Field Training [Class Zero :: Morning]

Tap... Tap... Tap...

A foot could be heard tapping impatiently.

Maria glanced sheepishly at the cantankerous Lisa who was waiting on the rest of the morning's arrivals. The nun was looking forward to additional training. But that hopeful and excited fervor slowly melted away as soon as Lisa was here. Knowing her, she wanted to make it a competition of who was the best of the best. A little bit of friendly rivalry was nice, it benefited both parties. But the toxicity that would devolve was sorely not needed in this nice morning.

Sera fidgeted to himself as he waited nervously by the wall. Even despite taking part of earlier missions, the Cadet didn't seem very sure of himself. After all, he was surrounded by two of some of his scariest peers within the force. He was someone Maria kept a wary eye on, but for the moment, he wasn't a threat. Hardly so, in any case. The boy wasn't very different from another recent recruit Maria forcibly and personally brought in, but he was actually useful than just standing around. His name wasn't even worth mentioning anyway.

Maria was about to rummage through her pockets for a few decades of the rosary, until someone stepped inside.


The three spoke in unison. Lisa was almost bursting in anticipation, but she did her best to remain as composed as possible just like her Brother always was. She needed to be more like her siblings to surpass them, of course. Sera was the same unsure nervous wreck while Maria seemed ready and eager. The Prince glanced around the dojo, it was empty, save for the four of them. "It appears we may need to give some time for everyone else."

He didn't mind. There was still some time before they must continue today's field training. Knowing Helter Skelter and his crew were out there, he didn't want his new Cadets to fall prey to them. The ones that worried him the most were the recent recruits. Everyone else were trained and capable, but they still needed a little more polish, especially people like Maria and the more outstanding Cadets. Julius took one look at his watch again before looking back at the dojo entrance hoping to see if anyone else would arrive.

The events of the previous night were still fresh in Jackie's mind. The Civilian was safe, the demon was defeated, and there were no casualties. On top of that, he'd been granted an actual rank within the Cadets. So he figured he SHOULD feel happy. That was why he had these 'real' emotions now, to feel, right? But...it didn't feel happy. He had lost his temper, in a way he didn't even believe possible. He had acted in an unprofessional manner, and as a Defender of the City, that wasn't a good thing in the slightest. He carried a Mini-Gun, he couldn't afford to lose control while there were Civilians were around. That was only the first problem, though. He had been unable to question her about the Website, and probably wouldn't be able to personally now. It felt...frustrating, hitting a dead end like that, and being left to hope somebody else bothered to ask the 'right' questions.

The notice of a Training Session in the morning when he got home hadn't really helped. He was still stuck wondering about how everything'd unfold from that point on. Still, it was mandatory, and experience was experience...even if it was a simple exercise. Well, he hoped it'd be simple. He didn't exactly know if he was up to a fight of the same length as the one the night before. Jackie sighed, standing outside the Dojo Entrance. He adjusted his sunglasses, and did his best to look like he was perfectly happy, as much as that was a lie. He forced the questions left unanswered into the back of his Files, and entered the Dojo.

And inside were...the two girls from the night before, a boy he didn't recognize, and the Prince he recognized from his Awakening. "Good morning, everyone..."

It was a terrible, dreadful morning already. Susan had missed her alarm after the late night and had to go without, specifically her lifeblood and sole reason for existence on this earth: coffee. But the panic had kept her very awake, j-just not in a good state of mind. She had prepared her things the day before, a uniform to train with, her tactical vest, her firearm, an apple and some granola bars to keep her energy up, and plenty of water. Unfortunately for her she would forget these things and need to go back to her home to get them. And then forget that she had dressed for work and not for training. On top of that she had to call her boss on in the morning traffic to let him know of her delicate situation.
"G-Good morning sir! It's Susan Groves, I'm-"
"...yes I know it's early but I-"
"...n-no sir, this couldn't wait. I'm going to be absent this morning, I have-"
"...y-yes sir, I understand but I simply cannot be in attendance, I have a government mandate to meet."
"...for my Cadet training?"
"...for my Cadet training, sir."
"...I emailed you two weeks ago, sir, but this-"
"...I-I-I tried to do that sir, b-but you-"
"...y-yes sir, I apologize, but this came out last night an-"
"...a week's notice, y-yes sir, but I can't speak for-"
"...yes sir, I understand sir. It won't happen again, sir. Have a nice day!"

