Chapter 7: More Than Meets The Eye (Part 1/2)
"This looks like a good spot. We are conducting the training here," Esdeath says, our horses coming to a stop in an arena like clearing amidst the trees. Dismounting our horses, I stretch my arms and legs while Bols removes the giant lug of equipment from his mount. Sprawling it out on the grass on a tarp, there's a whole arsenal of many different weapons.
"Go ahead and pick out what you like. We'll focus your training around what you choose," Esdeath says.
"R-Right off the bat?!" I gasp.
"But of course. I don't think you need any basics coming from the other army and all or would you prefer to get my version of the basics?" She offers, her smirk making my skin crawl. I've already had my fair share of her almost killing me so I'm all good on that front!
"I-I think I-I'll have to respectfully pass on that," I stutter.
"Not willing to let your leader have a little test run? Truly a shame then. I'm sure you'll reconsider in the future," she shrugs, feigning her insulted tone. Best to leave it at that and not entertain her. Last thing I want is her seeing me as a second Tatsumi to toy with though I fear the ship already sailed the second she recruited me. Looking over the weapons, I immediately spot a greatsword with a pretty big blade. I trained with something kinda similar at one of the Revolutionary Army's boot camps.
"Close quarters wise, I'll go with this one," I say. Picking it up, I notice how weirdly easy it is to lift.
"Uh, isn't that a little heavy for you?" Wave inquires.
"Not really. Feels pretty light to me," I answer, practicing some swings using only my right hand.
"Huh, no wonder Seryu actually got a scratch on her trying to apprehend you. You're stronger than you seem," he says.
"Actually, I—," I begin to explain.
"Yep! He's definitely far from your typical spy types! Isn't that right, Tets?" Seryu quickly interjects, playfully elbowing me in the gut.
"Oof! O-Oh yeah! Definitely! Only the best get put in Night Raid similar to how I'm sure you all are the best of the Capital!" I concur, chuckling. I almost spilled the beans by complete accident so I appreciate the save. Had she elbowed me any harder though, she would've taken me out again!
"So much for all that humbleness you were about in your little introduction," Kurome plainly remarks. An invisible arrow emotionally pierces my heart.
"I-I'm still humble! Can't a guy flex his skills once in a while when it's actually relevant?" I inquire.
"That's what we're here for, isn't it? Put your money where your mouth is already or don't. Either way, I don't really care," she casually shrugs before pulling out a small bag of chips. If you don't care, then why call me out on it?! Talk about harsh!
"Ahem!" Esdeath clears her throat loudly, grabbing my attention. "Assuming you're done, are you ready to train?"
"A-Absolutely!" I answer.
"Very well. Wave, you'll be helping me assess Tetsuo. Go ahead and equip Grand Chariot's armor," she instructs.
"W-Wait what?!" I exclaim, taking a couple steps back.
"R-Right away? If you say so, General," Wave takes out his Imperial Arms and plunges it into the dirt. "Grand Chariot!" A flash of blue flames engulf his body and dissipates, leaving him in a dark blue suit of armor with a matching sword. It's just like Incursio?! "Alright, Tetsuo! Esdeath seems confident about this so…," he gets into a stance. "Show me what you can do without an Imperial Arms!" He suddenly dashes towards me. My body moves into a defensive position on its own, blocking against his charge. I-I'm not losing immediately?! How the hell?!
"This is far from fair, Esdeath!" I shout as I keep pushing back against Wave's blade.
"And yet here you are still somehow standing on your feet when Wave should've ran you over with ease. I think this is plenty fair," Esdeath says.
"Gonna have to agree with her, Tetsuo. What you're doing right now is kinda insane! I mean, you're still using one hand too, like it's nothing! I'm actually getting pretty pumped about this!" Wave chuckles.
"Is that so? Let's see how far I can go then!" I yell. Pulling our blades away from the bind, we clash a few times on our swings.
"You got this, Tets! Give Grand Chariot a run for its money!" Seryu cheers for me. A jolt of energy courses through me in an instant, speeding up my attacks.
"You're getting quicker but it's still not a problem for me," he easily parries my sword, breaking my stance and forcing me to stumble back. With a clean step forward, he thrusts his blade at me. Shit! I don't think I can dodge!
