Inhale.
Exhale.
Eyes steady. Fingers twitching. Pressure on the feet.
Deep breaths. The timer hasn't started, yet.
Her eyes focused.
She sprang forward.
The timer began.
A straight pathway materialized. Vertical platforms followed.
Jumping off the platform, her Jump Kits flared to life. Pressing her feet against the wall, she ran horizontally across the vertical surface.
3 seconds. 4 holographic human targets sprang upwards from a considerable distance.
She wasted no time, the SA-3 Mozambique in hand. Forward momentum, projectile velocity accounted for, 92% hit chance. Highly probable odds.
4 shots, 4 targets down. 2 rounds left. Not good enough. She grabbed a spare magazine, faster than her feet could touch the floor.
9 seconds. 6 more targets popped up. She didn't hesitate.
6 consecutive shots, each one did not miss.
A bright flash of crimson caught her eyes. She reacted quickly.
Dropping to a slide, her helmet barely missed the laser. Taking the brief pause of action, she promptly reloaded her firearm.
The sound of more holograms activating caught her ears. Quickly jerking up, she popped 2 more energy rounds, each one directed at the 2 targets.
13 seconds. She gained herself some momentum, before leaping from onto another vertical section. The Jump Kit did its job. Gravity cannot restrain her.
4 more targets, each further from the other, made their appearance. Her hands were quick. 4 shots in rapid succession, and all 4 targets were down.
A short birst from the Jump Kit helped accelerate her sprint. She continued onward, into another large room.
16 seconds.
Two metallic rods extended upwards from opposite sides, each one firing a horizontal laser at different heights, at her eye level and knee level. Both lasers move in a circular motion from opposite directions, trapping her in the middle of the path.
Focus. Anticipate. Time slowed to a crawl. She made her move.
Leaping to the air, performing a horizontal corkscrew, she successfully dodged both lasers at the same time.
Gracefully landing on one foot, she dashed forward, loading a spare magazine into her Mozambique.
19 seconds.
6 targets popped up, 3 on each side of the room far away from the other.
Two Arc Stars, 3 targets each. 90 percent success chance. Close enough. She threw both stars at the same time. Her calculations were correct.
22 seconds.
A solid flat wall lay up ahead, 90 degree angle. She knew where to go next.
Sprinting forward with all of her strength, she leapt onto a wall and ran vertically upwards. Activating her Jump Kit at the right time, her feet touched the wall opposite of her. Immediately, she pushed herself upwards to the upper platform.
Sliding onto the flat platform, her right foot crossed the finish line.
"Session End."
"Current time: 25.5 seconds. Previous time: 28.5 seconds. Congratulations, you have beaten your previous record by 3.0 seconds."
She took a moment to take a deep breath. Adrenaline is still coursing through her veins.
A substantial improvement in her time. Still too slow for perfection. Perhaps could've been faster. But her timing and accuracy were near flawless. Still, there could always be improvements to be made, even if minor.
-knock knock knock
An unfamiliar knocking sound. Where is the source? The simulation course has already ended.
Ahh, outside. Of course.
"Ending simulation."
"Neural link disconnected."
She took off the headset was greeted with the dark interior of the simulation pod she was currently in.
A state of the art Hammond Virtual Reality Simulation Pod, specially designed for training new and hardened Pilots. The neural link established allows the user to experience an extremely realistic simulation within the pod, to the point they could feel their own touch while inside. As well as other simulated senses, though it is by no means perfect.
The sim pods have not been manufactured for public use, at least not yet. So for now, the only thing they can do is create simulations of hostile environments and hazard courses for Pilots in training, usually ones similar to what is found in the Hammond Pilot Combat Simulation Facility.
Currently she is in possession of one, conveniently sent and placed in her room for easy access. But she would still have to share it with at least one other person in the academy. Not a problem. They share the same room, after all.
Opening the door to the pod, she was greeted by a familiar face. That of another Pilot. And her current roommate.
"Had a good sleep?" Jack Cooper sarcastically asked.
"Training simulation. Beat my previous record. 25.5 seconds." Zoe Grey monotonously replied.
