Chapter 10 #2
“This is Black Star,” Ender says. “My operations unit. Our specialty lies in infiltration, extraction, recon, and neutralization.”
Ender walks towards the north wall, where four other people linger. His hands are clasped behind his back, posture flawless. Several pairs of eyes shift towards him, trailing his every move. He surveys the recruits with clinical precision, as if he already finds them lacking.
Knox leans against a metal pillar. He gives me a faint nod when our eyes meet, unsurprised by my arrival.
A familiar boy stands to his left.
It’s the dumbass who attacked me.
He’s a few inches shorter than Knox, with bronze skin and hair buzzed to his scalp.
One side is dyed white and the other black.
On someone I despise less, I would find it cool.
He is perched on a railing, boots braced beneath him.
His fingers drum idly against his thigh, and his brown eyes churn with a frantic, restless energy.
There is a girl beside him with blond hair so colorless it appears white. And beside her is a muscular boy with flaxen hair and a stoic expression.
These must be the members of Black Star.
“You know why you are here,” Ender says. “You were picked to be tested. During your training, your weaknesses will be stripped away, and you will be molded into perfect soldiers. Only one of you will make it to the end. And the rest of you will die trying.”
Murmurs travel through the group as they exchange nervous glances.
“If you are having second thoughts, you may leave,” Ender says. He pushes a button, and the door opens. “The choice is yours.”
As much as I don’t want to be a part of Ender’s secret unit, I can’t ignore this opportunity. I can infiltrate his trusted circle, but if I leave, I will never get this chance again.
This is why I came to the Forge. To advance my position in society. The military is the regime’s primary tool of control, and what better place is there to be than at the top of the chain?
I remain in position. I cannot take Ender’s offer to run. I must see this through.
A boy breaks from the group with a nervous expression.
Slowly, he makes his way to the door, glancing warily behind him, as if Ender will chase after him when he gave him a perfect opening.
His shoulders loosen, the tension slipping out from him like fresh air through a cracked window.
And he fully turns ahead, picking up his pace.
A crackle echoes through the chamber, and I flinch. The boy crumbles to the ground, blood pooling around him.
Ender shot him, point-blank.
“That was a trick,” Ender says calmly. “There is no other option. You signed the paperwork, which means your life is forfeit. You belong to me.”
His eyes dig into mine, hooking like talons. I shiver at the callous look on his face. He just killed a poor boy because he decided this cult wasn’t for him. How is that fair?
A ripple of tension moves through the recruits. Spines straighten as everyone tries to toughen up and mask their fear.
“Knox will be overseeing the training structure,” he says, pointing at the blue-haired boy. “You will be divided into two squads led by Spider, the idiot to my right, and Orion.”
Spider pouts. “Rude.”
The blond boy gives a short, disciplined nod, his jaw set like stone.
“Clover will be aiding Knox,” Ender continues, pointing to the white-haired girl.
Everyone shifts, uncomfortable by the force of his stare.
“Remember the stakes,” Ender says coldly. “You are not just fighting for your place in this unit. You are fighting for your life.”
A few of the recruits suck in a surprised breath, but no one dares to speak. Nobody glances at the door. Or even contemplates escape. Not after what we just witnessed.
Ender’s eyes slide to me, lingering on my vest and the pistols at my hips. His mouth twitches as if he finds my getup utterly ridiculous.
He crosses the room towards me.
They are all Gifted. I’m the only Common, which means I’ll have to rely on myself.
“You will observe today,” he says.
Ender steps back, hands clasped behind his back once more.
“Begin,” he orders.
Sections of the obstacle course grind to life, walls rising, platforms shifting. I hate that I can’t tell if it is real or an illusion. This could be a simulation wing. They are used for military training to create mock battlefields.
The recruits fan out in a practiced formation and break off into a sprint.
“Watch carefully,” Ender says. “They have three days of practice on you.”
All I can see when I look at him is the gun, raised high, and then the thud of the boy’s dead body. He didn’t react when he collapsed. In fact, he seemed pleased that someone dared to fall for his trap. He wanted to send a message. He wanted us to know that we are mere pawns in his game.
“You just killed a boy,” I hiss. “You’re crazy.”
“Having second thoughts?” he asks. “The door is right there.”
“So, you can put a bullet in my head, too?”
Ender’s mouth raises in a frigid smile. “You’re a quick learner.”
Two recruits hit the sand pit at the same time, and Orion moves in without hesitation. He disarms one with brutal efficiency, a twist of the wrist and a rough strike to the collarbone that drops them to their knees. And then swiftly immobilizes the second.
Knox is fighting a girl, but he keeps turning invisible, vanishing from her sight, before her aim strikes true. A second later, the girl yelps as a practice blade taps her throat out of nowhere. Knox reappears behind her with a lazy smile.
Spider—my attacker—thrives in the chaos. He darts across the round platforms that were lifted high above the ground. There are rubber mats on the ground to soften the blow, but a drop from that height is bound to hurt.
Spider is light on his feet, taunting the recruits as he leaps from one circle to the other.
“You move slower than my grandma,” he calls, just as a recruit’s fist misses his cheek.
