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“There you are,” Astaroth’s voice rings out.
I’m so focused on Levi that I don’t notice we’ve stopped in front of an archway leading into a massive room made up of dark wood and concrete walls. This is nothing like Mr. Weston’s setup back home, where there are seats, a few mats, and a wall full of mirrors. This room also has mirrors, but they're toward the back, along with dummies like the ones at a shooting range. Punching bags, a boxing ring, and a range of weapons take up space along the wall too. There’s a boxed off area that appears to be an office, and the floors are covered in… black wood?
‘Why would someone want black wood?’ I wonder.
‘To hide the blood,’ Knots supplies, and a shudder runs down my back.
Okay then.
Ryker, Knox, Zeke, JP, Lynx, and Chester are already off to one side, stretching on a set of mats; they wave at us. Moni comes riding into the room on the back of my puppy, and they skid to an undignified halt as they crash into Astaroth’s leg.
“Oops,” Moni squeaks as she hops off of my puppy and flies over to Chester.
Astaroth glances down at my puppy, who’s running around grabbing his tail successfully, then coming back to me. “I doubt this was on your list. Has Lucifer seen him yet?” He quirks an eyebrow in question. He’s shirtless, with a man bun and wearing black martial arts pants.
“Of course.” I cock my head and proceed to walk around him to the mats where everyone else is sitting. “And I’m still standing,” I say as I throw out my arms and walk backward, feeling bold.
“Maybe not for long,” Murmur laughs, coming out of the office structure in the back with a long pole in his hand while wearing identical pants as Astaroth. “Make sure you stretch because you’ll be landing on your ass a lot,” he chuckles.
I give Knots a pointed look, and all he does is laugh as I sit down between Zeke and JP and start stretching. I hear everyone laughing as the puppy runs over to us, but he trips over his feet and tail until he reaches the mat and plops down to start chewing on the edge.
Well, that works too.
“I can’t believe you got a puppy,” JP says. “But I can’t wait to spoil him.”
“Thought of a name yet?” Zeke asks as he studies my hound.
“Not yet,” I admit as I switch legs and get in a good stretch.
Murmur throws a small pole over by the mat, and it rolls to the back of the room, sending my puppy after it and out of our way.
“So, who here has used a Cudgel before?” Murmur calls out, and we all blink our eyes but say nothing. “Are you kidding me? What do they teach you in that school?” He sighs in frustration and runs his hand through his hair.
Moni raises her hand.
“Yes, Moni,” he calls.
“We learned some defensive moves when we had a Deathweaver running loose,” she helpfully says.
Zeke shrinks into himself slightly as his shoulders round, and I already know what he’s thinking. I lean into him and grab his hand, whispering in his ear, “It’s okay. We don’t blame you, remember?” I give him a kiss on the cheek, and he seems to brighten up a little, giving me a small smile.
“Well… That’s a start. Grab a partner and come on up and show me,” Murmur coaxes. He places both hands on the end of his staff and rests his chin on it as Moni gets up in front of him. She makes eye contact with me and gives me a cheesy smile. I know that look. I let out a groan but join Moni front and center.
* * *
Five minutes into watching me and Moni spar, Murmur wasn’t having any of it. He called it all garbage and told us to forget everything that we had learned at Purgatory. Astaroth slipped in and said it shouldn’t be hard since it wasn’t much. The nerve of him. Murmur then gave everyone a bo-staff, paired us off, and got us to work. I’ve been blessed to pair up with the weapons master himself.
“Again,” Astaroth barks as I lay on my back, trying to catch my breath. His freaking tail whipped out and distracted me, so he got the upper hand, beating me once again.
“I can’t even feel my arms anymore,” I whine, as I slowly get off the mat. He’s been running me through all the blocks and basic attacks, repeating them until he’s satisfied, to the point my arms feel like Jell-O right now.
“I thought you said you’ve had some training,” he taunts, opening himself up for me to strike, but I’m not falling for it.
“Think of it as more like karate. I’m what you would call a scrapper. I know how to throw a punch and fight dirty,” I insist. “None of this formal weapons crap,” I huff out, leaning against my staff.
In one swift motion, his staff strikes the end of mine, sending me sprawling to the floor again.
“What the fuck?” I grind my teeth as I jump up without my stick and advance toward him. He just cocks an eyebrow, as if to mock me. “Why’d you do that?” I get in his face and I don’t know what provokes me to do it, but I shove him—at least I try to.
