Sparks flew in the clash of steel. Al stepped back dodging vice-captain Rocky's slash, his hand, clutching his short sword, tingled from clashing with His vice-captain's ax.
His long straight, red hair fell into his face, even the black bandana on his forehead couldn't hold it back anymore. 'I need to cut that,' he thought.
He heard the wind split and quickly jumped up, Rocky did the same, to avoid Fatty's barrage of arrows.
After they landed, the free-for-all came to a standstill. The vice-captain, Fatty Kai, and Al eyed each other cautiously.
"I'm jealous."
"I know, he's only eighteen, but can keep up with the strongest in the guard."
"I remember when we used to look down on him."
The guards chattered as they watched the fight on the stands of a stone arena that they had built two years ago outside the outpost. On top of the stands, Dorian was sleeping in his reclined chair, an empty pint of beer next to him. Al's mom sat next to him.
With his right hand, Al unholstered the revolver at his waist and aimed it at Fatty. Fatty's small nose wiggled in fear as he retreated. Rocky, on the other hand, took the opportunity to attack Al. The mountain of muscle ran forward his ax gaining momentum as it swung for Al.
"Gotcha," said Al, smiling. He whipped around the gun and shot Rocky's chest, point-blank.
The bullet was a nonlethal training bullet, but it still packed a punch. Al heard ribs crack as his vice-captain tumbled backward.
'One down, one to go,' he thought.
Al dodged some more of Fatty's arrows before aiming his gun at him.
However, by that time, electricity was already crackling on the arrow nocked onto his longbow. 'Damn it!' Al thought. The arrow shot out of the bow at incredible speeds piercing Al's right hand before he could shoot. The arrow's remaining Thunder Qi raged through his body, paralyzing him.
At that moment, he saw searing, crimson smoke coming from behind him.
He instantly knew it was Rocky's Qi Combustion! A primitive but powerful martial art that burns one's Qi to release its energy, effectively doubling one's power.
Al was now trapped between both of them.
"You conniving little brat, you're done," Rocky said while enveloped by crimson smoke.
"No both of you are done!" Fatty shouted as a vortex of thunder, the size of his oversized torso, spun around the tip of his arrow.
Both Rocky and Al grew pale. Fatty's Qi Charge, once fully loaded, couldn't be dodged.
After its release, like lightning, his arrow flashed through the air toward Al and Rocky. An ear-piercing blast resounded upon impact.
Fatty Kai fell to his knees having exhausted all of his Thunder Qi. "I win," he said laughing. He was elated, but when the audience avoided his gaze, he knew something was wrong.
"Nice shooting, Fatty," said a young voice, as a cold dagger was laid on his neck.
Fatty's eyes widened as the dust from the blast cleared. On the ground was an unconscious Rocky, his chest badly burnt and lacerated from the blast. Next to him stood Al, however, like a ghost the floating dust simply passed through him.
He looked up at the hand that held the dagger. It was Al, whose smiling face hid cold, calculating eyes while a multicolored light shone behind the bandana on his forehead. 'This kid had really grown up into a monster,' he thought.
"You switched yourself with a projection. Damn it!"
"I win." Al laughed retracting his dagger from Fatty's throat. He was panting due to expending a ton of Qi.
"You are animals! Look at what you have done to the poor man!" Al's mom crouched down next to Vice-captain Rocky. Next to her, a Sunflower-like plant rapidly grew which extended its vines that stitched up his wounds while the flow remained down golden particles onto Rocky that healed the burns.
Looking at Rocky, Al realized that raining had gone a bit overboard. Luckily, thanks to his mother's spell, his injuries quickly recover. "Thank you, mom~"
"You rascal," she said glaring at him.
"Don't anger your mother, Al." Dorian still half asleep came wobbling down the stands.
"Yes yes, captain."
"Alright boys and galls, that's enough fun. Everyone except the fighters, go back to training," he said as he dragged Al's audience away for training.
"Hey, help me over here."
Listening to his mom, Al went over to his mother and used his little remaining Qi to stop the bleeding while the vines stitched the wounds together.
He could do so by forming Qi lumps in the major blood vessels which stopped most of the blood loss. I mean, he couldn't exactly heal, but ever since they had started mock battles, his mom had taught him how to do first aid with Qi.
Al's mom had been worried about the mock battles getting out of hand, and that's just what happened today.
"Hey Fatty! What were you thinking? Why use a martial art like that?"
"Sorry, Ms. Monet, I got caught up in the moment." Fatty scratched the back of his head, embarrassed. He wasn't the smartest of the bunch.
"You use that spell against my son again, and I'll make fungi grow inside you until you explode!" Al could see a chill going down Fatty's back as mom stared at him with an icy gaze.
"I won't do it again, ma'am!"
"Alright, get out of here!" she said while Al's mouth voiced a silent 'sorry'.
In less than a minute mom's Asclepius's Flower had healed Rocky's burns, while all the wounds were stitched up.
"After this come home with me. I have something to give you."
"Of course."
Al and his mom waited until the vice-captain regained consciousness until they excused themselves and went home.
"Sorry, my mom wants me home, vice-captain."
"I couldn't stop you if I wanted to. You proved that today, Al," he said.
"And, it's only today that you broke through to peak stage," his mom said ruffling Al's hair.
"Don't rub salt into the wound, Ms. Monet."
"But it's the tru-"
"Ok, bye, vice!" Al said as he dragged his mom away before she insulted another one of his friends.
Under the afternoon sun, they walked home. Al was exhausted so he walked slowly. The smell of the sweet bloom of the spring flowers wafted into his nose.
His mom didn't say much for a long time until on the gravel road up the hill where she said, "You're secretly leaving tonight, aren't you?"
Al halted, not knowing what to say. He couldn't bring it over his heart, to tell the truth.
"You don't have to say anything."
His mom didn't stop and continued up the hill, and Al eventually followed and caught up.
"Boy, you are just like your father. A big dreamer with a soft heart. You speak of independence and freedom, of doing your own thing. But, in the end, you can't bear the pains that adventuring brings."
Al still couldn't talk back or refute her words. Because it was all true. He knew that if he gave a proper goodbye then his heart wouldn't let him leave. It wouldn't be able to bear walking away. This was home, after all.
As his mom walked through the door, she paused.
"Promise, you'll at least try to say goodbye."
"Okay."