*Omar*
"I need you to release her so the situation won't worsen any further." I requested.
Gladly, he did as I asked, but instead of releasing his grip on her, he threw Sidika into the air. Sidika was unfazed and caught herself mid-air and landed right next to me.
["He means no harm, I swear on my life."] I said to Sidika.
["He says he is an Arabic citizen."]
[That's right. Me and him were both born in Central Superio. His father is an Arabic citizen. He isn't lying.]
[Bring him and the girl into the station and ask him about his situation.] Sidika ordered.
["Yes, Ma'am!]
I walked over to Niam who was now next to the grey-haired girl. She was still passed out from Sidika's Salan ability, but she was fine. Niam however, seemed totally unfazed. I'd never seen someone resist the effects of Sidika's ability. 'Is he a Bearer? He must be, or else he wouldn't have been able to take Sidika hostage.' I wondered.
"She'll be fine. Sidika's Salan ability caused her to feel scared and pass out." I reassured him.
"I hope so, I need her." He answered.
'Is this the Niam I know? Him needing a woman? Must be something else.' I thought.
"Carry her into the station, we'll talk about your circumstances there."
***
After I heard what Niam had been through, I was in awe. He'd been trapped under his house's rubble for months with nothing but dirty water. After he awakened, he was faced with a fight or flight situation which had led to him having to kill for the very first time. He was captured and tortured for information he didn't have after that. He escaped with the grey-haired girl and fled back to Central Superio. In Central Superio, he came across the infamous Piranha School and cooperated with them. At the end, he told me how he wanted to go to old Lebanon to see if his family was alive. The girl was just going along with Niam. Having nowhere to go, she decided to go along with the only person she trusted, that person being Niam.
"I'm sorry your parents died, but what about your brother?" I asked.
Niam and I grew up together, I saw him become the person he is today. Since we were kids, he would always lie, cheat, manipulate and act, but he never did when it came to me. I'd known him as an honest person and we would occasionally make deep-talks. But the question about his brother seemed to have caused a negative reaction. He placed his left index finger on his lips, signaling me to shut my mouth. Then, he emitted a cold aura that completely wiped away my curiosity.
"Whatever, man." I tried de escalating the situation.
*Niam Henka*
The door to our room swung open and the vicious woman entered.
'I think her name was Sidika.'
"If you want to cross the bridge, we'll need your personal information. Your birthday and the names of you and your parents." Sidika explained.
"Oh, yeah! I didn't introduce you to each-other. Niam, this is Commander Sidika of Siran bridge. She is in charge of everything that has to do with Central Superio. And Sidika, this is my old friend Niam. He is a trained swordsman." Omar said.
"I know, Omar. I listened to your conversation with my Salan ability."
"Well, if you've already decided on letting me pass this bridge, I won't refuse."
After telling her that, Sidika took out a rolled-up piece of paper. The paper was unique, it had a small Mana radiating aura.
"Go on." Sidika ordered.
"Niam Henka, born on the 24th of October 2030. My mother's name was Hangaku Henka and my father's name was Nahdi Noor."
"Niam Henka, October 24th 2030, Hangaku Henka, Nahdi Noor." Sidika repeated.
When the words left her mouth, the paper lit up and words manifested on the piece of paper, a second later, they disappeared. 2 minutes later, the paper lit up again. This time, other words were visible on it.
["Checks out. His father is from old Lebanon. Tell him that his grandfather and uncle are the only survivors from his father's side of the family."]
"How is that possible? Were you able to create a long-range communication method?" I asked.
"Yes, a Bearer named Nesta created it."
***
I was told that I could carry Tsuki into Sidika's private quarters and let her rest there.
"Mana has its perks. A woman can now easily rival men in combat." Sidika said.
"I can see." I responded, making a reference to her skills.
"As a high ranking military official I can't allow to make exceptions. I put you through the same process as the other people that tried to cross the bridge. Usually, when I activate my Salan ability, they get stunned and capturing them is a lot easier."
"I haven't fought a lot of Bearers, but the ones I did fight were exceptionally talented and blessed with a good Salan ability."
Sidika was two-faced. To allies, she showed great empathy and loyalty, to enemies she only showed hatred and relentlessness. Like a dog, like a wolf. I'd guessed it already, but seeing her personality from both faces made it clear. 'Salan abilities can also grant abilities animals have.'
'I wonder what happened to her cheek.' I thought. The scar on her cheek was different. It wasn't caused by a cut. It looked as if it was ripped and shredded into pieces only to be stitched together later in a hospital. Her yellow eyes were unnatural and were most likely connected to her ability.
We stood in silence, both thinking what to do and say next. Suddenly, Omar opened the door, his stupid grin told me that he was up to no good.
"Niam, I want to spar with you." He said.
A way out of this conversation appeared. Two birds with one stone. I got to escape the conversation me and Sidika had, and get to see how strong Omar had become. 'He must be a Bearer.' I thought.
"I'll trust you with Tsuki. She will be a bit scared when she wakes up. Just tell her what happened and bring her to me, please." I said to Sidika.
Omar led me to a training room on the highest floor of the station. Other soldiers trained there, and when they spotted us, they whispered to each-other.
["He fought Commander Sidika and exchanged several blows with her."]
["Does the commander's ability not work on him?"]
["He's here with Omar. He's Sidika's right hand at the moment."]
"What are they saying?" I asked Omar.
"Rumors and stuff." He responded.
Omar took a look at the people in the training ground.
["Clean this place up, you're about to witness the battle of a lifetime."] Omar yelled something.
The soldiers immediately started to clean up training gadgets and weapons from all over the training hall.
In the middle of the room was a 10 by 10 meter mat. Omar stood opposite of me on the mat and held a sword in his hand. The sword's handle was made out the same plain wooden material as the scabbard. The wooden material didn't look to be of good quality and showed signs of usage. When Omar drew the blade though, I was stupefied by the blade's quality. It was a scimitar sword, like the one that my dad used, a typical Arabic sword. Like Geir's spear, Omar's sword emitted a powerful aura that put my Katana's quality to shame.
'I need to get a better sword as soon as possible.' I realized.
"We fight until someone forfeits. Are you fine with that?" Omar asked.
I just nodded and stepped onto the mat. I drew my chipped and cracked Katana and took on a defensive stance. I needed to know what Omar's ability was in order to come up with a way to defeat him.
"Let's go!" Omar yelled.
He closed his eyes to concentrate on the Mana inside of him while I increased the earth's gravitational pull on my body with Supreme-Control.