Three Weeks Later…

The morning sunlight burns Honey’s eyes, and she grips her luggage handle and the rail tightly as the bus makes its way through the street. Thor-Ton is clipped on her back, and while there are a few others with specialized weapons, hers is the largest, which is getting her some stares and a small circle of space. Her heart races, and her throat feels like it is inflated. It takes a lot of effort to keep her feet from tapping.

She takes a deep, shaky breath, and drums her fingers on the luggage handle as she attempts to keep her eyes from snapping to the people observing her.

She fails.

Her eyes flick to the side, causing a couple to avert their gaze, and she looks outside to see the buildings pass by. A few minutes later, the bus stops, and the door slides open, allowing passengers to get off and more to come in. The number of new passengers is three, and one of them is Petals with her weapons and luggage; she is wearing sunglasses and is dressed in a fine dress and black vest with red flowers that appears to be high class at first glance, but upon closer look, the clothing is really just cheap, and the flowers are patches ironed on.

Petals pays the fare and goes to Honey, offering her a smile as she sits down.

“Hello again. It’s been a little bit,” says Petals.

“Yep,” says Honey.

“Looks like you’re the one nervous, now.”

Honey scoffs. “Me? Nervous? No. Not even close.”

Petals nods slowly. “Mhm. Have a seat.”

She pats the empty seat next to her, and Honey instantly takes the offer. She unclips Thor-Ton from her back, and her legs lose all strength, and she falls hard on the seat. Honey clutches Thor-Ton tight and stares ahead while Petals relaxes in her seat.

“So, about three weeks ago when we got trashed,” says Petals.

“I blacked out. I don’t remember any of it,” says Honey swiftly.

Petals lips pucker. “Oh… Lucky me.”

Honey shoots a look at Petals, and she stretches out her legs. The bus stops again, and Asmund and Marie get on the bus and sit across from Petals and Honey. They are holding hands and dressed in high quality clothing that isn’t fake; and Asmund has his luggage and weapon’s case strapped together.

“Petals, good to see you again,” says Asmund.

“It has been a little while hasn’t it?” says Petals.

“About three weeks,” remarks Asmund.

“How are you doing, Honey?” asks Marie.

Honey shrugs and tightens her hold on her weapon, making her knuckles white. “I’m fine.”

“That’s good.” Marie and Asmund look at each other, and then Marie looks at Honey. “Listen, on that drinking night about three weeks ago…?”

“I don’t remember,” says Honey quickly.

“She blacked out,” says Petals.

Marie blinks and Asmund tilts his head.

“Oh… Okay,” says Marie.

“You didn’t have that much,” says Asmund.

“Maybe she really sucks with alcohol,” says Petals.

“I do not!” says Honey defensively.

The bus stops again, and this time Astros gets on with his luggage and weapon. He goes to the group and sits next to Honey, and the group stares at him. He is quiet for a few seconds, but when the bus moves forward and the eyes are still on him, he looks at the group quizzically.

“What?” asks Astros.

“So, about that thing that led to us avoiding each other for three weeks,” says Asmund.

“Yes?” says Astros.

“Honey doesn’t remember it.”

“She blacked out from alcohol,” says Petals.

Honey shoots a glare at Petals, but can also feel heat burning her cheeks, and she looks at the group with some annoyance.

“You really don’t remember?” says Astros to Honey.

“No,” says Honey sharply.

“You paid my cleaning bill and the damages for the hole you punched in your room wall.”

Honey snaps an annoyed look at Petals and Asmund; Petals is rubbing her brow while releasing an exasperated sigh, and Asmund is rubbing Marie’s hand as she leans against him.

“That’s it? That’s all that happened. You guys made it sound like it was something weird!” says Honey.

Petals hums. “Well, that stuff did happen, but there’s more to it. You see, after the hole was repaired and the bill was paid, we bought more alcohol, played some board games and…”

Later…

The bus pulls to a stop outside an airfield, and the group gets off one by one, with Honey being last. Her face is a mix of red and green. She’s hot, shaky, and feels like she’s going to be sick. And she doesn’t feel like being near the group. At least the morning air is cool, despite the sunlight making her eyes feel like they’re going to boil.

