Ayla inhaled sharply as she awoke. She shut her eyes again, because she felt tired. It was another nightmare. She began to have them often after the first and all of them tended to involve atrocious acts she would commit in the future, stretching back from the sacking of Castezin. She did not think it was strange. In fact, she had a good idea of why it was happening.
`Guilt. I have no idea if I can change myself, let alone my future. So I keep reliving the things I’ve done without being able to change them. Right?` She would experience them in a similar fashion to the first dream, where she would be aware of what she was doing, and overcome by the acts she was committing while being unable to prevent herself from carrying them out. Even if she felt horrible having them, Ayla never considered dreams as anything other than her own mind tormenting her. The only thing that gave her pause was the realness with which she experienced those events again. She had barely dreamed before, let alone dreamed so real. Ayla shook off her weariness from the lack of good sleep and slid out of bed to begin her morning routine. It was the day of training. While they were at the manor, another squad was going to be sent to patrol for the day and then the next day she, Samson and Miller were to be rotated back onto patrol while the other squad trains.
`All of this is done the week before the full moon.` She admired the idea behind it. The full moon was always a time when Humans had to be most on guard against monsters. It was a night when those suffering from Lycanthropy would awaken for the first time. It was a time that had always been difficult for her. From what she was made to understand about herself from others; on the Full Moon everything she was became amplified and more than a little frightening.
“I’ll deal with that when the time comes.” She mumbled, splashing water in her face. She checked her equipment and armour, donned it all in immaculate condition and left for the training grounds. The moment she left the barracks she was intercepted.
“Dame,Ayla?” A Knight she had not seen before waved her over before. He had smooth blonde hair that was of a medium length on top, slicked back. Around the sides his head was braided in rows with mostly skin around his ears and no stubble or sideburns. It was a very ‘Imperial’ style. He wore his uniform like hers. Immaculate. He bound his armour the right way, tightly; this was in spite of it being uncomfortable. He had an average build, and stood over her by half a head.
“Speaking, Sir.” She gave the Castezinan salute and inclined her head respectfully.
When he saw her show politeness he offered it in return, offering a matching salute without the tilt of his head. He was very martial and stoic, the type of person Ayla would usually get along well with.
“The Knight-Captain wants to assess you before training.” He eyed her for a reaction and preempted any argument by saying:
“Don’t take it as him doubting your skills. For the record I believe it’s the opposite.”
Ayla dashed his expectations by merely nodding without showing much reaction one way or another. It projected a confidence that he acknowledged by exhaling through his nose sharply.
“I haven't met you yet, Sir.” She mentioned, waiting for an introduction..
“Eldrich.” He said simply without airs.
“Oh, Knight-Lieutenant.” She inclined her head again in acknowledgement.
He waved away the formality. “That isn’t really something we do here, except for the Knight-Captain and His Grace. Feel free to treat me as any other Knight.”
Ayla shrugged and explained frankly. “I treat the members of my adopted squad as Knights with seniority over me, so I’ll treat you the same.”
He made a dumbfounded expression. “I can’t really say anything against that. Let’s just get going. We don’t want to keep the Knight-Captain waiting.” Eldrich spoke with his deep voice in a soft yet firm way that allowed his voice to somehow carry without adding much volume to it at all.
He led her on a march towards the training grounds, but skirted the side of the manor instead of going right in. She had come out early, so Knights were still assembling.
Ayla saw the Duke and saluted while lowering her head.
“Your Grace.” The Duke waved his hand to release her from the stance. She relaxed the salute completely, turned to face Rast, then offered another full salute and bow.
“Knight-Captain.” He was the only one that did not seem to be annoyed or perplexed by it.
“At ease, Dame.” Rast stared at her while rubbing his beard. The older Knight had frostbitten features. A face that was perpetually red and ghostly white hair. His eyes were pale, as well. Pale brown. The man was a giant. She tried as hard as she could to not think about her past-life’s desire to fight and kill him personally as a true test for her Shapeless Aura. In doing so, she must have shown something in her expression because the Duke lifted his chin and smirked at her subtly from the side. Rast continued.
