The weeks following the duel went by too slow for Kaitri Anam who had a lot of bruises and breakthroughs alike.
The mornings were sometimes a blur of Professor Obi's sharp commands in the dojo. Her voice was a relentless chisel that she hammered to Kaitri and the others, shaping his raw instincts into something functional.
The afterimages of Archedes' battle still haunted his sleep, but now, with Obi's guidance, they were not as bad. He had a goal — to implement Obi's teachings into Archedes' battle style. Well, as much as he could.
He noticed that for some reason, he could remember every single detail from that dream if he just decided to. It was weird but helpful.
"This mysterious phenomenon. Should I talk to Jenny about it? She doesn't seem like type to blab."
She did gossip a lot with her female friends though. Kaitri sighed and got back to swinging his sword at the practice androids that were sparring with each of the special combat class.
At the end, Obi had chosen forty students. Jenny and Varik didn't make the cut but there was a basic combat class which was just for basic survival by Vale. That just meant Kaitri, and the thirty-nine others were more battle hardened while the rest of the first years will have time to build on other aspects.
Kaitri hit the ground with a thud, he had tried to transform the impossible grace of a Fated warrior into the clumsy, straining reality of his own pre-Resonant body. It was a slow and painful process, but progress was progress.
***
Afternoons were spent in Vale's survival classes, held in a sprawling, sphere glass-covered biodome near the edge of the Darkwood.
The air inside was thick with the smell of damp earth and strange, otherworldly flora collected from various planets. Today, the class was different. Some of the second years were here.
They stood apart from the first years, a silent, unmoving wall of solemnity.
Fresh Resonants.
Their faces were hard, their eyes told tales of things seen and people they lost. Some of them looked at the first years with something akin to pity, a weary knowledge of the trials they were going to face in the future. Kaitri scanned their faces, his gaze snagging on one figure who seemed to radiate a predatory calm.
He was an Aerie, one of the winged humanoids Kaitri had only read about. Feathered forearms were crossed over a lean, powerful torso with a storm-grey black wings behind him. His eyes were sharp and constant.
It swept over the first years before locking onto Kaitri's.
A devious, knowing smile spread across his face.
'Resonant O-Ws are scary,' Kaitri thought. It was what people informally called Otherworlders.
The Aerie's presence was a palpable weight in the room.
"You better quit before you get yourself killed," the Aerie's voice was a low, cutting whisper that carried easily across the space. "Not enough rejuvenating sinews in the world for pre-Res weaklings."
Kaitri's lips twitched.
He kept his voice just as low, almost a murmur to himself. "Proud. All birds are proud." It was a line he remembered from some old fantasy novel, a throwaway observation, but the Aerie's head snapped toward him, his sharp ears catching Kaitri's whisper.
"What did you call me?" he hissed, his body tensing as he started to walk toward Kaitri.
'He's also a bird brain,' Kaitri thought, steeling himself.
Before the Aerie could cross the few feet separating them, a firm hand landed on his shoulder. "You need to relax, man."
The Aerie shot a glare at the newcomer but seemed to deflate slightly, stepping back with a final, lingering sneer at Kaitri. The peacemaker turned, a disarmingly warm smile on his face.
"Sorry about my boy there," he said, his voice smooth and calming. "He has a temper because Vale interrupted his nap time." He offered a handshake.
"I'm Aiden. Aiden Sell."
Kaitri took the offered hand, and an involuntary shiver ran down his spine. 'Creepy... Something is off about him.'
It might have just been his appearance that irked Kaitri. Aiden was a Mernian, but unlike the more aquatic members of his race, he had fewer scales. They shimmered faintly along his jawline and the backs of his hands, more like subtle jewellery than armour.
His hair hung in dark, wet-looking coils, braided with tiny, almost invisible shells. A faint web of skin was visible between his fingers, and his eyes were blue, wide, and watery. He was, Kaitri had to admit, distractingly handsome.
'He isn't pure Mernian like the ones who visited my parents back then. Half-born hottie,' Kaitri thought as he tightened his grip.
He finished the handshake, the brief contact leaving a cold aftereffect on his hand. Aiden, oblivious or simply ignoring Kaitri's reaction, moved on, introducing himself to the other first-years with the same easy charm.
Just then, Vale walked in, his heavy steps echoing dramatically in the sudden silence.
"The registered population of Halycon's humanoids is 2.7 billion," he began without preamble, his gaze sweeping over the students.
"Across the fifty-six planets, including Earth, it's closer to fourteen billion. These numbers don't include unregistered nomads and deserters who have migrated to other worlds. As a Resonant, it is your duty to be able to adapt to every situation and every world. Survival isn't always about fighting. More often than not, it's about knowing when to hide and when to run…" His lips curled up slightly before he continued. "Today, we'll see how well you do at both."
After some exercises and calisthenics, he gestured to the second years. "Finally, these Resonants will be your hunters. Your goal is to evade them. The entire academy is your playing field. You fail when they find you and every time each of you gets caught, others will be alerted with a beep."