There are a few other buses that have dropped off other recruits, each with their own weapons and luggage, but while Honey trails Astros’ group, she notices Rocky and Emma are talking with two other people. Their tones are light, and their postures are relaxed, which is surprising to see when it comes to Rocky. As Honey passes them, Rocky’s smile fades and Emma’s lips twist to a smirk as she waves with wiggling fingers. Honey rolls her eyes and keeps walking to catch up with Astros’ group.

The airfield isn’t anything spectacular. It is a domed building in the Baroque style with five hangars and an air tower nearby (also in Baroque style), and a long airstrip. There is a cluster of flags up front, with the tallest being the Federation of Sol Systems flag, then the Prospect Sector flag, then the Eqos flag, and finally the Eqos Irregular Defense Force flag. The EIDF also has their symbol painted on the wall of the domed building.

The group enters the main structure; warm air counters the morning chill and flight schedules are on display on hanging monitors, and there are body scanning tubes and conveyer belts leading to another scanning device. Guarding it are four soldiers (two male two female) dressed in urban camouflage and black vests, and nearby is a bulky machine with thick arms and legs and a ring of optical sensors on its dome shaped head.

The people go through the body scanning tubes one by one with their weapons and luggage going through the other scanners. When it’s Honey’s turn, she takes off her boots and steps inside the tube. Lights move up and down and side to side on her, and she can see outside the tube the guards staring at the results with odd looks. The tube opens, and one of the female soldiers’ motions Honey towards her, away from the others so they can be processed without trouble. Once off to the side, Honey is instructed to extend her arms, and she is swiped with a wand. The same results come back, and the female soldier looks at her supervisor with a confused expression.

“It’s her whole body, sir,” she says.

“My medical records are with the paperwork,” says Honey, keeping her tone calm despite being slightly annoyed since this didn’t happen when she left Lilian.

The soldier takes out the paperwork from Honey’s bag, and after looking through it with her supervisor, her paperwork and boots are returned.

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“Sorry about that, ma’am, but we have never seen a modification like yours before,” says the supervisor.

“It’s alright,” says Honey as she puts on her boots. “It was not a cheap procedure, and it was entirely experimental. So far, I’ve had no problems.”

“Did you get it because of that thing?” asks the supervisor, pointing with his hand at Thor-Ton, which is laying on the floor.

Honey nods and smiles. “Yep.”

“I can see why you got those then. But it would have been cheaper if you didn’t make a weapon that heavy.”

“True, but then it’ll be easier to steal it if it was normal.”

“Right…” The supervisor prints out a ticket from a device strapped to his wrist and gives it to Honey. “Well, get your gear and go to the seating area.”

Honey thanks him, grabs Thor-Ton and her luggage, and goes to Astros and Petals. They are sitting by one of the large windows and each of them has a ticket as well. At first Honey didn’t know where Asmund was, but after a quick look, she sees he is still with Marie in the lobby area, hugging each other while the soldiers continue their work.

“What was that about?” asks Petals as Honey sits down across from them.

“They’ve never seen modifications quite like mine before. Were you taken to the side?” says Honey.

“No. I was just told not to stab anyone.”

Honey looks past Petals and Astros and watches a shuttle being pulled out of a hangar by a truck on treads, and the aircraft is guided towards their building. As this happens, Asmund sits down next to Astros and takes a deep breath.

“Now that the easy part is done, the hard part begins,” says Asmund.

“Saying goodbye didn’t look easy for you,” says Honey.

“It wasn’t, but it’ll be easy compared to what’s going to happen next.”

“You’ll be fine,” assures Astros.

“Yeah, as long as we don’t die,” says Honey.

“Very funny,” says Petals.

“I’m serious. We have a chance of dying during training.”

The group stares at Honey, and she looks at them curiously.

“Did you guys not read that part?” asks Honey.

Petals and Asmund avert their eyes while Astros keeps staring at Honey.

“Did your parents not tell you that part!?” says Honey.

“No,” says Astros. “And I might have skimmed the fine print.”

“My parents didn’t say anything about death during training,” says Petals.

Then comes a giggle that immediately pisses off Honey.

“Wow,” laughs Emma. She leans over the bench’s spine, so she is next to Honey. “So, you go through all that trouble to join the EIDF and didn’t know about the whole death part? What a bunch of goobers!”

