Chapter 85: To get ready for a test (Patreon)

Sarah was on the verge of banging her head on her desk.

In the official Hero Union trainee white full-body suit, the short, lithe ginger girl watched in despair as the Legion teaching them got ready to press the remote it used to control its presentation and present another slide. Judging from the groans around her, she wasn't the only one. She spared a look at her fellow trainees and took in the sight of the even smaller redhead Glicer Glitter looking in horror at their mechanical instructor, all of her usual joy sapped away, not far was Kopper Kid, his usually brown skin so pale it was disturbingly close to her own, Elaimant was emitting even more white noise than usual and their crystalline pyramid encased in a bubble kept on spinning, Sarah was pretty sure the various metallic knick-knacks they used to form a roughly humanoid body were even groaning. Scareowl, ever diligent and attentive, had to place the elbows of both his wings on his desk to keep his head up. Even Maledicta, despite arriving late and missing a third of the lesson, could barely keep her cool mean girl act, her brow was covered in sweat and she had to slap herself now and then to stay awake.

The mindless mono-eyed robot in charge of their classroom completely ignored their distress, and Sarah knew it would show no mercy - during a quick talk with Mechaman, the genius had revealed to her Legions were programmed to recognize emotional states and medical situations, which meant they were perfectly aware of when students were overwhelmed by the many law lessons they had to go through, they just weren't programmed to care. She had even directly asked a Legion, just to be sure, maybe the veteran Hero was just messing with her after all, but now, it had without a shred of hesitation confirmed they were completely aware of their students' reactions to lessons and were actually keeping track of them for their profiles.

The lanky robot pressed a button on its remote, and like an act of divine intervention, the projection of the presentation on the screen-board of the classroom shut off.

"This lecture is now over. Please note, a test covering your entire Hero education will take place Monday, during your allotted afternoon education time. Every allotted education from henceforth and until the test will be free to let you study at your pace. Group study is encouraged. Failure to be present at the beginning of the test will result in a non-debatable 0, any note of 0 will have you expelled from the Hero trainee program. Education time after the test will constitute of repeats of previous lessons based on your results, with a second test after two weeks if your performance is deemed insufficient."

Taking a test about everything you had learned after a little more than a month of being part of the program didn't seem that much, but the Legions were ruthless teachers. Sarah wouldn't be surprised to learn she knew more about law than an actual law student at the end of their first year, though she wouldn't bet on it. She had learned her lesson on the field day at the fire station. Her uncle had even taken the time to drill proper fire-fighting protocols after he had known she had been outdone by a firefighter trainee.

Kopper Kid raised his hand and the Legion nodded.

"Uh, what if our results are good enough that we don't need a second test?"

"Your physical and power training will incorporate fighting against armed, unarmed, and Cored opponents, while your education will focus on the various threats you may encounter in Zalcien. After a month of this new regimen, you will take a new test to prove you are fit for deployment. Depending on your results, you may be sent on official Hero Union operations of low risk under the watch of a senior Hero."

Glicer immediately jumped up from her chair.

"You're saying we're gonna actually fight bad guys?!"

"In two months, if your results are satisfying. Now please stop standing on the furniture."

"Inquiry: Is it safe to send trainees to the field after merely three months of training? Observation: We do not appear to be combat-ready."

"The division of Hero trainees' education and preparation is the result of years of research and experience. Zalcien has been determined to be a safe enough city to allow for shorter training. Your concerns are noted."

Scareowl raised a wing, and once more the one-eyed robot nodded to give a curious student the go-ahead.

"Legion, may we study with the aid of a Legion?"

"Legions may only be assigned to help Heroes after an official demand has been made to their local branch of the Hero Union, you are not Heroes yet. No Legion will be allocated to help you in your studies."

"Oh! What about a Hero?!"

"Miss Glitter, please do not stand on the furniture. If a Hero wishes to help your study during their personal time, they are fully allowed to do so. Miss Glitter, for the last time, please do not stand on the furniture."

"Whoops, sorry!"

"Please, do not stand on the furniture in the future. Are there any questions regarding today's lessons? If not, this will mark the end of today's allocated educational time."

"Statement: Negative."

"No, Legion."

"No question here!"

"As if anyone would want to stay here any longer..."

Sarah rolled her eyes at Maledicta's needlessly mean answer before giving her simpler own.

"No, it's alright Legion."

"Class is dismissed then. Be present on Monday in this classroom at 14:00, any lateness will see you fail the test and be expelled from the Hero trainee program. Please proceed to leave the room."

They didn't need to be asked twice. Knowing the various rules, laws, and protocols they had to follow was very important for sure, but sitting through hours of lecture on end with no pause... Sarah still wanted to be a Hero, but now she wondered if maybe the reason why her uncle had told her to take the time to think about it when she had brought it up the first time wasn't out of worry for her safety but rather trauma out of the training itself. He wasn't even one of the combat-focused Heroes, and those were the ones who were the most affected by the most laws. She wasn't sure what she wanted to do, but if she chose to fight crime directly... She couldn't imagine what sort of hell the Legions would make her go through.

