another chapter wohoo~ this one is going to be a bit of an interesting one, I got a suggestion for more hound wolf squad content from Vahditar on Ao3. I absolutely love those guys and it actually fit in really well with what I needed so hopefully you'll enjoy some BSAA shenanigans.
Song Suggestion: Can't Hold Us by Macklemore & Ryan Lewis ft. Ray Dalton
Disclaimer: I don't own anything~ sing it with me now! I don't own anything and I'm not affiliated with CapCom~
The BSAA Invites you to a company Morale Day
Friday, May 17th from noon to 5 pm on the campus outdoor training grounds
All state-side employees will be allowed to sign up to participate in teams of 6.
While not required, it is recommended to work with your usual squad as a team for this event to build comradery.
Please submit your team roaster by Monday, May 13th at noon.
Prizes will be awarded for 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place of each event, with a grand prize of 3 days' worth of Paid Time Off for each member of the highest-ranking team.
Chris leaned back in his chair as he read over the email. To hell with the BSAA. Morale Day, his ass. He was still mad at them for how shady they were being, and some field day competition wasn't going to fix that... but at the same time, three-days' worth of paid time off was nothing to sneeze at, and he knew just who to talk to.
[Alpha] Hey, did you guys see the email HR just sent out?
[Night Howl] You mean the excuse to not work for half a day? Yep. I saw it.
[Canine] I could use the vacation.
[Umber Eye] Count me in.
[Lobo] Let's gooooooo. Those three days are as good as ours.
[Tundra] Guessing HR was hoping one of us would be out for a mission that day. LOL.
[Alpha] Their mistake. All right team, let's do this. I'll get us registered.
Chris smiled at the group text before correcting his posture and stops leaning back, so he could send in the email. Hound Wolf Squad reporting in with the following team for the event. Chris filled out the full list of names, tagged each of the Hound Wolf Squad members in the CC section and sent out the email. "Let the best man win," he said quietly as he got back to work.
While filling out reports, his mind wandered from time to time back to the competition. The email said there were multiple events, but what would they even be? He supposed it was only fair that no one knew so that way people wouldn't be able to practice ahead of time, but it didn't make him any less curious.
'*'*'*'*'
11:58 am rolled around on the 17th of May and Chris was already on his way to the Campus outdoor training ground. The May rains gave them a break as the day was sunny and held a warm spring breeze scented by the blossoming trees that lined the edge of the field.
"All right," Lobo said while stretching. "You guys ready to tear this shit up?"
"I'm just looking forwards to those three days, I could use them," Tundra said with a smile.
"Same," Chris replied with a nod.
"Really? I didn't think you ever took time off," Canine said with a snicker.
"Yeah well, a few things came up." Chris shrugged, debating saying anything further but deciding against it.
"Good afternoon, everyone. Thank you for taking the time to join us for this morale day event," the director said into a microphone with an unimpressed tone as an HR Rep appeared to be giving him a thumbs up from the side. "We'll be hosting one event each hour to allow time for the setup and takedown of additional pieces as needed," he read verbatim from a clipboard. "For our first event, please make your way over to the obstacle course for a relay race. Each team will be required to send in one participant at a time to go through the course before running back and tagging in their next member. Volunteer referees will be counting to make sure each person goes through the full course. Volunteers, we thank you for your time." The director looked over to the HR rep with an expression that said 'really?' They nodded with a smile, then rolled their hand to motion for him to continue. "For the five exercises, first place is worth three points, second is worth two points and third is worth one. May the games, commence."
"You know what? I don't even care if we win now," Night Howl said with a short laugh. "That was worth it in and of itself to see the director under HR's thumb," he added, shaking his head.
"Careful," Chris quietly warned. "But you're not wrong," he muttered shortly after as the team headed over to the obstacle course and lined up. Chris, Umber Eye, Lobo, Night Howl, Canine, and Tundra stood in a line and waited for the signal to begin to be given.
