There was a blow of a whistle, one that echoed around the vast space of the brightly lit arena. The squeaks of shoes on the smooth, slick court followed it as a body moved forward. A girl’s fist pulled back, swung fast, and was well aimed, but it missed. Ferain ducked beneath it, sidestepped, and continued to avoid three other wild swings, all within this girl’s personal space. After a final attempt was made, and the girl’s scarlet eyes were narrowed in frustration more than concentration, Ferain knew she had found her opening to counter. The pale fist came but was easily avoided around the outside. As the momentum of the girl went forward, Fera’s body twisted as her leg went up and her head went down.
Her opponent practically stumbled into the foot that Ferain sent towards her cheek. As the girl stepped back, stunned from the hit, Fera spun twice more, building up momentum in a powerful kick that was aimed for the girl’s exposed side. With a lightning imbued attack, there was a flash of light, a shriek of pain, and the opposing student was forced off of her feet. A quiet thud reached Ferain’s ears from where the girl landed before sliding to a painful stop on her side. Fera’s illuminated, narrowed eyes of dark gold and black focused solely on the girl while blocking out all other sensations from around her.
She heard the girl’s wheezing breaths as she struggled to take in air, she saw her writhing in pain as she gripped at the singed tear in her uniform just below her ribs, and she noticed how agonized the expression was on her beautiful face. As currents of blue and white light coursed violently around Fera’s hands and forearms, almost forming what appeared to be claws at the ends of her fingers, she progressed towards her. There was silence, or, actually… that wasn’t entirely accurate. There was a heartbeat that could be heard, Ferain’s own, she suspected. There were the subtle whispers of her shoes as she quietly moved closer, and there were the pained cries of her victim… of her prey.
Like a starving predator, she continued forth, eyeing her foe, almost salivating at the thought of tearing another down, as she had done so many times in District-D, in the confines of that rusted, filthy warehouse. As she moved, she heard Raven’s words in her mind, from Halloween the previous year.
“Prodigy? Hirigaya? Y-You win. I-I’ll stop. I’ll l-leave.” The voice was full of fear, trembling from it as the uncontrollable emotion flooded out of her pretty little mouth with every shaky word spoken.
Just as she had done that night, with that girl, she did not fully receive the pleas to stop. They were lost on her, as if falling on deaf ears. The girl, with her thin face and flowing black hair and terrified scarlet eyes, looked up at her with a similar expression to Raven’s from that night. Fera stepped up close, her hand raised, her fingers spread apart like she was going to rake her electrified nails across her opponent’s body, and looked down at her with a coldness in her eyes that were unfamiliar and unobserving. Just as she brought her hand down, the white and blue growing fiercer ,she felt something strike at her. It didn’t make contact with her skin, but her arcing aura, catching her by surprise more than anything.
It was only then that she was able to notice her surroundings. The world had taken on the appearance of the classroom for a moment, but as she looked away from the girl’s frightened face, she noticed that she was in the gym again. Professor Itani was watching her with something that resembled pleasure in his dull, sickly eyes. Actually, it was now that she noticed the pale reds they had once been seemed brighter, more full of life and light. Even his sallow figure seemed more filled out, and his color had been going from a pale, corpse-like contrast to a more natural complexion.
“When did that happen?” she wondered, before remembering what had snapped her back into reality.
Her head quickly darted away from her watching teacher to find Marrow standing a short distance away, out of line from the rest of the onlooking students she shared the morning classes with. His forearms were enveloped by whip-like tendrils of water that shifted and flowed. He had a fury in his bone-white eyes that she’d only seen on a few occasions, mostly when confronting her the previous year. Her own eyelids narrowed contemptuously while he took another step closer.
“She’s had enough.” he said, to which Fera replied by giving a harsh snort of laughter.
“Oh, look at you, Marrow. You’re trying to play the hero this year?” she asked him venomously. “What happened to you, hmm? Got tired of pushing everyone around? Got tired of being a slimy, cowardly–”
“And what happened to you?!” he shouted, interrupting her. He swung his arm, sending a tendril towards her. She made no efforts to move since there wasn’t any need to. The water exploded as soon as it got in her near vicinity, barely making contact with her armor of crackling static. There was a hiss and a billow of white-gray steam as it instantly evaporated. Through the brief cloud, her glowing irises were all that could be seen, creating an imposing sight that even caused Marrow’s courage to falter. Still, despite the fear, he continued. “Since when did you become a bullying asshole?”
