As Marcus pondered his life choices, Commander Evert walked on stage.
His aura was oozing with contempt and impatience. His expression was vexed as if he had been irritated before coming on stage.
He walked to the podium on stage, standing before it as he glanced over everyone in the auditorium. His expression is unchanging from its earlier irritation.
"I would congratulate you on making it this far, but due to recent events, I've lost my patience." Commander Everts's tone was as deep as usual, yet somehow different. "Starting tomorrow we'll begin performing the implantation process. Every day ten cadets will be called to the training facility to have their surgery, this will be followed by two days of rest, before an officer is assigned to train you on how to control your newfound abilities."
Commander Evert then paused, taking a deep breath before shaking his head. "However, there is something you've been lied to about, of the 75 cadets who undergo this procedure, it's estimated that 40% of you will not survive."
Gasps and sudden shock waved through the cadets, their expressions turning perturbed.
Marcus among them.
He had been under the impression that if you passed the first exam it would've been smooth sailing, he glanced over at Sang-hee, whose expression turned slightly sour, as if she ate something bad.
"I know there are many questions, the most pressing among them is if you can opt out of the surgery. I'm sorry to inform you that the answer is no, as your implants have already been genetically grown and engineered to work seamlessly with your specific body types, your second question is most likely what is it that kills you? The answer is Ether shock, when a body is overloaded with naturally produced ether, one of two things happens, either your body adapts over time or the ether will break down your body from the inside out, leaving nothing behind but pure ether."
Marcus felt a chill run down his spine as he glanced over at Luna, a shocking realization passing over him. He actually could've died…..
He knew Luna told him what could've happened, she was very upfront in her apology about what could've happened to him, so he had no right to chastise her over it again, but the realization that he actually could've died was eye-opening.
Luna looks over at Marcus with a sympathetic expression, reaching for her hand to grab his.
Marcus accepted it, yet his fear and shock were never quelled.
"All hope is not lost, however." Commander Evert spoke, putting a hand into his pocket, he pulled out a bottle of medication, "We do have pills that can help mitigate the effects of Ether shock, so if it does progress to the point where you are dying, we can elongate your life, but it won't save you."
Marcus's eyes widened further, those were the same pills he was taking to suppress Luna's core!
The ether suppression pills!
A lot of loose ends were coming together, and Marcus didn't know how to feel about any of it, his mind was racing and his hands were trembling.
Commander Evert then gestured a hand over to the officers who Marcus saw earlier when walking in. "These men and women went through the same process as you did last year, they'll be here to support and train you, or alternatively help ease you into your death."
The auditorium fell into a buzz of whispers and alarm as Commander Evert's words echoed across the crowd. The reality of the situation truly seemed to be settling in, and that's when panic struck.
A cadet, no older than 17, jumped up from his seat on the front row. "No." He exclaimed with a deep Italian accent, "No, this is not right."
Commander Evert looked down at the cadet with narrowed eyes. "Sit." He commanded, his voice rattling through the auditorium.
"What?! So you can just fucking kill me, man?" The boy exclaimed, "That's not happening." The boy said with a slow shake of his head.
"I will not command it again." Commander Evert replied.
The boy narrowed his eyes before turning to leave, "You'll have to kill me yourself." The boy hissed as he stepped away.
He didn't get very far however, his headless body dropping to the ground oozing crimson red blood onto the carpet floor.
Marcus's eyes widened as his eyes moved from the headless corpse to Commander Evert's hand, which held the boy's decapitated head. Its blood dripped onto the stage as Commander Evert examined it.
"Now is the time for reflection cadets." Commander Evert said with a faint frown.
"You choose to become guardians of peace and protectors of the earth, as I have said before, the path before you is not easy, and now you have passed the point of no return."
Commander Evert then tossed the head onto the ground, allowing everyone to see it roll around the floor before it eventually stopped.
The entire auditorium was shaken, no one dared move a muscle, in fear that they were next.
"You no longer serve your own interests, you have no allegiance to any country, religion, or person, anything that endangers or interferes with the mission to protect and serve must be sidelined or ignored. I will not allow any of my officers to join without understanding these basic principles. You all had ample opportunity to quit, to fail, to return home, yet you persisted, and now you wanna run home when it gets hard?!" Commander Evert's tone was devoid of emotion, yet his anger and passion could be felt for miles.
Every cadet seemed frozen in place, their faces pale with fear and shock. The auditorium had fallen so silent, that Commander Evert's breathing could be heard from the back of the room.
