Rise of the Crusader

Inside a huge circular shape building in the training ground, the year one elite division students gathered in there with their instructors.

The instructors were the same trio that organized the previous training session. It was none other than the full-bearded muscular man, the lean man, and the silver-haired woman.

Unlike the previous training session that took place in the hellfire domain, the students were going to be venturing into a new and different domain.

The speed force domain.

"Good morning class." The cold voice of the full-bearded muscular man suddenly rang out after a few seconds.

The students were all putting on their training suits, and after they entered the massive building, they had all been staring at the surrounding. It was only after the man spoke, that they moved their gaze towards him.

However, it was only a handful of the students that turned toward the muscular man, the other students were still very much mesmerized by the building they were in.

The building they were in comprised of a tunnel-like track, which was with no doubt used to train speedsters or those whose attributes related to speed. There were also numerous unusual treadmills in the area.

"Hello everyone!!" Seeing how it was only a couple of the students who paid heed to his words, the voice of the muscular man got louder. And this time around, it wasn't in a friendly tone.

With a sneer on their faces, the students shifted their gaze back to the muscular man, and some of them folded their hands across their chest.

"The…" The muscular man was about to speak when the lean man pointed his finger ahead. As the muscular man stared in the direction which his colleague was pointing at, he froze.

Whether it was the muscular man, the lanky build man, or even the silver-haired woman, they were left startled when they saw Sean.

Sean was walking around a massive generator, and as he stared at the generator, a big smile could be seen on his face. It wasn't the sight of Sean in front of the generator that left the three instructors stunned, but instead, it was what Sean was putting on.

The device prototype which Sean placed on his chest sent the eyes of the instructors twitching. A second after, and the silver-haired woman made a move.

She appeared in front of Sean, and retracted the device from Sean's chest, before then glaring at him. "What is wrong with you speedsters!!! Does this look like a toy, you should play with?" The woman exclaimed.

"How was I supposed to know that! And besides, if you didn't want anyone to lay hands on it, you shouldn't have kept it in plain sight." Sean responded.

"Y-You… Did you not read the sign on the cabinet!!" The woman said, pointing towards the glass cabinet beside her, "Do not touch!"

"The only way you could have taken this is if you were to phase through the cabinet, which is precisely what you did."

Sean shrugged his shoulder when he heard the silver-haired woman, "And who is that to blame," Sean said, then began walking towards his classmates.

The woman shook her head, before then returning the tachyon prototype into the glass cabinet. She heaved a deep breath and appeared alongside the muscular man and the lanky man.

"Ah-Ahem. I welcome you all to the speed force domain," The muscular man said with a smile on his face. "We have already wasted too much time, so I'm going to head straight to the point."

When the muscular man stopped speaking, the lean man suddenly moved towards the pillar in the building. As he placed his hand on the pillar, an energy field emerged on the tunnel-like track.

"I present to you the speed force."

The muscular man walked towards the energy field that had just appeared, he, however, didn't get too close to the field, and still kept his distance from it.

"Each of the seven domains in the academy is overseen by different entities. It could be forces, particles, supernatural beings, crystals etcetera. And as for the speed force domain, it is overseen by the speed force itself."

"If you all weren't so weak, when you entered the hellfire domain in the last training session, you would have glimpsed upon the entities overseeing it. But, none of you were able to see it."

There was a tinge of mockery on the man's face when he spoke about the hellfire domain. "Anyway, the speed force domain is empowered by the speed force, and over the last decade, the academy has deployed this speed force into training metahumans."

"Though the speed force was created for speedsters in general, the academy was able to alter its attribute, and enable it to not only assist speedster but also train other metahumans."

"The speed force can also be termed to be the representation of reality in motion, as it is the very force that pushes space and time forward."

Once the muscular man began to speak about the speed force, the students listened attentively. They had eyes fixed on him, trying as much as to grasp each word that he was saying.

Even Gus, who was on Raphael's shoulder, was staring at the muscular man as he spoke.

"At the speed force's core, the speed force is equivalent to time itself. All of the time. Existence moving through reality. Kinetic energy, and even temporal energy."

As the muscular man explained about the details to which the students were entitled to know about the speed force, a very grim look could be seen on his face.

"I shouldn't have to explain about how valuable the speed force is, as merely it being able to share a relationship with space and time, the speed force is stupendous."

Suddenly, the muscular man waved his hand, "The rest of the details of the speed force will be said when you are all on the tracks." He muttered, and seeing the expression on the student's faces, he shook his head.

"You can't be scared, right? It's like I said, the speed force has already been altered by the academy, so it wouldn't severely damage those who aren't speedsters. The least it is capable of doing is to cripple you, and that's all."

There was a smile on the muscular man's face when he said those words.

"Haha hahaha!! I'm just joking with you all. But if you end up being crippled by the speed force, there is a medical bay in here." The man said, pointing at one of the rooms in the area.

The fact that a medical bay was close to the space force couldn't be a good omen in any way.

"So, what are you still waiting for!!! Get on the track, and quit standing on the edges!"

There was, however, no response from the student when they heard the muscular man. It was only Sean that leaped on the track, as for the rest they had eyes glued to the energy field.

Suddenly, the silver-haired woman moved towards the students, "What is it?!" She inquired.

"This is simply insane!! I refuse to believe that the academy can modify a system which is meant for speedster into a system for other metahumans also." Xavier exclaimed.

"For all I know, I could be swept into some space and time disruption, or even else I can be locked in there. Who knows what the hell could happen to me in there!!!!"

"There is absolutely no way I'm also going down there." Jackson's voice rang out.

Seeing, how the other students stood in place, it could also be assumed that they didn't have any intention whatsoever to go near the speed force.

The silver-haired suddenly chuckled, "I understand what you're trying to convey, and none of the would-be happening to any one of you. This is where you're mistaken. The training for a speedster and the nonspeedster are entirely different."

"A non-speedster would be required to assimilate a bit of the force within the speed for, whereas a speedster only has to communicate with the speed force." The woman said, "You can see that they are miles apart."

About half of the students in front of the woman had a light frown on their faces.

"Isn't assimilating the force in the speed force more dangerous than communicating with the speed force," Jackson mumbled as he scratched his head. "Regardless of how you put it, this still seems like suicide training to me."

The silver-haired woman's mouth opened slightly when she heard Jackson. She seemed to be about to speak when she decided not to, and instead flashed a rough smile at them.

"You know what, Lucien, move them to the track." The woman turned towards the lank-built man and exclaimed.

Lucien waved his hand a second after he heard the silver-haired woman, and then the twenty students all appeared in front of the energy field.

"Y-You…"

The students weren't just standing in front of the energy field, their hands were on the energy field. The speed force was emitting various sorts of lightning colors and properties around its body, and the lightning could be seen moving about the student's bodies.

"Get ready."