All in all, Miho thought it was a wonderful Sunday. After spending the previous morning working out at the team's gym then relaxing on her balcony with a book Miho, Erika, Eva, and Shelby were out and about enjoying their new home city. While not as large as the cities they were all from, they found that Halifax was a vibrant city that distinctly did not have a big city feel. No, it felt like a collection of towns that were all side-by-side.
Ther walk had been enjoyable. The previous week's heat had finally broken and now a warm fall atmosphere had settled onto the seaside city, making their day spent walking around the cities' sites extremely comfortable. They had started their day walking around the waterfront and visiting various museums and attractions. Erika had quite enjoyed the HMCS Sackville and Maritime museum, while Miho vowed to return to the Discovery Centre, a science museum also on the waterfront.
Although not everything had been serene. Word had gotten around that members of the tankery team were out and about the area, and before long the group found themselves posing for pictures and signing autographs. Miho and Erika were disoriented and unsure about this at first, but took in how their older, more experienced, teammates were handling the attention and eventually fell into a rhythm with the fans. One thing that Miho enjoyed about the experience were the children who were so excited to meet their heroes. To these kids, Miho and the rest of the group were larger than life, and Miho couldn't help but gravitate towards spending time talking with them. Erika, meanwhile, found herself the favourite of younger teenagers and preteens; her cool and collected comportment was, as one young lady stated, 'Super cool!'.
After about an hour and a half meeting with fans the group made their way to a local cafe & eatery that was exceptionally welcoming of the group and once inside they discovered why. The decor of the cafe was almost completely themed to the team, and on the sole TV at the bar area was the 24/7 tankery coverage channel. Over the course of their meal (that was exceptional to them) they learned that this cafe was the unofficial 'home' to the diehard fans of the team, and hosted watch parties of the team's matches when they were competing outside of the area. After their meal they posed for a photo with the owner and staff to be added to the decor; indeed scattered around the main dining room were various photos of team members over the years visiting the venue.
The longest stop for the day was the mighty Halifax Citadel, a 1750-era stone fortress that was designed to protect the harbour. For a number of hours they explored the grounds, took tours, and posed for more fan photos; luckily the Citadel wasn't that busy so there were few issues with foot traffic being blocked or issues with crowds.
After their time spent at the Citadel, the group returned home; Miho offered to make a Japanese-style dinner for everyone, and thus they ate together and spent a few more hours getting to know each other. By about 9PM however they knew that they had to pack it in as the next week would be tough; there was an early call for training (to which they spent some time light-heartedly complaining about as 6AM was far too early) and they were a bit tired from the walking they had done all day. By 10PM, all 4 were in their beds and sound asleep.
In the harbour, the ships slowly moved through the darkness, the lights reflecting off the water matching the glittering stars in the clear sky.
The 6AM training was far more brutal than anyone could have expected. The team had assembled by 5:30 in the lounge and after a light breakfast, they began their day. Where previous days had a 'At your own pace' feel, they began the new week with a run. And a run it was. While some women present were in great shape, Miho and some others were not exactly athletes by the typical definition of the word. By the time 7AM rolled around Miho just wanted to curl up in a ball and melt. But rest was not on the menu. After their run, the athletic trainers had broken the team up into their squads, and from there they spent the next 4 hours training in both the gym and in their tanks. Loading and unloading dummy rounds, climbing up and down the tanks, unlinking and relinking tracks; all actions were recorded and timed. At first it was just annoying the new members but after some time it became a competition with the other crews in the squad. They wanted to do better, move faster, and be more precise than everyone else.
Another team lunch followed, then an afternoon of more classroom-style lectures. Today's lesson was on more advanced topics such as terrain selections for firefights and map awareness. By about 4PM the lectures were completed and the team exhaustedly streamed out of the compound and to home. A quick meal followed once home; Miho and Erika took turns soaking in their hot bath; both were asleep by 8 that evening.
The days turned into weeks, then into almost months. Over this time changes could be seen and felt. The air grew more crisp with the chill of approaching winter. People were moved in and out of the team; Starting with number 1, the squads eventually solidified into a defined roster one at a time in order. By the end of September the team was set: 4 squads of 5 tanks each, 2 squads of 5 AFVs each, 4 spotter planes. 20 fully crewed Leopard 1s, 10 Spahpanzers, 4 Cessna spotters.
This may have seemed like more than needed to Miho and Erika, it started to make sense to them as training went along. While only 20 vehicles could be fielded at one time, the teams always had extra crews ready to go for any match; the strategy was to rotate crews in and out of matches to keep them fresh and ready; sometimes a crew was better suited to one style of map than another, so they could be substituted as strategy dictated. Plus there were the inevitable vehicle maintenance requirements and occasional illness that needs to be accounted for. The team did not replace a single crew member in the event of temporary illness or injury; they substituted the whole vehicle and crew.
Miho had maintained the command of her tank all through training camp, and her crew had somewhat changed around her; while Eva remained her driver from day one to day 48, they had gone through 7 different loaders until the coaching staff had settled on the unexpected choice with one week left in training camp: Erika. Miho had worried that Erika would take this as a demotion or criticism of her command ability as she had spent the first few weeks as the commander of her own tank. This was until her crew's meeting with the coaches and management. They reasoned that Erika and Miho worked well together as they covered for each other's weaknesses. They also added that with both able to command a tank that the crew would be more adaptable as they could move Erika and Miho around in the tank between commander and loader and not affect the crew's chemistry and allow more tactical flexibility.
