The time was two in the morning, practically the dead of night. The seven she-kats were sleeping side by side, seeing as it was convenient and it kept the warmth circulating. Encased within a non-REM sleep, they were entirely oblivious of what was about to befall them. Well, that wasn't true for everyone. One of the blondes, who looked older than the others yet still looked young, had a tingle on the back of her neck and an itch between her shoulder blades.
Her green eyes snapped open as if she had been shocked awake, or had a loud noise played in her ears. It was still too dark, still too cold, but she was awake. And the fact that she was awake warned her of something.
'They're coming. Shit, they're coming.'
She quickly got up, beginning to crawl out of her bag. The two kittens on either side of her muttered in protest, one of them snuggling further into her bag. "This is no time for sleep," she whispered to herself as she nudged the two she-kats that were next to a now empty bag with her right toe. "Come on, get up."
Her gentle urging brought the two of them awake. "What… is it morning already?" one of them muttered tiredly. "If it's not, let me sleep."
Callie shook her head and said, "You don't understand- you have to wake up, now." She nudged them again and said, "Come on, let's go before they get here."
With a groan, the two of them got up, scratching the backs of their heads and rubbing the sleep from out of their eyes. Their movement led to the stirring of the others, one of them waking up on the spot. "Quick now, wake up the others. I don't want them to catch us…"
A very confused she-kat raised an eyebrow in the dark and said, "Them who? What are you talking about?"
Callie shook her head and said, "No time to explain, just get the others awake and start your engines. Hurry up before they get here!" Still confused, she responded to the request, and soon they were all awake. Needless to say, not everyone was a happy camper.
Of course by the time they were all up and all the way live, it was an hour later. But surprise, surprise- they weren't here yet. Still, Callie's skin tingled, eyes looking towards the tent flap. And since nothing had happened yet, the others waited for an explanation. "Hey, I wanna know why I'm being deprived of my beauty rest," one of them demanded.
Callie smirked and said, "Not here. Let's head out so that no one will hear us. Come on."
With that, they followed her out of their tent and stood in a circle around her. Callie began to explain herself. "All right, here's the deal. I know they haven't arrived yet, but the instructors are on their way, and they're not here to have an early breakfast. They're coming with a lot of noise and a lot of orders, and the slower it takes to move, the worse it gets."
Their eyes widened collectively in the early morning. "There's no way… you mean they're doing a wake-up call at this hour?" Another one said, "This is crazy! I didn't sign up for this!"
They all started talking amongst themselves, saying how unfair it was. Callie wanted to yell, but it would wake the others. "Hush up, and listen," she said harshly. That got them quiet again. "I know it sucks. I feel your pain. But it's time to suck it up and get with the program. I understand your parents sent you here, and I know why you motivated yourselves go come here, but it doesn't matter why. All that matters is that you're here, and if you want to leave with some measure of pride intact, you're going to have to work for it. This is part of the work."
When they didn't respond, their leader continued onward. "You're going to get hungry, get cold, get tired, and be in more pain than you think you can handle. The point is to ignore the complaints of your mind, ignore all the little things that tell you to give up, that you can't cut it, that you, as you so artfully put it, didn't sign up for this. It doesn't matter if you did or not, it's happening. And if you want to beat this, you're going to have to ignore that voice in your head that's going to make you want to collapse. Now are you with me here or not?"
After a few moments longer of silence, they nodded. "We're with you," one of them said softly. "But where are they?"
Callie sighed and said, "I don't know, but they're coming. Just watch. You're about to find out a reason why this is called Hell Week."
Kanto the Slayer presents
A SWAT Kats Fanfiction
SWAT Kats: Endgame
Megaphones blared and instructors shouted. Kats were suddenly roused from their rest at four in the morning- all except the seven she-kats who were ready for it, neatly lined up in their black BDUs. They said nothing as they walked past them and headed towards the rest of the tents.
Some of the kittens looked towards Callie, eyes widening. How exactly did she know they were coming? But no, now was not the time for questions. They turned their heads back to face forward again and waited for orders. It wasn't exactly that bad, really. They knew in advance, and it made things easier.
