A Flower Blooms - A Prologue To RtW

The next day, Zero was once more taken by the bishop to the same room they were in the previous day. This time, there was a different man inside.

"You will be training your fighting skills today, to see how effective your ability to take in those skills is." Max pointed toward the other person in the room. "This is John. You will be fighting with him."

Zero nodded. Then, she walked up to him and activated her ability.

The world around her changed from the dreary indoor room to the much more open and bright space outdoors. She took a cursory glance around before immediately heading off to search for John. She found him, standing next to a row of swords stuck into the ground.

The swords were of various shapes and sizes. Many were plain, others were decorated, some excessively so. Zero saw John materialize another sword in his hand, one that looked like it was made entirely out of gold. He swung it around for a bit, then swung it at another sword. The gold sword bent.

"What are you doing?" Zero asked as John tossed the useless sword off to the side.

"I was told to test a few things. I couldn't make a sword unbreakable. Nor could they be anything more than just normal swords." John focused for a second and a moment later a large device appeared in front of him.

The device was made of many pieces of wood attached together. There was a large string placed over a wooden beam. On the beam was a stick with a pointed metal tip. "This is a crossbow," John said as he began fiddling around with the device. The string was pulled backwards, and when it was released the arrow flew off at a fast speed, embedding itself into a tree.

Then, John created another device, looking similar but with some differences. However, it didn't seem quite right. He tried to use it, but it failed to do anything. "I saw this thing once, but I don't quite remember it very well. I guess that this isn't enough for me to make one. Well, that is enough of testing creation for now. I suppose you will be reporting this back."

Zero looked at the device, which was similar to a larger version of the crossbow. It seemed familiar. She thought for a few moments, before recalling why. Marcus had seen them several times, and even used one. And now, she could remember it as well. Zero envisioned it, and it appeared. The device had some differences to the one John made; several parts were in different places and missing components were added. Zero tried to pull the string back, but she was unable to with her strength.

John stepped up instead and was able to get the string drawn back all the way. The arrow was released, sending it flying forward at a much greater speed. It smashed through the tree and flew a bit more before eventually stopping.

"Impressive, you made it work." John gave Zero an appraising look. "I didn't think you would have seen one of these before."

"The man I absorbed yesterday had experiences with them. I drew on his memories."

"Ah, so that was it. It seems the memories you gain are quite detailed. But now it is time to see whether his other skills have transferred well." A sword appeared in John's hands, pointed toward Zero. "Now, we shall fight."

As John stepped forward, Zero created her own sword and hastily blocked. The impact sent shudders running down her arm. Her opponent withdrew his blade before slicing forward again from another side. Zero brought her sword back up to parry the strike, but the man's swing suddenly changed. She turned to compensate, but it was too slow.

John knocked the sword out of Zero's hand. "Sloppy. Pick up that sword and try again."

They crossed blades once more. Zero could feel a sense of familiarity as she innately knew what to do. But at the same time it wasn't quite right. Her body was smaller, and she couldn't move exactly as Marcus would have. The knowledge of what to do was there, but her body didn't know how to carry out those actions.

The sword clattered to the ground. As she went to pick it up, John spoke. "That is a bit better. But you have to do better than that. Now, we fight for real."

John dashed forward, his sword swinging down from above. Zero stepped to the side, narrowly dodging the sharp edge, before lunging forward with her own sword. It was knocked aside as John parried it, but Zero was unfazed, quickly moving her sword back to block John's next strike. She could feel it getting more natural, fighting like this.

Zero stabbed her sword forward, prompting John to move to the side and strike back. She ducked below the swing and jabbed forward. The tip of her sword was narrowly dodged by John. His next sword swing forced Zero to back up and defend. Another attack from John came down, forcing Zero to block it, but before she could recover and attack, another strike came.

A series of attacks from John drove Zero back and knocked her off balance. Before she could regain her footing, John stabbed forward. Zero's sword clanged against the incoming blade, but its progress could not be halted. The sword stabbed itself into her left shoulder, slicing into the bone.

Zero screamed as she fell to the ground, dropping her sword. Blood was dripping down her side, staining her white clothes. John walked forward slowly, towering over Zero's prone body. "Pathetic, you fall apart the moment you get hit. You need to learn to bear this, and fight!" He stabbed his sword downwards into her abdomen.