“Judging by your actions when I first saw you I assumed you'd be loose with the order of things, but your discipline tends to be top notch.”
“Thank you, Sir.” Ayla responded promptly.
“You got a certain look about you.” He grinned. Ayla looked at him quizzically.
“The look of someone that’d stab a babe in their bed if asked to.”
She blinked. “W-” Her mouth opened and closed a few times in shock.
“What?”
Rast lifted one of his bushy white eyebrows. “Huh. Maybe I was wrong.” he dropped it as swiftly as he brought it up.
“Show me your stance.” He ordered.
Ayla shook off the goosebumps she got from his prior comment and stepped back to make room. Rast was in front, The Duke was to her right and Eldrich was on the other side of her. She moved into her first position by turning her body to make it as slim as possible while pointing her sword in line with her feet, which were spread apart. Her front foot was planted firmly and faced forward, but the heel on her back was lifted slightly to prepare to pivot. Her left arm was curled at her side.
“Alright. Anything else?” Rast asked.
She brought her left hand forward and spread her grip out on the pommel of her sword. She closed her stance a little in the way she was standing and adopted different guarding positions with both hands on the pommel. She went through a few attacking motions after that, then switched again to neutral stances that could easily enter offensive or defensive modes that she had just shown. They were two very simple ways of fighting that she knew enough about to be confident.
“Is there anything else?” Rast asked rather forwardly, pale eyes staring through her, it seemed.
Ayla felt put on the spot. “Sir?” She could see the Duke’s subtle smirk had grown obvious and pointed.
“Anything else you want to share?” Rast hinted.
“Could you be more specific? I apologise.” Ayla danced around the subject, because it was an unfortunate subject for the sake of her own credibility.
The Duke covered his mouth to stifle a laugh as he interjected.
“If you for example... wanted to kill a person aggressively and efficiently, Is that the type of thing they teach at the Academy? Is that a suitable technique for a Knight, Dame?”
She felt warm all of a sudden, like the feeling of breaking into a sweat before throwing up. It was not something that was taught in the Academy. In reality, it was a technique used for assassination and efficient killing using speed, though if she wanted to nitpick, she made it work against monsters. Ayla would never say that to them, however. Not while she was trying to show that she could be normal. Because the methods she was taught were the best way for a skilled mercenary to kill a Knight of equal skill quickly. It was a type of movement she used to reach nineteen on the dummy. But she was dumbfounded by the question. These were skills that she would only truly show to their fullest during her future campaigns. Her heart thumped in her chest heavily. Ayla shut down.
“I don’t understand.”
“Who are you here to kill? To Assassinate. Or... Are there multiple targets?” The Duke grilled her.
Ayla could not move. Her arms fell limply at her side and her head lowered for her to stare down shamefully with wide, unfocused eyes. In the moment she felt like she took up the only spotlight in a deep, black void. The Duke was not there, only his voice was. Her mouth moved automatically.
“I'm not here to kill anyone, I promise.” her voice shook. Without being able to restrain herself she added thoughtlessly.
“Please forgive me... I'm sorry…” She repeated those two phrases over one-another, layering them and feeling mad as they echoed back at her within the space.
“What do you have to be sorry about?”
“I promise I just want to help.” Ayla struggled to let go of her sword, so she settled by shakily forcing her limp left hand over her heart. There was no more interjecting voice or echo. She was merely speaking into the wall of black that was closing in all around her to create a claustrophobic sensation within the shrinking light. Ayla looked around desperately, since it felt like she could be drowned in the tar-like void if it enveloped her.
“I promise I'm trying. I want to change more than anything… I want everything to change!”
