[Now, open your eyes, my Armada.]

  Uan did as he was told and joined everyone in standing up.

  [Your first instruction is to run along the field you’re currently in.]

  Everyone did so, shaking the ground with their steps and filling the cool air with their breaths.

  Thirty minutes passed.

  And then sixty.

  Two hours.

  Then six.

  Everyone just kept running.

  Until the grass beneath their feet was turned into a mushy muddy paste.

  Uan was absolutely amazed by the fact that, even after running for so long, he didn’t feel even the slightest bit tired.

  According to Ardy, he had only used about 500W of his total Energy which meant he could keep going for another six hours.

  Those six hours passed and, after getting a warning message from Ardi, his steps started to slow as his energy signature dropped below 100W.

  It went all the way down to 10W and it’s here that people began dragging their feet.

  The weight of their new bodies became more evident and their breaths were hard fought.

  [Admiral Ardi may have given your new bodies but they have limits and, in order to understand them, you will need to experience them. When your energy levels drop below 5W, you will enter power-saving mode which will limit your movements and slow you down until your energy levels recover. This usually occurs during motion since Nanites are self-energizing but that function was disabled for the sake of today’s training.] Ardy explained and it was here, even as he steadily got drowsier and slower, that he realized the difference between Ardi and Ardy’s voices.

  Ardi, even though her every word was intentional and served a purpose, sounded youthful and almost playful.

  Almost as if she was a child who was elated at the sight of every new day.

  Ardy, on the other hand, was purely analytical.

  “Hang in there, guys!” Afilada wheezed as she ran by Uan’s side.

  Next to her were Saai and Gizagi who looked absolutely exhausted and were now slowly walking.

  Their energy signals then reached 3W and by this point, some people were starting to collapse.

  Uan watched as his vision darkened but even as his sensors blared emergency signals at him, he kept moving and as he did, his awe at Ardi’s control.

  It may have seemed simple but Uan saw right through what she was doing.

  Well, he saw through the purpose of this particular exercise.

  She was showing everyone their place.

  With this, everyone not only understood the heights of their new power, they understood just how low Ardi could bring them if she wanted to.

  All fifteen million of them.

  Uan found himself smiling as he fell to his knees.

  Ardi was just far too interesting an existence.

  One that the boy from LC-935 could never have even dreamed of.

  What is a word for something like this? He wondered as he fell to the ground.

  Oh, yes. He thought.

  “A God.”

  .

  ..

  Uan awoke with a groan.

  He opened his eyes to find that he was back in the sleeping quarters alongside everyone else.

  They all gradually awoke just as Ardy announced something.

  [Take it easy, your Nanites are slowly recovering the energy you lost. That said, you are now free to explore the base that will serve as the headquarters of the 5th Corps – Camp Xamsa. Those with a rank equal to or above Lieutenant are free to visit their offices.]

  “Guess that means no office for me.” Afilada softly laughed while scratching her head.

  “Whew! Did anyone else feel like we entered a new plane of existence after fully synchronizing with the Ardinite Network?” Saai asked from above. His bed was the one on top of Uan’s, not that there was anything to complain about.

  “It was definitely exciting!” Afilada nodded.

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  “I threw up a little,” Gizagi confessed.

  “While I cannot describe my feelings exactly. I don’t think I have ever heard of any person or entity that is capable of what we witnessed.” Uan growled.

  “Yea! Anyway, why don’t we check out the rest of the Camp. Ardy says we should be asleep in thirty minutes so we have a bit of time.” Afilada suggested and since Uan didn’t have a reason to refuse, he joined Saai and Gizagi in following their Sargent out of the main building and onto the field where they had run till exhaustion.

  “I know we already introduced ourselves but, since we’re going to be working together, why don’t we get to know each other a little better,” Afilada suggested but this just made Uan scoff.

  “To what end? All that matters is that we are able to perform efficiently in combat.”

  “That may be true but team synergy is key both in and out of combat. We’re not machines, ya know.”

  Uan was slightly taken aback by what Afilada said.

  While he knew that their brains were left mostly untouched, they were very far from what one would ordinarily call a human.

  But that much, he could grapple with on his own.

  What frustrated him a little was his superior’s attitude.

  While he understood that humans were social animals, he also knew that those instincts were secondary.

  A sword would remain deadly so long as its edge was maintained and that is what Uan felt like they should be focusing on.

  “I won’t argue about that but I feel as though what you’re trying to achieve could be more easily done through team-oriented training and studying-“

  “But that’s boring!” Afilada groaned before suddenly pointing at him.

  “Say, where are you from?”

  “LC-935.” Uan answered dryly.

  “Oh! That makes so much! No wonder you’re so stuck up!” Afilada snickered.

  “Yeah. Now that we know, understanding you will be a lot easier.” Saai nodded.

  “Yeah. You should’ve said that in the beginning. I sympathize greatly.” Gizagi said but all of their comments just made Uan bite his teeth.

  Of course, he knew what people thought of his home world and while he was generally immune to the opinions of others, it annoyed him to no end how everyone would treat him differently when they found out he was from the Lost Cradle.

