Chapter 31: Fast Forward.
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Location: Camp Lehigh, Naturals Training Grounds.
Omni POV
Time: Six Months Later
Six months.
Half a year had come and gone since the five Naturals first arrived at Camp Lehigh.
Six months of predawn wake-up calls.
Six months of bruises, sore muscles, and endless drills.
Six months of Sergeant Major Barnes finding increasingly creative ways to make them question their life choices.
And six months of Captain Rogers pushing them to understand the mysterious power flowing through their bodies.
None of them were the same people who had stepped onto the island all those months ago. Leon, Daniel, Erica, Raymond, and Martha had all changed in both mind and body.
Today, however, was different, for one of the few times since their arrival, the cadets had been granted a full day off.
A rare reward, one every trainee intended to enjoy in their own way. Leon had disappeared into one of his projects while Raymond and Martha had followed after him.
Which left Daniel and Erica standing in the training yard outside the First-Year Naturals Barracks.
A cool breeze swept across the yard as the two faced one another from opposite ends of the training grounds.
Daniel stood noticeably taller than he had six months ago. The softness that had once lingered around his face had begun to disappear, replaced by firmer features and the beginnings of a soldier's physique. His shoulders had broadened, posture had improved. Months of training under Barnes had slowly transformed him. Though despite all that, the same gentle nature still remained.
In his hands rested a wooden sword and shield specifically crafted for someone his size.
Across from him stood Erica. She too had changed. The blonde girl had grown taller and stronger, her training sharpening both her body and her movements such that even while standing still, she carried herself with a quiet confidence that made it clear she knew exactly what she was capable of.
Leather gauntlets covered her hands as her blue eyes remained as calm and unreadable as ever as she studied her opponent.
Daniel sighed, a long suffering sigh. "I really don't want to do this."
"I wasn't asking." Erica responded.
Daniel stared at her for several seconds. Not because he was surprised, quite the opposite in fact.
"...Yeah." He nodded to himself. "I expected that answer."
"You asked."
Daniel rubbed his forehead. There really was no arguing with her. "Why don't you spar with Leon?"
"Leon is researching something." A brief pause followed. "As usual."
Daniel immediately accepted that explanation without question because ever since they met him, they had come to know of Leon's habit of disappearing whenever he wasn't training.
Most of the time he could be found studying, building something, taking something apart, or somehow doing all three simultaneously.
"What about Raymond?" Daniel asked. "He can fight."
"He's an archer." Erica shrugged. "He spends half the fight running away."
Daniel laughed. The image appeared instantly in his mind. Raymond sprinting for his life while Erica chased him around the training grounds. "That's fair."
He adjusted his grip on the shield. "Then what about Martha?"
"She's a mage." That was all Erica said. No explanation. No elaboration.
Daniel smiled weakly. "So I'm the only one left, huh?"
"That's why we're here." Erica rolled her shoulders. The joints in her arms gave a series of small pops. "Besides." Her gaze sharpened slightly. "You're the strongest one here physically."
Daniel immediately shook his head. "You know if you want, you can match my strength."
"That's if you don't use mana reinforcement." Her expression remained unchanged. "Now let's fight."
Daniel stared at her, then at the training yard then back at her. Unfortunately, she appeared completely serious. "Fine."
The moment the word left his mouth, he moved. His shield came forward, sword pulled back as he charged.
The ground trembled beneath his footsteps, dust kicked up behind him.
To anyone unfamiliar with Daniel, the sight would have been terrifying. A massive boy carrying a shield nearly as large as his torso charging at them like a beast.
Yet Erica didn't move. She didn't shift her footing, didn't raise her guard, she didn't even blink, in her eyes the entire world seemed to narrow to a single point as she calculated Daniel's approach.
Five meters.
The distance vanished rapidly.
Three.
Daniel lowered his shoulder.
Two.
The shield angled forward.
One.
Only when he entered striking distance did Erica finally move, her body shifted sideways with practiced precision.
Smooth and efficient.
Daniel's shield rushed past empty air.
His eyes widened. "What—?!"
Before he could recover, Erica's fist shot to his side.
