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◾~Nya's POV~◾

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I had decided to accept the fact that me and Skylor would be unable to avoid Jay efficiently. I no longer cared if he found out the truth about us. I'm sure he would never tell on us and even if I did get the slightest indication that he was cracking up, I would see to him personally. Me and Skylor were only risking ourselves to uphold the honor of our family. We had no other intention. Nothing else should be our focus.

With all these thoughts tacked up in my mind, I boldly stood next to Skylor and waited for the captain's instructions. I made sure to elude eye contact with Jay even if it seemed a little rude. He wasn't supposed to know me and I wasn't supposed to know him.

Captain Lloyd pulled out bundles of wooden rods and sticks and tossed them at us. Considering how badly everyone did with the medals, I figured that competition would be less severe. I was proved wrong when the others caught the sticks and I let mine smack me right in the face. Rubbing my violated nose, I looked at Skylor to see how she fared.

I found her empty-handed, scowling at Cole. He was holding two of the sticks which gave me the feeling he had caught Skylor's as well. She demanded it back but Cole didn't comply. Instead, he slid the stick under her feet, making her fall. He then dropped the stick in her lap and whistled unknowingly.

I didn't dare to try and pull Skylor up. The captain had restricted us from helping each other, saying that one should be able to help themselves before benefiting others. So, I stood there quietly as Skylor got to her feet, muttering various things under her breath.

Captain Lloyd planted himself at the head of the group, facing us. He held his rod in front of him with both hands, waiting for everyone to get ready. The way he gazed at us betrayed the faith I had instilled in myself. I tried looking through his eyes and found only disappointment. He was not hopeful that we'd make it.

"Before I let you handle weapons, you must learn using mere pieces of wood," Lloyd stated assertively once the lesson began. "Not only will it prepare you to face the challenges of blades but it will also provide you with a general and balanced form of hand-to-hand combat."

I tried hard to make mental notes of every single word that fell from the captain's lips. I was desperate to learn the right way. Silently watching my brother train with my father for so many years was not enough exposure.

Lloyd availed the ends of his stick to send two clay pots flying on either side of him. We all observed in awe as he immediately jabbed his temporary weapon left and right to break the pots before they both hit the ground. Stance still maintained, he pointed the stick at us, permitting us to follow after him.

"Hai!" cried the crowd, an exclamation used by trainees to indicate their approval to oblige. My voice came out meek and timid, making me sound like a mouse amidst roaring lions. Even Skylor showed that she had power in her lungs to yell. Trying not to get overwhelmed, I clutched my stick tighter.

Suddenly, I felt movement behind me. Before I could register what was happening, something prickly crawled down my back. I could tell at once that it was an insect. And a big one at that. To me, insects are equal to calamity so I panicked. I screamed and in the heat, I forgot to make it sound deeper. I kept twisting around, scratching at my back to get it out.

I jumped, shook and clawed at my uniform, swinging around my stick absentmindedly. Some men laughed and others gawked at me. Skylor tried to get closer to me, but my frantic stick assaults were keeping her at bay. Those who weren't so lucky got struck. Including Jay, I think. Angry shouts and curse words were thrown at me by the group but I was too busy overreacting.

In the blur of faces, I caught sight of an outraged Lloyd advancing towards me. I may have violently poked him in his bare chest with the stick because he grunted loudly before yanking me up from the front of my clothes. I finally felt the insect drop from under my shirt and relaxed. However, I stiffened again when I looked back at the captain's dagger-like glare.

"Poise," he hissed through clenched teeth, impatience leaking immensely into his tone. "Poise and balance are the key to qualified fighting. Unfortunately, you have none of them."

He dropped me and I collapsed to the earth. Shooting me a look of contempt, Lloyd walked off. I turned my head and saw half of the recruits on the ground, rubbing their heads, their arms or their torsos. Skylor rushed over by the time I climbed to my shaking feet.

"It was Cole," she said bitterly, dusting off the dirt on my uniform. "He put a beetle in your shirt."

I saw the culprit helping up Jay who glared at him scoldingly while Zane stood to the side, shaking his head in exasperation. I bit my lip when I noticed the redness swelling up on Jay's cheek. I wanted to apologize so badly but I couldn't risk it.

I sighed. "I failed a second test. I'm so bad at this."

"Come off it," Skylor tutted, bending down and retrieving my abandoned stick. She stuck it my hand and pinched my cheek. "It's only the beginning. There's a lot more beneath the surface, Nya."

She smirked. "Or should I say Nayal."

I smiled, glancing down at the wood in my hand. I tightened my grip on it again and nodded resolutely at the redhead. After sharing a comforting hug, the two of us shuffled back to the reformed crowd, ready to try once more.

