Book II, Part II: Outbreak - Convergence
Chapter III: Voyages
[July 16, 2152 | Trabia, Bika Snowfield | 10:58 AM]
Yuki Kurabasa's boots crunched across the snowy grass that covered the plains surrounding Trabia, followed closely by the other two SeeD members who were along with her on patrol. They had been at it for nearly an hour, covering almost four miles with ease in the timeframe which put them reasonably close to the edge of Trabia Garden's zone of influence. Much like the other Gardens, Trabia Garden held recognized territory around its main campus, extending for a radius of six miles on land from the grounds, as well as three nautical miles from any coastlines into international waters. Notably, the space was open and free of any delineations whatsoever; Garden relied on constant surveillance from Trabia itself as well as frequent patrols instead of static perimeter defense like fences or watchtowers. A mobile force like SeeD could easily respond to any attack or threat that they saw coming, which was made relatively simple with their constant scans across the open plains of Bika.
"Lieutenant Kurabasa reporting," she said into her GLD, noting the time - 1100 hours precisely. "No hostile threats present. Resuming patrol."
"Copy, Lieutenant," a voice said from the other end, one of the officers assigned to patrol monitoring. Their patrol had begun at 1000 hours, a standard two-hour patrol that Yuki had come to view as entirely mundane, with check-ins to command every thirty minutes barring contact with something which would merit a warning outside of that timeframe. She patrolled once almost every day when not on missions, a task that was as much about continuing physical conditioning as security, and she rather enjoyed the chance to be outside in the wilderness in such a peaceful area. The occasional monster foraging for prey broke up the monotony on most days, but today had seen no such threats.
Yuki reached into a small pack she carried, withdrawing a bottle of water and taking a drink as the trio took a momentary rest. Junctioned SeeD could exert themselves for hours before their bodies truly began to feel the effects of the activity, bolstered by the magic within them, but there was no need to do so on such a routine patrol.
"Lieutenant," one of the SeeD started, causing Yuki to turn and see them pointing off into the distance. "Something's there."
Yuki's eyes drifted in the direction of the SeeD's gesture, leading to something she couldn't quite see from where they were. It looked like one of the large Snow Lion creatures that roamed the plains...but the odd, sea lion-like creature seemed to be hovering off the ground. At least, that's what it looked like, she thought to herself, squinting and covering her eyes to see better over the large distance. Her eyes widened as she heard the monster howl in pain right before its body was shredded apart, pieces of it flying around the snowy ground before they dissolved into magical energy, and she saw a humanoid figure for a brief moment before the sound of static filled the air around them.
"Hello, child."
Xeria Esquina stared down at the shorter girl in front of her, hair lashing around her like striking snakes as a small smile began to cross her face. The two SeeD officers with Yuki immediately drew pistols from their side, pointing them at the Espada, but tendrils of hair struck out with blinding speed and sliced the weapons apart before coiling around each of them. Yuki barely had any time to react as the duo screamed, their bodies being crushed by the sinuous fibers before Xeria tossed their maimed forms aside like trash.
"I've been told to offer you an invitation," Xeria began, eyes shining with malicious glee, "but I hardly feel you've earned it. Let's see if you can live up to the impressions my master has of you, hm?"
The strands of hair dove at Yuki again, and the plains lit up with the sounds and flashes of magic as the young girl began to fight for her life.
Yuki Kurabasa was, by all accounts, a magical prodigy the likes of which Garden had not seen in years. She was talented in white and black magic alike, as well as the rare gift of Blue Magic, giving her a dizzying array of options to choose from for almost any situation. Her bloodline gift of the Kurabasa family was the strongest that had been seen in the family for nearly twenty years, giving her a natural affinity to the Ice element and a degree of power surprising for someone so young, though she hesitated to wield her power in combat before attempting diplomacy first. She was skilled with a blade, though not as much as her brother, and Garden training had given her the basics of a vast array of other skills such as firearms, archery, survival skills, and much more.