THUMP! The impact echoed across the training yard as her fist buried itself directly into Daniel's side. ( A perfect liver shot. ).
As Daniel turned to face her again, Erica calmly lowered her fist as she taunted him "Too slow."
Daniel slowly straightened, still wheezing and in slight pain. He took a deep breath. "I still hate that move."
"That's because you still can't stop it," Erica said. The faintest hint of satisfaction appeared in her eyes.
"Yeah..." He winced. Raising his shield once more. "This is going to be a long afternoon."
Then he charged again as the spar continued.
††† At the Same Time with Leon.
Location: Naturals Barracks Laboratory.
The room looked completely out of place within a military barracks.
Several strange devices hummed quietly in the background, as a collection of tools, crystals, half-finished prototypes, and pieces of machinery occupied nearly every available surface.
Workbenches lined the walls. Sheets of paper covered in diagrams had been pinned almost everywhere.
A collection of dismantled military equipment sat stacked in one corner of the room.
The room had originally been an unused storage area attached to the Naturals Barracks. Over the past six months, however, Leon had somehow transformed it into a functioning laboratory.
Nobody was entirely sure how, when or why only that it existed now and Captain Rogers had apparently approved it which made questioning it difficult.
At the center of it all stood Leon as three holographic screens floated around him. One displayed a complex series of symbols, another appeared to be some form of blueprint meanwhile the third was filled almost entirely with calculations.
"So." Raymond looked around the laboratory before turning toward Leon. "Why did you call us here?"
Leon didn't answer immediately. His eyes remained fixed on one of the holographic displays as his fingers moved through several floating windows.
Only after finishing whatever he was doing did he finally look up. "As you might remember, I'm looking for a way to restrict my mana output."
Raymond frowned. "Yes, I remember."
Martha nodded from beside him. "I thought you said it was impossible."
"Yes." Raymond agreed. "That's exactly what you said."
"No." Leon immediately shook his head. "I said it would take years."
Turning back toward the holographic display, he flicked several windows aside. "It would take years to design such a system from scratch. Especially considering how little we actually know about Graces."
Leon pointed toward Raymond. "But then I remembered something." "You said there was already something capable of doing exactly what I need."
Raymond's eyes widened slightly. Realization slowly crept across his face.
"Yes." Then his expression became apologetic "But you can never get your hands on it."
A pause.Then— "Don't tell me."
Leon's smile widened. The silence that followed was answer enough.
Raymond immediately rubbed his forehead. Somehow someway Leon had done it.
Martha looked between the two boys. Clearly trying to figure out what was happening. "Wait." She frowned. "What exactly are you talking about?"
Leon turned toward her. "I got my hands on the blue prints of an armour."
Martha blinked. "Raymond, you said only the royal families had access to them"
"Exactly." Raymond agreed.
Now she looked just as concerned as Raymond. "Please tell me you didn't steal them"
Leon nodded. "Come on that isn't fair, I've only stolen once, and he deserved that"
Not in the mood for jokes Raymond asked. "How?"
Leon simply smiled.
††† Flashback to Their First Day of Training.
Right after they finished their first morning of training under Sergeant Major Barnes, the five Naturals had been sent toward a separate building on the far side of the camp.
Their legs were sore, their uniforms clung to them with sweat while muscle in their bodies protested with each step.
Raymond, meanwhile, looked seconds away from collapsing entirely.
His face had gone pale, breathing was uneven while his legs appeared to be operating solely through sheer determination. "I think Sergeant Barnes is trying to kill us," he muttered while dragging his feet.
Nobody immediately disagreed.
"Please just let me die in peace." Martha groaned as she leaned heavily against his shoulder.
Daniel and Leon looked only mildly better compared to the first two, while Erica somehow looked completely unaffected.
Eventually, the exhausted group reached their destination. A large stone building stood near the edge of the camp, compared to the training grounds, it looked surprisingly ordinary.
The moment they stepped inside, however, the atmosphere changed.
Rows of desks filled the room, bookshelves lined the walls.
The entire interior felt far more like a classroom than a military facility, while mounted atop a raised platform at the front of the room stood a crystal nearly the size of a soccer ball.
The object immediately caught everyone's attention.
