Metroid: The Last Aurealian *REWRITE*

The New Grind

My first task in training started with a scrap of metal junk.

"See this?" The Commander pointed to the metal sheet. "This is old scrap from defunct hydro craft carriers. I want you to scour the island and retrieve as many of these plates as you can. Place them in an orderly pile here. There should be no less than thirty pieces of scrap metal. Once that's finished I'll give you further instruction."

I nodded. Ok. I don't know how this qualifies as training, but I'll do it. I'm your dutiful pupil.            He nodded with a smirk. "That's the attitude I want, now get to it." I clicked my frills in approval, trotting off to my assignment before pausing in my steps, looking back at him in doubt. Um Chief, I have a question.

"Yes Lani."

How am I supposed to lug over thirty pieces of scrap metal here with my teeth? I mean I can.....but it'll take until Federation Day to do that.

"You're not gonna drag it by your teeth like an animal. Aurealians claws are as prehensile as human fingers.Simply grip it by your hands and bring it back here." I chuffed and trotted off. The scraps were easy to spot, bright cyan reflecting the sun's light. My claws could easily pick up the metal, the sharp edges would've normally sliced through human skin but my scales protected me.

I brought it back and lay it next to the other scrap. The Commander instructed me to tear the shred into squares. I glanced at him at a skeptical  eye. What was I doing here? 

I shredded and melded scrap until the sun was at it's zenith taking a break to bask in the sunlight like the great reptilian beast that I was. After my break, I followed Adam across the island where rocky cliffs jutted  like teeth. The remainder of the afternoon was spent honing my climbing skills, as well as my memory. Adam sent me off onto the giant rocks bordering the training grounds,testing how fast I could scale each and how finesse my movements were. I felt like a lizard sprawled against the vertical rock face, my belly warm against the heated stone with my claws curved firmly into the surface. The sun gleams onto my back and my scales glimmer like tiny emeralds.

I practiced leaping from rock to rock, using my powerful hind legs to propel me across, and scrabbling ungracefully against the vertical surfaces before steadying myself.  Adam didn't much emphasize perfection,thank the spirits, only to leap with the utmost confidence and without harming myself. He said that perfection would come only in time.

"Remember to gauge your distance before you jump, use the amount of force that can get you across. Do not leap halfheartedly, if you jump too powerful across a smaller space you could injure yourself."

To test my memory Adam hid twenty energy tanks among the nooks and crevices of the surrounding rocks, ordering me to retrieve them all in the quickest time. But I couldn't just fetch them and give them back; I had to tell him exactly where I found the energy tanks with full details of their location. I can't begin to say how many times I screwed up because I forgot the place where I found them,eager to snatch them all as quickly as I could.

"You're rushing too fast for your memory to work. Look at the location thoroughly and with a quick reflex as possible. As an Aurealian you are able to remember the most insignificant detail of an area in a short time. "  Other times he tossed a few Missile tanks into the mix, dismissing them when I collected the entire heap.

" I asked for you to retrieve the energy tanks only.  You should have left the missile tanks alone."  I protested they should count after the amount of time wasted finding them. Adam shook his head. "No,only retrieve the energy tanks, leave the rest. Pay attention the next time I give directions."  I fluttered my frills annoyed at his trickery. Then why didn't he just tell me the missile tanks were hidden as well, and I should disregard them if found.                                                                                                    

"Don't be angry at him. A mentor should always test their pupil's smarts. Life is full of tricks and loopholes and you must use your own noodle to solve them."Ziir said wisely, still damp with water and slime coating.  "And believe me, young Ziik, you have a big noodle. You put it to use and you can solve anything." I gave him a cynical glance. What a clichéd statement, but the former was true. Life was full of trickery,you needed a smart head to uncover them and seek the truth. Now that was truer than words.

He'd given me the schedule once I was finished. This was how it was set up. Each day of the week was dedicated to one of the two types of training: Physical and mental. Physical training were days I woke  at the crack of dawn to meet Adam in the main lobby, where we'd take a ferry to the scrapyards and train.  

On the following day I would wake up an hour later and meet up with Adam in his office for the class where I would learn about Aurealian language and biology, and how to transfer information into the Aurosphere. ( He promised to teach me more about my people's culture and history after our mission, ensuring the Aurosphere understood enough to translate Aurealian was the top priority.) The class would go on several hours until late in the afternoon, with a  two hour break in between. Then the next day I would switch back to physical training. 

This firm, yet agreeable mentorship put an equal amount of efforts on both aspects. I had spent as much time in Adam's office, reading and scanning the archaic scribes of my people as I spent on the field honing my physical prowess. My brain worked just as hard as my body as I was tasked to remember everything I was taught down to the smallest detail (which for a human is ridiculously impossible, but not for the memory of an Aurealian). 

Monday I'm on the training grounds, Tuesday I would be in the office, Wednesday on training grounds, Thursday in the office, and so on. It was planned to my advantage and gave me enough time for hone my physical ability and my intellect. For my benefit, he set up a consistent training and class schedule (if I could call it a class, it was the closest thing to a classroom I ever experienced). It would go like this; One day of the week I would spend on physical training. I would wake up at the crack of dawn and train until noon, when I would have quick lunch break.  Then I would continue on with the regiment until early evening, at the latest.  It was between these two gaps explored the island if I had the energy. (Federation Island wasn't overly large, you could walk from one side to the other within a half hour.  Within a few days I pretty much got the whole mental map of the island.)

Thus began my rigorous training. I'd slipped into this new grind, my new life, pretty smoothly after the insane beginning. Little did I know, many surprises awaited me, beginning with the first: I'd made a new human friend.