Jack raised an eyebrow, but his face quickly became neutral again. "Training sim? At 0600? You know what, never mind. Got a message from Miss Orimura. Private meeting in 30 minutes. Staffroom. Just reminding ya."
He wouldn't mention it to anyone, but in his head, Jack was actually quite surprised, if a bit jealous, at Zoey's score.
'Damn, 3 whole seconds faster than mine.'
"Copy that." She replied coldly, before shutting the sim pod door closed again, effectively shutting him out as well. Still not much of a talker. Can't really blame her. He wasn't exactly the most socially adept person either.
Oh well, he still had a whole year at most to get her to open up. It's not like there's anyone else he could talk to at this school anyway. Only a single day at this academy, and every single girl he met, with the exception of the female Pilot, either looks at him with lust, or hatred, or fear. Sometimes all at once.
Well, there's probably one other person he could talk to without having it feel very awkward. Perhaps the only other male in this entire academy. Ichika Orimura.
Not gonna lie, the guy seemed like a good kid at least when he first met him. A little clueless about his surroundings, probably. Maybe he also swings the other way? Since he didn't seem to be ecstatic at all enrolling in a school entirely composed of women.
So far, the only thing he knew about the guy is that he's the younger brother of the Brunhilde, aka the strongest Infinite Stratos pilot in the entire Academy, aka Miss Orimura. That, and also the fact he's the only male that can pilot an IS in the entire world for reasons yet unknown, means he's a high value target for any sort of possible terrorist attacks. Most notably, the Echelon and the Insurgency.
And Jack Cooper has been discreetly assigned to be his personal bodyguard/stalker, should anything bad were to happen during his stay in the academy. Not going to be the easiest job in the world, he would guess.
He still wasn't completely sure for what classified reason Zoe Grey would have to be here with him, but it's never a bad thing to have another fellow Pilot to talk-...well, interact with.
BT is currently safe and sound in a special maintenance room specially built for each Pilot and their personal Titans, which only they could access, so no one would be snooping around Hammond's property. Titans can't be stored in a physically compact form after all unlike the IS.
He was already in his casual crimson jacket and black jeans. Sure, he may be technically a student in this academy, but that doesn't mean he's going to wear uniforms all year while he's here.
There's still at least half an hour left before the meeting, so he should probably take this time to get to know the person he's going to protect. And maybe pry some more personal information out of him regarding his sister as well in the meantime. Again, he wasn't the most socially adept person, and for good reason.
Though, looking at the time now, he wasn't really sure if anyone other than the two Pilots would already be awake at 6 in the morning.
Ichika Orimura wasn't having the greatest time today.
In all honesty, he hasn't had much of a good time at all since he first enrolled in this academy.
Between having to endure his sister's fury every day, his childhood friend no longer being as friendly as he remembered, a bratty princess who hate/love him, and the attention of the entire world on his back as the only male IS pilot in existence, it was almost too much for one 15 year old kid to handle.
But then, as if fate wasn't cruel enough towards him, they arrived.
The Hammond Representatives. And their Titans.
He still couldn't shake off the memories of what happened in that fight. He could barely get any good sleep last night. Those Titan Pilots...they don't look or act like actual pilots. More like soldiers. Heavily experienced ones, at that.
Hell, even their attires just screamed military all the way. Armor vest and pads? Tactical harnesses? Guns? They weren't dressed up like pilots at all. How would they even pilot their Titans in those clothings?
And their Titans... he had heard about Hammond Robotics before and theiir contributions to advancing forward the field of robotics technology, but he had never thought they were also capable of producing such weapons of mass destruction, almost comparable to that of the Infinite Stratos.
Right now, the only big disadvantage the Titans have that Ichika could think of, is their lack of sufficient physical compression technology for ease of access. Titans apparently often needed to be dropped from orbit when deployed into a battle, unlike the IS which can be safely stored in a compact form for the user to wear at all times. He wondered where those Titans would be sent to after retrieval. Do each Pilot just have their own personal aircrafts carrying the Titans back into the atmosphere?
Still, the aftermath was a disaster for both IS pilots. Perhaps the worst thing, was the fact they managed to not only defeat both him and Cecilia in such a short span of time, but they pretty much humiliated both of them as well. Especially himself.
