He stepped towards me smiling, "I told you before Fawn, I am the best Illusionist around. This is what I do. No need to worship me."
I glared at him, "I'm not worshipping you Axel."
He tilted his head to the side, "You sure? It seemed close to worshipping to me."
Zan pushed his shoulder, sending him stumbling off to the side, "Oh shut up Axel, sometimes you give me a headache."
I smothered a laugh and looked up into Zan's amused face. "Ignore him, everyone else does when his ego gets that big."
I couldn't help but laugh.
"Sorry to let you down there Thorlan, I thought I had him," Zan called out.
"Nothing to worry about, I don't mind repaying my debt," He joyfully replied, "Hey Fawn, why don't we start your training now. See what you know?"
I froze on the spot and flushed, "Oh, um, don't you think we should wait? Maybe tomorrow?"
"The enemy will not wait for tomorrow little girl, they wouldn't care if you're tired, injured or if you traveled a long way," Rema remarked, her arms crossed.
"Rema." Axel snapped, his eyes glaring.
"You know this as well as I do Axel, we don't have time to waste." Rema looked me in the eyes, stealing my attention, "We. Are. At. War. Which means we need you trained and trained fast so you don't become a liability. There is no time for niceties, not time to mommy coddle you. You need to learn and you need to learn fast."
I stared at her, listening to every word she said. It was true, I needed to be trained and fast but that gave her no excuse to speak to me like that. I knew her type. The tough girl. I've run into her kind many times.
I stepped up to Rema until we were face to face. I was a couple of inches taller than her so she lifted her head to meet my gaze, "I am not a little girl. I haven't been one for a long time. So treat me with the respect you would give everyone else, and I will prove myself trustworthy and reliable. Do not make an enemy of someone who will be a part of your unit Rema, because one day you may need me and you don't want to be my enemy on that day."
She gazed into my eyes, reading how serious I was. There was a tense moment all around us, as the others waited for Rema's reply.
She smirked, "When you prove you're not a little girl, I will show you respect. Until then you best get used to the name," She spun on her heel and walked away into the tower.
I turned towards the others who all let out a collective breath.
"I'm sorry. Rema...she's had a hard life," Thorlan remarked, his shoulders shrugged in a small apology.
I waved him off, "I've dealt with people like Rema before."
Zan clapped me on the shoulder.
"I think you'll fit in well with the Crimson Guard Fawn," Zan observed before giving Axel another little push, "Rematch? We still have a couple of hours to kill and I need to improve my strategy against Illusionists."
Axel smiled, his eyes dancing. "You're on."
With a quick nod of the head, Axel and Zan walked over to an empty space on the clearing to practice.
Thorlan turned to me, his smile still not leaving his face, "Now let's begin your training. We will start with a game of tap."
"Tap?"
"Yes, tap. It's an exercise that will show me what you know but at the same time it will train you in hand to hand combat," Thorlan explained.
"Okay, what do I have to do?" I asked.
He stood with his arms relaxed to his sides and legs spread, "All you need to do is avoid being tapped."
"That's it?" I asked, baffled. Surely that was too easy.
"That's it. We will start off slow and go from there."
I nodded and copied his position, arms relaxed and legs braced.
He reached out a right hand, aiming for my shoulder and I moved my left hand, grasping his forearm and pushed it out of the way. His left hand came towards my face and with my right hand, I slapped his other hand away.
We kept on like this, him moving his hand to tap me and my slapping his hand away, slowly at first but it started to pick up the pace, Thorlan's hands blurring with motion and me struggling to keep up.
Before long he was poking holes through my defenses, a tap to the rib, one to the stomach, one on my arm until I couldn't keep up at all and before I know it a thump to the forehead had me falling on my rear.
Thorlan smiled and reached out a hand for me to grasp and pulled me to my feet.
"Not too bad, not the worst I've seen."
"Gee thanks," I rolled my eyes.
"You just need training."
I nodded.
"Remember you can move. You don't have to be a statue when someone or something is going to hit you, you're going to want to dodge out of the way. Not stand there still." He advised, "Again."
I concentrated harder, figuring out how to play this game. He started off slow again and I blocked and dodged, slapping his hands away until the pace started to increase.
This time I kept my cool. Arm, slap. Ribs, dodge. Shoulder, dodge. Leg, slap. Before long I started to realise where he was going to tap me before he did it. The slight shifts in his posture. The shift of eyes at the last possible moment, giving me cues.
Thorlan reached to tap me on the shoulder and I lunged away from him. As he reached to tap me in my ribs, I blocked again. But this time, I reached up to where he left himself exposed and tapped him back on the side of the cheek. His eyes widened in shock and I felt a thrill run through me. I got him. A savage smile spread across his face and I had a moment to think 'Oh crap' before the pace picked up even faster, the strikes coming in fast and furious.