One of the instructors finally noticed that they were quietly standing in rank and said, "Well what do we have here? Looks like someone managed to catch us before we caught them. That makes me wonder if there's a spy in our ranks. Of course, I'd know whether there was one or not, so I'll chalk it up to luck. Since you're fortunate enough to get up before the others, you'll be my first victims. Down, now!"
They got down.
"You will be doing push-ups, in unison, with good form. You get out of line or out of posture once, and that one doesn't count. I want to see thirty of 'em and I want to hear a count on every one. Go!"
This time, they were ready. Every count was in line, every push-up was in sync. "Do not think," the instructor yelled at them as they performed the exercise, "That I will show any mercy on you just because you're she-kats. You're here like everyone else, and you will put out when I damn well say you put out, or you can take your ass home! Do you get me?"
"Hooyah, instructor!" they said in tandem. By the time that speech was over, they were at fifteen, and they had done them without a scratch thus far. It was a surprise what they could do with a bit of motivation, wasn't it?
"Damn straight. It looks like everyone else is awake, so you're doing what they're doing. And don't think for a second that I'm not watching, because I am! You will be in tandem with the group and in form, or you will pay. Get me?"
"Hooyah, instructor!" they said again, but louder this time. By now, they were done… but it was going to be a long day. Still, it wasn't so bad. Hell, they already felt more confident, if only a little. And it was true, why they were here didn't matter. Just that they were here in the first place and that they had to stick it out together.
The instructor nodded. "Good. Stand up and form ranks with the others."
Fortunately, by the time six in the morning rolled around, they were called to a halt for an important announcement. Unfortunately, this was the judgment result from yesterday that loomed over their heads. A couple of armored personnel carriers pulled up, each one designed to carry eight trainees, along with a driver and a gunner.
"If you thought," the Sergeant Major said to the group, "That we would just let you all move along like it was nothing special, you damn well better think again, right now. I want the following kats to step forward!"
There were several names called, and soon the class was split between thirty-two in back and thirty-four in front. For a moment, there was silence… and then the Sergeant Major said, "Front team, about face!" they turned to look at the thirty two that were behind them.
"Take a good look at these kats before you. Burn their faces into your minds forever, because this will be the last time you see each other for this entire week! We are looking for four boat crews, count 'em, four. That means eight kats per boat. I'm sure you can do the math from here, but don't get cocky. We're damn well just getting started. Front team, face forward!"
They did, without flinching. Some kats were definitely miffed; others knew that they had gotten their asses kicked in the physical examination. But they all knew where they were going next.
"Remove your headgear," he said solemnly.
They removed their hats. One after another, the instructors quietly took them from their hands. This meant that they were gone, completely and totally cut off from the rest of the team. Once that was done and they were put in a nearby box, the instructors stood in rank again. "Wherever you go after this, we wish you the best of luck. You place just isn't here, not yet. The Black Hawks are waiting- you have one hour to get the hell off of my base. Take care and god speed to you."
With that, they disbanded, leaving only the thirty two at attention. "Congratulations, grunts. Hell Week is now in session. The first half-day you had wasn't even a part of it, it was only physical examination. You passed that, and now you're here, locked in. Now I get to kick your asses for real," the Sergeant Major said with a grin.
"The APCs behind us are going to take you to your first training facility. You will be trained in the use of weapons, tactics, and strategies that are vital for engagements that may require your attention. You will be also trained in close-quarters battle and hand-to-hand combat. We believe in the well-rounded individual here, after all."
The doors to the APCs opened and the order was given. "They ain't gonna stay open forever, so bust 'em!"
They hauled ass yet again, though some of them were reluctant to do so. Hell, most of them were. That wasn't even part of it? All they had gone through was a test? Well that wasn't too good, was it? It meant that it was only the beginning, and if they had to wake up this early every day, well… it wouldn't fare too well on their nerves.
