Re: FIELD-GYM #2
Roy gave Roll a sad smile. "They wanted to hurt us, by hurting you...but they wouldn't have hurt you like that. They just needed to get you with a blade to win. But because they chose to pick on a child to be their target, we decided to hurt them a lot worse than they were going 5o hurt you. The General thought he was being funny...but we aren't laughing, and now, none of them are, either."
He gave a little hint of a grin, and added, "I don't think any of them has been in actual combat in a long time...they've forgotten how much we sacrifice to fight, and a lot of the time, we're fighting for people we don't even know. The General would have been smarter to pick one of his own people to take your spot, though. We would have still protected him...but he picked on family, and made it about something a lot more than just showing him that his men aren't as good as they think they are. When he picked you, Roll, he made sure that his men were going to suffer, because we're dangerous when we're fighting...but we're just plain old mean and vengeful when you try and hurt family. And you're part of the Hermes family, Roll. Every one of us would have fought all of them, alone, to protect you. Even everyone up in the stands would have done it. And if we thought for a moment that they actually meant to really hurt you? Those men wouldn't be screaming, they'd be dead. Because we protect our family."