Flynn looked at him, then shook his head and cracked his knuckles. “Nah, not shocked, excited.” He beamed. “I had a picture in my head of what this would be like, but that little demonstration they just put on? I’m more pumped for this than I already was.”
“Even after seeing all that carnage? Not to mention those ships and tanks—what will you do against those?” Luke asked.
“Can’t say just yet, but I’ll figure something out. Guess it also depends on what my squad looks like. Maybe I’ll simply wait it out and hope they take each other out.”
“Quiet down,” Jaxon warned. “The chancellor is going to speak again.”
The man cleared his throat. Head Monitor Zhang made his way to the podium and stood silently at Durand’s side. “I’m happy to see so much eagerness and excitement among you. However, as much as I enjoy crafting a good speech and showing a bit of bravado, I won’t take up much more of your time—not when we need to get down to brass tacks.” He looked at the man beside him, who nodded in acknowledgment. “I’m sure you’re familiar with the head monitor, Zhi Ruo Zhang. He will go over the history and rules of the Squad Test. After his overview, we will get to what I’m sure most of you are most keenly interested to find out—your squads.”
More heated chatter began among the initiates before the chancellor raised his hand to quiet the crowd. “Please give your undivided attention to Head Monitor Zhang.”
Durand beckoned to the man as he left the podium and Zhang took his place. “Thank you, Chancellor,” he said and faced the crowd. “I’ll get right to it, initiates. This is a formal matter. I’m sure many of you know the basics of the Squad Test through information from previous students or the archives in the library. So, I’ll keep this as brief as possible.”
A video screen appeared overhead, showing a group of initiates striking poses or waving at the camera. “This was the first class to ever undergo the Squad Test, the initiates of 2171.” Kaiden saw a small smile form on the lips of the head monitor as he looked at the video and the group laughing at and prodding one another, but it quickly fell away as he began to speak again. “As you can see by the number of buildings in the background and the students, we were a much smaller facility at the time. This group of forty-five initiates was only the fourth batch we received, and this was the first year we had students in all four year-groups.”
“Man, that vid is only in 32k res. Looks straight ancient compared to nowadays,” Silas noted.
“Tech changes all the time. This was taken twenty-five years ago,” Izzy pointed out.
“Even though we had only been operational for a few years, we were constantly improving and adapting—as should any high-tech institute worthy of respect. We had judged that for all the individual improvements the students were learning and mastering in their short time here, they kept mostly to themselves bar the occasional team mission for SXP. Seeing that many of the jobs these students would fill in the future would require working in groups or in areas with frequent collaborations, and the fact that at the time, team training and activities were saved for the Master and Victor years, we decided that we needed to ‘encourage’ the students to take it upon themselves to start working together more frequently. Which is how the Squad Test and Co-operative Test came to be.”
The video changed to a screen showing the forty-five initiates’ pictures in circular frames. The images divided out and then regrouped in triangular patterns of three. “It was actually because of the number of initiates we had that year that the Squad Test groups were formed into trios. At the time, they picked the groups themselves, but as the years passed and we gained more recruits and wanted to add some more difficulty and tactics to the test, we developed a new system.”
The screen changed again, dividing into segments and showing each year’s total amount of initiates, starting from 2171’s forty-five, then 2172’s fifty-two, and speeding through the following years. Kaiden saw it increase to one hundred and thirteen in 2177, then one hundred and ninety in 2181, two hundred and fourteen in 2190, and finally to their year’s group of three hundred in 2196.
“Obviously, we weren’t fortunate enough to have the required number of initiates each year for all groups to have three members. They either had to find volunteers to do a second test with them or use an artificial teammate. Unfortunately, we had to terminate that option as workarounds and hacks became an issue.” The head monitor sighed before composing himself again. “Fortunately that is not a problem this year. We have enough students, and this will be the largest test this Academy has ever undertaken.”
The map that had previously hung over the students’ heads appeared onscreen. “This year will have a few changes from the previous tests. Normally, we do the test in batches, dividing it over three days with one batch going in on Wednesday, another on Thursday, and the final group on Friday. But thanks to advances in the Animus and a larger advisory staff for the center, this year, all teams will participate at the same time. That is, all three hundred of you will face off against each other.”
The students sat up and looked at each other, taking in the scope of what they would be facing.
“That’ll be a busy-ass map,” Cameron exclaimed. “Even the Division Test at the beginning of the year only had between fifty and a hundred students at a time.”
“Gonna be a lot of bodies piling up. Maybe they should keep the tangibility down for this one,” Luke muttered.
“On top of that, this will possibly be the most visceral mission many of you have undertaken thus far. The synchronicity, tangibility, and equilibrium will all be set to four for the test,” Zhang declared.
“Well, shit.” Luke sighed. “Guess I better take a couple of training sessions in corpse climbing.”
“Can’t you simply barrel through them?” Amber asked.
“Or use that hop-jet thing?” Kaiden suggested.
“Bouncepack. Get it right, scrub.” The titan snickered.
Kaiden rolled his eyes. “Because that name has so much more dignity.”