Callie just nodded and kept moving, her face serene. She had expected it.
The other she-kats and one of the other toms entered the APC with her, and once all four were good and ready, the doors closed and they were up and away. The young kat that had joined them looked like he was going to throw up at any minute, he was so damned nervous.
The blonde leader could feel his torment. Yes, he had most definitely figured that this was just the beginning. "Holy shit," he muttered to himself, "You mean that was just… holy shit! I don't think I'm cut for this, and we have to wake up early as hell, too… oh, man…"
For all she knew, he probably thought he could hack it when he first came here. Sure he had passed the physical test, but now that it was really getting started, there was no good news here. He probably wasn't ready for anything else. Callie, her gaze fixed on him, called out. "Hey… it's okay."
He looked up towards her, as if he were in his own little world for a while there. "It's… okay?" He laughed, tersely and without merriment. "How the hell is waking up at four in the morning, only to hear that the shit you went through was only the tip of the iceberg? No offense miss, but none of this is okay!" He shivered and said, "I still hurt, everywhere. I don't like pain, I don't like being cold, and I don't like the way these guys are talking to me."
She nodded, expecting all that. "Then don't pay attention to it."
He laughed again and said, "Please, I'm supposed to ignore all that just for the sake of some kind of pride or honor? Those are overrated. I'd rather be back home with my parents and tell them that I couldn't hack it, just apologize right now and never piss 'em off again. If they were trying to scare me straight, they sure as hell did it."
Callie felt him start to crack, even now. That was, if he hadn't already started to do so yesterday. "What exactly did you do? Why did they send you here?" She knew her talk about how it didn't matter, but she had to know what exactly the case was before she said it. Everyone had a different situation.
He scoffed and said, "You know parents… they think you're too spoiled or too meek or too whatever, and want that fixed ASAP. Not like they had time to do it themselves, they were too busy. So they shipped me off here." His eyes narrowed. "This is utter bullshit. I can't hack it in any kind of confrontation, how am I supposed to do here?"
The other she-kats were silent, not knowing what to say.
Callie simply nodded. "I see what you mean. You want my advice? Don't make this about your parents. Don't take all this as torture. A lot of kats seem to be doing that, but it's not like that. You're not here to get humiliated or harassed or bullied."
He just looked at her with an incredulous expression on his face. "What the… how can you say that when the evidence of the opposite is right in front of you? How the hell can you take all this?"
She grinned and said, "Because I know the trick to beating it."
He was entirely silent. She was too confident, too sure. Not arrogant, but certainly more outgoing than he was. So he was quiet, and he listened.
"The trick is," she said calmly, "To turn everything they throw at you into something you can use. We're about to be split into teams, which means what?" She didn't wait for him to answer, and didn't think he could right now. "It means that you can't act alone, by yourself, without others backing you. But at the same time, if you don't move, the whole thing won't work. This isn't some form of torture. It's a means of taking your ego away and replacing it with something real. It's a way for you to learn how to work with others while depending on them at the same time. And you know what else?"
He shook his head. "What else?" the tom asked quietly.
Callie placed a hand on the young kat's head and said, "It's a way to learn how to stand up to anyone who threatens you. It's a way to learn how to be mindful, so you don't piss your parents off, or if they're really being bastards, to tell them off. And it's also a way to learn how to tell the difference between those two things."
The tom shook his head and said, "I don't get it…" Well at least he was calm now.
The she-kat smiled and said, "I know. You will, though. But if you want to, you have to stick it out. Got that?"
He was quiet for a moment before nodding slowly. "Okay… I'll try. Besides, it's only a week, right? I mean, what's five days? I might even have the weekend to do whatever the hell I want after."
Callie nodded and said, "Maybe. If not, you have the satisfaction of going home without ever being afraid of anything again. And that's what this is really about, right?"
He laughed and said, "Now you sound like the Captain."
She laughed as well. "Well if you've heard it more than once, it starts to make sense, right? Besides, he was telling the truth. If you don't mind the cold, the chafing, the noise, the cussing, the pressure, the pain… then what is there left to bother you?"
