Turn Your Back, Look Away and Just Keep Running.
Chapter 1: Welcome to the A.D.O
"Lucy Heartfilia, sir. Age 19. Citizen #2657 of the Sabertooth Area."
"Erza Scarlet, sir. Age 23. Citizen #4789 of the Mermaid Heel Area."
"Gray Fullbuster, sir. Age 21. Citizen #510 of the Phantom Lord Area."
"Wendy Marvel, sir. Age 16. Citizen #1357 of the Lamia Scale Area."
"Natsu Dragneel, sir. Age 20. Citizen #777 of the Fairy Tail Area."
So we all said going down the line as an introduction to our new boss, who we were to simply call either 'sir' or 'Commander'. We all held up our Citizen ID cards as we spoke, as if to reinforce our words. After all, you never know who could be lying. Who will have your back and who will stab it? You'll never know until it's too late.
I'm Lucy Heartfilia, just in case you're wondering. And I'm standing here rigidly in a line in a underground dormitory with four other people, four other strangers, who are supposed to become my comrades. Who I'm supposed to immediately trust with my life.
Yeah right.
Now, I'm no lie detector but I don't trust that easily. Especially in this world. This goes without saying in any situation, but you gotta earn your way in this world. Whether it be money, power or awards. Or the trivial things that everyone takes for granted like friendship, camaraderie, respect and trust.
The things that can be snatched away from you before you know it. Take my word for it. I know.
I think you get the point though. And I don't want to babble on about the small things when there's a story to be told.
So, without further ado, I'm gonna tell it.
While the Commander introduced himself and some very stern, official-looking individuals to our little group, I took it as an opportunity to study them closely. According to the Commander, one of each of these people would be assigned to us as a 'mentor' of sorts.
This could go very well or very wrong.
The Commander started pacing in a kind of linear movement, eyeing us all and blabbed on about other things that I firmly believe none of us really gave a shit about, then finally got onto the things I wanted to know about. He stopped pacing and stopped in the middle, giving us all one final look before talking. I think he must have been studying us thoroughly, deciding if we were to be trusted or not, sizing us up by our body language and the looks in our eyes. I stared him dead in the eye, trying to conceal any emotions I might've been displaying before. Then, he got onto the important stuff.
"I assume all of you are wondering why you were brought here. And before I reveal too much information, I must lay down some rules. Under no circumstances should you ever tell anyone where you are, who you're with and why you're here. Revealing information to outsiders is grounds for immediate execution. It puts not only you, but this whole organisation in jeopardy. Also, whatever orders I, or your mentors, give you are to be followed with no exceptions. Disobedience or betrayal is punishable by labour or starvation. Escaping or running away is not an option, and we will be forced to kill you if you do so. You will be permitted to leave the organisation if you wish to do so after your final mission. If you wish to stay with the organisation, you may do that as well. The five of you are essential to the following missions, so rest assured you will all be paid a hefty wage for your hard work. And one last thing," the Commander stopped there, his face growing even more serious than before, if that was possible, "the world out there is not the one you have been sheltered from your entire lives. It is a battlefield, a hell-on-earth where bloodshed is an inevitable, everyday occurrence. The missions you will be asked to complete as a team will require you to face this world head-on. Death is not a million miles away. Only the strongest will survive. Still, are you prepared to follow through?"
With that, he looked at us and waited for a response.
"Yes, sir!" all five of us barked back at him simultaneously. He nodded at us, and started to speak again.
"That's that, then. After this, there's no turning back," he paused, before speaking in a much-less-serious tone, "for just over half a century now, we have been selecting 5 people whose family have a history with combat every five years, and we train them for a year, in order to complete several different missions over the course of the remaining four years they serve here. All of these missions require you to work as a team to survive, so when I leave I want you to choose a team captain. Your mentors will guide you through training and your first real mission, but after that you're on your own. All of the missions that you will do will lead up to your final mission at the end of the five years. The final mission is the same every year, but we will not reveal it to you yet. The reason that the final mission is always the same is because nobody has ever completed it yet. They all died either before or during the mission. We're hoping that this time, that won't be the case."
I could hear the man beside me gulp in fear. I half wanted to laugh, but I half felt sorry for him too.
"Now, are there any questions before I leave you to your own devices?" the Commander asked, looking around. The teenage girl in the middle raised her hand and spoke. She looked terrified at the prospect of speaking to the Commander, but she cleared her throat and talked in a clear voice.
