As the barracks door opened, it revealed a disappointing sight: the beds were rugged and rickety, while the wood that encased the building was undoubtedly on its last legs. Zuno sighed as he walked in while the others in his squadron followed closely behind. This was their new residence for a while, and they had to make the most of it.
Zuno resumed his pace before stopping a periodic feet away from his bunk. He was on the underside, with a pile of folded clothes on top of the bed, with his name minted onto the right side of the shirt. There was also another thing there, an insignia was printed beside his name, which denoted his status. It wasn't even a pin, and he was at the foot of the barrel. His eyes flicked back behind him, quivering at the others who walked inside the cabin, all with a disappointing glimmer in their stares.
'Well, maybe this is for the better.'
His eyes looked back towards his bunk, with a somber but hopeful glint in them. His story was just beginning, and that's all that mattered —the development.
Zuno's hand drooped down towards his bunk, softly tugging on his new uniform, the new him. He then reached his hand back, laying it by his side, his uniform gripped tightly. He then made his way towards what he deemed was the bathroom... hopefully. Zuno, with his other hand gripping the handle of the cabin bathroom, walked inside and quickly put on his uniform before returning to his bunk, where his civilian clothes were laid neatly on his bed.
After half an hour had passed, everyone, including him, was done and changed, patiently waiting on their monochrome beds. After a couple more minutes of waiting passed, a voice yelled from the middle of the field, outside their cabins. Michael was standing silently in the middle of the field. Zuno thought back to it; it seemed like he was outside waiting the entire time. As Zuno and the others gathered before Michael, his final lecture of the day left his lips.
" I suppose all of you are ready and set for tomorrow's training. I just have one last thing to say to y'all. Throughout your days here, I hope you and your squadmates will get along, because out of the frontlines, when everything and everyone is out to get you. The ones you work with now might be the reason you live another day. Now, get some rest and be up and running at 0600 tomorrow on the dot! "
It was about sunset when Michael dismissed the recruits, with it not being too long before Zuno and his squad mates were out of their uniforms and shut down for the night, anxious about what lay ahead for them.
Tomorrow's torture started with a tiring fifteen laps of jogging around the base. Zuno, being one of the smaller and feeble members of the platoon, lagged behind quite a bit, almost throwing up from exhaustion when they finished, but with an empty stomach, all he could do was gag. After a small break, his exhaustion subsided, which was strange for an unathletic boy such as himself, but he summed it up to his body getting used to the workout.
" All of you need to build up your endurance. The day has just begun; rest is for the wicked. None of you would last a day on the front at this stage. Now, each of you, drop down and give me fifty pushups. If you can't even achieve that, I might as well shoot you right now; it would be a mercy for what's coming. "
The day continued with more endurance and strength training, with Michael ending it off with a painfully difficult obstacle course. As night came, Zuno and his Squadron lay slumped over their bunks, drenched in sweat and dirt, each of them taking a shower in turns, with Zuno voluntarily being one of the last to do so, his arms being too sore to wash himself right after today's training finished. After Zuno got himself cleaned up and ready for bed, one of his squad mates spoke out.
" Today was hell, and we have weeks of this shit ahead of us. "
A short, brunette girl of similar size to him complained as she lay uncomfortably on her bunk. Zuno felt the same way, but he didn't want to announce it to everyone, so he kept his mouth shut. Her complaint led to the whole cabin getting fussy as a taller blondish girl was the next to speak.
" Now, Sarah, you know complaining about it won't make it go any smoother, we have a big day ahead of us, so- "
" Instead of chattering to ourselves about how terrible simple training was, why don't we get to know each other? I'll go first. My name's Derrick, and I hope to get through the next couple of weeks as simply as I can and hopefully with a good night's rest. "
The man who interrupted the blonde, Derrick, was a dark, brutish male, while also being the tallest and most fit out of the squad, with the second being the blonde, Claire.
" Well, I guess it's my turn; you all can call me Claire. I'll try my best to be a valuable member of our squad! "
Claire emitted in an optimistic tone, she was a tower compared to Zuno, and had more curves than someone at her age should have; her light golden hair swooped down towards her shoulders with small bangs covering her forehead, she was the complete opposite of Sarah.
A short sigh escaped Sarah's mouth as Claire finished her introduction; it seemed like she would be the next to introduce herself.
" Sarah, and I'm just here because of that stupid draft... "
The Squad looked towards Zuno after everyone finished their introductions. He had yet to do so, and sweat swamped his hands as he readied himself to. He wasn't much of a public speaker after all.
" Uhh... I'm Zuno. I hope we can work together as a team."
" Since that's all now finished, how about we get some rest? Enough fussing for today. "
Derrick exclaimed as he lay back on his bunk, quickly dozing off as Zuno and the others did the same. The next couple of days passed the same as the first one, with them learning marksmanship towards the end of the first week.