x
"Good morning, students. You've finally arrived at Zodiacs and I hope you will be happy here," Ms. Lenate, their new teacher, greeted. She was wearing a black pencil skirt and a violet blouse which matched her violet glasses.
755Please respect copyright.PENANAiIv14oIWEI
She continued her greeting when no one said a word. "I'm sure you all know that after this, you'll be getting missions to keep Sky in order."
755Please respect copyright.PENANA2TqOm8HKWi
Pisces breathed deeply. She wasn't sure what to make out of this 'missions' thing, but she knew for sure it was no piece of cake. After all, their job was to make sure Sky--the planet they lived in--was safe and sound, and that was a big deal. If something went wrong in their mission, a kingdom or the whole world, might die.
755Please respect copyright.PENANAacIIY2vlx2
"Each positions have their own important job. There is the captain who gives out the orders, and you shouldn't go against him or her. If the captain isn't around, we have two vice-captains and the third-in-command," Ms. Lenate explained unnecessarily.
755Please respect copyright.PENANADYnk3Fqr44
She doesn't need to explain stuff we already know, Pisces thought, but didn't dare say a word.
755Please respect copyright.PENANA3VJnZ9R0eu
The whiteboard in front of them suddenly changed into some kind of large screen and showed what humans would think was a zeppelin, but in Sky, it was called the Aerola. "This is what you're going to be riding for your missions, the Royal J254. Use it well. Any questions?"
755Please respect copyright.PENANAgqVdGSJVYF
The students looked at each other and raised an eyebrow, as if they were asking each other if they understood, and the other side answered with no. None of them have ever ridden the Aerola because only the Zodiacs could ride them.
755Please respect copyright.PENANAUJde9vxCb3
It's cute watching Libra all confused, Pisces thought. Libra was rarely confused because she usually studied all the necessary and unnecessary stuff before doing it. That was why Pisces always looked up to her.
755Please respect copyright.PENANA63xOIPoV1q
The water sign's eyes looked around the classroom. It was a usual classroom, like any other one. There were twenty-four student tables, twice than their number, and a teacher's table--all were equipped with chairs.
755Please respect copyright.PENANAIHU1aaPVoY
The walls were cream and the tiles of the floor were white. There were four windows on the right side of the room, but none on the left. It made the room felt a bit unbalanced, if that made sense.
755Please respect copyright.PENANASFj0ujtTbx
Out of the corner of her eye, Pisces saw a purple-haired girl sitting at the corner, near the window. Her arms were crossed and her eyes were focused to the front. She looks really serious... She looks scary, was what she thought.
755Please respect copyright.PENANAPqHdmG3c8t
Pisces had a bad habit of judging people by their looks. It caused her to get intimidated and shy to approach some people. She didn't like it either, but she couldn't help it.
755Please respect copyright.PENANA8fADMMOlgA
When she focused her eyes back to the front, the teacher had given Aries a few papers for him to give to the other members. I must have zoned off again, she thought with a frown, crossing her arms on the wooden table.
755Please respect copyright.PENANAdAmMBtJR4g
"Those are your schedules for the next seven days... including this one--does that make sense? Anyways, you're going to spend the next few days in the Training Ground before you go on a real mission," Ms. Lenate tried to explain. Pisces got the feeling she actually was a new teacher. She was just hiding her nervousness behind a mask so that she looked tough.
755Please respect copyright.PENANAH797TnxEby
Leo raised his hand. Whilst the potentially-new teacher nodded her head at him, she also shot him a glance that Pisces couldn't quite decipher. It was a mix of disgust and annoyance, but why?
755Please respect copyright.PENANAjoiwtyu77I
"Only one week?" he simply asked the question everyone had been wanting to ask. None of them had ever had a real battle experience--some lucky ones might have taken lessons of sword-fighting or something like that, but that was as far as it goes, so they wouldn't be ready with just a seven-day-training.
755Please respect copyright.PENANAQASUl70srw
Ms. Lenate shot him another weird-looking glance--it looked a bit dangerous. "Yes. The missions can't wait, the world needs to be saved," she answered. "Anyways, I have to go. I have a guest, so you call can go to the Training Ground now. It's on the map. Class dismissed."
