A Simple Test

Squadron W, a unit in the Eurasia’s army, was commanded by Maria Anasta, A short woman standing at just under 7 feet but made up for that in a bulky appearance. Everyone knew her fighting capabilities. Everyone feared her. At the age of 97 she was offered the position of General but decided against it saying that she had more than half her life ahead of her and there was no point rushing things, only to take up the position ten years later. Now aged 151 she was staring at a man more than hundred years her junior, someone who should barely be out of adolescence and yet he seemed old. She had a quick read of his documentations before starting,

‘Gin Gale, a name is all I have from you in this application form. In the section ‘place of origin’ you have put N/A; in ‘magi category’ you put N/A; in ‘age’ you put N/A. In fact, every section here, apart from your name is filled with ‘N/A’, even in what you hope to achieve from joining us. Mind telling me what this is about?’

Gin knew something like this would happen. After all what she said was the truth. They had nothing on him and yet he still wanted to join the army. Normally he would be rejected straight away on the basis of poor conduct in his application but squadron W was different. All they require was that you pass a simple test and you are accepted straight away.

‘Of course you would ask that but I do have my reasons, colonel. My place of origin? No longer exists. The category of Mage I belong in? That literally is not applicable to me. My age? You wouldn’t believe me but I’m thirty three’

‘Thirty Three?! Child, I will admit you should be looking like you just hit puberty at that age, not someone who is about to reach their physical peak. Frankly, I sense nothing coming from you. Everyone I have encountered and will encounter has emitted some sort of aura but you provide nothing. Are you human?’

Gin felt offended. The comment on his age was something he could understand; the lack of knowledge of his origin was expected but him not being human? That was absurd! He remained calm however, like how his mother had taught him to be, and responded:

‘I assure you that I am probably the most humane being on this entire planet. I may not give out the same aura as most people but I am certain I could be of help to Eurasia. My methods may be unorthodox and you may not recognise the techniques I have but that doesn’t matter, does it?’

A puzzled look appeared on the General followed by a smile, ‘Oh is that so? Yes you are right; whatever methods you use doesn’t matter to join my squadron as long as you pass the initiation test. I’m presuming you know what that is, am I right?’

‘Yes ma’am.’

‘Good. Now follow me.’

They both got up before Maria led Gin down a well lit corridor. The walls were full of moss like substances which were actually the roots of the Rezah plant, which never catch fire. It was a special measure against enemy fire mages that had managed to destroy several inhabitant and military buildings in the past. From the outside, the building looks like a large tree and due to its appearance several more Rezah trees have been made to camouflage the actual buildings in case future attacks were to happen.

‘I won’t deny that I am intrigued how a child like you can possibly help us. You do realise what waits if you fail our trial?’

‘Yes I do know what the trial consists of. This is unique to squadron W only so it isn’t surprising that its common knowledge amongst the army. I just have to fight in a one versus one combat against one of the best fighters in the squadron and hold out for a set period of time. If I do survive then I am enlisted into the squadron just like that.’ Gin paused for a moment, letting out a sigh that indicated that he understood the gravity of the situation, ‘however, this opponent I am facing will try to kill me. If he does then obviously I won’t make it into the army or anything for that matter.’

The General led them to a room consisting of two chambers. On one side of the room was nothing bar several seats but it was immaculately clean. Even the floor which was covered in dirt in nearly all the other facilities and rooms was spotless. It was a huge contrast to the other chamber. Separated by a see-through film which was sturdier than it looked, the other section seemed like it had travelled through the battle of Anthrax and back. The Rezah walls were scorched, wet and in places were red smears. Blood.

Maria stopped, raising her hand to signal that Gin should do the same, she whispered, ‘Guess you’re lucky. Looks like someone else is taking the trial before you do. You get to see your opponent in combat.’

Gin stared intently at what entered into the room or rather who entered. It was a man, Gin thought, of roughly 10 feet in height. Brown hair sprouted out of every single part of his body. His nose was more like a snout, elongated and rounded off with canine-like nostrils at the end. His eyes were fierce, one that showed experience in both killing and being on the brink of death. His legs were packed with muscle and combined with them being in a bent posture while walking, it seemed like he was ready to pounce at any moment. On the top of this beast’s head were dark black horns, only a few centimetres in height. 3000 years ago he would have been called Lucifer, El Chupacabra, Evil incarnate, Satan, but he was none of them but rather a creation of mankind.

