Son of Justice by Steven L. Hawk

Author:Steven L. Hawk [Hawk, Steven L.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2016-04-12T06:00:00+00:00

Chapter 13

The fourth day of the Sift trials began with a surprise for Eli. He and Tenney were neck-and-neck for top ranking, with him leading by only three points. His lead had been more than fifteen points the previous morning, which meant he had lost ground as a result of the military knowledge testing. It was a surprise because he had considered that area of the trials to be one of his primary strengths. He wondered briefly if the last second switch of the tests by Sergeant Brek had anything to do with the results, and made a mental note to speak with Tenney or one of the others about their tests at morning chow. Although he considered himself an expert at military history and weapons, many of the questions he had been required to answer were so obscure, he doubted anyone without access to a data-link could have done better than average. It was interesting, to say the least.

He turned away from the results—which the sergeants always posted while the recruits slept—just as two other recruits stepped forward to review them. He heard one mutter something about Crimsa and detected a hint of disappointment. Crimsa was doing well, just a few points behind Tenney, in third place. Apparently, those in third platoon who knew him weren’t exactly pleased. He made another mental note to ask Tenney or Sims about that as well. His own interactions with Crimsa hadn’t been overly positive, but the guy seemed to know his stuff, which Eli respected.

The short trek to the mess hall took less than five minutes, and he fell into line. He looked across the room as he waited for the morning’s offering to be plopped onto his tray. He noted that Benson, Tenney, and Sims were already seated at the table that had become “theirs.” Ever since being entered into the Sift, the group—with the exception of Crimsa, who preferred his own company—gathered at the same table for each meal. It seemed that the other non-Sift recruits preferred the separation as much as they did, and he noted, not for the first time, that the separation of the company’s eventual officers from the enlisted had already commenced.

“Good morning,” he announced to the table as he took his usual seat across from Ellison and beside Tenney.

“We were just talking about you, EJ,” Benson replied jovially. “Have you seen the postings yet?”

“Of course,” Eli answered. For the past four days, the ranking sheet was the last thing he looked at before leaving the barracks. He turned to Tenney. “Congratulations on your performance yesterday. Impressive.”

She cast him a sideways glance and placed her mug of coffee on the table. “Thanks,” she replied. “I’d have thought you would have aced that test, Jayson. It was the easiest thing we’ve been handed so far. What happened?”

The comment caused him to pause. It validated his previous concerns. He knew they received different versions of the exam, but each version was intended to cover similar content as the others, and they should have been relatively identical in perceived difficulty.

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