The Key To Combat

Chapter 14

I open my eyes. The room is quiet. I turn my attention to my right and see Anna in her simulator bed beside me. She's still sleeping. I pan my head around the room towards my left. There are two simulator beds on the wall and the warriors connected to them are still sleeping. The wall straight in front of me has three simulator beds against it. The three warriors connected are also sleeping. The third wall in the room towards my left has two simulator beds against it. None of the two warriors connected to them are awake. I turn my head towards Kyscin laying in the simulator bed next to me. Against this fourth wall of the room is mine, Anna and Kyscins simulator beds. He looks so cute when he's sleeping. I grab the wire attached to my left temple and peel it off. I do the same to the one on my right temple. I sit up on the bed and lift my right hand to the back of my head and disconnect the wire attached to it. I swing both my legs over to the left side of the bed and let them dangle. Everyone in this room accept me, is still completing their test. I wonder if anyone else is awake. Maybe Lynn is already awake or Priya. They are both great warriors I admit. I remember almost losing to both of them at MCHS. I would normally win all of my battles pretty easily but there were a few people who put up a fight. Anna is one of those people. I already knew her and I were going to be a force to be wreckened with. Same with Kyscin. He's a great warrior. If Anna and Kyscin are still sleeping does that mean Lynn and Priya bested them? I hope not. How long has it been? I look up at the big black digital clock hanging at the top of the wall straight in front of me. It reads 17:38:12 in red. I stare at it for a second and it now reads. 17:38:11. It's counting down. It's been two hours and twenty two minutes since I started the test. Not to toot my own horn or anything but I finsihed the test quicker than anybody has in the forteen years of this university being open. I'm not surprised I'm in group A but I am surprised that I finished so quickly considering it's never been done before. I look behind me at Anna and then in front of me at Kyscin. I hope they wake up soon. Not just because I want to see them beat Lynn and Priya but because I want to share my excitement with them. I have to find out if I'm the only one awake right now. It'll be double the excitement when I find out I'm the first. That would mean I'm the best just like I believe. I lean off the bed and plant my feet on the floor. I bend over to grab my bag and then I stand up. I turn to my right an walk to the end of my bed. When I get to the end of my bed I take another right and head towards the door. I walk out of the room and to my left down the hall. I look into the room labelled 'T, U, V'. All ten warriors are sleeing. I do the same in the three other rooms on this floor. The next one is labelled, 'R, S.', the following one is labelled 'P, Q" and the last one is labelled 'N, O'. I turn to my left around the corner and head towards the stairs. I get to the bottom floor and I start to admire the plaques and picture frames on the wall. I can't believe I didn't notice these my first time walking passed them. I guess I was just too excited to begin my test I ignored anything else. The frames hold pictures of the people who were the first to complete their simulation test. There are seven frames spread across this corridor on both the left and right wall. I stop at the end of the corridor and read the last frame on the right wall. It reads, 'Warrior Mitchel Gray, The first of class 2020'. The name belongs to a shaggy haired blonde boy. He has light brown eyes and one of them is almost being covered by his hair. He looks very similar to Martin. Martin has the same light brown eyes but with Golden brown curly locks. They both have the same creamy off white skin tone and they have a simular bone structure. They could definitely be brothers or related in some way. Mitchel has a very nice smile. I would be happy too knowing that everyone is going to walk by and see my face in a frame and below it reads, 'Warrior Wavina Wyatt, The first Of Class 2021'. I can see he is very proud. As he should be, it's a great feat. I turn to my left and continue to look for anybody else who might be awake. I walk straight ahead towards the other corridor. I stop in front of the entrance doors and see Diane and Martin are walking up the main hall to my right. They are a few feet away. "Congratulations Wavina." Diane says approaching me. Martin and Diane stop in front of me "Thank you, Diane." I say. I scan the hall and the look up to my left. Diane follows my eyes and then looks back at me. "I haven't congratulated anyone else yet if that's what you're wondering." She anticipates. It will never cease to amaze me how she can answer a question before it's even asked. She is really the greatest warrior I have ever encountered. I guess you don't get a badge that says 'Mother Warrior' unless you are great. I hope one day I can be just like her. Maybe I can get a badge too. That would be so cool. Teaching the younger generation following in her foosteps. I think after becoming the greatest warrior that will be my finish line. It would be my honor to share my love and all of my knowledge about combat with the future generations. Teaching others what I love to do and making the world a stronger and better place couldn't be a better happy ending. First step, become the greatest warrior. Am I already there? Is that why Diane is congratulating me? Congratulations, you're in group A? I know she said she hasn't congratulated anyone else yet but that could just mean she hasn't seen anyone else to congratulate. Someone else could be awake right now just sitting on their bed, who knows. "Is that where you were heading?" I ask and she smiles. "Yes. When each of you awaken from your simulation test a notification is sent to my computer or my watch, in case I'm away from my desk." She replies. She turns around and points to the double doors at the end of the hall. I guess she knows. She was coming to congratulate me. She knows when each of us wakes up which means when she said she hasn't congratulated anyone else yet she was really telling me that I'm the first warrior to