My pain is real!

Junpei didn't react. Their was only the sound of her gun's hammer drawing back, and slamming forward. The explosion of Reishi smashed into the ground with great force. Sending up debris and smoke, in a flash of light. Junpei freed herself from Ryder and was bolting down the lane with superhuman speed. She was soon far enough that, she was beyond normal sight. She headed into the city, and began looking her senses were beyond the normal parameters of her perception. She leaped from building to building, using her ribbons as a spear to connect to buildings just out of her reach. She'd use them to climb up the sides and move to the rooftop. A loud cry alerted her to first instinct. The howl a hollow gives off just as it arrives in the human world. She spun on the spot and fired an arcing bullet that then weaved between buildings before striking the hollow in the mask with keen precision. It dissolved into nothing. She looked down at her smoking gun and her eyes coming into focus. So this was it. Who she really was. A marksman of supernatural proportions. There was no way she could just run off and do this.

She owed it to her father, however, to destroy as many as she could. Until none survived. Her mind began to calculate how she could dissolve from the face of the company, but return as she pleased. She holstered her guns, and sat at the edge of the building. She could ghost the company back into her mother's sight, making sure it was run by the family still. But she'd probably leave the administrative details to her board of directors. That way she could still move about freely, without drawing unneeded attention. She sighed. This folly would be her new life, and for now she would learn to survive in it. She looked at her hand, bruised by the recoil of her own gun. Her lifestyle had weakened her body this much? She could fire a .45 Desert Eagle with a single hand, but this gun hurt her so easily. Another Howl, and instinctually she locked onto the spiritual pressure. She grabbed her gun and fired another shot. She felt it shift its coarse a few times, and then...poof. The spiritual pressure vanished. She dropped the gun this time. She grabbed her hand and cringed in pain. That one broke her wrist. She couldn't keep this up. To think she used to slay hundreds of Hollows in the span of a couple days, and now...two shots and she broke her own wrist. She laid down on the cold roof, tired. What could she even do now?

Wednesday morning, 11 o’clock, a rather convenient time for university to start, for it allowed to sleep in and still get a hearty breakfast including a delicious bowl of cereal and/or just coffee. Despite that lush amount of free time though, Weylin seemed as if he had slept barely more than four hours, big bags under his eyes telling a story of nightly activities. Very much like a walking corpse the young man slowly made his way across the grassy field towards the main entrance, bed hair and wrongly buttoned shirt included. With a sigh the student shifted his bag from one shoulder onto the other, while he walked past different crowds of people who were obviously enjoying the sunny, but fresh, day. “You are late.”A medium-size girl with a hime-cut appeared next to the whitehead, and regardless of her rude demeanor she gave the male a coffee. Her pale skin went well with the jet black hair, and although she was obviously the bookworm type her get up did not fail to emphasize that she too was a woman with certain attributes.”Good morning, Weylin. How nice to see you on this pleasant day, it is always a joy to see your smiling face.”After having thrown out how he would like to be greeted in the future, the Quincy took the hot brew and after a sip he was beginning to feel rejuvenated. Pointing his long index finger at the woman, who was smoothing different parts of her uniform, he spoke up once more: ”You know, I appreciate the coffee, Kanoe, but it would also make my day if you would not pick on me. How about greeting me the American way? With a hug and a smile.” The Japanese gave him a stern glance:”Order your clothing, comb your hair and be on time and you will stop hearing some complaints.” The woman turned around and started to walk towards the room where their next lesson would be held. ”What do you mean “Stop hearing some complaints”? Come on, I am not that bad!”

