Carla and Xavier headed south to see if they could find a flag or a place that a flag might be hiding. They came across a field of cacti, and Xavier showed her how to tell which ones were good, which ones were about to die, and which ones were not quite ready. He then proceeded to coach her on how to pick one without getting pricked, and which parts were best for food. She was incredibly receptive and enthusiastic.
About an hour had passed when the two of them made their way back to the cave. They were met by the smell of roasting vegetables and meat. David and Emily revealed a few rations of compact meals that would give them another day of food. After three days, they would be on their own.
They finished their meals and headed south. As the sun rose, the wind picked up, and all of the markings Carla and Xavier had made, and the entire terrain they had read, became useless due to the wind shifting their path. They were just wandering aimlessly, and it was impossible to tell if they had come across any flags. Xavier shouted back to the group, telling them to head back to the cave. They stumbled around but were able to catch up to him.
The team was exasperated. Abaigeal released a loud and long sigh. “We cannot continue on like this all week.”
“Perhaps we can attempt another time of day?” Goma suggested. “We have a mission to complete, do we not?”
They were all in awe. Something had clearly happened to change Goma’s attitude. David shouted joyously. “I guess we are working third shift!”
Even Xavier was amazed at David’s enduring positive attitude and found himself challenged to be more positive. Within an hour they had dozed off. They arose at 8 p.m., and the fierce wind had turned into a light breeze. No one was excited about the lack of sleep, but they all knew survival was more important. They had just over five days to find three flags, and Xavier found himself invigorated by the challenge.
They headed south in the dark of night. It took a few minutes, but their eyes adjusted to the darkness. Hours had passed and they were approaching the boundaries of the desert line. In front of them was a forest of cacti, and in the middle they saw a green flag. Carla asked the obvious question that was on everyone’s minds. “How are we going to get it?”
Xavier and the rest of the group thought for a moment. “How would you extend your reach?” he asked.
David’s eyes lit up with an idea. The group watched him work, helping where they could. Within minutes he had used scraps to build an intricate device. With Emily’s help, they were able to pluck the flag out of the center of the cacti forest. Xavier looked at David puzzled; his ingenuity was on another level.
Carla was working with Lena to pick some cacti fruit. She was showing her how she could tell if it was healthy, dying, or not ready for picking yet. She made eye contact with Xavier, who was watching her with a huge smile on his face. Xavier was impressed. He was happy this team had stepped up in the most difficult of circumstances.
They made their way through the desert to the nearest cave. The sun had risen at the end of their day and the wind had begun to grow ferocious. They stumbled into the cave and after a quick breather, Xavier stood up, muscles feeling torn, and addressed the group.
“I know we’re all tired and sore, but we don’t have time to think about it. Every time we stop and make camp, we have to sort through the supplies we have and scour the area to find more. If we don’t plan properly, we could all fail and it will be the end of our time here.”
They all nodded in agreement. Xavier, Emily, and David searched their supplies as Abaigeal and Fina looked for more resources. Emily pointed out that they only had enough water for the night.
“Are we going to have to go back to the forest to refill?” she asked.
“We cannot do that. We will lose too much time if we do,” Abaigeal called out.
“Not exactly…” Goma said. “We only need to find soft sand. If we can dig one to two meters, we will find water as long as we are near vegetation, which we are because Carla and Lena found cacti.”
Fina and Abaigeal found soft sand in the back of the cave. “You mean sand like this?” they said in unison, pointing out the sand Goma had described.
Several of the recruits hurried to Fina and Abaigeal and began to dig as Goma, Carla, and Lena worked on a fire for dinner. After a couple of hours, the team had dug three meters into the sand and had a pretty full well. They ate and were able to reserve enough water to refill everything they needed to. After dinner they all passed out and enjoyed a long sleep.
Xavier popped up with urgency. He checked his watch which displayed how much time they had left. Rousing everyone awake, he announced that they only had fifty-two hours to find the remaining two flags.
They rushed northeast towards the mountain ridge that separated the forest and the desert. They combed and rummaged every section looking for flags with little success. For sixteen hours they were unable to find anything—not even a base camp. The wind and sun were beating them down until their bodies couldn’t take it anymore. Systematically they all passed out.
Three hours had passed when Xavier awoke, and Fina woke up next. They all began to get up and shake the sand off of them. The wind had slowed down and the sun had shifted. After a few minutes of moving slowly, they were able to find another cave.
“Oh, look…another cave,” Xavier said sarcastically.
Emily frowned. “We should probably eat,” she said, feeling defeated.
“Do you think there’s latkes and rugelach in that cave?” David joked.
“Mmm…rugelach and gefilte fish,” Abaigeal chimed in.
“With matzah ball soup,” Fina added.
“I would be satisfied with schnitzel or roulade,” Lena stated.
