The fleeting moments that followed Tess's grueling training sessions slipped by. She savored the delectable crunch of cheesy popcorn, but the insistent ache that permeated her joints was an unwitting catalyst for a change in her focus.
While destroying Lanse's reputation had consumed her thoughts, the gnawing ache served as a subtle reminder that her true priority lay in escaping the clutches of the oppressive Primus Mid-Sentry. Being the first day of training and what little she had learned about the man she was to call Sensei, she had reason to believe worse was coming.
Unlike the previous night, Tess resolved to seek solace within the confines of her own room. The unforgiving hardness of the floor did not offer respite for her aching body. The allure of a long, warm shower, which could have temporarily eased her discomfort, failed to cross her fatigued mind.
Instead, she found herself drawn to the thoughts of planning her escape, a fleeting notion that entered her consciousness as she blinked at the time displayed on her alarm the following morning. An exasperated exclamation escaped her lips; time was slipping away. Darnit!
Tess blinked relentlessly to accept the cruel reality that befell her. Approximately three hours remained before she and the other recruits were due in the training room. The temptation to stay cocooned in the warmth of her bed beckoned, the allure of postponing the imminent agony of training threatening to overpower her will. Yet, the mere hint of Sensei's plans for their future training sent a shiver of fear down her spine, igniting a flicker of determination to escape!
She mustered the strength to rise from her slumber, a lingering ache and traces of tears still clinging to her weary frame. Despite the residual pain, she summoned the determination to change into fresh training attire, bidding farewell to the sweat-soaked garments from the previous day. Though a part of her longed to reduce them to ashes, she resigned herself to throwing them in a dirty napper. Whoever was going to wash those would not be her.
The kitchen beckoned her with its promise of awakening, and her first act was to craft a steaming cup of coffee. The rich aroma filled the air, a fragrant symphony that danced with her senses, revitalizing her spirit. With each sip, she felt the invigorating elixir infuse her being, fueling her for the tasks that lay ahead.
Once the last drop of coffee had been savored, Tess sought solace upon a plush couch to begin her work. Within the sanctity of these precious moments she would meticulously prepare for her escape, since after training she was near dead. Worse, her deep sleep ensured her unconsciousness until the morning only to repeat the grueling cycle. Her faint memory of what happened the prior night was a testament.
While on the couch she used her eye ability to scan Primus. Her vision moved along hallways with Primus workers, gliding along hallways teeming with Primus workers, slipping through closing elevator doors, and discreetly shadowing those who aroused her suspicions. Yet, as the hours unfurled, an electric shock of pain jolted her delicate eyeballs, demanding respite from the strain.
Reluctantly, she shut her eyes, surrendering to the darkness and embracing the solace it brought. Tenderly pressing her palms against her closed eyelids, she sought solace from the ensuing headache, a testament to the toll her prolonged use of her eye ability had exacted.
A faint flicker of concern whispered within her mind, wondering if these side effects would impede her performance in training. Yet, she swiftly dismissed such worries, recognizing that her quest for escape superseded the desire to outshine her peers.
Not long after, as Tess embarked on a rigorous jog up the imposing mountain, a surge of regret coursed through her veins. The relentless assault of the sun's rays hammered her already strained eyes, casting an agonizing veil over her vision.
Fatigue intertwined with the dizzying heights, conspiring to weaken her resolve, causing her to veer off the treacherous path. In a merciless twist of fate, she plummeted over the precipice of the mountain. A fleeting scream escaped her lips, only to be swallowed by the void as she hurtled through the abyss, hurtling towards an unfathomable thousand-foot plunge.
Sensei and her fellow recruits, drawn by the piercing scream, hastened to the scene. Their eyes, filled with abject horror, peered over the precipice, beholding the chilling sight of crimson stains where Tess's fragile form had collided with the unforgiving ground below. Zino's anguished cry pierced the air, tears streaming down her face.
Disbelief etched itself upon the faces of the others, while Zack succumbed to panic, his voice trembling as he accused Sensei of orchestrating their demise. Unfazed by the chaotic scene, Sensei swiftly put an end to the training session, recognizing the gravity of the situation.
In the eyes of her comrades, Tess was deemed lost, a casualty of her treacherous fall. Yet, to her astonishment, she awoke the following day in the sterile confines of the infirmary, a vast room adorned with rows of beds, each swathed in pristine white sheets. Not a trace of injury marred her delicate frame, as if the incident had been erased from existence.
Unwantedly, Sensei entered the room just as she made her way towards the exit. A sense of anticipation hung in the air as Tess demanded an explanation, her voice laced with both curiosity and bewilderment.
