C009 Robyn Hode Cannot Even Archery ?!?!?
2010 Words
"The Church had taken our home and land and all we've got is this piece of unclaimed land and no one wants to put up here since this is the land filled with wild beasts and bandits et cetera."
"Other Churches don't act this way unless they are being influenced by greed and wanting to gather their riches in a quicker manner. These Churches never got taxed by the Sheriff that's the reason they squeezed taxes on innocent people, villagers and so on and if they can't pay the taxes, they collaborate with the sheriff's men and take the land by force."
"When I gave you this sword, do you remember what I had said to you?" The Elder glared at her only granddaughter, Matilda as she spoke these words slowly and let her sink into the latter's mind.
"I will marry the person who revives Father's sword? I remember my oath, Granny. But he's the one who kicked my cunt...!"
When I heard the sentence from Matilda, I accidentally blew the contents of the gruel away. 2 sentences that will haunt me for the rest of my life. I think by now, I should be known as the cunt kicking little bastard from hell. Hahahahahaha...
"Marry this little girl, Elder? What type of agreement you two had before it or was it made up in an instance, plucked from midair or something?"
"No, child. This was not made up just now. It was an oath that I made her swear that if anyone came and revived her father's also known as my son's sword, she is to marry the person..."
The Elder just answered me in a matter-of-fact manner that stumped me beyond words that could not be described or form intelligible in my head at this moment.
"Please excuse me, ladies...I need to find my space right now..." I spoke softly as I carried a large bowl of gruel towards the stream and found a tree to lean back on while I sat there while holding the large bowl on my lap.
"This must be kidding me right? Getting married to someone I barely knew just because I managed to revive her sword that doesn't even look better than a butter knife? What's my main objective here? Am I not Robyn Hode and His Merry Men and suddenly this marriage thing pops out?"
I can't help pondering on this matrimonial question that had just surfaced and a few days ago in 1860 I was married to Izumi and now...doesn't my series ends up with marriage or receiving awards...hahahahah. Really couldn't think beyond all that."
I quickly finished the gruel off the large bowl and I splashed waste to rinse it off before returning it to the prep table and sat with the ladies outside the house.
"Shall we start on the archery soon, my child?" The Elder spoke and I reached for my bow and quiver and stood up.
=*=
"Alright, use a blind arrowhead for your practice. Go and stand here with your bow and arrow. I want to see how well you wield your bow and arrow and I will guide you if you make any minor mistakes. Do you have a bracer?"
"Blind arrowhead? Oh, you mean this tipless arrows. Alright...I don't have a bracer and do I need one, Elder?"
"Not at this moment, no, you do not need one but you would require one in a couple of days or when you become a Class 1 Bowman. You've got fine arrows here. Very straight and uniformly made, this would fly in a straight line indeed."
I was happy that the arrows were appraised by her well and I have made a fine purchase.
"As an archer, remember the first thing is your posture and stance. stand with your two feet apart. See that tree there? That's your intended target. Now perform a stance and facing that tree as your target."
I adjusted both my feet and made a straight imaginary line towards my target that I'm going to shoot.
"Hold your bow in your arm. Which is your master arm and eye?"
"I can shoot with either my left and right arm and both my eyes are master eyes. I'm ambidextrous, Elder. I won't give any other people a chance to know where I am shooting from the place in hiding."
"That's impressive. Now, I want you to hold your bow in your left hand and use your right to release the arrow. Do it now, but do not release your arrow."
I held the bow in the middle with my left and I placed my left elbow outwards from the drawstring and nooked an arrow on the string and pulled. The drawstring was placed right in the bridge of my nose as I took aim with my right eye and closed my left. My left arm was perpendicular with the ground and it was straight outstretched. My right arm that was holding the drawstring was c****d back and everything is in a straight line.
The Elder was moving around to correct some minor mistakes and adjustment and found that she liked what she saw.
"Alright...hold that position until morning. This is a test to see your endurance. If you're able to hold that position till the morning at the break of dawn, you would be able to wield any types of bows."
"Don't cheat on me ok. Remember this is for your own good. If you cheat, then it's your end results that follow. The trees and the birds will report to me if you put down your bow or slacken the drawstrings abit. Do not move from your position at all. This training is one of many."
"Yes, Elder...I won't cheat on myself...!"
I gritted ny teeth as I pronounced that to the Elder as I maintained my position, holding the bow in my outstretched left arm with the arrow nooked in my right arm in an anchoring position.
I MUST ENDURE AND PREVAIL NO MATTER WHAT...!!! No doubt this is a test for me on my endurance and patience, I hope that it's worth it. Keeping an eye open while the other is closed is really something I hadn't done in a very long time. Even training as a sniper before, we keep both eyes open on the scope until it's time to shoot at the silhouette targets.