Astros’ group glares at Emma, and Honey’s hands tighten on Thor-Ton and her eye twitches. Then she growls when Emma puts her hands on her shoulders and gives them a firm squeeze, still looking at the group while her voice seeps into the blonde’s ear.

“It’s going to be hilarious to see you guys die,” says Emma. She pats Honey’s shoulders. “Especially this one.”

“Emma!” calls Rocky, walking towards the woman in question with the other two following close behind.

“Yes?” says Emma.

“Leave them alone. I don’t want us getting in trouble when we’re this close to getting to the Academy.”

Emma giggles again and backs away. “Of course. I just can’t help myself sometimes.”

Then Emma skips away to join Rocky’s group, and Astros, Asmund and Petals watch her leave while Honey stares straight ahead, not really registering the environment.

“What was that about?” asks Petals.

“It sounds like she has a vendetta,” says Asmund.

“Is she a problem for you?” asks Astros.

Honey takes a deep breath and forces a thin smile. “I have no idea what her problem is with me, but I won’t be dealing with her much longer. Once the training is done, we’ll be going our separate ways and that’s that.”

Before any more words can be spoken, a bell dings over the intercom, and a gruff voice breaks the chatter like a wrecking ball. “Alright, bugs! Everyone on the shuttle! Now!”

The sudden command and the roughness of the voice freezes the group of thirty-six recruits, with some looking at the intercoms, others looking at the shuttle parked outside, and some looking at each other or at the soldiers with no signs of a functioning brain. Then the voice returns.

“Now means now! Get on the shuttle! Now! Now! Now!”

This got everyone to move towards the entrance tube to the shuttle, and as they are herded towards the tube, the man screams over the intercom.

“MOVE FASTER! MOVE IT! MOVE IT! MOVE IT!”

Honey can barely register what happens next. She goes into the tube, goes on the shuttle, locks her luggage and weapon down, takes a seat, and stares ahead without blinking and muscles tight as the others make their way to their spots. She barely notices Astros sitting next to her and Asmund and Petals sitting behind them. And it seems as though time has sped up because the next thing she knows, everyone is seated, and the door is sealed. A moment later, the engines whir to life, and the cockpit door slides open, allowing an imposing figure to step out, wearing urban camouflage outfit and black vest, polished boots, a gas mask hanging off his belt, and a tag that reads J. Heinlein.

This person is tall, buff, with coal black hair and dark brown eyes, and he is of biracial origin that Honey cannot quite pin. Definitely Eqos, but possibly Filipino? She’s seen some pictures of them when her father talked about his time in the EIDF, and this stranger looks like he has some of their genetics. All that aside, Honey feels drool in her mouth.

He’s so big, thinks Honey.

Heinlein stares at the group with intense scrutiny, and the recruits stare back, too stunned, or nervous to speak. The shuttle starts moving and the seatbelt lights turn on, but no one moves.

“Put on your seatbelts!” barks Heinlein.

Everyone on the shuttle snaps their belts in, and Heinlein grabs a ring hanging off the wall as the engines get louder and the shuttle picks up speed.

“In ten hours, you will land at the Academy of Irregular Defense,” starts Heinlein.

The shuttle lifts in the air and scenery rapidly changes from the airfield to the blue sky. As it rises, Honey grips her seatbelt tightly while Astros stares ahead with a tight jaw.

“In ten hours, we will kill your old self. We will transform you from a nobody destined to be forgotten, to immortals who will be remembered for all time. Embrace the comfort of this ride because this is the last of it you will have. Immortality does not come from peace, but from pain. We will break you and we will enjoy breaking you, but in the end, you will thank us.”

The shuttle is quiet, and Honey’s eyes are wide open and drying out in her attempt to keep her eyeballs from looking at the passing clouds. However, because of her wide-eyed look, she catches the attention of Heinlein, and he points at her.

“You. Blondie. What’s the matter with you? You’re creeping me out. Blink before your eyes shrivel out!” says Heinlein.

Honey blinks, and Heinlein drops his hand.

