By Merlin's Beard! [JT, Closed, Ranth]

[Nola Vilde]

Training for CTP

Nola was finally....adjusted to squad 10. It had taken some doing, especially with her....unusual looks. Between that brilliant scarlet skin and the piercing white hair, it had taken a while for her squad to grow used to her appearance, but by now the staring was now down to a minimum, and due to the...nature of those stares, she was begining to feel like at the very least, 'weird' wasn't what came to mind when she got them. But she did her best not to focus on that. Rather she was more intent upon other things! One of the other squads, it seemed, had deemed it fit to make some sort of exchange program. The shinigami shift between squads for a day of training. No doubt due to the trials and tribulations, Squad four especially, the sereitei was beginning to realize that the collection of all similarly-skilled shinigami in single barracks was not the best idea.

Fast forward to today? and now cross-squad training was becoming more frequent. In an attempt to diversify talent, the Gotei seemed intent on being able (at least partially) to make up for any heavy losses similar to the devastation of squad four. And so Nola had volunteered. As fifth seat of her division, she had been designated as one of the trainers, and she was going to be getting her very first trainee today. For the time being, she stood out in the training grounds, off to the side near a rather large cherry tree, waiting patiently as she expected her trainee to arrive soon. Truth be told, she was....hesitant about this sort of thing, after all her skills were a bit selective,what honestly could she teach a shinigami? She always seemed to rely on her squadmates a lot when doing missions, but she put that behind her for now. Now, she was to focus on what she COULD teach the lad or lass. Honestly it was her only choice.

Letting out a soft sigh, she glanced off to the horizon. It was afternoon, and not quite sunset, but it was getting late into the evening, the sky blazed a soft orange as the sun was saying it's goodbyes, casting an orange glow to the already oddly-pigmented woman. She let her palm rest on the handle of her...exotic zanpaku'to. A massive needle, several feet in length, with the eye of the implement being the handle that she held it by, sheathed in it's own narrow holster. Strange by any stretch of the imagination. But it was hers, all the same.

[Ranth]

It was funny how change worked. Decades could pass and nothing would happen; the status quo remaining steady and free of any kind of disruption and then suddenly, everything happened at once. For Ranth, the past 3 months had been among the most tumultuous series of abrupt changes that he'd had to deal with in decades. He'd graduated from the Academy and been thrust into the life of a Shinigami assigned to the Kido Corps. He'd hit the ground running, not because he'd wanted to but rather because he'd had no other choice. Sink or swim had been his exhaustive list of options and he'd settled for floundering as best he could.

A mission on the anniversary of his first week after graduation had shown him that inexperience was no excuse to avoid his duties and had reinforced to him the value of having allies to cover for his weaknesses. Power of Unity, Strength in Numbers, no I in team; however you wanted to refer to it, the principle was the same and the proof was in the fact that he was still breathing. There had been no time to celebrate finishing his first mission because he'd been thrust into some rather intensive clerical duties to help keep the ailing Kido Corps afloat as well as partaking in a series of mentor-ships. First was Senshi Odayakama, the vice captain of the 8th Division with a particular focus on the art of Kido which had really helped Ranth make leaps and bounds in his fledgling abilities in the field.

Next had been an officially sanctioned inter-squad trainee-ship with the Omnitskudo that had unexpectedly placed him under the tutelage of none other than the Vice Captain himself, Aevus. It had proven to be another invaluable opportunity that he could scarcely believe he'd been afforded and whilst he knew that he was making progress, he also knew that he had a long way to go. More often than not, he spent his evenings practising either his Kido or his Hakuda- or both- long into the night before catching just enough sleep to function adequately to take on his daytime duties. If his superiors knew how hard their newest member was pushing himself he was certain they'd have put a stop to it, but he felt like he couldn't afford such a setback and so he continued his punishing routine in relative secrecy- taking on greater burdens and responsibilities whenever the opportunity presented itself.

Which is what brought him to his latest trial: an inter-squad training regime, but this time it was with squad 10. Once again, he didn't know who exactly he was going to be under the tutelage of this time- but that was nothing new- and so far he'd had nothing but good experiences with these programs and so he'd jumped at this one the moment he'd heard that there was a spot open. He'd been given a place and time for his first meeting with his newest mentor and as the sun began its descent from its noon apex towards the horizon he arrived at a run at the designated training grounds.

