FORTUNE FAVOURS ELYSIA | ᴀᴅᴀᴍ x ʟᴜᴛᴇ

9 | MANIA

𝙻𝚄𝚃𝙴'𝚂 𝙿𝙾𝚅—

Shouldering the angelic rifle, I keep the stock close to my body as I reach my free hand to pull onto the bolt, pulling it back to chamber a round. I raise it up to a full ready position, adjusting my feet and shooting posture. I steady my breathing as much as I was able to do— shallow, more spaced apart breaths, practicing the breathing patterns of a marksman.

"Stand by..." Vaggie says towards my left, holding onto a timer in her hand. Keeping proficient with a firearm has been something drilled into my head for many years as a soldier, and I wouldn't want to break the habit, even in the afterlife. Shooting is one of my favourite things to do.

A loud beep came from Vaggie's stop watch, queueing me to begin shooting. I pull my aim over towards the left, firing at the first target. It goes straight through the centre of the bullseye. I aim towards my right, at a target more high above. I fire off a round, before snapping my aim to a target below— a moving one. I fired off two rounds in it before it stopped moving.

"Aaand... 4.6 seconds! Good job..." Vaggie praises, as I remove the magazine from the rifle, pulling back the bolt to make sure the chamber is clear before I set it down on the table.

I had spent most of today's training with Vaggie, mostly hanging around the angelic rifles room, though me and her did spar with swords earlier. I've acclimated well to the exorcists, better than I have expected, and the days have been flying by, blending into each other. It's wonderful what structure does for me, the enjoyment I get in reliving the same things over and over. I go to training, talk to Vaggie, go home and play what I affectionately call my 'Sera sanctioned lute' thag I have beside my bed, and then go to sleep. Rinse, and repeat.

There has been barely any sightings of Adam. He is around us girls sometimes, though he keeps a good distance away from me and Vaggie, which she says is a good thing. According to her, it means we are doing well enough that he doesn't need to come over and correct our mistakes. From my observation from a distance, Adam seems less eccentric towards his girls. He's a lot more harsh— more than usual, and doesn't hold the same playful tone to his orders anymore. It was taken over by someone who seemed entirely miserable, someone who has lost their spark.

Vaggie and I walk towards a bench in the main foyer, sitting down as we watch the girls spar or socialize. I notice Vaggie's gaze is fixated on one of the other exorcists, I think her name is Lynn. Her helmet is off, showing her curly golden locks that end just beneath her chin. Her eyes are a striking purple, and it seems she wears makeup often. Lynn wipes some sweat from her face, giggling to another exorcist about something we can't hear from over here.

"You've been gawking at that girl for days. That's Lynn, right?" I ask towards my left, my gaze drifting to Vaggie. I am unable to see her facial expressions, but the digital face is undoubtedly staring at the girl.

"Yeah, that's Lynn..." Her tone is soft, yet certain.

"What, did she do something to you?" I took her gazing as possibly feeling unsafe in Lynn's presence.

"No... no not really..."

"Then what's going on?"

"I just..." Vaggie takes a deep breath, hesitating on what she is about to say. There is a nervous expression on her mask, her gaze now brought downwards, "I think I might like her... she is never ceasing to smile, she lights up this gloomy fucking training centre with everything she does..."

"Oooh... well why don't you go and say hi?" I wrap my arm playfully around her, bringing her into a friendly side hug. Both of us are giggling at it— and Vaggie honestly sounds relieved. Before I could say anything else, a voice interrupts us— one so familiar.