The Fractured Veil

Chapter Five

A year has gone by and much has been learned, taught, gained, and fixed in that time. Takeshi has done his best to teach Alexandra everything he notices about her form, technique, and general performance. There's not an over abundance of problems he had to fix over the course of the year though. The main thing he noticed was that when it came to speed, Alexandra, wasn't as fast as some of the other trainees, let alone Takeshi. So he set up a sprinting, medium distance, and long distance course she would run every three days. The sprint was a mile, the medium distance was ten miles, and the long distance was fifty miles. Her goal was to finish each of them in a set timeframe, which was his slowest time at her age. She needed to finish the mile in two minutes, ten miles in twenty-three minutes, and the fifty miles in two hours and ten minutes. She was able to do this after about seven months of training. This made her much faster than most of the other trainees, but still not the fastest. She was much weaker physically than Takeshi and only a handful of trainees. When he asked her if she wanted to increase her own strength she refused and stated that she "wants to be more stealthy and the muscle mass would make her more noticeable. Takeshi had to agree that stealth was by far her most amazing ability. Her stealth was unmatched and throughout the year Takeshi could not figure out how she was able to have such silent movements. They were all taught to be silent and able to hide your presence, but Alexandra took it to the extreme. She could be standing right in front of you and if she wanted to, make it seem like she wasn't there at all. Takeshi also could never get her to share her secrets. She always just stated "family secrets," and left it at that. She was very agile and able to do things the others couldn't with her footwork and her overall fighting style. This made her very unpredictable and in one on one combat, virtually unbeatable. Takeshi finally was able to land a few good hits here and there using his superior speed to get in close before she would have time to react. Takeshi did get to know her as well.

It wasn't all training and fighting. During their free time they would talk and discuss what they are after and what they want out of everything. He learned that she was very kind and did not like it when people tried to hurt those she cared about, and this was rooted from the fact that her parents had been killed by unknown assailants and she had been rescued before they could take her. She was strong, but humble, never giving any indication that she was so dangerous. She never wanted to hurt anyone but would kill in an instant should the need arise. She always tried to smile because she knows that it brightens everyone's day to see a smile. Takeshi couldn't help but start wanting to protect her no matter what. She began to change how he saw things. Not only did he now want to find out who his parents were and what happened to them, he now also wanted to protect those close to him.

"Good to see you both here. How is the training going?" Suriel asks after having called both Takeshi and Alexandra in for their monthly briefing.

"The training is going well. We continue to improve every day." Takeshi explains as professionally as he can.

Suriel nods. "Tell me something you've learned today." She looks over to Alexandra.

"I've learned how to better react to multiple threats at once by watching their footsteps and never getting surrounded." Alexandra answers cheerfully.

Suriel smiles and sighs slightly. "Good. I'm pleased to hear that you are learning. I admit Takeshi I was worried at first. But her progress is astonishing. Well done."

Takeshi smiles. "Thank y-" He starts but is cut off by Suriel raising their hand.

"Don't thank me yet." Suriel stands up and looks out into the forge. "Do you know how these weapons are made?" Suriel asks them both. They look at each other, then back to Suriel and shake their head. "They are made by infusing carbon nano-tubes into the steel. Nano-tubes are very stable and very durable. This makes the steel, in turn, more durable and stronger." Suriel turns her head slightly to look at them. "Now you know that secret, do you know why commanders get Gemstones embedded into their weapons and are made specifically by me?" They look at Suriel mesmerized. Suriel turns around to fully face them. "I make them specifically because I am able to pour magic into the gemstones. I won't explain how or why, because frankly it doesn't matter. This magic that I pour into the gems then courses through the weapon, enhancing the users abilities and powers. It also means that the weapon can't be used by anyone other than the user. There are rare occasions where a loved one has wielded a weapon with my power in it, but that is besides the point." Takeshi and Alexandra look at each other and then, both thinking the same thing. That they are about to be sent on a mission where they can earn commander status. Takeshi is excited about the prospect of being a commander but he knows they've never been on a mission, and commander missions are more difficult normally anyway. They look back to Suriel. "Good job. You figured out why I'm speaking of the commander's weapons. Takeshi. You have demonstrated that you can teach exceptionally well. While this alone does not qualify you to be a commander it is a huge step towards it. Alexandra. You have learned and improved far more than I thought possible for someone your age. The leader is very pleased with this." Suriel takes a seat before continuing. "He has asked me to relay a message to you both. And while I think it is premature for it, he wishes for you to be sent on a mission alone." Takeshi's eyes open wide as he hears this. A mission. It's all he's ever wanted. But alone? This seems more like a suicide mission than a commander mission. How are we expected to complete our first mission, alone?