Chapter Thirteen

 

“We’re back,” Stern announced as he and Cammie entered the suite.

 

“Looks like we’re back first,” Cammie said, looking at the empty room.

 

“Grab a drink downstairs?” Stern asked.

 

“Might as well.”

 

Trooping back down, Stern grabbed a two-person table off to the side as Cammie got them some drinks. The room wasn’t busy yet, as the people who would be filling it were either trying to join a crew for a run or were actively running a dungeon.

 

Cammie came back to the table with two mugs, handing him one as she took the other seat. “Hope you don’t mind the choice.”

 

“I prefer light ale, actually. Dark ale is too much like chewing my drink.”

 

“Yeah,” Cammie laughed, “I understand that. My brother loves them dark, while I prefer them light.”

 

“Siblings can be vastly different,” Stern agreed, thinking about his own brothers and sisters.

 

“You have some. Your comments make that obvious.”

 

“I’m the eldest,” Stern said.

 

“Only irregular?”

 

“Thank the Goddess,” Stern said softly.

 

“How long until they run?”

 

“A year or two. A few of them are within a year of each other, so they might run together for the first few, at least.”

 

“The first few?”

 

“A couple of them will probably stop after the first three dungeons. They just don’t have the mentality for it. It’s good, though. It’ll mean less worry for our parents.”

 

“There is that,” Cammie sighed.

 

“Just you and your brother?”

 

“Yeah. Some of your family will run like you?”

 

“Probably.”

 

“Why didn’t you just wait for them?”

 

Stern took a long drink before answering, “They don’t care for my perk, either. It bothers them as much as it does others. They try to not let it, but the longer I’m nearby, the more it does.”

 

“Even family?”

 

“Not as badly, but yeah. Some of my sisters were better about it, but they felt a lot of pity, which was a different kind of bad for me.”

 

“Oh,” Cammie said softly, understanding dawning. “Every emotion... so yeah, younger sisters feeling pity must have cut deep.”

 

“My parents loved me, so I managed.”

 

Another deep surge of sorrow flooded Cammie, and she drank deeply from her mug. Setting it down, she looked up. “You’re not going to ask?”

 

“Not my place. Honestly wish I didn’t have this perk. If or when you want to tell that story, you will.”

 

She looked at him for a long moment, then nodded. “Thanks. Vulk won’t ever tell it, but I might in time.”

 

“That’s fine. Speaking of...” Stern drained his mug and stood up. “How did the shopping go?” he asked over Cammie’s head.

 

“We got everything we needed,” Trish said. “Let us drop it off, then we can go.”

 

“We can help,” Stern said, going to Cyra and taking her bag.

 

“Thank you,” Cyra smiled. “I could have carried it, though.”

 

“Yeah, I know,” Stern murmured, meeting her eyes.

 

Cyra flushed a light pink and ducked her head. “Thank you.”

 

“Are we going to go or just stand here?” Vulk asked pointedly.

 

Trish gave him a look, then went up the stairs.

 

They dropped off their bags and headed right back out.

 

“What about the armor?” Vulk asked Cammie.

 

“Five days,” Stern said. “They’re refitting a couple of pieces for her instead of making them from scratch. That would take a month.”

 

“Chest and legs,” Cammie told her brother. “Part brigandine, a lot like his and hers.” She nodded at Stern and Cyra.

 

Vulk looked thoughtful as they walked. “Is that armor better than mine?”

 

“Mostly different, especially down here,” Trish said. “We’ll be upgrading as we go. I’ll end up in plate, and you’ll likely end up in scale. All three of them won’t really go beyond what they have. We might get Cyra into heavier armor. She doesn’t need to be stealthy as much as she needs protection, but we’ll want to ease her into the heavier gear.”

 

“So I can get used to it?” Cyra asked.

 

“Exactly. You’re still filling out all the way and getting used to what you have now,” Stern said. “Cammie and I will be stealthy and fast, which means lighter armor, especially if we want her out in front to disarm traps.”

 

“Just enough to give me time to retreat,” Cammie nodded. “That’s the way trap finders work. But why you?” Cammie asked Stern.

 

“You’ll see shortly,” Stern said with a smile.

 

Vulk snorted, but didn’t say anything.

 

Trish’s lips quirked up when she thought about what Vulk was about to find out.

 

~*~*~

 

The city dojo wasn’t far from the inn, so they reached it quickly. Stern had arranged one of the larger rooms for them, along with padded armor and training weapons.

 

“We start with stretching,” Stern said. “We normally do this every morning, but we put it off today because we wanted you both to join us.”

 

Vulk looked sour, taking those words as an attack on his drunkenness last night. Cammie nudged her brother, giving him a warning look.

 

“After stretching, we’ll spar,” Stern went on. “We’ll begin with unarmed, have a small break after we face off a few times, and then we’ll move onto the weapons.” He nodded at the worker who brought in the gear he’d requested. “Thanks.”

 

The worker bowed and left, giving Stern a worried look.

