2 Chapter 2 - Is it Good News or Bad? (2/2)
”Who died?” Lesedi asked.
Alice rolled her eyes as she once again shut everything out, but her coffee.
I sighed, knowing it was my job to explain since I started the whole conversation this morning. ”We have a new member joining today and it seems she is the 'last one'.”
”Such a cheerful subject first thing in the morning,” Sophia said, sarcastically, as she walked over and got herself a cup of coffee.
”Damn, I thought we would get a few more people to defend the world,” Lesedi added in the same tone.
”Well, that leaves four left to tell. Any idea when they will make it to breakfast?” I asked.
”They are all with your brother, so who knows,” Sophia answered as she sat down in the free seat next to me.
I made some gagging sounds in response which got a laugh from everyone, but Kiara, who just smiled behind her cup. The stone golem walked over after a moment, carrying a large tray filled with scrambled eggs, bacon, toast, and fruit. Everyone helped themselves, filling their plates, then started eating. We chatted and talked about our plans for the day while skirting around the knowledge of a new member joining.
Lesedi, our weapon and armor crafter, and Sophia, our enchantress, had a project they were trying to finish up which, judging by the constant avoidance of going into detail, it was something for Terri or me. Kiara, as usual, would be spending the day tending to the large garden Alice kept in the side yard. Terri would be out in the training field, doing some target practice, and offered to spar when I mentioned I was going to do some light training. Alice didn't talk about her plans, but we all knew she must have a lot going on with the government now.
As usual, everyone finished eating long before I did, but that was just a joy having the appetite of a dragon. The stone golem continued cooking and presented me with a fresh tray of food, shortly after I scrapped off the last bit of eggs off the old plate. The golems were all created by Alice over the years and, although they could only do specific tasks, they were always highly skilled at whatever it was that Alice had taught that golem.
Before I could more than a plate's worth of food from the new tray, my brother and the remaining three girls walked in. Gustavo was much tanner than I was, and he had a few inches on me, much to my disappointment. Only after my bloodline awakened did we finally look like family, but it was more like a pair of brothers rather than a brother and sister as Ella liked to tease me. Ella was the one hanging on Gustavo's arm, red hair, pale skin, freckles, and a beautiful Irish brogue. Yue was a stunning beauty with almond eyes and long, silky black hair that was always tied back in a low ponytail. Melissa was in the back and though she normally had a smile covering her face most of the time, she had a serious look on her face when she locked eyes on me. She was yet another stunning beauty that had fallen for my brother with curly, dark brown hair and an infectious laugh.
My brother, in his usual oblivious self, sat down at the table and started loading up an empty plate while the other girls had picked up on the change in Melissa and were looking at me with a strange look. I finished my plate shortly after they all sat down and pushed it away with a sigh.
”What's up, Becca?” Gustavo asked between bites.
”Alice told us earlier that a new member would be joining today and that she would be the last,” I replied.
The girls sighed while Gustavo's face turned solemn. The five of us were the longest members of the manor, excluding Alice, so we all knew this day was coming sooner, rather than later. After a minute or so, I stood up and took my plate to the sink before I headed off to the training field.
Walking out the front door, the garden was to the right and the training field was to the left. Although it appeared as an endless grassland on the other side of the stone walls that marked the edge of the manor, the manor was actually placed within a high-security, military base. Within the grounds of the manor, we were sheltered and isolated thanks to Alice's efforts, but when we step outside, we are treated like dangerous criminals, and in my case, like a monster. The government feared our power, despite using us to handle the occasional hotspot that appears, and it even made sense to a point.
Gustavo and I both could take a gunshot without any injury and Terri and Lesedi would only be bruised. The other girls might not be able to take a direct shot, but Kiara's and Melissa's natural regeneration would prevent them from being killed as long as their inner mana core wasn't destroyed in the shot and Yue, Ella, and Sophia had their own unique magics that would prevent them from being hurt. Anyone one of us had ways to level an entire city if we wanted to, so all of us understood the government's position.
