Exiting the cottage, the first thing he saw was the brightness emitted from the morning sun, illuminating the surrounding area around him in a beautiful blue sky, as well as white clouds moving slowly across it, as if time had slowed down on him. He breathed in a deep breath and exhaled while leaving the door open to also allow light into the house.
Sounds of chirping birds were known across the distance, but they all came crushing down within an instant when he heard blades clashing against one another, followed by hurried footsteps and movements dancing around in circles as though there was some sort of invisible fight happening nearby.
Pulling himself away from the sky, his eyes widen when he sees Guan Yu sparing with Billy, who was holding a knife in his hand from a distance away, seemingly training themselves to fight against one another in close-range combat. Although he wouldn't call Billy the winner in their spar,
"Ah, dammit!" Having desperately tried to stab the elderly warrior before easily evading it by stepping aside, the man then placed his pole at the young cowboy's foot, causing him to start falling to the ground. "Shit!" Not able to stop the momentum, Billy ended up collapsing on his front while letting go of the knife.
Guan Yu didn't appear fazed at all after seeing him fall; "getting too hasty with your attack is a critical mistake," the old warrior spoke in a calm and collective voice. "It will leave you vulnerable to counters or exploitable openings in an opponent's defense," he explained patiently while maintaining a casual stance.
"Shut up!" Angrily getting up while grabbing his dropped knife, he walked forward while wiping away the dirt on his face before turning around to face him once more, pointing his small weapon towards him. "I'm not done yet! Don't think that you've won!" Declaring it loudly with bravery and courage.
Hearing this, Guan Yu merely chuckled softly with amused expression, "Do not let overconfidence blind your vision in an enemy's strengths or weaknesses." Shaking his head lightly, he warned him of his recklessness: "Remember, never underestimate the strength of an opponent, even if they—"
"AHHHHHH!!!"
Shouting at the top of his lungs, he ran full speed towards the man with a knife held firmly in his grasp while intending to swing it downwards in hope of landing a striking blow. But that failed when Guan Yu easily blocked it with his weapon, sending vibrations through both weapons upon contact.
"How are you this good?" Billy was desperate, angry, and embarrassed that his attempts to attack had failed numerous times within the last half hour. He swung his blade wildly like a madman who had lost control of himself. "Why are you so damn strong?" His frustration only grew worse with every passing second.
In followed pace, the warrior didn't use much of his strength due to how predictable the boy was; it was obvious from the beginning that the child has no prior experience of fighting in close quarters with melee weapons compared to him, who had years of fighting in war, "many years of practice and training, that's all there is to it," still standing in his spot while blocking every blow and strike from him.
"Ugh!" Feeling overwhelmed by his own lack of combat experience, the young boy slashed harder than he intended, which caused him to stumble backwards before regaining balance as he panted heavily before glaring angrily at the warrior, "This is impossible." Inquired with a mix of curiosity and jealousy, "How can someone your age be this skilled and strong at the same time?"
"I already told you," the old man said with mild exasperation, repeating himself, "my time in war has hardened me to become the man I am today; the bloodshed and deaths have made me god of war." He recalled all the horrors of seeing men being cleaved apart by his weapon.
Allowing his body to fall while sitting on the comfortable grass while still breathing fast and shallowly, Billy stared blankly at the elderly warrior for awhile before breaking into a loud laughter, "God damn, no wonder your this strong!" Expressing his amazement, "to have trained and experienced hell itself must be exciting!" Grinning from ear to ear in full display
The old general couldn't tell if the blue-haired teen was simply being sarcastic or an actual genuine compliment to his abilities. "Training is never an easy feat for most," he said, glancing at the pole in his right hand. "Somebody like me, I've dedicated myself to the craft of war and mastering it, everything from using a sword, bow, and spear," describing his training through vivid detail.
"All for the sake of doing what must be needed in order to accomplish the tasks ahead," his eyes trailed towards him, who was watching the scene unfolding itself. "Those who are willing to risk their lives on the battlefield are always few in number," he said, nodding in approval. "Not many are brave enough to die in the name of a greater cause, such as war or battle itself, for it is a form of sacrifice."
The way he put it sounded depressing and boring altogether, something Billy has no interest in participating in. "Sure," uninterested in what the man was trying to say, "So are we going to continue our training or not?" Quickly getting up and with a knife in hand, "because I want to win," he added in annoyance, "and I'm not going to stop until that happens."
Raising his brow from this, he never expected the boy to be this willing to become victorious by any means necessary, if it means having to fight in a losing battle. "You are still wanting to go through this even if this is a pointless endeavor?" He asked in curiosity, "What is your reasoning for this foolishness?" I'm curious about the motivation behind it.
"Are you seriously asking me that?" Finding it ridiculous to hear such a response, "If you know me, I'm never the type of person that loses when it comes to challenges," he smirked confidently, "I always come out on top and make people regret picking a fight with me," showing his arrogance in its true colors.
Sighing from this revelation, "arrogance and anger are weaknesses if you cannot control them," and saying in a scolding tone, "all it does is make one more vulnerable in being unprepared against the dangers ahead of you," it seems that the teen hasn't understood his lesson yet. "Do you understand?" Asking the question one more time.
"Arrogance, huh?" The teen seemed to contemplate his words, folding his arms in the process, "since when I was arrogant?" Not seeing his own faults, "I don't recall ever being one," he casually replied, finding the accusation humorous to think about. "You must be hearing things, old timer, either that or you have poor eyesight," the boy stated with a mocking grin on his face.
Instead of being insulted or irritated by such a rude response, Guan Yu just sighed in defeat. "Every action has consequences; I hope that you will not forget this in future events." His advice fell on deaf ears as Billy simply ignored it altogether by shrugging nonchalantly.