None of that was helping her here against her vastly superior opponent.
She had vaguely heard Ben mention a group called the Espada in one of the many stories she'd been told since he opened up to her and her brother about who he was - who he really was. So, when she heard the woman introduce herself in an arrogant tone as "Xeria Esquina, the Novena Espada," she had quickly surmised that she was far in over her head in terms of combat potential. She had tried to flee, using Float magic to levitate the two SeeD that had fallen and Mighty Guard to try and protect her as she fled with Haste magic, but the Espada had closed the distance in the blink of an eye with a movement skill that seemed extremely similar to Ben's own speed, tearing apart her powerful defensive Blue Magic barehanded as if it was nothing. She had no time to try and call for aid with her GLD, as her entire focus had been on defending against the strange woman's hair, of all things, which seemed to have a mind of its own and struck like a dozen lashing Anacondaurs all at once.
Worst of all, Xeria seemed as if she was barely even trying.
Yuki rolled out of the way of a striking spike of hair, forcing another back with a quick burst of Fira magic - the only thing that seemed to be useful against it - before her body flashed blue as she entered the second stage of her bloodline form. Wisps of frost floated away from her body as her magical power rose, and Xeria found herself momentarily intrigued right before Yuki's body emitted a furious nova of ice in an attempt to give herself some space to breathe. The ice pushed Xeria away, and she was mildly impressed at the force behind it as she skidded to a stop, still watching Yuki as the girl gathered herself from the onslaught Xeria had put her through so far.
Yuki's mind was in a whirl, still trying to catch up and process everything that Xeria had said and figure out why she was being attacked. The Espada had said something about Yuki being offered an 'invitation' that she didn't feel had been earned on behalf of her master...and with Xeria being an Espada from the Nether Plane, as Ben had explained, that meant -
That meant a planar leader had eyes on her for some reason...and the only reason that such a thing might happen, to Yuki's knowledge, was the same reason that Ben and so many others had been sought out.
"Your master...he wants me to be a Planeswalker for him, doesn't he?" Yuki asked suddenly, catching Xeria off guard. She hadn't expected Yuki to know anything about the outer planes - most Hume had no idea and lived in blissful ignorance, after all - let alone to guess what Aizen, and she by extension, was truly after. Grudgingly, Xeria felt her respect for Yuki grow a tiny bit. It seemed that the girl was far more intelligent and rational than most, even under pressure.
"My, my...you figured it out," Xeria said, letting her normal arrogant persona return to the forefront. "Yes, child, my master wants you as his newest chosen. It is a great honor for Lord Aizen to champion a Planeswalker...even if he must look to a lesser race for candidates."
"Then this is a test," Yuki said, keeping her guard up. Xeria seemed content to speak for the moment, but that could change in the blink of an eye.
"Of a sort," the Espada replied, waving a hand in the air. "The Nether Plane prides itself on strength. Only the most powerful can rise through the ranks to the Espada, and the Planeswalkers that are chosen stand on esteemed ground. If you cannot prove to me that you are worthy, then...well, the world will not miss one measly Hume."
Yuki felt the hairs on her arms stand on end. Xeria's statement was perfectly clear - if she didn't put up enough of a fight to make it worth the Espada's time, she'd simply be killed here, no questions asked. There was no likelihood of reinforcements or rescue, no time to escape...the only thing she could do now was fight. That was a thought to put steel in her spine, she realized. SeeD didn't back down or run away, instead facing every challenge head on and moving past it with their wits, skill, and ingenuity.
She'd simply have to do the same.
Still...
"...I don't want to fight you," Yuki said after a moment, frowning just faintly. She still didn't enjoy the idea of fighting, SeeD or not - it wasn't why she had joined the organization in the first place. "Shouldn't I be proving myself to your master if he wants me to be his next chosen?"
Xeria let out a short, barking laugh. "Little girl, you don't have a choice in this matter. Either you prove to me that you have potential..."
