#forwardtask2

Recruitment officers were crawling all over the academy, it seemed. He didn’t see them all the time of course, but whenever there was an opportune moment to show his skills and worth, Yuri seemed to spot a nearby officer to call over. Not that this bothered him—if he could showcase a number of his abilities to a different array of people, then all the better for him.

There was a bounce in his steps as he led the woman to one of the simulation rooms. “How’s your visit to the academy been so far?” he asked in an attempt to strike up small talk. Yuri steered the conversation as smoothly as he could, avoiding anything potentially sensitive and making sure to not let the silences draw out too long when they grew awkward. The recruiter appeared to respond well to it. Yuri couldn’t tell if she knew exactly what he was doing or not, but either way didn’t hinder him. “Anyways, let me just set up the stimulation and then we can get started.” They both laughed lightly as he punched in a set of buttons. Good luck, cadet. He needed less luck and more skill, and hopefully he had enough to impress the UNSC officer. The door slid up and he took a deep breath before stepping inside.

And promptly jumping to the left. The simulation wasted no time in testing his reaction time, but fortunately he had plenty of quick reflexes to dodge a majority of the jabs and swings at him. He ducked while simultaneously stepping forward to reach for the projection’s free arm and twist it behind its back. It never uttered a sound as Yuri brought out his knife and slashed it across the back of the neck. When he’d first arrived to the academy, the startling realism of the simulations had put him off at first. He could feel the weight of the projection against him, heard the body thump to the floor as he turned and swept his leg across the floor to trip another hologram.

Another quick lunge placed his weapon straight between the enemy’s eyes; the projection never stood a chance. The body suddenly gave way, forcing Yuri to slip out before the dead weight trapped him to the ground and the other projections seized the opportunity; then it would be game over. It disappeared in a flurry of pixelated light.

He heard a shot behind him just as he felt a sharp burn in his shoulder. Yuri lurched over, twisting his gaze behind him to spot a hidden projection before he promptly raised his arm and shot it in the head. Sometimes the simulation was just too damn clever with how realistic it could be. Rather than waste time muttering and complaining to himself, he jumped away to avoid a kick to the chest. Before the other could react, he stretched out his arms to reach for the falling leg and tugged it forward, forcing the projection to lose balance and fall flat on its back. Within seconds, he’d planted the blade into its throat.

Another mysterious shot, but it was the last one. One more enemy and the simulation would be complete. Yuri ground his teeth together, trying to spot the projection, but gloriously failing. He fell to the ground before the next shot could take him again. Precious seconds passed before he heard another shot and identified the final projection, and it was aiming its gun straight at him again. Sighing, he rolled away and went to his knees. Well, this knife was specially weighted, wasn’t it? He almost squeezed his eyes shut as he pulled his arm back and threw.

It was with a heavy heart that Yuri trudged over to the abandoned chess board. The cadet rarely attempted to play on his own, as he found it rather tedious and difficult to battle himself in a game of strategy and deception. He bent down to sweep up the board and pieces, strewn across the pristine floor. A bit too loudly, he placed the board on the nearest free table so he could swiftly move the pieces to starting position. His expression stoic—a rare sight, as he was usually bubbling with excitement and puppy-like grins—he began the game with the Ruy Lopez. The beginning moves were always the easiest, almost done out of rote memorization as the experienced rarely deviated from the usual chain. Each time he set down a piece in its predicted position, he immediately spun the board by the corner in order to counter appropriately.

“Mind if I jump in, cadet?” A deep voice interrupted Yuri’s thoughts and left the chess board spinning until a broad hand reached down to carefully grasp one of its sides. When the boy looked up, he found himself face to face with another recruitment officer. His demeanor morphed to suit the situation. Smiling genially, he held out a hand toward the empty chair.

“Certainly, sir. It’s black’s turn right now,” he replied. He lowered his head so he could examine the white pieces in front of him. Curious eyes wandered up to stare at the burly man as he moved a rook forward.

“Tell me, cadet,” the officer began. They exchanged one move after the other, almost as if they intended to end the game in a matter of minutes, but the rapid pacing set Yuri’s heart racing and his mouth stretching into a wild grin. “Do you play chess often?”

“It depends on what you mean by often, sir. I do play it a couple times a week, but sometimes more dependin’ on my mood.” The cadet answered faithfully. “I wouldn’t want to take too much time away from my schoolwork.”

He heard the grin in the man’s voice as the officer made a counter. “Speaking of schoolwork, how is it? Heavy burden on your shoulders?”

Yuri paused from the game, looking up to smile reassuringly. No matter what the cadet actually thought, the smile seemed genuine and the reply convincing, “Not at all, sir. I’m doin’ perfectly fine, and I have high hopes I’ll do well.”

The officer nodded. “Good, good, and on that note, what do you expect to be doing post-graduation?”

The conversation continued in that matter, with the man casually asking one question after the other and Yuri faithfully answering to the best of his abilities. He sat with his back straight and always grinning or smiling when he answered like he was in an interview, but the boy had a way of making it appear natural, like he always did it. Over the course of the questioning, the two had gone through a number of games, each with a unique strategy or set of moves showcased by one or the other. The cadet had even managed to steal a couple of wins from the adult.