Ayla was still sweating, but she was staring at the wall as if she had been practising her stances in front of them the whole time. While trying to catch her balance on unsteady legs she looked at Rast, then the Duke with paranoia. Particularly the Duke. They were simply staring at her as they had been before.
`Feel like I’m going to be sick. Did that just happen? That-` As she looked to the Duke again discretely she relaxed. Despite how panicked she felt moments early, and how real the experience was, she calmed herself.
`My mind is playing tricks on me. Nothing more, nothing less. Just my mind…` She gritted her teeth.
`Doing this to me over and over and over again.`
“Alright. Next.” Rast removed the glove on his left hand and extended it towards her. Ayla stared at the hand for a moment. She was still dazed, reeling.
`Testing my power through contact.` She took his hand and closed her eyes, letting go so that it would be easier to get a grasp of her skill in Soma.
`Power… If I wanted to be the same, I could be so easily.` It felt unfair to her. With the sun rising and touching her cheek she began to feel a guilty sense of disdain for Sol.
`If you wanted to bring me back to change things, why are you doing this to me? Maybe I’m just being taunted. This life is just for torture.` Dizzily she began to remember where she was and opened her eyes slowly. Rast was still waiting. Ayla reasoned wearily.
`Nothing to hide in regards to this. It’s the only thing I can really be honest about.` She released the Energy restrained within her Soma Pathways built through her Alignment. Rast seemed to feel it and gave a short nod.
“That's pretty developed for only a graduate. And Nerve Alignment, as well. Who gave you the idea to go for such a thing?”
“My teacher did. She said that of all the methods of expanding Soma throughout the body, it was the one that could make someone unbeatable. But... That it also had a chance to kill or cripple me. So, it seemed obvious because I thought I would do it without being killed or crippled. I guess I also thought that if there was a chance of being defeated with the others, what was the point? I learned later she was exaggerating a bit, but still...” She never regretted her decision.
“Gahaha!” Rast laughed loudly, the way he did when they first met in the woods.
“You decided? That sounds familiar. What are you working on now?” His gravelly voice ceased being so inquisitive. It was as if they had gotten past the difficult parts and now they were just talking shop. Ayla finally began to feel a bit more comfortable.
“My Alignment sacrifices Energy for more concrete benefits immediately, so right now I’m trying to expand Soma from my Nerves to my muscles for a higher volume of Energy. As of right now I run out quickly in a pinch.”
“What about your limits?” Rast questioned.
“I-” Ayla stopped. She felt horrified.
“I feel them. They’re close. I’ll have to stop, soon.” She was shaken by the sudden realisation. It was not true in her past life. Her limits were way higher.
That’s normal. Happens to everyone eventually.” He seemed to be thinking out loud. Rast released her hand.
“Now release your Aura.”
Ayla felt faintly uncomfortable to be seen through so easily. She placed her hand over her Aura heart. It was in the centre right of her chest. To release it in such a way without any concept behind it, the Aura would create resistance out around the user as raw force. The force exerted at each distance marker from the body was the standard measure for the level of Aura one had attained.
“Second Ring. For a Knight as young as you that’s crazy. You don’t need to worry about Soma limits if you keep going like this. There's no point training you.” Rast concluded after the explanation.
“Pardon?” Ayla looked to him with a concerned expression.
“You would just be showing off. Like Sir Eldrich you'll look over the other Knights in their practice and offer pointers. Don’t think of it as a promotion.”
Ayla furrowed her brow. “Sir Eldrich had said that his rank wasn’t anything. He only had it because he wanted to do more.” That felt right. It felt good.
“Should I focus on helping those that I know and others around them?”
“You should.” Rast nodded.
“Go on.” As she and Sir Eldrich left together to go attend to the training grounds on the other side of the observation area, Rast wandered right up next to the Duke.
“Any thoughts, Your Grace?”
“I haven't finished my assessment yet.” He smiled, as if moving on to another topic entirely he lightened his tone.