After the fight ended, Cecilia was raging so hard, it took three teachers to calm her down. While in their IS units. It was that bad. He didn't get away scot-free either. Houki gave him an endless death stare all throughout the day.
Eventually she told him she will have to train him much harder from now on, because he wasn't performing anywhere near goood enough. In other words, he'll be going through alot more hell from now on. And it's not like he could say no.
Now this year is going to be so much more troublesome for him. All because of that guy.
"Here's a pro tip, kid: Don't shout your attacks."
Jack Cooper's line felt like a permanent sting into the heart. Ichika mentally hit himself in the back of the head. He wanted to hate that guy for defeating him in such a cheap and underhanded way, but at the same time, he couldn't help but realize how right the Pilot was. It was such a stupid and simple mistake, but one that probably cost him the whole fight.
That settles it. He swore an oath to himself in silence. He is going to try to- no, not good enough. He will become better. Next time, he will defeat that Pilot and prove himself strong enough one day, so that he could truly protect those he care about.
But for now, he'll have to settle with more hellish training from Houki and possibly also Chifuyu-nee, judging from her look after the fight.
Which was why he was currently at an empty training room right now with Houki, and currently lying face up on the floor, exhausted. At 6 am. At least an hour an a half before class. While Houki was still standing upright, wooden katana on hand. And she was eager to use it.
And from now on, every morning will be this way. Waking up at 5:30 in the morning. And then at least an hour of training session with Houki, per her request, to build up his swordmanship much faster, and train him for future IS battles. And then barely any time for a break before having to attend classes again, and possibly inciting the fury of his sister at the same time, given his bad luck.
It is most certainly hell for him.
"Get up." Houki sternly commanded.
"Just give me...five minutes..." Ichika muttered weakly.
"Would the enemy be so fair as to giving you five minutes when you're in a life or death situation? Get up now!"
"Oh come on..." They've been at it for only 15 minutes, but Ichika could already feel his life force being drained after just a brief sparring with Houki. She was simply leagues better than him.
knock knock knock
The sound of the locked training room door being knocked on alarmed both of them.
Obviously someone was at the door. But who? Who would want to use the training room at 6:15 am? Was it one of the teachers? Miss Orimura? How could she possibly know if they were here?
"Should we open it?" Ichika asked Houki.
"I think.. we should keep quiet, they may not know us here." Houki hesitantly answered.
"I heard all that noise. Can you open the door now?"
Well that was pointless. Apparently whoever was outside already heard their sparring, and was now curious at what two people could possibly be doing alone in a locked room when everyone else is mostly asleep.
Wait...that voice sounded like someone they knew. Someone Ichika especially wasn't ecstatic to meet. Especially not this early.
_
"What the hell do you want?"
"...not much of a morning person, are ya?"
As if this day could not have gotten off to a worse start, the first face Ichika met after Houki just happened to be the same person who had coincidentally made his life more miserable.
Jack Cooper. Short, spiky black hair, blue eyes, and overall a more rugged look. It was like looking at an alternate version of himself if he was much older and probably had a more cynical outlook on life.
Jack raised an eyebrow, and briefly touched the side of his hair. 'Is that how I look like if I grew it longer?' He thought.
Seconds passed by, and Ichika found himself getting rather impatient.
"...so are you just going to stand there? Or.."
"Oh yeah, how ya doing? I mean, you don't look too well after...well, yesterday." Jack nonchalantly answered.
That was it? He came all this way just to ask him how he was doing?
But Ichika decided to answer him nonetheless. "Umm.. yeah, I'm fine. Thanks for asking. Is that all?"
"Well not really...whatcha doing with that lady over there?" Jack asked, pointing towards Houki, who wasn't giving off the most friendly vibe towards the former.
"The name is Houki, by the way. We were just training, that's all. Anything else is none of your business. Isn't that right, Ichika?" Houki immediately replied before Ichika could muster up an answer.
"Uhh...I guess?" That was all he could think of. He could feel Houki's seething rage even without looking at her, and he wasn't as stupid as to trying to disturb the hornet's nest even more.
Jack was also noticing the cold air coming from the girl with the wooden katana in her grip, and decided it was time to leave. "...I have a feeling I'm not very welcome here. Alright then, until next time."