“Rich, coming from you.” Ferain spat. “I didn’t realize that you were such a hypocrite. If only Copper was still alive to see you now, I bet he’d be sick. After all, you’re going against everything he stood for, aren't you?.”
Marrow’s face contorted in anger as he lunged forward, but a loud clap interrupted both him and a lowering Ferain as she prepared to counter his attack.
“That’s enough.” said Professor Itani, stepping between them. “Ms. Kana, you can go back to join the others.” he added, looking at the girl that was still clutching her sizzling injury. He then eyed the pair of Ferain and Marrow, both of whom were refusing to back down. “If we had more time in the class, I’d let you settle your differences here and now, but, seeing as the bell will be chiming in…” Just as he let a pause linger, the dismissal bell played over the speakers of the room. “We can save this for tomorrow, unfortunately. All of you are dismissed and I hope you have a pleasant break before afternoon classes resume. I want you all to study up on what you can do to improve, especially you, Kana, I expect you to be better prepared during your next lesson in my class. As much as it pains me to say this, it seems only Hirigaya has been able to really gain anything from her time here. If this sort of disappointing display continues, I will be forced to start taking drastic measures in order to pass any of you.”
They all eyed him furiously, all except for Ferain and Marrow, who were still locking eyes with one another. After a moment, he scoffed, let his powers die out, and turned to help the wounded victim of Ferain’s latest assault.
“Are you okay?” he asked her, helping to keep her on her feet as she collected her bag, which he quickly offered to take himself.
“Fine.” the girl added, smiling at him as they hobbled towards the exit of the arena.
“Disgusting.” Fera stated, gritting her teeth and clenching her fists.
As her own lightning vanished, she began walking towards her bag, which was left by the lowest level of seats with everyone's belongings. It was during her progress towards the exit that she heard Itani call her name, drawing her attention to him.
“Can I speak with you for a moment, Ferain?” he questioned.
Cautiously, she thought for a second before nodding. She waited for him to approach her, not the other way around, mainly due to her wariness of this man. He was untrustworthy, he’d proven that much. Plus, every other night, during their lessons, she was always on the receiving end of his malice and strict extra lessons. He was not a person to be taken lightly, and her guard always needed to be up around him.
“I wanted to congratulate you.” he said, grinning slyly. “I wasn’t lying about what I said to the class. You’re really starting to get the hang of what you can really do, and you’re doing an incredible job showing everyone what you’re capable of.”
For a second, Fera felt proud, she felt fulfilled, but just then, she recalled the face of the girl she’d just been about to…
“Not kill.” Fera thought, silently wondering what exactly her plan was. She wasn’t really giving it any thought, to be honest. She was just acting on her impulses, giving into the anger she’d learned to use since starting her extra lessons with Itani. “I wouldn’t have. No, I… I wouldn’t.”
“Ferain, are you listening to me?” he asked her, bending over just enough so that they were on eye level.
Through her hanging, messy fringe, she eyed him fearfully, feeling deeply concerned about how much of a mystery her next actions were during that fight. If Marrow hadn’t interrupted them, could she really, for a certainty, say that she wouldn’t have done it? But, if that was the case, if it was as impossible as she hoped, why did she continue the fight? The girl was beaten, the match was over, there was no need for another attack, especially one with as much power as Ferain put into it.
“Y-yes, sir.” she shakily replied, before shaking her head silently. “No, I wasn’t.” she then admitted.
“You were distracted,” he said softly.
“I was. Sorry. It’s just… I do feel like I’m getting stronger, but… Maybe I’m starting to go too far. Maybe I need to start going easier, at least on the other students.”
“And hold yourself back again?” Itani asked scornfully. “Ferain, you’re really leaps and bounds ahead of the rest. If you start holding yourself back again, you’ll just go back to being the victim of all of their derision. You’re making your powers known, you’re showing them that you’re not some helpless thing to be pushed around. Do you really want to go back to that?”
