Chapter 8: Just a Normal Day

10 a.m. again. And, once more, Austin had none of the covers. At least this time he could move his arms, and his legs. But he couldn’t sit up. Not completely anyway. He propped himself up on his elbows and found out why it was that he couldn’t sit upright. Of course, Ellie had made herself comfortable by lying face down, resting her head on his stomach and dangling her feet of the edge of the bed. Her left arm ran down Austin’s leg and her right arm up his side. It was a precarious position to say the least. Out of nowhere her arm moved up from his side and onto his chest and a small amount of pressure was applied.

“down… more comfy…”

“We got any plans today?”

“noooo…”

Two hours passed before they even attempted to get up and it was early afternoon when they finally had the first meal of the day. Austin noticed that the food in both the towns he had visited so far were very different to what he was used to. It was mostly liquid based, porridges for breakfast, soups for lunch and stews for dinner. Were they stuck in a recession or something? Bread was hard to come by so most take-out lunches were just a single lump cold meat, cheese and crackers or flatbreads. After eating their soups and then deciding to get a take-out lunch to share as well the two of them went off to go see Jezza. When they got to the armoury once again Jezza was nowhere to be seen, except this time he could be heard. There was the heavy, piercing sound of metal clashing coming from the back room.

“Jezza!” Ellie shouted and the noise stopped. Austin opened his mouth and prepared to shout but was quickly cut off by Ellie with a hand signal. After a short moment the racket began again.

“Jezza!” She called and just like before the noise stopped… then started back up.

“Jezza!” Ellie was now looking rather pleased with herself as whatever Jezza was doing in the back room was interrupted for the third time. Some quiet scuffling came from behind them and just as Austin turned around:

“AAAHHHHHHHHHH” The worm-like creature shrieked at them.

“AHHHH WHAT THE FUCK!?”

Austin fell back onto the floor and was about to start scurrying backwards just as he realised that it was only Jezza. Ellie burst into laughter at what she just witnessed.

“You almost gave me a fucking heart attack man!” Austin admitted as he lay back on the floor and clenched his chest. Jezza couldn’t stop himself from laughing as he slithered off into the back room and even continued to do so as he reappeared on his wheelchair a minute later.

“Oh man… whew… Sorry about that youngen. Couldn’t help it.” He was still chuckling to himself.

“Did you get the metals?” Ellie interrogated.

“Sure did. They arrived this morning.”

“Cool, that’s all I came here for. Right! We’re off to train now.”

“Have fun kids.”

“That’s all we came here for?” Austin asked as they were leaving. Ellie nodded but he didn’t notice. The shop opposite had captivated him again and this time he was determined to go in.

“We’re going in there first.” As he dragged Ellie in by the collar.

The two of them walked into the shop and were instantly enchanted by all the bright, vibrant colours and the aroma of freshly cut grass in the air. All sorts of shades of blues, yellows, greens, reds, pinks and so many more took form in all the different types of clothing throughout the shop, from casual dresses to smart shirts and everything else in between. The shop was practically a wardrobe fit for a king and queen. The two of the wondered aimlessly around the store completely speechless, until they bumped into a man. An enormous man built like a brick outhouse. Even the veins in his muscles were more intimidating than the two of them put together. The man had a scar down the left side of his face and most of his body was completely covered with tattoos. To top of the man’s look of wearing nothing but a black vest and black shorts, not even shoes or socks, the only hair he had on his entire body was his thick beard and short block mohawk, both of which were a deep crimson red.

“Um… sorry.” Austin’s voice wavered.

“Ah. Thou shalt not worry about that young sir. Sometimes, it is difficult to see what is right in front of thee.” The man had a deep, husky voice that was strangely gentle and satisfying.

“Fuck that’s profound… But we’re here to see the shop owner, any idea where he is?”

“We are?” This was the first Ellie was hearing about it.

“TIS I! THE WEAVER!”

“… So, are you the owner?”