Weylin matched her pace and with an excellent display of dexterity he managed to re-button his shirt without spilling coffee or turning half naked in the process. Side by side the strange couple of study-buddies entered a big room which was designed to grant seated places to about five-hundred people. ”Today’s attendance is overwhelming,” Weylin said sarcastically, after he had scanned the room and guessed the amount of people to about twenty-five, including Kanoe and himself. Clearly unimpressed by the Germans approach towards the situation the Japanese made her way up the stairs to grab a seat in the right wing, which would grant her a clear view upon the professor and the entrance. ”So what are we here for today?” the Quincy inquired while staring out of the window where a group of girls went by. “Social studies - a discussion of the relationships between the United States and Japan, seriously how DO you manage to score so high on exams?” Finishing his coffee the young man answered with a cheerful smile: ”It is all thanks to Kanoe-dono’s preparations.”Clearly the girl liked to be flattered, for a fine red tone appeared on her cheeks, though she tried to hide it by making wild waving motions with her right hand, gesturing towards the entrance. Although there were barely more than fifty people present, a woman who obviously did not belong to neither nor students made her way up front to the speaker’s position. Readying herself she gave what Weylin interpreted as a stern glance, it was then that the Quincy leaned forward in his chair. He gave a puzzled look, for he felt that something was unexpected and peculiar yet familiar about that lady. “Are you done ogling her?””I beg your pardon?” Honestly oblivious how absorbed he must have seemed the student leaned back and faced his companion, who seemed rather displeased.”This is going to be a two hour lecture; you can stare at her during that time, but please do not be so blunt and obvious about it.” Weylin sighed: ”Would it help if I truthfully told you that I was not checking her out?”Kanoe remained silent and motioned towards the stage.

Striding professionally into the room to the 'click, click, click' of her dress shoes, First Lieutenant Barrie Hughes was a sight to be hold. Pale blonde hair fell down to her shoulders in waves, contrasting sharply against her navy blue officer's dress uniform. The stiff fabric was cut to accommodate her curves as best they could without becoming too 'obscene,' causing the chest part to swell out in a single piece before tucking back in snugly against her thin waist, only for the skirt to flare out once more at her hips. As she reached the dais, Ryder made a cursory scan of the attending students, determining that many had no doubt chosen to skip today on her account. Among the students there was one that caught her eye, however. A boy with peculiar white hair, who gave her a tingling deep inside... not dissimilar to what she felt when encountering other people with spiritual power.

The first half hour Weylin actually tried to pay attention to the details of the speech the woman made, slowly though his mind went adrift towards a happier place. The sound of her voice was replaced by the serene noise of waves crashing onto a shore; seagulls were yelling and completing the picture of a peaceful beach. Sighing the young man imagined the whole class at this holiday paradise, Kanoe would be wearing a conservative one-piece-swimsuit, which would only nurture her image of a tsundere, while girl in the last row, who was known for her devious outfit, might even wear something as dashing as a micro-bikini.

The student began to scan his tutor more closely. She was fairly tall with pale skin and light hair greenish eyes – actually quite charming. Her bust was a force to be reckoned, even now while being held in check by a military uniform it was a definite eye-catcher, which made the German imagine a happier time and place. What would she wear? Maybe a tight one-piece to emphasize her well trained figure and great chest? Or rather a bikini, to show that she was not only a soldier, but also a woman…close observations found out that her legs were indeed intriguingly long.

Weylin shook his head, to return into the reality of the auditorium – had somebody realized that his mind had gone astray? No, it seemed all when he had left. The Quincy side of the young man spoke up though, and demanded further investigation of the eerie feeling; the drive to seek information was shared by a totally different part of the student, but hushed to allow for concentration. Weylin was almost sure that the woman up front emitted spiritual pressure; not enough to send weak minds running, but recognizable enough to assume that she was aware of it. The Quincy closed his eyes and secretly tried to decipher the pattern of her spirit, which felt strangely familiar, but after a minute or so he called it quits and flung his arms into the air. This provoked Kanoe to punch the man into his side, to remind him to remain silent. With a subtle “UFF” Weylin flinched and rubbed his ribs. It did not so much hurt his body, but maybe Kanoe would feel sorry for it and finally cut him some slack, or so he thought, when she hit him a second time. After a look at the time the student let go of the soothing beach noises that had made his mind so tranquil and started to pay attention to the lecturer’s explanations. He speech had gotten more slowly, as if she was about to summarize and draw a conclusion.

Weylin shook his head, to return into the reality of the auditorium – had somebody realized that his mind had gone astray? No, it seemed all when he had left. The Quincy side of the young man spoke up though, and demanded further investigation of the eerie feeling; the drive to seek information was shared by a totally different part of the student, but hushed to allow for concentration. Weylin was almost sure that the woman up front emitted spiritual pressure; not enough to send weak minds running, but recognizable enough to assume that she was aware of it. The Quincy closed his eyes and secretly tried to decipher the pattern of her spirit, which felt strangely familiar, but after a minute or so he called it quits and flung his arms into the air. This provoked Kanoe to punch the man into his side, to remind him to remain silent. With a subtle “UFF” Weylin flinched and rubbed his ribs. It did not so much hurt his body, but maybe Kanoe would feel sorry for it and finally cut him some slack, or so he thought, when she hit him a second time. After a look at the time the student let go of the soothing beach noises that had made his mind so tranquil and started to pay attention to the lecturer’s explanations. He speech had gotten more slowly, as if she was about to summarize and draw a conclusion.

