The surprisingly shrill and monumentally annoying scream of the Reveille trumpets caused just about every member of the FTF, with Serika even letting out an audible and ear-scratching scream as they jumped to their feet from their incredibly rough, hard bunks. As they stood up, DI Diego barked, "FORMATION, YOU FUCKS!"
They all lined up in front of the bunks, eyes wide. Hoshino herself looked almost like she'd looked the Devil in the face, all bags-under-eyes and spindly. The DI began speaking to them, "LET'S MAKE A FEW THINGS CLEAR, LADIES! I'M THE QUEEN BITCH IN THIS HOUSE AND I'VE BEEN PUT IN CHARGE OF A BUNCH OF LITTLE SHITS THINKING THEY'RE HOT STUFF FOR HAVING THE BALLS TO SIGN UP FOR MY BELOVED CORPS!" all while she walked through the formation.
She looked at each recruit, noting that May was trembling, eyes so wide she may as well have been trying to suck up all the light in the room, which would've been one hell of a feat. The woman stopped in front of her, pulled her down to face her by the collar of her shirt and spoke, "You look a little worse for wear, Boot! The fuck's with that look on your four-eyed face?!"
"N-Nothing, Sergeant-Major, Ma'am!" The girl stuttered, voice audibly cracking.
The woman scoffed, pushed her back and said, "STRAIGHTEN THAT SPINE, FOUR-EYES. Ya won't be marching out to fight the Innies or Covvies crooked like your Chiropractor buttfucked you!" and that got a few snorts, but the Sergeant-Major shut them all up by barking, "SHUT THE FUCK UP!" and marching forward to the end of the line.
She stopped in front of Hoshino. Though the young woman was usually not much too scared of adults, just distrustful, she suddenly felt a chill shoot up her spine as the woman's dark-brown eyes pierced the very core of her soul. The woman was looking her in the eye, making sure to show who was boss in this house indeed. Then, Miss Takanashi felt a slight twinge of surprise as the woman started looking her up and down.
She paused when she saw the Halo over her head, then asked, "Pinkie-Pie, ya mind tellin' me what in the sam fuck is that shit floating above your head?" in a surprisingly level tone, which was honestly quite surprisingly scary. Hoshino swallowed, looking straight ahead while the woman examined the slightly cracked Halo.
"Well!? ANSWER, YOU SPINDLY LITTLE SHIT!" She barked demandingly.
Hoshino snapped-to, then said, "Ma'am! That's my Halo, Ma'am!" trying to sound as self-assured and calm as possible. If she didn't show any fear to an Adult, maybe they'd respect her and her friends. Casting a quick glance to the left, though, she saw the whole gang was scared pretty much shitless of the situation.
The woman glared at her for a moment, looking as if she was staring at a piece of gum she was gonna have to scrape off her boot later, then she spoke, "ARE YA GONNA TAKE IT OFF, PINKIE!? SPEAK FAST!"
"I-I CAN'T, MA'AM!" The girl replied, stunned, "It's attached to me!"
"Bullshit!" The woman barked, then jumped and tried to grab the Halo, only for her hand to phase through it. She scoffed and tried again, then growled and gave up, looking at Hoshino as the girl stared at her with an awkward smile. She barked, "WIPE THAT SMIRK OFF YOUR FACE, BOOT! YOU AIN'T HERE TO LAUGH!"
The girl snapped-to. Part of her knew deep down that Drill Instructors weren't meant to be beloved by the Recruits, so the Sergeant-Major was just playing her part. It didn't mean that she had to like her berating people she knew. She watched her approach Serika, notice the Halo, then mumble, "Whole platoon of'em. A REAL ANGEL SQUAD! THAT'S YOUR NICKNAMES FROM NOW ON! PINKIE, CATTY, WOLFY, KNIFE-EARS AND DROP-TOP! THE FIVE LITTLE ANGELS OF BRAVO COMPANY, FIRST TRAINEE REGIMENT!"
As the woman stepped back toward the door, she spoke, "BDUS ON! WE'RE GOING ON A RUN AROUND THE CAMP!" and she turned to face them, "YOUR ONLY EASY DAY WAS YESTERDAY, WHEN YOU WEREN'T PART OF THE CORPS! HAUL ASS!"