"Wait! How did you find us in the first place?" Houki shouted.
"Well... let's just say I'm that good, and anything else is none of your business." Jack gave both of the teenagers one last look before he turned around.
This guy... using her own words against her, it felt extremely insulting. Such a brash attitude.
"I challenge you to a duel! The first person to make the other surrender wins! If I win, you tell us how you did it!" Houki exclaimed, pointing her wooden sword at Jack's behind.
The latter turned around and looked at her for a while with a dumbfounded expression, before releasing a sigh, and responding, "Look, I don't really have time for this.."
"-And if you win, you can ask us whatever you want to know."
That sounded like a pointless bet, but Jack was thinking deeply about the possible benefit. He needed to get close to Ichika and learn as much he could about the boy as possible, but he couldn't risk any of the academy staff finding out without getting suspicious. At the same time, this Houki chick is also pretty hostile towards him for seemingly no reason, despite them only knowing each other for less than 5 minutes. And she might not want him anywhere close to Ichika. He wondered why..
She was probably mad at him because of that battle yesterday. He beat Ichika, rather humiliatingly at that, and both him and the girl seemed quite close together considering they were sparring together alone without anyone else noticing. So maybe she is his closest friend? Or rather...a romantic interest.
Either way, he had to either get rid of her first or just befriend her before he could pry more information regarding this boy. Which meant there was only one answer.
"Alright...this sounded like a stupid deal, but fine, I accept. When?"
"Right now. Ichika, give him your wooden sword." Houki demanded.
"Huh? Oh, alright." Ichika hastily gave the wooden katana to Jack. He took a moment to familiarise with the weight and feel of the weapon, before spinning it around a couple times with one hand.
He wasn't used to handling melee weapons longer than a knife or machete, but he could manage. The wooden material also made it much lighter than an actual sword, so he could still hold it with one hand easily.
Stepping into the training room, Jack glanced at his watch. 6:20 am. Only 10 minutes left before he need to go meet Miss Orimura. He'll have to end this match in 5 minutes then.
Houki readied herself, both hands holding her own wooden katana, her two feet spread far apart for better stability.
Jack simply stood casually, still twirling the sword in his right hand. He didn't seem serious about this duel at all.
"Are you ready?" Houki asked. Her question was met with silence.
Jack was still standing rather nonchalantly, and he was twirling the sword around much faster than before. Almost like he was simply playing around with it.
"I said are you-"
Her words were cut short.
Clank
It was an unexpected move coming from the Titan Pilot. He threw his sword towards her, and she barely managed to block it with her own. It took her a second to readjust herself. But a second was all he needed.
He immediately sprinted forward, and in a split second, he was already in front of her. He spun around, delivering a roundhouse kick to her face. She anticipated it, and raised her sword to defend.
Except, that was what she thought was going to happen.
Jack was actually aiming for Houki's hand, and his left foot met its target. She released her grip from the sudden impact, and the sword flew out of her hands and spun around in the air.
"Aaaghh!!"
Before she had any time to react, Jack immediately reached out and caught her sword, and swung it to her neck. The tip of the wooden blade however, stopped just an inch away from making contact with the skin of her throat.
It happened so fast. She wasn't able to register everything that happened. She was still grasping her right hand tightly, still sore courtesy of Jack's foot.
His eyes were cold and lifeless. It was like he wasn't staring at a living person, but at a corpse. She didn't like that look one bit.
"Give up?"
His sentence was short and simple. He had her by the neck. She knew there was no other choice.
"...I surrender."
"Houki!!!" Ichika yelled, running towards her. He got right between the two and slapped the wooden sword away from her neck.
"What the hell was that!? You were too harsh on her!! You could've broke her hand!" Ichika angrily shouted at the Pilot, and understandably so.
"No, it wouldn't. It'll just be a bruise at most. And I wasn't too harsh, it was a duel and we're both using wooden sticks. One of us would've been bruised by the end either way.
And by the way, I've got some questions." Jack coldly replied.
"Wait a minute!! That shouldn't count! What you did was unfair!" Ichika retorted.