The tom really had to think about that for a moment, and then he said, "Nothing."
"Get out here, you sorry-ass bastards! Go, go, go! We don't have all day here; we'd like to get home!"
The APCs emptied out as they arrived at their destinations. Immediately assuming that they had to form ranks, they began lining up, but the instructors kept yelling. "What, did I tell you to stop? In the building, now! Hustle!" There were several however that kept on moving. Apparently, they understood that they were heading towards a training facility, and that whatever orders were to be given were obviously going to be done so inside.
The seven she-kats and one tom simply followed Callie as she jogged towards the building in question. This was probably the point where they were going their separate ways, at least most of them. All she had to find out was how, and hope that whoever was sent to another team would carry away what she had showed them.
As soon as they were all in, then they were told to form ranks. The Sergeant Major was already there, in front of a series of tables and chairs. It was a classroom. Those that noticed this tried not to grimace. They were going to school now? What the hell was all this? But they refrained from speaking.
"First things first," the Sergeant Major said as he walked towards the recruits. "You heard me talking about boat teams earlier. Well here's your chance to find out just what the hell I meant. You have five minutes to find eight kats of similar height before I do it for you, and it's not going to be pretty. Those who bonded during the first day, don't you worry. You'll see each other again; it just might be on opposite sides. The only time you will not be competing is when you are at lunch. Then you can damn well sit wherever you want and with whomever you want. You get me?"
"Hooyah, Sergeant Major!" they shouted.
He looked around for a moment, scanning the rows of faces. "Let's move!"
It was chaos from there as thirty-two kats searched for a group with similar height. This was somewhat difficult for Callie as she attempted to find out who was around five foot six. Fortunately for her, three of the she-kats from her original group and the one tom she had just met were her height, so that took care of most of it. Unfortunately... one of the remainders was not exactly her choice for a good team member.
"Awww, Shit. I figured this would be a bad day," the former gang member said from behind her.
She sighed in exasperation and said without looking, "Well it can't be helped. Try not to get us killed, okay?"
He grimaced and considered smacking her upside the head, but he figured that wouldn't be conducive to his continued participation in this. That was, if he wanted to continue at all after this one. He just decided to himself that he wouldn't let them hold him back. There would be no waiting, no hesitation, he would just do what he had to do and head off by himself when it was over.
Five minutes were over, and along with him, three more joined the team. Most of them were the same height, so whatever happened next wouldn't be a problem. At least, Callie hoped not with the guy behind her. "Well then, you can follow orders. Good, because that skill will come in handy for this next evolution. Crew one, first table!"
With that, they began taking their seats, the fourth crew at the back and the first in front. Callie's was number two.
"All right, listen up. Before we get started, let me explain something. From this point forward, you are in competition mode. Every exercise, every evolution, every run that you take will be compared with your opposing teams. In combat and in life, it pays to be a winner. That's going to be taken to the extreme here. Losers will pay, and they will pay dearly, so it's best that you work as a unit."
Callie nodded to herself. That was the plan.
"Individuals will be singled out, just like the term suggests," he continued. "They will be given special treatment by the instructors, and if one fails, everyone suffers for it. So you'd better get it out of your brains that you're worth two shits without your team, because that will not fly here. Do you get me?"
They responded with the expected reply by now, and the Sergeant Major nodded. "I want the following four kats to stand up when their last name is called. Felix," one kat at the third table stood, fifth seat from the right. "Andrews," another kat stood, first table. "Lynx," a third kat, table four. "Briggs." Callie stood from her table.
Wait, Briggs? Holy shit… that was the Deputy Mayor's last name, and the news had stated that she was… no, it couldn't be. It had to be a coincidence. But never mind what her last name was. Those who knew what she was capable of wanted to cheer, but they stayed quiet. The ex-gang kat just looked at her, stone-faced.
He didn't know what he had done in a past life, but he was starting to feel sorry for it now.
