"So you got a big family then?" I ask
"Yep, I have at least 100 family members. At least 70% of them are cloven like me, while the others are of other beastmen relations."
"I remember my father's long-time friend, brother in arms was a wolven male with white hair who they often had fist fights. Apparently, My father was drunk and threw a mug at him, and ever since then when the two got paired up as a partner in a patrol they got into heated arguments. Now they are close friends and sometimes at family gatherings would rough house. Much to my mother's anger."
"Wow...Wish I had a somewhat chaotic family" I comment
"Was yours small and too timid?"
"W-well...my mother died when I was young from an uh...disease. My father was or is a well-respected man in the village but I was ostracized by the people of my village to the point I was a stranger. Plus having a missing eye didn't help either. So having a family where everyone at least interaction was something I wanted growing up. Never happened. Came here on my little journey and now here."
"I see...I am sorry you didn't get a family interaction like mine. But let's just say having to memorize over 100 family members gets hard at times hehe."
"True. You want to throw your tray back?" I ask wrapping my bag into a bag and tossing it into a trash compartment.
"Yeah, I forgot we were eating too be honest. You are a good listener surprisingly," she says getting up.
"What do you mean?"
"Well, no offense, but your face looks like someone cut it up, and also your eye scar looks like someone removed it or something...BUT I don't mean to be offensive with that, I just mean that visually I would've taken you at first glance as a stoic, deeper-voiced, silent dangerous person. But you've acted way too....'normal' to me."
"Huh...well none taken about the offense. But I do see what you mean. Shall we?" I gesture to leave the library.
*Elsewhere*
A man wearing a black cloak and a metallic mask that mimics a human skull is standing in the highest building closest to the Academy. They are staring towards the campus through soulless-like eyes as the wind blows and the sun shines on them.
He pulls out of his cloak a handheld pocket watch. He opens it and sand begins forming a male figure, but no details to discern the person.
"Have you done it yet?" a deep masculine male asks vaguely
"Not yet, but I know where they are right now. The moment they leave, he will be dead."
He looks back at the direction of the campus and closes the watch and widens his steps. Then begins summoning a flame, which proceeds to increase in size, and become more violent. Increase from the size of a baseball, to then be about 8 feet in diameter. He then launches it toward the campus with full force as it arcs over the fence of the campus and into the Academy.
He then without much effort, swipes his cape and vanishes into a puff of black smoke.
*Elsewhere*
"I think I ate too much lettuce or something...the sandwich might've been too much for me," I say rubbing my stomach as if it is full
"Oh please, that is nothing compared to how much I ate in comparison." she giggles a bit.
[Daniel something is coming]
Explain...
"What is that?!" someone screams
Gizzele and I both turn in the direction of the scream and see a large ball of flame approaching and arcing down toward us. With only a couple of seconds left time suddenly feels like it slows down.
What the hell is going on?
[This is a part of your emergency protocols in case of something like this.]
Why is it like time has slowed down?
[It hasn't, your brain is just thinking faster than everything around you is. Meaning you can respond to things faster, but maybe not your body.]
I look at the ball of flame still approaching me and I turn slightly with Gizzele still there is shock before horror.
[I suggest I use Adernal to increase the muscle of your legs to get out of the way]
But what about Gizzele?
[Doesn't matter]
You know I am not going to listen to your suggestion...
[I know. But I can redirect the dormant reserves of nanites in your body to harden your skin to protect you from the potentially explosive impact of the fireball.]
Will that raise questions about how I am unscathed by the attack?
[Likely.]
Then just do the bare minimum. Protect my vital organs and my handsome face.
{Adernal injection 60%}
{Nanites-Skin hardening}
I feel a brief feeling of something cold around my abdomen and my neck, and with this increased response time, I have turned my attention to Gizzele. I grab her right arm and with the momentum I have and Adernal increasing my physical strength twist my body and throw her out of the way.
She goes flying as the ball of flame makes contact with the ground just 5 feet from me releasing a sudden gust of fire and with force engulfing me.
*BOOM*
With a sudden flash, I am in the air and then crash into the shrubs and bushes somewhere rolling into the dirt and grass until making contact with a tree. As I feel a bit dazed and discombobulated.
Gizzele hits the ground and rolls a bit and stops rolling after about 4. She lifts her head up heaving a bit from the sudden quick change of events. Unsure of what happened she stands up and walks backward as the fire burns around the area of impact and also a crater of where the impact was. She looks exhausted and dusty and has a bit of singed clothing still even though she was outside the blast area.
But as the echoes of voices and screaming begin to fade away, she comes back to her sense. She looks at her hands and then around herself. Some people also have singed clothing and some dust and ash on them as well.
She looks around me and realizes what occurred she got picked up and thrown out of the way. She looks around for Daniel but doesn't see him anywhere.
"D-Daniel?! Where are you? Hey has somebody seen him?!" she begins screaming. But the commotion of the explosion has gotten everyone in a daze and some don't even respond.
Was this some kind of terrorist attack?
As she looks around she hears a voice
"H-hey! Are you alright?!" a male voice calls out to her.
She turns around in relief to hear Daniels's voice but within seconds of seeing him she is in shock and steps back a few times
*Daniel POV*
"W-whats wrong? Am I dirty?"
[That's definitely not it...]
As I look down at my body I see some parts of my clothes are singed, burnt off, and torn apart.
But when I bring both of my hands up my right one is dirty and has some small scrapes, but my left hand is charred up, black in some spots. But then I look across my whole left arm, and my clothes and skin have been burned up.
[You said you protect the vital areas, so you will recover. The nanites will assist with the natural healing process greatly. As well as reduce the discomfort of the physical pain of the burns.]
So that's why I don't feel pain right now, just dazed.
[Yes, I blocked off the pain receptors to reduce discomfort.]
It might be a little too much if you totally nullify my pain. Dial it back a bit so it is convincing enough
[Weirdo...]
Within seconds I feel pain across my body and collapse a bit to the ground holding my left hand close to me, while my right hand holds me up from the ground.
I didn't realize my insides were screwed over.
"Daniel!" Gizzele yells running over to me
I think I might faint...
Daniel collapses from the shock of pain and goes unconscious for a bit. Gizzele checks on him trying to know how Daniel is doing and begins yelling and shaking him a bit.
Then as footsteps proceed to get a closer combination of clacking, and metallic stomps. Gizzele turns around to see knights and Cloven shield bearers begin gathering up the students injured and getting them away from the blast zone. Some walk up to Gizzele and ask questions
"Miss, can you stand?" one knight asks
"Please help him! He threw out of the blast and-and he is...I don't know!"
He looks past her and gestures to another to help him. The two pick Daniel up and begin to drag him in a general direction of where a carriage of knights came from.
"Where are you taking him?!" Gizzele yells following them before being stopped by another cloven with a shield.
"They are taking him to the campus medical center. He will be cared for and kept safe. Will you answer some questions?" he asks
"F-fine..."
*Daniel POV*
Where am I now? I look around and see myself in the void once again but then realize where I am after a couple of seconds.
[You know, you could've just let the pain receptors be turned off you know.]
I could've, but I am not a good actor for showing physical pain. If I just acted as if I was not in physical pain it would be to suspect than I already am.
[Maybe]
A hand touches my right shoulder and I turn around to see a shorter white-haired girl wearing a white button-down shirt, and black shorts.
She waves her arms to the voids and then a sudden blur of furniture looking very simple yet modern to 3 years ago before I fell asleep is made.
*Sigh* I have gotten a bit used to these human-like accommodations but they are still boring to me. I've gone through my records of human classical art, music, and designs. But still don't find an appeal to them.