“I saw her using the dummy.”
“The one you commissioned for entertainment?” Rast questioned.
“Everyone stays away from that thing because at the level you asked it to be tuned it's impossible.”
“Well, she hit nineteen targets.” He explained.
“Could you do that?”
Rast bristled at the question. “That thing isn't made for me. I'll never get into a spot where I have to run around an opponent like a rabbit.” He remembered who he was talking to and corrected himself.
“No offence meant, your Grace.”
On the training ground Ayla found the spot where Samson and Miller were positioned. They noticed her walk up only to stand on the side-lines watching.
“Ayla, what're you waiting for?” Miller asked.
“Even if you’re confident you gotta at least pretend you’re training.” He gave her a little insight into his own performance that she was already in the process of inspecting.
“Apparently I'm an instructor today.”
Miller looked shocked. Samson just nodded his head, looking straight ahead. “I guess graduates are something else.”
Ayla looked at them. The way they were standing and the way they moved and swung their swords. “Just do what you usually do. That goes for the rest of you, as well.” She found one of the other Knights within her view and kicked at his heel to adjust his stance. He jumped.
“O-oi.” He grumbled in annoyance.
“You're tall. You can't just look at the distance between other Knight’s feet. You need a wider stance to support your body. Other than that, you are very good. Good use of your reach.” It was a little thing that was easy to miss, and his stance width was probably only off by a few inches. It may not have even affected him in a significant way, but she still noticed.
“Oh, thanks.”
She continued walking between the ranks as the Knights practised swings with chosen stances. She eyed another Knight next to her and stopped his sword.
“Swinging fast isn't the point. Swing slowly and make each swing perfect. It also helps the muscles you use more than waving around like that.” The Knight corrected and began swinging his sword the way she asked him to. Ayla nodded. She stood around for a few minutes, staring at Miller's back once she had nothing else to look for. She walked up next to him and watched him more closely.
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“Have you considered a battle-sword?” Ayla questioned.
“Your hand is creeping right up to the guard of your long-sword.”
“A what-sword?”
His confusion made sense. The battle-sword was a combat weapon. Castezin seemed to utilise its Knights as a glorified guard force. The longsword would be the weapon of choice. “It seems like you want to have an even wider grip. You have a build that begs for a heavier weapon.” She glanced towards the weapon racks and did not see what she was looking for. With a sigh she added.
“I’ll make the request so that you can try it for yourself in your own time and decide.”
“Okay.” He seemed surprised by the detailed recommendation.
“What about me, Dame?” Samson asked.
Ayla turned and observed him for a few minutes. “Everything you're doing is right. I have no comments.”
“Damn, is that so?” He exhaled, sounding a bit disappointed, but he still did not falter in his continuous repetition.
She sensed a hint of the frustration he showed. `I think I understand the gist of what he's feeling. He's six years ahead of Miller, I think I heard him say. His father was a Knight, so he has extremely solid fundamentals. If he just stays like this his whole life, he will be a valuable asset, but he won't be a force. There are people like this in every army. Cogs that exist to fill in the gaps. People like that are needed, but Samson and Miller are in my squad. I want to do what I can for them.` She tried to probe him a bit.
“What do you want to do?”
“I just-”
Ayla interrupted. “Actually, talk to me later tonight, both of you.” Ayla looked around at the other Knights.
`Improvement isn't necessary here. These people are personal Knights hired to guard a territory. Knights who are constantly improving are... not normal to begin with, and it's very typical to hit a wall and fall into the position Samson is in. Adding to that, there are no battles to be fought around this time. So all of the Knights here are capable, but not exceptional. If things stay like this and Caelin attacks as he did in my time it will just be another slaughter.`
Training progressed with the Knights performing exercises the entire day. As the sun was going down many maids and workers were walking in and out of the area in a line.
“What's going on?” Ayla asked.
