Chpt 2: A secret group in the military, what unit will I go to?

Blogger's Notes: So sorry for the lack of updates, i have taken up a one month job at Chinese Garden as a Lion Dance Performer. Its a very taxing job and by the time i get home at night, i am pretty much too beat to write anything. So as a special, today i will not only update one blog, i am going to update all of them!! so here goes!

4.00am in the morning...

"Wakey wakey Kaine!!" quipped George.

"Ugh...4am already?" groaned Joe.

Its been a week since Joe went into XXX camp but he still is unable to cope with the daily normal training. Struggling out of bed groggily, he got washed up and ready for morning PT.

Falling in a straight line, the Officer in Charge began the training. For starters, they ran nonstop for 2hrs, followed up by countless repetitions of body conditioning exercises.

Stopping at 8am for breakfast, the whole platoon were perspiring like pigs.

"Is it just me or are we all still unable to take this training?" Joe asked.

"I think its just you, all of us have more or less settled down." George replied.

"What? Kaine still still can't take the training? Jeez you are weak, how the hell did you manage to get here in the first place?" sneered someone from behind.

Rolling his eyes, Joe turned to face the leader of a rival platoon, Kevin Ng. They had hated each other the moment they saw each other during the orientation. Since then, they have tried all ways and means to life hell for each other.

"At the very least, I am glad I am not like you, muscle head." Joe rebuked.

"Smile while you still can, see you later for The Test." Kevin said, walking off with a smug look on his face.

"The Test?" Joe asked, puzzled.

"Didn't you know? The Test is an individual thing that determines where we will be posted." Jimmy Lin, another member of the team.

"Yeah, rumor has it that this is no ordinary camp. This is a training facility for some secret regiment in the army..." Kim Kang Rong, a Chinese Korean whispered.

"Where did you hear that?" Joe asked.

"From that jerk Kevin when he was talking too loud. Seems one of his relatives holds a high end position so he gives Kevin lots of inside info." Kang Rong answered.

"No wonder he has been putting on airs about how great he is. Jerk ass." Joe mumbled.

"Alright Recruits!! Gather for a briefing!" The Officer in Charge announced.

All the recruits rushed to their positions and stood at attention.

"Listen up! I will not repeat myself. Later when you return to your bunks, on the top of your beds is a note telling you the time to report for The Test. Failure to attend or late-comers will be dealt with accordingly..." the OC announced.

"Tch, that jerk Kevin must be blowing up like a balloon now." Joe grumbled.

"...also, this may be the last time you will be in the same bunk as your current bunk mates so enjoy whatever time together. There will be no training today until the test is over! That is all! Fall Out!" the OC finished.

Returning to their bunks and enjoying the short company of Kevin and bunk gang, they peered at the notes found on their beds.

"What the...12am in the morning!?" Joe exclaimed. Looking at the others, he saw that everyone had some weird but mixed timing .

"This feels like we are back in Primary or Secondary school." Jimmy commented. Everyone mumbled in agreement.

Spending the rest of the day getting to know each other better, they played truth or dare until only Joe was left. No one came back from the test. They must have gone straight to their new bunk right after the test. Joe thought.

At 11.30pm, Joe got up, packed his stuff and headed off to the test location. Before he reached, he put on a protection amulet shaped like a flying dragon that his mother gave him before he entered the camp.

"You are early Recruit Kaine." a high pitched voice squeaked behind him.

Whipping around with his fists raised, Joe was shocked to see the freaky doctor standing in front of him.

"You!? What are you doing here?" he asked.

The doctor did not reply but walked past Joe and entered the building which is to be the testing grounds of which he spoke:

"Come now, we can start early to finish early...This time you will remove that bandage, I promise you."

Joe could a cold chill run down his spine. Mustering his courage, Joe stepped into the building. Inside, he saw only a single passage towards an exit which he passed and was greeted by a large dome.

Awestruck, Joe stared at the view in front of him, How come no one noticed something like this inside the camp? he thought. Looking forward, he saw the OC, the doctor and a group of other officials. Walking forward, he reported in for the test.

"Good, you are very punctual Recruit. Now here is the first requirement of the test..." the OC started. Joe waited patiently but suddenly what the doctor said came back into his mind.

"Strip." OC finished in a straight voice.

"Ex...excuse me?" Joe asked, taken back. Boy, how could he have not seen that coming? He gave a quick glance at the doctor whose was grinning blatantly.

"You heard me Recruit. Strip, all the others before you also had to do it." the OC sternly said.

"Everything?" Joe asked nervously.

"Just leave your underpants or whatever on. Everything else, off." the OC replied.

Reluctantly, Joe took off all his clothes, leaving only his under garments on.

"I said everything Recruit." the OC spoke, staring at Joe's bandaged hands.

"But.." Joe protested.

"No buts, DO IT Recruit." the OC ordered.

