Chapter 4

Blood and Sweat

The air was dry and cool, but what else did you expect, standing in the middle of the desert at one o' two in the morning? The time difference will take some getting used to, Lily thought. To the Muggle eye, this grassless enclosure, with its orange dirt and sparse buildings, was nothing but a government cover-up, better known as Area 51. To the wizard's (or witch's) eye, this was a bustling, well lit, encampment of tents, buildings, and people. The Muggles had it right when they called it a cover-up, but who and what were not what they would expect.

Fort Mage, as it was truly named, was in reality one square mile of fenced in space within the confines of Area 51. Its main gate was in the far west corner of both the magical and Muggle compounds. The sign over the gate had originally read "Welcome to Fort Mage," but some bright person has scratched through Fort Mage and written Eternal Suffering in bright green.

As the seven newest trainees stood gazing at all the wizards and, significantly fewer, witches gathered here, a short bald man made his way towards them.

"You must be Omega Squad. I am Major Ghost and I will be your training instructor while you are here. If at any time you feel as though you do not have what it takes, please go to the bright yellow tent just inside this gate. For those of you who do make it through this training camp, you will go home as an officer for the I.C.W., or we can place you in a job more suited to your abilities, which you can refuse at any time. I have been asked to also tell you that should if you leave this camp at any time without permission, you will be considered a deserter and tried as such. You will also not be able to return to this camp. The gate has a charm on it that prevents anyone who is not supposed to be here from entering. By the time you leave here you will be so sick of my ugly mug; you'll want to hurl. As Omega Squad, each of you possesses an ability that is truly unique. You will, in the course of this training, gain control of your ability and respect for those of your classmates…"

"Excuse me, Sir," said someone from the back of the group.

Everyone turned to see who had spoken. He was tall, his skin fair, and his hair and eyes the color of dark chocolate.

"Arrivals sent me with this. There seems to have been a mix up with my paperwork," he said, giving Major Ghost a roll of parchment.

"So, they mess up and put you in the wrong training class and I'm supposed to drop everything and take you to your proper instructor? Well, that isn't going to happen. I'll take you after I've finished speaking to my own group."

The one who had brought the parchment stepped back and said, "Thank you, Sir."

"Now, where was I…oh, yes! You are not required to make friends within your squad, nor are you required to divulge any personal information…"

Lily turned her attention to the one who had brought the parchment. Something about his seemed familiar. As the man shifted his stance, Lily noticed he wore a silver armband engraved with Celtic runes. She recognized it almost instantly. It was the same band she had given Aaron for his birthday during fifth year. She had the band's mate in her trunk. Aaron had changed since the last time she had really looked at him, but it had to be him. Aaron was the only one who could wear the band she had had made. She sighed. It looked like she and Aaron would see each other after all. She only hoped that her heart would survive.

"Since you are an elite group, you will have little interaction, if any, with the rest of this camp. Now, if you'll follow me, I'll introduce you to Major Bane, where we will drop off the tag along and then show you where you will be housed."

The group moved farther inside the compound. They hadn't gone but about fifty feet when Major Ghost stopped beside a younger man, about thirty years old, who was of average height, had a blonde mustache and spiky crop of hair on his head. He had a medium build and friendly face. It looked as though he had been waiting on them to arrive.

"Omega Squad, this is Major Bane. He is in charge of Gamma Squad, a group that specializes in Muggle combat weapons and fighting. Bane, it seems that Arrivals misplaced one of your new pets." Aaron stepped forward and saluted his new instructor by placing his wand over his heart. Bane returned it, gave him a packet of papers, told him to fall in with the others, and thanked Ghost before walking away.

Once again the group began moving through the camp. They stopped only when they reached the eastern corner of the compound away from everyone and everything else.

Here stood ratty, yet slightly more permanent structures, rather than the tents used in the main area, in various shades of brown. The structure lightest in color, a light beige that resembled sawdust more than anything else, and also the largest was the latrines. Next came the Mess Hall; an ugly building the color of rotten apples and resonating a smell almost as pleasant. Major Ghost's quarters were located in a building barely large enough to house the room Lily had occupied at home, which was a small cramped space more befitting of a decent closet than a bedroom. It was the color of chocolate syrup and looked more run down than the Shrieking Shack. The last building was the barracks. The building was almost black in color and would have resembled and exceptionally small airplane hangar if it had been wider. The barracks also had what looked to be a small tool shed.

