you'll make a fool out of me!

[3] HE'S BRINGING YOU DOWN.

TW //  Character death, Animal death, Dismemberment, Breakdowns, Blood and injuries, VERY morbid experimenting scene,  lots of trauma, uhm.... lol.... rip seers mental state... 

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Maybe a month had passed since the evacuations. There wasn't an exact count of time, especially in the cave. Regardless, the more time passed, the more polished the cave looked. A few remained in hysterics about their old homes, the coziness of them, and how quiet it was. Now, the cave constantly echoed with noises- footsteps, chatter, objects being dropped; it was rare for the cave system to be completely silent.

Supplies were kept in check by the aquamarine elites that Proxima had brought, as well as Colle, Beef, and Seer. A few volunteered to help, but it was kept to that group. That didn't stop people from going out, either to find help or find supplies, and never coming back.

Seer had adjusted to his new role quickly- he had to. His body felt weird all the time, his wings becoming more of a weight than anything else. There were obvious marks on his skin where it'd stretched. Goggles said it was due to the influx of energy, and also that Seer had gotten a little taller from it somehow.

There wasn't much room for him to fly around wildly, but Seer had the hang of it now at least. It was much easier than training. Speaking of-

"Come on Seer!" Colle called out from the sidelines.

Seer felt the whoosh of a halberd a few centimeters from his head. He ducked down, tucking his wings close. The moment it was clear, Seer stepped back quickly and pushed himself back up again. With quick motions, he raised his arms and slashed his scythe down.

Proxima was just as quick, swinging his halberd up to catch the blade of the scythe. Without even a second to let Seer process it, he yanked his weapon closer- and yanked Seer closer too. Seer didn't get a moment to move his limbs. A knee smashed into his diaphragm, and he knew he was going to hit the floor if he didn't do anything.

He was already exhausted, lasting longer this session than the others. It almost felt like he was syncing his movements with his beating heart.

With a gasp, Seer tried to focus on keeping his knees from buckling. He forced himself to step back, even if it was mostly a stumble. Proxima swung again, and Seer quickly put a wing up to shield himself.

The blade never fully connected- he felt it brush against it, maybe doing enough damage to give him a paper cut. He knew if this was a real fight, it would've gone right through. Seer silently cursed himself out, but kept fighting.

Another swing, and constantly flexing his wings back and forth to be able to move his scythe properly. It was tiring. Seer tried to attack without constant swings, constantly needing to spin his scythe and arms. It left his movements stiff, and Proxima was able to knock him down finally.

When he hit the ground, Seer felt more relieved than anything. He rolled his shoulders, trying to pop out the aches in his back. Proxima stood over him.

"You did better. You still need to work on your defense. The trick with your wing was fine at the moment, but you can't let your body be your shield."

"Yes, yes..." Seer rose to his feet, "I wish these wings weren't so big. It's inconvenient."

"At least you don't need energy to fly like us." Proxima replied, "Want to go again?"

"Can I go?" Beef spoke up before Seer could reply. Proxima stared at him, then looked at Seer for an answer. Seer shrugged it off and nodded, going to sit down next to Colle. Beef burst up from his spot, sword already in hand.