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[Chat with Anis <SSH>]
> Hey, Commander.
> ...Thanks.
> You won't get it. But...
> I'm thankful. Super, super, super thankful.
> I love you.
> Come back soon, okay?
===
I glanced at my phone and the sudden messages from Anis.
It was confusing since I was missing lots of context...
But I sent her a quick reply saying that I loved her too. Then I looked over at Rose. "Sorry about that. You were saying you wanted to spar?"
"That's right, Commander." Rose handed over a wooden sword she'd carved during our chat, and then picked up her own. "Nothing too rough. But I'd like to test my body's condition. And you're the only one around here who knows how to fight in close quarters, right?"
I took the offered wooden sword and said, "I don't mind. I'm curious too..." I shifted my weight, pointing the sword at her like a rapier. "Just how skilled was the Melee Squad? That's something I've been curious about since I heard about your team."
"Well. You're about to face the best of it. On guard, Commander."
After that, Rose vanished.
An attack beyond human perception. Something I shouldn't have been able to dodge or see coming.
But-
"What?"
-My sword blocked the attack to the back of my neck.
Brushing Rose's sword away, I hummed and said, "Okay. That's pretty ridiculous. I didn't even see you move."
Rose laughed, her eyes wide in astonishment. "You say that... but you're the one who blocked my attack. I pulled back on purpose and was going light, but..."
"No need for that." I looked at Rose and said, "You can go all out. My armor's pretty sturdy, you know?"
And apparently my body too.
...The probability of me being a genetically modified supersoldier was preeeeety much 99.99999% at this point considering how that was DEFINITELY autonomous ultra instinct just then.
Still, this was a good opportunity.
Rose looked doubtful, but she nodded. "If that's what you want, Commander. Then... en garde!"
===
[Play: Mighty Wind]
'...Is the commander really human?'
That was the first thought in Rose's mind as she blocked another counterattack aimed at her heart.
Once again, she leaped back to open the distance between herself and the commander.
And once again, he stood there, his wooden sword lowered and leaving himself completely open.
It was a seemingly suicidal demeanor. Even with that armor of his, to completely open yourself up for attack was something that Rose had never dared, even in her most flippant spars against her younger sister.
But it wasn't.
'Terrifying.'
It was a level of combat that Rose couldn't even imagine.
Moreover...
'There is no light. How can he see?'
The campfire had long faded. The moon was obscured by clouds.
Those azure eyes of his seemed to glow almost violet in the darkness. But they weren't looking at her. No, they were looking through her. As if he was staring at something she couldn't perceive.
'...Let's test it.'
For a Nikke, especially one like her, sight was unnecessary. Spacing could be measured by the blade. Positioning could be determined by sound. The 'feel' of battle itself was akin to a sixth sense.
But that shouldn't be the case for a human...
'At least, it shouldn't be...?'
This time, Rose didn't hold back.
Using her full speed, she moved and thrust the wooden sword in her left hand towards the commander's heart.
But-
'What?'
A sensation like her sword pierced through mist.
The moment her wooden sword touched his armor to strike it, the commander's entire body pivoted.
A single motion. Not a reaction, but a simultaneous action to her strike.
And then with that simultaneous pivot, the commander's own sword cut towards her exposed side.
Rose's eyes widened and she immediately jumped out of range, causing the commander's sword to cut through where she was just standing.
"Huh. It worked."
A casual response from the commander.
Rose let out a nervous laugh. "It worked... is that all you have to say?"
"Well." Commander Hoopa idly twirled his sword and said, "I can't see, so I have to make do with other senses."
'Other senses...'
Was it hearing? Touch?
Rose's younger sister always spouted about tales of ancient wandering swordsmen who had honed their other senses to the extreme.
'Maybe the commander is someone like that?'
Rose didn't know. But she could test.
Someone with heightened senses would overreact. So...
"HAH!"
A sudden shout. Attacking in the brief moment after the sound reached the commander's ears. And at the same time, a feint, so that the wind of her attack would hide her true slash.
Like that, Rose closed the gap again to attack.
For a brief moment, Rose thought it had worked.
The commander didn't move, and her blade reached his neck. A blow that would have been fatal if she had a proper sword in hand.
...But then he moved again. As if his body was a part of the sword she swung, he flowed with her attack until she overextended and then the sword in his right hand sprang out like a viper to poke her side.
An attack that Rose couldn't avoid. So she didn't. Accepting that she lost the clash, she allowed the attack to land.
It didn't hurt. Of course. The commander had nowhere near enough strength to harm her with a simple wooden sword.
But even so...
"I lost, huh?" Rose stared at the wooden sword clearly pressed to her side.
"...I guess?"
Rose stared at the commander only to see pure confusion on his face. Rose blinked and said, "...You cannot be serious."
"What?" The commander shrugged and said, "It's my first time trying it out. I've been fighting Raptures this whole time and never had a chance to do proper close quarters combat since I was deployed."
