Chapter 4: Lieutenant Lynheart

Seth failed to suppress a yawn as he slowly trudged down the hall. At this hour, the brunette would much rather be napping. However, there was little time for slacking off when being summoned by the commanding officer. His thoughts began to drift to a certain blonde beauty, and he smiled. He had seen her with the flower the other day. It was those little things that served to give him hope. Hope that one day…

The teen frowned. What was he thinking? A relationship between them would never be allowed, even with her consent. Of course, if she was willing to break the rules, so was he.

The brunette smiled slightly. Alice was known to push her boundaries from time to time. Upon reaching the large twin doors that led to the training room, the teen heaved a sigh. If only, right? I suppose we all want what we can’t have…

Seth gave one of the doors a particularly hard shove and entered the training room. The room appeared to be completely empty, aside from the blonde waiting patiently for him. Smiling, he greeted his commanding officer. “Good morning, Alice. You, uh, sent for me?”

The blonde nodded. “That’s right. Glad you could make it.”

Seth quirked a brow at the female’s stiff tone. “What’s got you so pissed this early in the morning?”

As soon as the question left his lips, the teen regretted it. The blonde’s eyes narrowed briefly. The lights began to flicker and dim as the temperature in the room quickly began to rise.

“Now, now, Alice, b-be reasonable.”

“Oh, I’ll show you reasonable.”

Seth cried out as a petite hand made a solid connection with the back of his skull. “Ow! What the hell was that for?!” the teen whined, gingerly rubbing the back of his head.

The blonde sighed, shaking her head in exasperation. “You honestly didn’t think I’d forgotten all about your little comments the other day, did you?”

“Okay, okay, point taken,” Seth grumbled. “I’d forgotten that you don’t have a sense of humor.”

The blonde snorted. “I don’t have time for your nonsense today, Seth. We’re getting a new cadet in our division, and you’re to be on your best behavior.”

Seth rolled his eyes. “Yes, Mother,” he quipped.

An eerie chill came over the room as the lights began to flicker.

“Okay, okay! You’ve made your point!” Seth all but yelped, breathing a sigh of relief as the lighting finally returned to normal. He loved the woman so, but she was downright terrifying when she wanted to be!

A loud clang was heard as the door to the training room was suddenly flung open, causing both teens to jump slightly.

“Uh, good morning, you two,” Issac hesitantly greeted, scratching the back of his head sheepishly. “Am I interrupting?”

Alice shook her head. “No, of course not! Come in. Good morning to you too.”

The brunette shrugged. “If you’re sure,” he murmured as he entered the room, Vincent trailing closely behind.

“Oh, hi, there, Vincent. I didn’t see you,” Alice smiled warmly upon spotting the boy.

The raven-haired teen returned the gesture instantly. “Hello, Alice.”

Truth be told, he wasn’t exactly certain why the girl captivated him so. The teen bit his lip when he caught the disgusted scowl aimed in his direction.

“Don’t mind Seth. He’s just sour because we have to wait on a new cadet. What brings you two here?”

Vincent felt his heart rise to his throat at the blonde’s words. I-It can’t be…

“Funny you should say that,” Issac smiled, turning his attention back to the dumbfounded boy beside him. “Vincent, may I introduce you to First Division Strikeforce Lieutenant General, Alice Lynheart?”

The blonde’s eyes widened. Surely Leo wouldn’t have already… “Wait, are you saying-”

Issac nodded, cutting the young woman off with another smile. “Alice, meet your new cadet, though I believe you’ve already met.”

The teens exchanged bashful glances, nodding.

Seth rolled his eyes at the display. Honestly! “Oh, brother. Don’t tell me I have to watch you flirt with him all day.”

“Seth!” Alice chided, eliciting a sharp yelp from the teen as her elbow made a solid connection with his ribs.

Issac chuckled as he made his way to the door. “Well, I’ll let you guys get back to work, then.”

“Well, now,” Alice began, “this is interesting. I didn’t expect my new cadet to be you, Vincent.”

The teen scratched his head. “Uh, yeah, it took me by surprise as well. I hope I won’t be any trouble to you.”

The brunette frowned. This was a terrible idea. He wasn’t certain what powers the girl possessed, but he certainly hoped they weren’t as frightening as what he’d witnessed with the commander.

“Of course not!” the blonde assured with another warm smile.

“Just so you know,” Seth interjected with a sly grin, “she’s a drill sergeant.”