It was only an hour or so and I felt that time had somehow stood still as the surrounding turned into dusk. Matilda was busy chatting with her granny and was catching up with old grandmother's c**k and bull stories as laughter and sniggles drifted in the dark.
"Don't disturb him, cutie pie. If he wants to be an archer, he should have the endurance of holding that position till morning. He would be the predator waiting for his prey and not the other way round. An archer is like a hunter, patience, resilience, endurance and strength. We will see how this young man performed and hope he can last till tomorrow."
I heard the Elder said to her granddaughter and it was audible enough even if it's far from earshot.
"Granny, do you want a Coke? I'm going to the vending machine to get one..."
"Oh...A diet one for me, cutie pie...hush...not too loud or he will hear you..."
"Hii...hii...hii...Yes, Granny, I will go now and be right back. In going to get some insect repellent too..."
"COKE...?! VENDING MACHINE...?!? INSECT REPELLENT...?!? Is this a resort park or what?! Girl Guide's campsite?! A common camping ground?! Hello...I am here and I could hear pretty clear you know...! Can I get an ice-cold Frappuccino later when I'm done with the bow and arrow exercise?" I screamed aloud in ny thoughts at the thought of modern-day luxuries in the middle of the 12th Century higher middle ages of England.
"It's better for me to concentrate on my Internal Chi Breathing techniques and meditate while I stay here rooted to the ground. At least I'm killing a few birds with a single arrow. Hahahahaha..." I thought aloud and closed my eyes as I slowly controlled my breathing and transfer all energies to the secondary points on all parts of the body.
"I'm fortunate that I could still employ my Chi Breathing, meditate and enters my Realm of Mind. With the thousands of bricks and thousands of Refined Steel plates, I would be able to use that for my future in case I need to sustain myself financially."
"Sigh...I should have taken a leak before I partook in this endurance test. Better not think too much and it's better for me to meditate."
The minutes ticked by and to avoid feeling numb, I wiggled my toes on my feet. Perspiration had started to form on my forehead and the stinging droplets had entered my eye and is disrupting my concentration...! Damn...! Now my nose is starting to itch and twitch...!! Huaaarrgghhhhh...why am I facing this misery alone...
Concentrate dammit...think of all the happy moments...Meditate and let your mind free...As long as you don't let go the arrow or drop the bow, it should be fine.
"It's only 845pm Sam, you still got another 9 more hours to go. Just flow with it and you will persevere will the end at 530am when the birds start chirping again..." said an offscreen crew as he passed me by before hitting the lights off against the backdrop.
"Awww...screw yourself, dude...!" I shrieked at him, making me lose my concentration once more...
=*=
All is quiet within the forest and the little thatched house as darkness envelops the area, only the chirping of crickets and the steady lull of the stream breaks the silence once in a while when I was deep in meditation, standing up and rooted to the ground just like Robyn Hode statue in Castle Road, Nottingham NG1 6AA.
How do I manage to persevere this long, I myself would not be able to find the answer. Maybe I had a strong sense of responsibility towards myself, or simply I was too stupid and follow instructions blindly. Hahahahaha.
Night eventually gave way to day as the occupants of the thatched hut awoke by the alarm from a mobile phone...! WHAT...?!
"Good morn', my child. You can put down the bow and arrow now and take some rest." the Elder spoke beside me as I slowly brought the bow down and unnooked the arrow from the drawstring. My left arm that was locked in place was numb all over while my right arm that was positioned in an anchoring position the whole night was sore as hell...!
"Awwwwwwww.... Arrgghhhh... My arms... It is like they're cast in cement...! I can't move them much... Especially my right. Its been staying there in that position since the time right after my dinner. Please, Elder... Can I go take a leak now? My bladder seems like bursting already...!! "
She nodded and I hobbled down to the 'Qool-Enviro' kind of portable toilets meant for staff and crews on the set. After relieving myself and washed my hands at the sink, I hobbled again to the staffs' banquet table and helped myself with some jelly-filled doughnuts and some hot coffee with milk. After I was gone for about ten minutes, I hobbled back to the Elder.
"Sorry to make you wait..." I said as I wiped traces of jelly beans and sugar sprinkles off my lips and let out a small burp. Hahahahaha.
"You had finally fulfilled the path of an archer. You did not falter even an inch from where you stood to hold the bow and arrow in that manner. It would take some time for you to recover, so take a few hours off and tend to your garden. Matilda is still sleeping as she is a late riser. To perform your task and I leave the rest of the morning to you."
"Thank you, Elder... Do you need me to prepare anything else for the archery lessons?"
- Writer
