I spent my two weeks practically running away from Bellona. The mad woman was obnoxiously persistent but you always knew she was coming because you could hear Geb rolling not far behind her. I didn't know what she hated about me. But I knew she wasn't going to be nice if she got her hands on me.
I still got kills on snakes. But it was getting lower and lower as everyone began to truly embrace their roles. I had learned over time that they each had roles they were built for. Fairies were excellent for building and production. While Geb and giant beings like Leroy were built to be tanks. Bellona was a brawler/warrior type which was obvious. But beings like myself were suited to stealth which made me more of an assassin. But I wasn't certain what role I would fill yet.
And so our two weeks drew to a close. Not a soul explored the sea zone except for a bath now and again. Then it happened. The last night I was at the beach with Leroy next to the bonfire. "Seems like yesterday we were dropped into this place. Kinda feels like home now." Leroy said as he leaned back into his sand bed which he had hardened using a coat of ice. The cold really suited him better. Unfortunately there were no ice regions to speak of here.
I nodded my agreement as I stared into the flames. I suddenly noticed movement to my right and rolled backwards out of the way of a spear. It embedded itself into the ground beside Leroy raising a small cloud of dust.
I stood up and dusted myself off. This was getting on my last nerve. I had been running all week. I would not be running my last night. I glared at Bellona and I had the last straw.
"Bring it on you cocky &!+€#!" I roared and everyone's heads turned to see us. A sword and buckler grew out of the ground beside her. A classic gladius shape for her sword and a spiked round shield which immediately attached themselves to her arms. My chain sickles snaked out from under my bandages and my bandages rolled around like something was moving beneath them which unsettled a couple of onlookers.
Bellona roared and banged her shield. A set of spread wings appeared beneath her feet as she charged at me. (So she's got a speed buff. That's nice but doesn't change much.) I waited for her to swing at me. I sidestepped an overhead slice and elbowed her side. She skidded a little and looked like a little wind was blown out of her sails.
What can I say. I was an orphan. I grew up knowing that the world wasn't as nice as most people believed. If you waited long enough most people revealed a side to themselves that just proves how poisonous human beings can be. Not saying there's not a nice side. But that side is very rarely seen.
A sword was swung at my midsection and I hopped backwards. She kept charging and even started swinging her shield at me. But I was in it for the long game. My movements involved less stamina usage while hers were broad swings and heavy equipment.
Her brow was getting covered in sweat and her arms started shaking as I stood there with my breath coming out a little thicker and a couple little scratches on my arms and legs. The one thing that made a difference though was I couldn't bleed
For some strange reason my left arm was getting warmer and warmer as we fought. I felt faster and stronger. But it didn't feel like anything major. Just like getting a little wind helps a person on a roof cool off. It helped to say the least.
Dodging and waiting was hard work. Then she did it. She jumped into the air and tried to pile drive her shield into me. I rolled to the side and finally started to truly fight back. I swung one of my chain blades in an arc over head at her while swinging my other one from the side.
She rolled backwards and was met by my other blade. My blades were still hidden folded into the tang of the blade but that didn't mean they didn't hit hard. She brought up her shield in time to block only to be sent tumbling by the force of my strike. I spun as my chains made contact and the folded blades hit her shield like sticks hitting a drum. Her feet were dug into the ground but were still being forced back leaving trenches in the earth.
Suddenly a roar sounded from Geb. The ground shook and a wall of earth separated us. I withdrew my chains. And they slid back into my arms like snakes to their dens. My head turned to look at Geb. "Stay out of this you fool!" I shouted.
He grinned a little and shrugged. Suddenly the wall exploded as a large war hammer smashed it to pieces sending debris everywhere and filling the air with dust.
"Damn it." I swore under my breath. I heard the whistling of a weapon moving and rolled back. The hammer came down where my head had been. I sent out a chain that coiled around it and pulled backward making the Bellona faceplant. I jumped onto her back and pinned her to the ground. A sickle was suddenly at her throat when she raised her head. " Enough. You have been beaten. All I want is to be left alone." I hissed as I retracted my blades and started walking away.
She panted but her eyes were still red. The hammer disintegrated into sand and she charged at me with a dagger and a roar as I was walking away. And when she wasn't even a foot away from me her yell was cut short. I turned and saw her coated in a layer of frost and ice. There was a long line of ice leading to Leroy.
I looked at him. "Damn." I said in shock. He grinned a little. "Nobody hits my homeboy when his back is turned. Nobody." He rumbled. I walked up to where he was sitting and plopped to the ground exhausted. The warmth was gone and so was my energy.
I cocked my head to the side and stared at Bellona. "She gonna be alright?" I huffed out.
