The scales were still shooting me upward and I could feel every vibration it made as it rubbed against some sort of concrete. The ride was bumpy, the scales continuously skidding across the sides of a stone pipe until there was a sudden jolt and they finally dispersed away. I cautiously opened my eyes and wrapped my hand around the bruises on my arm.
A small groan sounded. I turned around and saw a reptile-looking animal. It was ridged with green scales and once it breathed out, the scales detached from it, revealing pink, rubbery skin. Its eyes were large and bulbous, and the feathery wings that protruded from its body was the only thing that kept the reptile balanced; it had no arms but muscled legs.
Standing next to the creature was a middle-aged man with thick arms crossed across his chest. Instead of human skin, what covered his body was a fleshy substance, pink and identical to the skin of the reptile's. He moved and along with his body, his skin too, wrinkling and bunching up excessively in contrast to the wrap of human skin.
"Thank you," I stuttered, suddenly gasping for breath.
"You're welcome," the man replied, bowing. "Good luck with training today."
The man's symbol was his skin. For me, the tattoo on my hand was physical evidence that branded me as a Phoenix Auxiliary. To this man, his skin was the mark that told everybody he was connected with his animal.
The man turned back to his animal. "Alright, Rakde, pull up another. I feel another person on the target board."
The creature unfurled its wings and from its flesh, a cluster of scales sprouted out and shot inside the pipe that had led me out. I stared at them a little longer until the man bowed toward me again.
I looked behind me and to my surroundings and noticed I had landed on top of the roof of the building, the entire bottom half piled with sand. Just down below was the beach I had seen through the large windows from last night. Or what I thought was the window. In reality, the window was not facing directly to the beach but somehow was able to have a visual of what was on top.
Huge torches were staked across the beach, dim and waiting to be lit. The waves of the beach roared in my ears and through the soles of my shoes, I felt the coolness of the sand, almost like sugar, fine and coarse.
A shout echoed across the beach. "Alright! Let's get training!"
I dusted off some dirt off my pants and slid down to ground level after Aaron who was bringing the group together. My boots squished on wet sand as I made my way over.
"Welcome to another day of training," Aaron greeted. By now, everybody had gathered together in a semi-circle. "Every day you will be assessed on what you do so don't screw up. Easy. Just follow directions and do well. That's all there is to it. I don't want anybody dying when they just met their animal."
Mr. Hrodvitnir was standing next to Aaron, chewing happily on a cotton candy stick. Then the familiarity suddenly dawned on me. He was the same guy who kept soothing me at the reception desk after I took my Evaluation. I raised my eyebrows and kept staring until Aaron began talking again.
Aaron pointed behind him with a thumb. "Since we're all done with touring and orientation, the real training will start. We will be walking over this hill every day to get to our training grounds. It is vital to keep up your physical endurance hence if your animal gets too hard to defend against."
From the window of the dorm before, I had seen the massive hill, but standing in front of it showed the sheer height of it. The hill was so large that it covered half of my vision and almost the blue skies above. Trees dotted on top of the hill and to the land beyond the hill's straight summit.
"We will also be given weaponry and getting used to those before meeting our animals. Remember failure to follow the rules and inappropriate uses of the weaponry will result in automatic dropping of this class, and immediate incarceration. Any other questions?"
A man raised his hand. Aaron looked at him once before the man said, "Why weaponry? Doesn't that just provoke the animal even further?"
Aaron had rings all over his hands, silver and gold, all different types. As he cracked his knuckles, the rings brushed past each other and tinged small clear sounds. "No. It's only for safety purposes. As animals are a lot more diverse, their power becomes unpredictable. Your Phluids will know in time. It's not only physical endurance that make up your Phluid. Your mentality shapes it as well."
The slight tip of his nose suggested a hint of warning. A hint not to question his authority. He smiled and began the first step over the hill in front of him. Nothing promising a nice walk.
I stepped on the first ascent of the hill and walked. My legs were reluctant to move and after my passing out yesterday, I was surprised that I could walk for so long. The only thing that kept me going, I thought, was because of the cool breeze that whipped through my hair and the desire to do my best during training. All for the future. That was all.
Constantly my legs ached but I chose to ignore it, pushing along with the other group members aside me. Once we got over the hill, I saw a clearing, or a glade, with trees surrounding it. A small pond took over most of the clearing, reflecting off thousands of beams from the sun.
