The first rays of dawn flashed in my eyes like unwanted paparazzi cameras. I pried my eyes open and looked around. The once blazing fireplace I had set up was now no more then ashes in the wind and right beside me, lying on my shoulder, was none other than the vice president herself, Veritas.

Uhhh...

All I could do was stare at her dreamy innocent face slumped against my shoulder. It took all the willpower in me to not jump away. As I lay there, her head against my shoulder, my adolescent male fantasies grew. I was forced to remind myself that this wasn't some Rom-Com anime scene where the girl falls for the main protagonist, but rather one of the great illusions of life.

"Against a sleeping defenseless pretty lady, what would a single male like you do?" Rin's voice crept out of nowhere.

"Shut the hell up, I am not going to do anything!" I said irritated, mainly because she was right about the single part.

"My mind is telling me no! ...but my body! My body, is telling me..." Rin sang with a deep male voice that wasn't hers and at the same time Veritas began to shift.

"Crap, you're waking her!" I hissed.
Slowly, like a fairy waking, Veritas blinked at me a couple times with those stormy grey eyes of hers. Then she pulled herself away from me suddenly causing me to jump back.

"Apologies that I fell asleep..." she blushed, pressing a worried fist to her lips.

"It's fine." I said, my voice much calmer then I expected, as I got up and stretched my arms. "Oh, look its day already. One more night and day to go!"

"Correct." She said, getting up from her position. "But would you mind accompanying me to find a spring?"

"Sure, no problem." To be honest I would probably follow her around anywhere, since being around her gave me the largest chance of survival. Plus there was no point seeking more foes, cause those monsters she defeated gave us more then enough points then we need.

"Achooo!" I sneezed, as I intuitively wiped my nose with the back of my hand.

"Bless you." She smiled.

I guess being half cyborg, doesn't stop you from catching a cold, though, at the very least I wouldn't have to worry about frostbite on my limbs.

"Veritas, aren't you cold? You're wearing even less then me..." I shivered.

"Not at all. Members of the House of Wind are born cold resilient, since most of our training is done in the sky..." she said, standing at the mouth of the cave and gazing at the sky.

"I see."

After the next 5 minutes of chattering and walking, we stopped at the foot of a glacial cliff, and there was a trickle of a stream dripping to the ground.
Veritas, with no hesitation, held her hand forward and cupped the dripping water, then drank from it a moment later. And a few cups later, she moved and gave the spot to me.
One thing I am thankful about my robotic arms is that they feel no cold, otherwise my fingers would have already frozen off. But still the icy chill from the fresh water lingered in my throat. A shot rang out of nowhere stopping me from taking another drink. I spun around, only to find a bullet frozen in mid-air, just centimeters from my face. My lips quivered and my eyes widened at the sight. And before panic could make its way through my whole body, Veritas whipped around and snapped with a single chant:

"Ictu!"

A small portion of a nearby cliff broke off, and a black MS came tumbling down from the side of the hill. And when the MS landed waist deep in the snow, it was then magically uprooted several feet off ground and drifted towards us, with the MS head fidgeting and hands trying to pry away the invisible force choking her.

"Veritas stop!" I called out at once.

Veritas hesitated but didn't let go, but it was obvious she loosened her grasp a little.

"Why?"

"Just let her go! Please!" I pleaded, making a mental face palm.

Veritas did as I told this time. And with a 'let go' gesture of her hand, the black MS slumped onto the ground at once.

"Kuro!" I yelled, rushing to her aid at once. The visor of her helmet lifted, revealing a pale gasping face, and an unnerving set of red eyes.

"I can get up myself." She said, rejecting my help as she climbed to her feet her own.

"Where's your partner?" I scanned around her curiously, but no one else was in sight.

"You mean that traitor? I took care of him at the very start." Kuro said, her voice filled with icy resentment.

"So, it seems that the rumour is true..." I muttered to myself, thinking back to what the golem dude said about 'taking out the humans'.

"What rumo-" As Kuro was half way through the word, Veritas cut her off:

"Is she a close acquaintance of you Kard?"

"Yeah, she's a friend of mine. We're from the same division."

"Then why did she try to shoot you?" Veritas asked beautiful smile, but there was an unmistakable edge in her voice.

"My finger slipped." Kuro lied.

I take back saying she is my friend!

"I see." Veritas, with a poke face smile, turned to Kuro and spoke: "Allow me a proper introduction. I am Veritas S. Aeolus, daughter of the great duke of wind, and it's a pleasure to meet you."

For a moment Kuro said nothing, as all she did was stare at Veritas as if she was an alien. I understood, somewhat. Considering Veritas came from a noble heritage, and Kuro who had been a rebel all her life. The two groups have very little in common with one another, other then inflicting bloodshed towards one another.

"Kuro. Kuro is fine." She said with an exasperating sigh.

She seemed to have take it well, for a person who fought against capitalist overlords and their puppet government for most her life. No doubt, corrupt aristocrats would fall under that category as well, but she seemed to have no quarrel with Veritas; not yet at least.

"Wait! Are we allowed to make temporary alliances with other teams?" I said, looking back and forth between the two of them.

"There are no rules against it, but there are also no rules against back stabbing." Veritas smiled at Kuro with closed eyes.

"Alright then. I trust Kuro, we're an alliance then. Kuro you're ok with this right?"

"If you say so." Kuro grumbled, then turned and picked up her fallen sniper rifle.

"So where are we going again Veritas?" I asked, facing Veritas.

"The center." She said with a small smile.

"Wait, why are we...Oh never mind..."
I almost forgot about the magic tome mentioned at the start as a reward to whoever uncover the what so-ever crown first, that hinted to be in the center of the testing grounds... Though the magic tome was completely useless to me as a human, since humans can't cast magic spells and I defiantly could not, it was surely quite a great deal of importance to the elementals. Whose lives basically evolves around magic.

"Were you about to say something Kard?" Veritas cocked her head slightly.

"No not really." I said stretching again.

"Alright! Now, can you lead the way again please?"

***

Why did she choose that underling boy?!?!?!

Carrying only a fury of thought, Wyndham slashed at a nearby thick oak with his rapier. And just like that, the hundred-year oak fell onto the ground with a heavy thud as it's last protest.

WHY? WHY? WHY!?!?!?

Wyndham continued to hack at the already dead oak with his rapier, ripples of wind began to stir in the air, slicing and dicing it into a thousand tiny little pieces.

"Sir Wyndham...Are you alright?" a little girl's voice quivered from behind him.

Wyndham paid her no heed, as he continued to hack at the wood, until literally half of it has been reduced to shreds.

The girl placed her twin fists on her chest worriedly, as she began to recite prayers in her native tongue, quietly.

She was always with me...Always...That cursed underling...If only he wasn't here...If only he never showed up...she is mine...and I am not going to give her to any person...

Wyndham stopped slashing, at this point the fallen dead oak has been reduced to million shreds literally. As Wyndham stood in his place and sheathed his rapier, a rain of wooden shreds continued to shower on him along with the snow. Then with a grunt expression, he began to walk away from the scene and towards the center.

Q: What thing/event gives you the most frustration?