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Fable : Fall of the Guild	By : Samson Category: +A through F > Fable Views: 8222 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
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Chapter List
- 3
- 4
- 5
Final Test.
Fable : Fall of the Guild

Part I - "In Your Blood"

By: Jesse Racine AKA Samson

Original Date Written: March 23, 2011

Two years into Timoteo's training at the Guild of Heroes, the head of the Guild, the mysterious yet widely famous Hero of Oakvale, left for parts unknown. Nobody saw him leave, he only left a letter for the Guildmaster. What the letter said, nobody knows, as the Guildmaster told not a soul. Also, Darrah and Timoteo's relationship had taken a heated turn, the both of them becoming intense rivals. Darrah always picked on him for being a mage, while Timoteo always made fun of her for being a "meaty fighter", as he put it. Their rivalry pushed them on in their training, bringing them to excellence as they attempted to outperform one another. Three and a half years into Timoteo's training, and the Guildmaster had officially retired. He said that the Guild was his home, however, and so decided to stay on as the head of the Guild. An old Will user, said to be deeply skilled in various arcane arts, was elected to be the next Guildmaster. Although his name was Merlin, he liked to simply be called "Guildmaster", like his predecessor had.
To avoid confusion, the old Guildmaster allowed others to call him by his old Hero name, "Weaver". Four years into Timoteo's training, and he already felt like a competent Will user. He had gained a deep proficiency with several spells, and had a large array of additional spells he could cast with amateur skill. With both Bianca and Travis gone, however, his days training at the Guild had many lonely moments. He didn't have any other Will users to train with, and was more or left to his own devices as the others went to train with Heroes of the same Talent. His loneliness only seemed to grow as he watched the other boys find girlfriends among the younger apprentices. As Timoteo and his group of friends grew older, they saw more and more young children come to the Guild. They saw many forced to leave, as they didn't have the physical or mental strength to endure the training at the Guild, which seemed to grow more and more intense with every passing year.
Brute, Gibbons, and Calvin all found companions in younger girls, but none of the girls Timoteo saw around the Guild grounds really caught his eye, nor did he seem to catch any of their's. Since apprentices didn't train with anyone older than them, Timoteo wasn't even able to see what the younger mages were capable of. He once confided in Marst that he had felt lonely during his time at the Guild, that he secretly longed for other mages to train with, wanting to see Bianca and Travis again. Marst comforted him, telling him that he would find a good companion some day soon, saying that a good match for him could be closer than he realizes. To tease him, she suggested Darrah as a match for him, winking at him as she said that Darrah hadn't gotten herself a companion, either. Timoteo practically laughed at the suggestion, saying that Darrah hadn't found a companion because of her teasing and very often catty personality. When their laughter had died down, he seemed to grow a touch morose.
He told Marst that he missed his quiet times in the library, reading with Bianca. He still read in the library aisle that he and Bianca had sat at, only now he did so alone. Marst offered to join him, but she only did so for a week before she resumed sitting with the others. She told him that she missed the conversation that went with the others, Timoteo apologizing, saying that he had gotten used to quietly reading with Bianca and so wasn't used to talking while reading. While his rivalry with Darrah remained heated, it grew more and more personal as the emotional changes of puberty, which had started not all that long ago for the group, began to swing their minds around in new directions. During his fifth year of training at the Guild, he heard news of civilians becoming paranoid and untrusting of Heroes. He heard news that ordinary people were beginning to consider Heroes unnecessary, which was surely preposterous, right? Heroes would always be needed, the constant influx of Quest Cards was proof of that.
Very many Heroes thought the same as Timoteo, and so paid very little attention to the rumours of unrest among several parts of Albion. Timoteo's years of loneliness had begun to have an effect on him, turning him into a quiet young man with an air of maturity about him, an introverted teenager that always seemed to think of his actions before he followed them through. He had developed a body with toned muscle due to his training at the Guild, his hair thick and his features fairly handsome. Now that he was a little older and had become a little more developed, younger girls suddenly seemed more interested in him, giving him attention that he had never known before, flattering him immensely. His first kiss came during his sixth year of training, when he was sixteen. A fourteen year old mage-girl had passed him a note during everyone's break for lunch, the note asking him to meet her by the entrance to the Guild Woods after everyone had finished reading in the library.
Timoteo, amused by the note yet also flattered, spoke with his friends. All of them encouraged him to meet the girl, including Darrah. Timoteo went out to meet her as the sun set, finding the girl there. She was blushing as he approached, seeming quite nervous and shy. When Timoteo asked her why she had wanted to see him, a smile on his face with one eyebrow raised, the girl seemed lost for words. Mustering up some courage, Timoteo gently brought the girl close, his heart pounding nervously in his chest as he gave the girl a kiss on her lips. Despite his pounding heart, he coolly asked if that was what she had wanted. The girl's face full of blush, she mumbled "Y-Yes..." before suddenly running off with embarrassment. Timoteo laughed when he told his friends about what had happened, some of them not believing that he had just kissed the girl outright, the others congratulating him. Darrah teased him, telling him that if the girl had just ran off, it was probably because Timoteo was a terrible kisser.