Alice whirled around, obviously appalled. “I am not!”

Vincent watched as the lights began to flicker. “I’ve, uh, been meaning to ask: Is there something wrong with the lights?”

“Oh, not at all. This happens from time to time,” Seth replied, flashing the blonde a knowing glance.

The lieutenant sighed, the lights ceasing their wavering. “I think that’s quite enough out of you. Go run laps.”

“See what I mean? She’s a drill sergeant.”

“Move it, soldier!”

Seth gave a sigh as he started toward the back corner of the room.

“Not here. Go outside. I think running in the fresh air will do you some good,” the blonde instructed, gesturing to the large, metal doors.

The brunette grumbled under his breath before taking his leave.

Vincent swallowed as he watched him go. Note to self: Do NOT get on her bad side!

“Well, now, what do you say we get started?”

Vincent swallowed again, giving a nervous smile as he rubbed the back of his head. “W-well, uh…”

“Oh, ignore what he said, Vincent. I only give Seth a hard time because he purposely brings it on himself,” Alice assured, making her way to the back-right corner of the room.

“To be perfectly honest, I’m a bit uneasy. I don’t know anything about combat and such,” the brunette confessed, biting his lip lightly as the young woman retrieved two wooden swords from a stand at the back of the room.

“Don’t worry, that’s what I’m here for. By the time I’m done with you, you’ll be ready for just about anything,” the blonde quickly assured, a confident smile lighting her pale features.

Vincent smiled, the girl’s confidence easing his trepidation somewhat. Perhaps he could do this? After all, these people really seemed to need him. “If you’re sure.”

“First order of business is for me to evaluate your skill level. Here,” the blonde stated, tossing him a wooden sword. “Do your best to disarm me.”

The boy paled, all apprehension immediately returning as the blonde lieutenant fell into a guarding stance. “Disarm? You mean, like, a-attack you?”

Alice held in a chuckle as she rolled her sapphire eyes. “Well, yeah. That’s kind of the point of disarming your opponent, Vincent.”

The brunette swallowed. Wh-what the?! I can’t attack her! “I-I can’t.”

“It’s only training, Vincent. Don’t worry, you’ll be fine.”

Vincent bit his lip as the young lieutenant then resumed her defensive stance. How was he even remotely supposed to do this? His acute lack of skill coupled with his unease was more than enough to fuel his self-doubt. A sharp yelp erupted from his throat when the lieutenant suddenly swung the wooden weapon in his direction. Caught off guard, the teen merely blinked in surprise as the wooden sword he once held went skittering across the floor with a rather loud ‘clang’.

Alice blinked in surprise. “Uh, Vincent, that was probably the most pathetic block I’ve ever seen.”

Vincent gave an awkward smile, shrugging his shoulders in an attempt at making light of the embarrassing failure. Just when the teen would have liked nothing more than to melt into the floor, he heard the girl giggle. Smiling a genuine smile, the brunette laughed. “Sorry,” he finally murmured.

The girl gave him another dazzling smile. “It’s fine. Let’s try again. Never take your eyes off your opponent.”

The teen hastily nodded, retrieving his lost weapon from its resting place. Attempting to shake off his nerves, he raised the wooden weapon once more. Swallowing the lump in his throat, he gave a half-hearted swing, wincing at the loud ‘clack’ of the two weapons as they met. The brunette couldn’t help the yelp that escaped his throat at the sharp sting as the wooden weapon then landed a solid strike to his left shoulder.

“You have to keep your guard up, Vincent,” Alice instructed, giving the teen a slightly apologetic glance as he rubbed his, now sore, shoulder.

A part of her felt genuinely sorry for the boy. After all, she could only imagine what he must be thinking. The blonde frowned as she watched him finally sink to the floor with a heavy sigh of defeat.

“I-I don’t think I can do this.”

Alice returned the boy’s sentiment, a soft sigh falling from her lips. She opened her mouth to reply when he suddenly spoke again.

“I don’t even know why I’m here,” he murmured.

Alice lightly bit her lip as she slowly knelt beside the boy. “Vincent, it’s okay. No one starts out as an expert on anything. When I first started, I-”

The young boy shook his head. “It’s…it’s not that.” Heaving a heavy sigh, he continued, “I just can’t. I guess I just don’t get all this talk of war and such.” He did his best to offer the young woman a smile, though it was rather forced.