Zero continued to cry out as John began repeatedly stabbing her. All she could feel was pain. Zero desperately wished for it to stop. She could see her opponent right above her. There was no way to block the stabs, nor could she move away. He was close, barely out of reach…

A thin sword appeared in Zero's hand, and she thrust it upwards, cutting into John's neck. Zero saw him fall to the ground in her last moments. Her vision began turning black as she bled out.

Suddenly, the world was bright again. The memories of pain were still fresh in her mind, but when she looked down there was no trace of her injuries. She heard the grass rustle behind her. Zero turned around and saw John walking toward her.

"We are not done yet," he said. "We will continue fighting."

John created a sword and Zero followed suit. The sounds of the clash of sharp steel filled the field. Zero killed her opponent several more times. She herself was covered in cuts, but there weren't any serious injuries. Zero wondered if it was because she was getting better, or if her opponent was intentionally holding back. But by now, she was too exhausted to care. They had fought for over an hour, and she was at the edge of what she was able to do, despite her near limitless determination.

With one final stab, Zero ran through John's c.h.e.s.t with her sword. She collapsed onto the ground, breathing heavily as she watched the life slip out of her opponent's eyes. Finally, the world fell apart.

Zero found herself back indoors. Her body was no longer tired, but she could feel another rush of memories into her mind. After spending a few moments standing in a daze, she opened her eyes. Then, she reported her experience to Max, who was recording the information she told.

"You've done well," Max said after Zero was done speaking. "I will arrange for you to have fighting instructors who will help you train, in the real world. I expect you to work hard in honing your skills. For now, you can return to your room and reflect upon your experiences."

***

Maximillian entered Vincent's office, having been summoned by the archbishop. He sat down in the chair in front of the archbishop's desk as Vincent gestured for him to sit. Vincent poured some wine into a glass and passed it to Max.

Vincent took a small sip out of his own glass before speaking. "Tell me, how has your work with the latest recruit been progressing?"

"I would say that it has went about as well as could be expected," Max said. "The potency of her ability is somewhat surprising, but the girl has been nothing but obedient so far."

Vincent leaned forward. "Oh? What more have you learned of the witch's power? Is it different from what you first thought it to be?"

"Not exactly." Max thought for a few seconds about how to describe his findings. "It is more that the breadth of the knowledge she is capable of acquiring is impressive. Not only does she obtain detailed memories of everything the target experienced, she can also gain skills and more instinctual knowledge. Zero could become an accomplished fighter very quickly. In addition, she has such detailed familiarity of the people she absorbed that it seems entirely possible that she will experience change to her self each time this occurs."

The archbishop took a drink out of his wine glass, before placing his elbows on the table. His fingers were folded together as he sat silently. Finally, he drew back from the table and leaned back into the chair, his face inscrutable.

"I see, this is only natural after all. Could you really say that you are the same person you were twenty years ago?" Vincent sighed. "Time changes all of us. The things we experience, the people we meet, all of that influence what we become. Perhaps one can say that there are core aspects of someone that remain fixed, especially when one is older. But that doesn't change the fact that new things can affect how one sees the world."

Max sat silently with a somewhat confused look on his face.

Seeing this, Vincent continued. "Zero has gained a lifetime's worth of memories. In a certain sense, it is as though she experienced years. Given this, it is inevitable that she will change. The lives of each person affects her in some way. It isn't necessarily the case that they blend, but rather that she gains a new perspective on the world, giving her new thoughts. That is what is most troubling."

"Troubling? What do you mean by that?" Max asked.

"It will make our work much harder," Vincent said. "I do not doubt you when you say that right now, Zero is loyal. Indeed, she is probably even more devoted to the church compared to when you first picked her up. However, that could change if she were to come into contact with those that hold ideas dangerous to us."

"But if we cannot use her against our enemies, then our range of options is much reduced," Max said with disappointed.

"Then we must be careful about this," Vincent said. "Who she can use her ability on must be carefully controlled. The ones who are most worrisome are the ones who know more, and have doubts about the church or oppose us for ideological reasons. Common thugs are unlikely to be a threat. So, there are some that she needs to kill directly while others she can use her ability on. However, we must also perform proper maintenance to ensure her reliability. Be vigilant of any doubt she may have, and persuade her with appropriate reasoning to refute those doubts. With proper training in the church's doctrine, she can be made resistant to corruptive influences."

"Is it really necessary to go so far?" Max asked with a tinge of incredulity. "Carefully curating those she comes into contact with seems somewhat excessive."

Vincent let out a sigh as he leaned back and gazed upwards, reminiscing about the past. "We need to keep tight control over the witches. You weren't there all those years ago. I can still remember back when the witches controlled the church. Of course, you won't hear about that now, me and many others worked hard to suppress that information. Originally, the witches ruled over us."

