The Calm Before Hell

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The barracks have been buzzing with activity for the last week. For many troops, tomorrow is the hour of truth. The point where they find out if their training was up to snuff. They had been told to be aware of everything that transpires, regardless of how small. Because even the mightiest warrior can fall prey to a protruding root that snags your foot, or stepping on a branch when stealth is imperative. Many things can go wrong. Several of which you have the power to do something about. Many more which are little more than freak accidents that can cost you everything.

Even with a powerful Aura, it is considered foolish to rely on it to the point of becoming a crutch. If that is your only defense, then you are doomed from the first day. **Klara Aurorum** sat in the cafeteria, indulging in some of the more exquisite meals. A privilege earned for heading out to their first mission. They say it is a form of congratulatory gift to give you a taste of what is to come. However, she quite confidently believed it was more of a case of 'Have a good meal. It might be your last'.

Looking around as everyone gathered their teams and comrades, Klara felt a bit dejected that no one had asked her yet. She didn't mind too much though. Push comes to shove, she'll just do it on her own. She can handle it. Looking over the crowd, she saw someone familiar to her, raising her fork with some food on as a show of greeting before returning to eat her salmon.

Franz made note of the woman, holding his tray in his hands he had no means of greeting her back. He, for a moment, considered ignoring her altogether, surely there would be no harm in it. It wasn't as though he had accepted her greeting or anything of the sort. But he noted that seats were filling quickly, while the girl was sitting all but completely alone at her table. In an instant he weighed the pros and cons and let out a sigh, moving through the crowd and sitting his tray down directly across from her.

"Klara" He greeted her with her name and a nod of his head in acknowledgment. Sitting down in the seat her rolled up the sleeves of his off-white shirt, revealing along his arm his tattoo, one of black and gold in color, symbols in the shape of lightning riding up his forearm with his wrist as the starting point. "You seem to be getting along well, enjoying the food?" He asked, knowing he wouldn't get out of a conversation with the lass but if nothing else he could try to steer it.

"Better than stale crackers." She joked, observing the tattoo on his arm, noting its design. She knew he had been branded with a lightning mark, but she had not seen it so close and with such detail before. His artist sure wasn't the best, all things considered. It was large and bulky, taking up too much space on his arm. Space which could have been filled with more marks. "Might as well make the most of it. I would say 'it might be my last', but we both know that I would be lying if I said that." She chuckled, confident in her abilities. "Got too much going for me." She said with a tap to her chest, feeling of a mind to ease her mind with some slight taunting. She had already been branded three times since being drafted. A mixture between having proven her aptitude for resisting the side effects and having been exceptional enough in her training to earn them. One on her left pec, one along the left side of her neck, and another on her right thigh. One from the Serpent Brand, and the other two from the Saur Brands.

An amused huff of air escaped from the man's nose before he popped a fork with sausage into his mouth as he listened to Klara talk, the room was a buzz with people talking, some confident and others nervous, and then few like himself who seemed to be completely neutral about the events of today and what awaited them tomorrow. Swallowing his food he finally spoke, "Those are famous last words, I did hear that it was the foolhardy who tended to fall first." He darkly joked before raising his cup to his lips and drinking from it a brown colored liquid.

"Blood, sweat, tears, late nights, and early mornings. They've tested us time and time again, tomorrow we see if the fruits of their labor are ripe. Where's your team?" Franz spoke as he rested the cup back onto his tray.

"A fool is a person who never learned what they can't do. I know what I am capable of and how I can use those talents in my benefit." She said, uncaring for his lackluster warning. "I haven't bothered looking around and no one have asked. A bit daunting for them, I'd say." She chuckled. "If nothing else, I'll head out on my own. I am not letting my debut be hampered by tardiness from others."

Swallowing the last of her salmon, she took some of the rice and gathered in a bit pile before digging in to it. "Blood, sweat, tears, early mornings, hellish days, late nights, nightmares, rinse and repeat." She elaborated on his previous statement. "We're ready. Can't imagine that we aren't. I'm up to it. You certainly are too. I whipped you into good shape after all." She teased with a wink.

