Assessment and Mission

The cage the girl was shoved into was small, but clean. There was no rust or sharp edges on the wire cage. There was nothing at all in the cage except for a thin blanket that separated her skin from the wire mesh. In this cage she could barely stand up, she couldn’t fully stretch out, she could only really only sit with the blanket wrapped around her small shoulders. 

It was very cold in the facility. Very cold and dark that always reeked of disinfectants. The room she was in was very large with nearly four hundred cages inside. Each cage had a child varying in age from four years to ten. The cages were stacked four high in ten rows of forty. Some of the kids cried in fear or pain. Others screamed in agony or rage. Most were deathly silent, though. A few from actually being dead, stress and failed experimentation doing them in, bodies now waiting to be taken. The rest were quiet because they knew no amount of them expressing grievances will change anything. So they will sit there quietly, waiting for either food or a trip to the designated washrooms.

They were fed and watered twice a day. This was quickly followed by trips to the washroom. There was a brief night cycle that would last for five hours. Throughout the day certain children would be taken from cages to what was called the Red Room. It was named for all the blood spilled in there every time another child entered. Most of the children who entered came back, but something was always changed about them. Some never came back at all. 

Every single one of them took a turn in that room. One day the day came for the girl. The Techs walked down each row, stopping at certain cages to pull out squirming and crying children. Up and down each row they went, pulling at least one from each. They came down her own row and stopped in front of her cage. The girl looked into the visor of the Human Base Tech, seeing only emptiness in those eyes.

Assessment day has always been Squad Alpha's favorite day. While they were never allowed to give an opinion before, they were asked to help with the challenges. Most of the challenges were normal, like sparing, agility tests, stealth, and target practice. Though a few were a bit more unique. There is a game called Prey-Hunter, lung capacity test, or Aeon's personal favorite and current objective; Wake Up Call.

Aeon and her friends had gotten up early to do this. As quietly as a Tech Feline they crept into the barrack room the rookies were temporarily placed in. It was a small room with twelve sets of bunk beds, three in each corner of the room seperated by tall metal shelves. Aeon signaled for them to disperse across the room, each going to a wall while she stayed in front of the door. Star climbed on top of the cabinet to the left of the door as she was tasked with watching instead of partaking. Her foot slipped making the slightest of sounds.

Aeon saw a head pick up to her directly to her right. With speed built up by years as a soldier she rushed to their side to place her hand over their mouth. The surprised grey eyes of Steve, one of the new recruits she met yesterday, staired back up at her. She cracked a large smile and placed her finger to her lips, a signal to be quiet. Once he nodded she gestured for him to cover his ear, which he complied. With a satisfied nod of her head she walked back to her position. She gave a quick signal of her hand and all three participants brought their guns to the air and fired.

The sound of repeated gun fire jerked the new recruits awake. There were shouts of surprise and fear from the rookies. Some had fallen out of bed, a few getting tangled in their sheets. Aeon watched the chaos ensue, grin never leaving her face. After thirty seconds they had all calmed down upon seeing no actual danger. Instead they looked at the four Partials with mixed faces of confusion, shock, and even anger. Among the angry ones was the very rude group from yesterday.

The leader turned towards Aeon, furious at being woken up like that by something he didn't even consider human. “What’s your problem?!?” He shouted at Aeon, who in turn only smiled at him. “Firing weapons in our barrack? Are you trying to kill us, you stupid Partial?”

“I’m not sure if you’ve been informed, Danolis,” The voice of Jessie said from behind Aeon, who moved over to reveal the war leader, “but we have a no discrimination pollicy here. If I hear such comments from you again I will have no choice but to take drastic measures. And do be warned that your skills and achievements in Training Center Alpha are the only reason why I’m going to let it slide this one time. Are we clear?” The sharp silver eyes of the rebellion leader stared him down.

“Yes ma’am. I won’t speak out of line again.” The rookie nodded, backing down.

“Very good.” She nodded her head sharply before turning to address Star. “Who were the first ten up and ready, Star?”

“The first ten to be awoken by the gun fire in order were Sare, Roddy, Danolis, Demitris, Scarra, Elexa, Adro, Orilis, Phero, and Mary. However, Steve was woken up before the gun fire when my shoe slipped.”

“Hmm, I haven’t heard of one waking up beforehand. Especially at such a slight sound.” Jessie hummed, turning an interested eye towards the young male. “Then take these eleven recruits down to Training Room 1. The rest of you, follow Captain Elriso to Training Room 3 where you will be assessed and placed in your new squads.”