“Well, no, but… Maybe I’ve done enough now.” Fera said, looking more hopefully into his eyes, but they only darkened at the words.
“Tsk, tsk.” came his clicking tongue. “No, that won’t do, Ferain. Whenever you think you've done enough, you haven’t. It’s only when you know that you’ve done enough that you actually have.”
“How do I know?” Ferain questioned.
“They’ll tell you, they’ll show you. When everyone here shows you that you’re where you want to be, then you’ll know, but until then, you might as well still be nothing in their eyes. Label stood up to you just now, and that means that he doesn’t acknowledge that you’re better than him yet. He still thinks you’re weak, that you’re able to be pushed around.”
“He was defending Mio, it’s only natural. I went too far. If I talk to him, I’m sure…” She stopped when she saw the disappointment on his face.
“Words are meaningless, Ferain, that’s just how the world works. Do you know why? It’s because people won’t pay attention to what you have to say until you make them see you. Until then, you might as well speak to a wall for all the good the wasted breath would do you.”
“But maybe–”
“Actions speak louder than words. Have you ever heard that saying?”
“Yes, but–”
“Let me ask you another question.” he interrupted. “You tried using words all last year, correct? Where did that get you in the end?”
“Nowhere.” she replied quietly.
“Nowhere.” he repeated. “What happened when you were attacked last Halloween?”
“I… I snapped… and–”
“You attacked the girl, right? That’s what I read. That’s what you told me. You attacked her, and with your deeds, with your actions, not your words, you frightened her. You showed her how strong you really are, and because of that, you made her fear you. Look, when a person wants respect, people tell you to earn it. Words don’t earn peoples’ respect, but actions do. You show them that you’re worthy of it, that’s how you get respect. If you want a raise or a promotion or even just simple praise at your job or school, do you think words will get you any of that? Words won’t make people see you as a hard worker, no… You have to put in the work for your work to be seen. You need to show them that you are a hard worker. You can’t just tell people that you’re strong and expect them to take your word for it. If you want people to see you as strong, you need to show them just how powerful you really are. You did that with your advancement test, correct? Everyone spit on you the entire year until you went out there and not talked to them, but showed them how much weight you can throw around.”
Ferain felt sick to her stomach, but it wasn’t because she didn’t agree with him or couldn’t stomach his words. The problem lay in the fact that she couldn’t argue against them. Everything he said was true. She only stopped being bullied and abused after she fought Victor in the advancement tests. She trained and trained until she could go out there and show them how strong she was. The same could be said about Raven. She remembered very little of the space in time after Raven’s last hit had knocked her against the floor, but she did recall bits and pieces. One such bit was Raven’s pleading voice, the one that begged for Ferain to stop and allow her to leave. She was afraid, terrified even. Words didn’t do any of that, it was all her own strength.
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“People never listen.” Ferain murmured.
“No, they don’t. But do you know what people always do without fail? They watch. They observe and learn and only then, when they’ve seen something they simply can’t ignore, only then will they listen. Use your actions to make them listen to your words, that’s how it has to be done, there is just no other way to get people to lend you their ears. It’s one of the many sad truths of the world. At the end of the day, people only care about themselves. If you want to force yourself into that bubble, you need to pop it.”
He walked up beside her and put a hand gingerly on her shoulder, causing her to look up into his eyes. There seemed to be a glow behind them, but it wasn’t the same as when wielders used their powers. It was… different somehow, like somewhere, deep in the back of his skull, a candle was flickering and the light was somehow just barely reaching his irises.
“Now that we’re on the same page with all of that, I wanted to let you know about something. The main reason I stopped you was about the warehouse.”
“What about it?” asked Ferain.
“Well, they’ve had enough of you, to put it bluntly. You’re too strong, and they’re getting tired of their fighters being beaten up repeatedly by a little girl. In fact, they even paid me to keep you away from now on.”
“I’ve only been going there for a couple of weeks.” she argued, her anger rising within her body. “They can’t do that, I need it. It’s been helping, really. I can’t stop going there.”
