Sergeant Uzi, Corporal Woo, Private Borrys, and Private Felix being the biggest alliance in the game had control of which chairs would get removed from the game, forcing the two officers and Sergeant Hunter to get new chairs each round.

  There were now only two chairs left in the game, and the officers were able to steal them from Corporal Woo. The only players left in the game were Iker, Lieutenant Tagore, and Sergeant Hunter.

  You know, you were right about the summit lieutenant. They'll be here any minute... but the round is almost over.

  Sergeant Uzi, Sergeant Hunter, Gabe, Joaquim, Lucia, and Private Borrys were all hiding in the crevice with the spiky boulders.

  "You know Sergeant Hunter... I change my mind. I want to go to New Korea," Sergeant Uzi declared while whispering.

  "What?" Sergeant Hunter asked ver unconvincingly.

  "I know you heard me," Sergeant Uzi replied. "The way you spoke about the country... just got me sold on it. Can you just win and give your vacation time? Don't you humans tell me all the time to be more open minded? I'll give you mine next year."

  "Go back to closing your little esper mind sergeant," Sergeant Hunter whispered, leaning her neck to one side glance at the summit above. "My fat ass better be eating kimchi in New Korea by lunch time."

  "Let's just go up," Gabe said. "We have zero chances of surprising them."

  "Wow, you don't even know me," Sergeant Hunter said, raising her volume as much as Gabe did in anger. "Way to give us away."

  Sergeant Hunter sighed while putting both of her hands in her pockets, leading the way for the rest of two platoon to climb up to the summit. They climbed the flat spiral, and right at the tip were Iker and Lieutenant Tagore sitting on the last two chairs as if they were in the mess hall just gossiping away.

  "They had the chairs levitating in a cloud?!" Lieutenant Tagore yelled, getting Iker to roar in laughter in response.

  Sergeant Uzi coughed.

  "By the way... it is that funny," Sergeant Hunter whispered after placing an open hand by the side of her mouth.

  "No it's not," Sergeant Uzi retorted, turning away slightly while in midair.

  Gabe marched ahead of the sergeants jesting, crossing his arms in front of the two officers.

  "We figured out what this test is all about," Gabe declared.

  Iker let out a chuckle, kicking up one his legs to cross them ankle over knee. "Oh really?"

  "Yes really," Gabe replied.

  "Tell us about it," Lieutenant Tagore said. "We have no clue what this test is about."

  While they spoke, Joaquim noticed Sergeant Uzi acting strange, but could not explain how. Ve was more idle in midair somehow.

  Ve doesn't remember Camilo at all?

  It took Joaquim a while to notice it went quiet, and realized that Gabe tilted his head back to stare at him. There was uncertainty in his eyes, but Joaquim gave him a reassuring upnod. He smiled faintly and faced the officers again.

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  "I get to be the smart one this time," Gabe said.

  Lieutenant Tagore and Iker glanced at each other. "Is your little brother usually the smart one?"

  "Yea, but I realized how much giving most of my food to him affected my mind," Gabe explained. "I do not regret it at all. Not even close. But since I was able to stay in the military base and not worry about food, I realized how much I got my mind back."

  The light mood established by the joking around vanished. This time it was not quiet because Gabe was nervous, but it was because his words hung heavy on everyone's mind. Now only the song and the mountain breeze could be heard brushing upon the snow-clad cliffs, and passing by the pine trees lower on the mountain.

  And even though the song did not stop, both Iker and Lieutenant Tagore pressed on the metal plates on their chairs.

  Colonel Felix and Lieutenant Tagore have been eliminated.

  "What!?"

  "The fuck!?"

  "THROW ONE OF THEM FUCKING FAR FROM HERE!" Sergeant Hunter yelled at the top of her lungs, and Sergeant Uzi obeyed.

  Sergeant Uzi casted an auditory hallucination using vis esper powers, making them think that the song ended earlier. And when the song actually ended, it was Sergeant Hunter who sat on the chair that Sergeant Uzi levitated towards the rest of two platoon. Sergeant Uzi took vis chances taking Lieutenant Tagore's chair for Sergeant Hunter and lanced Iker's chair somewhere in the taiga horizon, and ve made the right call.

  Sergeant Hunter is the winner.

  "We never had to be the ones to sit on the chair," Gabe explained. "We simply had to make sure you two get eliminated. Most cadets failed the test thinking that they had to play along instead of just eliminating you two. It's a lot easier to eliminate you two with help than it is to try and be the last one standing at cadets."

  Even though Joaquim had no idea where Gabe stood, he took this moment to be proud of him. Well, even Joaquim did not know what to believe in.

  "Welcome to two platoon Cadet Gabriel Wami, Private Borrys, and Cadet Joaquim Wami," Iker murmured with closed eyes and a smile.

  And all of two platoon erupted in cheers. Lucia did not hesitate to snake between the legs of the new recruits, her hologram chevron disappearing when it brushed against them. Sergeant Hunter checked on Private Borrys's face while apologizing in between welcoming him. And Private Borrys noticed Joaquim looking directly at him, giving him a thumbs up.

  "I knew you three were going to join," Corporal Woo said behind Joaquim. And Iker and Lieutenant Tagore arrived to the vicinity of the celebrators, taking turns wrapping their arms around the new recruits. And despite Joaquim wanting to join zero platoon still, this was the first time he felt like he belonged somewhere. They even got Gabe on board with who he truly is, but for how long?

  And the hair on Joaquim's neck raised up, sensing something terribly wrong. Between more congratulating going on around him, he glimpsed towards the crevice below, and found Farouq and Camilo still shapeshifted after he followed the bloodlust he sensed.

  And everything went silent.

  Not just the platoon, but the mountain breeze. Even the crinkling of the river far below. Sometimes one could hear the children on the beach in the other platform or down the ski resort, but not now. And while Joaquim could not catch his breath, he noticed everyone around him stood perfectly still. Even Gabe was frozen. Whether some of the soldiers were in the middle of a hug or were about to open their mouths to say something or to breath, they stopped midway.

  The sky flickered just once and once alone. Joaquim was not sure if it was a hallucination.

  Whatever Camilo and Farouq just did, Joaquim was ready. It had to be them.

  Joaquim raised his fists up waiting for the Alkrezian extremists to make their move.

  All the fear Joaquim had in his soul made it impossible for him to be aware of how much time had elapsed waiting for Farouq's and Camilo's attack.

  And after waiting what might as well be an infinity, nothing came.

  No sound came from the crevice. And if it was not possible for the mountain to be even more silent, it somehow became more silent. Joaquim could close his eyes and think he was in his bedroom in the middle of the night instead at the summit of a mountain. It was quiet like a dead city.

  After realizing he did not know how much time he stood there with his fists up, Joaquim began to walk away from his new platoon that was frozen in a supernatural stasis. He hiked down the spiral, and precariously put one foot into the crevice out of utter trepidation. Shaking nonstop, his whole body entered the crevice and he put his fists back up.

  Joaquim glanced up to find that Camilo and Farouq were frozen in the crevice's shadows too.