“Good. Now let’s get down to business. My name is Staff Sergeant Juan Heinlein; I am your training instructor for the Academy of Irregular Defense. I will teach you how to how to kill, how to heal, how to survive, and how to be the best EIDF soldier. I have trained hundreds of soldiers who have fought and lived against odds that would kill a normal soldier. As for me, I have been on the frontlines of the Aarde War. I have engaged pirates. I have rescued hostages. I have killed traitors and performed mercy kills. I have changed more lives than every last one of you combined, so I do not have patience for slackers or rats or the insincere. If you’re either of those, you’re better off dying than tarnishing the EIDF. Any questions?”

Emma raises her hand.

“You. Ballerina. What is your question?” says Heinlein.

“How often do people die during training?” asks Emma enthusiastically.

“Put a ‘sir’ at the end of that question and try again.”

“Yes sir!” replies Emma with a smile. “How often do people die during training, sir?”

“You’re going to be a pain in the ass, I can tell already. But I'm going to say ten percent sounds close. Any other questions?”

The recruits stiffen, and Heinlein frowns.

“Don’t tell me you didn’t read that part in your contract. You slackers are off to a bad start!” says Heinlein.

Honey hesitantly raises her hand, and Heinlein looks at her.

“What do you want, Blondie?” asks Heinlein.

“I read the fine print… sir,” says Honey.

Heinlein sighs heavily, unzips a pouch on his vest, and pulls out two wrapped chocolate chip cookies with 'Prunella Honey Thornton' and 'Emma Winters' scribbled on them. He proceeds to walk up to Honey and give her the cookie and tosses the other one to Emma, who eagerly opens it and starts eating it.

“Congratulations for being the only two to read the fine print,” says Heinlein.

“Oh… thank you, sir,” says Honey, looking at the wrapped goodie with a lot of confusion.

“Shut up.”

Honey sulks, and Heinlein returns to the front of the shuttle. Emma's already finished her cookie at this point.

“As a reminder, this will not be a simulation. We will not plug you into pods. We will put you in mud, in the forests, in the arctic, we will test you and your weapons, body, mind, and soul, and we will make you bleed, and we will love every minute of it. If you die during training, don’t even think about haunting the Academy because we have priests and shamans on speed dial to get your weak ghost ass off our property. If you’re too weak to live during the easy part, then we certainly don’t want you around as a floating corpse living rent free,” says Heinlein.

Emma raises her hand again.

“What is it?” says Heinlein.

“What if we turn into a demon when we die, sir? Can we stay since demons are different from ghosts, sir?” asks Emma.

Heads turn to her, and Rocky rubs his face while Heinlein sneers.

“What the hell is wrong with you?” says Heinlein. “Actually, don’t even say anything. You’re no longer allowed to speak, and when we get off this shuttle, you’re giving me one hundred pushups for being a creepy bitch and a smart ass. And no more cookies for you, either.”

Meanwhile, Honey is carefully opening her cookie and cringing while the plastic crinkles and tears. When the cookie is free, she cautiously puts it in her mouth and chews slowly, to keep the crunching as quiet as possible. While doing this, she stares at Heinlein, unblinking.

“The moment Blondie finishes her cookie we will pump relaxation gas into the shuttle,” says Heinlein. “This will ensure you rest before we put you through hell.”

Honey stops chewing. She is on the last bit of her cookie, and she feels all eyes on her.

“Eat the cookie!” orders Heinlein.

Honey resumes chewing and reluctantly swallows the grounded food, and as soon as she swallows, Heinlein puts on his gas mask and knocks on the cockpit door four times. A few seconds later, the seatbelts locks turn red, and there is a hissing and faint green gas coming from the vents. The recruits start to panic with curses and struggle to get their belts off, and even Astros tests the belt, but remains silent. Honey tries it, too. Her blue lines glow and her fingers tighten on the belt straps as she pulls. She can feel the lock breaking and the fabric tearing, but then the gas seeps into her nose and almost immediately everything becomes hazy, and her muscles become weak while her heart slows down.

“Nobody panic. This is procedure to make sure you’re well rested before landing,” says Heinlein.

Honey’s vision becomes blurry and dim, and she looks to the side and sees Astros bobbing his head while other recruits slump in their seats. Except for Emma; she’s smiling and patting Rocky’s hand. As for Honey, she fights to keep her eyes open, but it is futile. Within seconds, she falls into darkness, and her last thought is, What a dick.