Timoteo teased her back, asking "How would you know what a terrible kisser is, have you ever kissed anybody, hmm?" Darrah grew so annoyed that her face had gone red, and it took the combined efforts of Brute and Marst to keep her from tackling into Timoteo and starting a fight right in their shared bedroom. After kissing the girl, however, Timoteo never had another opportunity to speak with her. Whenever she saw him around the Guild, she always ran off blushing, leaving Timoteo with no way of contacting her. By his seventh year of training, there were so many young apprentices in the Guild that a new building had to be made, just to act as a dormitory. The Guild had begun to flourish once more, and although a good deal of the apprentices eventually had to leave due to an inability to meet certain standards within the Guild, there were still so many that many of the older Heroes believed the Guild was entering a new golden age. It was an idea that many were unable to deny; in just a few short years, there would be a new generation of Heroes that would go out into Albion and the world beyond, serving ordinary people or serving themselves, it didn't matter what choice of morality or conduct they made. All that mattered was that Heroes were returning.
Timoteo awoke peacefully, the sunlight shining in through the large openings in the walls of his shared bedroom. By his seventh year at the Guild, Marst had already graduated. Timoteo and the others still saw her every once in a while, however, when she would come to the Guild looking for Quest Cards. Occasionally, she would join them with training, as although she had been older than the others within their group, she would have been alone entirely were she not allowed to train with them, as there weren't any others of her exact age at the Guild. As such, she was still allowed to spar with them whenever she'd come around during their training. Timoteo watched as the other boys' companions came and went, the three of them being equal when it came to gaining the affections of girls. Timoteo was confused about Darrah and Marst, however. While Marst had been at the Guild as an apprentice, she had had several suitors; many boys had shown an interest in her, yet she had always politely rejected their advances.
Timoteo wondered if she was simply pleased with being alone, satisfied with just being on her own. Or, perhaps she just didn't want to date anyone younger than herself? Darrah, as well, had had a few suitors during her time at the Guild, and while she had shown a bit of an interest in one or two, things never seemed to work out for very long. Timoteo yawned wide before starting to sit up. He glanced to the left, to the bed that had gone unused since Bianca had been exiled from the Guild, years before. Having been sleeping in his underwear, he got out of bed, the others waking up around the same time, getting up out of bed, as well. Timoteo reached under his bed and pulled out his clothing. He slipped the garments on, looking to the others. He was dressed in a pair of black pants, while his shirt was gray with short sleeves. Done around his stomach and lower back were dark blue designs, looking like runes of another language. He reached up to his head, feeling through his dark brown hair.
Darrah, although being the only female in a room full of young men, was no longer shy about her body. The only times she really grew shy were when the group went for their baths, but even so, the obvious signs of childhood shyness had disappeared, leaving only the self conscious feelings of a young adult. She only had on a bra and a pair of white panties, but she had already started to get dressed. Like the others, she had grown and developed quite a bit since the start of their training. With Marst gone, she was now one of the tallest of the group, tied only by Calvin. She had a lean body, thin yet toned with some muscle. She hadn't developed a very curvy bust, but her curvy backside had gotten it's fair share of attention during her teenage years. She had kept her hair cut at a medium length, her hair going down the back of her neck to the top of her spine, her hair reaching down to her shoulders on either side of her neck. Her hair was still dirty blonde, but streaks of lighter blonde had faintly developed along her hair.
She had developed a fairly cute face, something Timoteo had noticed on many occasions. With pouty lips and bedroom eyes, she had an attractive visage. Her eyes were still dark brown, and still seemed as thoughtful as ever. She pulled on a dark red shirt as well as dark blue pants. Gibbons had developed into a slim man, yet was one of the quickest fighters Timoteo knew of among the apprentices currently at the Guild. He had gotten into trouble several times for attempting to steal from the Guild shop, which was across from the library and beside the passageway down into the dining hall. Often, the trouble wouldn't start until he attempted to return the item, as he had only been caught actually stealing items a few times. Gibbons was often dared to steal something, and after he would, he almost always returned the items, getting himself in trouble. Nobody really knew how much stuff he had stolen for himself and simply kept, however.