finish. Oh. My. Goodness. I was just starring at the plaques, admiring every warrior who came before me and now I'm going to have my very own for every warrior who comes after me to admire. This is my dream, I'm standing in my dream and it's real. I'm not going to wake up like I usually do and try to fall back asleep just to get back to my dream. My dream is now my life. I don't have to sleep or daydream anymore just to live it. Not only did I finish first in my class but I finished faster than any other warrior ever. I'd like to know who the best is if it's not me. I'm the best. I can proudly say at least for now, that I am the best warrior in the world. I can't believe even after the simulators went haywire I still finished first and quicker than anyone ever. I wonder if I would have finished quicker if I didn't get set back a few paces. She turns back around to face me. "I'm the first?" I ask almost to myself. Saying it out loud made it so real, a big smile spreads across my face. "You're the first." She says proudly. She smiles at me and then turns to Martin. "We're finally going to beat POST this year." she says triumphanntly. "Who's post and what are we going to be beaating them at?" I inquire. Diane turns to me. "Professional Operating simulation technology." Martin says. He speaks? I thought he only spoke to Diane. I wonder why he has so much hatred in his voice. "It is a university a few blocks down from ours and they are our rivals. Every year SOCS warriors and POST warriors go head to head. We would hold the competitions in the spirit of good fun and the love for combat shared among friends but POST has one every year since our seventh year of operation. Which made them treat us like we are inferior and weak but with your abilities we can win and finally let it be known that we are not at all inferior." Diane says. "So POST is the best combat university in Miladyrow?" I quiz. This isn't the best school? How can this be? I came here because I thought they could make me the best warrior I can be and now I learn that they might not be capable of that. Does that mean me being the warrior to finish the simulation test with the quickest time is because this school is too easy? Just like that I'm not the best anymore? I want to be the best. Am I at the wrong school? Diane looks down, checkig the time on her watch. She looks up at me. "I have to go." she says quickly. She looks at Martin. "Gray, show Wavina to her room please." she commands. She turns around and walks quickly to her office. Where could she have to go in such a hurry? Did Diane just say Gray? Like Mitchel Gray? "Gray, Martin Gray? So you are related to Mitchel Gr-" I say excitedly. "Yes, That is my brother." he says. He sounds annoyed and almost embarrassed to admit that they are related. I can't imagine what must have happened. Relationships with your siblings are the strongest. If you do not have a bond with you brother or sister that's like not having a bond with yourself. That's saying a lot because you are forever with your own self. It would be like being glued to someone you loath. Constantly wishing they'd leave you alone. You'd never have peace. That's what not having a bond with Keivy would be like. No peace. I don't want to think about ever severing the bond Keivy and I have with one another. She is my little baby rock. She's so important to me. I don't ever have to ask her to listen. She comes to me and tells me to start venting. She's only eight but she gets me. She's never embarrassed by me and I'm never embarrassed by her. She's younger than me but sometimes I like to treat her like we are the same age because she is so easy to talk to. She can hold an intellectual conversation. That's thanks to my parents. They birthed a couple of geniuses. We can talk all night and never get bored of each other. She's like my best friend. She could never replace Anna but Keivy is in a very special category of her own and nobody could ever replace her. "Why didn't I see him in the group a couple of hours ago?" I quiz. "Mitchel transferred to POST for his second year. He wanted to train with 'the best'." martin says annoyed. I understand the embarrassment now. Mitchel left to go to POST. I may be the best at SOCS but if POST is the best I would be training with some real competition. Mitchel had the right idea. I would be getting greater everyday with their winning techniques. If I want to be the best I have to train with the best and learn from the best. SOCS just isn't the right place for me especially because of my need to be great. I don't want to be a warrior if I can't be great. I can't save lives by being mediocre. I don't have to be the best to save lives but I sure as bunions have to be great. I promised myself I'd learn to be great and stop as much bad as I can from happening in the world. I have to be in a school that can help me achieve that. "So POST *is* the best Combat university?" I inquire curiously. Martin shakes his head. "It was my first year at SOCS and it was the third year the university had been opened. That's also when POST opened. Diane, being the active and fun leader that she is, started an annual, friendly competition between the schools. I won three years in a row. I was on a roll but I could see it was bothering Andrew," He says. "Who's andrew?" I question. "He is the Consult at POST. Andrew didn't like being the underdog, last opened and last to cross the finish line. The next year when the competion began, I noticed the distance in the POST warriors' eyes. They lost their friendly dispositions and they didn't even look at us during and after the competition. They won that year. Victoria, my girlfriend who used to go to POST at the time, told me that Andrew stole Dianes ideas for a new simulation challenge and he even erased the data from her computer. He also coerced the Post warriors to act malicious towards us. He stole her teaching technique and she had to go back to using the first challenge she ever created. Which wasn't good enough to help train the warriors which cost us the win each year since. Diane didn't figure out a new challenge until this year. That's also why you have RHI tech. The challenge you and your fellow warrior classmates were made to face, is Diane's best work and the challenge is much