"What happened to me?" she inquired, her voice laden with a mix of yearning for understanding and a hint of trepidation.
Sensei, his gaze fixed upon a distant window through which hopeful rays of light streamed, answered. "You healed." Pausing for a moment, his eyes shimmering with unspoken truths, he continued, "Your fellow cadets are consumed by worry as they think you are dead and will be shocked to see you alive. Please be gentle with them. Knowing you as I do, I expect no less from you."
And with that, he departed, leaving Tess undeterred by the enigmatic nature of his parting words. She brushed off the subtle sting that might have been perceived as an insult, her attention now fixated upon her miraculously unblemished skin, as if tracing the path of a wondrous transformation.
Whispers of miracle doctors, skilled practitioners capable of seamlessly mending the body without leaving a trace, danced through her mind. In the realm of Primus, a place brimming with advanced technology and secrets, the notion of such skilled healers seemed entirely plausible. The hidden truths concealed by the people of Primus tugged at her curiosity, for she could not fathom how she had not only survived the treacherous fall but also healed within a mere day.
Filled with a yearning to reunite with her fellow recruits, Tess embarked on a quest to locate an elevator. However, the intricate passageways conspired against her, and she admitted she was lost.
Asking the strange workers with bright colored hair for directions seemed like a recipe for danger rather than good. She still had no idea what Primus was, rendering her cautious and hesitant to place her faith in anyone she encountered within those walls.
As if summoned by an unseen force, a resounding ding pierced the air, commanding Tess's attention with an air of mystery. Her gaze was drawn towards the gaping maw of an empty elevator, its doors invitingly open.
Compelled by an unspoken allure, she stepped into the vacant enclosure, the weight of anticipation settling upon her shoulders. The doors slid shut with a whisper, sealing her fate within this enigmatic chamber of vertical ascent.
In that instant, her heart set ablaze, pounding against her ribcage like a captive bird desperate for freedom. Whether her actions were brilliant or plain right dumb, she would soon find out. Soon found herself staring at a familiar hallway, each contour and shadow intimately known to her.
It was the bottom floor of her living complex. With a mixture of trepidation and hope, she embraced the uncertainty that awaited her beyond the elevator. Driven by a gnawing hunger, she made her way to the kitchen, her footsteps echoing through the familiar halls.
However, before she could indulge in the solace of satiating her appetite, her ears caught the unmistakable sound of a tray crashing to the ground. Turning her gaze, she witnessed Zino, weariness etched upon her face, trembling with both disbelief and joy. A burst of delight escaped her lips as she materialized before Tess, engulfing her in a tearful embrace.
"Tee! You're alive!" Zino exclaimed, her voice filled with both relief and awe.
Meanwhile, by the poolside, Lanse lounged with a device in hand, absorbing the world through its digital prism. Szedra reclined on a lounge chair, motionless as a statue, her gaze fixed upon the sun's waning glow. In the telegram emitter room, Zack absently flipped through channels, his attention scattered.
The resounding voice of Zino reverberated through the air, acting as a siren call that drew them all towards the kitchen, their paths converging with haste. Zack's eyes widened in shock as he laid eyes upon Tess dressed in full white, her mouth occupied with a frenzy of food, disbelief contorting his features. Unable to resist, he poked her, a confirming touch to ensure she was not a figment of their collective imagination.
A low, guttural growl escaped Tess's lips, reverberating through the air like a primal warning, a resolute message for Zack to halt his unwelcome touch.
"What did we have for dinner yesterday?" Szedra's inquiry dripped with disbelief, struggling to reconcile the sight before her. How could Tess look so remarkably unscathed and whole in a span of mere days?
Tess replied plainly, "Popcorn."
With those simple yet revealing words, the confirmation washed over the others like a cleansing wave. Indeed, it was Tess who stood before them.
Lanse, seizing the opportunity for jest, playfully teased her. "Tess the ghost. With your white hair and eyes, you couldn't be anything but, especially dressed in full white."
"Wait, are you suggesting that she was a ghost even before her fall from the mountain?" Zack's perplexity echoed through his words, struggling to grasp the connection between Tess's ethereal qualities prior to the incident. "I don't understand."
L, perturbed by Zack's astute observation that exposed the flaw in his joke, retorted with a tinge of annoyance, "Well, you can continue to not understand, then."
Szedra, overwhelmed by the absence of any visible scratches on Tess's body, found solace in the belief that she must be trapped within the realm of a dream. The surreal nature of it all left her questioning the very fabric of reality, casting doubt upon the authenticity of everything she perceived. Nothing felt real anymore.