Susan took her hands off the steering wheel to rub her temples, nearly careening into the car in front of her before she managed to fumble her hands back onto the wheel and focus her eyes on the road.

She managed to reach Seven Stars Academy before the first bell, lugging her briefcase with her as she strode in a brisk walk, receiving too many "Good morning, ma'am"s to make her feel good about herself today. She managed to find a bathroom and swiftly throw on her training uniform. A plain black polo tucked into cargo pants with running shoes. She would keep the other things in her briefcase in order not to frighten the children. After reaching the designated meeting place Susan would squeak in and worry the door shut behind her so as not to make any noise.

"I-I apologize for being late, sir," she began despite not being late. Susan was on time, she was merely not as early as she wished to be. Early was on time, on time was late, and late was fired after all.
"Oh! ...g-good morning everyone! Um, I ran into some issues this morning sir, it won't happen again s-sir. I-I also don't have my after action report yet sir, I am awaiting input from my team and it was late and s-so I wouldn't bother anyone b-but I have a hot wash planned for tonight, you should see it before the end of the week sir." Susan would speak and stutter as she threw her vest on and zipped up the front, trying to find the best place for her briefcase where it was both out of the way and she could grab her P90 with minimal interruptions. Being the bearer of bad news so early in her career with the Cadets wasn't something to look forward to. Susan would move toward the back of the rest of the gaggle in an attempt to make herself seem less noticeable less she be picked on and fail once more. To be honest she didn't like training at Seven Stars Academy. The classrooms reminded her of her own unhappy high school experience and this threatened to be much the same. Her mind began to spin about what they were about to do and how terrible she would be at it. Jumping jacks. Pushups. Bear crawls. Sparring. Susan hadn't stepped foot inside a gym since college and she really wasn't as fit as any of the younger people, it terrified her to think of how embarrassing this was about to be. But she wouldn't express her fears so openly, she would merely shrink down in the back and attempt to keep her head down.

Morning liked to be a pain in the ass, didn’t it? Even more so when the idol had a rare free day. The night before was fresh enough in his mind and while the mission had been a success and he was dead tired, he would not be getting the rest he needed. He had checked the schedule see and noticed the meeting for the Cadets posted. After reading it carefully, he saw that it was mandatory for him to go to said meeting and it was a morning to boot, so sleep? Heh! What a joke. More like a brief nap before he was rolling out of bed to get ready again.

Despite being a zombie, it did have its perks. Being zoned out mean he didn’t put any effort into his looks. He picked out a comfortable pair of pants, a decent shirt and some comfortable shoes. He made sure he was clean and presentable before pinning his hair into a messy bun. He didn’t put on contacts this time around finding trying to work with them too much of hassle for his mind set.

He did wear his usual array of earrings in his ears black in color and the choker with the cross on it, but outside of that he didn’t do much else to decorate himself. Before leaving he checked himself out in the mirror quite impressed he manage to pull off a punkish and rather normal look despite not really paying too much attention to ever single thing. He still looked good and while a pretty boy he didn’t think he would stand out too much dressed like this. Or at least he hoped as he moved out of his room...only to be encountered by Mother as she waltz out of her room overly dressed with that scary cream mask on and the brightest pink roller in her hair that the young man had ever seen. As soon as she saw him dressed and looking like he was about to go somewhere, she’d stare at him quietly with narrowed eyes, but the idol wouldn’t flinch as he blinked at her a bit debating if he wanted to be a pain in the ass or not.

Hmmm...not worth it. So what did he do? He would give her a small smile as he greeted her using Japanese instead of English this time around to show he was not trying to be smart with her this morning. She would consider his words before relaxing and nodding deciding she would play nice for now too. They had a small normal chat as she walked him to door and once there actually let him go out without much of a fuss. He was safe for now….but knowing Mother she would probably have something up her sleeve to ruin his day at a later time.

