Garrison Proud

Admissions Exam

Katie Holt stood in front of the entrance of the Galaxy Garrison,surrounded by other aspirants, her hands were shaking violently and as she stared at her reflection on the doors of the prestigious school, she noticed she seemed much paler than usual. It had been a week since the written exam, which she felt quite confident about it, but the practical test carried out in the facilities of the Garrison were an entirely separate issue.

Her father had told her about the test days before so she could prepare. She would have the main instructors of the academy judging her performance and they would compare both written and practical evaluations to decide whether a student would be accepted or not. Katie had already passed the first hurdle, there were many students who could not pass the written exam and were not called back for the practical test, but her father had mentioned that regardless of a perfect written exam result, it was very possible to be rejected if her performance in the practical test was less than pitiful.

"Hi there" greeted a voice so out of nowhere, she could not help but turn to see to whom it belonged. A tall and dark-skinned brunette stood behind her and looked at her with a flirtatious smile, "It seems that it's true that the Garrison is full of beautiful girls. They should honestly give us a free pass, i mean, what kind of klutz would fail a physical exam?'

Katie looked at him with annoyance, but the boy had already left to greet other girls who seemed to have just arrived. She let out a loud scoff, hoping she wouldn't have to cross paths with such an unpleasant person again. At that moment the doors opened.

Although she had previously been in the academy building, she had never been in any of the practice rooms. Inside, there were simulators and obstacle courses and everything seemed to be of the latest technology.

The applicants were led by a stern-looking woman to a prep room, where they were given uniforms with their applicant numbers marked. Then, they were led to a huge room that had a couple of adjoining locke rooms, one for men and one for women, where they were all given instructions. "You will each go one by one, one man and one woman according to their applicant number. You will be asked to do a series of activities according to the results of your written exam and the necessary skills for the position which you are applying to. Keep in mind there are different exams for pilots, mechanics, and communications technicians." With that, the woman dismissed herself and left the applicants in the room. After just 10 minutes, and with half of the applicants already dressed, an overhead speaker began to call the applicants in, one by one.

Each person left the room, but none of them returned, which led the young woman to conclude that there must be a second door through which the candidates exited after completing their examination. She estimated, by the frequency in which names were announced, that the average duration of the exam was approximately 10 minutes, very little time, she felt, to show the examiners the full extent of her abilities and potential.

Finally there were only a handful of people left, when Katie Holt heard her name announced through the overhead speaker. Her hands were still shaking a little and when she opened the door a chill ran through her body. Clearly, she was very nervous.

As Katie entered the room, her eyes blurred and the room spun for a quick moment, so it took a minute to focus in on her surroundings. She found herself in the middle of a large gym with an obstacle course and a semi-dismantled simulator. Above her, there was a balcony from where you could admire the entirety of the gym, inside were seven people that the girl recognized as the main instructors of the Galaxy Garrison.

The brunette felt her nerves swell, her father almost never mixed his work with his personal life and even so she could perfectly identify each of the instructors. At the ends, she could see Commander and First Captain Mitch Iverson and her own father, Major Samuel Holt; next to them, were the Major and Commander Roy Fokker and the, now very known to her, General Takashi Shirogane. Toward the middle were the Wing Generals, Tim Hendrick and Lauren Montgomery; and finally at the very center, the division General and Director of Galaxy Garrison, Joaquím Dos Santos.