Second Sight: Chapter Three: Recruitment
#8 of Second Sight
Location: Arpeggio, Second Life Orphanage.
Time: 06:30am.
Year: 2090, December 15th.
I woke up quietly, and found myself on top of Joseph. He sounded as though he was awake. I couldn't hear him snoring.
"Do you have to leave now?" He asked suddenly. It was true, that I had to decide today. The militia would be waiting to pick me up outside the orphanage, though I wasn't quite sure when. I pried myself from Joseph and rolled over to his side.
"I can stick around for a while." I whispered. "I still need to pack my bags and have a quick shower."
Joseph just stayed silent and nodded. He wasn't much of a crier, but I could still tell that this must have been hard for him. I got up and had a quick shower. After that, I would have to pack up all my clothes and junk. I only ever wore three sets of clothes, so it was easy to fit everything in. Joseph was still lying in my bad, watching me pack up.
"So... what will you do now?" I asked him. I couldn't find the right words to say how much I was worried about him. He wouldn't have me around anymore, and thinking about it made it even harder for me to leave.
"Don't know." He replied bluntly. "If I could join you, I would; but I don't really see that happening."
I was all done packing, so I just sat there, trying to find the right words to say. I had none; and the silence had kept going on.
I heard some sirens wail by the entrance to the building. I was sure it was my ride. I leant forwards and have Joseph one last goodbye kiss, and whispered into his ear.
"Thank you." I said; "For never leaving me."
"I still won't leave you." He whispered back, stroking my head one last time. I got up and walked out of the door. From that moment on, I completely regretted leaving him in that way.
I exited the building, and approached the long black car just outside. The driver and passenger were the same Dragon and Wolf that I saw yesterday. This time, they didn't handcuff me, but still forced me inside the vehicle. I only had two bags. One was clothing; the other was filled with books and work. I assumed that I still had to keep up with my studies as I was being trained; but next to all the books was a small photo. It was a picture of me and Joseph. Just so I would never forget him.
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Location: Arpeggio, Militia Training Grounds.
Time: 08:30am
Year: 2090, December 15th.
It was a long car ride to the Militia Compound, and I started to feel drowsy. Unfortunately, the Militia doesn't really appreciate people who sleep when they want. I was walked over to the training grounds, where dozens of other people were waiting. They were a mixture of ages; from mere children up to people around my age. They were all lined up in a long row that went on for quite a fair distance.
"Welcome to your first day of training." I heard someone shout. Everyone looked to their left to see a large Dragon walking along the row. His scales were a radiant white, but that wasn't what caught our eye. His right hand had been replaced by a metal, three fingered hand. The hand was a dull shade of grey, and stuck out compared to the color of his scales.
"You have been brought here today to test your mettle." He continued. "You will feel pain; some of you may even die! But I ask you; do you have what it takes to be better than the best? To kill the unkillable and overcome any obstacle?!"
I heard the whole row shout out ‘sir, yes sir' in one booming voice. I didn't contribute because I felt that to be better than the best would only give someone a big head; and to overcome any obstacle is near damn impossible. Unfortunately, the Dragon had seen that I was the only one who didn't shout out. He strode over to me and gripped my neck with his right hand.
"You got something in your ears, half-breed?" He asked, shouting in my face. The metal was starting to dig in, but I merely showed an emotionless face. He wouldn't kill me; that would be pointless. When he saw that I wasn't afraid, He simply let go and leant down to meet my face.
"That behavior is good." He whispered. "No fear, no failure. But mind that it doesn't make you reckless."
I smiled inside. I was off to a rough start, but I could tell that the Dragon had begun to respect me, unlike all the other recruits, who simply agreed with him all the way and never spoke up. They were like sheep in a herd, but I was the black one. At least, that's how I think the story went.
The Dragon continued on with his speech, and sent us on our way. We were all restricted to a single room, where we were all alone, and had only one bed. No table, no sink or personal shower. We lived as equals, but were all trained differently.
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Location: Arpeggio, Militia Compound.
Time: 00:30am.
Year: 2092, January 9th.
The year wad went by fast, and by the end of 2090, a lot of people, even recruits, had started to recognize me. We all had a personal trainer each, but that didn't stop me from getting to know at least half a dozen of them.
There was one trainer, who constantly beat up his student as a means to ‘build character'. I didn't bother getting to know someone as aggressive as him; but I did get close to two other trainers.
The first was my own personal trainer, Vincent Haliat. He was the sort of Wolf who admired people who thought outside the box; though he constantly pushed me around and worked me until I ached, he always decided to treat me with either an early day off, or would let me have a look around the Militia scrap yard. Anytime I got an early day off, I would always search through some scrap piles and find something interesting such as broken guns, or even full boxes of ammunition; every time I repaired one, I would turn it in to the Militia, and often get praise for being ‘resourceful'.
Now I was sixteen, and one day off my seventeenth birthday; though no one had the time to celebrate, Vincent decided to make an exception this year. It was the middle of the night, and I was still running on the treadmill. I had been for the last two hours.
"You can stop now." I heard Vincent call out. I immediately jumped off the treadmill, and dropped to the floor, gasping for air.
"You're making excellent progress." The black wolf continued. "I didn't expect the Militia to give me a student like you."
I laughed quietly, and struggled to get up. Another headache had settled in, though I felt more in control with my vision. My eyesight was constantly tested until I was able to control how I saw things. I even practiced as I slept by looking through walls at some of the other sleeping recruits. It was useful for when I wanted to spy on anyone without needing to listen.
"Well, tomorrow's the big day." Vincent said. "You'll be turning seventeen; but just before you do, I need to talk to you about something."
Vincent leant down and put on a serious face. I knew it had to be something bad.
"The Militia is planning on sending you out for testing tomorrow." He continued. "I'm not sure what they're going to do, but you need to be prepared for anything; which is why I'm giving you this."
Vincent held out a long rifle in both hands. The barrel had made up two thirds of the gun, and was assembled out of a lot of pieces that varied in shades of grey. It was the first gun that I had assembled since my recruitment. I took the gun by the leather strap, and leant the metal stock against the top of my shoulder. There was no scope, so I had to bring it up to my muzzle to see where I was aiming.
"How's this going to help?" I asked. We both knew what I meant. The gun used a long revolver styled cylinder, and we couldn't find any existing ammo to use. Vincent pulled out a large case from the back of the room, and opened it up.
"You'll use these." He said. They looked like sharpened steel spikes. They would definitely fit in the cylinder. "Pure steel stakes with enough impact to go through a Dragon's scales. These should keep you protected."
The case held around fifty spikes, and was surprisingly light. Vincent waved me off as I walked out the door, muttering my thanks. Tomorrow was going to be my birthday, and possibly the hardest day of my life.
I returned to my dormitory, and pulled out a small can of blue spray paint I had found in the scrap yard. It still had some paint in, so I decided to use what little was left to stripe my gun in blue. Now I had a complete set; a long, dark blue Arch-Angel coat, a dark blue vest and trousers, and one blue striped rifle.
My name is Kobalt Kaiken; and soon-to-be Arch-Angel.