Reporting For Duty [Eryka's Awakening]

It was another quiet night in Class Zero as Julius awaited in his usual seat inside the empty classroom with the golden goblet on the podium. A lot did happen since the Nameless Guard's announcement to allow more people to join the ranks. There was a lot to mull over and contemplate. The Prince glanced at young Alex pouring his entire attention on his smartphone playing the same inane games as his youth allowed. There was going to be no participation from him unless a ritual went wrong and most of the time it didn't and there was no reason why it would now. In the end, it would just be another listless night regardless who comes in. Or so he thought, until when someone finally came inside. It was only then when Alex gave a bored glance at the new arrival before going back to his games as the Prince began to address them.

Finally. Finally it was the promised time! Forms had been filled out, applications accepted and training completed. All that effort and work invested in getting this far was about to pay off. It was time for "the ritual" not that Eryka knew what to expect; all she had been told was to show up at class zero at the appointed time. As punctual as ever Eryka showed up exactly on the dot, pushed open the door and walked inside.

She was not surprised to see other people, after all there was no way she was the only candidate, but these two seemed....odd. Eryka stayed silent for a short while, tilting her head sideways ever so slightly in curiosity before ultimately speaking.

"Yes." The reply was curt and short, punctuated only by the faint whirring of Eryka's prosthetic limb as she sat down, her head turning to look towards Julian and his companion. As much as it was entirely possible these two were here for the Cadet program it was also entirely possible their was an alternative reason why they were here. Eryka ran through numerous reasons as to why they could be here, remaining as silent as the grave all the while.

It was an obvious answer. Most people come in here at this time of day for one reason only, to gain power and the responsibility that came from working under Julius. Though Alex was back to playing with his phone as the earbuds filled his ears, Julius seemed to take note of a faint sound after noticing the metallic shape of the arm. It wasn't exactly rare to see any amputees nowadays in Endymion for obvious reasons, but it was a first to see someone willing to join even after knowing the horrors of the Divide. At the same time, he could already see the reason for them joining a couple of leagues away. The Prince gestured the new arrival to come closer

"Eryka Eckert. I am here to ensure my own survival. Other weaklings may hide behind the actions of the Cadets but I refuse to rely on anybody except my self." She had no real desire to answer any questions like this. They were pointless and irrelevant. Eryka's reasons were her own and as such she should not be judged by them; the only thing the amputee believed she should be judged by was her own actions. Eryka climbed from her desk and walked towards Julius wondering WHY he didn't ask her to do this before she sat down. Inefficiency was intolerably annoying....

Alex rolled his eyes at Eryka. In spite of himself, he still had it in him to snicker at the unfolding event. It was a change from all of these altruistic claims as reasons for joining their corp, for once. But this? This promised to be an interesting night, alright. He began to turn off his phone and finally began moving his attention towards the young woman with the smirk on his face. She really had no idea, did she? The Prince raised a hand signalling him to remain silent, but his relaxed and welcoming expression turned stern while still retaining composure. This really was a first and it was one he didn't have a taste for.


"Miss Eckhert, I'm afraid the Cadet corps may not be for you. We have expectations here. As much as maintaining the Order is our primary goal, we also serve to protect the People in this City." Julius began firmly as he pushed up his glasses, allowing the moonlight to shine across the transparent surface. The bespectacled Prince gave a focused and examining stare on Eryka's person. "This outlook of yours fails to assure us that you may align with our purpose. I must also stress teamwork is a dire necessity in our line of work to ensure success in our missions. So I wish to ask you, why should I allow you under my wing?"

Well that changed things. Julius's response to the initial, and lacking in depth, reason Eryka gave did not impress him. Okay that was fair enough. The amputee went silent for now, pondering how to answer Julius's question in a way that satisfied both his expectations and the true reason for her joining. She remained stoic and still, eyes locked on Julius broken only by a quick glance towards the kid.

"As you can see I am an amputee. I lost my arm and parents in the Divide. They were there one moment, I looked away and when I looked back...you do not want to know what was left behind. I do not hate the demons that threaten our existence but I acknowledge them as an enemy. It would be negligent of me to sit idle and allow others to loose their family like I did. That is an injustice and I despise injustice." There was plenty more Eryka had to say but before that, oh yes.

This bespectacled man's concerns were mostly valid especially when it came to Eryka's world view. Her attitude was definitely different compared to the average person so it was no wonder Julius had concerns about her mindset. The one thing he would not have to worry about was Eryka co-operating with fellow Cadets. Co-operating with one's fellow compatriots was the most successful way to complete whatever mission she had been assigned. A part of her was a little insulted this pretty boy dared insinuate she wouldn't do so.

"You do not need to be concerned in regards to my willingness to co-operate. If co-operation is the most effective way to accomplish any and all given objectives than I will use it. It is just a tool to me. Only children refuse to employ everything at their disposal." Eryka may be cold and lacking in people skills but she did have a genuine desire to be a Cadet. Was one's willingness not all that mattered? So long as she kept people safe, followed orders and worked with her colleagues did her motivations really matter? She clenched and un-clenched the fingers of her prosthetic, patiently allowing Julius to judge her answers.

He listened to what Eryka had to say for herself. It was obvious that she lost something to the Divide and it didn't surprise him. So many others did, giving them the burning reason to join his corps, especially the one Cadet from Sunlake Palms. Even then, injustice or not, it wasn't quite enough until she addressed his issue about teamwork. It was a working answer, but by any means, there were doubts about letting her in. However, less than savory motivations and conditions were allowed anyway.

