"Nice, Rain! You're getting better...you almost hit me that time!"
Rain cuts his eyes up at Nik bitterly, from his position doubled over gasping for breath. It's been a few more days since his campfire lunch with Tess, and he's currently on the tail end of a sparring session with Nik. As his alleged friend implied, Rain has yet to land a single sword strike on the overly skilled Legacy after over a week of training together.
Just now, he'd felt a rush of satisfaction over parrying Nik's attack and, thinking he saw an opening, had lunged to stab him with the practice sword. However, Nik had deftly redirected the momentum of his parried weapon – directly into Rain's gut. The blow had dropped him on the spot, leaving Rain in his current predicament. Still, Nik seems genuinely impressed by the attempted counter, so Rain feels that's some consolation...but only some.
"Nik, what performance enhancing drugs are they feeding you Legacies? It's okay, you can tell me. I promise to keep your secret...as long as you share."
Nik chuckles and shakes his head in amusement, then flashes Rain a radiant smile full of confidence.
"Now, now...don't be a sore loser Rain. For someone with less than two weeks of sword experience, you're actually doing remarkably well. I mean it. Honestly, I thought it was going to be a waste of time when I first saw the state of your swordsmanship, but you're a quick learner. Hell, you might even be able to beat a third of the normal kids in our combat class already. Before the Crucible, you'll be honest-to-gods above-average at this rate."
Rain rolls his eyes and stands back up with a groan, then prepares his stance.
"Gee...thanks, sensei. Alright, ready for round...er, thirty-eight? Maybe I've lost count of how many times I've been smacked silly."
Nik smirks and shakes his head, then walks toward the weapon rack as he calls over his shoulder.
"No, that's got to be it for me tonight – I have somewhere I have to be. I'll see you tomorrow, though."
Rain gives him a puzzled expression, lowering his sword, then a knowing smile slowly spreads across his face. He calls out to Nik, who's almost to the door, with a teasing tone.
"Ohhh, somewhere you have to be, huh? Is she cuter than me?"
He watches as Nik hangs his head in exasperation briefly, not looking back at Rain, and continues out the door with a backward wave of his hand. Once he's gone, Rain's left alone with his thoughts.
'Damn...a girlfriend sounds nice...curse that handsome bastard.'
He sighs deeply, coincidentally wondering what Bright is up to.
*****
Back in his room, Rain has just showered, changed into some casual clothes, and taken a seat at his room's desk. He notices that he has an omniwatch message from Bright.
Wifey Bright
Have day off. Visit in four days? Discuss Falling plan, study table runes.
'Gods, if she ever sees her name on this thing she's going to strangle me. Also, her grammar is absolutely abysmal, even by Rim standards. You'd think she's getting charged by the letter or something...'
Rain smirks to himself as he sends a reply.
It's a date. I'll supply the cake and tea.
Much to Rain's surprise, he almost immediately gets a reply from her. Glancing down at the message, he frowns in confusion.
'Huh...it's just a picture of a fence. Weird...'
He shrugs, turning to his monitor. He plans to do a little bit more reading on the known terrain of Asphodel. He's learning about the geography, but he'd also like to know Earth Bridge locations, where major human settlements are, and how dangerous the various areas between and around them are. He feels that information will be essential for his survival during the Crucible.
As he's preparing to start his research, however, he hears a knock at his door. He glances at the time on his monitor, noting that it's already a couple of hours after sunset. Confused by the unexpected interruption, he walks across the room and opens the door. In the hall, a girl his age is watching him as he stares back at her in confusion. She's about his height, lean but curvy, and she has long, straight, platinum-blonde hair and cold, pale blue eyes.
It's none other than the Academy's local celebrity...Ronin.
Rain directs a bewildered gaze at the imposing girl, his voice coming out shocked and faltering.
"U-uhm...Ronin? I've...got to say...this is a surprise. Do you...need something?"
For a moment, her cold stare remains fixed on him, then she casts a few discreet glances around the hallway outside his room. When her gaze returns to Rain, she speaks in a low, flat tone.
"May I come in?"
Feeling a pang of apprehension that he can't quite justify, Rain stares at Ronin for several seconds. Eventually, though, he hesitantly steps to the side, opening the door for her as he does.
"Uhm...sure...why not."
She simply nods at him and walks into the room confidently. He shuts the door behind her, then turns to watch her with a wary gaze. She seems to be subtly keeping an eye on him as well. However, she's also scanning around the room curiously, as if making note of all his belongings. Eventually, she turns to face him, both of them still standing. Her blue eyes seem to be studying him suspiciously.
"You didn't bring any personal items with you?"
Rain eyes her incredulously.
"You have to own personal items to bring them."
Ronin purses her lips thoughtfully, still studying Rain, but she remains silent. After several moments of awkward silence, he clears this throat and puts on a polite smile.
"Ehem...well, I'm sure you didn't come here to give me interior design advice. So tell me, to what do I owe the pleasure of being visited by the Academy's strongest, most legendary student?"
