Chapter 3

Clara

I sat waiting for around ten minutes until the original guy came back and sat back at his desk without saying a word. Minutes later with a foreboding looking man entered the room, eyeing me for a while before speaking and I had to fight the urge to squirm in my seat while under his stare.

“Miss West?” The newcomer questioned, holding out his hand for me to shake.

“Yes.” I smiled slightly.

“I'm commander Hicks, I hear you want to sign up?”

“Yes sir.”

“Okay then, come with me.” He stated before leading the way through the old guards room and down a corridor I hadn't seen before.

He stopped at a large room filled with metal equipment that looked like it could be used for torture. “This is one of our training rooms. Have a seat for a moment.” He said and took the second chair in the room so that he was facing me.

“Before we go any further I need to clarify that if you sign up you know what you are getting yourself into. Being in the army isn't glamorous, its dangerous, hard work and its bloody. You will be asked to do things that you might not agree with, you will be required to kill.” He stated dramatically as though trying to warn me off. “Why do you want to be in the army Miss West?”

I swallowed hard before answering. “I was fourteen when I first really learned what the army did. I always had a notion before that but no real idea of the specifics. The day I learnt that people in the army killed other people I was horrified but it only lasted a minute. The infected that you kill Sir, they aren't people, they are animals, monsters. They are responsible for the deaths of millions, the suffering of millions. They are the reason we live the way we do. Trapped behind concrete walls, fearing the outside.”

“ I have memories of how the world used to be and we deserve a chance to get back to that.” I stated, taking a moment think about my next words. “Its not me that I'm doing this for, its for the next generation. The children that live here that have history lessons and listen with amazement when we tell them how life used to be. Because how we live now is so far removed from that that they can barely believe it. I'm doing it for the children that are yet to be born, and for the people who are forced to live this way. We all want a better life Commander, but there is no hope of that while we fear the infected, while they rule the world. I want a hand in changing that, in keeping people safe and in giving them hope for a better future.” I stated, the words pouring out of my mouth.

“Good answer.” He smiled lightly nodding his head. “Lets get started then shall we. You said on your form that you have a high level of fitness?”

“Yes sir.”

“Okay well today we are going to test that. The testing itself lasts around four hours, although you get a twenty minute break every hour. Physical fitness is your first hour, followed by combat, then weaponry and finally your interview.” He stated standing from his seat. “Are you okay to start now?”

“Yes Sir.”

“Lets get too it then.”

Okay maybe I underestimated the army a little. After my first hour I was ready to collapse. I slumped in a chair in the training room, every muscle in my body on fire. And I was so thankful that I had been training for as long as I had, there was no way I would have made it through this otherwise. Commander Hicks had shouted in my ear every step of the way, pushing me harder than I thought possible until my body collapsed and refused to do any more.

I gulped down air as I let my limbs relax then very gratefully accepted the water bottle he offered me. “You have twenty minutes before combat training. I'll leave you to yourself for a while, there's a rest room through there if you need it, I'll be back in twenty minutes.” He smiled lightly and the rebellious part of me wanted to tell him to fuck off. Smiling at me after an hour of screaming in my ear.

I sipped the cold water feeling instant relief against my sore throat then slumped back against the chair back. Shit this was harder than I had thought it would be.

I took a few minutes to relax and catch my breath before deciding that sitting still was only going to let my sore muscles stiffen and I needed to be flexible for the combat exam. I slid to the floor and started stretching out my legs, one muscle at a time, wincing against the tender feeling that was unfamiliar.

The minutes flew by and I was stretching the last of my back muscles when the commander returned with another man in tow.

“Time up. Follow me.” He stated with that smile again and I groaned a little. If I didn't want this so damn badly I would have given up about an hour ago. It was a wonder anyone ever made it through this. He led us to a room down the corridor that was empty save a row of seats along the one wall.

“This is Brad Wesley, he's going to be sparring with you.” The commander stated watching my expression. “Don't worry too much about this assessment, it's more to determine if you are teachable than anything else, we don't expect you to be able to fight.” He stated and I held back my smile. I had thought I would have a leg up in all of this, but so far all I had found was that I had been sorely underestimating the army, maybe I would be able to redeem myself here. “Idea of the game is to get as many taps on Brad as you can while avoiding being tapped.” He stated. “Understand?”

“Yes.” I answered, I had played this game with Matt a time or two, although I would bet anything that Brad would be faster and stronger than my best friend so I was feeling less confident than I had this morning.

“When you're ready.” The commander stated taking a seat but I was dodging before I could even manage a ready stance as Brad came at me.