After a long, drawn out lecture consisting of three parts measured in thirty minutes each, Ryder was growing weary of talking, and had said all that she had to say. For the first thirty minutes, she had covered the relations between Japan and the United States prior to World War Two, for the second, she had discussed the immediate post-war relationship during Japans reconstruction, and finally, she had finished her lecture with thirty minutes discussing the build-up to, and current relations.

"Well, I know this class usually runs two hours, but that's all I have to say," answered Ryder with a forced smile, her voice slightly weakened after the lecture. "If any of you have any questions, or things you'd like to discuss with me, you're welcome to come speak with me about whatever you wish. Class dismissed." Those words complete, Ryder watched on as the class began to disperse, most of them no doubt grateful to finally be done listening to the 'dumb blonde' 'all boobs and no brain' 'fucking american soldier' boring foreigner talk about shit she 'didn't really understand.' Of course, a few did stay, but if she had to guess Ryder would have assumed they were mostly perverts.

It seemed as if that military chick had spoken for ages when she finally rounded up her lesson. ”Man, I thought this would never cease…” Weylin started to stretch his upper body and then began to round up his papers. Most of them had been adorned and decorated by stylish patterns or chibi-anime-figures. ”Look Kanoe-chan, no matter in which order one sorts my papers, there is always a story to be had, thanks to my unique drawing abilities! This one is me, that one is you – yes, you are wearing a bikini – and over there is a sea monster.” The girl didn’t even blink at her fellow student but handed him her notebook. “I am assuming that you did not take too many notes. Here are mine. Return them by tomorrow to me.” The Quincy raised his hand as if to salute his darling-dear, but only got playfully smacked to the face with the papers. ”Yare, yare…” Weylin imitated one of the more popular anime characters he knew. ”So, are we going to the cafeteria, as always? Hana from two rows below told me that they would be selling the bread-sweet-thingies you like so much.” The Japanese lady walked right by and only turned towards him for a moment:”There is a meeting for the student council. You are on your own now.” She took another two steps.”I will be done in two hours. Safe me a bread.” The German gave her a cheerful smile and a ‘thumbs up’; he then grabbed his bag and debated what he should do in two hours time. He neither felt like studying, nor like eating – should he go to the library and sleep, or rather to the roof?

Weylins gaze scanned the room to see who was left, with whom he could spend some free time, but besides people who could not stand him, there was only the soldier-woman left. The soldier-woman with the spiritual pressure that easily rivaled, if not surpassed, his own. ”Well…do I really want to get myself into this? It could be possibly messy…that would not be were hedonistic, would it?...on the other hand: she is a hottie. Hmmm,” the Quincy rubbed his chin: ”Let’s try something new and decide this using utilitarianism! So…how did this go again? If I remember correctly, the moral worth is to be determined solely by its usefulness in maximizing utility and minimizing negative things as summed among all beings. What good could it do me: I could get to know another powerful being, I could get a date with a beautiful woman…maybe she is even nice, beneath that stoic exterior. Now for the bad side: she might be after my head our out to kill me in any way, shape or form. She might just play me to get a free coffee. Well if we sum this up we get three pluses and two minuses. Consequentialism is lovely, isn’t it?”

Weylin was very well aware of the fact that his list was more than shabby but he had decided midway that he was going to talk to the woman anyway, so he just made up an excuse to get the result he wanted. Taking one step at a time, checking once again whether his shirt was correctly buttoned and his shoes tied, the student made his way down the aisle. The soldier seemed about ready wrapping up her stuff, when the Quincy approached. ”Good morning ma’am,” he greeted her with a warm and lovely smiled that could even stop Kanoe from hitting him: ”My name is Weylin von Wolfenstein, and I must say I found your speech most interesting. In general you made a very dedicated impression on me; I was impressed by your…strong spirit.” The young man reached out his hand, hoping that she would shake it: ”Could I invite you to a coffee, tea or something completely different?”Once again the Quincy assessed the woman, tried and succeeded in not staring at her awe-striking chest, but reached out mentally to perceive the flow of her Reiatsu. This could get ugly if she is out for blood..-Shut up, conscience, it is too late for that anyways. Let’s just hope she takes a liking and Fortuna smiles upon us. Are you being serious? This mental battle between Weylin and his self was only interrupted by the soldiers answer.

