Kai, Lloyd, and Teon are all lying in their beds; the lights are out, but neither of them is able to sleep.

  "I have to tell you something."

  Kai sits up in his bed and looks at his two friends.

  "What?"

  Teon sits up as well.

  "After Lucius surprised us this afternoon, he sent me a message."

  Now Lloyd sits up as well and looks into Kai's direction.

  "What did it say?"

  "He told me that he wants me to get personal training."

  "That's amazing."

  Teon says and turns on the flashlight of his phone before laying it display down on the ground to see the other two.

  "I guess, but this would mean that we get separated."

  Kai looks down at his phone before his eyes wander back up.

  "We've only known each other for a few days, but I'm still going to miss you."

  Teon grins.

  "Aww, is someone getting sentimental just now?"

  "Shut up... asshole."

  "I'm just making fun of you; don't be mad."

  Lloyd smiles a bit.

  "We're going to miss you too."

  "And it won't be the last time we see each other. You're just getting personal training; it's not like you'll leave the country."

  "I guess you're right."

  After that the three lay back down, and Teon turns his flashlight off again. Still, each of them takes a long time to finally fall asleep.

  The next day, Teon and Llyod are standing with their bags in a hallway in front of a door. Teon knocks, and after a few moments, Kaia opens it. She waves timidly.

  "H...hey, you're finally here. We... we were wondering why you took so long."

  She steps aside to let the two enter. Inside the room are five beds, three already made. Max lies on hers, looking at her phone. Meanwhile, Percy stands next to him, practicing with a sword.

  "Why are you so late?"

  "Sorry, but we also had to say goodbye to Kai."

  Max shrugs her shoulders and puts her phone aside.

  "I don't care. Quickly unpack your stuff and make your beds so we can go to the training field. If we are too late, Nova is going to be so pissed.

  Teon and Lloyd throw their bags on the free beds. Minutes later the group stands on the field, Nova in front of them. Percy holds an ax in his hand, resting it over his shoulder.

  "Where is Cole?"

  "That's nothing of your business, dipshit!"

  Just moments later all five lay scattered across the field, covered in bruises and panting. Nova puts her guns back in their sheaths while looking at each of the recruits.

  "Take a short break before you start sparring with each other."

  She walks over to Kaia and leans down.

  "I don't understand what Lucius sees in you, but if I were in his place, I would've already thrown you out! You're utterly pathetic."

  Nova straightens up again before walking to one of the exits. Kaias eyes tear up; pulling her legs against her chest, she hides her face between them. Max glares in Nova's direction before standing up and walking to Kaia to help her calm down.

  "That was way too much!"

  Teon thinks while looking at Max and the sobbing Kaia. Before leaving the field, Nova turns around; seeing Kaia crying, she just scoffs.

  "Break time is over; start sparring. I want to see you exhausted and sweating when I come back!"

  It's evening; after a long day of hard training, the three boys come out of the group shower. They dry up before wrapping towels around their waists and leave the bathroom. As they enter the connected bedroom, Kaia squeaks out and looks away from them. Her cheeks are taking on a bright red color. Max, who is also blushing slightly, yells at the boys.

  "CAN'T YOU CHANGE INSIDE THE BATHROOM?!"

  Without saying a word, the three grab fresh clothes before walking back into the bathroom to get dressed. After the girls also took a shower, everyone sat on their bed. Teon brings something up.

  "Can we talk about how strict and harsh Nova is, especially towards you, Kaia?"

  Kaia looks down at her folded hands lying in her lap.

  "I understand her. I'm weak compared to you, and I barely managed to pass any of the entrance tests."

  "Still no reason to treat you like that."

  Lloyd murmurs while carving his initials into the metal bedpost with a claw, causing a disturbing scratching sound to echo through the room. Percy makes a face before telling him to stop. Afterwards he adds that they maybe should go to Lucius and tell him about Nova's harsh behavior towards Kaia.

  "No!"

  Kaia yelps out, drawing surprised expressions from the others.

  "I...if we do and she finds out, it might just make everything worse."

