"Chronicles of Immortality, Matthew" - (Installment 5)

When the captains said that the training was done and we released them, Teucer invited me to walk with him.

I gestured for Anaxis to come to me and told him to see that the men had as much wine as they wanted and that he should see that Vexiaus got sleep, I wouldn't need a bodyguard until we left tomorrow.

Teucer had one of his servants fetch two bows and gave one of them to me. The heat of the afternoon was at full as we walked down the sandy road away from his manor.

"Where did you get the one who defeated my cohorts?"
"Your sister sent him to me."
"Who trained him?"
"I don't know, he's taken an oath about not sleeping and staying in armor."
"That's strange."
"Something about his father, there is a letter from the princess I'll give it to you, so you can read it."

His eyes were not on me but on a glade of acacia with tall grass. I went on wanting to be sure of this change in manner, and that he had no real anger toward me. "I thought you were going to brain me."

"And what if I did? You would just heal, and I would know how far to trust you at war."
"How far do you trust me?"
He smiled and then looked back to the trees. "There are three hares there, in the shade. Do you see them?"
"No."

"Watch carefully they will move their ears." He tapped a rock with the side of his sandal and as if they were all connected three sets of long ears turned in our direction.
"I see them."
"Pick one and shoot."
"I don't think I've ever shot a bow."
"We'll see and then I will answer your question."

I drew back the bow expecting the hares to flee as the sinew on the front of the bow creaked. The bow was very strong and my arm shook as I tried to look down the shaft. I released the string. It slashed into my arm and the arrow dropped to my feet.

Teucer coughed out a laugh and drew back his own bow as the hares fled toward a dried stream bed. The first arrowed hissed away from the bow strings snap, but before it could stop humming from the shot, Teucer had loaded and shot another arrow.

"Even I cannot get three."
The first arrow took the back hare so that the front ones did not change their track. The second arrow took the foremost causing the middle one to veer suddenly back toward us.

Teucer snatched another arrow from the quiver on his belt and shot the hare through. He laughed until he fell down and then gasped from the dust he was raising in his mirth. I could only look on and shake my head.
"Yes, I trust you Promatthias, you are good luck!"

We picked up the hares and as we were walking back to the manor, he began to speak earnestly.

"When I was a boy and Ajax not much older than me we trained together. He was twice as big as me and took glee in telling me that I needed to eat more and work harder so that the Blood of our father would strengthen me. I threw myself into everything I did but it didn't matter because he was always stronger and in everything was better than me.

While I would churn my legs as fast as I could he was faster because his legs were longer. In wrestling he would batter me, then throw me from the ring. I think you are like that Matthias, you are stronger than me, faster than me, better at war." He laughed again and I thought that he was lessening himself but he went on. "I thought that Ajax had sent you to baby-sit me and keep me from campaign, but you have proven that wrong. You are ready for war. In all things you are my better except the same thing that Ajax has no merit in." He laughed again then continued, "Everything but the bow! You could not shoot so badly deliberately."

He kept laughing and handed me the hares, "You couldn't even feed yourself on campaign." He laughed all the way back until I was kicking at stones and promising that one day I would best him at that too. He laughed even harder and said, "That's what Ajax always says!"