Cayden's Crusade

Outside At Last

We were so excited about our first hands-on lessons so we woke up earlier than usual.

"I wonder what Sir Samuel got for us",  Zinny exclaimed.

"Only way to find out,  Zinny", Aloutte said grinning.

We went to our classroom and found some bags laid on our respective chairs. Sir Samuel, who just noticed our arrival smiled at us.

"Open your bags at magbihis kayo. Girls, you can change in there", sabi at itinuro ang makeshift dressing room sa gilid. "After that, kunin niyo ang weapons niyo. I will be back in a while". At, umalis siya nang classroom.

I looked around and I still could not find her. I focused on Sir Samuel's instructions. Binuksan ko ang bag ko, may mga black na overall na nakalagay sa loob. Kinuha ko ang isa and examined it. May naka embroider dito. I looked at it closely. It was the dome's logo.  It was a circle na may maliit na circle sa loob. Hinati ito makaapat excluding the circle inside. The small circle refers to the Copulo de Uno samantalang ang apat na hati represents the four district.

"Wow!", sabi ni Cassius who was moving his body as if warming up for our training exercise. "Very comfy!"

We all agreed. Naisuot na namin ang overall and it was indeed better compared to our training uniforms. It fits just right and it feels like our second skin. Meron pang shoes na kasama sa content ng bag.

The overall even have a belt to hung our knife and gun.

"Amazing", Zinny said, her eyes lighting up. "I think we should braid our hairs para di siya sagabal sa kung ano man ang ipagagawa ni Sir sa atin".

They then take turns to braiding their hair, Aloutte and Zinny and Chava and Naila. The others kept moving around, swinging their swords, jogging around the room testing the flexibility of our new clothes. I went to the window and saw the woods again. I wonder bakit lage siyang nakatingin dito. Asan kaya siya ngayon?

Sir Samuel arrived. He approved when she saw the braided hairs of the girls.

"Follow me", sabi niya.

We followed him to the lower part of the building. We were on the basement. May mga high tech na sasakyan na nakaparking duon. May mga mechanic rin na tinitingnan ang ibang mga sasakyan. Probably may sira or for maintenance only. They stopped for a while and looked at us for a while before continuing what they did before.

I may have been paranoid but somehow, I feel like there is pity in their eyes with the way they looked at us.

We stopped on a heavily armored van.

"Get inside", Sir Samuel instructed.

Then, he closed the van's door and knocked three times before we felt the van move.

The inside of the van was situated in a way na pahaba ang upuan on both sides of the van. May isang upuan rin sa may pintuan kung saan nakaupo si Sir. Walang anumang butas o window para makita namin ang nagdrive sa unahan.

"Where are we going?", it was Zinny who broke the silence.

Sir Samuel just smirked. "You'll see".

Aloutte rolled her eyes." You'll see", she mouthed mimicking Sir Samuel.

We all laughed a bit. We travelled on and on for about an hour before we felt the van stopped. We heard a tap on the door and Sir Samuel opened it.

"What the", Brick exclaimed. Our jaws dropped.

We're in an air base! Helipads, copters and planes were moving here and there. It was noisy but we did not mind it. The base is so vast it goes on forever. We followed Sir Samuel as he gestured us to follow him after he talked to the driver.

Isang malaking helicopter ang naghihintay sa amin. We went inside as sit down as Sir Samuel walked around grinning.

"Surprised?", he asked. "Well, good news idiots because you are going out the dome!"

"What? ", we chorused. Hindi makapaniwala.

Sir Samuel nodded. "You can't wait for your hands-on lessons, right?"

Isang nakabibinging katahimikan. We never expected na lalabas na kami nang dome as early as this on our training.

"What now, afraid?", Sir Samuel asked. "It's okay, guys. Just remember what you trained, I think you'll survive out there."

His little pep talk did not help. I now started to understand the pity in the looks of the mechanics earlier. Perhaps, they were thinking kung makakabalik pa kami ng buhay.

" We're gonna die", Zinny whispered to Aloutte. Zinny was beside me kaya rinig ko ang sinabi na may halong takot sa boses niya.

"No,  we're not", Aloutte snapped.

We're all thinking the same thing. Wala nang atrasan to. The copter already started it's ascent. There is no way to go back no matter how afraid and unsure we are of what will happen. I released a deep sigh. It's sad na di ko man lang siya nakita. Baka di na makabalik sa dome after nito.

I looked at my wristwatch, almost twenty minutes in the air. Sir Samuel stood up and asked to press the small circle on our overall's logo. We did and there was veil-like something that seemed to wrapped our whole body. I tried to touch it, I goes through the veil and I felt my face.

"That's your radiation suit", Sir Samuel. "Bababa na tayo in five minutes. Make sure your suit is on kung gusto niyo pang mabuhay".

"Yes,  sir", we said.

"This suit is genius", Cassius said.

Parehas kaming kinakabahan but still, our curiosity of what is waiting out there consumed us. I can feel the copter lower down. We fell in line as the door slowly opened.

Dust. It filled the whole surroundings as we climbed down the copter. Desert sand. The veil was very effective as I did not inhale any of dusts and sands disturbed by the copter. When everything cleared up. A desert stood before us. Just like the one on our CER. The only difference is the small rectangle shaped building ahead, as if wauting for us.