Slezzy got off the bus once again after several days of exhausting routine.
The young man took a walk to the FMA building. That was his last day of training.
The past twenty—nine days had been intense, extreme and exhausting, but yet none of the candidates even considered quitting.
Several races in the same military field were held, from physical, such as races, bodybuilding and advanced gymnastics, to strategic and military.
During all the previous days, in the morning, the group performed the test of the White Room, which was increasingly difficult according to the passage of time, because the number and difficulty of the soldiers increased gradually, simulating sniper shots and even some types of bombs. At the same time, Roy always observed the performance of each of the members of the group, through the bulletproof cameras installed there. He added placement points for each one, according to his own conception, based on some topics such as decision making, emotional control, leadership and rate of accurate shots, all obtained by a technological system. The same points that would help Roy in the future to decide which would be the top two members of the select group that would remain in the FMA.
Slezzy was different. His striking musculature caught the attention of several people who passed through the central square while even the FMA. He wore the same classic social attire, carrying a backpack on his back.
He kept that contract he thought was indestructible in the same backpack.
It was late and there were only two and a half hours left for nightfall.
Upon arriving at the reinforced gatehouse, the gates opened immediately. The same soldier, responsible for the entrance to the area, already recognized Slezzy easily.
Before Slezzy completely crossed the gates, the same soldier confronted him:
— Hey! Good luck in your final test! A little bird told me that you are one of the strongest candidates in this last FMA training group! Even so, do not settle! — Then, with Slezzy facing him, the military pointed to the military badge hanging from his chest. — The journey to this is not easy at all.
— Don't worry! — he answered, smiling. — Captain Roy will still get a promotion for finding the best military agent of all time!
The soldier laughed lightly and returned to exercise his escort in that gatehouse.
Slezzy turned and proceeded with his walk to the main door of that building. On the way, some soldiers recognized him, waved and applauded him.
Suddenly, the boy heard a deep voice coming from behind him.
— Don't think about failing today, kid! — That voice was identical to one of the demons he'd met weeks ago.
He stopped walking immediately, with the looks directed at the ground.
"What? No... It's not possible that these demons... have been watching me this whole time..."
— Slezzy!? — It was Captain Roy's voice.
Turning quickly, the young man realized that there was no demon there.
— Are you nervous by chance? — asked the Captain with a sarcastic tone.
"What? That voice couldn't be yours, it was so deep..."
— It's not like that, Captain! It's just... maybe I'm too focused for that day — replied the boy, disguising his thoughts.
Even if he was surprised, Roy only resumed his steps until the ordinance.
Still in the same position, Slezzy reflected again:
"Why? Why did I hear that voice? It was so similar..."
"Although... all this time... I barely thought about all that. I just ignored everything all of a sudden!? Wait... is it really possible that those demons have been watching me all this time?"
"Well... by logic, it is not possible that no one has signed that contract so far, otherwise I would no longer have his possession..."
Slezzy opened his backpack and noticed that the black contract was still there, deep down, among other objects. His white letters shone brighter than usual.
"It has always been here... during these last weeks... AH! DAMN! I can't freak out right now! Not on this very important day"
Slezzy turned again to the building and entered the building in the sequence.
— Good afternoon, Laura! — Slezzy exclaimed, with a confident tone.
At that point, he had already acquired a little intimacy with the girl, since sometimes after the end of training, he talked to the employee and the other candidates for long minutes.
— Good afternoon, Slezzy! Good luck in the final test! — she said, opening a big smile.
Slezzy went to the elevator. Captain Roy was waiting for him right there, holding the doors of it with only one arm.
With the boy by his side, Roy pressed the "number eighteen" from the control panel next to him.
— Aren't we going to the White Room?
Roy pulled his phone out of his pocket, keyed it for a few seconds, and the kid said,
— Before the final test, some topics need to be reinforced. Probably, the other members of the group should already be in the office. I think they caught your habit of getting to appointments early.
The elevator doors opened and Roy left immediately. Slezzy followed.
Upon arriving at the office, they came across Jean, Kine, and Clay. The boys chatted about something.
— Sit down! — ordered the Captain.
— I thought they would not arrive for the party! — Clay exclaimed. The young man's body had also received a remarkable change at first sight.
— Do you really think the old man would miss that day? — provoked Jean.