“Now that the background has been explained, let us get to the rules and winning conditions of the test.”
“Uh, sir?” An initiate spoke up, raising a hand in the air. “This seems to be a rather battle-heavy test, a ‘deathmatch’ as I’ve heard it called by the older students. What are initiates in non-combat classes supposed to do? Like diplomats, navigators, translators, and the like?”
“Ah yes, the Deathmatch.” Zhang sounded amused. “I’ll address your concerns shortly. However, I would like to discuss the rumors surrounding this so-called ‘deathmatch.’”
The screen showed several glowing shapes in various colors: Time as a white T, Valor as a purple heart, Data as a blue zero and one, Motes as a yellow orb, Cache as a green square, and Honor as a red blade.
“The objective of this test is to collect as much of each ‘currency’ as possible and survive as long as you can. There are many ways to obtain them, and multiple objectives during the test. It is not simply about your kills.”
“Damn shame,” Kaiden mumbled.
“Good luck, mate. Won’t be able to stay in your happy place during this one,” Flynn joked.
The ace shrugged. “Won’t be too different. I kill enemies while my partners do their thing—assuming I have competent partners.”
“And assuming those partners realize they need to get as far out of your line of fire as possible.” Cameron chuckled.
The screen zoomed to the Time currency. “You gather Time simply by surviving. The longer you survive, the more you accumulate, gaining one Time unit per minute.”
The display changed to the Valor icon. “Valor is the other basic currency. You gain it by destroying hostile forces such as droids, mercs, mutants, and the like. The more difficult the opponent, the more points you get. I should also note that this goes to whoever makes the killing strike. Keep that in mind.”
It shifted to the Data currency. “Data is the focus of technicians. You gain
points by hacking into systems, locks, and other tech throughout the map. There are also payloads and teller systems that can give you large numbers of Data points if you can find them and successfully hack them.”
The screen moved to the Motes. “Motes are the most universal of the currencies. They can be awarded to engineers if they repair a vehicle or rewire a droid. There will be injured soldiers, civilians, and VIP individuals that those in the medic field can heal or assist and gain Motes that way. These are only a few possibilities.”
The screen switched to the Cache currency. “For the initiate asking about Diplomats and Navigators and the like, this is your answer. There are objectives you will have several options to complete. Along with potentially gaining artificial allies or unique weapons, those in logistics will have many ways to apply their craft and, if successful, will gain these cache points to contribute to their squad’s score.”
“Yay, we’re not useless,” Kaiden overheard an initiate cheer sarcastically, and he chuckled.
“These are the fundamental currencies of the test. But of course, I left one out. Which brings me to the Honor currency and the reason this test has the reputation of a deathmatch.”
The screen changed to the glowing red blade of the Honor currency and a picture of three wire-framed soldiers appeared beside it. “When the test first begins, you cannot harm any other initiate in the field. However, this will change at some point, with all initiates becoming hostile and friendly fire being turned on.”
“Friendly fire? We can accidentally shoot each other?” Raul questioned.
Zhang paused for a moment, a sly grin crossing along his face, “It is simply another way to add difficulty and realism to the test. In battle you cannot take back a stray bullet, you understand.” The wire-framed soldiers held their guns up as if they were firing at an opposing force. “Honor works like this. All the currencies you gather go toward the final overall team score, along with an individual rating at the end of the test. If you kill someone who has collected little currency…” The soldier on the left was shot, disappeared, and left behind an Honor score of ten points. “It will be a pittance compared to someone who has gathered most of their team’s currency.” The soldier on the right was shot and disappeared, leaving behind its own Honor currency of three hundred points.
The Honor currencies appeared again, and the remaining soldier ran over to both and picked them up. “This currency, unlike the others, falls to the ground and can be picked up by anyone. If you are fast enough, you can hurry and retrieve your partners’ Honor points should they fall in battle before you do, increasing your personal score.”
“Oh, you devious bastards,” the ace whispered.
“What’s wrong, Kaiden?” Chiyo asked.
“I’ll tell you when this is over, but this could either make things easier or far more complicated, depending on the number of bastards in the mix.”
“Normally, you count yourself among those bastards,” Marlo jeered.
Kaiden, however, remained stoic, “Not this time.”
“To wrap this up, we will talk about the map and the winning conditions. The map is procedurally generated.” The screen returned to a holographic image of the previous map, but rooms started to change, and hostiles and mechs swapped out for different models. “The map is not only different every year, but changes during the test. Rooms that were once death traps could change to rooms with objectives in them. A hallway that was clear now has a team of heavily armed mercs patrolling, so you must always be on your toes.” The display began to darken at its edges, and the view range grew smaller and smaller. “Toward the end of the test and past a certain mark, the map will begin to deteriorate. Should you be caught in one of these sections as they disappear…” a room with three holographic soldiers faded, and the soldiers fell into the abyss and disappeared, “it will be the end of the test for you.”
Luke sneered. “Oh, boy, running. My favorite.”
“Better work on that cardio.” Cameron laughed.