“And just like that, we go from 24 to 11 to assess.” Aeon said as she watched the 13 other recruits walk out of the room to follow the Captain. Internally she was pleased to see that two of the there of Danolis’s followers were being taken. “Now, why don’t the rest of you follow me?”

“We’re not going to eat breakfast first?” Elexa questioned the older female.

“Out in the field you will need to learn how to work without food as you will not always get a chance to eat.” Aeon told the rookie as she led them down. She turned back to look at the raven haired girl. “Particularly when you are on our platoons, Elexa. I’ve missed more than my share of meals when out on a mission.”

Training Room 1 is the largest of the four Training Rooms. It was designed to look and imitate both the ruined city they hid themselves in and the forests surrounding it. There are many obstacle courses through it along with an adjoined weight room. Mud, water, oil, and other such things were brought down to help imitate a real life situation as much as possible. Many soldiers have gotten hurt down here as it is the most life-like and dangerous of the Training Rooms. 

To one side up high is a large window that overlooks the Training Room. It allowed observers to see nearly everything while staying out of the way. It also helps prevent cheating when competitions and assessments are being taken place. Normally Aeon, Chriso, Star, and J7 would be up there, but today they will be down on the ground.

“Alright, Kids, listen up.” Aeon shouted, getting all of their attention. “Today my team and I will be down on the ground with you to get up close and personal with each of you. We will be doing this to get a better look at what you are doing and how well you are doing. Meanwhile, the Platoon leaders and Jessie will be up there watching you, taking note, and judging.

“Now listen to this, it is very important. If you are caught cheating, you are disqualified. If you get injured beyond a quick bandiging, you are disqualified. If you do anything to hurt or purposefully hinder another you will be disqualified. We are team players here and will not tolerate traitors and those who value their own gain above the good of the war.

“Now, on to evaluations. You will be judged, assessed, and evaluated on three things. General performance, skill demonstration, and the ability to take initiative and improvise under unusual circumstances. The top four at the end will then be taken to the final test. Are there any questions?” Aeon asked, looking at the group of youthful faces. They all looked back at her, not one raising their hand. “Good. Star, my dear, please head to your spot.”

Star nodded her head, slipped out from under Chriso’s arm, and jogged towards the stairs that will take her to the end of the obstacle course. Aeon watched her go, making sure she was in place before she started the run. Satisfied, She turned back to the group with a big smile on her face. Chriso and J7 were passing out equipment to each rookie.

“Normally we would have more challenges of different varieties that would take several days to complete. However, we don’t have that kind of time, so we’ll be doing something different. This challenge will be difficult to complete.” Aeon started. “Far more so than anything you received in your Training Centers. The only thing I can tell you is that your objective is to get to Star on the other end of the course before the next four hours are up. You need to collect four keys, which are hidden throughout the course, to be able to get to her. J7, Chriso, and I will be there the whole time, even if not close up. Sometimes to help, sometimes to hinder. Start when the buzzer goes off and good luck. You’ll need it.”

“Ppfff.” Danolis sneered at Aeon, hate in his eyes. “I don’t need any luck.”

Aeon only smiled at the boy as a silent agreement went through her team to help the rookie as little as possible. She moved each one into position in front of the forest part of the Training Room. Once they were evenly spaced out she signaled for the timer to start. Short high pitched beeps were heard in the large room. Nine times it beeped before the buzzer went off.

Like bullets each and everyone ran through the forest followed by the Partials. They stayed close enough behind to observe the rookies without being in the way. That watch them navigate through the false forest, avoiding traps or purposefully triggering them. Aeon stopped by Adro as he was yanked into the air by a snare trap. While the others ran ahead she stopped to see if he could escape.

“Techs set basic traps all over the place to catch us in.” Aeon started as she leaned against a tree to watch. A small smile was on her face, enjoying the show. “Most have a sensor that goes off when the trap is triggered to alert any nearby Techs. You have less than a minute left to get unstuck before I have to take you out.”

“We didn’t learn about these types of knots in the Center!” Adro said in a panic, blood having rushed to his upside down face. He tried to undo the knot, but had no luck at undoing the tight, complicated loops and twists. “I can’t undo these knots!”

“Well you have thirty seconds. Figure something out.” Aeon warned him. She stood by where the trap was attached too, ready to drop him. He sorted through his equipment, grabbing the knife. Using the serrated edge he cut the rope, dropping him to the ground. “Three, two, one. Techs here, now you need to fight to get out.”

“What do-” He never finished as Aeon punched him in the face with her left hand. 