"...I give up."
"H-Huh?"
Rose tossed her sword to the side and flopped onto the ground, laughing. "You're CLEARLY a superhuman in disguise. If the United Forces of Humanity had warriors like this, why even bother with Nikkes? Just give them proper armor and blades and they'd wreak havoc."
"H-Hey now, I think that's overexaggerating-"
Rose sprang back to her feet and crossed her arms, puffing her cheeks. "It's not! Look at you! You're not even out of breath! I attacked at full speed! A level no human could POSSIBLY respond to let alone perceive! And you're not even out of breath! It's like... like I was hitting a rubber dummy! One that bounced back with every attack!"
Rather than fighting an opponent, it was like Rose was fighting herself! Just like those flexible bags on a cord to test reflexes, every hit she tried on the commander just came back at her FASTER.
"What even ARE you, Commander?"
"I'm just human. I think."
"You think?!"
An exasperated sigh echoed from nearby as a woman with a beret and crimson hair approached.
Rapi? That should be her name...
Rapi shook her head and said, "Commander. At this point, just save us all the trouble and call yourself superhuman."
"But I'm not superhuman. I'm pretty sure anyone could achieve this level. Eventually."
Another woman walked over. One with silver hair and a light blue uniform. Marian.
Marian sighed and said, "Commander... Saying anyone could achieve that level is like saying a room of monkeys could write Shakespeare's greatest works. And they could, theoretically. If they were immortal and had a thousand years."
One last woman walked over. One with a black outfit and dirty blonde twin-tails. Suri.
Suri nodded. "What they said, Commander. You're DEFINITELY superhuman. And if you're not, you're in the top 0.00000001%. Which is functionally the same thing."
"...Okay, fair."
Rapi walked over to Rose with an apologetic smile. "...You'll get used to our commander's antics."
Rose watched Marian scolding the commander and said, "Is he... always like this?"
Suri sighed. "Yeah. He keeps us on our toes for sure..."
Rose chuckled and then walked over to grab another beer bottle, cracking it open.
Seeing that, Suri grabbed one too.
As Rose took a swig of her beer, she watched the man she'd accepted as her new commander and said, "It's strange."
Rapi walked over to stand with Rose and said, "What is, Miss Rose?"
"Just Rose is fine, Rapi. And..." Rose hummed. "...His heart is clear."
Although Rose never bought into her younger sister's more eccentric ways and thoughts about swordsmanship, she did agree on one thing.
When you clashed blades, you could tell a lot about a person. Their temperament, their instincts, their tendencies...
A brief clash was all you needed to get a read on a person's core.
And as for their commander...
'Like a polished mirror.'
Throughout their entire clash, the commander had been colorless. His blade, empty- No, waiting to be filled.
And the moment that Rose committed to an attack, that was when HE attacked.
It was the unavoidable tenet of combat. When of equal skill the one who slashed first must be willing to be slashed in turn. The initiative could be seized if the opponent was calm but ready.
Still, it was something that should be impossible to perform consecutively. A move meant for an opening and decisive clash.
Not something that could be done like the commander had.
Humans were predictable. At least, they should be. As pattern seeking creatures, they would instinctively react to the same attack the same way.
...The SHOULD instinctively react to the same attack the same way. And even if they didn't, they would be primed to expect an attack that might not come.
And yet...
Rose threw her bottle at the commander.
Rapi's eyes widened. "Rose!"
Rose understood why Rapi was upset. It looked like an attack. Insubordination.
But...
"Oh, thanks Rose."
...While still in mid-conversation with Marian, the commander grabbed the bottle, took a swig, and tossed it back.
Rose caught the bottle and laughed. "Ridiculous. How can someone like that be still considered a human?"
She was certain of it now.
It wasn't a 'reflex.'
It wasn't 'reacting' to an attack or action that the commander did.
No, it was melding into the action. Intentions were mixed from the start, making her action and his the same.
There was an old saying that her younger sister liked to spout. Be like water.
Water could flow or crash. If poured into a cup, it would take the cup's form...
The commander was similar.
And yet, he went a step beyond that.
Not water. No, water took time to change shape.
Instead, he was space itself. The moment you moved, space was already moving away from you. When you occupied a space, the air inside that space moved away in the same instant.
In short...
"No sensory delay and autonomous movement." Rose laughed. "If my younger sister were here, she would be green with envy."
...The mythical 'one with the sword' state that were spoken about in the outlandish stories her dear younger sister adored. The ones about martial heroes who traversed murim and the jianghu...
'Well. I suppose some things are worth living for.'
Rose was curious.
She didn't know if her sister was still alive... and she had no intention of finding out.
The moment that Rose chose to end her life, their connection was severed.
If destiny happened to draw them together one way or another, she would address it then.
But for now...
'How far can our commander go?'
Rose wanted to see it.
In this world where machines, guns, and raw power had forced humanity underground...
Just how far could a man and his blade walk?