Daniel pointed. "Hey." The large boy frowned. "Doesn't that look like the stones they use in church? It's just smaller"
The others followed his finger.
"It does." Martha nodded quietly.
Raymond adjusted his glasses. "It looks similar." He studied the crystal carefully. "But I don't think it's the same."
Without waiting for permission, Luxion floated closer. His red eye scanned the crystal from top to bottom.
"Analysis complete." The small drone paused. "It is composed of materials similar to a Blessing Crystal."
Everyone immediately looked interested.
A second later, Luxion continued. "However, it lacks an active energy signature."
Daniel frowned. "What does that mean?" The large boy looked back toward the crystal.
"It means it is not a Blessing Crystal," Erica replied.
Daniel nodded thoughtfully. "Thanks for that."
For a moment, Erica simply stared at him. Then she sighed. "I was being sarcastic."
Daniel blinked. "What? Why—"
Forgetting about that conversation she looked around the room "What I want to know is..." Erica folded her arms. "Where is the Captain?"
The room immediately became quiet.
Because she had a point. They had arrived nearly ten minutes ago yet there was still no sign of Captain Rogers.
"Maybe we're early?" Martha suggested, sounding hopeful.
Raymond glanced at one of the wall clocks. "We're not."
"Maybe he had something else to do" Daniel offered.
Nobody believed that, not even Daniel.
"Or maybe he's testing our patience," Raymond said.
"Or maybe—"
The door suddenly opened with the room immediately snapping to attention.
Captain Rogers stepped inside. Immediately followed by another officer.
All five recruits shot to their feet with even Raymond a d Martha who looked close to death somehow finding enough energy to stand straight.
Rogers swept his gaze across the room, satisfied with what he saw, he nodded once. "At ease."
The recruits relaxed somewhat.
Rogers gestured toward the officer standing beside him. "This is Lieutenant Akens."
The officer stepped forwardm who compared to Rogers or Barnes, appeared younger.
His uniform was immaculate and posture perfect.
"He'll be conducting today's assessment."
The group quickly exchanged curious glances.
Assessment?
Leon immediately raised his hand to which the Captain noticed almost instantly. "Cadet Bartfort."
"Sir." Leon lowered his hand. "What exactly are we being tested on?"
The rest nodded along, they wanted to know too.
Captain Rogers folded his arms across his chest. "I'm sure Sergeant Barnes already explained the three primary paths available to awakened fighters."
Leon answered immediately. "Skill-based fighters, Mages and Physicals."
Rogers nodded. "Correct." He began pacing slowly across the front of the room as the steady sound of his boots echoed softly against the stone floor.
"Skill-based fighters shape their combat around the unique abilities granted by their Grace."
"Physicals focus on enhancing their bodies."
"Meanwhile, Mages channel their energy into spells."
His gaze swept across the recruits, each of them straightened slightly under the attention. "But regardless of which path you choose..." He stopped beside the crystal. Raising a hand, he tapped the smooth surface. The crystal produced a dull sound. "All three require one thing."
The room became silent. "Energy control. Without control, power means nothing."
Rogers' voice remained calm. "You'll waste energy, you'll damage your spirit veins or worse you might kill yourself."
The atmosphere in the room immediately shifted. What had sounded like a lesson moments ago now felt far more serious.
Nobody looked away or spoke as they let the silence linger.
Rogers seeing they had understood him continued. " This test will measure your natural affinity and control."
Stepping aside he said. "Lieutenant Akens."
The younger officer nodded. "Thank you, Captain." Moving toward the crystal, he placed a hand against its surface. "As Captain Rogers explained, today's assessment is relatively simple."
His eyes moved across the room. "All you need to do is place your hand on the crystal. Then allow your energy to flow into it."
Daniel immediately raised a hand.
Akens pointed toward him. "Yes?"
"What happens then?"
A faint smile appeared on the Lieutenant's face. "The crystal will change colour."
Daniel blinked. "And?" That answer explained almost nothing.
"The colour determines your result." With everyone paying attention Akens gestured toward the crystal.
"Red indicates the best outcome."
"Orange indicates exceptional."
"Yellow indicates advanced."
