Spirit Energy

After breakfast, the trio of friends arrived at the training area as instructed.

Upon arriving, they noticed it was filled with many large dome-shaped structures that seemed to be used for training purposes. The domes had glass ceilings and white metallic walls that were aesthetically pleasing.

"So these are the newbie assassins Alondo told me about..!" Suddenly exclaimed a cool deep voice from behind. "The girl looks like an annoying brat, the blonde kid looks dumb, and that last one is a twig..."

The friends turned to see a tall, muscular man in his early thirties. He wore dark sunglasses with a huge cigarette perched against his lips. He had a slightly shaved beard, black spiky hair with faded sides, and wore an army-green jacket with camouflage pants and big leather boots.

"Uh— who are you..?" Asked Sindy curiously.

Instead of answering, the man rudely placed his massive hand atop Nathan's head before he began squeezing it like a rubber ball.

"Hmm... So, you're the Mind Hero... You're tinier than I expected. You have a lack of muscle build-up, and you look poor in any form of physical activity..! Is Alondo sure he has the right person?"

"Ouch! You're hurting me!" Squealed Nathan in pain.

"Sorry, kid. You just seem pretty pathetic is all."

"Who is this monster?" Trembled Andrew.

"I don't know, but he better not try anything dumb," threatened Sindy.

The man then paused and puffed his huge cigarette before rudely releasing a cloud of smoke in Sindy's face.

*Cough* *Cough* "How could you do that?!" *Cough*

"Ahh, that's some good weed! Now, let me introduce myself to you newbies. My name is Brady! I'll be your trainer and team leader for your first few months here at AA. You can call me Instructor Brady, or Senpai Brady, or maybe just Senpai..! Whichever you like, but I personally like Senpai!"

"This gorilla is gonna be our teacher?!" Squealed Andrew.

Instructor Brady then quickly draped Andrew by the shirt and looked him in the eyes, "Who are you calling a gorilla, pipsqueak?! Call me that again, and I'll kill you!"

Andrew quickly nodded in submission before allowing the instructor to release him.

"Hahaha! I'm just messing with you! Now then, let me welcome you three to AA! As of today, I'll be responsible for you. I'll train you, take you on missions, feed you, and put you to sleep! You got that?"

"Yes, sir!" The three replied submissively.

"Okay, now let me see if I got your names right... It's Mindy, Andre, and Note, right?"

"No, I'm Sindy! Sindy Williams..."

"Yeah, and I'm not Andre... It's Andrew... Andrew Blake..."

"And I'm Nathan Styles..."

"Alright, whatever! I'm not good with names but follow me. It's time to train!"

The three were then led inside one of the dome-shaped structures they had seen earlier. It was much bigger than it looked from the outside.

"Okay, kids! This is what we like to call a Leisure Dome. It's a dome specifically designed for training assassins to their limits. It works by converting your body into Spiritual Energy which is then transferred inside the dome into a physical form. Due to this, any injuries or deaths received while inside will be nullified once you leave.

The three friends were left quite impressed. They liked the idea of training without fear of permanent injuries.

"This training will be harder than anything you've faced in your pathetic lives. Are you all ready?" Asked the Instructor.

"I feel like we're moving a little fast, but yeah! Let's do this!" Exclaimed Andrew.

"Also, uh... Instructor," began Sindy. "You mentioned something about Spiritual Energy. I take it that's the energy people in the Mind World use to cast these so-called Art Styles? I've been curious about it for a while now."

"Wow, Mindy! You're smart for a blonde!"

"Thanks, I guess? And it's Sindy..."

"Can we begin training already? I wanna kick some ass with my new superpowers!" Rejoiced, Andrew.

Their determination was very evident. They were surprisingly enjoying themselves to the point of almost treating things like a game. Little did they know that this chain of thought would soon be their downfall.

"Okay, I like your spunk, kids! So let's get started. Over here, we have something called a Spirit Detector. To use it, simply place your hand on the screen and let your Spiritual Energy flow. Once done, it should show what kind of Art Styles you'll be able to wield."

