Chapter 37: Lastation and Lowee Training
It's not long at all before we reach a training complex, which is split into various sections. Even though it's a training complex it's very new and futuristic, it actually looks like a very nice place. It's full of posters of the CPUs encouraging the people here to train well, and the facilities here are all of spectacular quality. As I look around, it astonishes me that they do all sorts of combat training, you name it they do it. The section we're in consists of various forms of training, there's: platform training, melee combat, unarmed combat, firing range and a gym for training involving the body itself. They must cover any aspect one can think off. Very impressive.
"Wow there's people training in all sorts of stuff." Ram gasps as she looks around taking it all in.
I'm amazed too as everywhere we look people are working hard training in different aspects, there's also a couple of Loweeans here as well.
"Out of curiosity is there anything you lot can do with regards to combat?" I ask them.
I ask them because it is important for me to know what skills they have, as well as what skills they need to be able to do.
"I'm not sure. I seem to be able to do stuff I didn't think I could do before, I mean I can drive cars, fire different fire arms and I'm good at unarmed combat. But I know lots of people in Lowee can do this:" White says while trying to think.
She then gets out a cloak and puts it on her, which makes her invisible to the human eye. But due to my special visions such as heat and night I am able to see her, besides she's a friendly so even in normal vision my HUD tells me where she is. As she becomes invisible I switch on the optical camouflage on my clothes. Interesting how despite Lowee having cloaks and Lastation having optical camouflage, both nation's troops can become invisible to the naked eye. After a little while she takes her cloak off and I switch my optical camouflage off as well.
"You must be similar to me White, I'm sure I have plenty of skills I don't even know about. OK what skills do you have Rom and Ram?" I ask them both.
"I am able to call in plenty of support as well as use a bit of magic for combat." Ram explains.
"Erm….my magic can heal lots of people, but just like Ram we are Pokémon trainers and have various Pokémon. These are: Plusle, Minum, Ledyba, Spianarak, Hitmonlee, Hitmonchan, Esperon, Umbreon, Solrock, Lunatone, Kabuto and Omanyte…" Rom explains.
While I vaguely remember the names of the Pokémon, they do appear to be Pokémon that complement others, or Pokémon that I can imagine twin Pokémon trainers having. I often wondered whether Rom and Ram are twins as they have similar names. I mean they appear to be of similar age and even then their appearances are similar, hmmm.
"…though right now they are being given a brain wash scan, I hope they're OK. I think they'd be very useful in combat, I think they're all level 100. Also like Ram I can do this:" Rom finishes off.
She then runs along a nearby wall for about a dozen seconds, only to grab on to a platform hanging from the very wall she ran up. She then climbs up the platform and then quickly runs up the wall, only to jump from the wall to a nearby bar hanging from the ceiling. She then turns around only for her to do a couple of swings on the bar enjoying herself, after which she then releases her grip from the bars at the right moment, as she then falls through the air only to grab onto another bar. Next she does a couple of swings again, and like before she let's go only to then grab hold onto a column this time. She then climbs up the column and noticing some eagles flying away, she then does what's known as an Eagle leap, as she then falls and lands in a cart full of hay, providing her a soft landing. Amazing, I never knew she could do that. I wonder whether she has worked in the dark to serve the light, and follows a creed where nothing is true and everything is permitted.
She gets applause from everyone watching, as she then thanks everyone for doing that, It's well deserved she was really impressive. I don't even know if I could do that.
Yeah I never knew she could do that, but I remember how the games never promoted Rom or Ram that much. While it is a useful skill, and she probably uses it all the time when they were in Lowee, do either of them possess sufficient combat skills or abilities, to be able to help in repelling the inevitable invasion of Leanbox tomorrow? There is the Pokémon but will they be ready for tomorrow?
"That's very good, Rom, your platforming skills are amazing. I think I'll have a go." I say to them.
I then do the same moves as Rom did, and while it was fun doing it as well as providing plenty of adrenaline, it astonishes me that I am capable of doing it. Perhaps it is down to me playing those sort of games before, It's just as well I did it without falling because, I'm unsure if I have an equivalent of a dagger capable of rewinding time, or if I could just heal my wounds purely by drinking water from a nearby fountain. But I just remember now that I don't think I can hurt myself by falling great heights thanks to the perk a colas.
"Thing is while platforming is very useful right now, we need soldiers who are excellent in all sorts of combat, especially fire arms training. Rom, Ram are you any good with fire arms?" I ask them both.
"The only guns we use is this one, our Wii Zappers." Ram explains.
She un-holstered the weapon to show me. It actually looks like the one you use to play on the Wii, only this one looks like a pistol.
"Automatic 20 round machine pistol, with a rate of fire of 600 rounds a minute. It can be reloaded by pressing A, although reloading takes about 5 seconds." White explains to me.
