Recruiting (2)

By the time people realized someone had acted, Elian was already up on the platform, rushing through the first part of the obstacle course. The moment his feet touched the first rounded, floating rock, it began to descend and tilt; yet his body instantly reacted, his mind reconfiguring his balance in a way that was far faster than a cat could balance on a tightrope. From the outside, it seemed he was hopping over them effortlessly, and some people even questioned whether it was still turned on or not.

Their surprise continued when Elian reached the second course. He jumped forward as if he were flying, grabbing directly onto one of the vines in the middle, skipping the first two, and letting his initial momentum carry him forward. He was like a monkey in the jungle, swinging through them and crossing the chasm in the blink of an eye.

"I'm coming, kid!" he shouted, glancing at the swinging blades while still sprinting, jumping over the first gap, landing firmly on the log below him. The moment his feet touched down, he was already in motion to lean forward and catch the boy. Without hesitation, he grabbed his hand, pulling him up, and now both of them just stood there, stuck between two deadly pendulums.

"I... who... What... I... Thank... Thank you!" The young boy stuttered, on the verge of crying, gasping for air, his already pale skin whiter than a ghost's.

"Don't mention it. Can you stand?" Elian asked, still holding his shoulders, standing like a solid stone on the thin lumber, unbothered by the passing wind and the noise of the swinging blades.

"Y-yea... I can!"

"Good... Okay, we will jump back; wait for my signal!"

"No!" he shouted, holding onto Elian's hand, surprising him. As he looked down, noticing how strongly the boy was trying to keep his arms, his fingertips whitening, he realized he barely felt it. Was the kid still sapped of energy? Or was this something different?

"Listen-" Elian started, but he didn't get far.

"I can't! I need to do this!"

Elian couldn't help but fall silent, looking into his eyes, trying to read his thoughts about why he was so stubborn. Although he knew he did not possess those types of powers, the ability to read one's thoughts, he could sense that the kid was serious about it. Even now, after being saved, the idea of leaving frightened him just as much as death.

"Okay..." He gave in after a brief moment, "But then, you must listen to me without thinking, gotcha?"

"Y-yes! I'm good with not thinking, ahaha... Ah... Um..."

Hearing his quivering voice, trying to crack a joke, quickly relaxed Elian's mind, patting the kid's shoulders while forming a small smile himself. Even though he hesitated before, he still had a spark within his heart, one that was refusing to give up, and he admired that in the boy.

"What's your name, kid?"

"Sammy... Sam for short."

"Mhm," Elian nodded, watching him, "When I shout jump, you jump! No questions, no thinking, got it, Sam?"

"Yes... Yes, sir!"

"Good... JUMP!"

Elian was ready to grab him if he hesitated even for a millisecond, but he did not. The moment his voice registered within his mind, Sammy moved, crossing the small gap, landing on the next section of the timber while the blade swung past behind him. Elian wasn't thinking about that one anymore, though. Instead, his eyes followed the next set of blades, calculating...

"JUMP!"

From his peripheral vision, Elian could see how Sammy's body relaxed; his shaking subsided, and his fear seemed to escape his body, leaving behind pure adrenaline. He was good... really good. Whenever Elian shouted, he obeyed, and after two more jumps, he reached the end, turning towards Elian, barely believing what had happened before collapsing onto his butt.

"Nice!" Elian grinned, flashing a thumbs-up for Sammy, before looking at the coming blade and following suit, quickly crossing the gaps to the other side in a perfect rhythm. "Good job, Sammy!"

"T-thank you... Mister!" He answered Elian, battling with his tears, barely able to form the words. Elian was about to pull him up from the ground when heavy, clanking steps interrupted their thoughts as three people approached them from the other end of the platform. Two of the new arrivals were dressed in worn plate armors, the type that had clearly seen multiple battles before. There were no folivorous adornments on them, only a small coat of arms on the left side of their breastplate, featuring faded crimson and golden colors, and the image of a phoenix in its center.

"The test should have been done alone."

The one who spoke was the third person, sandwiched between the guards, a young girl barely reaching Elian's chest with her head. What surprised him just as much as her serious tone and words were the round, fluffy tail and white bunny ears coming out of the top of her head, adding enough height to her that, on paper, she could be counted as being at the same height as Elian.

