An extra’s tale

Arthur awoke to a world of pain. His body ached in places he hadn't known existed, each throb sending waves of weakness through him. Groaning, he forced himself upright and opened his eyes. To his surprise, he wasn't sprawled on the ground anymore, he was lying on a bed in what appeared to be a hospital ward.

Noticing his movements, a male healer approached. The man was old, his brown hair streaked with grey, and his face lined with deep wrinkles.

"So, you're awake," the man remarked, his voice devoid of empathy or animosity. It carried an unsettling lack of any emotion, hostile or otherwise.

Arthur tried to speak, but the only sound that emerged was a hoarse groan. "Aaagh."

The healer's lips curled into a smile that never reached his eyes. Somehow, it made his expression even more disconcerting. "We've healed you, but per Officer Maya's orders, we had to use your strength to do it. Unfortunately, you didn't have much strength to spare, so your recovery will take about a week."

Arthur sighed at the mention of Officer Maya. That must be the one in charge of his unit, no doubt another brute like the officer who had beaten him half to death.

'You asked for this, Arthur. Suck it up.'

Pushing those dark thoughts away, Arthur focused on the healer again. "S-so, what happens now?"

"Now that you're awake, you'll report to your unit. I'll have an assistant show you the way."

Arthur bit back a groan. Of course, expecting to rest would've been too much in this damn place. Gritting his teeth through the pain, he swung his legs off the bed and forced himself to stand. His leg throbbed painfully, and he quickly realized it had been broken during the beating, reducing him to a pathetic limp.

A young boy appeared beside him, dark-haired and bright-eyed, his kind expression almost startling in contrast to his surroundings. He offered Arthur a hand.

Arthur took it gratefully, managing a weak smile in thanks. 

'Funny, calling him a boy. We're probably the same age.'

The boy, whose name was Marsh, guided Arthur through the barracks. The journey was slow, Arthur's injuries making every step an ordeal. Eventually, they arrived at a squat, grey building that looked as though it had been carved from stone. Marsh gave Arthur a friendly wave and disappeared, leaving him alone with his nerves.

Steeling himself for the worst, Arthur limped inside.

At the front of the reception room stood a woman with long red hair, a slim but powerful physique, and sharp, assessing eyes.

"Arthur?" she asked.

"Yes, ma'am," he replied, straightening as best he could.

"Good. Follow me."

She led him into a smaller room with four bunks, three of which were already occupied. The men occupying them turned to stare at Arthur as he entered. Their expressions ranged from cold indifference to open hostility. Among them, one pair of eyes stood out, livid green and burning with hatred.

'Noah' he thought bitterly. 'Just my luck.'

The woman nodded curtly. "Unit 7, this is Arthur. He's the second criminal joining the unit. Arthur, you'll bunk with Noah over there."

Arthur didn't bother to argue. Resigned, he limped over to the far end of the room, where Noah sat on the top bunk, glaring down at him. Avoiding the older boy's gaze, Arthur collapsed onto the lower bunk, his body screaming in protest.

"Training begins tomorrow at 0600," the woman continued. "But in light of the two new recruits, you've all been granted a day off."

The squad erupted into cheers. Arthur, meanwhile, sighed in relief and laid down, exhaustion dragging him under almost immediately.

Noah sat on his bunk, staring contemptuously at the pale-haired noble sleeping below. Arthur, that was his name. From the moment the boy had limped in, Noah had felt a simmering rage rise in his chest. He remembered the sight of Arthur being beaten by the officer. A noble punished, just like they deserved. Whatever Arthur had done to end up here, it had to have been bad that even those wealthy scum had decided to cut him off. To Noah, every bruise on Arthur's body was justice for all the suffering nobles had inflicted on people like him. If he had one regret, it was that he wasn't the person responsible for those bruises.

The day passed, with Noah's anger compounding each minute Arther remained asleep. Immediately after the Officer had given them a free day, he had fallen asleep, and hadn't stirred since. He was itching for the noble to wake up, waiting for any excuse to start a fight. Late in the night, Noah's patience finally snapped. While Arthur slept, a small smile crept up on his face. The smile drove Noah insane, it taunted him, driving him further into anger. Silently, he climbed down from his bunk, his fists clenched.

Arthur's dream was a peaceful one. He sat in his family's living room, watching his father read the newspaper, his mother and Mary chatting animatedly at the table. Joseph, his twin and Persi, his younger sister, played nearby. Arthur smiled softly, content to observe even if he couldn't join them. Dreams like this were his only solace, even before his transmigration, and he was grateful for having them.

Then the first punch landed, shattering the dream.

Arthur's eyes snapped open just as another fist connected with his side. Pain exploded through his body, and he curled up instinctively as more blows rained down on him. Blood dripped into his eyes from a reopened cut, blurring his vision.

Through the haze, Arthur made out Noah's silhouette. The older boy's fists were relentless, each strike aimed at Arthur's bandaged wounds.

'How many times?' Arthur thought bitterly, shielding his head with his arms. 'How many fucking times will I get beaten for existing? I'm so tired man. So fucking tired.'