Marcus was genuinely struggling to process what was happening, he had seen death before, many times in the simulations, and though it was traumatizing his mind was eventually able to recognize it as a fake.
But this.
This was real.
Commander Evert's eyes scanned the room, his expression stern, and his gaze unyielding. "You have chosen this path, and now you will walk it, I do not tolerate failure nor disappointment."
After a moment of silence, Commander Evert sighed deeply. "Starting tomorrow the first group will be called, you have until then to prepare yourselves, dismissed."
With that, Commander Evert turned to leave the stage, quietly disappearing as if he were never there in the first place.
In his absence, the auditorium sat in complete silence.
Eventually, the officers Commander Evert had gestured to earlier, began dispersing through the crowd of cadets, attempting to engage with them and ask questions.
One of those officers, a young man who looked around 19, approached Marcus with a giddy expression. "Why are you just sitting there?" He asked his tone full of mockery.
Marcus slowly turned to look up at the officer, he was an average height, maybe around 5'7 or 5'8, he had long white hair with red highlights, his skin was smooth and well groomed, his eyes blue and crystal-like, with a small nose.
"S-sorry miss." Marcus stammered, trying to conduct himself properly, but struggling to manage, "I uhm, just a little stunned that's all." Marcus chuckled nervously, unknowingly squeezing Luna's hand.
The officer blushed as he covered his mouth. "Such a roundabout way to call me cute hmm?"
"W-what?" Marcus stammered.
"That's a guy, dumb ass," Sang-hee answered bluntly.
"Oh." Marcus said as he chuckled again, "Sorry sir, uhm, do you mind if I go?" Marcus asked, gesturing towards the exit with his free hand.
The officer tilted his head, a playful smile dancing on his lips. "And where are you trying to go?" He asked curiously.
Marcus knew exactly where he had to go, he needed to find Dr. Fletcher, to get her to explain everything to him, he needed answers, or at this point, just reassurance.
"I need to find Dr. Fletcher, do you know her?" Marcus asked.
The officer shook his head. His long hair fluttered from side to side. "No, I can't say I do, but I don't mind helping you search." His offer was spoken with a playful grin.
Marcus didn't care what happened at this point, he just needed to find Dr. Fletcher.
"Ok," Marcus said, nodding his head as he stood up. "Let's go."
Standing up from his seat and walking towards the exit, Marcus was followed by Luna, whose hand he held, and the officer, who followed behind with a curious expression.
Stepping out into the hallway, Marcus checked both the right and left path, before ultimately looking down at Luna, "d-do you have any idea where she could be?" Marcus asked.
"She could be in her office." Luna suggested, "At least that's where we often talked."
Marcus nodded. "Can you take me there?"
"Of course, it's on the fourth floor," Luna replied, leading him down the left hallway. As they navigated through the brightly illuminated halls, Marcus's mind continued to circulate with questions.
He hoped that she had the answers, no, she had to have them.
Reaching the elevator, Marcus pressed the call button several times. Before a dinging sound echoed from the elevator speakers and its doors hissed open.
Marcus led Luna inside before stepping into the elevator himself. The officer followed in shortly after Marcus, his expression still filled with curiosity.
As the elevator ascended to the fourth floor, it felt like an eternity, Marcus's heart was pounding as sweat began beading down his forehead.
"Aren't you overreacting just a tinge." The officer suggested, pinching his pointer finger and thumb together to illustrate his point. "What's done is done."
"That's not the point!" Marcus snapped at the officer. "Some kid just fucking died, I just found out the organization has been lying, and to top it off, I very much could've died myself, so excuse me for being panicked!" Marcus hissed.
The officer raised an eyebrow as he crossed his arms. "Interesting." He replied.
The elevator reached the fourth floor, and Luna led Marcus out and into the long winding hallways, with rows of doors on either side.
Eventually, Luna reached a door that had Dr. Fletcher's name on its side in bright blue text. "This is the one," Luna informed Marcus, gesturing towards the door.
Marcus began to knock on the door without hesitation. Each knock was harder than the last.
"It's open Marcus." Dr. Fletcher answered from the other side of the door. Marcus took a step back from the door, looking for a way to open it.
Luna pointed out the button that was underneath Dr. Fletcher's name.
Marcus pushed the button and the door hissed open, revealing Dr. Fletcher was sitting beside a desk with several documents on her desk.