“Ferain…” he said, putting a finger under her chin. The touch sent a shiver down her spine and then back up towards her brain, but she didn’t fight against it. “You don’t need them anymore. You didn’t need them after your second visit. All you need to do now is remember how it felt. They didn’t stand a chance against you. It was like a bunch of children trying to take on a giant, it was simply impossible. You’re becoming the most powerful wielder in this city, and you still have so much more room to grow.”
“How?” Fera murmured, looking away from his watching gaze.
Forcefully, he grabbed her cheeks with one hand and made her look at him. He had a wicked leer, a conniving gleam in his eyes, and a contorted curve to his mouth that hinted at some sort of sick amusement. Her heart began to race as his lips neared her own. Just as enough courage to fight against his touch bubbled up to the surface, his lips moved past hers and hovered close to her right ear.
“It’s easy, Ferain.” he whispered, tickling her ear with his warm breath. “You need to finally face your fear. He haunts your dreams, and he, by existing, is holding you back because of it.”
“Kiko?” she asked, with a voice that was only audible because of how close he was.
“Yes.” he hissed. “Your failure. Your goal. You want to be free of it, you want to truly know how strong you are, all you have to do is prove it. Actions speak louder than words, Ferain.”
“Are you telling me to kill him?”
“I’m merely suggesting it. It’s what you want.” he said, pulling away from her ear. “You want proof, what better proof than killing the person that started all of this?”
Ferain looked away, contemplating the idea, almost picturing it happening. To some extent, she could even imagine the feeling of the event, how satisfying it would probably be to finally be rid of what’s haunted her since that night. Kiko was the cause of it all, her nightmares, her fears, her desire to get stronger. He was the primary threat she was doing all of this to face. If she killed him, took him out of the picture permanently, she would have no more reasons to be afraid. In her mind, he was the pinnacle of danger, there was nothing else that topped the threat he posed.
“Kill Kiko?” she muttered, tasting the words on her tongue. “I… I don’t know where he is.” she pointed out, half as an excuse and half as the truth of the matter.
Guji never revealed where he was, nor did Cross or Mana, and why would they? She had no reason to know that information. For all intents and purposes, she was probably expected to just forget it all happened and move on with her life. Kiko was a thing of the past, just as much as the murders were.
“Why don’t you ask Guji about it?” suggested Itani.
“He wouldn’t tell me.” Fera said, feeling certain in that regard.
“No, I’m sure he would.” Itani stated. “He’d do anything for you, after all. You are very special to him. Give it a try. If he doesn’t budge, I might have a way to track down your missing friend. Once that’s settled, we can move on to figuring out how to plan it.”
“Plan it?” Fera murmured, almost absently.
“Plan how to kill him. He’ll be guarded, I’m sure. It won’t be easy, but I have a few ideas that might work. Don’t worry, Ferain, you’ll be free of it soon enough. Once he’s taken care of, you’ll know you achieved what you wanted, and you won’t have to be concerned about your safety, or your friends’ safety ever again.”
“And what about you?” asked Ferain. “You threatened them. If I do this, if I’m as strong as I want to be, will you leave us alone?”
“I’ll take back every threat I made against them. You’ll be free, and I’ll start focusing on the other students. All you have to do is prove that you’re ready.”
Fera thought for a second before granting him a short, solemn nod of her head. Some time later, she found herself lost in thought. Her brain was conflicted, confused, overwhelmed in so many ways. Countless emotions rose up within her, and too many thoughts to handle bounced around within her head. There were scenarios of Kiko’s demise, ideas of how it would play out, of how she would feel when it was said and done. Even before that, she wondered how she would feel in the moment, when she was standing there, looking him in the eyes, and all she had to do was act. Intertwined with all of this doubt and confusion, there was also a part of her that longed for it. As Itani said, his death would be her freedom. She would be released from this constant worry, as well as this fear and rage that continued to threaten her existence.
She was so consumed by all of this uncertainty that she failed to fully take note of where she was at the present. In just the same way, she also failed to notice her name being called on by a gruff, older tone that belonged to a similarly aged man.
“Ms. Hirigaya!” the voice rose, snapping her out of the prison that her mind was slowly becoming.
