Feyd left the inn he had stayed the night alone and headed straight for the military headquarters.
Something felt weird, though it might just be anxiety since he was about to enlist into the military, specifically as a Manipulator.
He recalled his memories of waking up alone in the medical room of the headquarters, and eventually being taken in for interrogation after his small outburst.
He wanted to enlist as a Manipulator since firstly they already had clues that he was one and he had revealed his powers almost immediately after waking up, and secondly Manipulators get much better treatment and opportunities compared to regular soldiers.
They also have much more say in their deployment, much quicker advancements, better training and access to information, and more.
This is because Manipulators are ofcourse incredibly rare and powerful, while also being extremely versatile and useful. Depending on what they manipulate Manipulators could be used for all sorts of purposes.
Earth Manipulators could help make bases, defenses, pit falls, conceal things, etc., water Manipulators can provide water in extreme locations, lightning Manipulators can activate machinery or have their energy converted into magic to activate magical technology, and much much more.
That's not taking into account the pure difference in might between a Manipulator and a non Manipulator. Taking Feyd as an example, if Feyd fought without Rift against multiple versions of himself without Rift or Fire manipulation than he could probably kill dozens if not hundreds before running out of juice.
Ofcourse guns and other projectile weapons can kill him, while bombs, missiles and other large scale attacks would wipe him out.
But that's the case with all soldiers of the same rank, a many power levels higher. Not only that their improvement in strength was much faster than normal people, since they could actively train their abilities that didn't grow weak and tiresome like muscles after a workout, instead just required time for recovery of energy.
Feyd was sure normal people could also grow stronger somehow, but he wasn't sure as to how. Otherwise Manipulators and Gifteds, or powerful monsters, would've taken over the world by now.
Feyd recalled whatever he knew about the military as he prepared to meet Vice Captain Jace.
He had just finished the necessary procedures for entering, having undergone a an hour long test to measure his physical and combat capabilities, before basically being given the green light.
He had already been "tested" during the interrogation so there was no need for an interview, but he was called to meet Vice Captain Jace after a brief rest and meal.
Feyd knocked on the wooden door four times and spoke after a brief pause, "Feyd here, was told you needed me?".
"Come on in!"
A joyous and frivolous voice cam from inside as the door opened by itself without Feyd, or Jace who was at his desk, physically opening it.
'!'
Feyd felt internally shocked but didn't let it show. Instead he calmly entered the room and took a seat, upon which the door behind him closed by itself.
"Ohh, well aren't you going to ask me about the door? Isn't that pretty impressive?"
Jace asked with a slight smirk on his face, his squinty eyes providing a perfect poker face.
"Well it uhh seemed pretty neat, nothing too impressive. I mean, it's just a self opening door"
Feyd answered awkwardly. He had noticed a strange pressure, like the one his interrogator had, beginning to occupy the room.
"Ohhh, I see... Then that must mean you know how it works", Jace feigned a eureka moment as he looked expectantly at Feyd.
"Oh, uhhm well..."
Feyd stumbled on his words for a second, completely unsure of how to answer. He didn't know how that worked! Was that magic? A gift!? He was completely lost...
"Well it would be weirder if you did know, but the way you spoke– and you're nonchalant reaction– makes it seem like you know things you don't know"
Feyd quickly whipped his head to the side as he felt something invisible pass by him. It was an intangible force of some kind, and as it traveled to the end of the room it created a loud banging sound against the door. Jace looked especially sinister at that moment.
A heavy pressure began to weigh down on Feyd, who gritted his teeth and resisted with all his might.
"Grr... Is this what, you called me for–?"Feyd barely managed to speak through gritted teeth. Jace looked at him expressionless for a second before the pressure vanished completely, as if it was never there.
Only the sweat clinging to Feyd's body was a trace of its existence.
"Well it seems you really don't know about it, hmm. Well, let's go with this. How about you can ask me any one question, that's not THAT confidential, and I'll answer it before we get downnto business. Hmm? You tempted?" Jace tilted his head slightly, his expression slightly remorseful and apologetic, yet his the slits that were his eyes felt like a snake coiling around Feyd.
A strange feeling welled up from within Feyd. This was a test of some kind, and he really wasn't sure what he was being tested on, or what was the correct move.
'What is all of this!? I just want to join the military, why can't you just let me join normally!?'
Ofcourse Feyd know that his situation was unusual, but he still couldn't help but vent internally.
Feyd paused for a few moments letting silence linger in the air between the two of them. Feyd was too deep in thought to feel awkward while Jace sipped some tea, seemingly incapable of losing his composure or feeling awkward.
'I really don't know what he's testing me on... Not only that, I'm not sure of this is his own actions or something he was told to do'
'Ahhh why is this so troublesome? If only I had an intelligent, telepathic companion to help me out...'
Feyd subconsciously scratched his head slightly.
'Well he might be testing me on my intentions, whether I'm a spy or something. I'm not sure why though, they've already investigated me. Are they really that untrusting?'
