Fading Rust

Jerb::

[Using a Gold Rush ability in order to obtain one strong magic item at thread completion. Also choosing for the Boss trainer meaning the minimum WC becomes 3k ]

Beanstalk village was a little hamlet resting atop a small hill overlooking the surrounding countryside. It's surrounding plains and farms made it look like it was protected from the troubles of the outside world, with no large forests nearby and therefore a lack of possibly dangerous animals. And this peace could be seen in the way their inhabitants acted. They were all extremely hospitable, with each person Casus passed greeting him and asking him if he needed directions. Not that it would be necessary seeing as how the village was rather small. None the less it didn't sit right with him. How could a famous Rune Knight, and a trainer at that, be hidden away in a place like this. It hardly seemed suited for such a renowned warrior.

The house Casus ended up at seemed just as normal as any other. It looked old, was made out of wood and seemed like it survived quite some summers and winters. Casus couldn't help but knock with the sense of disbelief hidden within the back of his mind. Even more so when the door was opened by an old, small and fragile looking old lady. Her hair seemed like it never had another color than grey, and her eyes seemed a tat emotionless. None the less she gave him a smile that looked like it took effort on her face and asked the man politely if she could help him with anything. ''Ah, uhm.. Sorry to intrude, but could this possible be the residence of Sir Ponk?''. The woman seemed unfamiliar with the name until she suddenly seemed to realize something. ''Spoinky dear, you have a visitor'' she called out. Her voice trembled a little at the effort it took to raise her voice ever so slightly. But what followed wasn't the answer of a man in the same condition. It was a disgruntled growl as heavy footsteps neared the door. The old lady stepped aside as she nodded once more to Casus, and left having a man a bit taller than Casus taking her place. ''Now who are you and what are you here for?''. The man was blunt, and his voice was powerful. But it suited him. He was older than Casus but looked bigger, stronger and more fit. It was as if the peak of his physical condition had never let him loose. Casus couldn't help but feel a bit jealous

''I'm Casus Belli. I've heard of your renown. You've trained many warriors before, all whom have either risen to prominence or died trying. I haven't much to offer in ways of compensation, and I realize you've long since retired, but I ask this of you as a favor, from one old soldier to another.''

Sir Ponk listened whilst seeming to inspect Casus from top to bottom. Once finished with his question the man shook his head and asked Casus what made him think he was on the same grounds as his. Casus couldn't help but look down in shame as he asked the man for a little time to explain. The look told Ponk enough as he asked his wife to prepare some tea as they went inside for what would become a long talk. Casus talked about his motivations, what drove him to come here and what made it necessary. He talked about his losses and victories, the wars he fought and the wars he lost. And eventually even about his biggest loss. Ponk listened intensely, sometimes even sharing some of his own experiences. He emphasized with Casus and realized even though they were only ten years apart they had followed much of the same path. Once everything was said and done Ponk grumbled something to himself about how he promised not to do this anymore, but then he looked Casus in the eyes and agreed to train him, and his wife offered their guest room to stay at for the duration of his stay within the village. Casus gratefully accepted as this would mark the beginning of a new journey.


It was early in the morning as Casus and Ponk stood in their backyard. Well, they called it a backyard but most people would call it a large field. In any case, the sun had just barely come up and the air around them was still cold and frisk. Morning dew was still collected onto the nearby grass which stood until knee ankle length and birds filled the area with noise. It was nothing alike to the city life Casus had grown used to. He could even feel his old joints creaking a bit at the cold weather. He had felt weaker ever since the power of the Iron Dragon had left him. He realized, a bit too late, that his heart had grown corrupt and justice had all but left his mind. It was at this point that somewhere inside of him a switch flipped and the power that had been taught and granted to him by the dragon had disappeared. But he couldn't let his journey end like this. He didn't have a home like Ponk to retreat to. No place to quietly live out his days. No. Casus would meet his end the next war or the one after that, but he couldn't do so to satisfaction in the state he was currently in.

Days very much like that one, filled with self reflection and dedication to the basics he had lost thank to a dependency on his magic followed. It began with basic training, jogging in the morning, push-ups and torso training in the afternoon and hours of swinging a rather heavy wooden training sword in the evening. It was tough, and even though younglings would have done this without breaking too much of a sweat Casus was feeling the neglect he had been putting on his training. At some points he felt old, at some points he felt hopeless, but he never stopped feeling determined. After all, the old knight was only ten years older than him. And that little piece of pride just wouldn't let go of him. He HAD to get back in shape. He wasn't done yet.

This continued on for a solid three months before Pont came to Casus with the next part of his training regime. At this point Casus had already made significant progress as his physical appearance started to look more like Pont. He had grown more muscular and even looked a bit taller as he walked more upright than he had done in years past. Pont gave him one more look and inspected him a final time before nodding a bit satisfied and explaining the next part of his training. Casus had told him about how he handled combat before and in what kind of engagements and wars he had been involved in, and Pont had correctly deducted that his codependency on magic had cost him his physical prowess. As such the next step of training would be with the handling of weapons. Pont had a rack with a large collection of wooden training equipment. There were maces, swords, hammers, axes and spears. Casus unknowingly asked which kind of weapon they would be training with before Point answered stiff ''All of them''.

In the following days Casus discovered 'all of them' was no understatement as, paired with a routine of basic training he was bombarded with combat training lead by the knight himself. And he was merciless in his training. The first two weeks Casus wasn't capable of landing a single hit on the man with any kind of weapon, even though he felt he was getting close in physical prowess. But he quickly came to realize how sorely lacking in technique he was. He was mercilessly beaten up day after day, bruises collecting during blunt weapon training and scars forming with bladed weapon training. The old wife of Pont occasionally even tended to Casus's wounds.