The night passed quietly. From across the room, Jay murmured mantras under his breath, reading from a worn book.
This was their last night before being sent beyond the wall.
So far, the Hail had taken control of around sixty percent of the continent. Small villages had either buried themselves underground or fled toward the capital.
The distant memories flared back into Alan's head as he tried to sleep.
"The mission is over."
That was vague. Was it a success? Failure? He didn't know.
The other lines made less sense.
Reinforcements?
The worst part was that if things or people failed or died because of his influence, he would lose points.
As the thoughts clashed in his mind, he slowly drifted into sleep.
As the sun rose against the horizon, a giant cloud dragon could be seen flying over the main training compound of the land-based military.
Along its spine sat a five-section concrete command complex, bolted into its scales.
In the foremost building, a gruff man could be seen smoking a heavy cigar. His mouth was torn, and his teeth exposed on the left side.
"General," A young woman spoke while sweating. "Nimbus is approaching the landing zone. Should we send word to Sergeant Kahn?"
A raspy reply shot back. "No, I need to speak with him privately." He slowly took his embroidered Jacket off. "I'll be back."
As the words left his mouth, a hatch above him slowly opened.
He quietly placed his cigar into the ashtray to his side and vanished.
Inside the commander's barracks, Khan sat while reading a book to pass the time, his long hair flowing down his back.
If someone saw him now, they would assume that he was a scholar, not a military sergeant.
"Kahn." The general spoke outside his door.
Khan's eyes widened for a second before quickly placing the book down and greeting his superior.
"Greetings, General Illum."
The general's eye twitched before quickly shooting him a dumb glance.
"Why are you putting up the act of a good soldier now?"
He quickly rubbed his eyes as he walked into the room and opened a bottle of Elderwheat Bourbon.
"General, I was saving that for when Alexi- Cough Cough, for when General Jakobs returned from her mission."
Kahn's eyes drooped slightly as he stared at the bottle being downed vigorously.
"So," General Illum's eyes softened for a moment. "How is your group? Do you trust them enough to survive?"
Khan quickly picked his book back up, finding the page he lost. "As long as all of them listen to their leader, they should live."
"Hmmm," General Illum glanced out the window for a moment, his gaze looking towards the recruit dorms. "Is it the blonde-haired one?"
"No. The dark-haired one." Kahn pointed to the boy lying on the cot, reading a tactics book, twirling his finger over the page.
The general quickly sent a probe of energy at the boy, but the boy instantly shot up, bewilderedly twisting his head back and forth.
"He's very sensitive, he will be a good scout if he lives."
You will meet them all tomorrow. Why are you testing them now?
Khan couldn't help but question this strange general.
He had asked for the strongest squad of my batch to do a deep mission, but he would reward them with double supplies upon completion.
Whatever, this will be a good test for this group.
Khan had taught countless groups here at the Wall. This group may be special, but Kahn had seen groups like theirs before.
[Ding!]
[Host has drawn the attention of a major character!]
[+5 pts]
Back at the dorm, Alan was currently sweating profusely.
While lying in bed reading through the system, he had felt an incomparably strong fluctuation of energy come after him from afar.
What now?
He shot up from his bed, glancing around the room.
In the distance, the entire commander's barracks was covered in a heavy crimson light.
Alan's heart quaked for a moment.
Who?
But just as he was asking the question, the light vanished.
So many random things have been happening recently.
Alan gave up on understanding it.
—
The sound of trumpets blasted around the entire military base.
In an open field, a giant parade of young men stood in formation.
Organized by age, each class had around 200 members, totaling around 2000 recruits this quarter.
A beautiful young woman walked up to the stage in the front, cheers echoing from the crowd she walked by.
"Hello, young recruits." Her voice soothed the noisy atmosphere immediately.
"Welcome to your first and last graduation ceremony." As she spoke, the eyes of some recruits glistened.
"Some of you may know me. My name is Geargia Walters. A lieutenant of General Illums Nimbus' unit."
"On behalf of the Military and the Frontier Guard, we welcome our recruits to the world."
