Evening came.
The doctor officially discharged the four of them together.
Eden had been right. At one point, Kiah's med did wear off, and the pain was intense. It felt like a thousand needles pricking every inch of her body at once. Thankfully, she was quickly administered another dose of painkillers.
She was instructed to take her meds regularly and was told she'd be fully healed in a week which she found absolutely incredible.
Back in her world, an injury like herds would've landed her in a hospital bed for a while. Here, she was walking around with just a few bandages and a high-dose prescription.
The tech in this world was simply unreal. She wondered if they had found the cure for cancer too. They probably had. She made a mental note to ask later.
She was escorted to a new room, not the prison like one they had put her in earlier. This one resembled a dorm. It was clean and spacious, with a bed, a desk, a wardrobe, and a bathroom.
She changed into the uniform they'd been handed, a charcoal black combat trousers and a matching shirt that clung like a second skin. Stamped boldly on the back was a crimson R, which she figured stood for rebels.
The same uniform was worn by everyone on the base. Didn't this mean they had passed?
After changing, they were led down a quiet corridor, and we're guided into a room that looked like a military grade classroom. A single holographic projector floated near the center, flickering to life with the crimson R symbol.
The room looked like it was designed to hold about two hundred people and half of the seats were already filled with people, and more were still coming in.
The four of them awkwardly occupied a row.
"Who are these people?" Kiah whispered to Naya.
"Other aspirants," she answered. "Apparently, we weren't the only ones that took the test."
Kiah's brows shot up in surprise. She wanted to ask more, but several people walked in, all wearing sleek, upgraded versions of their uniforms. One glance and you could tell these were the higher-ups.
And leading them, of course, was none other than General Denvil, with a signature frown on his face.
Kiah inwardly rolled her eyes and looked away.
She spotted Eden among the trail of people that followed him in. She was wearing black shorts and a plain shirt like she always did, disregarding the uniform entirely.
Then a smaller group of people followed. Ten of them. Anwyll was among this group.
He entered quietly with the rest and stood beside the front panel.
"Good day everyone," Denvil's cold voice rang out, sending the entire room to silence. "I'm General Denvil. You are here today because you expressed an interest in joining REBEL, our organization, which is tasked with protecting Duskworn. We stand as the last line of defense against the degenerates that hunt us by night, and the traffickers and other threats we face by day."
"The test you endured was a risk, one you chose to take in order to become part of this noble cause, and for that, I commend you. However, this is just the beginning."
Ha paused, letting the tension settle in the room.
Kiah's eyes narrowed. The good part was coming.
"A hundred and eight aspirants took this test. Nine badges of eleven aspirants and a final badge of nine aspirants were sent to different locations in Duskworn for their test,"
As he said that, the projector displayed a map with ten red dots signifying the different locations.
"Seventy-seven survived. Only two failed the test." He announced.
Kiah's brow arched her brows. So it turned out they weren't the only ones fighting for their lives that night. The operation was bigger than she had thought.
But their group was the smallest, and from the looks of it, they had more casualties.
Her gaze drifted to Anwyll and the others standing in the corner. She scoffed under breath.
'Of course.'
"You didn't know what the test was about. Each round, each batch of candidates is tested differently, based on what Duskworn needs most at the time. In your case, we were looking for specific traits. Traits that define a true Rebel. Out of those who went in, only seventy-five of you proved yourself worthy."
"With Rebels being targeted and abducted more frequently, we wanted you to endure the harsh reality we face in Duskworn. The test was more or less a wake up call. The tip of the iceberg."
He began listing them off like rules.
"Resilience. The ability to endure, even when it seems impossible. Bravery. The will to confront danger without hesitation. And trust, the most vital. Without it, no Rebel survives long. Each of you ticked each bracket."
As he spoke, the projector flickered, playing different scenes from the tests, captured from different angles and perspectives.
Whispers of shock resonated around the room.
Kiah watched in muted disbelief as several clips of other badges during the test were displayed.
A clip of her being thrown across the street by a degenerate was shown. Another showed Yellow sprinting for her life. Then came a jarring one — Red bashing the blonde boy's head in until he stopped moving.
'I was right. We were being watched,' Kiah thought.
"Each of your belts contained hidden cameras. We monitored everything. Your movements, your decisions, and your reactions under pressure. We weren't just testing your strength or skill, but your judgement and conscience."
The next two clips showed a boy slitting his teammate's throat, and Red pushing Blackie into danger.
"Quinn Stone and Jackson Hewitt were disqualified," Denvil said flatly, "because they chose self-preservation over solidarity. That is not the kind of people we want. They were unworthy."
More footage rolled of teams helping each other like Kiah and Anwyll helping Naya, and of their whole team going to save Blackie.
General Denvil continued.
"Ten of our best Vanguard were also deployed to the field to monitor your progress. After reviewing their reports about you all, we are pleased to welcome you officially into our noble organization. Welcome Rebels."
There was a faint applause from the crowd but it wasn't encouraging.
General Denvil paused, eyes scanning the room.
Kiah didn't know what he had hoped for. What did he expect? A grand celebration? After everything they'd been through?
They had nearly died out there. They fought until their flesh was ripped apart and their bones were broken. While the higher-ups watched it all unfold from their pristine offices like it was some twisted reality show.
Her fists clenched under the desk.
Bunch of assholes.
And then there was Anwyll.
Her eyes snapped to him.
She wasn't shocked. She had already started figuring out the truth a long time ago.
From the beginning, he had been too good. He was a better fighter, always composed, always just a little too knowledgeable about what came next. The way he moved, the way he assessed every situation like he'd seen it before.
That was because he had.
She let out a quiet breath.
Was she mad? No.
He hadn't betrayed them, nor did he hurt anybody. In fact, if not for him, she might be dead. He'd put himself in danger to protect her more than once. His presence had increased their odds.
Maybe that was the organization's way of helping them out.
So no, she couldn't hate him for that.
But would she keep her distance?
Certainly.