Mulan Part 5

General Huā Part 5

Xiao Huā began her climbing endeavors in the silent nights as the rest of the base slept peacefully. Again and again, she would slip off on accident due to the sudden impulses that spawn when she looks down, causing her to lose control. Fortunately, she was still at the beginning of her climb hence the fall was not that steep. However, as Xiao Huā climbed higher and higher, her falls became longer and longer.

If it was possible to succeed in one day, then other recruits would have long succeeded before Xiao Huā who was still having a hard time controlling her suit. Although Xiao Huā practiced deep into the night, Xiao Huā knew when to stop. She would never climb higher than a certain height unless she was certain she would not slip up. After all, it’s fine to fall and break a leg as that is an injury that can be healed, but if she were to fall to her death on accident, no one can save her.

Although Xiao Huā knew her tactic was slow, she decided to abide by it because slow and steady wins the race. After her climbing endeavor, Xiao Huā would then take a quick shower if she was extremely dirty or simply head to bed. With this daily routine, half a month passed as Xiao Huā became proficient in controlling her suit. Although others also trained with the suit from time to time, there were no recruit that would take the suit on the long daily run because no one wanted to fall so pitifully like Xiao Huā does every day.

Xiao Huā had no complaints as she kept on with her routine. She believed that if she could trade her moments of embarrassments for gradual improvement, she would do it anytime as it is a worthy trade. Simply through this hard working yet exhausting procedure, Xiao Huā was already able to climb way past the half way point of the mountain. Without anyone’s notice, Xiao Huā has gradually surpassed the mountain climbing records of the other recruits! Of course, there were not many recruits left to try anyways because the recruits learned that the suits’ special enhancements will be toned down to 5 times from the initial 10 times if no recruit was able to climb the mountain within the next week. Many recruits decided to try after the suits were modified once more after they heard this. Of course, the incentive for choosing a custom mecha will also be removed after the suits were modified.

Some may be wondering why the camp would downgrade their requirements so fast. The truth is that they need cadets to go to the battlefield as soon as possible. The mother nest has already encroached on half of the Federation’s territories and there was not much time left. As cadets were mostly sent to be sacrificed, the camp’s goal was never to train elites but to train cannon fodder. It was only under General Sheng’s request that the training was modified, but now that the situation on the battlefield was getting worse, General Sheng had no choice but to set his standards lower.

Of course, Xiao Huā was unsatisfied with the changes. She worked so hard because she wanted her own custom mecha just to learn that it will be canceled soon. There was only a day left until the one week deadline to re-modify the suits. The suits will be collected tomorrow night for modification, so today was the last chance for Xiao Huā. Hence, Xiao Huā decided to risk it all that night.

That night, Xiao Huā began her climb to the top. She kept her eyes forward while having Xiao Mu help her light up her environment. She took as much precaution as possible as she steadily climbed up the mountain. She also kept extra rations in her pocket just in case she ever gets distracted by hunger. Her hard work through the month has paid off as her grip was steady and her foot was stable. Without anyone’s knowledge, Xiao Huā gradually climbed towards the top of the mountain. As Xiao Huā got closer and closer to the top, sweat broke out on her face as her arms and legs began to shiver from fatigue. However, Xiao Huā gritted her teeth as she kept her focus on the rocks, making sure she never lets go before finding a firm grip.

Dawn began to break as the sun peaked out from behind the mountain. The base began to bustle with activity as the recruits woke up to head over to the training area. The recruits lined up once more, but some found it weird that there was an empty gap on one of the spots. Did someone not wake up?

General Sheng showed up on time and the empty gap in the front row caught his attention immediately. He furrowed his brows before he coldly stated, “Late recruits will be puni-“

However, before he can finish, an alarm sound in the base. General Sheng froze before a look of shock appeared on his face. He rapidly turned around to see a beam of light shooting straight up into the sky. The beam of light was coming from the direction of the mountain, so it was clear what it meant. General Sheng hurriedly dashed over to the mountains with the recruits following him. General Sheng then hopped into a mecha in the warehouse before flying off to the mountains while the recruits hurriedly jogged towards the mountain.

When General Sheng reached the mountain with a squad of mechas, they found a pretty boy leaning against the beacon fast asleep. The sunlight from the rising sun illuminated his face, reflecting the sweat and dirt that had gathered on his face. However, to General Sheng and these soldiers, those sweats and dirt was a form of radiance to their hearts. Someone had completed the challenge.

Before long, the whole base knew of Xiao Huā who had completed the challenge one day before the deadline, earning the recognition of the soldiers and admiration of her peers. Not only that, Xiao Huā also received the chance to choose her own custom mecha. This event not only brought happiness to the soldiers, but it also encouraged the recruits themselves. When the soldiers came to collect the suits for modification, most of the recruits resolutely refused and decided to train with the suit just like Xiao Huā had. After all, even a pretty boy was able to do it, why not us. With that, the recruit training went into a frenzy as crowds of recruit constantly fell as they ran, but they all resolutely continued their journey. Afterwards, they would do their best to climb the mountain.

