I'm away for the day but I couldn't go without posting the new chapter so here you go! Enjoy!
Hetalia belongs to Hidekaz Himaruya and Attack on Titan belongs to Hajime Isayama!
ODM
Everyone was up for breakfast early because today they would be using the ODM gear and some, (cough ~ Alfred and Gilbert ~ cough) were really excited at the prospect of flying through the air on cables. Kiku took bites of his food while looking at a diagram of the equipment they would be using so he would know how it worked. Arthur went into the kitchen to request some scones and was chased out with a meat cleaver. Arthur was the only person who could set fire to a kitchen, just by walking in!
Ivan was sat next to Yao and they look cosy as they discussed the day ahead while Ludwig sat with Feli who tucked into his pasta while Ludwig chewed his bockwurst as he gave advice to Feli about using the ODM gear that he had studied the night before. Francis tried to flirt with a disgruntled Arthur and ended up with his face in his breakfast. Lovino ate his food, scowling at everyone and Matthew was still digging into his pancakes with maple syrup when Shadis walked in and looked down at his half eaten breakfast.
"Like maple syrup, do you, Maple Breath!" he said. "Well, get it eaten now! You can taste it later!" And he turned to the others.
"That goes for the rest of you maggots!" he ordered. "I want you in the classroom for ODM orientation in five minutes! Any latecomers will be cleaning the wall until midnight, now MOVE IT!" And he stomped out, slamming the door behind him. Everyone rushed to devour what was left of their breakfasts (Kiku and Francis were very dignified but, as for everyone one else, it was not pretty!) and they scampered out the door.
The next hour was spent going over the ODM equipment, how it worked and how to operate the triggers (Matthew was nearly impaled when Feli accidentally triggered one of the grapple hooks and it shot into the wall!) and then they were shown how to attach the gear to their straps and they went out to the woods to train, Alfred and Gilbert practically chomping at the bit which made Shadis roll his eyes.
This was going to be carnage!
"YEE-AH!" Alfred shouted as he zipped through the trees on his cables, swinging around like Tarzan...
…..then cried in pain when he swung into a tree like George of the Jungle and Shadis facepalmed. The Hero needed to pay more attention to his surroundings, maybe the collision with the tree would knock some sense into him.
Yao lost control of his cables, collided with Ivan and they ended up stuck together with the cables wrapped around them. Strangely, Shadis thought, Creepy Bastard did not seem to mind that much and he wondered just what was going on between him and Panda Boy.
Feliciano ended up upside down, cocooned in his cables with Ludwig hanging down from his own cables, once again trying to untangle him. When he finally unravelled him, Feliciano fell to the ground with a yelp. Shadis watched Ludwig lowered himself to the ground where Feliciano hugged him in gratitude and they shared a few words. Shadis could not hear what they were saying but then they took to the air again and with Ludwig at his side, Feliciano seemed to do much better. Shadis shook his head. It was a strange relationship between Pasta Boy and Muscles. Close but strange.
Kiku had a natural grace in the air and because, like Ludwig, he had studied the ODM gear beforehand, he had a good grasp how the triggers functioned. It was just a matter of getting use to operating them which he did fairly quickly. Shadis believed that Manga Boy may have found his niche with the ODM gear as he zipped away with the agility of a bird.
Now to check on the rest of them!
Arthur was light and nippy in the air and, after a wobbly start in which he accidentally extended the cables and almost crashed to the ground, he got the hang of it and flew through the trees, using one cable and the gas jets, he was swinging round trees, disengaging his hooks from one tree to fire them at another and he was doing well until Francis collided with him and they both dropped to the ground.
"Why don't you look where you're going, frog?" Arthur growled, shoving at Francis who had landed on top of him.
"Moi, Angleterre!" Francis exclaimed. "You're the one who can't stay away from me!"
"In your dreams, wanker!" Arthur swore. "Get off me!"
"You and your girlfriend want to get a room, Francy Pants?" Shadis had seen them collide and came to see if anyone needed medical attention, only to find them tangled up together on the ground with sexual tension heavy in the air. "If no bones are broken, get back in the air! Snuggle on your own time, Eyebrows!" Arthur practically threw Francis off him and stood up, blushing.
"Like I would with HIM!" Arthur snorted, firing his grapple hooks and flying away into the air. Francis looked lovesick.
"I think he likes me, really," he sighed. "Ah, L'amour!" He flew after Arthur, leaving Shadis to face-palm. Francy Pants was either fooling himself or he was spot on! Either way was going to be a pain!