BANG!
A starting pistol was fired, and the race began. Chris took off, over log hurdles, up a flat wall, then back down on the other side, running across a good stretch of tires stuck into the ground, under a series of wire traps, over a few more hurdles than jumping to grab and pull himself over a high bar. It took him a minute and thirty-eight seconds, not his best time but not his worst. With that, he hurried back to tag in Umber Eye. Minute by minute time seemed to pass by slowly but surely until Tundra made it back.
"Time!" she shouted, and one of the refs clicked a stopwatch.
"Nine minutes and eighteen seconds." The ref called in the first time. It was a decent indicator that they would win, but there were multiple rounds of the race required to get all the teams to fit.
Thirty minutes passed and the teams all regrouped at the center field for the initial results. "Congratulations to all of the teams for their impressive displays," the director read from the board. "To start off, in third place is Silver Colt Squad Earning 1 point. Second place goes to Arctic Fox Squad for 2 points. First place, with a time of nine minutes"—the director paused— "and eighteen seconds"—Hound Wolf squad started to cheer upon hearing this—"Is Hound Wolf Squad, taking an early lead with 3 points."
"Hell yeah! and we're keeping that lead too!" Lobo shouted before giving an excited howl that the others joined in on.
"Very nice," the director said, unamused. "The next event will be a blind maze. A rope maze has been set up. You'll need to pick three members of your team to be able to see, while three are blind. Pair up and guide your members through but remember to watch where you're walking. if you step over a rope, you will have to start over again. For the sake of time, multiple mazes have been set up in the main field, one for each team of six. You have one hour to get to your maze and complete this task."
"I call dibs on being a guide," Tundra said with a smile.
"Same," Night Howl added with a nod.
"Okay, we need one more guide then," Chris said as Canine raised a hand.
"Sure, how hard could that be?" He shrugged.
"I'll guide Umber Eye," Tundra said as they walked over to the sign in the ground with their squad's name on it, next to a roughly 50-foot by 50-foot square maze marked on the ground with rope.
"I'll feed instructions to Alpha," Night Howl said as Lobo put an arm over Canine's shoulders.
"I guess that leaves just you and me, pal," Lobo said with a grin.
"Joy," Canine replied, laughing.
Upon arriving at their maze, a referee hands each of the three walkers a blindfold and a headset, while the guides are given radios. "Guides, please make your way to the other side of the maze. You'll be providing directions from there. Once you guys are ready, have your squad leader announce 'start', and I'll start the timer."
About thirty minutes later, Umber Eye and Chris were through the maze, with only Lobo left.
"Okay now take three steps left," Canine said, and Lobo took three steps. "YOUR OTHER LEFT!" as Lobo stepped over the rope the ref blew a whistle
"Reset" the ref stated as Lobo pulled up his blindfold to see he was almost at the end.
"Oh, for fuck's sake," he grumpily complained before walking back over to the beginning. "Hey Canine! We're facing opposite directions, ya shit!"
"I KNOW," Canine shouted back as the other four dropped their shoulders. At least it looked like the other teams were struggling too. Some only had one person through, others had none. Before long, Lobo finally reached the end.
"TIME," Chris shouted and the ref stopped the clock.
"Thirty-nine minutes and twenty-two seconds," the ref said while recording the information. "You're free to head back to the main stage and wait for the results."
The team grumbled but did so and awaited the results announcement.
An hour passed, and the director walked back onto the stage. "Another excellent display of comradery," the director said in his usual tired tone. "And now for the results. In third place, earning one point, is Hound Wolf Squad. In second place for two points is Canary Lynx squad. And finally, for first place with a total time of twenty-four minutes and forty-three seconds"—the director paused—"Is the Arctic Fox squad, putting them in the lead with a total of five points."
"Bull shit... There's no way. They had to have cheated..." Tundra grumbled under her breath.
