Maxim grunted as he placed the last heavy object he owned: an antique typewriter, on the right side of his desk. Despite being centuries outdated, he was always fascinated while typing away on that machine ever since he was a small boy. Making sure the typewriter was still in good condition and undamaged during the move, he smiled, seeing nothing was out of place. And that should do for all the major equipment. I'll leave the rest for after dinner. Taking a look at the time on his holowatch, his stomach growled when he realized it was already past seven in the evening. "I'd better go get some dinner now. If I remember correctly, there's a cafeteria connected to that main lobby downstairs."
As he approached the door, the door automatically opened in front of him before shutting again as he exited. Scanning the card, the door was locked again. After making his way down to the lobby, he looked to his right, spotting a large door that was already open, allowing the smells of several different foods to permeate the room. His stomach started growling again as he walked into the cafeteria. On the other side of the room was a large, buffet style procession of food with plates and other utensils on the far left. The kitchen was directly behind the buffet line, with several cooks working quickly to keep up with the rapid pace of the students and some faculty as they ate. The rest of the room was filled with large, rectangular tables with wooden benches on either side of the tables and a place to put used dishes.
Making his way to the moderately long line of people waiting for the buffet, he already knew what he wanted to eat. When his turn finally arrived, he filled his plate up with some oven roasted chicken, mashed potatoes and gravy, and, begrudgingly, some broccoli. Grabbing a glass of milk that was poured by an attendant immediately after he finished grabbing his food, he made his way to a relatively empty table in the far right corner of the room.
As he began to cut his chicken up, he heard a voice from the other side of the table. "Do you mind if I sit here?"
Looking up, he spotted a familiar face and nodded. He watched as the woman sat down on the opposite side of him. "You're...Ellie right?"
She nodded. "I am. And you're Maxim correct?"
Maxim nodded as well. "You are indeed correct."
Ellie grinned. "Good. I saw Kolten earlier and somehow completely blanked out when trying to remember his name. I don't think that made a very good first impression..."
Maxim chuckled. "I wouldn't blame you for not remembering most names right now, especially of those who were on the opposite team from you."
"Well let's just say you made more of an impression than the others did. I was impressed you were able to hold out as long as you did against a three to one fight."
Maxim shrugged as he took a bite of chicken, swallowing before responding. "I can thank my training for that, but that can only take me so far. I was impressed myself with your teamwork with Aidan. It was like you two were already in sync."
Ellie nonchalantly waved her hand. "He's the one you can be impressed with. While coming up with our strategy, he immediately took charge and said that you all would try to go it alone. He split us up into different roles, and I was the one he picked to go with him. He's just...easy to work with I would say."
Maxim nodded. "I can see that. I've spoken with him a few times already, and he's already struck me as someone who's a go-getter, and quite honestly, a leader."
"You think that way too, huh? That was the kind of impression I got from him as well. Speaking of which, do you know if he already had dinner?"
Maxim shook his head. "Sorry but I have no idea. I've been cooped up in my room unpacking shortly after I arrived. Haven't seen him since before I started unpacking."
"I see..."
There was a silence between them that lasted about a minute before Maxim spoke up again. "So what were your impressions of the others on your team?"
Ellie furrowed her brow as she thought. "Well...besides Aidan, I was under the impression Lexi was...disappointed in her role. Looked to me like she was wanting a larger role than what she got. Brandon appeared like he didn't care what his role was, he would just follow whatever order he was given. As for Freya...I'm sorry but I don't really have any sort of impression on her, either good or bad."
"Huh...thanks for answering my question though."
They both continued to eat in silence for the next few minutes. Maxim occasionally stole some glances at Ellie. She seemed like she definitely knew her way around a blaster, and the way she synced with Aidan is either a testament to Aidan's ability to work with just about anyone...or that she's able to work together with people she doesn't even know.
Maxim finished his dinner first and stood up. "Well it was a pleasure to formally make your acquaintance Ellie. I hope that we both will have a great school life here."
Ellie smiled and nodded. "I hope so too. I guess I'll see you tomorrow then."
Maxim nodded. "Sure will. Have a good night."
"Good night."
Maxim took his plate, glass, and utensils to the place marked where they should go and walked back to his room. Taking one more look at the time, he sighed. Guess I should call...
Maxim took out a small device from a drawer in his desk and turned it on. Making sure he was on a secure channel, he called the only contact installed in the device. A familiar voice almost instantly greeted him. "Well look who FINALLY decided to give me a call!"
Maxim sighed again. "Well sorry for having to wait until it was later here to call. I did have to unpack what I brought and get something to eat before I finished unpacking. Just be glad I decided to call you now instead of finishing up."
The voice grunted in disapproval. "And here I was hoping that when you called you would be in a happy mood for starting a normal life."
"You should know I'm probably never going to have a normal life, not with my family."
"Oh that is true. But anyways, how were your classmates? Did they make the right picks with both your classmates and your instructor?"
Maxim was silent for a couple seconds. "Well...it's too early to say about my classmates. I will say that Aidan is probably the best of the bunch, but the jury is still out on the others...actually I take that back. Melek also showed some promise already that he understands what's going on around him."
"Well I'm not surprised about Aidan. They did praise him a lot when going over his file, and he was instantly approved. Melek, however, is a surprise, given his background."
"What is his background exactly?"
"Unfortunately I can't say anything to you. Been given orders that you'll need to find out any pertinent information directly from the source. So...be sure to get along with everyone, alright?"
"You talk as if I make enemies everywhere I go."
"Well...you kinda do, but of course it's no fault of your own. But enough about that, what about your instructor? Did she make a good impression?"
Maxim nodded to himself. "Actually, yeah she did. She could even easily tell I held back during the mock battle."
"Wait...you guys had a mock battle already?"
"Yep. She wanted to see how skilled we already are and so we were split into two teams."
"And your team won...right?"
"...we got slaughtered."
"Now that's something I never thought I would hear. You could have taken all of them on easily and come out on top."
"Sure, but that's not why I'm here. I'm sticking to my objectives, not to impress others."
"Laaame, but back to your instructor again. What else stuck out about her?"
"Well, even though I haven't seen her fight, just by her demeanor I can tell she's seen her fair share and can probably hold her own against you if you two fought."
"Doubtful."
"She also completely put all of my team through the ringer afterwards. She really knows how to intimidate others."
"Well she is among the elite of the military. That just comes with the territory. Well just keep an eye on her as well. I assume that's all you have to report?"
"Basically. Besides the mock battle, we didn't do all that much together, so I couldn't get too much intel. Sorry about that."
"Eh, don't sweat it. I wasn't expecting much in your first report anyways."
"But now my question for you: was there any movement?"
"Yep. Looks like they're on the move in a couple hard to reach colonies, so they've split up their resources and went to both. That's where our push against them begins."
"I see..."
"Maxim, don't worry about what's going on in that regard. What they wanted and what we all want is for you to try to enjoy your school life as much as you can. Make friends, get stronger, and maybe even find some ooo la la along the way! As long as you guide everyone in the right direction, everything will turn out fine."
Maxim sighed. "You can't take anything seriously, can you?"
"Hey, you should be happy I was even a little bit serious.. But anyways, since you've finished with your report, I'll let you go. I'll be sure to tell them what you told me when they get some reception again."
"Thanks Rina. I'll talk to you a week from now. I should have a lot more to report by then."
"I'll be looking forward to it. Good night."
"Good night."
Maxim turned off the device and flopped down on his bed. "She says to enjoy life here, but I never asked for this to begin with." He sighed once more. "I just wish things...never turned out the way they did."
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