The Over-Break System

Breaking into a sprint, Gabby quickly caught up with the party before catching Selene by the arm and dragging her off behind the bleachers.

“What the heck is with you, Gabby? Wait, don’t you have a fight to prep for?” She was utterly confused about why she was dragged away from her beloved Cynrik, so in response, Selene grabbed the other girl’s ear and tugged at it.

“Ahh, ahh, Selly, you’re gunna tear it off; I needed your opinion on something super important ahh, stop.” Gabby cried as she struggled to get free from Selene’s grasp.

“Oh, quit your whining and talk little rabbit?” Releasing Gabby’s ear, Selene stood with her left hip cocked to the side and placed her hands on her waist.

“Ok, so I need to know if I should do the thing?” Free from the ear-twisting demon, Gabby massaged her sore earlobe and spoke in a hushed tone.

Over by the bleachers, Cynrik, Benny, and Brance stood frozen in place with confusion written all over their faces.

“Sooo,” Cynrik started, with his eyes shifting back and forth.

“Do we ask? Or are we just going to act like our usually reserved and ditzy little rabbit didn’t just brush past us and kidnap Selene for a secret girls’ talk?

“This…I have no clue if we are even allowed to.” Brance replied while massaging his temples.

“Probably not our place to but in.” Benny, too joined in on the conversation.

“Yeah, we probably shouldn’t, butttttt that is precisely why we should sneak over and eavesdrop.” Putting on a mischievous smile, Cynrik crouched down and started creeping over, only to be caught by the back of his collar by someone taller and much stronger.

“And where do you think you are going, Student Ivar?” Headmaster Rivia asked as he lifted Cynrik off the ground like a kitten.

“Shit, so this is how Benny feels when I do it to him. OI BENNY, I PROMISE NOT TO SCRUFF YOU ANYMORE; THIS TOTALLY SUCKS.” Ignoring the Headmaster’s question, Cynrik was more preoccupied with the annoying feeling of being lifted by his collar.

“We don’t know him…right Benny?” Then, turning his back to Cynrik, who was about to get an earful from Geralt, Brance began whistling a familiar toon from the same movie he and Cynrik had quoted earlier.

“Nope, never seen him before in my life; why is the Headmaster carrying that other student like that? Poor guy probably feels helpless.” Then, like Brance, Benny turned away from Cynrik and looked up at the ceiling.

“FUCKING TRAITORS! WHAT HAPPENED TO UNITY? WHERE IS THE BROTHERHOOD OF OUR MYRKLYS!” Cynrik cried, feeling betrayed in his moment of need.

“I asked why you were sneaking off and where you were going, Ivar Ragnarsson? If you don’t answer me, I will dock those 15 merit points you received from your homeroom teacher.” Giving Cynrik a good shake twice before putting him down and standing intimidatingly, Headmaster Rivia questioned Cynrik again.

“Cough, uh…reconnaissance?” Shrugging his shoulders and squishing his face, Cynrik ended his question in a high pitch and question format.

“Uh-huh, reconnaissance.”

“Yessir!” Cynrik stood at attention and stuck to his story.

“Inside, in the Battle Arena, where you have spent the last hour or so?” Staring at Cynrik with a blank face, the Headmaster replied.

“Yessir, I have reason to believe a secret meeting is being conducted and took it upon myself to conduct routine recon for my part; no need to praise me for my efforts; it is something all upstanding students should do.” Cynrik shamelessly spouted bullshit as if it was second nature; unfortunately, Headmaster Rivia didn’t buy it.

“GET YOUR ASS OVER TO YOUR BROTHER’S SIDE SO THAT HE CAN KEEP YOU LEASHED AND OUT OF TROUBLE THIS INSTANT!” Hearing how Cynrik was being so shameless, Headmaster Rivia nearly popped a blood vessel and shouted at Cynrik, who scurried off and instantly flashed right to Brance’s side.

“Hehe, sucks to suck, aye, Big Brother.” Seeing Cynrik acting so meek for the first time, Brance just had to tease him.

“Bite me; now I am EVEN more curious about what the fuck those two are talking about. For the Headmaster to stop me from going over, it must be something important that the girls don’t want us to know.”

“No kidding, you don’t say. Gabby and Selene literally ran off to talk in private; I think your fight with Björn may be affecting your cognitive skills Big Bro.” Shaking his head in disdain, Benny joined in on the fun of teasing Cynrik.

“Keep it up, Benny; bet me that I won’t force you to work out till you drop when we get back to the dorms.” Cynrik snorted.

“No, I believe Benny is onto something here; you did take quite a few blows to the head; maybe you have a concussion. Here, lemme look at you.” Finding Cynrik’s reactions humorous, Brance placed the back of his hand against his older brother’s forehead to check his temperature before conjuring a tiny ball of light on his fingertip and waving it in front of Cynrik’s eyes.

“Your temp feels fine; please follow the light for me; I need to check your ocular response.”

“FUCK OFF!” Swatting Brance’s hand away and making Benny and Brance burst out laughing, Cynrik fought the urge to beat them both black and blue.