It wasn't hard to spot his mentor, not because of her unusual skin colour or by the unique shape of the Zanpakuto that hung on her hip. No, it was neither of these things which Ranth took in within seconds of laying eyes upon her and were quite difficult to miss. What gave it away was the fact that there was nobody else there, so by the process of elimination, he'd found his instructor. An instructor whom had obviously been there for at least a short while before him. Almost skidding to a halt before her, Ranth wasted no time in adhering to the proper formalities as he bowed deeply. "My apologies for making you wait ma'am", he said before straightening and saluting smartly. "Ranth Amanite, unseated officer of the Kido Corps reporting for inter-squad training", he introduced himself formally- not least of which because there was just something about this woman that emanated a sense of... strictness? He couldn't quite put his finger on it, but felt the need to be especially formal towards her. Then again, perhaps this was just another case of what his 5th seat, Artorius Sidonis, would call 'going overboard'.

[Nola Vilde]

Nola's eyes shifted, her calm, serious gaze locking onto Ranth as he closed in on her, silently surveying the ....younger? man and taking a measure of him as he seemed to adopt her formal expression and stance. She herself remained rather rigid as she watched him, taking several moments to contemplate before she spoke up."Excellent. I'm aware youre of the Kido corps. However, I'm curious to know. Many squad personnel change over, and some do not always completely adhere to the ...expectations one might have. So before we resume this training, I will ask. Do you have any hand-to-hand capabilities?" she asked, looking up. He was quite a bit taller than her, a full four inches in fact. Which was a bit odd as she was usually on the tall side for women around the sereitei.

That aside, she drummed her fingers along the handle of her zanpaku'to. Thoughtful. Her own eyes scanning for his own blade, or any indication of his indviduality beyond the normal shinigami. There was plenty she could just ask him, but there was a great deal more one could derive from just looking at how someone held themselves. Nola was....prim and proper. Her head up, shoulders back, chest high. A military stance if ever there was one, and a hint of...regality as well. an almost Royal air about her, especially given that pure white mane of hair. But what did Ranth offer?

[Ranth]

Ranth had rarely- if ever- been on the receiving end of such a soul piercing gaze as right now under the intent gaze of Nola Vilde. There was something about her straightforward scrutiny that made him feel as though all of his thoughts, all of his strengths and all of his weaknesses were laid bare before her. In a way, the simply weight of her gaze was as effective as any Bakudo and when she finally spoke, there was little reprieve from the sheer weight of her inspection.

Her question was as straightforward and matter of fact as her gaze and Ranth was beginning to feel like those two words might just be able to apply to every aspect of the woman from the way she spoke, to the way she acted. Today, Ranth had opted- after a long period of deliberation- to adhere to the normal Shinigai dress code. This obviously consisted of the staple black robes that all Shinigami were known for and a keen eye would note that his uniform was exceptionally well cared for and maintained. Ranth was a creature of routine and discipline- two things that he felt comfortable relying on in lieu of himself.

As for his Zanpakuto, it was as ordinary as any Zapakuto could be as it hung on his left hip- signifying that he preferred to draw it with his right hand. Its sheathe and hilt- on closer inspection- could plainly be seen to have been meticulously oiled and polished. The same level of attention to detail had been applied to everything that could have been argued to be part of is uniform, which made the relative lack of attention to his hair stand out to someone who was especially keen eyed to such things. Although not exactly unkempt, Ranth's white hair could best be described as 'loosely tamed' as it hung down just past his ears at the back.

Feeling as though Nola would appreciate a direct response to a direct question, Ranth was as prompt and straightforward with his summation of his abilities in the vein that she'd inquired into as possible when he spoke. "I have been a member of the Kido Corps since I graduated 3 months ago. However, I've recently trained under Aevus of the Omnitskudo and he impressed upon me the importance of practising Hakuda. I was late in picking up the sword, but he suggested that aiming to master Hakuda could be the best way for me to bridge the gap with my peers when it comes to melee combat". That was all there was to it. No excuses or exaggeration about where his strengths and weaknesses lay- just the facts as they stood in Ranth's mind.

[Col Arana]

14 paragraphs written;

70 CTP awarded to both participans