On everyone's birthday, he would very often steal something from the Guild shop and present the birthday child with the item. He had stolen food, books, sometimes clothing, but on Darrah's seventeenth birthday, he had stolen a steel longsword for her. Darrah was worried of what the consequences would be for stealing such an expensive item, so with Gibbons' urging, she hid the sword under the mattress of her bed, and decided to never take it out until the day her apprentice training was over and she could leave the Guild. He still wore a tight black shirt as well as a pair of shorts, his latest pair being coloured dark gray. He often wore his dark brown hair in a ruffled style, his bangs styled off towards his left. Brute had developed quite a bit of muscle, being a rather beefy young man. His hair had lightened to a sort of sandy shade, and his eyes had turned to a deeper shade of blue. He was dressed in a faded green shirt with blotches of white along it, wearing dark olive pants to go with it.
A belt was loosely done around his waist, the belt made of black leather. Calvin was equal to Darrah in terms of height, having gone through a deep growth spurt during puberty. Like Timoteo and Gibbons, he had developed a lean body with some toned muscle to him, although he had a bit more to his form when compared to the other two. He still wore his blonde hair in a spiked-up fashion. He wore brown pants still, but he now wore a dark purple long-sleeved shirt, a black sword designed over his chest, pointing downwards. As the others finished getting dressed, Timoteo headed over to the nearby hallway, already headed on his way out to the training grounds. The new Guildmaster did the same as Weaver had done; once a child had entered their third or fourth year of training, they and others of their age were no longer supervised, as well as entrusted as a group with a sack of potions to make sure they all remained safe.
With the large influx of new apprentices, many new areas had to be made to allow all of the new students to train at the same time, but as the eldest apprentices currently at the Guild, Timoteo and his friends were allowed to use the areas created first, the training grounds they had used their entire time at the Guild. As Timoteo headed down the hallway, Darrah quickly caught up to him, smiling happily with slightly raised eyebrows as she walked beside him. "Hey Tim, I thought of a new technique while I was sleeping, it came to me in a dream. I doubt you'll have much of a chance against it." Her voice was just another thing about her that had matured, and now her voice drew Timoteo in in a way he would never admit to anyone save for himself. Although they had an intense rivalry, and although their relationship had started off with her more or less bullying him, he couldn't lie to himself; now that Darrah had grown up a little, her voice, among other things, had turned quite sensual.
Timoteo smirked at her. "Doubt it's going to get past my Physical Shield, whatever it is." He said. Darrah smiled more, walking ahead of him, shrugging slightly as she said "We'll see, we'll see. Your magic can't protect you forever, mage." Timoteo smiled a little, narrowing his eyes. When the group made their way outside to the training pen, they found their sack of potions as well as their sticks. Since they were still apprentices and since they were training with one another, often roughly, they still had to use sticks for safety reasons, although they often had to take new ones from trees to replace small ones or ones that had broken. Quickly getting into the training, Timoteo was beaten by Brute, yet he beat Calvin. Gibbons took him down, however. Darrah beat him as well, telling him she'd be saving her new technique until after, saying she'd use it against him in the afternoon when he was allowed to use magic in the sparring fights. Moving on to the archery range, the group trained for a while before the group split up according to their specific Talents.
Heading over to the Will training zone, Timoteo trained for a bit, but he eventually stopped. Lying on the ground and gazing up to the sky, he thought of Bianca. He still missed her, and he missed Travis, as well. Whenever he went to the Will training area, he often found himself thinking of them. He wondered what they would've been like if they had stayed at the Guild, had spent the years training with him as well as each other. He thought of Bianca. Where was she now? What was she doing with her life? Just because she wasn't a part of the Guild, it didn't mean that her Heroic blood would simply fade away. She was still a mage, she was still capable of manipulating her Will. He tried to imagine what she might look like at the age of seventeen, dwelling in his thoughts for well over an hour. When he finally decided to get back up again and train some more, he only did so for about fourty minutes before Darrah came for him. Walking across half of the little bridge to what was pretty much Timoteo's exclusive training zone, she called out "Hey, Tim! Let's go, it's time to train! I hope you're ready!"
Timoteo looked over with a smirk, saying nothing, starting to walk after her. Heading back to the training pen, Darrah immediately said "Tim and I are going first, and that's that!" Nobody argued with her. Getting their sticks, Timoteo and Darrah made their way into the pen. As soon as they both agreed that they were ready, Timoteo cast Physical Shield, the glowing white aura surrounding his form in a split-second. Just as he was about to cast Lightning at Darrah, she sprinted towards him. He cast Lightning at her, but she ducked low, his electricity flying over her harmlessly. Very close to him, she held her stick in one hand, spinning around on the heel of one of her feet. As Timoteo was about to strike her with his stick, she brought her stick to him, letting out an angry cry. Using the momentum of her spin, she crashed her stick against him so hard that it not only instantly dispelled his Physical Shield, but it also sent him stumbling backwards. Darrah's stick had been snapped in two after her attack, and as Brute tossed her another one, he called out "Nice Flourish, Darrah!"