Shaking my head free of those destructive thoughts, I made my way over to the training field. Terri was already at the range that spanned the whole width of the training field along the far side, somewhere around a hundred meters in length. The targets were all placed anywhere from fifty to one hundred meters away from where she stood, most of them were moving and, those that weren't, had some kind of shield in front of them, yet she constantly fired arrows, each of them finding the very center of the targets.
In the center of the yard, a series of wooden pillars, three feet thick and twenty feet tall, were arranged in a five-by-five pattern so that they were ten feet apart. There were a number beams that jutted out randomly over the pillars made of metal so that they could be strong, yet thin. Numerous smaller posts were scattered at odd angles and various heights were scattered around the ground so that it was possible to cross the field without ever touching the dirt. Outside of the field itself, each side was arranged with a stone golem, holding a bow, in the center. Alice had turned an exercise to practice coordination, spatial awareness, and reaction time into a game by adding in a light you had to catch that would appear randomly throughout the field. The more lights you caught before touching the ground the higher your score, but you would also have to dodge the arrows fired by the golems or you would lose points. My brother and I had a constant battle for high score and the title of ”Riktonii Champion” which was usually mine.
On either side of game field was a reinforced sparring ring with a variety of stone golems holding different weapons. The golems were a reoccurring theme throughout the manor, but there was no question that they made great sparring partners. They were nearly indestructible, and they would scale themselves up in strength as they analyzed their opponent. They even had a training mode which they slowed down their movements so that you could learn the various moves that had been engrained within them. Alice never went into too much detail about how she made them, but she did mention knowing various Weaponsmasters throughout history.
Since I was going to be meeting the new member later, I couldn't do anything too intense, so sparring was out for now. I made my way for the game field then started stretching as I walked towards the center. As soon as my foot crossed the stone line, all four of the golems raised their bows and aimed at me with blue energy-based arrows. They wouldn't fire until my feet were off the ground for more than five seconds, but it was still unnerving having four faceless golems pointing their bows at you.
When my stretching was done, I let out a deep breath then slowly inhaled as I let my bloodline stir slightly. This was supposed to be light training, so I didn't want to awaken my first form, but I could still get a few benefits. Although I couldn't see them, I knew my eyes had turned golden with diamond-shaped pupils and my horns had grown an inch. Both my hands and feet grew talons which would help me grip the posts. I placed a single foot on the inclined post then dashed up the pole while counting in my head. Right at the five second mark, I jumped backwards, flipping through the air, just in time to dodge four energy blast. Another five seconds passed, and the orb of red light appeared as the golems released another volley of arrows. I sprang from post to post as I made my way over to the corner where the orb was hovering high in the sky and dodging the arrows. I leapt up into the air and smacked the light, causing it to vanish. My foot had just touched a post when the golems released another volley. I kicked off right away and dove down to avoid the arrows. I landed on the ground to reset the golems since they would shoot faster with the more points I gathered. I just wanted to take it easy, yet still move around.
I spent more than hour, running through the course, never gaining more than a few points at a time. I finally stopped when Terri walked over and asked if I wanted to spar. Unlikely the golem, who only knew how to push you or ”teach” you, Terri could keep it friendly. You could call it sparring, but without the long curve daggers in Terri's hands, it was more like a game of tag. Both of us used hit-and-run tactics when we fought at close range, so it was just a back and forth of dodges and counters. Neither of used any of our real strength, just enjoying the time. It wasn't long though before the sound of a car suddenly roared. Reality snapped back into place as Terri lowered her weapons and we both looked to the dirt road. I groaned since I didn't think she would be arriving so early.
”What's your problem?” Terri asked.
”Alice is assigning her to me,” I groaned.
”That's not so bad,” she said, encouragingly.
”And how long did it take you to warm up to me?”
”God, Becca, will you ever let me live that down?!?” Terri exclaimed.
”Dousing me in holy water? Never... I still don't understand why you had it when you are a Methodist.”
”Shut up! It was something my mom gave me!”
”Sure, sure... Let's go. I want to try to duck in the back and clean up a little before Alice calls me over,” I said as I pushed her towards the house.