"Now, for a little bit of fun," said Ghost, holding out his hand in which there were now several little bits of paper. "On each of these bits of paper is written a word. The one you pick will be your name from now until you leave. Who's first?"

Lily stepped forward and picked one.

"What does it say?"

"Blue."

"Well, Blue, tell us something about yourself, true or false."

"I am the only girl in this generation of my family."

"Good, now who's next?" One by one the others stepped forward to choose a name and state a fact. "Half way through your time here, you will be given the chance to state whether you believe each statement made today is true or false. If you are correct, you will learn the real name of that person. Whoever collects the most names will win a prize that all of you will want. If you choose, you can make your guess before the halfway mark but keep in mind, you only have one chance to guess for each person, so use it wisely. Before I send you to your bunks to get everything settled, I have a few more announcements to make. First, you will not willingly or purposely inflict pain or damage to the others in this squad for any reason. Second, this is a top secret facility and to keep it as such, all correspondence in and out of this camp must be cleared through me and be of an urgent nature. Rule breaking is punished on a case-by-case basis. Break enough rules and the least that will happen is you will be kicked out. From this point forward, you will address me as Major Ghost or Sir unless instructed otherwise. Gentlemen to your barracks, Blue follow me."

As the other six moved towards the larger building, Major Ghost led Lily to the one that looked like a storage building. At the door he stopped.

"This is your room during your stay. You are the first female to get into Omega ever, that's why it's so small. You are serving as a test case for this program. Please keep in mind at all times that your behavior, successes, and failures will be used to determine whether this program goes co-ed. Only people you invite inside may enter. They must be invited each and every time. Special housing is the only difference in treatment you'll receive. You will be expected to participate in the same exercises and capacity as the others. There are papers for you to read over before you report to breakfast at 0600," and with that, he walked to the men's barracks and entered.

Lily walked inside her room and could only stare in horror. Every item in the space may have been a different shade than the last, but it was all pink. The room was bigger than it looked from the outside. It was a twelve-foot by twelve-foot square. Lily saw that she had been given a cot, a desk, a chair, a lamp, and a clock. On the desk there was a stack of papers. She glanced through them and saw that they contained schedules for the latrines, a table of time when certain things were to occur, a letter that stated the purpose of the Omega Program, and another letter that said if she had any special concerns to tell them to Major Ghost. The letters were both signed by "The Generals" whoever they were.

There was only one concern she could think of at the moment. She saw Major Ghost walking towards his own quarters and ran outside to talk to him.

"Sir, I have a problem," she said coming to a halt next to the Major.

"Already? This can't be good," he said looking slightly pained. "What is it?"

"My room is pink."

"Yeah. Girls like pink."

"Not this one. I detest the color. It gives me nightmares."

"I was told pink so you got pink."

"Can I change the color?"

"To what?"

Lily thought for a second and found the perfect answer.

"Blue?"

"Sure. Have fun."

"Thank you, Sir," she said as she saluted him the same way she had seen Aaron salute Major Bane. She turned around and walked back to her room.

When she emerged from her bunk the next morning at five o'clock for her scheduled shower time, Lily found two boxes outside her door. The first was about the size of a large hatbox while the second looked more like a shoebox. Both were wrapped in brown paper.

She picked them up and carried them with her other stuff to the showers. When she emerged from the lukewarm trickle of water twenty minutes later, she quickly dried and dressed before she took a closer look at the packages.

Lily examined first one box, then the other, in hopes of finding some sign of who sent them, but found nothing. Growing up around Fred and George had taught her to be wary about unmarked packages. She still had a scar on her left leg from the last unidentified package, which had contained a copy of The Monster Book of Monsters. The book had attacked her after she'd accidentally dropped it.

She placed the two boxes on the floor, took a few steps back, and used the Diffindo Charm to carefully cut open the boxes. The larger one contained a brown outfit consisting of cargo pants and a t-shirt. The smaller box contained a pair of tall, black, leather boots that had a stubby heel and a sleeve in each shoe where you could keep your wand or a knife. There was also a note.

Blue,

This is your uniform. Other sets will be placed in your quarters sometime during the day. You must be in uniform at all times.

