[:you are not in control of what happens next.]
Cog would be the first to admit his faults when it came to decision making. He thoroughly enjoyed a solid challenge, and the more extreme, the better. Perhaps that’s why he waved off the help of Xandir in regards to the threat from the god who had pried itself into his mind while he finished his drop suite; perhaps it was also, in part, due to the gods themselves gaining power when their names were said aloud, even when the concepts they represented were experienced. He kept the message open for a good portion of the 3-hour drive to the annex, and only once he had ingrained it into his memory did he close it. He looked up at the relaxed Xandir, preoccupied Braune and impassive Olga sitting around him. Noelle had ultimately been forced to drive the group to the annex - Xandir used his ‘Veto Power’ as ‘Group Leader’ - and hers was a presence Cog didn’t realize just how much he’d miss until she wasn’t readily present.
Absently, Cog picked at the tips of his long hair; it seemed to have grown with him, so it remained ankle-length in his new, taller body. While he was still no more than four foot ten on a good day, it was a significant growth spurt nonetheless. The incomprehensible lack of knots in said hair made Cog quite curious about how it functioned, and not for the first time, he questioned if it was even hair.
“Well?” Xandir asked aloud, causing Cog to jump. Xandir held out a hand in a calming gesture.
“I didn’t intend to startle you, but you didn’t reply.”
“What did you ask again..?” Cog said.
“Are you excited?” Xandir asked, gesturing at the road outside his window. “You’re taking your first steps towards a goal you never knew you’d have in a world that can grant you powers you could never conceive of before. You’re about to travel to a specialized annex for proper training in said powers. I can hardly fathom the eagerness you’re feeling.”
“Yeah, uh… ‘Eager’ isn’t the term I’d use,” Cog muttered, looking down at his hair. Xandir tilted his head.
“Really?” Xandir asked. “What term would you use?”
“Annoyed. Mildly nostalgic, maybe? It sounds just like school where I come from, and I’m really pessimistic about re-entering the education system. It… wasn’t great back home.”
Xandir nodded in understanding, waiting for the pech to continue. When he didn’t, Xandir tilted his head.
“No elaboration on those experiences?” he asked.
“None,” Cog said bitterly.
A deafening silence permeated the cabin for a time.
“I would look at it this way,” Xandir said, sighing. “If you learn what you need to in order to survive and it isn’t something you want to continue, you can teach yourself. It’s more expensive, but definitely possible.”
Cog nodded absently, watching the trees pass them by outside.
“If I make it that long, sure.”
Xandir simply nodded, his near-palpable intrigue dampening. Neither had to confirm what Cog meant by that.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
As the Clanker approached the school - which, from their view, was as of yet a massive, amber-colored wall - it passed by an odd building; it was constructed like a massive gazebo, though its roof was crafted in the shape of a dodecahedron, and every side had a different kind of weapon engraved upon it. There were at least five of these buildings - possibly more, based on the curving, roadside layout visible from Cog’s perspective - and each had a different image shown off on one of the sides. A curious part of him, despite being shunted into the depths of his anxiety, peeked its head out at this.
“Are those buildings where you choose your Class?” Cog asked.
“Oh, you don’t choose your classes,” Xandir said. Cog blinked.
“You don’t choose your Class? …Wait, you said Classes. Does everyone get multiple Classes!? I thought multiclassing was a big deal.”
Xandir paused, turning to fully look at Cog with a confused gaze.
“Are we talking about the same kind of class?” he asked, and Cog tilted his head.
“I’m talking about the Classes like Bard, Knight, Dragoon… those kinda things.”
“I’m talking about classes like mathematics and the Æthounian language. Since when are Bard classes a thing?”
“They’re common in my world’s fantasy settings. It’s like a specific role you play in a party - your own personal specialization.”
Xandir snorted a laugh, and Cog blinked in confusion.
“What’s so funny?” he asked.
“What you call Classes, we call Specializations,” Xandir exclaimed. “Your phrasing was incredibly confusing!”
