Chapter 33: Training Day
Sora, knowing a headfirst dash would do him no good, jumped over Frank in an attempt to attack him from behind. Frank was a little surprised by this manoeuvre, but countered quickly by sticking his blade above the floor where Sora was about to land. Sora, not prepared, landed and quickly lost his footing on the uneven combination of Frank's sword and the floor, and tripped and fell. Frank didn't even turn around fully and instead kept his back to Sora.
"This isn't a game, Sora. Get back up, and this time, don't just focus on where you're going, but also what you will do when you get there."
"What do you mean?" Sora replied. Frank turned to face him.
"Simply put, an enemy will nearly always go for a counter should he see your attack coming. While you must get faster Sora, so must your mind. You must be able to adapt to any situation that appears before you within a split second. There is no point in having all that speed if you can't keep your concentration up. Imagine someone who could move at the speed of light, but someone who was pretty clumsy. They'd just run into every wall they find before they even know it's there."
"I think I understand now..."
"Good, then come at me again. And this time, concentrate."
Sora prepared himself. Standing directly in front of Frank, he decided that he would make an obvious attack, and then change it depending on where Frank went. Sora slightly turned, as if he was going to step back before attacking, but quickly turned and delivered a horizontal slash, but reversed his own attack before he made contact. Frank, who didn't expect this, was already moving to catch Sora's keyblade. He realised what Sora was planning though as soon as Sora had started turning in the other direction. Sora this time went for a downward strike. Frank to dodge away from the incoming strike, but Sora, quickly turned it into a thrust.
'Such an obvious tactic.' Frank thought. He grabbed the end of the keyblade as it came toward him, and using all his strength lifted it, and Sora, up into the air, tossing the lot over his head and letting go. Sora landed headfirst on the stone floor, busting him open.
"I said use your head, Sora, not use tactics that an amateur can do in his sleep." Sora was still dazed and didn't pick up most of what Frank had just said. What Frank didn't know, however, was that Sora was completely out of it. The impact had caused heavy bleeding and Sora was about ready to pass out. With the combination of a frantic need to defend himself, and blind rage, Sora ran screaming at Frank, keyblade in hand. Frank was a little shocked, but not fazed by this turn of events.
'Maybe I should've gone a little easier on him. Maybe I am still getting emotional over what happened with him and Sophie. Nonetheless, let's see if he can still try to fight me in this state.'
Sora took an open swing at Frank. Frank just grabbed him and tossed him back, but only lightly, sending him falling back a few feet. Sora quickly got back up and went at it again, but this time a little faster. Frank still saw it coming however, and just knocked the keyblade out of Sora's hand, before smacking him with the blunt side of his sword and sending him back even further.
"Come on, Sora! Even in this state, you should be better than this!"
Sora threw his Keyblade at Frank as hard as he could, trying to deliver the Strike Raid, a move he hadn't used in years. His throw, strong as it was under the circumstances, was still weakened by Sora's failing state, and Frank easily dodged it, turning to watch it lose momentum and drop to the ground behind him.
As he turned back around however, he was surprised to see Sora was up is face, about to deliver an overhead punch. Frank grabbed his wrist and was about to swing him over again, but Sora saw this coming and instead put his weight into falling, causing him to swing downward and toward Frank. Frank quickly dodged this, still holding Sora's wrist and prepared to punch Sora in his vulnerable face, but Sora surprised Frank again by grabbing Frank's other wrist, preventing Frank from using his sword. With Sora headed to the ground fast, Frank lost his footing slightly, giving Sora an opening. He let go of Frank's wrist and in a split second, called his keyblade to his open hand and swung in the opposite direction.
'Damn it! He's getting the hang of this!' Frank thought quickly and let go of Sora, causing him to begin to fall mid-swing. Frank dodged out of the way to avoid getting hit as Sora fell to the floor yet again, resulting in a moan of pain from Sora as he landed on his already injured head.
Frank was still a little visibly surprised by Sora's sudden burst of speed and tactic, but was not exhausted like Sora was. He calmly walked over to Sora and smiled down on him. "You are full of surprises it would seem, Sora. I did not expect you to pick up such speed in such little time, even for you that is quite a feat."