“TIMES UP, STUDENT GABRIELLA; HURRY UP AND HEAD TO THE WEAPONS RACKS; YOU HAVE FIVE MINUTES TO CHOOSE WHAT YOU ARE USING IN YOUR EVALUATION!”

Luckily before Cynrik could suffer any more abuse, Instructor Garrison hollered for Gabby to get a move on.

“Coming, Instructor Garrison!” Gabby cheerfully exclaimed before making a mad dash towards the weapons racks, making all the students sitting in the bleachers chuckle at her enthusiasm.

“Do you guys think she will change her bow type? She has been using a Compound bow, but I wouldn’t be too surprised if she changed to one of the three other types.” Brance stated as he watched Gabby make a b-line straight for the rack filled with dozens of bows, from wooden to metal, all varying lengths and weights.

“Im not too sure about changing types, but she will most likely go for one with more tension. Now that her STR increased, she can draw back more weight.” Cynrik added.

“Hey guys, sorry about that; Gabby was nervous about fighting in front of Björn and needed some encouragement beforehand.” Finally returning to the group, Selene gave an excuse for her absence, only to get a suspicious glance from Cynrik and Brance.

“Yeah, ok, I TOTALLY believe that bullshit excuse,” Brance said while rolling his eyes and observing Gabby.

“What are we talking about?” Selene ignored Brance’s sarcasm and inserted herself into the conversation while sliding her hand into Cynrik’s back pocket.

“We are trying to figure out what bow my sister will pick.” Being the most innocent of the three boys, Benny filled Selene in on what she missed.

“What are the options? Unfortunately, I’m not an archery expert.”

“There are four basic types of Bows; the first is the Recurve; it basically falls in the list as a beginner type. Named for their unique shape, the central parts of the bow’s limbs curve towards its user, while the tips curve outwards and away from the Archer. It’s labeled the beginner’s bow mainly because it requires less strength to use while delivering adequate power in its shots.” Cynrik spoke up first, starting the crash course for bow types for Benny and Selene.

“Up next is the Compound bow, which Gabby primarily uses. It’s the most modern of the four types and relies on a system of cables, pulleys, and cams, which are the round disks you see at the end of the limbs. All these moving parts assist its user in holding a heavier draw weight than, say, a recurve bow. You can set the weight and tension, and once you draw the string, the mechanical parts bare the weight, taking the strain off the Archer and giving them more time to aim without stressing their arms.” As Brance explained Gabby’s primary bow type, the girl instinctively moved towards those very bows and pulled the string back on several different ones to test their weight.

“Third is the Traditional Bow, also known as a Longbow. Of the four types, this is the most basic one, as it only consists of a curved piece of wood the same height as its user and its string. Many people disagree over which is the superior basic bow – the longbow or its much smaller cousin, the shortbow. Each bow has its pros and cons. However, it boils down to if you wanna be able to fire at a more extended range or have a higher firing rate. Either way, it’s all personal preference and what situation you are fighting in at the end of the day.” Cynrik rolled his eyes and watched Gabby carelessly draw back a string before accidentally dry firing one of the compound bows because its weight was too much for her to handle.

“The final bow type is the Crossbow. Unlike the other three, it is set up in a horizontal position. It has a mechanism attached to a trigger, allowing its user to lock the string in place before loading a bolt, instead of an arrow, and firing when the Archer pleases. Smaller and more compact than any of the other types, the Crossbow frees up one of your arms, and although they can perform on the same level as a Recurve or Compound bow, they require a higher draw weight to do so.” Just as Brance finished up, Gabby replaced the now broken Compound bow she had accidentally dry-fired embarrassingly before shocking Cynrik, Brance, and Benny and moving to the Crossbows.

“YOU HAVE TWO MINUTES REMAINING!”

“Innnnteresting, going for a crossbow, OI, woman, was this what y’all secretly talked about?” Shooting a questioning glance at Selene, Cynrik tried not to interrogate her, even though he hated surprises thoroughly.

“I mean, it was one of the things, to be honest, she has been practicing with a repeating crossbow we picked up shopping by ourselves on a girls-only date the other day. But I honestly didn’t expect her to make the swap. So I’m guessing she was influenced by all three of you using something other than weapons you were used to.” Selene looked around with shifty eyes to not meet the gaze of Cynrik or Brance.

“Oh, so you admit to keeping secrets from us. You know, if I remember correctly, you promised to *muffled and indecipherable words*.” Cynrik started to blab about a personal bet between himself and Selene, only to be silenced by the girl covering his mouth with both hands with a bright red face.

“Don’t you dare finish that sentence, or that little thing I told you I’d send you during the first period vanishes forever? EEEEK, WHY ARE YOU LICKING MY HANDS, YOU FREAK?” Selene started off in a hushed and menacing tone, but Cynrik wasn’t one to be silenced, and when he felt her statement was made, he began ruthlessly licking her fingers and drawing letters on her palm.

“TIME, BOTH COMBATANTS REPORT TO THE BATTLEFIELD CENTER FOR INSTRUCTIONS.” Instructor Garrison dropped his arm when the timer hit zero and ordered Gabby and Alistar to meet up.

Slightly panicked, Gabby extended her hand and scooped up two full quivers of bolts before placing them on her belt and running towards Garrison with her training crossbow in hand.

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