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Sons of Sword: Tales of Glory – Lost and Found #17

Metcalf grabbed her gear and walked for one of the training center’s exit.  There was nothing left to do there.  She only had about five thousand academy points left.  This amount placed her with the lowest ten percent of the students at the academy; the lower half of the red zone.

It was a little hard to believe.  She had gambled points at the Stream Quarter Training Center for almost a decade.  For the amount of time Metcalf has been lingering in the school.  The final will be extremely had for her to pass.

Sure, she wanted to climb the ranks before midterm.  So did everyone else.  That was the only reason the training centers were packed this time of year.

She passed a few students worriedly looking at their rank on their handhelds.  Unlike them, she knew when to let go of hope.  With the training center’s stiff competition, no one would challenge her except a student in an equal position.  With the scant few points to work with, it would be weeks before she would manage to crawl out of the red zone.  By then; midterm would have passed; she would be on the final exam list; and the training center would be empty again.

She only gambled because it was the only way she could keep enough Academy Points to stay at the school.  It was possible to get points from accomplishing tasks in a class but the classes were boring.  She would prefer not to see Naoh and Koh but if not for them, she would have been out of the school a long time ago.

Exiting the training center, she took of her helmet.  The hue on her beautifully youthful face was split down the middle; red on the right and white on the left.  She still had a slight green tint due to her not quite being of age.  That did little to mask the face of a thinking reasoning warrior.

Strangely she was not upset at her fate.  Sure, she would prefer it to be different.  Leaving a school where students enjoyed everything, free of charge, was a major inconvenience.  Then again, she no longer had to prey on lesser skilled students.

She wanted to participate in real work and use her talents for something real.  Guard duty was in no way glamorous but her actions made a real difference in people’s lives.  With any luck she could land a good placement with a nearby city.

Still with the sudden change, Metcalf felt like she should be angry at someone.  However, no one person seemed to fit the criteria to be stuck with the blame though.

Lance?  Not him.  How would he know how things would end up for her?  He actually looked sad when he saw how many points she was losing.  He had the potential to become a great Protector.  He only had to learn to project more of his skills rather than touch everything.

Herself?  No.  Lance did something that the Quarter Masters had taught against for the longest time.  There was no way to predict that it would actually work.  She simply did what all students in her position would do.  She knew continued gambling would end like this eventually.  Students that gamble eventually lose.  She lost.

Naoh? Koh?  No.  They were heartless sharks, and there was no way they would help her now, but they had nothing to do with this.  They helped her stay afloat in the school until now.  And in the end, she made the decision to challenge Lance not them.

No one was to blame.  The day started like any other and it ended like this.  Metcalf didn’t like it, at all.  However, she lost her say in the matter a few minutes ago.  Her time at school ended at this year’s Final Exam, unless she passed.

Metcalf giggled at the thought, Yeah, Good luck with that.

#1 – Lost and Found #16 – Lost and Found #18

Sons of Sword: Tales of Glory – Lost and Found #7

A thousand points?!  No way, way too much!  Even though a small win would be outstanding, a wager that large is not even close to being worth the risk.  Metcalf didn’t even try to hide her reluctance.  The amount may have been reasonable for Isabeau.  The top students had many more points to play with.  For Metcalf, a big loss at those stakes would set her down to zero.

“If that’s too much, we can change the amount.”  Isabeau’s expression showed as well.  This made no sense.  Metcalf was wasting her talents here.  She had seen students gambling points in training centers; the competition it created.  Even when students worked together, they never stayed in this arena for as long as Metcalf, Naoh, or Koh.

The students here usually had no other way to get the extra points they desperately needed.  They had to win Academy Points or face expulsion, utter failure, and disgrace.  There were no other options.  Their future, their hopes, the free life of an academy student, the honor of a Protector, everything depended winning.

Most only knew the basics but they used those basics in ways never taught in the classrooms.  They fought hard for those points, the fiercest competition she had ever seen.  At times, more inventive students happened upon variations of advanced strategies and techniques.  Isabeau only hoped to gleam some of the techniques to use as her own.

At the end of the mid-season, the winners and losers were determined.  Losers never came back, expelled after the final.  Winners rarely came back, not wanting to fight in the Training Center again unless it was absolutely necessary.  Metcalf stayed in this environment and thrived.  True, Metcalf was low in the student rankings but only because she wasted her time here playing for tens and twenties.

Isabeau had no doubt that Metcalf would win with the proper incentive.  More points meant a stronger fight, right?  She was pretty much giving Metcalf points for the honor of a challenge.  But, if a thousand points a target was too much, “What about five hundred?”