more difficult than the one Andrew stole. So to answer your question, No. They are not the best." he finishes. Wow. I completed the hardest challenge created yet. I really am right where I need to be. I'm glad because there's something about this school that welcomes you with imaginary open arms. It's like a kiss on the cheek from you parents when you wake up in the morning. I'm training with the best warriors and I have the best teacher to help me learn all that I need. I'm ready for this competition. I can't believe this Andrew guy. I can't wait to pummel him. When I'm done with him he's gonna wish he never messed with the sweetest mother warrior ever. One thing I learned from the test is that you don't get to be a warrior by shying out of a challenge you become a warrior when you realize how to overcome your fears. Andrew can't overcome his fear of being an underdog because he wont stop believing that his ideas can't compare to Dianes. Although it may be true, a true warrior knows that he can and doesn't give up. "What was the first challenge?" I ask excited to hear the answer. Maybe aliens or magic or giants. Giants would be so cool. "It was really simple. Anytime you'd feel a negative emotion or have a negative thought relating to your combat skills you'd be teleported into a room and battle against yourself. The simultion would last one hour and whether you were in a battle or not, you'd wake up. Then the machine would calculate a percentage out of one hundred based on your fighting and how well you overcame the negativity." he says. I see Diane has a momentous side. She must be attached to the idea of battling ones self. I can't say I disagree. You create your own demons when you doubt or worry or neglect to trust. Those thoughts entrap you and stay with you becoming your inner demons. So by fighting yourself you beat the demon and the crypalling negativity. The more I think about the simulation and the lessons behind it I realize how smart Diane really is. I don't know how she could ever top this simulation challenge but I bet she'll find a way. It is empowering and very self healing. I will never forget this experience and I don't think I'll ever find anything more invigorating, beside fighting of course. "Battling yourself. She's so clever." I say. "So you understand the metaphor?" he inquires. "Not only do I understand it, I love it." I say with a smile. "The dorms are this way." He says geturing out in front of him with his right arm. "I've been wanting to see my dorm. They look so beautiful on the website." I say excitedly. I turn around and head out the doors. Martin follows behind me. We walk straight towards to where fifty grey condo looking buildings stand on grass. The buildings are spaciously proportioned. The buildings are about fifteen feet from one another. There is a row of five buildings in front of us and nine more rows of five behind them. We walk up to the building in the middle of the first row. "Diane isn't just a pro with tech. She's also a pro with interior designing." he says with a smile. He opens the door. "Man, is there anything that women can't do?." I ask but I know the answer is no. He laughs and then steps inside and I follow after him. I stop abruptly. I drop my jaw and my bag to the floor. It's like a little house all in one room. It's so spacious and home-y. Five feet to the left there is a door. I walk to the door passing a window on my left with dark red, suede curtains. I reach for the door knob and push the door open. "Woah!" I say in amazement. I look back at Martin and he smiles. It's a bathroom. There is circular bathtub in the centre of the room. I turn to my left and there's a closet for towels and toiletries. I close the closet door and turn back to face forward. Straight ahead on the side of the room with the closet is a standing shower. The shower has nice glossy white tile walls. There's a steel shower head attached to the end of the shower, closest to the closet. The shower is closed by distortion glass sliding doors. I turn to my right and walk five paces ahead. I touch the sand looking counter top pressed against the back wall. There is a white sink in the centre of it and a mirror on the wall stretching across the long counter. On the wall across the standing shower there are hooks and shelves. I walk out of the bathroom and to my left is a single bed on the back wall. There is a window above it with black suede curtains hanging on the sides of it. Three paces to the right is a fride. The fridge is connected to a smooth grey counter. The first thing I see on the counter beside the fridge is a dish strainer.Then there is a deep, wide stainless steel sink. Continuing straight ahead to the other side of the room there is a blender and a coffee maker sitting on the counter top. The counter ends and there is a tall pantry beside it. There are dark brown, sanded cupboards on the wall above the counter, stretching from end to end. Passed the pantry is another single bed three paces away. I walk straight and look out the last window in the room, above the bed. This one also has black suede curtains hanging on its sides. The top of the bed is pressed against the back wall. At the bottom of the bed is a red two seater couch. The couch is pressed against the wall facing the bathroom and there is a television sitting on a t.v stand five feet away. On the wall the tv is pressed against, are two hooks five feet up on the wall. The hooks are right next to the entrance door of the dorm. Spread across the whole entire room floor are white hardwood tiles. I look up at the ceiling and there is a small beautiful chandelier hanging from it. Diane really knows how to make a girl feel welcomed. I don't think I ever want to go back home. "Can I live here?" I ask. I'm in shock at how amazing everything in this school is. Here, I get the whole package. The advanced learning styles, the sweet joy of independence and I get to room with my best friend. This is going to be the best four years of my life. I don't want this happiness to go away. I run over to my bed next to the t.v and jump onto it, plopping down on my back. Martin let's out a breathy laugh. "Well, I'll leave you to your excitement." Martin says. I laugh and wave goodbye. He nods his head and walks out the door.