Joe glumly removed the bandages, revealing the Mark of the Phoenix on his hand. Satisfied, the Oc continued the explanations of the test. All Joe had to do was enter the dome and complete the obstacle course. He will then be graded and posted immediately.

While Joe tried to digest all the information given to him, the doctor edged closer to Joe and began a full body checkup. Joe was so uncomfortable that he had to fight the urge to wallop the doctor as he groped every inch of his body like Joe was a piece of meat on sale.

Finishing the checkup and declaring that Joe is fit for the test, they opened the door for him. Entering, Joe saw a simple obstacle course and was surprised. As he turned to ask if that was it, the door suddenly sealed itself shut and Joe could not find a slightest opening on the smooth surface of the dome.

Facing the obstacle course, Joe took a couple of steps forward and suddenly, the ground cave in below him. Barely catching himself in time, Joe struggled for balance and peeked below him. He saw jagged spikes and the skewered bodies of several people he saw within the camp.

"Whoah!! What the fuck is this? This is a test? Fuck, its a fucking execution death trap!!" Joe hollered and clambered to safety. Scanning the dead bodies, Joe was relieved that none of his former bunk mates were there.

More cautious now, he took some stones and threw them in random directions in front of him. Sure enough, several stones triggered deadly traps and Joe could feel the cold sweat on his bare back......

An hour has passed and Joe was barely even halfway near the damned obstacle course. Dodging traps has really taken a toll on him, even the daily training they had been subjected to seemed like a walk in the park.

Outside though, the examiners seemed to be enjoying a good show.

"Incredible, even without using 'It', he has survived. All the others before him had already awakened 'It' by now." one of them said.

"Didn't I say so, this one would make a fine subject for further studies. He has phenomenal athletic capabilities but unless he uses 'it', I fear...." the doctor replied.

"Indeed, he will not survive this course." another examiner agreed.

Back inside, Joe was struggling to get to the obstacle course but had suffered several wounds due to misjudged timing on his part. His exhaustion was also preventing him from properly escaping the traps.

Suddenly, he felt a strange sensation coming over him. Then, a giant spiked ball with a diameter of at least 2 people came crashing down a slope that appeared from the ground. Joe attempted to roll out of harms way when he bumped into a concrete wall that had burst from the ground.

Looking around, Joe found he was trapped and the only to escape is upwards. But that is humanly impossible! To reach that height is one thing, but to get enough hang time to stay in the air long enough? But now is not the time for thinking so Joe took action.

Recalling the feeling he had when he jumped over a car, he leaped with all his might and tried to focus on staying in the air. To his surprise, and the examiner's amazement, he not only leaped over the ball, but managed to stay afloat for a few seconds well over the time after the ball passed him.

Landing back on the ground though, Joe winced as a sharp pain curse through his entire right arm, originating from the palm. Staring at it, he saw the Mark glowing and burning again. Taking deep breaths, he pushed back the pain and made his way forward.

With this new ability on hand, Joe found it easier to progress through the traps by jumping over some of them. However, every time he tried to utilize this ability, his right arm would feel pain but he tried his best to ignore it. On another hand, each time he rested, Joe noticed a significant increase in the recovery rate of his body.

Just as he was reaching the obstacle course, the whole dome was filled with alarms. and explosions could be heard every where.

"What is happening?" exclaimed one of the examiners.

"I don't know but for some reason, the systems seems to be overheating but i can't shut it off!" the doctor cried.

Inside, Joe was surround by falling debris and in the process of attempting to escape, had his leg caught by one of the debris. Just has another was about to fall on his head, crushing it, Joe raised his right arm instinctively and an unseen force blew the debris away.

Stunned, Joe barely had time to recover when larger chunks of debris came crashing down. Imagining a wall, in front of him, Joe could feel something taking shape and true enough, the debris were stopped in mid air.

It was then Joe realised how heavy the debris were as he could feel something pounding in his mind and as more debris piled up, the more painful his right hand hurt. His body covered in sweat now, Joe fought against the pain, know that if he let his guard down now, he would surely die and he would not have that.

As time pressed on, Joe could feel the pain on his arm reach new heights and he nearly lost consciousness. That momentary lapse in concentration caused the wall to weaken and nearly crumble. Just then, Joe could feel the burn spread from his palm to the rest of his hand and he could see the Mark expanding and covering his arm with strange line and fire started to emit from it.

Suddenly, a bright burst of light revealed the flaming bird entity enveloping his arm and emitting a force that blew all the debris plied on top of him like they were just dust in a sand storm.

As the dust slowly cleared, Joe saw the examiners rush over to help him and they were awed by the magnificence of his burning right arm. In his head, Joe could feel some strange thought waves from his right arm, saying that Joe is safe now so it will take its leave.

As Joe wondered what it meant, the flames suddenly extinguished themselves and his right hand returned to normal. Turning to face the examiners, he asked:

"So, did I pass? Where will you post me to?"