Miller grinned. “At the end of training each month they heat up enough water for everyone to take a hot bath. There's Basins set up and they've probably already been filled so everyone is gonna separate into their groups and bathe together. Samson and I get to share a bath.” He feigned a swooning gesture, acting like a blushing girl.
“So embarrassing~”
“Oh, alright.” Ayla began walking in the same direction as everyone.
Samson pulled on her arm. “You... Aren't actually planning to, are you? In front of-” He stopped. His face was red. It was the first time she had seen him like that. Miller also seemed shocked by her brazenness and transitioned to actual embarrassment.
Ayla turned around. “I suppose not. I was fine with it, but I understand it'll make you both uncomfortable.”
Miller swallowed hard. “S-sorry, Ayla. It's just a little... hard for us as men, you understand?”
“I understand.” She began walking away. A familiar maid approached her. Bluish black hair and practical footwear. Without her sickness-induced delirium Ayla recognized her to be the head maid of the manor answering directly to the Duke. Chantelle.
“Dame, as you are a woman, a private bath has been prepared in the Manor, as per His Grace's instructions.” She smirked at Ayla unsubtly and added.
“I don’t suppose you were trying to bath with the men?”
Ayla avoided the question once it was brought up by another woman and redirected to a different question.
“Are there any other Knights that are women under his Grace?”
The maid shook her head. “There are none.”
Ayla looked at her strangely. `A lie? I suppose she has her reasons.`
“I guess this makes sense...” She did not want to confront the woman about the fact that she, a maid, was definitely a Knight.
The maid's eye twitched a little. She did not let Ayla get away from the question. “Were you planning to bathe with the men?”
Her cheeks flushed. “N-no.”
“I see. Come with me.” The Maid shrugged and led Ayla into a servant entrance at the side of the manor.
“This will be much more satisfying than cold water from the well.” It was a tone so flat that Ayla could not detect if she was being teased or not, but she assumed the answer was yes.
“I guess everyone knows about that.” Ayla eyed the maid pointedly.
“I was also there at that time.” She admitted, as if it was not already known.
“For future reference, his Graces office overlooks the training grounds.”
Ayla gasped. That was a surprise. “He-”
“His Grace called me after observing Dame Ayla walking into the drain rooms with a bucket straight from the well, along with tools for washing.” Chantelle teased professionally. They arrived in the room that held the basin. It had been prepared with hot water and there were even some petals and scents thrown into the water.
“Oh wow.”
“There is no Lady in this manor so when the maids have a chance to prepare something for a woman they get excited. If it is too much for you, let me know and I will have the water replaced.”
“Give them my honest thanks.” Ayla asked casually. The maid bowed and left her, shutting the door. She removed her clothes, folding them on a seat by the basin. She dipped in and felt the warm water, finding it to be about perfect. A little hot, but she liked that, because it meant that it would cool to a reasonable temperature as she soaked. She sank in slowly, feeling her muscles relaxing as soon as she was submerged.
`I had baths like these whenever I wanted in my old life. This is nice, but I don't feel like I miss it. I just did that stuff because I could. Having this at the end of a month feels more like a reward. I like it.` She dunked under fully then slowly floated back up and scrubbed her hair.
Her mind quickly wandered back to work as she cleaned herself. `I would like for Miller and Samson to develop an Aura heart. For a Knight that hits a wall, switching gears is the easiest way to get stronger. Everyone has a natural wall that they hit when it comes to Soma.` She frowned.
`Even me. Aura can be expanded almost without limit. But someone needs to teach them to do it. The benefit of the Academy was that everyone who wanted to was taught the steps to establish their Aura and given the necessary materials. I can’t do all that, and I have a feeling about Samson that I can't shake. He’s smart and stable. He recognizes his limits but doesn't show a dangerous amount of angst or frustration, meaning he has control and confidence. I think he could develop as an Aura-Knight, but I can’t do that either. As soon as he develops his heart outside of his mind, he can not develop as a Mage anymore, so it's a difficult choice to make.`
Her mouth surfaced like a whale’s blowhole. She exhaled into the air. `Miller is another matter. I have a feeling he actually has not hit his upper limit yet. But has he been training beyond his current state? In my past life he was still so weak. Hm.` She opened her eyes and stared up at the ceiling for a bit while floating.