He took the golden goblet full of what appeared to be of scarlet fluid and held it towards her direction.

"As you wish." The very idea of kneeling to someone irritated Eryka. She believed that each and every servant of the administration that kept the peace should be equals; they were all performing the same task after all. However, she was not childish enough to throw a tantrum over this. Sacrifices often needed to be made hence why Eryka knelled with only a few moments of pausing. She was glad that her answers were accepted despite this.

"The queen has my loyalty." Eryka dropped down to one knee, took the goblet and downed its contents before offering it back to Julius. What would happen next was...totally unknown. Eryka felt perfectly ordinary for now anyway. She stared at Julius and his companion, standing up in the meantime, wondering what on Earth was supposed to happen next. Would she feel different? Would she suddenly gain magic powers? Or would she suddenly drop dead?

The blood would be sweet-tasting as it made contact with her lips. Yet, the very moment it went down their throat, the consequence was more bitter and that was an understatement. Something was beginning to irritate their throat, making it hard to even breathe. Even a single breath was a significant struggle. Even worse, their skin was beginning to crack like porcelain and chip off to the ground. Piece by piece, eventually, it would open up to a hole on their face right where their eye was. It was as if they were shedding their previous lives, and a new one was being born in its place. Whatever this blood was doing, it was interacting with something that had been stored in their minds long ago. The seed that had been planted within their heads the day of the eternal divide was being hatched, but also isolated. They would begin to see the world how it truly was, but in a controlled view. Some could handle this, while others loss themselves to the truth. Those were first possessed by their Shadows and then turned into the very demons they feared.

Eryka finally awakened. An explosion in the classroom caused the desks and chairs to tumble away from her. A Persona would be born and so was its Cadet. Julius gave a nod to her, she has passed. He gave her a moment to register what just happened as he began to search through the head desk and pull something out.

System Update:

The sensation came fast and hard. First there was a sweet taste to the blood, which was VERY concerning, and then came the choking. A tightness inside of Eryka's throat grew and grew, suffocating her as she gripped her throat glaring at Julius. Had she been deceived? She would not allow him to get away with this deception. It got worse as Eryka felt her right eye changing, cracking and breaking audibly as it turned into porcelain. Anger began to rise within Eryka. Anger, rage and a desire to commit intense violence.

"UAAAAAAA" Eryka yelled, her voice distorted and twisted as a wave of energy erupted from her body. As the amputee collapsed to one knee, her breathing grew ragged and heavy as she pushed herself up. The colour had gone from her skin, her face was drenched in sweat and she seemed to be seeping a strange black mist from the seams of her prosthetic arm.

"Ahh...ah....what....was that....?..." The room looked...odd somehow. The colours were still mostly the same yet seemed to be slightly more de-saturated. It was a strange thing indeed... The dark steam escaped from Eryka's arm, coalescing behind her slowly growing denser as the seconds passed by. Eventually this smog would coalesced into a more solid form, adopting the likeness of a...tank? Yes, it was a perfectly normal tank...except for its simply gigantic size and the excessive amount of weaponry it bristled with.

It was a strange persona, alright. Most tended to have humanoid forms, but it was a rare one where it took the appearance of a vehicle, a weaponized one at that. But perhaps it was suiting for her. Regardless, there was time for pondering later. The Prince took out a scroll from the table and unfurled it in her direction. Light began to emanate from its contents and before the newly inducted Cadet knew it, a demon was summoned before her ready for violence. "Now, show us the extent of your power, Cadet."

He threw a gun towards her direction for her to catch, complete with a magazine inside.

Eryka Obtains:

Senri, Level 9:

"Haaaah.....save....your congratulations until after...." That was not Eryka being rude or refusing to accept congratulations; she merely felt drinking some blood was not worth congratulation. There was no challenge inherent to the act so she felt congratulations should be saved for later. There was the question of what would happen now...but that was swiftly answered by Julius who pulled a scroll out of a desk, unfurled it and summoned a demon into existence. The notion that Julius, a servant of the queen, could summon demons like that did not exactly endear him to Eryka but that was when a giant gun was thrown towards her.

Deciding that perhaps it was best to focus on the demon for now, Eryka caught the gun and instinctively knew how to load it despite never having seen a weapon of this nature before. She felt energy surge through her limbs as the turret of her Persona twisted to focus on the Demon, automatically loading a shell not that Eryka knew what the internal workings of her Persona was actually like.

"As you wish." Killing demons? Sounded like a perfectly understandable test. There was no point in allowing the weak and useless into the Cadets..not unless one wanted sacrificial lambs but that was distasteful.

"Fire." It was a simple order but one Melina's Persona understood perfectly as it aimed every single weapon at its disposal at the shadow and opened fire.

Melina>Auto-Tarukaja>Attack boosted by 30%
Melina>Hell's Thrust>Senri>66 damage before defenses are applied with a 20% miss chance.

Hell thrust misses on a 1-2:

Random number (1,10) :

7

Hell Thrust reduces defense by 30% on a 1-20:

Random number (1,100) :

20

calculations:

stats:

Crit if 1.

Random number (1,10) :

10

Hit with 67 damage, my bad.

Defenses at 12% for PE and 10% for ME.