Everyone was jerked away by the sound of a bugle playing “Reveille” as Sergeant Savage stepped into the barracks, “Good Morning, Recruits!” he boomed, lowering the bugle. “You have thirty minutes before we start dismissal for breakfast. Before you are dismissed there will be an inspection of your barracks and you will not be dismissed unless the entire barracks passes!” He didn’t bother to wait for any protests or complaints and slammed the door as he left.

The room was filled with grumbling as the examinees got out of bed and started pulling on shirts, stocks and shoes. The clothing that the Empire had provided were a red t-shirt with “Albus Officer’s Exam IY 105” and a pair of black shorts. Everyone had changed into them last night, even Tracksuit. The clothes she wore the day before were already in her truck per the instructions on their PUCs. It only took a minute to put her shoes and socks on; she made her bed, making sure it was up to standards like her brother had shown her. Most of the others in the barracks followed suit, several of the guys had slept without a shirt on. Kiera had to admit there was some eye candy for her andAlanna. Ryan refused to look Kiera’s way, which she was fine with. Tracksuit hadn’t even climbed out of bed by the time everyone else was ready and only five minutes remained until Savage returned.

“You need to get up,” Kiera said, “They’re not going to give us all morning for breakfast.”

“I haven't gotten nearly enough sleep,” Tracksuit mumbled, “I’m not getting up until I have, and I will be served breakfast when I am ready.”

“No, we’re not doing this today,” Kiera said walking between their bunks, “You’re just another examinee, the same as the rest of us. Get up, Tracksuit.” She grabbed his arm and pulled him halfway off the bed.

Tracksuit yelped and glared up at her, “My name is not ‘Tracksuit,’ I am Crown Prince Albretch Dalimus of Dalimar!”

Alanna spartan kicked him the rest of the way off of the bed, “Nobody cares. We’re all tired, we’re all hungry.”

“We got him up, one of you boys can make his bed,” Kiera said, “And find his shirt.”

Ryan walked over and grabbed the blanket, not getting anywhere near Kiera as he began to make the bed. The shirt was on the floor and crowned the narcissist’s head as it was thrown at him. Tracksuits managed to get the shirt and shoes on by the time Sergeant Savage returned, all the while complaining that Kiera wouldn’t let him attend to his disheveled hair.

“Atten-tion!” Savage shouted walking into the dorms. The only one that hadn’t heeded his command was the Dalimarian, he leveled a look of utter disgust at the sergeant. “Recruit, perhaps you didn’t hear me, I said Attention!” Savage boomed.

“I’m not a recruit,” tracksuit grumbled. He did stand a bit straighter, but his posture for being at attention mirrored his form for his pushups, just awful.

Savage ignored him as he patrolled between the examinees, surveying their stance, their beds, and walking past them all into the bathroom. He emerged a moment later and started walking down the line again.

“Sol, Moana, you are dismissed. ” He called out, reaching the front of the barracks again and standing aside. Kiera and Alanna walked through the line of boys and out of the door, not waiting another moment. Was it favoritism? Did the sergeant have a soft spot? Or did her late night massage have something to do with the boys staying behind. As soon as they were out the door she got her answer. Savage’s voice blasted through the barracks like there were no barriers between them telling them of the punishment they would be completing due to their groping and attempted hanky-panky.

“One of the guys ambushed me in the bathroom trying to get me to sleep with him, what happened to you?” Kiera asked.

“I woke up with a guy copping a feel under my shirt and saw one who was starting to pull your blanket down to do the same. You probably don’t want to know who it was,” Alanna said.

“Wait, are you serious? No, I—” Kiera stopped, “Thank you.”

“We girls have to look out for each other,” Alanna said, linking her arm in Kiera’s.

Both of them joined Robyn, Tamalyn and Isaac, their plates heaped with fried eggs, sausages, bacon, and toast. Coffee was available for those who wanted it, and only Isaac was nursing a mug. Kiera looked around for Gargax and waved to him as she caught sight of the ork leaving the serving line with a tray heaped more than some of the others. He walked over and put his tray next to Kieras before sitting down.

