Training Grounds 0914 hours
After nearly an hour and a half of drills, Lyle Smithsonian felt he could just collapse from the sheer weight of his suit. Dribbles of perspiration hovered above his eyes from his brows as he furrowed them in concentration. He fired round after round at three alien holograms, two of which disintegrated on hit. However, the last shot missed a shredder by mere margins. He clenched his teeth and shook his head while trying to blink away the beads of sweat that had just dripped into his eyes. If his hard work had not blurred his vision, that stupid creature would have been smithereens. Right now, he could just picture Commander Malkovich taking note of their performance behind the glass windows in the control room: 'Minus one for Lyle.'
Lyle hopped backwards, avoiding a stream of green spikes, and sent a bullet home. 'No more thorns in my side.' he mused, finishing off the flying plant. He watched it plummet to the ground with a thud.
Out of all the different training exercises, Lyle hated physical training more than anything. For starters, he was slowly marinating in his own sweat as he continued to fire at these accursed, elusive projections, which so happened to be all set on the highest, intense difficulty. Better yet, Malkovich was notorious for being a slave driver, "demanding the best out of each and every one of them." That man could go jump in a ditch for all he cared! Come on! They weren't machines like him; they couldn't work nonstop like this. But best of all, that little runt, Samus, was the Commander's favorite – that little lap dog – bet his life she was a robot, too.
"Lyle!" Adam barked through the communication set in his helmet, "Focus!"
The tall soldier dodged to the left and then right as a holographic grenchler entered the fray, firing energy bursts afar. He evaded each shot with some difficulty, but managed to stay light on his toes. He could hear it roar in frustration. All of a sudden, the blasted creature leapt across the field and landed a few feet to in front of him. Lyle cursed, watching its multiple red eyes staring him down as it dug large clawed toes into the dirt before charging forth. He gasped and immediately began running in the opposite direction, trying to distance himself from an open maw of serrated daggers. His staggered sprints were no use as his trembling legs refused to go any faster.
The grenchler crouched low again with beady eyes trained on him. In an instant, it uncoiled its legs and propelled itself above the man. The next thing he knew, his left shoulder collided into the ground and his rifle landed out of sight. The only thing he could see was a snapping jaw, ready to tear him to shreds. He ground his teeth slightly, the muscles in his abdomen tightening as he fiercely tried to hold off the beast. Instinctively, he began driving his thumbs into the grenchler's exposed eyes.
It screeched painfully in his ears and stomped on him. The creature stumbled backwards and shook his arms off its head. Lyle took his chance to scramble backwards, searching frantically for his gun, which his hands conveniently uncovered in a patch of grass and mud. He'd show it what for! The man grabbed his gun and armed himself.
As he looked up, the grenchler had its horn down diving at him headlong. Lyle screamed at its alarming recovery and unloaded a round of bullets into its cranium in a blind fury. His eyes widened as he was quick to realize the shells bounced harmlessly off the creature.
He yelped, brought his arms up, and braced for impact.
Lyle saw a flash of blue from the sides of his visor and was relieved the impact never came. Instead, an electric chain was latched to its razor horn and held the creature at bay.
'Samus!'
He watched her cement her feet into the dirt and tug on her arm cannon. With a powerful cry, she jerked her arm and yanked the grenchler to the ground. Immediately, she charged her power beam and punished it, firing a torrent of white-hot plasma into its vulnerable back until it burst into tiny holographic squares, which dissipated into the air around her.
"That's enough!" the Commander's voice rang clear into his ears, instantly vanquishing any of the remaining creatures.
The environment suddenly lit up with square grids all across the field. The trees, water, and other obstacles retracted and the ground and sky folded up into smaller squares; and in its place, the regular blue room they started in reappeared. He half turned his body towards the sound of doors gliding open as Adam entered the training room some odd feet to his left. That signified PT was over! Thank the vast space above it was finally over! At last able to rest, Lyle ripped off his helmet – much like how the grenchler would have if it wasn't for Samus' timely intervention – and dropped it flat on the disappearing grass beside him. Lyle ran a hand through his brown matted hair causing droplets of sweat to drip on the floor where he sat. He rubbed the beads blurring his vision away and sat there gulping in the refreshing conditioned air. Catching his breath, Lyle turned his gaze towards Commander Malkovich, who was apparently talking and probably praising Samus again. He grumbled watching the small exchange.
"Topnotch aim, Samus." Adam said, tilting his hat back to get a better look at her young face.
