The Cadet - The Officers 1 #watty2015

Chapter 1 - The cadet

As the two of them approached the shuttle with the other cadets Holcum had some major differences. The first was the woman by his side. The other was the golden collar around his neck. Other than that he resembled the others by looking relatively young, in flashy clothing, and talking animatedly with the woman. It was the first time he had been off their home world.

Mila couldn't help but smile at his animated conversation. She knew he was excited since last night he had barely been able to sleep. When Holcum had received the notification that he had been accepted as a cadet he had almost lost it. That led to her having to apply a hint of her powers to control him. It was rare for their type to be accepted since there were critical requirements which had to be met. There wasn't any waiver either. You either met the requirements or you weren't accepted.

She wrapped a hand around one of his arms and grinned at him. "I would say calm down or you might end up flying to the Academy silly." Holcum could be a great deal of fun but once in a blue moon he would get to excited and lose control. Being young had some drawbacks but she was pleased he had asked her to be his mate and eventually his controller.

As soon as her hand touched his arm he gently removed it and wrapped his arm around her shoulders. "I know Mila but darn it I am so excited. Mom and dad didn't think we would qualify and I thought dad was going to blow a vein." He knew that the two females were considering breaking out the sleeping pills. His father had also been one of the few who had been selected as well. That had been well before Holcum had been born though and during the wars of unification.

As they approached the group of others he assumed were going up he called out. "Are all of you going to be cadets?" Holcum was grinning even as he felt Mila mentally rolled her eyes at him. Yes he was excited and he wasn't going to let her stop him.

Several turned around and his enthusiasm was very obvious. One girl returned the grin and glanced at the woman with him. "What gave that away?" She waved at a young man next to her. "I'm Nacy and this is Jace." She held her hand out.

Holcum gave her hand a good shake and flashed a grin at the guy. "Oh I don't know the fact that I am to report to this shuttle? Oh, this is Mila and I am Holcum. We just got the notice last night." Holcum was doing his best not to bounce in his excitement.

Mila rolled her eyes at him. "Holcum calm down or I am going to break out the chill pills. Either that or make you stand in the corner." She was shaking her head as she looked back at the other two. "Both he and his father were doing their best to bring the roof down last night. To be honest I am not sure he even slept."

The girl who had greeted them was a pleasant looking young woman who had a bright open smile. Her hair was a mouse brown and neatly tied up in an approved manor. The young man was on the spare side with a narrow inquisitive face. His hair was clipped short as were all the other males including Holcum's. "I guess maybe the fact all the guys have no hair might be a bit of a giveaway as well." Holcum laughed as Mila snorted.

Jace pouted. "I know and I liked my hair darn it. Now my ears are cold." When Nacy covered his ears up with her hands he turned a brilliant pink and jerked away. "Hey..." He didn't know what else to say till she started laughing.

The speaker system activated saving Jace from anything else. "All personnel assigned to Academy transport 2316 please report for boarding." The message was repeated several times as people started forming up in the queue.

As they were getting ready for boarding the noise dropped drastically when a Sergeant walked out. "Form up and when I call your name report to me. Your seats have been assigned and in your seat you will find a docu-stick. You will be responsible for knowing the basic regulations by the time we arrive." She was older with some gray hair and a no-nonsense air about her.