“Okay, Gargax, spill. What happened last night?” Kiera asked, unable to restrain herself.

“Zorana wanted to mate. Did not happen,” Gargax said, scooping food into his mouth.

“With the idiot!” Kiera said, “He didn’t have any bruises or black eyes this morning, and he was in the bunk before I was. What did you do?”

Gargax just turned his head and gave Kiera a grin, before taking another large bite. Kiera let out a groan of annoyance and turned to her tray, “You’re such a tease. What’s it going to cost me to get you to tell me what happened?”

“How much are you willing to pay?” Alanna teased. Her question caused the others to laugh, but Kiera just shook her head with a grin. Gargax just continued to eat, not answering Kiera’s question. Kinsley joined them a few minutes later, the barracks seemed to be dismissed faster for breakfast than they did for dinner.

Kiera’s barracks weren’t the only one that had incidents. Tamalyn and Isaac were woken up by two recruits hooking up and the other girl in their barracks wasn’t involved. Kinsley caught someone mid grope and broke his hand. Robyn reported that the other girl in her barracks returned to the showers and invited anyone interested to join her, and had looked pointedly at Robyn. Kiera shook her head, some people weren’t officer material at all. The groups that had punishment detail before being able to eat came in together, all of them looking even more tired.

“Good Morning,examinees!” Sergeant Ward’s voice rang throughout the mess hall, putting an end to all conservation. “I hope you all were able to get some rest last night. In half an hour we will be dismissing you to your written exams, once they are finished you will have a short break and then you will begin your practical exams and interviews; both of which will take place on the Imperial Virtual Network, or IVN. At the conclusion of your interviews your exams will be completed and you will be free to report to check out.”

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“Nothing I read mentioned anything about practical exams,” Isaac said with a frown.

“My siblings didn’t mention them, either,” Kiera said, “They might be something new, or they might be something that no one talks about. It’s not like they’ve got us a lot. Are all of you staying on Albus tonight?”

“Albion Station,” Tamalyn said, “I’ll catch a passenger ship back to Elysium in the morning.”

“Same here,” Isaac said, “But I’ll be going back to Ikoria.”

“I’m from Albion,” Kinsley added, “So I’ll just catch the shuttle to the spaceport and then the intercon back to Adair, why?”

“Well, I thought that it would be nice to go get some dinner or something together and exchange contact information,” Kiera said, “I’ve really enjoyed working with all of you. We could go out somewhere or order something and bring it back to my brother’s.”

“The Saturtarian in Adair is one of the best restaurants on the planet. You won’t find much about it on the Planet Net because it’s not a chain place. The couple who run it are amazing,” Kinsley said.

“That sounds like a lot of fun,” Tamalyn said, count me in. The others expressed their agreement, and Kiera made sure to let Alanna know she was invited. It was rude to talk about celebratory plans in front of someone and not invite them. Robyn said she would have to ask her over protective father. The only one who hadn’t committed to going with them was Gargax. He had finished eating and was nursing a cup of pombar juice.

“Would you join us, Gargax?” Kiera asked.

“Have to speak,” Gargax said. He closed his mouth and then lowered his head as if he were trying to remember, something speaking under his breath in the galvians language. He stood up and crossed the hall to where Zarona was sitting, but the ork girl just rebuffed him, obviously upset that her mating attempt failed. He rejoined Kiera’s table and then shrugged.

“I understand, you need to talk to someone. We can meet outside of the testing site entrance,” Kiera said, looking around the table, “If that will work for everyone?”

Murmurs of agreement replied and soon it was time for the written exams. They were once more dismissed by barracks, this time with a wait time of five minutes between each one. Kiera wished them good luck as everyone was dismissed, and then to Kinsley as her barracks was called. Sergeant Savage led them into a large room filled with cubicles and then to their block. Once she sat down a wall rose up behind her and a force field sprang to life at the top of the cubicle. Any ambient noise was immediately silenced.

