In the small room, there were two bunk beds with three beds occupied. Hearing the soft snores, Ali hesitated about his entry to the room, knowing better than making a bad first impression. Therefore, he sat down by the doorway in the hallway and fell asleep with his bag tucked between his legs. The teenager would wake up when he sensed pairs of eyes on him. He looked up to see three teenagers around his age staring down at him with puzzled expressions.

“Hi, I’m Ali! I joined late last night.”

The lack of response made him worry so he thought about what else he could say. To his surprise, the tallest of the three offered him a hand.

“Welcome to Group 30! We’re happy to have you!”

The tallest teenager had short yellow hair and a big smile on his face. His tall build would have been impressive if he had any muscles but the teenager was nothing but skins and bones. When Ali accepted the hand, the grip was surprisingly strong as he was pulled up.

“I’m Svenn, the leader of the team. And these two are Umaru and Kamis.”

Umaru had a medium build with dark skin. The teenager reminded Ali of fishermen he encountered back at his pillar formation. These fishermen claimed to have come from a warmer region of Ocad where the sun was a lot less forgiving to those who were stuck out in the ocean. Umaru would fit the description of those fishermen but the teenager had realized that his experience had been far too limited for him to make any correct assumptions.

“It’s good to have you,” said Umaru as he offered a hand. “I hope we’ll work well together!”

Ali shook his hand but he wondered what Umaru meant by working together. He was only told to rest in the room as his briefing would be given to him the following day by his new roommates. With two of his roommates done with their introductions, the teenager turned to the third member who was massive compared to the other two. Ali was almost certain Kamis had more muscle than the rest of them combined. Despite his intimidating muscles, it soon became apparent that the teenager was extremely shy with strangers. He only said a greeting when Ali offered his hand.

“With the introductions out of the way, let’s get you updated with how things work around here!”

Once his new roommates helped him settle into the room, Ali sat down to hear about the new life of those who joined the junior ranks of the liberation army. Much like on the airship, there was a certain time when everyone did their morning routines. Then, there were plenty of drills and exercises to get them more battle ready. Ali wasn’t surprised about the lack of classes in literacy skills. The liberation army needed obedient soldiers who weren’t tainted by knowledge of the outside world.

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"Is there any significance about Group 30?" asked Ali.

"There are thirty groups in total and the number is associated with their ranking. We are sadly dead last in the ranking."

Given that I was assigned here, that makes sense. Guess I'll start from the bottom then.

“We can update you more once we’re at the cafeteria! We got to get ready for our morning run.”

Svenn led the way down the crowded hallway as all the groups jostled for a spot for the showers. Through careful negotiations and maneuvering, Svenn somehow got the group into the showers faster than if they waited in line like the others. Ali didn’t exactly enjoy the cold shower but he knew he was spoiled on the airship by the readily hot water. The group then arrived outside the building where the drill sergeant already sent groups out for runs. Like atop the airship, the members were given wristbands that kept track of their laps. As soon as the four of them were given theirs, they were on their way.

“What route are we taking and how many laps?” asked Ali who wanted to pace himself.

While Svenne and Umaru were focused on their breathing, Kamis took charge of the explanation. The massive teenager shared that they were running through the wilderness that involved a river, some hills and some muddy terrain. The first two laps should be easy but the laps got harder as fatigue started kicking in. Ali was convinced Kamis was just built differently from the rest of them. The teenager acted like this was a leisurely jog where he had plenty of time to spare. A quick peek revealed that both Svenne and Umaru were struggling, despite them still being on the first lap.

“Will they be okay?” asked Ali with concern.

“I usually give them a hand later, especially on the muddy terrain.”

The group soon arrive at the river where they had to cross a ford that forced them to wade into the freezing water.

I won’t complain about the cold shower ever again.

Following the ford crossing, the group began their climb up the first hill. When they reached the top, both Svenne and Umaru were already stopping to catch their breaths. Ali turned to Kamis.

“How many laps do we have to do?”

“Only five.”

How are these two going to finish even one lap?

“Ali…you go…ahead…with…Kamis.”

Ali looked at Kamis who nodded his head. The two of them left their roommates behind. Before Ali could ask, the other teenager explained the situation.

“To complete the morning run, a team must have at least half of its members finish all five laps. The remaining members must at least complete one lap. Before your arrival, we have no chance of finishing our runs. We might succeed for once!”

The fire in Kamis’ voice was contagious so Ali shouted back words of encouragement. The two of them breezed through the hills but the teenager started having doubts when the two of them arrived at the muddy terrain.

That’s a swamp, isn’t it? And I thought I saw something move under the surface.