Of Thousand Lives

Sincerely, Circulus - Chapter 16: Leitmotif

  It's now the second day of Justice's enlistment. He has somewhat caught up with the routine and rules of this place. Though, he doesn't seem to be making any progress with his magic. Which is a shame, but he believes that he will get there in the end, eventually. He trusts Raven's words that day. "Lucky" is what the elf described him, but maybe it was a bit of an exaggeration. For now, Justice can't really seek any help from the expert anymore. It's been months since he was last seen anyways. Nobody knows how he's doing.

  Everyone is rallying at the courtyard, per usual. This time, the child prodigy is present in his sharpest uniform. Hurlem steps on an elevated podium to get ready to make his speech. "Today, we will examine your ability to manipulate the Song. Call it magic, simply. If you, unfortunately, do not have it, don't worry, it's not the end of the world for your career. Look at me, I barely do magic and I'm still thriving. Well.. Not the best type of thriving, but I'm still in one piece in a way.", he shrugs, knocking on the metal augmentations on his leg. The kid takes usual glances at the cage with the glowing orb inside of it as he makes his speech. He then clears his throat, "I'm guessing many of you must be wondering what the glowing orb inside of that cage over there is. I'm not even gonna sugar coat it. It's a fiend of the Song that we captured and it's angry. Think of it as a concentrate of magic, which doesn't follow any element and is out to injure and even kill someone if it's let loose. After doing a bit of checking, we will start letting a few volunteers inside. I'll explain a few things later. For now, please do stand still.". Chatter can be heard coming from everyone after the kid finishes his speech, they're mostly talking about how they're like lab rats for the military. Hurlem doesn't really care and reaches inside of his pockets to pull out a pair of round glasses. The prodigy puts them on and takes a look around. "He looks so cute with those glasses on.", Elysia whispers in a squeaky voice and giggles, nudging Justice's arm. Though his reaction seems a little stoic compared to hers - a little nod and 'Mhm'. From the looks of it, perhaps those glasses can help the person who wears them to see others' ability to use magic. A handy tool, though not a lot of The kid looks around the rows upon rows of trainees before him then finally takes a look at Justice, though a little sigh seemingly of disappointment comes out of him when he meets eyes with the Anomaly. "Okay, luckily, you all are compatible with the Song, which is nice. Valkyrie squads currently do need more candidates with magic capabilities. Except for one person! You there. But as I've said before, not having any connections with the Song will not bring you disadvantages in the Valkyries, you will have equal opportunities just like the others.", the boy takes off his glasses then promptly continues his speech. Hearing and seeing the boy point at him is enough to make Justice confused beyond this world. The chatters grow ever so louder when Hurlem pointed at him, now the topic of their discussion is about the Anomaly. Some laugh, some just whisper things to another. The courtyard becomes rather talkative. Elysia can't say anything more than just take little glances at her comrade. Justice can't help but feel a little disappointment in himself as well. He thought and believed that he had a chance at magic. It makes sense to him, perhaps he really does have no luck with magic.

  The child prodigy on the podium lets out a frustrated sigh and shakes his head slightly. After a few more seconds of silence from him, he finally shouts, "QUIET, PLEASE!". The courtyard immediately falls silent, not a single voice or whisper audible. Satisfied by the absence of noise, he continues,"I will not, and I repeat, will not tolerate any cases of mistreatment within our lines. You will receive absolute punishments if you violate the privacy and well-being of other members of the Valkyries, either physically or mentally. Mind what you say and what you do. You have been warned.". The silence grows ever heavier with the pressure of thousands of gazeful eyes on Justice. Somehow, Elysia can feel it too. This type of attention is uncomfortable, even an outgoing person like her would be discouraged. "Well, now. Does any of you want to go first?", Hurlem asks, breaking the silence of the courtyard in a way. Yet it ensues, for no hands are raised, no answers are spoken. The trainees down below just turn their heads to look at each other, seeing who is the first to be the punching bag for that fiend. Hurlem, as unimpressed as always, is about to open his mouth to say something, but to say he was surprised when Justice - the only person who doesn't have any affinity with magic, as he described him - was the only person to raise their arm to volunteer. "Are you crazy?! That thing looks as if it wouldn't be scratched even if you punched it a thousand times! You're going to die!" - Elysia immediately protests against his actions, trying to pull his hand down. Despite her efforts, his arm still remains raised. Hurlems smiles a little, out of amusement and confusion, not knowing if this was bravery or stupidity coming from the Anomaly. "Soldiers don't fear death.", Justice gives a strong and stern answer to his comrade. That line alone was enough to raise an eyebrow of Vurul's - who has been watching everything from the start on the roof of the base - along with the respect for the boy. Though, still a few are sceptical of his choices and think that he's an idiot, which is rather understandable. Justice is a little afraid of what's to come next, too, but this is what he has to do to know his true strength and potential as of now. "Interesting. I will honour your decision. We shall move to the arena.", Hurlem nods and slowly makes his way to the cage. The trainees then follow him like a herd of sheeps, with that chattering continuing, all about Justice. It's just like he became the talk of the town in just measly 10 minutes. A ring of spectators gather around the fence, all eyes are on Justice - who's now standing next to Hurlem. "Do note: A fiend of the Song is a purely magical entity, meaning physical harm will not do any damage to it, though it will do damage to you. I will pull you out when things get out of hand, climb through this fence and the chains will be taken off. Good luck.", the prodigy pats on the leg of the trainee before stepping back and giving the brave volunteer a reassuring nod.