False Gods | The Prime Archives #3 ✓

sixteen

There were ten of them involved in that day's training exercise. Those who weren't present were most likely in orientation or somewhere else in The Acropolis.

"What are we doing today?" Spencer Long asked. He readjusted his thick-lensed glasses, which were wrapped tightly around his head with an elastic band.

"Please don't let it be another civilian rescue," Daku Aoetearoa whined, his New Zealand accent coming through heavily in his voice. "I'm honestly tired of having to catch training dummies out of burning buildings."

Bumi Devanagari, their recruit from New Delhi, India, snickered. "Didn't you drop one last time?"

Daku's cheeks reddened. "It was an accident."

"For a healer, you sure are clumsy."

"Shut it, Rock Girl."

Bumi stuck her tongue out at him as she folded her bare, muscular arms over her chest.

Stella rolled her eyes at them before urging them to be quiet. Once everyone was silent again, she began explaining the day's activity.

"No, we're not doing any civilian drills today." She pointed an accusatory finger at Daku. "But we will be doing those later this week, so be ready. You all definitely need more practice caring for civilians during battle. That's a crucial part of your job."

"I thought our job was to punch bad guys and be badass superheroes?" Thomas, nicknamed Gyro for his ability to alter gravity, asked. He had his arms folded across his chest. An obnoxious, blue and green dyed mohawk sat atop his head.

Stella pursed her lips at him. "Part of being a superhero is saving people. Hence the word hero."

Thomas snorted.

Victoria squinted at the boy and stomped up to him. Gulping, he dropped his eyes to the floor.

"Go run a lap."

"What? Why? I didn't even—"

"Wanna make it two?"

Groaning, Thomas shook his head. He shot the two girls a scathing glare before taking off into a run around the perimeter of The Battlefield. Stella and Victoria smirked as they watched him.

"As I was saying," Stella continued, "we won't be doing any civilian drills today. Instead, I figured we would have some fun."

The recruits' eyes lit up as they exchanged glances. Excited murmurs rippled through the group as they speculated what she meant.

Stella cleared her throat before smiling.

"Well?" Spencer asked. "What are we doing?"

"We're going to play a classic little game I like to call..." She paused, building up the suspense. Once she could see they were all practically begging for her to reveal it, she obliged. "Capture the flag."

Smiles and cheers broke out as the ten recruits slapped hands. Their spirits had been visibly lifted. Much of their training occurred in classrooms and the simulation room. Not much combat and real-world situations were a part of their curriculum—which Stella found strange.

When Director Shaw was their leader, her team had been trusted with a plethora of missions. There was a huge gulf in experience between the two phases of the Prime Task Force. At nineteen, Stella was flying through the streets of New York and other cities across the world in pursuit of rogue Primes.

But these new Primes? Most of them hadn't even encountered a rogue yet. Nevertheless, one that posed an actual threat.

Stella wondered if that was a good thing or not.