ME: A/N: Interlude. Time for the defenders to get a break.
"You guys are gonna have to run," Major Flavius announced via megaphone. "Prisoners, I repeat, turn around and leave the area."
"What?" Lieutenant Lopez all but screamed. Enobaria was frankly sick of having to put up with SSS insolence and arrogance. "These degenerates are rebel traitors, we can't just release them to let them pollute the blessed homeland with their filthy footsteps! Major, these prisoners must be eliminated immediately if we don't take them captive!"
"Then have a court-martial convict them," Flavius replied. "Look, Lieutenant Lopez, unlike you triple-S freaks, I don't do summary executions."
The rebels left after being told their fate, their expressions universally expressing their disbelief.
"Know this, Major Flavius!" Lopez snapped more disrespectfully than the miner's daughter thought possible. "President Snow himself will hear of this!"
"I'm sure our President has plenty of other young women to please him sexually."
Finally, after that rude awakening, the SSS moron ceased her annoying noise pollution.
As soon as the rebels left the way they came, an MRAP came in from the north. Though it had Thirteen's Hammer and Sickle, four Peacekeepers were riding on the outside of the vehicle.
"What the hell?" Enobaria asked herself. She was half tempted to assume it was an elaborate trick and open fire, but the MRAP lacked even a SAW.
The vehicle stopped near the trenches, and as the fireteam dismounted so did another Peacekeeper. Unlike the four who rode on the outside, this man looked older (he lacked any helmet whatsoever, but if he wore one in the past it evidently had saved him from certain death, because she noticed scarring) and had an armband like the SSS. However, the three black letters on his were all unique; NSB.
The National Security Bureau?
"Who's in command here?" The man asked.
"I am," Flavius replied, stepping forward. "Peacekeeper Major Themistocles Flavius."
The NSB man shook hands with Enobaria's Commanding Officer; unlike the rest of the SSS, he appeared polite if nothing else. "Operations Officer Hoover of the National Security Bureau. Major, I need transport to Fort Cheyenne immediately. I have intelligence to deliver to your superiors."
"I'll radio it in, Officer," Flavius replied diplomatically; he didn't give a formal rank, so Enobaria figured he didn't have anyone to blame but himself for her Major's form of address.
After the officer and his cohorts were whisked away, a group of Peacekeepers and Militia soldiers led by a Lieutenant Colonel walked to their rear.
"Major Flavius?" She asked.
"Here," Flavius replied.
"First off, congratulations on your promotion to Lieutenant Colonel. As I congratulate Captain Enobaria Domitius, First Lieutenant Laura Fisher and Second Lieutenant Corbulo Carney for their own." Wait, they had all been promoted? "Second off, my Department is here to relieve you; Command knows you're exhausted after fending off two different attacks without rest."
The defenders, including Enobaria, groaned out of relief. Soon they progressed further into District Two's Central City, leaving the trenches behind.
The newly-established field kitchens weren't currently serving dinner, so the newly-promoted Captain decided to clean her weapons.
First she polished her Gladius with a rag and some sword polish; this was a daily activity for her, but her blade had tasted blood and thus she had to pay special attention to it.
Next she disassembled both her rifle and sidearm. Luckily, all firearms District Two manufactured used RF85 nanotechnology to inject calcium into the molecular fabric of the metal. This reduced friction by eighty-five percent and eliminated the need for lubrication common during the North American Era, leaving no oily film to catch carbon particles and thus ensuring weapons ran clean much longer. All she needed to clean both firearms was soap and water; very convenient for both her and logistics Peacekeepers.
"Hey, Eno!"
She looked up to find Laura and her brother, Lawrence.
The two resembled each other with their tan skin, blonde hair and blue eyes (the latter two attributes reminding her of Cato, Clove's partner). However, the similarities ended there. Laura wasn't short at 5'9, but standing next to Lawrence (who, Enobaria realized, was 6'6) she appeared to be. The male District Four native was also bulkier than his younger sister, who was no weakling herself having trained to be a Career (though she ended up joining the Peacekeepers instead of volunteering as a Tribute).
"Either of you two girls find someone special?" Lawrence asked.
Enobaria thought it over before replying. "To be honest, no. I never was attracted to males, and while I had crushes on some of my female classmates back in the Academy I was always too busy training for romantic pursuits. If anything, I'm married to my job."
"It's been kinda different with me," Laura replied. "I exclusively crushed on boys when I was younger, but my first date-if you could call it that, and yes, Lawrence, I didn't tell you about it-was with a chick. After my twenty years are done, I wouldn't mind who I settle down with; guy, meh. Girl, also meh."
The Victor glanced at them. "Wait, you two haven't slept together?"
"What, no!" Enobaria yelled, briefly attracting the attention of the MOEI crew.
"Didn't you read my letters, Lawrence?" Laura said. "Eno's practically my sister now, sleeping with her would be like sleeping with you!"
Lawrence grimaced. "Only with the possibility of an inbred kid. That's apparently a problem in District Twelve."
"Not surprising," said Enobaria.
