The Ranks

Oren, Loran, and Julian stood straight in a row in the GCTF Gym No.1. Their row was one of many in the gym. Oren knew that there were roughly 300 other participants in the camp that year, but seeing all of them in the same room put things into perspective for him. The high school that he'd gone to had been very small, with a graduating class of less than 200 students. It was hard to fathom what it would be like to train with all these people, even for just a month. Placed on a raised platform in front of the trainees was a podium, and behind it was a enormous holographic display that showed the numbers 1-296. 

Oren leaned over to Julian. 

"They are really ranking us?" Oren asked.

Before Julian could answer, Loran looked at them both and told them to hush, pointing toward the podium. A man had walked up to the podium and seemed to be looking over some general notes with his glasses. Oren recognized the man as Coach David Ecker, who was present at the entrance ceremony. The man had been standing off to the side, looking aloof as the main speaker carried out the speech. He was on the older side, with a few wispy gray strands on top. Despite that, one could see how lean his figure is underneath his tracksuit. Ecker hadn't spoken throughout the entire ceremony, so Oren hadn't a clue about how the man would sound. Finally, Coach Ecker touched a button on the side of the podium, causing a strip of light to turn on along the trim. Then, a chilling, deep voice sounded from the speakers hidden around the room.

"Sit" The voice said. Nobody moved.

Coach Ecker pressed his fingers to his temple and sighed audibly. 

"Are you all stupid? I told you all to sit the hell down." He said, voice harsher than before.

With that, everyone sat down on the floor quickly. Oren turned to Loran, who's face was stuck in a determined stare. Julian on the other hand, beamed with a wide grin. Oren couldn't tell what the general vibe was around the room. Everyone's facial expressions were different, a mixture of fear, awe, and drive. However, everyone's eyes were stuck to the Coach, who rested relaxedly on the podium with his chin in his hands. 

"If you weren't paying attention during the Entrance Ceremony, allow me to introduce myself. My name is Coach David Ecker. You will call me Coach Ecker, or Sir. I will be the head instructor for the duration of the training camp. Now. I'm sure you're curious as to why I called you all here as you're probably just settling into your rooms, and you may be a little tired after that drag of an Entrance Ceremony. But honestly, I don't quite care. We have some things to discuss, and then—well, you'll see."

A couple of murmurs began to rise from the crowd until Ecker raised his hand in a nonchalant stopping motion. 

"Behind me, you'll see a leaderboard. Every slot will soon represent one of you. The next three days will be filled with physical and mental evaluations to assess your initial readiness for the world of Pro Diving. You will be scored from 0 to 500. The higher your number is, the more likely you are to succeed in the Qualifying Class and move on to Second Class."

The holographic leaderboard suddenly began to change. Soon, all the numbers from 1-296 displayed a name and small image next to them, as well as the number zero in parentheses. Then, Oren's I.D. card vibrated in his pocket. He took it out and examined the contents.

[Oren Astor]

[Room 5-243]

[Rank: 67 (0 pts)]

"For now, ignore the ranks that appeared on your identification. The numbers will change after the first evaluations. During the training camp, several of our staff members will be monitoring your performance, adjusting your ranks as needed. New ranks will be posted every morning at 8 AM, except for the first ranking, which will be posted at the end of evaluations on Monday at 9 PM."

As he mentioned the staff members who would be monitoring them, a line of people in black and white athletic uniforms marched in from the side doors of the gymnasium. There were a lot of them, though not nearly as many as there were trainees. They filed in and stood in a couple rows in front of Coach Ecker and the podium. 

"In addition to the staff you see here, I will be joined by two divers who took time out of their busy training schedules to help you. Please let me introduce First Class Diver Penny Hathaway, and Spectrum Class Diver Sage Sampson." Coach Ecker gestured toward the ceiling, where the large glass windows began to automatically part. The crowd of trainees began to rumble with excitement, guessing what was going to happen next.

Julian nudged Oren and looked at him, eyes wide. "They ain't gonna—"

"Oh hell yes they are." Oren beamed as he looked toward the sky.

