Eternia gazed down.
The complexity of this training had it divided up into locations key groups would be training in, from a one-way glass wall built in she could see everything, it was taxing on maybe a human mind, she imagined this was how God saw things.
He with all his intent on man inhabiting earth, glance left and see all of mankind across the Americas, down to the individual man at his home, glance right and see Africa, Europe and Asia, the middle east.
She knew his perception was much greater, but she had this replicated in the idea of that, this needed to be the perfect facility.
Eternia saw Delara and all of her generation progress through this threshold the ‘gauntlet’ in her training,
Traps and mechanisms they wouldn’t be told of, purely to test something intangible, intuition it bordered on superstitious to human beings but to a Vampire it was a key part of evading danger, anticipating it.
It was impossible to anticipate everything but that’s above a certain threshold, it differs on caste
for Shocktroopers to the extreme, vast open expanses across four different sections are prepared.
They will contain perfectly replicated desert dunes and cliff-faces can open and swallow them into pits of spikes and other dastardly devices bordering on murderous even for them.
None ever dies here, neither did anyone alongside Delara similarly but for Aleph’s sake she hopes at the very least one, something to break him so he can be less human. She’s been able to hear Krul’s observations and it’s nothing positive, he has displayed only the side effects of her alternation none of the primary benefits or positives.
She knows that a balance is needed internally to bring it out. That’s what she intends to bring out, thankful they’ve finally reached the ‘Gauntlet’ in sync with her arrival and observation here.
-
Aleph
Aleph is pained again, the wait is too long in that that locker-bay as the final preparations are set, he was barely briefed.
“It’s like the standard danger course, larger, more violent, from here on out all training will be brutal this time.” Aleph hated the ambiguity in the words he remembered from Krul, but the indication their training before wasn’t brutal perplexed him.
Maybe this humanity infecting me is just making me think everything before was difficult or maybe-maybe it allows me to see that this is twisted–. Aleph violently shakes the thought out of his head before it can become treason, he thinks it is.
He’s benched silently as time passes on the cold steel of the bench is ambient but he gives a short laugh often remembering Arianne, before he was here. Moments he took for granted.
“Geez h-h-h-how did you not know it’s too cold!” She shivered out, red faced when called out by Aleph, younger then. He laughed and ran with her home, a-hundred apologies on the way.
She should be eighteen by now, but it’s been so long for me. Is all he thinks as the warm memory turns unexpectedly cold.
The newbie speaks up first to break his thoughts Anna “What are you impatient for? It’s only been three days.” Anna speaks matter-of-factly with some venom, but the confusion on her face is genuine. She’d been watching him impatiently tap his foot on the bench, she was silent.
Straight and leaning back on the bench in uniform, her fists now clenched, she was tired of hearing anything other than the silence.
Asaph is now looking toward Aleph, his blackened hair short not needing much of a shave it hadn’t grown since birth. He adjusts his new training suit the last damaged from prior.
Aleph takes that as if he should start to speak
“You see things differently Raised by simply humans. They live short lives barely a-hundred” Asaph coldly cuts in before he even could begin
“As if most of them are lucky to reach that.” He speaks like this when mentioning humans all the time, no hate, no malice, disregard, not unlike speaking of a pet you have no attachment to, or like a fact of any animal.
Aleph seems to growl out his thoughts aloud, enough to shake Asaph “That’s just means they learn faster to appreciate what little they have” Aleph is growling more to himself, angry that he snaps to defend them.
But he was thinking about Arianne, he imagined Asaph saying that to her and he couldn’t join in..she was human and she mattered despite how weak she was.
He felt that certain humans did in fact matter enough to not have the species spoken of as a collective mistake that hardly lives longer than the youngest of its own kind.
Ever since Eternia came here I started thinking about her more what is this…. It bothers Aleph enough he doesn’t want to argue with Asaph who clearly is hot-headed enough recently to start it, he moves away before Anna can interject like she wants too visibly.
Their voices rise as he leaves but are so muddled, the likelihood of another fight too great to bear it grates on him, he can’t remember many positive memories with Asaph, but he sees him as a strange faraway friend despite it, he couldn’t show how much it hurt to be put down by him.
