. «Sebas, did you see that! I finally managed to learn it!» I exclaimed out of joy.

«Truly excellent Ellie, you get better every day» complimented old Sebas. So, slowly, we managed to repel the Acolytes, forcing them all to group together. Strangely enough, however, they no longer seemed intent on attacking us. «You see who's the real deal here, huh?» taunted Nate.

«Sorry to disappoint you Nate, but I think you misunderstood» Sebas corrected him. «The reason for their retreat is coming up behind them» he finished, pointing his sword at the trees behind the Acolytes.

The dragon had arrived.