“This is probably good enough.” She got up and began to towel off. She finished drying her body and moved on to her hair.
`I wish there were more female Knights. Bathing with others is probably fun.` She thought while slipping back into her clothes.
As she left, a maid was loitering outside. It was a tall woman with long orange hair tied into a single braid. She wore simple footwear and no additions to her uniform, so Ayla presumed she was normal.
“Oh, hello Dame.” She tried to act surprised to be noticed, even though she was being quite obvious by standing outside the door dusting something that already looked clean.
“Yes. Hello.” Ayla nodded. Even if the woman was a worker, she was still going to be polite. The thought of treating her differently from anyone else never entered into her mind.
“Was the bath to your liking? I ran it based off my own preferences.” She said cheerily.
“I told the head maid to thank those who drew it. Now I thank you personally.” Ayla looked up, measuring just how much taller than her she was.
`Wow… Almost as tall as Rast.` When Ayla realised she had been staring she eyed the girl’s face, noticing she was blushing.
“Oh my… Dame.” The maid played bashful, but it felt like she was being messed with.Ayla stared at her as she spoke.
“You graduated at the Academy first in your class, right?” She asked excitedly.
“That’s true, though I never stated that fact here. I don’t want to brag.”
“You should brag! That’s impressive. We should have a brawl sometime.” The maid grinned.
Ayla’s mouth fell open. She stared blankly. `Oh. This one basically doesn’t hide it.` Ayla sighed and nodded towards the Knight.
“I’m not sure. Ask his Grace.”
The woman pouted. “He’ll definitely say no.”
Ayla inhaled slowly. `Then why are you asking me?` She shook it off.
“”Alright, well-”
“When are you off? Wanna drink with me?” She asked, leaning forward with wide, bright green eyes.
“I tend to leave early in the morning and arrive back after dark.” Without any real idea of what the woman’s intent could be she offered:.
“If you’re interested, I will typically end up at the Wintergreen after sundown and be there until late.”
The Maid gasped. “Woah! You didn’t turn me down? Are we good friends now? My name’s Jade.”
“You can call me Ayla if you want.” She offered calmly.
“Ayla… Things are moving so fast for us.” Jade commented, touching her cheeks with both hands as if in rapture.
“Are we?” Ayla wondered what she could mean by that.
`Come to think of it, I usually get a lot of attention like this from women. Mostly noble women.`
Chantelle suddenly appeared, pulling Jade into a tight headlock. Ayla observed and could swear she noticed Jade passing out before being dragged away. Chantelle spoke in retreat. “Sorry, Dame! This one is taking up too much of your time. Have a good night.” With that they were gone.
“Is my hair still wet...” She wondered out loud, running a hand through it. It was the only thing going through her mind after that encounter.
“Not too much. Good.” She did not want to get sick again. Ayla left through the door she came in from and waited outside the training grounds for Miller and Samson. Within the area that held the basins she heard loud laughing and chatting.
`Just like I thought. It sounds like it’s more fun over there. Too bad I'm a woman.` She exhaled lightly. Thinking for a moment she guessed:
`That Jade woman would probably do the public bathing with me if I asked? It sounds strange, even just thinking about it, though.`
Ayla waited about twenty more minutes. Finally, Samson and Miller emerged in looser clothing. She approached them.
“You both look refreshed. I’m glad.” She wasn’t, but she came up with the thought that it could be a good thing to say while she was waiting.
“So refreshing. Second favourite time of the month.” Miller described with a wide smile.
