After that was jumping jacks with the same weights underwater, pushups and sit-ups on the surface with heavier weights, and several other intense activities that left everyone except Ashla gasping for breath.
Throughout it all, several other students gave Fate hateful or distrustful glances, Pethren included, but he didn't care what they thought. He'd dealt with people like them all his life, and had long since grown a thicker skin when it came to these matters.
He had noticed after obtaining his Deviant Skill that the adverse effects of his eyes on others seemed to have vanished, so this hate and fear they displayed wasn't influenced by the source of his childhood anguish and was entirely their own.
But he still didn't care. He had held the stigma that was his eyes for so long, what difference did it make that it changed to something else?
If anything, this change was a welcome one. He'd much rather be hated for something he did than something he had no control over.
More than anything, he was surprised that many minded their own business. Either that or they were too self-important to care about anyone else.
Cait and Ashla weren't bothered by his scar from what he could tell, which he was curious about.
During one of the very, very rare moments that they were allowed to rest, which was lunch time, Fate's curiosity got the better of them and he decided to ask.
"Anyone who can suffer enough lashes to scar and still push himself like you do is someone that's okay in my book," Ashla shrugged, saying more words than he had ever heard her say before.
"Everyone has stuff in their past they'd rather put behind them, and resolve is an important quality of a Guard," she finished, scarfing down the last of her food.
"The Guards always give a softer alternative," Cait said after Ashla finished, eyeing the meat on her fork. "You didn't choose it. I don't know much about kitsubi culture on account of everyone refusing to tutor me, but my life as a human has shown me the value of Pride.
"Pride makes for fearless warriors, stern yet fair parents, hard workers. I saw it every time I entered the mines, every time my father reprimanded me. Just be sure you do not let it ruin you."
"Pride before the fall," Ashla added quietly.
Cait nodded, tearing a chunk off of the meat on her fork and swallowing before she continued. "And considering you weren't hanged or thrown in prison, it wasn't something abhorrent. What did you do, steal a chair?"
"A few apples," Fate chuckled.
"While I don't condone thievery, you stood by your decision even when faced with the whip. As far as I and the Empire are concerned, you've paid your price for what you did."
'I like this one,' Kravoss said.
'Get your head out of the gutter, you damn bird,' Fate retorted, seeing his thoughts.
Kravoss sighed. 'I know, I know. "Human love is more nuanced than that! I don't like her that way!" I've had human memories for less than a year, all right?
'And it's not like I can rely on your mastery of love to figure this stuff out. I don't know why you humans make everything so complicated when it comes to breeding.'
Fate just rolled his eyes. His Familiar was still having a hard time grasping the concept of civilization and civility.
As Fate learned early on, the instructors didn't give equal tasks. Cait, since she could handle more, was given more to do, and the others were likewise given what Freyn thought appropriate.
"Appropriate" in this case meant soul-crushing exercise that would push each of them to their breaking point, so by the end of it their muscles were screaming and their lungs felt like they had shrunk by several sizes.
Kravoss was given intensive activities to increase the accuracy and sustainability of his Breath, better control his water Form, and increase his flight time.
Pospo was given several exercises to practice with her light beams, and thanks to her healing factor, had much more difficult physical training.
Every student, from Cait to Pethren, were pushed to the edge and then pushed some more. Anyone who refused or failed to meet the goals assigned to them were removed and told to find another militant family to train them.
The days passed by slowly. Every hour felt like a week, and every week brought with it new, hellish forms of training.
Fate underwent every training in every environment and condition known to man, from scorching heat to chilling cold to zero gravity.
Various enchantments had him fighting with one or more limbs missing, various injuries and physical or mental conditions, differing amounts of foes with different levels of skill, and different species.
Everything a Journeyman such as himself could win against, he was subjected to, although the odds of his victory were kept as slim as possible without hitting zero. He lost more than he won, and his wins were so hard-fought as to be pyrrhic.
Sometimes Freyn put them through teamwork exercises, pitting the four of them and sometimes another group or two against one or more groups from other instructors.
Pethren could only suck up his distaste of Fate during such times, as any failure was punished with the rod.
They actually worked quite well together.
Pethren's Skill involved coating someone other than himself in a thin film of Mana. So long as this film was present, any damage they sustained would be inflicted on the attacker as well.
The synergy with Fate and Cait was obvious.
Since the two could take a lot more punishment than the average person, they could battle as normal and within seconds their opponents would drop like flies if their opponents were using weapons or minutes if they weren't.
Through it all, Freyn's attentive gaze picked out every mistake, found every flaw, and corrected every fumble that the experienced Guard could drag out of his students.
The weeks turned to months, but to the Guards-in-training, it felt like years.
During this time, the aesh were suspiciously silent.
The imps conducted several raids on the Empire's villages and cities, failing horribly against both, but the aesh never appeared during these skirmishes.
Fate's first thought was that the six they had slain were indeed all that the aesh had left, but he dismissed that idea immediately. He had fought the aesh; they weren't the most creative of the bunch, but they were anything but stupid.
Risking your entire species to take a single city, even if you thought the Tier V would greatly increase your chances, was a fool's endeavor.
Not to mention the fact that they had but one female aesh left. If she was unlucky enough to be slain, which she was, their species would be finished.
No, Fate suspected they were waiting for something.