Spirit Taming

"Then I am taking this sword fool with me. We are still using pairs and you are going to suck it up." Ralph grabbed and dragged Reese with him before Clark could say a word. This just left Clark shaking his head while watching the others wonder why he had done nothing.

"I figured he would do that. I think he is a little more afraid of what Professor Wright thinks than he lets on." The slight teasing of Ralph just got a grunt from the distant molten boar that could still hear him.

The already marked path that the two were taking was nothing that had been left unexplored. There were multiple parts of the walls that had been dug out so that the ores could be harvested. Some places had small tool stashes along with the odd emergency supplies.

"Can’t we just go in a larger group? It seems as if there are more dangerous beasts around that we should stay together. Even the basics say that we should remain with more people to be safer." Reese wanted to attempt logic. He had always done so when studying the spectral sword style.

"Stop being so stiff. You have this whole metal is a solid so I can’t bend thing going. It makes me want to beat you to a pulp." Ralph was very huffy, he wanted a good fight and to prove that he and his partner could rise to take down the fourth year student that had nearly cost them their lives.

"We have to get stronger and you need materials. That sword beast of yours is weird and needs metal and light right? Look where we are."

"A mine dungeon?" Reese wasn’t sure if Ralph was capable of logic. But he was thrown off too much to get what Ralph was getting at.

"Yeah. a MINE! That means we can get a material or two for you. Then see what else that nerd and his team can do for you. After that, you can thank me for the help by letting me beat Clark to a pulp too."

"I don’t think that I-"

"Just shut up and learn a thing or two. Those beards worry about sitting and learning from books. I am more flexible because I fight more. So just come with me and learn something. Oh, and get that mole over there. I want the black iron in its claws." Ralph gave a push to Resse which sent him in to his first head on battle ever. He was finally battling without analyzing details and attacking cautiously. Exactly why professor Wright wanted Ralph to partner up with Reese.

"Clark, I will meet up with you and the others after you handle the new cave system. I will take Grace to learn a little." Back where everyone was standing, Isa had decided to follow Ralph’s lead. She was a little surprised that Ralph had just gone his own way but had actually liked it. She wanted to do a little teaching for once too.

"But you just said it wasn’t going to be safe! If things are this dangerous we should consider our numbers..."

"Oh, good. You realized that I am going to make you learn whether you like it or not. The negotiations were done before you even got to the table. Remember, a merchant will always make multiple deals. Never assume that you have a guarantee on products that are not under contract already." Isa just wagged her finger as she watched Grace accept her fate and take out her rapier.

"Good luck. I hope it goes well." Maria cheered Isa and Grace on as they walked down the other mined out tunnel.

"Now, the larger hammer tailed lizards can be handled by Maria, Brad, Ella, Clark, and Jerold. You and I have some little ones and those weak moles to deal with while we gather things left behind. I want you to learn the basic movements before we are done."

Isa had a goal as well. She would teach the rapier basics to Grace whether she liked it or not. "You have a unique ability because of your beast. It’s clear that you have been on edge and blind since it was sealed in a box to grow. You are clumsy and can’t survive without it. That makes you even more of a failure. A defective product that could never be sold even at a discount. It would bring bad gossip that would ruin my business."

The sudden coldness from Isa made Grace feel that she was looking at a different person. This was the piercing cold of the Rolly family merchants. They were clean cut and ready to go after a weakness. Anyone that had been in a market knew of their mercantile strength. It was not uncommon for regular people to hear the rumors.

"You should know that small hammer tail lizards have gaps on the scales that cover their bodies. Every beast with scales has them. So, you will aim with your rapier to pierce those gaps. It’s a basic move called piercing strike. A finishing move. Watch me carefully."

While Isa began showing the simple move to Grace, Clark, Maria, Ella, Jerold, and Brad were the last ones left to go anywhere.

"That just leaves us now. Everyone else left." Brad felt a little uneasy seeing four people leave them behind.

"It is not anything we can not handle. The larger hammer tailed lizards will be in low numbers. With our combat capacity, we will have a decent chance to defeat any beast that comes at us on one to one co,bat. But I have a lot of data to record on a hidden section of a dungeon. This is the first time finding this unique case. I can write a very thorough journal about it."

"Then you worry about writing. Maria and I will take the lead. The smaller beasts we will let Brad and Jerold handle. Jerold already tried to send his rainbow chameleon forward to scout. He just didn’t realize that it was easy to see in my eyes." Clark’s small smile was scarier than anything else to Jerold.

"I just wanted to improve my skills. Scouting is ideal for my partner and I." This was the honest desire that Jerold had. But he also had the desire to impress the elite students in front of him who had been giving him so many chances.

"That’s fine but you should know that we don’t need to scout ahead. I have already done some looking. We are going to head through the break there where more soil and stone fell. Ella will clear a path while Maria and you handle the small hammer tail lizards. Brad is going to face one of the moles head on. I want to see what he can do with that short sword and shield. Especially since he was hiding them."

Clark’s look toward Brad was one of curiosity. Brad, on the other hand, was nervous. He had hidden his weapons and not mentioned that he could use them. He had been speaking about his beast and how to get it stronger, not himself.

"It’s just that I didn’t want to be outdone so much. And I can’t do much when it comes to fighting but I can attack these lizards and win, right?"

"Just fighting them won’t help you. If you beat them with poison it won’t be an automatic gain in strength. You could have a beast ten times stronger than you tamed. That will give you strength. But will you be able to use it if you aren’t used to wielding that strength? Or will you just hurt yourself and others?" Clark had a very good point. It was why even the richest families avoided giving their children a beast with strength that outshone the limits of someone’s current abilities.

"And that is why you will fight a smaller hammer tailed lizard without your partner’s help. I can do it without poison so you should be able to as well." Maria took the lead to show off. Ella was more than happy to hold back. Clark was also happy to see Maria taking the teaching role seriously. He wanted to see what she could do and how strong she had gotten from her intensive training.

"Brad, you look ready to. You and your partner fight as one at all times. I think that’s perfect for who you are and any style you might use. So fight and show off too. It will help me gauge what we need to guide your possessed helm’s growth."

Since Brad had already decided to follow Clark’s instruction, he just nodded his head while stepping forward as well. No one realized that Devi had snapped down on to another mole that had tried to dig its way near them after sensing their movements. That was the only reason Clark had trailed back as the last one to leave the main entrance to the dungeon. He would die before he let a weak beast like these steel clawed moles sneak up and harm his team.