First day
"Griffin! Get out of the bathroom; I’m late for my first day!" Raven yelled through the apartment.
"Sucks to be you; if you would’ve woken up earlier, our paths wouldn’t have crossed this morning!" Clarke yelled back.
"Shut up, guys, some of us have a day free once in a while and can enjoy the peace of the morning!" Octavia chimed in.
Raven ran through the apartment, searching for her gear and uniform. She, Clarke, and Octavia had celebrated her first day as a soldier last night, but she had woken up late with a headache that could kill a horse. The worst thing was that she still needed to shower and dress and maybe eat a thing or two because, on the whole, food tastes like shite.
Clarke left the bathroom, and not a second later, Raven sprinted into the bathroom and started her speed shower. It only took her five minutes; it had to be one of her fastest showers since boot camp. Her hair took the longest; she did it multiple times, but she could never quite get the smooth surface; the bun wasn’t that complicated. She dressed and was glad that she had found everything, and she took a final look in the mirror.
She had been preparing since the day she was recruited by the military; she was ready to work with the unit she was put in. During her time in boot camp, she heard myths and legends about the squad she was about to meet.
It was rare that a soldier fresh out of boot camp would be able to join a unit like this, nonetheless a unit full of Navy Seals, and she was proud and honored to be able to join the unit. She had to thank her mentor in high school, since he discovered that Raven had an exceptional ability with technology, physics, and a limited knowledge of chemicals.
She exited the bathroom and grabbed her stuff from her room. When she entered the open kitchen area, she saw Clarke and Octavia standing in the middle of the room with big smiles on their faces.
"We are so proud of you, Raven," Clarke told her, and he went to hug the girl.
"If you only think about bringing anything dangerous home, I’ll skin you alive," Octavia threatened, joining the hug.
"I love you too," Raven laughed. Now, could you please let me go? I don’t want to be any later than I already am."
"Scared of getting yelled at on your first day, boot?" Clarke asked.
"You are in no way allowed to call me that," Raven complained as she made her way to her boots.
"Why not?" Octavia asked.
"Only service members call each other that—well, usually Marines call each other that, but the other branches as well," Raven explained.
Raven put her boots on and checked to see if everything she needed was present. She walked around the kitchen counter and opened the fridge to find something quick to eat on her way to base.
"Alright, how do I look?" Raven asked with one foot out the door, the other still in the apartment.
"Great, good luck, and we expect a full report back, soldier," Octavia ordered in a deep voice.
"Fuck off, ‘til later," Raven said, and went outside.
She was excited, and if she didn’t learn how to control her excitement, she would bounce up and down like a bouncy ball. She got into her car and took a deep breath; this was the beginning of a hopefully long career, and she knew she was meant for more than just fixing up cars in a run-down mechanic shop with shitty pay.
She kind of regrets dropping out of college, but since she blew up one of their labs, she lost her scholarship and couldn’t afford it anymore. Clarke’s mother had suggested she pay for hers, but she didn’t want to take anyone’s money.
When the military found out that she had hacked their servers once, they opted to give her a job instead of throwing her into prison or worse. It was a stupid dare, and she was drunk; looking back, she had forgotten all about it and moved on with her life. She took pride in knowing that the military needed nearly ten years to figure out that it was her and that she had been a high school student.
The traffic was on her side, and she managed to get to the base on time and had five minutes left to spare. She was getting more nervous and anxious by the second. She was going to meet her supervisor and the unit that would be starting her training. Her training would consist of field training with real-life scenarios and a few theoretical classes. Her bomb training and technological knowledge came from her own research, and she trained with bomb specialists during her boot camp time.
When she drove through the security gate of the base, she had to show her ID, and only after they checked it thoroughly was she let onto the base. She parked and entered building 2, the conference hall, where all the meetings were held.
She sat outside the meeting room, where she would be meeting the commander, who is also her supervisor. Her leg bounced up and down, her palms were sweaty, and she was trying to breathe steadily. She couldn’t afford to pass out right now. Raven wasn’t even sure why it made her nervous and anxious at the same time to meet her supervisor. Was it the rumors about this unit or the lack of confidence in this situation? She really didn’t want to screw up this opportunity.
When she thought about all the stuff people said at boot camp and that she would never get anywhere, she didn’t have the greatest time there once people found out where she would be stationed; they were jealous and assholes. She didn’t even tell the others why she was recruited; it was the drill sergeant who tried to break her during one of the many three-mile runs that they did. She had sprained her ankle somewhere during the first two miles and had a hard time finishing the third. Her fellow recruits overheard what he had said and started to create rumors about how she got to join such a high-ranking unit without being a Navy SEAL herself.
"Private Reyes?" The soldier at the front desk asked, and she shot out of her seat and stood in front of the desk.
"That’s me, sir." Raven answered and waited for the man to tell her she could enter the meeting room.