A profound silence settled among the group, a collective refusal to fully accept and comprehend the extraordinary events that had unfolded before their eyes. Yet, as the day progressed, a semblance of normality gradually enveloped their surroundings, resembling any other day following their rigorous training.
However, amidst the veneer of normalcy, Lanse's relentless mocking persisted, a constant reminder of Tess's plight. She couldn't help but wonder what witch had enchanted him in a relentless pursuit to torment her.
The following morning arrived, and once again, Tess awoke as the first among them. However, this time, she decided to allocate less time using her eye ability, granting herself a moment of respite and recovery.
Lanse, gradually becoming aware of her early awakening, couldn't help but notice the presence of a cold coffee mug that consistently awaited their arrival. Even more peculiar was Tess's decision not to engage in their customary mountain jog, instead lagging behind.
This unconventional behavior sparked Lanse's incessant teasing, labeling her as a ghost. Yet, Tess remained unfazed by his attempts to provoke her into a rivalry, paying no heed to his jibes. Was this the real Tess, or did the real Tess die after falling from the mountain?
She had no idea it was his way of getting her to rival him again. He did not consider Zino a fair opponent with her speed ability as he preferred opponents he could trample. Without Tess's competition, the boredom from Primus was starting to get to him.
Little did Tess know, Lanse's incessant teasing was his way of getting her to rival him again. He considered Zino, with her formidable speed ability, an unfair opponent, preferring adversaries he could effortlessly overpower.
The undeniable evidence of Zino's speed and age pointed towards her having undergone Shinra enhancement, further solidifying her position as a formidable opponent. On the other hand, Szedra's peculiar incident involving the glove was dismissed as a stroke of mere luck, lacking the consistency Lanse desired. Zack was too average to ignite even a flicker of interest within Lanse.
However, in the absence of Tess as his rival, the tedium of their training began to bear down heavily upon Lanse. He found himself compelled to delve deeper into his fiction saga, surpassing the recommended reading limits, while the relentless screen time exacted a toll on his weary eyes.
Several days slipped away, seamlessly blending into the relentless routine of Tess and her fellow recruits. The once-daunting warm-up exercises had become second nature, completed effortlessly within a mere two hours. Sensei, an enigmatic figure, reveled in his limitless arsenal of peculiar challenges. Every seemingly mundane task carried an evil twist.
A seemingly innocent joint bending exercise atop a trampoline transformed into an excruciating ordeal, stretching beyond endurance. As they rebounded ceaselessly for an hour, their insides threatened to burst forth from their very heads, teetering on the brink of physical collapse until Sensei finally called a halt to their torment.
The tasks, carefully interwoven, served as preparation for the forthcoming trials Sensei had in store. The day after the grueling trampoline trial, they found themselves leaping from solid ground, defying gravity as they somersaulted over a suspended horizontal pole. They thought it was crazy until they did it.
Their training ventured into dangerous territory, after Sensei made them use the summoning gloves. With each swift and precise strike, they cleaved completely through solid metal columns ,witnessing the destructive power that rested in their youthful hands.
The recklessness of entrusting such deadly weapons to eighteen-year-olds suggested that time was running short, or perhaps Sensei had grown indifferent to the potential injuries they might incur.
The intricate hand movements required to summon their swords were etched into their minds, a reflexive response forged through relentless repetition. Zino's near-fatal swipe at Lanse's head with her newfound sword confirmed the latter suspicion, and Tess couldn't help but revel in the satisfaction that befalling those who dared to mock her was not without consequence.
Since Tess's fateful fall from the treacherous mountain, plummeting a staggering one thousand feet, Sensei's concern for their well-being had waned. More perplexing to Tess was the absence of any scars from the harrowing descent, vanishing overnight as if swallowed by a mysterious force. Even the knee scar from her first mountain jog was completely gone.
Even the columns fixed to the ground that they relentlessly sliced into delicate ribbons, only to find them restored the next day, fueled her bewilderment. Something inexplicable lingered beneath the surface, teasing her with enigmatic possibilities.
Tess found herself trapped in a disconcerting realm, caught between the clutches of a nightmarish coma or the intricate workings of a rumored dream world simulation. Perhaps it was Jeremy's doing, a mischievous ploy gone awry. She had always been obedient to his every command. This surreal experience, tinged with pain, left her questioning the boundaries of reality itself.
Despite their initial doubts, Tess and her companions had developed a newfound reverence for Sensei, particularly after bearing witness to his awe-inspiring mastery of the sword. Zino, captivated by his enigmatic aura, often rhapsodized about his remarkable prowess.