The blonde bit her lip lightly in contemplation. He had a point. After all, he was a blank slate. “W-well, most people tend to fear what they don’t understand. Keep in mind that we still know very little about the virus.”

“So these supposed powers I have are due to me having a virus?”

The blonde gave him a look of confusion, her pale eyebrows furrowing. “They didn’t tell you that?”

The brunette shrugged. “They told me that I supposedly have powers, but nothing really more than that.”

Alice sighed, resisting the urge to slap a hand to her forehead in exasperation. Leo was known for being quite blunt and abrupt, so, unfortunately, it wasn’t all that shocking to hear that they had done as little as possible to mentally prepare the poor boy.

Vincent bit his lip, once again internally berating himself for causing the young woman so much trouble. Then again, it wasn’t as if he was asked to come here. “Is it…bad?”

Alice did her best to smile in an effort to ease the young boy’s worries, though, she knew she was likely failing miserably, judging by the look still etched onto his face. “Well,” she began tentatively, breathing out a soft sigh, “The virus doesn’t seem to cause any harm to those who live through the infection phase.”

The boy felt his blood run cold. What the hell?! “I-Infection phase?”

The blonde nodded, giving a somewhat forced smile. “Yes. The infection when a person is first exposed to the virus and contracts it.”

Vincent swallowed. “I…I just don’t remember. I honestly can’t remember anything.”

Alice pursed her lips as she felt her heart squeeze painfully. Placing a comforting hand on the boy's shoulder, she offered a genuine smile. “Remember what I said yesterday? Take it one step at a time.”

The lieutenant’s words seemed to reach the brunette as he flashed her a warm smile, causing the girl's pale cheeks to fill with color. “You’re right. It’s just…well, everything seems to be going so fast. I’m afraid that I’m just not of very much use to him.”

“Don't you worry about the commander, Vincent. Leave him to me.” The blonde assured as she gently pulled the boy to his feet. “Ready to try again?”

Vincent smiled warmly once more as he gave the soft set of hands he now held a gentle squeeze. If for no one else, he would try for her. After all, he owed her the debt of his life. He gave a firm nod. “All I can do, right?”

Alice smiled. At least he didn’t seem as nervous anymore. “That’s the spirit!” Handing the boy back his wooden sword, she fell into a defensive stance once more.

Try… All I’ve got to do is try. This girl’s counting on me. Vincent drew in a deep breath as he poised the weapon above his head. Lunging, his eyes quickly widened as he felt his left foot slip. Knees buckling, he barely had time to yelp as he slid forward. The wooden sword flew from his hand with a loud ‘clack’ as it hit the ground and rolled. He pinched his eyes shut as he prepared to hit the hard tile floor, barely registering the yelp from his companion. His brows furrowed in confusion when, instead of the cold hardness of tile, he was met with the warm softness of the body of another.

Finally opening his eyes, the embarrassed teen’s breath died in his throat as he drank in the sight of the flushed, young beauty now lying beneath him. “I-I…”

Alice felt her cheeks burn. “U-m, Vi-Vincent, I don’t think that’s really going to work on any enemy.”

Vincent gave a sheepish grin, trying his best to ignore the heat creeping down his spine. “Well, at least I disarmed you.”

Something about the boy’s musical laughter made the young lieutenant’s heart pound. “I’m pretty sure that doesn’t count, Vincent,” she gently chided with a giggle.

“Oh, my, Alice, I never realized you were so shameless,” came an amused chuckle from the doorway.

Vincent quickly sprang to his feet, turning what he was sure were a million different shades of red as he extended a hand to Alice.

Standing to her feet, the blonde cleared her throat. “What are you doing here, Kurt? Aren’t you supposed to be in the lab?” she quipped.

The young scientist smirked. “Hey, I’m just saying that if this is how you train your new cadets, sign me up.”

Alice rolled her eyes as the brunette winked for emphasis, doing her best to ignore her burning cheeks.

“It-it was an accident!” Vincent protested quickly. Too quickly. The boy instantly felt his face burn as the brunette then turned to him with a coy smile.

“Oh, of course it was. I just randomly throw myself on top of pretty women all the time.”

“You would, you pervert,” Alice quipped, folding her arms across her chest as she looked away.

She really needed to get ahold of herself. It wasn’t like her to lose her head so easily. If she kept it up…

“Hey! I resent that,” Kurt retorted.

“Did you actually need something, Kurt, or did you just come down here to get in the way?” the blonde sighed, agitation clear in her tone.

