A Game of Knives. [private]

[Nyla Korvich]

834 WORDS

@juliet

BY MINNIE OF GS

SOMETIMES CARRYING ON,

Narrowly, Nyla managed to rouse herself from her slumber during the early hours of the morning; her alarm clock having been her solace in the instance. Upon awakening, the fox shifter managed to dress herself accordingly in her TRS uniform that possessed minor altercations for the sake of her bushy tail. Minutes were spent gazing in the mirror, adjusting the various features of the coat. Once pleased with the appearance of her coat, the female hunter tied her hair back into a simple ponytail with some red ribbon. Her daggers were shortly added, being adjusted until the young woman was satisfied with their locations; caution was required in case a terror bothered her walk. After making a quick few slices of toast and hastily devouring the delicious breakfast, she left home in order to travel towards the TRS training center.

The gymnasium at the TRS headquarters always seemed to possess the correct materials for her solo training unlike the small house that belonged to her uncle and aunt; they were probably unaware of the definition of exercise. The routine began with the usual walk in the brisk morning weather, a red backpack from her school years accompanying her. Slush and puddles covered the streets and sidewalks due to the steady arrival of spring. The air itself had grown warmer, making the walk comfortable enough without her temperature regulating bracelet or a heavy jacket. A single interruption arrived with her walk in order to purchase a large coffee at a cafe that she enjoyed immensely. The remainder was spent in a wondrous comfort as the warmth radiated from her cup, tickling her slender fingers. Upon arrival at the headquarters, a soft smile touched Nyla's lips as she began to walk around the headquarters itself and towards the training building.

Light poured from the windows in the darkness, guiding the young shifter towards the training center. There was a sense of nostalgia as drew closer to the building. Thoughts of days spent in class and being taught by her wonderful mentor caused the smile to broaden. As the distance between herself and building was closed, the fox shifter's ears began to subtly twitch in search of sound. From what Nyla was capable of hearing, there were few occupants inside the building and were probable to merely be cleaning staff based on presumption. Carefully, the blonde pushed open the entrance doors, only pausing a moment to allow her turquoise eyes to adjust to the different lighting. The hallways were navigated quickly, Nyla providing a greeting towards those she was familiar with. When she finally reached the gymnasium doors, the smile broadened a hint more as her fair coloured hand pushed open the door.

Upon entry, her eyes scrutinized the location to make certain that there were no early morning apprenticing classes. What she found was pleasing considering the gymnasium was empty, the various students had probably retired to their dorms many hours before her arrival. The female shifter entered, walking towards the bleachers to set her backpack down, her coffee joining the bag after a the hunter took a sip. Warm, bitter liquid covered her tongue and trailed down her throat, the caffeine assisting in waking her body. The habit was unhealthy, but Nyla already found coffee to be an addictive morning beverage on days when she was required to awaken early. A few moments were taken to remove her TRS coat, draping the article of clothing over the red backpack. Beneath she wore a simple black tank top that she oftentimes wore during training.

A brief moment was taken to perform some quick stretches for her arms, shoulder, and legs before heading towards the equipment room. The door was slowly open, the fox shifter's hand quick to flick the light switch for the room, almost as though it had transformed into nature. Various shelves that stored training weaponry, targets and some smaller pieces of exercise equipment lined a majority of the walls. Larger pieces of equipment occupied space on the floor, creating a disorganized maze due to the apprentices hastily cleaning the gym for the next class. A sigh escaped the blonde's lips as she weaved easily through the mild mess to fetch a wooden target board with various slits on the flat surface and several red circles. The target board was old, threatening to give anybody who touched it a nasty splinter should they not maintain caution. Nyla was hasty the grab it, the target board's weight not being a problem for the fit young shifter.

With a few strides from her long legs, she excited the equipment room with the target board. She carried it to the furthest corner in order to be courteous to anybody else who desired to use the gymnasium during the morning hours. Once she occupied her favored corner, the fox shifter began working on setting up the oak wood target board with plans to practice her knife throwing. From years of practice, her aim had grown incredibly sharp, but practice remained necessary nonetheless.

- - is a superhuman achievement.

[Deleted]

Admittedly, Juliet's routine was slightly bit different in the morning. That is to say, the early morning to her was some time before the sun had risen, when the sky was nearly black and streetlamps still saw fit to cast their glow on the way to the Terror Response Syndicate's main building. One could say it was her responsibility to emerge from bed long before the citizens of Lorsette even considered getting up from their rest, and similarly, it was her duty to sleep only after everyone else had done so. The ever-vigilant Juliet thus had only a small time window to get the things she needed to do complete. Like clockwork, down to the seconds every day, she had a shower, cooked a meal, brushed her teeth and donned her uniform before rushing out the door. 