"You are the Crew Captains. You are responsible for the welfare, tactics, and performance of your crews. A mistake on any part of your team reflects heavily on you, because you could not keep the specific individual in line and in shape. I don't care how you have to do it, just keep the team together. Understood?"
"Hooyah," they all responded in unison.
"Good, sit. Now then, here's the situation. You're here to learn how to operate in a military operation via small-unit tactics. Your boat teams will act as two fire teams of four and will execute in both fire and maneuver and close-quarters battle tactics. Each team will have three runs and will be judged on three different factors- cohesion, tactics, and kills scored. Even if you are low on one score, if you score high in the other two, you could still emerge victorious. The team that ends up in last place, of course, will go through the grinder. Get me?"
"Hooyah, Sergeant Major!" Well, they were getting better at saying that in unison.
He smirked and said, "I bet you do. Now there's one more thing before we teach you the real way to fight." He brought something out of a box, shown to be a panel with a siren and a red alarm light on it. He pressed the button and the alarm sounded as the light flashed. He held it for three seconds, and then let go. "That is the sound of failure. You wanna quit, you do what I just did. Talk to any instructor, they will lead you to the Red Death here. You hold that button for three seconds and that will let everyone know that you are a washout. You will be heading back to the mainland afterwards on the next day of the week, no questions asked, and will not be participating in any more evolutions for that day."
Well, there it was. The gauntlet had been thrown down.
"You don't have to be here. You don't have to be cold, wet, tired, hungry, or in pain. You can leave any time, but you will be a sad sack of shit for it in our eyes, and in the eyes of those who sent you here. Hell, maybe even your own eyes, if you've got any sense of integrity. But let it not be said that I didn't give you a chance to back out. If there is anyone who wants to leave now without any further ridicule, step forward and hit the alarm."
The room was silent for thirty seconds. "Going once…" Ten more seconds passed. "Going twice, you bastards are crazy…" Ten more seconds. "Gone, and you better not regret it, because for this exercise, you are locked in. Now let's explain how we kick some ass here at KatGuard…"
Boat Crew Two was moving down the streets of the simulated city, checking for any sign of hostile activity. They could come from pretty much anywhere- windows, doors, and alleyways. They had a series of airsoft weapons, harmless pellet guns that simulated small arms fire. And they wore a pair of protective polycarbonate lenses, just in case.
Callie peered out from behind the building she was standing against, checking the street. Apparently, they had nothing to worry about for now, but it was still a good idea to check for cover. There were a few options around, sure enough, but they had to be sure that they wouldn't suddenly get jumped if they were all together. She turned toward the leader of the second team, that timid tom who went by the name of Andrew. "Second team, scout up. We'll cover you."
Andrew nodded silently and began moving out into the street, checking for any sign of activity. Even from here, she could feel his dread and anxiety, but it was a commendable effort that he was trying. 'Master your fear… just remember to stay cool.'
The kat that was on her team, the one harassed her almost twice as much as the instructors did, huffed impatiently. "That cock bag isn't going to do shit to help. We should just rush out there and fuck shit up, not wait around and sulk."
Without giving him the grace of a look towards him, she replied, "I'd rather we not all die and fail this, thanks. You sound like you've never heard of reconnaissance before." And just as she said that, the itch between her shoulder blades kicked in. "Damn, it's a trap!"
She had five seconds to get her people to stop. She spoke into her radio, "Scout team, hold and find cover. You are walking into an ambush." They immediately followed her order and moved out of the street. "Now where are you…?"
The former gang member raised an eyebrow. "You're fucking kidding me. You can't see 'em- how do you know they're out there?" He shook his head and said, "I ain't got time for this crap. I'm going."
"No, wait-"
He moved, running out into the street. She groaned and said into her radio, "Scout team, we have a rogue headed your way. He's gone suicidal on us- I want you to cover him from your positions. Try as best you can to keep him alive, got it?" Callie received the affirmative on her radio before she grimaced as he walked right into the trap she knew was there.
'I will not lose because of you.'