He wondered how many more of them were going to let their hormones get the better of them.
Gilbert was whipping through the trees with the wind ruffling his white tresses and he swung round a tree to see someone swinging toward him. The blonde was doing quite well when suddenly he cried out as he hit the wrong trigger and his back gas jet blasted him toward a tree. Gil used his own jet to shoot forward to catch the blonde before he hit the tree and flew him to safety.
He flew them to a large branch and the blonde man looked up at Gilbert and violet eyes in a boyish face met his own red orbs. He gave a cocky half-smile.
"Well, hello Birdie!" he purred at the cute blonde in front of him. "That was a close call, wasn't it!"
"Yes," the blonde admitted. "Thank you!"
"You're welcome," Gil replied. "I'm the Awesome Gilbert Beilschmidt from Berlin District! And what's your name, Birdie?"
"Matthew Williams from Ontario District," the blonde said.
"Cute name!" Gil replied. "Want to meet up later, Birdie?"
"You love-birds want to pick this up later!" Lovino called out as he flew past. "Bald Bastard is coming and you don't want him to catch you bastards!" And he flew away.
"Hey, Egomaniac! Maple Breath!" Shadis called up from the ground. "Love might be literally in the air but not on my time. Save it for later!" Matthew blushed while Gilbert smirked. Shadis decided to round everybody up before they disappeared with each other, doing God knows what!
"All right, you airborne idiots!" Shadis bellowed from the ground. "Hit the ground now! That includes you, Tomato Idiot! Time for target practice if you can leave each other long enough!"
The other trainers were ready with the titan targets to move them into position when the cadets came flying through to see if they could react in time. Shadis told them to divide up into pairs and they picked their flying buddies, not that some had a choice (cough~Yao and Arthur~ cough). Alfred picked the Japanese man because he had seen Kiku flying and thought he would make a good wingman and, anyway, he was cute! Ivan's stance beside Yao brooked no argument and Francis put his arm around a struggling Arthur. Gilbert immediately stood beside a cutely blushing Matthew and a fight was breaking out between Ludwig and Lovino who were arguing over who should partner Feliciano.
"What the Hell going on over here?" Shadis demanded. He was ignored as the two combatants glared daggers at each other.
"I should partner Feliciano!" Lovino stormed. "He's my fratello! Go partner your own, Potato Bastard!"
"Ve~ Please don't fight!" Feliciano begged but the argument continued.
"My bruder already has a partner," Ludwig replied. "Anyway, I've been helping Feli from the beginning. Where were you when he was hanging upside down in his cables?" Lovino went red like a tomato.
"That's it, Potato Bastard!" he screamed. "There's a ninety percent chance of a sh*tstorm and it's heading your way!"
"SHUT UP!" Shadis bellowed. The two arguers pulled apart and Feli yelped in fright. "There's three of you left anyway so you three will go together! I don't care if you don't like Muscles, Tomato Idiot!" Shadis shut down Lovino who looked like he was going to argue. "Just suck it and take it like a man!"
"Lovino can have this Frog if he wants!" Arthur offered as he tried to stop Francis's hands from wandering.
"Eww!" Lovino replied. "No thanks! You can keep the pervert!"
"There you go, Tomato Idiot!" Shadis commented. "Someone always has it worse than you so stop complaining!" Then he addressed everyone.
"All right, maggots!" he yelled. "You'll each go in pairs! Follow the designated path and you'll be judged your attacks, amounts of titan strikes and how deep you hit. And try not to impaled yourselves on your own pairing blades! Jones! Honda! Get going!" Alfred and Kiku fired their grappling hooks shot into the trees and out of sight.
Alfred took left while Kiku took right as they took out their pairing blades and Alfred knew he had to focus this time. Goofing around in training was one thing but they were being assessed now and Alfred could be serious when the situation called for it. Kiku concentrated on the woods ahead as he knew the target could appear from anywhere at any time.
As they flew passed branches, a huge wooden titan with padding at the neck was suddenly turned into sight on the right and Alfred triggered his gas jet, shooting him forward and he lashed out with his blades, taking out a huge chunk of padding in the neck. Kiku released his left hook and activated his left gas jet to push him to the right and another chunk was taken out. Alfred gave Kiku a thumbs up just before he reach the spot his hooks had grappled on to. He released his hooks and fired his gas jet again to keep him airborne while his hooks returned then he fired them again and continued on his way while Kiku brought in and fired his hooks again and they went after the next target. Shadis watched from the branches and jotted down his observations of the two.