Darrah grinned and caught the stick, but before she could look back to Timoteo, he attacked her. He struck her in the stomach with the spell Force Push, a sphere of what looked like moving air striking Darrah in the stomach, visible ripples going through the air for a moment as Darrah rapidly stumbled backwards. The wind knocked from her, Darrah's eyes were wide as she brought a hand to her stomach, the colour draining from her features. She kept her eyes on Timoteo however, and as he blasted a sphere of fire at her, she forced herself to roll to the side. She dashed for him, Flourishing once more, cracking against his stick so hard that it snapped off in his hand, swinging off to the side in the air. Timoteo was surprised. Darrah was strong, yes, but he had never seen her display such brutality in her strikes. Due to his surprise, he wasn't able to react in time. Darrah brought her free hand to a shoulder of his, sticking a leg of her's out in front of both of his own. Pulling him with all her might, she actually made him flip forwards, making him ram to the ground on his back so forcefully that the wind was torn from his lungs.
Getting over him, she dropped to her knees, almost straddling him as she sat on his stomach. Bringing her stick horizontally to his throat, she had narrow eyes as she stared down into his surprised own. She didn't go any further however, and Timoteo felt thoroughly helpless beneath her. The others were quiet for a few moments before Brute casually said "Well, it's pretty obvious who the winner here, is." Darrah let a half-smile come on her face as she got up from Timoteo. Because Timoteo felt like he was lacking breath, he was practically panting as he sat up. Darrah didn't help him stand up, instead, she spoke as he rose. "Don't expect to beat me very many times from now on, Tim." Timoteo let out a wheezing chuckle as he sat up, smiling at her, saying "I'll...Get you next time..." Darrah raised her eyebrows, smiling broadly. "We'll see." She said simply. The others had their matches, and then the group went in to eat a much-wanted lunch.
They spent their afternoon training as usual, going off to take their evening baths in the refreshing pond within the Guild Woods, Gibbons rushing off and getting towels for everyone before they undressed. Since Timoteo and his friends were seventeen years old, they were considered adults, and as such were allowed to bathe in the second pool along the forest's path. They were the only ones allowed to use it, but they knew that once they were in their eighth year of training, the children in their seventh year would be allowed in the pool, like they themselves were at that moment in time. The boys let Darrah undress first, letting her get into the sizeable pool of water before them. The body of water for adults was very much like the one meant for children, only it was deeper and quite a bit larger, looking almost like a small lake. The boys undressed and stepped into the water, following the same routine they had had for years, chatting with one another about this and that.
At one point however, Darrah called out to them from one side of the pool, to the left of the group of boys. "Hey guys, come check this out! I found some weird mushrooms! I've never seen anything like them before!" The boys, curious, made their way over to Darrah. Since she was curious over something and had called the boys over herself, she didn't shy away from them once they came close, and she didn't try to hide her body. Trying to do so would be an effort in futility regardless, as the water of the small lake was clear and pristine, they could see her as she was if they really wanted to. Timoteo came closest to Darrah, the other boys in a row by his left side. "There...Ever seen them before?" Darrah said, pointing to a nearby tree by the edge of the small lake. The boys examined the strange mushrooms from afar. Like all types of mushrooms the teenagers had ever seen, these had a thick stem and a rounded top that came down over the stem, almost like a helmet.
Bafflingly enough however, these mushrooms were coloured light blue, nearly cyan. All along them, there were white dots and specks, and the thick stem was a light gray shade. They stared at the mushrooms for a bit, looking along the clump of them. There were about ten of them in a small patch. "Think they're safe to eat?" Brute mumbled. "Can't you wait until after? Dinner's going to be ready pretty soon." Gibbons said, sounding a little amused. Brute raised an eyebrow. "Not really. I'm already feeling pretty hungry, and hey, eating while bathing is probably a cool experience." Calvin raised his eyebrows. "I'm sure that if there were poisonous mushrooms growing in these woods, someone would know about it and warn people. I've never heard of blue mushrooms, though..." Darrah shrugged. "There's enough for us to have two each. Wanna just eat 'em, guys?" Timoteo shrugged. "Why not? I guess a little snack before dinner wouldn't ruin our appetites, right?"
Brute said "Yeah, there ya go! Let's eat the things, c'mon!" Everyone else shrugged, and the each of them pulled two of the mushrooms. Eating one and then the other, Timoteo noticed that the mushrooms tasted a little pasty, but they weren't unpleasant. Each of them ate their two mushrooms, and then continued bathing. Shortly after, however, they began to come under the effects of the mushrooms. None of them had known that the mushrooms, aptly named "Blue Mushrooms," were actually a powerful curative that, when ingested in their raw form, created intense hallucinations as well as mind-altering thoughts.