"Yeah, whatever," rolling his eyes at the old man's response, "the choices and actions I take shouldn't be anyone's concerns," stating that other opinions don't matter to him, "I'm free to do what I want and when I want it, because it is my freedom," expressing his desire for independence, "you're not the boss of me, and I don't have to listen to what you say, either way."
Frowning at this carelessness that the boy is showing, he was nonetheless impressed by the young cowboy's strong need to follow his own feelings and actions rather than those of someone else. The rebellious nature of an individual who is willfully disobedient to what is demanded or expected, "then so be it, just be mindful of the consequences," was enough for Billy to shrug it off again.
Loud and soft, audible footsteps from behind alerted their attention as they spun in motion in the direction of their source, revealing no one other than Seth, who was now awake and was seen entering their vicinity. "Good morning, everyone," the young boy greeted in a respectful tone.
Stopping just close to them in a circle, he said, "I hope I wasn't interrupting something important," being afraid of making them upset for interfering with their sleep. "If you guys do, I could always leave instead," suggesting the alternative as he awkwardly rubbed the back of his own head nervously.
"Sup, Sethy-Boy," Billy responded with a friendly wave in his left hand, although his expression says otherwise. "Why are you here anyway?" Curious to know why, "I thought you would be resting like a lazy bum," the teen teased with a smirk on his face, "or are you getting bored of having your beauty sleep?" It almost sounded like he was making fun of him.
Widening his eyes at the response, "W-what?" He was bewildered by this: "That's not it at all; I just needed some fresh air and went outside, that's all," stammering his words due to the nerves being shot out from this sudden confrontation; "Please don't take it the wrong way of interrupting your training; it wasn't intentional," apologizing to avoid a fight from happening.
Annoyed, "There you go again," the gunslinger complained about his habit of being apologetic too often, "being all sorry this and sorry that," seeing this is getting old at this point, "when are you ever going to stop beating the bush and act like man?" questioning his behavior.
Redness appeared on his cheeks once more, embarrassed at being called out on his fault. "Sorry," he said, immediately stopping himself from repeating that word again. "I just...never mind," changing his sentence into something different altogether. "I mean, I guess I should be more careful from now on," adding in another of his words awkwardly.
Sighing at this childish banter, Guan Yu looked down on Billy. "His just unsure of how to handle these kinds of situations," the man explained of Seth's predicament. "He doesn't mean to make others uncomfortable with his antics; he is just trying to find the right words to use," defending himself on behalf of the somewhat frightened boy.
"No kidding," the teen scoffed in reply, "it is just that he pisses me off when he constantly makes this type of crap happen all the time," pointing at Seth while explaining his case, "seriously, is there nothing else to him aside from being this shy and reserved all the time?" The nerve of having to see this shit nearly every day always makes him go insane.
The boy flinched at the criticism and stared down on his feet in shame. "I, I am not that bad." Trying to defend himself from the allegations, he says, "It's just the way I was born, remember?" Trying to sound reasonable but failing miserably, "it isn't easy being the way I am and I have to deal with it," Seth told him honestly, "is that a crime for having these emotions?" He inquired softly.
"Yeah, it is a crime to have to be a goddamn pushover in everything," the teen sneered back. "Come on, there has to be something more interesting than you being a sniveling pussycat who still can't be man by relying on others," was a painful reminder to hear from him. "I hate seeing you like this; it makes me sick to the stomach."
The tension between them was already building up to a boiling point; this argument was taking longer than necessary as Seth's shoulders started trembling from the rising anxiety. "You don't have to be this mean to me," wishing his friend could see reason; "I'm also tired of being a burden to you guys," admitted the truth; "I wish to become better, but you can't rush these types of things."
Before Billy could open his mouth, Guan Yu intervened once more: "What is it that you truly want from him?" He asked a simple question to gain perspective on the situation, "just so we can find some middle ground and prevent further escalation," staring directly at the young cowboy, who was conflicted about giving a proper answer.
Seth was focused on him, curious to know how his friend would respond to this question. It was always Billy who knew best, more so than himself, and was also extremely opinionated towards those who did not agree with him. He also had stubbornness that went beyond common sense.
Silence hung heavy in the air as they waited for a response. However, after what appeared to be several minutes of waiting, the blond teen suddenly broke out of his trance and gazed at the old warrior. "You wanna know my answer?" Narrowing his eyes in distrust, he said, "Fine, I will tell you what it is, so you will finally get it through that thick skull of yours," accepting the challenge.
Taking in a deep breath, he then released it afterwards: "I want you to be strong for yourself." The answer was both unexpected and yet somehow familiar at the same time for them. This surprised everyone by what Billy had heard: "I don't care what it is you do or how long it takes for you to man up, but I want you to be able to protect yourself without needing someone's help." The gunslinger revealed his motivation for all of this.
He was lost for words. Seth isn't sure if the answer was meant to be encouraging or between; there is one thing he agrees with, and that is having to grow more independent for his own improvement. And Billy is right in what he said, as he has been a liability to them more often than not.
Guan Yu was perplexed at hearing such a confusing answer from the likes of an unruly child, but at the same time he was astonished that deep down, the boy still cares for Seth, even if it means being harsh for his benefit. "I see..." The elderly general finally understands the meaning behind his intentions.
The three stood in silence, allured by what had just transpired, each of them still processing what to say next or even do at all. A couple of seconds had passed since the discussion, and not a single person had left their place. Eventually, it was Morgan who brought them out of their shells after exiting her home.
"Breakfast is ready!"