"I know Sindy already gave us a hint about what Spiritual Energy is, but do you mind going a little more in-depth? We have no basic knowledge of this stuff," addressed Nathan.

"Sure. Spiritual Energy, or SE for short, is the energy that allows us to wield powers known as Art Styles. Everyone is born with at least one type of SE."

Instructor Brady then paused to puff his cigar before continuing, "To break this down even further, Spiritual Energy is divided into three main classes or types. These include; The Natural Arts, The Light Arts, and The Dark Arts. These are then further subdivided into a variety of Sub Arts commonly referred to as Art Styles. Unlike SE, everyone is born with a minimum of two Sub Arts. But there are way too many Sub Arts for me to list. There are so many that no one knows them all."

"Then in terms of the three main classes, which is the most powerful?" Inquired Nathan.

"The Dark and Light Arts are naturally the most powerful, but they're also quite rare. Most people end up with only Sub Arts from the Natural Arts. However, any Sub Art can be dangerous. Even the most powerful Dark and Light Arts can be rivaled by some of the Natural Arts that exist. Hard work is what truly determines how powerful your Art Styles can become."

"Alright, I'm feeling this! So how do I channel my Spiritual Energy into the Spirit Detector?" Asked Andrew as he ran towards the machine.

"Just place your hand on the Spirit Detector and visualize yourself pumping SE into it. A tingly feeling will develop if you're doing it correctly."

"Alright, guys! Watch me walk out with a Rasengan or a Kamehameha!"

Andrew walked over to the Spirit Detector and placed his hand on its scanner. He then started channeling his Spirit Energy into the machine. Shortly after, his hand became tingly and hot as if it was soaking in hot water. The machine then buzzed, indicating that the scan was complete.

USER: ANDREW BLAKE

AGE: 16

SPIRIT ENERGY TYPE('S)/MAIN CLASS('S): DARK/NATURAL

MAIN SUB-ART/ART STYLE: DESTRUCTION ART (DARK ARTS)

SECONDARY SUB-ART/ART STYLE: WATER ART (NATURAL ARTS)

"I got Art Styles from both the Dark Arts and Natural Arts! Shit! This is hype!" Boasted Andrew.

"I'm not sure if I should feel impressed or concerned," began the Instructor. "Destruction Art is quite powerful but wielded by an idiot like you spells all kinds of trouble. Try not to kill yourself, kid."

"Yes, Senpai!"

"Mindy, you're up next!"

"Okay, and it's Sindy!"

Sindy cautiously approached the machine before placing her hand on the scanner. She wanted an Art Style that would allow her to care for both Nathan and Andrew. The scan then began as Sindy felt the same tingling that Andrew had felt before. Soon after, the detector revealed her results.

USER: SINDY WILLIAMS

AGE: 16

SPIRIT ENERGY TYPE('S)/MAIN CLASS('S): LIGHT/NATURAL

MAIN SUB-ART/ART STYLE: REGENERATION ART (LIGHT ARTS)

SECONDARY SUB-ART/ART STYLE: FIRE ART (NATURAL ARTS)

"So another rare... But it seems you're more of a healer even though you got massive firepower to back you up. You can fight both on the front lines and still be a valuable asset in the medical field. You're quite valuable! Well done, Mindy!"

"It's Sindy!!"

Knowing it was his turn, Nathan nervously approached the Spirit Detector. He needed powerful Art Styles to protect the people he cared about. He took a deep breath and placed his hand on the detector. For a moment, there was nothing but silence which made him a little worried. This was when something unexpected immediately happened.

*******ALERT!!!! ABNORMALITY FOUND!!! TRIPLE ART USER DETECTED!!!*******

USER: NATHAN STYLES

AGE: 16

SPIRIT ENERGY TYPE('S)/MAIN CLASS('S): DARK/NATURAL

MAIN SUB-ART/ART STYLE: DEATH ART (DARK ARTS)

SECONDARY SUB-ART/ART STYLE: LIGHTNING ART (NATURAL ARTS)

TERTIARY SUB-ART/ART STYLE: WIND ART (NATURAL ARTS)

"Woah!!! A Triple Art User and an Abnormality?!" Shouted Instructor Brady in shock. I can understand the Triple Arts, but why exactly is it an abnormality..?"

