[Mkguild] Part 4 of Changing Fortunes

[Daniel Michalek]

Here is the fourth part of my story. Ditto previous stuff I said.
KillerNarwhal

They left the mess hall and focused on finding this George person who was
apparently in charge of something and could give them a job. They didn’t
know what to look for, but Cheep noticed a door that he was sure they had
passed at least twice and pointed it out. Kag opened the door cautiously,
wondering whether he was intruding. There was a wide anteroom with maps on
the walls and a reception desk at the back, at which sat a particularly
beautiful woman who looked to be a secretary.

“Excuse me, but we were looking for George?”



A loud belch was heard from the connected office beyond, and a slightly
mangy jackal morph walked out, scratching himself in a very unprofessional
way.



“You found him. What can I do for you?”



Cheep stared at him, finding it difficult to believe that this unkempt
being was a leader, military or otherwise.



“We need jobs. We were told to talk to you about joining the scouts, I
think?”



“That’s right. We’ll see. The scouts aren’t exactly on-duty during this
Plague thing, ‘cause nobody can go outside the walls that isn’t already out
there, but there’s plenty to do inside to help out the Watch. What training
do you have? I can see the sword on your back, big fella, but do you know
how to use it?”



Kag spoke up first. “We were just employed as caravan guards for a choosy
merchant before being stuck here. I have killed about thirty-five Lutins
and innumerable bandits with my blade. But I assume you would want to test
us before making a decision.”



“You got that right. How about you? I don’t see a sword on you. What do you
fight with?”



Cheep was only a little bit nervous now. “I can fight with my bare hands,
staffs, nunchukas, and throwing blades. I don’t know anything about Lutins;
I *did *kill at least four bandits from a group called the Reapers when my
troupe was attacked a few months ago. I don’t usually need to kill; I have
personally disarmed and knocked out at least two dozen bandits who tried to
attack me before that.”



“Interesting. Nunchukas?”



Cheep pulled his out and held them out for George to see.



“Oh yeah, those. Well, I guess we should head off to the practice rooms to
see just how well you can fight. Come on. Terry, cancel all my appointments
for this morning.”





He led them back through the Keep to a large courtyard where a large number
of humans of various ages and animal morphs practiced and sparred.
Apparently not everyone was too scared of the Plague to go about their
normal business. George tapped a feline morph who was practicing archery as
they passed and motioned for him to follow.



They neared a series of rings painted onto the floor, some of which
contained pairs of sparring humans and morphs.



“You, skinny kid, what was your name?”



“Chip’ang Koniko, sir. Most people call me Cheep.”



“Some barmaids call me that. But that’s a different story. And you?”



“Kagmer Quarr. Kag for short.”



“Charmed, I’m sure. Anyways, you can’t practice with real blades. Grab some
practice swords and get your tails back here ASAP.”



“We don’t have tails.”



“Not yet anyways. Move it!”



They each quickly found a wooden weapon appropriate for their size in the
racks against one wall and returned to where the jackal stood waiting.



“All right, Cheap, or whatever, you will be sparring with Alex here. Don’t
go easy on him.”



Cheep was unsure of to whom he had addressed this last command.



“Can I use my nunchukas?”



“Not this round. Go!”



Cheep was caught off guard by the sudden ferocity the cat morph displayed
as he whipped across the circle and disarmed him with one stroke, and then
poked him in the chest with the blunt tip of the sword.



“I win.”



“Again!” George barked. “And this time keep a grip on your weapon!”



Even though he was ready for it, he still didn’t last long against the
obviously skilled cat, who had no trouble delivering multiple would-be
killing blows with the wooden weapon.



George sighed. “Well, you’re obviously worthless with a sword. Now try it
with those nunchukas.”



