Mock Battles

Emile healed the man and sent him back in line. He didn't feel responsible for his plan to backstab his opponent and based on the eyes of his fellow soldiers as he returned, Emile was sure his punishment was already in effect.

He shouted once again, beckoning anyone to challenge Sam for one of the three positions he's creating, but no one was interested. Emile wasn't sure if Sam genuinely was the strongest soldier, their Gifts definitely play a major role in actual combat, but her ingenuity and ability to persevere made her more than qualified.

Emile dismissed her and she joined the panel of observers, eventually finding a spot next to Roy. With act one complete, Emile addressed the remaining soldiers:

"The Trial of Combat has concluded with Sam as the victor, but don't fret, I have more planned for you!"

'I have nothing planned'

'Trial of Combat sounded really cool though'

'Trial of… Smart People?'

'How can I measure intelligence?'

"Moving forward you will be competing in mock battles! The twelve who stepped forward prior will be team captains, they will choose two teammates to join them in a three versus three skirmish! And I want to make this clear now, I am judging you based off of your strategy and appropriate utilization of each of your team members Gifts! Winning is not the be all and end all!"

Emile stepped away and allowed for the soldiers to form their makeshift bands, he didn't want them to pick people one at a time; that gives the person who chooses first an unfair advantage.

Emile would rather they fight amongst each other and come to their own decisions on how to get people to join their team.

"I thought we were going back into the forest today." Roy said beside Emile.

"I forgot—" Emile shrugged, "about all of them. And considering Blood's condition even though he was with us, they need to be semi-self reliant. This is not a working military base, this is a wild outpost and I need them to understand that."

"What happened?" Sam suddenly asked, "To Blood, I mean."

"Even I'm not really sure. I don't know if it was from the miasma or from the gigantic spider he was fighting, but either way he has two parasites living inside of him and he appears to be in some sort of comatose state."

"I'm so sorry."

"It's not your fault, we were careless, something I'm trying to root out before it kills us all."

Amidst their conversation, a man approached the three of them. He saluted first to Emile and then turned and faced Sam:

"Will you join my team?" He asked.

"Huh?"

"Please—" he persisted, "assuming you're allowed to." He side-eyed Emile.

Then Sam, too, looked at Emile.

"You're the shield guy aren't you?" Emile asked.

He scratched the back of his head and awkwardly smiled, "Yeah."

'He's thinking outside the box at least'

'And he has the gall to follow through'

"Sam can join you—" Emile agreed, "if she'd like."

***

With the teams decided and the soldiers gathered, Emile randomly assigned the matches. He was quite proud of himself for coming up with this event on the spot, of course he still hadn't thought of a cool name yet, but the mock battles served multiple purposes.

First, it allowed him to preview the strategic capabilities of some of the soldiers, the twelve team captains that is.

Second, it also previewed the pre-existing relationships between the soldiers. Team captains who struggled to get two teammates struggled for a reason; either they're disliked, uncomfortable giving orders, or are simply too inexperienced for the role.

Third, the mock battles are the perfect way to analyze the soldiers' Gifts: what they are, how they work, the best instances to use them, and any possible combinations between them.

Furthermore, it will be evident who among the soldiers are giving it their all. Emile is not interested in relying on people who do not try their hardest to achieve their goals. If they won't try for themselves, why would they try for his sake?

The first teams approached and followed Willow's guidance. They traveled to their appropriate end of the battleground and finalized their plans.

Willow raised her hammer and counted down.

"Begin!"

Without a second to waste, a man raised his arm and pointed his finger down the battleground. He bent his finger back and flicked the air.

Immediately, pellets of air exploded forth and pelted the opposing team. He raised his other hand and began firing even more.

A wave of air bullets crashed into the opposing team, pushing them back inch by inch. Meanwhile, the man's two teammates hugged the edge of the battleground and ran towards their opponents.

Before they made it, however, an ear-shattering screech spread throughout the camp. The sound waves disrupted the air and obliterated the approaching air bullets, but the noise affected everyone equally.

All six soldiers, in addition to the crowd of people watching, pushed their fingers into their ears in an attempt to deafen the horrid noise.

He must have run out of breath because the screeching stopped, but everyone was left depleted and nauseous, except for the man responsible.

He bulldozed forward, charging the two people hugging the edge. He summoned his short sword and cut down the two soldiers, leaving behind shallow cuts in otherwise lethal parts of their body.

He quickly made it to the last man standing, but he was still dizzy from the ringing in his head. Incapacitated, the human banshee eliminated the opposing team in one swift counter attack.

And just like that, the first skirmish was over.