Before long, the entire Company, men and women alike, were formed up. Hoshino, Serika, Ayane, Shiroko and Nonomi were running in the same row, with May bearing the Company flag at the front as they ran a slow run. Beside them, Sergeant Apone had been tasked with leading the Formation and calling Cadence. He'd chosen an apparently well-known Cadence.
As they ran, the song being sung by the Sergeant and repeated by them, Shiroko leaned forward and spoke, "I don't really like the way they're with us…" in a whisper.
Serika turned back and replied, "That's how the military is, even in movies," in a low voice, too. Then she told them, "We all expected it. Cadence, marching… One heck of a Summer Camp this is gonna be," as she made sure to trot her boots in synch with the beat to the best of her abilities, just like the others. Sure, some stumbled as they ran down the concrete, but they were doing decent.
Johnny was bad and he was brave! Johnny jumped on a hand grenade! He saved the lives of the men he led! But, now, poor Johnny, he was dead!
Ayane trembled a little at the chorus of voices all repeating after Sergeant Apone with the same tune and jingle. She whispered to the others, "These guys are r-really hardcore, aren't they?" as the vivid imagery of the song, a piece that was apparently a Marine Cadence since time immemorial whose lyrics were the only thing adjusted to fit with the times. Johnny had fought Innies in this case, the Insurrection.
"Marine Corps, Semper Fi," Hoshino parrotted, a small smile on her face, before she repeated the next lyrics alongside the rest of the cadre. She noticed Sergeant-Major Diego staring at them rather intently. The girl turned her gaze back forward at that, running to the cadence with the others, the group now having gone quiet.
Some time later, after about two hours of physical exercises in which Serika had somehow pissed Apone off enough to order her to do a hundred push-ups(Which she'd barely made it through), the girls were now sat for Lunch at the base's mess hall. Pelican engines droned in the distance as the UNSC's standard-issue dropships gently dipped low and descended toward the airfield, visible through the mess hall's windows.
Hoshino was staring at them as the troops aboard, mostly Army engineers, descended to assist the UNSC Naval Construction Battalion units on-site in building a few new barracks and assets for Reach's defense. She sighed, leaning her chin on her hand. Shiroko called, "Your food is gonna go cold, Hoshino…" as she pointed at what was a bland-looking chicken piece and some fries.
The girl replied, "Not sure I wanna eat that, to be honest," as she spun to face the food. She picked up a sucky-looking fry from her plate and chowed it down, noting it was soggy. Probably because she'd left it like that, she figured. Genuinely annoying, but at least it was still lukewarm enough not to be a total loss, she thought to herself as she ate.
"This is gonna be tough," Ayane spoke, a little worried and shaky of voice as she ate, too, "We sweated our butts off just doing a run while singing, then they had to have us doing push-ups," before she cast a glance at Nonomi, who was still visibly miffed at losing her hair, feeling the top of her head with her fingers and whining in mumbles. The glasses-wearing girl sighed and said, "And Nonomi can't really do push-ups…" before glancing down at the girl's chest.
Obvious problems aside, Shiroko commented, "That's why I always asked you all to join me on my bike rides or exercises," before grabbing a fry and scarfing it down. She looked at them and added, "Cardio and physical workouts would've had us prepared for this. Sure, we're in shape enough to go through it, but…"
"Things'll only get harder from here," Serika sighed, feeling one of her ears. She leaned on the table, having already finished her meal, "These guys really mean business. Swear, I think we might've made a mistake…" then she slumped forward, annoyance visible on her face. Shiroko shook her head in disapproval, with the Catgirl casting a short glare her way.
"You did," Hoshino told them, causing Serika to perk up and look at her, surprised. The girl, dead serious, looked at them and said, "I do appreciate that you girls wanna follow me all over, that you wanna stick together… But maybe you would have been safer just staying with Doctor Halsey. I could do this alone-"
"Nope," Nonomi stopped her, staring her down with a surprisingly intense gaze, "Stop saying that, Hoshino. "Don't start again," She then warned, "We all volunteered and we're going to see it through… Serika, stop complaining," and the Catgirl sighed, but nodded. Hoshino smiled again, then nodded in understanding, before looking at Ayane, who smiled.
Though she could still see how unsure they were, Hoshino didn't dare berate them again for joining. They'd see the truth as soon as they were deployed. How rough things could really get when the situation really turned against them. Then, she paused as she saw May approaching, a smile on her face. The girl greeted, "Heya, girls. Mind if I sit with y'all? Sarge had me humping rocks until now."