-Ghost

Lily checked her watch, 0525, she had five minutes before the guys were supposed to be coming in to take their showers. She gathered her belongings and went back to her room to change.

At six o'clock, Lily walked into the empty Mess Hall and sat down at a table to wait for the others. When she was still alone at 6:15, Lily walked outside to see Major Ghost pacing in front of a line of half-dressed, soaking wet guys.

"Did anyone here read the papers that were left for you?" asked Major Ghost. When they only looked at their feet, Ghost asked, "Is there anyone who thought that if someone took the time to leave you instructions, they might be important?"

At this, a short man, about 5'4" with jet black hair and an Australian accent spoke up. "Apparently Blue did."

"What makes you say that, Speedy?"

"Because she's watching us from over by the Mess, Sir."

Ghost spun around to look and found that Speedy was right. He motioned Lily over. When she reached him, Ghost asked, "Did you read the materials that were left for you?"

"Yes, Sir. I did."

"Why?"

"It's better to read the instructions beforehand and be prepared rather than assume something and be wrong, Sir."

"What were your instructions?"

"To make a note of the fact that my allotted times for private shower use are five to five-thirty in the mornings and nine to nine-thirty at night. Breakfast is from six to six-forty five; lunch is if and when you dismiss us for it and lasts only thirty minutes. Dinner is at six-thirty. Lights out is at eleven. All times are subject to your whim and can change without prior notification. Wandering the compound after hours is against regulations. Entering another person's space without permission is also against regulations. Any questions, comments, or concerns we have should be given to you, Sir."

"Nice job of summarizing. Let me state for the record, I don't like suck-ups. Brown-nosing will only hold you back. Do you understand?"

"Permission to speak freely, Sir?"

"Granted."

"I hate looking like a know-it-all, however, I refuse to do less than the best I can. I am here because I want to be, not because it will look good on a resume. I refuse to be polite to someone just because they hold some power or position greater than my own."

"That's quite the little sermon, Blue. Tell me what you consider to be your biggest flaw."

"I have more than one, Sir."

"The ones you feel cause the most problems for you then."

"I have an enlarged ego. I have spent years being one of the best and I know it. Pride. I am far too proud to ask for help or to accept it even when the outcome can mean serious consequences to myself and to others. Stubbornness. Once I set my mind, there is no changing it. My sentimentality can cloud my mind and cause me to choose incorrectly. I am loyal to a fault. Once I let someone in, they are in forever regardless of their choices or actions."

"Is that all?"

"Yes, Sir."

"Were you, by any chance, a Gryffindor at Hogwarts?"

"I would prefer not to answer that, Sir."

"Fine," Ghost turned back to the line of men. "It is now 0635. You have ten minutes to get dressed and grab some food before we begin drills. Dismissed!"

At the last word the guys took off towards their barracks while Lily and Ghost stayed where they were.

"Your civilian name sounded familiar. Can you tell me why?"

"Yes, Sir."

"Well, why?"

"My dad is Harry Potter, better known as 'The Chosen One', 'The Boy Who Lived', or 'The Champion'," Lily said dryly.

"That would explain it. I worked with the Order gathering information for Dumbledore and then for your father. I was even there when your dad took down Riddle."

"Maybe you could tell me what happened? Mum and Dad have told me a little, but there just has to be more."

"I'll make you a deal. If you beat the others in today's drills, I will write down what I remember."

"I'll do my best , Sir."

"Your mom wouldn't be Ginny Weasley, would she?"

"Yes. Why do you ask?"

"I had a bit of a crush on her once upon a time, but she only had eyes for your dad. Once Potter set me straight on a few things, especially the fact that he would have no qualms about causing me great and permanent bodily harm should I even breath the wrong way in your mother's direction, I quickly got over it. Did Ron and Hermione ever stop fighting long enough to take their vows?"

"They managed to stop for a bit more than that. They are happily, if boisterously, married with four kids and a cat."

"Thank Merlin! Those two were so in love it was disgusting. If they'd gotten to know each other under different circumstances, they would probably just now be getting serious."

"Can I ask you a favor?"

"You can ask but I won't guarantee anything."

"Fair enough. Would you… I want to be treated like everyone else. Can you not go easy on me because of who my family is? I realize I've probably just insulted you, but I have to ask."

