Reyn looks up at the imposing structure rising before him, gleaming in the morning sun.
It was beautiful to behold as it reached into the heavens, sunlight dancing across its hundreds of windows. Another triumphant display of human engineering, he thought, pondering its construction.
He wonders if its builders knew what horrors it would hold.
"Greetings graduates!"
A booming voice breaks his train of thought, startling him from his latest fixation, and bringing to silence the rest of the graduate group.
"For those of you who don't know me, I am Glenn Foster, Senior Officer for Aetheric Integration and Training here at GAARD, the Global Agency for Aetheric Research and Defence. I'll be overseeing your stay with us during your integration period. I think I speak for all of us here at GAARD, and perhaps all of humanity, when I say we are very excited to see the results of the Brannon-Brook initiative. We have high hopes for your performance at today's assessment."
"The Gatling Gun!"
"I was completely obsessed with his team when I was a kid…" Another chimes in as the group breaks into murmurings.
"Settle down future recruits." His powerful voice booms again.
"I know you're all excited to see the results of your hard work and training, but first, why don't we start with a little tour of the place, eh?" Glenn proclaims with a hearty chuckle.
He theatrically swings his arm toward the entrance of the GAARD HQ's main administration building while sporting a wide-mouthed smile.
He continues to congratulate the group as they move along the perfectly pruned gardened path of the GAARD facility's entrance. The picturesque surroundings of the main administration building was a stark contrast to the militarized-fortress motif that seemed to enshroud the rest of the establishment.
Reyn inspects Glenn Foster closely, his tremendous stature and short silver hair basking effortlessly in the sunlight, a warm smile barely hidden behind a thick beard. A presence exuding confidence and authority.
Reyn turns his eyes back up to the towering headquarters of GAARD. Nestled deep into the foothills of the Tahtali Mountains of central Turkey. The Mediterranean sea could be seen reflected clearly in the windows of the upper floors, while the peaks of the Tahtili towered over the Agency complex from behind.
The GAARD Headquarters featured an almost 10km-square, heavily fortified, multi-purpose complex consisting of several buildings, facilities and courtyards. All surrounded by a 8 meter tall, steel-reinforced, electrified, concrete perimeter wall and extensive security and surveillance.
In the center of it all stood the main administrative tower, 25 floors above ground, and 16 below.
"At least 16 that the public knows of." Reyn humors himself, contemplating what secrets the Agency held in its hidden halls deep below them.
"Move ya ass, plug! You're getting left behind. Again!"
"Yeah, Gaz."
Reyn mumbles back at Ghazal Merkaan, a 19 year old Pakistani-American. Reyn's closest friend since his earliest days at the Academy and the only thing that kept him from spending most of his Academy days buried in books or plugged into training simulations.
Socially unfiltered and morally unrestricted, Ghazal is the complete opposite of Reyn's more introverted nature, yet the two men had grown to share a brotherly bond over their 3 years at the academy.
"My little sidekick ain't shitting his pants already, is he?" Ghazal laughs, slapping Reyn across his chest.
"Don't worry princess, you know the Great Ghazal's always got you covered."
Reyn winces, choosing to ignore his friend in favor of one last glance at the world around him. Somewhat mournful of the simple life that was stolen from him since being conscripted into the academy.
"Seriously though, you're sure you're up to this Reyn? I gotta imagine you freaking out a little right now. That stoney face ain't fooling me."
Ghazal hooks his arm firmly around Reyn's neck and pulls him close as they move toward the administration building.
"I know you stressed, brother, but we got this, ok. Just do the breathing thing. Four seconds in, Four seconds out. Deep and slow." Ghazal said, mimicking the breathing motions while forcefully tugging Reyn along.
"You've got this, right?"
"Ugh, Gaz, stop. I'm ok. I've got this. I'm good. Quick assessment, couple months of training and then a slow, painful death. Why would I freak out?"
"That's my boy! Victory or Death!"
Ghazal punches the air then wraps his arm around his friend.
"And I'm sure there's nothing to be worried about. ARCH-types, they're linked to the psyche. Mental fortitude and whatnot. So it'd make way more sense for someone like you to get a support type, right?"
Ghazal confidently proclaims, slapping Reyn firmly on the back now.
"Right! I bet ya 20 creds you're gonna end up as some kinda support lugging around our weapons or something."
"Oh god!"
"I'm sorry, but your ass ain't gonna make it a minute on the frontline. The Aetherian gods gotta be cruel to give you an offence type. Support makes way more sense."
"Right… why does that kinda feel like an insult though?"
"Just the truth, brother. You got a strong mind, I'm sure you'll have a good resonance… but you're just not built for battle. Probably trip over your own thoughts if they weren't stuck in your head."