‘That is Varunel, One of our best combat specialists. He’s been in the service for 137 years, a true masterpiece and one that any nation would be jealous of!’ The colonel gave a grin at that comment before continuing, ‘Seems like the person hoping to join my squadron is about to enter now.’

Just as she had finished speaking, somebody else came through the door. A dark skinned woman entered the chamber. She had short white hair and green eyes on her round face. She seemed to have an air of confidence around her. She then started become shiny under the light, as if a thin film enveloped her.

‘So what do you think of the match up?’ asked the colonel.

Gin analysed the two before answering, ‘It’s very obvious that Varunel is a bestial type, I’m guessing of the Juggernaut subclass. Bred to be extremely strong and agile, Juggernauts tend to have heightened senses which are pretty visible as he has a dog-like nose and I won’t be surprised if the eyes, which are much more slit than average, compared to our ancestors, are those that can probably see great distances. His legs and arms are very muscular, his kicks and punches would cause fatal damage to those cannot defend.

On the other hand, the girl is probably an elemental type, and judging by the shiny film that she covered herself with, she is a fire mage at that.’

‘Oh what a very astute observation from you, child. How did you know?’

Gin could tell that question was some kind of test. She was the colonel after all and so she probably had to assess those who potentially could join her squadron and what role they could take in future battles.

‘As I said, I could tell by the film that she is covered in that she is a fire mage. I have done my research on the various categories and their sub-categories and can tell who is what, apart from a few cases such as you, colonel. If you want me to go further into the details of the average fire mage, I can.’

‘Please do, child’, she replied.

This was definitely a test of some form, Gin concluded before continuing, ‘To create fire, you need to create a reaction. See the girl’s fingers? They are both dry and rough and the skin forms some sort of pattern. I assume she uses that to create some sort of ignition. But she needs some sort of fuel to keep a fire going which is why she is glistening. It is a flammable substance which she secretes from special glands in her skin similar how sweat is produced. In fact, her mechanism makes it so that the sweat itself is flammable and so provides several functions and is more efficient to having several different organs. The sweat of fire mages is called oil. Although fire can deal severe damage to most people, she is not hurt herself due to every single inch of her body being made up of flame-resistant cells which is why she is quite dark and has rough skin like.’

The colonel gave a nod to say that was enough. She was ready to start the fight between the girl and Varunel.

‘Whyte, you have to survive five minutes. Do that and you join my squadron. Varunel, your task is to kill her in that time. Are you both ready?’

‘Ermm, why is it only five minutes? Thought it was normally one hour long,’ asked the girl named Whyte.

‘Yes you are right; normally it is one hour long. Today is special, though, as you are facing Varunel. He hates days off and asked me if he could do the test whenever he is free. Got to love his bloodlust! Five minutes is very generous if you ask me. Good luck, child!’ Maria answered before saying under her breath, ‘you’ll need it’.

Gin noticed what she said and felt a lump in his stomach. A test meant to be one hour long, reduced to five and even then the colonel thinks she will lose. Just how strong was that bestial type?

A buzzer had rung which signified the start of the fight. Immediately, the girl created a globule of oil in both her hands before clicking her fingers. Immediately her hands went into a blaze of fire. She then hurled the fire at Varunel.

The aim from Whyte was excellent. The burning fuel splashed across the torso of Varunel. Such a clean hit would lead to the fire spreading all across his body leading to the agony of being burnt alive. But the fire suddenly sizzled before coming to a stop. Not a single burn mark was found where the fireball hit. Gin now realised why she couldn’t win.

The girl became terrified. She realised too. From the top of his head to the tips of his toes, Varunel was covered with what must be fire resistant fur. It was so resistant that such an attack won’t even burn the fur let alone the beast himself. Varunel grinned. He let the fireball hit him on purpose.

Whyte then started doing something strange. She smothered her hand with more oil. However, Gin noticed the substance she secreted was different from before. She snapped her fingers once more and instead of the clean flame she was creating a few seconds ago, this time the room was being filled with black smoke. Gin thought that this was a great back up plan, after all, if she can’t beat him, at least try to survive for five minutes.