He stumbled back, blood all bus squirting out of his nose, an astonished look on his face. She, like the actual Techs, didn’t give him a chance to recover. She came at him again, swinging her leg to kick him in the side. Adro fell down, hitting the ground hard. He tried to unattach his gun from the holster, however, Aeon’s boot came down on his arm before he could. She had his own gun in his face in less than a second.

“Pew!” Aeon imitated the sound of a gun shot in the most childish way possible. “You are now dead. Go back the exact same way you came, you are disqualified.”

He stood up, stupefied and unsure at what just happened. She knew he didn’t expect the assessment to be this realistic. If he had then perhaps he would have taken it more seriously. He may have even made it to the final four. Instead Aeon watched as he limped back to the start, a disappointed look on her face as he left. She shook her head before trudging forward. There was more to be done and he was finished.

Aeon moved forward, glad to see the other ten had made it to the River Test. To pass the test you had two options. Swim as fast as you could for fifteen minutes against the current or tread water for thirty. Most had chosen to swim against the water, leaving only Steve and Roddy to tread. When swimming against the current, the water's speed is adjusted till the swimmer is kept in place. Aeon walked over to her friends to swap information with each other.

“Adro has been eliminated. Got caught in a trap and took too long to figure out he wouldn’t get out by untying the knot. Had to beat him.” Aeon whispered to the other two so those swimming wouldn’t overhear.

“Sare is in the lead with Danolis in second. And trust me, he is not liking it.” Chriso shook his head in amusement, loving the frustration on the boy's face. “We then have Elexa in third and Steve in fourth. The kid got caught in a trap and got out quickly enough.”

“The others have some catching up to do.” J7 commented, cold blue eyes never leaving the group. Out of the four of them he disliked the new recruits the most. He believed that they were given a chance to enter the top of the ranks too soon. “Still, I don’t think any of them will be a good fit for the team. They’re too young, too new.”

Aeon sighed, crossing her arms. “I was thinking the same thing too. I don’t understand why Jessie is having us team up with rookies for such an important mission. Especially when we have more than enough seasoned soldiers.”

“I hope she has a good reason, other than cannon fodder.” Chriso hummed, a thoughtful look on his face. “She wouldn’t do something like that, would she?”

“No, she wouldn’t.” Aeon shook her head, not believing the seasoned leader would find any use in that. “That’s not like her.”

They watched the rookies as they swam in the water. Since each one started at a different time they finished at a different time. This meant that Sare had finished first, about thirty seconds before Danolis. Aeon signaled to her squadmates that she was going ahead with Sare. The young female gave the elder a confused look when Aeon fell in step next to her. It lasted only a moment before she looked ahead again, just in time to doge the paint bomb trap.

Aeon ran next to her through the stretch before the city part of the Training Room. This part mimicked more a suburban part of a city. It was even completed with three fake houses one can go through, as opposed to the prop houses, and several broken down cars that were dragged down here. Sare dodged paint bullet fire from up the road and fled into one of the houses, Aeon hot on her trail.

Sare went through the living room area and up some of the stairs. She hid in the bedroom, behind the dresser, ready for the approach of one of the training soldiers. Two of the soldiers ran up into the room where she was waiting. The second both walked into the room and were visible, she fired at both of them at the target locations. Human Base Techs have a few vulnerable locations, such as the back of the neck, under the jaw, both eyes, and most joints.

Now that both were tagged in the correct spots they stopped persecuting her. Insead they nodded at Aeon and turned around to head back to their spots. Before leaving one left a key at the spot he was shot at. Sare picked up the key and looked at Aeon.

“Some keys can be obtained by shooting certain Trainers.” Aeon explained to the girl, a bright, proud smile on the Partials face. “The rest must be found throughout the fake city. You have three more to go. Good job and good luck.”

With that Aeon left her to her own devices. For the remainder of the four hours Aeon, Chriso, and J7 watched, helped, guided, fought against, and tricked the rookies. Nearing the end of the four hours six of the eleven had been eliminated, leaving only five. Two, Sare and Steve, had just found their fourth key, while the other three, Danolis, Elexa, and Orilis, only had three each.

Aeon was on the far side watching Sare and Danolis as they searched. Aeon watched Sare, just out of her sight, as she found her fourth key. Aeon watched with pride as he current favorite finished the task and started to head to Stars location. Aeon was about to head back when she saw Danolis charge at Sare. Before she could react he had shoved her off the platform she was on, causing her to bang her head on a metal bar.