They amused themselves with their goofy food ideas. Once they arrived, they all plopped on the cool cavern ground, and Carla pulled out their supply of fruit.
“Or we can, you know, just eat more fruit,” David said, laughing.
The group wearily stared at each other, eating their fruit sluggishly. Goma got up and stared in the back of the cave.
“Would you look at that,” she said, pulling a second green flag out of the sand in the back of the cave.
The energy was highly kinetic as they laughed together. Xavier jumped up exuberantly, full of adrenaline.
“We have thirty-four hours left! Let’s make this happen!”
For several hours they made their way all the way to the back of the desert. Fina drew everyone’s attention to the top of the ridge. “I think I see something up there!”
The group rushed to her side looking up in the direction she was pointing. They confirmed that what they saw was glimmering, but it was too dark to make out what it was. It was after four and the sun would be rising soon, and they all elected to wait until it did so they could see it clearly.
They rested for almost two hours when the shine of the sun woke them up. As the sun’s light stretched, it revealed that on top of the mountain ridge there was indeed a green flag. They all searched for something that could help them climb up the mountain, but there was nothing. Fina spoke up.
“Maybe we could go back to the island and get some climbing gear?”
“It will probably take eight hours to get back to the island, and assuming they even offer those supplies, we are going to have to set it up and get back. We only have eighteen hours before that elevator picks us up,” Xavier explained.
They all stood around for several minutes trying to develop a plan. Xavier continued staring at the flag.
“I’ll get it,” Xavier said.
“You are going to free climb ten meters for a flag?” Emily inquired.
“With joy. That’s our mission.”
“Estas loco,” Carla stated.
Xavier laughed. “Nah. It’ll be fun.”
“Go for it!” David exclaimed in support.
“What do you need from us?” Goma asked.
“Catch me if I fall,” he said with a smile.
“Stop! This is mad!” Em
ily shouted.
“I got this.” Full of confidence, Xavier began to analyze the mountainside. There was a ledge protruding about eight feet up. He looked at David. “Give me a boost.”
David nodded and positioned himself. Xavier inhaled and exhaled a few times, and then closed his eyes. He took three large steps back, ran at David, and jumped onto his hands. David lifted as Xavier rose. He flew through the air and cleared the ledge.
Before moving again, Xavier’s eyes hunted the entire mountainside for the best route and he began to climb. The edges were small, and required greater strength to grip, but they were just big enough for his hand. The footholds were also small, but his balance was impeccable.
He began maneuvering like a wiz. He twisted from one rock to the next and turned from one angle to another. He was sidestepping from ledge to ledge, bouncing off of several footholds to gain a better position. This went on for a couple minutes. His muscles were beginning to strain, but he knew he had to push through. He only had one shot at this.
His team was amazed. His climbing was like an art, and he made it look so easy. Xavier was suspended twenty-nine feet in the air, and his position was precarious. His back was to the mountainside. He was about three feet directly under the top of the ledge where the flag was, and the team was directly under him, prepared to catch him if necessary.
His arms were outstretched. He had nothing to rest his feet on and was dangling from the mountainside. Xavier closed his eyes and took a couple of deep breaths. In a quick motion, he pushed off the mountainside and brought his feet over his head in a smooth flip. The team was holding their breath as they watched him. He flopped on the top of the ledge stomach first as pain shot through him. His head and arms were looking down at the team below him, and they were all looking up at him in shock. He smiled at them and they exploded in applause.
Xavier rolled over proud of himself. He was exhilarated and full of adrenaline. After catching his breath, he sat up, a sense of urgency swelling through him. He grabbed the flag and slid it in his shirt as if it were a sword.
Taking the same route he took up, he climbed down the mountain, which seemed significantly easier than going up. Within minutes he was back on the ground. Everyone surrounded him, giving him hugs and pats on the back. Emily gave him some water as Carla checked on his health.
He was sitting with his back up against the mountainside breathing heavily. Pacing his water gulps knowing they had a limited supply. Once he finished his water, he was back to business.
“We have less than seventeen hours to get back to the island. A storm is coming, and if we stay along the mountainside, we should be okay. Once we get past the mountain, we are going to have to make a beeline straight for the bridge.”
“Do you not need a few minutes?” Lena asked.
“I’m good. I can rest once we get back to the mansion—”
“—we have a job to do,” Goma interrupted with a big smile, finishing his sentence.
Xavier looked up and they all laughed together. The team stayed along the mountain for as long as they could. Once the mountain was behind them, they focused on going straight. The wind was blowing against them, but not as hard as it had been all week.
For a few more hours they struggled forward, encouraging one another along the way. The bridge was within eyeshot, and they all dashed towards it as if their lives depended on it. They crossed the bridge onto the island full of relief.