  Suddenly it knocks at the door. Max answers, and it opens. Through the doorway steps Nova. The five quickly jump up from their beds and line up in front of her.

  "Good evening, recruits."

  She sighs.

  "Since you've been training for over a month now, and most of you made great progress... Lucius decided that you're ready for your first mission."

  The groups look surprised and excited at the same time.

  "You will only be sent into nearby regions and only against weak Nightmares. Don't get it twisted; you won't be promoted from recruit to higher ranks. This is just so you can gather real battle experience."

  Her gaze wanders over the group before she turns around again. Just as she is about to close the door, she says.

  "Good night."

  The door closes, and everyone relaxes again. This night none of the five were able to sleep because of excitement.

  A few days later, on the training field, Lloyd and Percy are standing in front of each other, panting and sweating. Percy is holding a glaive in his hands, while Lloyd is suited up in bone armor, with a blade formed where his right forearm normally would be. A few meters away, Teon is fighting Max and Kaia at the same time.

  "I'm dying to go on a mission."

  He says, panting, while blocking a strike from Kaia and dodging a kick from Max at the same time.

  "Why are there no incidents nearby?"

  Kaia gathers distance from him before speaking up.

  "Isn't that good? No incidents means no civilians get hurt or die."

  "That's true, but I understand Teon's frustration."

  Max replies as she dodges an attack from Teon before she tries to counter.

  "After all, we signed up to fight the Nightmare plague and help people, not beat each other up each day."

  "YESSS! FINALLY!"

  Kaia, Max, and Teon stop their fight and look in Lloyd and Percy's direction. They see Percy lying on his back, the glaive sticking in the ground nearby, and Lloyd standing over him, panting and exhausted.

  "After so many matches... I finally beat you for once!"

  Percy smirks up at his friends and sits up while reaching for his weapon.

  "Yeah, looks like it. Weapons like this just aren't my strength."

  His hand, holding the glaive, disappears in the air as he puts the weapon back in his pocket dimension. As he pulls his hand back out, it's holding onto a Zweih?nder, which he uses as support to stand up.

  "That's more like it."

  After straightening up, he points the tip of the massive sword at Lloyd.

  "Rematch!"

  Lloyd swallows hard, and before he can react, Percy uses a flash step to get as close as possible and slams the flat side of the blade against Lloyd's stomach. The bone armor breaks instantly, and Lloyd flies backwards before crashing into the ground, spitting blood on his own chest. Kaia yelps out in shock and covers her mouth with both hands. Percy's face turns pale, and he runs over to his friend.

  "Sorry, man. I didn't intend to hit you this hard."

  "It's... okay."

  Lloyd spits out blood again before gritting his teeth and groaning in pain. The broken bones regenerate.

  "Let's go again."

  Lloyd demands while grinning and wiping blood off his chin.

  Just as the two are about to clash again, Nova appears between them, grabbing both their weapons and twisting them so they fall to the ground.

  "That's it for today. Go shower and eat something."

  Later the group sits together at a table eating and speaking about their training session.

  "Next time I want to spar with one of you two."

  Teon says with a full mouth while looking at Percy and Lloyd.

  "First, swallow before you speak. Second..."

  Percy smirks cockily.

  "If you want to lose that badly, I'm all in for it."

  Suddenly Nova slams her hand down on their table, causing everyone to wince.

  "There is a Nightmare attack in a nearby region. Suit up; it's your mission!"

  All five jump up and sprint through the base to their room. Moments later they stand outside the big gate on the street, wearing black battle suits with armored plates on each limb as well as the back and chest.

  "Where is the car?"

  Nova laughs as she hears Lloyd's question.

  "Car? You're going to run. If you're able to fly."

  She turns around, shaking her head, chuckling, and muttering to herself.

  "Car..."

  "Run?"

  "Yes, run."

  Lucius speaks to them through a communication device in their ears.

  "Nova will go with you to supervise."

  The five all look at Nova, who sighs annoyed before she starts to use flash steps to move. They follow her, all having problems with really keeping up with her.