Her eyes blinked twice, as if refocusing on her environment. It was a darker room, seeing as the windows were hidden behind blinds, and most of the lights were currently off. There were a couple of the dozen or so ceiling lights that were set to a dimmer setting, but most of the room’s lighting came from the digital board that hung on the wall at the front of the classroom. The room itself was decorated with globes of the world and maps that hung on some of the walls, as well as various shelves of books or novels that covered the world’s history. In front of the board was a slightly slouched figure, one that was quite aged, with a balding head of gray hair, and narrow eyes that were surrounded by wrinkles. He wore a button-up shirt, a fancy black vest, and a pair of black slacks.
“Welcome back.” said the older professor. “So, Ms. Hirigaya, would you like to answer my question?”
“Question, sir?” she asked, unable to recall any such question coming up.
“Yes, my question. I asked for someone to give a brief summary of the three Greater Nations, and seeing as you seemed so enthralled in my lesson, I imagine that you should be suitable enough for the task. So, would you mind sharing an answer with the rest of us?”
“O-of course not, sir.” she said, sounding nervous and lost. Ferain rose from her seat, cleared her throat, and tried to remember what she’d read about them during her private lessons at home, and what she’d learned in her previous year here. “The three Greater Nations consist of the Eagle Nation, the Sakura Nation, and the Crown Nation.” she recited. “There are smaller nations as well, ones made up of smaller countries and such, but the three primary powers are the Greater Nations. The Eagle Nation consists of the western countries that once made up North and South America, as well as everything in between. The Crown Nation was once known as Europe, as well as several other countries ranging from Africa, all the way up to Sweden. The Sakura Nation is made up of places like China and Japan, and most of the other Asian countries that exist as well.”
The professor eyed her curiously, and he seemed to be distrusting of her information. Was it the best summary? No. Could she have been more specific about every country that made up every nation? Obviously. However, for a brief summary of the three nations, she figured it would be enough to satisfy even this old bag of bones. He gave a quiet grunt as he turned and faced the illuminated board that currently had a blank white screen displayed. He stuck his finger against it and began to draw a basic outline of the Eagle Nation.
“What Ms. Hirigaya said is basically the gist of it. It was simple, but I suppose I did request a brief explanation. North America, South America, Central America, as well as places that are, to this day, still known as Cuba, Puerto Rico, and Hawaii. These places were left with individual rulers, as they had before, but now they share a banner under the same alliance. As with the rest of the world, despite the drastic changes that occurred during and after the war, most locations kept their original names. The only real difference is the encompassing title that they all fall under. The Sakura Nation and the Crown Nation are very similar as well. We all still have our individualism, it’s just that we now have a connection to the rest of those that share our name.”
The professor just finished drawing out the other nations as well on the board with a black outline. It was a crude drawing, but there was a reason he was the history teacher and not the professor of art.
“When decisions are to be made, the leaders of each country within a given nation meet and determine how best to handle whatever topic they had met to discuss. Afterwards, the leader of the primary country, in our case, Japan, would go and meet with the others to share what they decided as a group. It was a change that was brought about by the brothers that put an end to the war all those years ago. They figured that with a system like that, there would be little room for issues to arise or disagreements to take hold. It wasn’t a new system, nor was it flawless, but for some reason, perhaps because of the fear of another massive war, the system has held firmly for all this time. In these many years, we have yet to face massive disagreements among our leaders, and thus, we have avoided war from breaking out. There have been minor ones in some of the smaller territories of the world, but on the whole, we have been relatively at peace.”
“Until recently.” a boy muttered from behind Ferain.
“I beg your pardon.” said the teacher, turning around to face the boy in question.
“It’s been all over the news for months.” the boy spoke loudly. “Wielders and humans attacking each other in the streets. People are worried another war is going to break out over this. It’s getting worse out there, isn’t it? What are the world leaders going to do to fix this?”
“That is up for them to decide,” said the professor. “As for the current situation, this is not the only time in history where something like this has happened, and like the previous occurrences of disagreement between our two species, it will be sorted out. I see no need for concern.”