Ghost just laughed. "If anything, I'll expect more out of you than the others, not only because of your family but because of what you are destined for. The I.C.W. has been keeping track of you for your entire life, Blue. The Department of Mysteries is actually one of our departments. We've known since the prophecy was made, that you would be a great witch with abilities most can only dream of."

"Then why wasn't I contacted sooner?"

"The choices we make are what define us as people. To have approached you any sooner would have made it seem like it wasn't your choice."

"Clever. What if I had chosen differently?"

"It was a risk that had to be taken. How you choose to live your life cannot be controlled. The actions of others may play a part in you decisions but in the end, it is the choices and actions that we as individuals are responsible for that eventually form our destinies. A prophecy is only a glimpse of what can happen if certain things remain as they are." Ghost looked at his watch. "06:44. Guess I had better go and hurry them along. Put it out of your mind for now, Blue. It's far better to just live for today and let tomorrow take care of itself," said the major as he walked away.

It was midnight before Lily made it back to her room. She was so tired she could barely life her eyelids. Ghost had put them through enough test simulations—testing aim and reflexes—and a complete rundown of defense spells and uses so as to make the N.E.W.T.S she'd taken barely a month ago seem like simple first year homework assignments.

She had managed to hold up her end of the bargain with Major Ghost and best them all.

The first had dropped midday with heat stroke. Rocky had a large build. He was broad in the shoulder and chorded head to toe with muscle. His pale complexion and Slavic accent marked him as possibly a Durmstrang graduate, which could explain his gross intolerance to the heat.

Next had been Stilts. A short, stocky man with more attitude than aptitude, he had dropped around two due to sheer exhaustion. His accent couldn't be placed among the ones Lily had heard so she had a hard time trying to tell where he might have been from.

Quickly following Stilts had been Fez. Medium height and lanky, this brunette looked as though he would have been at home on the Quidditch pitch, but the fact that his reflexes were slower than a snail probably kept him off of one.

The Aussie, Speedy, had hung on until almost six when one of the Bludgers they were using for targets had sideswiped him. Canon, a Frenchman of slight build and standing about six feet, lived up to his name by the force behind the spells he cast, and Jabber had taken each other out with misaimed spells shortly after eight.

Blue had recognized Jabber immediately. He was solidly built, though not an ounce of fat showed. He had closely cropped, dark hair that showed off a tattoo of the Hufflepuff house crest on the back of his neck. This was Josh McKinnon, who had been the Hufflepuff Quidditch captain Lily's sixth year.

Lily had held out until eleven thirty, when she'd finally been nailed by a Bludger. She had set a new camp record at seventeen hours and fifteen minutes.

Now, as she lay on her bed, Lily was grateful that her dad taught defense at Hogwarts. What had once been a source of never ending embarrassment was now a source of pride. Had her teacher been anyone else, Lily was sure she would have been knocked unconscious hours earlier.

At five o'clock she was up again and at five-thirty, Lily emerged from the showers dressed and wide-awake. She ate her breakfast in silence, trying to ignore the looks of utter contempt from the men. At six forty-five, she was in line with the others waiting for Major Ghost to give them their orders for the day.

"We're going to try those defense drills again. Some of you were pathetic, some mediocre, and the rest I want to know if it was a fluke. Resume your positions and begin."

The day before they'd been assigned colors. Each person walked to the spot marked with their color. They were told that they were not allowed to move from that spot or attack any target that wasn't marked as theirs.

It seemed to Lily as if they were living the previous day over again. They fell almost the same way. Cannon and Jabber had been facing opposite directions, but had attacked another person's target and therefore were removed from the drill. More cautious this time, Lily had lasted until two thirty-six in the morning, changing the record to over nineteen hours.

The pattern continued for two weeks. Up before dawn and then drills until you dropped.

After fourteen days they had two days to rest before the cycle began again. After six months, Lily was at forty-eight hours straight, the guys were all able to go at least sixteen hours and the menacing looks had turned into harsh comments and complaint of "No fair!" The main argument was that Lily's targets had been charmed to be easier than the others. This complaint was quickly put to rest when Lily switched places with anyone who thought she had it easy. The men quickly learned that Lily's targets were, by far, the hardest ones.