Then she hesitated calculating
No that wouldn’t do what if they were providing a meal Alien food sounded pretty good right now
Chapter 101
Decklan sat with his arms folded tapping his toes on the ground Tera looked at him anxiously
Don’t you want to go see She asked
Decklan shrugged The battles he has against the lower squads will be over quickly What would be the point
They had been informed earlier today as had all of the individuals who were part of a squad that The Ghosthound would be sparring against every squad in turn from lowest ranked to highest and giving them pointers The average squad member was incredibly nervous but excited After all it wasn’t often that the Ghosthound interacted with most of Donnyton’s population even the Classers
Well yes Tera said uncertainly But
They were both distracted by the hurrying form of Ptolemy who was followed by two individuals carrying a large cooler
What’s the hurry Decklan asked yawning
Ptolemy made an uncertain face I’m not sure Apparently they needed more mana potions down at the quarry for The Ghosthound’s trials
Chuckling Decklan asked he ran out of mana already He’s certainly bringing out the big guns
No its Ptolemy hesitated It’s apparently for the healers
Then the trio was past them hurrying North towards the quarry Tera and Decklan exchanged a glance Even though their appointment wasn’t until much later Decklan sighed and began to follow heading towards the trials area
When they arrived they found Paolo and Kayle standing next to each other uncharacteristically silent Decklan and Tera pushed through the surrounding crowd moving to stand next to them with a good view of the trial ground
The entire area was silent The Ghosthound stood alone holding a long pole of wood surrounded by a dozen or so moaning bodies Methodically the Ghosthound began pointing with the pole and commenting
Too timid when you see an opening take it You you have too much fear of pain Either get used to it or quit the squads You do you really think you can consider yourself a leader when you freeze up in the face of the unexpected
The Ghosthound shook his head Also why is there not a single one among you that has started to train Mana Bolt Are you incapable of handling an opponent at range Even throwing knives would be better than just waiting for me to walk up to you
Several healers were moving among the knocked down squad members healing their injuries They were helped off the arena to an area where a small number of grim faced men and women waited the previous victims of the Ghosthound In an imperious way the Ghosthound banged his pole against the ground twice
The 25th Squad of Donnyton has fallen Who dares step forward to fill the gap
After a few seconds of silence a voice answered We the 24th Squad of Donnyton dare
It was almost ritualistic Decklan thought fascinated as he watched the next squad walk out onto the arena with serious faces They whispered to each other arranging themselves on the ground forming into a square 11 individuals 10 members and the squad leader drew their weapons and stared at the Ghosthound waiting
He did not keep them waiting long
To Decklan’s surprise he simply dropped the pole and started walking towards the squad just strolling forward Next to him Paolo and Kayle narrowed their eyes
This is Tera asked wonderingly
This is the Ghosthound that moves to crush resistance He has been cycling through 4 modes rather randomly Overwhelming strength crushing the opposition with the pole Unstoppable magic simply blowing his opponents away Impossible speed moving like a ghost and this the final method Paolo spoke slowly
Kayle finished his thought this is a lesson in futility
Unlike the previous squad the 24th squad shot several mana bols at the Ghosthound and the squad leader threw several hatchets towards the approaching form He did not dodge He simply allowed the projectiles to hit him unphased His speed remained constant
The squad leader barked a sharp order and two individuals with long spears moved forward prodding at the Ghosthound With a slow casual movement the Ghosthound grabbed the shaft of one of the spears yanked pulling its wielder close and punched the man directly in the face The crack of bone was audible and the man collapsed immediately senseless
With another order the squad rushed forward weapons raised trying to push the Ghosthound back and bring the wounded comrade to safety But the first man was smashed backwards by a kick the second had his shield pulled away and was thrown 5 meters in the air Then the squad leader was before the Ghosthound whipping three hatchets at him lightning fast The first two simply bounced off his skin The third slashed a shallow gash in his shoulder and a thin trickle of blood running downwards
The Ghosthound’s hand stretched out grabbing the lip of the squad leader’s armor picking him up like he was a misbehaving dog Then he whipped the squad leader sideways hitting the squad’s healer from behind who was still bending over the first man
The rest of the squad kept rushing forward but the Ghosthound simply waved his hand knocking away their attacks and delivered several short punches and kicks incapacitating the rest of them
As he surveyed the fallen bodies and more healers rushed out treating the defeated squad the Ghosthound said you made the right decisions You were simply too weak Coordination cannot overcome weakness only true skill can Without raising your skill levels this will forever be your limit
Why is he doing this Tera asked wonderingly
Decklan grinned in response The town treats him like a guardian angel Looks like he’s fed up with it It’s a good experience too for the squads to get reminded of their limits And finally
It’s a challenge Paolo whispered To us to Donny to Dozer to Annie Asking us if we are enough to beat the monster that is the Ghosthound
The Ghosthound returned to his pole and knocked it twice against the ground once more The 24th Squad of Donnyton has fallen Who dares fill the gap
Dozer sat cross legged in darkness his eyes closed To her surprise when Annie located him Donny was there too also in a meditative state
Is it fine to just sit like this Annie asked To her surprise Dozer was the one who answered opening his eyes and frowning at her
Yes those detail obsessors Kayle and Decklan will watch There is nothing there that we don’t already know And we need time to prepare
Annie shrugged Prepare for what It’s just a spar right
Donny snorted finally opening his eyes Not exactly Randidly came back from Franksburg a lot colder than he was previously It seems like his search for his friends was fruitless And when he came back he found that in his absence Lyra had to sacrifice some part of herself in order to save the town They might not actually be involved with each other but there is some connection between them
This Dozer said closing his eyes once more Is the Ghosthound angry coming to collect his pound of flesh for letting her be forced to this The earlier trials will be a warm up the I and II squads as well as our personal squads will be fighting him all at once At that time he will stop pulling punches and we will finally see the Ghosthound bare his teeth
Donny shivered I can’t even wait
Dozer gave him a sly smile Me too
Annie sighed wondering why men were sometimes fascinated by the thought of violence
The kids talked excitedly watching as the men Mrs Hamilton sent over dug up the area surrounding Arbor leveling and flattening it They created a stone path that led towards it and a small wooden stand surrounding it an area to approach the tree and touch its ashy trunk Several women came over planting rare herbs and spices around it after they had learned that its presence provided its strange energy even to plants nearby
Kiersty nodded satisfied Arbor too wiggled with glee as this action on Mrs Hamilton’s part was a tacit admission of Arbor’s use for the village The NCCs already were beginning to treat it with a strange reverence due to its positive influence on the nearby flora