#oc: Cato | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

oros-ash3s · 7 days ago

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࿔*:･ﾟ ˚₊ 𖥔 ˚ ‧ㅤㅤㅤ୧ “Training” Ⳋ :･˚₊ ᐝ ꕀ࿐⭑

Characters: Atlas (he/him), ??? (they/them), Cato (she/her)

Atlas swung through the air, sweat slicked to the nape of his neck. He could feel the piercing gaze of each of the training officers locked on his back, practically burning into him, as he spun his staff, jabbing it into the gut of one of his opponents’ while delivering a harsh blow to the jugular to the other. They both went flying, one crashing into the wall with a yelp while the second bulldozed through two unsuspecting trainees, sending them all tumbling to the ground like bowling pins. Although he didn’t dare lower his guard to check, he could already see the nods of approval he was undoubtedly getting from behind the observation glass, trainees and trainers alike watching in awe at his perfect form, his unbeatable strength, his quick wit. His perfect score.

Each training session prior had gone like this: Atlas’ unmatchable skills, next to his less-than-satisfactory classmates, each who were desperate to finally rise above number 792 – the golden boy. And each training session, he would easily overpower them, knocking each opponent that dared cross his path to the ground like it was nothing, hardly breaking a sweat, the only one left standing by the end of the hour, his figure radiating power above the bruised bodies all fallen at his feet.

Today was no different. Atlas took on opponent after opponent, not allowing himself a second of rest, as the crowd outside continued to gape at him in complete astonishment. It was only when the sharp whistle from the lead director cut through the thick atmosphere did he finally allow himself to lower his guard, relaxing his posture, staff clattering from his grip, the trainee he had in a tight headlock plummeting to the ground with it. It was only then, as he turned his attention away, that he saw the amount of people gathered outside, watching. A large horde of people were gathered in front of the observation glass, eyes all trained onto him. More faces than he could count were pressed close to the glass, trainees all excitedly trying to push their way to the front to see what all the fuss was about. Quite the turnout, he thought dimly to himself as he stepped past the rows of crumpled bodies and outstretched limbs, making his way outside.

It wasn’t unusual, of course. It seemed that at all times there was someone or somebody watching him, inspecting. As much as he didn’t like it, he had to get used to it, being at such a high rank now. It came with the territory. But a crowd this size, well, it was definitely not what he expected to see. He slid the door open, eying the rows and rows of eager, nervous faces anxiously, before tipping his head down, averting his gaze. It wouldn’t have bothered him so much, if not for all the whispering. It was hard to all make out, in a crowd of this side, more a dull buzz of reverence, digging under his skin, turning his stomach to a mess of jitters. He sucked in a sharp breath through his nose, pushing down the nervous tension and muttering a quiet apology as he pushed his way through the crowd.

He had only made it two feet before he was very rudely interrupted by someone crashing into him. They stumbled back, letting out a loud huff of annoyance — like they hadn’t been the one to run into him — and glared up at him, eyebrows knit together. Their expression quickly morphed into one of panic, fear flickering between their eyes, as they realized exactly who they were looking at. It was a look he knew well by now. He cleared his throat, albeit a bit awkwardly. “Uh, excuse me.”

The trainee scrambled away from him, patting off their uniform and staring down at their feet sheepishly. They fumbled with their hands, twisting and intertwining their fingers together, their entire body tensed up at once. “Sorry. Wasn’t paying attention.” They grunted, not sounding very sorry. They were already disappearing back into the crowd before Atlas could even register their rushed apology, cutting off any other conversation.

Atlas watched them go, unmoving for a moment, a small frown tugging at the corner of his lips. Strange. Although he was used to the weird looks or the whispering or even the intimidation at just talking to him, something about this particular interaction stood out to him from the rest. Something about how the trainee behaved was just… completely unlike any other soldiers he had the privilege of speaking to. Most of those at Eden, not unlike himself, were level-headed, calm, and respectful. While this trainee in particular was none of these things: Running into him, not paying attention to where they were going, even looking like they were about to fight him. It wasn’t like anything he had seen from another person inside the warehouse before. How very strange.

If he was actually thinking about it, Atlas couldn’t remember ever seeing them around before. All their features had been plain, with pin-straight jet black hair cropped short, dark brown eyes, and pale skin. Nothing about it would have made them stand out in a crowd. Still, Atlas was sure he would have remembered seeing them around at least once. He’d been here for ten years, he would have remembered someone like them, so rude and scatterbrained. Unless they were new. It would explain the attitude, and why he didn’t recognize them. But such a low rank, how could they have found their way to this level? Someone like them certainly wouldn’t be allowed to oversee training…

He quickly pushed the thoughts aside, briskly continuing through the crowd and ignoring the odd feeling that was still poking at him from their interaction, as short as it was. It wasn’t any of his business. Maybe they were a special case, like him. Granted access to the higher levels due to their powers. Maybe he would find them in training soon. A proper opponent, now that would be nice.