Cog felt the corner of his own mouth turn up a bit before scratching the back of his neck.
“What exactly are Specializations, then?” Cog asked. “I could always assume, but I’ve found that to be a poor choice in this place.”
“It’s rather simple, actually,” Xandir said, easing his laughter into a few soft chuckles. “A Specialization is your tertiary mastery, after Chroma and Vyr - the latter of which being taught here, and by a more competent teacher of it than me, but I digress. Your Specialization can be martial arts, use of a particular weapon, or a brand of craftsmanship; most individuals only receive one, but the system allows excess processing of up to three. They can sometimes combine into a single, new Specialization, as well; when that phenomenon occurs, more memory in your System opens up and you’re able to refill said memory remaining from the convergence.”
Cog nodded, looking at the fourth building as they passed it by. He identified some weapons on it - flails, meteor hammers and even chain-blades - but others were as alien to him as his new world; a whip made of chain that looked to have each individual link sharpened, a trio of batons attached together with chains, and even one short chain link with what appeared to be excess chain links sprouting off of them. Only a few people were inside, all listening to a tall individual that looked similar to Braune.
“There’s a lot of chain weapons here,” Cog said.
“That’s because it’s a chain training center,” Braune said, stretching. “Each of those places trains a specific variety of weapon and, depending on the one you use, you might need more than one of them to truly master it.”
“Huh,” Cog said. He absently looked into the fifth gazebo from a distance, spotting individuals using everything from their bare hands - some punching, others palm striking - to brass knuckles, even some dagger blades attached to dusters. His awe only mounted as their actions became clearer, and the damage they were dealing to the training dummies before them rapidly healed. He recognized the now-familiar emberscar trees grown in the rough shape of a humanoid figure rejuvenating themselves, only to be shredded apart again.
With his jaw slightly agape, Cog got lost in the combat dance performed before him.
Xandir smiled at the wonder on the pech’s face, nodding once before straightening his posture.
“There will be infinitely more within the walls of the annex,” Xandir said. “Don’t use all your wonder in one place; after all, every craftsmanship building is within the walls of the school, and their training is something to behold.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
As the group passed a certain point on the rough-shod path that counted as a road, the trees all around them parted, revealing perhaps the most gorgeous building Cog had ever seen. It stood at a generous five stories tall, marble white brick glistening in the morning sun. The brickwork itself was easily mistaken for a solid wall; the only reason Cog could tell it wasn’t one solid slab of carved stone was the pattern of overlapping outlines that didn’t shine, dividing the structure into flawless, dazzling rectangles.
The amber wall he’d seen prior, which was now evidently a solid barrier of some sort of bizarre metal, spanned further than Cog could see. The barrier curved at an arc, which Cog assumed meant it was a massive circle encasing the buildings inside. The impressive defense stretched almost as tall as the white building, and only once Cog watched it for a long while did he realize it didn’t change anything but its viewing angle from his perspective; that could only mean the building was on such an immense scale as the wall surrounding it.
During the five minutes it took to arrive at the inner grounds, Cog made several observations in stunned silence. The wall had an opening that was nearly impossible to see unless you were looking head-on, and even then, the perfectly sealed gate wouldn’t be noticeable unless it was already in the process of opening. Their Clanker shuddered into the bounds of the wall, and Cog’s eyes widened. A sudden feeling of tangible, electric excitement permeated the air around him, making his heart tremble. The smells coming through the Clanker’s windows, closed as they were, were still enough to make the pech salivate heavily, and more than once, he had to wipe his mouth on his hand.
“Good god, the smells… If I get money, I know where it’s going to. Also, this feeling in my chest, like a… Like a…”
“Like a jump-start?” Xandir asked.
“Yeah!” Cog said, “Like a jump-start!”
“That would be the entire campus itself. It allows individuals to regenerate Chroma far faster, and it gives a similar feeling to over-oxygenation, just less blithe. More energetic and focused.”