"Hey, Hound Wolf!" called a member of the Arctic Fox squad. "I thought you were going to keep the lead, not give it up," they taunt, causing the other members of their team to snicker before they all howled to mock the group.
"We'll catch up next round," Umber Eye said quietly to the rest of Hound Wolf.
"For our next competition, head to the outdoor range for a relay with a kick." The director looked irritated that he had to follow a script. "We'll be competing in a revolver relay. Similar to the first event, each team will line up behind their booth. One participant will go up to the range, fire, then put down their gun to walk back and tag in the next person. For safety, please do not run during this event or throw the gun on the table. Teams who do this will be disqualified and put through firearm handling and safety training," the director openly threatened. "The catch is that it's not just about speed, accuracy will also play a part in the ranking, so you'll need to have a plan. Again, for the sake of safety, each team will have a scheduled time to make their run at the range alone. Rather than having multiple teams run all at once," the director explained "That about wraps up the explanation. Everyone, get to your station."
"Okay so shoot fast and accurate. We got this," Lobo said with a smile.
"Don't you usually have the worst accuracy?" Night Howl pointed out.
"Yeah, pretty sure you need a locator beacon to hit the broadside of a barn," Tundra teased, with a chuckle.
"Hey, hey, hey, the peanut gallery is getting pretty loud there. Aren't you two usually on the recon, not shooting stuff side of a mission." Lobo frowned.
"This might be more difficult than I initially thought..." Canine admitted quietly.
"Relax, we got this," Chris replied with more confidence in his tone than he had in his mind.
"Just leave it to me," Umber Eye said with a smile.
The group waited until their squad was called to approach the range. They kept the same order as the last relay and rather efficiently went through, allowing each team member to take one shot at the target. As far as the accuracy department went, Chris and Umber Eye carried the team.
"Remind me to have everyone do range drills," Chris said with a slight frown.
"No can do, Cap. You're technically not the captain anymore. Remember?" Lobo pointed out.
Right... this was only for today.
"I'll get on that," Umber Eye agreed, causing Lobo to frown.
"Do you think we placed?" Canine asked as the group walks back.
"Maybe," Tundra replied, seemingly unconvinced. "It's hard to tell since we were separated from the other teams like that."
Once again, the director waited on stage until he was given the signal by HR to speak. "A fine show of marksmanship to be sure," the director read from the board. "And now for the results. In third place yet again is Hound Wolf squad gathering one more point for a total of five," the man reads off. "In second place is Artic Fox squad gaining two more points for a total of seven, and finally, in first place is the Eagle Talon squad earning a total of three points. We're officially entering the last half of the event with Artic Fox holding their lead."
"Oh god damn it," Canine grumbled as heard more cheering from the aforementioned squad.
"So, range practice... Got it," Lobo said with a now determined nod. This was frustrating, but it drove him to want to work harder. Heck, the whole squad was starting to feel the same itch. They wanted to do well with this, even if it was just some silly HR-mandated event.
"For the next event, an old-fashioned contest of power," the director said before gesturing to the field. The mazes had been cleared away and replaced with long lengths of rope. "Tug of War will be available for all teams to compete in. Please make your way to your team's sign. This event will be a bracketed tournament, so make sure to follow the directions of your assigned referee."
Upon being dismissed, each team made their way to their sign. It looked like half the Refs were here for directing teams and the others were busy at the other end of the field setting up for the next event.
"Okay, new strategy for the lineup," Chris said as the group huddled up. They quietly discussed the plan and nodded. "Break," they shouted as they left the huddle. Chris took the front, followed by Night Howl, then Lobo, then Tundra, followed by Canine and Umber Eye.
For the more part, this plan worked. Victory after victory, the group made their way through the tournament brackets up to the semi-finals.
"Come on! Pull!" Chris shouted as the team struggled against the Canary Lynx team.