This must be a weapon only used by the CPUs and Candidates of Lowee; this must be their equivalent to our G Con 45. Although it has unlimited clips and it's probably a good weapon, I honestly feel they need others. But it will be my pleasure to help fix that problem.
"OK in that case I think I'll introduce you to other fire arms." I decide.
I then notice a Lastation soldier.
"Excuse me could you try and bring me some Loweean fire arms please?" I ask the soldier.
"No problem Lord Black Lead." He salutes me.
After which he then leaves to get the weapons.
It is then we go to a table with large containers full of various liquids, there's also a notice saying:
"Attention citizens of Lastation and Lowee, please ensure you have had a drink from each of the following types of drink:
Juggernog
Speed Cola
Quick Revive
Double Tap Root Beer
Stamin-Up
PhD Flopper
Deadshot Daqueri
Mule Kick
Drinking these will provide benefits to you at work and in combat.
Lady Black Heart CPU of Lastation."
On those containers are the names of these liquids, they must be the Perk a Colas. I don't drink any of them because I have already had them along with White, but Rom and Ram then have a drink from each container, only for them to burp after each one.
"Those drinks have different tastes, but why is it important to drink this stuff. I mean how does it help in work and combat?" Ram asks me sounding confused but she also has much curiosity.
"That's a good question Ram. Well each drink provides different abilities to the person who drunk them. The Juggernog increases health. If we had a lot of health before due to being CPUs and Candidates, just think how much health we have now. It would be extremely difficult for any enemy to kill us.
The Speed Cola speeds up your reload, but it's also proven useful in doing anything involving your hands, like washing or doing paper work.
The Quick Revive, now that's a very useful drink. That very drink has saved all of us. As because of that drink I was able to trick Neptune into thinking that myself and Blanc killed our sisters, and it was that drink that ensured you could come here, where we could check to see if you're brainwashed. How fortunate that killing then reviving was all that was needed to get rid of the brain washing, I hope. It works by drinking and then if you die, then you can be revived by a snap of the fingers by a specific person. Which can be anyone you pick while you drink it.
The Double Tap Root Beer is able to increase the rate of fire on every weapon, good for weapons that don't have a good rate of fire.
The Stamin-Up drink helps you to move and climb faster, it even speeds you up when you're crawling or just walking. Very good for someone like yourself when you're climbing about.
The PhD Flopper makes you immune to falling damage inflicted by an enemy, and protects you from explosive damage to some extent. A very useful drink if someone climbs a lot.
There's also the Deadshot Daqueri which dramatically improves accuracy, even ensuring you hit the enemy's weakest spot every time.
Finally is the Mule Kick which enables the user to carry more weapons, but it can also enable the user to carry heavier objects and more items all at once. I think it may even enable Pokémon trainers to carry more than 6 Pokémon at a time, good eh?" I explain.
"Wow these drinks are so cool, very useful too. Vert and Neptune are truly screwed indeed." White replies nodding, enjoying the explanation I give about the drinks.
"Yep quality beats quantity." I agree.
As if on cue the soldier comes back with some Loweean weapons, which I thank him for. I couldn't help but notice that there does not seem to be that many types. I recognise the weapons and as I do, I realise that while the guns are modern day they don't appear to be as good or as high tech as the Lastation ones. But perhaps it is to be expected as I notice Lowee's weapons are of magic, and of creatures such as the Pokémon. But as I look closer, they have different attachments to the gun which are all from Lastation.
The weapons consist of a Type 95 which is a burst fire assault rifle, a Type 89 automatic assault rifle, a JS 9mm sub machine gun and a Type 85 sub machine gun. Where did I remember those weapons from they seem distinctive, it's unfortunate I can't remember.
"Erm, would you mind if you train me in using Pokémon, because I think me and White know quite a bit, but I would like to have some practice if that's alright with you. As soon as all the Pokémon have been cleared from the brainwashing?" I ask Rom and Ram.
"Sure, I'd love to see the Lastation people using Pokémon with us." Ram replies.
"Training you would be our pleasure." Rom agrees smiling.
Yeah Rom seems to be smiling a lot here, especially during her time here, it's such a contrast to her neutral expression in the series.
I must say I appreciate their answer, as it's good to see our forces and equipment combine to become even stronger. Plus which I thought it would be fun to become a Pokémon trainer once again, ah the memories of trying to catch dozens of Pokémon I'll never forget it.
"I like it, I give you fire arms training and you give me Pokémon training. OK first things first how much do you know about fire arms?" I ask them. I think I can predict the reply but it's best to ask.
"Well for me I have a decent amount of knowledge on them." White replies with confidence.
"I don't know much, but I can use the Wii Zapper." Ram explains.
"I'm same as Ram." Rom adds nodding in agreement.
