by Kevin Groh
Leena looked at him and said: »An improvement if you ask me.« He looked at her shortened hair and said: »Unfortunately not with you, I’m sorry ...«
»You’re honest and straight forward, I like that!«
After the involuntary haircut, they went on to the dormitories. These were elongated rooms with bare gray walls and four square columns in the middle. They offered space for 24 people. There everyone got a bunk and a locker. They slept on bunk beds, but no one dared to quarrel above or below. Carter was not assigned to a bed.
The officer said: »You have now half an hour to look around here, then you will be at the mess for breakfast at 0900, understood?«
An approving murmur was the reaction.
Suddenly he yelled: »When a superior asks you a question, you answer either ›sir, yes, sir‹ or ›sir, no, sir‹! We’re not on the playground here! Whoever is disrespectful, gets my boot so deep up the ass that the shoelaces tickle the throat! Is that clear?«
A frightened »Sir, yes, sir!« followed. He seemed satisfied and continued speaking in a normal tone. »You will find that the instructors here are not particularly indulgent. Anyone who breaks the rules or refuses to obey orders, depending on the severity of the offense, will either be offered additional service, be allowed to brush the toilets with a toothbrush or spend the night in a cell. Remember that before you get sassy! The bedrooms must be kept perfectly clean. As you may have noticed, men and women sleep in the same place. You are grown up and should be able to handle it. I don’t give a shit if you sleep here, jerk off or fuck each other as long as you follow the rules. However, if you intend to screw each other, be fair and at least let the fat and ugly watch.
Every morning at 0600 I will appear here and those who aren’t dressed yet will take part in the program in their underwear. I don’t give a shit if it’s warm, cold or wet outside. You’re standing in a row here in the corridor when I arrive, and the beds are made. In the evening before the night’s rest, I walk through the rows and check the condition of the shoes and uniforms. There is order here. Has all this been gone through your skulls?«
Another »Sir, yes, sir!«
He turned to Carter and said: »You seem to be pretty important to some people. Come with me!« He went out of the dorm and led him upstairs into a corridor full of doors. »These are the bedrooms of the officer’s ranks. These are the recruits who volunteer after basic training. They come here on a monthly basis and extend their training. One room is designed for two people, but my supervisor has decided that you will get it on your own. He said you could also choose a roommate if you wanted. So if you consider someone worthy to breathe the same air, let me know and I’ll move that person here.« Carter opened the door and found a spacious room with two separate beds, a real closet, desk, computer, and a fairly large window. »I don’t know why I was given this treatment, but I don’t think I’m any better than the others.«
The officer crossed his arms. »Anyone can say that. We’ll see how you perform, boy. And by the way: Just because you sleep up here doesn’t mean that you won’t have to do the usual drill. You have to be present downstairs when I come in the morning, just like the others. And I’m sure they’re very excited to have one of them isolating himself. You just got off to a particularly great start ...«, he mocked.
Carter settled in more or less because he feared it would be much worse if he made a fuss about it. Changing anything would only further enhance the reputation of ›special snowflake‹. He moved through the loveless gray corridors down into the mess hall, where the rest were already waiting. Roderick looked at him with an arrogant smile, as if he had judged him correctly. Leena looked more surprised and the others seemed as if nothing had happened. Only William, who called himself Billy, said: »Very cool move with the private room! How did you do that? Must be nice not to sleep with the losers.« Carter looked at him in disbelief: »Are you serious? Losers? Listen to me: I had no idea that I would be accommodated somewhere else. My father must have organized it. I don’t think I’m better, nor do I think you’re losers or inferior in any way. To be honest, I consider the whole thing more embarrassing than pleasant.«
Roderick shook his head. »Tell that to someone who believes you, show-off.«
Kelly said: »Leave him alone! You’re just mad because you’d rather sleep in a room, too. We all would.« Then she smiled at him.
Billy asked: »You managed to stand out from the crowd. Why do you want to prove so badly that you are only one of the sheep?«
Gina replied: »Because he’s not an ass! Even if you actually are better than everyone else, it’s not a big sign of greatness to rub anyone’s nose in it.« Billy twisted his eyes.