"I got your back, Alpha!" Umber called from the back and Chris nodded. He loosened his grip, so he could shift his stance to steady his footing and, after adjusting his grip on the rope, he gave it a solid yank, which caused the other team to fly forward.
"Point to Hound Wolf squad," the ref stated, holding up a flag for their side.
"Hell yeah, boulder man!" Lobo shouted with an ear-to-ear grin. They were sweating, they were tired, but best of all, they'd made it further than that gosh darn Arctic Fox team it seemed as six very burly-looking people walked over.
"The final match will be between Silver Colt and Hound Wolf. Combatants take your positions," the referee announced. Each team lined up, took hold of the rope, and the war began.
It took a solid five minutes, but eventually, Silver Colt was able to take the lead and knock Hound Wolf Squad off balance to take the win.
"Point to Silver Colt squad," the ref announced and held up a flag to their operates' side of the field. There were a few grumbles, but Hound Wolf ultimately got up and shook hands with the other team, they didn't really have any problem with Silver Colt at this point, so there was no reason to be curt. "When you're ready, please make your way back to the main gathering area," the ref said and started walking there as well. Because it took so long, the announcements had already begun by the time they arrived.
"Tug of war represents strength in unity and trust" the director read but rolled his eyes. God damn HR bullshit. "So, it's my great pleasure to award third place, to Canary Lynx Squad giving them one more point for a total of three. Second place, to Hound Wolf Squad upping their total to seven points. And finally, first place"—the director checked his notes—"To the Silver Colt squad for a total of four points," he announced. "With that, we'll be entering our final game the current standing shows Hound Wolf and Arctic Fox Squad currently tied for first place with a total of seven points each."
"We can still win this," Canine said with a smile.
"That depends on what the last event is and if we can end up one rank higher than Arctic Fox. If Silver Colt gets first place again and neither of the leading teams place, then it will be a 3-way tie," Umber Eye pointed out.
"What even happens in that case? Each team of people gets one day of PTO?" Night Howl asked, confused. "I don't think they really prepared a sudden death game."
"Hey, I'd take that offer," Lobo said with a laugh. "PTO is PTO at the end of the day."
"And now for our grand finale, an event that encompasses the essence of a team within the BSAA and everything that comes with it," the director read with a wide smile. "Your team of six will be working together to compete in an open battle royale." The director, for once, actually seemed amused. "The far end of the field has been set up with rugged terrain and obstacles to be used as cover," the man stated, as the groups looked over to find that the director was telling the truth. "Each of you will be fitted with a specialized tracker and multiple target points, which will be attached to your uniform," he further explained. "The tracker and target are fitted with an electronic coding system to alert a referee to escort a player off the field if an enemy is able to properly mark the player's target with their tracker."
"Wait is this…?" Tundra started to ask with an amused smile.
"Laser tag," Lobo said with an ear-to-ear grin. "Aw hell yeah."
"In that case, we're in trouble. Lobo's gonna get us banned from the field," Umber Eye said with a snicker, causing the others to laugh as well.
"If your squad is ready, please make your way to the field where your team's sign is set up, your gear will be waiting for you there. The event will start in ten minutes, whether you're ready or not. Please note that you are allowed to move around ahead of time and find a favorable position but trying to mark a player early will result in the offender's whole team being disqualified. The winning results will be based on who's left standing at the end. Last standing gets first, and so one," the director read from the board for a moment while rolling his hand. "Get going."
With that, each squad quickly made their way over to the field to get suited up. They hadn't really had a chance to 'fight' other squads in this sense, so everyone was pretty excited to see who would end up on top. Hound Wolf was a little rusty, but they ultimately worked to their strengths and used that first ten minutes to come up with a plan.
A plan that pretty quickly fell apart. The battle royale was ultimately chaos. There was no way to perfectly account for the strategies of roughly twenty different teams of six.
"I'm out," Tundra said in a frustrated tone into her communication device.
"Shit!" Lobo exclaimed shortly after.