Cog nodded, watching the people milling about the annex’s campus. He noted once more how diverse the dress and species were. It reminded him of the medical tent he’d seen at Xandir’s camp, though here, every individual wore the same jacket; each had two pins in it, one of which was identical across each jacket Cog saw. It was a pair of odd-looking symbols that he assumed were letters representative of the annex’s name. The other pins’ symbols varied a bit, though it seemed there were only six different ones - each one appeared to represent what he thought to be an element. He remembered Xandir briefly describing elemental attunement to him during one of their many drives, and figured the symbols must be the variety of Chroma they used. He absently wondered why they’d show such tactically crucial information on their metaphorical and literal sleeves, but shook his head; this place was what he hoped for in a fantasy realm, and he wasn’t going to ruin first impressions with assumptions that were sure to be answered later. He simply let himself smile and ease into his seat, taking in the full splendor of the spectacular marvel.
Beside him, Xandir couldn’t help but give him a warm smile. Braune looked up, smirking, and even Olga’s mouth turned a corner upwards, if only for a moment.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
It took a solid ten minutes for the group to check into the annex, having to go through three separate checkpoints to verify their ID, as well as what Cog learned was called their ‘Chroma Signature’ - the reaction of their personal Chroma when interacting with another’s. They used devices, oddly enough, which Cog found counterintuitive; Xandir simply laughed, explaining that Chroma was still energy, and that a machine was perfectly valid for checking such things.
As they successfully completed the final inspection, the man at the gate - an individual that looked to be one of the four-armed humans Cog had seen in the medical bay back at camp - shook Cog’s hand and congratulated him on being one of the first Arnik to enter an annex.
“We don’t often see any Arnik that survive the ‘fervor’ of the public, be they religious or scientific,” the man said. “I’m glad to see the world improving upon itself for once. Have a good day, and those are on me!”
When Cog withdrew his hand, he saw what the man had implied; he’d given Cog a dozen Red drops. The entire group stared down at them in shock, then looked up to the man. He gave them a toothy grin.
“I knew you weren’t gonna be well off from the get-go, so when I heard an Arnik was coming in, I figured I’d round up the Arnik-supportive guards and we’d all pitch in a couple of drops for you. Hopefully you put them to good use! Now you best get going, or you’ll miss the introductory course - and trust me when I say, you do not want to miss a showboating Tolis!”
“Tolis is still teaching here!?” Braune asked incredulously, breaking into a cackling laugh. “Oh, who am I kidding - of course the old coot is still here! I remember being taught the basics by him myself. How’s he holding up?”
“Well, he can’t be doing too bad - he’s the head of this annex now.”
“No shit!” Braune said, cackling again. “That son of a bitch just doesn’t quit! Maybe I’ll have to spar with him once or twice, for old times’ sake.”
“I’m sure he’d be interested,” the man said, tapping a finger on the desk within his booth, “but you really should be going. At this rate, you’ll already be missing the opening speech.”
“Ah, you’re right,” Braune said, scratching the back of his neck. “What was your name again?”
“Osol. Osol Reimar.”
“Well, thanks for the updates, Osol. I’ll be sure to put a good word in for ya, whatever that’s worth!”
“It’s worth more than you think, sir. Now go on already; the annex is waiting!”
Braune chuckled as the group drove off, he and the guard briefly waving at one another. While he did so, Xandir and Olga skimmed through the drops the guard had given Cog; he’d subtly nudged them in their direction until they understood that he wanted them to check the gift. Nobody willing to take risks, the two experienced explorers poked, prodded and tossed about the small spheres. After another five minutes of driving and inspecting, they found nothing wrong with the drops.
If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.
“Hard to believe there are still genuine supporters of Arniks,” Olga muttered. “It’s like a crusade out there.”
