The atmosphere in the Block B Administration Office was serious.
Besides Tara and her five companions, there were three other prisoners who had been captured earlier and appeared to have accumulated enough points as well.
Martinez was among them.
Because he had once been the Governor's second-in-command and had led an assault on the prison, the number of atonement points required for his release had been set especially high. After spending months at Blackberry Ranch shoveling livestock manure, he had finally reached the threshold.
A staff member read out the review results. Tara and the other eight had accumulated enough points and passed their daily conduct evaluations. They were approved to become full members of Rock Fortress, effective immediately.
They turned in the wooden identification tags marking them as "Penitents" and received new metal ID tags stamped with their names and identification numbers.
Next came their choice of assignments.
Martinez, Tara, Alisha, Pete, and Mitch all checked "Defense Force" on their application forms.
The other four prisoners chose almost without hesitation to join the Industrial Park's production lines or engineering crews. None of them had been soldiers before the apocalypse. They hadn't had much choice in the past, but now that they did, all they wanted was a stable life.
"Defense Force applicants, report to Training Ground No. 2 in the Industrial Park tomorrow at 8:00 a.m. for a combat assessment."
...
The next morning, Training Ground No. 2.
The training ground had been converted from an open area in the old factory complex. The surface was packed dirt and gravel, while discarded tires, concrete pipes, and other debris had been arranged around the grounds as obstacles.
As Commander-in-Chief of the Defense Force, Leah personally oversaw the assessment.
She stood with her arms crossed on a slightly raised concrete platform at the edge of the field. Maya and Lieutenant Welles stood beside her, serving both as examiners and as a safety measure.
Michonne, Shane, Andrea, and four other members of Maya's squad were positioned at key points around the area with their weapons ready. Their job was to ensure that no one actually died during the test.
Tara and the other four were not the only applicants.
Five ordinary residents had also applied to join the Defense Force during the same period, bringing the total number of candidates to ten.
They stood in a somewhat uneven line. Quite a few looked nervous, especially the ordinary residents.
Leah wasted no time. Her gaze swept across the ten faces, some anxious, others determined.
"All of you applied to join the Rock Fortress Defense Force.
"The Defense Force offers the highest point rewards, but it is not a shelter. We need people who can survive the worst situations, protect their comrades, and complete their missions.
"Today's assessment is simple.
"Live combat."
She pointed toward a half-open warehouse at the far end of the training ground.
"Behind those doors are ten walkers. Their movement has been restricted to a specific area. Your job is to go inside and use the weapons available to you."
Leah gestured toward a nearby weapons rack lined with machetes, fire axes, spears, crowbars, and other melee weapons.
"Clear them out while keeping yourselves and your teammates safe.
"There is no time limit. You can work alone or form temporary teams, but by the end, I want to see 'blood' on every one of your hands.
"If you freeze, run away, or seriously endanger your teammates, you fail immediately.
"Remember, the guns outside are here only to prevent the worst-case scenario. They are not something you can rely on. Don't assume they'll save you. Their aim might not be as good as you think.
"Choose your weapons. The combat test begins in thirty seconds."
Melee weapons.
Against walkers.
The requirement made several applicants visibly pale.
Anyone willing to apply had used a gun before, but fighting walkers at close range with melee weapons was something else entirely. It demanded far more nerve and skill.
The armed guards positioned outside offered some reassurance, but they also underscored how serious and dangerous the assessment was.
They would only intervene if someone was truly about to die, and if that happened, the candidate had already failed.
A single mistake could still cost someone their life.
Tara moved first.
Without hesitation, she walked to the weapons rack and chose a machete that felt right in her hand.
Alisha followed immediately, taking a spear made from sharpened rebar.
Pete picked out a fire axe, tested its weight, and gave a satisfied grunt.
Mitch chose two entrenching shovels.
Martinez took a crowbar, then picked up a lightweight car door that had been removed from a vehicle and had its edges smoothed down, using it as an arm shield.
The others stepped forward as well, though they were noticeably more hesitant.
Thirty seconds passed quickly.
The heavy iron doors slowly opened inward.
The abandoned warehouse was open at both ends. At the far side stood a large cage holding the walkers, with Michonne and Shane guarding it.
Maya gave them a signal.
Michonne tossed a canister of walker attractant into the warehouse.
Shane opened the cage.
Ten walkers began staggering and dragging themselves toward the interior.