This time the cat was caught off guard as the now-confident youth stood his
ground and remained motionless until he swung the blade at him. The
nunchukas spun once and cracked loudly as they deflected the blow. The
feline attacked again, this time trying to fake his motions and get in a
blow around his defenses. Again the nunchukas flipped and this time
impacted the grip of the wooden sword in the cat’s paw. Alex almost dropped
his practice sword at the shock and pain of the hit, but shook it off and
flew into a series of successive quick strikes. Blow after blow was simply
deflected as Alex realized that Cheep was simply in his element and was
trying to wear him down. He changed strategies again, now trying to hit
lower to make him protect his legs so he could attack his vitals again.
Once again, the expertly wielded nunchukas prevailed and left no opening
for the wooden sword. Cheep saw Alex’s frustration and decided to finally
press the attack. He spun the weapon around his body in curious arcs and
lashed out at the swordsman. Alex had no shield, but would have found it
difficult to defend himself even if he had one. He was only able to block a
few strikes from the unorthodox weapon before Cheep managed to wrap the
cord connecting the two halves of his weapon around the handgrip of Alex’s
practice blade and he jerked backward. The cat tried to maintain his grip
on the sword, but he was pulled forward and Cheep dropped him to the stone
floor with a chop to the back as he tried unsuccessfully to regain his
balance.



“Very interesting. It seems you might really know your stuff. Next?” George
called out.



Alex shook his dizzy head as he tried to get up. Cheep helped him up, and
he asked, “Can I at least have a little break first?”



“Yeah sure. Just hurry it up. I don’t have all day.”



The cat massaged his neck as he rested against the wall. “Wow, that was
some pretty impressive stuff back there.”



“Thank you. I saw that you are used to fighting people with swords, and
that you’re good at it, but you’ve just never seen my kind of weapon
before.”



“Yeah, something like that.”



He got back up and entered the circle once more, this time to face the
hulking Kag.



“Seriously. I should get extra pay for this.” Alex remarked.



The two combatants faced off, one with a standard wooden longsword, the
other with a practice claymore that looked like it was made out of a
trimmed-down fence post.



Alex shook his head and rushed toward his opponent, intent on winning
quickly so he could go relax for the rest of the day in the baths and try
to soothe his sore body. Kag swung a feint at him, gauging his reactions to
see what he would do. Alex dodged the halfhearted blow and pressed forward,
trying to get in a ‘killing’ blow and end the match. The big man surprised
him with his skill as he dropped his hands lower quickly blocking the
expert thrust with the hand guard of his practice sword. He then swung the
blade around again and drove through the cat’s block, knocking him
backwards on his tail. Alex winced in pain and scowled at how his day was
turning out. He got up again to finish the match and be done, no longer
caring whether or not he won. He slashed almost blindly at every exposed
part of Kag’s body he could, landing many of his blows but eventually
getting hit again, this time making him stagger backward instead of
falling. He once again shook his head, frustrated that his hits weren’t
having any effect on the towering swordsman. He didn’t even show pain. Alex
charged one last time before the huge wooden sword swung around in a wide
arc and shattered his own blade in two, not stopping there but plowing into
his chest once again, driving the air from his lungs and knocking him to
the floor one more time.



“That’s it… (wheeze)… I’m done. Get somebody else to test your recruits.”



If he noticed the cat’s attitude, George didn’t show it.



He got up with difficulty and limped off for the baths, muttering something
about a broken mirror.



“It seems you can handle yourself in a fight. But if that had been a real
sword, you would be cut to ribbons.”



“I’m more used to fighting groups of attackers; I usually attack most of
them while their focus is on something else. I use a big sword so I can hit
multiple foes with a single stroke. I can only block a little, though, so I
wear heavy plate to keep the blades off.”



“I suppose that works. I guess I could take you both on. Welcome to the
Scouts.”



“Thank you, sir.”



“Whatever. Show up here Monday morning for your training and more
instructions and stuff.”



As they started to leave the practice rooms, they noticed the tiger morph
from whom Cheep had bought his throwing stars approaching.



“I saw your fight, and I was wondering how strong you are,” he said to Kag.
“I would like to challenge you to a wrestling match.”