“That’s because you won’t have to fight,” said a girl this time. Ferain looked over and saw a tall girl with a thicker sort of silhouette in the poor lighting of the room. “My dad is in the army. He said that if war breaks out, we’ll all have to fight it. Is that true?” she asked the teacher.
“Look, this has nothing to do with our lesson today. For the time being, no matter what is happening back on the mainland, your focus should be on your studies here. Everyone has a job to do, Ms. Pytra, and I assure you that they are doing it to the best of their ability. As for your own job, it is to study and to learn.”
The professor looked over at a digital clock on his desk and sighed. At a snap of his fingers, the remaining lights turned on, bringing a sharper, cleaner image of the faces around Ferain. Most looked grim, as if the two who had spoken had brought to light the fear that was in the back of almost everyone’s minds.
“I’m afraid that we’re out of time today. For homework, I want a report on the history of the Eagle Nation, as well as a brief explanation of the various countries within it.” said the teacher, before looking towards Ferain. “I want a word with you, Ms. Hirigaya, before you leave.”
Ferain pulled her bag over her shoulder, watched as the other students passed her by, and then stepped up towards the teacher.
“Yes, Professor Yung?” she asked, wondering what he could possibly have to say to her.
“You’ve been distracted all year. Last year, you were so intent on listening, so determined to learn. I can’t help but wonder if something is going on. Something at home, something with a friend?”
“N-no, sir.” she said quietly. “I’ve just been a little tired, that’s all.”
“Well, I recommend you get some sleep, then. I’m happy that you seem to know the material, but you need to pay attention. Do that, and you just might learn something you weren’t aware of. Besides just that, as a scholarship student, you’re expected to put in the effort to pass. Your grades have been falling since returning this year, and I’m starting to get concerned by your lack of interest or your seeming lack of caring. That doesn’t even include all of your absences as of late.”
“I’ll try harder.” she promised. “I’ve been distracted, and…” She paused for a moment. “Sir, do you really think all of what’s happening back home will be fine in the end?”
“I do.” he answered. “It seems bad now, every situation like this always seems bad when you’re going through it, but…” He took a short breath. “But, everything does get better. Given time, given enough resources, things can be repaired. Centuries have passed since the war, and we have been in a peace unlike any other in history. For all that time, there have been disagreements among our species, but in the end, solutions are always found, resolutions are always reached. As I told Ms. Pytra, what you should primarily be focused on is your studies. How well you do here can affect a great many things in your future, from careers to overall general opportunities. This is where your attention should be, not on matters out of your control.”
“I understand.” Ferain said.
“Good. Then, you’re dismissed. I expect you to be present tomorrow, okay?”
“Of course, Professor.”
He gave her a short nod and sent her on her way. As she walked through the halls, her focus did not return to her studies, as Professor Yung recommended. Instead, she found herself thinking of the most recent attack that she saw on the news the previous morning. It was at an airport in the Crown Nation. Apparently some CEO, who happened to be a very outspoken person in defense of wielders, was attacked and killed as he was leaving his plane. It was a human’s doing, so the damage wasn’t overly extensive, at least in a physical sense. Only a few people were lost in the crossfire, and the airport itself suffered no structural damage except for a few bullet holes that now decorated the walls. However, the true damage caused by the attack was felt worldwide, and it came as a wave of fear and a lack of safety that more and more people would without a doubt be feeling.
“Everything is so screwed up.” she muttered, not paying any attention to where she was going. Fera held up her bandaged right hand and sighed. “All of this violence and here I am, thinking about killing somebody. It’s for the best, but… I don’t…”
Fera shook her head, shaking away the doubt and uncertainty. She had to do it, she just had to. Perhaps it was denial, perhaps it was something else entirely, but with her mind as made up as it was going to be for the time being, she headed for her next class. For the remainder of the day, she didn’t pay much attention or participate in any real way. For Gym, she mostly sat against a wall as the other students stretched or jogged or played some sport. In her academic lessons, she kept silent and to herself. After getting back home, she shared a dinner and a bath with Anita, only slightly against her will, and then dressed in preparation to go back to District-A later that night. It was time for another lesson with Itani, one of the hopefully few that remained.