None of them remember much of what happened in that pool. They all agree that, at one point, Darrah came over to them, sitting beside Timoteo as he was the closest one to her. All of them coming under the effects of the mushrooms, they each bathed themselves several times over, much more than was necessary, simply because they enjoyed the sensation. As the group grew hungry, they got up and began to get dressed. The mushrooms seemed to banish any inhibitions that Darrah may have had about her body, and she calmly got out of the water with the boys, going over to their towels with them, Bending over beside one another to grab their towels, Darrah accidentally bumped into Timoteo, and he looked to her as they stood back up. As if for the first time, he noticed her physical appearance, the mushrooms making her form hyper-detailed to his eyes. Her beauty enraptured his mind, and he stared at her for well over a minute, slowly gazing along her glistening skin.
She noticed his looking, but she didn't grow angry, she didn't even tell him to stop. She turned towards him, looking in turn along his body. At one point, their eyes met. The both of them had bedroom eyes, their jaws hanging open a touch. They simply gazed into one another's eyes for what felt like the longest time, losing themselves in the colours of one another's irises. Timoteo recalls that, at that moment in time, he almost felt like he could hear Darrah's heartbeat, feeling it on the air. At the same time, they slowly leaned closer to one another, closed their eyes, and kissed. Timoteo raised his hands to her hips, and she raised her hands to his elbows. They kissed for a few seconds before slowly kissing a second time. Timoteo didn't see her as a rival at that moment in time, he didn't see her as a childhood bully. He just saw her as she was, Darrah, a woman. After their second kiss, the others finally noticed them, calling their names.
Timoteo and Darrah released one another, pulling away from each other, their eyes going wide. They stared at each other for several seconds before bundling up their clothes, wrapping their towels around their bodies, walking after their nearby friends. "Were you two just...? Are my eyes playing tricks on me?..." Brute mumbled. Timoteo and Darrah both blushed immensely. They all suddenly burst out laughing, each one of them began to roar with laughter as they made their way back to the Guild grounds. They were still laughing as they spread their clothes over a rock by the Guild's small creek, letting their clothes wash. Heading up to their room, they all changed into their spare apprentice uniforms, and then headed downstairs to eat dinner. Feasting heavily, they made their way to the library. They all attempted to read, but they only ended up relaxing for around an hour or so before heading back up to their bedrooms. Undressing, they all fell into a deep and extremely relaxing sleep.
In the morning, after the blue mushrooms had worn off, Timoteo approached Darrah. He saw her as he usually did, his memories of their rivalry now shining easily in his mind. However, he hadn't forgotten the way he had viewed her in the Guild Woods; it was as if he had been meeting her for the first time, and instead of being ignorant to her body due to his personal feelings and their history, he saw her and even felt attraction to her. "Darrah...About yesterday..." He started off. He didn't exactly know how to feel. If he looked at her, he could still see her in the way he had the day before, but now he was conflicted due to their past. Darrah blushed lightly, which was uncharacteristic of her. She remembered what had happened just as well as he did. "Let's...Not talk about it." She mumbled. "Um...I don't know what exactly happened...But I think it was the mushrooms..." She said slowly.
Timoteo nodded lightly. He had suspected as much. "But...Darrah, about what-" She raised her eyebrows gently, causing him to fall silent. She spoke softly as she said "Tim, I...Don't know what to say..." She shook her head lightly, looking downwards. "It's confusing...Let's just not talk about it, okay?...Can we leave it behind us?..." Timoteo closed his mouth, his jaw having been hanging open slightly as he had been prepared to speak. He nodded silently. Darrah slowly gave him a short nod. Still speaking gently to him, she said "Let's go train, huh?..." Timoteo slowly took in a deep breath, nodding slightly. As he exhaled, he said "Alright..."
The rivalry between Timoteo and Darrah calmed down significantly after that day. The others noticed it, often asking the two if they would finally get along like friends. Neither of them knew what to say to those questions. Their relationship grew so calm and gentle, in fact, that the two of them seemed reluctant to train with one another, neither of them seeming to want to hurt the other anymore. Half of the way through their eighth and final year of training, Darrah decided to finally join the boys as they bathed. If Timoteo was the farthest to the right or left of the row of boys, Darrah would always sit in the water beside him, but if he were in the middle of the row the boys always formed, Darrah would simply sit beside whoever was physically closest to her at the time. Near the end of their final year, however, a bit of competitiveness seemed to work it's way back into them, and although they never insulted one another verbally or taunted one another like they used to, they began to fight with an intensity that was close to the one they had always had while true rivals.
