Today Cyrus could be seen in the streets once more, this time alone and not in his gaudy appearance of yesterday. This time he was heading out to his second and final preparation for his stay at Glacies.
"While I do feel bad for Fauve, there is no real need for me to have him accompany me today. Besides, it seems like he was old friends with Lily so I am sure they have much to catch up on" thought Cyrus as he approached a large temple with a series of gated courtyards around it.
The circular building stood tall as it loomed over Cyrus, with its dark gray stone make and large carvings of the Legionaries prided symbol above its heavy doors. Not only that but as he walked the stone path with granite worked into it, large statues of various powerful Legionnaires in nearly their full war gear could be seen. All of them were in the same solemn pose, holding their helmet in one hand and sword held towards the ground with the other, as they looked down on all who gazed at them with a judging glare. When Cyrus came close enough to see the plaques at the foot of each statue, instead of a name of a respected member of the order ,as one might expect, he saw words describing various traits of a Legionnaire instead. Loyalty, Strength, Unmoving and Unbreaking were the words inscribed on the plaques, truly giving any onlooker a sense of what these warriors prided above all else.
As Cyrus walked up towards the large wooden doors, he could not help feel somewhat intimidated but was reassured by the token he had received from Gabriel.
"Clearly this gift is far more useful than I had initially thought. Before formally entering Glacies I need whatever I can get, even if the cost of it may be a bit high. I can only wonder what I stand to gain here though, but I will have to find out" thought Cyrus as he fingered the mask on his belt, resisting the urge to put it on.
Walking up the steps and finally reaching the heavy looking doors, Cyrus merely waited instead of trying to intrude on someone else territory. He had already noticed that he had been detected by various guards hidden in the shadows, which is not a testament to his detection abilities but rather the fact that the guards posted did not even bother to hide themselves more than just being out of visible sight.
As expected, it did not take long before the doors slowly opened inwardly revealing a man of impressive stature that seemed to be signature of the Legionaries. With a cold nod he said while looking towards Cyrus' necklace,
"Welcome fierce one, I had been hoping to meet you eventually once more. I did not expect you to come straight to me however, nor under these circumstances."
"Again?" pondered Cyrus, as he did not recall meeting this particular Legionnaire before. He was of the same impressive stature of every other fully fledged member of the order, with a head of flowing black hair with dark eyes to match, and a freshly shaven face that had a cold stern expression on it… Cyrus definitely did not recall meeting such a man before.
"Considering all whom I have met since coming to this city, then it could only be…"
"You are… the one who was apart of the exam?" asked Cyrus carefully.
"Correct fierce one. My order has close ties with the Tower of Babel, we cooperate on many things and assisting them in their exams is one of them. Now, I take it you did not come here for pleasantries. What is your aim?"
Cyrus thought for a moment before answering,
"I have a dire flaw in my sword usage that I wish to fix. I do not hope to be condescending and come to demand to be trained on account of my token, but only as a request that can be negotiated upon if necessary"
A flash of praise was momentarily seen on the stony face of the Legionnaire,
"An immense request but done so in an acceptable manner. The techniques and methods of my order are not one for outsiders… but having a token of friendship from an Honoris does open up the path. Follow me."
The Legionnaire then walked past Cyrus and began heading towards one of the many gated courtyards that circled the periphery of the temple.
"Ordinarily you would be required to go through a series of tests to ascertain your worth but I have already witnessed your potential. Your friendship with an Honoris, your combat ability as well as your position in Glacies… in the future you will no doubt become a great partner with the Legionaries" said the Legionnaire, talking while he led from the front.
Eventually they came to a rather desolate looking courtyard, but still had obvious signs of maintenance being done to maintain it as much as possible. The two stepped in through the small wooden gate at the entrance to said courtyard and continued to walk forward towards what looked like a training area in front of a small building. Cyrus looked around scanning the surroundings, while the ground was somewhat ridden with various overgrown plant life and the walls showed signs of decay the actual training field itself was maintained perfectly. The ground was packed down smoothly and pruned of any plant life with any stones or debris picked out with care, the optimal environment for a wide variety of training.
"Here is where you will come to train. You have just under a month left if I recall correctly… while it may not be enough time to put you at the ranks of a master swordsman at the very least we can iron out the obvious flaws and build a full foundation for the future. I will arrange sparring partners of a skill that matches yours and will adjust them based on how you grow during this month… now… let us begin our first lesson. Show me your true face fierce one" said the Legionnaire in sudden excitement, as he donned his helmet and drew his sword.
"True face… oh" thought Cyrus as he put on his mask and drew his blade as well.
"It seems he is quite pleased with how I am with my mask on, an unexpected windfall so it would seem. How useful, how convenient… how naïve. Let us 'hope' that the reputation of the Legionaries pulls through and this interest remains only that" thought Cyrus, criticizing his unmasked self.
"Good, that is more like it; truly fierce as I had remembered. Being able to adjust your entire personality to suit combat in the blink of an eye, what a gift! If only you were a member of my order, how far you could go…" said the Legionnaire in excitement and ending with disappointment.
Shaking his head slightly, "Either way, I will help you reach your full potential. Mages always neglect other forms of weaponry, which is fine for some but not all are meant to take the path of intense theoretical research. There are other ways for a mage to exist, one of battle and bloodshed up close and personally. Instead of hiding behind their Legionaries whilst casting spells they support them up front and center; a risky strategy it is but one that is both effective and frightening to face off against."
Taking a stance, which prompted Cyrus to do the same, he said
"Now, let us begin the first lesson."