“Or use that springy leaper.”
“Bouncepa— Shut up, Kaiden,” the titan growled
“The last remaining team may not, in fact, be the victors. While that is the typical outcome, we have had teams that have gathered so many points so quickly that even when they were killed halfway through they ended up on top, so you must always keep your strategy and options in mind. You must never believe that you are truly out. Even in reality, you can lose your life and still succeed, and sometimes that might be the only way,” the head monitor informed them solemnly. The mood in the theater changed to grimness for a moment before Zhang spoke again. “I should say that only one team has emerged truly victorious in this test. Having the most points doesn’t mean you are the winner, only that you are the best among the other teams.”
The ace looked at the others in confusion, but they returned his glances with curious looks or shrugs. “Now then, with all that out of the way, let us move to the final event of this meeting. Your squads.”
The initiates sat up. Some held hands and other crossed their fingers. “Best of luck, guys,” Kaiden said.
Zhang took a tablet and looked at Chancellor Durand, who nodded to him. He entered a few commands and placed the device on the podium. “Due to the number of initiates, we have decided to send your squad files to your individual EIs instead of displaying them one at a time. We’ll give you a moment to find your teammates before we close this meeting.”
Kaiden saw many EIs pop out of EI pads and initiates’ eyes lighting up as their oculars accessed their devices. Kaiden crossed his arms and legs and leaned back, closing his eyes. “All right, Chief, who did I get saddled with?”
“Looks like a biologist named Abcde Notere and an administrator named Fore O’Four.”
Kaiden clicked his tongue. “Dammit, really? This is gonna be a drag.”
Chief cackled before laughing out loud in his head. “Nah, I’m screwing with ya. Nice to see all that bravado goes out the window when you get a bad draw. I wonder what your poker face looks like?”
The ace opened his eyes to glare at the ceiling. “Hilarious. Now, who did I really get?”
“Let’s see… Look to your left, four and five seats down.”
He raised a questioning eyebrow and peered down the aisle as instructed, to see Chiyo and Genos looking his way. “I got Chiyo and Genos?”
Bingo!
Kaiden chuckled as he sat up and saluted his future squadmates with two fingers. “Well, at least I won’t have teammates I’ll treat as only meat shields.”
Chief scoffed. “You’re the salt of the Earth, partner.”
Chapter Twelve
“Settle down now, initiates.” Zhang called for order as the Academy students moved in a whirl through the auditorium, searching for their squadmates. “Get back in your seats.”
His orders were finally obeyed and the initiates calmed down and faced the stage, although many of them still glanced at one another or had their EIs sending messages through the network.
Zhang sighed. “I knew we should have saved this for the very end. I say it every year,” he murmured. “We are at the completion of the evening. You will have the rest of the night to yourselves to meet up with your squad and discuss your preparations for the test next week. However, before you are released, Commander Sasha would like to share some parting words.”
He stepped back from the podium and offered it to Sasha. The commander moved up with what might have been a smile lurking. “Thank you, Head Monitor. Initiates, I speak as a former commander, a member of this Academy’s board, and a former initiate of the Academy. I want to wish you luck on your test. You are not only the future of your respective planets, but perhaps the future delegates to species unknown and future heroes of our galaxy.”
“No pressure.” Kaiden huffed but flinched slightly when he thought Sasha looked his way. The commander couldn’t hear him from that far away, could he?
“As both the chancellor and he
ad monitor said, this test is the culmination of your year. Go into it knowing that even in victory, you are bound to achieve even greater heights throughout your time here and beyond.”
Sasha took a moment to look around the room. “You are Nexus Academy students, but that is only your title. You are some of the best this universe has to offer, and you will have to deal with oppression and aggression throughout your life. Some of you may have already had to deal with this, unfortunately, but you survived and through your will and strength, moved beyond those dark moments. Always remember that drive when you are confronted with a seemingly impossible situation or terrifying foe, and know that you are all better than anything that will try to tear you down.”
“The commander is pretty good at this pep-talk thing,” Amber commented.
“Maybe he put some talents into it when he was a student? Is that a choice?” Marlo wondered.
“Your success is your own to achieve. Always keep that knowledge close, and know that there is no reward without effort. So, strive ever forward and continue to achieve.”
The students applauded the commander’s speech. After a few moments, he raised his hand to quell them. “Once again, best of luck to all of you. Dismissed.”
Initiates flooded out of the building, and the mass quickly splintered as students ran around and found their squads. Kaiden and the rest of their group walked to the center of the plaza before he turned to address Genos and Chiyo. “Well, ain’t this a silver lining? The three of us together—it’s like a dream team.”
“Oh, most assuredly! I wouldn’t have thought I would be so fortuitous,” Genos declared.
“You trying to turn that into a catchphrase or something?” Cameron joked.
“I must say that it was quite…lucky, for lack of a better word,” Chiyo admitted.
Kaiden eyed her curiously, “You still thinking I might fuck this up somehow?”
Animus Boxed Set 1 (Books 1-4): Initiate, Co-Op, Death Match, Advance Page 72
