Free Cartlidge: Rise of the Imperfect Flame by Devon Loos Page A

to reach the room. Most of the squads were already filled, with the
exception of two. The first had only its squad leader and Tek. The second had
only two spots left, and was led by Jevack. I sighed and typed my name into the
first squad. The choice was not difficult, the possibility of conflict made me
feel nervous. I found an empty chair and donned my helmet. Instantly it fused
itself with the mesh suit. I checked it to be sure I could find the release
clips. The two clips were located halfway down my neck, covering the neck
muscles. I opened a hatch in the back of my helmet and pressed the switch that
activated the helmet’s systems. The visor portrayed a list of systems like a
screen.
    “O2 filter: online. Cooling:
online. Audio amplifiers: online. Stand by for window.” I smiled and thanked
the unknown manufacturer of my armor for programming my helmet with Gaia.
Several other systems rapidly joined the list. The visor then lit up with a
green border, as the list shrank and moved to the top left of the visor.
“Unarmed” appeared in the top right. The room was then filled with green dots,
confirming that all my fellow recruits were not hostiles. I grinned childishly.
It reminded me of the typical “Head’s Up Display” system on Earth. I spoke in a
clear voice to the helmet.
    “Voice systems: on.” The helmet
responded, sending “Voice systems: online” to join the list.
    “Targeting systems: off.” That system also
joined the list, but in red font. The green dots quickly disappeared,
and my visibility was restored. The remaining fifteen minutes passed by
quickly, and our general entered the room to brief us on our strategy. We would
engage the enemy team at the center of the map, while two squads kept watch for
any flanking attempts. If a section were to open up in the left or right, we
were to push around and surround them. Our overall goal was not to attack the
general, but to eliminate his team, forcing him to surrender. The general then
met with our squad leaders for a few minutes to explain each squads role in the fight. They were each given a communicator to talk to the general.
The squad leaders then reported to us and told us each of our jobs. We left the
room and made our way to the armory, where we were given the same weapons we
used in the arena. After twenty minutes of preparing, we finally made our way
to the field.
    “Alright. Window visors must be
offline. We have to rely solely on eyesight for this mission.” The general
shouted. After a minute we continued.
    The battleground was a massive rectangle, with thick,
concrete walls that towered several stories high. At the center was an empty
plain, bordered by several large rocks, logs, trees, and other forms of cover.
Small, rocky cliffs separated the plain from the walls. Large forests covered
both sides. We quickly rallied to an opening in the forest, just southeast of
the field. The general climbed a tree and instructed us to reach the field
where the attack was likely to take place. We walked for a minute before
reaching the line of obstacles. Each squad quickly moved into position in their
designated spot. My squad was the furthest right, without being the lookout
squad. The lookout squads were hidden in the trees bordering the cliffs. The
field was filled only with the songs and smells of nature. We waited for
several agonizing minutes.
    “Cartlidge!” My commander whispered
from behind a large tree. “Move to a different cover. That log’s too old to
give you any good protection.”
    “Copy that.” I shifted myself and crouch walked over to a
large boulder near Tek. A shot echoed in the distance, just as the round
scraped across the back plate of my armor and crashed into a tree before
disintegrating. Instinctively I leapt forward and landed behind the rock.
Several soldiers shouted and rounds began to fly. Chaos ignited, and the sounds
of gunfire soon drowned out the song of nature. I grabbed my rifle and began to
fire. The