I strained to keep up, Thorlan's strikes coming from all angles this time. So fast that I couldn't tap back and before long the same happened again. Tap on the shoulder, another on the ribs and another final thump on the head that left me on my rear.
"Damn it!"
Thorlan let out one of his bellowing laughs, "You did well! You've had no training at all and you've managed to make a tap back. You're good, you have good instincts which will get you far in your training."
I picked myself back up, "Again."
Thorlan stroked his beard, "You sure?"
I snarled at him, "Again."
He laughed and started again. And when I landed on my ass again, we trained some more. Each time I lasted a little bit longer, each game I managed to get a couple more taps in before I was back on my rear and covered in sweat. Thankfully I wasn't the only.
Thorlan wiped his forehead with his wrist, the perspiration glistening in the fading sunlight, "That's enough for today."
I laid on my back and flung an arm over my eyes whilst nodding, out of breath.
"Next time instead of taps, it will be with punches. You'll need to learn how to take a hit and continue as well as actually dodge danger."
I lifted my arm off my face and looked at him, worried. "No offense Thorlan, but you're a Titan with incredible strength. How am I supposed to take a punch from you?"
"I'll be pulling my punches at first, but eventually you're going to have to learn to take a real hit. Look at Axel today, Zan punched him right in the face today and she's a Titan. I can tell you now she didn't pull her punch. Axel was lucky to have pulled back enough that there wasn't any permanent damage."
I looked across the field to Axel and Zan talking, worried for him.
"You will be up against all different kinds of powers in this war Fawn, you need to train as much as possible to be able to take on all of them."
I nodded, agreeing. I knew this, I needed to be prepared for anything. Especially for the variety of missions Volorn would give to us. As he said, sometimes the Guard is there to slaughter, sometimes to gather information, sometimes to defend. The Crimson Guard is the best of the best and I needed to improve to be one of them.
Chapter 14
After training, Thorlan led me to the mess hall where the other members of the guard dotted around tables, stuffing their faces after a long days work. The hall was a large stoned circular room, dotted
with thick oak tables and benches that were worn and chipped from use. The atmosphere seemed relaxed, a buzz of conversation kept a soothing undertone to the room and I wanted to close my eyes and soak up that feeling. But as soon as we entered the room all eyes swung to us, some filled with a mixture of curiosity and caution, and others filled will welcome.
"Go take a seat, I'll grab you some food." Thorlan murmured before striding away, leaving me in the center of everyone's inquisitive stares.
A sliver of unease traveled through me as I found myself the center of attention and I had to control the ripple of power that wanted me to shift into another shape.
"Fawn! Sit here!!" An excited voice exclaimed.
Wymar stood by a bench, practically dancing on the spot whilst he waved at me. Beside him sat Rema and Averil, who seemed to me in a pleasant conversation until Wymar's exclamation. Rema turned her focus to me, a scowl wrinkling her tanned face as she glared at me before ripping into her food. Whereas Averil gave her a small frown before bestowing me a soft smile. I shifted on my feet, looking for another more familiar and welcoming face, only for Wymar to all but sprint towards me in greeting.
"Hey, Fawn! Come sit with us! We have so much to talk to you about!" He eagerly announced, reaching out and grasping my hand.
I flinched at the touch and snapped it back, causing Wymar to frown. But I adopted a bright smile to cover the discomfort and replied, "Sure."
Wymar's frown disappeared as soon as it came and he lead me back over to his table, "I have so many questions to ask you, as I'm sure you have so many to ask me! I want to know so much about your powers! What is it like being a Mimic? Are you the only one? Do you know any others? Are you restricted to mimicking people or can you mimic animals? Objects? Can you mimic people of the opposite sex? When did you find out you were a mimic-"
"Wow. Slow down Wymar. Let her sit down first." Averil gently reprimanded before giving me a welcoming smile, "Hello Fawn. We have had much of an opportunity to speak to you. How has your day been?"
I gave her a grateful smile back, whilst settling myself on the bench next to Wymar, whose body nearly vibrated with impatience, "Fine, thanks."
"How are you settling in so far?"
"It's...different."
Rema snorted, "Don't get used to it little girl."
Averil snapped an elbow into Rema's side which made her grunt in pain. I narrowed my eyes and opened my mouth to give a sharp reply when Wymar exploded beside me, "I can't hold it in anymore! Your power is just amazing! A Mimic hasn't been recorded for over fifty years! Were your parents Mimic's too?!"
His question jerked my attention to him and I found my jaw clenching a little at the question, "I...I don't know."
Frustration at the lack of memories of my parents welled up, along with a slither of resentment towards Tawney which made guilt quickly follow. Were they Mimics like me? How did they die? Why didn't he tell me anything?
I blinked back at the well of liquid that rushed to my eyes and felt a soft touch on the top of my hand. I looked up to see sympathy swimming in Averil's sky blue eyes. She didn't remark on my thoughts, just gave my hand another squeeze before removing her touch.