Jack raised an eyebrow to this. "The hell do you mean? She said it was a duel. I caught her by the neck, and she had to surrender, just like the rules. So I won fair and square."
"No...Ichika has a point. What kind of fighter willingly throws away their weapon at the enemy? I've never heard of such technique before!" Houki exclaimed.
"It's called the element of surprise. I improvised. That's what you do to win a real battle. You don't play by the books, you use whatever tactic works to gain the upper hand, no matter how unfair or inhumane. And you don't have any right to complain, it worked, didn't it? I caught you off guard, and that was enough." Jack harshly explained.
"Tch... that's your excuse? Resorting to such low tactics, have you no honor?"
Her words made him seriously begin to question just how naive these children really were.
"Honor? Seriously? You think honor wins wars? Listen kid, honor doesn't mean shit in a battlefield. That's where all sorts of human decency gets thrown out the window. You do whatever it takes to win, to survive. That's how history has always been."
Houki was taken aback by Jack's answer. She clearly did not expect something so brutally serious.
It was obvious from his tone that he felt rather offended when that word was thrown into his face. He may be only a few years older than them, but he never had the normal childhood any other kid may have had.
Honor...honor didn't save his family. It didn't help him survive in the Frontier. It didn't drive him towards becoming a Pilot. It had nothing to do with any of it.
"Wars? Battlefield? What the hell are you going on about!?" Ichika was exasperated, clueless about what Jack was talking about.
"...you wouldn't get it. And I can't explain it to you, even if I wanted to." That answer only seemed to confuse the former even more.
Looking at his watch, he noticed it was already 6:25 am. Only 5 minutes left. He needed to go. Perhaps the answers he seek would have to wait. And with that, he decided it was best to walk away.
Ichika, however, was not keen on just letting the latter go away that easily. "Hey, wait!! Are you just going to leave like that!?"
"I've got other more important things to do. Don't forget, we had a deal. I'll be back for that question." Jack replied without looking back.
After a few steps however, he decided to suddenly stop, and let out a deep sigh.
"...wrap that hand with a piece of thin cloth, then put an ice pack on the bruise and wait for at least 10 minutes at a time. It should heal in three days, give or take." He softly spoke, just loud enough for the two IS pilots to hear, before continuing his pace and walking out of the training room.
Well, that went about as well as the first time he tried to cook an omelette. Still, it could've gone alot worse. The whole kitchen could've been on fire.
He couldn't really stay mad at the teenagers because they simply had no idea of what he had experienced. He guessed that they led fairly normal lives before entering this academy. In a way, he was quite envious of them.
Maybe he had gone a little overboard back there. But it wasn't like he had much of a choice. It was pretty obvious that the girl was quite adept in swordsmanship, he could gauge at her overall skills with just a single glance. He knew he may have not been able to best the swordswoman in direct combat since he simply wasn't used to handling such large melee weapons, and there was simply not much time to engage in a flashy sword duel.
Pilots were always trained with a specific mindset: Objectives first, methods second. It doesn't matter how skilled you are with a sword, it doesn't mean anything if your enemy has a gun and could simply pull the trigger. Hence, the best way to approach combat is always to know more than the enemy does and have a handy trick up your sleeve. Everything always has a weak spot to exploit.
The element of surprise isn't just for talk, there's a reason Pilots are always equipped with tactical equipments designed for versatility and maximum agility in combat environments. It's not always about dealing a bigger punch than your enemy, it's about knowing where to punch and dodging the enemy's in the process.
All that Houki girl's talk about honor and not fighting the "right" way was just evidence that she had never experienced an actual fight, where actual lives are at stake. There are no rules in war. Anything is fair game. No matter how inhumane. He'd experienced it firsthand. He wouldn't wish anyone in this academy to go through the same thing he did.
He mentally hit himself in the head. He always needed to remind himself this wasn't the Frontier anymore. He wouldn't he able to fit in if he keeps acting like a soldier instead of a normal student. But how would he know how to actually act like a normal teenager? It wasn't like he had any previous experience to back himself up.
...what was he doing again? Right, the meeting. He's probably going to be a little late considering how far he has to walk.
"You're late, Mr. Cooper."
"Only 2 minutes late. That wouldn't be a problem, would it?"
