Araya was looking at his gun, trying to figure out what was wrong.
"Did I turn off the safety?"
He looked and it was off so that wasn't the issue. He tried shooting it again but it just made a clicking sound.
"What could be the problem?" He glared at it, trying to figure out the problem.
He was panicking and it was noticeable as his hands shook. He looked at the clock and only a minute was left.
"Goddammit, think! Don't let the pressure overwhelm you. It must be something simple," He unloaded the magazine and noticed that the bullets in them were old and unusable.
"Shit!" he cursed. He quickly looked back at the large table filled with other magazines, searching for the right one. It took him a while of fiddling through the many clips until he eventually found a replacement. He checked it before placing it into the gun and used his palm to make sure its placed right. He planted his free hand on his other and aimed.
"Please work," he prayed as it fired and hit the first target.
"It works," He mumbled and fired at the remaining robots. His aim was a bit off as it took him two to three shots to get one, although to his defence it was moving around. He got four out of the five. He shot the last robot but the bullet just reflected off it. He looked at the timer and it was at zero so he put the gun down.
"Thank you, your grade is D. Take your place in the designated corner," One of the announcers said.
He left the chamber a little bit disappointed with himself. I could see it on his expression that he was a bit angry.
"He should be glad he passed," I turned my attention to Nara.
"I heard that the examiners are ruthless and they throw you out for the smallest of mistakes. A few years ago, I heard there was a really talented girl with the ability to fly."
"Really?! Somebody with an ability like that didn't pass,"
I was a bit baffled that someone like that didn't pass.
"That's not the whole story though. She didn't pass because she cheated. Her ability was levitation and not flight. She bought it off the black market and used the power of invisibility to hide it. During her test, it got damaged and it was revealed to everyone that she cheated so they disqualified her even though she had massive potential."
"That's quite the story," I looked back at Araya as he sat down next to a few other grade Ds.
"It must be really tough for him but at least he passed. Wait! What did I put that my skill was?! And why am I only noticing this now?!" My mind started to go blank as I tried to think.
Nara turned towards me and detected my worry.
"You okay? You look like you have seen a ghost," She calmly said as I snapped out of it.
"Huh? Oh, I'm just a little nervous about my test, that's all," I showed her a nervous smile.
"You're going to be just fine, just believe in yourself and give it your all. That's the tip I'll give you," She was convinced that I would pass. If only she knew that I had absolutely no idea what skill I registered and I'm pretty sure that whatever I put down, isn't even going to be impressive in the slightest.
"Next up, Nara Kinuko, step into the testing chamber, please! "
"Looks like I'm up next. See ya on the other side," She smirked and went towards the chamber doors.
"Good luck," I encouraged.
"Luck? That's just a common misconception. All I need is skill,"
She went in and the doors closed behind her. She pulled out a pair of fingerless gloves that you would wear when going on a bike ride. She went on her toes and did little jumps while swinging her fists forward like a boxer.
"I can almost sense her overwhelming confidence. Her expression is focused and her body movement confirms it. She just might pull through."
I thought as I watched her.
An obstacle course appeared in the chamber. It had various things that could stop her, from jumping to crawling.
"Are you ready?" A timer popped up.
"Ready as I could be," she responded.
"Alright, start the countdown,"
"Five!" A robotic voice counted. She bent over and positioned herself to get a good head start.
"Four!" She took a deep breath and exhaled calmly.
"Three!"
"Speed is my strength and my motivation," She spoke to herself.
"Two!"
"No one can make me turn away from the path I choose,"
"One!"
"I am strong and I will prove it!" A loud horn sounded the start and she took off running.
She jumped over the first few that were in her way like in a hundred-meter sprint. The chamber was huge for this one. It had somehow expanded but I don't know how. I must have missed it but some sort of silent mechanism triggered the expansion.
She ran forward and her speed was definitely above average. She was halfway there but suddenly a pair of electrical beams rose up and a line of electricity was cast from it. She almost ran into it but her quick reaction made it so she slid under it.
"Almost there!" She stood up and resumed running.
I breathed in a sigh of relief for her.
"That was close. You got this Nara!"
The next hurdle popped up not too far from the last and they weren't getting any less dangerous. Two rocket launchers with robots carrying them. Once she was in range, they fired.
"Rockets?!" She gasped a little but she didn't let that faze her. She jumped above them and spun in the air. Everything seemed to have slowed down when she did it and she looked majestic. An explosion happened as she landed and continued.
The last hurdle happened near the end and there was no indication of it either. A part of the walls closed up and wanted to squish her but she dodged it using some acrobatics.
"Such agility... How is she managing this?" I thought in awe.
The last thing she needed to do was climb the rope to the ceiling and ring the bell. She spat into her hands and rubbed them. She started climbing and she was almost there. Suddenly, her hands were slipping.
"What the?! Ahhhh!" She slammed into the floor.
"No way! What happened?" I thought as she slowly sat up.
"Thank you for participating, your grade is D, go to the designated corner," The announcer said.
