"Edward! Get down from there, we're done for today."

Edward huffed as he heard The Commanders voice from the top of the Alternate Movement Course. Looking down through all of the bars, poles and platforms he had parkoured his way up to get to where he was sitting, Edward gave the woman a thumbs up.

"Right! I'll be down in a sec!"

He couldn't really see The Commander from all the way up near the top of the course, but he thought that she returned his thumbs up, before leaving the training room. Edward jumped off the small platform he was sitting on and grabbed onto a bar. Using the platforms and items he had just climbed up with, he made his way to the ground.

It took him a little while, but he eventually reached the lowest item in the field and jumped to the ground, rolling as he hit the ground to bleed off some of the force. Popping up to his feet, he rolled his shoulders and headed for the door.

The door of the training room hissed as it opened, letting him into a brightly lit hallway. One of the passersby gave him a nod as they saw him, and he smiled back to them, giving a small wave, before heading off in the other direction.

He passed by a few other people, but they seemed invested in whatever they were reading, so he let them be. He reached The Commander's office and knocked on the door, stepping inside when the door opened.

The Commander put her feet together and brought her right hand up to her forehead as if she was shielding her eyes, her left hand near her hip. "So, Edward. How was your training today? Any injuries that require our attention?"

Edward returned the salute before shaking his head at The Commanders question. He sat down in the chair across from her, smiling. "No ma'am. Nothing like that. I think I've pretty much mastered the Alternative Movement Course. What happens next?"

The Commander chuckled. "Nothing happens 'next.' You've passed the tests for your weapons certification, your other test scores are around the standard or above, and you turn 18 in 3 days. You're basically done."

Edward sat up straight at that. "Really?! Oh man, I forgot about my birthday! The clockworkers do their best, but it gets hard to keep track of days down here."

The Commander nodded, sighing. "Yes, it does, sometimes. But, when you head up to the surface, that shouldn't be an issue. But there are a few things that I wanted to personally go over with you one last time before we start preparing for your exit from the bunker."

Nodding, Edward sat up straighter. "I assumed you would, Ma'am."

Smiling, The Commander stood up, pulling a remote out of her pocket and pressing a button, turning on the screen to her right. A map of Australia showed up, one that he had seen before many times, but this time it had lines separating the landmass into 8 sections.

Edward raised his eyebrow. "Is this just a history lesson, Ma'am?"

The Commander turned to him and nodded. "Yes, Edward. History is by far the subject you fare the worst in, so we are going to reinforce the knowledge one last time before your departure."

Coughing, The Commander tapped the screen with a metal stick. "These areas here were known as the 'states and territories' of Australia, and they existed up until around 150 years ago."

The Commander clicked another button and the slide changed, showing a picture of a koala with glowing blue eyes, the bit of the tree it was holding onto made of metal.

"The reason they were disbanded was after the 'Superpowered Wildlife Catastrophe', where almost 50% of the animals on Australian land started developing basic, almost prototype-esq versions of what we now call Quirks. Unfortunately, this number has grown over the years, and currently sits at around 90%"

"With the country still struggling to keep up with the sudden appearance of humans with superpowers, the military and police forces were quickly overwhelmed it became clear that almost every animal in Australia had the potential to be a lethal threat."

The Commander frowned, and the slide changed to an aerial view of what Edward could only assume was the entrance hatch to the bunker. "With the sheer quantity and varied nature of the wildlife's Quirks, it was soon clear that humans were not able to remain in their cities."

"Because of this, the government set up a new branch. The 'Surface Defence Force', whose mission was the creation of new, fortified cities for people to live, safe from the super-powerful animals that now dominated the country."

Edward raised his hand, and The Commander waved to him, letting him speak. "I do know most of this. The cities ended up kinda working, but there were too few of them to house everyone, so they made the bunkers, right?"

The Commander nodded. "That is correct. The bunkers that we and most of the current population reside in were built after the cities were deemed too small to hold everyone and remain safe."

The Commander continued. "The creation of the bunkers coincided with the creation of the Australian Rangers Alliance, or ARA for short. Field Rangers are tasked with using their Quirks to investigate the surface outside of the bunkers of cities, marking down threats and mapping the landscape."

Sitting back down, she hummed. "And that brings us to now. Not a lot has changed since the creation of the ARA. There have been some wins for humanity, with Rangers taking down massive threats before they could do real harm, but for the most part, it's been fairly stagnant."

