Chapter 3: Undercover

"Nice to meet you all, my name is Urdr. Starting today I'll be your new instructor." Urdr announced.

Both Urdr and Yakumo however noticed immediately that there were some unsure faces among the students. It was to be expected, most of the men here were already older than Yakumo by many years. Having a new instructor even younger than him, not to mention a girl, would not have made them comfortable. The few female students that were here saw the expressions on the men as an insult, although they too were uncomfortable about having such a young instructor.

But Yakumo had already planned for this. "Kamon, would you please step forward." He said, and one of the female students stood up. "I would like you to have a short sparring match with Urdr."

Kamon was a tall and robust woman. She had been around as long as Yakumo could remember, even back when Reishin was still here. She was by far one of the strongest people in the dojo and well respected by the other students. "Very well," Kamon said and walked up to the front to stand in front of Urdr.

"Please don't hold back now." Urdr requested of her opponent, and the two took bows before getting into their ready positions.

Yakumo went and had a seat with the students. "Begin," He said, and Kamon made the first move.

Kamon ducked down and swept her leg swiftly in an attempt to throw Urdr off the ground. But the attempt failed; Urdr jumped just before Kamon's sweep would connect and span over her head and landed behind her where their backs were to each other. Kamon used her planted foot and twisted her body so she would be facing Urdr again. At the same time Urdr turned quickly and swung her hand in a sideways chop going for Kamon's neck.

There was no time to think; once Kamon saw the incoming attack she merely thrust her fist at Urdr's stomach. But Urdr did not hesitate in her attack, but instead stopped the turning of her body and sucked in her gut while at the same time using her free hand to grab Kamon's fist and pull it to the side.

This combination of maneuvers kept Kamon's attack from making any contact with Urdr, while at the same time keeping anything from coming between her own attack and Kamon's neck. And with that the spar was over.

Urdr had stopped her hand from striking Kamon's neck just before actually making contact while continuing to hold Kamon's fist in her hand. Kamon's expression was the same as the other students who on looked this spectacle- amazed. Kamon herself could not believe what every sense she had was telling her just happened and just stared at the young girl called Urdr.

Urdr however smiled with complete satisfaction and placed her hand on Kamon's shoulder as a sign of approval. "Excellent, you didn't hold anything back." She said to Kamon and took a step back.

Yakumo smiled; he had established what he wanted. No one in the dojo would have any problem accepting Urdr as an instructor after what they had just witnessed. "Now then, let's get class started."

"So Verdandi, What kind of things did you have in mind to talk about?" Mikami asked as she took a seat on the ground next to the girl she had no way of knowing was her enemy.

"Nothing in particular; basically whatever comes to mind." Verdandi answered, lying down on the grass. "Have any family?" She asked Mikami.

"None worth talking about." Mikami answered. "I'm part of the Ginko clan but as far as my direct family goes I only ever had a father, and I never did like him anyways. What about you?"

"Me," Verdandi thought for a moment. "My parent's were never around while I was growing up; I learned self-defense at an early age." She said. "I practically had to raise myself and I had to grow up really quick."

"Sounds rough," Mikami stated.

"It was, but I turned out alright."

"So, Verdandi, got any hobbies other than getting away from crowds?"

"I've always liked studying the Human world. After all, we are supposed to protect the Tera balance of earth; I for one want to know about the people I'm protecting."

"That's a valid point." Mikami replied, a slight smile forming on her lips.

"There was a time I studied and taught myself a human fighting style as well; Taekwondo it was called. Most Mototsumitama see them as weak, but I think they're more useful than people give them credit for."

"Oh, trust me; I know the worth of humans." Mikami responded and looked down at her hand, and thought about Excel and Shingo.

After that though, there was a silence due to a lack of topics to really talk about. After a minute or so, Verdandi flipped herself up to her feet. "Well, I'd best get going."

"Oh, do you have somewhere to be?" Mikami asked

"I'm meeting a couple of friends later today. It's not for a while but I like to be early to these kinds of things." Verdandi replied and then began walking toward town.

In a secret place, the girl who had appeared before Kuro – Skuld – waited for her comrades to return from their undercover assignments. Just then, the entrance to the area opened up and a single figure walked in. Seeing the young woman, Skuld smiled. "Well you're here early as usual, Verdandi. Urdr's class doesn't let out for another half-hour." She told Verdandi. "You could have used that time to make sure you were properly embedded into Mikami's life."

"Well, we lost things to talk about. Leaving it at that and 'running' into her later seemed like a better plan than sitting around doing nothing for 30 minutes." Verdandi responded with a shrug, and then walked over to sit down next to Skuld.

After waiting awhile, Urdr finally showed up as well. "I'm back!" She told her friends with a cheery attitude as she spun around in the doorway.

As Urdr approached the other two, they noticed she had worked up quite a sweat from teaching at the dojo. "Well, how'd it go on your end?" Skuld asked.

"Infiltration successful; no problem! Yakumo trusts me completely." Urdr reported without dropping her chipper attitude. "And what about you Verdandi?"

"I made Mikami believe we had similar childhoods growing up to give her a point of relation to draw from. If I were to ask if she had a moment to talk, she'd listen to what I had to say from that because she's just a considerate person." Verdandi explained.

"What kind of story did you feed her?" Skuld asked, interested to hear.

"I told her I had negligent parents that were never around, forcing me to take care of myself." Verdandi answered, a sly grin appearing on her face as she did. "Which is pretty much the exact opposite of my actual childhood of being a pampered only child."

Hearing the ruse, Skuld held back a laugh. "Quite the actress aren't you, Verdandi?" She asked rhetorically.

"Wow, you're playing her like a fiddle." Urdr aid with approval.

"Well then, Skuld, how did the 'princess' take everything you told her?" Verdandi asked.

"Exactly how we predicted. They can't even begin to comprehend my plans to become the Masagami. They realize there is still something I need to do to get there, but other than that they don't have a clue. They don't even think I have comrades."

"Which will just make it more of a shock when we betray them, right?" Urdr stated and then giggled. "Oh I can't wait to see their faces!"

"Those will make for good shows, won't it?" Skuld noted. "Well then, if that's everything, I should get back to the primary preparations for our big plan." She told the others and stood up, opening the door and leaving.

Soon after, Verdandi and Urdr stood up to leave as well. "Man, I still shiver at the thought of the three of us becoming Masagami." Verdandi noted with a smile on her face.

"Me too, I can't wait for that moment." Urdr said in response, and then the two of them left as well.