"W-what is it?!" Panicked Nathan.

"Nathan, you're a Triple Art User! Very few people are lucky enough to be born with the ability to wield three different Art Styles! If a Triple Art User manages to master all three of their Sub-Arts, they usually become much more powerful than a regular Double Art User. I guess you aren't the Mind Hero for no reason..."

"So what does this all mean..?"

"It means you're damn rare! To show you how rare it is, there are almost 3000 assassins in AA, and only one of them is a Triple Art User."

"So Nathan's godly compared to everyone else?" Asked Andrew sarcastically.

Instructor Brady slowly puffed his cigar to ease his excitement, "Well, it depends on how you look at it. From my perspective, it's more of a curse than a blessing. Spirit Energy should be able to flow in equilibrium within one's body at a 1:1 ratio. However, the addition of a third Art Style disrupts that flow completely. The energy is spread randomly inside that person rather than becoming equalized like a regular Double Art user."

"Are you saying it will make me unstable..?" Asked Nathan curiously.

"Sort of. The different energies inside you will fight for dominance. To make it worse, you wield the Death Art, Nathan. Death Art is one of the more powerful Dark Arts. I'd say it's ranked #2 just under the Catastrophic Art. An Art Style like that is already hard enough to control. Even a simple Double Art user would struggle to keep it under control. Its nature is just that aggressive."

The images of what had happened between the wolf-like creature and Nathan flooded Sindy's mind. Just the power of that dark energy added to a piece of wood was enough to send a massive Demon Beast hurling through five trees. Not to mention, Nathan's hand was injured by the force.

"So what's he going to have to do then..?" She asked worriedly.

"Hard to say, but he will have to find a method to control his rampant SE to keep them in equilibrium. As for now, I forbid you from using your Death Art, Nathan. It will probably be the most difficult to control. As it stands, you're nothing more than a walking time bomb waiting to go off. Practice only your Lightning and Wind Arts to perfection until told otherwise."

"Wait, I know you said that it was more a curse than a blessing but is it really that bad..?" Murmured Nathan.

"No more questions, kid! Rely on that power only if you intend to hurt those around you!"

The Instructor's words echoed through Nathan's head. The last thing he wanted was to hurt any of his friends. Due to this, he agreed he would not activate his Death Art, no matter the situation.

However, the truth was that Instructor Brady had picked up on something within his Death Art. Death Art was truly a powerful Art Style, but he would never tell someone not to use it under normal circumstances. Nathan's Death Art seemed abnormal and extremely sinister. He wasn't quite sure why, but there was something that made it feel much more aggressive than normal.

"Okay, I won't lie. I like you kids. You're all gifted and contain enormous amounts of potential. Nathan, don't worry too much about your Death Art. I'm sure someday you'll be able to use it freely without hesitation. Until that day comes, work hard to achieve it."

"Yes, sir! I'll do my best!"

"I'd rather you call me Senpai, but sure. I won't take it easy on any of you. You will train twelve hours a day for two months. You'll be given a test mission after the first month to get familiar with the Mind World then your first real mission will be assigned once your training is over! Your training begins now!"

The days then passed by slowly. Each day the Instructor placed them under extreme physical and mental training to increase muscle build-up, stamina, and confidence. He taught them how to fight and defend themselves with and without weapons in case of numerous situations. He even ran training missions in the form of virtual simulations to increase awareness.

Somedays, he made them do friendly spars with one another, while other days, he fought them himself. Their speed, quick thinking, and teamwork became second nature. He taught them the basics of controlling Spiritual Energy and even showed them how to create different variations of attacks and moves from their Art Styles which would be vital during missions.

After the first month, they were looking much better than before, ready to tackle their very first test mission.