Eventually, their final day of training came at last. None of them realized that it was their last day as they awoke and pulled themselves from their beds, heading out to the training pen for their usual routine of morning sparring. Weaver, the old Guildmaster, met them at the pen, however. He still looked as he did when the group were children, still wearing the same outfit, not looking a day older than he had been years before. It had been a little while since any of them had seen Weaver, so as they approached the pen, they all smiled. "Hello, Weaver. How are you?" Darrah asked. Weaver smiled a little and said "I'm well, thank you for asking, Darrah. Do you all know what day it is, today?" Timoteo and his friends glanced at one another. "...Tuesday?" Brute said curiously. Weaver smiled more with a hint of amusement. "Not just any Tuesday, Brute. Today is the day where each of you are considered to have finished your training and completed your apprenticeship."
Darrah glanced at Timoteo. "Even Tim? We all came to the Guild months before him." Gibbons nodded. "Yeah, we came before him. Is his training done too, or does he have to stay here for a while longer?" Weaver glanced at Timoteo, saying "Tim's training is considered complete, like all of you. None of you came to the Guild on the same day, so instead of holding a graduation ceremony for each of you alone, it's simply being said that you all came at the same time and are thus finishing at the same time. Today, you won't be doing your regular training. Instead, there are only two tests you must all complete. When you're all finished, then we will have our ceremony in the Chamber of Fate." "Chamber of Fate?" Timoteo repeated curiously. Weaver nodded. "Yes, it's a room that can be accessed through our library. We keep it locked nowadays, and only use it for graduation ceremonies. It's the oldest part of the Guild, and it's also where the Hero of Oakvale fought and defeated Jack of Blades."
Weaver raised his hands for a moment, saying "But enough about that, we'll get to it in due time. Your first test of the day is a full fight. You will be given real weapons, and are expected to fight each other as if your lives depended on it. You will most likely get your first real injuries today, but there will be plenty of potions on hand to heal you. You will be graded on your performances, and if you do well enough, then you'll be able to go on to the second test. Think you can all handle that?" All of the boys nodded except for Timoteo. He and Darrah glanced at one another through the corners of their eyes. After a moment, Darrah looked to the Guildmaster, slowly nodding for a second. Timoteo looked to the ground for a moment without tilting his head, eventually looking up to the Guildmaster and nodding, as well. "Sorry I'm late, Weaver. Had to grab some apprentices to help me bring the supplies over." Timoteo heard a voice he recognized, yet had not heard in years. It was Kiln! They all turned around, but Timoteo had moved the fastest, a smile on his face.
Kiln was taller than he had remembered, and despite Timoteo now being a young man, Kiln was still taller than he was, being just a touch taller than Darrah and Calvin. He was dressed in all the same garb as he had been in when Timoteo had seen him last, and he didn't appear to have aged much. Behind him, two apprentices walked after him, dressed in the usual apprentice outfit, their hoods pulled up over their heads and casting their faces in shadow. One of them carried a bundle of sharp iron longswords, the other carrying a big burlap sack stuffed full of what must have been potions. Kiln winked at Timoteo, saying "Haven't seen you in a while. How are you, my friend?" Timoteo kept smiling, saying "I've been alright. And you?" Kiln reached the group with the apprentices a second later, Kiln saying "Doing fine, doing fine." Weaver said "Hmm, looks like the apprentices are doing all the work, Kiln." Kiln smiled, raising an eyebrow, saying "Exactly, they're helping me by doing all the work, heh heh."
Weaver slowly took in a deep breath before exhaling lightly, trying not to let his sigh be too obvious. "Thank you for your help, apprentices. Everyone, take a sword." Tim and his friends each took a sword, getting a feel for their weapons. "You can set the bag down by the gate, there." Weaver said, the apprentice with the sack of potions complying silently. The apprentices, no longer needed, went on their way. "Will you stay and watch us?" Timoteo asked. Kiln had a half-smile as he cheerfully said "Sure. Let's see what you're all made of." As Weaver decided which pair of the teenagers should fight first, everyone examined their weapons. The weapons were plain and undecorated, with the metal of the blade being a dull gray in colour. The handles were wrapped in simple leather binding, and the crossguards were a sort of brown shade, seemingly made of a type of bronze. While in the hands of a deeply muscular young man like Brute, the sword seemed pathetic, like he could swing it with ease while holding it between just two fingers.