As he walked to the school, he wonder if this training would be able to help him become better at handling his Mother. Honestly, there had to be some sort of training or something for family issues...right? Hmm. He would ponder that one as he moved through the streets not being bothered by the early morning commuters who were more concerned about getting to work than glancing at pretty boys or what not. It was a nice break considering all that changed once he hit the campus.

While thankfully none of the students came at him, he took notice of all the stares, whispers, and the rumors that were probably already spreading around the place like wildfire. However, he wouldn’t pay it much mind as he kept his hands in his pockets, his posture slouched, and his expression hard to read amplifying the intimidation factor on purpose just to keep the people away. It seemed to work wonders as he managed to reach his destination without any issue.

When he arrived he wasn’t late nor early as he stepped into the room and took notice of all who were there. Jackie, Susan, Lisa, Julian, Maria and...The idol’s eyes would land on the nervous one of the group. He remembered that face from a while back. Right before the mission with Alice that turned his perspective about the world all around. Sera...though he didn’t recall the guy seeming so nervous before. Hmm...he wondered what had happened and how was it he was in training now. As curious as he was about the situation, his stare was a brief one before he was blinking and greeting the others.

“Good morning. I hope all is doing well,” he would say in a soft voice as he gave each a respectful nod, the nod turning into a small bow out of high respect for Julius both as their leader and the Prince. Once that was done, he would take a spot near the back with Susan, who seemed to trying to make herself invisible. Well too bad for her that made her more noticeable to him. Though he didn’t pick on her as he settled in a spot next to her quite relaxed as he waited to see what was going to happen next.

Takeru burst on the scene nervously.
"Sorry i'm late, sir!" he said, bowing profusely.
He had seriously messed up. He had forgotten to set his alarm.
Thankfully, he had managed to show up, at least.

No rest for the wicked fit perfectly for Joseph.

He profusely spewed out curses under his breath in the morning when it was announced there was a training exercise. You would think after a job well done that they could get a day off. Nope. Not for the Cadets. He knew they were a busy lot, but this was really pushing it. Fuck this organization. Fuck being a goody-two-shoes. He wanted to bury his face in a pillow and slumber unashamed like a log. No matter how much he bitched to himself, Joseph already was at the entrance with his fake courteous dull morning face.


It appeared many Cadets arrived this morning with many familiar faces and one that was never ever relevant. He put his attention towards Julius ready to take on any task today. They were here for a reason and it better be a good one.

"Y-yes sir, thank you sir." Susan frowned at the Prince's revelation, it wasn't good news, not to her. Maria had already back-briefed him on the events of the night prior while she did not, she attended to other work instead. It made her seem lazy in comparison. A-although she would wager that it was a simple informal filling in of the situation, not a structured report like hers would be. What also concerned her was her own problems which would leave her in a vulnerable position. Her "issues" that morning were traffic and oversleeping which were failures of her own accord, her workplace grievances were a different story. If she brought them up to Prince Julius and he contacted her workplace it would look unfavorably on her when she returned. She deigned to keep silent about it, it would do her no good to create problems where there were none. The woman would wait until it became a noticeable problem that could not be reconciled. To be frank she was happy that the Prince had chosen to answer her rather than wave her off, it took away focus from her current source of anxiety, that being Hatsuharu choosing to stand right next to her. He needn't tease her to get her to fluster, his mere presence was enough.


She wouldn't look to him, thankfully this time she had an excuse to keep her eyes forward and on the Prince as he spoke. What did it mean? Why did he stand next to her like that? Wouldn't someone as prolific an actor and performer as he be more comfortable toward the front? He... he didn't fancy her, did he...? Susan could feel her face growing hot but she would try not to let him distract her although he was quite the attention-getter. She kept her voice low so as not to rudely interrupt the Prince as she held her inconsiderate side conversation through his brief.
"D-do you know who those two are...? We... met the girl with the long hair on the exercise l-last night b-but I never caught her name, I... don't recognize the other boy..." Susan did not want to be out of the loop and look condescending by referring to her teammates by description, nor did she think it appropriate to ask her at this time.