Sare brought a hand to her head, pulling away with blood on it. She looked up at the other recruit with a look of confusion and astonishment. “What the hell, Danolis? I’m not a Trainer!”

“No, but you have the last key I need to get that spot, so I’m taking it from you.” He snarled in fury at the slightly smaller female.

“And what makes you think I won't tell the others that you cheated!” She snapped back as she tried to stand up, but failed. She hadn’t noticed, but on her way down she had hit her ankle on another bar, breaking it. She stumbled back to the ground with a hiss of pain.

“Because you won’t be awake to tell.” Danolis chuckled, a self satisfied grin on his face. 

He raised his paint gun to smack across her head when he suddenly felt a hand on his shoulder. He was roughly yanked around to see the furious gaze of Aeon. She took his gun out of his hand with her right hand and kept a harsh grip on his shoulder with her left. She slowly let her finger sink into his shoulders, slowly crushing it and causing him intense pain.

“You have purposefully attacked your teammate. You have injured her semi-permanently in your attack. And you have attempted to cheat in order to achieve a personal gain at the cost of your teammate and her health and safety!” Aeon hissed at him, taking pleasure in his face scrunching up in pain. She roughly pulled him closer so she could shover her face right in his. “Not only are you disqualified from the challenge I will personally see to it that you are severely punished for your crimes! Now move!” 

She shoved the rookie forward to walk back towards the edge where the othe disqualified rookies, several soldiers, and Captain Darick stood. She scooped the injured rookie up to carry her back. The walk took a couple of minutes, even at the fast pace she had them nearly jogging at. Whence they came into view of the other Captain Darick had called for Medical, who then took the injured recruit out of Aeon's arms. Aeon explained the situation to her Captain, who in turn was infuriated by the young recruits actions.

“Thank you, Aeon, for carrying Sare back and bringing Danolis's actions to our attention. I assure you I will handle him.” Captain Darick nodded her head at her before turning his head to the newcomers.

While the situation with Danolis was going one the other three recruits had obtained all four keys and had got to Star. The four hours had run out, so they came to the sides with the three winners. They were surprised to see Aeon with their Captain and Danolis, and Sare off to one side with Medical all around her. They looked at them in confusion before realisation dawned on them. The three Partials strode up to their squadmate and Captain, eager to know the story.

“Sare found all four keys before Danolis. He got jealous and attacked her for the keys. She ended up getting a busted open head and a broken ankle.” Aeon explained to the group, anger still in her voice as she pointed to the boy behind her. “The little brat has cost her a chance at the spots. Shame too, I really wanted her on the team.”

“What a bastard.” Chriso snarled in the boy's direction. His arm had slung over Star’s shoulder again as she leaned against him.

Aeon nodded het head in agreement before turning around. She walked over to Sare who was doing her best to hold back tears. From the pain of the injury or frustration at being eliminated from the competition because of someone else or even both, she could not tell. Instead she sat next to her and placed a reassuring hand on her shoulder. She looked up at me with watery silver eyes. Strands of her strawberry blond hair hung in her sweat covered face.

“I’m so sorry this happened.” Aeon started, a sympathetic smile on her face. “If I had known he would have attacked you I would have interfered sooner. I really wanted you on the team. You are the strongest one of them.”

“Thank you, Aeon.” Sare nodded her head. She was still sad, but a small smile ghosted across her face. “I’m sorry I can’t join you. I really wanted to be on the team.”

“Don’t worry about that. I’ll talk to Jessie about placing you on a list as a replacement for members on Squad A1A.” Aeon patted her shoulder, grinning in delight at the hopeful look on the rookie's face. “You have a lot of potential. I’ll hate for your talents to go to waste on lesser missions. You just focus on healing up, and I better not hear about you pushing yourself.”

“Yes ma’am! I promise I’ll heal up to perfection and continue training for the A1A Squad!” Sare promised, frustration, pain, and grief momentarily forgotten.

Aeon grinned at her one more time before heading back to the others. With three last remaining contestants there was one more test to do. It was a rather simple test compared to this one, but necessary. She led the small group over to the weight room, followed by both Captains and Jessie. Not by the SICs as they were dealing with the situation. Inside she turned to face the last three.

“Elexa, Stever, and Orilis. You three are the last ones so you have to pass the final test. Step on to the three large treadmills.” She directed them to the extra long extra wide treadmills that stood off to one side of the room. Each one stepped on and they started moving. The three recruits started walking across the worn down leather of the treadmills. “Normally there are four or more for this test, so this will be quicker than normal. The first one to fall off their treadmill loses and the other two will be placed on the team.”