Then, the hum and burst of a Darcy's thrusters reverberated throughout the gym, and two figures could be seen flying down through the skylight. With a satisfying thud on the gymnasium floor, both figures touched down. One of them, clad in a sleek black Darcy with white LED trim landed in a dramatic superhero-like pose; one knee on the ground with her fist planted firmly in front of it. She slowly stood up, and spun around to display her suit. Along the right side of her back glowed a holographic display of her name "Hathaway" vertically in bold white letters. Her helmet was entirely smooth and black, except for a small white LED stripe going down the right side of the mask. Oren could tell by the Darcy's shape, material, and the way the suit clung to her body that it was an Ibex Industries Phantom Darcy. He didn't know which model though.

The other figure landed gracefully on two feet, and shook out his body once he'd settled. He wore a forest-green Darcy, but unlike the form fitting Darcy that Hathaway wore, the notably shorter young man's Darcy was slightly baggy in certain areas, with white painted metal armor protecting key spots. The Darcy also boasted a full utility belt. Knowing Sage Sampson's fighting style, Oren could only imagine what kind of tricks Sage had in there. Sage's Darcy did not need a holographic name display, as the color of his Darcy alone would show anyone that he is the Green Spectrum Diver. 

Both divers took their helmets off and waved to the crowd. The crowd erupted in applause for the two.

"Er-ahem. P-please don't uh—clap? I have something to say." Sage Sampson said, voice cracking. Everyone knew that Sage Sampson was still a teenager. He had broken convention by being the youngest person ever to become a pro diver, and the only person under the age of 18 to do so. He was just 14 when he had debuted, and had become a Spectrum Diver at the Ceremony of the Sky this year just after his 16th birthday. His awkwardness was the main thing that garnered popularity among NADL fans. His request for the audience to calm down was ignored however, as they kept with the raucous applause. 

"HEY. ARE YOU ALL DEAF? QUIET DOWN OR ELSE I'LL MAKE THIS CAMP HELL FOR YOU." Yelled Coach Ecker. 

The crowd went silent almost immediately, and Sage's face flushed as all attention was now on him. 

"Th-thanks guys. I just wanted to say that, even tho I probably should be preparing for the Spectrum Tournament, my agent made me—I mean I wanted to come here and help all of you out! So, please be nice. Please." He ended his statement with a small chuckle and stepped backwards to let Hathaway take over.

The woman held her helmet to the side, and brushed a bit of short black hair to the side. 

"Hello everyone. My name is Penny Hathaway. I am a First Class Diver and I am super excited to be helping you all achieve your dreams. But understand that this career is a tough one. You have to be in peak mental and physical condition. We will push you. If you can't take it, leave." She stepped back, and looked to Coach Ecker, who nodded his approval.

Coach Ecker stepped down from the podium to join Sage and Hathaway in front of the line of staff members. He clapped his hands together and asserted in a booming voice,

"Alright that's all for tonight. Your first evaluation will start at the appointed time listed on your I.D. card. You all are dismissed. Rest well." Without another word, Coach Ecker, Sage, Hathaway, and the rest of the staff left the room swiftly. 

As the trainees began filing out of the gym, Loran turned toward his roommates with a big smile on his face. 

"We have an actual Spectrum Diver to help us! Isn't this absolutely splendid?" He said, still beaming.

"Can't you use normal words like excitin' or cool? You speak like a wannabe rich guy." Julian chuffed. 

Loran turned his head away in annoyance and shrugged his shoulders.

"You know what? It is 'splendid' indeed." Said Oren, wrapping his arms around his two friends shoulders as they walked out of the gym back toward their room.

Coach Ecker, Hathaway and Sage were walking down a corridor, the latter two chatting about maneuvering techniques, as Ecker looked over a holographic clipboard. 

"Oren Astor and Carter Lovecraft." He says, quizzically.

"Who are they?" Asked Sage.

"Trainees. Says to keep a lookout for them. They are supposed to be something special." 

"We'll be the judges of that." Hathaway says.

"Yes. Yes we will."