"Hey, Pisces! Wait up!" she heard the unmistakable sound of Libra. Pisces wanted to groan. She had been hoping to avoid Libra and Sagittarius for a while now.
755Please respect copyright.PENANA8O2jIbvmjA
Someone tapped her on the shoulder. She knew instantly it was Sagittarius--her hand was always ice cold for some unknown reason. "Yo, Pisces. Your brother is, like, an athlete, right?" she asked.
755Please respect copyright.PENANAlzFFvxfgEK
Of course, it's about my brother again, Pisces thought, a little disappointed. Not sad, just disappointed. Years after she had befriended Libra and Sagittarius, and yet, all they ever talked about that kind of included her was her brother. How depressing.
755Please respect copyright.PENANAr9zYnWg1vT
The chocolate-haired girl shrugged. "Yeah, I guess," she replied. Honestly, these girls truly had no shame. If they were going to use her to get close to her brother, then they should've been at least nice to her, not act like she didn't exist until they needed her.
755Please respect copyright.PENANA4Ezmq1cRYo
As they walked, the other two girls started gossiping more about her brother. Pisces slowed down her pace, but they didn't realize and kept walking until they completely left Pisces.
755Please respect copyright.PENANAvtyk0LQLua
"I thought you were good friends with them."
755Please respect copyright.PENANAJnrUpOL58c
Quickly as lightning, Pisces turned around and was greeted with the face of that intimidating purple-haired girl earlier. "Good friends are overrated. Who might you be?" she asked.
755Please respect copyright.PENANAfCm224NaBA
"I'm Gemini," the other girl answered with a smile. When Gemini was smiling, she looked way different--like she was another person. She didn't look intimidating anymore. Pisces nodded and they walked together in silence.
755Please respect copyright.PENANAqXxDC4SbjB
She would've copied Gemini's smile if she wasn't in such a bad mood.
Unlike Aquarius, his sister had never been one to get interested over physical stuff. That was why, as everyone was practicing and training by themselves, she was standing alone in the corner and wondering what to do.
755Please respect copyright.PENANA3QMOMtZupU
The Training Ground was magnificent. It was quite like an indoor field divided into two parts. The first one was full of gym stuff such as trampolines and suspension trainers while the other one was filled with targets for shooting and skeletons to impale.
755Please respect copyright.PENANAFQpwL8McOe
Pisces wondered which way she should go. She totally didn't want to go to the gym part of the Training Ground because it looked tiring, but the shooting part was nearly as intimidating. Besides, Pisces didn't want to make a fool out of herself.
755Please respect copyright.PENANARt0jSObNwU
Her so-called good friends were happily jumping on the trampoline, leaving her by herself as usual. They seriously didn't care about her at all, it was quite saddening.
755Please respect copyright.PENANAc1OgzeMeNb
"Oi! Pisces!" an unidentified yet familiar voice could be heard. It was Gemini, the intimidating girl. Pisces really hated herself for judging a book by its cover, that act was really uncool. Gemini seemed like a nice person.
755Please respect copyright.PENANAa7ZmUWVh8K
Yes, she might be just another girl trying to get closer to Aquarius via his sister, but so what? Pisces was tired of Libra and Sagittarius, anyways. If they're having their fun, then I'm having mine.
755Please respect copyright.PENANA61tE7eD4kh
Those were her thoughts as she approached the girl who called her. Gemini was currently on the shooting part. The bow she was holding was made of wood and it was purple-coloured. The name 'Gemini' was written in capital letters on it.
755Please respect copyright.PENANAoc1t65SshX
"Did you bring that from your home?" Pisces asked, referring to the bow. It looked really old, yet very well-treasured. She looked over at the arrows in something that looked like a belt-bag, used firmly around Gemini's waist.
755Please respect copyright.PENANAn82tk8uFP7
Gemini nodded, again with that award-winning smile. She wiped her sweat off her neck with her purple handkerchief. "It's been a while since I did this. My arms ache so bad," she groaned. "What are you doing?"
755Please respect copyright.PENANAddJVNbBGCS
Pisces smiled sheepishly. "Uh, I can't really do anything, so I just sit back because I don't wanna make fun of myself," she admitted, blushing shyly.
