fortuitous odds

[13] ship of theseus

────────

Sickles were an interesting choice of weapon. Something that was used to harvest the thing that brought life, being used to tear that very essence away. They were strange to hold and hard to manuever. This was Jungkook's first lesson in any form of combat, most of his previous training focused primarily on defense and how to use a taser.

"Okay so, think of these as really long claws. They can grab, and they can counter, but in their current state and with your skills, you would be lucky to catch anything on this edge." His teacher Seokjin ran a finger along the serrated edge of the steel blade that curved the inner side.

"Why can't I just have a knife or something? Aren't they easier?" The snort he received in response brought a disgruntled huff from Jungkook, shoulders slouching and arms dropping the two tools to his sides.

"Forgive me for not wanting to give the impulsive ex Katharós soldier an actually lethal weapon." Quipped Seokjin with a slight smirk, stepping back on the road to allow space for the other to begin testing his movements. They were overall pretty smooth, showing a decent level of dexterous movement. But his hesitance was clear, never really using any power behind his swings. "Put some effort in. I've not a clue what Hye is gonna give you, but you're not even going to be able to cut grass at this rate." This time Seokjin received a louder, more dramatic grumble, followed by the clanging of metal against metal. "Oh don't look at me like that." He scoffed, Jungkook sporting a teenage angst worthy glare that was juxtaposed against a pout.

"Why can't you do your thing to them? Make them crystal or something cool."

"And have them shatter on impact?" He argued pointedly, registering the movement in his peripheral and the flickering of time on his watch that noted it was 5 o'clock. "Hye's here. Good luck."

"That's never served me well..." Jungkook chuckled, fingers massaging the area above his collarbone. "Hye, hi." He greeted with a stiff nod upon noting the girl standing behind him with Namjoon by her side. Somehow the late afternoon sun made her even more intimidating. Her eyes shining a burning brown, hair pulled back in a neat bun and dressed in a navy jumpsuit. "Are we... ready to start?"

"So eager. That does make me happy." She hummed calmly, striding around the boy in a circle with a narrowed focus. It felt strange to be scrutinised so closely, unsure whether he should move or allow the circumstances to build themselves. "Awfully calm too." Her eyes never left his, catching his attention so easily that it was slightly embarrassing.

Something moved out the corner of his eye, tearing that silent battle apart as Jungkook swivelled around to see a small python with a strikingly beautiful pattern. It blended in almost entirely with the dusty surface of the road, moving effortlessly.

It's a hallucination... He told himself, risking a glance at the three behind him before returning to the creature. All its focus was on him, navigating closer with the calm flickering of its forked tongue. He stood frozen, knowing if he moved it would startle the creature into possibly attacking.

Considering its origins, nothing was going to stop it from striking eventually. This is fine... A sickle is just like a snake hook. Pin it down then use the inner edge to hook around the middle, then grab the tail.

In his head it sounded simple, a three step process. The moment he stepped forward however, everything fell apart. The ground could have rumbled with how loud every small sound had become, the snake coiling up backwards ready to strike. It's not real, it can't hurt you. He reminded himself, stumbling forward and attempting to use the edge of one of the sickles to stamp the head. In less than a second the snake lunged, getting a clean bite at the skin between his ankle and cuff of his jeans. Jungkook hadn't prepared himself for the electrifying bolt that would rush through his body in the next second, eyes whiting out and scream splitting from his lips before he could stop it. His whole body crumbled, weapons falling so he could slam his fists into the ground, leg convulsing as the venom shot through his veins. The flashes in front of his eyes swirled, making it impossible to make out where he was as he sobbed and choked on each pained gasp.