Reyn sighs, it was an unbearable fact, but still the truth. He spent countless hours in training simulations, perfecting every aspect of his combat abilities. Theoretically at least.
In reality, he could never find consistency, his mind always lost between the options and possibilities on the battlefield. Unable to hold a natural rhythm.
"But, you being mommy's little princess and all. Maybe you'll get a cool hybrid-type like her? Or something freaky like that dude that can fold shit. You see that? He was nuts in the Berlin battle last year! Ripping up etties left and right, that shit was brutal…"
Reyn could barely focus on Ghazal's diatribe. Ideas had already been digging their way into his brain. Breaking through every mental barrier he had prepared for the day. He was lost in his own thoughts again, processing all the probabilities, all the possibilities, the ways the assessment could go wrong.
"What if I have no resonance?"
The thought sent a shrill down his spine, draining ever more of what little hope he tried desperately to cling onto.
"Oh god, you're doing it again! C'mon! Snap out of it, plug. You gotta stay focused, man."
"Doing what? I'm fine."
"Doing wh - Um, using that freaky-smart little brain of yours to think up every… single… possible way that everything could all go wrong today?" Ghazal groaned, poking Reyn playfully against his forehead.
"I - ah, fuck. Yeah, ok. You're right. It's just a lot ya' know. It all comes down to this. I don't know if I'm ready. I really want to make her proud, but I..."
"Screw that negativity, bitch! Reject the impossible!" Ghazal proclaims, his chin held high.
"Victory or Death!"
"Argh, stop that!"
"Then get your shit together. You're here cause you've already proven yourself, right? You're worthy! And we didn't suffer 3 years of Brannon-Brook fucking mind-raping us to give up now! So nut up, soldier!"
"Yeah, your right Gaz, your always fuckin' right."
"Of course I am, princess."
Ghazal laughs, increasing his pace as he pushes Reyn along.
"But forgot about all that, Looks like this thing's getting started. Let's go!"
Reyn relented, plugging along as his friend forced him through the crowd to the front of the group.
"This way graduates!"
Glenn Foster beckoned to the 16 members of the group. The first group of graduates to emerge from the recently erected Brannon-Brook Academy.
Opening its doors almost exactly 15 years after the First Gate incident, the international academy was created to educate and train future Archaners. Owned and operated by GAARD, it used the Aether-Affinity census, part of the global conscription drive implemented shortly after the First Gate incident, to find its prospective students. Focused on people between the ages of 15 and 25 that show high aetheric aptitude.
Students of Brannon-Brook are trained for 3 years, their body and minds molded for maximized ARCH-Type resonance. GAARD believes this process will produce archaners with higher innate aetheric resonance and capabilities. Improving its ability to suppress the ongoing invasion.
"Welcome."
A gentle voice beckons as soon as the group enters the large automated doors of the administration building. The busy lobby inside featured all manner of displays and decoration along its entrance path, and just beyond the doors, a woman stood patiently awaiting the group's arrival.
"It's my pleasure and privilege to introduce you all to Agent Linda McCain." Glenn exclaims, gesturing the group's attention toward the short, slender, middle-aged woman clad in the typical sleek-black formal-wear adorned by most agents of GAARD.
The etchings of her ARCH-unit could be clearly seen beneath her short, dark-blonde hair.
"Agent Linda McCain is a stalwart of the organization and my right hand. She will be your first point of contact during your first few weeks here at GAARD. If you have any questions, please direct them to the ever-accommodating Agent McCain here."
"Thanks Glenn, charming introduction as always." Agent McCain responds with a sarcastic leer.
"Always a pleasure, Lin." Glenn replies in kind.
"Well, that's it for me, folks. Got a couple of motivation-lacking conscripts I gotta whip into shape. I'll be leaving you guys with Linda here, she'll guide you through the rest of the introductory process and get you set up for your assessments. Good luck, future recruits! REJECT THE IMPOSSIBLE!"
Glenn punches his fist into the air triumphantly as he walks away from the group and back towards the building entrance.
"VICTORY OR DEATH!"
~ SHABOOOOOM~!
A tiny airburst explodes at the tip of his knuckles, rupturing through the lobby like a sudden gust of wind. The shockwave of air startles the group, flinging hair and personal-belongings, while knocking some members a step back. The reverberations rattles through the building lobby.
Glenn's ARCH-unit could be seen glowing ever-faintly through his suit.
Once outside, he steps one foot firmly into the air.
Swirling molecules support him as he rises to weightlessness. He blasts off deeper into the base in a burst of vibrations that seem to tingle every muscle in the graduate's bodies.
"And that's our Gatling Gun Glenn for you." Agent McCain said with a sly grin, waving down her blown-back hair and settling her suit.
