It spoke.
That demon was capable of human speech.
The others stood frozen, feet glued to the ground, numb.
I was too. But some part of me, some hidden, twisted part.
Felt awe.
Felt opportunity.
Even if just for a second, that's what I thought.
And I'd stash it away before that idea fully surfaced.
More importantly.
He knew Soke. I'm certain he just said his name.
Soke's pupils quivered before he adjusted, yellow sparks gradually increasing in intensity.
"Well, that's a surprise. I didn't think I was famous among demons."
"Oh you're famous all right. We even know Chairman Lucien, Arielle, Vadera. We know about it all."
The creature responded in a distorted voice.
Soke's fists clenched, I could tell what he was thinking.
How does he know so much?
Soke wasted no time.
Golden needles ignited in the void, drawn to his grip like iron filings. They fused into a pulsing curve of amber fire that hummed against the air, casting long, rhythmic shadows with every heartbeat of its light.
"Golden Bow."
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
This is far beyond strange, setting aside the fact he knows my name's Soke. Arielle, Vadera, and the Chairman too?
Something's wrong.
Something's happening. And we don't know what.
I'll have to take care of this one quick.
My arms reached for the string, drawing it across my shoulder.
[Divine Resurgence]
Three concentrated streaks of energy exited my bow, spiralling towards the demon.
Let's see how he responds.
Its arms gathered crimson sparks into a focused sphere.
Blast.
Collision.
Shit. They cancelled out.
I need to close the distance.
I lunged closer, the demon's movements mirroring my own.
"What's you going to do now, So-ke??"
Its arms stretched out, weaving a bloody trail of sparks.
They began closing in. Getting hit by that would be bad.
[Shallow light]
My bow sliced a golden arc through the air, meeting his trail.
Nullified.
Each clash sent vibrations crawling up my forearms, something I hadn't felt in a while.
Now.
[Retribution]
Five arrows burst through its body.
"Gaghh!"
No, he's not finished.
His arm whipped in a blur, carving a jagged arc of crimson sparks through the air. A quick retreat into the sky followed as the heat hisses past. My grip tightens; this is the final move.
Once more. [Divine Retribution]
The arrows screamed forward.
The demon twisted; barely, three golden streaks cutting past him in a blur of near misses, leaving scorched trails in the air where he'd been standing.
Okay. I need to be faster.
His arm swung wide, crimson sparks gathering at his fingertips, condensing into something sharp. Jagged shards of red energy crystallised in the air around him, suspended for just a moment.
Ah.
Then launched.
I shifted to the side, not enough.
The first shard caught my cheek, a red line of pain opening across my face. The second grazed the same side, heat dragging across my jaw. The third clipped my leg as I turned.
My balance disrupted, the ground rushing up before I caught myself.
Mid-air, this is the last chance.
Blood traced a slow path down my face.
The demon watched as I began steadying myself.
"Is that all, So-ke?"
I positioned the bow.
Drew the string back slowly, further than before. The amber light along the curve intensified, pulling tight, the air around it bending slightly with the pressure.
"Whew."
[Snipe Shot]
A golden blur burst past.
It landed before the demon could register the emptiness in its stomach.
Straight through.
The creature stood still for a moment, the crimson sparks flickering once, twice.
"So-ke."
Then it folded.
Silence returned to the outskirts.
My body slammed against the floor in a thud.
I straightened slowly, one hand pressed to my face, the warmth of blood against my palm.
That was closer than it should've been.
"Soke!"
The kids rushed up to me, hands pressing against my face and thighs.
Why're you so worried, damn it?
I'm your teacher, cut me some slack. I wouldn't lose.
Still.
"It's all good guys. I had it."
A certain warmth penetrated my heart.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Soke was amazing.
He'd dodged, weaved, and countered an enemy of that caliber.
As expected, he was strong. Beyond belief.
And golden bow. That's just the type of charm I'd want.
If getting one was even possible.
At that moment, two figures landed beside us. The four of us stared back in a daze.
"Oh, Soke. Looks like the fight was a rough one, huh?"
A woman with brown hair curled back, dressed in a white gown spoke to Soke.
He groaned. "Arielle."
Beside the woman was, him!
Zefir.
He stood anchored to the floor, looking down on us.
I saw he was as prideful as I remembered.
And then, for the first time.
"This is your teacher? On the ground from one demon?"
He spoke. Sounding exactly how I'd have expected.
