“So, you’re the new recruit for the Resurgence Initiative.” An ordinary-looking soldier, his chest adorned with five medals, stared at Gaius intensely. The pressure was palpable, and Gaius looked back calmly at the officer. He wasn’t sure what rank the man in front of him was, or if they even used a rendition of ranks that were similar to the ones he was familiar with on Earth.

“Yes, I am.”

The officer held the stare for another second, before the pressure subsided. “You look like someone who’s here for the correct reasons, but I’ll just tell you to make sure. What the Resurgence Initiative wants are people dedicated to the pursuit of strength, and that alone. If you came in here bearing political agendas, either you drop them by the time you leave this tent, or you turn away right now.”

Gaius nodded subconsciously, his mind whirring. It was a good thing that his secretary retained Nakama on the grounds of wanting to entertain her, or else she might have broken out into a wail at the officer’s threat-infused words. Not so important were the implications that these words were bringing out. It seemed that inter-faction politicking was at an all-time high, if even schemes to get sympathisers into this project was underway.

Now that he’d thought about it, Gaius could faintly make out shadows of other people standing outside the tent. The officer in front of him could not have been oblivious to their presence, which meant that even someone of his status had to compromise with whatever entities that were backing these eavesdroppers.

It had to be stifling, working in such an environment.

“Yes, sir,” replied Gaius.

“Good. Now, I’m going to ask you a question. You are to reply to me honestly — do not try lying to me.” The man snapped his fingers, and something like a container shrouded the two of them. “What was your objective when you decided to not show restraint in the past two days?”

“Power,” Gaius replied promptly. “Enough power to protect my sister and I. I want to be strong enough to recover everything I’ve lost.”

The officer breathed in sharply. “I see you make no mention about loyalty.”

“Naturally,” said Gaius. “There’s no point being loyal if you aren’t strong enough to back it up. Tossing one’s life away thoughtlessly is the epitome of waste.”

“To hear a child speak words like these…” The captain shook his head. “It speaks volumes about your childhood, or more accurately, lack thereof. Very well, young one. Welcome to the Resurgence initiative. I’m Major Degurechaff, overseer of the Initiative.”

The officer extended his hand, and Gaius gripped it firmly. “Unlike the normal training you’ve had so far, the way we do things are somewhat different. It’s closer to a school than anything else. The gifted are given more freedom, more resources. We’ll offer you opportunities like no other. All we ask of you is that you show us results.”

The major got up and motioned for Gaius to follow. Behind his desk, covered by a pair of ornate curtains, was an unremarkable wooden door. Major Degurechaff pushed it open, and Gaius’ face squinted as a gust of cold air hit his face. “Don’t stand around and gawk. We’ve things to do.”

Gaius shivered as he stepped through the wooden door. The cold was one factor, definitely, but to an earthling who, in his memory thus far, had never came across something as unscientific as the land of ice and snow he was in right now, such fear was perhaps justified.

Snowy peaks dotted the horizon, blurred by a persistent curtain of snow and ice. Whatever sun that was illuminating the land before Gaius had to be crippled — the sunlight could have been swapped out for an artificial light here, and the latter would actually function better.

Herds of woolly creatures huddled together in a valley a few hundred metres away from him, batting away at the occasional roving wolf aiming at the smaller creatures.

The seemingly lifeless land was inundated with life. The viewer just needed to see it.

Gaius bent over, picking up a small fistful of snow with his bare hands. It felt like velvet, cold and smooth, and in that moment, the world around him shifted once again.

A snowman, shaped like any regular human, stood in front of him. Someone else had built it, the shadowy figure in front of him, who was giving a lesson to abandoned children like him. The streets were deserted, and whatever cars that were in sight had been long stripped down to the skeleton.

“First off,” said the man, “remember that a strike to any part of the body can be fatal. Organs affected by enough trauma can enter into shock, or even fail after a few minutes. Therefore, aiming selectively at more vulnerable organs will serve you better if you think a fight will go on for a long time."

He punched out at the snowman’s chest lightly, sending cracks through the lightly packed snow. “The chest is protected by the ribcage, so ideally, you should aim to land a blow hard enough to break a rib and send the affected part inwards. A broken rib can pierce his lungs. There are two results here: either your opponent is experienced enough to constrain his movements, or he dies after his lung, spleen or liver is perforated.”’

“The abdomen is a vulnerable target too.” The man flicked his finger at the dummy human made of snow, and a finger-sized hole appeared there. “The kidney in particular tends to fail easily when injured, but it is located deep within the abdomen. Therefore, simply aiming for your opponent’s stomach is good enough to trigger nausea, providing you more opportunities to take advantage of.”

“The throat is usually well protected by any fighter, and for very good reason.” The shadowy figure traced a line with his right index finger across the snowman’s throat. “A single forward punch can crush the windpipe. A hard-enough blow from the back can disable the opponent’s nervous system.”

As Gaius stared at the snow-person, his head throbbed again. Abruptly, the scene shattered into multiple fragments, and a sensation of falling assailed his nerves.

Mountains of ice entered his vision once more, a place that teemed with life despite the apparent lifelessness within. It was a definite contrast against the city of death that had just appeared in his memories. The memory this time wasn’t that useful, seeing as he had already begun to recall just where to attack for maximum effect, but at least he now knew why. Furthermore, killing or crippling other members of this initiative probably wasn’t a good idea, given that everyone here probably was a talent in one way or another. But still...to think that his past on Earth was like this. In a sense, he was beginning to understand why the lifestyle he had now wasn't entirely alien to him.

“Recruit, you alright here? You looked a bit out of it for a moment or so just now.”

Gaius nodded slightly.

“Come on then. The base camp isn’t too far away. Keep your head down and follow me.”