*Andrew’s POV*

I was chomping at the bit to get to the Walls, for the first time in a while. I couldn’t stand not knowing what had happened with that weird troll hostage! Eliza had already told me to slow down once on our trip down from Commons.

Thinking of things I was looking forward to, that definitely included our Night off! My mind was spinning with all the possibilities. Of course, first and foremost, I wanted sex, and in spades. This whole hormonal takeover of my mind and body was a major inconvenience. But surely I’d be able to pull myself together enough to take Eliza out to do something tomorrow?

Eliza poked me in the ribs. “Whatcha thinking about?”

I smiled at her. “What we should do tomorrow-“

Eliza snickered. “-As in, what position to fuck in, or what? Because I’ve noticed a trend lately-“

I turned red. “-Besides that! Alice said we could stop by and meet his ceffyl dŵr, if you were still interested.” Eliza grinned and nodded. “I, uh, was also thinking about introducing you to my mother.”

I glanced at Eliza, feeling a bit nervous. She looked shocked, and I had heard her sharp inhalation of breath. “I don’t know what she’d think of me, Andy. Though if she is even half as accepting as you, I’m sure everything will go smoothly.”

I was waffling over how much to reveal when Eliza added. “To be honest, I was under the impression that your mother was no longer with us.”

I cleared my throat. “She, um, isn’t, exactly, not in the traditional sense. But don’t worry about that right now. Just think about what you’d like to do, what would make you happy.”

Eliza nodded, but was clearly pondering what I’d said. I really didn’t want to have the conversation about my mother right that minute. I figured she’d see, all in good time. No need to distract her before Watch.

---

The Changing of the Guard seemed to go on forever. I was glad that Ashley didn’t say anything. It seemed that he’d turned over a new leaf, so to speak, just as I had. Afterwards, I approached Blasko, eager to hear what had been learned after Eliza and I had left at Dawn. I saw Eliza having her regular, short conversation with Jinxx, just beyond the podium, out of the corner of my eye.

Blasko and James both turned when I came up. James looked at Blasko. “You got this covered, Blask?” Blasko grunted, and James sauntered off.

I ran a hand through my hair. “So?”

Blasko made a cranky face. “It turns out that the troll Crilly’s Scouts bagged for a while also started foaming at the mouth once they captured it. They had to run off with Whiplasher’s group when they were ambushed and left it behind.”

I frowned. “How’s Nico?” I had only visited him once, and he hadn’t been conscious yet.

Blasko brightened a bit. “He’s awoken a few times, just enough to curse a little and demand tobacco and a pipe.”

I grinned as Blasko continued. “At Dawn, we confirmed Papa’s suspicions after you left. The troll never awakened and died just as you had described with the other one.”

He gave me his trademark shoulder pat. “You did well, Andrew. But what we’ve learned is grave news indeed. Papa says that an incredibly powerful magic user is likely controlling the trolls, if every single one of their scouts has that gagging, uh, hex or whatever, on them.”

I scowled. “How can we defeat something like that?”

Blasko sighed. “Well, the first step is being prepared. It’s Wednesday’s Night off, would you mind working the Initiates? If it comes to war, and I believe it will, they will have to fight too, ready or not.”

I grunted and gestured for Eliza to come join me as I headed in a different direction than usual. She looked a little green, but hadn’t gotten sick, at the least. I was proud of her. She was able to be around Jinxx for longer and longer amounts of time. A good thing, as a battle wouldn’t exactly come to a halt if either one of them needed to vomit.

---

The Initiates that were on rotation to care for the stables, mind the armory, walk the Walls, or had other chores, had left for their stations on time, which was a good sign. I decided to work on combat with the remainder for a while. “Go get yourselves a training weapon and pair up! No shields tonight, you won’t always have one!”

There were a few displeased groans as everyone went to pick out a wooden weapon. I was amused when they all just stood there, looking at me expectantly. “What in the nine hells are you waiting for? Spar!”

As everyone got started, it took an effort not to make a disappointed face. They clearly needed more practice. Some of them needed a lot more practice! Carefully I looked for those with the greatest weaknesses.

Crilly, as I would have figured, was doing very well, and his opponent, Caleb, was getting a beating. Caleb would get discouraged and learn nothing if I allowed that to go on for too long. I walked up and stopped them. “Caleb, you’re leaving yourself open too often. Here, give me your sword.”

I pointed to Crilly. “Watch Crilly as he comes at me; see how I stop him and use his momentum against him.”

I gestured to Crilly to attack me, and he did not look thrilled. Eventually he moved to strike me, and I easily parried and countered him, landing a purposefully light blow on his leg. I talked as the same basic pattern continued several times. “Never have your feet close together, it will reduce your mobility. When you parry, like this,” the wooden swords clunked, “see how I keep the blade close to me, so I don’t need to stretch my arms out to block?”

Crilly backed away and circled, trying for a new technique. I just kept talking. “You want to keep your balance. The more of the sole of your foot touches the ground, the easier it is to put substantial force behind your attacks. If you’re just on your tip-toes, it will make it easier for your opponent to knock you over.”

I indicated to Crilly that he should try again, though he looked winded. I tried even harder not to be so harsh on him. “Face forward, not to the side. That way you’re able to twist to avoid blows, whereas facing to the side means you can only evade in one direction.”

Crilly came at me and I just side-stepped. “See how all I had to do was dodge? That works best in open areas, of course.”

Crilly looked exasperated, and I realized I’d best stop soon. “Until you have a lot of skill, it’s easiest to hold your sword in a middling position, not high and not low, right along your torso. When your opponent is circling, like Crilly, keep your weapon pointed at his head, with your elbows bent. That way he has to get through your sword to get to you, but you’ll still have the ability to thrust and parry quickly.”

I signaled to Crilly to stop, and handed Caleb back his sword. “Remember, real fights usually end in seconds. All the facing off and dancing around you’ve seen in the training ring, you rarely see in battle. Often the first strike decides what will happen, so make it count.”

I turned a bit and pointed to Crilly. “My reach is longer than yours. You could have used that to your advantage. It’s actually safer to get in close with an opponent with longer arms or a longer weapon. That way it would be more difficult for me to get a good swing in.”

I nodded at them before walking away. I didn’t want them to feel singled out. “Take a five minute break, catch your breath, then find a different partner!”

I looked at Eliza, who was smiling, but said nothing. “What?”

She grinned. “You are a good teacher, Second Officer.”

I smirked. “See if they all agree with you later on, when I make them run laps.”

Notes