Chapter 4: The First Test

The mood in the dorm is low the next morning, nobody else had less than ten laps of the gigantic dorm building that holds seven years worth of Class 1 Cadets.

After age eighteen, the Cadets will move to the Imperial Military College. Nico was chosen for a scholarship to the Military College at birth due to her talent level, which Sam found out last night as they got acquainted before bed. The Imperial College is essential training to become a command officer, so it is a place Max has worked his hardest in hopes of attending.

If he can't score high enough he will end up at one of the lesser colleges, becoming a low ranked Line Mecha pilot, and likely end his days doing drudge work under someone else's orders. That's the last thing that Max wants, and Nico has agreed to help him with his goal in every way she can.

But first, they must suffer through years of basic education Nico already did on her own, from what Max has seen in her memories. Max, on the other hand, learned a great number of the things that are considered essential knowledge only today.

He's not sure how his handwriting will be, having never actually owned pen or paper, but after multiple uses of his skill on his roommate, a very necessary invasion of privacy he feels truly bad about, he has all of the essential skills and many of the important bits of knowledge Dave missed teaching him committed to his memory long term.

Dave was an Enlisted Infantry Soldier, with a D minus System Compatibility score, he was never taught anything about Mecha Piloting, and all he knew of the officer's training was that they liked to order his units to their death by the tens of thousands while they stayed back in the command center.

[All Recruits Assemble in the front courtyard at 0900] comes an announcement through the speakers mounted all over their floor.

Max and Nico both snap their attention to the clock, seeing that they have ten minutes to get downstairs. They're not allowed to use the service elevator and the first years are on the top floor of the building. Every year they'll get one level closer to the ground with shorter runs when these announcements come in.

The majority of the others are still sleeping, so the pair calls out to the cafeteria "That's in ten minutes and we need to get downstairs. Time to go everyone."

Wise enough to not want anther punishment for being late already, everyone heads for the stairs, many still carrying their morning meal. As they run they call out into the dorm rooms in an attempt to get the rest up.

Dorm room doors don't lock, but every cadet gets a biometric locked cabinet in their room. Max and Nico both know to keep everything secured in their lockers and the bed made, but a lot of the rooms they pass look like a hurricane just passed through.

They were only allowed to bring one small bag of personal effects and Max brought nothing at all except a few keepsakes from Dave and a single change of clothes.

Nico brought a bit more, but only enough to fill a third of the regulation rucksack that they will be issued soon.

As they reach the stairs, Nico taps the data screen built into the wall and winks at Max. The lights start flashing red and an alarm sounds, pulling even the deepest sleepers from bed.

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She doesn't slow her pace though, hopping up to ride the banisters down to ground level with Max right behind her. Major Payne is smiling at them and looking at a stopwatch when they arrive and fall in on the painted squares in the courtyard.

This time a few of the smarter students are not far behind them, panting from the effort of running down the stairs. Fewer than twenty of their classmates are assembled when the instructor clicks her stopwatch and the other teachers lock the doors and wait inside for the late Cadets.

"Not bad Cadets. The alarm was a nice touch. You will now be issued your Uniforms, Toiletries and have the chance to access the Commissary for anything you forgot. One Hundred Standard Credits have been issued to your accounts."

A Sergeant comes by to hand each cadet a plastic bag with their ID number on it, containing their basic necessities.

"Fall out and assemble here in three hours, in uniform and ready for afternoon training." Major Payne smiles at the students, many of whom start thinking she might secretly be a kind person and not a harsh taskmaster.

The relaxed first day schedule is a trap though, as are the credits. It's the entirety of their first Semester's allowance, and if they spend it all now on comforts they'll have very little for the next four months.

The academy year is split into three semesters of focused education with a break in between each. The end of summer break they won't be allowed to leave this year, but the early spring and beginning of summer ones they will be if they're well behaved.

"Let's go get socks. They only give you two pairs." Max tells Nico once they're dismissed and starts jogging for the Commissary to get there early.

That was among the most important bits of advice in Dave's mind when he was briefing Max on his first days at the academy. Clean Socks are the key to comfort, he insisted.

One standard credit each gets them a prep pack, as the Academy calls them. A high tech thermal base layer that holds optimal body temperature, with six pairs of socks and a boot polishing kit. They each take two.

"Let's go, my friend says they give you the boots unpolished, Max tells Nico who shakes her head at their pettiness.

Everything the first day is a test for the Cadets. Even the uniform kit. The underwear in it is cheap and scratchy, but the prep pack base layer is silky smooth and extremely comfortable. The boots aren't polished, but they have to be to pass muster. Finally, their cadet badges attach to the locking buttons, but no instructions are given as to their proper placement.

The military wants to know how fast they can adapt and how strong their decision making skills are, but it doesn't make life easy on Cadets like Max and Nico who don't see it as a mental challenge, but a series of minor inconveniences.

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