I side stepped and ducked, swinging my leg behind me to pivot away from him as his right arm swung out and missed me by a breath, that had been way too close for comfort. I swung back and struck out with my left leg, missing his shin as he jumped but he landed closer than I had expected and scored the first tap.

Crap. I dodged backwards, bending at the waist before seeing an opening. I threw my body into a forward roll, coming up to his left and struck out full force at his hip, following up with a jab to his shoulder.

Feeling a little better and gaining some of my confidence back I stepped backwards again as soon as my jab connected not wanting to be caught out. I watched warily as he stood straight and eyed me with raised brows, shooting a glance at the commander who nodded before he attacked again.

The hour continued in the same manner, with us alternating blows that became more painful as the minutes passed, I was going to have some impressive bruises in the morning but I would be damned if I let either of these men see just how much some of the 'taps' hurt.

“Enough.” The commander finally called and we stepped away from each other both breathing hard and wincing as we straightened. My only consolation was knowing that Brad would be hurting in the morning too.

The commander handed me another bottle of water and left me alone again and I lay on the floor rather than one of the chairs while I tried to get my breathing under control. I was happy with how that went, it wasn't disastrous at the very least. That was the hard parts down now just weaponry and the interview.

I could throw a knife with certain accuracy but I had never even held a gun before, so I had no idea how I would fair in my next evaluation.

The minutes ticked by again and I was still lying on the floor when the Commander returned, a smile on his face and a laugh in his voice.

“If it helps any, Brad was in that exact same position when I left him.” He smiled down at me, offering me a hand up. “You did good. A hell of a lot better than I expected.” He stated. “Its easy from here on out.” He stated indicating I should follow him.

This room was long and thin, with a metal cabinet near the door that the commander opened to display a wide range of knives, guns and sharp deadly looking tools that I was sure I would come to learn about.

“Lets give this a go. Some people are naturals, others need a little more training, but either way its not a problem, we just need to know where you are at.” He stated handing me a gun. “Gun safety. Never point it at anyone you don't want dead. That's the safety, it wont fire while that's on. So flick the safety off, cock the gun, aim and shoot.” He said indicating a wooden board with a paper target at the other end of the room.

Now or never Clara.

I followed his instructions and missed the target completely although now I had a sense of what to expect I figured I could do better. I aimed again and hit the left side of the target, then a little closer to the centre. I emptied the clip without once hitting the bullseye.

“Not bad, could definitely be worse.” He stated taking the gun from me and handing me another.

I had been a little nervous about this but firing a gun was somewhat like therapy, it was relaxing in a way that it shouldn't be considering that they were designed to kill people.

“Not bad at all West.” The commander stated. “Come on lets go take a seat and work through the last of your evaluations. I'll have some lunch brought in.” He stated clapping me on the back with that little smile still on his face, only now I felt no ill will towards the man at all. At the end of the day he was just doing his job.

He led me back into A block and into the second cell on the right that was outfitted with comfortable looking sofas and a coffee table. “Henesy.” The commander called out, getting the attention of a man standing two cells down. “Could you grab us two trays and drinks.”

“Yes Sir.” The guy responded and I watched as the commander took a seat on the sofa so that he was facing me. He relaxed back into the cushions and looked perfectly at ease while I tried hard to remember everything that I had learnt about this interview. I was just too tired though. Now that I knew the physical part of my evaluation was over it was like my body was protesting and refusing to move any more.

“Well West I would say that you are more than capable. Your initial evaluations are higher than most, your combat skills could use some fine tuning, and we will continue to push your fitness levels although it doesn't really need it. Mostly we need to work on your aim.” He stated then fell quiet for a moment. “Ordinarily training takes a minimum of six months but that time is mostly spent improving fitness levels and teaching combat, as yours are already fairly high I'm considering putting you in with one of the more advanced classes. It would mean throwing you in at the deep end, but it would also mean that your training would be over in about a month.” He stated much to my shock and this time I couldn't help the smile that broke out on my face.

“That sounds good to me sir.”

“Glad to hear it. Now from what you said earlier I take it you would rather be put on one of the external teams than be based at the compound?”

“Yes sir.” I stated, thinking that guarding the walls of the compound seemed like a boring job. I wanted to see the world again, to make a difference, and that was only going to be achieved outside of these walls.

“That's not a problem. Lets get you through training then we can see which team has an opening.” He smiled lightly. Standing to accept the trays of lunch the young man brought in. “Tuck in Miss West, you're in the army now, your going to need the sustenance.