"Sorry guys," Night Howl groaned with a disappointed frown.
"And that's me too," Canine grumbled, annoyed.
Within fifteen minutes, the field went from one hundred and twenty to twenty. But what else could be expected when you tell a bunch of highly trained spec-ops soldiers shooting each other?
"I'm hit. You're on your own Alpha," Umber Eye said as the numbers continued to dwindle from twenty, to ten, to five.
Chris looked around before eventually spotting a member of Silver Colt and tagged them.
"three combatants are left," one of the refs announced.
"Two combatants are left," they said shortly after.
"Shit where are they?" Chris muttered, looking around and eventually spotting the leader of Arctic Fox at the same time as they saw him. Fire!
Bzzt. Bzzt!
Both of their targets seemed to alert at the same time.
"...Zero combatants are left," the Ref announces. "The results will be announced after consulting the target data."
"What happened?" Canine asked as Chris jogged over to rejoin the group.
"Did you get him?" Tundra asked, confused,
Chris shook his head. "I can't tell," he admitted. "I think he got me first."
"Well shit," Lobo said with a slight frown. "Hey man, we did our best. What else can we say. Maybe they'll give us two days for second place?" he offered in an attempt to cheer up the group, but this had stopped being about the PTO very early into the day, and they all knew it.
All the same, they made their way back to hear the announcements and prepared to hear the gloating of the other team.
"At the end of the day, we're all brothers and sisters in arms. Our ability to perform under pressure in combat is what defines us as a unit." The director read the sappy sentiment. "The results of the battle royale are as follows. In third place earning one point is Panther Hog Squad, in second place, for a total of nine points"—both teams wait as the director seemed to be enjoying the pause—"Is Arctic Fox squad." Hound Wolf cheered immediately with excitement. "Leaving Hound Wolf squad in first place with a total of ten points by a margin of one half of one second."
"HOLY HELL, that was close!" Night Howl said through laughs of relief.
"Nice shootin', boss," Tundra exclaimed with an excited smile.
"You always did like to show off by cutting it close to the wire," Umber Eye said with a hint of amusement in his voice as he nudged Chris, who laughed.
"Hound Wolf into formation," Chris said, and the team lined up. "Follow me," he instructed, and they walked over to a very, very salty Arctic Fox squad.
"Hey," Chris called as they approach, which earned a good cluster of complaints, but the competing squad lines up. Once Chris made it over to the leader, he offered a hand. "You guys gave us a good run for our money," he offers with a slight smile. "We'll have to train together sometime," he added in an offering of good sportsmanship.
The leader of Arctic Fox hesitated for a moment, but ultimately accepted the offered hand. "Yeah, you too. You kept on our ass the whole time," he admitted. "If they do this again in the future, we'll be giving you guys hell. You're not going to be winning on a lucky shot again, that's for sure."
"I'll hold you to that then," Chris replied with a short laugh.
The other squad mates of both teams followed suit and shook hands, idly to chatting about the different events. The day was long and frustrating. The whole team was tired from basically working out for five hours straight, but in the end, it proved to be worth the effort.
This was a fun Lil break from the norm X'D I hope you guys enjoyed some silly Hound Wolf Antics. Next chapter will be back to your regularly scheduled programming.
Review Responses:
Ketchup imaginario - First off, thank you for bingeing my story, I'm so glad you're enjoying it enough to do so. Secondly, thank you for your review I cackled while reading it. That being said, I promise I will not be going full psycho and killing everyone. X'D If you want to keep reading but it's getting stressful and knowing what to expect would be helpful, let me know and I'll PM you some spoilers so that way it's not as suspenseful and you can read more comfortably. At my current posting rate, the story will probably be done by the end of Juuune? Still hesitantly shooting for that. I'll probably pick it up again and write more after that if CapCom is gracious enough to give me more lore to work with by releasing DLC or if there is enough demand for me to continue past the RE8 timeline without lore and just make it up X'D
