TWO YEARS LATER
Location - Sanctuary Base
"Hey, Kael," a young energetic female voice travelled from outside the door to the confines of the room. The bed sheets could be seen to move in different directions before the person underneath was able to resurface. Kaelus has lived in the Sanctuary for more than two years after he was saved by Kina and her team. As he awoke here, he expected things to be much more militarized and different but it was still somewhat casual. Life here did not have much of a change than how he already lived before. Daily routines of sleeping, waking up, eating, exercising and building core survival skills and knowledge were what was every recruit routine in the Sanctuary. To be honest, life here wasn't all that bad but Kael was never comfortable here nor was he happy.
Everytime he laid on the bed, he could still hear the screams of his parents as they were torn into shreds in front of his eyes without him being able to save them or do anything for that matter. He blamed himself all over and over again as he sobbed after he awoke from those dreams. Though the frequency of these dreams started to reduce after some time he had spent here in the Sanctuary. With the help of Lark and Monnae, two other recruits who came into Sanctuary at the same time he arrived but from the inside the settlement not outside like him became his friends much quickly. Lark was weird but he was still a great friend nonetheless while Monnae was uch spirited and cheerful out of the group. Kael could bet that it was she who aroused him from his slumber from the tone in her voice. Not many in the Sanctuary can keep such cheerfulness in their tone after experiencing the harsh truth of the world but Monnae was able to and it was one of the reasons Kael had a lot of respect towards her.
"I'm bashing my way in if you don't answer, Kael" the voice that sounded from outside the room spoke to which Kael responded "Who's that?," in a sleepy and tired tone. "Who else can it be except for your one and only friend, Monnae! But that's not what I came here for. Do you remember that today is the day the recruits get tested for acceptance into the Pionner's Academy for training?" Monnae spoke with much seriousness evident in her voice as she stressed the most important parts of her words, to highlight their importance. After listening to what Monnae said, confusion then finally an alarm could be seen playing on the face of Kael. "Shit. I totally forgot about it. Just give me a minute, Mon. I'll be ready as soon as possible!" Kael said as he hurriedly stood up from his bed and began to freshen up in the bathroom that was compressed into the recruits living space. The living space was quite basic at the first , containing just a single bed on top, a bed stall, a clothes wardrobe with compartments for storing shoes and other things the recruit owns. The walls that encountered the room were painted a pastel of grey colour. A section was also cut out for the bathroom and toilet that were combined in order to save space while still providing the required amenities that recruits may desire. It was a simple and basic house built but the Sanctuary did manage to ensure it covered what the recruits may require albeit in a cramped up scale.
Some minutes later, a freshened up Kael who has changed into the recruit's uniform consisting of a ash top with a black bottom complimented by a black coloured pair of shoes. He dashed forward down the recruit's living apartment and as he came down, he spotted Lark and Monnae standing some metres away. He walked closer to them and greeted them as he made sure that he was looking presentable due to the quick change of clothes. "Monnae told me you slept in again. You're gonna be in a lot of trouble if you keep doing this, Kael." Lark said as he lectured Kael on his lateness and tardiness. "Yeah, yeah. Don't try to rub it in. I know it was my mistake" Kael said nonchalantly as the group began to move forward towards the building that was sitting in the middle of the Sanctuary, with all its grandeur and glory. Monnae walked to the front of Kael and helped him to get ready by folding his flying collars and ruffling down his messy hair to make it more presentable. "You should know just how lucky you guys are to have someone as charming and great as me." she said as a joke and ended with a chuckle as she retook her position between both Lark and Kael. "Don't try to act much better than us, Mon. And don't ruffle my hair while treating me as a child" Kael said with a bit of anger in his voice as he tried to get his point across to Monnae which definitely did not work as Monna giggled after blowing a stupid face at him and looked ahead. "Just give up, Kael. You know that she isn't stopping anytime soon." Lark commented as he watched their banter with a book that said that he had seen it many times before. "Sure. Take her side, Lark" Kael commented as he dropped the matter with the trio giggling and picking up their phase as they headed to the tower-like building.
As they walked, they came across a crowded area and with curiosity beckoning to be satisfied, they approached the commotion. When they did, they saw a team who were being escorted into the tower building on stretches for the less gravely injured or coffins for the critically injured or dead ones. "Another team that has just suffered disastrous consequences against the Xions. Did anyone make it safely?" questioned Lark as he gazed on the defeated team and their huge casualty. Monnae commented with "I know this team. Their leader is Devan, our recruit class instructor. I remembered him speaking about how he and his team were preparing to take down a group of Xions and that they have been aching for a fight since they haven't been deployed to the field for the past two and a half years." with a break in her voice and tremble which she tried to conceal but was having a hard time in doing so, she continued "Who knew that this would be their fate. I feel so..so sorry for Mr Devan. He seemed so happy to be able to take down those Xions for humanity..sake" Monnae finished as tears welled up in her eyes.