“I-… Yes.” The Weaver was slightly shocked by this question because in his mind he had clearly just answered it.

“Sweet! I need a baller outfit I can wear around and I’ve heard you’re the man to go to.”

“Then thou hath heard correct! But doth thou hath a design in mind?”

“Kinda.”

“Then shall we move into the back room to create the design and pick the fabric?”

And with that suggestion they moved into the back are where The Weaver’s workshop was. Austin picked out the most expensive fabric, partly to piss Ellie off but also because it was by far the best there. The fabric had great hypothermic and hyperthermic insulations while also being breathable, stupidly durable and surprisingly soft. After that he began designing his outfit.

“Hmm… Alright. Let’s go for a hoodie, but it’s gotta be long in the sleeves and in the body. And could we make it quite baggy in the arms and body area but keep the chest and shoulders kinda tight you know. And the cuffs gotta be a kinda tight elastic as well so I can pull the sleeves up.” Austin started.

“Why do you want long sleeves if you’re just gonna pull them up?” For some reason this bothered Ellie.

“Quit dissing my style!”

“That’s all sounding good. Then what colour would thou like this hoodie young sir?”

“Oh man, don’t call me sir. It sounds weird. But let’s just go for… black’s pretty cool.”

“Of course. And would thou like it to be stain proof?”

“That’s a thing? Does it work on blood stains?”

“It’s a special technique of mine, and yes it does.”

“Then hell yeah!”

After that, Austin went and picked a similar fabric for his trousers that had the same kind of aspects to it but was also slightly stretchy. He told The Weaver that they should be kind of skinny but not too ridiculous. And they would also be black and stain proof. All the while, Ellie did nothing but yawn and sigh. When he had finished designing everything and had his measurements taken, they paid half upfront and began to leave.

“Finally, we can begin your training!” Ellie seemed reasonably excited by the aspect.

“Oh. Is this the training of a hero to be?” The Weaver asked as he was seeing them out.

“Ooooo I like this man.”

“HA. Probably not.”

“And whom better to train him than the heroine… and lover?”

“I- I… I wouldn’t say lover… we just sleep together.” Ellie swooned.

“This is being taken way out of context. We’re going. Thank you very much, we’ll see you again soon.” And Austin pulled Ellie down the street while she was still absorbed in her fantasy.

            The wall around Incipancy was enormously tall, but Austin didn’t realise how wide it was until the two of them reached the top of the narrow staircase that ran up along the side of the wall. It must have been about five meters wide, but it had no battlements or fencing, once at the top you were completely open to the elements. The two of them stood at the top of the wall opposite each other with the sun low in the sky behind them.

“We’re about to begin your training.” Ellie warned him.

“Yeah… About that… What kinda training are we doing exactly?”

“Oh. Did I forget to tell you?”

“Clearly.”

“Oh, my bad. Martial arts training.”

“Why do I need martial arts training when I have a sword?”

“Because sometimes your sword’s a shield and when it is, you’re gonna need to know how to throw and proper punch or kick. AND even when it’s a sword it’s just nice to be able to switch it up and be able to use feints and shit like that.”

“Well, I do have a bit of experience in karate so I’m not completely garbage. But you’re talking like I’m gonna be fighting people more than monsters.”

“You never know… Anyway. Let’s begin.”

The two begin sparring and a flurry of punches and kicks are thrown, blocked and deflected from both sides. Austin was clearly on the defensive but seems to be able to hold his own against her. Eventually Ellie stops to catch her breathe she accidently makes eye contact with Austin and finds herself unable to look away. Her guard begins to lower as she somehow finds herself close against his chest. She tries to peel her eyes away from his but the only other thing she found herself glancing at was his lips. Without even meaning to she wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him closer to her until inches became millimetres and she could feel his soft breathing against her cheeks. And with a quick twist and flick Austin was launched over her shoulder and slammed into the ground.

“Lesson one: never let your enemy distract you.”