For a second, Rain swears he sees the corner of her mouth twitch upward, as though she finds something amusing, but he decides that he must have imagined it. Ronin walks a little closer to him, so they're just within arms reach, and she directs an especially piercing gaze at him.
"I want to know what game you're playing, and who you're playing it for."
Rain gives her a blank stare for several seconds, blinking in confusion.
'What in the actual fuck is with this girl's communication? It's like I understand 90% of her words individually, but none of them together.'
Before he knows it, a seed of annoyance has blossomed into something where Unhinged can take root, and he feels his inhibitions lift entirely. He lets out a long, exasperated sigh as he rubs his temples. Then, he glares at Ronin with an annoyed expression.
"Uhm...listen Ronin...not that it wasn't fun during orientation, but can you quit being so goddamn cryptic? Seriously, you're one of the worst fucking communicators I've ever met. Has anyone ever told you that? No, I suppose you'd have to have actual conversations with people for that to happen. Whatever...can you just be blunt with your questions, please? It'd fit better with this whole tough girl vibe you're trying to sell anyway."
Rain feels a rush of remorse and fear over how he just spoke, but he quickly realizes that there's nothing to be done about it now. Ronin's eyes widen slightly in surprise following his retort, but a moment later she just nods with her usual stoicism and responds in a flat voice.
"Fine. Tell me why you arranged for me to take the credit for that score on the impact machine, how you managed to pull off such a high score, and whose orders you were following when you did it. Is that clear enough?"
Rain feels a wave of panic washing over him, though he tries to remain calm externally.
'Wh-...what the hell!? How does she know!?'
"I'm not sure what you mean. Are you saying that wasn't you? That's the impression that everyone in the school is under."
For once, Ronin's expression isn't subtle. It turns into a full scowl, and her voice becomes mildly agitated.
"Now who's not being direct?"
Rain purses his lips thoughtfully as he tries to think over how to address the situation. Ronin is obviously convinced that he's behind it. This seems entirely too forward unless she has compelling information. In which case, trying to lie won't do him any good. His top priority should be determining what she knows, and just avoiding outright admitting to her accusation. He turns his gaze back to Ronin, who's staring at him expectantly.
"Anyone who knows me would attest that I'm not capable of what you're claiming. However, in your hypothetical where I am, why don't you tell me what you think the answers to your own questions are? How did I do it? Why did I do it? Who did I do it for, since it can't be my decision for some reason?"
She stares at him for several seconds, frowning in disapproval, but seems to make up her mind. Then, she steps a little closer to him, so their faces are only a few inches apart, her cold eyes sending chills up his spine.
"The why is the easiest...you wanted to draw attention to me and make me a target in the Crucible. How is less clear, but ultimately irrelevant...I suspect that you're much stronger than people around here think. As for who, my first guess is Klaus, but it's not entirely unreasonable that it might be Godfrey pulling your strings."
Rain stares at Ronin thoughtfully, parsing the information she laid out. Eventually, he just shakes his head at her in confusion.
"Actually, most of that doesn't make sense. Your guess about my strength is unsubstantiated, but hypothetically reasonable. But giving you credit for that score...no offense, you were already the center of attention. If somebody was going to try to kill you in the Crucible for bragging rights or whatever, all that score did was make them think twice. If anything, it helped you. As for those two names you mentioned, I have no idea who they are, or why you think they'd want you harmed."
Ronin's eyes display a shimmer of doubt, then they narrow at Rain.
"So, you expect me to believe that you were just trying to help me? Is that it? As for those two names, there's no way you don't know Klaus of the Abel clan and Godfrey of the Veyron clan."
Rain begins rubbing his temples in frustration...it seems like talking with her goes nowhere. He feels his composure slipping a bit.
"No, you were...uhm, I mean...hypothetically, couldn't you have just been the perfect patsy so that no attention was drawn to someone like me? Also, I'm sure those two people are famous for you Legacies, but orphans like me don't know two random people from your damn clans, okay? Normal people don't care about your internal feuds."
Ronin quietly glares at him for several seconds, her eyes studying him, exposing traces of bewilderment. Eventually, she sighs and looks off to the side absentmindedly, mumbling to herself.
"I truly can't decide whether you're a clueless idiot or a genius at masquerading as one..."
As Rain is still processing the fact that's he's been insulted, Ronin decides to walk past him without another word, reaching for the door to leave. Registering her imminent departure, and feeling anxious over whether she might out him, his eyes widen and his voice becomes a touch frantic.
"Hey, wait!"
He reaches for her wrist, not intending to grab her, but just wanting to get her to turn around. However, the second that his hand touches her bare skin, there's a flash of incomprehensible movement from Ronin. The next moment, Rain is blinking in confusion as black mist solidifies against his neck.
Ronin is staring him down with by far the most terrifying expression he's ever seen, pure rage freely alight in her eyes. In her outstretched arm is a menacing, silver short sword, its point pressed to his throat.