 

“Okay, we’ll start with legs. Stretch until you feel the stress and hold it there. Don’t push it. We’re only loosening the muscles.”

 

Stern led them through the routine he’d taught Cyra and Trish in Darkstone. They had to pause for Cyra to heal Vulk— he hadn’t listened and pushed one stretch, straining a hamstring. After that, Vulk listened more, intent on not failing again.

 

Once they were loose and limber, Stern nodded. “You two are free to join us every morning to stretch. How do you feel?”

 

“Loose,” Cammie said. “Good.”

 

“Fine,” Vulk said a little tightly.

 

“Vulk, I know you don’t like me,” Stern said without any heat, “which is fine. But we need to trust each other to defend each other. I don’t think you believe I can do that.”

 

Vulk shrugged. “Too thin and you don’t fight. You just use a crossbow.”

 

“Which is one of the reasons we’re here,” Stern said. “Trish, I’ll be sparring with Vulk first. Please officiate. Rules are the same as when you learned during the academy.”

 

Vulk nodded, a hint of happiness rising in him as he thought about showing the others how strong he was. Stepping back, he put his fists up and started to bounce lightly on his toes.

 

Stern took in the pugilist stance and nodded as he set himself into a defensive posture. Stern gave Trish a nod and focused on Vulk.

 

Trish checked both of them, then told them to fight. Vulk came forward with control, clearly knowing how to use his fists. Stern waited, knowing the first attack was likely to be a probing jab.

 

The first exchange was fast— Vulk jabbed, but pulled back when Stern blocked and tried to grab his arm. Having been able to avoid the grab, Vulk tried a short hook with his other arm. Stern blunted the bulk of that hit with his other hand, but not as cleanly.

 

“I’ve beaten enough martial artists to know your tricks,” Vulk told Stern as he started to circle.

 

“Because most only know the simple things they were taught,” Stern said as he pivoted to keep Vulk in front of him.

 

Vulk came forward again, but Stern was suddenly closing and going low on him. Vulk tried to backstep as he drove his right fist down into Stern’s back. Stern grunted at the bruising punch, then grabbed Vulk’s legs. With a heave, he pulled the shorter, stouter man from his feet and drove them both to the floor.

 

Vulk grunted when they slammed into the mat— he hated being on the floor, but knew how to grapple. He pummeled Stern, who was trying to wrap him into submission. Vulk grew concerned and hit harder when he realized that Stern was more slippery than he’d thought. None of his blows were landing cleanly.

 

Stern had to abandon the first few holds, as Vulk was a fighter to his core. But Vulk had never trained to use his legs, so Stern shifted fast, grabbing one and using it to gain the upper hand.

 

Vulk grimaced when Stern shifted suddenly, as he knew what Stern was doing. He lashed out with his one free foot, aiming to kick Stern away, but again, Stern managed to slip just aside so that he only lightly grazed him. With a grunt, Vulk jerked his torso upright, using his abdominals to get into position to punch at Stern again.

 

The moment Vulk jerked upward, Stern spun, abandoning the leg and grabbing Vulk’s waist as he slid around. Using his momentum and Vulk’s lack of knowledge, Stern was able to roll the other man face down onto the mat as he mounted him from behind.

 

Elbows flew back at Stern as he kept his grip and slowly transitioned for the win. Vulk had a bad feeling about his position and tried to fight out of it, but he couldn’t find the right angle or leverage to dislodge Stern.

 

The end came quickly— Stern was able to get up to Vulk’s neck and get a choke applied. Seconds later, Vulk went limp and Stern let him go, standing up and wiping at his face. Looking at Cammie, he raised an eyebrow.

 

“He’ll give you respect now,” Cammie said slowly. “What was all of that?”

 

“What my parents taught me. Too many focus on a single discipline,” Stern said. “Next time, I’ll box him. He’ll probably win, but I had to prove first that I can win.”

 

“Can I fight Cammie next?” Cyra asked. “I’ll lose, but I want to test myself.”

 

“That’s fine,” Trish said as Vulk began to stir. “We’ll be here for hours. Stern, you factor in the salve for this?”

 

“Yeah,” Stern said as he drew out a small tin. “Can you dab me?”

 

Trish grinned. “Sure.”

 

“What... happened?” Vulk groaned as he came to.

 

“Choke,” Stern said as Trish took the tin from him. “You’re good, but you’ve only worked on boxing, haven’t you?”

 

Vulk sat up, blinking slowly as he tried to understand. “Yes. Granddad taught me.”

 

A pang of sadness from Cammie told Stern more of the siblings. “And when we fight again, I’ll box you and probably get my ass kicked, but holding to just one discipline isn’t the best.”

 

Vulk turned a hard eye to Stern, then exhaled slowly and nodded, letting go of the surge of anger. “And you can teach us?”

 

“Trish and I,” Stern said. “You’ll be teaching us in return. Now, come on. Cyra and Cammie are going for a round.”

 

Vulk took Stern’s offered hand and got to his feet. “Okay.”