When Prince Julius finished his briefing Susan had questions. SO many questions. But few appropriate questions. Questions such as how does this all work, why is the Sunlake Palms Church involved in this and what does the memory device see exactly. A flash of panic ran through her as she realized the possibility of the others witnessing her sobbing through her first trial, it wasn't public knowledge and she would like to keep it that way. At least these were opponents they would have faced before, meaning that Susan could gather intel as they progressed through questioning. She tried to make herself seem more innocuous as she slunk away to grab her submachine gun from her briefcase, it looked like this wouldn't just be pushups and jumping jacks today.

The timid woman would wait until she had taken her spot again before posing her question.
"Y-yes sir, I have a few questions," she squeaked from the back, "If this training exercise is based on memories will we be interacting with the situation physically or will this be more of a mental interaction like a simulation? A-Are there any safeguards in place in case of a worst case scenario?" Of course these questions were thinly disguising Susan's true concerns for the training exercise; could this memory training hurt her? N-Not that she wouldn't do it, but she wanted to be aware of how dire this event was. It would influence her perception of things, the more information she had the better.

It would seem there was quite a gathering here. Takeru and Joseph would show up as well; however, before he could let his mind wander to thoughts that cropped up with the appearance of the pair, the idol would find himself focusing on what was being said instead. It appeared Maria had once again showed herself to be a wonderful Cadet. She was even on the ball as far as making reports go. It was no wonder she had managed to become his superior in all this. He wondered if he’d ever get to that level if he remained with Cadets. Could he be a leader too? Was he one alre--? Eh?

Haru would pull himself out of his wandering thoughts as his eyes drifted to Susan briefly as she spoke to him in her usual nervous manner. He was quiet for a moment as he study her, his reason for being near her pretty simple. He needed her to get use to him. Crush, fangirl, or whatever it was that made her so flustered around him, he needed her to get used to being around him and not have that interfere with work. Cold perhaps, but it was simply how he was. In any case, the unreadable expression only lasted for a second before the idol decided that instead of being a stick in the mud, he try a gentler approach as he let his features soften and he gave her a small smile.

“Morning Ms. Groves. I am doing okay and you?” he would ask keeping his voice calm and low as his eyes drifted back to the Prince as he began to lay down exactly what they were going to do today. To the questions posed, the idol would nod giving his answers back in whispers only Susan could hear.

“The girl is Princess Lisa, the youngest daughter of Her Majesty. And the boy is Sera, a young man that helped the Cadets with a mission in the past.” His answer was short, but he didn’t wish to give long explanations while the Prince was giving instructions. If Ms. Groves wanted more information, he’d be happy to fill her in; however, not now. Anyway, after the answer was given, he would focus on what was being said about the training taking note that they were going to be using memories to work on being a team against an enemies they needed to get comfortable dealing with? Now what did that mean? He was about to ask when the Prince opened the floor to questions; however, it seemed Ms. Groves beat him to the punch. Her questions were valid enough and something perhaps they should all know. Even so, he wanted to know one thing.

“If I may,” the idol would speak up after a small silence. “The enemy we will be facing, what is it exactly?” His eyes would look to Maria and then Prince for answers as he wondered if said enemy had anything to do with the girl they had saved. Was the enemy the Prince was referring to like her…?

Honestly, Jackie couldn't muster the energy to be enthusiastic about that news. Instead he simply adjusted his sunglasses, quietly, aware of various cadets from last night's mission entering. It seemed like everyone but Hunt had shown up. Soooooo everyone who was required to, as far as he knew. The news they were still rough wasn't anything surprising, to him. If he had flawless execution on his first real combat mission, he'd find himself wondering why he was shelved at all. He remained silent during Officer Grove's questioning, once again, she managed to ask everything he could possibly think of. Which was good. Speaking outside of missions was...a complicated matter for him. "M-Maybe it's better if we don't know if there are safeguards...? We should treat it as a real m-mission, no matter what. K-knowing there's no risk might make us less careful than we should be...o-oh, excuse me if I spoke out of turn, or anything..." Jackie mused aloud. He figured he ought to contribute to the conversation somehow. Perhaps being a robot dulled the fear of possible death, but he didn't think there was any excuse for taking the training any less serious than a real mission. Memories or no, the entire point seemed to be improving. In his mind, there wouldn't be much improvement if it they thought it was totally safe. Still, if the others objected, he wouldn't argue.