“What do you mean ‘fall off’, ma’am?” Steve asked, confused by her wording.

“Well, as time goes on we will be increasing the speed of the treadmills. Then once you get to jogging speed we will start to throw stuff on the treadmills to trip you.” Chriso explained as he pointed to the pile of junk in one coroner. “The longer the three of you stay on the faster it will go and stuff will be thrown on. So the first one to fall off will be eliminated.”

“Are you serious?” Orilis asked, slightly nervous.

“Completely!” Aeon shouted as she picked up a brick and threw it on the treadmill, forcing Orilis to jump over it. “In the field you will be forced to run a lot. And during those runs you will be met with unsuspecting obstacles. You trip and you die.”

“We will also be firing at you from all sides.” Star added in as she was handed a paint gun. “If you get hit or fall you will be disqualified.”

Aeon gave the signal for the one who controlled the treadmills to pick up speed. Every thirty seconds they had the treadmills pick up more speed. The whole time bullets were being fired at them, making the duck and swerving to one side to dodge them. Once they had reached the point of jogging they started throwing things on the belts of the treadmills. 

Aeon took the most enjoyment out of this, much to the three rookies' dismay. While her friends each picked a treadmill to throw things on, she bombarded any one at random. Sometimes she would feign throwing things at one then instead throw it at another. She’ll stop for a minute or two before continuing. Sometimes she would throw things on right after another, barely giving them a chance to jump over each one.

They’ve been at this for two hours now and all three were sweating something fierce. It was mid afternoon by now and none of them had eaten or drank any water yet. She was sure one would be dropping any time now. Sure enough, the next time she double dropped objects on Orilis’s tread he fell. The item came at him just as the paint bullet was shot. He tried to duck and jump at the same time, but failed the landing. He stumbled for a moment, then tripped on the next item thrown on.

It was a hard fall, he ended up hitting his shoulder on the way down. He grunted in pain upon impact with the edge of the treadmill. One of the Trainers helped the rookie stand up while simultaneously checking his shoulder. Upon confirming he was okay Orilis stood in front of Jessie, head bowed in disappointment and slight embarrassment. Jessie placed her hand on his shoulder in a comforting way.

“You did very well.” She praised the young boy. “Not everyone makes it this far. I am impressed by how long you were able to run before stumbling. You may have a future on squad A1A or one of her sister squads.”

“Thank you ma’am. I will work harder and thank you for picking me as one of the contestants.” Orilis thanked her genuinely, a small sad smile on his face. She nodded at him and sent him on his way.

“Well, looks like we have our winners.” Aeon nodded at the two still running on the treadmill.

“Indeed. Please get them off. Have them shower and eat, then bring them to their new barracks. I’m sure the rest of the A1A Squad is eager to meet them.” Jessie ordered as she walked away, Captain Darick and Captain John right behind her. “Be in my office first thing tomorrow morning.”

Aeon turned to the two rookies who were just now getting off the treadmills. Both were panting hard, sweat running down their faces and necks. They were both clearly exhausted, though they stood up straight. The training in the Centers did much for their stamina and endurance. Two things they are going to really need when the mission starts.

“Well, well, well.” Aeon cheerfully chuckled, grinning nearly madly. She stood in front of the two new members of the team, hands firmly placed on her hips. Both looked at her as she approached. “Looks like you two have outlasted the last test. Welcome to the team.”

“I have a small question about the team.” Steve panted out between breaths. His hands were above his head to help with his panting.

Steve is a brunette with green-brown eyes. The color of old mud with yellowish green algae growing on it. He is a bit taller than Aeon, though a lot thinner in frame. A thin splatter of freckles dotted across his tanned face, making him look younger than he is. Permanent baby face syndrome. Something the Partials hadn’t noticed before was a necklace with a silver colored ring on it.

“We both do. Same question, we’re both just curious about it.” Elexa spoke up too, nodding her head in agreement.

Elexa is a rather pretty ravenett. Her pitch black hair is short and straight, stopping just below her ears. Her eyes are a bright blue with flecks of green in them. Her skin was a pale ivory, marred with several scars. A large freckle was dotted just under her right ear. She is more heavily built than her fellow rookie, though a tad bit shorter.

“Oh?” Aeon tilted her head curiously.

“Does the team have a name, or do we just refer to it as “the team’.” Steve asked her, finally catching her breath.

“We do.” Aeon grinned brightly at him, practically buzzing to tell them. “We are team Blood Moon.”