The same five recruits were still camped out on the island. Xavier was frustrated with them but was far too tired to worry about it. Xavier, David, and Abaigeal jammed the three green flags into the ground next to the blue flags. They had survived, with five hours to spare.
In a matter of minutes, all eight of them collapsed and blacked out and were awakened by the sound of the final food delivery. The thirteen recruits ate light but drank bottles and bottles of water. As they finished up, Oscar and his crew of thirty-five recruits came tumbling across the bridge with frozen beards, sharing jackets. Oscar and Charlie were carrying the purple flags, and they jammed them down next to the three red flags.
Xavier reacted mockingly. “Well, this is surprising. Surely the greatest recruit in the history of the Crimson Force didn’t get beat by the barbaric American?”
Charlie lashed at him. “Listen, hoser! Oscar is the future of this force! You, you are a poor nightmare that will soon be forgotten!”
Oscar stopped him. “Charles. You did well, American. I am positive you offered some help to David.”
David started to respond. “Actually, he did—”
“It’s okay, David. I’m sure the rankings will tell the story,” Xavier said, confident that everyone on his team was going to get a good score.
Xavier and Oscar measured each other, both of them wanting to finish at the top of the class. The groups intermingled. David went around talking to everyone and telling stories of their adventures. Xavier sat off to the side alone, wondering what it was going to take to finish in first place.
An Italian woman named Maria approached him. “Are David’s stories true?”
Xavier smiled to himself. “He likes to embellish.”
“Well, the stories are good. I judged you too soon. I apologize.”
Xavier nodded gratefully towards her as her friends called her back over to them. The clock struck four and the elevator descended. Captain Jaheem and Commander Pak met the recruits as they re-entered the mansion.
“Congratulations, recruits. You survived your first bit of training. As I said before, we will only be keeping ten recruits, two per squad. Tonight there will be a large banquet at 1800 hours. The first ten eliminations will take place tonight at 1900 hours. Take the rest of the day off. Lunch will be served at 1200 hours. The Captains and Commanders will be unavailable, as they will be divulging their ratings for the rest of the day. We will see you in The Great Hall at 1800 hours.”
And with that, all the recruits dispersed to their rooms for some much earned rest.
Chapter 13
August 8th 2062 4:30 p.m. (Day Fourteen) Crimson Manor, Berlin, Germany
Dinner was fast approaching. Most of the recruits spent the day sleeping. A group went to a nearby market place, but Xavier spent the better half of the day wandering the halls, trying to learn where everything was. He had one more sophisticated outfit that he could break out for the dinner. He stared in the mirror, fighting his thoughts. He felt he did more than enough to move on to the next round, but it seemed as though most of the group hated him.
He was unsure if the Crimson Force would rank based on popularity or skill. He had hoped he didn’t have to play politics and suck up; it was too much like that in the military, and the only time people were on a level playing field was on a mission. His desire was to be the best, beat the best, and end the tyranny of the worst. He hoped that was the desire of the Crimson Force.
As he finished getting ready, his heart began to race with every step he took, pulling him closer and closer to the next round of the training. The scent of steak and venison lured him in. He was so ready for meat. He had lost weight in the last two weeks but was excited to get back to working out and putting it back on. Just then Captain Stanley passed Xavier and greeted him.
Xavier saluted and was about to turn when he stopped himself. “Captain Stanley?”
He turned around, making eye contact with Xavier. “Yes, Mr. Phillip?”
“Why did you bring me here knowing I would be hated, exiled, and ridiculed?”
Xavier struggled to hold his composure as frustration built up inside of him. Stanley sensed his frustration and responded curtly.
“Recruit Xavier Phillip, I do not need to provide you with an answer. I need you to mind your place. Out of respect for you, I will answer your question, though.”
Xavier shut his mouth instantly, as he remembered Captain Stanley was one-sixth of the governing body of the United Nations.
“My job is not now, nor has it ever been, to recruit the mo
st likable person. My job is to recruit the best fit for my team and the most transcendent warrior I can acquire. I believe that is you. You have barely begun, and I am going to need you to stop getting so bothered by what other people think and perform to the best of your ability. In time they will all come to respect you. You have greater things to concern yourself with. Now, if you will excuse me.”
Xavier saluted until Captain Stanley departed. He then looked down at the ground trying to gather his thoughts. I am whining, he thought to himself. He looked up as he realized he needed to step up his performance. Captain Stanley’s words were humbling as they echoed through his head. A burst of pride shot through him, and he made the decision to be himself and break every record they had.
The dining room was buzzing with life. All the recruits were refreshed and ready to tear into the meal that awaited them. Xavier found David and they sat with their team of survivors. Their appearance was far different than the exhausted, scraggly look they had when they were trying to survive the desert; they were all dressed to the tens. After some time, Commander Fernandez walked in. Xavier was drawn to her. He still hadn’t spoken to her, but every time she stepped into the room he was captivated by her.
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