"Three days?" Whispered Noah.
"The test will only last 3 hours; within those three hours, those who've lost their flags will be disqualified," Ethan added, adjusting his glasses, and continued.
"All of you will be put into teams. The method depends on you. If you already have people to team up with, that's less hassle for me." He declared before leaving shortly after that.
The dining area went up in murmurs and chatters.
"Three days?" Noah whispered again.
"Yeah?" I added. "That's enough time, in my opinion."
"What's capture-the-flag?" Will join in.
"It's self-explanatory, really," Noah responded.
"It goes like this: there are two teams with their own flags, and the one who has their flag stolen loses."
"What if nobody steals either's flags?"
"Then I guess it's a draw."
Everyone started leaving, some more enthusiastic than others. Curfew was approaching, and no one wanted to break any rules since Markus was acting as the disciplinary officer to the recruits. I don't even think anyone's eardrums can handle Markus's voice, much less his yelling.
"If it's cool with you guys, do you think we can team up? I don't know anyone else here." Noah asked as we got from our seats, our metallic food trays in hand.
I shrugged. "I don't see why not."
"Yeah, besides, you're cool, Noah," Will added.
"Aw, thanks, guys."
We washed our trays and returned them. Will kept asking Noah questions. For the most part, it was just questions like, "What's your favorite superhero?" Or "If you could have one superpower in the world, what would it be?"
The gravel crunched under our feet as we walked back to our sleeping quarters. I felt a mix of unease with a tinge of excitement. The only other time I felt this way was before a big test. I guess it was because there was something to lose this time.
All the recruits who passed the first hurdle were put into army tents after they made a full recovery. These tents comfortably fit only four people. I was lucky I shared mine with Will, Noah, and the older guy whose name I still haven't got. We all slept in sleeping bags on the ground. The smell inside the tent was as pleasant as you can imagine, with four guys who had only showered once since we got here.
"Good night, Noah, Good night, Jake. Good night, older guy." Will whispered.
"Good night, Will," Noah responded.
At night, the sound of crickets and the people constantly shifting in their sleeping bags was all I could hear.
My eyes blinked restlessly at the empty darkness inside the tent. I made a habit of not sleeping much at night. Call it survival instincts or insomnia.
"You still up, Jake?" Noah whispered, his back turned to me.
"Yeah," I said softly.
"Looks like you can't sleep either." Noah chuckled.
"Guess not."
The noise died down, and the deafening sound of silence filled my ears again, only to be broken by the constant chirp of crickets.
"Can I ask you something?" Noah said.
I could hear him shifting to face me.
"Shoot," I responded.
"Why'd you choose to join Verdant Canis?" Noah asked. The sound of nylon fabric wrinkling in the background.
"Drifting from place to place wasn't an option anymore."
"What's it like?"
"Drifting? I don't know, but it mostly consists of going to bed hungry at night and the uncertainty of tomorrow." I answered, pausing for a while before asking.
"What's it like inside behind the walls?"
There was another pause before Noah answered.
"Well, it's safe... but... never mind. You'll find out soon enough."
"It must be better than being out ther-"
"Will you two go to sleep already?" The older guy loudly whispered.
"Oh, sorry." We responded at the same time.
"Say, you mind telling us your name or..." Noah asked.
"It's Robert." He replied coldly.
"Wow, you responded. That's a first." Noah sarcastically said, to which Robert replied with whispered cussing.
I laughed softly as Noah and Robert went back and forth.
Exhaustion finally crept in, and I fell asleep.
***
Day 1 of preparation was uneventful.
All of us woke up to Markus Lee's earth-quaking footsteps.
Most recruits refreshed themselves by the lake, which left 1 hour before breakfast was served. Since another physically challenging test was coming up, everyone opted to exercise. Almost everyone ran, while some chose to do bodyweight exercises.
During breakfast, everyone was aware of the tension brewing between the recruits. So everyone ate in silence. Except for the steel fists. Those guys were still the rowdy bunch.
It was almost the same for lunch and dinner. We ate in silence.
The animosity between recruits became more apparent on Day 2.
The steel fists grew more quiet, and the group of girls split into two after they got into a big fight. The rejects were oddly calm despite everything.
Some started planning in the dining area while others continued to train their bodies. I was one of them. I'm not very good with plans. I'm more of a spur-of-the-moment kind of guy.
On Day 3, barely anyone ate, including me. The only ones who did were the rejects. Some of them make my skin crawl. I hope they get disqualified during the test.
Night fell, and all of us were headed back to our tents. Will and Noah kept talking about superheroes while Robert just stayed silent.
When we got into our sleeping backs. It was apparent none of us were getting one wink of sleep.
The nylon fabric crinkled and wrinkled throughout the night as everyone shifted around, hoping their weary bodies would put them to sleep.
"Jake," Will whispered.
"Yeah?"
"What do you think our group should be called?"
"I don't know."
"I was thinking we could be called the Fantastic Four, you know, because I think the four of us are pretty cool."
"Not happening, Dork. Now go to bed." I said as I turned over to sleep.
***
Everyone woke up early in the morning on the day of the exam. We were all given uniforms to wear, which was great since I hadn't had a fresh change of clothes in forever.
All of us were gathered at the entrance of a forest. The earthy smell tickled my nose as we waited for Ethan.
All of us were dressed in a black shirt, cargo joggers, and thick combat boots.
"Good morning, everyone!" shouted Ethan cheerfully over the microphone.
"You're all looking fresh." He added before continuing.
"Are you guys excited? Because I sure am."
Everyone collected responded to his overenthusiasm with silence.
"Jeez, tough crowd."
"Alright, since all of you are eager to start right away, I'll remind you of the rules once again," I said before clearing his throat and continuing.
"You will have to protect the flag planted firmly at your starting point. You will have no weapons since this isn't combat. The test ends when one of the teams loses their flag or the time runs out. Remember, the entire duration of the test is 3 hours. There will be altogether three rounds, and two teams will have to face off against one another."
"In an unlikely case where time runs out and neither has managed to capture the other's flag. The winner will be decided by me and Markus based on your performance and teamwork. Remember people, our enemy is the mutants, not each other."
"You will all be observed by these." He said, pointing up at the sky.
Hovering up above were drones whizzing across the sky.
"These drones will capture live footage and the rest of us will be watching with these." He said as he reached into his pocket and took out a small metallic ball.
He then proceeded to throw it onto the ground, which transformed it into a holographic projector.
Everyone stood in marvel at the technology he showed us since it's been ages since any of us saw advanced tech. All except Noah.
"These bad boys were developed by the genius minds at Ark."
"Oh, and one more thing."
"If we suspect foul play is involved, the test will immediately be halted and the other team will win by default."
He grinned widely and continued.
"I'm sure you're all just roaring to go."
The projection buzzed only to stabilize on a random number generator.
"I'm sure you guys have already chosen a leader among you so please, leaders. I invited you all to come to the front and try your luck."
I turned to Will, Noah, and Robert.
"Don't look at me, dude," Noah said
"I think you're our leader, Jake," Will added.
Robert just remained silent as usual, with a distasteful expression on his face.
With my heart pounding in my throat. I walked up with six others.
Everyone collectively held their hands out, and we all instinctively knew to press it at the same time.
On a count of three, we all pressed the button simultaneously.
The number in front of me spun and circled.
A bead of cold sweat ran down my back as I hoped to God that we wouldn't have to go up against the steel fists or the rejects.
The number spun and spun eventually landing on...