“Well, some people still have faith in one another,” Xandir said, then held up a finger that was perfectly balancing a Red drop. “The right kind of faith.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Once the party finally arrived in what Cog could only describe as a parking bay - simply an open lot of packed dirt that vehicles of all kinds were sitting in - they guided Cog towards the central building together. Noelle rejoining the group put Cog slightly at ease, though he understood slightly better why now - he assumed one of her abilities was a mild boost to Chroma regeneration, as her presence provided an extra, albeit slight, jolt to his heart. The feeling actually caused him to recall the adrenaline rush he’d had back in the cave, with the Fialtog. He closed his eyes and shook his head for a moment, pushing that thought out and replacing it with the memory of a far more welcome feline - his family’s old cat. Cog felt a slight pang of loss in his gut before walking through the doorway of the annex’s front entrance.
By now, the sun was well on its way past the horizon, and not a cloud was in the sky, which lit the entryway of the annex up with a warm, homely glow. As he looked about, dissociating from the conversation his group had begun with the staff of the annex, he thought he recognized one of the sofas in the waiting room from his childhood home; on closer inspection, though, the color was slightly off and it was far too large. He was reminded of a better time, when he didn’t have to worry about surviving or social anxiety, where he could just sit at a table with his family and eat pancakes in the morning, watching Hanna Barbera cartoons…
Cog shook his head, refocusing on the situation at hand. He tuned in to what his group was discussing with the staff. Noelle was the one talking at that moment.
“...means he’ll likely need personal quarters close to those of Tolis, in addition to the pre-established precautions. That aside, I think we’re done here. We cannot thank you enough for agreeing to help him. We know it’s an annex that’s very Arnik-tolerant, but it also isn’t exactly easy to let an Arnik into your care. We really, truly appreciate it.”
“It’s no problem at all!” the receptionist said, giving Noelle a slight bow. Despite neon green hair, the woman seemed relatively normal and human to Cog. “We’ve actually been trying to get Arniks a place at our school for years now, so being able to host one is an honor! I’ll fetch Ms. Ava, who will escort Cog personally to Auditorium C. We’ll keep you updated with all of our plans, as per the agreement!”
“Thank you,” Xandir said, giving a polite bow. He held one hand in front of himself and one behind his back, bending to a full right angle before straightening. The receptionist returned the bow, and Cog committed the motions to memory. His group turned to face him, Braune resting a comforting hand on his shoulder and Olga giving him a genuine smile for once.
“Are you ready for the first day of the rest of your life?” Xandir asked, a spark of excitement in his eyes.
Cog had quite nearly missed it; the mild stiffness of his shoulders and legs, the practically undetectable sway in posture, and even the slight trepidation hidden behind the eagerness. Xandir didn’t seem entirely himself, and this shook Cog quite a bit. He nodded, however, albeit with false confidence; the last thing he’d need would be self-doubt about this choice, regardless of what this group thought. He felt his body tense slightly, reminding himself to keep his guard up before speaking.
“Thank you guys for everything,” he said, the words making his eyes burn slightly. “I’ll stay strong for you, and hopefully I’ll be able to help you all someday.”
“I know you will,” Xandir said, then gave a hug that enveloped the pech. Cog felt the soft, smooth jacket against his skin, the smell of coffee and brown sugar permeating his senses. He could feel the power behind Xandir’s arms, yet he had flawless control over his strength. What took Cog aside the most was, despite the man seemingly being made of shadows, his body was very clearly warm to the touch, to the point that his arms felt like blankets fresh out of the dryer. The tendrils of darkness that peeked out from the minute gaps in Xandir’s clothing, when brushing against Cog, felt more like incredibly lush fur than anything. Perhaps warm clouds?
The pech took a deep breath as he returned the gesture, then waved goodbye to his old group. Once they’d left the building, he felt a familiar rigidity return to his posture - one he’d wished he could have left behind in his world’s high school. He repeated the breathing technique Braune had taught him a couple of times, then turned to the receptionist with a smile that felt more confident than him.
“I’m down to meet Ava whenever she’s ready,” Cog said.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
It didn’t take long before the two met.