Still, if he exposed their positions, it would be a hell of a lot easier to take them down. Perhaps he could help them after all. And lo and behold, they came out of the woodwork. Two windows opened and kats began coming out of the alleyways in front and behind, four in front and two each on his flanks.
The window on the left side was taken care of by Callie with a well-placed shot from her M4A1. The right was handled by one of the scout team members while the other three sprung their own trap, opening fire from behind the enemy.
As for the gang kat, he was busy taking out what was in front of him, his UMP, something that she herself had used. He was busy screaming and cussing and making a royal mess of things. "Oh, you like that, bitch? Bring it! I ain't scared of any of you punks!"
She sighed and said, "Selfish bastard." She had just saved his ass, and here he was, plowing forward to die. He was too far ahead though, and soon four more were approaching, with two more on nearby rooftops. Problem was, he didn't see them, so he kept on shooting what was in front of him. But she saw them, and it looked like it was time for his first lesson.
It would be worth the point deduction that her team would get afterward.
Callie smirked and said, "Scout team, take cover and hold fire until I give the order. Let's let him have his fun. He's about to learn a hard lesson."
And as she expected, he took out the four in the street… and the two on the roof mopped him up handily, pellets raining down on the top of his head. "Oh, shi- dammit!"
He growled and got on the ground, hands behind his head. "Open fire and take them out," Callie said with a satisfied chuckle. Her team moved into the street and began firing towards one of the roofs while the scouts aimed toward the other. Two more went down, no enemy contacts left. "All units, close ranks. Let's keep moving."
Callie did not give him a single look, walking past him coldly. There was no time to mourn his 'death', not like she cared right now. He would find out the idiocy of that move later. Right now, it was time to advance to the room clearing. They approached the target building near the end of the street and she gave the order, "Stack left. Get ready to open and clear."
The four members of the scout team moved to the left of the door, near the knob. Callie's team, now consisting of her and two of the six she-kats that she had befriended earlier, acted as security. Their job was to take out any who came their way, and to maintain fire superiority on the rest. In other words, keep their heads down, keep them behind cover, and keep their team from getting pounded.
"Open and clear, now!" their leader said as she got ready. The door was thrown open, and it was on. The first team member stormed the building immediately with a shout, opening fire on targets to the left, moving faster than he thought possible. Second moved right, third immediately started firing as soon as he was in the doorway, and the next kat was caught between two different fields of fire. The fourth covered the angle of the room that had not been taken.
They all moved in so quickly that before the opposing force knew what hit them, they were down in a nice hail of airsoft fire. They had now successfully dominated the room, with the first kat at the top left corner, the second at the bottom right, the third at the bottom left, and the forth at the top right. "Situation," Andrew said as he tried to catch his breath and start his heart from beating so hard.
Each kat responded with their situation, which was of course, "Clear!"
Andrew looked towards the stairwell and said, "Head towards the stairs, watch for fire from above. Go!"
Meanwhile, the situation outside was getting… interesting. Callie felt them coming before she saw them, could feel their intent. They were charging hard, aiming to overwhelm their position. "Take cover, they're coming! We need to get some fire superiority going!"
The other two she-kats nodded before heading towards their respective areas of protection. With that, the opposing force came in, and there were a hell of a lot more this time, a total of fifteen. "Holy shit," a brown-haired she-kat said as she peeked out from her cover, ducking behind it again, "They're everywhere!"
Callie nodded and said, "Lay 'em down. Just calm down and pull the trigger. Don't think."
She could feel her fear as if it were her own, and knew what it was like to square off against multiple targets with nowhere to go. She had done so quite a few times in her life, but it was better that no one found that out just yet. "Control your fear," she said as she got herself ready, "And use it to fight! Let's go!" The brunette and the second she-kat with her shouted, popping up from cover with their guns blazing.
Callie was more controlled about her approach, but she still felt the adrenaline run through her. She didn't stop for anything, she just let it run and let her training take over. No thought, no hesitation, just aim and fire. The other two kats laid down a virtual wall of suppressive fire, allowing Callie to clean up after them where she could.