As she'd taught her lesson, Ryder's eyes had continued to dart upwards into the seats, to that peculiar boy with the white hair who had given her such a peculiar vibe. The more she'd pondered the situation, and allowed her mind to work it over, the more convinced she became that this boy had to be spiritually aware. Whether he were an empowered human like Arazia had been, or a fellow Quincy she couldn't know, but this sense in the back of her mind could mean nothing else.

When at last she had finished her lecture, and began packing her notes and other various teaching aids away, Ryder took the opportunity to look up at him once more, ensuring to lock his face in her mind for later use. The boy who was up there flirting with some japanese girl, showing her something he had before taking what the Marine could only guess were the young lady's notes, bore spiritual power to some degree, and she had to find out just what he had, and if he knew anything. This Quincy hunt she had undertaken was quickly wearing the woman thin. She could only hope that sooner or later she would at last unearth the mythical 'Quincy Council' of which her grandfather had spoken.

Even as she was studying the pair, however, the first of a surprising few students arrived to talk with her and forced the woman to break away from her mark. From what she'd seen during class, none of the students had appeared particularly interested, most of them just drivelling notes away like robots, or drawing pictures to seem like they had been taking notes, but there were a fair number here with sincere questions. Sure there were several perverts (one of them even a girl!) among them, but they all seemed to have some measure of genuine interest in the subject at hand.

For the next fifteen minutes, Ryder answered questions, ignoring the perverted eyes and questions and the one hand that tried to snatch and grab. By the time she had at last finished, and was completing the preparations she'd begun earlier, she was approached by one student who'd lurked in the background, no doubt in an attempt to ambush her. At his 'good morning,' Ryder looked up to the clock, taking note of the actual time and smiled back in greeting, listening to him offer his name, CLEARLY german (and far more appropriate to his appearance), and bullshit her before offering his hand and inviting her to go out with him.

"Guten tag, herr von Wolfenstein," she replied, smiling softly as she pointed at the clock above them, "Es ist zwölf Uhr fünfundvierzig." In preparation for an anticipated stationing in Germany, Ryder had taken German as her highschool foreign language, and tried to keep herself fairly well brushed up in it. At this point her German was still stronger than her Japanese, though the balance was shifting over time. "Now, if you'll cut the bullshit and speak openly and plainly, I suppose we could go grab something to munch on."

~What luck...~ she found herself thinking to herself, though she was sure the boy was already visualizing her naked. It's just what they did. [i]~Here I thought I'd have to track this kid down, and he came to me. I'd better keep my guard up though, boy thinks he can feed me some bullshit and get away with it. There's a chance he might not be as friendly as he appears. Hopefully I won't have to kill a bitch today.~[I] During her time in Afghanistan Ryder had killed enough men for several lifetimes, but would never hesitate to kill again if circumstances demanded.

