The number of people has dwindled down to only 19 people in our group.
Lying back on a wall, one of the armored five tilts his golden money shades down.
And of course our instructor is the blonde drunken woman from earlier.
The outer layer of her bodysuit consists of a white, winter jacket with black stripes on the sleeves, fastened with yellow straps and buckles. It's decorated with a sports logo emblem on the side, and yellow utility belts dangle from her clothes as she throws her head back, taking another swig.
"Hello, once again,n newbies. My name is Somnia, and I will be your instructor. Now, I have something important... something important that I'm supposed to tell you!" She attempts to take a swig, "...shit." but the bottle is empty. "Double shits, what was it?"
"Put down the bottle and do your job!"
"Put down that attitude or I'll-" She burps. "put you down."
She tosses the bottle at them before taking a deep breath. "Whatever it is, I'm sure it's not important. So, welcome to the High Rollers! For us, victory is our life, we live for style points. To us, honor is another word for manipulation, and self-sacrifice is pitiful. With no shackles, we live for all 7 sins; our schedule consisting of wealth, lust, and entertainment."
Some people in the crowd cheer, while others look less than content.
A blond-haired boy steps up. "If we're just living for ourselves, then why do we need training?"
"Because, you're going to learn the meaning of life."
The crowd chuckles, yet she doesn't appear to be joking.
"First order of business is to pair up, these will be your roommate, teammate, and friend. Just remember that you all share only one bond, our sins. So before you take a bullet for them, make sure they're not the one holding the gun."
People cautiously look around before teaming up with strained smiles. With 19 of us, one person is destined to be singled out, but that doesn't seem to be an issue as the outlier guy from earlier is leaning back on a wall, rolling a coin through his fingers with a smirk.
"What do you say, want to team up?"
My attention is pulled away as the blond-haired boy stands before me with his hand outstretched.
Looking around, it seems I have only three choices, one seems to hold no interest in me, and the other two seem dangerous.
He has a warm smile as he awaits my handshake.
"I understand your skepticism, especially after that unnerving speech Instructor Somnia gave us. But if we can't turn our back on anything, we'll be forced to go in circles."
If you tie two birds together, they will have twice as many wings, yet they lose their ability to fly. "Sure."
"Great! I won't make us do any kind of trust fall ice breakers, so how about I start by showing my trust by revealing my name." We finally shake hands. "They call me Hallow." He chuckles. "You are free to make the obvious joke if it will help you remember."
"It's nice to meet you, Hallow."
"You missed out on the chance, well,l if I heard correctly, your name is Coffin."
My eyes narrow. "And who told you that?"
He scratches his head as he looks away. "I apologize for the eavesdropping, but I overheard you and that red and white haired woman talking to Salem."
"You make it sound like you know her."
He tilts his head. "And you don't? Salem was all over the news a month ago." He leans in to whisper. "I heard she went berserk on her teammates, the government claims it was due to an accident, but due to the fact that she was demoted to training with us rookies, I'm not so sure."
"Is that why he's here as well?"
"Who? ...oh, you are very observant. Yes, that lone wolf was also one of the five that was demoted back to training. I heard his name is Ekstacy."
"That would explain his confidence." But 5? They said 6 were shot down, with 100 cores, wouldn't that mean we are missing one? Did they lose one?
Whatever, a bunch of people took the million polar deal, so there's no point in keeping count.
"He certainly had no interest in teaming up, which is why I wanted to team up with you instead."
"It's good to know I was the second choice."
"I apologize, I didn't mean anything negative by that; if anything, I knew I could trust you."
(-_-) "Right."
"Alright, that's enough of your playdates. Lineup! We're checking your Night cores."
So like ants, a line forms.
As it's my turn, Somnia inspects me with a judgmental stare before tapping my chest. "The hell is up with your core?" She pulls out the glowing white fuse as it puffs out a cold cloud.
Leaning forward, her snowflake earring jingles as she looks into my chest cavity. Oh, Number 04 that explains it."
"Huh? What is that supposed to mean?"
"Nothing."
Well, isn't that ominous?
"In terms of your affinity, it seems..." She scoffs. "Oh, tough shit Squirt, you got ice."
"How do you know it's tough?"
"I know because I have the same affinity. Shits useless half the time." She raises her eyebrows, "Though..."
For some reason, I'm actually hopeful. "...Yes?"
"It helps keep my drinks cold."
My body slouches with a sigh, because I like my coffee hot.