Chifuyu Orimura was considered the strongest woman in the IS Academy, and she sure as hell had the aura to match the title.
Still, it did little to unnerve Jack Cooper, who was currently returning her deathly stare with a bored one.
"No, I suppose it wouldn't." She had no time to be angry at the male Pilot right now. There were other more important things to discuss.
"Is there a reason you would like to meet us, Miss Orimura?" Zoe Grey asked in a monotonous tone. She was currently wearing her zipped indigo jumpsuit, although her amber eyes still looked as bland as ever.
Chifuyu kinda liked the female Pilot better. At least she is polite, if a little too robotic.
"Ahem... I must warn you that everything that will be disclosed here will not leave this room. This is a matter that may concern the security of this academy and its occupants. I ask you questions, you answer them. Do not lie. I have a good eye, so don't even try. Is that clear?"
Jack nervously gulped. This is going to be a problem. Had his cover been blown already? So much about being a spy.
Both Pilots were initially reluctant, but they eventually relented. "Clear. / Understood."
"Very well...now I will ask you,
what is your purpose here?"
Jack wasn't sure how to answ that, but apparently Zoe had him covered. "We are representatives of Hammond sent to the IS Academy to participate in the upcoming Mondo Grosso Tournament as per-"
" -Don't give me that bullshit. I know from the moment you two fought in that arena yesterday that you were more than what you said you are. In all my experience as an IS pilot, I've never seen a pilot of anything having to wear so much armor plating or having such an extensive arsenal as their standard equipment. Your Titans are one thing, but the way you fight? You seemed to know how to counter ISes, despite it being your first day in the academy. That tells me you're not just pilots in training. You're soldiers.
Never mind the fact that Hammond was taking in children as soldiers was already ethically questionable, what really bothers me is why would they send two of their personal soldiers into this academy, who seemed skilled enough and even have prior knowledge of tactics to counter IS, for the mere purpose of entering a tournament? If the reason was to share and exchange information regarding IS and Titan technology, why couldn't they have just sent one of their researchers and reduce the hassle? Is it because Hammond just wanted to prove to the world how amazing their pilots and Titans are? Considering how secretive they are about everything, that just seems out of character. Doesn't really add up to me, and I know you both would agree were you in my position.
So I will ask you again, what is your purpose here? And will it involve my students and the staff members, and the safety of this entire academy?"
Both Pilots were quite taken aback by the sudden shift in tone. Even Zoe had lost her stoic composure.
They were in a dilemma. They couldn't risk exposing their classified objectives to anyone here, but they also couldn't risk raising the suspicion of the academy staff and possibly get expelled from the academy.
Jack thought of any possible solutions, but he couldn't think of any good ones. He need to gain Chifuyu's trust or he wouldn't be able to get any closer to Ichika and his mission would have been for naught. He didn't have much of a choice. He'll have to trust his own gut.
'Alright, gotta do what you always do. Improvise.'
"First of all, Miss Orimura... both me and Zoe are 18 years old, so we are technically adults. Second of all...
..everything that I'm about to tell you is highly classified information, and it absolutely cannot leave this room. I need your trust, as you do mine."
Zoe widened her eyes at Jack. She was surprised at how quickly he was willing to sabotage their mission. However, Jack shot a look at her that essentially meant, 'Trust me.'
Chifuyu narrowed her eyes, but decided to play along.
"Don't worry, this room is sealed shut and there are no cameras or hidden mics of any kind. But you better not spare anything crucial." She explained.
Jack took a deep breath and let go, before continuing.
"Have you heard of the Remnant Insurgency?"
Author's Note
Holy shoot, how long has it been? A year? Probably more.
I swear, I didn't plan there to be a large hiatus for this story. I genuinely forgot this story existed for a while. It was only recently that I finally have the time and motivation to continue this again.
For those who are still around since the first chapter and are still following, well what can I say except, thank you. For not losing interest in this fic yet. Because I sure did for some time.
This fic may end up being longer than I originally anticipated. Some changes had to be doneto my original drafts, but thankfully for now I have no need to rewrite any of the older chapters to fit the progression of the story. At least not yet.
Anyway, as always, thanks for reading. Until next time.