Ava, as it turned out, was another Dracht; unlike Olga, her hair was long, curly and brown, and her skin was remarkably tan. Her eyes shone with a light blue intensity, and her simple adornments of leather armor, a plain t-shirt and basic sweatpants screamed contrast against Olga’s own excruciatingly regal attire. Ava’s own ears were larger than Olga’s, and if Cog wasn’t mistaken, he’d thought they were sharper, too. Her piercing, icy gaze wasn’t just a visual aspect, either; as she quickly explained, her Chroma was water, though her abilities were ice-centric. In addition, her abilities manifested as predatory plants, of all things, which meant her gorgeously chiseled physique was a representation of her ice sculpture abilities. She showed off a normal-sized venus flytrap - a species Cog definitely expected to be far larger in this world - that was held loosely in her hand, slowly opening and closing on its own.
“I won’t go into too much detail,” Ava explained, “but just know I have the means to protect you in virtually any situation. Setting traps, direct confrontation, subterfuge - I’ve been trained in the best of defensive and offensive Specializations, including having four Specialization Hybridizations under my belt, but I digress. Ultimately, it’s my job to protect you, but that doesn’t mean I’ll coddle you. I’ll simply prevent anyone or anything that interferes with your time here from killing you during your stay, but it’s otherwise on you to grow stronger and survive. Understood?”
Cog nodded, analyzing her face for a long moment.
Then, he held out a hand to shake.
Ava tilted her head slightly, then slowly and confusedly shook his hand.
“I’m sure it will be a pleasure working alongside you,” he said with a smile that was more genuine than he thought he could muster. “Thank you for agreeing to help me. I’ll warn you in advance that I’m annoying, bossy when I shouldn’t be, and I really don’t know when to quit. Long as you’re ready to knock some sense into me, I think we’ll get along just fine.”
This time, Ava gave him a smile; a smirk more than anything, but he could see the honesty of the gesture in her eyes.
“Sounds like a plan to me,” she said, eyes glinting; whether it was with danger or excitement, Cog couldn’t quite tell. “Let’s get you to the auditorium.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
As they arrived at the auditorium, Cog was once more enthralled by the architecture. Unlike the pristine white walls outside, or even the more mundane wooden walls in the hallways and offices, the auditorium walls appeared to be pure, perfectly polished diorite with flecks of gold spread generously throughout it. Not one ounce of mortar or sealant was present, meaning this entire room was likely carved from a single stone. It had to be the size of a football field, stands included, and every part of the floor was made of what Cog now easily recognized as more Emberscar wood; this floor, however, was perfectly smooth without a single knot or flake of bark misplaced, and he couldn’t help but wonder if petrified Emberscar wood was what they used. Despite this internal inquiry, the sheer feel of the floor - and the sound of him walking across it with his dress shoes - confirmed that it was, in fact, still very much alive. He shook his head in amazement, touching the seats made of a pale violet leather. The feel was smooth, firm and oddly comfortable; he sat down as directed, though, which was in the back and against the wall, Ava directly next to him.
The man at the other end of the room was talking into a device shockingly similar to those that Xandir called ‘Communicators’, yet his voice carried clearly across the entire auditorium. Cog assumed this was a modified Communicator, or perhaps this world’s version of an announcement system; either way, he quickly lost interest when he looked a bit closer at the individual talking.
The first thing Cog noticed was the man’s skin - or lack thereof. It looked as if he had his outermost layers removed, only muscles and anything lying beneath remaining. He stood at least seven feet tall, and due to his immense musculature, Cog could only assume him to be nearing three hundred pounds. He wore a vibrantly hot pink suit, which actually looked incredibly good on him, though the pech soon realized the speaker wasn’t wearing any shoes. Despite this odd fact, there was something more bizarre. The man without skin actually blinked, and Cog came to realize his eyelids seemed to be made of muscle. The combination of a lack of hair and such mild details being impossibly wrong made Cog shudder involuntarily.
When he realized he hadn’t been listening to the man on the metallic stage - made of what Cog assumed to be Orichalcum, despite its oddly light appearance - he frantically forced himself to tune in.
