The sun rose. The day the True Haven had been waiting for had finally come. The first day of class.
Students woke up early to get ready for the opening ceremony.
By eight o'clock sharp, Raia and Arman had finished getting ready and went outside to walk to the Assembly Dome for the opening.
They wore their uniforms: a purple jacket, black fitted battle suit, black shirt, and black boots with purple streak designs.
Some students ran, while others used their powers to get to the Assembly Dome as fast as possible, as the opening ceremony would start at 8:30.
With Arman and Raia's amplified speed, they reached the Assembly Dome in no time. Students were lining up around the place, making the Dome look like a sun with purple rays. Raia and Arman managed to get inside after a few minutes and made it just in time.
The ceremony started with a song in honor of True Haven. Every student also stated the mission and vision of True Haven, the goals of why they were here and what they would become in the future.
The first speaker on stage was Mistress Fate, who welcomed the students gathered today. After her inspiring speech, the other instructors introduced themselves once again and gave short speeches relating to the subjects they would handle. They also introduced their assistants, who would substitute for them if they were unavailable on some days.
The opening ceremony ended an hour later. By 9:30, classes officially started.
Raia looked at his schedule on his Wristband and saw that their first class would be in the Hunting Department. Raia was actually curious about the Hunting Department because, according to the information provided on his Wristband, it wasn't just about hunting monsters... it involved the study of monsters themselves.
The venue for the class was located on the southwest side of the Assembly Dome. Raia could see there were a lot of people inside.
When Arman and Raia went in, they were greeted by a small stadium-type scene. There was a wide space in the middle, and the seats were arranged circularly around it at different levels. This setup offered good views from multiple angles. It was like a smaller version of the Assembly Dome but squarish.
Raia and Arman found seats in the middle decks and went over to sit down. Each chair provided enough space for the students to move freely. There was also a clear screen in front of them acting like a shield or barrier.
The two placed themselves comfortably in their chairs and waited for the instructor to arrive. Raia looked around and saw that students were slowly occupying the vacant seats. Based on the number of students inside, there was a possibility that three classes were sharing the venue today.
After ten minutes of waiting, a platform opened a small hole, just enough for a person to go through, while a screen dropped slowly from the ceiling.
A shadow suddenly came out from the hole and landed on top of the screen that was still descending. The screen then divided itself into four panels and arranged into a square, providing views from all directions.
A spotlight shone on one of the screens, revealing a man standing confidently.
He was wearing an outfit that looked like a wildlife ranger's uniform: a buttoned-down, mud-colored vest over a green shirt, cargo shorts matching his vest color, a black belt, and black sturdy boots.
Raia couldn't help but chuckle a bit at how funny their instructor's outfit looked. Little did he know, it wasn't just the outfit that was unusual.
"G'day, True Haven students! You lot excited to learn about all the different kinds of monsters runnin' loose out there? Just waitin' to be hunted, eh?" While he said this, he was doing finger guns at a camera that displayed his actions across the four screens.
The students went silent. They were actually holding back laughter. They were about to burst, unable to suppress it. After a brief awkward silence, it was replaced by countless laughs.
Even Raia couldn't help but chuckle. He liked the vibe of this instructor.
"Oi! Why're ya laughin', mate? Somethin' funny, is it? That's bloody rude! Cut it out, yeah!" the instructor turned red, trying to make the students stop laughing. But the students kept laughing and laughing even after he spoke again.
Seeing this, the instructor frowned and took a whip from his hip, holding it firmly. Raia noticed the change in his demeanor and stopped laughing. He could feel the offended vibe coming from the instructor.
In the next second, a loud whiplash sound rang out.
SMACK!
One whiplash boomed inside the facility like thunder. The students were horrified and immediately shut their mouths.
"You makin' fun of me, ay?" he said seriously.
He didn't look like he was joking anymore. The students didn't dare answer. The instructor's face twisted further when he didn't hear a response.
"Don't muck me around! Yes or no?!" he barked angrily and whipped the air once more.
SMACK!
The air thundered again, and the students covered their ears.
"No, Sir!" the students shouted in synchronization out of fear. Their instructor smiled when they finally answered and showed a goofy smile again.
"Good! Name's Jack Macgyver. I used to be a wildlife ranger out in the Aussie bush.After the Great Catastrophe, True Haven roped me in to teach you young pups about the monsters runnin' about and how to bring 'em down! Now, before we get started, I've got two simple rules: One, Don't be laughin' at me. Two, Answer me, alright?" Jack said in a jolly way. It was as if he hadn't gotten angry earlier!
Raia squinted at him. He found this instructor really weird.
"Yes, Sir!" the students immediately answered to avoid angering the instructor any further.
"Alright then, let's get stuck in. First thing you gotta learn in Hunting Class is observation. If you can collect good info just by watchin', you'll know whether you should or shouldn't pick a fight with a dangerous creature. Now, a quick question for a few bonus points in me class. You all saw what I did back there with the whip, yeah? That was my True Origin. So, based on what you've observed, can anyone tell me what my power is? Closest guess scores 50 points and 200 True Credits."