In the hands of a slimmer figure like Timoteo or Gibbons, however, the sword seemed to be of appropriate size. Weaver quickly decided on having Timoteo fight Calvin first, the both of them getting into the pen. Due to their fight being the first of the day, the two were understandably uneasy about truly fighting against one another as hard as they could with the weapons they had been provided, but at the urging of Weaver and Kiln, the two eventually began to really go at each other. Viciously crashing blade against blade, Timoteo had his Physical Shield going strong to protect him, the shield saving Timoteo from having to experience the pain of multiple blows. At one point, Timoteo landed a blow on Calvin, slashing along the forearm of his free arm. Calvin jumped back from Timoteo, looking to his arm, seeing his slashed flesh through his cut sleeve. His sleeve darkening with blood, Timoteo felt the urge to apologize yet held his tongue, knowing that he was only following through with the expectations of the test at hand, knowing that Calvin would've done the same to Timoteo if he had had the chance.
Calvin looked to Timoteo after a moment, anger flashing across his eyes. He charged at Timoteo, swinging wildly at him, chopping towards his stomach yet missing as Timoteo jumped back. "Can I use offensive magic?!" Timoteo called out as he jumped to the side to avoid a forwards stab from Calvin. Weaver called out "Of course you can, you're a mage!" Darrah cheered for Timoteo after Weaver had spoken, something he hadn't been expecting yet appreciated nonetheless. Timoteo quickly cast a spell he had finally learned how to cast with adequate skill not long before, having been attempting to learn the spell for months. In a flash, an ethereal form appeared by Timoteo. It looked like a sword, only it was transparent, the sword being nearly invisible. If it weren't for the faint gray mist that surrounded the blade, it would've been almost impossible to detect. It was a little longer than one of his arms, and looked even deadlier than the sword he was equipped with.
He had cast "Ghost Sword," a spell he had been interested in from the moment he had learned of it's existence. Calvin raised an eyebrow, his eyes widening a little as he glanced between Timoteo and his ethereal blade. The ghost sword floated over to Calvin quickly, swinging itself through the air. He swung his blade over and crashed his metal against it, Timoteo quickly stepping forwards and swinging for Calvin, Calvin hitting his blade to Timoteo's, as well. "Yeah, Tim! Keep going!" Darrah cheered. Timoteo and his ghostly sword swung at Calvin rapidly, but Calvin was doing a rather good job of deflecting their blows. At one point, Timoteo's sword did a very rapid swing for Calvin's legs, Calvin seeing no alternative except to jump to try and avoid the attack. He avoided the ghost sword's swing, but as he was in the air, Timoteo pushed into him as hard as he could, Calvin ramming down to the ground on his back. Timoteo's ghostly sword faded, but it didn't matter, as Timoteo felt that it had served it's purpose.
Before Calvin could rise, Timoteo planted his left foot against Calvin's stomach, bending over and quickly bringing the point of his sword to Calvin's throat. Calvin froze, staring into Timoteo's eyes. The others clapped, including Kiln. Weaver said "Good job, the both of you. Wonderful use of that spell Tim, and good job fending off both blades, Calvin. I give you both an "A minus" as a mark. Have a potion Calvin, and heal up. Tim, if you want, there are mana potions within the sack, as well. The others will have a go, and then you two can fight some of the others." Timoteo stepped back from Calvin, reaching a hand down to him, helping him stand. They both got out of the pen, Calvin drinking a health potion, his flesh magically knitting together, his wound disappearing. Timoteo pulled a Will potion from the sack, looking along it. It had a different look to it than a health potion did. The Will potion had a rounded bottom that went up to a thin top.
The bottle was made entirely of clear glass, but the rounded bottom of the glass had a strange black web of circles along it, the circles clear in their centers and making it almost look like their were the outlines of black bubbles along the glass. The liquid within the bottle was light blue, and seemed to faintly glow with it's own magical power. Downing it, Timoteo felt more energized, feeling his Will energy run through him strong once more, being replenished. The next two to fight were Darrah and Gibbons. Gibbons swung his sword with amazing speed, smiling and chuckling every now and then as if he was just messing around, like his swings weren't even as fast as he could make them be. Darrah was occupied enough with just trying to deflect Gibbons' blows, but she couldn't keep up her defence for long. Eventually, Gibbons lightly slashed across her stomach, cutting through her shirt. Enraged, Darrah surprised Gibbons by suddenly ramming into him smashing him right to the ground.
She had been about to get over him when he pointed his sword up at her, Darrah freezing. He swung at her a few times, keeping her at a distance, but he couldn't get up with leaving himself open to an attack. Still angry, Darra attempted a few times to hit Gibbons with her blade, but she eventually came close enough for him to slash her legs. He swiped his blade across her right leg, not too far below her knee. Darrah cried out in pain, pure rage crossing her face. "Oh, shit." Brute muttered. Darrah pulled her arm back and swung her sword down with an incredibly powerful Flourish attack, and when she struck Gibbons' blade, a loud metallic clang sounded out. Her blade broke into two halves, the top half of her blade flying away from them both, embedding itself into a nearby wooden post that acted as part of the pen's perimeter. There was a metallic ringing on the air as Gibbons' blade flew out of his grasp, twirling in the air a few times before clattering to the ground nearby.