Sora spun himself upright, but quickly regretted it as he felt really dizzy, and fell to his knees.
"Take a minute to rest, Sora. I think you need it." Frank pulled a blood pack out of his pocket and chucked it to Sora. "Drink up."
The rest of the day proceeded rather slowly, nothing really interesting unfolding between any of the training groups. Riku was however, still having trouble getting used to off-hand fighting, and reluctantly accepted he would have to rely a little more on his pistols.
After a hard day's worth of training, the group met up in the main room to plan ahead.
"Feels kinda weird having a group meeting like this..." Riku commented.
"And where is Alucard? Surely he is involved in this now as well?" Sora asked.
"Hmm... Alucard does what he wants. Besides, he wishes not to become directly involved in affairs, although I have asked him to keep an eye on things in his own world. Kaine and Victor, however, as mentioned before, will be joining you." Frank answered.
"And what about Sophie? Is she rejoining us?" Riku asked.
"Not at this time, as I will be returning to scout duties. Things are picking up speed. The family is moving forward with a new initiative." Sophie answered.
"What Sophie means is that the Family has been expanding its interests into the Milky Way galaxy. Specifically, the Koprulu Sector. Sora, Riku, Cloud, it is unlikely you have heard of this place." Frank said.
"Can't say that we have." Sora added, meaning him and Riku, although Cloud had no knowledge of the place either.
"Well, currently a war is ravaging this place and nearly all of the planets located in the sector. Three races and numerous more factions all vying for their own goals. They are the Zerg, Protoss, and Terran. The Terran are a human race, however they have been split into several factions by corrupt officials and a lot of lies. The main force is the Terran Dominion, and they will most likely be enemies to you. The Zerg, however, are the main problem, as they are the race that have partnered up with the family." Frank explained.
"But it doesn't add up. The family and the Zerg have always been out for number one, and everybody else is just meat. Even weirder is why the family would show interest in this sector, as no matter who wins, they wouldn't have a hope of controlling it, especially if the Zerg emerge victorious. We are still trying to work out what their goal is here, but for now all we can do is watch." Sophie added.
"Which is why you lot won't be getting involved in that battle just yet. Sophie will be heading down herself and meeting up with a batch of rebels to keep an eye on the goings-on in the Koprulu Sector. In the meantime, you boys can do a little cleanup." Frank concluded.
He opened up a map showing several new worlds to Sora and Riku. Some new, some old. "Take your pick. They all have an infestation problem. Your job is to clean them out." Frank rolled up the map again and handed it to Sora. "I'll contact you if anything comes up. Don't expect me though unless it's urgent. If you need to contact me, the location of this mansion can now be found on your Gummi anytime you need to restock or just rest. You're welcome anytime."
"Thanks, Frank." Sora bowed, and then turned to his new team; Himself, Riku, Cloud, Kaine and Victor. "Well guys, what are we waiting for? Let's go!" Sora ran off toward the mansion door, but Riku stopped him.
"And just where are we going, Captain?" Riku asked. Sora pulled out the map and chose at random.
"Here!" He pointed to a Victorian-style town with a large tall clock tower standing proud from it. "Old London Town..."
"Well then, now we can get going." The group walked with Sora this time, toward the door.
"You know, we could have picked when we got in the Gummi, Riku." Sora commented.
"Oh, hush, you..." Riku answered back as they walked off.
After Sora and the gang had left, Sophie turned toward Frank and asked "Are you sure we shouldn't just tell them?"
"They'll find out for themselves soon enough. Besides, they don't need such information bogging them down at the moment. It's best they find out when the time is right." Frank turned to head back to his study. "Now get going, Mr. Raynor is waiting for you." She turned to head towards the door herself. As she walked through, she uttered one last thing:
"I hope you know what you're doing, brother."
Chapter End
A/N: STARCRAFT! OMG! Who guessed it? Anyone? What I doubt anyone didn't guess however was that last part. So, was the wait worth it? (My conscience: NO!) Review and tell me what you think!