She glanced at her hands and they were wet.
"What is this?" She touched it with her fingers.
"Some sort of slippery liquid?" She got up and clenched her fist.
"Dammit! I let my guard down" She left the chamber disappointed as she went over to the corner which her cousin was at.
"Are you hurt?" he stood up.
"No, I'm just disappointed," She frowned.
"I am as well but at least we made it in,"
"You're right, " A small smile showed up.
"Do you think Akiro will pass?" he looked over at me. I was clearly a bit anxious about the whole thing from what I saw so far.
"Hopefully he will but I didn't notice anything special about him. Do you think he is not from here?"
"Maybe, let's just wait and see,"
"Why can I not remember? I know it was something simple but what did I write down? Come on Akiro, think!"
I hit my head gently with my hand trying to remember but i wasn't recalling it.
"Next up, Seki Gonshiro step into the chamber,"
The boy in question did as he was told and stepped into the chamber. He had a mix of black hair with a yellow outline on the edges. He was wearing a yellow shirt and a black jacket with some stylish looking spikes. He looked serious and took off his black glasses to reveal his ocean blue eyes. He was chewing some bubble gum to relieve some stress I presume.
"Your task is to shoot the bad guys without injuring the civilians," The announcer challenged.
The horn announced the start of the challenge. The targets that looked like cardboard cutouts of criminals and bandits showed up and the civilians moving in front of them. He took some bolts or metal objects out of his pocket and threw it on the ground. He closed his eyes and concentrated as the small metal objects started to rise from the ground. It got up to the height of his head and he snapped his fingers. The bolts flew at some speed and hit the targets. It also hit a few civilians and one of them had their head chopped off.
"What a terrifying power!" I thought and the people around me started to chatter about it.
"Thanks for participating," I saw a smirk on his face like he was expecting to pass with flying colours.
"Your grade is F, please leave the complex," the smirk that he had quickly disappeared as he heard the final part.
"What do you mean!? I hit the targets didn't I?!" He protested angrily.
"You did but you also hurt the civilians in the process. You even killed one of them without hesitating," A female announcer explained.
"So? Human casualties are common in these situations," He stood his ground.
"That's exactly the attitude we don't want in our vicinity. If there is a possibility, we try to keep everyone safe even if they are weak and helpless. Now please leave the ground, " A male announcer continued.
"This is some bullshit!" A few robot guards showed up behind him.
"We have been instructed to show you the way out, If you don't mind," The robot put his hand on Seki's shoulder.
"Don't touch me!" He grabbed the robot's hand and it started to shake. It broke down after a few seconds and the other robots moved in.
"I don't deserve this type of treatment!" He used the bolts of the broken robot to take out the two robots that were approaching.
"This is not good! If he breaks out of that chamber it's bad news for everyone," I stepped back a little as I prepared myself for the worst.
He turned towards the glass wall and tried to break through but he couldn't. It was only making vibration waves even though the bolts were hitting it non stop.
"I'm gonna break this place to pieces!" He shouted.
Some of the candidates started to leave in fear of him actually getting out. All of a sudden, his power stopped.
"What!?" He couldn't control the bolts anymore. His vision started to blur and his body felt light.
"What's going on?" He put his weight on the wall behind him.
"We compressed the air in the chamber. Every second you spent in the chamber after you retaliated got less and less. Don't worry though we are kind enough to leave you alive," A male announcer said calmly.
"B-basterds!" he mumbled before passing out. After it was confirmed that he was unconscious, the remaining robot guards took him out of the building.
"We apologise for the inconvenience. This happens sometimes and we can't control someone's emotions after they realised their failure in following orders," A female announcer expressed.
"Ahem, continuing with the exam, please step up..." It called upon a bunch of other students. Some of which left after the recent fiasco and others remained that passed or failed. I was one of the last people to be called into the chamber.
"Next up Akiro Okuda, step into the chamber," I was sweating nervously as my name got mentioned. My palms were sweaty and my throat was dry. I needed water but didn't have the courage to ask. My thoughts were all over the place and I still couldn't recall what I wrote as my skill.
I stepped into the chamber and I wasn't comfortable at all. My hands were shaking a bit as I tried to calm myself down.
"Your task is to dodge the incoming balls. Some of them can be small and some are bigger but deadlier. They range from rubber to gold. If they hit you a certain amount of times you lose, got it?" The male announcer explained.
When he said that I remember writing down reflexes.
"Um, question?" I raised my shaky hand.
"What is it?"
"Will I get hurt if it hits me?"
He sighed.
"No, it's a hologram simulation. From your point, it's the real thing but if you get hit, you won't experience any physical damage. Your brain will just register the hit and react to it as normal,"
"So I'll take mental damage instead. I feel better already," I thought sarcastically.
"Any more questions?"
"No," I regrettably answered.
"3,2,1" He counted and a machine spawned about 30 meters away from me.
"Start!"
And so my examination began with me having no idea how I will pass.