Alfred F Jones : Childlike and immature! Has a hero complex and an overbearing personality which could make working with others difficult. However, can be serious and focused when needed and has good ODM skills. Could be an asset with the right people!
Kiku Honda : Quiet! Good at reading the atmosphere and knows when to not speak! Excellent ODM skills and concentrates on the task at hand. Despite being solitary, shows signs of working well in a partnership or a group!
Shadis went to observe the others.
Shadis had seen Muscles whisper something into Pasta Boy's ear and a frightening, dark look had fallen over the normal bubbly Italian's eyes and he began snarling. He shot off like a man on a mission while Ludwig and Lovino followed him. Shadis wondered what Muscles had said to him. Pasta boy had looked like Eren Yeager whenever anyone mentioned Titans.
Feliciano shot through the branches with Ludwig and Lovino flanking him and, when a wooden titan presented itself, Feliciano gave a blood-curdling war-cry and lashed out with his blades so hard, he almost took the whole padding off.
"Hey, fratello!" Lovino shouted. "Leave some for the rest of us!" Feliciano just gave another primal scream, pulled in his hooks and fired them again, whipping through the air at high speed.
"What in the Holy Hell did you say to him, Potato Bastard?!" Lovino demanded but Ludwig just smiled. Shadis wrote in his file.
Feliciano Vargas : On the surface, seems weak and ineffective but, but when motivated, can become almost terrifying in his intensity. When not motivated, is a little too dependant on his friends, however, if handled properly, can be an efficient member of the military. I think!
Lovino Vargas : Argumentative, disrespectful, disobedient! However, this could be due to abandonment issues in his youth! Has decent ODM skills and, while does not work well with others, suspect he will watch out for his squad mates in whatever branch of the military he decides to join. Although I feel sorry for his commanding officer!
Ludwig Beilschmidt : Serious and dedicated to his goal! Will obey orders without question and make a good soldier! However, needs to learn to rely on initiative more! Watches out for team mates and supports them. Would be an asset to the service!
He moved on to the next team.
Yao and Ivan were flying in search of their first target, Ivan staying close to Yao, retracting and firing their hooks and keeping their blades ready.
"What's the plan when we find the target, aru?" Yao asked as the leaves whipped past their vision.
"Become one with it!" Ivan replied and, not for the first time, Yao wondered about the sanity of his partner but then the huge wooden shape turned into their vision and he had to concentrate on that.
"VODKAAAAAAA!" Ivan screamed, activating his gas jet and shooting at the body to the target, rather than at the neck paddling. Yao's heart went into his mouth as Ivan 'became one' with the wooden shape at high speed. The wood broke apart in splinters and the paddling flew away from it, then Ivan came flying round and struck the padding with his blades in mid-flight and the padding hit the ground with a big gouge in it. Yao had never seen anything like it!
"How did you hit that at that speed and not kill yourself?" Yao gasped as they flew on. Ivan shrugged.
"I'm Russian!" he replied as if that explained everything and to Ivan, it probably did. Yao shrugged as the next target came into sight.
"Whatever works!" he said. "Please, leave this one for me!"
"Da, comrade!" Yao shot forward, his cables now trailing behind him as he shot over the padded neck. Then turned upside down and retracted his cables. His blades ripped a gouge out of the padding as he shot back over the neck.
Shadis was stunned at what he had just seen! He almost felt sorry for the titans!
Ivan Braginski : Very large, intense individual! Unsure of his mental stability but very strong! Will go to great lengths to protect his team mates! Not someone to make an enemy of! With careful handling, will make a powerful soldier!
Yao Wang : Seemed somewhat average but showing hidden depths. Surprising OMD skills and quick reflexes, should make a decent fighter and, with the right people, excel as I suspect he has more to show us
With that, Shadis moved on to the next pair.
Get to your own side of the path, you git!" Arthur ordered as Francis got too close to him again. They had already hit two targets and would have hit more if they had not spent time arguing. "You're putting me off my target practice!"
"You aim for the wrong target!" Francis purred as he flew closer again. "Your target should be my heart, mon cher!" Arthur snorted as he withdrew and fired his hooks again.