It shouldn’t matter if I need to be worn out, I need to be stronger.
He clenches his fists, he’s hoping everything that isn’t killing him is making him stronger, not just the brutality of this training but the harshness of the instructor the coldness of those around him.
He’s nearly bursting into prayer that it will make him better than he is now if it doesn’t just kill him whilst he marches off further and further, descending into isolation.
He moves into a rear portion of where they were loading out and looks into that mirror. He’s taller, but right before a shocktrooper becomes fifteen they hit half of their expected height, it wasn’t new.
Neither was his countenance.
He looked just like well– before.
With the altered passage of time here it has to have been thirty-years and he wouldn’t be wrong, but it wasn’t showing on his face.
It bothered him. He knew it didn’t show outwardly entirely but the training was affecting him.
This mental misery invited the company it loved, he can remember a helpless voice resurfacing from memory “Al-Aleph?” He heard a certain terror in her voice when he appeared like a ghost to haunt her.
She was looking up at him now…he’d grown taller in such a short time; it was when he first learned the difference in time from here to there.
And regrettably his reflexes had been altered.
He split a man’s wrist that day, a human man who had made the mistake of trying to sneak up on him to meekly ask a question.
The screams–
He broke out of thought, his hair was the same, jet-black and short, Aleph was tall now but the interior was adjusted for the rapid growth in height that would’ve exploded when he would’ve turned fifteen anyway.
His eyes a strange color, he could unnaturally control the glow of them, his iris a deep purple but it turned something akin to violet, a mixture of that and red. Saiyah had the same eye color, letting him know in spite being unaware of his birth mother and blood-father’s origins he was born on New Persia too with her.
He’s lost in thought, although it wouldn’t of mattered had he not been, he leans against a blood-stained sink.
Can I even manage this, being Team-Leader, A Sergeant when his is over!? I’ve only watched it be done.
He’s doubtful, looking up into the mirror covered in thin layer of dust, he doesn’t even feel the lifeless presence hanging around him.
Then as usual she is there to break him from bursting into self-defeat as if she somehow knew
No one hears Saiyah not in training or a duel you could be braced to fight her with a knife and watch her curve around you and be holding you up by the weapon you hadn’t noticed her snatch from you.
Aleph often felt himself lamenting feeling like a ghost
When he thinks of Saiyah being like a ghost, he’ds referring to a strength she has that scares him and even Asaph to death.
He expected her to pop in but it still frightened him, he was sure he’d reach a point where he could see the gun of the enemy he’d trained so long to fight pointed at him, but it still wouldn’t frighten him as much as well as Saiyah could descend from nothing. –
She came from behind him, no one sees her coming the way she appears,
Another head came beside his own, like a ghost it curved out from behind him.
He shoots up straight as he feels her fingers lightly tap his sides. “Gotcha!” Her voice is high, enough to make him smile but still making him grow fearful.
Saiyah can blend in.
He hadn’t known where she was, but she came up from the blue, Aleph had figured he was like a ghost to humans able to silently slip around, something natural to all Vampires once they become in tuned and permanently enter ‘the zone’.
But Saiyah was just – different, scary too.
“What you want to gaze into my eyes!?” Her fist sails for his neck and he blocks it with elbow, shaking his arm at pain, and a feeling of – he knew he heard the ligament crack and regenerate.
He is grabbing her shoulder and pushing her away, but his steps follow “Alright! Alright… Let’s just go.”
“Alright Sergeant!” She mocks in good faith. “I don’t really see how you made qualification, but I’m sure Asaph was pissed! Are you both alright?” She spoke smoothly and as giddy as usual but now with an edge of clarity, concern.
“We’re fine.” He mouths to dismiss, and she goes from a smile to a frown, she hesitates to say something but doesn’t end up saying anything at all.
He doesn’t find her making jokes, trying to cheer him up with unnatural ability to know when he needs it, they make their way back and by coincidence he doesn’t get another word out edge wise– the alarm sounds and they’re exiting this loadout bay.
They enter that a leading hallway to one of those same omni-elevator that led to the hall where Aleph’s heart first beat when those machines nearly beheaded and killed him.