"OK fair enough, there are lots of guns in Gameindustri and they also fall into different classes. Now the Wii Zapper which is a gun you know, falls into the machine pistol class. What that means is that they have a fast rate of fire, they are light so they can be carried with 1 hand and…" I explain.
I then draw my G Con 45 out, which I was able to do quickly.
"…quick to draw. Sadly they often don't have large magazines and they have a close range." I finish off.
"Now the G Con 45 is a handgun, the fire rate is semi-automatic…." I fire a few shots in the air to show them what semi-automatic fire is like, after speaking to them.
"Although each shot is very powerful, apart from that they are very similar to the machine pistol, with regards to its strengths and weaknesses." I then head to the table as I speak to them.
I then pick up the Type 95 paying attention to all the various attachments. I notice in my HUD on the bottom right the following information: Type 95: multiple attachments 100/2000.
"Now this is the Loweean main assault rifle the Type 95, this particular one has been modified with various attachments to help upgrade the weapon thanks to Lastation technology. There are now 100 rounds in every magazine which is a lot, and they are taped together to speed the reload up. At the side is a heartbeat sensor which detects who is near you: white dots show up as Loweeans, black dots show up as Lastations and green dots show up as Leanbox. There is also a hybrid scope on the top, meaning you can switch the range of the weapon, as to whether you're firing at close range or far away. Finally the weapon comes with a grenade launcher that holds 2 rounds. It's a burst fire weapon, so you'll be able to fire 3 bullets at a time, although you're able to switch the rate of fire of the weapon from single fire, burst fire to full auto. Assault rifles are all-rounders as they can fire at medium to long range, there are various other types but for now I'll show you how to use this gun." I explain to them.
Conveniently there are 4 of these Type 95s so I pass them around. I then lead them to a firing range, consisting of multiple cut outs of Neptune and Plutia which represent the targets for us to shoot, as well as a place to shoot from, along with a table full of ammunition. The targets are lying down right now.
"OK the key thing when using this fire arm is to aim down your sights, as you'll be more accurate and accuracy is the key. Especially considering how you could end up in intense firefights. Here I'll demonstrate." I say to them.
As if on cue the various targets pop up and with speed and accuracy, I am able to shoot them all down. After a while they stop popping up.
"OK a couple of pointers. First is if you have an automatic weapon, fire in bursts or single shots to increase accuracy and to conserve ammo, and second there are 3 stances: standing…" I explain to them.
I then crouch down.
"….crouch…." I explain further.
I then get on the floor on my belly.
"…and prone. The closer to the floor you are, the less visible you are to the enemy. It also increases accuracy in exchange for movement, but you'll be more accurate the less you move. Aiming down your sights works when switching quickly between targets. Here I'll show you." I explain.
The targets appear close together, and because of that I was able to shoot the targets much quicker than the last batch. Eventually again the targets stay down.
I have to say I'm enjoying this briefing I'm giving the candidates, I'm surprised how good I seem to be at explaining to them. Hopefully they find that what I say makes sense, because it's them that matters.
"OK sometimes your target will be behind cover, but that's OK because some weapons are able to penetrate through different surfaces. And our different visions will be able to see them from hide behind cover anyway. This gun is capable of penetrating through the cover that you're about to see. OK here goes:" I inform them.
A target then appears behind cover, but like I explained to Rom and Ram I was able to shoot the target no problem.
"OK two more pointers, the first is with regards to the grenade launcher attached to my gun. All grenades fired from any grenade launcher need to travel a minimum distance before it explodes, although if it directly hits a flesh and blood target, it should cause some serious damage. Another point is the frag grenades, frags like grenade launchers can take out multiple enemies at once, even lightly armoured vehicles but bear in mind as soon as you pull the pin, you have a certain amount of time to throw the grenade. About 3 seconds before it will explode so be careful, if you can cook the grenade which means holding it for a couple of seconds before throwing it at the enemy, the grenade should explode before the enemy can throw it back. OK Rom and Ram did you get all of that?" I ask them both.
I realise now I probably said a lot in one go, although it amazes me how I was able to teach Rom and Ram fire arms training, they understood it. It is definitely quite a feat as I've never done that before. I notice them nodding and they show no signs of not understanding me, and they're able to follow everything I say, just wonderful.
"Wonderful. OK targets will pop up for you to take down, let's see what you 3 can do." I say to them.
Targets pop up for a while now, one after another and it's good to see Rom and Ram are able to take them down. White appears to be a natural at this, and I hear her comment on how the Type 95 is a very good weapon to use. After a few minutes the targets stop popping.
"OK let's go to the pit." I say to them.
They then follow me, as I lead them past various people training. We also go past different apparatus used to train our people in various aspects. It's not long before we reach there. For some reason the pit reminds me of Modern Warfare 2 where there's a table full of different weapons, but this time there's cameras of the whole course.
