Attendance at Fortescue Military Academy M1 Y:2142
House Thoth, Squad Leader, Squad Zero
M1 Rank: 1/1275, Tier 3 M-Rank: Null
Term: 1, Round: 5
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The room was quiet, other than the sound of exos and weapons being loaded into hoverbins and one cadet – Barran – whistling a happy tune which mirrored the general feeling of the squad.
(Authors Note: Music was an individual thing. Cadets could listen to music anytime through their helmets and often did. The room would still otherwise be quiet.)
There were no hi-fives, dancing, or raucous laughter. The cadets were pleased with their accomplishment, but they were not the types to jump around in wild abandon. Perhaps Barran was, but he lockstepped with his peers.
M1 Thoth Squad Zero, M1TS0, was in the semi-finals of the M3 competition. In their first term at Fortescue Military Academy. Up until that point, they had worked hard and focused on improving and what they needed to get done.
Each year there was a first and second ranked cadet, and sometimes from the same squad. But what they achieved had never been done before in the thirty-four-year history of the academy.
Messages from their peers filtered through to Vannier, Axel-Zero, Barran, and even Gaumont, Mace, and Picard. Daedo received the singular message.
Sideris: Well done, Daedo. See you on Thursday.
It was the squad leader from M3 Shu Zero. One of the only people to have his contact info, which was due to their purchase of exos from Thoth. Ironically, they would be facing each other in the semi-final. At least one squad with Daedo’s exos would be in the final.
As they walked back to their quarters, Barran announced, “I’m going to have to put on auto-reply again,” and then laughed.
Daedo was reading the group two analysis from Master Nader. Her analysis always contained metrics that were not available on the academy’s killboard. Until the tournament started, she sporadically sent tables with data on their practice matches. But now that the official matches were underway, the analysis was set out in a structured manner.
The dashboard showed key stats with comments about strategy and performance below each match. Not only did she give stats on their performance, but they also had every single squad in the same format, including matches they were not involved in.
This made it easy to highlight weak areas using the comparison to other squads in terms of reflex action, accuracy, quality of damage, and cybernetic bandwidth. All of which could be trained on and improved.
Their last match had no review notes, only an order for a debriefing at 1830. Daedo sent a missive over comms since not everyone was in earshot.
Daedo: Squad, we’d best eat, shower, whatever. Master Nader has scheduled a debriefing for 1830.
Daedo put his exo away and hit the shower. It had been a long day. No one wanted to brave the cafeteria, so the squad ate and chatted in their quarters until Master Nader summoned them into her office at 1830. Master Nader was never late.
“Be seated,” she informed the squad, and they sat on one of two bench seats she had prepared in the shape of an L facing her corner desk and display. “You must be satisfied with your progression?” she finally asked them.
It was almost delivered as a rhetorical question. No one answered for a moment.
“We are satisfied that we have progressed in both competitions,” Daedo answered carefully.
“Your performance, tactics, and equipment are all commendable,” she said. “Yes. We can be critical and find issue with many things. But this is why we train. That is why we are here. To learn. But in order to learn correctly, the fundamentals must be in place.”
She paused. Her robotic voice conveyed neither compassion nor joy. However, it was exceptional at showing displeasure, which was not on display on this occasion.
“I have one major concern,” she said. “Let us run through a logical progression.” A few questions should lead the squad to the same conclusion she had already arrived at. “Why does the competition give more points for the fewer cadets you lose in order to win a match?”
Axel-Zero answered immediately; the cadets knew it was best not to muck around. “The additional 0.1 to 0.8 points show the level of disparity between the squads. In the event the group stage ends with an equal number of wins, the performance of each match separates the tied squads. These points become significant in the longer inter-academy league competitions.”
The league competition predominately had matches every weekend with a total of twenty-two by the end of the regular season.
Master Nader sat silently. A strong indication the answer was not complete.
Daedo thought he knew, but if he answered everything it did not assist with the squad’s learning. He folded his arms, indicating he wasn’t going to answer. It was up to the rest of them.
Vannier offered the simple answer, “The fewer cadets you lose, the more points you get. Points are the only reward in a match, therefore, the only measure of performance.”
Master Nader leaned forward. “That did not take long. Good,” she said in her manner of conveying that their performance was barely adequate.
For the first nine weeks, Master Nader used her usual manipulation and nurturing techniques on the M1TS0 cadets. Daedo had become problematic. He saw through a trial for what it was. Trials were set before him by Master Nader for the sole reason to train. On many occasions, his deduction lowered and sometimes nullified the effect. She’d come to the conclusion that direct and open tutelage was in order. Not much else worked when Daedo picked it apart with logic.
“The squad leader and his second have the reports from the group matches,” she said. “They will interpret and discuss. I will not be giving you a performance review on the matches. I will give your leaders a performance review on your own internal performance review.”
She stood and walked out from behind her desk. “There is one message that I wanted to give to you all directly. And I want you to consider very carefully what I say next.
“From now on,” she began and paused dramatically.
“In every match and every competition …” She stopped again.
