The once cheerful and bashful wolf-man was no more, stopping dead in his tracks. A dark face of anguish and deep hatred contorted Dhetre's face. A subtle oppressive force began to emit from Dhetre's body. Zane's question of who the enemy was had triggered something inside of him.
Zane now knew the questionable razor-like toothy grin he saw earlier from Dhetre was truly his genuine smile. The face of the wolf-man he saw now shot goosebumps all over his skin.
Zane had never experienced bloodlust. The sudden and growing dense atmosphere affected those around. Everyone pacing by immediately stopped and became defensive while cautiously looking around.
It was a mucky feeling that weighed heavily in the air with a suffocating pressure that caused Zane difficulty to breathe. The once smiling eyes of his furry friend warped into that of a psychotic killer. With his gray fur slightly raised, Dhetre figure seemed to enlarge into a menacing murderer.
A side gaze from the glaring eyes of the wolf-man sent terror from Zane's brain down his spine.
The wolf-man was caught in his turbid memories and painful emotions. However, the trembling of the human before him reminded him of his current situation. He quickly reverted back to the happy tail-wagging wolf-man he was. The passersby gave a questioning look at the wolf-man.
"Zane! I'm sorry. That must have given you a fright! But I just lose it when thinking about those insects and lizards bastards!" Dhetre's furry ears drooped down in remorse and popped up in anger again, this time with no bloodlust.
Zane was stunned at the sudden change in personality. Dhetre went from an outgoing friendly individual to a cold-blooded killer out for revenge and then back again.
Zane would have thought his guide had a mental disorder had he not known any better. He knew he purposefully poked the wolf-man's tail, but he didn't know how much of a bomb it would turn out to be.
"No Dhetre. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to make you experience any unpleasant memories."
The wolf-man sighed. "No, it's not your fault. I'm just not disciplined enough. No matter the situation, a warrior should never lose his composure. Death comes more frequently for those who lose their calm mind." The wolf man showed a sorrowful smile. "Our mana will sometimes manifest itself with our emotions. What you felt was mine. It was a good first experience for you."
"..." Zane went silent. He did not like the foreboding comment of more similar experiences to come and no longer further pushed the topic.
Noticing his advice causing the human to fall further into a downcast, he attempted to comfort him. "Don't worry, you most likely won't go to the front lines anytime soon. Us veterans of the armies from the ten commanders will handle those guys first."
Dhetre's attempts to cheer Zane up only further made him dread what was to come.
Seeing the new recruit's morale further drop, the wolf-man feared this captain would reprimanded him. He tried even harder to soothe the frightened man. "Did you know!? There will be many of you coming here. You could be a supporter depending on your job as well! You might not even go into the front lines!"
The wolf-man mixed in half-truths to comfort Zane. It seemed to work as light seemed to come back to his dark lifeless eyes.
"Oh! That's true! My job is only an apprentice mage, so at worst I would be in the back, right?"
Dhetre didn't say anything but gave another tooth-filled grin. Zane was uncertain what that meant.
As the two continued walking to the training grounds, Zane ran more scenarios. But with his current self, he knew he would be instant fodder. It was like what the notification screen said, his fate depended on learning well. Zane renewed his resolve, he was going to do whatever it takes.
Dhetre didn't dare add any more details along the way in case he dragged the human back down into depression. The planetary supervisor specifically stated to minimize casualties. He did not want to be blamed for any failures of such a large mission.
Both of them didn't speak until they reached the entrance to the training grounds. Although part of their encounter had become less light-hearted, Dhetre had a good impression of Zane.
"Good meeting you Zane. I look forward to working with your fellow humans."
Dehetre's personality made Zane more comfortable in the foreign space, and he was grateful to the wolf-man. He was nice, but his information would be crucial to his survival. Thinking so, Zane returned the gesture in kind.
"Thanks Dhetre, I hope to meet more lycans like yourself. I will put a disclaimer though, some humans can be assholes too!"
The wolf-man laughed, "Same with lycans! Don't get your hopes up too much! I wish you luck, human." Inside though, Dhetre hoped the newbie wouldn't die.
"Good luck to you as well." With a wave goodbye, Zane watched as Dhetre returned back to the portal where they came.
There was a lot on Zane's mind.
The situation was more than he expected. Messy even.
He conjectured a battle or a war was going on, and he and others were placed here with the intention to fight an unknown enemy he knew nothing about. The talk about the enemy insects and lizards was enough for the nice friendly wolf-man to turn into a crazed executioner.
Zane knew he needed to train as soon as possible. The quicker he could train, the more time he could grow and increase his odds at survival. His trial with the mage job left a bad taste.
One of the worst things Zane detested was leaving things incomplete. His incomplete trial results bothered him as he still thought about how he could have done it better. Regret was not something he wanted to repeat.
The training grounds were behind a metal gate built into the stone slabs of a giant wall. Two guards were on duty in full heavy armor standing by the closed metal gates.
Getting closer, one of the guards spoke and directed, "Place your hand on the gate." Looking at the guard, Zane couldn't see everything but did partially see the head of a feline underneath a helmet. Zane wondered if everyone here would be a mammal of sorts.
Following the instructions, he proceeded to touch the gate. A blue screen popped up for the two guards, but surprisingly he didn't get one.
"4th class citizen. Clear. You are free to enter." The gates opened and though a bit confused, Zane walked in.
"Clear?" Zane thought to himself. "They're pretty tight with security too it seems." Making a mental note, he pushed up the level of caution and urgency in his mind.
After stepping through the gates, he saw a small line of humans like himself further in. Observing his surroundings while making his way to the line, Zane felt like the place was more of a military stronghold than a training ground. Besides the giant stone walls for defense, the area had strategically placed weapons and shields around for quick access. Supply carts were close by the entrance and were already filled and waiting to be delivered. There were more heavily armored individuals busy walking on the walls and working around the area.
Zane felt like the entire time he's been here so far, everyone he's seen was on edge. There was no one relaxed.
Zane believed battle was imminent.