Her hand rose, aiming in the direction of the two fallen SeeD members that Yuki had tried to move out of harm's way as violet light shimmered across her fingers.
"...or I will slaughter those two men you tried so hard to protect."
Yuki tensed, finally pulling the short blade she carried from its sheath as she moved to stand in front of the two downed SeeD, making her decision without hesitation.
"I won't let that happen."
(Play: She Has to Overcome Her Fear - Yuki Kajiura, Sword Art Online)
Xeria's hand snapped back towards Yuki, releasing a quick burst of weak Bala blasts in her direction that the young girl met with an equal number of Fira spells, countering Xeria's attack before bursting through the smoke cloud to meet her in closer combat. If the Espada wanted her to prove herself, then she'd hold nothing back and show her that she was worthy of the position her mysterious master was offering. Her wakizashi flashed out and met iron-hard threads of hair as Xeria smiled, the whip-like strands lashing out and clashing with Yuki's weapon as well as any forged steel could. The blade lit up with fiery energy an instant later, sending embers flaring as she channeled Firaga magic into it and let loose with an explosion of power at point-blank range that her hastily-crafted Shell protected her from.
Xeria frowned as she took a step back - the girl had a decent amount of power for one so young, but it was nothing she couldn't easily handle. Still, the ease with which she channeled that energy for spells and enhancements was surprising, she thought to herself. She watched as the girl reappeared behind the smoke cloud, setting up for another attack, and her hair rose to block the attack instinctively as it had before.
She didn't expect an ethereal mallet of force to superimpose itself over Yuki's blade, however, and the translucent power phased right through the block she had prepared and smashed into her body, the girl's Magic Hammer tearing a portion of her mana away with startling ease. The tendrils of hair whipped out again before Yuki could react, smashing into her body and hurling her away in a wickedly fast defensive strike. She had expected a simple test, one in which the girl's relatively meager power was no match for her superior might as an Arrancar...but the girl clearly had a few tricks up her sleeve.
Maybe this would be worth the trip after all.
Yuki got back to a kneeling position quickly and the inside of her sleeve shimmered as she called on her alchemy knowledge, the ground underneath Xeria shifting and elongating to try and trap her with ropes of earth, but her long hair easily sliced apart the rocky shackles even as the Arrancar raised a hand and sent a burst of poisonous power at Yuki. The SeeD was already moving, however, rolling away under the wave of venom and drawing again on her bloodline powers. Icy shards erupted from the ground like a hail of arrows, flying upward to slice into hair and flesh alike right before Xeria let a burst of reiatsu explode around her, shattering the icy fragments into nothingness and dashing forward. She wasn't using Sonido, but her movements were still rapid to Yuki as the younger girl found herself defending against a flurry of strikes from the blade now in Xeria's hand. Sparks flew briefly as Yuki's weapon met Xeria's, and the SeeD's sword lit up briefly with electrical energy that conducted itself through Xeria's and into her body. The electrical discharge wasn't particularly damaging to Xeria, but it surprised her just enough for Yuki to have time to draw on her Blue Magic again.
The air in front of Yuki shimmered and began to turn an orange hue as a sphere of power materialized between the two, and Yuki leapt back right before her Blastbomb went off, detonating squarely in Xeria's face in a large explosion that scorched the earth around the Arrancar. Even as Yuki moved she was casting again, ethereal feathers of power appearing around her before flying out like daggers as she launched her Feather Storm only to have Xeria cut them out of the air before any could connect. For a moment, she felt a stab of fear and hopelessness, dismayed that nothing she could do was seeming to have any effect on her much more powerful foe. The Espada looked more annoyed than anything even with all the magic Yuki had hit her with in a short time, but she wasn't going to give up just yet.
