spellblade part 2

Signed-off-by: Xe Iaso <me@christine.website>

blog/postdrome-2022-02-26.markdown

@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 ---
 title: Postdrome
-date: 2022-02-26
+date: 2022-02-25
 series: freenode
 ---
 

blog/spellblade-chapter-1-2021-10-11.markdown

@@ -1,5 +1,5 @@
 ---
-title: "Spellblade: Chapter 1"
+title: "Spellblade: Part 1"
 date: 2021-10-11
 series: spellblade
 tags:
@@ -10,7 +10,7 @@ tags:
 <p><i>This book is dedicated to all of those that need a ray of hope in these
 trying times.</i></p>
 
-Copyright 2021 Christine Dodrill. All rights reserved.
+Copyright 2021-2022 Xe Iaso. All rights reserved.
 
 This book is a Within Studios publication. Find out more at
 https://withinstudios.itch.io

blog/spellblade-part-2-2022-02-26.markdown

@@ -0,0 +1,190 @@
+---
+title: "Spellblade: Part 2"
+date: 2022-02-26
+series: spellblade
+tags:
+ - webnovel
+ - fiction
+---
+
+[Ya know how I said that I'd release more Spellblade monthly? That didn't
+happen. I'm actually writing more, but this is what I have in my backlog that I
+didn't release sooner. Enjoy!](conversation://Cadey/enby)
+
+---
+
+> Calm the raging whirlwind of your mind like this: breathe in for four counts,
+> hold for four counts, breathe out for four counts, hold for four counts. Focus
+> on Now, not Then or What Might Be.
+
+- Alicia's Mother
+
+---
+
+Zekas' team shared a meal in the meal hall. The hall was unusually quiet as it
+was the chef's "experimental" day. This day usually drew smaller crowds of
+everyone but the sharks, because the smell was not as intense for them on land
+as it would be in the water. There was usually enough food to spare that Zekas
+could get a double portion, but yesterday's events had left him on edge.
+
+"I can't believe we lost like that. We were so damn close. How could you let it
+get away like that? It was _right there_!"
+
+Zekas gnashed his teeth at his teammates, but mostly at his right-fin man Blanu.
+Blanu sat there slightly shaking in fear, his tail tucked under the bench and
+between his legs. _If this is that bad, then what happened with the teacher?_,
+he thought to himself.
+
+"That know-it-all cat keeps getting away with it. First she gets the good team,
+then she uses her blood to fake the flag? How stupid are you people? Can't you
+smell the difference between cloth and flag?"
+
+Blanu decided that this was a good time to pipe up, "I don't think that was her
+plan, I was the one that stabbed her. Didn't think it would do so much though."
+
+Zekas looked over at Blanu's direction. Zekas intently stared at the younger
+shark, studying his medium build and roughly short stature. "How much damage did
+you do?"
+
+"I kinda sharpened my sword last night to try and buff out a knot in the wood,
+and when it struck her the cut was pretty good, about one knuckle-tip across. I
+figured she had thicker skin."
+
+Zekas looked at Blanu incredulously. "A knuckle-tip? I saw the bleed had stopped
+by the time we walked back to the teacher. She had a bandage on it by then, but
+still she should have had some more bleed in her."
+
+"Oh yeah, there was one other thing. I could swear this was glare or something
+but I think I saw her hands glow at the end of it."
+
+Zekas looked over inquisitively. "Her hands...glow? Like a witch?"
+
+"Mighta been the glare, but I could swear that I saw her hands glow."
+
+Zekas stared down at his food. _Hands glowing? Fast healing? Could she be a
+spellcrafter?_ Zekas laughed to himself a bit. "It was probably the glare. You
+need to pay more attention next time."
+
+Blanu laugned to himself with a very nervous laugh. "Yeah, it was probably
+nothin', sorry boss!"
+
+Zekas continued the laugh, making the rest of the team feel obligated to laugh
+as well. _It's probably something, but I need proof._ Zekas continued to eat his
+meal in an uncomfortable silence.
+
+---
+
+It was a beautiful day in Nord Sewlet. Alicia was up to no good with other kids
+building a snow fort. The other group of kids had challenged them to a battle,
+and Alicia was more than happy to oblige. Their snow fort was made, complete
+with their bunker full of snowball ammunition. One of the other kids taunted
+over with "dumb girls, I bet your fort isn't even ready!"
+
+"You wanna eat those words?" Alicia shouted back. Alicia had a reputation for
+being the most accurate with her snow projectiles, using her body as a trebuchet
+she could easily thwack her foes across the battlefield...sometimes that is.
+
+They cast the first snowball. The battle was on. The fight was not bloody, but
+it was over as soon as one of the snowballs missed the enemy fort. It struck the
+side of the mountain and then the shaking started. It was an avalanche.
+
+It was crashing towards her like it always did. Then there was a flash and then
+
