[KH/FF] Treachery of Fate: Blood and Betrayal

Chapter 17

The cellphone beneath your pillow vibrated at 4:50 A.M for the alarm. Why so early? Well, let’s just say there’s about a few hundred students trying out for the missions and about 20 or so bathrooms. That wasn’t the entire school though- only the ones who had gotten permission to try out. You slid down the ladder and turned to make sure you hadn’t woken Cid up. You didn’t, and he was sleeping soundly, shirtless, with the blanket kicked off. Smiling at how peaceful he looked, you gently tucked him in and quietly exited the room.

After showering, you put on a new change of the uniform and tied your hair into the usual high ponytail with the long black ribbon. You checked the time on your phone which read 5: 15 A.M. and since nobody was awake yet, you decided to take a quick walk on the beach. You made your way to the rooftop of the airship, being that the main exit would make too much noise, and once at the top, you ran and jumped off- flipping several times before landing on the sandy shore.

The weather outside was a bit chilly as the morning breeze blew in the sunless sky. You could see the sun peeking over the horizon of ocean waves and inhaled the calming sea salt scent. Walking along the shore, you found yourself humming your favorite song, and everything seemed so peaceful. You reached the end of the shoreline and noticed that you were only a few strides from the clubhouse. Turning around, you began walking back to the airship and noticed somebody in the shallow waters. You strolled over to where the water met the sand and examined the person.

He was incredibly tall and you guessed him to either be a college freshman or a high school senior. From the black baggy pants he wore that was tucked into black combat boots, you guessed senior. He wore no shirt and his silver hair was incredibly long. He summoned a katana blade that was much, much longer than yours and began to do numerous exercises with it in the water. As he turned around, he noticed you watching and stopped. You blushed and looked down from his emerald gray eyes, embarrassed at yourself for staring. He gave a curious stare for a moment before gesturing you forward. Bashfully you strode into the shallow water and stood in front of him.

“I- uh- I’m sorry for staring,” you stuttered out.

He shook his head,” It’s alright. Would you… Like to spar with me?” he asked.

Your eyes glinted with excitement,” Sure.”

“We strike as soon as the first ray of dawn hits the ocean water. First one to trickle even the tiniest amount of blood loses,” he said then walked over a few yards away from you.

You walked over to the other side, waiting for the sun to rise. Your phone vibrated in your pocket then, but you ignored it. The sun inched higher, and the boy took a fighting stance. You closed your eyes and inhaled deeply, waiting. The sun took a few more inches up, and the first ray of light bounced off the water and hit your eyes. You opened them, and the first thing you saw was the boy dash towards you.

You flipped back and pulled your fist back for a punch, only to have it counter with the butt end of his blade. You took the opportunity to grab his wrist and pull him forward. You flipped behind him and kicked his back as you propelled yourself away from him. He stumbled forward then in the blink of an eye, he was beside you again, his foot raising for a kick to the chest, but you stopped it with one of your own. Time seemed to slow for a moment as the water particles around you fell back down. You both jumped away from each other and he ran towards you, flipping forward to have his blade splash against empty water.

Appearing behind him, you spun for another high kick and he blocked it with his wrist, pushing it away. You flipped back and he swung his blade at you. Not fast enough to dodge it, you summoned your own katana, and pushed against his. His eyebrows rose, impressed, but he was able to push you away. You slid yards back in the shallow water, but that didn’t stop you from charging at him again, your katana high in the air. He aimed his own blade to stop yours, but you didn’t go the way he interpreted.