Sure they were messy, but this was their first run. It was always messy. They were just lucky that she had gotten them ready beforehand. "I'm out," One shouted as she ducked her head back behind cover. Callie did not respond, only fired a grenade from her M203. Boom, more targets down. Her teammate's rifle was reloaded, and she returned to her suppressive fire.
And she wasn't so afraid this time.
Back in the building, Andrew's team hadn't run into any trouble on the stairs, but they had yet another room to clear at the top. Not to mention a t-junction hallway. The question was what to clear first? The decision was easy, save for the fact that the room before them had no door, and they could see the opposition clearly from where they stood.
'Shit… what now?'
He had to think fast, or this would be over very quickly. "Take up positions at the corners, check for hostiles." The four kats divided into two different teams, the first kat at the corner taking a peek around, while the second stood behind, waiting for the signal. They moved as quietly as they could, trying not to do anything that would disturb those inside the room.
The check was made as each kat at the corner took a peek. There was nothing, for now. "Hustle," Andrew said, and at that everyone broke their corners and checked. Nothing. "Secure," the she-kat at the right side of the hall whispered. Andrew nodded and took a moment to wipe the sweat off of his face. "Stack up at the door, both sides. We're taking this room out and going home."
"Hooyah," they said in sync before doing what they were asked.
One of the kats checked the room before he pointed to the bridge of his nose and put up five fingers. He saw five of them in the room. They were outnumbered slightly, which meant that one of them could possibly catch one of them early.
Andrew shrugged and replied with a hand over his eyes, then drew the thumb of that same hand against his neck. Flash bang and take the room down. He then withdrew a stun grenade and pulled the pin, grinning to himself before tossing it in.
There was only a moment to react before it went off and the room was raided. Corners and the far wall were quickly covered, and yet another room was taken down. "Status, and make it quick. We're almost outta here."
The she-kat on the team checked the corners. "We're all clear here."
Andrew smiled and said, "Downstairs. Let's get moving so we can support the defense team."
Then again, it wasn't like they needed support, because they had survived, and without a scratch on them. "What took you so long," Callie said with a grin, "You missed the party!"
Andrew shrugged and said, "Doesn't matter, we had one of our own. Let's get outta here so we can get our scores!"
The rest of the simulated mission was smooth sailing… but then again, it was only the first run. The next two would have all sorts of problems- more baddies, more complicated angles. The third would have the goodies of simulated RPG fire via pyrotechnics. But all in all, they did a fine job.
Before the hand-to-hand training started, the former gang-kat skulked around all by his lonesome. He had just been chewed out extensively by the Sergeant Major and had been taught a nice hard lesson on the importance of a team effort. He had also been made to endure quite a bit of stress from added pushups, mountain climbers, squat thrusts, and other devised tortures that they could imagine.
'Damn them… this isn't worth it.'
But of course, he passed by Callie. "Are you happy now?"
He stopped in his tracks, scratching the back of his head. "What the hell do you want?"
Callie pushed off of the wall and said, "We won. I mean, that's what you wanted, right?"
He growled and whirled on her, getting right in her face. "Where the hell was my backup? You were supposed to give me cover. You're the leader, you make the decisions, and you carry the team. So why in the hell was I dead in the middle of the street, huh? Answer me!"
She shouted back at him, now officially tired of his attitude. "Because you wanted it, that's why!"
He went silent, glaring at her.
"Don't you dare tell me you didn't," she said coldly, "Or I'll kick your ass harder than the instructors did. You wanted to be all bad-ass, gung-ho, without considering what your other teammates were doing or going through. I don't know if you wanted to be a hero or what the hell ever, but I let you have your fun. And you see what happened right?"
He glared harder, as if it weren't enough. The malevolent gaze seemed to bounce off of her. "I should tell them what you told me. Maybe then you'll shut the hell up."