"If it's with my pairing blades," he scoffed. "I accept!" And he triggered his gas-jet and shot away, leaving Francis to catch up. As he flew over the ground, a titan shape appeared before him and he readied his blades and was ready to strike when cables shot over his head and Francis was pulled over his head by them. Arthur sped up the cable retraction and triggered his gas-jet to try and get to the titan before Francis and they became neck-and-neck.
As they moved in to strike, the trainer operating the fake titan decided to mess with them and made it turn again and their blades hit empty air instead of padding. Arthur gave a cry of frustration as his swords missed.
"It seems the trainer is playing with us, Angleterre!" Francis said. "I say we play back, non?" Arthur smirked.
"You decoy!" he replied. "I'll go in for the kill!" Francis frowned.
"And what about my kill score?" he asked.
"You can have the next one," Arthur replied. "My word as a gentleman!" Arthur figured that, as they were stuck together, they might as well worked together as it benefited both of them. It was not as if he liked the frog!
They split up into the trees and the trainer lost sight of them then he found Francis coming back toward him, aiming for the wooden titan. As Francis came in for the strike, the trainer turned the titan again and Francis's blades missed but Arthur's did not when he shot out of the trees from another direction and a wedge of padding fell to the ground.
With whoops of victory, Arthur and Francis flew off in search of another target while Shadis scribbled in his file.
Arthur Kirkland : Emotionally repressive, Kirkland hides his true emotions behind a façade of hostility but cares about his fellow team mates more than he shows and has demonstrated the ability to work as a team even with those he appears not to get along with and shows strategic ability! Excellent ODM ability! Will make a good soldier and possible future officer. Time will tell! Just keep him out of the kitchen!
Francis Bonnefoy : Bonnefoy has shown he can concentrate on the task at hand and has also shown teamwork ability although he has been know to be distracted by things of a romantic nature. However, his ability to work with a team will be an asset if he can curb his urge to flirt with anything that moves! Decent OMD skills!
Two left to assess! Pancake Breath and Egomaniac! Shadis moved on!
"Scheiße, Birdie!" Gilbert exclaimed as Matthew took out his fourth fake titan. "For someone who blushes a lot, you have awesome, kicking-titan-ass skills!" Matthew looked back at him.
"What's wrong, Gil?" he smirked. "Can't keep up?" Matthew retracted his hooks and fired them again, speeding away. Gilbert gave his own smirk.
"Challenge accepted!" he grinned and fired his own hooks again, chasing after Matthew with the aid of his gas-jets and then he saw his Birdie just up ahead and slowly caught him up.
"Next one's mine, Birdie!" he swore. Matthew grinned.
"Not if I get there first!" he replied and they flew side by side through the trees and a wooden shape turned in their direction and they shot forward, raised their blades, swung them at the padded neck...
…..and struck at the same time, each taking a wedge out of the padding and they grinned at each other.
"We're awesomely prefect for each other, Birdie?" Gilbert said. Matthew blushed which Gil thought was the cutest thing in the world except for his pet canary, Gilbird and they went after their next target while Shadis made the last of his observations.
Gilbert Beilschmidt : Seriously needs his ego deflating and somewhat arrogant but that aside, good combat potential! Great ODM skills and a drive to 'be awesome' at what he's doing! Needs a little reining in but has the making of a good soldier!
Matthew Williams : Needs more presence, otherwise is mistaken for his brother, Cadet Jones, or fades into the background completely. However, has shown incredible skill with ODM and battle tactics to a surprising degree! Will make an excellent soldier if he made himself heard more!
Shadis closed his file and watched as the cadets continued to fly and strike at their targets and he knew they would graduate. He wondered what branch of the military they would choose and who would still be alive this time next year, should any of them choose the Survey Corps! They would have to make the choice when their training came to an end and they decided what the future held for them.
But he had one question for Muscles and he pulled him to one side and pointed at Feli.
"What did you say that turned him into such a demon in the air?" he asked. Ludwig gave a half-smile.
"I told him the titans had taken his pasta!" Ludwig replied and Shadis rolled his eyes for the umpteenth time that day.
Again with the pasta! Well, whatever worked!
Never steal Feli's pasta! XP And thank you, everyone for your many suggestions for Matthew's nickname! In the end I went for a combination but you all gave me the idea! :)
To Maveriqua – Lol! I can just imagine that and all the titans running for the hills, screaming! XP
Now, which branch of the military do you think they'll choose! Who will join the Survey Corps, the Wall Garrison or the Military Police! (Boo, hiss!). Please drop a review and give me your opinion! Right! I'm off!
Hasta la Pasta!