The hallway of the facility shifted, it stopped briefly and flexed a wall twice as if waving to them.
Asaph wasn’t unaware of this, the Aleph had told him he felt the facility had been alive, a belief Saiyah had even mocked him or.
Asaph now laughs when he notices those little quirks, he enjoys it.
Aleph hates it.
The walls are arranged in a way he can’t understand, Aleph throughout his time here has learned enough to self-proclaim a doctorate in surgery and quantum mechanics and still can’t explain how the walls are arranged.
As he walks through them for what would be another time in the thirty years he’s been here.
The metal occasionally reflects if it wants to him in third person, he feels out of control when it does that it shakes him, has him nearly about to stumble as he walks side-by-side with Saiyah, Asaph and Anna.
They enter in with just fresh uniforms undamaged.
And the omni-directional elevator peels back, only surrounded by walls the one behind it slams open and they are tugged in a significant lurch has them all tilting momentarily.
Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.
“You know these simulations are so life-like, when my dad told me I may think I never left training when I hit the frontlines, I think I’ll know why!” Saiyah started and opened, it’s a bit out of left-field, Asaph usually reserved has a distinct expression that he’s seen something just – wrong.
Asaph slowly seeks to change subject “We have no information about this what kind of test do you think it is?”
Saiyah starts “If it’s purely a mental puzzle I can count on Magellans lost cousin!.” She starts with a sly smirk at Asaph that has him rolling his eyes and stepping away, his sort chuckle turning her head to Aleph
“Strength–eh maybe not so much Asaph anymore! Aleph you were tossing machines around! Those mental exercises I told you worked huh!? Keep doing them I know I’m a genius!” She questions then exclaims high in spirit.
“New girl I got nothing to say about you, prove yourself!” She immediately turns cold and exclaims, bitter and demanding.
Saiyah isn’t unknown and it appears Anna who was known to be hot-headed, rough on the edges straightly speaks as if addressing she were answering Krul “Yes ma’am.”
Aleph laughs for a moment. Saiyah is so full of life it helps him get through, reminds him of Arianne often.
He thinks. Why are all the motivations in my life women, am I cursed? Aleph seems to more comedically remark that has him smiling.
“What are you so happy for! Get in the mood for commanding us around and not screwing up!” Saiyah beams at Aleph playfully.
Asaph is just rolling his eyes and silent, fiddling with railing on the omni-elevator they were riding on hoping it gets faster.
He looks ahead to see them going to another stop.
The Omni-elevator shirks around large, boring tunnels, angular with smoothness, blocky turns as it reaches a point, grinds to a halt with a barely heard hiss that gets more violently the more harshly it has to slow down.
Clicks to a stop at a corner and then proceeds on.
The Tunnel isn’t dark, an ambient blue atmosphere from the lights of the tunnel shine on them. They’re switching on as they come around, a rare use of lights where those who don’t need them go.
Like eyes the lights switch off as they move out of their view and go to another pair that can see them, two on each side.
It has Aleph looking uncomfortable.
Asaph doesn’t notice and neither does the others, he’s simply leaning forward onto the railing tapping his index finger
Saiyah leans back onto the railing, seeming to crack a few odd jokes to Aleph upon seeing him frown along the ride, he brushes them off after laughing at a few and questions where she was earlier.
“Our senior Delara wanted to speak to me after your promotion!” She seems to mouth off as if it had no relevance. “Wanted to hear a bit about her adoptee baby boy!” She mocks Aleph a bit with a grin.
“Oh, come on, it’s not like that she’s like a mentor at least.” Aleph is feeling light, smiling and laughing out in reply.
“Be honest I’ve seen it too, you’re like the child she never had.” Asaph spoke.
Anna is only nodding her head but doesn’t try to find this as an opportunity to fit in with this new group, her arms are crossed, and she huffs to herself standing far off from them.
Aleph blows out a warm breath of amusement.
Saiyah gives an ‘oh’ “Oh you got a crush on her instead?” she remarks simply with a smile, it grows wide into an evil grin as she sees Aleph squirm.
“Oh come on! gross Saiyah! You just suggested she’s like my mom!” He almost turns a shade of embarssment.
