Code Zulu Alpha: Nerd in the Apocalypse!

In all honesty, there was a lot of truth from the words that came out of Iskoh's mouth but if he wasn't an active participant in Hell Week, he had no fucking idea how each of my group thought they were gonna die or actually did die.

Brushing against life or death tempers a person's mind and body to a degree and as I've said many times before, you just gotta break them just the right amount or else they won't be able to recover from it, or in another case, they wouldn't be able to learn or feel its effects.

Still, I was fairly impressed that none of his chosen sacrificial lambs peed themselves—or they were just wearing diapers—but yeah, these kids needed to participate in Hell Week or even Hell Month, or face the consequences.

I wasn't saying their training meant jack shit but the whispers they've heard from the way I treat my students shouldn't be identified as coddling or something similar. Most of it was done in the safety of my confines, sure—but all this fucking time, I didn't force in Iskoh's throat how to go about "making" his soldiers so I should be given the same courtesy so he'd stay away from mine.

'Then again, going out and experiencing the world for themselves could do wonders in their development—but if they really wanted to face an insurmountable wall—wait, no… I could be blowing a ton of smoke in my ass right about now but… Haaa… Let's just meet in the middle and see… There just might be some other purpose Iskoh is going for and I might've jumped the gun a little too early…'

In any case, Iskoh looked like he really wanted me to show these kids what I could do face-to-face, because yesterday, they were in the group with Morales and they weren't even in the backline for support.

Still, the game was fucking on because not only did I light a fire in these kids' asses, I also lit a fire in my kids' asses because, with this show of dominance, Iskoh's words were ringing true because I was fighting their battles for them.

I could've just let them do their shit on their own but I'm fucking pissed off and I was only older than them by a few years so it is what it fucking is.

Iskoh's voice rang out:

"You done, kid?"

I rolled my eyes, "Sure. But I think your group's done too."

"Heh. It's their first time, take it easy. They'll be good to go in a few. So…"

"So what?"

"Are we doing it or not?"

I turned in JP and Tennyson's direction, "You fucks decide, I'm taking the leash off."

Iskoh cackled, "Hah! That's worse than peers, no? You're basically calling them your dogs."

I waved him off as I took my seat, "I just wanna sound cool, fuck off. And you can put on a leash on almost anything, just know there's a reason I'm 'coddling' them."

"Huh. Is this you trying to sound cool again?"

"Yes. Absolutely."

"Hah! Alrighty~ then. Almost the same formation as yesterday but the formation of the ones going up the platforms will be reversed."

"Yep."

"We leave in an hour."

In any case, my group and my "dogs" were already prepped and ready since yesterday so I just reviewed all the information they collected beforehand and got acquainted with Iskoh's trainees in a more friendly manner.

Obviously enough, the 90% were wary of my presence while half of the 10% was showing me slight hostility—but then again, it was a fair number because I always have to deal with Brian, Brownie, and even Lucas on a daily basis.

And yeah, Seb and Marvin took the friendlier approach compared to JP and Tennyson while our happy-go-lucky boys like #2 and Ruben had already gelled well with the other group.

However, there were obvious individuals that wouldn't just vibe with each other like Megan and this other chick, Brian and this other meathead, Carlo and this other tall and lanky dude, but yeah, it was expected though a life-or-death situation could change that.

'So they just have a leader, no vice-captain… Aaron, huh?'

So I approached him for the second time but with a firm handshake, "How do you pronounce it? Ei-ron, A-A-ron, or Uhh-ron?"

"First one, sir."

"Great. I just received your files from Iskoh's assistant but there's more to it than just what's written on paper, no?"

He nodded, "I did try my best to fill it out but it's not like it's final, no?"

"Yep, everyone continues to improve. So, are you more of a charge-in-front kind of guy or do you stay in the back and watch and adjust?"

"Depending on the situation, sir, and the directive—"

"You're leading your team today, you're the directive. What's your plan of attack?"

"Umm— It's pretty straightforward, nothing fancy."

"Simple's good. It doesn't have to be complicated if it doesn't need to be."n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om

"Yes, sir."

"Then fucking tell me!"

"Ah— That's what you're implying, I get it now— So, we ascend the stairs with the group carrying shotguns, and on each bend, we'd drop in emergency ropes and make sure the area below is clear. Also, we'd have emergency ladders at the ready for a quick escape—"

"Hold up, hold up… What's wrong with the stairs you're on? Why so many emergency escapes?"

"I mean— Safety is—"

I looked at him weird, "I thought safety's not your priority? You know, judging by the Mayor's words earlier…"

"Ah— He's like that most of the time but he does care. And he did say we're free to do whatever we wanted. We've learned from the others' mistakes before."

"Oh… So there were more before you, huh? They still alive?"

"Well— S-Some of them, yes."

"Hmm. Okay, tell me more about your plans."

"Alright, sir…"

In any case, after five more emergency escape routes, we eventually found ourselves in front of the connecting station, and I specifically put myself in Iskoh's younger generation instead of my own.