Candidates

"Are we sure of this, Princess?" An old, raspy voice asked, belonging to a man with graying hair. His tone was not accusatory, but he was still unsure if it was the correct decision.

"Yes, Sir Tammel." She answered with a half-smile. At the moment, they were within the army's headquarters in the city's second layer, where the newest recruits for the military would be housed and trained. It was already dark, and she was having a long meeting with her generals and top officers, not just about the current events of the war but also about what had happened earlier in the city.

"He insulted you, straight into your face!" Yelled another man, whose name was Carrion. He was a bulky warrior with a golden mane, reminiscent of a lion, accompanied by sharp, pointed ears that stood upright on the top of his head. The way he slammed the table sent a vibration through it, knocking multiple pieces that hold down the vast map laid out on it over.

"Reign in your temper!" Sneered a female voice, which belonged to someone named Syl. It had a bit of hissing undertone, coming from the throat of a beautiful woman whose lover's half was that of a snake coiled up around and under her. Reaching forward, she began fixing the little figures on the map, representing the positions of their armies and then the enemy's known movements and detachments. Just looking at the situation made her sigh, realizing how much territory they had lost already, being on the brink of total defeat. "We are all frustrated, but remember whose presence you are in!"

"Sorry..." Carrion mumbled, lowering his head and quickly helping to fix the mess he had made.

"It is exactly the reason I want them to be trained." Princess Nika explained, forming a small smile and crossing her arms. "You all saw what happened, and both of them showed they have more than a simple talent. They both have the gift to join the Phoenix Knights."

"But that attitude..." The oldest member of the group, Tammel, interjected again, speaking his honest thoughts. "The kid is talented; I agreed with accepting him to be trained the moment he took on the last challenge. But the other? No..."

"He lacks manners and is clearly self-centered, showing off his talents the same way as..." Carrion started, but was cut short.

"Don't bring him up!" Nika snorted while also shaking her head, "And I disagree! Did we watch the same performance? First, his balance is on par with someone from the felines' tribe, yet he is a human." She exclaimed, looking at Carrion, "His physical performance was splendid, and he rushed up to help the kid because he thought he was in danger. Isn't that what your tribe is all about? Bravery?" She asked, looking into his golden eyes.

"That could still be a show for the crowd, as Tammel has said..." he answered, his ears twitching, betraying him that he was looking for excuses.

"And destroy it by berating me before them?" Nika asked back, chuckling. "No... I could see it in his eyes. He was sincere."

"Are we sure of that?" Syl asked, looking at the Princess, seeing her own reflection in the Princess's red eyes.

"I learned to see through lies and deception." She nodded, her voice grim and confident.

"He could still—" Syl tried arguing, backing her compatriots, but Nika's following words shut them down quickly.

"He has Sakku with him."

"I have no further questions, Princess." Tammel nodded, closing his eyes, no longer doubting her words. That was true... Her presence was the most significant proof that he was not part of the fallen heroes' camp.

"Good!" Nika clapped, smiling at them, "With the trick revealed, we will need to come up with a different selection to continue finding those who have the aptitude to be trained!"

"Will we be able to train them at all?" Syl asked again, sounding a bit worried, looking at the map on the table. "I don't think we have the years needed to raise them to what we need right now. We don't have years to waste!"

"Not to mention..." Carrion shrugged, "We simply don't have the manpower to recruit warriors... We are already drafting anyone and everyone..."

"We can't give up," The Princess said, her tone resolute, "I will do the training myself. I will deal with Dalen, but we need people to bog down his lieutenants; we alone are not enough! Even if we are grasping at straws, we must try or we will be as good as defeated..."

There was little they could do or say, as there were few to no alternatives left for them. Dalen's armies, even when stretched thin, surrounded them. They could march against the city at any time. Yet, they were instead going around, taking every little region and province, every village, and every town one by one, trying to provoke them out from the Capital city, straight into the open.

The fallen Hero, Dalen, announced it multiple times; he was willing to let any captured enemy repent and join his side. As his propaganda went, he was not against the people; he was simply against the current rulers. By his words, he was doing all of this for Susaria, freeing them from tyranny. Yet, destruction followed him wherever he went, especially when someone failed to comply with his orders.

Nika knew their situation was desperate and perilous, but right now, a ryuin had reappeared. After the massacre, the survivors were hidden away here in the capital, yet all five of them suddenly disappeared a month ago. Until this point, nobody had managed to find them, but right now, the youngest of the last five had finally popped up, with a man who had great talent and seemed oblivious to who she was.

"Could he be..." She thought, biting her lips, but the idea was unthinkable. Dalen made sure of that by massacring the ryuins… And a summoning usually required a dozen ryuins to work together...

...

....

......

"You should have told me earlier..." Elian grunted, sitting on the bottom of a bunk bed, while Sakku was sitting right next to him.

"I tried, but you weren't listening... hauh!"

"It was... very frightening!" Sammy agreed in a cheerful voice, leaning over the edge of his mattress and looking down from above. "I never knew anyone existed like you... Someone who dared to talk to the Princess like that!"

"Ugh..."

"You are fearless, Mister Elian!" He added, smiling from ear to ear, his eyes shining in the dark as it was already late at night. Currently, all of them were in a small room within the recruits' barracks, waiting for tomorrow and their first debrief.

"Or stupid," Elian grunted, lying on his back, fixing the white pajamas they were given alongside their new training uniform. It was currently resting on a hanger, dangling on the room's wooden wall. For the upcoming days, they would be put under heavy training; at least, that was what the Princess had said. Watching the clothes, they reminded Elian of a typical leather outfit from a run-of-the-mill video game he used to play on his outdated laptop back home. Yet here he was... part of a game. Game... No. This wasn't a game. "Haaah..." He shrugged, chasing away his thoughts and turning towards Sammy, "Drop the 'mister,' Sam! Just call me Elian."

"Um, um... Okay!" He blushed, "I'm amazed they accepted me. I didn't think it would be possible!"

"Why not? You are talented!" Sakku nodded her head, climbing atop Elian's chest while speaking. She was already used to getting ear scratches and asking for it like a spoiled cat.

"T-thank you... Lady-"

"Just Sakku!" She repeated, copying Elian, "We are all friends here!"

"I never met a ryuin before... Dad always said if I did, I had to be respectful, and I would be blessed with a lifetime of happiness."

"Err... Those are rumors!" She stuttered, looking embarrassed, making Elian chuckle. "We are... We were nothing special!"

"Sorry... I know how it feels..." Sammy replied, disappearing from view, prompting Elian to reflect on his words from back then and the apparent determination to complete the test. He could guess what happened to the boy...

"He probably no longer has any relatives..." He thought to himself, letting out another sigh and continuing to caress Sakku's head, "I can only hope that tomorrow, the Princess isn't going to be in a bad mood after I dared shout at her. Haaah... it would have been bad enough to check her out like I did, but then berating her before everybody? Great start, Elian... Why not pull your pants down while at it, too?"

"Elian...?" Sakku whispered, looking up at his face while making biscuits with her tiny paws on his chest, "It will be fine. Don't worry!"

"You can read minds?" he asked, a bit surprised, but he didn't think it was an impossibility.

"No, but I can feel if someone is down or anxious. Remember what I told you about us~!"

"True... Haahh... well, not that I should worry much, eh? We will see how it goes tomorrow!" He chuckled, closing his eyes.

After all, whatever would come next... would come nonetheless.