Waving her hand over to Edward, she smiled. "You, Edward, are the first Field Ranger that I have personally trained, and the first one that this bunker has sent out in almost 30 years. It's been quite a while since someone had a Quirk like yours."

The Commander leaned back in her chair. "Your Velocity Quirk is going to be very helpful when you get outside the bunker, I can tell you that."

Edward nodded, holding up his arm as he turned his Quirk on, watching the blue rings of energy appear, wrapping around his joints as his body sped up. "I don't doubt that, Ma'am. But is the history lesson everything you wanted to talk with me about? Seems fairly short if so."

The Commander chuckled, standing up. "Of course not. We're going to be doing a quick refresher course for the next few days, just to make sure that you leave the bunker in tip-top shape. Now, follow me, we are going to complete some firearm drills."

Edward jumped out of the chair, a smile on his face as he followed The Commander out of her office. "Yes ma'am!"

Edward blinked as his alarm went off, the lights in his room automatically turning on.

'Good Morning, (Edward). It is now the (25th) of (July), (2XXX). Congratulations on becoming (18) years old.'

Edward smiled to himself as he pushed himself out of bed, tapping his clock to turn off the alarm. The voice still spoke, but at least the blaring noise had stopped.

'You are now a legal adult, and as such, are now eligible to become a fully certified (Ranger). Please see your nearest representative of the (ARA) to gain your certification and equipment.'

Edward hurried through his morning routine, using his Quirk the slightest amount to make his body faster. It was a bit disorientating, having your body move faster than your perception, but he had mastered using the smaller increases years ago.

As he practically burst out of his quarters, he grinned at the maintenance workers that stood down the hall. As they spotted him, the older one, a man named Richard, waved. "Hey there, kiddo! Happy birthday!"

Edward waved back, the blue wrings around his joints becoming a little brighter as he sped up even further, as he was extremely eager to head out. "Uh, Thank you, Mr… um, Thank you, sir!"

He then sped off towards the mess hall to grab some breakfast, weaving through some of the other citizens of the bunker, many he didn't know personally but waved to him anyway, and some even saluted. It was weird to be known by people he had never interacted with, but it made sense, in a way.

Rangers were seen as fairly important, especially to the people still living on the surface, so the fact that he was a Ranger in training was probably a really cool thing that he took for granted because it had just been that way his whole life.

Skidding along the floor slightly as he turned his Quirk off, he arrived outside The Commander's office, swaying back and forth on the balls of his feet. He only had to wait for a moment or two before The Commander stepped out, her hair up in a very official-looking bun.

"Ah, you're here early, Edward, that's good. Follow me."

She started walking, and Edward walked beside her, his footsteps matching her pace as they walked. She glanced over to him, a soft smile forming on her face. "Edward, before we reach the armoury and get your gear, I want to say something."

Edward raised his eyebrow at her. "Of course, ma'am, what is it?"

The Commander took a deep breath, looking the most nervous he had ever seen her. "I just wanted to make sure that you knew, without a shadow of a doubt, that I am incredibly proud of you, Edward."

He almost stumbled as his head whipped towards her, his throat closing up. "I… uh…"

Holding up her hand, she stopped him. "It's alright, you don't have to say anything. I know that you weren't given much of a choice in becoming a Ranger, but your dedication and drive to being the best you possibly can be has impressed me time and time again."

She stopped completely, one of her hands falling onto his shoulder. "I don't know how you see me, and it's fine if I never do. But after training you for all these years, I have found myself quite... invested in you, my boy."

Edward would deny staunchly that his eyes were watering later in life, but he couldn't hide them from The Commander. "So… before you become a Ranger, I want to tell you, well, I want you to know my name."

Edward's eyes widened. "But, ma'am, I thought you weren't supposed to tell me your name? I've always been confused by you couldn't, but even why now?"

The Commander chuckled. "I'm going to miss you, Edward, that's why. Rangers don't usually come back to the same bunker when their employment is over, let alone anywhere that I'll be able to contact you. After you get outside of our systems range, that's it."

Edward's mind stuttered for a second, the excitement that had been with him the whole morning fading a bit. He had never really even… talked with most of the people who lived in his bunker, but The Commander had been the closest thing to a parent he ever had. To know that it was likely he would never see her again…

"Sarah. Sarah Walker."