"Green indicates medium."
"Blue indicates below average."
"Indigo indicates low."
Then his expression became slightly more serious.
"Purple indicates the worst."
Raymond immediately pushed his glasses higher. "How common is purple?" his paranoia already beginning to spike,
Akens smiled. "It isn't."
That answer was able to relieve some of his fears.
The Lieutenant looked around the room one final time. "Now then."
Stepping aside, he extended a hand toward the crystal. "Let's begin."
His eyes moved across the group. One recruit after another.
Then they stopped. The room seemed to hold its breath waiting to see who would be called first.
" Leon fou Bartfort."
††† Later That Afternoon.
The team was now sitting in the mess hall eating their fill after a long morning of training and assessments.
The building buzzed with conversation as dozens of recruits occupied the long rows of tables, from first-years all the way to third-years.
The smell of freshly baked bread and roasted meat filled the air.
For most recruits, lunch was the highlight of the day. For Leon, however, it was apparently a time for suffering. "Goddammit!" Leon slammed his forehead onto the table as the wooden surface rattled slightly from the impact. "Goddammit!" He screamed again.
"Stop that." Erica's voice cut cleanly through his dramatics. She didn't even bother looking up from her food. Calmly cutting another piece of meat, she continued eating as though Leon wasn't currently having a breakdown beside her. "What's done is done. So stop complaining."
"Hey, come on." Leon lifted his head a bit. A faint red mark had already begun forming on his forehead. "After what happened, I think I deserve to complain a little."
Several nearby cadets glanced toward their table with most quickly looked away when Erica's gaze drifted across the room.
"Look at it from a positive point of view." Daniel offered the suggestion with a grin. Despite wanting to sympathize with his friend, he was still in a surprisingly good mood. "Captain Rogers said white is supposed to be better than red."
"That was before the crystal exploded." Leon immediately argued. "Plus all of you got great results."
Daniel's smile faltered slightly. He scratched the back of his head not knowing how to respond.
"Captain Rogers said the only reason it exploded was because your connection to your source is too strong." Martha quietly reminded him.
Leon opened his mouth to argue, then stopped. Slowly turning his head, he looked toward Luxion.
The small drone was hovering nearby. Leon narrowed his eyes. "Luxion."
The drone's red eye turned toward him. "I can tell you have something to say."
A pause. "So stop holding back and say it."
"I was merely noting that it was fortunate you tested last."Luxion replied in his usual robotic tone. "Otherwise the others would not have been able to complete their assessments."
The table fell silent. Daniel immediately looked away.
Raymond suddenly became very interested in his food.
Even Martha lowered her gaze.
Nobody wanted to be caught laughing.
"You just had to kick me while I was down, didn't you?" Leon groaned before dropping his forehead onto the table once more. A muffled thud echoed across the wood.
"Why are you acting so down?" Luxion asked as genuine confusion entered the drone's voice. "All you need to do is find a way to restrict your mana flow. I would have expected you to possess at least one hundred theories by now."
"But how?" Leon groaned, leaning back in his chair, he stared toward the ceiling.
The enthusiasm that normally appeared whenever he encountered a problem was nowhere to be seen. "Luxion." The drone floated slightly closer. "You know more about Graces than I do, Is there a way to do what you just said?"
"I possess no such design within my databanks."
Leon's expression immediately fell. Again."Goddammit."
He slumped further into his chair as his fingers began tapping against the table.
A habit he had developed as a sign that his brain was already working overtime. "Then why did you tell me about it?"
"Because you made me promise to informing you of relevant information in my possession."
Leon groaned. "While it might be fun to solve..." His tapping sped up slightly. "Designing something like that is going to take forever." His eyes drifted toward the ceiling once more. "And I'd have to research Graces from scratch." The thought alone sounded exhausting. "By the time I'm done, we'd probably have already graduated."
"You don't have to do that." Raymond said as he adjusted his glasses.
Leon immediately stopped tapping, his head turned towards him slowly, very slowly the same way a predator moved when it finds prey.
Raymond immediately regretted speaking immediately "My father once told me that magic-armours can do exactly what you're looking for."