It took quite a while for the military representative to become unoccupied again, for quite a lot of male listeners had ambushed her in an attempt to charge headway into southern territory – or some like that. To white-haired boy in the background it seemed as if the soldier kept a professional distance and brushed all their questions and comments off as the fruitless tries of perverts trying to score. I am not quite sure, whether this is going to be worth it – for it most certainly will not be easy. After a little while everybody had been defeated, so Weylin carefully made his way around the crushed male spirits and approached the tall one. The woman did not seem pleased at all when Weylin did so, yet she still took time to look at the clock to rub in the fact that the Quincy did not have much use for exact timeframes. The student gave a slight smile as a reply, and was pleasantly surprised when he was corrected in German. ”Oh, werte Frau,” he started, hailing from a noble family after all, but when he tried to speak up once more he was cut down by Hughes, who then rather clearly, and not unlike a true German, came straight to the point. While the choice of words was rather plumb and her grammar poor she had very clear pronunciation ”Wie sie wuenschen.” Taking the lead and heading towards the cafeteria Weylin’s mind went into overdrive. The lady would have never agreed to meet him this easily if she too had not noticed the sensation. This made things easier, but also all the more dangerous, for the Quincy could clearly sense that she was ahead of him in regards of pure spiritual power. It would not be the first time, but I’d rather not fight today. Abruptly the German came halted his advances: ”Coffee, Tea, Soda, what do you desire?” Purposefully Weylin kept talking German and used a rather polite and ancient form, once the woman had chosen her beverage of choice von Wolfenstein proceeded to buy it and then made way towards the roof, all the while trying to foresee the next moves – was she in for a talk, or for some action? Was this going to be a lovely chat or an interrogation, maybe a fight for survival? The Quincy let out a sigh; meeting beings with spiritual pressure always involved stress, so that the opportunity to gain an ally in this world full of monsters was overshadowed by the consequences of having to scam through a crowd of people who all regarded themselves as the most special beings on earth. Judging from her appearance this particular specimen was rather full of herself, though this could merely be the years of military service who took a toll on her behavior during off-work time.

”So, kleine Lady, was kann ich fuer sie tun?” They had reached the roof and after the door had been carefully closed Weylin had started to lean against the fence, facing the woman and having nothing but thin air behind him. The drink she had chosen he simply gave to her, holding his can of cold green tea in his left.”Is it not lovely, to meet a similar soul in this god forsaken world?” His smile was lackadaisical and a clear contrast to his grave words: ”Since you seem to be an admirer of bluntness I will get right to it: I am not available for a fight at this moment.” The German started to open the buttons on his right sleeve and revealed a remarkable piece of craftsmanship, which was hanging from his wrist: a silver cross named Elyse. ” I am a Quincy, pleasure to meet you. As you have deducted correctly earlier, I am indeed from Germany, my family is one of the oldest clans in Europe when it comes to the business of Hollow extermination. I can tell that you are neither a Shinigami, nor simply spiritually gifted for those kind of people feel differently.” With a satisfying sound the can of tea opened and Weylin was able to take a refreshing zip, giving his companion the time to introduce herself properly. ”Hmm…So what shall we make of this meeting, Fraulein?” The student was still smiling pleasantly, but there was a spark of interest in his eyes, as well as a trace of jest in the way he addressed the lieutenant. Based on her performance so far, she should not be able to get me for this one…Let’s hope I haven’t walked into the beasts den as well.

As the boy replied, Ryder finished packing her things, and slung the bag over her shoulder, following as the young man led her presumably towards the caffeteria. As they went, the woman took advantage of the time in close proximity to try to get a better feel of his Reiatsu, it certainly had a comforting similarity to her own, though from what little she could tell, it seemed to be somewhat weaker, though to what degree she couldn't tell.

"I'll take coffee please, black" she informed the woman at the counter in Japanese, while grabbing a handful of sugar packets from the dispenser. Before she had a chance to pay, however, the boy took the initiative and dumped several hundred yen onto the counter and covered the cost. ~Kid knows his manners and procedure, but he's not the best at reading people~ she acknowledged in her mind, allowing Weylin to resume the lead, and guide her to the rooftop, the warm springtime sun shining peacefully, before quite politely dropping a verbal bomb on her.

He asked her what he could do for her first, still using German of course, before speaking on the lovliness of meeting a 'similar soul' in a 'godforsaken world.' While she found herself questioning the existence of a God from time to time, Ryder certainly couldn't think of the world as 'God forsaken.' True enough there were many Hollows prowling about, and perhaps even worse there were monsters among mankind itself, using and abusing one another, but the world itself was a truly beautiful place more than worth protecting. Praising her bluntness, Weylin proceeded to introduce himself as a descendant of an ancient clan of Hollow exterminating German Quincy, and that he could tell she was one of his own kind.

What shocked her most, however, even beyond his certainty of her nature or his revelation that the Quincy existed so long ago in Europe, was his question of what to do in the meeting, and offer to fight then and there. Garbed in her proper military uniform, the only weapon Ryder carried was an expertly concealed bra holster .38 pistol. Granted given the the percieved difference in their strength, that may be enough, but even so, why would a fellow Quincy want to fight to begin with?