755Please respect copyright.PENANAYzWctgyrGc
Gemini laughed. "Don't be so shy like that. Look around you. The only ones who aren't playing around are Scorpio, Leo and me. And Aries, he's trying," she said with another smile. Does this girl ever stop smiling? Don't her lips hurt?
755Please respect copyright.PENANAacr1udIfKM
Therefore, Pisces looked around her and true to Gemini's words, the only ones not playing around were those four people. The others were just trying out the stuff in the Training Ground.
755Please respect copyright.PENANAQShKLcR8Ct
Aries was trying to hit the skeleton with his wooden sword, but kept failing--at least he tried--whilst Scorpio and Leo were easily hitting the skeletons. Pisces remembered they used to take sword-fighting lessons. After all, they came from a pretty rich family--or at least around their village.
755Please respect copyright.PENANAQAXdBPCZPZ
Aquarius was being chased by Libra and Sagittarius--Pisces felt sorry for her brother. Virgo, Cancer, Taurus and Capricorn were trying out the suspension trainers.
755Please respect copyright.PENANA4VDNSFVaoU
"I can teach you if you'd like," Gemini offered, still panting a little. Her left hand was lightly massaging her right arm.
755Please respect copyright.PENANAXEtOJhSVBv
When the question was successfully processed in Pisces' slow brain, she nodded vigorously. "Of course!" she said before coughing. "I mean, sure," she repeated more calmly, causing Gemini to chuckle.
755Please respect copyright.PENANABxBYz4apNm
"Go grab one of the bows, then."
755Please respect copyright.PENANA0fs0YSrJ7J
A few moments later, Pisces came back with a blue bow on her hand. She also had wore that belt-bag thingy she still hadn't figured out the name of, it was filled with a dozen arrows.
755Please respect copyright.PENANAdfLSZMX4yV
First, Gemini did it as an example, hitting the bullseye with ease. She looked like a professional, Pisces understood why the teachers picked her.
755Please respect copyright.PENANACr7M7oUQ1v
Then, the purple-haired girl told Pisces to do the same position she did. She taught her that how the arrow should be positioned and all that too-complicated-to-explain stuff. The embarrassing thing was, Gemini had to remind Pisces to keep her right elbow up and her left elbow straight every five seconds.
Pisces wiped the sweat off her face and sighed in relief. She shook her hand that now felt boneless and sighed again. "I think that's enough for today," Gemini decided. She laid on the floor limply.
755Please respect copyright.PENANAPiaPmUD5Es
Half the group were tired and already stopped training, but they wanted to wait for everyone to finish practicing, whilst the other half--including Gemini and Pisces--just wouldn't quit because they only got seven days of training before going into action.
755Please respect copyright.PENANAj80SIEU7VD
"Finally done?" someone asked with a shout. It was Cancer. She was fanning her sweat away as she impatiently waited for the whole group to finish their activities. Cancer would love to leave by herself, but everyone suggested to wait so she had no choice.
755Please respect copyright.PENANA7W9SLnn05A
Pisces looked around and realized they were the last ones to finish. Quickly, she walked over to them with Gemini following behind her.
755Please respect copyright.PENANAzJDs4hdJyk
The Royal J254 group walked together to the dorms. Obviously, they were going to change out of these sweaty mess of clothing. Pisces regretted wearing her white shirt--she should've picked something more flexible.
755Please respect copyright.PENANAQB8yfOJ6gN
"Hey, after changing, do you want to get lunch?" Gemini offered as they walked. "I heard they had this awesome cafeteria that serves everything."
755Please respect copyright.PENANAdqTWsr5tQv
Pisces nodded with a smile. "Sure," she agreed, glad that she made a new friend. Sure, she wasn't as popular as Libra or Sagittarius, but she was great and she was the vice-president too.
755Please respect copyright.PENANANMEYlNbuEF
Gemini nodded excitedly. "Alright! I'm in room 666 so I'll meet you straight at the cafeteria," she exclaimed with a clap of her hands before skipping away. Pisces thought she was cute.
755Please respect copyright.PENANAtQCwFPpsdD
The day ended good, or at least on Pisces' end.
ns 15.158.61.8da2