Leon's eyes lit up, the transformation was immediate, gone was the exhausted cadet. In his place sat an inventor who had just discovered something interesting. "Oh?" The single word carried far too much enthusiasm. "Where can I get those blueprints?"
Raymond already knew he wasn't going to like this conversation. "Only the Royal Families know how to make them. I don't know how you're supposed to get your hands on those." Raymond finished.
†††† Back to the Present.
"How did you get your hands on it?" Raymond asked.
"You didn't steal them, did you?" Martha asked worried he might get in trouble. "I don't have to tell you how bad an idea that is."
Leon looked up from the holographic display. The smug look on his face immediately made Raymond fear the answer. "Captain Rogers gave them to me."
The room went silent as Raymond and Martha stared at him, Luxion being the only one Immune to the shock as he was there when the deal was made.
Several seconds passed In silence before Raymond finally blinked.
Once.
Twice.
And then a third time for good measure. "What did you have to do to get them?"
Leon shrugged. "I just sold him a few weapon designs." He turned back toward the holographic display as though he'd just said something completely normal. "That's all."
Raymond slowly removed his glasses, rubbed his eyes then put them back on.
"Leon." His voice sounded tired. "What kind of weapon designs?"
Leon paused to think. "A few."
Raymond's eye twitched. That answer somehow raised even more questions. "How few?"
Leon looked genuinely confused by the question. "As in a few."
Raymond stared. "Leon." The blue haired boy pointed at him. "That is not a number."
" Yeah I know it's not a number, what do you even need a number for any way." Seeing Raymond still looking at him, he added "You don't need to worry it was just a few guns, fighter jets, tanks among someother things."
Martha looked as though she was trying to determine whether Leon was joking, unfortunately, after six months of knowing him, she was fairly certain he wasn't. "You said you sold him blueprints. So why are you speaking in plurals?"
"Because they were blueprints for several different weapons." Leon blinked. Then pointed toward the holographic display to which he used it to show them the designs he sold. "I thought I made that obvious."
Raymond buried his face in his hands as a deep groan escaped him. "He's gone and done it now."
"I got the armor blueprints. Why are you acting so jumpy?"
"Leon." Raymond stared at him in disbelief. "Everything you just listed hasn't even been imagined yet."
He pointed toward the holographic displays floating around the room. "You didn't sell Captain Rogers a better rifle or a new magic cannon." His voice rose slightly. "You sold him weapons that could completely change how wars are fought."
Leon listened quietly, he didn't interrupt, didn't joke, didn't argue. Instead, he leaned back in his chair and folded his arms. "To Captain Rogers." The response came calmly. Matter-of-factly. "I trust him I'm sure he'll put them to good use."
Raymond opened his mouth. Then closed it again because that was the problem, he believed that too Captain Rogers wasn't the sort of man who would abuse that kind of power but that didn't make the situation any less terrifying.
Martha spoke next. Her voice was softer than Raymond's, more hesitant. "What about the people those weapons are going to kill?" Leon's eyes shifted toward her. "Will you be okay with that?"
Leon didn't answer immediately. His gaze drifted away from the group, toward one of the floating holographic displays. When he finally spoke, his voice was quieter than before. "I know where you're coming from." The usual humor was gone. "So don't think I haven't thought about it."
His fingers tapped lightly against the arm of his chair."It's just, in wars people are already killing each other." His eyes lowered slightly. "If my weapons can protect the people on our side...Then I guess I'll sleep a little better."
A faint smile appeared on Leon's face. Smaller than usual. "Besides." His eyes drifted toward the armor blueprints hovering nearby. "I really needed those blueprints." The smile widened slightly. "So if I'm being honest..." He shrugged. "Most of it was for me."
"And for my dream."
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I am writing my A Levels this year so I'm already stumped and if you add the time I use writing I think I'm entitled to POWER STONES sooooooo give them to me, I mean by 6 I'm going to school, 1300hrs I'm going to extra lessons and I only get to come back home at 1900hrs, and after that I still need to study on my own, so help me stay motivated.
P.S
Let it be known that the Story is undergoing a Rewrite, hence if you read the unedited chapters its on you, they are no longer part of the story.