Grass circled the pond and all around the field were all kinds of weaponry from bows to arrows to halberds and even staves. The wind seemed to whistle across the grass, susurrating softly at first, then picking up and mellowing down, a feeling of summer air rushing past the whole group even though the air smelled harshly of packed moisture. From this view, it almost seemed like training was simple, peaceful even, but the human-made weapons in the center of the clearing distorted the overall image from natural to artificial. All for the future.
The crowd gathered around the weaponry, a sort of hushed blanket enveloping all of us. Aaron gestured to the racks, "Every person should start with one weapon."
Aaron came over to one of the racks and hefted a halberd in his hands from the largest rack. "These weapons are low quality but do well for defense and amateurs like you. Especially since these weapons should not be used to engage in any sort of battle."
The same man immediately raised his hand. Aaron spun his halberd over his shoulder and asked, "Yes? A question?"
The man closed his eyes. "Most of us aren't amateurs. Some of us have used these weapons before."
Aaron's eyes sparked. "Am I the mentor? Or are you?" He seemed much scarier when he turned his profile to the weapons. "As I mentioned before, Phluid can be heavily based on your mental state. Having a cocky attitude can alter your Phluid tremendously and your connection with your animal."
The man's mouth fluttered but he didn't reply when he saw Aaron's tilted head with that same authoritative tone. Then, he regarded the rest of us. "Choose your weapon. Make sure you choose the one you're most comfortable with because you won't have enough time to change and catch up with the others."
With everyone else, I walked forward and grabbed the nearest tool and instantly regretted it. The halberd dragged me to the ground and it took all my strength to haul it back on the rack without tipping it over.
Halberd: no. Next, I wrapped my hands around a staff and suddenly a burst of energy blasted, rocking my body from head to toe. I shuddered for a minute, taking in my surroundings. Some people already were on a roll, already waving their weapons and doing all sorts of aerobatics. Others, who had touched a weapon for the first time, were already on the move, learning all they could.
Halberd: no, Staff: no, Next: Daggers? I saw a pair of daggers lying on the ground, but just as I picked them up, something felt wrong about them. They felt too light. I discarded them back on the ground and picked up a sword.
Immediately, power and adrenaline rushed into my body. With such power, I felt unbeatable. I swung around the sword like a little child, jabbing the sword in the air and jeering with pride.
It went on like that endlessly. I lost track of time. I would pick up the sword and then release it just as it began to overwhelm me with surging power. All for the future. Was it my Phluid at play here? Or something else?
Only when Aaron told us to stop that I collapsed down on the grass and felt the pain. Sweat poured out and my ragged breathing made my lungs contract. A part of me relished the pain. The pain was evidence I was training and doing my job.
But the other part hesitated. If Aaron did this every day, there was no chance I would be able to catch up. I heaved myself forward and sat on the ground, growling and swiping grass away from me. I will make it. I had to. Progress. Future.
Aaron smiled at the crowd. "Well done. For the first day of weaponry. The other days will be much harder so brace yourselves. We will be with our animals soon enough."
Nobody peeped. Only rough breathing and coughing followed Aaron's words. Maybe in later days, we would get used to it. I breathed harder, my stomach groaning with muscle aches. That had to be the solution to this.
"Stand up," Aaron ordered. "We're going back."
Mr. Hrodvitnir bolted upright from where he was sitting with chocolate in hand and scrambled after Aaron who was already walking down the hill.
I crawled to a kneeling position and then stamped my foot on the ground for balance, bringing myself up to a stand. I almost buckled but seeing everyone already leaving, I had to race to catch up to them.
Going down the hill might have been a little easier than going up the hill, but with depleted energy, it felt ten times worse. My boots hitched with every decline and soon I lagged behind, skidding dirt as I bumped across the slope.
Occasionally, I would trip on a rock and had to tilt on a tree to regain balance. Everything swirled, trees merging into one another and the sky creating a sensational effect.
Aaron shouted somewhere ahead, "Come on! Pick up your feet and let's keep moving!"
Through the daze of my eyes and brain, I chose to ignore his words. That must have been a warning for me to pay attention, but I was far too tired to even care.
The sun shone directly over my head and when I squinted, I could make out the torches of the beach. I heaved a breath and willed all of me to pump my legs to go faster.