  A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

  Arriving at the city, they make their way past destroyed buildings until they arrive at the center, where a huge wolf-like nightmare, the size of a small house, is throwing a tank into a building.

  As a military officer spots them, he calls back his troops.

  "Your turn!"

  Nova says before landing on a building.

  "That's a big boy."

  Nova scoffs at Max's comment.

  "That's a rather weak one. If you have problems, I will personally take your rights to go on missions."

  Lloyd and Percy look at each other before quickly approaching the nightmare. Percy pulls the Zweih?nder out, while Lloyd screams as his armor grows. On both hands he grows long blades and jumps up to attack the nightmare's head. Percy swings his sword at the Nightmare's leg, but it just bounces off its skin without doing any damage. Lloyd bores his blades into one of the nightmare's eyes. It screams out before shaking Lloyd off, hurling him into a building. Nova shakes her head, disappointed.

  "Kaia, take its attention for a moment so I can freely use my ability."

  Max yells; with slight hesitation, Kaia nods before she starts to yell at the nightmare while running around, dodging its attacks.

  "As soon as my power affects it, we attack Teon!"

  "Understood."

  While Kaia is distracting the nightmare, Percy is still attacking the leg, his sword leaving not a single scratch. Suddenly the blade slashes clean through the leg, causing the monster to scream in pain.

  "Now!"

  Max screams out. Teon dashes towards the other front leg; he delivers a punch that instantly breaks the nightmare's leg, causing it to fall forward. He looks back and sees Max struggling to even move.

  "Shit, the ability takes too much of a toll on her."

  Teon thinks before his gaze falls on Percy.

  "Percy! Go for the head!"

  Percy nods, runs towards the head, and jumps, both hands on his sword's handle, holding it behind his back to swing. Just as he is about to hit, the nightmare opens its mouth.

  "SHIT!"

  Percy screams, unable to change the direction of his jump midair. In this moment Lloyd slams into the nightmare's snout, forcing its mouth closed again. Percy's expression changes again into a smirk while falling past Lloyd and burying the blade between the monster's eyes, splitting the head. After a loud, pain-filled scream, the nightmare dissolves into black sand. Percy and Llyod fall a small distance to the ground, landing on their butts. Teon moves towards the two and helps them to stand up. Panting, they grin at each other.

  "Decent job. Looks like you get to continue missions."

  She sighs.

  "Only thanks to Max. Work on your teamwork, or you won't make it long."

  Jumping down from the building, she lands right next to Teon.

  "It was really stupid of you two to just attack without thinking!"

  Her gaze moves from Lloyd and Percy to Teon and Max.

  "You did a good job. You too, Kaia. Decent teamwork."

  She gives the three a thumbs up before making her way back to the base. The group is close behind.

  Later in the evening, Lloyd and Percy lay in their beds, multiple bandages wrapped around limbs and torso. Max laughs at them while standing in the middle of the room.

  "You idiots thought you could play hero and got wiped by the Nightmare."

  Teon smirks before turning his attention from Max bragging to the laptop in his lap.

  "You heard it. Our first mission was successful."

  On the other side of the screen sits Kai, smiling from one ear to the other.

  "But how about you? How is your private training going?"

  "Great! Lucius made another hyper-lethal train me."

  Kaia sits down next to Teon on the bed to look at Kai.

  "Which one?"

  She asks excitedly. Kai grins at her question.

  "It would take the fun away if I told you."

  Max sits down on Teon's other side.

  "You mean tease? Tell us! Is it number one?"

  Kai's cheerful demeanor disappears, and he just stares at his screen.

  "N...no...it's under Rank 3. And to be honest, after all I've heard about number 1, I'm glad it's not him."

  "What's that supposed to mean?"

  Lloyd asks before sitting up on his bed, letting out a quiet groan. Kai looks up from his laptop at someone outside the camera's view. In his background a tall shadow is visible. He nods before looking back at his screen.

  "Sorry guys. I have to go now. I'll call you back in a while. And I hope we see each other soon. Get stronger till then, so we can have a fun sparring match."

  Before anyone can say something, the video call ends and the screen of Teon's laptop turns black. He closes it and stands up from his bed.