A murmur of excitement and fear rippled through the first years.
Kaitri's mind was already running. 'The whole academy? That's too large an area to search without an advantage. The hunters must have some kind of tracking ability.'
He immediately started scanning the crowd, his eyes searching for a familiar, slightly disheveled head of blonde hair. He found her binging out a circular artifact from a small pouch on the overalls she chose to wear today. He moved toward her.
"Jenny," he said, his voice low.
She looked up, her green eyes bright with curiosity. "Kai. You ready to get hunted?"
"I have a plan," he said. "But it involves you."
"Oh?" she grinned. "I like the sound of that. What's the plan?"
"I need your brain. And probably one of your illegal artifacts."
Jenny's grin widened. "Way ahead of you. Here is an artifact that can lay them off our backs. There are rooms in the school that have wards which prevent tracking abilities, for privacy. You just watch our backs."
"Deal," Kaitri said. She glanced around. "Where's Varik?"
"Oh, he ate some bad clams this morning," Kaitri said with a wave of his hand.
She laughed. "I hate clams."
Vale's voice cut through the chatter again. "You have sixty seconds to hide. The exercise begins... now."
Chaos erupted. First-years scattered in every direction. Kaitri and Jenny moved as one, sprinting away from the biodome and toward the main academic buildings.
"Follow me!" Jenny yelled over the sound of pounding feet. "Girls' locker room, third floor. The wards are top-notch. No one will find us there."
It was a brilliant and slightly perverted plan. They burst through the doors of the locker room, the smell of soap and chlorine hitting them. It was empty.
"In here," Jenny hissed, pointing to a tall row of metal lockers. She pulled one open and squeezed inside. Kaitri hesitated for a fraction of a second before diving in after her, pulling the door shut just as the sound of footsteps echoed outside.
The space was cramped, their bodies pressed together in the dark. He could feel the warmth radiating from her, her quick breaths tickling his ear.
"Uhm, Kai?" Jenny's voice cracked as she spoke in a muffled whisper. "Why have you followed me in here?"
"I don't know your artifact's range," he answered, his own voice tight. It was a logical excuse, but the heat rising in his cheeks had nothing to do with logic.
They waited in silence, listening to the muffled beeps from other students' wristbands as they were caught.
Jenny let out a stifled giggle. "I bet Varik gets caught the second he shows up late, not even knowing what's happening."
Kaitri chuckled quietly, but the sound died in his throat as the locker room door creaked open. They both froze, holding their breath.
Heavy, deliberate footsteps echoed on the tiled floor. Jenny's hand gripped his arm, her nails digging in slightly as she looked to the small slits of the steel locker door.
"What is this creep doing in the girls' locker room?" he heard her whisper, though her lips didn't move.
The footsteps stopped. Right in front of their locker.
A shadow fell over the ventilation slits. Kaitri's heart hammered against his ribs. The locker door was pulled open with a soft click, flooding their small space with light.
Aiden stood there, his watery eyes crinkling at the corners as he offered them a calming, warm smile.
"Hey guys," he said, taking in their shocked expressions.
Jenny was the first to recover. "How did you manage to find us?" she demanded, her voice a mix of outrage and disbelief.
Aiden's smile widened, and he looked directly at Kaitri. "I tagged him before the class started."
Kaitri's blood ran cold. The handshake. The strange, creepy feeling. 'This cheating bastard. I was right to be wary of him.'
Aiden continued, his tone infuriatingly casual. "I tagged a lot of people with a handshake. This little ability of mine lets me track anyone I've tagged. Not even wards can hide you from me."
Kaitri thought about how insane that ability was… if you didn't know about it. It was the perfect tool for an assassin or a spy. He forced himself to ask, "How long does it last?"
"As long as I have SEU," Aiden replied. He then adopted a patronizing tone. "Oh, you might not have learned that yet. Soul Energy Units. It's the measure of how much soul energy a Resonant has. It can be dangerous during battles if it gets too low, but it replenishes over time. You can also increase your cap by absorbing shards from a felled Dark-Souled or Pure-Souled."
Jenny scoffed, crossing her arms. "That's common knowledge. Everyone knows that."
Kaitri scratched the back of his ear. He hadn't known about the cap increase. He'd have to remember that.
Aiden just shrugged. "Onto the next then. You guys are in the last twenty to get caught, though. So, that's something. You did good using the wards." With a final, charming smile, he turned and left, the door closing softly behind him.
For a long moment, there was only silence. Then Jenny exploded.
"You!" she spun on Kaitri, her green eyes flashing. "This is all your fault! You and your stupid… taggable handshake!"
Kaitri held up his hands in surrender.
"You owe me one!" she declared, poking him in the chest. Then, a slow, devious grin spread across her face, transforming her anger into something far more terrifying. "...and I intend to collect my debt pretty soon."
Kaitri gulped.
What the heck did that mean?