'Look at her now,' he squinted at her brushing off yet another compliment. Malkovich gave all his attention to that blonde runt, always. It was as if Samus was like a new toy he would "play" with until he got bored of her. Yet in the meantime, however, she would constantly receive the "special treatment."
Adam strode over to him after dismissing Samus and a few others. "Lyle, I need to talk to you..." he began.
As Lyle had guessed, it was about his poor performance on the field. Immediately, Adam began giving pointers on where to shoot, and what to do when that giant monstrous amphibian attacked.
Lyle was tired of hearing lectures on how to fight. All he had to do was aim, pull the trigger, and take cover; simple as that. Instead, he always had to wait for Commander Malkovich's orders to just even hold his weapon.
Sure his aim was just a tiny bit off today and sure he got surprised by a grenchler. But so what? It was just a onetime thing. What did he expect? He wasn't like Miss Perfect over there; why hound on him? A girl playing adult waltzes in and suddenly becomes the protégé of the genius military Commander. What gives? Why compare him to Samus? Plus, it wasn't like he was the only one "slacking behind" here. Lyle stole a glare at that scumbag, James, who snickered quietly behind Adam's back. How come he got away scot free!? Pierce just gave him a smug look.
It was time he showed the Commander and the rest of the platoon that he was more than a capable soldier in his platoon. Once his muscles had a chance to recover from the hell Adam put them through, he was calling the big man out.
"Smithsonian! Did you hear me?"
Training Grounds 1022 hours
He sampled the air - it was a fresh, cool breezy welcome - walking into the training room today. It was a new day, and a fine one to show everyone what Lyle Smithsonian could really do. Lyle strode passed Anthony, giving him a quick pat on the back, and then joined the rest of the platoon in a formation encircling Commander Malkovich. Adam was participating in this round's training, saying something about an exercise on "team bonding," yet the only girl here was that Misawa kid; Lyle laughed to himself, running around doing drills doesn't build teamwork. Eating together as group? Now that would work. Standing and listening to another one of Adam's magnificent speeches, he recalled last night's dinner. It wasn't the usual crummy cafeteria meals; it was actual food for once. That brought to mind this morning: there wasn't a single insect either. Not one. To top it off, the weather was better than it had been in weeks. A little change every so often never hurt. The more he thought about it, the more pumped up he felt. Just then, Lyle knew the stars had aligned and that today was the day.
Striding up to Adam, Lyle issued his challenge. It was a gunshot heard around the world. Like how he expected the men to react, the platoon erupted into a chorus of hoots and laughter, begging the Commander to respond and encouraging them both to do something. Anything that would provide for their amusement was game.
Commander Malkovich stared silently at Lyle for a few seconds then gave a curt nod. Honestly, who could refuse before the watchful gaze of the whole platoon? Lyle thought himself clever, whether the other man chose to accept or decline, the outcome would be the same.
Once the terms for the match were clear, both men subsequently walked to the opposite ends of the training field, comprised of a rocky cliff-side surrounded by overgrowth. Lyle approached his designated starting point and readied his weapon, waiting for the signal flare. After a couple of seconds, one of Samus' charged beams shot into the rapidly dimming artificial sky and immediately the fight began.
Lyle, adding to his fortuity, started out mostly obscured by the wild, unruly vegetation. Adam, on the other hand, was at his mercy with nothing more to hide behind but rocks and more rock in the clearing. The man smirked at this: He could attack from any position he pleased, making Adam a sitting duck, literally cornered at the foot of the cliff.
Without another moment's hesitation, Lyle dashed from cover to cover, speedily making his way across the field, hiking over the rough terrain. He ran through the tall ferns and swatted the large, annoying fan-like leaves away. After some time, the man came upon the clearing at the bottom of the cliff, which resembled a deformed and misshapen crescent moon. Its uneven shape stretched far left and right with its ends curling towards him. He located the area where Adam had taken refuge and observed several towering structure of discolored boulders atop more boulders. There were a few massive monoliths clumped together. Most sat adjacent to the wide precipice, but the others were scattered too far apart to provide much safety. Lyle knew Adam was still vulnerable in too many places regardless of the positions of the rocks. Honestly, this might have been easier than he thought. Adam would be sitting dead center of that crude fort of pebbles blissfully unaware. His Commander was in for a surprise attack he would never forget.
Adam wouldn't even know what hit him!
