How To Survive A Calamity

"No need to be so stiff and formal, i already promised i won't bite. Haha!"

"Please, do overlook my manner of speaking — even if you say that, you can't exactly expect me not to be wary about a strange and mysterious individual sitting alone under the moon this late into the night when the rest of the academy should be asleep, now, could you?"

The man nodded readily, his eyes smiling equally.

"Yep, same could be said about you, but I'm not going around asking where you're coming from, or what you're doing loitering this late, am i?"

I gazed at him deeply, holding my expression before saying.

"So we both agree we both, what we're doing now seems suspicious to any outsider."

"I don't think any outsider would have any right or excuse, either, in this case." The man said.

He was still smiling as he responded at me and said

Experience new stories on empire

"I won't ask any questions."

I shrugged.

"What questions?"

The smile on his face curled longer and he tilted his chin.

"Indeed."

The red haired young man nodded in satisfaction and slowly gestured to the spot next to him on the bench with his hand.

"Now that we've gotten over the formalities — while you're here, why not sit next to me?"

"..."

I remained silent, hesitant.

Meanwhile, the man continued, seeming not in the very least affected by my behaviour.

He looked away from me and stared up at the big wide moon hanging over our heads in the starry night sky.

"There's a really stunning moon out tonight, it was also a shame i couldn't share the view with anyone. You just happened to pass by at the right moment. What do you say about keeping me company for just a little, hm?"

My clothes ruffled as my hand moved inside of my pocket and i oulled out my communicator, switched it on, and glanced at it's illuminated screen for a quick second before returning it.

I returned my gaze back to the mysterious young man and shook my head slowly.

"I'm sorry, but I'm kind of in a hurry."

The man's shoulders trembled as he chuckled again.

"Ah, that's too bad. Does it have to do with you being late for curfew?"

"I thought we weren't asking questions, sir?"

The red haired man burst into laughter the next moment, somehow finding what i said funny, for a while and held his stomach. After a short while, he sat up straight and swept his fingers through his bright red hair and strangely stared at me.

I shifted on my feet and took a step slightly to the side, preparing to turn around, then paused.

"You should return back to wherever you came too...sir. Wait, hold on—", i said, and hesitated slightly. "

"You're not lost are you?"

"..."

"You're not lost, rig—"

"I thought we weren't asking questions?"

Before i could repeat my incredulous question, the man quickly interrupted me and interjected sharply.

My right eye twitched slightly.

'The moon is stunning my ass...!'

I raised my fist to my mouth and coughed, clearing my throat.

"Ahem. Well... I'll take my leave now. It's unfortunate I can't admire the moon with you, i also think it 'looks great tonight'."

"...Why do i feel like there's some pitiful misunderstanding in the way you said that?" The red haired man said with a faltering smile and a low voice, as i continued to make my exit with my back turned against him.

Then i stopped and looked back over my shoulder.

"Oh, and — uh... Don't...get caught," i said, paused and considered, then added in a really small pitiful voice,

"Or do..."

What was i suppose to wish for for him in a case like this?!

That he shouldn't be found, or he should be 'found'!?

Aegis was a large place, 'situations' like this were common. Now, what wasn't, was the level of composure and 'dignity' someone like him had in such a case!

You just have to respect that composure in such an embarrassing crisis!

Should i just offer him some directions to the nearest security post or something...?

'It's none of my business! I'll just leave now!'

And so, my strange and suspicious encounter with the mysterious red haired man came to an end that night.

The next day, i woke up with the events of the prior night slightly at the back of my head.

"That old man, did he get caught in the end?"

The man's identity was unclear amd suspicious; he denied being an instructor, and neither did he look like he was cadet. His looks were certainly youthfulness and charming, enough so for even i to admit he could slap modern day celebrities and models of earth twice in the face, but him being a cadet felt a bit of along shot.

Then my closest assumption was that he was indeed an intruder.

'Some kind of thief perhaps?' i thought casually, but froze jn place.

"... then haven't i intentionally let an intruder run free through the walls of Aegis?"

Shit!

But nothing seemed to have happened yet even after all this time, perhaps i was just overthinking things. Or perhaps, he really got lost...

There wasn't enough time for that, the Practical Field Experience Exercise was literally the following day.n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

"I still have the day off." I murmured to myself as i stepped outside the bathroom in my rom.

Beads of bath water streamed down my body as i dried my hair absent mindedly.

"There's nothing much i can do at this point. Sigh, I've already done my best."

I still had the final day off today. For a moment, i considered hitting the training room immediately again, but decided against it. Even i needed to rest a bit before tomorrow.

And so i did.

For the first time jn a while since coming to Aegis, i spent the rest of the day laying around and sleeve in bed without the once visiting the training room.

I secluded myself inside my room, read a few books, and meditated a few times. Nonchalantly whiling away time.

My kind wandered a few times as a result. I even spent a few hours trying to deduce what the criteria of the Exercise would be, and considerable various scenarios.

And like that, time continued to pass until the day was over.

The next day.

The Practical Field Experience had begun.