The Academy[edit | edit source]
Situated at more than than 3000m high in the Pass of Ages sits The High Academy of The Guardsmen of The Revolution. Its soaring towers and large training buildings convey a sense of vastness and permanence, their grey stone structures rising out of a whiteness that covers the landscape. Breaking this landscape are groups of young men. Some are young, carrying book bags as they run between buildings, others are older, either wearing full metal armor or carrying bows, as they go about their tasks. The only ones above 20 are the teachers, who are often seen either in full battle dress or at the head of a column of youngsters.
The largest building in The Academy is the gym. Covering almost 10 acres it is a technological marvel held together by methods now lost to time. Inside the building the place takes on a certain seriousness, palpable in the air. The predominate sounds are the yells of instructors, the crack of rifle-fire, and the clash of steel on steel, the predominate stench that of sweat punctuated by whiffs of blood and urine. The gym is not for the faint of heart, and neither are those who train there. Here the wearers of The Republic's most advanced body armor participate in sword-fighting classes, train in extreme accuracy with and the maintenance of their rifles, practice marching instep with their comrades, and spend a lot of time in the weight rooms. To them this building is their life. They are the future members of The Revolutionary Guard, and they have been here since the age of four. For most of them The Academy is the home they have ever known, and The Republic the only parent. This is their life, and it is a life of complete devotion to The Republic, the office of The Protector, and the officers who serve above them. They are trained to move as one, act as one, and think as one. Their strength comes from those beside them and their desire to protect The Revolution above all else. "Victory is life!"
On the other side of the compound drilled their polar opposites, the Andes' Rangers. Day and night the Rangers stood, ran, and rode through the woods shooting at targets, moving and not. For them the woods are their home, their rifle their only friend, and any other person they meet only a temporary ally or a swiftly dispatched enemy. Prized for their individualism, expert rifle skills, the ability to survive in the most extreme conditions, and adventurous spirit the Andes' Ranger is The Republic's first line of defense. These recruits have been selected from the pool at age 8 for exhibiting individualism. From then on they are trained separately from their brothers in The Guard. Though no less devout in their support of The Republic and The Revolution, Rangers are trained to be in situations where they will be out of contact with command for weeks if not months at a time. "Forward into the Unknown!"
All of these areas, and the specialties of the people there, pale in importance to the area in the center of the compound. The field at the middle of the compound is Joint Command. It is the place where all of the different specialties meet to train together. Here they drill on combined tactics which utilize the speed of the Mechanized and Armored Divisions, the stealth and individuality of The Andes' Rangers, and the staying power of the Revolutionary Guard. The Father was as wise as he was strong, and he knew that no single facet of an army can hold all on its own. Cooperation is at the center of every army, just as it is with this one.
History[edit | edit source]
Location[edit | edit source]
The Academy is located high in the Andes Mountains above 3200m in the area colloquially know as The Pass of Ages. The location was chosen for its defensibly, altitude, and proximity to water, and was supposed to remain a highly guarded military secret. The latter did not happen as support staff was needed to staff the newly constructed school, and a small village grew up nearby. Though it is not on any maps produced by The Republic, though there are plenty of people who know its location.
Founding[edit | edit source]
After The Revolution of The People of Chile the Chilean Army was virtually non-existent. Over the course of the Chilean Emergency Government it had been reduced in size dramatically and replaced by people hungry for power rather than people who wanted to protect. In order to remedy this The Father decided to disband the entire army, creating in its place a temporary force of his most loyal followers. It was their children, and the children of those who would in the future prove most loyal, upon which the new army would be based.
In order to mold the most loyal, most perfect soldier imaginable The Father needed to isolate the trainees. He also needed to start early in the trainee's lives, that way their obedience to The Republic would be a reflex rather than a learned action. A council of his most trusted advisers decided on the age of four to begin the training. It was thought, at the time, that training people from a young age would make them more loyal to those who raised them, and would also expose them to propaganda from the state during their formative years. Later this proved to be beneficial as it allowed the cadets to be trained in many different fields and specialties as the complexity of the Revolutionary Guard grew.
War of Rust[edit | edit source]
During the War of Rust The Academy was targeted by suicide bombers and enemy armies many times. None of the battles or attacks produced lasting damage, but several did disrupt the training programs laid out, and they all caused casualties in excess of training potentials. This caused The Daughter to consider increasing the defensive potential of the institution, including permanently detailing members of The Protectorate to secure the school. Ultimately the decision was made to simply increase the screening protocols and enlarge the security perimeter. These measures proved successful in stopping all future attacks by the rapidly weakening Cult.