"That man's gonna be the bane of your existence soon enough. I'd try staying on his good side while you can.", her grin widening with the friendly allusion to the graduate's fates.
McCain turns her head toward the lobby ceiling and gestures for the graduates to do the same. The group tilts their heads up in unison, some eyes widening in awe.
"Above us, we see the world's largest mural of the famous painting by J.P. Shulzer. 'Victory or Death'. Already considered one of the greatest artistic works of the 21st century." McCain explains proudly.
"A powerful dedication. A testament to one of the most important moments in recent human history. The moment Strike Team Captain Joseph Brannon and the members of Black Fennec brought down the Geo-Construct and secured the liberation of Bangkok during the Fourth Gate incident."
The mural displayed a sight familiar to most people on Earth, but one that Academy students would see everyday in the main assembly hall of Brannon-Brook. A masterful recreation.
"Reject the Impossible! Victory or Death!"
The words stood immutable, etched boldly into a striking banner beneath the mural. The famous battle cry uttered by Vice-Captain Mitchells to the members of Black Fennec before their final confrontation with the construct, and now the official motto of GAARD's Strike Teams.
The agent continues her lecture regarding the event, going on to describe the 2 week battle that would finally end in the construct's defeat and the collapse of the Fourth Invasion Gate.
"You ever get tired of seeing that?" Ghazal whispers to Reyn over his shoulder.
Reyn shrugged.
He couldn't deny the fact it was an impressive installation. Even though it hung more than 15 meters above them, Reyn could clearly make out every detail of the artwork.
The rubble of fallen buildings, the mutilated remains of fallen E.T.A.E.s scattered across the scene. Joseph Brannon standing triumphantly over the fractured core of the defeated Geo-Construct.
Behind him stood the members of Strike Team Black Fennec, including Vice-Captain Lunara Mitchells. Reyn's mother.
"Still, it's gotta be hard. Your mom was a freaking badass, bro! Left some pretty big shoes to fill. I kinda feel bad for you. You know I love you bro, but you ain't no Queen of the Elements."
"Yep… just a paranoid, indecisive nerd." Reyn groans.
"Oh c'mon… your mom was a biologist before all this started. Paranoid little nerds have been saving humanity since day one. Might just be your turn soon, plug."
"Does this look like the face of humanity's saviour?" Reyn grimaces, pointing to his chin.
Dark curls hung sloppily over the 21 year old's forehead, his long tanned face adorned with brown eyes and a thick, dark brow. His head hung unnaturally low, heavy with the weight of anxiety. A conventionally attractive appearance, but one constantly contorted by deep thought.
"Oh god… you're right. Might as well throw your pluggy ass into the next invasion gate."
"Not if I toss your hairy ass in first, douchenozzle!"
The two friends push and nudge each other playfully as they stumble behind their group.
Agent McCain finishes her spiel on the mural and moves the group along, explaining the histories of the various exhibits that lined the lobby as they moved deeper into the building.
"The Shimmer Cube!" Reyn spurts out, almost involuntarily.
His eyes were fully captured by the brilliant kaleidoscope of coloured light dancing from a display along their path.
"Pretty convincing, right?" McCain exclaims proudly.
"Took us a while to get the light fragmentation right, but still, it's nothing compared to the real thing."
The group huddles around the lobby's main attraction. In it, a semi-translucent cube span, its interior a blur or shimmering colors. All suspended in an oscillating display of dazzling light.
"It's a fascinating piece of our human history. A nearly complete visual replica of THE Lunar Artifact. The original Aetherite specimen. Discovered during the Apollo 15 lunar mission of 1971, the Lunar Artifact, commonly known as the Shimmer Cube, was humanity's first introduction to Aether. It would take 20 more years of intense study and research of the cube before we would even begin to discover its Aetheric origins and harness its potential to bend and transcend the limitations of our reality. Through the inspired contributions of Dr. Yar…"
"Merde! Quelle perte de temps! Enough with the information dumping, just take us to the damn assessment, lady."
"Shut the hell up Fontaine!" Ghazal yelled.
He reprimands 22 year old Frenchman, Lucien Fontaine, a fellow graduate, known for his short temper and penchant for disregarding authority.
"Let the lovely lady do her job, you uncivilised Frenchie!"
"Garce insolente!" Lucien whimpers.
"Please excuse our uncouth classmate. The resonance plays with his mind, you know. Please continue, Miss McCain?" Ghazal grins sheepishly.
"Thank you Mr. Merkaal. And it's Agent McCain."
"As for you, Mr. Fontaine", the agent turns her attention to Lucein.