Xeria vanished in the next moment, appearing in front of Yuki in a burst of Sonido and driving a fist into her stomach without any warning. Yuki doubled over, the wind gone from her chest and spit flying from her lips before Xeria's hair grabbed her and lifted, smashing her into the ground in another strike before hurling her away as if she was nothing more than a discarded paper cup. She started coughing as she hit the ground, trying to pull air back into her lungs - her junctions hadn't even seemed to matter against the strike, such was the Espada's raw strength, and her mind was sluggish as she tried to refocus through the pain.
"You are quite the pest, girl," Xeria said, slowly stepping forward as if she had all the time in the world. "Weaklings like you have no right to hold such an important station."
Yuki rose to her feet again, her blade held in a shaky hand as she cast Cura on herself to try and dull some of the pain. She only needed to hold out a bit longer, she hoped. She still wasn't seeing any way to win, yet she refused to give up...not without playing her entire hand. Azure gales of energy swirled around her briefly before sinking into her body as she activated her Dragon Force ability, boosting her power by a significant amount as she dashed off in a wide circle around Xeria, wind howling from her hands as she cast a powerful Tornado at the Novena Espada. Xeria was actually surprised as she felt herself leave the ground, picked up and carried by the buffeting, slicing funnel of wind for several seconds before she regained control of her movement. She propelled herself out of the tornado with a platform of reiatsu as it started to dissipate, looking around and spotting Yuki an instant later, and a quick Bala from her outstretched hand narrowly missed the SeeD as she threw herself to the ground.
'The girl would make a decent Fraccion,' Xeria mused, reluctantly conceding to herself that Aizen may have been on to something after all. The only thing she had to do now was end this charade, take her back to Aizen, and figure out how to subvert the girl from Aizen's control over time.
"Are there any more parlor tricks you wish to try, girl?" Xeria said, mocking disdain dripping from every word. She was trying to get a rise out of the girl, hoping to bait her into attacking without thinking so that she could finish this with minimal effort.
The girl's slight smile and response surprised her.
"Just one."
Yuki bounded high into the air, Float magic allowing her to leap dozens of feet in the air and keep herself aloft as motes of light shimmered from the ground all around Xeria. The Arrancar looked around for an instant before realizing that Yuki had caught her in a trap as the lights brightened, then exploded with impressive force, the magical mines Yuki had seeded in the area over the course of the fight detonating at her command even as she prepared one last spell. Green light gathered in her hands as she pointed both palms down at Xeria, the energy crackling around her hands and arms, and she pushed every drop of mana she could into the Ultima that she released at the Espada. It hit the ground like a bomb, erupting into a terrifyingly powerful black detonation of magic that enveloped everything in the area in as much power as she could muster. The Float magic dissipated from her body as she landed, knees wobbling under the exhaustion of all the mana she'd expended over the course of the fight, and she watched to see if there was any sign of Xeria in the middle of where the explosions had gone off.
Xeria stood in the middle of what was now a sizable crater, skin and clothing smoking and the dress she wore torn in several places from the collision of the powerful magical attacks. The smile on her face was gone, replaced by panting and a look of anger on her face - she was an Espada! There was no way some...some weak Hume child should have been able to even scratch her, let alone make her seriously defend against an attack!
She'd pay for that.
Xeria's hand rose again, and a high-pitched whine erupted as a violet beam of energy cut through the air towards Yuki, the Cero flying on a path of certain death for the young SeeD in front of her. Only once she had released it did she realize what she'd done - if she killed the one in front of her, she'd certainly die once Aizen heard of her mistake. He would never tolerate such an unimaginable failure, but she knew she wasn't fast enough even with her Sonido to stop the Cero or somehow protect the child before it killed her. She had sealed her own fate with her reckless anger.
Yuki's eyes widened as she watched the beam of energy rocket towards her in what seemed like slow-motion, inching forward like an unstoppable instrument of doom. She could feel the heat from the attack, see every ripple in the magical beam's surface as it wavered in the air...but she couldn't move. She was exhausted, her legs like lead weights unable to even consider the thought of carrying her away. Desperate, she threw her hands up in front of her and reached inside herself for her magic, frantically trying to cast something, anything that would ward off the impending death that was coming for her.