Further, he was ridiculing Soke.
"It was a high-level demon, and he won without any major injuries, cut him some slack," I responded.
He paid no heed to my words. Bluntly: I was ignored.
Again, it was kind of irritating.
Soke brought himself up from the ground, palms pressed against the grass.
"Wasn't much of a fight at all, actually." He groaned. "Why are you here, Arielle?"
"We got signal of a high-level demon being here."
Signal? I do remember Soke once talking about the cadets having technology capable of sensing demons that may pose a real threat.
"I see. And you brought the boy for?"
"The same reason you brought your kids, experience."
Soke sighed.
"Alright, let's just get back to the city."
"Let's."
I stared at Zefir. His eyes hadn't met mine even once. What he seemed to be focused on, was...
Hana?
Why was that?
***
We'd arrived back at the dorms, Miss Arielle and Zefir made their way back with us.
"If you've come all the way here to our dorms, then you must have something else you want, isn't there, Arielle?"
A sly smile ran across her face.
"How perceptive."
She turned to face us.
"Well then, let one of yours spar with Zefir."
Zefir's eyes twitched.
"Wha-"
"Hush it boy, you need to have a spar sooner or later. It's the same with your boys, isn't it, Soke?"
He stayed silent for a moment before replying.
"Fine then."
Part of me felt as if he wanted to show us off.
"Which one of you guys are gonna go."
Arielle's gaze drifted across our faces until she reached a decision.
"How about you?"
Her finger landed on Kai.
"Me?"
"Yes, I'm sure Zefir thinks the same. Right?"
Zefir shrugged, his eyes disengaged.
Although I kept catching him sneak a few peeks at Hana.
Again, what was that?
"Okay, it's decided then! Soke, let's take them to the training grounds."
We followed Arielle and Soke to the dorms training centre.
Wooden floors spread across a wide distance, worn smooth in patches from years of use. Bare walls, clinical lighting, equipment racks lining the far side. A space built to work in, not to impress. Clashes here would echo throughout the whole room.
Standing on the opposite sides - Zefir and Kai.
"Oh, Soke. Does your boy have a charm?"
"Freshly cultivated."
"Good then, this'll be fun."
She cupped her hands around her mouth.
"Hey Zefir! Don't underestimate him just because you were the outlier in the rookie exam!"
"Yeah. I got it."
"Don't either of you drag this out! Make it snappy and quick, first shot wins!"
Kai nodded.
"Alright then. Have at it!"
Kai gathered pure white sparks, energy forming the shape of a katana once more.
Then Zefir, I was curious. What was his charm?
He stood still, no sparks in sight.
Kai made the first move, closing the distance in an instant.
He swung his weapon to the left and-
Slice.
But there was no contact.
His katana had stopped away, a breeze pushed Kai aside.
"Wha-?" He muttered as he fell down.
Kai twisted his body, regaining balance.
A forward lunge, this time striking from above.
Again, his katana didn't reach, instead being swept away once more.
I see now. So Zefir's charm was-
"Wind control."
He could direct the wind around him to a certain extent, and pressured his opponents.
It was a gifted charm.
But.
Kai swerved mid-air, sparks engulfing his sword as he traced an arc.
Straight through Zefir's wind.
"What!?"
Kai flipped the sword, hilt towards Zefir.
SWOOSH.
Straight to the gut.
"Gagh!"
Kai was a gifted person.
Zefir's knees hit the ground as his arms wrapped his stomach.
Arielle had gone quiet.
"Well, I didn't expect it to be easy. But Zefir losing certainly wasn't on my radar."
Soke smirked with a reply. "That's too bad, isn't it?"
"Truly, it's too bad."
Kai extended his arm.
"It was a good match."
Zefir stood himself up and walked away without a word.
"Sorry, my boy's a bit shy."
She ran after him, waving goodbye to Soke and the rest of us.
"We'll see you another time, maybe!"
And there stood the five of us.
"Good job, Kai."
"Yeah, that was nice."
"Thanks, but his charm was really, how do I say it, annoying?"
Annoying would be the right word. Having someone that can redirect your every attack and send through his own all the same, that's a jackpot.
We found ourselves returning to the dorms to sleep that night.
"Goodnight, you kids."
"Goodnight Soke."
"Night."
"Yer, night."
"Goodnight."
I huddled myself in the bed, the warmth of a blanket cradling me in its embrace.
It felt satisfying.
Like a feeling I was in desperate need of.