Leena said: »People should be judged by their behavior and character, not by their status. Carter arrived with us and hasn’t asked for any special treatment since. So far, he’s behaved decently towards me, so I’ll return that gesture. There’s nothing more to say about that.«
Before further comments could follow, the officer came into the room and waved them towards him. He was standing in front of a terminal.
»This is the rations terminal. There are three of them in this facility. One here, one in the officers‹ mess and one in the main building with a snack machine. Every day you are entitled to three main meals and a snack. That’s valid from today. Hold your dog tag in front of the scanner and select the appropriate meal. Then you go to the front counter to get a tray and the kitchen staff will prepare a portion for you. You scan the tray again before you take your food with you. After entering ›snack‹ you select what you want at the vending machine and it will spit it out. The meals will be eaten in here. Not in the dorm, not in the room ...«, he said with a glance at Carter, »... and also not outside. In the summer there are occasional barbecues on the drill ground, but that’s the exception.« He instructed Tim to try it, and then said: »Okay, if this whole technology doesn’t confuse you, you can have your breakfast now, and then the introductory test begins.«
The Tormentor
After enjoying dull scrambled eggs on whole-grain toast, the small group went out to the drill ground. There they were met by a brawny, tall guy in military pants, boots, and a black tank top. His blonde hair was spiky short and he had a reddish, frayed scar across his cheek. His body was impressively trained and he had a stern look as he stood there with his arms folded behind his back. The officer brought them to him and ordered them to line up. Then he handed command to the brawny guy and disappeared. The other man let his gaze wander calmly over those present. He spoke loudly and seriously: »My name is Major Bartholomew Banes. I am a member of the Delta 3 Special Unit and have fought in various missions on different worlds. I have killed humans, Pintans, Lorgans, Gumai and Salvani. One of them left a clear trace ...« He pointed at his cheek.
»Because of my experience, I was chosen to pass on my knowledge to promising new recruits.«
His gaze wandered over the group again and he looked disgusted. »I don’t see anything promising about you, though.«
He passed the newcomers one by one. He looked at the boy named James with his glasses. »Scrawny, blind and soft.«
To Henry, the overweight boy, he said nothing, he just blew his cheeks mockingly. He did the same with Gina, with her pink strands. When he passed Kelly, she stretched out her chest in an exemplary manner, as was usual when standing at attention. He looked at her from top to bottom.
»You are a doll, not a soldier. The farther you stretch your tits out, the less seriously you can be taken.« Carter noticed a slight twitch in her eyes, but she didn’t move. »At least you have discipline.«
Banes passed Roderick, who was the same size.
»You are physically fit to be a soldier, but I have watched you and you seem too much in love with yourself. I will show you how pathetic you actually are. Only when you understand that I can work with you.«
Roderick growled quietly. Banes pulled his lips to a smile. »You are angry. Good.«
The n
ext candidate was Billy. The major didn’t say anything when he stood in front of him with his chest swollen with pride, he just smiled at him. When he came to Leena, he gave her a strong push and she landed on her butt. »You think too much. A head that works too hard quickly catches a bullet.«
Then it was Carter’s turn. Banes stood in front of him. He looked him straight in the eye.
»I’ve already heard of you, Sanders. I had to do with your father before. Tough guy. I heard that he begged all sorts of people to save you from conscription. When his little boy was drafted, he was suddenly not so hard anymore. And now he got you a special room so you could have a soft mattress. Boys like you desperately need the toughness of training so that they learn that life is not as pleasantly soft as they know it.«
Carter didn’t look away and didn’t react to the provocations. Banes played with his jaw muscles.
»You don’t let yourself be distracted and you don’t show insecurity or anger. You have guts, kid. We’ll see if it stays that way.«
He saw the twins and said: »Two equal brothers. That means double disappointment, twice the weakness, and identical failure.«
When he arrived at Nambur, he stared darkly at him. It looked funny because the Pintan was the only one who towered above him.