Of course, Xiao Huā did not know about all of this as she was now sleeping comfortably inside a private room. It wasn’t until a couple days later before Xiao Huā woke up in the morning. She didn’t recognize where she was, but she hopped off to the training area out of habit. What greeted her there was a crowd of recruits, wearing the skeleton suit, all glaring back at her with fiery eyes. Xiao Huā blinked her eyes in innocence as she headed to her spot. Not long after, General Sheng showed up and his eyes landed on Xiao Huā immediately. He then strolled up to her before patting her on the shoulder, “Good job soldier. Welcome to the team.”

Xiao Huā stared back in shock for a bit as she tried to process what was happening. It was then that she remembered what she had done. A smile broke out on her face as General Sheng stared at her in a daze before stating, “You may go pick out your custom mecha anytime. There is no need for you to train with the recruits anymore as you can go train on the mechas if you want.”

Xiao Huā blinked her eyes in innocence before glancing at Xiao Po and Xiao Yao by her sides. Then she resolutely declared, “General, I would like to continue to train. I wouldn’t have made it without my friends’ support, so now it’s my turn to support them!”

Silence descended upon the field before General Sheng declared in a gentle voice, “Good. Let us begin then.”

Then, General Sheng jogged off with the entire group of recruits following behind with fiery passion. The recruits’ eyes burned with fervor as they stared at the back of the pretty boy who was now running in the lead. They were determined to chase him no matter what it takes.

Time passed quickly as a couple more weeks passed. The recruits were gathered on fairly different training area now as it was in an enclosed space. General Sheng showed up once more; however, today was different.

General Sheng was dressed in his normal uniform as he stood in front of the group with his hands behind his backs. He then stated in a loud voice, “Congratulations cadets. You have survived the training and mecha driving is no longer a difficulty for you all. You are all ready for the next step, and I look forward to fighting with you all on the battlefield. Welcome to the team. Did I make myself clear enough?”

“Yes Sir!”

“Good. The aliens have already encroached upon more than half of our territories, and now it is time for us to go join our fellow soldiers in fighting back at our final line of defense. Are you ready to give your life for the Federation, for your home?”

“Yes Sir!”

“Then, prepare to sortie!”

“Yes Sir!”

With that, the cadets ran out of the training ground to the large hangar located nearby. The cadets, now officially soldiers, hopped into their assigned mechas as they prepared for battle. One mecha after another came alive as they rolled out to the launchpad to be launched into space.

General Sheng also hopped into his mecha and the mecha’s eyes glowed red once more. However, instead of immediately heading to the launch pad, he glanced over to his side to see a pretty boy scurrying into a custom made mecha. It was a mecha that was much bulkier than the rest as it was attached with all sorts of gadgets. It even had bunny ears on it that served as some sort of antenna. The pilot got into the cockpit before the mecha’s eyes also lit up in red. A certain AI’s voice resounded confirming that he had been granted permission to use the weapons.

“General, I am ready for battle,” Xiao Huā stated cheerfully before rolling off to the launch point.

Glancing at a holographic projection of a the profile of a certain noble lady, General Sheng could only sigh before whispering, “Don’t die out there, Xiao Huā.”

Xiao Huā was launched out of the spaceship and into space, where she flew off to join her fellow soldiers at the front lines. She glanced around at the surrounding planets that were already laid to waste as a sense of grief flowed through her heart. Eventually, she hardened her heart as she reached her destination, where a multitude of spaceships were spread out over a long line of defense with layers of mechas floating in the open space. Xiao Huā easily found Xiao Po in his large panda mecha and Xiao Yao in his rat shaped mecha. Xiao Huā flew off to join her fellow recruits as she admired the grand setup of the Federation’s army.

Xiao Huā greeted her fellow recruits as she couldn’t help but joke to lighten the tension, “With this line-up, it should be enough to stop them right?”

Her fellow recruits could only smile wryly as some gave a nervous chuckle. Even Xiao Po had a grim expression as Xiao Yao growled back to tell Xiao Huā to shut up. It was then that someone hollered into the communication channel, “They are here!”

With that, Xiao Huā lost her smile as she glanced off into the distance. Xiao Mu began to highlight the enemies in red on her holographic screen. There were only a small amount of red on her screen at the beginning, but before long sweat began to roll down Xiao Huā’s face. Her screen was covered in so much red highlights that Xiao Mu had to turn it off as it was a distraction instead. With a glance, Xiao Huā saw a horrifying situation.

A dark mass of alien blanketed the space in front of the army as far as the eyes could see. It was already so much, yet more and more kept appearing as if it was never ending. The light from distance stars were blocked out as darkness descended upon the army as if an eclipse was happening. The enemy has arrived with numbers far surpassing that of human-kind.