Chapter 31: Weapon Awakening and Morning Mishaps
Saturday mornings were usually peaceful in the Joseph household—a rare moment of calm before the week began again. But today, things started off with a twist, As sunlight filtered through the window, Peterson slowly opened his eyes—only to realize something was off. He was warm, yes, but extra warm, There was someone next to him.
He turned his head slightly. A mess of golden hair peeked out from under the sheets.
"What the... UH! Lili?!" Peterson whispered, trying not to jump of the bed.
Lili, curled up like a cat under his covers, snored softly, completely unaware of the boy beside her having a full-blown internal meltdown.
"When did she even get here?! I remember seeing her went to bed with my sisters." he whispered to himself. He glanced across the room, trying to me make sure he was not seeing things, he can see only his sisters in their bed. He glanced back at his bed, he slowly moving his body,
Trying not to wake her, Peterson slowly slid himself out from under the sheet like a spy escaping from a trap. He tiptoed to the bathroom, showered as fast as humanly possible, and headed out to help his mother with the merchandise.
Later, went back home after he helped set up the stall,as soon he walked through the door, the smell of fried plantains and salted fish wafted through the small house. When Peterson sat down at the table, he noticed something odd.
There were four plates of food.
He raised an eyebrow. Wait... did my mom somehow know we had a guest?
[ The night before, Altagrace had peeked in to check on her children after the house went quiet. To her surprise, she can see a blonde girl was snuggled up with Amanda and Miranda.
"Oh! My girls are having a sleepover. They didn't even bother to tell me about it ,At least it's not a boy," she chuckled, shaking her head before closing the door and went back to her room. ]
Now, the entire table was full. Lili sat between the twins, shoveling food like it was her first meal in days.
"Wow! Your mother is an amazing cook!" she said through a mouthful of boiled yam and avocado.
Peterson chuckled nervously. "Haha, yeah... you can say that, she always make us the best meal, tired or not ,she always does her best."
"I want to be able to cook like her one day," Amanda said.
"Same here," Miranda added, with her eyes shining.
They all laughed and enjoyed the meal, cleaning their plates down to the last grain of rice. Afterward, Lili even insisted on helping with the dishes, drying and stacking them while dancing around the kitchen.
Once the chores were done, Peterson grabbed his phone and called Wilkens.
Wilkens, who had just finished scarfing down a peanut butter sandwich with hot coco, saw Peterson's name pop up.
"Yo Pete! What's up, bro?"
"We gotta meet up for training. Can you also grab Jean-Daniel and head to Cité Madeline by the old barn?"
"Got it. I'll bring snacks and drinks too."
"MVP, my guy. See you in an hour then."
"Bet."
As soon the call ended he went up and messaged Jean-Daniel next.
Wilkens: "Peterson said we gotta train today, Let me know when you're ready. We'll go together."
Jean-Daniel: "I will. Give me 30 minutes."
An hour later, Peterson, Lili, Amanda, and Miranda arrived at the old barn. The area was quiet except for some birds and the occasional rustle of wind through the trees.
Suddenly, merging from the shadow of a large tree, a piercing scream echoed.
"YOOOOO! Wilkens, give me a warning next time! I thought I was about to be eaten by a shadow demon or something!" Jean-Daniel yelled, stumbling backward.
Wilkens emerged from the shadow of a tree right behind him, grinning. "You screamed like a little girl."
Everyone burst out laughing as Jean-Daniel stood there, arms crossed with a pout.
Peterson clutched his stomach. "Man, I wish I recorded that."
"That's Not funny man," Jean-Daniel muttered, then smile.
"Alright, listen up!" Lili's high pitch voice sliced through the air like a blade.
Everyone snapped to attention. Lili stood with her arms crossed, a serious glint in her eyes.
"Today, we're training in weapon summoning and control. You're each going to manifest two or three types of weapons that fit your style. It's good to know how to use multiple weapons, but mastering one or two weapon makes you unstoppable."