»A Pintan. And a Tenno, too. I don’t know why they tolerate you in our troops, but I’m against it. You better prepare for a hard time, buddy!« After he had examined the row to the end, he stepped in front of them again.
»You thirteen losers are one team for the next two years. You are thirteen because there are teams of two in many of my exercises. One of you will have to fight alone and I will always decide which one of you it will be, according to my mood«.
He crossed his arms. »The recruits like to call me the torturer because I have neither mercy nor compassion. I will give you the worst time of your miserable lives, and when you can’t stand on your feet any longer due to exhaustion, the fun just begins. With me, neither weakness nor excuses count. If you don’t keep up, you won’t come to dinner until later. I don’t give a shit what you think of me. Anyone who hates me understood the principle. If you get smart, you do rounds. Those who do not follow their orders by 100% sleep outside. If someone thinks he has to kiss my ass, he shouldn’t be surprised if he has to eat shit. With me, there is neither fun nor understanding. Get that into your heads! Is that clear so far?«
They yelled: »Sir, yes, sir!«
»I hope so! And now you’re warming up. Today we test your limits. I expect ten laps around the course. The first one to complete the eighth doesn’t need to keep running. Move!«
They started running. The different characters quickly showed. Carter and Roderick were both active and they knew they had to manage their endurance, so they slowed down. Billy was so convinced of himself that he sprinted straight away and after a quarter of a lap, he already gasped like a dog. Gina fought her way forward bravely as Henry tried to keep up with her. James and Kelly ran a little slower than Carter, but also seemed to be more careful with her breath. Urma shot off like an arrow. She had incredible stamina. After only one round they began to wonder how to handle ten of them.
Henry had stopped and held his side. Banes yelled at him to move his fat ass. He tried to walk slower just to keep moving. Leena was already in the third round, completely sweaty and she ruffled with every step. By number five, at the latest, they were all tired and even Urma had slowed down. Henry dragged himself slowly forward with Gina. After almost endless torture, Urma had finished the eighth round and Banes waved her over. She followed the order and when she stopped beside him she gasped heavily.
He looked at her and smiled, which never seemed to be a good sign. »Very good, you are the fastest. So get down and do 200 push-ups! Then 200 squats and 200 sit-ups! And the rest will keep going until you’re done, so take your time.«
The recruits almost stopped in surprise when they heard that. Not only did Urma have to work through the exercises somehow, but she also had to hurry for the benefit of the others. Every time Carter came by, he saw her face, distorted with pain. She finished after some of them had already limped their fourteenth round. When they lined up again, Banes grinned and said: »Good, now you’re warmed up.«
After this introduction, it was time for lunch. The group dragged themselves into the mess hall and everyone got a steak with green beans and a baked potato. Carter sat down with Urma and the twins at a table. Shortly afterward Leena squeezed herself next to him and said: »I want to be as far away from this Roderick as possible. Since this morning, that ruffian has been trying to get me on without a break ...«
Carter said to Urma: »I am impressed that you are so fast! I run a lot myself, but I’ve never seen anyone so fast. Respect, by the way, that you completed the exercises at all. I don’t know if I would have been able to do that.«
Tim said: »I’m afraid we’ll find out soon ...«
Urma replied to Carter: »I do not come from Utopia, but Earth. I grew up in Africa, in Ghana. There I had to walk many miles every day. Either to fetch water or as a part-time job. I worked as a messenger and delivered the news.« Her accent was clear to hear. »With time you have more and more stamina. In fact, as a child of poverty, I’m probably most accustomed to the treatment here.«
»Don’t be fooled. Tim and I are the sons of a miner and a tailor. We spent our whole lives in the slums of New Denver. Living between thieves, murderers and prostitutes hardens you. And the businessmen from the corporations think of us as nothing more than better footstools.«, Tom explained and his brother nodded approvingly.
»How did you get to Utopia?«, Tim asked.