She smirked and said, "Go ahead. They'll think I did the right thing, and they would probably make you eat the dirt again. You are going to learn that if you want to win, you win with the help of others. You say that life is all about being on your own." She pointed a finger right in his face and said, "That's goddamn wrong, and now you know it. If that was a real battle, with real bullets, guess what? My team would be one man down. You ever thought of that?"
He was still quiet, but his gaze was turned away. She was… concerned about him? Or was she just yelling?
"No," she said with a sigh, "I guess you didn't. I'm trying to get us all through this in one piece, and if you want to see the end of the week, you'd better straighten your ass out and fly right."
He locked eyes with her again and said, "What, so you think today matters? You think one mistake will make me just give up? Hell no. I am not pushing that button. I can't."
She gritted her teeth and said, "Then why are you not working with me? What the hell are you here for if you won't cooperate? If you can't give me a valid reason, then don't bother talking to me. You just do your thing, like you want to do, but don't expect me to be dragged down with you. I won't lose because of you."
Callie couldn't stand talking to him anymore. "I'm heading to the next evolution. You can stay here for all I care."
Well, that was interesting. She didn't even give him time to explain. Then again, they didn't have time, did they? He growled again and followed her. "Hey. Hey! I'm not done talking to you!"
She huffed and said, "Well, I'm done talking to you. If you're going to follow me, do so without speaking. Your attitude, if you haven't noticed, is catching onto me, and I don't want to be pissed all the time like you. So keep your distance until we get back."
There was suddenly a hand on her shoulder, and she wanted to break the arm that said hand was attached to. The sheer aura of violence she radiated at that very moment made him remove his hand as soon as he touched her. She was about to blow her top, and he could feel it.
'Holy shit,' he thought to himself, 'What the hell was that? Felt like ice along my skin… I think I've pissed her off one time too many.'
For some reason, he suddenly felt concerned for his safety. "You, uh… asked why I was here before," he said a bit reluctantly. "I figure I'd tell you now."
Callie scoffed and said coolly, "Bit late for that now, isn't it? If we don't hurry, we're going to be late and we'll both get the grinder. You wanna talk, you talk later. For now, try and keep up, smart ass!"
With that, she broke into a run, attempting to gain some distance on him. For once, he did what she told him to without complaint or resistance. He didn't want to do that again, to be honest, so he would work with her for now. At least, until this whole thing blew over. Sure, he didn't like her- but he had a feeling that she would be even worse when she was really, truly angry.
That was one thing that he had right about her- she knew how to break someone into pieces. Angry was not a good mood for her, because it made her go quiet. And when she went quiet with cold fury, it was only a matter of time before something ugly happened.
He didn't want to see that. Not now, not ever. So he would work with her, for now. Because the sudden chill she had given him earlier showed him something that truly frightened him more than anything these clowns in uniform could do…
Chapter 37: Hell Week (Part 2) – Dig In
The first day of Hell Week is secure! So then, this chapter was longer than I had planned, but then again that's not a problem, is it? It just shows that I was into it, that's all. In any event, you all know what to do if you want to comment. I think it's become intuitive by now, yes?
Okay, enough play. Reviewer Appreciation! Kodachi Claws comes first, and I would like to take this time to thank her for the edits that she has suggested. They've helped my writing out quite a bit. With that said, you'll see how things evolve in time. It's not going to be anywhere near pretty once the real insanity begins. ulyferal is next, and yes, I can't wait for that to happen either. Of course, it could go either way at this point. I'm going to try and keep it up in the air for as long as I can here.
GeekGirl2, you do have a knack with figuring things out, don't you? It seems that I can't get anything past you. Oh, and welcome back- glad to see you again after such a long time. Hope you read more often! Last but not least, RaidenSilversword. That's my job bud- to keep everyone coming back for more. I put hands to the keys and let them do the talking, and apparently what they're saying sounds pretty good. Then again, that all depends on you guys.
Right, well I'm going to get pumped for the next chapter now. And for those watching LionHearts, stay tuned for Chapter 19 of that story. If you haven't read it yet, and you like Final Fantasy VIII, read it.
Hasta la vista, see ya when I see ya.