- Experience Protocol, But Proper

Thanks to his obvious gaze, there was no question of who Cain was talking about when he said some had already partaken. Slowly, Gus could feel the gaze of everyone else in the room on him and his squad. And, aside from Lianna and a couple of members of her squad, the gazes were largely disapproving.

"So, Reapers, would you like to take a shot at explaining what the Protocol is?" Cain said, putting them on the spot.

'What's this guy's problem?' Gus thought. 'Did he expect us to be given an opportunity to advance our careers and not take it?'

"So, pretty much," Gus began, before quickly stopping. "No."

"No?" Cain asked, raising an eyebrow.

Gus was not about to just stand here and let his squad get berated for the mission they undertook. Especially not when the mission was as much their choice as it was the choice of those born in the frontier to die at the hands of the Bloody Dawn.

"No," Gus repeated, in a firmer tone this time. "Don't make us out to be bad for taking on the mission, or whatever it is you're trying to do. We were given an opportunity to gain some experience, and so I took it. Why should we have said no? Is there any good reason? Would you have said no, if put in our position?"

"I have been in your position. I was once a student at an academy much like this one, just as you are now. And I understand why you might want to take that opportunity."

"If you understand, then why you are you treating us like it's our fault, like we're to blame? Don't try to relate if you can't, it's blatantly obvious."

"You might have a well known name, Braye," Cain said. "But do not think that it gives you the right to speak back to me in the way that you are now. Do not forget your place here. This is still a military academy, and there are certain rules we must follow."

"What rules? Letting you treat us however you want to us without response? Allowing you to put us on the spot in front of everybody else?"

'I'm being unreasonable,' Gus thought. 'But if I don't say this, then I'm no different to what I was before. I came here to improve myself, to escape the old me. The me who would back down from something like this, who would let others walk all over me. I don't even care that I have the power to do it now, it is just something I have to do. Regardless of what others think of me,' he thought, glancing around the room.

"Gus, come with me a moment," Cain said, leading him away from the others. Once a sufficient distance away from everyone else, he spoke again, in a quieter tone this time. "Listen, I get that you might feel like every negative thing that comes in your direction is against you, but that's not what I'm doing. You might not think it, but not everyone here is your enemy, Gus. I'm not against you, not personally. I just think that it was wrong of Kleen to give you that mission, when it had not even been a week."

'And, how would he know about that?' Gus thought. 'Wasn't the Evolved Project confidential?'

"You were thinking that, weren't you?" Cain asked. "After all, being the same age as the Evolved, as well as the son of the lead of the project means you were likely a part of it, in some way. And, if you don't have any Evolution… Look, all I'm saying is, just don't think everyone is out to get you. Now, you up for explaining it? I'd prefer to see if you've got a good grasp as to why we do it at the same time."

Gus chuckled in response, remembering the library.

"What's so funny?"

"You say don't think everyone is out to get you, but on the mission we ran into a bit of trouble. There could have been a big issue if I hadn't made that assumption. It's just a little ironic, that's all."

"Of course, it's not a statement that fits all situations. But just keep it in mind, and act according to the situation," Cain said, directing him back to the main group.

"What was that about? Everything alright?" Claire whispered as he returned.

"Yeah, everything's fine," Gus responded. "If anything, I've just got issues about my past. Don't worry though," he said, noticing her expression. "I'll get over them soon enough. It's one of the reason's I'm here, after all."

Gus stepped forward before addressing everyone in the room. "Pretty much, the Experience Protocol is a thing the academy use to get us ready for the future, when we go to the war. Training here is all well and good, but it does nothing to prepare you for what it actually feels like to be in a life or death situation, or what spilling blood does to you." He paused for a moment, before continuing. "Trust me, I know what it's like. But, not only does it do that, it helps train you. It trains your body to fight, when the stakes are higher than they ever will be. It trains your mind to make decisions, when the wrong one means the death of you and everyone you stand with. It gives us a chance to explore different parts of Earth, and perhaps even the other planets, I don't know. You get to see the cultures that you never have before, meet people you never would have otherwise. But most importantly, it means you won't be getting sent out to the meat grinder that is the frontier as little more than a body. You'll be ready."

"That's… pretty well said." Cain assessed. "A bit too much corporate advertising for my liking, with mention of cultures and stuff, but a pretty good explanation. To expand on that, we're starting it a little early for now, since the Vanil situation has some of the higher ups worried. For clarity, you first years will only ever have to complete missions in this system, and most of those will be either on Earth, Mars, or Venus. As you get further in the academy, then you will soon find yourself going further away. Second years might go to more secure places on missions such as deliveries, as an example to the Emerid system, while third years are almost fully integrated into the military, and can be chosen by Generals, Admirals, or even the Evolved to give their assistance on different fronts. While there's nothing stopping that from happening to you, it is just uncommon.

From today, you may be approached for missions. These missions are important, as they will be used to rank you as a platoon in competition. This, along with the results of the League competition you participated in last week, will both contribute to something later down the line. Complete the missions to the best of your ability, make a name for yourself, and begin to climb the ranks of the academy!"