Asaph is similarly disturbed at a weird turn of the joke but cant help but laugh at Aleph.
Anna seems to enter the banter a foreigner to it. “Well you wouldn’t be the first, too many of our fellows from my section have a–.” Aleph is quick to raise a hand.
“You’re not helping.” He lets out in a sigh quickly drowned by Saiyah’s laughter.
Anna didn’t smile or laugh she didn’t seem to be joking, still a far off from them in former mention.
She was a bit spiteful. She’s only got an angry glare as she stares toward them, especially Aleph her eyes stick to him like glue, she watches him gulp down oxygen he doesn’t need, fidget and scratch even when they shouldn’t be able to so much as itch.
She was feeling sick.
She watches them banter and joke around, even cold Asaph isn’t immune to occasionally piping it, it disgusts her.
Silence is order
-
It got dark as they went out of view of any lights again, the elevator hummed and then went silent as if something had gone wrong, nothing was about to go wrong that hadn’t already for Anna.
Anna wasn’t a part of their section much less their little group.
“You’re too good, shoot her up to the top immediately, she is going to make Sergeant!” Krul spoke in an instant, she felt perfect, had always been perfect.
She trained alone, was on solo training, that is over now.
She isn’t making Sergeant they hit the quota, ‘Dropped me to make room for some pathetic bastard someone as dumb as a human, I could get away with shooting him probably– no that’s too much ‘
Anna is brewing up a storm. Her glare is on Aleph, she shoots a look to Saiyah and it ends.
Aleph checks his uniform and Saiyah took a moment to check her.
Saiyah was quite scary, Anna knew this. They were apart of that group of three, stoic and cold Asaph. Glass cannon Aleph, Saiyah the ghost. She spoke much older than she was, granted they had been here for thirty years. But this was much different, even when Saiyah arrived even as her initiation was much more brutal she had a cold brutal efficiency.
Anna had seen it when they first arrived. Saiyah found this group, they didn’t find each other and they’ve been like glue ever since. Saiyah is only staring at her for moments, no time at all yet it feels like millennia.
It’s a warning, it terrifies Anna has her feeling as if she is floating on this omni-elevator ride.
She feels as if she is sinking and Saiyah rises, a feeling brought on by how the elevator swings hard upwards and is dragging them to the training hall.
Asaph sticks up straight and grips the railing, Aleph almost stumbles but finds his footing.
Anna keeps her mouth shut, and weakly looks away from the three of them not even daring to cast a glance.
She wont question how Saiyah can sense her hate, how she may even know.
She won’t question anything at all.
They entered an arena, the omni-elevator reached a surface deeper underground, it was as if heat and sun was upon them.
Sands dumped onto their heads as they came from below, instructions were given.
[/In accordance you have reached ‘Seventh sensory Phase’ you will complete localized objectives.\]
[Strike the armory]
[Obtain weapons.]
[Gain access to the checkpoint and take a vehicle to where the main course of this training section will be located.]
They are looking at a plaque of it from where they are standing in a massive desert, it’s the size of a continent in exaggeration but they can see the end, a massive wall with a gate that ends the checkpoint is seen, with the sheer size of this simulation hall all 144,000 candidates could be here doing the intro and prep for the main course as well.
It’s titanic enough for Aleph to feel like his head is spinning.
It’s full of light they feel like they are in a desert.
“This place is massive, why don’t they just simulate the perfect environments like these in factories and make the robots they have us train so hard against.” Saiyah speaks in slow deliberate question.
Anna at least slightly proud enough to answer “Because against the Mechra, they’re not enough.” Anna boldly states and moves ahead.
Aleph speaks out “Hey! Rally on m-.” Asaph is looking apologetically toward Aleph and follows after Anna “She sounded serious, I’ll meet you at the checkpoint after we get through!” The two of them are off before Aleph can say a word.
Aleph sighs out “Just g–.” Saiyah slaps his back smiling “I’m not a damned traitor, couldn’t give me thirty pieces of a silver to betray a familiar friend.” She seems to remark and quote something.
He’s heard it before, his human father spoke of it, it seemed odd to him she would know anything about the God humans inside and outside the empire worshipped.