“...wrap up, I am Tolis Povestracht, and I’m proud to introduce you to Zeta Annex 2!” the man announced proudly, throwing his arms out in a gesture of grandeur. “With that extensive history lesson out of the way, let me begin by introducing you all to one of our newest members, Cog!”
The auditorium was quiet until Cog tentatively stood, glancing at Ava as he did so. She nodded encouragingly, leaning back and gesturing for him to go up on stage. As he began to walk forward, mild applause broke the silence.
“Cog here is our first ever Arnik!” Tolis said, gesturing at the approaching pech. He waved nervously, and the applause lasted until he got on stage.
“We’re going to be taking extensive steps to start helping Arniks who were shunted into their situation unwillingly, as it’s been proven time and again that it isn’t a choice they make. We’ll ensure that Cog here is given the best time possible, learning and growing just as much as his peers-”
As Tolis continued to talk, Cog began to zone out, looking about the auditorium. He noticed that very few people had the jackets he’d seen before, but many had badges that seemed very much like staff verification cards he’d seen on Earth. He assumed that meant a lot of teachers, parents and possibly even prospective patrons. Rather than worry about the bored looking badge holders, he instead focused on the half dozen or so individuals who did wear the jackets. He assumed the overlapping symbols on the commonplace badge were resemblant of ‘Zeta Annex 2’ in some way, and…
A shudder ran down Cog’s spine.
As if guided by another part of himself, he felt his eyes flash to one particular individual within the jacketed crowd; it was a four-armed person, much like the man at the gate. Unlike that man, however, this individual had tanner skin, heavier-duty muscles, and a far shorter stature. While the guard had to be at least as tall as Tolis, this individual couldn’t be much more than a head taller than Cog himself. Still, the man sat in such a casual position that it made Cog feel unnerved to the utmost degree.
Then, they locked eyes.
The man’s own blazed with a blossom of actively shifting reds, yellows and oranges, like a lava lamp on overdrive. His pupils shrank when they looked at one another, and a deep, festering hate began to burst forth from behind his eyes - a tangible feeling of dread and rage crushed down against Cog. The man gritted his teeth, entire body visibly tensing as though ready to leap across the auditorium at the pech, and Cog involuntarily shuddered. The look in the man’s eyes was beyond animalistic or calculating - it was like a fanatic who couldn’t venerate their gods. Since he got so easily lost in the fear and dread, Cog fully jumped when Tolis put a hand on his shoulder, but the latter showed absolutely no reaction to this. In the brief instant it took Cog to look up at Tolis and back at the man, he was gone.
No footsteps. No sound. No words. Just… gone.
For the remainder of the speech, Cog couldn’t focus on a single word Tolis said. He simply looked around himself, anxiously waiting for another shoe to drop.
When none did, he took a deep, shuddering breath, then refocused on the presentation.
“...allow me to demonstrate the power I’ve gained. Cog, if you wouldn’t mind stepping off the stage for now? I don’t wish to put anyone at risk.”
Cog immediately leapt off the stage, landing hard, but on his feet. He nodded at Tolis, who smiled.
“Ladies and gentlemen, might I introduce you to two things; one, a barrier of my own abilities and design-” at his words, a slightly opaque tan dome covered the entire stage, sealing him within but seemingly not harming his Communicator’s connection to the speakers, “-and two, a Purple-Threshold Cacklewreath!”
Cog immediately stumbled back as the curtain behind Tolis, which was also within the bubble, pulled back to reveal a cage not dissimilar to lion cages at a circus. Within was the single largest Cacklewreath Cog had seen to-date - it was damn near Clanker-sized - and with the quick flip of a switch, Tolis opened the cage. The beast burst forth, slamming directly into the dome with a hollow thwack. It whipped around to face Tolis, but didn’t lunge. Instead, it began to dash around. This time, due to the dome, Cog could see where it went due to ripples waving across the surface of Tolis’s barrier. His suit rippled in the wind kicked up by the monster’s wild dashing, but otherwise Tolis himself seemed unfazed.
The audience, however, was dumbstruck - Cog included.