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The third day of training dawned with my back hurting immensely. We had been learning staff combat all day yesterday. Skylor and I had been able to make little progress but we were definitely better than we first started out. Today we found ourselves at the edge of the forest, wielding bows and arrows. It was early in the morning and some of the recruits (me and Skylor included) were still stumbling about in a dazed sort of way.

Captain Lloyd, spry and vivacious even after hauling two sacks full of apples uphill, stationed himself a good few feet away from the nearest tree. The trunk had been marked with white circles from top to bottom in order to aid in target practice.

He placed three apples on a plank at his feet and fixed three arrows in the string of his bow. Signalling at us to observe, he pressed down one edge of the plank and the apples went airborne. Without wasting a second, he released the arrows. I watched in amazement as each apple got impaled by the arrowheads and were carried in a unified fashion towards their respective marks on the tree.

"Wow," Skylor breathed out next to me, eyes flickering with both admiration and anxiousness. "That seems hard to do."

"Really?" I asked, a smile immediately pulling at my lips. "For the first time since coming here, I actually feel a little confident."

It was a sliver of luck that Kai had pestered our father to teach him archery from a young age. Needless to say, I had soon joined in on these evening sessions. It was the only act of warfare that Dad had agreed to tutor me on. I had never let up on practicing from time to time so I was pretty good at it.

All of us were ordered to position ourselves in front of our respective trees. The captain counted to three, launching us all into action. We started with one apple each. We tossed the fruits and shot arrows while Lloyd marched among us with a criticizing gaze. Many of the arrows swerved off course or didn't leave their bows at all and soon the ground was littered with wooden remnants of them.

I wasn't able to hit the apples but my arrows did reach the target when I tried harder. It was astonishing to see myself do better than most. A sense of pride welled up inside me when Lloyd offered me a positive comment, looking impressed. I smiled back, my confidence boosting.

We broke away our gazes when we heard a loud yelp. Turning, I saw Jay flinching away from an arrow that had nearly missed hitting him in the head.

"Oh! Sorry!" Skylor yelled, biting her lip.

Lloyd's proud facade dropped quickly as he strode over to my sister-in-law. "Sky! You're supposed to aim for the enemy, not your comrade!"

Skylor turned red, staring at her feet while the captain reprimanded her. Jay suddenly stepped forward, saying that it had been an accident and that he didn't mind. I could see Skylor tense up as he approached. Lloyd, however, blew up more.

"Who's in charge?" he abruptly shouted at Jay, making him jump. "You or me?"

"You, Captain!"

"Then I decide whether people mind or not!"

Skylor got a mass of insults that day just like I had before. Cole was probably having the time of his life watching us being ridiculed everyday. I couldn't help but feel a little disappointed. Captain Lloyd had finally showed signs of expecting more from me and Skylor had messed things up.

In the end, only Zane had managed to hit the apple and accomplish the task. His success simmered down the captain's anger a little and he let everyone off. 

As we all made our way back to the tents, I quickly shuffled over to Skylor. She was frowning, her cheeks burning from embarrassment. I hesitated before placing a hand on her shoulder. "It's alright. Everyone makes mistakes. No one else was doing that great anyway."

"Who does he think he is?" she hissed venomously.

"Who? Jay?"

Skylor rolled her eyes. "Not him. Lloyd!"

"He's our commanding officer," I replied candidly. "Shouting at us is kind of his job."

Skylor tore open the flap of our tent and stomped inside. "He wasn't this vicious when you beat half the group with that stick yesterday."

I scowled. "That was an accident!"

"So you think I meant to shoot the arrow at Jay?" Skylor snapped.

I could feel the indignation spread through me. I didn't understand why she was so worked up about one slip up. I never reacted like this. The selfishness returned and I could only think of how she had ruined my moment in the spotlight.

"You couldn't have chosen a better time to make a mistake, could you?" I retorted, haughtily moving over to my mat. "Captain Lloyd was actually impressed by my performance. It felt so good to be appreciated but you had to come in and mess everything up."

Skylor looked as though I had slapped her on the face. She was speechless for a second and I took this as an opportunity of triumph. She recovered and glared at me in a way she had never done before.

"Fine!" she yelled, her voice cracking a little. "Go be the captain's star student or whatever! I am here because I care for someone and his honor is the only thing I'm fighting for."

With that, she stormed out of the tent, the flap swaying violently in her wake. Waves of remorse washed over me and I realized my error. Tears hung at the corners of my eyes as I buried my face into the nearest pillow.

I cursed myself for ever thinking that Skylor's troubles were below mine. She was in the same situation as me and none of us could blame the other. My sister-in-law was the only mean of family support I had here and I drove her away.

"I'm so sorry," I sobbed into the wet pillow, clutching the mat covers tightly over myself.

I was a discourteous bride. An insubordinate daughter. An audacious sister.

I was a dishonor to my family.

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