"The Captain is ready for you in the meeting room." He said so and showed her the room.
Raven thanked him and took a deep breath before opening the door and entering the room. The room wasn’t decorated in any way; it was just a long table with chairs for ten people inside. At the other end of the table, Raven was surprised to see a woman not much older than her in a standard uniform.
She walked over to her and stood at attention. Since the other woman was a captain, she had to; it was good etiquette and a sign of respect to salute higher-ranking officers.
"At ease, state your rank and name." The captain issued an order and remained standing.
"Private Raven Reyes." Raven told the other woman while relaxing in a standing position.
"Welcome Private, I’m Captain Lexa Woods." The woman answered and put her hand out for Raven to shake, which she did.
"Thank you for the opportunity to be in your unit." Raven said to her.
"Don’t thank me; I didn’t want a newbie in my unit, but the general is forcing me to. Also, you're on probation; one wrong decision or step, and you’re out. Do you understand that?"
"Yes, Captain." Raven wasn’t feeling great about that statement. If she wasn’t even welcomed, then why was she sent here anyway?
"Great, I will introduce you to the rest, and they will handle your training schedules, show you around, and work with you for the next few months to prepare you for your first time in the real war zones. Follow me." The captain turned on her heel and exited the meeting room through the other door in the room.
Raven had to make an effort to keep up with Captain Woods, and she followed her through the endless halls of the building. They exited the conference hall and stepped into the morning sun. It was still early, and the sun wasn’t as hot as it would be once the day went on. Captain Woods continued walking, and Raven used the time she had to look around while still following Woods.
The base was one of the biggest in the country; every military branch could be found here, and they all had separate training areas as well as having joined once. Everything you can think of could be found here. Most soldiers come here after finishing basic training and continue here. Some have the opportunity to start their basic training here, but only a few selected ones are allowed to. If you train here, you have the whole world at your feet, and you can request to be relocated to every base you want.
After walking in silence for a few minutes, Woods holds open a door to one of the training facilities. Raven was sure it was one for specialized units that met their requirements. It was a huge building; she wasn’t sure what would be inside, but she was so ready to start.
"Attention!" A woman yelled, and three soldiers stopped what they were doing and stood at attention.
"At ease." Woods told them, and they relaxed. "Trikru, let me introduce you to Private Raven Reyes; she will join our unit on probation."
Raven took a moment and looked at the three: two women and a man. The man had dark skin and was the tallest of them all. He had a mostly bald head and was buff as hell. The woman on his left looked like she wanted to rip her throat out. She seemed to be Asian or at least have relatives from Asia, and she had dirty blonde hair that was in the traditional military bun. The last woman on her right had a hint of red in her hair and was also the smallest of the three. She also had a slightly more welcoming face than the other woman. They all wore the same uniform, which wasn’t a surprise since everyone in the military had the same or similar ones.
"Reyes, those are your new teammates; introduce yourselves." Woods ordered.
"Sergeant Lincoln Woods." The guy introduced himself first. Why do he and the captain have the same name? Woods isn’t a common name.
"Sergeant Anya Woods." The scary woman on his left told her. Okay, it’s getting confusing now.
"Sergeant Luna Woods." The last one said: That’s definitely weird, right? How the fuck was she supposed to tell them apart?
"Do I have to change my last name into Woods as well, or can I remain a Reyes?" Raven thought out loud.
Lincoln and Luna snorted at the comment, and the Captain glared at her. She realized her mistake and swallowed hard, not meeting anyone’s eyes.
"Are you trying to be funny, Private?" The captain asked.
"No, Captain. Just thinking out loud, I apologize." Raven answered truthfully.
"I’ll let it slide since it is your first day; another comment like that and you’re repeating your PFT, and you’ll have to set new personal records." The captain threatened.
"Lincoln, Luna, give me fifty." Lexa told them.
"That's not fair, she made the joke." Luna protested while Lincoln was already on the ground, starting his fifty push-ups.
"You’ll do fifty or clean the toilets and showers today." Lexa glared at her.
"I hate you right now, you know that." Luna muttered and got on the floor.
Raven had to fight back a smile as she watched the soldiers do push-ups. The captain looked at her, and she had to really concentrate to not let her smile through.
Welcome, Reyes. You can call us by our first names; it is easier, and we all do it. Except for the Captain, when we’re working or in work-related situations, we call her by her rank." Anya explained while stepping forward and leading her away from the other three.
Raven had to realize that her first assumption was wrong and that the scary Woods was actually nice. Well, she still looked like she would eat you alive if you looked too long into her eyes, but she wasn’t talking like she would.
"Alright, understood. What is it with the last name then?" Raven was curious.
"We’re all siblings. I’m the oldest; Lincoln comes after me; then Luna and the Captain; they’re twins." Anya answered.