A shattering sound was heard as glass struck the floor. Max had knocked over his glass of wine in surprise, but even after the glass fell he paid no attention to it, only focusing on the shocking words of the archbishop.

"We only had the opportunity to take control after the last Extraordinary witch died. The witches were unable to choose a new leader, as their rules had required that an Extraordinary had to lead them. Moreover, the rest of the witches had no counter to the God's Stone of Retaliation. Under these circ.u.mstances, the church officials, ordinary people who no longer wished to be beholden to the witches, were able to catch them by surprise and eliminate them."

Vincent held a deadly serious expression. "We had to stop the witches from building up their power and retaking control from us. If that ever happened, then we will die, do you understand? Our power was obtained through force and cunning, and that is how we must maintain it. We still need the power of the witches to protect our own position, and fight against witches that oppose us. However, Extraordinary witches are a threat to us; they cannot be countered by the God's stones. That is why we keep none of them. The rest though, they can be used as long as we are appropriately careful. In order to facilitate this, we created the Pure Witch program. The witches are trained from a young age to obey us, and they become unfailingly loyal and will not hesitate to kill other witches."

"So, Zero is a unique case," Max said. "Outside experiences, far in excess of what any normal witch would experience, could lead her to stray from the church."

"You understand." Vincent nodded. "Then you know that your job is to make sure that Zero avoids the most malignant influences, and that she is periodically reeducated to ensure her continued loyalty. You are to keep a careful watch on Zero and stop any dangerous lines of thought before they become entrenched."

Max nodded. "Yes, your Eminence. Does this also mean that we should avoid making Zero too dangerous? She can manifest any weapons she knows about inside her mental battleground. I had been considering giving her information about some advanced weapons we have in our records so that she would have access to them in any battles she has with our enemies."

""No, that should be fine," Vincent said. "Her ability can be blocked with the stones. In fact, the fighting skills she develops would make her more dangerous to us than knowledge about those weapons, which is useless to her in the real world. But even then, our soldiers are enough to suppress any rebellion from the witches. Let her learn. A sharpened blade is more useful against the enemy. But you must be careful, very careful. I will obtain some of the records of the powerful weapons we have knowledge of and give them to you. Indeed, it may be beneficial to show her the extent of how dangerous the demons are, to further emphasize to her the importance of the church."

"Thank you, that will help considerably. I will proceed with the additional training, and I shall inform you when I feel that Zero is ready," Max said.

***

Zero walked down the hallway, heading for the training room that Max had instructed her to go to. Unlike the other days, she was traveling alone, not being escorted to her destination by Max, though there were still guards patrolling the halls. She waved at one as she walked past him. He gave no response, but Zero was unconcerned as she continued walking with a smile on her face.

Max had allowed her to go about her daily activities by herself, trusting Zero to do what she was instructed to. Indeed, Zero did nothing to disappoint the expectations placed in her as she walked toward her destination calmly. She knew her way around quite well, not only from the times she had been accompanied through the building but also from the memories of those she had absorbed. It was enough to let her reach her destination without incident.

Zero arrived at the training room, which was currently empty. While she waited for her instructor to arrive, Zero observed the layout of the room. There were several benches scattered around the outskirts of the room, while there was a large open space in the center. Zero spent some time lost in her thoughts until another person entered the room.

The man walked inside and closed the door behind him. Turning to Zero, he spoke, "So, you are the witch I have been ordered to train. I heard that you have some skill, though you don't look like much."

"Indeed. That is why I am here, sir," Zero replied as she bowed. "I will need to improve my physical strength and endurance, while acclimating myself to the rigors of combat."

He looked a bit taken aback by Zero's words which did not sound like that of a novice. "We shall see how you perform then." He handed a sword to Zero, before drawing his own.

Zero held the sword in her hands, testing out the balance. It was the first time she had held a weapon in the real world, but the experience was familiar to her. Although the sword wasn't particularly sharp since it was a training weapon, it was still a weapon, and could be used to kill someone if one knew how to. Zero did, and she easily thought of ways to kill someone with it as she held it in her grip. They had given her a weapon, something with the potential to be used against them, because they had no concern of her escaping.

Zero smiled. Then, she stepped forward into the center of the room to face the man in front of her. He wasn't wearing any armor, as it was not necessary for him to train Zero. He was also wearing a pendant holding a God's Stone of Retaliation, which Zero understood as necessary to prevent her from activating her ability accidentally. After all, this session was meant to help train her body in the real world. While some may have felt it demeaning, Zero accepted the need to protect the instructor from herself.

