Marcus and Luna continued walking the complex, watching as various cadets were being trained by officers.
There weren't many cadets, only the first two batches, making about twenty cadets in total. Marcus was glad no cadets had died yet, at least none that he heard of.
After a while of wandering around the complex, they finally found Officer Volkov, he was inside the eatery, sipping on a cup of tea with a thoughtful expression.
"Where's Sang-hee?" Marcus asked, sitting across from Officer Volkov, and placing Luna in his lap.
Officer Volkov gestured towards the training center with the point of his thumb.
Marcus nodded. "I see, so what's on the agenda?"
Officer Volkov placed down his cup of tea and smiled. "Well, I guess we'll start with the basics of your implant."
"You know what implant I have?" Marcus asked skeptically, he was a little surprised by such a revelation, but not alarmed.
"Mhmm, it's a rare one too." Officer Volkov said with a grin, "Goddess of Silver and Light, rank-three implant, it's so rare, that you're the only one who has it as far as I know." Officer Volkov said, tapping his finger on the table, a playful smile dancing on his lips.
"What are its abilities?" Marcus asked casually, attempting to hide his unease.
"Partial transformation, teleportation, flight, and the ability to charge blasts of ether." Officer Volkov answered, "Additional notes add that this implant also holds potential for greater power, yet it's unknown how to achieve such power just yet."
"Sounds cool, I wonder how a guy like that could ever get so lucky," Marcus answered with a feigned smile, the tension steadily building, becoming almost palpable.
Luna meanwhile, held a poker face that would make gamblers worship her.
"You know Marcus, at first I was under the impression that this had something to do with her." Officer Volkov said with a playful chuckle, gesturing towards Luna. "However, I realized that was unlikely."
Marcus was tempted to breathe a sigh of relief, yet he knew that would draw suspicion, so he faked a curious expression. "Why did you think Luna had something to do with this, and why is it unlikely?"
"Well it's obvious why I'd question her involvement, a cadet comes in with an anomaly companion, then when it's time to receive implants he gets one that lines up almost perfectly with with said anomaly, and not only that, but he's the only cadet known to have such a rare implant."
Officer Volkov then sighed. "However, that plan quickly falls apart when you realize that an anomaly cannot survive without its core, and a human cannot survive holding an anomaly's core while dying or becoming possessed." Officer Volkov then chuckled, "And I can rule out you being possessed, because you're just too human, the outbursts, the breaking down, it's all something an anomaly doesn't understand, and even if they did, why would they risk blowing their cover in such a way?"
Marcus nodded in understanding, on paper, Officer Volkov was right, there was just no way Luna could be involved.
However, in reality, Marcus's body could hold up with Luna's core quite well, so he quite literally was doing the impossible.
"Yeah, you make a point." Marcus said with a chuckle as he looked down at Luna, "truth is she's just an anomaly I've taken a liking to, and she likes me, it just works, you know?"
Officer Volkov nodded. "Indeed." He leaned back in his seat, crossing his arms as he glanced out the window. "So before we start your training, I want you to know I've procured that information you wanted, however, I'll withhold it until our training is complete, do you agree with that?"
Marcus sighed, everything was going well. Until it wasn't.
"How convenient," Marcus grumbled. "You found another way to screw me over."
Officer Volkov chuckled. "Hey I wouldn't say that, I just need to make sure you have a reason to continue your training, otherwise what's stopping you from bailing on me?" Volkov asked teasingly.
"He has a point," Luna commented.
"Hey, whose side are you on?" Marcus asked teasingly as he pinched Luna's child's cheek.
Luna giggled. "Yours of course, but he makes a valid point." She said, grabbing Marcus's finger and pulling it from her face.
"Fine." Marcus conceded, leaning back in his seat. "But this is it, you alter the deal further and I swear I'm dropping you," Marcus said seriously his eyes narrowing briefly.
Officer Volkov nodded. "You have my word."
Marcus knew that if he let Officer Volkov run over him any further, he would probably be seen as a pushover.
"Let's get started with this training," Marcus demanded, gently placing Luna down before standing up himself.
"Don't you want breakfast?" Officers Volkov asked, gesturing towards the breakfast trays.
Marcus shook his head. "The only thing I wanna eat right now is your lessons, so stop flapping your gums and come on."
Marcus knew he had to come off as strong, he was already at a disadvantage from when he broke down in front of the guy, now he was altering the deal, Marcus had to nip this in the bud immediately.
Officer Volkov blushed, "So forward." He said with a grin, rising out of his seat to follow Marcus. "We just met, you know?"
Marcus glanced back at Officer Volkov with a raised eyebrow, "Obviously, that's why I'm trying to get started."
Officer Volkov smiled mischievously, "then lead the way."
Marcus nodded as he stepped out of the eatery with Luna in hand. Marcus was determined to learn everything he could from Officer Volkov, especially the ability to fly and create ether blasts.
Marcus sees Luna using her limited transformation ability, but only to carve apples and clay. Marcus was sure it probably took skill and effort, but he wasn't interested in becoming an artist.
After a while of walking, Marcus came to a sudden realization; he had no clue where he was going.
