"What are your thoughts on Mr. Kokuren's way of doing things?" Alicia asked me.
We were on the sun deck of a luxury yacht, Alicia, Garnet, Lucas, Flora, Melissa and I, headed for Herald Island.
"I'm not opposed to it. You?"
"I think he's crazy. Executing change so fast people might cause agents to become overwhelmed and decrease productivity. Unless the training camp will be extremely efficient, all this change might backfire on him. Especially this squad system."
"Yeah, I got that feeling too," said Lucas. He was laying on the couch playing video games.
Alicia continued, "Though, resistance won't be too big. His way of punishing is kinda effective. I'm among the agents who had not submitted proof of completion of my mission by the end of the week, thus I didn't get the email to go get my card. Of course, I didn't get the payments for that mission for going past the deadline, but I was also penalized with the payments for my next mission too. I guess they're doing this to discourage slacking off. I tried applying for another small mission to get done with the penalty, but we can't apply for missions now. I'm afraid the penalty might take effect during the training camp if there will be rewards."
Flora, who had been on her phone the whole time, commented. "That's harsh. That penalty must have been placed on many other agents as well. From now on if you don't complete a mission on time you lose double the payments. That is, unless you have a good reason for not completing your mission before the deadline."
"Guys, why haven't they unlocked the Herald Island features yet? I mean, if we're going to live there for two months, they should at least give us access to most facilities." Garnet asked. I still hadn't gotten used to his somewhat British accent.
"Maybe they'll be unlocked when we get to the island."
Melissa came to the sun deck, where we were all staying.
"I feel like I ought to tell you this. Training on Herald Island is anything but easy. Different aspects of your life will be tested in-depth. You will have to work together to get through."
"You don't have to worry about that. We're gonna ace this, right guys?" Garnet said.
"Yeah."
"To ensure the training is efficient, the twenty squads have been split into two groups, each consisting of ten squads. I'm sure you are already aware of this as you were all emailed a list of all the other squads and their details. Your squad was among those picked to take the training first. The other ten squads have remained behind, and will continue to take missions, though these missions have been created by E.A, not the Anti Crime Embassy. You will be given further details on the training once you arrive on the island. I will leave you to discuss the rest among yourselves."
She started walking away. "Oh, I almost forgot, there will come a time you will be required to pick a squad lead. Be wise when doing so." She left. The others had determined looks on their faces, ready to take on whatever E.A threw at us.
By then, we could already see the island.
If one had an aerial view, to the right you would see Arsenal Island, the research island, where most weapons and equipment are stored. It is also the most technological island. There, all sorts of weapons and devices are created.
'That must be where these cards were created. I wonder what new technology they're coming up with right now.'
To the left, Herald Island, our destination. Specializes in training agents and testing the products made in Arsenal Island.
In the middle, and the biggest one, Main Island. That is the headquarters. It's basically a huge city with malls, apartment buildings, office buildings and theaters. Only the richest live there. We couldn't see Arsenal Island and most of Main Island from where we were on the ocean. Together, these Islands form the Echo Nexus.
"Herald Island is a lot smaller than I expected." commented Garnet.
We could see other yachts approaching the island.
"I guess each squad got their own yacht. E.A really doesn't hold back on expenses does it?"
It was nearly every agent's dream to one day visit one of the Echo Nexus Islands.
As we all stood in awe of the island's magnificence, the speakers embedded all over the yacht came to life and a female automated voice spoke.
"You have now arrived at your destination. Welcome to Herald Island."