"Cadet." One of the officers nodded as he passed her as she walked along the school. She nodded back. Though she did stop, it wasn't for the officer, who hadn't stopped her to speak with her. Instead, she stopped when she saw an explosion occur in building B. Her eyes widened as she saw smoke coming out, worried about everyone inside. She took a few steps toward the building, thinking of going in to help, but stopped when she heard another crash to her left and saw a vehicle, crashed and smoking. The front looked crumpled and she could see someone still inside.

Blythe didn't have to think twice before running toward the vehicle and prying open the driver's door. She could see now that not only one person was in there, but another one was in the passenger seat, their heads slumped into their chest. Unconscious, she would assume. This only made her act more hastily, but also more methodically and logically so her efforts would be well used.

She wanted to impress the officials. Needed to impress the officials. Sure, she was smart, but whenever people asked her questions about her future there were always holes in her answers. Not saying that she didn't know what she wanted to do after the Academy, but not saying that she knew either. It was an in between and she needed to find a way to impress them, so she'd invited them to watch her in simulation. She wasn't the best at combat, but she wasn't the worst at it either. She did have a brother after all. 

The simulation she chose was one that required a lot of mental ability to win. She'd chosen this one before and even if it was once she could remember most of it. So she started, fighting just as Thea had taught her. She dodged and kicked at the right time, though she didn't win all the battles, at least she didn't lose all of them. 

Blythe fidgeted with her fingers as she walked down the hall toward the room the officials had called her too. They always made her nervous. Not because she had anything to hide, but she always thought she was a bit like an outsider. She did want to stop the Insurrectionists, but not as much as other people did. Most everyone else had such firery hatred toward them she felt they were very different from her even when they might not be. She was here because of her family, and she would keep on going for them, but she was unsure of herself a lot and she didn't think higher ups like that.

"Alright cadets, these UNSC officers aren't here to watch you flop around or miss targets. They are here to see the universes best soldiers. There is a reason you are here and you better pull that reason out of your arse today. I am training you all in groups of two today so that they have a better look at you, this also means they will have more opportunities to see you screw up and if you fail, I fail." Thea spoke sternly but it was for their own good. She knew how serious these visits were, they weren't to be waisted. Her eyes went from Blythe to Aliya, both girls were talented she just hoped they could perform today. Although neither of them were her main concern, their skills could be more easily shown than her other freshmen cadet. Gerry was tough, she needed to find a way to get them to see his full potential. 

Thea led the girls onto the outdoor training ground. She could see the UNSC officers in one of the observation decks above. This was her first showing as squad leader, she couldn't mess up. Her squad was intelligent, the smartest cadets were at her disposal but unfortunately intelligence was much harder shown than combat, stealth, or weaponry. She figured a maze simulation would show their skills best. Walking over to the panel in front of the arena she set the dials to what she wanted. It only took a minute for the maze to begin setting itself up. Walls were raised out of the ground with droid enemies hidden within. 

"Well Cadet Carlin continue practicing." After her run in with Thea a week ago she had started to practice every morning. She still wasn't anything good or competent but she was able to hit the dummy without falling now. Concentrating on every movement instead of just trying to punch everything around her made her punched and kicks more precise and useful. Today when she had been practicing an officer walked in, she wasn't sure what she could do instead of just continuing to practice.

Setting up the simulation like the one Thea had made the other day she started, where Thea finished in a little less than five minutes it took her thirteen to complete. Fighting with one opponent was one thing but to have to look around and fight the best way to hit one whilst not allowing herself to lose track of the other one coming for her, required a lot more concentration and skill. Carlik looked back at the officer expecting him to have a look of disappointment on his features, she found a kind smile.

“Sir!” Yuri called out to the UNSC recruitment officer with a confident grin splayed across his lips. He waved an arm to catch her attention. The woman kept walking, but turned her neck toward the pair and adjusted her pathway accordingly. Hands are folded neatly behind her erect back when she strode toward them. She tilted her head, lips moving to form a question, “What is it, cadet?”

“Well, you’re here to observe our skills and such, right? I was just thinkin’ you might like to watch us train for a bit,” he answered, a hand motioning between himself and Michael. His expression changed suddenly, as if he’d just forgotten something. “I’m Cadet Yuri, by the way, and this is Cadet Michael.”

She nodded her head briskly, never losing her form as she gestured with one arm for the two to lead the way. “You are correct, and please, lead the way. May I assume you are about to begin weaponry training?”

The younger boy nodded, shooting Michael an easy smile before he led the group toward the appropriate area, a happy bounce in his steps while he held the S2 sniper rifle in his arms. He stepped onto the elevated platform and leaned over to grab a pair of glasses to don. Yuri hummed idly as he donned the protective eyewear. He rolled his neck, bones crackling softly as he eyed the targets currently hanging still in the distance. “I’m not very good with weapons, to be honest,” he admitted to both the officer and Michael. His hands firmly gripped the rifle when he glanced at them both before gazing at the dummies with an intent gaze. “Well, if it’s snipin’ I’m not a disaster.”