With no regard for my well-being, she slams the fuse back in the core, causing me to cough up a cloud of frozen air.
She pats me on the back. "The good news with Night cores you are not confined to just one element, but that's only if you have an affinity for a higher element... so it's not really good news, more like a fun fact. So I hope you like the cold cause you're stuck with it."
Despite supposedly winning the lottery of life, I don't feel all that lucky.
Shuffling out of line, I walk over to Hallow, who has an affinity for aquatics, which is one step up from mine.
"996, why are you in line? Your last victim learned your affinity all too well,l Mr.prodigy."
Spinning a coin on his finger, he walks away with a snicker.
"What does she mean by that?"
"That likely means Ekstacy has an affinity for either prism or the Abyss."
"I assume those are the gifted ones?"
"You assume correctly, think of it like chess, the gifted ones can wield any element while those below are confined to the basics."
"So we're pawns, and they're queens.
"Well... basically... yeah. While instructor Somnia is a well-known Pioneer, most of the big names fall under Prism or Abyss."
"Our instructor is well known?"
He chuckles before realizing I'm being serious. "I must ask, and I apologize if this question is offensive, but... do you live under a rock?"
Most people look up to Pioneers as though superheroes or sports players. Toko and I were a little too preoccupied trying to scrounge up our next meal in the darkness of alleys to be blinded by these shining knights.
"You could certainly call it that." Rock of poverty.
"I see. Then think of me as your friend first, and your newspaper second."
"Then can I read the sports section?"
Somnia stands before us, looking down at her paper. "Alright, now that you all have your affinity, next up is-"
"Can you explain what the hell these things are?"
"Oh...whoops, forgot. These are Night cores, and no, they have nothing to do with the music group, so stop asking. I'm sure you have seen similar devices on the street; usually, these act solely for holding elemental fuses, but can only contain one type. Due to taxpayer polars, we created these high-grade ones you have in your chest. They act as an anchor, with a faster revival time, cross elemental compatibility, and cleaner transfer of energy between the core and the wearer's armory."
The pair beside us begin whispering. "Holy shit, these things sound amazing."
"Yeah, I heard on the market they are worth 100 million polar."
"Your shitting me, they were trying to scam us earlier."
"That's why I plan on getting through training and selling this shit to some underground doc-"
The instructor appears behind the two. "You are free to do and go where you wish in between training. But, by choosing this path, you have agreed to serve a three-year tour of fighting The Strain. So what do you think will happen when you're the only one on the battlefield without a core?"
"Well- I- I was just kidding."
"Oh..." she begins chuckling. "That's pretty funny! Did you guys hear that? You should tell that one to The Strain." She leans in with narrow eyes. "The very species that we based these cheap knock-off cores on."
She walks back up to the front. "For now, we will be ignoring these cores to work on the ...core skills." She begins giggling to herself. "So, first up is firearm training."
A red robot comes walking out with a box of pistols, presenting them in front of us.
"Standard issue 12.32 MM Platinum Stars, they ain't the prettiest, but it's better than a knife. So, take one."
I'm not sure what happened to the one I bought from Reefer, or my necklace.
Maybe it's like prison, they will give it back once we leave?
One of my classmates reaches into the box and grabs two.
"Protocol failed. Number 702, your commander has issued only one firearm; please return the second-"
The man shoves the bot to the ground. "Fuck off droid, go suck on some loose wire."
Somnia puts her hand on the man's shoulder. "Did no one ever teach you how to count? He even asked nicely. Well, today is a day of learning; so, let's start with one-"
Whipping out her gu,n she fires a round into his kne,e causing him to stumble.
"two,"
She fires another into the other knee as he cries out.
"Three."
She fires the last into his skull, his body flopping onto the ground. The fuse pops out as the pulsating string begins to reel in.
With a sigh, she picks up both guns and returns them to the box. "No freebies for delinquents."
Patting the robot on the head, she walks back up to the stage.
"Unlike other instructors, due to the nature of High Rollers, I'm allowed to pick favorites. But my favor is an uphill battle, so try not to slip, and I'll be happy to be your buddy."
After we've all taken a pistol, she claps to get our attention.
"That's it for introductions, next you'll be assigned to your dorms, shooting aptitude, then class at five PM. Doors close on the hour; if you're late, entry will be denied.
I don't care if you're absent, but you will be hella confused once you're thrown out on the field. As you've likely realized, we are very laissez-faire here, so no lifelines, sink or swim."
She stands before us with a wide grin as she throws her hands out.
"Welcome... to the High Rollers."