Raven looked from one to the other and only then started to notice the similarities, whether in the way they stood or their facial features, which Luna and the Captain shared the most of.
"We all have the same father, but not the same mother." Lincoln said as he came over that he had already finished his push-ups.
"That’s cool, confusing, maybe a bit disturbing, and also fascinating." Raven said, getting a smile from Lincoln.
Luna finished her push-ups as well, and she and Cap joined the conversation. "Just so you know, I’m the better-looking twin." Luna spoke as soon as they reached the group.
"And just so you know, you’re cleaning the toilets and showers today." Cap ordered, making Lincoln and Anya laugh as Luna’s jaw dropped in disbelief.
"Remember to never get on her bad side." Raven whispered towards Lincoln, who gave her a thumbs up while trying to catch his breath.
Raven started to like the dynamic on this unit, thanks to them being siblings and still behaving like them, even if they want to look all professional. She loved the idea of fitting right in here, but she knew she had to earn her respect and her place in this unit.
"What’s planned for today?" Anya asked after focusing again.
"I had planned for Luna to show Reyes around base and show her the basics, but since she decided to volunteer for cleaning duty, Lincoln will do it. Anya, you’re going to go over her training schedule once Lincoln is finished, and then I’ll have more when I finish going through all the e-mails." The captain answered and excused herself.
"Right this way, Reyes." Lincoln gestured towards the door where she and the Captain had come in, then turned to Luna and smirked at her. "And you can enjoy the showers, dear sister."
Luna glared at him and then at Anya as she tried to hide her laugh behind a cough. "I hate all of you, including you, Reyes." Luna told them and went towards the showers, Raven assumed.
"What did I do?" Raven was shocked.
"You’re the main reason she has to clean instead of training." Lincoln stated.
Raven shrugged and started walking beside Lincoln and listening to him explain different parts of the base once they were outside.
He showed her the basic things, like the cafeteria, the administrative building, and the training grounds, and pointed towards more unimportant things like the different branch areas. It took nearly two hours to visit all the important buildings and answer all the questions Raven had; she mostly asked work-related questions.
After that, they returned to the building where the unit trained, and Lincoln started to show her each room. Her suspicions about it being a rather large building were confirmed. The building had its own shooting range, weight room, obstacle course, meeting rooms, rooms for special training, and a swimming pool.
"This place is amazing." Raven commented once she had seen everything.
"We’re lucky enough to have the military pay a bit more for our equipment since we’re a SEAL Team." Lincoln explained.
"Reyes! Are you ready to get your schedule?" Anya shouted from the other side of the room.
Raven nodded and went over to the other woman after thanking Lincoln for the tour. He walked away, and Anya led them into one of the meeting rooms. Raven followed and sat down at the table.
"Our working hours are different from the normal personnel on base. Our day starts at 600 and ends at around 1800, or if the captain is nice enough, a little bit earlier or when the schedule allows it. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner are available for us every day, but if you’re smart enough, you’ll eat at home for the first and the last, maybe packing a snack or two. We train together for the first part of the day, then we’ll have some strategic and theoretical lessons for the next. Lunch will be from 1200 to 1400; we mostly walk together at 1300. After lunch, the next two parts are working in our specialized parts and a bit of teambuilding, which means we’ll do different simulations and try not to fail, and around 1800, we’re all going home." Anya explained the usual routine.
"Those are only the next few months. Sometime later this year, we’ll be back into rotations and missions, where we’ll be flying all over the world and saving fellow soldiers or civilians. But that isn’t a worry right now. Any questions?" Anya finished.
"Yes, what do you mean by specialized parts?" Raven asked.
"We all have a different talent; yours is bombs and technology; you have your own station where you can play with explosives, as long as you aren’t blowing anything up. Lincoln is our sniper and the specialized medic on the team. We all have the basic medical knowledge we need when we find ourselves in a position where it is needed, but he knows more. Luna is our best swimmer and knows many languages; she’s also exceptional at hand-to-hand combat. The captain is our best fighter and a pro at infiltrating and retrieving information from the enemy; she’s also our leader and comes up with the strategies. I’m the communicator; I know everything happening in the world, and I stay updated on all relationships between world leaders and warlords. I also lead the way in hostage control and fly the helicopter if needed." Anya answered.
"So everybody brings something to the team; I’m glad nobody knows anything about explosives and technologies." Raven told her, which made Anya raise an eyebrow in question. "Well, if you had someone like that, I would still have to work for that asshole at the mechanic shop."
Anya nodded in understanding, and I finished briefing her about a few rules to follow when she was on base. Raven listened carefully and made mental notes here and there to look out for important things.
After that, Anya led her to another room and let her examine her station after excusing herself. Raven was in pure adoration at what lay before her. Top-quality chemicals and technology The computer was the newest tech on the market, and everything was for her. She couldn’t wait to rub it into Jasper’s and Monty’s faces.