"You will observe today. Do not engage. Tomorrow you`ll lead, and Addy will assess." The captain walks over to join us at the arena doors. "Iva, suit him up but no live weapons."

　　"Sure thing." Iva says to his wrist device. "Follow me, Oren."

　　"Let`s get to it." Kane announces and everyone moves with renewed energy.

　　I crane my neck as I get closer to Iva trying to understand what holds his attention. I catch him swiping through screens that look like schematics for a trap. His fingers fly across the keyboard and I wonder if his brain ever stops. We reach a team of scientist busy handing out gear from rolling carts packed with equipment.

　　"Standard combat load out includes comms, goggles, water, survival kit, two traps, one side arm, ammo, armor piercing blades, shelter set, and your specialty gear."

　　Now the pockets and straps on this uniform make sense. Iva jerks his head toward a cart and I fall in step with him. He pulls out items, naming them before stuffing them into my pockets or snapping them into the holsters and straps. He unloads a firearm and slides it into the hidden pocket on my right hip and shoves a couple of mags in my hand.

　　"You need to get use to the feel of entering combat with full load out."

　　I nod and stuff the ammo in the cargo pocket of my thigh. He`s going so fast I don`t catch everything he hands me or stuffs into pockets. I have a sharp memory but I won`t be able to locate things fast enough during combat.

　　"You`ll find your own method and where you like your gear." He says like he read my mind.

　　"Tomorrow you can load up yourself. Get a feel for where you want the basics. Once you get your specialty, your load out will change so don`t get married to anything yet. Get use to maneuvers with all the extra weight and bulk." He zips up my shoulder pocket and stands back.

　　"Got it." I raise my arms and test my legs, it`s like swimming in mud.

　　I`d been trained to be a guard. First aid kit, goggles and comms are their only gear. A guard doesn`t need to prepare for extended missions that require shelter, water or weapons.

　　"I`ll train you on the tech side of your gear including your shelter set when we have our specialty training. Luce will take care of weapons and marksmanship training."

　　"Perfect. I`m sure she can`t wait." I flash back to being strapped in the chair at the shooting range thinking she was poisoning me.

　　"Do yourself a favor and do whatever she says and you`ll be fine." Iva looks me over before a lopsided grin appears. "Nah, it`ll still be painful."

　　"No doubt." I agree.

　　"Today, you`ll need scout goggles." Iva turns to grab them off the table behind him.If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

　　"The goggles are pretty much what you`re already used to except they have image recording tech to capture terrain." Iva holds out the goggles for me to take. "We can`t transmit in real time because of the interference from the Mist, but the science division uses it for mapping. Addy can show you how to take images tomorrow."

　　I take the goggles and slide them over my head to rest around my neck. I`ll keep this pair so I can disarm the image enhancing before tomorrow. I look around at the scientist darting back and forth to get the arena and the team ready. It`s chaos. Making these goggles disappear shouldn`t be a problem.

　　"You still have your comm from yesterday right?"

　　I reach for the small pen sized pocket at my lapel and pull out the thin box.

　　"Yes." I reply opening it to place the comm in my right ear.

　　Iva grins. "That`s exactly where I keep mine." He says retrieving his box.

　　His wrist device pings and draws his attention. I`ve lost him.

　　"Ready up. We go in two minutes." Kane belts out.

　　He stands outside the arena entrance with the captain and the lead doctor from yesterday. I shiver remembering the demon`s odd behavior and their dead eyes trained on me. But I was too high up and behind the observation window for them to see me. I let my protective paranoia freak me out. Either way I don`t need to attract the doctor`s attention during my first live combat with the squad. It`s going to be hard enough managing my powers with demons around while not being able to draw my weapons or engage.

　　I walk over to Addy and stand behind a pillar. I pull off the scout goggles and bend down to the lower side pocket of my pants to switch them out with my modified ones.

　　"Ready?" Addy asks dancing in front of me.

　　I stand back up. Her blonde head tilts back.

　　"Ready."

　　"You are my shadow today. That means you have to stick close." She moves forward, firmly in my personal space. Her slight floral scent wafts up as I stare down at her.

　　"I`m going to move fast so try to stay close. It`s okay to track by touch. You can gauge my direction by my shoulders and hips."

　　I nod in understanding. It`s the same way I gauge my opponent in combat. The turn of the hips or shoulders telegraph their next move.

　　"I`ll try to account for your height but sometimes my instincts kick in and I just go. It may be too hard to follow if the space is tight. If that happens, wait for me to backtrack to you. Stay hidden, stay safe."

　　My head jerks back hearing the same words I said to Nugget in the tunnels. I look Addy over. She`s not dancing, bouncing or smiling as she waits for my reply. She`s in full warrior mode. She`s quiet and still. Her bright blue eyes reflect the overhead lights like crystals as they flit back and forth over mine.

　　"Understood." I say.

　　"Great!" She claps loud making me flinch before jumping up and down.

　　And just like that, she`s back. These Elites are too much like me. They show me one side and flip into a different one in seconds. Chameleons, like the captain they follow. I know why I mask myself but why do they? And which are the real squad?

　　"Time." The captain shouts.

　　Everyone lines up in a diamond formation in front of the arena entrance. The captain is point, Kane on her right, and Iva on her left. Addy behind Iva, Luce is behind Kane with Fletcher covering the back. I move into the center of the formation, next to Addy in the most protected position. They sound off for comm check and the doors open.

　　It`s like stepping through a gate, beyond the wall, and into the Mist. I have to give it to the Centrum scientists, any semblance of the training arena is gone. Even the air smells damp and rotted.

　　"Oren, stay by Addy, do not deviate from her exact path and do not engage. Your squad is your weapon today." The captain`s directives make my powers pulse.

　　Being in this atmosphere is like a beacon to my abilities. I force my breathing into a controlled rhythm. I give the arena one last look and squeeze my eyes shut pushing my powers back.

　　The tightness pierces my chest in argument. I release my breath and push power to my eyes to simulate my goggles being powered on. Focus on Addy, I repeat like a mantra.

　　I open my eyes, and she`s no longer in front of me. In fact, the entire squad has already moved out and I`m still by the entrance.