“Treat every death as real. I want you to play.” She said the word ‘play’ in a manner that conveyed her disgust for the word. “And not lose anyone in any match.”
Daedo bowed his head. The effect this would have on their tactics and disposition was enormous.
After three minutes, what she said had sunk into all the cadets. The protests began.
Barran said, “But no one else will be playing like this!”
Gaumont whined, “We can’t. Argh. How?”
Vannier stated, “Master Nader, this will make for some boring matches – are you sure?”
Daedo wondered why Vannier would say that. Surely she knew Master Nader well enough by now. She was always sure. Maybe she held out a small hope.
After everyone protested except Mace and Daedo, Master Nader sat back down. “None from you two?” she asked.
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“What’s the point?” Mace said, correctly surmising that no protest would succeed but indicating that she still didn’t like the order.
Everyone turned to Daedo, who had assessed Nader’s reasoning and her long-term goals.
“We’re all dead,” he said.
“What?” “Huh?” “Come again?” came the exclamations from numerous squad members.
“Sure we will be, with this directive,” Gaumont said, misunderstanding where Daedo was coming from.
“At some point today, I sacrificed one or more of us, including myself, in order to win,” Daedo said. “If that had been a real battle, we would be dead.” He stood. “Master Nader. You stated that we cannot lose anyone. That doesn’t mean they can’t leave the field of play when damaged and almost dead. Do I understand you correctly?”
“Affirmative,” Master Nader answered.
The fine print opened up many possibilities. If someone was deactivated by the AR adjudicator, they weren’t actually dead. They were incapacitated. Which meant they would survive if it was a real battle – as long as the enemy did not finish them off or they bled out before help arrived. Details the matches did not deal with.
“Incapacitated!” Picard shouted.
The cadets nodded. It was not as it had first seemed, but still … it was a restriction no other squads had.
“Cadets Picard, Axel-Zero, Barran, and Mace – dismissed,” Master Nader ordered.
Puzzled looks were thrown towards Gaumont as the four left Nader’s office. Nader often talked to Daedo and Vannier alone. Or a cadet alone. Leaving Gaumont in the room with the two leaders had significance.
The door closed behind them.
“Maybe he’ll get what’s coming to him,” Barran said, harking back to an old grudge from when Gaumont was not participating as part of the team.
Mace shot him a look. She knew that Daedo always supported Gaumont’s position, even if it felt like he was pulling against the squad. “Maybe he’s getting a promotion,” she teased. She was rewarded with a shocked look from Barran and gave him a rare smile.
“Oh you,” he said accusingly. Her smile had given it away. He proceeded to mess her hair before copping a kick to the shin.
“Don’t touch me,” she threatened menacingly.
Barran rushed to divert the angry munchkin’s attention. “What do you think is going on in there?” he whispered conspiratorily.
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“Sit,” Master Nader ordered.
The three had stood when the others left; they couldn’t sit again until ordered or granted due to the protocols of the academy.
“Cadets, we will play the same logic game as before,” Master Nader said. “Gaumont. Why is it that you did not fall into line immediately with the squad’s direction and structure?”
“Ah,” Gaumont began, and the room suddenly felt awkward for all the cadets. If Master Nader was a surgeon, she would not use anaesthesia or a small blade. “I … ah … I did not …” He was clearly flummoxed.
“Take your time and form your answer properly,” Nader ordered.
Vannier considered sending him a sneaky text, but of all the people on the planet, she could not imagine getting away with it in front of Master Nader. Or behind.
“I did not agree with the direction or the structure,” Gaumont answered finally, using the master’s own terminology to good effect.
Master Nader nodded. “But why didn’t you agree?”
The question confounded Gaumont again. He began coming up with reasons, excuses, examples, and obfuscations. Master Nader waited patiently through it all.
After he concluded, she asked, “Daedo, what is your analysis?”
Daedo had not thought about it until she brought up the topic. But he had known it all along. “Because we are alike,” he answered simply.
Master Nader nodded. “But that is not the sum of it,” she corrected. She was telling the cadets that Daedo was partly right, but there was more to it. “Gaumont. In order to succeed, you need to know yourself better. You have demonstrated today that you do not know yourself. This is a problem. Fix it,” she ordered.
Vannier thought it would be nice if she gave him some tips. Then she realised she and Daedo were there for a reason. In her imagination, she slapped her forehead. Master Nader basically delegated her to help Gaumont, but without saying a word. It was by inference because just like Gaumont, Master Nader understood her as well. Vannier liked to help people. Even when she wasn’t invited.
“Because you are incapable,” Nader said. “I will tell you. But be warned, I expect you to become capable very quickly because I will not hand feed you in the future.”
She had given Vannier the very same speech on their first day at the academy. Almost word for word.
“Cadet Gaumont,” Nader said, and the sound of his name was like throwing a bucket of ice water in his face, bringing him to attention. “You are a leader. You are a born leader. You hate to follow.” She spoke the words simply as if to say, ‘There, was that so hard?’
Even Daedo was surprised by this revelation. Gaumont was astonished that Master Nader thought that of him. But if she said it, especially in front of Daedo and Vannier, it must be true.