"OK first of all switch to your Wii Zapper." I tell them.
They all obey noticing how fast they could do it.
"Then switch to your rifle again." I tell them.
They obey, again the switch was so quick.
"Have you noticed how fast that was? Remember if you're out of bullets, switch to your other weapon as it's always faster than reloading." I say to them, but I've got to admit now we have speed cola as well as dual mags? I'm not so sure. It's also like with the grenades whether holding onto a grenade can do any damage to yourself in this world? Hmmmm.
"OK pick any weapons you want, I'm going to stick with this. I'll go first to help guide you as to how it's done." I tell them.
I then go around and as I thought, it is the Modern Warfare 2 pit with cars, sandbags and pieces of wood to add to the effect. I then run to some cover to find 3 targets, one on the left, one in the middle and one on the right. I fire the targets from left to right and like at the firing range, they're of cut outs of Neptune and Plutia, my most hated enemies. I then sprint forward and find cover further up the course. Another 3 pop up as well as cut outs of Noire in her HDD form, this must be their version of a civilian target or friendly target, I mustn't shoot them. 2 of them are aligned so I shoot them and then the 3rd on the right. As I approach the building in the course, I find more cover and 5 targets appear, 1 in the door, 1 through a window, 2 at the top floor and 1 behind the other side of the cover. I quickly shoot the one behind cover then the door, then window and then the 2 at the top floor. I attempt to shoot them in an order from left to right to save time, as opposed to picking them off at different sides.
After which I then run to the building before hiding behind the door. A target pops up from behind a table, as well as a civilian. I shoot the target and as I peek around I shoot the two targets behind another table. I then rush up the stairs as I get out my knife, and stab the target there with it. At the top floor I shoot two targets that are behind each other, ignoring the civilian on its right. And after peeking around I shoot the other 2 behind each other.
I then jump down and take some cover. I shoot two targets that are aligned on the right. Despite them moving I still get them, while avoiding a civilian target as well as taking down a target on the left, and another one further back but slightly to the left of the third target in the area.
I'm at the last area now and I appear to be doing well as I rush behind to some cover. There are only two targets that are close together in my vision, so I shoot them both. And with all the targets shot and none of the civilian targets hit, I sprint to the finish and thanks to Stamin Up I am able to run really fast.
"Wow you did it in 25 seconds, very impressive. I reckon I can do it in 20 though." White says sounding rather amazed.
"Yeah but I bet that's by using a USP45 with tactical blade, and not taking cover. If I did that and had an M9 I could probably do it in 15. But anyway let's see how you do Rom and Ram, if you can get at most 35 seconds then you'll have done very well." I say to them.
We spend all day training only stopping to have a tasty delicious lunch of enchiladas, full of different meats, and sauces as well as nachos with different cheeses and dips.
I'm very impressed with the progress they have made, and it's also a lot of fun training together. I felt joy as I was able to train Rom and Ram in something useful, and it's nice to know they'll train me with the Pokémon. I like training with my friends, I'd especially love to train with Noire knowing how passionate she is about keeping her skills up as high as possible.
Today has gone well for us as we have done all sorts of training: fighting, climbing, jumping, and shooting. We even squeezed in some racing and it's nice to know we're all expert racers. When it's time we meet up with Noire in her home at her wardrobes.
After guiding us to her wardrobes, I couldn't help but be astonished and breathless as this entire floor is dedicated to Noire's countless cosplay outfits and costumes, covering an unbelievable wide spectrum of different outfits and different costumes. There's even a huge area purely for photography, as well as different backgrounds for the costumes, though the current background is the Lastation one which looks futuristic and is full of blacks, whites and blues.
"Wow you have a lot of costumes Noire." I say to her whistling with amazement.
"Thank you Black, I wear a lot of the costumes in my spare time. In fact very often I wear them on important occasions, as well as wearing them when I'm seeing specific people. I even let my people borrow them, I'm extremely pleased to show you this. I've wanted to show you my cosplay collection for a long time now. What would you lot like to see me wear? I'll wear any of them you want, I'll even wear some of them tonight. I wonder what the readers would like to see me wear? I have every costume, you name it I'll wear it." Noire replies with pride.
"You know what Noire, I think I'll join in wearing your costumes. I'm sure the readers would like to see me in different costumes as well." Blanc proposes.
"Yeah and me." Uni adds.
"And me." Rom says, then Ram says the same thing after Ram.
"We will all cosplay, it will be so much fun." Noire says smiling a lot.
We all smile at each other with happiness, as we're going to have more fun seeing Noire and her costumes. I always wanted to see what her costumes were for a long time, because I remember how Noire loved to cosplay, and yet sadly Neptunia never showed us them.
And so both Noire and Blanc along with their younger sisters who decides to join them get changed, as we will now see them in different costumes.