He slowed to a crawl as he approached the cliff. Crouching in the bushes, he scanned about. Moving his head slowly from one side to the next, searching the rocks for any signs of movement. If he waited long enough he knew it would pay off eventually. Patience always did – at least that was what everybody said. Soon, several minutes passed in silence under the shadows of a round tree before his eyes at last detected some signs of motion. He saw a thin sliver of black stretch across the walls onto the gravel.
Lyle grinned under his blue helmet watching the shadow vanish behind the rows of grey. How careless! Honestly, Adam could at least put up more of a challenge. The more he thought about it, the more the Commander could use some training every now and again. After all, Adam was becoming a dull blade, getting rusty after days behind dashboards and his fancy desk.
Lyle crept up to the Commander, who couldn't see anything but the monolith he was covered by. Seeing the tip of Adam's shadow positioned right by the edge of the rock shelter, Lyle zeroed in on his target. He circumvented the first row of rocks and crept slowly without the slightest sound. Inch by pain-staking inch, he made his way over to the inner ring of the formation. He took a deep breath observing his new surroundings. The place started to look like a maze. It looked quite larger from afar. No matter; this would provide an actual challenge for him. Adam was still here somewhere.
He saw the shadow dart diagonally across to his left. Lyle jumped out from a tall pile of rocks and climbed over a collapsed wall of the maze, following in hot pursuit. The deeper he ventured, the more the shadows engulfed him. He had to admit Adam apparently had a pretty fair advantage in this wreckage now that he stood by the face of the cliff. The man could feel the loose dirt shift under each step, some pebbles scattering when he lifted a foot. As he rounded another corner of boulders, he heard a small pebble skitter behind him. Instantly, he swirled around, but he saw nothing.
Lyle narrowed his eyes and mentally cursed before cautiously lowering his gun, heart racing. He retreated into the convenient cover of a crevice in the wall of rocks and waited about a minute or two before moving again. The man retraced his steps and stood stock-still as his ears caught wind of the faintest sounds of more pebbles rolling further down the left. He approached where he pinpointed the disturbed gravel and found a slight depression in the dirt. He frowned knowing full well what may lie ahead. He licked his lips in anticipation; his suit was beginning to feel slightly moist again.
Taking another deep breath, he steeled his nerves and continued forward. Once again, he heard more pebbles and immediately slipped into a sizable crack between two rocks. He reassured himself though, the Commander wasn't as careful as he seemed if he left tracks to follow. Lyle waited again, but this time he heard not a sound.
The more time ticked by while hiding in the crevice, the more his stomach clenched. He groaned and wished he had eaten a more filling breakfast. All this cat and mouse had stimulated his appetite. Worse, the artificial night had fallen upon him now. He knew he couldn't trust that randomized environmental settings. This alien time was messing with his mind – it was noon outside for Pete's sake!
His sight turned black for a moment and his peripheral vision lightened then darkened again as the shadows of the cliff stretched further across the field. After another short rest to let his eyes adjust, he knew he couldn't afford any more time wasted standing idly. Though just as he was about to venture forth from out of the crack in the wall, he heard a small clink from behind a pile of rocks. From the wall, he saw another pebble skid by.
His heart began pumping faster.
Lyle needn't wait any longer as he knew exactly where that dastard Malkovich had been hiding this whole time. His mind started racing with plans. What was the best way to approach the pillar? What was the best way to catch him off guard? Lyle easily dismissed running straight forward – it was far too obvious. There had to be another way…
'Of course!' he smirked. The man quickly spotted a few rocky steps that provided a nice ledge. A preemptive strike from above was always welcomed in his book. Lyle immediately followed his gut instinct and hastily scrambled up the makeshift steps with his armor and gun clunking with each step. At the top of the flat surface on the boulder he prepared himself for the ambush.
He hurdled over the rocks like a grenchler and landed on the other side of the wall by the pillar with a thud, small clouds of dust flying in the air. Lyle, with a smirk on his face, dashed behind the pillar and aimed his gun at Adam…
Who wasn't where he was supposed to be!
But before he could finish his thoughts and wonder where the man could have been, he felt a shattering blow to the left side of his head, then a second to the back of his knees. He tried to fight back but crumbled under the sheer strength of the attack, and was down in an instant, his skull smashing hard into the floor disorienting him. Wrestled by brute force, his arms were roughly pinned behind his back before he could even put up a struggle. Weight crushing his lungs, he heard the sudden, piercing cock of a gun, and felt it pressed harshly against the back of his helmet. Then all Lyle heard as he senses came back to him was the all too familiar voice that could only belong to Adam.
"Freeze, you owe me PT."
Commander Malkovich had won.