Before he can dwell on something he finds quite worrying her hand is on his wrist, and she tugs him along through the sands was they cut through the dunes in the jackboots.
-
Elsewhere the other two speeding off into a sprint that has a sandstorm behind them, they move like a vehicle, Asaph and Anna cleared thirty miles per hour from standing to sprint. Abandoning the inexperienced new Sergeant quickly.
Anna is sprinting ahead, “Why the hell are you following me!? I can hit the checkpoint and you mistakes can ride my success all the way toward the main course!”
Asaph stops and skids in the sand appalled at her words.
“Watch how you talk-“He makes violent approach teeth bared, fists readied he anticipates he’ll just wring her neck
His approach changes destination, he sees the ground rush at him all at once faster than he can even realize.
She swept his legs knocking him down, it was so fast that it was just a warning of what else she can do.
“I’ll decapitate you, you little bastard!”
“Little bastard!? We’re the same damned age!” Asaph shouts.
“Go back to that idiot and his guardian angel!” she remarks, the way she addressed Saiyah has Asaph raising a brow.
“Go back and keep being holding us back some other time!” She adds on to dismiss turning around.
“Actually, I’m great! I just stuck cause that ‘idiot’ can’t keep up!” He points accusingly in fierce tone Asaph is furious if his face could turn red it would.
Asaph feels a twinge of guilt for how he refers to Aleph but can’t bother caring enough to retract statement.
Anna rolls her eyes. “All talk! I’ve seen nothing to tell me otherwise!” She lets that sit in Asaph and watches his mouth twitch.
It does and she replies before he can. “Following me thinking you can impress someone!?” She gave a short ‘hah’ after proudly declaring “What a snake you are! I’d see more of this ‘honor’ we learned about if you stuck with him”
If she could show any more disgust right now she would. she’s just staring down at a now silent and angry Asaph,
Her pale ghostly white skin sticking out from most other vampires who are a moody grey, her hair is long strangely and flowing in the simulated wind.
She has a fierce stare with ocean blue eyes.
She is as fierce as the waves too.
“Tcht don’t get all silent like a cry-baby you really want to prove he isn’t holding you back!? Don’t slow me down, but don’t expect me to think of you as anymore than a prideful snake.” She chastises and has Asaph staring down into the sands, empty like any of the honor he has.
“I’d shudder to think what kind of betrayal you’d give me if I gave you opportunity like he does.” She scolds him in a way that has Asaph forgetting they’re the same age.
He’s sat on his rear-end legs stretched out slumped at the cruel realization of how he spoke about Aleph.
“I’m not a snake! We are friends!” He desperately argues.
“Sure, fooled me with all that compensating you tried to give!” Anna speaks and gives a nod.
“Let’s get going then before they catch up and you face your betrayal!” She turns and enters a sprint immediately, knocking sand into his face.
“Why you!” He’s angry and climbing back up to his feet chasing after her
They traveled far enough to reach the outpost of the machines.
Anna braces herself, perching up as she sees the exterior, the asphalt and buildings, it’s all a blur she is just going to rush in, she can spot it.
Ancient rifles, I guess the leadup to the actual part of the training is slow.
She knows compared to their actual training this is all just a warmup but there is real lessons to be had here, they would be working together, figuring out how to quickly dismantle an enemy, seeing their mistakes. As Vampires and most notably Shocktrooper Caste they would have perfect memory of their failures, they’d never repeat this mistake. The very nature of this facility made this much more of a lengthy experience than it was, the dilated time spent here would perfect them.
She felt all the statements of the validity of these exercises were dumb, she’d seen them all at first failing the first rounds, then the second they attempted again they succeeded; this facility was accelerating them at the cost of psyche albeit one that had already faded long ago– when she watched her family die.
“Alright blowhard.” She calls out in insult, forgetful of Asaph’s actual name.
He can’t even mouth confusion at the strange insult before she answers again for him.
“I see a couple of machines, I strike low you and rush the armory, frag anyone inside and use that catwalk to provide me covering fire!”
“I’ll be running distraction down low, I’m faster than you, like moron who isn’t here So I can keep them busy, evade gunfire better than you.”