Samson honed in on what she was actually waiting for. “What did you wanna talk to us about after training?”
“Come with me, you two.” She led them to a private enough corner of the grounds. Once they were alone and away from anyone passing by she asked.
“Do either of you want to become stronger?”
“Yes.” Samson said immediately.
“I wouldn't say no.” Miller held a non-committal tone.
Ayla felt like she understood. `Miller has the potential but no reason to go further. Samson wants to get strong but has no potential. The match made in hell. I’m surprised they’re friends..` She went into explaining roughly what she had already thought through to them, and the troubles she's facing. Once she was done she put it over to them for their input. Samson was again the first to speak.
“You... think I could be an Aura-Knight? For real?”
“Correct. The issue is I don't have the connections to get a teacher here. Nor the resources for you to develop your Heart.” She sighed.
“I'm sorry...”
Samson let out a small chuckle. “Ayla... I'm a landowner and I've been a Knight for years. I can order a half-decent teacher and buy some materials for an investment like this. Is that all?”
She blinked. Ayla did not know why it did not occur to her. “You need to be certified to be capable of accepting the burden that a Mage possesses. For that, any recognized member of the Sol Church will do.”
Samson nodded, thinking out loud. “I'll just ask our chaplain.”
“Good.” Ayla nodded to him before acknowledging Miller. The man was standing by patiently, enjoying the conversation.
“Miller...”
“You're saying I can get strong, too?” He looked at her with mild interest. It was not what she wanted to see or hear.
“No.” She answered bluntly.
“But you said-”
“Without a definite drive to get stronger you might as well be at a wall. Did you naturally become how you are now, or did you put in a great amount of effort to be here?”
“It was a great effort.” Miller became somewhat uncomfortable as the conversation got more revealing concerning his lack of drive.
“I'm guessing you stopped at some point after you passed the test because there was no longer any incentive?”
“Yeah. Read me like a book.” He blushed.
Ayla smiled gently. “Miller. You're a good man and you have good instincts. You're a better Knight than all the Knights I knew... Before. That's based solely on your attitude.” He perked up.
“But improving requires a conscious desire to improve. You need that picture in your mind of who you want to be, and if that picture is just… Who you are now you will hit a wall. I.. Am also trying to improve with all my effort. I can't answer whether or not you should be trying to reach your potential but I can tell you that you could be strong, Miller. Really strong.”
The man straightened out his posture. “Could I even beat you?”
“No.” Ayla stated, waving a hand at him dismissively. He gave her a doubtful look. She tried to explain.
“It's not about you. I made my strength in such a way that I wont lose to any Knight one-on-one unless the difference is overwhelming. I can even hunt werewolves one-on-one if I need to. My Soma is developed to make sure I never get caught or hit. There’s no defence in my primary form, which means I only attack. It’s too much for normal fighters.”
Miller felt determined all of a sudden. “So if I train enough and I catch you-”
“I'm telling you it's good to have goals but this idea is impossible.”
“Well. Put it like this. What if I catch you?”
Ayla gave in to his delusion. If it would drive him to succeed she would encourage it, no matter how impossible.
“I'll grant you a wish that I am able to fulfil.” It seemed like a lot, but they were her squad. Her people in this life.
Miller pumped his fist. “I suddenly wanna get stronger!”
“You’re so predictable.” Samson held his head.
Ayla felt out of the loop. `What's he thinking about asking for? Does he think I’m rich? At least he's motivated, now. I can help him along if he wants to improve.` She turned to leave.
“We'll give it a shot, training after our patrol for a while.” She walked off.
“Hey Ryan?” Miller spoke up after watching her leave.
“Yeah, Zach?” Samson offered in a humouring tone.
“Did you hear her say I got a better personality than any Knight that she's ever met?” Miller looked over the moon.
Samson began walking back. “I'm going to bed.”
Miller jogged to catch up. “Oi! You heard it, right? I’m not crazy?”