Deep within her, something stirred and answered.
Yuki's hands began to emit a bright blue glow as the Cero's energy seemed to flow towards them, drawn inwards to her hands and body by a force that Yuki couldn't explain and had never felt before. She felt the energy drain into her body, filling her reserves of mana as if it was an ocean being dumped into a bucket and turning her body painfully hot as the light from the blast began to subside. She felt as if she was on fire from the inside, dimly aware of the cry escaping her lips as she stumbled, her body unable to cope with the energy it had just absorbed. She caught one last glimpse of Xeria as she started to fall, her mind shutting down from the pain and overload of energy, and she knew nothing else as she lapsed into unconsciousness on the snowy plains.
(End: She Has to Overcome Her Fear - Yuki Kajiura, Sword Art Online)
Xeria stood silently on the snowy plains for several long seconds, wondering exactly what she had just seen. A simple Hume girl had managed to defend against a full-power Cero from one of the ten Espada...not only that, there was no sign that the Cero had hurt her at all.
Impossible.
And yet, she thought to herself, it had happened. She had witnessed something that, for once, she truly had no explanation for. It cemented something in her mind as she walked closer, now strangely wary of an unconscious being leagues below her power.
Aizen was right.
She didn't know why or how, and it galled her with every fiber of her being to admit, but Aizen was right. There was something about this girl that was far more than it seemed, and now more than ever she realized she needed to find a way to have the girl under her charge in order to aid her goals of ruling the Nether Plane. Aizen would have a close eye on her, of course...at first. His interest in his other Planeswalkers had waned over time, after all, and despite the girl's apparent nature she knew that the Hume would be no different.
Which meant that all she needed to do was wait, biding her time until she could subvert Aizen's influence piece by tiny piece. Time was irrelevant to her, so long as she maintained her station - she would live centuries longer, millennia even, and as an Ancient she would have no need to worry about such meager things as age.
She reached the girl and bent down, easily lifting her prone form with one hand. Her body was almost hot to the touch, still radiating mana from the Cero that Xeria had launched even while unconscious. The Espada casually tossed Yuki over her shoulder, giving no heed to the two SeeD still lying unconscious in the area as she reached up with her other hand and pulled a finger down through the air. A rippling portal of black energy seemed to unzip in the air in front of her, jagged edges surrounding a void that would take her back to the Nether Plane, and she felt a smile cross her face unbidden.
Shiroka, too, had been right - coming to get the girl had proven to be infinitely more interesting and useful than she had thought.
[July 16, 2152 | Esthar, Residential District, Safehouse | 9:13 PM]
Ben yawned as he finished his sweep of the safehouse that he was currently residing in, one of many Garden-owned properties - all legal yet secretive, of course - that SeeD used while in Esthar on business. It was standard procedure to inspect each dwelling upon arriving for security due to the infrequency of any given building's use. Ben had performed the standard security sweep immediately upon arriving, and Tetsuya and Connor were currently unloading the few things they had brought with them on the mission from their vehicle. Naoki was already inside with Ben, setting up a small laptop computer on the table for them to work from. Tetsuya grunted from the doorway, almost stumbling as the bag he was carrying caught on the edge, and Ben pulled it open further to let him and Connor back inside before shutting it behind them.
"Everything good?" Tetsuya asked, and Ben nodded.
"Sweep was clear - everything is intact and secure. We're good to go."
"Good," Connor said, nodding. "That means we can start coming up with a plan."
"Before we do that," Ben started, looking around at the other three SeeD, "does anyone know anything about the Tsurimi family in general?" Naoki and Connor both shook their heads, but Tetsuya spoke up a few moments later.
"Not a lot, but my dad and I got to meet them a few times. Business dinners and stuff, you know."
"You've dined with royalty?" Ben said, grinning a little. "Impressive."