I flinched back from her touch, the reminder that she could read my thoughts making me snap myself upright, every muscle tense. Seeing my response Averil looked away, but not before I saw the hurt etched in her face and Rema's deepening scowl.
Oblivious to it all, Wymar continued with his inquiries, "Tell me more about your powers! Can you only change into women? Or can you change into men? Animals? Perhaps even objects?"
Detaching myself from the awkwardness I caused, I replied to Wymar, "How about I'll answer a question and after you answer one of mine?"
Eager for knowledge, Wymar vigorously nodded, "That sounds perfect!"
"Okay, my turn since I answered about my parents. Tell me about enchanting."
"Oh." He blinked at me, "Do you not know how we make enchantments?"
"No, I don't really know anything about enchanters. I know you make charms and enchantments but that's all. I don't even really know how they work." I replied, a little embarrassed at my lack of knowledge.
Rema snorted again, "Of course not."
I ignored her, keeping my attention on Wymar.
"Well, enchanters take powers and infuse them into certain items. This can be potions, armor or weapons, which also depends on the power of the enchanter. I specialise in armor and potion enchantments. Rema can do all. Humans can't use enchantments, only Ceruleans can but they drain your energy to do so which means you can only use one enchantment at a time."
Interesting. I had never known that humans couldn't use enchantments, which begged the question of why humans used to buy enchanted items from Tawney. Perhaps they didn't know it wouldn't work for them. Or perhaps they knew of a Cerulean to activate the power for them.
"My turn!" He squealed, shaking me out of my thoughts, "Tell me about your powers!"
"Okay." I smiled, "I can change into the shape of other people. It's not restricted to sex, I can change into both males and females, although it takes more energy to change into a male. It feels more uncomfortable for me. I change to their shape too so I can make myself taller or shorter, I change my voice to fit theirs, so basically, I match them perfectly."
My mind flung me back to when I first attempted to mimic a male form, Tawney's form. After a small spat between us, a spat over something so trivial I couldn't even remember what it was about, I had stormed into my small room. Slamming the door, I stomped over to my mirror and glared at my reflection, imagining Tawney has he had stood before me. A haze of anger filled me as I mockingly repeated his lecture, recalling the way the vein had jumped in his temple, his usually calm eyes glared at me with his brow furrowed.
But as each word left my mouth, I felt my powers take over. My adolescent body began to fill in places I never imagined they would, my voice changed from a soft, high pitch tone to a low rumbling drone. I grew taller, my skin aged and wrinkled and before I knew it, I wasn't imagining Tawney standing in the mirror. He was standing there. Shock had held my tongue and I slowly felt over my body, patting the arms which were thicker, stronger. I moved my touch over to the masculine chest and lower until I had realised...I was all male. My scream had sent Tawney running into the room, where it took hours to calm me until I could change back into my normal form. Soon after came the talk of the birds and the bees, which then turned a humiliating event into a worse one.
"How about animals? Can you change into them?!" Wymar blurted at me, bringing my focus away from the past back into the present.
I laughed, caught up in his excitement, "I have never tried. Maybe I'll try soon with my training. It would certainly be useful if I can! My turn and I get two questions now since you asked me two."
He sighed in disappointment, hoping that I would miss the double question which made me smirk in amusement.
"Okay, so how do you make the enchantments?" I asked.
His eyes light up with passion and he sat upright, his hand making wild gestures as he explained, "We can't just magic powers that we don't have into an enchantment, we have to get that magic from somewhere. So for us to be able to get that power into these stones, we need someone to volunteer a little of their magic through a speck of blood. Just a drop. Through that we take the power, amplify it with our energy and place it into the enchantment, ready for someone to use it. Depending on how strong the Cerulean's natural power is, as well as how strong the enchanter is, it depends on how strong the enchantment is."
He beamed at me, "There is only a small selection of powers we can enchant. Shielders, Titans, Illusionists are the only known powers we can enchant from. That is until Rema and myself decided to experiment-"
"Wymar." Rema interrupted, her blue eyes glared and her voice was frosty in warning.
"What?" Wymar turned to her, confusion muddling his features.
Rema gave me a look before stonily staring back at him,
"She's new. She's not to be trusted until shes has proven herself worthy."
"But-"
"No Wymar." Her tone broke no argument and an awkward silence filled the air between us as Thorlan ambled over, two bowls of food in his hands.
"Here Fawn. You'll need food after today's training," He gently placed a ceramic bowl full of rice and chicken before me but I kept my gaze on Rema, who hadn't taken her frosty eyes off mine.
Thorlan settled next to Rema and placed an arm around her shoulders, looking around the table and frowned at the awkward silence and shuffles that greeted him, "Is everything okay here?"
Crimson Guard Page 12