"What brings you here?" Dr. Fletcher asked a curious tone in her voice.
Marcus stepped into Dr. Fletcher's office and pointed a finger toward the floor. "Some kid is dead!" Felix exclaimed, "and the commander was going into detail about how ether shock could kill me! You said ether shock was practically harmless!"
Dr. Fletcher's eyes widened as Marcus began to shout, she immediately stood up from behind her desk and pointed toward the officer behind Marcus.
Marcus raised an eyebrow as he turned to look at the officer, who was listening to their conversation, with a satisfied expression. "What?" He asked as he shrugged his shoulders, "Please continue."
Dr. Fletcher frowned as she walked from behind her desk. "This doesn't concern you, I'd prefer if you saw yourself out."
The officer's playful expression turned serious for a second, his eyes scanning Dr. Fletcher's office briefly before raising his hands in surrender. "Alright, alright, tensions are high, I get it, but could I ask Marcus a question?"
Marcus raised an eyebrow, his impatience mounding, "Yeah, what?"
"That girl you were sitting with, what's her name?"
"Sang-hee?" Marcus answered, confusion evident in his tone.
The officer nodded his head as he backed away from the door. "Thank you for your patience, I'll be on my way."
The door then hissed shut, followed by a clicking sound, a quiet moment of tension passed, before finally Dr. Fletcher sat down in her seat once more.
"Are you satisfied?" Marcus asked with a hiss.
Dr. Fletcher sighed deeply before nodding her head.
"Good, because I want answers, why did you lie about ether shock? Why didn't you tell me I could've died?!"
"Because there was no point Marcus, when it's discovered that you have ether shock, your death will be pretty quick if it's fatal, but you showed the more mild symptoms, so I knew you'd be fine." Dr. Fletcher answered.
"Ok, but what about that kid who died?!? What was that about?"
Dr. Fletcher sighed as she shook her head. "What do you want me to say?" She asked, "If he defied Evert, did you really think he'd survive?"
"So it's cool to just kill him?!?!"
"And what have you suggested be done?" Dr. Fletcher asked challengingly, "Wipe his memory, sorry to break it to you Marcus, but to get your memory wiped, still requires surgery. The longer and more intense the memory, the harder the surgery becomes, now we're past the point of memory wipes there's only lobotomy left."
Marcus grew perplexed as his right eye twitched sporadically, "what?!?" He exclaimed, "Why did you hide this!"
"Because you didn't let me explain it to you in due time!" Dr. Fletcher finally snapped, "The moment I tell you anything of significance you blow up about it and whine."
"You–"
"So I decided to let you find out on your own, but that doesn't feel right does it?" Dr. Fletcher asked challengingly, her frustration evident. "Now you're overwhelmed and confused, I understand that, but you have to understand that everything I've done was to benefit you."
Marcus fell silent, his gaze focused on the floor.
"I know you're young, I know this all seems challenging and chaotic, but I can only help if you allow me. I'm here for you Marcus, everything I've done was and will be for you."
Marcus's mind was a whirlwind of emotions, he processed Dr. Fletcher's with scorn and scrutiny, yet everything she was saying held logic. Still, Marcus struggled to see the large picture, and in his failure to think it through, he chose anger as an outlet.
"O-ok." Marcus stammered with a sigh as he looked up to face Dr. Fletcher. "So what's going to happen next, I-I remember you telling me you'd figure something out, because I already had a core within me, right?"
Dr. Fletcher smiled faintly, nodding her head. "Yes." Dr. Fletcher replied, "I've taken care of the surgery details, so when they call your name, I want you to go to room 10, I'll be your 'surgeon' that day."
Marcus nodded his head. "Room ten got it." Marcus affirmed, "So should I stop taking the suppression pills?" He asked.
Dr. Fletcher nodded. "Yes, that would be wise."
Marcus nodded. "Ok." He said softly, "Is there anything else I need to know?"
Dr. Fletcher paused to think for a moment, placing a hand on her chin, "Hmm, no, not at the moment, but if I think of anything I'll be sure to let you know."
Marcus nodded. "Cool, but I have one last question, the third exam, is there a chance I'll die?" Marcus asked, his tone shaken slightly.
Dr. Fletcher nodded. "Yes, you'll be put against an anomaly that is around your skill level, and either you or it, will emerge alive, However you will be assigned with a duo who is around your level, so all hope is not lost."
Marcus nodded his head, sighing deeply. "I understand."