Erika, for her part, was glad to be in Miho's tank. She and Miho worked well together, lived together, and she reasoned that Miho would ask for opinions of her crew, which was proven to be accurate in their first full team training match after the roster was announced. Their tank had proved to be one of the most effective vehicles on the field for that match, and that record continued for every other match they had leading up to the 2 week pause before the start of the season. Another reason for her acceptance of the loader role was the final member of the crew, and the gunner: Shelby. Where Erika and Miho had a bond from their understanding of each other's methods and styles, Shelby could be counted on for being a good shot, and being an even better crewmate. If things got tense, she could crack a joke to lessen the tension. If something went wrong and they made a mistake, she could reassure them that everything would be alright. She's the character of the crew and between her and Eva the glue that binds them together.
On the last day of training camp was an open house announcement of the final roster. For hours the team spoke with fans, offered guided tours of certain parts of the compound, and interviewed with the media. Miho found herself, along with Erika, being asked to simply mill around and meet with fans and guests. From 10AM to 2PM they talked, posed, autographed, gave away team merchandise, and generally acted as hosts for what was essentially a festival. There was a stage setup where bands were playing on one end of the large lawn between the main building and the river, food trucks and stalls setup on the other. There was a live radio broadcast where team members would go live on air and interview with the DJs, a few fair rides for the kids (and some more outgoing team members), and a merch tent. Miho had to guess that a few thousand people were there for the roster announcement. At 2PM, all the team members moved to the back of the stage where they were to be introduced crew by crew.
As the announcement started at 2:30, Miho gathered with her crew. The biggest news of the week for them was the announcement internally that their crew was to be renumbered as 201 and appointed as Command tank, Squad 2. Miho was still unsure of the appointment but had determined to accept the responsibility of command. So for the past week, she had additional meetings with the other squad commanders and coaching staff. All the other quad commands were exceptionally supportive and were constantly checking in on her; they were all multi-year veterans of the WTL and Miho was learning everything she could from them.
"Miho, relax. We go on stage, wave a bit, smile a bit more, then leave the stage and wait to go home." Shelby was standing behind her when she spoke, and had obviously noticed the younger woman's nervousness.
"I'm not nervous… well not that much. I'll… be fine."
"Riiiiiiiiight." With a mischievous smirk, Shelby reached out and lovingly tapped Miho's nose, causing the younger woman to start with an 'EEP!'
"Whawhawhat was that for?" Miho stuttered out, embarrassed to have drawn the laughter and attention of those around her, worst of all the suppressed giggles of Erika.
"Still nervous?"
"... No... Not anymore."
"..."
"Thanks."
Shelby winked at her.
"No problem."
"Oi. We're up next." Eva had been half paying attention to the little display from her crew mates, and was making her way to the stairs to the stage.
Miho took a deep breath, and after letting it out with a puff, started up the stairs.
"Crew 201, Command tank of Squad Two!"
As the announcement took place, Erika straightened and walked out onto the stage with the rest of her crew, and stood on the 'L' marked out in neon green tape. To her right stood Miho, and to the left Shelby. Eva took up the position to the left of Shelby on the 'D' marking.
Smile and wave, Erika thought to herself, try to draw some attention from Miho.
"From Kumamoto City, Japan: Commander Miho Nishizumi!"
The crowd roared, and Erika saw Miho jump a little, then smile and wave. Erika could tell the smile was somewhat forced, but Miho was starting to unwind a little.
"From Hitoyoshi, Japan: Loader Erika Itsumi!"
Another roar from the crowd. Erika smiled as she waved at the crowd. She was shure, based on the way her cheeks felt, that she had the cheesiest grin ever. She was loving the attention! Now she understood how an Idol felt! The rush, the energy… if this is tankery, I don't want it to stop.
"From West Kirby, England: Gunner Shelby Morneau!"
Erika clapped as the crowd cheered. Her cheeks were starting to hurt from the smile she had on her face, but wanted to take this atmosphere in as much as possible.
"From Charleroi, Belgium: Driver Evangeline De Costa!"
Erika continued to clap and looked out to the crowd. It amazed her that everyone in the large crowd blurred together but she could pick out certain details like a bright green hat, or a father with what she assumed was his son on his shoulders wearing a team sweater. She was so busy looking out to the crowd and waiving that it took a very pointed 'Erika!' beside her to force her back to her location. With a final wave she turned and walked off the stage with her crew. Once on the grass behind the stage the adrenaline she felt on the stage left her and her knees felt weak. Turning to look at Miho she saw her friend sitting on an equipment case with her eyes and head pointed to the sky. But, as nervous as she looked,there was a soft smile on her face.
"And with that we wait for the full team to go on stage, then we go home." Eva stretched and plopped down on the grass in front of Miho. "And then, two weeks off. Then, our first match. Any plans for the next two weeks?"
Miho shook her head. She was going to spend the next two weeks relaxing around her apartment, seeing more of the city, and working out in the team's gym.
"Good. Shelby and I are staying here to relax. We'll hang out."
Some time passed in general silence backstage, but the cheers of the crowd on the announcement of the members of the team was incredibly loud and made most conversation difficult. Finally, the final call came, and the team went up on the stage and waved to the fans. After a few minutes they left the stage.
For Erika her first day on the stage for the fans would bring a smile to her face for a long time.
So I'm gonna skip the rest of the training camp as it would be more of the same. Practice matches, classroom training, day to day. I had some stuff written up but it was kinda slow and same-y. Next chapter will be the 2 week break then into the 1st WTL season, which should be fun.