The siren's high-pitched screeches nearly gave Chase a heart attack. He'd awoken just in time to see Rex fall off the top bunk and land on his face. Exhausted moans filled the room prior to the horde of sleepy and tired cadets drowsily beginning their morning march from the barracks. Needless to say, adjusting to a new schedule was tough, especially when it started with seven consecutive laps around the entire base. Those who couldn't keep up received the punishment of two hundred pushups only to resume the exercise thereafter.

Rex's lungs caught ablaze. His endurance training wasn't enough to prepare him for this hell. And this was just the beginning of their day. Once they finished the morning death jog as well as eating breakfast they'd been instructed to report to the collection of stone buildings at the heart of the cavern. This would be where they'd receive further education regarding the Outside World in addition to basic seeker related information. This included hand signals, combat formations, fauna and flora, so on and so forth.

What really piqued Rex's interest was the introduction to the exos suits. It wasn't your typical body armor. Far from it. This highly advanced piece of technology allowed for a seeker to freely roam the Outside World with little to no trouble in addition to containing a variety of useful tools and features. When the time came they gathered atop the training grounds plateau. A tan-skinned commander marched in front of them, black eyes glaring intensely. His angular face kept void of any emotion until he spoke, or rather, shouted his first words.

"My name is Commander Dorvan! Henceforth, you shall refer to me as such! Understand, cadets!?!"

"Yes sir!" the crowd hollered.

"I've been entrusted to teach you lot how to use an exos suit, the pride and glory of the Seeker Corps. They expect me to turn you useless brats into dependable seekers! If you want my opinion, I think it's an impossible request!" He stepped closer to the first row of cadets, singling out a dark-haired boy. Spit flung off his lips and onto the poor soldier's face as Dorvan roared, "I mean just look at yourselves! Do you honestly think you'll be able to survive the horrors of the Outside World?! A guy like you would be killed the moment he steps foot out there!"

"S- Sir?" the boy uttered.

"You heard me!! I can see it now! You're falling behind because of your exos suit malfunctioning! Left all alone until the elements kill you or you become something else's lunch! Such is the fate for each and every one of you maggots! You're scum! No, I'm mistaken, you're worse than scum! If you lot are the kind of people Sanctuary has put its faith in then truly all is lost!!" He paused for a brief second, a toothy smirk widening. "However, if you allow me to properly train and teach you, following my instructions to the T, then you might just survive! Either way, it doesn't erase the possibility of death! Even I could perish!! But until that happens I will strive for greatness as I assume you'll do the same!" His foul glare appeared once more. "On the other hand, prove to me you aren't putting in maximum effort and I'll personally drag your ass back to Sanctuary myself!! Do you get me?!!"

"Yes sir!" the cadets barked.

"Very well. Without wasting any more time, I present to you your tickets to liberation!"

A small party of seekers approached them, each pushing a trolley carrying a sole exos suit. Under closer inspection, Rex realized they differed from the suits he saw in the past. For starters, they weren't armor but sleeveless torsos. What the hell? Rex waited patiently for his own to arrive, eager to fully identify the blanched futuristic hauberk. When a seeker did present him with one Rex swiped it off the trolley. At least he would've if the torso hadn't weighed as much as a stallion's storage unit. How did they expect him to wear something in which he could hardly lift?

Even so, the metal torso certainly was a marvel to behold. Although, before he'd the chance to properly inspect it a pair of seekers quickly raised it above him. Rex slid his head and arms through the respective openings. Spawning from these openings were white-colored particles which gradually covered his arms and legs. The particles then solidified, matching the torso's attire. In a minute, Rex donned a proper exos suit, his head being the only part of his body left exhibited. He stared at his now gloved hands, moving his arms and raising his knees. Amazing, it's so much lighter. Did it adjust to my physique? The trio of blue streaks on both sides of his waist suddenly illuminated along with the diamond-shaped emblem on his chest plate. Startling him, a needle attached to a cord popped out the nape area of the suit. The piece lodged its way into Rex's implant, the boy clenching his jaw as the neuronic waves pulsated through his brain. Unbeknownst to him, his eyes momentarily gleamed sapphire, flashing three times in a row before stopping.

". . . Strange," an uncomfortable Rex uttered as the Seeker Corps' emblem appeared in front of him. He soon noticed how the suit had enhanced his vision. When he focused hard enough on a specific object or person blurbs of text would appear, providing him with a brief analysis of whatever he was staring at. Additionally, the suit allowed him to see incredibly far. He stood near the ledge of the plateau yet he could clearly make out the obstacle course on the opposite side of the training grounds. Blinking confusedly, Rex muttered, "Augmented perception? I've only read about it in books. The mechanics must've used some kind of-"

"Something bothering you, Cadet Rex?" inquired Commander Dorvan, seemingly appearing out of thin air. He towered over him, a giant glaring at a quivering ant. 

