Chapter 10

All the members of Team Spectre stood in an office, Leah among them. Anna had told her everything about the team the previous day after she had been accepted into the team, and already she was at her first brief meeting.

Sitting in front of Anna was Director Berkeley on the left, Secretary Campbell on the right, and Five-Star General Arden in the middle. There was an unspoken tension in the room, with the 3 of the most important individuals in the entire country across a table.

"Sergeant Hastings and team, I called you here today with good news." The general spoke.

He was a man around the age of Anna's mother. He had features resembling those of Chris and Charl, but his eyes showed decades of experience and had a calculated look that made him feel all-knowing. Anna was intimated by this man, but when she reminded herself that he had raised both Chris and Charl, she thought he must be a really good man under that cold skin.

"Director Berkeley and the agency have concluded the investigation yesterday, and we have learned much about the situation. But before we get into that, I have to mention that your team has been officially recognized, and the special ops Team, Team Spectre is fully operational." General Arden turned toward Secretary Campbell and handed her the room.

"Hi, as you may have heard from Admiral Howard, I am the Secretary of Defense, Jennifer Campbell, and you guys will be reporting directly to me. I will set up an office in the academy, and Sergeant Hastings will check with me every Monday morning. If any of you ever have any questions, you are welcome to come by." Secretary Campbell spoke in a very serious and professional tone.

"And I am Director Berkeley, the director of the Gladakian Intelligence Agency. I will be providing you with all the intelligence details you'll need. I have updated Sergeant Hastings's ID card to a level 4 clearance in the agency already. That means she will have access to all the records and files below the top-secret ones." The Director sounded a lot more relaxed. Clearly, as he was a much easier person to talk to than the other two.

"With the introductions over, I will now move on to the main topic. Remember, everything that comes out of my mouth will be highly classified, you are not to leak this information to anyone else, understand?" General Arden said firmly.

"Yes, sir." The squad said in unison.

"From our gathered intel, the Derunce Empire has been divided into two factions: the original empire, and the one consisting of radicals and private militias who refer to themselves as the Derunce Freedom Fighters. The empire has been like this ever since the signing of the armistice, and they are now on the verge of a civil war. The empire wants peace, while the freedom fighter strongly opposes peace."

Strongly opposes peace? Anna balled her fish at that thought.

Anna despised those who sought war as an unnecessary means. Because, to her, those who oppose peace are the ones who took her father away from her. Her country didn't desire war, either. Because of its almost endless resources, Gladakia has always been targeted by surrounding countries.

The General continued, "As you might have guessed, the mercenaries came from the radicals. More of these attacks will come, and all-out warfare is just around the corner. Most of the students in the academy will be enlisted upon graduation. Your team will be defending the school against these attacks for now, and when the Freedom Fighters declare war, you will be leading the academy into the frontlines."

"We will not let you down, sir," Anna answered.

"I will also provide you with some information about the upcoming training in the academy. The Navy has decided to select 500 of the academy's finest cadets and put them on GMRS Citadel." General Arden said.

With a capacity for 50 planes and 3000 crew members, GMRS Citadel is the largest aircraft carrier in Gladakia. It's roughly the length of 3 soccer fields and weighs over 75000 metric tons.

"Along with the rest of the crew, the selected students will be stationed near the border of the Derunce Empire. There, you will go through flight and naval training. War is likely to be declared during the time of your station, but with the advanced equipment aboard the Citadel, I doubt there will be any real danger, so I wish the students will also receive some experience in real combat. You can ask Secretary Campbell for more information." The general finished speaking.

It was a really good idea, Anna thought.

She has always wanted to be a part of the Navy since that's where both her parents' backgrounds came from and where her brother went.

"That about wraps up everything I have for you today. Everyone except for Sergeant Hastings and Private Chris Arden is dismissed." General Arden said with a wave.

Theo, Leah, Will, and Charl turned around and walked away towards the door.

"Now, as for you two, I believe Secretary Campbell has something to say." General Arden waited for the door to close and leaned back into his chair.

"Yes, this is unrelated to the training, however. Anna, your mother will hold a dinner party tonight to celebrate your newly founded leadership in the 'disciplinary committee." Secretary Campbell said, referring to Anna by her first name.

Anna thought it was odd. She knew that her mother wasn't the type to willingly host social events.

"Aunty Jenny, are you perhaps the one who suggested this?" Anna unintentionally teased the Secretary.

"Wha-." Secretary Campbell's face turned red a little, just barely enough to notice, "Nonsense."

"You are a bad liar as always, Jennifer." Director Berkeley said with a smile.

"Nobody asked you, Michael." Secretary Campbell snapped back.

They seem to get along well, Anna noticed

She remembered Theo telling her that his parents were divorced, so there might be a chance she could get him as a little cousin. Anna smiled at that thought.

"Anyways, Chris, your family is invited. I have already told your father, but I wanted to ask you personally, do you want to attend?" Secretary Campbell asked.

Chris looked at his father, who nodded at him, and then he turned back to the Secretary.

"Sure." He said.

"What about Theo? Will he be coming as well?" Anna asked.

"Unfortunately, no. I still have a lot of post-investigation work to do, and Theo will be helping me out." Director Berkeley said.

"Aww." Anna was visibly disappointed.

"That will be all that we need you two for. You are dismissed."