He paused right in his tracks and glanced back at Volkov, who was walking behind him with a teasing smile. "Why'd you stop?" He asked with a knowing grin.
Marcus cleared his throat as he averted his gaze. "Because I want you to lead the rest of the way, see if you can handle something that simple.
"Oh?" Volkov said with a laugh, "So you've finally realized you have no clue where you're going?"
"No." Marcus said defensively, "Do you?"
"Yes, and I think if you would've paid just a little more attention, you'd realize that the entire complex is open for training."
"Oh," Marcus replied in a flat tone. "Yeah…."
Volkov chuckled to himself as he stepped back from Marcus, "No matter." He said, clasping his hands together enthusiastically, "This spot is perfect!"
"It is?" Marcus asked, looking around he noticed that they were near the female dorms.
"Yep, large open area for our class, and if Sang-hee survives her operation she she meets her on her return to the dorms," Volkov answered.
"Let's just hope she doesn't," Marcus murmured.
Officer Volkov narrowed his eyes, glaring at Marcus. "I refuse to let you speak ill will on your comrade, same as I stop her from speaking ill of you."
Marcus sighed as he raised a hand in surrender. "Alright, alright, it was just a joke." Marcus conceded.
"I won't tolerate such behavior, do you understand?" Officer Volkov asked, his tone stern.
"Yes," Marcus replied as he nodded his head.
Officer Volkov nodded his head in satisfaction, "Good, it appears you're a fast learner." He said with a chuckle, slowly lowering himself on the grass in a sitting position.
"What are you doing?" Marcus asked, tilting his head in confusion.
"The first lesson you need to learn is patience and control, and the best way to do that is through meditation, now sit with me, and I'll explain the secrets of proper ether flow."
Marcus raised an eyebrow as he glanced down at Luna, who shrugged her shoulders.
Marcus sighed as he hesitantly settled down into the grass, copying Officer Volkov's posture.
"Close your eyes Marcus, and focus on your breathing." Officer Volkov instructed, his tone soothing and steady. "Breathe in deeply through your nose, and exhale through your mouth."
Marcus did as instructed, after repeating this process a few times, Marcus felt a calming wave wash over him, his tension easing.
"Focus on your chest, specifically your heart." Officer Volkov instructed, "Focus on the rhythm of the beat, search for your implant, focus on it until you feel a warming sensation in your chest."
Marcus obliged, focusing on his heartbeat searching for that warm sensation in his chest.
At first, Marcus felt nothing, but as time passed and his focus increased, that warming sensation began to show itself. "I can feel it." Marcus said, his tone full of excitement, "I can sense it."
"Good." Officer Volkov replied, "Now, focus on that sensation, pull it from your chest, and guide it to your fingertips, you'll know you've succeeded when your fingertips feel static."
Marcus nodded, keeping his eyes closed as he focused on that sensation. He concentrated as hard as he could, picturing that he was pulling that warmth from his chest. He could feel the heat moving slowly from his chest, through his arms, and finally into his fingers.
Suddenly, all of Marcus's fingers grew long and sharp, like the tip of a thin sword. "Woah!" Marcus exclaimed as he looked down at his hands, it was like he had long nails, but instead of his nails, it was his entire fingertip.
They were a beautiful silver color, similar to that of Luna's eyes.
"That's faster than I expected." Officer Volkov said in awe, leaning forward to examine Marcus's fingers. Marcus reached out his hand triumphantly, "I guess this is your partial transformation ability."
Marcus could hardly believe it, first he flew uncontrollably, and now he was finally controlling another ability. It felt so surreal, almost unbelievable.
"Can you retract them?" Officer Volkov asked curiously.
Marcus focused on his fingers, picturing the process in reverse. He drained the warm sensation from his fingers back to his chest, and slowly the silver blade tips began to recede, turning Marcus's fingers to normal.
"Holy shit!" Marcus exclaimed in disbelief. A giddy smile plastered on his face. "This is amazing!!!!"
Luna watched Marcus with a proud smile, nodding her head in approval.
Marcus then repeated the process, turning his fingertips back into long, silver blade tips. He then retracted them, he repeated this process several times, extending and retreating them at will.
With a large smile on his face, Marcus stood up and struck a superhero pose. "Fear not citizens!" Marcus exclaimed, "For the black feline, is here!" He extended his finger blades, punching the air several times while making punching sounds.
"Alright, I know this is exciting, but there is much to learn." Officer Volkov said with a grin, "Can you morph your fingers into anything else? Try to add more ether to your hand."
Marcus nodded, closing his eyes and focusing more energy on his hand, suddenly his entire hand began morphing into what looked to be a large drill tip.
Marcus' eyes widened with amazement. "Oh shit!" Marcus explained as he pointed at his hand, "You guys see this?" He asked in disbelief.
"I do." Officer Volkov said with a grin, "Add more ether, let's see what happens next."
Marcus nodded with a giddy laugh. He forced even more ether into his hand, but to his disappointment, nothing happened. "Aww man." Marcus groaned, "Looks like that's about it for the partial transformation powers."
Officer Volkov nodded, his smile never faltering, "ok then, let's see if you can shoot an ether blast."