"You can do it, Tets! I know you can!" Seryu chimes in again. Suddenly, I'm able to recover my balance in time and sidestep his attack, appearing to move in slow motion as I do so.
"You're wide open!" I exclaim, taking a swing at his back with all I got. Landing an attack, my sword clinks off of his armor like it's nothing. What?! I know it's an Imperial Arms but I seriously didn't make any kind of dent with that?! Though I can't see his face through his helmet, I know there's a cocky smile on it. Failing to do damage to Wave, time goes back to normal.
"Nice try! On the contrary…," He stops on a dime, transferring the momentum of his lunge into a sharp kick deep into my stomach. I gasp painfully as I feel the wind flee out of my body. The sheer force of his armored kick sends me tumbling across the ground for a few feet. Coughing up blood and taking deep breaths, I struggle to get up as I feel the pain starting to really sink in. Never have I ever taken a hit like that before. If only I could control either of those two strange things going on with my body, then I might actually pose a threat to Wave… but it's too dangerous to try and force either of them out.
"Tetsuo!" Seryu calls out. Looking at her, my brain starts getting all fuzzy. No! Can't go out on getting hit once!
"Seryu… I'm…," I mutter, struggling to stay awake.
"Really? One measly kick and you're down? I know there's more to you than just this," Esdeath says, her icy eyes demand that I get back up or else.
"C'mon, Tetsuo! Are you gonna disappoint the ladies?" Wave taunts as he walks towards me. Looking him up and down, my eyes seem to start scanning Grand Chariot for a weak point of some kind. There's gotta be one somewhere! My eyes lock to his knees. It's gotta be behind the knees!
"Wave, do a Grand Fall," Esdeath commands.
"What? That will kill—," Wave tries to warn.
"If he dies, then he wasted not only my time but Seryu's as well. Am I wrong in that statement?" She looks at Seryu.
"N-No, General," Seryu sighs.
"Geez… Well, an order is an order," Wave leaps high into the air.
"I won't… go down… this easily," I force myself to stand up, regaining breath. My chest is starting to feel heavy and very cold. Every exhale chills my lips. Damn it! Don't start acting up now! Stupid bandage is doing nothing to prevent it from flaring up!
"Seems like he finally got his second wind," Bols comments.
"Now let's see what he does with it," Esdeath adds. Maybe if I warm it up, it'll go away? I desperately rub the bandage on my chest through my shirt hoping to generate some heat as I watch Wave perform a brightly shining blue kick.
"You better dodge this! Grand Fall!" Wave descends rapidly towards the ground. It's no use! It's just making it much worse! I'm gonna have to gamble. I throw my hands up and try to focus as I let the cold take over for once.
"Tetsuo, you're not gonna be able to catch Wave's kick!" Seryu shouts.
"That's not what I'm doing!" I yell. At least not the way she's thinking about it. Wave's coming in super hot now! If I screw up, I'll most likely die. If I overdo it, everyone and this forest might become collateral which is also far from ideal.
"This is foolish! I don't know what your plan is but you better hope that it works!" Wave shouts, only mere seconds away from crashing down on top of me.
"Ha! Trust me! I know it will! It's just as Ser said! I'm far from being typical! Just you wait and see!" I grin wildly. "Watch closely, everyone!" Among the loud rippling winds caused by Grand Fall cutting through the air, I sense the time is at hand.
"Huh… is it just me or is it getting colder?" Bols asks.
"I'm… feeling it too," Seryu affirms.
"Me as well," Kurome nods, chomping on a chip.
"Could it be…?" Run ponders. With Esdeath remaining silent, I look straight at her. Her eyes are locked on me with a delighted smile on her face. I don't know if she knows what I'm preparing for but it makes me strangely happy. Tilting my head back, I close my eyes and everything goes quiet.
"Now, Tetsuo! Unleash your mighty power!" an unknown disembodied voice demands. As you wish. Holding my face with my own hands, icy cold tears quickly flow from my eyes as I open them to look to the sky.
"Freeze! Freeze this unjust world! Permafrost Prison!" I cry out. In an instant, everyone… and everything around me… freezes entirely.