The students roared at how generous the reward was. They bombarded him with answers, hoping to guess correctly, but Jack kept nodding, still waiting for the right one.
Raia didn't answer immediately. He thought hard about what the closest possibility could be. Earlier, what Raia truly observed was that all of them had become tamed. Raia was sure the first day of school was always the rowdiest, especially since the School of True Haven didn't limit the students' age. Everyone from 15 to 50 years old was brought in to become T-Users and train. Therefore, discipline would be a problem at first.
But with a single whip, everyone had shut their mouths and obeyed Jack. Like tamed pets.
"Taming?" Raia guessed, whispering to himself. Suddenly, Inner Self corrected him.
'Correction, it is Monster or Animal Taming.'
"What?" Raia asked to make sure he heard right, but Inner Self didn't respond anymore. With no further answer from Inner Self, and with the constant bombardment of answers from the other students, Raia became stressed and pressured. In a panic, he locked in his answer, and a mic appeared in front of him.
Raia leaned closer to the mic and said a single word.
"Taming?"
Jack stopped and looked directly at Raia.
"Can ya specify what kinda taming, H-008?" Jack asked. Raia knew he was on the right track, he just needed to narrow it down.
"Monster or Animal Taming," Raia said confidently. Jack eyed him intensely for a moment, making Raia uncomfortable. But then Jack's expression softened, his eyes smiling.
"Spot on, H-008! Chuckin' ya 50 points and 200 True Credits, right now!" Jack announced excitedly, finger-gunning at Raia. Raia's Wristband vibrated with a notification.
'You've received 200 True Credits from SS-007.''You've received 50 class points from SS-007. Points have been stored in the Class Point System.'
Raia checked the notifications and saw his True Credits balance updated from 1,780 to 1,980 True Credits.
Under the status panel where penalties and warnings were listed, Raia noticed a new category. The Class Points System. There, he saw his current status.
[Class Points]
Hunting Department – 50
Combat Department – 0
Weaponry Department – 0
Power Control Department – 0
Role Identification Department – 0
Defense Department – 0
Experimentation Department – 0
Total – 50
Raia didn't know yet what the point of the Class Points System was, but he had a feeling it would help him a lot.
He also noticed his code, H-008. Jack hadn't said Raia's name at all, only the code. That made him curious. Raia looked back at the notification and found Jack's code, it was SS-007.
'SS-007... Could it be...! 007!'
Raia remembered something. Back at his dorm, when he opened the wooden box given by the military officer, it wasn't just extra uniforms and Origin Vials that were inside. There were also other items.
One was a circular disc, the size of a microchip, which Raia had attached to his Wristband. It was black in color and camouflaged so well that it gave the illusion of disappearing.
Along with the disc was a letter.
'Even in a second chance, I will always support you — 007'
Raia had been confused when he first read it, unable to think of anyone who would write him something like that. Even if it held a deeper meaning, he couldn't understand it then. He had simply shrugged it off.
Now, he suspected he might have found the writer, though he wasn't sure yet if it was Jack. Still, the way Jack had looked at him made Raia stick with his guess.
Jack continued his discussion and explained his power. According to him, Monster Taming was the ability to communicate with monsters and animals, taming them. And even humans, since humans were technically animals too. He clarified that his power didn't control monsters or people; instead, he made them his friends. Like what had happened earlier by exerting a wave powered by his ability, everyone instinctively understood him and obeyed.
What was even more amazing was that his power worked even better on creatures or monsters with lower intellect.
To further showcase his power, Jack pulled out a whistle. He blew it sharply, and a gust of wind whipped through the venue. A shadow hovered overhead, heading toward Jack. He didn't move, waiting calmly.
When the shadow reached the bottom of the screens, Jack jumped and landed safely on its back.
The shadow did a few loops before stopping under the spotlight, revealing its true form.
It was a huge bird, almost as big as the Java Sparrows Raia had encountered before, though far larger and differently colored. Its sharp beak and black-and-white feathers covered its body majestically.
As it landed, a section of the floor opened and a loud growl echoed.
GRRRR!
Suddenly, a shadow leapt out and landed beside Jack. He stepped forward and patted it gently.
It was a Giant Kangaroo. Its legs looked powerful, and its body was heavily muscled, covered in golden-brown fur, and scars from countless battles.
Finally, another section of the floor opened, revealing a pool. From the water emerged a huge alligator! Its scaled body glowed faintly with blue light as it crawled toward Jack. Like the others, Jack welcomed it warmly.
The students were in awe, seeing such majestic creatures up close, and even more amazed that they were tamed. Jack had tamed them!
"Alright everyone, let me introduce ya to me mates from down under!First up, we got Maggie, the Giant Magpie! Watch ya heads, she's a cheeky one!Then there's Kang, the Brutal Kangaroo! Tough as nails, this bloke'll knock ya flat if ya're not careful! And last but not least, say g'day to Ally, the Deinosuchus! Big, snappy, and not someone ya wanna wrestle with in the water, mate!"
Everyone's mouths were wide open, stunned at the sight of the monsters... no, the companions that Jack had brought.