Asaph is quick to chastise “You’re too quick with this plan I’d like to get something in.”
“Doubtful it’s anything worth it, don’t bother speaking!” She cuts him off in monotone.
“This isn’t normal combat exercise hell these machines even look different and!–.”
“Are they sporting low caliber weapons? I can see the tiny rifles from here!?” Asaph is quick to notice those too-big robots are holding too-small guns.
“Clearly to deter us from just grave-robbing, and actually help us learn advanced battlefield procurement, practice infiltration moron!” She is quick to judge, too eager, too quick and wants to rush this to get away from Aleph quickly as she knows he will be coming with Saiyah.
Asaph speaks “Look their weapons have orange bands around the barrel that isn’t normal, what if they have a special round.”
The ambient march of the machines as they ran some incredibly tight patrols, enough to have Asaph regretful he left Aleph behind so he can run interference, play the pointman and draw fire like he does for these
“Don’t get struck. Probably something to activate your suit and disqualify you!” She’s too quick, she doesn’t even pay attention or think to plan, she’s still angry about how Aleph was picked over her and he’s likely fumbling behind like a moron. She surges ahead.
So does Asaph.
Asaph seems to rush in, get close he doesn’t make a leap anywhere, the place is surrounded by a fence.
She hops over first and strikes the ground; her jackboots impact and she is heard– now spotted by a machine facing her down with the very small rifle.
She is quick to rush a machine, it gives a whine, and heat steams out from the sides of its head.
She is fast, the first few rounds exit the barrel, and she’s evaded them already.
She realizes the machines in this part of the section are much different, twice as tall, grey rather than purple, they had digitigrade legs. And they’re all overclocked.
In what seems like a long hour as time slows, she utters a half-hearted prayer internally for other candidates elsewhere before she moves swiftly to evade the full burst of gunfire.
She’s on the ground now, and her legs spin smoothly, catching the heavy two ton machine in them, she has what would be the neck of it in a vice-grip and brings her fingers into the asphalt until they bleed and they crack through.
She swung her torso off to the side anchored to the asphalt, she could already spot another machine alerted by gunfire, the machine quick to march over to assist is struck.
This is a major threshold we’ve been held back from by Aleph this just must be an advancement!
She can guess the caliber from diameter of barrel ‘5.56’. She’s monstrous in how she surges in, not even paying its mind, she’ll take the round, they don’t need to sneak around is the immediate thought.
Too low caliber to incapacitate and none of them are more armored than needing a high caliber small arms to dispatch, she thinks it is fine.
That was up until the round struck her stomach.
Something horrible happens, it’s like fire builds up, she’s felt pain before and ignored it.
It’s why she hates Aleph, He thinks we don’t feel pain, it’s our upbringing that has us doing something other than squirming around like a baby off his mother’s breast when something as simple as getting shot happens to you. It’s what separates us from humans.
She is unable to give that sort of reasoning to herself here, she immediately rationalizes something different.
She feels like she is dying.
The dark hurtles around her... She isn’t regenerating.
She is trying to panic but that round cleanly went through her body and exited out the spine, that isn’t coming back either, so weak and human is all she tearfully thinks, she should be able to move most of her body even without the spine, but it just wasn’t happening.
She can’t scream, only gasp, she can barely even attempt to speak, only able to utter pained whimpers, the lack of control terrifies her, she hasn’t been this weak ever in her life she has nothing to compare it to.
Our perception of pain is different. Is this what…Aleph feels, is this what all humans feel… she feels so apologetic, emotional... She’s heard of such a thing happening when a human nears death.
She squirms, finally able to move but can’t escape, she gives an even louder whine as she feels liquid torment seep through her body and starting to spread.
She feels a need to scream to tell Asaph is something wrong, but she hears a thud and how he falls, he must’ve been avoiding rounds on the way to help her.
His ability in evasion runs out. She knew such agility was Aleph’s forte, she watched them constantly…
She looks down to see that awful orange-glow the one that showed when her father died.. When he was executed.
The rounds made to kill a vampire…
For the first time ever, her visions fade without her control and black swallows her.