She lifts her right hand as her ARCH unit starts glowing. With the twirl of her finger, Lucein is lifted firmly into the air and dragged through the group. His body is held in place by the aether that has infected the spaces between every atom touching him. The agent's telekinesis moves him effortlessly till he is suspended helpless before her.
"Your behaviour today will be noted." Agent McCain snarls.
Lucien averts his gaze and pouts his lips.
"Insubordination will not be tolerated here at GAARD. We have rules and you will respect them!"
"Apologies, Agent McCain." He sulks.
The agent drops him to his feet with a delicate thud.
The agent leads the group further along the displays of the GAARD administration building lobby, doing her best to regale the graduates with the history and happenings of the agency.
A question pops out of the group.
"Do you really have living etties here?"
"Ha!" The agent chuckles, turning her attention to Reginald Maudeen, one of Lucien's lackeys.
"Right, Ettie's, one the more common terms used to describe our enemy. Officially called Extra Terrestrial Aetheric Entities, or E.T.A.E. I prefer the term Aetherians myself." The agent shrugs.
"I can officially confirm that GAARD is the official and exclusive proprietor of all Aether and Aetherian matter on Earth, as was mutually agreed upon by all nations of the 3rd Annual I.G.S.I. conference. However, I'm afraid any further details on this area of research and investigation are highly classified. You'll be duly informed should the situation require."
"Of course." Reginald sneers.
The group follows the agent as she continues her presentation.
"And we have here, an example of the first iteration of the Aether-Resonance Cognition Harness. The Aether Purge System. Created almost 30 years ago at the CARD facility at NASA. Spearheaded by the brilliant Dr. Yaroslav Ravinok."
The agent points the group to a small cylindrical display covered in thick glass. Suspended in the middle of it was a replica of the original APS.
It is a biomechanical augmentation harness that connects to the brain stem, accumulating aether absorbed into the user's body, and automatically purging it into the surrounding environment when bodily concentration levels become too high. An invaluable tool in humanity's study and understanding of aether, and humanity's first steps into enabling human-controlled aetheric manipulation.
"Developed first as a means of protecting scientists involved in Aether research and investigation from the dangers of Aether Induced Meta-Psychosis Syndrome. The device would evolve into the ARCH units we see and hear of today, used by many of the brave men and women working to keep our planet safe as part of the Invasion Gate Suppression Initiative."
McCain proceeds to guide the group past several more displays including more recent versions of the Arch unit, a cursory display of more than 15 wax replicas of E.T.A.E. specimens, as well as some of the specialized Aetheric-based equipment and weaponry developed in-house at GAARD.
"And that concludes our little tour for today."
McCain sighs with a smile as the group reaches a dark corner of the lobby. Before them stood a pair of large metal doors.
"Ok ladies and gentlemen, beyond these doors we'll be moving into GAARD HQ proper. Before we do that, I need you to understand what it is we do here." McCain says, her warm welcoming expression shifting to seriousness.
"Here at GAARD we take our work seriously. Our mission, our purpose, it's the only thing keeping humanity from being dragged off to whatever god-forsaken wormhole those demons keep coming from. But those monsters aren't the only ones we need to worry about. We've got plenty of our own right here on Earth."
Her face turns to a scowl.
"If the research we do and the things we hold in this facility got into the wrong hands, the invasion gates would be the least of our worries. So I need you to respect the gravity of what we do here at GAARD. A moment of incompetence…"
The agent's words fill the air with unbearable tension.
"I'm sure you all remember the incident after the Seoul gate 5 years ago. More innocent lives lost to a single rogue archaner than the whole of the Tenth Gate Invasion!"
The agent focuses her gaze around the group, looking each member sternly in the eyes.
"Understand, the moment we attach those units to your bodies, you're no longer just humans. You're archaners, you're humanity's first and last line of defense. You have a responsibility to your species. A responsibility we will ensure you uphold as members of GAARD."
Her eyes harden with intensity.
"You belong to GAARD now! If at any moment we feel you pose a threat to our mission, you will be brought down without hesitation. Do you understand?"
Her humble voice was dripping with intimidation. The students struggle to respond.
"DO YOU UNDERSTAND?"
Now less a question and more a roaring command.
"Yes, sir!"
The group responds in perfect unison, almost through instinct. Their academy training breaks through the stress and tension of the situation.
Reyn was no different, he stands erect and to attention with the rest of the graduates. Their heads held firm, eyes fiercely focused forward. They had heard this all before during their 3 years at the academy.
Constant reminders that their lives now belonged to the Invasion Gate Suppression Initiative, their courage and sacrifice now a tactical requirement to the defense of Earth. The illusions of choice long since buried deep in their minds, the product of rigorous training and re-education. They were ready to be forged as weapons of war.
"Good, then let's go. We shouldn't keep Dr. Ravinok waiting."