  "Let's not disappoint him."

  Teon walks towards the door, followed by Max and Kaia.

  "You two aren't really in the condition to train. Means we have enough time to catch up to you."

  Max grins after Kaia and Teon have already left the room. Lloyd protests.

  "Hey! You can't train without us."

  "Sure we can, and we're going to."

  Max closes the door behind her.

  Kaia lies panting on her back, looking up at the star-filled sky. At the same time, Max flies backwards through the air before crashing into the dirt ground of the training field. Teon runs to her and holds out his hand to help her up.

  "Sorry, this was a bit too much. Are you okay?"

  "No!"

  Max yells before punching upwards, just barely missing Teon's face. He stumbles a few steps back.

  "Woaw, calm down, hotshot."

  Kaia and Max both struggle to stand up. Big visible bruises all over them. Meanwhile, Teon stands there as if nothing happened, unscathed.

  "No chance."

  Kaia mutters under her breath.

  "Yeah. I hate to admit it, but I guess you need a new training partner."

  "No, you're just fine."

  "Nothing is fine! Look at us and then look at you. Not a single scratch or bruise on your skin!"

  Kaia nods before adding.

  "Meanwhile, we are covered in them."

  Before Teon can protest, they hear a familiar voice, causing the three to shoot around and look where it came from.

  "They're right."

  There stands Nova, crossing her arms in front of her chest.

  "How did you get here? I couldn't feel your soul energy at all!"

  "I'm not an amateur, Teon! I know how to hide it, and even if not, you weren't paying much attention to your surroundings."

  Nova sighs before pulling one gun out of its holster and loads in a magazine. She aims at Teon.

  "I'm your partner now. Show me how much you've improved!"

  "Sure!"

  Teon smiles, and after Kaia and Max gave the two enough space, Teon instantly closes the distance with a flash step. He grabs her gun; Nova lets go of it and quickly strikes at Teon's nose, landing a perfect hit. Teon yelps out in pain and lets the gun fall to the ground. Nova catches it and swiftly moves around Teon to get behind him and presses the barrel against the boy's back.

  "You certainly improved; I have to give you that. But it's not enough to remotely challenge me, Cole, or even your friend."

  Teon turns his head, glaring at her. Then he quickly turns 180 and reaches for the gun again. Nova reacts in time and pulls the hand holding her weapon out of his reach. Taking a step back, gathering distance between the two, Nova aims at him again.

  "Try something new!"

  The boy scoffs before attacking. This time not going for the weapon, but directly striking Nova. She effortlessly dodges all his attacks, jumps back, and shoots. The fired bullet grazes his right arm, causing him to yelp out in shock and cover the spot with his other hand. Blood runs out from between his fingers. Kaias eyes widen in shock, and she gasps.

  "These are real bullets."

  "Nova, are you out of your mind?!"

  Max yells out, ready to step between the two. Nova grins and waits for Teon's reaction. The boy pulls his hand away, showing the open wound.

  "You should really try not to get hit!"

  "Asshole!"

  "What did you say?"

  "Nothing!"

  Without saying another word, Teon uses another flash step, appearing right in front of her, and he swings at her face. She steps back to evade the attack but doesn't notice Teon's foot, which he placed there after his flash step. She stumbles over it but manages to stay on both feet. To her problem, she does not have enough time to dodge the next incoming attack and takes a punch straight to the gut. She coughs surprised and lets go of her weapon. Teon kicks it away before aiming for another strike. Nova raises her hand, making Teon stop his fist right in front of her face.

  "Enough. I lost. I underestimated you."

  She walks past him while holding her stomach. Picking up her gun, she slowly leaves the field.

  "Next time I won't."

  Max jumps, cheering, not as exhausted from her bruises as a moment earlier, before tackling Teon.

  "Man, you're amazing!"

  Kaia smiles and nods.

  "Yes, you really are."

  "Come on, Teon, let's brag about this in front of these two dickheads."

  Max pulls at his shirt. The boy chuckles and lets her pull him along. Kaia walks behind them.