Looking at her, she wore a tight leather armor that greatly accented her athletic body. Maybe because she was a hybrid, but her thighs and hips looked thicker than her stature suggested, making Elian think she had to be a great sprinter... Or kicker. Just like a bunny would be, which subtly made him smile. And maybe because he looked a bit longer than necessary, Elian could also notice the change in her eyes.

"Oops... Damn it..." He exhaled, saying it to himself, trying to act normal.

But it was too late for that. Moving his gaze upwards and checking out her chest also didn't help him, not that he was trying to ogle; he was simply noticing the metal plates affixed to her leather armor, bearing the same symbols but with an extra crown on the head of the Phoenix.

No matter what, Elian couldn't lie to himself; he found her attractive. Her face encapsulated everything that had been the complete match of his fantasies since childhood, and it was topped off by the fact that she had long, white hair and ruby-colored eyes.

But... dreams are to be broken.

"So what?" Elian asked, his mind suddenly hardening, blurting it out before the woman could speak again, surprising everyone around them. Even Sammy snapped his head, looking at Elian in disbelief... as his tone was... very... very accusing.

"So... what?" The girl asked back, her young voice quivering for a moment.

"Yeah, so what?!" Elian repeated, his temper rising even more. After his initial shock and the sudden beauty standing before him, all that happened a minute ago rushed back into his mind... and he was angry. "What the hell is this?!" He shouted, pointing with two hands towards the swinging blades, his coarse words silencing the crowd below them.

"Elian, stop! No!" Reverberated the panicked shouts of Sakku, who was trying to climb up to the platform with great difficulty, being so much smaller than everybody else.

"What, no answer?!" Elian continued, not hearing poor Sakku, "What the damnation is this? Should I ask it a third time?!" He laughed sarcastically, stomping in place, "You have big ears; you should hear me!"

"You-!" Finally, the girl managed to react, her bafflement written on her face for everyone to see.

"Yeah, me!" Elian snorted, "Are you letting kids have a go at it?! At least put up a warning, an age restriction, or something! This is more than nonsense! Even if allowing kids... that just makes it more idiotic! Whoever designed this is a maniac and should be locked up!"

"Ah... Mister..." Sammy tried to say something, crawling towards him, pulling at his legs that refused to let him stand up, but Elian had already blown his top. All the frustration, excitement, and fear he pushed down now exploded out of him, landing on the three people before him, packaged in his shoutings.

"You want to test bravery? Piss off!" He snorted again, "Even if someone talented does it, they could die, and then you lose a great future soldier! A brain-dead idea! I just hope the one who came up with it won't lead soldiers into battle!"

"I developed it," the girl answered, her white, porcelain face turning slightly pink, not from embarrassment but from anger, her left eye twitching a little. "Do you want to say I am stupid?"

"My Lady..." The guard on her left spoke, but she quickly shut him down with a wave of her hand.

"Yeah, I do." Elian nodded, crossing his arms, not backing down.

"Then observe." She scoffed, walking past him. Before everyone's eyes, she stepped into the path of the swinging blade, letting it hit her, maintaining a deadpan look and holding eye contact with Elian.

The moment the pendulum touched her body, it passed through her, turning out to be nothing more than an illusion that perfectly fooled everyone's senses.

"It was never in the cards to hurt the competent... It was to test their courage." She spoke freely and with confidence, holding her hands behind her back while the blades kept swinging, going through her body every time. "Same with the floor. It's soft. I just never expected that the first to cross them would be..."

"A what...?" Elian asked, feeling embarrassed but still thinking he was right in criticizing her. Maybe not so harshly... but still!

"Elian!"

Before the bunny girl could answer, Sakku finally managed to climb up, hopping before him. She repeatedly bowed her head in her furball form, shocking him with her following words.

"Please, forgive him, Princess Nika! He didn't mean it that way!"

"Well..." Elian paled, twitching his right eye just the same way Princess Nika did with her left, looking at the young girl once again, trying not to cry. "Um... My bad?"