Once they were all out of the classroom, the little group arrived in the massive hallway filled with countless doors they had all come to know. In the distance, they could distinguish the doors of one of the elevators on each side, the massive columns of white marble that allowed transport between the various floors of the Union's Headquarters. The hallways were cozy but still impersonal, with beige wallpaper, a unique slab of wood to make the entire floor, and an azure ceiling clearly meant to echo the false infinite sky of the Hall. The hallway was wide, larger than the average road, and long enough that it wouldn't have been surprising to see people using vehicles to make the travel quicker. This was the first floor of the gargantuan skyscraper meant to host Heroes, hence why it wasn't as crowded as the lower floors where the regular citizens working for the Union filled non-vital paperwork or as the upper floors where all of Zalcien's Heroes hanged out and trained. This was the halfway point between the people and their guardians, a floor only visited by trainees, Legions, and the occasional Hero who dropped by to give a special class.

That wasn't to say this floor only had classrooms, no, there were also quite a few training rooms of various styles representing different situations and challenges, in multiple iterations each. Sarah and the rest had been in a few of them, and so far her favorite had to be the room where they had been trained to hit bad guys without hurting civilians with paper cutouts. The fact Maledicta had fumed because she always hit civilians and bombed her score may have played a part in this preference. Scareowl was the one with the best score in this training room, but Sarah wasn't far behind in the silver medal, followed by Elaimant and Kopper Kid. Glicer had some trouble keeping her fire in check, but at least she saved a few civilians. Sometimes.

Frankly, Scareowl and Elaimant were the only two other trainees in their group that Sarah would like to team up with permanently. They were both knowledgeable and efficient, and they were very good at what they did. Glicer was cute and Kopper was nice, but she had trouble controlling her powers while he didn't have the stamina or drive to support his. As for Maledicta... No.

"Firefly? You listening?"

"Ah! Sorry Scareowl, I was lost in my thoughts. Could you repeat please?"

The drow in the group rolled her eyes, and Sarah was on the verge of snapping back at her when the owl continued to speak.

"I said, it'd be good to follow the Legion's suggestion and study as a group. We could cover each other's weaknesses while keeping our strengths sharp."

"Quoting: Teamwork makes the dream work."

Glicer jumped and threw glitter in the air.

"Exactly! I'm all in! So, Firefly, in for a Glitter Study Party?"

"Glicer, it's only supposed to be for study, not glitter or party. Besides, it will occur over multiple days, how would you even keep a party going for so long?"

"Relax, I'm just ruffling your feathers."

"Please, do not ruffle my feathers."

"Anyway, you're in Firefly? And you, Kopper?"

"You're really nice guys, but usually I prefer to stud alone... Listening to some music, doing things at my pace..."

Kopper seemed relieved to hear Sarah's words.

"Yeah, I'm with her on that one. I know group studies are a thing that works, they're just not mine, you know?"

Glicer lost all of her energy.

"Oh. You sure? I'll prepare snacks and everything."

"If we're meant to work together at some point in our careers, starting with something like this could make for some good practice, too."

"Yeah! What Scareowl said!"

"Observation: Studying together will be an opportunity for bonding, and might offer alternative ways to think. Statement: Ultimately, the choice is yours."

Sarah winced. Those three were friendly, and Elaimant and Scareowl were her favorite classmates, but she genuinely preferred studying alone. As she said, doing it on her own let her do it her way. At the same time, they were right, this was the perfect excuse to bond...

"... Alright, we have a week before the test, so let's try every other day, alright?"

"Yeah! We're gonna have so much fun~"

"AND STUDY. Don't forget that part, Glicer."

"Sure, sure."

"Inquiry: Kopper, would you be willing to join us with the same condition?"

"Ahhh... If all of the gang's here, I wouldn't want to stick out."

"Yippie!"

"Inquiry: What about you, Maledicta?"

The air in the hallway went frigid at Elaimant's words. Even the drow raised an eyebrow before she caught herself and rolled her eyes.

"Why would I want to change out with you pitiful lot? I don't need any of you. Besides, I've got my system."

"Statement: Very well. Observation: You are late to every class, you should consider coming much earlier than usual if you do not want to be expelled."

"That's none of your business, pyramid."

"No need to be mean, Maledicta."

"Stay out of this, owl boy."

"Hey! That ain't nice!"

"Shut up glitter girl, that goes for you too."

That was it. Sarah had more enough of the drow's attitude.

"Why do you even bother coming to Hero training if you're going to act like this? The Legions keep track of everything, they'll probably kick you out no matter your grade on the test."

"They can't afford to kick me out, little bug. I'm the best thing that has happened to the Union in years."

Sarah was about to retort when their Legion teacher popped its camera-like head out of the classroom.

"Please, either exit the building or go to a communal area available. Do not stay in the hallway."

"Or what, bucket head?"

"A senior Hero will be summoned to escort you out."

Maledicta groaned but left, not even bothering to say a final quip before she left the group behind. They always exchanged looks before going to one of the communal areas the Legion had mentioned, small rooms meant for trainees to stay together between lessons, or in their case, to study together. Their lessons for the day may have been over, but they all could afford some time to ready themselves for the first big challenge in their Hero careers. Proving they knew what they could, should, couldn't, and must do.