Noah's fist broke through his guard, slamming into his face.

Then something inside Arthur snapped. As if a dam had been broken allowing a flood of rage to course through his body.

Roaring, he threw a punch that caught Noah off guard. Summoning his training as Reshi, Arthur shoved the older boy off and scrambled to his feet. Adrenaline coursed through his veins, dulling the pain.

Noah lunged again, swinging wildly. Arthur ducked under the blow and countered with a solid punch to Noah's stomach. The older boy doubled over, but Arthur was relentless. Pivoting to the side he continued pummeling. Blow after blow, he struck Noah, his screams blending with his tears.

"WHY THE FUCK COULDN'T YOU LEAVE ME ALONE?!" Arthur bellowed, punctuating each word with a punch. "I DIDN'T DO ANYTHING TO YOU!"

Noah stopped resisting, slumping to the floor, his face a mass of blood and missing teeth. But Arthur wasn't finished, all his suppressed rage and exhaustion surged forward, and he kicked and stomped until his legs burned.

When Arthur finally stepped back, gasping for breath, he realized the rest of the squad had gathered. Their expressions were ashamed, their gazes averted. They had seen Noah attack him, and had done nothing.

Arthur's lip curled in disdain. Turning back to Noah, he felt a profound joy to see him wheezing on the floor, Arthur had planned to try and befriend Noah when first saw him. To get close with the boy, and also help him overcome his hatred of nobles.

'But fuck that.'

Moments later, Officer Mara burst in. She quickly assessed the scene and was able to gather what most likely had happened. Nevertheless it surprised her to see Arthur, whom she had previously regarded as weak, kicking and stomping on Noah. The other Cadet had a marked hatred of nobles, as was mentioned on his file, so she had expected conflict. She hadn't expected for Arthur to be winning that conflict.

The noble boy no longer looked weak, nor did he look like a noble. His white hair was sticking out wildly, his red eyes full of emotion. But instead of anger, Arthur's eyes were full of fear as he kicked at Noah with all his might, ignoring the bruises and countless cuts that were pouring down his face.

'How fucking scary' Mara muttered as she quickly got closer. Pulling out her remote, she pressed the button. The effect was immediate. Arthur stopped moving suddenly, becoming still as electricity coursed through his body from the collar. Then he fell onto the floor, shuddering. When she released the button, the fallen noble was already unconscious.

Eyes livid, Officer Mara turned to Felt, one of her squad members.

 "You best fucking explain, now."

Arthur woke to the familiar scene of a hospital bed. He braced for the familiar wave of pain, ready for his body to be full of aches and cuts.

But there was nothing.

No pain, nor ache. Only a slight exhaustion. Getting up, Arthur found the same male healer looming over his bed.

Before Arthur hadn't noticed how tired the man looked. His dark eyes were sunken, his skin pale as if he had been up for nights in a row.

"Ahh, you're awake. Good. Get out, someone else needs this bed now."

Stunned, Arthur wordlessly got up from his tent. Because of the fight with Noah he had expected to wake up in a cell or something. Or at least handcuffed to his bed.

'Then again, with this collar, I guess they don't need to.'

With a bitter expression he remembered how the collar had sent volts of electricity coursing through him.

Arthur left the Infirmary wing, his body feeling much better, albeit tired. He made his way to the Unit 7 building, where he saw Officer Mara, standing at the front.

"Come here Arthur. I guess we need to talk."

Wordlessly, Arthur obeyed, following Officer Mara to her office. Inside the office was a large table piled with different important looking papers. She sat down on the chair and fired up her laptop. Seeing as though there were no other chairs, Arthur stood there awkwardly.

After a moment she turned back to him.

"Okay then Arthur. Why don't you tell me what happened,"

Arthur was silent for a moment. A part of him wanted to spill everything. Wanted to rant about Noah and the other members who had stood by and let it happen. But another part of him urged him to keep silent. He had taken his revenge on Noah himself, and the others. Well, fuck them. It felt wrong to try and get them into more trouble.

Sighing Arthur finally spoke up. "Nothing happened, Officer."

Officer Mara raised an eyebrow. "Oh, so are you telling me I didn't see you kicking Cadet Noah on the floor."

"No Miss. What you saw was a misunderstanding. I fell on top of him."

"You fell. From the bottom bunk, on top of him?"

"Yes Miss."

There was no point in trying to make a convincing lie. No doubt Officer Mara could already guess what happened. But if he didn't take it further, there was not much she could do.

Officer Mara nodded, trying to hide a small smile. "Very well Cadet Arthur. You're dismissed. Try not to fall on anyone again."

Arthur nodded, "Yess Miss, I won't", before turning around and leaving.

Officer Mara smiled freely as soon as Arthur had left. It was funny, but despite being a noble, she couldn't help but feel like she was conversing with a true soldier when she spoke to Arthur. He had acted differently than what she had expected.

Felt had already told her everything that happened, and as an Officer it was her job to speak to both of the parties involved. But both Arthur and Noah had said nothing had happened, each of them stubbornly protecting the other for no clear reason.

"How funny, it seems they're more alike then they realise."