 |
By: Inuki **Ookami**
29
"Before we go through the technique
of piloting a battle-robot with a sword I want you to try using a sword yourself.
That is why we have brought special, very old style swords. These days we
naturally think of sword as those giant blades that battle robots carry and
fight with, but originally they were much smaller, and hand-held. This was
a long time ago of course, long before the first robots were even conceived
of." the line of boys stood infront of the young instructor. Mitsuhiro
didn't even look interested. The instructor pulled out the blades. The students
took them, and were very careful. None could really use them. Yet Kaleb and
Mitsuhiro had amazing skills. They fought with their blades so quickly everything
was just a silver blur. The blades flashed against each other. Mitsuhiro jumped
over a low slash from Kaleb. As Mitsuhiro landed he did a spin, his shirt
whipping back and forth through the air. His blade sung like a nightengale
as it flew towards the other boy. Kaleb bent his body backwards, and then
did a back-flip. Slowly the other pilots fought, each trying to make themselves
look good, but none were skilled, and all deeply feared the sharp blades against
their skin. Yet this was not the case between the two training pilot roomates.
They fought and fought until they were beyond tired. Finally Kaleb was about
to give up, and call it over, when Mitsuhiro amazingly flipped right over
Kaleb's head, and without even turning his own head, raised the sword, and
slashed behind him. Kaleb's sleeve of his shirt scissored open like a piece
of paper. As if it were a miracle he was completely unharmed. Could it be
that Mitsuhiro had such perfect aim that he could cut the boy's shirt, and
not his skin? There was no answer to that, but by now the other boys had given
up fooling with their own swords, as most had grown frustrated with the devices.
Instead they gathered around the two boys and their whirling blades. Kaleb
was angered, he spun around, and slashed at Mitsuhiro, who also turned around
and raised his sword to block it. Kaleb kept attacking, softly though, he
wasn't a very ferocious person. Mitsuhiro seemed to easily block each attempt.
All of a sudden Kaleb had the upper-hand when he somehow knocked Mitsuhiro's
blade to the ground, in a flicker he had his own blade to the other boy's
neck. Mitsuhiro breathed heavily. One inch further and that blade would have
punctured his throat. Kaleb slowly withdrew, and suddenly everything froze.
Everyone in the room stood frozen as a single feather floated down from out
of nowhere. It sparkled as it landed, and vanished like all the others before
it. Suddenly Kaleb was whisked away. Only this time he was in complete darkness.
He felt around the room, only to find that there was nothing of use there.
It didn't seem to be a room, because no matter which direction he walked he
found he could never feel any wall, nothing. He tried jumping, but could find
no roof. All he could feel was the ground below him. He should have felt free,
and open, but instead he felt small, and cramped. Still everything was dark.
He blinked, and slowly opened
his eyes. Mitsuhiro and his instructor stood over him.
"Huh? What happened?" he asked in a weak, soft voice. Mitsuhiro
gave him a blank look.
"Don't you remember? You turned away, then dropped your sword and fainted
or something. You just collapsed. You okay?" he asked, as Kaleb slowly
stood up.
"Yeah, I'm fine now." he mumbled, standing up. The feather. What
had happened? What was going on? It was driving him insane. Suddenly he turned
and fled from the room, no longer able to handle the room. He raced out of
the building, and all the way back to his room where he lay on his bed.
An hour later the door creaked
open as Mitsuhiro stepped in.
"You okay?" he asked. He walked over to Kaleb's bed, and sat down
on the side of it, facing Kaleb.
"No." Kaleb admitted sadly. He looked at the bed. Mitsuhiro stared
him in the eyes.
"What's wrong. What happened back there?" Mitsuhiro asked. Kaleb
didn't want to answer. He knew he had to eventually. You have to face your
fears.
"What's the meaning of life Mitsuhiro?" asked Kaleb, in a very weak
voice.
"To fight Kaleb. You know that. As long as you and I are pilots we have
to fight for what we believe in." said Mitsuhiro, moving a hand through
his jet black hair.
"Well, what if this is all a dream? What if it's not real? What if everyone
is faking it. Like the general. What if he's pretending to be mean. Maybe
he's really against I.P.M. too. Wouldn't destroying him be horrible then?"
asked Kaleb.
"This can't be a dream. In dreams and fake worlds people don't question
their existance, or if it is a real world or not. It'd be pretty hard to get
everyone in the world to fake anything. The general, what if he is really
an alien monster? What if I'm acting too? What if I'm pretending to be stupider
and weaker than I really am?" asked Mitsuhiro in reply.
"Are you?" challenged Kaleb, who was now looking closely at Mitsuhiro,
getting more and more worried. It seemed like his entire world was crumbling
to pieces beneath his very own feet and there was nothing he can do about
it.
"I can't tell you." said Mitsuhiro secretively.
"That means you are, otherwise you would have said no! Wait. Does that
mean that you knew that the general was trying to trick us into hating each
other all along? And you could have gotten better marks if you tried harder?"
questions the now extremely puzzled and weak American.
"Well, I did know he was trying to make us hate each other, but I had
to make him think I was stupider than I am, that way I will be able to get
away with a ton more things than I usually would. By the way, how did you
know about me wanting to destroyt his company?" Kaleb shrugged and replied.
"Well, it was a lucky guess, the way you've been acting, I started trying
to figure out things. Like the stuff that we bought in that store, and why
we went to the jail. Where will you go when you have blown this place up?"
Kaleb inquired.
"To outer-space, of course. Where else?" chuckled Mitsuhiro.
"So you aren't as hair-brained as I thought you were? You were acting
all along? You mean to say you're an intellectual, not some ditzy kid?"
wondered Kaleb out loud.
"Well I'm not as stupid as I've been pretending to be, but I am still
hair-brained and ditzy." chuckled Mitsuhiro. Kaleb gave a sigh, and looked
annoyed.
"Well, are you going to help me, you know, with the bomb?" asked
Mitsuhiro. Kaleb only shook his head slowly.
"I think that your gel has finally leaked into your brain! You darn well
know that I can't. I don't want to be responsible for the deaths of so many
lives."
