Chapter Fifty-Six


    Elayne departed not soon after that, the elven waitress had a bounce in her step that Ambrose had not seen just hour before. After that, Ambrose and Noelle settled in for the night. Now that he was C-Grade, he found that he needed little sleep.


    Noelle, however, curled her body up into a ball on her bed, tail wrapped around her, soft breaths signalled she was deeply asleep. He couldn’t help but find her adorable, and a powerful urge to protect her built up within him.


    He had to be careful with that urge. Noelle wanted to take part in the fights ahead, and he couldn’t deny her that. Unable to sleep, he settled on the bed, posture straight, and legs crossed. From the window, moonlight bathed the room, and when he closed his eyes and focused, he could hear the creaking of boards and the sounds of the people in the inn.


    He could feel it when the building and the people within settled in. It was a kind of silence that one struggled to describe, but knew nonetheless.


    Focus was key in a lot of what he did. You needed it in combat, but it also needed to be passive.


    “It’s focusing without focusing, son.”


    At the time he had nearly pulled his hair out when Raylen had told him that. It hadn’t made any sense.


    But as the years went by, he got it. There was a kind of art to it. You needed to be focused enough, but not so focused that you lost awareness of your surroundings.


    It took practice, discipline, and experience, but he had picked it up eventually.


    None of that focus helped him with his Icon. Not even a little bit.


    Focus, at least for him, was being aware of his body and his physical surroundings. Yes, it could help him relax, but it couldn’t help him understand himself. Even if it could, taking that understanding and connecting it to an abstract concept like the Forge Icon was something a little beyond what focus could help him with.


    He had done well to come as far as he had, in understanding enough of himself to connect it to his Icon, but he had a long way to go. He worked on that now.


    Previously, he had figured out that he was forging himself, becoming something new.


    Tonight, he wanted to take a different approach. Instead of trying to think about how he was like the Forge Icon, he instead just allowed his mind to drift through his life. Almost like spinning a wheel, he wanted to see where he would land.


    He found himself thinking back to when he had just lost his hundredth spar with his father.


    “I don’t get why I have to keep doing this! It’s pointless! All I do is lose!” The author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.


    His father wiped a towel over his face, regarding his son who was sprawled on the floor.


    “Have you ever heard the phrase ‘Iron sharpens iron,’ boy?”


    Ambrose shook his head.


    Raylen nodded, expecting that. He was his son’s teacher after all.


    “It means a lot of things, but mostly it means we improve through challenge, through hardship. Especially with one another.”


    Raylen went to the wall where a rack of weapons stood, looked it over for a moment and selected an axe. He hefted it, turning towards his son.


    “See this? Do you know how it was made?”


    Once again, Ambrose shook his head no.


    “With fire and blows from a hammer. In other words, under intense pressure and heat it becomes something newer, better and more dangerous than it was before.”


    His father returned the weapon to the rack, gesturing at him.


    “You think I abuse you. You think I hurt you. In a way, you’re right. I am going to bring you heat, I am going to pressure you. Because that’s how you’ll change, that’s how you’ll become dangerous. Get up. We go again.”


    They had fought three more times that night, and Ambrose lost every time.


    He felt it when his connection with his Icon deepened, not quite putting another piece of the puzzle together, but beginning to understand it. It was almost like he was on the cusp of working out a problem but needed a little more to fully solve it.


    He spent the rest of the night trying to do so to no avail.


    ________


    When morning came, he and Noelle checked out and headed for the town square, where the announcement for the advancement trial would begin. When they reached the square, they found Elayne looking out for them.


    She beamed when she saw them, waving them over.


    The Elven druid was dressed in leathers of forest green and browns. She looked quite good in them, the leather form fitting. She had a staff in her hands that looked to be carved from an ancient oak tree. The same man from when Ambrose first entered appeared, addressing the crowd.


    Ambrose began to listen, but soon tuned him out when he delivered information he had already heard.


    “Flags will be worth two points, killing others is worth one and killing monsters is worth three! Top three participants will earn a prize, whilst anyone who possessed one flag not their own and kills one monster will be awarded their badge, and will be free to move on to the next zone.”


    “Zones?” Ambrose questioned.


    Elaine supplied the answer.


    “Midgard is separated into zones. Beyond the next western gate is zone two. Ya need a bronze badge to be in that zone. Advancements like this prevent needless death because it means ya actually can defend yerself. Plus, it''s a mark of distinction.”


    Ambrose nodded.


    “Teams are allowed, but each person must have a flag and kill one monster for each team mate.”


    “So three flags and three monsters then,” he muttered to himself.


    He heard Elayne curse softly, and he looked up.


    A man strode towards them.


    And Elayne didn''t look happy about it.


    He was blonde, elven, and wore duelist leathers with a sword strapped to his hip. He moved with the confidence of a stalking leopard. His eyes were burnished gold, flashing in the morning light.


    His strong features held a smug grin.


    “Trying again this year, Elayne? Tsk tsk. When will you learn?”


    Elayne’s ears went hot pink, and her fists clenched as she put them on her hips.


    “Leave me alone Stroud.”


    “But if I did that then how would you know to stay in your place, lowborn?”


    Elayne blew out a breath, and Ambrose actually saw her bite back a retort.


    He was tempted to step in, but he wouldn''t be doing Elayne any favors if he did. He knew bullies when he saw one, and this Stroud character fit the bill.


    He would stand down if Ambrose intervened, but as soon as his back was turned, he''d be back. Ambrose couldn''t be by Elayne''s side all the time.


    There was also the fact that she hadn''t yet indicated that she needed his help. Elayne was no delicate flowers, and he wasn''t about to treat her as such.


    No, this was something she needed to do on her own.


    Iron sharpens iron.