The Effect

Training

    "It's good to see you again Estalet!", the elder guard greeted Estalet. She had walked back to her small house on the other side of the village, after she escorted miss Benar and her niece to their home, but finally another day has been risen.

    "Elder Guard Retsame...", the younger guard nods her head in greetings, though without a doubt, not cheerfully. Elder Retsame's expression sours a great deal. "Listen here weakling, the Captain of the High Guards is going to come at any given moment today, so you'd better prepare the hall for his arrival immediately!", Retsame practically screeches in Estalets' ear. Without another word from either, the Elder leaves and the young guard starts to clean and prepare.

    A group of young guards start to walk through the door, when suddenly they all froze as if they saw something so horrendous for their eyes, "Lookie here it's Medusa", the one who looks to be the leader of the group snickers. Estalet sighs as she repetitively does. 'Why... why when I am best at sword combat and the best at obedience?', she sadly questions into her mind, a question that is never answered.

    Kneeling on the ground with her head hanging low, Estalet doesn't make contact with the group. "Bet if she even has any powers, it'll be to turn foes into stone with her eyes", one of the group members snickers, the only reaction that statement got was a hidden eye roll. Estalet knew already that anyone who is a high guard, or one in training to be exact, will always get at least one unique power. "There's always the late bloomers", the young high guard mumbles lowly.

    "Hey, hey, sounds like she's talking to herself, maybe she is becoming one of the corrupted!", another group member whispers to someone else, though Estalet hears it loud and clear. These are the things that shouldn't be used or talked about so lightly, so it always discouraged her even if they are things which are very exaggerated.

     On the other side of the door, a spy of its own work listens in thoughtfully to the annoying, childish group as well as the lonely high guard, "A most talented high guard being bested by others?", the spy asks the lonely hall. The spy listens in closer, though the door blocks the occasional word. Steps are heard walking to the other side of the hall where one of the exits is. Looks like the group got bored.

    "Or maybe not so talented", the hidden person snorts. The silent, exiting steps of the spy were never heard, though one was more keen at their surroundings than others...

    The lonely high guard had heard the person behind the door even if it was just as loud as a whisper, the person shouldn't have been so confident as to talk, even so, if the spy wasn't detected by now it must've been an advanced spy. One that can get jobs done. Period. Maybe they finally thought the young guard was useless and chose to send someone to discard of her like throwing a piece of trash away, she thought.

    "Hello Estalet, my favorite pupil", a voice says behind the surprised high guard, almost immediately, the guard smiles. It wasn't uncommon that people pass through that hall, considering it's one of the main ones. Estalet turns around and greets her swordsmanship teacher... at least she respected and could see her talent with swords.

    "Elder Guard Retsame making you clean up for the Captain?", her swordsmanship teacher, Ms. Entaller, guesses solemnly. "He makes me clean most days- on a good note sometimes we don't encounter, so he cannot tell me to", Estalet responds, trying to cheer up the gloomy mood by only a bit. "Why do you let the other high guards in training bother you?", the young high guards' teacher questions suddenly. "Um...", the high guard starts.

    "Um...?", the swordsmanship master repeats curiously. Estalet decides to let it, in a way, out. "They do not physically hurt me, they use the words they have...", she explains. "It's like the words are bee's; they sting, say one hurtful thing, that's one sting. Let's say someone says another hurtful thing, that's a sting in the same place as the other and the first sting digs deeper into your skin. People keep telling you more disheartening things, more stings to add on the first one. Until your too hurt, too damaged, unable to do anything about it, that you can never recover again.", the guard frowns. "I suppose i understand...", the swords-master responds, 'poor girl', the teacher thought for a moment.