"No- Nothing sir! Just getting used to the suit-"

"In case you haven't realized, everyone is doing the same thing! Stop making a scene! Stand straight until I give you further instructions! I don't care if you're hurt, sick, or simply need to take a piss!!" he screamed loudly, spit flying from his lips. "Do I make myself clear?!"

"As clear as can be, sir!"

Chase rolled his eyes. Leave it to that moron to piss off an instructor on the first day of training.

Standing nearby was a snickering Zeke and an annoyed Maria. In fact, the two had been there since the start of the lesson. Maria needed to fill a report for Commander Keith who'd been summoned by the general. Zeke, however, stayed solely to laugh at the terrified recruits.

"Hahaha! Dorvan's got them shaking in their boots!"

"Pay attention, it's more than a simple intimidation display. Overwhelming them with fear lets him determine who is and isn't easily staggered under extreme or intense conditions. The unphased are more than likely used to dealing with situations much worse."

"So in other words, he's testing who has the largest pair of balls!!"

" . . . Yes, if you want to look at it that way." She watched as the commander picked a boy off of his feet, shouting at him as he remained suspended. "Or he's just insane."

"Ha! I like to think this is his sick sense of humor!!"

She directed a glare at the commander. "Why are you here again?"

"Got bored. Heard screams. Came to laugh."

When Dorvan approached Chase on the third row he said nothing. He passed him by without giving the cadet so much as a glance. Chase Hunt, huh? He reminds me of her in many ways. With a grunt, the commander returned to the front. "Alright maggots! I'll now explain how they work! I'm not repeating myself so open your ears!!" he barked. "These exos suits are powered by the e-cores located inside the chest plate's sigil. Despite this, the suit is more dependent on your ability to control it than anything else. The neuro conduits plugged into your implants can read the directions and commands stemming from your cerebellum. It then translates those thoughts for the suit thus giving you the ability to control its features using your mind alone."

Rex couldn't comprehend everything at once. A piece of technology capable of essentially reading one's mind sounded a little far fetched. Was it actually possible?

"Before we try anything else, we'll start with the basics! The exos suit responds best when it receives distinctive orders. The more uncertain you are the more likely it is for the suit to overload or malfunction." Dorvan pointed to a boulder ahead of them and said, "Without moving, concentrate on getting to that rock! Construct an image of speeding vanward in your mind."

Chase closed his eyes and did what the commander told him. To his shock, a pair of box-shaped engines ejected from the rear of his shoulders. They whirred to life, Chase sensing the heat of the miniature boosters caressing his neck. It took Rex a little longer than everyone else but, eventually, he managed to conjure his engines. Next, Dorvan instructed them to move the engines up and down or side to side. This is stupid, Caiden told himself. Nevertheless, he obeyed. As did Alex, Barry, Chase, and Aaron. Unfortunately, Rex desperately struggled to command them, barely getting them to move an inch. What Chase had told him the night before rang through his head. This was their first day of training. He couldn't fall behind this early. Rex glanced at Seth in the row ahead of him. He whistled as his engines rotated in circles with his arms crossed.

How the hell is he so good at this?!!

"Listen up, maggots!" Dorvan shouted. "Your next exercise will be to safely travel to that spot over there!" Commander Dorvan pointed to the end of the plateau to a pair of red marks painted on the wall. "Allow me to demonstrate." The man got into a crouched position, his arms orbiting his waist whilst he bent his knees. To Rex, it looked like he was sitting on an invisible stool. "This is the standard starting position, at least when you're freehanded. Once you build enough speed and momentum ascertain you don't move sporadically. Extend your arms behind your rears and keep your chest poked out." he explained. "If performed correctly, you'd look more or less like me."

His thrusters ignited. Expelling from them were two brilliant blue flames. With a grunt Dorvan shot from his spot, kicking up a mountain of dust at the cadets. When he gained enough speed, Dorvan stayed true to his instructions and slowly transitioned out of his original position. With his arms stretched behind him and an upper body bending frontward the man bolted forth in a burst of speed. It took him less than half a minute to reach the other end of the hundred-meter track. Before getting too close to the wall he began decelerating, his body leaning backward in order to reduce his celerity. He tapped the wall before rapidly looping around and returning to them in a flash. All the while the silenced cadets watched in amazement as their instructor stood before them brushing away the dust cloud. "See? Nothing to it!"

"How cool!" exclaimed Barry.

"He would've had to muster a lot of concentration while simultaneously directing where he wanted to go," Aaron analyzed. "Incredible."

"Pfft! Show off!" Zeke snarled.