The whole chamber was filled with smoke. Gin couldn’t see a thing but then suddenly a gruff voice came from the chamber,

‘How long did I take?’

’Twenty Seven seconds,’ the colonel said.

The smoke started being cleared via air shafts in the room and in the middle was Varunel holding Whyte; her ribs broken, hair tainted red, lungs bleeding out and her heart utterly destroyed and in its place was Varunel’s fist.

‘Whyte has failed the test!’ the colonel confirmed as she gave orders for some people to clean up the mess before turning to Gin,

‘You’re next child. Your test will begin in thirty minutes, while the room is cleaned up. Please take your time preparing; after all, you might meet the same fate as that girl.’

Gin stayed quiet. He was thinking about what had happened in that short period. The girl hurled a ‘fireball’ at Varunel. A common technique among fire elementals where the user creates fire in their hands using more fuel than usual, secreted from their body, they then ‘throw the fire’ at opponents. This was done by throwing the flammable substance and as the fire burns using the fuel that was thrown (the reason why they create so much fuel in the first place) it lands on the opponent and leaving the flammable substance burning on your opponent. A very effective method against those not bred to be fire resistant.

However, Varunel was fire resistant due to his fur. He was the worst match up for fire mages of her level. Gin had very few fire based attacks so it didn’t really matter to him but what had happened after that was what he was trying to figure out. The room was filled with smoke and yet he was able to aim for her heart with such precision. Does that mean he can still see or can he know his surroundings via other methods? For a bestial type, it isn’t uncommon for them to able to be able to use sounds or heat detection. Maybe he could ----

‘Time’s up! Please enter the room opposite and we will begin,’ the colonel ordered

‘What?! You said thirty minutes to prepare but it’s only been two!’

‘I lied. Please proceed into the testing room.’

Gin’s eyes widened. His battle experience was nothing compared to his Varunel’s yet he definitely knew he couldn’t face him in a battle of strength. He was panicking and he knew it. Varunel was able to see Gin’s face from the other room and snorted at how terrified his opponent must feel.

In a moment of panic Gin said, ‘No, I need to prepare otherwise I won’t stand a chance. Please give me a minute more!’

‘When faced with an opponent that is much stronger than you, it is natural to feel afraid, to panic, and to begin to beg as it’s human nature to do so. I understand your sentiments. I really do, child, but in a real fight, imagine both you and the girl were in a battalion on a mission and a bestial type of Varunel’s calibre attacked you. Given that she told she was going to stall and only lasted twenty seven seconds, would you really think he will wait thirty minutes before coming after you? I will repeat once again. Time is up. Please go to the testing room,’ the colonel said before ushering Gin into the room.

Once you accept to take it on, there was no way out of it. On normal days the pass rate was roughly twenty five percent but when Varunel was the one to invigilate it, the pass rate was less than one, even with the survival time being shortened by so much. In fact no one has actually beaten him in a one on one fight. The one percent of those who pass are those who just barely managed to survive the five minutes.

The test was about to begin. Five minutes. Just live. Such a simple task and yet it was so hard especially with the lack of time to come up with a proper strategy. Gin reached to his belt. On his belt were a few objects, all cuboid in shape but of various colours. They had intrigued both the colonel and Varunel since the beginning and Gin guessed that might be a factor in why the test was being taken so soon. Gin took out the red one before slotting his fingers through four holes in the cuboid. He pushed his index finger further through the whole and at the bottom laid a button which he pressed. A long metal beam erupted out of the cuboid, the process instant.

Both the colonel and Varunel’s curiosity grew further. They had never seen such a thing despite their many years of experience. Was the MBP able to breed someone with the ability to create weapons at will? No, the thing that just appeared didn’t appear from Gin himself but rather from that object that Gin picked up from his belt.

‘Is this the ‘unorthodox technique’ you were talking about before?’ the colonel asked Gin.

‘It might be.’

‘Well, I am very interested in how you will fight. Shall we get started? The time limit is five minutes; your aim is to survive for that long. Varunel, your task is to kill him in that time. Are you both ready? Let’s begin!’

The buzzer blew and the timer had begun to countdown. Five minutes. Varunel just stood there, his eyes watching his opponent slowly edging closer to him. This was new to him. No point in killing him without gaining valuable experience, right? Just like the girl beforehand, he would let him attack first before finishing him off, after all he did have five minutes and killing him would barely take five seconds.