Edward looked up at The Commander, no, at Sarah, and smiled. The hand on his shoulder moved up to his head, ruffling his hair. "You don't have to call me that, in fact, it's probably better if you don't in front of anyone, but… at least you'll know it."

She continued walking after that, and Edward followed behind her this time, giving her the privacy she obviously needed to wipe her eyes and clear her throat. It was a complete accident that he found himself wiping away tears as well.

Edward almost jumped as the man in front of him slammed down a holstered pistol and a watch onto the counter between them.

The man was slightly shorter than Edward, at around 5'9", and much older. The man's beard was pure grey, and there was an eyepatch over one of his eyes. "So, Edward, is it? Commander here says you're becoming a Rainja!"

Edward lifted a finger. "Actually, sir, it's a 'Range-'

"l know what I mean, boy!"

Edward squeaked as he ducked down, the pistol in the man's hand flailing as he yelled out. "Tch, interrupting your elders… how the hell did such a disrespectful brat become a Rainja, eh? Guh, whatever. Ain't my job to pick 'em, just to gear 'em up."

Edward turned to Sarah slowly, and she sighed, nodding. "Go on, Jax is rough around the edges but he will get you sorted. Meet me outside once you're done, please."

He gave her a thumbs-up, and turned back to the man, Jax, smiling. "So, sir. Please, uh, 'gear me up' as you said."

Jax sneered but nodded waving his hand at the two items on the counter. "First up, you're Rainja watch. Some wise guy at Rainja HQ in New Canberra decided we all gotta have watches that keep track o' shit for us, so here you are."

Edward grabbed the watch and placed his hand through the loop, marvelling at how the band automatically shrunk, clinging to his wrist, but not enough to limit his movement or stop blood flow. "This is super cool!"

Jax clicked his tongue, pulling out a sheet of paper and handing it over. "Heres the full manual for it, but essentially, its voice commanded. It's solar-powered, can track your health, has a Sattelite GPS in it, a normal clock feature, flashlight, and can even keep track of the charge in this bad boy."

As Jax finished, he patted the holstered pistol, sliding it over to Edward. "This baby right here is the NLAPP-34 or the Non-Lethal Anti-Personal Pistol 34. Standard issue for Rainja's all over Australia, nowadays."

Unhostering the pistol, Edward smiled as he held it up to the light. "These are the energy weapons, right?"

Jax nodded. "Yep, some nerd from HQ, a different nerd this time though, used his Quirk to make electricity into a semi-solid projectile. The NLAPP-34 uses the principles of that guy's Quirk to keep a charge of 34 shots of energy."

Whistling, Edward re-holstered the pistol. "That's pretty amazing. Quirks are so weird, though. Hell, some of them are just plain bullshit, if I'm being candid."

Jax hummed, nodding. "Got that right, mate. Now, you've got your watch and you've got your gun. Let's get the rest of your suit."

Exiting the change room, Edward smiled, adjusting his hat.

He clipped the holstered NLAPP-34 to his right thigh and stepped out to where Jax could see him. He rolled his shoulders while Jax grunted. Turning to see a mirror to his side, Edward smiled as he gave himself a once over.

He had a dark blue jumpsuit on, the legs and arms tucked into black knee-high boots and black gloves respectively, with the ARA's logo in a gold thread over his heart. Goggles went over his eyes, and a black slouch hat sat on his head, the cord pulled tight under his chin to keep the hat snug on his head no matter how much he shook it.

There was a black bag on his back, too, currently empty, but Edward had seen a bunch of sections seemingly dedicated to certain things throughout it. Turning to Jax, Edward pointed at the side of the bag, where there was a round slot to insert something.

"What's this for?"

Jax looked up to see what he was pointing at, before slapping his forehead and jogging over to a nearby locker, pulling out a… shovel? "Knew I forgot something!"

Jax lobbed the shovel his way, and Edward grabbed it out of the air. It was made out of solid metal and had some plastic grips around the handle. The shovel bit itself was weird, being incredibly sharp, with one side actually serrated.

"Uh, this looks like it could really hurt someone…"

Jax snorted. "That's kinda the point there, kiddo. That's your standard-issue Multi-purpose Combat Shovel. Good for digging holes and defending yourself. It does have a sheath for the blade bit if you're worried, though."