»I was drawn into a gang war on Earth. The conflict in Africa is centuries old and even today they fight for freedom, money and blood diamonds. I was abused as a messenger between two camps of allied bandit tribes. I didn’t have much choice. When the army exterminated the bandits, I was arrested as a prisoner of war. Then they let me decide: execution or military service. Since I was a potential danger in Africa, I was sent here so that I would not be tempted to switch sides.«
Carter found her story very sad, but it wasn’t much worse than the lives of the workers‹ children in the cities of Utopia. He told them about his youth and how he had always tried in vain to get connected. Since he considered most of the upper-class offspring to be arrogant fools, the sympathy of the others grew for him. He asked Leena about her background.
She evaded: »I would have been one of those you could have made friends with.« When Carter continued drilling, she said: »I come from a working-class family in New Vienna. My father is also a miner there and my mother works as a secretary to a smaller department head in Syntech’s administrative headquarters. When I was sixteen, I ran away and came to New Denver. I went to the office of a Vinduran refugee who has a small research laboratory here and offered myself a temporary help. Since aliens are treated even worse than workers here, he was happy about the offer. A few weeks ago a corrupt soldier attacked the lab with his friends simply because he hated aliens. I saw them coming on the cameras and used the lab equipment to strategically finish them off. Only with the help of chemicals and laboratory equipment, I took them out without even raising my hand once. Well, the soldier’s superiors got ahold of that, the Vinduran was arrested, and I was drafted because they wanted to further my ›strategic talent‹.«
»Not bad.«, it came from Tom.
After dinner, they walked to the obstacle course, where Major Banes was already waiting. The course had several possible laps in different lengths and with increasing difficulty. He stood there with an old-fashioned stopwatch.
»For those of you who thought the warm-up session earlier was part of the test, I say: You‹ re wrong! The actual test starts now. This is the hell trail. We start with the smallest course and work our way up.« He threw Jane the stopwatch and said: »I’ll show you now what a successful obstacle course of the highest difficulty looks like if you work hard on it. You stop
time!«
Jane nodded and pressed the button. Banes sprinted away and the first obstacle was several large tires on the ground. He hurried over it with a steady step while taking each one into account and putting one foot in it. Then came a mud hole, which was covered by a ladder-like scaffold. Banes jumped up and made his way over. A two and a half meter high wooden wall followed. After a small jump, the major pulled himself over the edge by pure strength. He grabbed a rope and swung over another hole. Then he crawled under a net of barbed wire. A narrow corridor between two metal walls with randomly extending obstacles came next and he hurried attentively through the middle and rolled or jumped whenever one appeared. Then he vertically climbed up a rope and swung up onto a platform. From there he slipped down a steep slope and at the end overcame a pit, which he jumped over with the help of the momentum. A sprint course with occasional wooden barriers followed, which he had to overcome. Then he balanced on a beam and ran about five hundred meters in an arc back to the beginning. Jane clicked the stopwatch.
»Four minutes and forty-eight seconds.« Banes nodded contently and took it back. He didn’t even gasp noticeably.
»I took it comfortably. If one of you manages to beat this time by the end of your basic training, the graduation ceremony goes on me and the winner gets my stopwatch as a souvenir. In my six years here, no one has ever been able to do that.« He laughed briefly and then pointed to the course. »Rejoice, because your test is also your first partner exercise! And today’s candidate as a lone fighter is Sanders. I want to see if you really have what it takes. The others work together. Today you will take the hardest course to really push your limits. I don’t expect you to make it to dinner, but each of you will finish the course no matter how. Forward!«
They were all tracked and analyzed separately using an HUD on Banes‹ arm. Carter sighed because he had got stuck with the short stick right away. He didn’t wait for his comrades but hurried off immediately. The tires were less difficult for him than for some of the others, because he had often run through woods. He stumbled twice but balanced himself again and again. The scaffolding for climbing was a bigger problem. He held on tight and took the first four bars as his arms got tired. He knew Banes would let him repeat the obstacle until he had made it, so he forced himself up to two-thirds of the ladder and then swung to the edge of the hole. With his already tired arms, he had to somehow get over the wooden wall. The others could help themselves with bunk-ups and support, but they were not allowed to assist him.