It was a surprisingly mundane experience for someone who had earned the rank of General, though Juliet was often reminded of her position and responsibilities as soon as she entered the building belonging to the Syndicate. Her distinct height and unmistakable long uniform coat made it easy for those in the TRS to recognize Juliet, even if the three red stars on her uniform didn't immediately indicate who she was. With that, it usually meant people would stop to and salute the diminutive general, though with proper decorum she wasn't obligated to salute back. Rather, if she tried to do that, it would take her the rest of the day to greet everyone.

However, the sun had only just begun to clear the horizon when she arrived, and so today she didn't feel compelled to beeline for the command center as she typically did. Instead, an impromptu survey of the facilities was in order - though she hadn't really ordered it in any capacity. No, this was for the sake of killing time, more or less, and so she took a roundabout path through the headquarters only to exit through one of the side entrances. Heading towards the training building, she burst through the doors with her usual bravado, surprising the staff who had actually been attending to the reception desk. 

So there were people using the gym at that time. Interesting. Those were the diligent types Juliet liked, and she'd considered how amusing it might be if the general suddenly showed up to creep on them doing their exercises. Naturally, when she entered, a number of eyes immediately settled on her with surprise - but many of them simply hadn't noticed. Choosing one at random, she decided to approach the one furthest away from her - the shifter in the corner, who'd removed her coat and was wearing a simple black tank top. It wasn't likely that she would catch Nyla unaware of her approach simply due to the other woman's heightened senses, but perhaps she'd react in a way that would tickle Juliet's funny bone.

"Hmm? What do we have here?"

A wide grin on her face, she stopped a few meters short of Nyla just so she wouldn't interrupt the throwing in progress.

Nyla Korvich

[Nyla Korvich]

660 WORDS

@juliet

BY MINNIE OF GS

SOMETIMES CARRYING ON,

Once the wooden board was properly set up, people began filtering into the gym with intentions of an early morning training session, but Nyla ignored them. Instead, she performed a quick stretching of her arms and shoulders to make certain the muscles were prepared for the coming task. As she stretched, her turquoise eyes remained lock on the red circles of the wooden board, trailing around them as she analyzed the numerous deep slits into the wooden material. The blonde shifter tightened her ponytail while she positioned herself to be enough distance away from the board and where she would be throwing. Once the distance was suitable, a few deep breaths were taken to relax Nyla's muscles as her pale hand reached for one of the throwing knives. Automatically, her feet adjusted their position as the knife was carefully adjusted so her thumb remained on top while the remainder of her fingers below.

There were approaching steps that caused the shifter's ears to twitch subtly in reaction to the noise. With knowledge that the gymnasium was safe, Nyla managed to ignore the noises as her body relaxed again. After a final extensive breath was taken while the blonde's arm went back before swiftly throwing the knife with the required moderate strength. As expected, the knife twirled in the air, end over end, before landing with a thunk on the edge of the red center circle. For a majority of people, the aim was magnificent and would definitely be severe and perhaps lethal if not properly handled. Alas, the dexterity in the throw remained inadequate for the young shifter who immediately grabbed another knife for a second attempt. Similar steps were followed with minor adjustments to the aim, which allowed Nyla to inch closer to the middle circle.

Gradually, the throwing speed was increased with pauses being extinguished as the blonde's practice turned more intense. Each thrown knife managed to hit the marker with a smooth precision until the number of knives dwindled. When her entire arsenal of throwing knives were transferred from her possession to the wooden board, the shifter straightened. Her eyes were hasty in analysis, noticing that all her knives landed within the outer ring, most orbiting the pure red center circle. The display was incredible to a majority of standards, but Nyla was keen on narrowing her aim. She took a few steps closer as she surveyed her surroundings for ceasing when she noticed the individual who had been observing her. The appearance, as to most hunters, was familiar as the shifter took a few moments to analyse the blonde woman who had scrutinized her throwing session.

The long coat accompanied by the trio of red stars confirmed the woman's identity as Nyla stood stalk still with mild shock. Being observed by a high ranking individual was deemed as an honor and the hunter found herself mildly horrified at the display that was merely average or below in her opinion. Blame could be placed on her own desire to wake incredibly early or on the fact they remained the first throws of the day, but Nyla refused to state those irresponsible words.

"Hello, ma'am," Nyla began, attempting a professional air. "My apologies, I did not think the general would be watching me."

Friendly tones remained in the shifter's voice, alongside confidence in the words she stated smoothly. Fetching the knives bound in the board were forgotten a moment while Nyla turned fully to face her general. Her feet were snapped together as she squared her shoulders to make professional social conduct. Patiently, the young woman awaited for the response the general may provide while maintaining an air of confidence as she relaxed her stance. Admittedly, there were nervous emotions churning in her gut over the concept of the highest rank in the hunting division observing her. Breathing was forced into extensive breaths, kept steady despite the slight increase in heart rate from the activity and startling discovery.

- - is a superhuman achievement.