'This could also be a way to tell what kind of a person I am? But the real question here will be how is he going to interpret my answers...'
Feyd pondered for a few more seconds before coming to a conclusion. He would ask about something he needed to know about, if he wanted to grow stronger.
"I have my question ready"
Jace continued staring at Feyd, though he did put down the cup of tea he was about to sip from.
"I want to know about the different types of supernatural powers, and how people get stronger"
Jace raised his eyebrows slightly with an overly animated expression. He made an 'o' with his mouth before nodding slowly.
'I hope this bodes well...'
Feyd had decided to ask about the different supernatural powers of the world, and the path of strength of their users. He knew there were much more ways to get stronger, and proper classifications for his own powers, which were Gifts and Manipulation.
Otherwise how would people have survived dragons, pheonixes and other crazy monsters? With guns? Or a bow and arrow, some swords?
Manipulators and Gifteds were far too rare to be relied upon for the survival of humanity, and thus the common soldiers must've had a method to gain power themselves too!
"Well that is an interesting question... Are you sure?"
"Yes sir, I am sure"
Jace slowly nodded before making a slight cough then straightening his posture. He looked directly into Feyd's eyes as he spoke.
"The two most well known are Manipulators and Gifteds. The chances of a person being one is 1 in 100,000 and 1 in 1,000,000 respectively. There have been rising and lowering trends for their appearances throughout history without any discernable cause, but that is the average"
"Manipulators, as you most probably know, can manipulate an element of some kind. Be it your fire, or maybe water. They can however get more proficient with a certain way of channeling their abilities, with higher efficiency. That is called a skill"
"Such a thing exists with most supernatural powers. Gifteds are a bit more special. They are very flexible in their abilities yet can also be very narrow. Their abilities can be anything unrelated to Manipulators"
"One may have the power to silence their surroundings, while another may be able to shrink and enlarge others and themselves. Not only that, Gifts can change, evolve and grow in response to their users"
"Now what I'm going to say are things the public will probably never come into contact with"
Feyd leaned forward slightly at those words, clearly excited and filled with anticipation.
"Almost all humans have the capacity to acquire an 'Energy'. This energy is something that can be channeled through the user for different effects, with different energies being better at different things"
"The three most common, and safest, being Aura, Mana and Ki. Aura is the combination of your will power and your life force, with a wide array of uses. It can boost your damage while preventing enemies from healing, or boost your own defenses and clear enemy influences. You can bear a pressure onto your enemies or you can directly attack their mind"
"Mana is the most versatile. It is purely your life force, and when I'm referring to life force I don't mean your permanent vitality, what I'm referring to is like your stamina in sorts. It is the most versatile with the most array of uses. Although not as good as Aura or Ki in what they can do, Mana can do what they can and more. It is used in magic and creation of magical items while also being the safest and most stable energy"
"And lastly is Ki. This is the most volatile and dangerous energy, but nothing crazy. It is the combination between your life force and physical body's energy. It has extremely high destructive potential and it's main uses are purely combat. High damage and high defense"
"They can all be trained by continously using them or improving the attributes they orginate from. For example you can improve your willpower or life force to strengthen your Aura, or train it specifically or use it a lot to make it stronger"
Feyd kept nodded his head the whole time, completely entranced by the explanation. Meanwhile Jace internally seemed quite satisfied with the current situation, for reasons unkown.
"Howevwr you would've learned most of this in training anyways so you basically wasted your question"
Feyd froze for a moment, his expression turning bitter and sour as his brows twitched slightly.
"Really?"
Jace nodded.
"However I would feel bad sending you off like this with a wasted question. So I'll tell you a few neat details you wouldn't normally get to learn."
A slightly grateful expression appeared on Feyd's face however inwardly this whole time he had been putting his guard up. He could never be sure if this was a trick or a ruse or a scheme or anything!
"First of all, if someone with a Gift or Manipulation dies they condensed their power into a crystal which seeps out of their body as a crystal from their heads"
Feyd became internally surprised though he didn't let anything show.
"They can be used by ordinary people to gain the same powers, though compatibility is the real issue. Once a crystal has been used it is gone forever. However the best use is to find someone with similar powers, like Water Manipulation and Ice Manipulation, which would give a boost to the user of the crystal while maybe even inheriting a new element in some way"
Feyd slowly nodded, realizing the importance of the crystal. It sure was great it was hidden somewhere in the bandit camp. By whom? He didn't know. Why? He knew now, but before...
Jace gave Feyd a strange smile before continuing, looking a bit different.
"Next the three energies I mentioned can be utilized in special ways to use cool skills or unlock new Abillities"
"There are also other, less commonly known energies that can be derived from these three or just by itself completely"
Feyd and Jace continued talking for another few dozen minutes before Feyd could finally leave, all of his procedures done. However just as Feyd was about to leave he heard a voice calling out to him.
"Oh yes, Feyd, one last thing"
Feyd turned back to glance at his superior.
"Don't talk so casually with your superiors. I let you off easily, but others won't be so kind"