+_NO!_ Alicia screamed to herself in her mind, shocking herself awake. She was
+safe in the bladecraft school. _There was no avalanche, it was a dream. I'm
+safe, it was a dream. I'm awake, it was a dream. That was years ago, it was a
+dream._ Alicia ran down the list of affirmations from her town's cleric, using
+them to pull herself to her normal state of calm. _Anxiety is a bitch_, she
+thought.
+
+Alicia looked over and saw Tistus unceremoniously on his back and twitching
+happily like he was dreaming. _At least someone's having a decent dream_.
+
+Alicia quietly stole forward over to Tistus' cot. Her presence made his eyes
+flutter open and he instinctively purred in his sleep. Alicia grabbed Tistus in
+a tender, caring hug; the kind of hug that you can only understand when you wake
+up from horrific nightmares of your past. Tistus stirred and yawned. He
+whispered to Alicia "Another one?" Alicia nodded. "The avalanche?" Alicia nodded
+again. Tistus hugged back tighter, these ones always hit Alicia hard.
+
+They stayed like that for what felt like an hour or two, but then the blissful
+silence was broken by the morning bell. Alicia stretched and yawned, then
+gracefully started to stand. It was morning: another day, another battle.
+
+As Alicia was getting dressed in her class uniform Tistus looked up at Alicia.
+"You know you can talk with me about that any time you need, right? It must be
+tough to have all that bottled up so much."
+
+Alicia nodded back and hugged him as her response. "I'll try. It's hard."
+
+Alicia's thoughts returned to the battle yesterday. The anxiety from the
+adrenaline of the event was still there. _No_, she thought. _I need to stop
+thinking about this. This will only cause trouble if I keep thinking about it.
+I'm not a witch, that was a fluke and it won't happen again._
+
+She put on her boots and tied them, hopefully to spec. She was ready for the
+day, but first her stomach was ready for a meal at the canteen. The other
+members of her team were rousing with the sound of the morning horn and
+staggered along as they got up.
+
+---
+
+Alicia scowled across the battlefield as she studied the paper her teacher gave
+her. "Yep, they have the high ground. You need to capture their flag and bring
+it back."
+
+Alicia nodded and turned to her team to start formulating strategy as the
+teacher went off to watch the situation unfold.
+
+"Oh, one more thing:", the teacher interrupted. "If you travel in groups of less
+than two, the green team is allowed to tag members of your team out. This will
+count against you in the scoring. If you wanna do well, don't go it alone."
+
+"I see, thanks for warning us." Alicia said confidently. The teacher replied
+"you're welcome, good luck."
+
+_That's totally not ominous,_ Alicia thought to herself.
+
+Alicia looked over her team and sighed. "I knew that this would be hard, but it
+looks like this is going to suck. We're against green team. They have the high
+ground. We've got to take the flag from somewhere around here. No claws on the
+flag, it's supposed to be left intact as much as possible. Otherwise it's your
+standard recon mission trying to get a document from the enemy. Tis, you're with
+me. You two scouts pair up and you all-arounders are together. Please don't get
+caught."
+
+Everyone nodded. Puri spoke up, "Do we know anything about the terrain? I've
+never been in this part of the field before."
+
+Alicia gestured at the map. "This map is all we've got and it's 10 years out of
+date. Hopefully it's accurate. I think the river may be a safer place, but we're
+sneps so our heads are going to stand out. Stay low to the ground I guess. The
+river isn't the best to drink though."
+
+"I see, thank you." Puri mused and settled into her place in the circle.
+
+"Oh, one more thing. If they play dirty, don't play dirty back. It'll push our
+score down. Let's head out and kick ass!"
+
+Alicia smiled and lead her team to victory, projecting an outward image of calm
+and collected focus but on the inside she was worried sick. This was one of the
+bigger ones. _No, now's not the time to worry_, she thought to herself, taking a
+deep breath and heading out towards the battlefield.
+
+---
+
+Over on the side, Zekas was watching. Blanu was laying in the grass next to him.
+
+"Hey boss?"
+
+Zekas grunted and looked over at Blanu. "What do you want? I'm trying to keep an
+eye on the cat. Something bothering you?"
+
+"Why do you care about this so much? She ain't done anything to you-"
+
+Zekas cut Blanu off with a swift punch to the shoulder. "Shut up and focus on
+the girl. You'll know what I'm talking about when you see it."
+
+"Okay boss." Blanu nodded and scooched over away from Zekas, hopefully outside
+of the range of his fists. He raised his contraband spyglass to his face and
+looked out into the distance.