“Sounds interesting.” Kag said. “When?”



“Now. Over there.” The huge tiger pointed to a large ring on the floor with
a smaller ring in the center.



“Okay.”



They prepared for another sort of combat as Cheep watched. Kag stripped out
of his armor and weapon, and the tiger removed everything except a
loincloth and hand and foot wraps for his sharp claws, and faced each other
at opposite edges of the smaller circle. Kag got into his wrestling stance,
crouched halfway to make for a low center of gravity, hands out but elbows
in to prevent being grabbed, head up. The white tiger shifted into a
similar stance, modified for his altered anatomy. All of a sudden the huge
feline lunged at Kag’s feet, trying to use his legs as a lever to bring him
down to the floor. Kag saw the attack coming, however, and jumped, sending
his feet straight out behind him and grabbing the tiger’s head and
shoulders with his arms as he passed underneath him. The tiger obviously
did not expect the man to be able to dodge his grab so easily, and was
pinned underneath the man’s prodigious weight for a few second before
snarling and forcing his limbs down, lifting the man off the ground
completely. Kag spun around behind the tiger’s head and gripped his head
again from underneath the furred arms, catching the feline in a full
nelson. The tiger snarled again and thrashed about furiously, breaking the
man’s grip and almost throwing him off completely, but Kag held on and
changed holds, this time catching the tigers head and one leg between his
arms in a cradle, with the tiger’s back on the floor. The tiger morph
surprised the man this time with his sheer strength, which Kag had never
encountered before. He was definitely stronger than Kag, but he could tell
the tiger was starting to get tired. If he could keep on him for a little
while longer he would have him. The tiger broke the man’s hold again and
leaped across the circle before he could be grabbed again, breathing hard
as he prepared for his counterattack. He leapt back at the man again,
knocking him to the ground with a fierce growl. Kag was expecting it, and
shifted his weight so the tiger didn’t land directly on top of him; he
quickly squirmed out from underneath and pounced back on the tiger morph,
who tried to reach back and grab him, but only succeeded in giving the man
a handle to grab as he was put in a half-nelson. The man used the big cat’s
arm as a lever to turn him on his back and pin him. The tiger tried to
break the hold again, but he was spent.



“That would be match,” Kag said with a grin, letting the tiger man up once
he conceded defeat.



“I suppose you are right,” the tiger said with a scowl. “I used to have
more endurance, but this tiger body is built for short bursts of strength
and speed, not marathons.”



“Sooo… any chance you’re going to give back a little of that extra gold I
gave you for those stars?” Cheep broke in.



The tiger looked incensed. “They are still worth what you paid, even if you
might have argued the price down. I do not really need the money; I get
enough from my other work so I make extra weapons simply because I enjoy
it. I charge only a little more than the high quality materials I use cost
me.”



“Oh. It was just a thought,” Cheep said sheepishly.





Cheep and Kag stopped by the baths on their way to their midday meal,
washing off all the sweat and grime from exercise, and offered sympathy to
Alex, who they saw already sprawled out in one of the larger tubs, moaning
from his aches and bruises. He assured them that it was all right, and he
was having a bad day anyways, so he didn’t really blame them. They left and
once again went to the mess hall, enjoying more fruits and vegetables (Kag
noticed the meat was even blander than before, and the fruit tasted even
better). Cheep ate several more bananas, still the most delectable fruit he
had ever tasted. As they were finishing their meal, Kag suggested that they
go out and see how people were reacting to the quarantine.



“No! I don’t want to get the Plague,” complained Cheep.



“We only just heard about it; as far as I know there is only the case that
caused the message to the Duke.”



“No.”



“Are you going to stay in here all week?”



“Yes.”



“Come on. I know you better than that; you’d be bored stiff ten minutes
after I left.”



“Well…”



“I promise not to take you any place where the Plague has actually been
seen; we’ll just go through the market.”



Cheep sighed. “I guess.”


!DSPAM:4f96b44c65402130720353!
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