"I said foolhardy, not fool." Franz corrected her, taking a bite of his bread and chewing slowly. "Don't take that to mean I doubt you..." He covered his mouth as he ate and spoke at once, swallowing before continuing. "But if it were so easy we'd have won this long before you and I were born. The enemies of humanity won't hesitate to kill any of us nor us, they. It's better to err on the side of caution if you ever want to have Salmon again. Canned or otherwise."

A small, somewhat smug smile appeared on his face, "I'm not worried of course, I had good teacher." He pointed his fork at her, "And good examples of what not to do."

Klara playfully chucked some canned crab at the man with her fork before returning to eat her meal. "That's right, everything I didn't do is probably a bad strat to try out." She teased, playing up her own grandeur. Even if she didn't believe half of it, it is always good to have a surrounding who believes it. Biting into her crab and rice, she almost choked when she heard a soldier call out: "Officer on deck!"

Rising to her feet, Klara saluted, even as her dry throat demanded that she cough to clear it. But she stood firm as it itched. Looking towards the officer, she saw the emblem of a Lieutenant approach them. He was a tall man, lean in build, and with a plenty of signs that he had seen some of the worst out there. His left eye was missing, sewn together to hide the likely more grizzly sight beneath it. His right hand missed two digits, and his scalp was partially burnt, leaving him with only the right side with brown hair, hanging to the side in a mini horsetail. Even so, he couldn't be older than late twenties, early thirties.

Klara didn't stare. Couldn't afford to, so instead she looked off into a different direction. "Specialist Klara, Private Franz. You and your teams have been assigned to my squad for the coming mission. I would like to gauge your talents." He spoke, his voice mellow while still authoritative.

"Our reports can be found in-"

The Lieutenant stepped right in front of the young woman, staring her dead in her eyes. "Personally, Specialist." He instructed, causing a chill down her spine. With a nod from her, he walked off with a wave of his crippled hand, ordering Klara and Franz to follow. She was quick to follow in his steps, coughing slightly to clear up. "Something the matter, Specialist? Tensing up already?"

"No sir!" She replied. "Just some crab in my th-"

"Did I ask?" He said back before picking up the pace.

Franz passed beside her, catching her glance with a look that said in the most smug way possible, "Oh dear you got in trouble." Before his gaze shifted forward to look in front of him as they walked in silence. Though Franz admittedly regretted not getting to finish his meal nothing could be done about it.

They followed the officer through the camp, past the barracks and down a hill to their training grounds. Large flood-lights were set up all around lighting up the grounds as though it were the middle of the day. He stopped when the officer stopped, standing at attention and awaiting whatever order they might receive. Franz never missed out on a chance to show off his skill, this made some believe that he was cocky or arrogant but in truth the man simply had full confidence that his abilities could impress.

Klara stood at the ready as the lieutenant took position. "I am going to see what you are good for. If you have what it takes to stand with me and mine. I've read your reports, seen your records, observed the tapes. Your quirks and tricks are known to me. But how will that apply to a wholly new field, an entirely new enemy? If you fail to impress me, you will be demoted and put on a whole new year of bootcamp before you can take to the field. Understood!"

"Sir, yes sir!" Klara affirmed. Dressed in a rather fine coat, she moved to take it off before the test began, not wanting to dirty it down. When it moved past her eyes, she felt a fist in her stomach, knocking the air out of her and throwing her back a good twenty feet. "W-What the hell-" She groaned as he had somehow closed the distance between them in such a flash of a moment.

"Do you think you will have time to wait for an attack? Think you will have time to take off your fancy clothes? Do you believe you will be able to distract the enemy with your strip teases!?" He berated her. He had seen her many times remove her fancier attires, even her protective gear against those she felt superior over. Immediately had he pushed with his feet to put some more distance him and the two of them. "If so, then quit now. I don't need a useless girl's corpse on my conscience."

"Understood sir!" She cried out, preparing her next move. She knew nothing about this man or what brands or marks he was Inked with, but she could only assume he had a mark to let him move as quick as he did. Channeling her neck's mark, a few veins popped clear around her left eye that trailed all the way to the mark. Clapping her hands together, sparks of lightning began to manifest around her, about to extended away until it all just came crashing back down on her. Crying out in pain, she fell to her knee again. "What was that?"