Crossing his arms, Dorvan announced, "During these coming weeks we'll be focusing on maintaining constant and continuous control. Your first order of business should be mastering the basics, understand?! Now let's get to work, cadets!!"

"Yes sir!"

Rex swiftly learned Commander Dorvan wasn't a liar. The following days were purely dedicated to properly managing their suits. Training boiled down to completing different exercises designed to improve each individual's maneuverability. First there as the obstacle course, a track looping around a collection of massive rock pillars. A certain number of cadets had to continuously boost around it for a specific amount of time. It was a lot more difficult than Dorvan originally made it seem. There were also relay tracks. As the name implied, a pair of cadets had to speed to one end of a five hundred foot dirt trail and return so their remaining teammates could complete it as well. Victory went to whichever team finished first. The kicker, at the halfway point lied a cluster of lengthy stalagmites. This meant the racers were forced to reduce their speed as to not accidentally crash.

As challenging as these exercises were, Rex wished he could partake in them. Lamentably for him, due to his failure of completing the first task, he was forced to stay behind under the surveillance of Commander Zeke. It was the same drill Dorvan had done during his demonstration. He simply needed to speed to the cavern's wall at the end of the track and touch it without losing control or crashing. The problem for him happened to be his inability to properly coordinate the engines as well as their output. Commander Dorvan explained his entangled emotions were hindering his performance. Yet again, his incompetence at grasping his feelings acted as a roadblock.

In another attempt, Rex soon discovered whenever he focused on moving not only would the engines appear but the bottom of his boots became covered in metal plating. Said metal was apparently so smooth it allowed for easy transportation. In spite of that, they did little to put an end to his plight. Once again his legs buffered, his arms breaking the X formation in favor of flailing to the side. Rex collapsed shortly after.

"Dammit!" he shouted.

"Phew! You're getting better and better," Zeke grinned. "At eating dirt, that is!!"

Rex returned to his feet, cursing under his breath. This put a huge dent in his plan. He couldn't understand why he was struggling so much. All the other cadets had moved on while he stayed here getting teased by a drunkard. Wiping the dirt off his chin, Rex jolted towards the wall again. He felt the wind brush against the sides of his face as his surroundings devolved into numerous blurry shapes of color. He saw his target, the crimson markings beaconing for him. This time! This time for sure! It got closer and closer, victory within his grasp. However, he did not receive the results he craved. The engines suddenly began to spew streams of smoke, Rex immediately losing the speed he'd built up. Before he could recover the helpless cadet slammed into the rocky wall, falling onto his behind as a trail of blood left his nostril.

"That's gotta sting," Zeke yawned.

Commander Keith watched from the edge of the plateau alongside Maria, the woman busy jotting down notes on her miniature holopad. "He hasn't gotten any better, has he?"

"No, sir. Unlike the other cadets, he's having trouble with the first exercise. It's been this way for the past five days."

"I see. Maybe if I-"

"Help him? You know as well as I do this is something he must overcome himself. If it was one of the more difficult challenges I'd have no problem, however, this is different." She averted her attention from the downed seeker, returning her gaze to the device she held. "A seeker's first hurdle is special. Cadet Rex must persevere if he wants to survive."

Rex pounded a fist on the floor in frustration. A bored Zeke stomped towards him shaking his head and sighed, "Come on, kid. Get up already. For your information, slacking off is my job."

"So- Sorry sir! I . . . I'm trying to get the hang of things."

"It's taking you a while, don't you think? That brother of yours isn't having too much of a hard time. I mean just look at him." On another activity, one where the cadets had to lead up and down the pillars at the center of the disc-shaped obstacle course, Chase soared gracefully through the air. That exercise introduced to them the air projection system, a feature which expelled wind currents out holes at the bottom of their boots. Chase made use of it by flying over the heads of his fellow trainees. Although, he nearly kicked an unsuspecting Barry in the process.

"Hey! Watch where you're going!"

"Whoops! Sorry, Barry!"

Zeke smirked. "He's rusty but nowhere near as terrible as you."

"He's amazing . . . I have to catch up fast."

"Well, you better hurry. You don't want Dorvan to cut you, do ya?"

Rex's eyes widened. "What's that supposed to mean?"

The drunken commander's grin grew. "Did you already forget? I could've sworn he gave you the memo. Commander Dorvan is known for his ill-temper and abominable patience. If he thinks you're unfit to be here, in his eyes, you have no right being a member of the Seeker Corps." His horror-struck heart pounded vigorously against his chest. I'll be . . . Cut? Rex felt a lump form at the back of his throat, sweat trickling down his forehead. "If you don't start shaping up soon, Cadet Rex, you'll be stripped of your status as a seeker and forced to return to Sanctuary forever."