  His people were thought of as idiotic savages, brutes from a collapsed world and while that wasn’t entirely false, he was obviously an exception.

  He wanted to complain but before he could, Ardy instructed that everyone return to their quarters.

  “Alright, men! You heard the voice in our heads! Let’s go!” Afilada cheered as she led everyone back inside.

  Uan grumpily got into bed and crossed his arms as Afilada wished her unit goodnight.

  He simply scoffed in return and closed his eyes.

  .

  ..

  Everyone was woken up after five hours of sleep and, after they all bathed in the communal showers, they tidied up their sleeping quarters, got changed into their second set of uniform while the first set was washed and made their way outside as the sun soared brightly above.

  Something else that Uan found fascinating was the fact that senior officers all the way up to the rank of Lieutenant General were training.

  He quickly realized that it was to build a sense of unity among the troops and welcomed the idea wholeheartedly.

  Everyone stood attentively at the assembly point.

  [The point you’re standing on marks the beginning of the Stress Test Course which is one hundred kilometres long. To your right is a grassy path that stretches out for ten Kilometres. Following it is a steep drop into a jagged concrete maze that is forty kilometres long. Mounted atop pilots from this point on will be turrets which will fire live rounds at you as you run and while your Dermis will be able to absorb a significant amount of the damage you take; it is not indestructible so be advised. Next will be a dense jungle section that will also be forty Kilometres long. It is filled with heavily augmented Fauna and Flora that will hamper your progress so be advised. The final stretch will be a ten-kilometre sprint across terrain that is desert-like only it is actively heated and dehydrated to push you to your limits. To simulate a worst-case scenario, we will be deactivating Energy Regeneration so keep that in mind. That said, as you all currently are, you do not have to eat but ingesting organic matter will help recover some energy which can help when you’re on the brink. Everything you need is in the provided backpacks at your feet which contain a combat knife, twenty meters of rope each and a one-litre container.] Ardy explained as everyone carried their plain grey backs on their backs.

  [And one last thing. Friendly Fire will not be tolerated and any infractions will result in immediate punishment. Now, begin!]

  Everyone broke into a sprint and some people even fell as everyone tried rushing past each other.

  [Remember, it’s not a race to see who can finish the course first but a test to see just how well you are adjusting to your new bodies and how you work not only as individual units but as a Battalion.]

  “You heard the lady, slow down!” Afilada snapped but this confused Uan who frowned in response.

  “We can be fast and cautious, you know.”

  “I do. I also know that taking our time and reacting proactively rather than reactively will save us a lot of pain down the line. So slow down!”

  Uan bit his teeth but did as he was told.

  Maybe it was his competitive spirit but he agonized every time another unit passed his.

  It wasn’t long before they were in last place and this infuriated Uan.

  “Alright. Now that everyone is gone, let’s continue our chat from yesterday. What did we learn?” Afilada asked as she lightly jogged in line with her men.

  “We learnt that Private Uan was from LC-935!” Saai happily recalled.

  “Good and what about you, Saai?”

  “I was born in the wonderfully barren world of BA-7021! Not much water to go around but it’s stuffed with all sorts of minerals and stuff!”

  “Why are you always so damn cheerful?” Gizagi groaned.

  “Don’t be mistaken! I am quite fatalistic but there is much wonder and joy to be had in every day, haha!” Saai bellowed.

  “And you Gizagi?” Afilada asked and it’s here that Uan realized that if his Sergeant really wanted to know where everyone was from, she could have simply asked Ardy instead of doing this tedious dance.

  “I’m from DM-82. We have… sand. A lot of sand. It’s mostly desert.” Gizagi droned as the unit ran across the vast field of grass.

  “Neat! I’m from PAP-1717 which is a Port World so this is the first time I’ve seen so much grass in one place!” Afilada smiled making Uan roll his eyes.

  “Alright. That’s enough chit-chat, let’s pick up the pace!” The Sergeant barked.

  “What happened to slowing down?”

  “I just wanted to annoy you!” Afilada stuck her tongue out at Uan before sprinting ahead.

  “Oh, it’s on!” Saai giggled prompting Gizagi to follow closely behind but all of this served to further confuse Uan who eventually sighed in defeat.

  He then joined his squad in a forward sprint.

  They eventually caught up to some of the slower teams and it was here that Uan noticed that Afilada was completely quiet.

  Her brow was low and her eyes were sharp.

  A fierce expression that was becoming of a leader but this confused Uan even more.

  He wondered where this new version of her was coming from.

  It seemed as though, even while being her usual annoying self, every decision she made centred around her men.

  She was far more calculating than Uan initially thought but a deep uncertainty lingered.

  Her troublesome personality made him think about things that were quite foreign to him.

  Trust, loyalty and comradery.

  Things that he had since cast aside.

  He bit his teeth as he realized why Afilada frustrated him so much.

  She was forcefully trying to establish those things among her men.

  But to what end? He wondered.

  What was there to gain in forming any sort of connection with the bag of meat that could be blown to bits in combat?