"Yeah man. The ice melts after a couple minutes. That's enough time for her to cool her head." He said as Geb got up and was examining her.
I rolled over and relaxed. I couldn't sleep in this place. But that didn't mean that rest wasn't neccesary. After a few minutes I heard some cracking and looked over to see the ice breaking off of Bellona. She hunched over a little and heaved in big gulps of air. Her weapon was gone and it seemed that her energy was too. She began to cry and sank to her knees. She got no sympathy from me.
I didn't approach her. I just left her alone. Geb gently lifted her crying form in a huge earthen hand and went back to their fire a little ways from ours. In the end I actually got up and took a little dip in the ocean to clean the smell of sweat off.
I only took a few steps in when I noticed something. The water was turning red. And I mean crimson red. I quickly retreated and started yelling. "Hey. Hey! The water is changing!" everyone's attention went to the water. Bubbles began to form on the surface of the water making it look like the ocean was boiling.
Leroy thumped over to stand beside me. "Any idea what might be coming?" He said as he nervously examined the water from our position. "I don't know. But whatever it is it's big." I said. It wasn't long till we found out.
A large head the size of a bus roared out of the sea. It was serpentine in nature and it had a massive spikey fin on its head. Our group stared at it in shock and horror as it turned so one of it's eyes could examine us all.
But the most shocking thing came next. It spoke. "Ares finally got a new batch of people I see."A feminine voice echoed out. Everyones jaws hit the ground in shock. Quite literally. Cartoony as it was we still found it humorous for it to happen.
"I am your second instructor for the last days training. This battleform is known as Jormundgander. The Norse myth enthused people will know this. If you don't... well I guess you get to learn later. My name meanwhile is Priscilla. Memorize it. I will be teaching you the basics of the systems outside of combat. Because after this 2 week training is over you will not always be in battleform. You will be in civilian form in public settings." Her voice echoed.
She lowered her head toward the beach and suddenly it was like a black hole formed on her nose. She began to shrink incredibly fast till a little humanoid with two feet stood before us. It was white but had a serpentine crown on its head with a little dress that looked like it belonged at a night club. This was definitely a female. That was all I could think.
"I will teach you how to revert and exert yourselves into and out of your battleforms. I will only teach you once so pay attention!" She yelled. She paced back and forth before us.
"I want all of you to gather around." She shouted out. We naturally did so excited to get out of this place and be around what could be considered normal people. "I want you all to close your eyes and envision the person you used to be. As best as you can till you could swear it was a reflection. Focus. Till you know that is you!" She said.
I closed my eyes. I began to imagine what I had looked like. Pictured a 5'9 Male. I had Asian looking deep blue eyes with messy dark brown hair. My pale complexion from being inside all the time I didn't want. I imagined a slightly more tanned skin that kinda reminded me of the old movies with the California actors. My old clothes came to mind. A thick black scarf that wrapped around the lower half of my face and neck like a mask. My favorite grey trenchcoat that reached my ankles. My favorite black gloves and my short sleeved black shirt that was a little big on me so it hung down below my waist. My blue jean's were always torn at the knees and I was always more comfortable with that than brand new pants. My shoes that were dead but that I had managed to coat in metal scraps so I never stubbed my toes.
I know. I went a bit overboard with my imagination. They were just normal white and black sneakers.
As I envisioned what I saw myself to be I felt something. Like I was shrinking. "Don't let go of the image!" Priscilla yelled. I was startled to the point I almost lost focus. "Sorry." She said to me. She obviously noticed I jumped a little.
I kept my reflection in mind and eventually the feeling went away. I opened my eyes tentatively and looked down. I saw most of what I imagined. My gloves were black but still covered in tiny hexagon shapes. I didn't have torn jean's. They were just black pants. My trenchcoat was as long as I wanted and my shoes. Were very different though. They were white and black of course but they had 3 claws sticking out of each of them. I also felt something odd on my head. Like there was weight that didn't need to be there. I reached up and felt a large pair of dog-like ears. I even heard my fingers rubbing them.
"We have one successful reversion and quite the nice one at that! Well done!" Priscilla called out. "Mind you all of you will retain something from your battleform every time you change. So keep your focus and your body will do the rest!" She said as she moved about the group. I turned around to check what was going on. The same thing that happened with Priscilla was happening with us all.
Soon everybody was around the same size. Most were pretty good for humanistic looks. Though we all had some semblance of what we were. Leroy was blue and emanated cold, Geb looked more like a person made of rock and was the color of sand. The girl who used to be Bellona was around 5'6 and still had arm guards and shin guards on. Though she was in a icy white skirt with a blue top and black socks with slip on shoes.
" Now we move onto the points you've accumulated" Priscilla said with a smile.