"I am your enemy. You expect me to tell you my tricks or skills in a life and death moment?" he retorted with venom. "Now fight! Fight like you mean it!"

A huff came from Franz, "I expected better." He remarked toward Klara before his eyes looked to their superior officer. The man was fast but Franz could see it, and if he could see it he could react and counter it. One moment Franz was there and the next a roaring boom of thunder rang out and he was gone with nothing but scorched ground where he once stood.

He reappeared above the officer, lightning crackled around his body in shades of blue and gold as he held in his hands two twin daggers. Both were brought down like fangs toward the officer. Franz fought with killing intent, he knew what they were looking out for and he intended to show them that he wouldn't hesitate for a moment.

Klara was getting back on her feet again, pondering what her next move ought to be. Her Electron Mimicry spell had come to nothing. It was as if all that she was trying to excude and produce was fiercely forced back into her. There was something that he did to cause it, but what exactly remained to be seen. Electrically charging her body, she felt it tingling more than usual, almost painfully so as she upped her speed and ran forward.

"Be glad for your Aura, kid." The Lieutenant told Franz as his daggers came into contact with his shoulders in the stab. He had not moved as much as an inch to avoid the move. But as soon as teh daggers grazed his clothes, the lightning daggers turned on their own master, lacerating and electrocuting the man's hands. Thanks to his Aura, all that cost him was some spiritual energy rather than cutting up his hand. With his left hand did he deliver an uppercut towards Franz' stomach. If it were to connect, Franz would immediately notice how the strike hits with a unreasonable amount of force. As if his body was just a doll before him for all the resistance he could put up.

Franz felt the punch to his gut, it knocked the wind out of him and sent him flying. But despite the pain his mind never stopped moving, never stopping trying to analyze the situation. *"I connected, I know I did. Does he have some sort of force field? No. I would have felt it before I touched his clothes if it was that. His aura didn't protect him either, ours would have clashed if it did."* Franz was high in the air now, likely upwards of twenty feet and already beginning his descent back to earth again.

On his way down he steadied his own breathing, catching his breath again as his eyes began to glow. Like blinking again the rumbling thunder sounded and Franz was nowhere to be seen, this time he appeared opposite of where he would have falled. He did not chance getting close this time, instead he held a single bullet in his hand. A brief crackle of electricity and a bang as the bullet fired with no need of a gun to fire it. The now empty shell still in Franz's hand as the bullet had been sent toward the officers chest and Franz waited, watching how it would interact with the man.

Klara ran forward, shaping up pink orbs over her knuckles as she prepared her next assault. But before she had the chance to do something, the Lieutenant raised a hand and as the bullet soared towards him, he in one swift motion swatted it away from its trajectory and was sent soaring towards Klara now. "Parlor tricks." He muttered.

Klara had to act quick. "Disperse!" She shouted, her littel trigger word to make her spell happen. Her body glowed and was about to break apart temporarily to then be rejoined in continued combat, but before that could happen she was rejoined together again, just as the bullet made contact with her stomach, piercing right through. During disperse and reemergance there is a short window where the Aura cannot protect her. Losing focus on her orbs once she came back, the gravitons burst, bombarding the area with gravity. The Lieutenant backed off from the explosions, but Klara wasn't so lucky, getting thrown back against a wall and causing a crater there. Barely standing as she dislodged herself, she began to apply her aura to heal her wound.

"You are stumbling over each other and yourselves like children! You are facing a lieutenant! Soon a Yokai! PROVE YOURSELVES WORTHY!"

Franz's brow furrowed. He'd passed every test, gotten high marks, he couldn't handle more tattoos but he was a prodigy with what he could. Few things had come easy but he'd met them head on and broke through each barrier evey time coming out stronger on the otherside. If he couldn't handle this then what was it all for?

Before even a hair on his head hit the ground his eyes glew and with that same rumble he appeared beside Klara. "Did you notice anything at all?" He spoke quietly at a low whisper. He hand't noticed anything, if is bullet simply been swatted away or if it had been a result of his power but either way he hadn't gotten anything new from the attempt.