“Atlas.” All thoughts of the trainee were quickly forgotten at the sound of his name being called. He glanced up, finding himself face-to-face with Cato, her crisp black badge, engraved with silver lettering, shining up at him, marking her as the head of the Task Force. She made her way towards him, the crowd dispersing at her wake, creating a clear walkway for her as they pressed themselves up against the walls. It was only when she stood directly in front of him that she allowed herself to properly greet him, giving him a curt nod and a small smile. “Training went well, I assume?”

The attention from everyone else was only amplified tenfold with Cato at his side, the wide clearing she had made leaving him out in the open, exposed. All their eyes burned into him as he gave her a small nod and smile, fingers twitching at his side, tapping against his thigh. He knew he should’ve been used to it by now, but still with every time he was singled out like this, the center of attention, he couldn’t help but flush and stare down at his feet, silent. He loved his job, loved Eden, but this was always going to be one of those things he’d much rather not be a part of it.

Cato’s smile widened, the look of approval lingering in her eyes distracting Atlas from all the attention on him, for only a moment. It was the smiles from her that made it all worth it. He could take the stares, the whispers, the rumours, as long as he had Cato at the end of the day, eyes shining in pride.

Cato glanced around at the gaggle of people gathered in a wide circle around the two of them, and her expression shifted to one of annoyance. Her sharp gaze pierced through each of the whispering, eavesdropping trainees as she raised a brow, as if to say move along, before nodding to Atlas, motioning for him to follow. “Let's walk.” She said, not waiting for a response as she moved forwards again.

Atlas quickly scrambled to follow, falling in step beside her, taking extra care to match her sharp pace exactly. “You are on track then?” She asked, gaze trained straight ahead. “To advance.”

“Yes,” he nodded, rubbing his thumb and index finger together in a soothing motion as he spoke. “I should be ready for when the rest of the leaders come to observe in a couple of weeks.”

Even now, as they walked further away from the training room, eyes still lingered on them. Some murmured behind their hands, shooting Atlas envious looks before being silenced by Cato’s harsh gaze on them, while others he could feel watching him, following his every movement, the glare in their eyes saying more than any whisper could.

“Good,” Cato said, her voice calm and steady. “I’m sure they will be impressed.”

She fell quiet, letting the words sink in. Impressed. Cato thought he was something to be impressed by. The thought brought a new type of jitters to his stomach — a good kind, this time. Atlas had been training for so long, restlessly improving his skills, rising above the odds, constantly fighting to be recognized for his talents; the fact that the day where he’d finally be something more than a lowly trainee from the warehouse was actually arriving… Well, it all felt surreal. Evaluation Day was only weeks away. Mere weeks, and he’d finally have everything he had ever wanted. All of Cato’s lessons, the sleepless nights before tests, the drills and workouts and fights, they were all paying off. Just like they told him they would.

“This will be good for you Atlas.” Cato’s gaze finally landed on him, sweeping him up and down, observing. Atlas went stiff as a board, his posture straight. He waited for her to pick out an imperfection that he needed to hone in on before Evaluation Day, waited for the criticisms of his form or posture, or the little remarks about his unruly appearance. But for once, no such thing came. No, for once, Cato was staring at him in nothing but pure, complete pride. “You’ve earned this.”

Atlas’ lips parted slightly, the praise – something Cato didn’t hand out lightly – coming to him as a shock. He instantly brightened, chest puffing up in pleasure. “Right, of course.” He said quickly, the smallest smile quirking at the corners of his lips. He had earned this.

A whisper caught his ear, pricking the back of his neck: Look who it is. Cato’s little pet.

The snickers took him off guard. Usually, he was good at disregarding the little snide remarks said behind cupped hands. They were insignificant, in the grand scheme of things. Just words. Harmless, when compared to the blow of a weapon, or the pierce of a dagger; they were nothing. But for some reason, being so out in the open, Cato staring at him so gently, the words almost… hurt. Of course, it wasn’t anything he hadn’t heard before. He knew why life at the warehouse was always so lonely, why he got the glares and looks of intimidation. He knew what they all thought, what they were saying about him.

792 only made it this far because he’s her favourite, he doesn’t know what true hardship is like. Not when he’s pampered by the commander herself. She would’ve let him get anything he wanted. He’s only ever been special because she dotes over him so much. He’d be nowhere without her.