"For nobles, they're not all that bad," Tetsuya said with a shrug. "Little stuffy, but the daughters were nice."
"Daughters?" Connor broke in, heading to the kitchen to grab a drink as Naoki finished setting the computer up on the kitchen table.
"Yeah - Diana and Mariko. Diana's the older, probably around our age or a little older now. Mariko was a kid when I met her, so she's probably in her teens."
"Leave it to you to notice the ladies," Ben cracked, earning an eye roll and a punch to the shoulder from Tetsuya.
"So, are their parents an old king and queenship from before the presidency?" Naoki asked.
"Duke and Duchess, actually," Tetsuya said. "Yuji and Aika Tsurimi, I think - I haven't heard their names in a long time. Dad said the main royal line all died off or were killed, and since the presidency was formed they never actually named another king from the remaining successors. President Loire continued to let them keep the titles out of respect, though, even though they don't really have any true power anymore."
"So, basically, they get to continue to be nobility as long as they don't cause trouble for the nation itself," Connor added, causing Tetsuya to nod.
"Pretty much, yeah."
"Where do they live? They still have a mansion or castle or something, right?" Ben ventured, leaning against the sofa.
"It's a few miles from the Presidential Palace. Walled off with its own guards and everything. Mostly, it's kind of a tourist attraction nowadays. They don't let anyone in unless they're hosting some grand gala or the like, but besides the Duke of Dollet, they're probably one of the few remaining families you could call a real royal family, so they get a lot of people coming here just to try and sneak a peek at royalty."
"Is that right..."
Ben got a strange grin on his face, eyes drifting down as he considered Tetsuya's words.
"Sounds like tomorrow, we need to go be tourists."
"I know that look," Tetsuya said. "You're thinking about something crazy, aren't you."
"No, no, nothing that crazy," Ben replied, shaking his head. "But it won't hurt us to go take a look around, even if we just pass by on the streets and act the amazed out-of-towner. Depending on how much of a guard force they actually have, we might be able to do a bit more active recon with Vanish magic, or something similar." He shrugged, turning to Naoki. "You're the stealth expert, so I'll let you take the lead if we try anything along those lines."
"Willing to cede command that easily?" Connor asked, quirking an eyebrow. "I'd think you'd want an iron grip on a first command."
"It's not about command," Ben said a bit quickly as he started to tamp down the annoyance that threatened to bubble up at the question. He wasn't sure why he was suddenly irritated at the words, only that he was. "Mission comes first. I don't know everything, and that's why I have a team at my back. Doesn't make sense for me to try and muddle my way through at the lead if I've got someone who can do it better."
"I suppose that's fair," he conceded. Still, he didn't seem to be entirely settled, Ben noted. He decided not to worry about it for now - if Connor had any issues, it could be aired tomorrow once they'd all had some rest.
"So, let's call it a night - we can head out to take a look around in the morning. We've got two days to come up with a good plan, so let's make the most of it."
No matter how much had changed with Ben since he first went to Spira long ago, one thing had apparently remained a certainty - no amount of power, prestige, or friendship helped with his recurring issues of getting a good night's sleep when he needed it most. He glanced at the clock - 2:14 AM - before hopping out of bed quietly and heading towards the kitchen. He grabbed a glass from the cabinet above the sink and started to fill it with water, listening to the quiet running of the tap to try and put his mind more at ease. The glass had just gone to his lips when he heard a soft footstep from behind him, and he slowly put the glass down as he wondered who else would be awake at this hour.
"Couldn't sleep?" a voice said from behind him, causing him to turn and see Connor standing in the doorway of the kitchen. Ben shook his head, taking another drink from the glass before setting it down on the counter again.
"What are you doing up?" he asked in return.
"Heard a noise, thought I'd check it out," Connor said nonchalantly, shrugging. "Something bothering you?"
"Just...nerves," Ben said after a moment, pulling out one of the chairs at the kitchen table and sitting down with his drink. Connor took that as an invitation, stepping over and doing the same in order to face Ben.