"...M-Maria, oh, that's...her?" He gestured at the Blue Haired girl. The one who somehow jumped over a train. Maybe her kind of training WOULD be incredibly beneficial. Jumping over moving vehicles could be an invaluable asset on the field. If they learned that sort of thing...he supposed he wouldn't mind a sudden training session.

Once the offer was given, it was quickly and subsequently taken. Julius carefully and quietly listened to their concerns and questions. While he has taken the night earlier to test out the fruits of his Sister's labor, he didn't quite have the same kind of technical know-how that she did in regards to complicated technology. But it didn't stop him from explaining what it is from his own experience. He gave an amused smile at Susan's barely hidden concerned expression and then at Jackie's. "The latter, Cadet Susan. This room will transmogrify into an entirely different environment complete with simulated enemies. Your lives won't be at risk. At worst, you will feel pain just as you would in real life. But that doesn't mean you shouldn't treat it anything less than an actual enemy. I expect you all to take it seriously."


Sera silently heaved a sigh of relief as the scarier Cadets began to file out of the room with the Prince. The dojo remained the same as ever for a moment or two. As if someone cut the strings of a puppet, the lights blackened out. Not even the windows were spared as all was consumed by a pitch-black darkness. Then a dim light began to emanate below their feet. Indescribable sigilla of sorts were becoming apparent as they grew brighter with each trailing second until a white light blinded them for a split second and revealed an entirely new sight to behold.


They weren't demons, that was one thing for sure. But none of their faces could be shown. It shouldn't take much for the Cadets to put two and two together here. What also wasn't difficult to tell was they were armed and ready to wreck havoc in the midst of the chorus of laughter. In the midst of that noise, the Cadets could still hear Julius speaking. "Your objective is to wipe them out or to reach the exit point on the other side of the forest. Remember to treat this with the same gravity you would to a mission. Good luck."

PvS Skirmish:

Map Key:

Noted Enemies:

Sera:

The Cadet would listen to the words taking note of the change in Jackie’s speech pattern as he made a valid enough comment in regards to knowing if this training was going to be dangerous or not. For him personally, he was interested in the answers to Susan’s questions. It was good knowing what you were getting into and would not affect how he approached the situation. The Prince would explain the situation and as expected, they were not to treat this as some sort of game. Nodding at that part, the Cadet would lift his eyes to meet Julius’s as he responded back to his question. Surprisingly, a small smirk would cross his face as he observed the Prince. “A surprise then? Fair enough,” he would say seeming more amused about the situation than anything. Odd? Maybe, but why stay too serious on the job? Heh...it seemed Ms. Claire’s lesson stuck despite the situation changing to where she nor Chris was no longer part of the group.

That aside, he would become serious once more as the Prince gave his final orders and left with Maria and Lisa to set the stage. He took note of Sera’s behavior, but didn’t make a comment on it as the room became dark before displaying strange symbols, light, and then --

The Cadet would blink a bit against the brightness as they were transported outside and before them a group of giggling opponents would appear that instantly put the Cadet on edge as he looked at the masked beings. These were….humans, but something was very wrong about them. Their mission was to eliminate all or reach the exit. Right.

Falling into his combat mindset, he would nod.

“Alright Lady and gents, our guests have arrived. Let’s show them a good time,” he would begin and then pause as he saw Joseph go ahead and take the initiative and move. Interesting. Well then.

“Jackie, Takeru, Susan, Sera, backup Joseph. I’ll stay behind as back up this time. Let’s be careful,” the Cadet would say before falling back to a safe spot where he could still communicate with the team and get into the action if needed. For now, he would watch to see how his fellow Cadets did.

Action:

He nodded. This was going to be fun.
He was eager to prove himself.
"With pleasure!" he said.

Actions, Purple Star::

Stats::