"I was unaware that my family had a history of combat. Would you mind explaining it to me?" she asked. Come to think of it, I didn't know my family had a history of combat too. The Commander, to my surprise, smiled at her.
"I'm afraid I cannot reveal that to you myself. It's not in my place to do so. However, I can assure you that you will find out along the way," he answered her, before turning back to face us.
"Any more questions?"
The man to my right raised his hand.
"I apologise if this seems like a silly question, but what is this organisation called?" he inquired. If you ask me, it wasn't a silly question at all considering the Commander had never bothered to provide us with that information. The Commander shook his head apologetically.
"Don't apologise. I was the one who forget to tell you. This facility is called the A.D.O. The Anti-Devilman Organisation."
Before I continue, I should probably explain what the Commander is talking about. 60 years ago, in the year 2140, these genetically modified humanoid animals named Devilmen began to appear. Or at least they are assumed to be animals. Nobody knows what animal specifically, but it's definitely a dangerous one, that much I can tell you.
Over that past six decades, these Devilmen have been at war with us humans. They grow in population by turning people into one of them, much like zombies. Only instead of eating their brains they eat their hearts.
Several full-scale wars have taken place at different parts of the world. The world is no longer divided into countries, but areas. Other than that, the world works in much the same way as the past. The politics are the same. Each area has its own army.
But things will never be the same as they were in the past again.
On with the story.
"Any more questions?" the Commander asked. Nobody said a word.
"Very well. I'll leave you all to get settled in, to get to know your mentors and to get to know each other. Dinner will be served at 5:00pm sharp. Your mentors will show you where the canteen is. Training will be at the crack of dawn tomorrow."
And with that, the Commander left the room.
We all looked at each other once the door shut behind him. Being in a room full of complete strangers was definitely not my idea of fun. The awkwardness became too much to handle, so after what felt like a lifetime one of the mentors finally spoke.
"I suppose we should introduce ourselves. My name is Ur Milkovich. I will be mentoring…" she paused, looking down at a sheet of information, "Gray Fullbuster."
A man with dark raven-black hair and darkish blue eyes stepped forward with a rather confident, almost cocky, smile. He stuck out his hand to his mentor, who shook it.
"Nice to meet you," he said simply. Then, the next mentor stepped forward.
"Where is Erza Scarlet?" he asked, looking around at us. The woman beside me took a step towards him and shook his hand.
"I am. It's a pleasure to meet you."
"Likewise. My name is Jellal Fernandes and I'll be your mentor," he replied. He had a blush on his face for some reason. I followed his gaze as he looked down and realised he was staring at her boobs.
What a perv. Glad I wasn't stuck with him.
One by one, we all introduced ourselves to our mentors. The teenage girl, whose name was Wendy Marvell had a female mentor named Grandine Porlyusica. The man beside me, who had asked what he thought was a stupid question, was called Natsu Dragneel and his mentor was called Igneel Zeref.
Finally, I was the only one left to meet my mentor. I studied her carefully. She was pretty, and seemed like the girly type. I hoped to whatever higher power was up there that she wasn't a total weakling. She smiled brightly at me, and infectious smile that I was forced to half-heartedly return.
"It's nice to meet you. I'm your mentor, Mirajane Strauss," she said, shaking my hand enthusiastically whilst I tried unsuccessfully to withdraw mine form her grasp.
"It's nice to meet you too," I replied, "the name's Lucy Heartfilia."
We all spent some time talking to our mentors. They told us stories of some of the missions they had been on, how hard or easy some of them were, what training was going to be like and how they would all try their hardest to help us.
I wasn't convinced just yet, but I faked it and pretended like we were already BFF's.
After a while the mentors left, saying something about having to attend some kind of meeting and that they would come back for us just before dinner to take us to the canteen. The door shut behind them quietly.
And, just like that, we were all left to get to know each other.
A/N: Hey guys!
I'm back again with a brand new story! I have no idea how this idea came to me, but I think the concept is interesting, and I'm really excited to write more for it. I hope you all will join me on this journey! I plan to really focus on this story, so I may not update any others for another while. I'll do my best, but I'm going back to school on Thursday so that might be an issue.
Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this chapter and I look forward to hearing your response!
Until next time, ja ne!