It was what made working under the Leader so… intriguing. Under her, there’d be no judgement, under her, they’d see him for who he truly was, not just an extension of Cato. Under her, he’d be surrounded by like-minded people, driven for power, to do true good in the world. They’d be equals.

Unless…

The whispers wormed their way under his skin like needlepricks, causing his expression of excitement to fade, eyebrows drawing together.

Despite himself, despite the praise Cato had given to him so softly — praise he could usually never expect from her — he found himself doubting his place, wondering if maybe they were right. After all, the Elites, the Evaluation – they were hand-picked by Cato herself. If she didn’t like him so much, if she hadn’t kept such a close eye on him, given him personal lessons, allowed him to move up when others couldn’t… would he have even made it this far? Was he truly deserving of this?

“They are jealous. You deserve this.” Cato’s voice cut through again, practically reading Atlas’ thoughts.

He glanced back up towards her, but this time her gaze was focused forwards again, not making eye contact with him. He wished she still was. He’d do anything to get that soft smile, the way her eyes crinkled up when she was pleased with him. He simply gave her a nod, lapsing back into silence beside her. She had to be right. Cato wouldn’t lie to him, and especially wouldn’t give him a freeride to the Elites. Only the best of the best made it through. And if she thought that even the other leaders would be impressed by his skills… Well then, he had to be the best of the best, didn’t he?

The thought spurred something inside of him, and he turned back to face her, a flicker of doubt passing across his face. “Um,” he said, lowering his voice, almost hesitating. “Ira will be coming with me, won’t she?”

At Atlas’ words, Cato cast her gaze down on him again, but only briefly. Her eyes were laced with something indescribable as she stared down at him, and then the look was gone, her face turned away. “To your evaluation with the other leaders?” She paused. “Or moving forward to the Elites?”

Atlas stared down at his feet. “To the Elites.” He said, his words suddenly stuck in his throat, as he thought desperately on how exactly to word his next question. It was a stupid question to bother Cato with, especially when she took time out of her already-packed schedule to come visit him after training — to make sure he was alright. She didn’t have time for questions about Ira Mawar. Still, he couldn’t stop himself from continuing. “You’re considering her too, right? They’ve fought so hard to finally be one of the selected — they’ve even been here almost as long as I have. I don’t know if…” He cut himself short, the words lingering in the air as he looked towards Cato for her approval.

Cato’s expression was now far from the soft, gentle look of pride. She shot him a firm stare, stopping him in his tracks. He was sure that the next word from her lips would be a harsh “no” — he already knew the question was wrong to ask as soon as the words left his mouth. But surprisingly enough, Cato didn’t shoot him down so fast. She hesitated for a moment, before saying in a quieter tone than before, “We are… considering them. Though, I suggest you don’t speak to her about this.” She added, the ‘if you know what’s good for yourself’ going unspoken.

Atlas relaxed ever so slightly, relief flooding through him. “Understood.”

The idea of having to leave his best friend behind had been the one problem that had been troubling him as Evaluation Day drew closer. Of course, he’d been waiting for the day to come since he was only a child; it was his one dream, the goal he’d been working towards for years, the thing he wanted the most. But the thought of going ahead and leaving Ira alone at the warehouse was unthinkable. She was always at his side, his rock through it all. They did everything together; an unbeatable duo. When he imagined being an Elite, she was right there at his side.

To hear that Ira might be one of the selected instantly eased his worries. He knew it was foolish to wish to have Ira as his partner, always, but he was glad that there might be a possibility that the two of them wouldn’t have to part ways. Of course, he was never going to tell Ira this. He was fortunate enough that Cato was willing to allow him such classified information. No one knew who were the top picks for the Elites, not even the other commanding officers. Only Cato and the leaders had access to those files. To think Cato trusted him enough to tell him…. He wasn’t going to dare disobey her, not when she thought he was special enough to know. He could never break her trust like that.

Cato nodded at Atlas’ affirmative. “You have a good heart… thinking of them like that.” She said slowly, falling quiet for another long moment. “I understand your closeness with Ira. However, you would do well to maintain your own success as your number one priority.”

“Right.”

“Keep training. Don’t let yourself get too relaxed now that you’re finally getting the recognition you deserve.” She reached a hand up and gave Atlas a brief pat on the shoulder, causing his ears to go pink. “I’ll see you at your next training session.”

And with that, she disappeared down the hall again. His time with Cato was finally up.

Credits go to @ohagiwrites as she helped co-write this!!

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