"First command...must be rough," Connor offered, causing Ben to nod.
"Yeah...a little," Ben admitted. "Command's not exactly what I expected to be doing right now. Not my area of expertise...I'm used to working in a team as equals, not leading one."
"That why you made an offer to...Naoki, was it?" Connor asked, leaning back in the chair.
Ben bristled a little once again, but realized Connor probably didn't mean anything by it. He was just tired, and reading too deeply into an innocent question. "No, that's not it at all. Like I said, Naoki's a stealth specialist - if there's anyone I trust to know how to get in and out of a place undetected, it's him. I know the basics of infiltration, but he's got the mind for something like this if we need it."
Connor nodded slowly, seeming to accept the explanation. "Old friend of yours or something?"
"Not really 'old,' I guess. I've known him for a few months now. He's in the combat division with Tetsuya - he introduced me after they got out of a class with Angel one day."
"Angel? Are you talking about Instructor Bayloh?"
Connor had heard Liam Bayloh's nickname before - he was one of the combat instructors at Balamb whom he'd had classes under in the past. Nearly everyone who knew him still just called him 'Instructor Bayloh' out of respect, though. Why, then, was a random Trabian SeeD calling him by a name he'd only heard in passing?
"Yeah, sorry...habit. Forgot that everyone doesn't call him that," Ben amended, noticing that Connor suddenly looked intrigued at the mention of his fellow Planeswalker.
"You must know him pretty well, then."
"...You could say that, yeah. We've done some missions together, stuff like that."
It was pretty obvious to Connor that Ben's demeanor had suddenly changed, and the idea of him knowing a Balamb Instructor that well made him think that maybe there was something to some of the rumors about the boy he'd been hearing.
"What kind of missions?"
"Eh...mostly normal things. Escort, guard details, diplomacy stuff. Couple classified things. Nothing too big, really," Ben said, absently rubbing at his chest as if to scratch a sudden itch there.
"Combat?"
"Enough," Ben replied, nodding. "Well, enough that I got a pretty clear picture of how far I've got left to go with my own skills, anyway. It's good motivation."
What Ben was saying told Connor a lot in just a few words. Liam Bayloh was a consummate professional, known around Garden for being someone who finished a mission no matter what. He'd heard rumors that the instructor had never failed a mission in his entire career, though he believed that to be somewhat far-fetched even given how skilled the man seemed to be in the brief glimpses Connor had gotten. For Ben to be on missions with him - which seemed to be simply two-man missions, since Ben hadn't mentioned a team at all beyond the instructor - meant that there was assuredly a lot more to the SeeD officer in front of him than he was seeing. The mention of classified missions hadn't escaped his notice either. For a Lieutenant, or perhaps not even that high of a rank at the time, to even be within arm's reach of anything remotely worthy of being classified was nowhere near normal.
Which meant he needed to be on his guard. The unknown was dangerous, no matter whether it was friend or foe.
Ben raised his glass again, draining the last of the water inside before rising from the table and setting the glass down inside the sink. Talking with Connor had helped some, and his mind felt a bit more relaxed now that he'd had a few good minutes to focus on something other than his own nervous thoughts. "I'm gonna try and hit the sack again," he said, starting to move past Connor on his way out of the kitchen. "See you in the morning."
"Yeah...see you then," Connor said absently, still focused on the brief conversation they'd had as he was left alone in the kitchen with his thoughts. He was still wary, but he was at least a bit more assured in Ben's - and his team's, by association - ability to make sure the mission was carried out. Something about the whole thing still left his mind uneasy, though. Maybe he was just reading too much into things. He couldn't say for certain, but whatever it was, he was going to get to the bottom of it. He smoothly rose from the table and slid his chair back in before spinning to flip the light switch, plunging the house back into darkness as he headed back to his room, ready to face a new day and new challenge...in more ways than one.