As she spoke, a katana materialized in her hand—its blade sleek, slightly curved, and glinting in the sunlight. There is a sculpture of a goat head at the end of the handle .
"This," she said, raising it, "is my weapon of choice. I'm quick, light, and I need something that matches my speed. You all need to find your thing. Focus your mind, reach into your power, and see what you can bring forth."
She raised and lowered the katana, the tip barely an inch from the ground, standing in a stance so calm yet ready, it made everyone straighten up and nervous.
"Now... who's going first?"
Peterson cracked his knuckles. "Alright! Let's do this."
Jean-Daniel stepped forward aswel. "Let's see who pulls the coolest weapon."
Wilkens chuckled, already pulling out a sketchpad from his back pocket. "I brought this in case I see anything cool. I want to doodle our progress."
"What are we? Anime charactes?" Peterson teased.
"Technically... yes," Wilkens said with a straight face.
Lili rolled her eyes. "Focus, you nerds."
They stood in a circle, focusing.
Peterson's hand glowed faintly—he reached out and suddenly, a long staff with glowing white bones twisted around it appeared in his hand.
"Whoa! That looks like something a necromancer would use," Jean-Daniel commented.
"Perfect for me then," Peterson said, spinning it once and jabbing it into the ground.
Jean-Daniel focused next. His body shimmered, and a large hammer of rock and metal formed in his hands.
"DUDE! That thing's massive!" Wilkens yelped.
"Compensating for something?" Peterson said with a smirk.
Jean-Daniel shrugged. "Nah, I just like smashing stuff."
Wilkens, not wanting to be left out, raised his hands. Shadows crept up from the ground, swirling around his fingers. A dual-blade dagger formed, curved and dark.
"Dagger style," he said. "Fast, quiet, deadly. Like me."
"Quiet?" Amanda laughed. "You?"
Miranda giggled. "That's a stretch."
"Y'all disrespectful," Wilkens pouted.
Lili clapped. "Excellent. We'll train in cycles. Speed, endurance, and control. Everyone pair up."
Peterson spins his staff and slammed it on the ground, It sent a powerful wave, that pushed everyone slightly, Jean-Daniel charged towards Peterson with his gigantic hammer and slammed it down on Peterson, he spins his staff and creates an invisible shield, as soon it connects with the hammer, the invisible shield cracked it send sent Jean-Daniel flying with the hammer then shattered, then he spins the staff once more and changed it into a transparent great sword to match Jean-Daniel ferocious attacks .
"Dude, when did you learn all these?"
Jean-Daniel grinned
"Well! the system just showed me what is at my disposal, its basically guiding me."
Peterson replied.
"Ah! Yes, it does the same for me, that's why I was able to summon the hammer."
He chuckled.
Wilkens, and Lili moving like the flash, dashing around the area, he kept on trying to surprise attack her through shadows, she ended up cutting down most tree, and left just one so he won't have a choice but to use that one as retreat only
They trained under the sun for hours. Sweat poured all of their bodies, their clothes soaked, laughter echoed, and the bond between them grew stronger with every clash and jab.
Amanda and Miranda watched from the sidelines, noting down everything. Lili occasionally offered advice or scolded sloppy stances.
"Jean, stop swinging like you're trying to swat a mosquito."
"That's my signature move!"
"Then your signature sucks."
Even Lili cracked jokes. "Peterson, you swing that great sword any harder and you'll start breakdancing."
By sunset, everyone collapsed in the grass.
"Not bad," Lili said. "Not bad at all. We'll continue tomorrow."
Peterson lay flat on the ground panting. "Tomorrow?! I might not survive tonight!"
"Then I'll write your eulogy," Wilkens said, already pretending to cry. "Here lies Peterson Joseph. He died a noble death... tripping on a blade of grass."
Everyone laughed.
As the moon rose and crickets began to sing, Lili stood once again, as she made the katana disappearing from her hand.
She looked at each of them. "Next you will also learn how to use a ranged weapon. "
"So," she said, eyes gleaming. "Who's going first tomorrow?"