Then, their swords clashed as the two sprung into combat. The swords struck each other in rapid succession as the two sparred. Unlike a normal teaching session, the instructor was not constantly providing feedback about the student's deficiencies. Zero was quite capable of making those evaluations for herself. And the most pressing flaw that she suffered from, beyond just the need to adapt to this body shape, was the failings of her body.

Eventually, Zero collapsed onto the floor, panting rapidly, though she had the presence of mind to lay down her sword gently first. She had the full determination to go on for as long as she could, but she had long exceeded the limits of what an ordinary girl her age would be capable of.

Now that they had finished with the spar, the two of them sat down at the side of the room as they drank some water and rested from the exertion.

"Well, that certainly wasn't what I was expecting," the man said. "You fought like any experienced soldier would. It just goes to show that appearances can be deceiving. Even though I had been informed to some extent, I didn't imagine it would be like this. It's a shame we couldn't have gone on for longer."

Zero sighed. "I still have to train some more so that my body can handle the exertion. Also, I am thinking that perhaps I ought to find my own way to fight. I am not going to go out heavily armored to engage in contests of strength. The fighting styles that I know of aren't exactly most suited toward someone like me. Though the experience certainly helps, and I may be able to incorporate different aspects into the way I fight."

"It would certainly be impressive," he replied. "If we spar again in the future, that would probably be a real treat. I would look forward to it."

"Just be sure to stay alive then so you get to see it," Zero said.

The man chuckled. "I'll be sure to take care then."

Then, the door creaked open and Max walked into the room.

"I see that you are done training for today. There is something else that I would like for you to do, so you will be coming with me now."

Max lead Zero to an empty room, and they sat down. He took out several texts from the box he was carrying and placed them on the table. Some of the pages were aged and wrinkled.

"What am I going to be reading about?" Zero asked. "How will I be expected to make use of the knowledge."

"Zero, as you know, your ability is powerful, but can only reach its full potential with help," Max said. "While many witches have abilities that can kill people, it is usually very straightforward. Your ability on the other hand is more involved. Rather than directly killing someone, you have to defeat them first in another fight. It is not your physical abilities that are tested, but rather your mental ones. It is a contest of the soul, and only the winner can emerge. To that end, it would help for you to expand your knowledge."

Zero nodded. "I understand. So you believe the books will help me win fights in that imaginary world."

"Yes, though I would say that it may not be so fitting to refer to it as an imaginary world. While it is not the physical world, that doesn't mean that it is nonexistent. You may not understand yet, but the mind and reality may not be mutually exclusive. Perhaps we ought to come up with a better name."

Zero thought for a moment. "The battlefield of the mind? Would that be appropriate? It is a bit long though. Mind battlefield doesn't sound right. Maybe, the soul battlefield."

"Yes, Soul Battlefield has a nice ring to it," Max said. "I think that shall be an appropriate name. Now, it is time for you to start reading. Remember to be careful with the texts." He left her with the texts as she settled down to begin reading.

One book, which looked to be quite new, had the schematics of various war machines such as catapults, trebuchets, ballistas. There were descriptions and pictures of castle designs, with explanations of the defensive features of each component. Zero found all of this fascinating and soon she was engrossed in studying the designs and understanding them.

The next book however gave her pause. It was an old record, filled with long stretches of text. The book described a horrifying scene that seemed to come out of fantasy. Hordes of demons fought against the desperate human army. The capabilities of the demons was ferocious and they possessed terrifying weapons that decimated the human forces. Zero could feel chills running down her body as she continued to read.

The next page held a picture of one of the weapons that had been captured from the demons. It was a massive device, capable of throwing large spears tremendous distances. The design was intricate, and crafting them was stated to be outside the capacity of humans, though it was possible for humans to operate them.

Thoughts immediately began running through Zero's mind as she read the text. She wondered where could this have possibly happened. The locations described were completely unfamiliar, and she had never heard of such a war before, despite the fact that it must have had wide reaching implications. The existence of the war machine would support the claims of the text, and Max would not have given her a work of fiction describing something that could not be used by her. So, what was written described real events, the frightening implications of which were obvious.

She spent the time in the rest of the afternoon and well into the night reading and rereading those records. Only when it was very late did she finally decide to go to sleep.

That night. the memories of those she had absorbed didn't trouble Zero, but nonetheless she remained restless.