"Cadets! Wake up! We have an important meeting today!"
Reiko shouted at us in the morning as usual. I couldn't sleep after what happened yesterday. The way Bleed looked at me in the eyes. Like if he wasn't going to give up on finding me. And the fact that Emi found out everything. Emi was lost for words and could barely speak. I told her to forget this happened and return to the barracks. But it's not easy to forget something like that. Finding out about the deaths of hundreds of innocent people. And then me blowing up Bleed's camp. Nevertheless, we couldn't let the guards or other cadets know about what happened. We'd be in big trouble.
I saw some other cadets glance at me funny. I wondered why until I found out that my uniform was wrinkled and had dirt residue on it from what happened yesterday. I quickly went and changed. After changing, we all lined up outside the barracks as usual. Next to us, the girls were also outside in a line. I looked at Emi, who was in the back of the line. She looked tired, worn out, and gloomy from yesterday. Usually, she would be all cheery and enthusiastic. I also saw Natsumi. She looked normal, but something was off about her. I could tell. Then I looked over at the broken fence where I had walked away with those Antonov supporters. It was… PATCHED UP?! How was it patched up? Bleed and his men couldn't have done it, so how?
As I thought to myself, my friend and fellow cadet Akito approached me.
"Hey Hiro, you seem dazed off… you okay?"
Akito said. I had not noticed him.
"Oh, Akito! Didn't see you there. What happened?"
I responded.
"It's about Natsumi. She's been off lately. I think it has to do with you."
Akito explained.
"I noticed too. But why about me? I guess I haven't talked to her much recently…"
I reflected on my time with Natsumi. She's been my best friend for so long, but I haven't talked to her recently because of all the "special training" I had to do. But I should've at least kept tabs on her…
"Cadets! Follow me to the conference room!"
Reiko appeared out of nowhere and told us to follow her. My conversation with Akito ended there, but it made me think about Natsumi a little. Nevertheless, my main concern was how the fence was fixed, and none of the soldiers or employees seemed to know about anything related to that. I felt like so many things were happening at the same time and I couldn't keep up.
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We had arrived at the conference room. It was a spacious room with many seats and screens. Reiko and employees directed us to sit in the seats. Both guys and girls were mixed during the seating, so I knew a girl might seat next to me. After sitting down, I looked across my seat and saw Emi. She was seated close to me. I obviously didn't want to bother her, or act suspicious, so I tried not interacting with her.
From one of the entrances, an old man wearing an officer uniform entered the room. He was followed by 2 armed soldiers. He had a serious aura coming from him. He stood in front of us cadets and looked at all of us in the face. Some cadets looked fearful from his stare.
"Good morning, cadets. All of you shall address me as Lieutenant General Tomoya. I am the highest ranking official in the entire base. I was sent by General Yoshida to inform you all about something."
We finally met him. The man that controlled this facility. His white beard and wrinkled face showed his aging. But age also meant experience. This man must have been the best of the best to become what he is now.
"Turn on that screen."
Said Lieutenant General Tomoya at one of his accompanying soldiers.
Suddenly, multiple screens turned on. They were all showing the same thing. The thing it was showing was…
THE ANTONOV SUPPORTER'S TERRORIST ATTACK????
The screens were filled with dead bodies, the aftermath of the explosions and the affected buildings. Then, we could see the families of victims crying in the streets, mourning the death of their loved ones. It was one of the most emotional, intense videos I had ever seen. I had already known about it, but somehow it felt like I had just found out.
The other cadets looked in disbelief. Some of them thought it was a movie, but others realized sooner or later that it was a real video. And that they were real victims. The reactions in the other cadet's faces showed sadness, despair, and anger. I looked over at Natsumi, and I saw reactionless. She was normally very emotional, but somehow she stayed put during the entire video. Emi just looked at the floor, as she already knew what was going to be displayed. The others girls began to cry, as seeing the gruesomeness of the scenes was just too much.
"This happened yesterday, cadets. Militants who support Aleksander Anotonov's plan to put the world under his leash bombed the innocent civilians of Japan. They destroyed Shinkuju and Shibuya Stations and sent kamikaze drones all over Tokyo. This was an act of terrorism on our soil!"
Exclaimed Lieutenant General Tomoya.
The conference room was filled with Lieutenant General Tomoya's voice. Not a single person said a word. Only the weeping of cadets who were emotionally affected by the news. But the Lieutenant General had one more thing to say…
"It is time we put all of you War-Knights to good use."