Chapter 32

The fourth years’ reactions when they saw Nick already at the field was worth using Dagr to teleport them. However, before any witty banter could be exchanged, which Nick could tell Keith wanted to do, other students began to appear. The fourth years headed off back towards the simulation room, and Nick watched as the other first years slowly appeared.

“Oh look who has finally decided to join us.” Trent, with a group of first years in tow, was the first to say something. The others started laughing. “What’s the matter, did your fourth year buddies get tired of you?”

Nick decided to take a page out of Rasha’s book. He pulled on his full power, moving faster than any of the other first years could, and was suddenly behind Trent, an arm loosely around his neck. “Do you need me to remind you of why the fourth years want me around, and not any of you?” He flexed lightly, momentarily cutting off blood flow to Trent’s neck, before letting go.

“One of these days, you’re going to pay for that.” Trent’s voice was filled with venom. But compared to the fourth years, compared to Eli, Nick wasn’t worried in the least about him.

“Any time you want a repeat of the proving, just let me know.” He flashed a Keith style smile at Trent. “Maybe I’ll even hold back a little.”

“Glad to see you are all so energetic after lunch.” A voice boomed across the field, pulling everyone’s attention. A well-muscled form approached, someone Nick hadn’t seen before.

“You here to get your pet back?” Trent apparently thought Nick knew the newcomer.

“Did your advisors not teach you respect?” The approaching figure’s voice was firm. “I’ll give you a single warning, to not speak like that again to me.”

The figure, a tall man, finished his approach, and starred for a moment at the group of first years. “My name is Jared, and I am an instructor here at the Academy.” He pulled up a holoscreen on his wrist, and pressed a button. The earth on either side of him split open, and multiple weapons racks suddenly appeared.

“It is my job, to teach you first years how to utilize these weapons, to their full extent.” He motioned at the racks, and they appeared to all hold simple swords. “The first weapon you will learn will be the sword.” He pulled one of the blades out, and tossed it at Trent. The first year made to catch it, but the moment he did, his eyes filled with surprise, and the blade yanked his arm to the ground.

“This training will also serve to help you focus your physical powers.” He grabbed another sword, and threw it easily towards another first year. Again, an attempt to catch it, followed with a failure. His point had been made.

“I want each of you to look at your energy levels.” Nick, and all the others, turned to the screens on their arms. “I want you to pull in physical energy, until your reading is at a 5.” Nick’s power easily shot up to 5, but as he looked at a few of the screens around him, he could see others struggling to reach that point.

“Our weapons training for the next month will be set at 5, after that, I will increase the weight of these weapons. I will ensure you not only master your energy control, but also master these weapons at the same time. Do not draw any power past a 5.”

He tossed a sword at another first year, and this time, the student caught it, and held it with ease. “Good.” Jared looked at the others. “Now, each of you grab one of these swords, and line up in formation.” The first years complied. “I will teach you the basics of the sword, and once you have mastered those, we will move on to the next weapon.” He grabbed the last sword, and stood in front of the group. “It is important you all learn these moves, as I will regularly have you spar with each other.” He looked at the crowd of first years. “Fail to learn, and you will be punished, fail to control your energy, and you will be punished..” The way he said those last words, Nick didn’t want to know what his punishments would be like.

Jared proceeded from that point to take them through basic techniques, how to hold the sword properly, how to strike, and how to block. He would walk them through each technique, then call out a series of orders, watching as the first years executed each command. Had it not been for the weight of the sword, and Jared’s sudden punishments, Nick would have found the training enjoyable.

Halfway through the training, the group found out what his punishments involved. They were in the middle of making multiple slashes, when a female physical suddenly screamed, and dropped her sword. In a split second, Jared was in front of her. “I did warn you against pulling in energy past a 5, didn’t I?”

“I didn’t…” She started to whimper.

“These swords are set to recognize the power level being utilized, and release a rather painful shock if you exceed their limit.” He looked at her, eyes dangerous. “So don’t lie to me.”

She lowered her eyes, and whispered, “Yes.”

“Did you think you could make this training easier by pulling in more power?” He looked at the first years. “I don’t care what the maximum amount of energy you can pull is. The reason I limit you, is because you must learn to manage how much energy you expend at a time. In combat, no matter how strong you are, if you burn yourself out too soon, all you are is dead.” Every first year was staring at him in silence.

He looked back down at the poor first year. “Release your energy.” There was no option given in his tone. “You break my rules, you will be punished.” Without warning, he took his own sword, and smashed the girl’s side. IF the blade wasn’t dull, Nick was certain he would have cut her in half. Instead, they could hear her ribs break.

“For the next five minutes, you are to hold this, without any power, directly in front of you.” Jared pulled a baton from his side and handed it to her. “In combat, mistakes can lead to injuries, and you must learn to focus and perform even through the pain.” Tears were streaming down her face, and she was trembling as she took the baton. Nick could tell by the way her arms shook, it too had some extra weight.

“I do not enjoy punishing you, but it is my job to ensure you are combat ready.” He took his position back at the front of the group. “Follow my orders, and you will survive.” He pointed his sword at the quivering girl. “Disobey, or make a mistake, and you will pay the price.” He took up a stance, and looked out across the group. “Now then, let us continue.” For the rest of the class, not a single student dared to try to pull in any more power.