Gibbons was still in shock when Darrah fell upon him, her face distorted with anger as she began to strike Gibbons in the face with her fists, hitting him so savagely his head would twist to the side with every blow. "Darrah, stop!" Weaver said, seeing it was obvious that she had won the fight. Brute ran into the pen, grabbing Darrah around her waist, pulling her up and away from Gibbons. Once she was away from him, she calmed down, panting with angry eyes as she stared at him. "You cool?" Brute asked. Darrah looked down to the ground, saying "Yeah, I'm fine...Put me down." Brute put Darrah back down on her feet, Gibbons slowly getting up with an eyebrow raised. His face wasn't angry, rather, it was calm and serious.
The others knew, however, that when Gibbons was angry, he didn't show it on his face. Instead, his face went calm, like it did at that moment in time. He said nothing as he walked over to his sword, grabbing it from the ground. He walked out of the pen silently, reaching into the sack by the pen's gate, grabbing and quickly downing a health potion. Brute stayed in the pen as Darrah collected the two pieces of her sword, quickly drinking a health potion before going off to get herself another sword to fight with. Everyone was silent for a few seconds before Weaver said "Timoteo, feeling up for another match?" Timoteo looked to Brute, who was still in the pen. Timoteo shrugged, saying "Sure."
Brute ended up defeating Timoteo rather quickly, breaking through his Physical Shield before knocking him to the ground. He quickly got over him and trapped him with his sword, Timoteo admitting defeat. When Timoteo and Darrah fought, they were quite careful with one another, and all the others could tell that they were trying not to really hurt each other with their weapons. Although Weaver gave them a bit of a mediocre mark, the both of them were simply pleased that they hadn't wounded one another. Before long, everyone had had a chance to fight one another, and the only one to sustain a serious wound was Calvin. He received his wound from Gibbons, who had accidentally stabbed him in the stomach with his sword. He hadn't ran Calvin through on his blade, but he had stabbed deep enough to cause blood to squirt out, the match quickly being put on hold by Weaver so Calvin could drink a health potion. In the end, Gibbons was declared the winner, regardless.
After everyone had fought each other, Weaver had declared that they had all passed. When asked about who had gotten the highest mark overall, Weaver wouldn't tell. Kiln congratulated Timoteo on his fighting, but said that he had to leave on important business, departing from the group. Weaver said "Now...On to the second part. Follow me, all of you." Weaver began to walk towards the gate leading to the Guild Woods, everyone following after him. He stopped by the large wooden doors that acted as a gateway to the forest, turning and looking to the older teenagers before him. "One at a time, I will take you out to the woods. We shouldn't take long. While out there, I will tell you of what your final test is to be." Weaver smiled, saying "Everyone has gone through this specific test as their final one, and it is one of the duties as the Head of the Guild. I went through it, Kiln went through it, every Hero has. It's not terrible, but...Well, I'll let you all find out for yourselves. Who would like to go first?"
Everyone was silent. They all expected the worst. Figuring someone had to go first, Timoteo shrugged lightly, saying "I'll go first, why not." The others glanced at him. Weaver nodded. "Very well, follow me, please. The rest of you, just wait here. Figure out amongst yourselves who will go next." The others stayed by the gateway as Timoteo and Weaver walked through it, entering the woods. They were silent as they walked along the path, heading deep into the woods, passing both bathing areas quickly. "Has anyone given you an idea as to what the final test is to be?" Weaver asked. Timoteo said "No, I had no idea what the final tests were to be like before today." Weaver said "Ah, well. No harm done. The test is simple, really." The two of them were silent for another few minutes before they reached a large clearing in the woods. The path continued deeper into the woods, but Weaver stopped walking once he had reached the middle of the clearing.
"The final test...Is that you must fight me. You don't have to defeat me, but you have to show to me that you've taken your training and grown into an experienced fighter." Timoteo was thoroughly surprised, and he knew it showed on his face. Weaver smiled, chuckling before saying "Don't worry, Tim. I won't attack you. I may cast a few spells to defend myself, but I won't actually try to harm you. I simply want you to prove that you're competent and won't have your head hacked off by a bandit the moment you leave the Guild." Timoteo calmed down slightly, his facial expression relaxing. "Alright, then...So...I just try to attack you?" Weaver nodded. "Attack me and hit me, yes. Think you can handle that?" Timoteo nodded, saying "I suppose. Should we just start?" Weaver said "Whenever you're ready, Tim."
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Fable : Fall of the Guild