Chapter 5

I tried to make things a little more interesting for once! Enjoy!

"Sir, if you don't mind me asking...why are you so interested in this specific recruit?"

"Don't worry Zeta, I enjoy answering your inquiries. I wouldn't say I'm interested in her...I just want to study her. I can tell that she's...different from the others. I can tell she'll make a good soldier already,"

"How can you tell that? She's only been in two combat situations since becoming a recruit. Why did you ask Sergeant Smith to move her up a rank?"

"Zeta, you are very curious for an A.I. I didn't move her up a rank simply because she passed a simple test. That wasn't even the hard part. Her real test is how she will deal with this sudden change in rank,"

"Then you must be aware of the troubles the other Spartans will give her,"

"I do. That's what I'm counting on. Now, Zeta, please log off. There is something I need to take care of."

A young girl, about five years old, sat peacefully on her back porch in the middle of a cornfield. She stared up at the midnight sky, a magnificent display of shimmering stars, galaxies, and planets. The deep, dark blue universe had streaks of purple and even very light pink that marked galaxy after galaxy of spectacular beauty. It looked even more magical with the billions of stars that dotted the sleeping world like glitter glue would cover a piece of paper.

The girl's jaw gaped open in astonishment, then curved upward into an amazed smile. She dreamed of going up there, exploring the entire universe, with nothing to stop her. She could discover new things, experience the wondrous world and all that lay inside of it. There was no limit to her imagination.

But then, the girl's smile turned into a frown, and her eyebrows bent in fear. Something was wrong. The small child could smell smoke, and she could feel heat. Jumping off the porch, she sprinted into the cornfield. Turning around, she saw her house exploding into flames. A strange creature was trudging out of the small cottage. It had three long fingers on each hand, and it had grey, wrinkly skin. The girl also noticed that it was mostly covered in metal armor, and it was holding a strange, glowing object that resembled a sword.

Suddenly, the creature turned, and looked at her with beady eyes. It stared at her, studied her for a moment. Then, it began to run. It ran straight for her, glowing sword pointing toward her center. It was a few yards away, then a few meters, then a few feet. The creature reached to strike, and then...nothing.

Axel blinked her eyes open, slightly stunned and breathing heavily. It was a dream...no...a memory...but not mine... She could still feel the heat of the flames and the cornstalks brushing up against her legs. Axel bit back tears, and got ready for her day. Sergeant Smith had told her that she would be deployed to another planet for more advanced training, and she would be in cryo-sleep for a while until they got there.

As Axel walked down a hallway to the shower rooms, she was stopped by a group of ODSTs. One boy shoved her shoulder, and another pushed her head so that her chin was jammed into her collar. Axel tried to ignore them, and kept walking forward.

One of the boys, who seemed to be the leader of the small gang, pulled hard on her ponytail.

"What?! What do you want?!" Axel hissed, whipping around to face the three ODSTs. The leader, a tall blonde boy, smiled, glad he had finally got her attention.

"Oh, we were just here to tell you something! You know, a little...advice," he said, smiling mischievously. Axel raised an eyebrow, willing him to go on. The ODST looked around, making sure no one else was in the halls.

"Me and my boys heard some gossip about you, ya know? We heard about how you weren't meant to be a soldier. Tell 'er, Jones!" the leader said, nodded toward one of the boys behind him.

"Yeah, they sayin' that they got your paperwork mixed up wit' someone else's! And you gettin' sent back to your home planet today!" The boy known as Jones said with an unusual accent, smirking as he said it. Axel rolled her eyes, knowing it wasn't true, and that this was their failed attempt at throwing her off. She turned to continue toward the showers, but was almost immediately stopped.

The third boy jumped onto her back, sending them both tumbling toward the ground. The remaining two boys ran over, punching and kicking her. But Axel wouldn't put up with it. She kicked upward, hitting flesh, and then flipping one of the boys backward with her feet. It sent him flying into another boy, and now only one remained while the others struggled to recover.

The boy still on her reached to pull her hair again, but she gripped his wrist tightly. Then Axel began twisting, harder and harder, until she heard a snap, and a squeal of pain. Unfortunately, the other two boys were closing in now. One threw a punch and Axel dropped onto her stomach, then swiveled around, knocking him off his feet. She jumped back up again to face the remaining ODST, the leader. He seemed a bit surprised that Axel had taken out two of his goons, but his brows furrowed and his mouth turned downward as he pulled up his fists. He punched, and Axel blocked. He kicked, and Axel blocked again.

I can win this...I can do this… Axel thought to herself, trying to think of strategies and ways that would provide her with just enough time to escape. But just then, the ODST pulled out a small dagger, raising it above his head menacingly. Just as he lunged for her, Axel gave him a powerful kick in the stomach, sending him sprawling backward and knocking him unconscious. She was panting heavily, but rushed away quickly.

As she looked at herself in one of the shower room mirrors, she saw that, before she had kicked the boy, he had sliced her cheek with his dagger. It trickled down her face, and she quickly snatched a paper towel to wipe it up. Axel had a few other cuts and bruises, but the one on her cheek was the worst. She had won, but at a small cost. That always seemed to be the case in war.

Axel stood inside a small cruiser, only meant to fit five people at the most. However, she was the only one aboard despite an A.I. that had been sent aboard to manage the ship. Axel had learned that the A.I.'s name was...what was it? Zara? No, Zeta, she remembered. Axel would be in cryo-sleep for most of the journey, and stood next to the nearest cryo-pod. Suddenly, a light flickered on a nearby panel, and Zeta appeared. She was green, and had long, curly holographic hair.

"You must be Cadet Taylors. Are you ready to go?" Zeta asked, arms folded behind her back. Axel, who was now wearing her armor, put on her Scout helmet and nodded.

"Yup, let's go," she answered as the cryo-pod next to her opened slowly. Zeta smiled.

"Ok. See you when you wake up," she said in a friendly voice, gesturing toward the cryo-pod. Axel stepped inside and watched the hatch close. As the pod grew colder, and ice crystals began to form around the edges, she couldn't help but feel curious about why she was being sent away. Axel closed her eyes, letting cryo-sleep overtake her.