"To commemorate this new beginning, starting this year, the first successful mission of any squad will allocate diluted dragon blood to its members."
She took a moment to let the words sink in.
"Every Hail you kill on your first mission will increase your share."
She rattled off different things for certain groups, but the main thing was certain. If you support the military now, the military will support you.
The once glistening expressions of everyone turned even more excited. Dragon blood? The majority of people had only heard of such a product, reserved for only the upper class.
Even some of the nobles in the crowd were shaken.
Dragon blood from one hail beast?
If I had known it was going to be like this, I would've enrolled my entire family.
Alan's group was more controlled, they already knew about the blood.
If only thirty percent survive, it's still hundreds of vials. Will they be able to collect so many?
Even Alan was lost on this concept.
Behind Geargia, a giant head poked up over the field.
Some gasped, the others cowered, but almost everyone shrank upon seeing the massive creature.
Wings spread out over the crowd, small water droplets started raining above them, dripping from the clouds lining the wings of the dragon.
Above its head, a lone figure could be seen.
With a cigar poking out of his ripped mouth, he spoke downwards, his voice carried by his energy.
"Today marks the day humanity begins its ascent against the beasts of the hail."
"May the dark tide be swept away by humanity's prowess."
Instantly, cheers erupted from below.
"For humanity!"
"For freedom!"
Alan just eyed the being above.
That was him.
The energy from this morning was him.
The sense of foreboding was the same, that eerie feeling at the back of his head told him it was him.
Soon, the wings of the dragon retracted, bringing the red sun back into view.
The figure on the dragon vanished, reappearing atop the stand next to Georgia.
"Today, your drill instructors will pick you up to get ready for your first mission."
"May Glory come to those who win."
With the final statement, both Georgia and Illum left the stand, leaving the recruits to socialize and start collectively marching back to their respective dorms.
Beyond the stage, two figures walked away from the crowd, their backs carrying an invisible weight.
"Georgie." The General's voice sounded lighter than before. "Are we the good guys still?"
"What do you mean?" Georgia's face looked confused. "It's just a bunch of recruits, if they survive, they get to be a part of the greatest generation. If they die, they will be remembered as heroes who allowed the humans to take the first step back at the Hail." Her tone had no remorse as she spoke.
The General glanced at her but said nothing.
If this plan fails, I'll burn that nest myself.
Back at the dorms, the boys slowly gathered their things.
"We know our mission." Alan started, giving each boy a look before continuing. "Even if you fail, you must live. I have been getting premonitions that these first missions aren't exactly survivable."
Each group member gave Alan a confused glance before nodding. They were going to prioritize themselves anyway, no need for the pep talk.
A smooth knock resounded on the door.
Following the knock, a figure stepped in.
Slow footsteps echoed into the room until they came face to face with a beautiful woman.
"Lieutenant!" The group quickly stood at attention.
"At ease." Her voice was cold and rough, the opposite of earlier.
"I was told by instructor Kahn that your mission was already semi-debriefed."
Alan nodded, explaining what he knew about the situation.
"Good."
She then handed each one of them a small stone with an adhesive gum-like substance on the back.
"These artifacts are produced by the military's leading engineers." She began.
"They allow instant capture and messaging of various sounds and notes."
She quickly demonstrated to the group.
"Each of you will report to your leader, who will then report to me."
She then handed a closed file to Alan.
"This is all the data we currently have for the area we want you to scout."
In the folder was a small but detailed map of the terrain, various hazards, and three small yellow circles for where she wanted the group to be stationed.
"For counting kills…" Alan quickly asked, which surprised Georgia.
"Collect their left thumbs, if they do not have one, collect their right ear." She explained.
"Why are we reporting to you and not to a lower echelon for our first mission?" Alan questioned, trying to probe why they were meeting with such a high figure on their first mission.
"No comment." She replied.
The others asked similar questions, but she only gave vague answers.
Only now did they understand Alan's earlier words. The theatrics, the rewards, they were to up-play the current situation.
They were desperate.
"Do not overestimate yourself." Her voice pulled everyone out of their spiraling thoughts.