After everyone sat in the chairs of the room, Roy removed a sheet from his briefcase. He spied on her and then spoke:
— Honestly, I'm very impressed. You were one of the few that adapted as well, both as a group and individually. After the final exam in the White Room, I want you to make sure that everyone here is prepared to handle any level of crime outside of this building. — He scratched his head for a few seconds and proceeded. — Ah! Of course! In addition, each of you will receive... let's say... a small financial bonus for such demonstrated competence within our institution.
— Good, Captain! The blondie will be able to buy more toys for his collection! — provoked Slezzy.
— That's funny! — Jean replied.
Roy resumed his line:
— I think you'd better concentrate for the last test — All the members of the group looked at you after the serious comment — Today, our test will be totally different from every other day.
Kine raised his hand:
— I'm sorry to interrupt, Captain, but... what's so special about this test?
Roy smiled and approached the girl.
— Special? Hum... The simulation will be as real as possible!
— Han? — Clay grumbled.
— Today, the projectiles from the weapons of those holographic soldiers... will be lethal.
Clay stood up, putting his hands on the table, confronting him soon after:
— What? Captain? Have you gone crazy!?
— SHUT UP AND SIT! — cried Roy.
Clay obeyed the order, still mumbling softly.
— Do you think it's like the White Room out there? Han? Do you think those bad guys are going to shoot fake bullets at you? THE ANSWER IS NO! — The Captain hit one of the tables hard. — They won't think twice before putting a bullet in their heads! The bastards won't even care about your age, height, institution or even your family.
The four young men clashed, completely silenced.
Roy walked to the door of the room; and before he left, he calmly concluded:
— Over the past few weeks, you've devoted most of your time, your days, to our training. You haven't even relaxed on the weekends! You gave blood in all the challenges that at first seemed impossible. You proved the opposite, not only for me, but for yourselves. And even then, you can still choose: throw everything in the trash or... if you prove it in the last test. I won't force you to do anything.
Kine stood up from his chair and turned to the group, a little shaky, but still confident to express himself:
— Listen to me... you bunch of wimps, can't you understand?
The other three stared at her, disagreeing, as Roy smiled.
— Do you want to go out on the streets, fight the criminals who make us miserable every day, and are afraid of some kind of test that we face during all the training?
Enraged, she went on:
— If you don't think you're ready to handle a simulation like that, how long do you think you'll last out there?
Jean was the next to rise:
— Let's go straight to the twenty—first floor! I've had enough of this mess!
Roy, smiling, left the room.
— Remember the first day, Clay? — asked Slezzy. Clay glazed his eyes on the young man, seriously. — It was you who controlled me... You remember!?... Relax partner! What's the fucking difference if those bullets are real this time? Didn't we defeat all the other twenty—nine trials without getting hurt once?
Slezzy squeezed his colleague's right shoulder.
— You're right... — Clay removed Slezzy's hand from his shoulder, getting up in an excited way. — Let's finish off those fake soldiers!
Slezzy, Kine and Jean laughed happily after that comment.
They all left the room and went to the next dressing room. There, they changed in the private cabins and soon after walked to the stairs.
As they went up, Roy commented:
— I'm glad you made the right choice. Still, I ask you to take all possible care. As you enter the White Room, you will be between life and death when the time comes to finally prove yourselves.
Upon arriving at the door of the room, Roy opened it and soon the candidates crossed it.
They armed themselves and set up the pentagon formed by steel shields.
At that point, they possessed strategies and also mastery of all weapons.
With the end of the preparation, the dark canvases were lowered, one on each side of the room. However, on that day, a third appeared.
That screen slowly came down, covering the entire door of the room, thus preventing any escape from the White Room.
The group, who had not yet entered the Pentagon area, was at odds when they realized that Roy was still in the room.
— Today, my recruits, we will simulate an attack. — said the Captain, opening his arms. — WELCOME TO THE FINAL EXAM!
— You mean... a terrorist attack? — said Kine.
— Of course! A terrorist attack! Answer me, Kine... Why are the attacks so dangerous?
— Han?
Suddenly, the captain fired at rapid speed towards the pentagon formed by the shields, shouting:
— BECAUSE THEY ARE SIMPLY UNPREDICTABLE!
At the same time, the squad heard the noise of a sequence of shots coming from inside the screens.
Without thinking, all the recruits repeated the same attitude as Roy, while the projectiles began to cross the sides of their bodies.