Well.  Maybe, less than that. Though it was definitely more reasonable, it was quite a lot more than usual.  So much, much more than Metcalf had ever played for before.  Isabeau could be using a negotiating tactic; starting unreasonably high so that a sucker could suggest something unusually high.  Things rarely ended well for the sucker.  Metcalf was having no more of this. “Two fifty,” she spoke with certainty.  It still could be a trap.  The amount was well more than double what she expected to bet, but it was still recoverable if she lost.  However, that was her final offer, no higher.

Two fifty?!  Metcalf is definitely showing her a lot of respect.  But if that’s the way she wants it, “Deal.”  Such a low bet.  She was going to be very upset if she won.

The negotiations finished, they waited for their number to be called.  They sat without speaking for a while.  Sometimes, the wagers were the hardest part of the challenges.  They both wanted their way, and each had to flex their wills to get it.  It was especially tough for the nicer students.  If they became friends later, it would be great.  It was never certain though.  After the awkward silence, Isabeau suggested they eat somewhere after the mid-season.

“Sure,” Metcalf said without hesitation.  She was still a growing young lady of course.  She loved to eat.  Also, she could ask her about a few special techniques.  Such a high ranked student had to know some techniques that only the Quarter Masters taught.

“I’ll give you my contact after this.”

#1 – Lost and Found #6 – Lost and Found #8

Sons of Sword: Tales of Glory – Lost and Found #1

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Glory City: Stream Quarter Dorms

Metcalf Luo woke to the sound of soft music and a calming water mixer that served as her alarm clock.  Sunlight poured into her room signaling late morning.  Her bed and blankets, soft and warm, left behind for the day’s work.  Dreams slipped from her head as she frowned remembering her tasks and what must be done; what she must do to stay at Sword Mint Academy.

Happy plush toys lined the dressers and tables along the pale orange walls.  They were as close as they needed to be.  Most activities were done outside anyway.  All the same, she would have preferred to have a larger living space.

After her shower, she checked her handheld for the student ranking.  The holographic image displayed a transparent image of all Sword Mint Academy students ranked by their Academy Points.  The rankings changed ever so slightly as she looked; that happened constantly.

She focused the image on the lower forty percent.  The lower half of her focus was covered in a red hue.  These students would be the ones most desperate for Academy Points.  The final exam was dreaded by all students.  If they didn’t find a way out of the red zone within the week, they would have to take it.  Her own portrait was just above the red zone, her rank slipping as she slept.

She looked all the way to the bottom.  “Hm…  Still hasn’t moved yet,” she said to herself.  Lance Da had been accepted to the academy a month or so ago.  There was a little fanfare at his arrival but she paid little attention.  Metcalf recognized him differently now.  He was at the very bottom of the pack since he arrived, still with zero Academy Points.  Most new students rest for a week or so before they start trying to advance, but Lance?

It could be easy enough for him to pass the test.  The Quarter Masters would not expect him to learn enough to warrant a strict grading curve.  However, everyone takes the same strenuous test.  It was difficult enough that even the newer students try to learn as much as they could to prepare for the inevitable.  Lance wasn’t even trying.

She hoped he did well.  It would be embarrassing to fail in the first half year.  For new comers, the test was more of a wake-up call.  A heavy reminder of what Sword Mint Academy expects its students to be able to do.  She took the test once and passed, barely.  It was as horrible as she expected.  She never wanted to take the test again.  Since then, she managed to stay above the red zone with Naoh and Koh’s help.

It worked well but she did not like what they did.  It had to be a perversion of the Academy Point System.  Thankfully, Mid Term was coming up soon.

Now sixteen years old, she had been at the academy for most of her life.  She started realizing her niche a few months ago.  Her type of combat was not the type that warriors crave on the battle field.  She attacked from the shadows.  She was getting good enough to stop gambling with her Academy Points.  She would miss hanging out with Naoh and Koh, but they would have to get their points without her.  Perhaps after Mid Term she could speak to Master Fu about getting a new training regimen.

She stretched and put on her armor.  She grabbed her weapons; Blue, her short bow with barbed bolt arrows; Rasz and Black, her weighted aluminum nightsticks.  She took a count of her throwing knives, making sure she had all twenty of them.  She put the lot into her traveling bag and went out for breakfast.

She still could be a great warrior.  Stealth warriors have a good place in their field.  She would need more training to be useful but that was for another day.  Today, she needed to ensure her own survival at Sword Mint Academy.  To do that, she had to play the swindler; again.

“Here we go again.”

Lost and Found #2