"I will give you one piece of advice," she turned around and moved to the door frame. "Survive."
With that, she beckoned them to follow, leading them to the dragon pad landing area where Nimbus was currently sleeping.
"Get into this van. Once you hear a chime come from the circular bell on the ceiling, group one will step out and move to quadrant A3." She then laid out specific instructions for the three groups.
"Do not engage unless cleared by either the squad leader or me, understood?" She glanced at each member individually.
"Good."
She soon took a step out of the sealed van.
"Ah," she almost forgot. "Please wear those belts on the side, it'll hurt if you don't."
Each member immediately put on the weird vest belts and positioned themselves in their groups.
The Van door slammed, sending the interior into complete darkness.
Outside the van, small straps latched onto the van's underchassis, linking to a small hook attached to Nimbus.
With a heavy yawn that sucked a few clouds out of the sky, Nimbus stretched its wings and took off.
The once peaceful landing pad erupted into cries as multiple dragonoid species harped at the giant dragon leaving.
With a short ruff, the dragon shut them all up.
Its eyes glared out into the distance, where a black storm surged in the sky.
Foul beings, corrupting my sky with that puny storm.
One day, I shall cast a storm that swallows them whole.
With a triumphant smirk, it lifted its chin as if it had already done that task.
"Nimbus."
A voice called out into his head.
"Illum?"
The dragon used a projection to glance at the General.
"I haven't explained this to you yet because I know you love humans." The general pulled out a cigar cutter and snipped the end of a new roll.
"Those humans will all die within a week."
The words hit Nimbus hard, similar to when his older brother used to strike him with lightning.
"Dead? By whom? Who do I have to kill?" Incredibly angered, Nimbus slowly started darkening in the sky, scaring some weaker soldiers.
"Me," Illum spoke indifferently.
He had always fought for every human life with nimbus since he was born.
This monstrous cloud glutton had never even eaten a human before.
"Why?" Clouds below Nimbus's stomach started raining, as if crying.
"It was the only option." Silence descended, the look in Illum's eyes said he was not going to explain anything else.
A small bolt of lightning struck a nearby hill, small sparks spraying from the impact.
The projection dissipated, returning to the main body.
After the stray bolt, the trip returned to a relatively peaceful flight.
Within the van, the boys had steeled themselves.
Alan's face portrayed no emotion, but inside, he was still thinking about countless scenarios.
"Alan." Bryce called. "Do you truly think the military is sending us to die?"
Alan's gaze passed over Bryce momentarily.
He didn't want to think that at all.
But all signs pointed at that being the case.
"You heard the lieutenant." He responded. "Survive."
With that, the relative silence followed until the first group was about to be deployed.
Ding.
A smooth chime resounded around the inside of the van.
"That's the signal." Alan pointed out to the boys seated up front. "Jay, George."
With the signal, the boys slowly opened the door to the outside world.
The first thing all of them took note of was the lack of sunlight.
The Hail.
Yes, the Hail.
A Bio-Atmospherical disaster.
In the game, Hail were described as beings from beyond the dark clouds.
They first came down from black clouds that lined the horizon.
With the help of dragons, the storm had stopped moving towards their lands but now their threat covers half the continent.
Black snow drifted down from the sky as the first two boys stepped out of the vehicle.
"Transmit as much as you can with the artifacts." Alan's voice pulled them back to the mission.
"Check in every hour."
With the instructions given, the boys set off to find a spot to reside before the mission starts.
An hour later, Will and Peter set off as well, leaving only Alan and Bryce in the van.
As time passed, a familiar chime recurred. As the noise polished their thoughts, they set off from the bus.
As they stepped outside, Alan's eyes widened at the scenery before them.
To their right, a giant mountainscape that travelled for miles sat. To the left, a wild storm of black flurries congregated, purple lighting cascading around it.
The trees around them were taller than earths, at least 100-150ft into the air.
As Alan gathered his bearings, he tapped the rock behind his ear, a small beep followed.
"Group 3, touchdown."
"Group 1, gathered"
"Group 2, gathered."
"Good."
"Begin the mission."