Jax tossed over a thick leather covering for it, and Edward quickly stuck it over the top of it, strapping it in place and sliding it onto the side of his bag. "So, my melee weapon, my only hope if my pistol runs out of ammo... is a shovel?"

Clicking his tongue, Jax nodded. "Don't shit talk the shovel, kid. Plenty of my fellow gear guys have gotten reports of saved lives because of them. I suggest you keep that in mind and don't underestimate it."

Edward put his hands up in surrender, chuckling. "Ok, ok. I won't diss the shovel. I guess it is just like, a small spear, or something?"

Jax just shrugged. "Whatever you wanna think of it as. It's yours now."

Edward nodded as he tightened the straps of the backpack slightly, jumping up and down to make sure it didn't move. He saw Jax check a clipboard, ticking something off. "Is this all my gear?"

Jax nodded, pulling out a pair of jumpsuits out, as well as a black sleeping bag. "Yep. That's all you get. You'll be getting some water bottles and MRE's to put in your pack from the canteen before you leave as well. These are just some spare jumpsuits. You never know how much damage they'll take from the animals out there. Or the people."

Edward smiled, picking up the spare jumpsuits and the sleeping bag, and stuffing them into his pack. "Thank you, Jax. I'll be sure to get good use out of this stuff."

Waving his hand, Jax grunted. "Good for you. Now get out of here, you still gotta get your official license before you leave."

Edward nodded, dashing over to the door, blue rings shining around his joints over the jumpsuit. "Right! Goodbye, Jax!"

He didn't get a response from the old man, but that was fine. He got the feeling Jax didn't really care for people that much.

Sarah met him outside the armoury and took him to the canteen to get his supplies, and soon enough, Edward found himself in a room he was fairly sure 90% of the bunker people had never been in before.

The Surface Entrance Chamber.

"Alright, Edward. This is it. Your final moment before I give you your license."

Edward nodded, bouncing on the balls of his feet. Sarah gave him a soft smile, pulling out a card from her jacket pocket. "I know that you're gonna be great out there, Edward."

Edward grinned, taking a moment to just acknowledge how important this moment was. He reached out slowly to take the card from her… only for their hands to go right past each other as Sarah quickly tapped the card to his Ranger Watch.

Edward made eye contact with Sarah for a moment, embarrassed. As his Ranger Watch let out a ding, Sarah quite obviously hid her laughter. "Your license is electronic, Edward. Cards can be lost or stolen easily, the Ranger Watches are a little more of a… hassle to steal."

He looked down at the watch as a picture of his face appeared on the screen for a moment, his name and a 10 digit number listed underneath it. Sarah patted his shoulder, smiling. "That's your Field Ranger ID Number. It's just for database purposes, mainly, but it can be used by HQ to contact you, like a phone number, if need be."

Her hand on his shoulder moved behind him, wrapping around his back in a sideways hug as an alarm started going off, the giant metal bulkhead in front of him starting to screech as it moved.

"Edward, it has been my absolute pleasure to be your Commanding Officer for these last 14 years. If we meet again or not, I know that you're going to knock this out of the park."

Tears sprung to Edward's eyes as he reciprocated the hug, the bulkhead of his home opening fully for the first time in his life, and even though the blur from his tears, he could see dots of light lining the night sky.

Sarah released the hug and patted his back, pushing him forwards. He rubbed at his eyes, clearing his tears, and took a step forward. And then another. And then a few more. And then, for the first time in his entire life, Edward set his foot down outside the bunker.

He felt natural wind buffet into him for the first time ever, the jumpsuit stopping most of the chill in the cool night air from getting to him. But before he allowed himself to be distracted, he did a 180, facing back into the bunker, locking eyes with Sarah.

The door to the bunker started to shift, and Sarah walked alongside it, keeping Edward in view, and he did the same for her. Finally, when there were only about 5 metres left for the door to travel, Edward stopped.

A sad smile on his face, he raised his arm to his face, tapping a finger to his eyelid, then his hand to his heart, before finally, pointing at Sarah, the woman who has practically raised him.

A simple gesture, one that had been around far longer than anyone could remember. Right before the door closed, he saw her break, crying into her hands, and his own tears sprung out again, renewed and powerful.

He knew she understood him from that and was glad to know that. Sitting up against the door to the bunker, Edward pulled out his sleeping bag and slipped into it, pulling his goggles off of his eyes and putting them around his hat.

Sleep came easier than he expected, and his plans to set out were left for the next morning.