“This is a demonstration of the power I’ve grown using this very annex’s teaching methods. To this day and even at well over three hundred years old, I still use these training methods and exercises. Now, I’d like you all to remember a few things.”
Cog could see the impact points becoming more and more widespread across the dome, and he could only assume the Cacklewreath was speeding up even further. He bit his lip, knowing that Tolis wouldn’t be the head of the annex without good reason and more than likely had a handful of contingencies in case this did fail against all odds, but the experience of just a day or two ago made him anxious nonetheless.
“First, Purple Threshold Cacklewreaths, being the second highest rank possible, can get to nine times the speed of sound without breaking the sound barrier due to their attunement with Air.”
The barrier had begun to ripple everywhere, like a pot of water’s surface beginning to boil, but it still held.
“Second, I have the authority to personally intervene in all physical matters regarding any of my students or staff, up to and including execution of any given party on the spot, should I see it just and it corresponds with our laws.”
Tolis had begun to casually sway halfway through his second point, ducking and dodging in seemingly random patterns, until Cog realized that he was evading attacks. Attacks likely faster than Cog himself could ever dodge or throw, evaded by this man as if they were gently tossed tennis balls.
“And third,” Tolis said, and with such immense speed that made it look as though his arm skipped video frames, his hand went directly from his side to raised high in the air. The Cacklewreath’s lower neck was grasped firmly in his fist, its massive, writhing body barely held above the ground.
Tolis held it aloft as if carrying a bag of groceries.
“Lethal assault on any trainee is punishable by death.”
He yanked his arm down, ripping the throat free of the Cacklewreath’s massive bulk. He then threw a punch that caused the thing’s body to halfway explode, a shifting of coloration in the dome causing ricocheting limbs and bones to be vaporized against the sides of the bubble. The main portion of the torso - the expansive chest cavity - was shoved into the side of the barrier by Tolis personally. The shield acted like a sander, grinding the remnants down incredibly quickly before leaving Tolis’s empty hand unharmed. He turned to the crowd with a bow, blood still dripping from his suit sleeves, barrier dissipating as he shot the people before him an award-winning smile. The hushed tones erupted into jubilant cheers, though Cog couldn’t bring himself to do more than shake uncontrollably.
“That will be all for now. Go, enjoy your day and don’t forget to be decent people! Don’t forget to introduce yourselves to Cog on your way out, either~!”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Once the auditorium was cleared out and Cog had received a couple dozen of half-hearted introductions, Ava climbed up the stage alongside the pech. The pair of training annex staff members took Cog down the hallway, walking him between them. He was taking several deep breaths, trying to steady himself, but it didn’t seem to be working the way it normally did.
“Do you guys have anxiety meds here?” Cog asked suddenly. “I dunno, like… Sertraline? I’d like a bunch of Sertraline. That would be good.”
Ava and Tolis gave each other a knowing look before the latter directed Cog to turn right.
“We don’t have those,” Tolis said. His voice was laden with concern. “Are you okay..?”
“You were doing relatively well when we met,” Ava said. “Couldn’t be an ability, since nobody in this place can use their Chroma in the auditorium. It’s got a dampening field that just negates it and puts the Chroma back into the school grounds. What in the hells happened?”
“It… was nothing?” Cog said unconvincingly.
“Well, I’m not gonna pry-” Ava said.
“I am,” Tolis said. “It’s a student in my care. You’ll be keeping a dorm room right in the same building as Ava and myself. You can talk about it there if you’d rather avoid that conversation now.”
Cog nodded.
“...Could I at least get a handful of charbars?”
Once more, Tolis and Ava shared a look. The silence between the three lasted until they’d nearly arrived at Cog’s room, and he took a deep breath.
“It’s… a lot to process,” he said. “You guys aren’t the issue, it’s stuff I’ve been through before. And something I haven’t… at least not here. Give me a half hour in my dorm and I’ll be ready to talk, okay? …Please?”
Ava nodded and Tolis sighed.
“Take all the time you need,” he said. “We’ll be right next door, waiting.”