The scientist shrugged. “Well, Leo sent me down here to get a status report on how things were going.” Turning to the boy, he gave a suggestive smile. “I’ll be sure to let him know that you’re, uh, ‘on top’ of things, Vincent.”

Vincent swallowed. “H-Huh?”

“Kurt, you pervert! You better not say something like that to Leo,” Alice quickly protested, her fair cheeks filling with color once more. “He’ll get the wrong idea for sure.”

Vincent cocked his head. She calls her father by his first name?

The lights in the room suddenly brightened, causing Kurt to smile knowingly. “Alright, easy on the lights, already.”

Alice glared. “Shut up.” Taking a deep breath, she relaxed her posture.

The lighting gradually returned to normal.

Vincent turned to the girl with somewhat wide eyes. “W-wait, so the weird things going on with the lights was you?”

Kurt quirked a brow. “You seriously didn’t figure that out until just now?” Honestly! Was the boy stupid?

Vincent opened his mouth to retort. His lieutenant, however, was quicker.

“Back off, Kurt. You, of all people, know his situation. He can’t help that he’s new to a lot of things.”

“Yeah, including weird girls who blow up lightbulbs,” the brunette quipped.

Alice’s sapphire eyes narrowed. She’d had enough! She felt the heat surge through her body to settle in her fingertips. “I said I’m not weird!”

Vincent gasped as a flame suddenly burst from the girl’s balled fist and into the floor at her feet.

“In case you couldn’t tell from that demonstration; Alice, here, is a fire user,” Kurt informed as he turned to the awestruck boy with a smirk. “In other words; she’s short tempered.”

Alice balked. “Sh-short tempered?! I am not!”

“Suuure,” Kurt drawled, a taunting smile still tugging at his lips.

The blonde huffed out a sigh before turning her attention back to the amber-eyed boy still staring at her in awe. “Anyway, why don’t we take a break, Vincent? I think you’ve been through enough for now.”

Vincent slowly nodded. “Uh, sure,” he murmured, watching as she turned and collected their wooden swords before making her way to the back of the room to put them away. She seems upset now “Alice, are you-,” he began, only to be cut off when a hand grasped his shoulder.

“Come on, Vincent. I’m sure Leo is waiting to assign you your room now,” Kurt said as he turned and made his way to the door.

“Very well,” the boy sighed in defeat as he began to trudge after the boy. Reaching the doorway, he stopped. “I guess I’ll see you later, Ali-er-Miss Lynheart,” he murmured before closing the door behind him.

Alice felt her face grow warm. What must the boy think of her now? Perhaps Kurt was right. Was she weird?

The blonde shook her head. No. She wouldn’t give him the satisfaction. She would control her emotions…and her powers.

****

Kurt frowned as he spared a glance behind him. The boy following him down the hall had his head down, refusing eye-contact.

“Do…do you think Alice sounded upset?”

Kurt suddenly stopped, whirling around to pin the raven-haired boy with a glare. “That’s Lieutenant Lynheart to you, Vincent. I suggest you watch how familiar you are with her from now on. There are a lot of guys here that would beat you into the ground if they heard you calling her by her first name like that so suddenly. You’re a new cadet, after all. It would be in your best interest not to forget that.”

Vincent frowned. Somehow, he got the distinct impression that this boy didn’t like him for whatever reason. As for why, he hadn’t the faintest clue. “I-I meant no disrespect toward her, Kurt. She didn’t seem to mind.”

Kurt’s eyes hardened, clearly finding displeasure in the boy’s tone. “Alice may feel some sort of responsibility to you because she saved your ass, but I’ll be frank with you; she doesn’t need your drama. She has enough on her plate without another child to babysit.”

What the?!

Vincent crossed his arms, his dark pupils constricting as his eyes narrowed. This boy was really beginning to test his patients. Hadn’t he been jerked around enough?! Hadn’t these people put him through enough? “Excuse me?”

Kurt sighed. Alice wouldn’t approve. “Just forget it. We shouldn’t keep Leo waiting.”

Vincent returned the sentiment, a sigh escaping his lips. “Fine.”

“Oh, and one more thing, Vincent: There isn’t any need for you to mention this to Alice…at all.”

Vincent’s brows furrowed. Why did he get the distinct impression that this boy was now threatening him? Heaving a heavy sigh, he nodded. “Sure.”

Today was going to be a long day…