Unbound Book 1: The Failed Duke

CHAPTER EIGHT: WHAT WE TAKE WITH US

In a small forest village, there was a young boy, about twelve, who took practice swings, with each swing going in a different direction.

As he swung, a woman that looked to be his mother walked over and adjusted his arm and pivot foot position.

While she explained to her son everything that was wrong about his form, there was a girl that looked to be about the boy's age who spied on the pair, and did so poorly behind a tree.

The mother, after explaining what was wrong with the boy's form, saw the girl spying on them and smirked. "You can come out Elena."

The boy looked over at Elena and smiled.

He waved and said, "Elena, over here."

Elena blushed before she walked over. "H-Hi Lucan."

Lucan's mother nodded and said, "How are your parents doing dear?"

"They. They're doing fine. Same as always."

She held out her wooden sword to Elena and said, "Want to spar with Lucan?"

Elena turned bright red and waved her arms around. "I. I could never. I. I'm no good with a sword."

Lucan's mom elbowed Lucan and said, "Don't worry about that. Lucan, despite having a decent amount of training, isn't that good either."

Lucan frowned at his mother, and she continued, "It doesn't matter how many handicaps I give the boy, he still can't seem to land a hit on me."

She placed the sword in Elena's hands and said, "I think having someone of his skill level would be beneficial to his training."

Elena looked at the sword in her hand, then to Lucan and asked, "Lucan, are."

Lucan smiled at her. "Sure, it sounds like fun."

He glared at his mother and said, "It'll be nice to not have to spar against such a showoff."

Lucan's mom whistled and kicked a rock as she said, "I don't have the faintest idea as to what you're talking about Lucan."

"Handicaps? More like ways to show off your own skills."

Lucan's mom clapped her hands and said, "Well now, enough of that. Why don't the two of you trade a few blows."

She looked at Elena and said, "You need to get used to having that sword in your hand."

Elena held up the sword in an awkward fashion, as she had her hands together at the bottom of the hilt.

Lucan's mom walked over and pressed down on the sword, which put the crossguard on top of her hands. "Your hands are supposed to be touching this part dearie."

Elena blushed as she said, "Yes master."

Lucan's mom placed her pointer finger over her lips and said, "Master."

She looked at Lucan and said, "Henceforth, when we are training you."

"I'm not doing that."

Lucan's mom began to pout as she said, "Come on, I gave life to you. The least you could do is-."

"No."

She looked at Elena and.

*

"Lucan! Lucan, wake up!"

Lucan blinked several times, still on his knees on that bloody battlefield.

He looked up to see Rousset, his hands on his shoulders shaking him.

When Rousset saw that Lucan had returned to his senses he said, "Lucan, come on."

He grabbed Lucan and pulled him up. "We need to go after that woman."

Once Lucan was on his feet, Rousset walked towards the castle. "I can't go on without you. She can use her quantum magic to freeze me in place, so I need you to watch my back."

Lucan wasn't listening to Rousset, instead starred at that mask, now covered in mud.

Rousset turned and said, "Lucan, come on!"

Lucan walked over to the mask and picked it off the ground, where he put it in one of the pockets in his coat. "I, I'm coming. I just dropped something."

*

The two of them reinforced their bodies with magic and like before jumped over the walls.

When they entered the castle however, they noticed that the area they entered was completely abandoned, with not an enemy soldier in sight, and especially no Elena.

What they did see were barrels everywhere.

Rousset walked over and pulled the lid off of one of them, and revealed that it was full of. "Water?"

Lucan walked over to the barrel, and examined it. "It seems to be normal water to me."

Rousset dipped his finger in it and said, "Seems so. Lucan, why don't you."

The two of them were interrupted by the sounds of fighting not too far away.

They ran over and saw Hilibrand was fighting a group of enemy soldiers.

There were four of them, and they surrounded Hilibrand.

One of them charged at Hilibrand, but once he raised his sword, Hilibrand charged at the man and punched him in the gut with his right hand, which was reinforced with magic so sent him flying.

The remaining three charged at him at once, which caused Hilibrand to fire off a pulse, which launched them some distance away.

As they got to their feet, he pulled out a shot put ball, tossed it into the air and then punched it as hard as he could.

It went flying towards one of the men, and hit him in the head hard enough to cave in his skull.

As his body hit the ground, Hilibrand flicked his wrist, and it sent the ball into the air.

Hilibrand in turn reinforced his legs with magic and jumped into the air, where he hit the shot put ball downward as hard as he could, which annihilated another one of his attackers.

After he hit the ball, he fell downwards, and landed not too far from another of his attackers, so to kill him he fired a palm blast at his chest, which burrowed a hole all the way though.

As for the last opponent, he backed away before he began to run in a full sprint away.

The ball flew right next to Hilibrand, and he punched it hard enough that when the ball smashed into the retreating soldier's back, it broke his spine and killed him.

The man fell to the ground in front of Lucan and Rousset, and they watched as Hilibrand walked over and removed the ball, before he put it into one of the pouches on his belt. "Lucan, Rousset, what are the two of you doing so close to your entry point?"

Rousset pointed his thumb at Lucan and said, "We were intercepted by a member of The Bleeding Hearts, specifically a sorceress who controls time."

Hilibrand raised an eyebrow. "A sorceress who controls time? I assume that she is no longer alive?"

Rousset shook his head, and Hilibrand grunted. "What about the rest of The Flight of Eagles?"

Lucan looked down, and in response, Rousset placed a hand on his shoulder. "They died fighting the sorceress."

Hilibrand looked at Lucan for a moment before he turned and said, "No matter. Since the two of you are here with me, we might as well head towards the castle together. Black Blood has to be there since he has yet to be spotted."

The two of them nodded, and the group headed towards Castle Lichtenfeld.