"Move!" Leah barked.
Martinez drew a deep breath.
He raised the car-door shield with his left arm and gripped the crowbar tightly in his right, then charged in first.
Alisha and Tara followed close behind him.
The others entered as well.
Inside, Tara and Alisha quickly positioned themselves back-to-back, forming a simple defensive circle.
Tara used her machete to hold off a walker lunging toward her.
Alisha drove her spear straight through its eye socket.
The two worked together smoothly.
Pete swung his fire axe in wide, powerful arcs. His strikes carried plenty of force, but the large motions demanded a lot of effort.
Mitch stayed close, moving around him and using his entrenching shovels to finish off any walkers his brother Pete missed.
Martinez slammed his shield into one walker, holding it back, then smashed another walker's skull with the crowbar.
He immediately turned and finished the one pinned against his shield.
The others performed far less impressively.
One tall, thin man armed with a spear screamed as he stabbed wildly, failing to inflict any meaningful damage.
Instead, one walker grabbed the other end of the spear and yanked hard.
The man screamed and let go, stumbling backward before tripping over some debris.
The walker tossed the spear aside and lunged toward him, snarling as the man landed with his legs spread apart.
"Ahhh! Help!"
The lanky man screamed desperately, throwing up his arms in a futile attempt to protect himself.
Just before the walker's rotting teeth could sink into him...
"Bang!"
A sharp gunshot cracked through the warehouse.
The walker's head snapped sideways.
A bloody hole burst open at its temple, spraying foul black blood and brain matter across the man's face.
The walker went rigid and collapsed on top of him.
The man screamed like he was being slaughtered, frantically shoving the corpse away before scrambling backward on his hands and feet until he reached a corner.
His entire body trembled uncontrollably.
Andrea, who had fired the shot, showed no expression.
She simply shifted her sights toward another part of the warehouse.
The lanky man's assessment had ended the instant that gunshot rang out.
He had failed, but he was alive.
Another candidate, a woman wielding a small axe, was completely overwhelmed by the gunshot and what she had just witnessed.
She backed into another corner and began swinging the axe wildly with her eyes closed, accomplishing nothing except exhausting herself.
Then there was another man.
When two walkers closed in on him from both sides, he dropped his weapon, screamed, and ran straight for the door.
He began pounding desperately on the sealed iron gate.
"Let me out! I quit! I don't want to take the test anymore!"
His panic distracted Martinez, who was fighting nearby.
Martinez cursed angrily and nearly got grabbed by a walker because of it.
The fight lasted roughly fifteen minutes before the iron doors opened again.
All ten applicants came out alive.
But their conditions were vastly different.
The man who had fled during the fight had to be hauled out by Shane.
He collapsed onto the ground, tears and mucus running down his face.
The lanky man was supported by Michonne and Andrea.
His legs were too weak to hold him up. Blood and filth covered his face, and his eyes were unfocused.
The others were all splattered with foul blood, pale-faced, and some were still trembling, but at least they walked out on their own.
Leah stepped down from the concrete platform.
Her gaze swept over each candidate, lingering slightly longer on Martinez, Tara, Alisha, Mitch, and Pete before turning cold as she looked at the two collapsed on the ground.
"The assessment is over," she said, breaking the silence. "I'll announce the results now."
"Martinez. Full Defense Force member."
"Tara. Full Defense Force member."
"Alisha. Full Defense Force member."
"Mitch. Full Defense Force member."
"Pete. Full Defense Force member."
Then Leah looked toward the woman who had been cowering in the corner with the small axe.
The woman lowered her head in shame.
"You lack basic fighting spirit and the ability to respond effectively under pressure. You'll be transferred to the reserves."
Leah pointed toward two other men whose performances had been mediocre, but who had at least stayed in the fight until the end.
"You two. Your fundamentals are acceptable, but you need extensive training. Reserves."
Then her gaze fell on the man sprawled on the ground who had tried to flee.
"You. You abandoned the fight and seriously disrupted the assessment. Failed."
Finally, she looked at the lanky man.
"You. You completely lost control under pressure and became incapable of fighting. Without outside intervention, you would be dead. Failed."
The two men's lips trembled, but neither could speak.
"Those who passed will be collected by their respective squad leaders shortly. Reserve personnel, report to the reserve training camp. Those who failed, leave on your own."
With that, Leah turned away without another glance and left.