Gin only had one plan, which was what his preparation time allowed him. As he stepped closer to the beast, it was very apparent how large he was. Even when his legs were bent in their natural position, ready to pounce at any moment, Varunel was at least a metre taller than Gin. However, despite how easy killing his opponent was, Varunel didn’t attempt any movement.

A small beeping sound echoed around the room, it signified that a minute was up. What was Varunel doing? Or rather the question was; why wasn’t he doing anything? As the time ticked down, the second beeping sound echoed around the room.

‘You know I am deliberately giving you an opportunity to attack me directly, that’s why I haven’t killed you yet,’ Said Varunel in his gruff voice, ‘However if you don’t within the next ten seconds, I will end it now.’

This was Gin’s chance. If he managed to pierce Varunel’s body, then he could win. This newfound hope allowed him to charge at the monster. Varunel did not react, he stuck true to his words, and allowed to strike to attack directly. Gin aimed right for his heart, and as his weapon slid right through Varunel’s body, it suddenly stopped and so did Gin’s grin. Had he hit a bone? No, his weapon was sharp enough to cut through them at a bare minimum. Was the blade stopped by the muscles Varunel were packed with?

‘I’m impressed, kid. You were close, I’ll give you that, but you can’t kill me that easily,’ Varunel said, ‘I am curious about something, however, mind telling me what that thing you are holding is called?’

‘It’s a sword, custom made by me,’ Gin replied. Varunel must still be confident to be talking while having the sword still in him. But this didn’t faze Gin though as he pushed his finger through another hole in his sword’s hilt to push a second button. Immediately the sword went ablaze. If the skin and the fur were fire resistant, then surely there was no need to have his innards fire resistant too. The plan had worked. The fire began burning the insides of Varunel and the pain was showing when he gave a grunt of discomfort.

Varunel was getting mad. He had enough and began his attack. He hurtled a fist straight at Gin but Gin anticipated that and reacted in time to use another Cuboid, this time Green. Out emerged a shield made of the same metal that his sword was made of. It blocked the punch but the hit was so strong that Gin was flung into the wall, leaving a dent where his back had smashed into.

The sword was still wedged in Varunel’s torso but he didn’t care as the fire stopped once Gin let go off it. Gin’s attack actually did damage and this couldn’t go unpunished. Gin was out of breath. The arm which was holding the shield probably had a broken bone or two as well; that’s how strong the punch was.

Another beeping sound rung around the room which meant that there was two minutes left. The options were limited for Gin. Varunel wasn’t in a rush; in fact he was steadily walking towards the wall where Gin lay, barely able to stand. He was enjoying this. As he walked towards Gin, he noticed that Gin pushed his finger through a hole in the cuboid where the shield emerged from. If it was anything like the sword, then it must have a function too. In a panic, Varunel quickly broke off the sword that was in his torso in fear it would set on fire again but that wasn’t what the hole was for. The shield expanded, surrounding Gin, enclosing him in a metallic dome.

Varunel’s eyes widened. Gin wasn’t trying to attack but instead stall for time. Varunel’s opponent was nothing but a coward! Varunel’s disgust led to anger and lashed straight at the dome of metal that contained Gin. In his rage, Varunel didn’t even notice how the sword crumbled when he broke it, leaving just the Cuboid. Instead he sent a fist at the dome. A large clanging sound emerged when his punch met the dome but there was no mark or dent in it. Varunel continued to punch the dome, each one stronger than the last. However, no sign of weakness, the metal stayed as strong as ever. Just what was it made of?

The buzzer rang for the fourth time. This only made Varunel even angrier. He only had one minute left. The punches didn’t stop. They hit the same place over and over again, applying more pressure on the point. He had to break through eventually.

Then the breakthrough happened. One of Varunel’s punches smashed through the metal. Compared to his previous punches, this one felt effortless, Varunel thought, but that didn’t matter. What mattered was what was inside the dome. Without hesitation Varunel grabbed Gin by his neck and pulled him out of the dome. Gin looked was weak, one arm broken, out of breath, unable to do anything. In the same fashion as the fight against Whyte, Varunel penetrated Gin’s chest, aiming for the heart before crushing it in his hands.

Ten seconds later the fifth and final buzzer rang. The test was over.