“I am informing you of changes occurring next term,” she said. “These changes have been in my house plan before term one began. Your actions throughout the term have only confirmed my initial assessments.”
After that statement sank in, she continued. “In term two you will be squad leader of Thoth Squad One. You will replicate what you have witnessed and learned in Squad Zero. I should not need to spell out what that is. You will spend the next few days gathering information and preparing for this role. Before you are dismissed, do you have any questions?”
This surprised the three cadets. Master Nader didn’t usually allow asking questions as an option.
“Ah, is this compulsory?” Gaumont ventured.
“Affirmative,” she answered. Gaumont really had to get to know Master Nader better. Everything was compulsory unless she stated you had a choice to make.
“Right,” Gaumont said, standing up. “I guess I’d better–”
“Cadet!” Master Nader boomed. “You have not been dismissed or given leave to pontificate.”
The sound blasted Gaumont like a sonic shotgun back down onto the seat. As soon as his ass hit the bench, Master Nader spoke again.
“Dismissed,” she said as if nothing had happened.
Gaumont left without saying a word.
Daedo and Vannier sat quietly waiting for the master to dismiss them or bring on the next world-exploding directive.
Master Nader made them wait. One minute turned into five.
Vannier looked at Daedo, who merely sat thinking about strategies that involved keeping everyone alive first and winning second in arena matches.
“Cadet Daedo,” Master Nader finally said, “you will prepare a list of specialities and skills needed to continue to develop ordnance and mecha. Then you will assign squad members to this list, excluding Gaumont. You are to submit a report to me with assignments and prioritise areas of deficiency.
“Until now, you have conducted this with a haphazard approach, and my efforts to direct you have been circumvented. Due to your immunity to manipulation, current and future interactions will now consist of open direction, information, and guidance.”
Daedo almost fell off his seat. Master Nader had just said she would speak plainly with him from now on because he saw through all her puppetry strings.
“Does that include asking questions?” Daedo ventured. Risk-taking was part of battle strategy.
Master Nader nodded. “Granted, but do not interrupt or … you know the ‘or.’”
Vannier was about to inquire if it included her. Master Nader must have sensed it, and she swivelled her head to face Vannier. “No. You have not earned that privilege yet. You display the opposite of immunity from manipulation.”
Daedo could not help himself; there was a burning question above all the unanswered questions he had. “Are aliens on their way to invade Earth?” he asked.
Vannier turned to look at Daedo. That was the last thing she expected out of his mouth. But she had not been with Chief Albert and Nader when they both let slip something about defending the planet. She had not been part of his conversations with Mace about The Spiral and its intent.
“Cadet Daedo. You disappoint me.” Master Nader would be smiling if she could. It was as if she had been dying to tell him that for a long time. “The evidence surrounds you. If you cannot assess the evidence and come to a conclusion when it is this obvious, I cannot help you.”
She had not answered his question.
So much for open guidance, Daedo thought. But then he began to think about the academies and the buildup of military forces. Those had always been part of his life, but it was not always so throughout history. Men used to fight wars against themselves. There had been no wars for over thirty years. None. The preceding two hundred years or more were littered with wars.
The world’s foremost education facilities were all now military academies. Some of them used to be places of higher learning with no military aspect – Harvard, Oxford, Berkley, Cambridge, just to name a few.
Even without the few dropped words from Master Nader and Chief Albert, it was obvious. Master Nader was right. The buildup was not explained by mech fervour and xenophobia.
“When?” he asked.
“Soon. Get ready,” Master Nader said.
“What happened to open guidance?”
“You know more than any cadet in the academy, and you are still not satisfied? The open direction, guidance, and information policy only apply to what you need to know. It’s not an open invitation to all my secrets.
“The exact timeframe is unknown. There are estimates that place it at five years and others ten. What I do know is that you need to prepare. Prepare for five like your life and the lives of most of the people on this planet depends on it.”
Daedo began to panic. “Why bother with the games?”
“Cadet. The games train you, your squad, and the squads you compete against,” Master Nader stated calmly. “They are competitive training. Nothing other than real battles will give you better experience. Fight like your life depends on it. That is all you need to do.”
She finished with, “Dismissed, or I will have to suffer questions all night.”
Daedo and Vannier left Master Nader’s office.
The list of revelations was dramatic. Don’t die in competitions, okay, that was a pain. Gaumont is leaving, no word of replacement other than making a list. And oh yeah – aliens are invading in five to ten. Dismissed.
Mace noticed the look on Daedo’s face first. Vannier was paler than usual, which shouldn’t be possible.
Mace: What happened?
Daedo: You don’t want to know.
Mace: I can help.
Daedo: Yes. Please. We need to make a list of skills and specialities required to fully build and innovate mechs. Weapons and the mech itself.
Mace: Not exos?
Daedo: If we can do a mech, we can do an exo. We need to prepare for the future.
Mace: So what happened really?
Daedo: Master Nader has a new policy since I keep seeing through her machinations. Brutal honesty.
Mace: How brutal?
Daedo: Look-at-Vannier’s-face brutal.
Mace: Oh shit. I only noticed you. She’s catatonic.