Kael's fists clenched as he gazed upon the fallen Pioneer team. 'Those monsters are called Xions. I want to kill them all. Just wait, when I get strong enough through the training, I'll make sure to eradicate as many of you that I can, especially that man!" he said in rage in his mind. He never forgot the pain and anger he felt from that massacre that day, but he just obtained it biding his time until he was strong enough and with permission to leave the Sanctuary to take his revenge. Living in the Sanctuary has also made him aware of many things such as the inhuman actions of those Xions, the way they destroy families and lives and his hatred has only worsened as time goes by. He fixed his attention on the series of injuries both big and small that the team sustained before he was snapped back into reality by Lark. "Hey man, it's time to go to the arena. I know about how much you hate the Xions due to what they did to your family but all your rage will be for naught if you don't pass the Pioneer's Acceptance Assessment. Take all his rage you feel now and store it deep and ready to be summoned so that when you need it as we fight against the Xions, it can be easily reached" and then rested his hand on his shoulder for a minute before starting to lead away from the commotion while supporting the sobbing Monnae. Kael thought about what Lark said and realised that he had some sense of reason in his statement so he took his attention from the suffering team and walked away while catching up to his friend group.
"Do you think all this suffering will stop one day?" questioned Monnae as they walked into the tower-like building. "Yeah, I believe so. I believe in humanity's spirit and the justice we stand for. We shall definitely destroy those monsters and send them where they came from!" Lark spoke with a voice filled with determination and a surreal hope for the future. "Yeah, Lark's right, Mon. Humanity will be able to win" responded Kael in the conversation as he tried to calm both his mind and that of his companion Monnae. "Un..I'll trust in you guys. Let's become Pioneers and rush those monsters guys!" Monnae spoke in a much optimistic voice as she has now garnered her courage and built up her determination against the fight against Xions. "Let's go to the arena quickly before we get into serious trouble," Monnae concluded, grounding back into their current reality and status.
Some Minutes Later
Location - Arena in Pioneer Building(Sanctuary Base)
"Hello recruits. Many of you have been training for months, days or maybe years for today. Today is the day where all your efforts will be tested and in the end, those who qualify will become Pioneers who shall endure pain and brave forth with courage to push back Humanity's enemies, the Xions. My name is Team Leader Dame Ilral, the leader of Unit 203 of this Sanctuary. Good luck and grace towards you in your tests," the mature looking man who stood in the arena while garnering attention with his poise and momentum that he alluded to by just standing there spoke. He set his middle and index finger together and placed it on his heart as he spoke, saluted and walked off the stage. There were then murmurs as he left the arena varying from how cool he is to his authority and presence he alluded in his presence. "Attention all Recruits. This test is divided into Theory and Practical both designed to test what is crucial to your survival outside the Sanctuary. If you have any questions, feel free to ask before we start the testing" on of the staff members asked as we stood in the middle of the arena. One of the recruits, a boy, stood up in a motion of asking questions and after gaining the permission of the staff, he posed his question. "Sir, what is the need for theory exams? In the end, fighting Xions is all down to your combat skills and what you learn from books doesn't seem to have any value and instead just becomes a waste of time. So if you don't mind, can you explain to us recruits so that we can understand?" the recruit said as he took his seat back. The staff member then began to address the question that he had just been asked. With a short dramatic pause that was able to catch the attention of most of the recruits, the staff then proceeded at the explanation "You're not the first group of recruits who has asked this question but it is still a worthwhile question nonetheless. Let's take a scenario as an example, say you have been stranded by your team members during a Xion raid, while hungry and tired and also in need of communication to the Sanctuary. What would you do in that situation?" He said as he looked towards the recruits for an answer to this question of his.
"Won't you just need to find food that can be eaten in the wild and maybe try to fix your equipment?" a recruit answered nonchalantly seemingly without putting much thought on the matter and instead just saying things that come to mind. "Yes, you're the correct recruit but did you notice something? The skills you require to find edible and safe things to eat and to try to fix the broken equipment are not knowledge obtained from combat but instead from Theories taught in lessons in the Sanctuary. Now you understand why we deem it as necessary and compulsory. The Sanctuary wants to try its best to increase the survival chance of each Pioneer and if possible, to not lose any Pioneer if what caused their death is something like food or shelter which could be easily solved by equipping them with the proper knowledge they lack for those situations. Do you understand now, recruits?" the staff said, his voice growing louder as if to make sure that the point that he was trying to convey to the recruits was getting received clearly. "Yes sir, we understand" all the recruits said in unison which brought a smile to the staff's face who continued the original plan.
"Since we are all in agreement, it's time to start the test, recruits. Goodluck to you all and I hope to meet you in Pioneer."