"Why don't we talk about something else?" He asked. "I got a song from District Four."
"Singing?" Enobaria asked. "Alright, what the hell, do it."
"Haul on the bowline," Lawrence began, "the bully ship's a-rolling."
"Haul on the bowline," Laura joined in along with other District Four Loyalists who were nearby, "the bowline haul!"
"Haul on the bowline, Clara is my darling."
"Haul on the bowline, the bowline haul!"
"Haul on the bowline, Clara lives in District Four."
"Haul on the bowline, the bowline haul!"
"Haul on the bowline, the old man is a-growling."
"Haul on the bowline, the bowline haul!" Laura and the other District Four Peacekeepers and Militia volunteers finished.
Enobaria nodded. "Impressive, never thought two Mayor's kids would know a sea shanty."
"It's common for non-fishermen-or women-to sing these kinda songs out of pride for our District's primary industry," Lawrence explained helpfully. "You Twofers celebrate Peacekeepers, right? Well even the deuterium processing plant workers sing what I sung all the time."
"Deuterium?" The young Captain asked, confused.
"Sorry," Laura answered. "It's one of the two stable isotopes of hydrogen. It's used in both hovercraft and the fusion power plants in Five. We extract and refine deuterium from the Pacific, similar to how Two provides Peacekeepers and manufactures weaponry in addition to the stone quarries here."
"Understood," she replied. "I always wondered where we got hovercraft fuel from."
One of the portable televisions turned on and announced, "This is National TV!" just as the seal of Panem, the National Eagle clutching a load of arrows in it's talons, came into view and shined brightly.
It was Caesar Flickerman. "Greetings, fellow citizens of Panem," the host of the Hunger Games began. "Tonight I'm joined by my brother, Chief Correspondent for National Security Julius Flickerman!"
Another man strode into view, who was undoubtedly Julia's father. He resembled Caesar, but looked older (probably due to growing old naturally and not resorting to plastic surgery) and apart from his eyebrows had a hairless head.
"Thank you, Caesar," Julius said. "Citizens of our great Nation, our brave and noble Boys and Girls in White are fighting to keep District Two from descending into barbarian chaos in the name of an unobtainable utopia. With the help of footage from a film crew led by my daughter Julia, we here at the Ministry of Enlightenment and Information bring you a special short film based off the civil war dividing our homeland and people needlessly."
The film started playing. It opened to white boots running in the mud, covering otherwise bare legs.
"District Two," Julia's voice announced, even though she couldn't have been around to say the lines for the movie. "The rogue Mayor of District Thirteen, a rabble queen named Alma Coin, annoyed at the very notion of Loyalist civilization, has come to the Loyalist population centers to bring us to heel."
It now cut to a thunderstorm-bombarded LZ with numerous hovercraft. "She makes landfall at District Two, with an invading force that outnumbers the Loyalist defenders a thousand-to-one."
It then cut to the good guys; to Enobaria's horror, the Peacekeepers and Loyalist Militia troops were horribly equipped. In place of firearms were axes, swords, shields, bows, crossbows and spears. The males only wore some Capitolite-looking thing below their waists that wouldn't look out of place on Finnick Odair, while the women wore skimpy tops that clearly were for the benefit of the male audience in the Capitol. The leader had a white cape (as did a few nearby subordinates) but lacked even an older helmet.
"As the invasion occurs, the hopeless Boys and Girls in White do the unthinkable; they attack. They attack as the weary rebels disembark from their hovercraft vomiting all over each other and before they can recover and establish their war camp."
The rebels, unlike the Loyalists, dressed realistically. All wore the gray uniforms of District Thirteen, though since they were armed like the Loyalists it wouldn't make a difference.
"The architect of this foolhardy strategy is a little-known Peacekeeper Lieutenant Colonel. His troops call him-."
Cut to the helmetless actor.
"-Themistocles Flavius. He gives the traitors a taste of Loyalist shock combat."
"Flavius" screamed what was probably meant to be a battle cry as he ran into battle. If there was a redeeming aspect to the film, it was the realistic (yet simultaneously gratuitous) blood and gore.
"I don't know what to be more pissed at," Claudia complained as they ate their dinner, meatloaf with tomato sauce. "The fact we dress like skanks in that movie-we still have more than the guys-or that we fight without guns."
ME: A/N: RF85 is a real-life nanotechnology; look up Anderson Rifles. The NSB officer is named after J. Edgar Hoover. The propo film, of course, is a reference to 300: Rise of an Empire. I have District Four in the Pacific Northwest (as does ForFutureReference) due to seafood; you guys outta try the local clam chowder there, I had it in Seattle for lunch. If you guys are wondering, Enobaria's a lesbian (but married to the job like Romulus Thread; she never had time for romance) and Laura's bisexual. Neither is interested in each other, however, and they're simply surrogate sisters. So do not ship them or think I'll have them make out; it won't happen. "Haul on the Bowline" is a real song; T.J.98 also used a version of it in his good fanfic Auxilia. Check it out, it's pretty good.