Spider hooks a leg around the boy, flipping him onto the mat below. He lands in a crouch above him and holds out his fingers like a pistol.
“You’re dead, kid,” he says.
I recognize the head of hair beneath him.
Aric.
Shit, he’s in this unit?
Ender watches it all without comment. His eyes track every movement, silently judging them. When someone falls at the hands of his companions, his gaze hardens, disappointment tightening his mouth. He expects perfection and nothing less.
“Again,” he repeats.
The obstacles reset with a metallic groan. The recruits scramble, sweat already darkening the gray fabric of their shirts. They have to race through this intense course while Ender’s pals chase them, intent on killing them.
I shift my weight, fingers brushing the grips of my pistols. I’m acutely aware of my own inadequacy. I don’t know how Ender expects me to keep up with a bunch of Gifted. They are part of a three-year program, which means some of them have been here longer than I have and are more advanced.
“You’re afraid,” Ender states.
“You brought me into a kill box,” I say sharply. “What did you expect?”
“The tough act drops at last,” he muses. “You’ve become aware of your own mortality.”
I look him dead in the eye. “You’re a monster.”
Ender finally turns to me with a severe look in his eyes.
“Your turn,” he says.
“You said I was just observing.”
Dread creeps down my spine. I shouldn’t have riled him up.
“I changed my mind,” Ender says. “Go on. Show us if you belong here.”
For a moment, I don’t move. Ender whistles, and everyone comes to a halt. Eight pairs of eyes lock onto me. I notice Rei among the group; she and Aric are both a part of this. And they are wearing matching expressions of disgust.
Just my luck.
I exhale slowly and step forward. The platform beneath my boots shifts, and the wall begins to shift, as the levers click, drawing me up. It’s hard to stand still when the floor rattles beneath me, raising me several inches above the floor.
“Nonlethal force,” Ender says. “Free for all.”
The recruits hesitate, uncertain about who to attack first, before pure mayhem ensues.
Everyone begins to charge at each other.
Aric and Rei exchange a smile and race for me. Another girl with short hair joins them. Two platforms remain between us, but they leap across each one, evading the flying fists that come their way until they are on mine. I run toward them, refusing to tuck tail and hide.
They don’t expect it.
Aric goes rigid when I hook my arm around his elbow and use his momentum against him, sending him careening back into the mats below.
“You’re going to regret that,” Aric growls.
He blinks, and he’s back on the platform, leaning on his powers to help him. Rei lifts her hand to fling me when Ender’s voice cuts through the noise.
“No powers against the Common!” Ender barks.
A frustrated growl escapes her when she realizes it’s going to be a fair fight. She nods at the girl to her left and eyes Aric.
They surround me, moving in a coordinated effort.
I slip out two blades. Not the practice ones everyone else has. I’m kind of glad I didn’t get the chance to grab those. At least I know if I strike, it will cut.
Ender said “nonlethal,” so I can’t exactly shoot them, which would be ideal.
The tip of a practice knife bounces off my vest. I’ve never been more glad to be overdressed. That would have left a bruise.
Aric’s fist flies in my direction. I duck and leap away from the girl they partnered with, whose leg flies towards my ribs. I use my blade to slice her stomach, watching the blood trickle from her wound.
Rei clips my shoulder, and pain blooms across my skin. Aric and the girl attempt to grab my wrists, but I evade their hungry grasps and kick the girl’s ankles out from under her. She falls on her back, and I sink my blade in her thigh.
She howls in pain. Rei looks furious that I’ve stabbed her friend.
Others join them when they’ve bested their opponents. It’s five against one. The Gifted don’t like that I’m still standing. It reflects poorly on them. They’d rather fight each other after they’ve put me down.
“Get her,” Rei says.
I turn, prepared to run and put some distance between us, while I brainstorm a way to win, when Spider drops in front of me. My pistol is in my hand before I register the movement, the barrel stopping inches from his chest.
Spider slowly lifts both hands, grinning.
“Nonlethal,” he reminds. “Put it away.”
I contemplate shooting him in the face to wipe that smug look off.
“You’re kind of scary; you know that?” Spider says.
I click the safety. He has seen nothing yet.
“Enough,” Ender says.
I lower the gun and step back. My pulse roars in my ears.
I glance back to face the vicious-eyed recruits behind me.
They want to finish me, and they are so close, too.
I’m a decent fighter, but I’m not arrogant enough to think I could face all of them and come out victorious. They would have beaten me to a pulp.
The platform lowers, making me slightly dizzy.
Ender approaches, boots echoing on the stone floor. He studies me with interest. My chest is rising and falling rapidly, and I can’t quite catch my breath. Not to mention my ribs ache, and my legs are sore and twitching.
“Acceptable,” he says at last.
Spider leans forward to whisper in my ear. “That’s high praise.”
I didn’t even sense him approaching. He walks like a ghost. And smells like green apples.
Ender returns to the wall.
“Training resumes,” he says. “We will continue until I am satisfied.”
Shoulders sag in disappointment, but nobody dares voice a complaint.
The room shifts, turning into an obstacle course again, and I swallow back a groan. I’m exhausted, everything hurts, and Rei and Aric are looking at me like a wolf would a lamb.
It’s going to be a long day.