Tess couldn't help but notice the way Zino's eyes sparkled in his presence, suspecting a blossoming infatuation between her comrade and their enigmatic mentor. Zio would often comment how skilled Sesnei was and she no longer grew her nails back but took pleasure in filing them down by the pool.
Amongst the labyrinthine corridors of Primus, Tess's heart yearned for the teleporter room. It held a peculiar allure, not only for its potential in aiding her escape plans, but also for the rare opportunity it granted to step foot outside.
The sight of clouds drifting across the sky and the touch of wind against her skin served as poignant reminders of her existence, validating her desire for freedom and imbuing her escape with a sense of urgency.
Amidst the darkness, there were occasional respites. Primus housed a hidden garden adorned with a riot of vibrant flowers, each tree standing as a unique testament to nature's artistry.
Yet, it was the field caressed by the ever-present wind that held a special place in Tess's heart. Even after leaving its enchanting embrace, the ethereal touch of the wind lingered upon her skin, reminiscent of the lingering sensation of waves upon a beachgoer long after they have departed.
Regrettably, Tess found herself alone in her yearning to revisit the sacred wind field, as her fellow recruits showed no interest in her desire to return. Even though Sensei had granted permission, there lingered a possibility that his affirmation was shrouded in sarcasm, leaving Tess to ponder the true intent behind his seemingly encouraging words.
In addition to the rigorous physical training, Sensei had instituted Friday classes, much to Tess's dismay. It wasn't solely because the familiar sight of desks, a whiteboard, and a hologram projector reminded her of her Academy days, but also due to the content discussed within those confined walls.
Within that space, Sensei delved into the topic of survival, emphasizing the art of bandaging wounds with vivid, graphic imagery. He demonstrated the use of painkiller patches, a simple slap onto the skin near delicate veins, and their instantaneous effect in numbing pain. As Tess observed the patches, her mind involuntarily recalled the excessive use of caffeine patches by Petra, a painful memory that resurfaced.
Tess couldn't grasp the logic behind prioritizing pain numbing over injury prevention. She held a preference for avoiding wounds altogether rather than merely masking the pain. And what was the purpose of delving into the intricacies of various types of wounds and the circumstances where amputation became the sole option? Sensei's intentions remained elusive.
Nevertheless, it proved intriguing to witness the diverse range of knowledge possessed by each member of the group. Lanse boasted an encyclopedic understanding of Sybervirian classifications, effortlessly identifying and categorizing them based on estimated height and body build alone.
Zack, on the other hand, frequently interjected with obscure historical trivia that hardly anyone else cared about. Surprisingly, Zino possessed an extensive knowledge of unconventional foods, able to discern which of the spiky plants, seemingly lethal to the touch, were in fact edible.
What did Szedra know about? Her level of involvement in those classes remained a mystery. She seemed disinterested and lacked enthusiasm for the subject matter. It was evident that her focus lay elsewhere.
For Tess, excelling in stealth came as no surprise, especially after Zack incessantly praised her skills in that domain. He often recounted instances when he failed to detect her presence until he heard her eerie voice, sending shivers down his spine.
There was a moment when he attempted to convince Sensei to witness a live demonstration of Tess's stealth abilities, but her annoyance became palpable. The piercing look she shot his way served as a silent warning, ensuring he would never attempt such a request again.
Tess had long abandoned the desire to overshadow Lanse and secure the position of Sensei's favorite. Her reputation had already suffered a blow following her fall from the mountain, coupled with a decline in performance during training sessions. Both setbacks could be attributed to the intense headaches she experienced from overusing her eye ability.
The lingering pain in her head served as a constant reminder of the consequences that accompanied her unique powers. It became increasingly clear that her journey was not one of seeking recognition, but rather a battle against the physical and mental toll her ability exacted upon her.
Lanse had undeniably ascended to the status of the class idol, basking in the favoritism bestowed upon him by Sensei. But for Tess, such trivial matters held little significance in the grand scheme of things. Her eyes remained fixed on her ultimate goal, a singular focus that propelled her forward. Lanse could remain trapped at that place as Sensei's favorite all he wanted while she became a free person after escaping.
Those regular thoughts got a wicked smile to curl upon her lips before she closed her eyes. She held them shut for five minutes before she opened them to use her eye ability. They would remain open for a long time after that.
Those thoughts swirled within her mind, generating a surge of determination that radiated through her being. With a deliberate gesture, she closed her eyes, shutting out the world around her. In that moment of darkness, she allowed her mind to settle, her thoughts crystallizing with unwavering clarity. Five minutes passed in silence and solitude before her eyes fluttered open, revealing a gaze that held an otherworldly intensity.