At the desk was a datapad, a screen, and a visor. The visor was a device that allowed someone to connect to the IVN. Its name was a bit of a misnomer as the visor contained a fused pair of goggles that was worn around the head, adjusted so the ears and eyes were covered; the ear coverings were padded for comfort and a microphone captured voice. There was also a pair of gloves that were worn with the visors to allow a user to interact with the virtual environment; specialized immersion suits were also available.

She mostly used the IVN for simulation practice and to play a strategy game called sai-hau. It was an old game that her father taught her how to play. Emily didn’t care for it, preferring card games, and rather than force her friend to play, Kiera went to the IVN. It wasn’t a popular game but Kiera had a few people she played with. Her favorite opponent was ‘Five Moons Hatori’ who used unconventional strategies. He was a joy to play with.

Kiera glanced at her PUC, no instructions had appeared on it. She took a deep breath to center herself. She had been working hard at studying everything she could about tactics and troop deployments and movements as well as battles the Empire had waged against a variety of foes. What would be on the written test was anyone’s guess; they couldn’t expect them to already know how to be officers, otherwise what would the academy be for? Her screen turned on.

Welcome, Examinee Kiera Sol. Please use the datapad to input your answers. This exam will last two hours. Please select ‘Begin’ on the datapad when you are ready.

Kiera picked up the datapad and the pen with it. Not waiting any longer, she tapped on begin. The first few questions were easy, they asked things about how the empire expanded its borders. The litany and the explanation of what it meant as well as how the Imperial Solar Year was calculated. They were questions that any imperial citizen would know. Then they started to get harder, naming the core worlds and their capitals, then questions about each division of the Imperial Military, their function and any specialties that may exist. After those questions were scenarios, the screen showed combat maps that looked like the game Conquest where players would assemble armies of units, each with their own point cost. Each player was given the same amount of points and the stronger the unit the more they cost.

These scenarios used the pieces without regard to point cost but troop availability. She had to assign units, choose their positions based on the enemy composition and terrain. Some scenarios had battle projections that let her see predicted results of her choices; others did not. The questions seemed unending, and before she knew it the screen changed to display the words: Time Completed. Written Test Finished. Kiera put down the datapad and the pen. She felt good with most other answers but couldn’t help wondering how many more there were. The force field de-energized and the back wall lowered down. She heard Sergeant Savage’s voice call out that it was time for their break.

Kiera joined the others walking back to the mess hall. Some of the examinees spoke in low voices about their answers, most were quiet, probably thinking about the test they just completed or the addition of a practical and an interview. The proctors announced the rest rooms were open and there were snacks in the serving line; Kiera had watched how much she drank during breakfast so she wouldn’t lose any time during the test. She used the restroom and then went to the table that she and her friends had been using. Tamalyn and Kinsley were already sitting down, each had a donut in front of them.

“How do you two feel about the test?” Kiera asked, joining them.

“The combat scenarios were difficult, the only ones I felt confident about were the ones involving medical deployment and where to set up triage stations,” Tamalyn said, biting into a chocolate donut.

“I’m confident in my answers,” Kinsley said, “How about you, Kara?”

“I think I did well on most of them,” Kiera said, “I thought the scenarios were pretty interesting, but the Conquest set up left me a little distracted a couple times.”

Gargax sat down next to her, placing a donut in front of Kiera, it had a mixture of maple and chocolate frosting on it. Gargax had one of the same kind on his own plate. The donut was followed by a glass of milk.

“Thanks, Gargax! That’s super sweet of you!” Kiera said, giving him a hug as he sat down, “How did the test go for you?”

“Slow,” the ork said, “Not good with datapad. Not answer many.”

Kiera gave him another hug, “I’m sure you did your best,” she beamed at him then took a bite of the donut. A mixture of cinnamon on a sweet roll crossed her pallet, “Oh, this is really good!” Isaac joined them a few minutes later, a steaming cup of coffee in his hand. Robyn followed him, setting down a couple extra donuts and some fruit she had grabbed, offering them to the group. They made some light conversation, talking about various test answers; as usual Gargax listened but didn’t add much. Their PUCs beeped, letting the examinees know their time was up.

“Good luck guys,” Kiera said.