"Free seat's right there," Hoshino smiled, pointing beside Ayane. The girl smiled, then sat down.
"Rock-humping, huh?" Another Marine spoke from the table over to their right. He was one of the guys from their company. Tom, the girls recalled. He smirked and said, "Sounds like ya really pissed the Sarge off, boss lady…" to which the girl shook her head, chuckling a little. He then looked to Hoshino and Co and said, "And the Angels, huh…?"
"If you start prayin' to us for Salvation, good luck, pal," Serika quipped, "We're still as mortal as you," and then she pointed at Shiroko's burns. Tom and his pals let out a short laugh in understanding, while May and Hoshino exchanged a quick glance and both started laughing awkwardly, Hoshi even letting out one of her classic 'Uweh~' noises.
Tom, an eighteen-year-old fresh off the boat like them, said, "I think we're all gonna be the same Platoon, so no prayin'. Just promise me you'll watch my ass out there and I'll watch yours," before giving a broad motion to the entire table of female members of Bravo company.
"Not too close, I hope. I mean, I know it's a fine piece, but ya know how it is," May grinned, which got a few laughs out of the other male Marines at the table, a couple of which were the other people wearing glasses. Shiroko cracked a small smile, while Serika chortled at the quip. She told him, "Yeah, we're all gonna be stuck together… Gonna be interesting."
"Worried?" Hoshino quirked up a brow as she saw the girl stirring her warm food with her fork, seemingly finding it as unappetizing as it looked. Though she could also tell by the slouched shoulders and slight tremble that the girl didn't wanna be part of any operation that meant taking care of people. Or that she was scared for something else.
May let out a deep, long sigh, pushing her glasses up and saying, "I lost most of my folks to the Covenant. Only my brother's left and he's here, on Reach… I signed up to earn us some money while he's staying with the foster family that took us both in," before leaning back and looking up at the ceiling, now clearly worried, "And now I'm realizing just how fucked we are…"
"We saw what the Covenant can do," Hoshino spoke, then tilted her head to Shiroko, "And we obviously have experience."
"A glancing blow from a plasma round while evacuating off your world, huh…" The girl spoke, stunned, while the other Marines, Tom included, were looking at the marks. She sighed and said, "Sorry about that… I know how horrible it is to really leave everything behind," and she sighed, cutting into the chicken and taking a bite.
"Nn… Not a glancing blow," The girl said, which caused May to blank. She pointed at her chest, from where the burn scars stretched, then said to her, "I took a direct blast from a Covenant plasma rifle… It hurt," then she shivered, remembering the heat prickling at her skin and scratching the still somewhat-red scars.
May was about to ask how when the roar of a new dropship filled their ears, though it was muffled by the walls and windows. May turned her head, with Tom grinning as he saw the aircraft touch down. It had a mark on the side, a burning pod of some kind, colored gold, placed against scarlet flames and with a skull at the forefront, also a dark-red.
A ribbon had the letters 'ODST' written on it, causing everyone but the confused five FTF members to stand up, May gasping and beaming, "Oh, my God! It's the Helljumpers!" like a fangirl. Hoshino and the others stared at her, confused. When she saw that, she begged, "Don't tell me you girls don't know about ODSTs…" and yet more blank stares answered her. She blinked, "Holy shit… They're the best units in the Corps. Orbital Drop Shock Troopers. Jumping into hell, feet first from orbit!"
The five girls stood up and watched the troops dismount, greeted by cheers. Clad in jet-black combat and completely sealed combat armor. Most took their fully sealed, opaque-visor helmets off as they dismounted the craft, marching in a perfect formation off the bird and toward an officer clad in Dress Blues. They snapped to attention, saluting the officer.
Sleek-looking, battle-damaged armors, scarred faces and capable-looking troops with eyes as sharp as bayonets. They looked professional, deadly and ready to kill. And going by the scuttlebutt Hoshino was hearing right now from other companies eating with them, the ODSTs were here to evaluate the new crop of Recruits.
"They're so cool…!" May whispered, with the rest of the girls agreeing.
For Hoshino, however, there was a different concern to handle right now. Sergeant Apone approached, calling out, "Recruit Takanashi, on me," with a surprisingly calm voice. The girl turned to face him, to which he told her, "Sergeant-Major Diego said she wants to see you. Follow me," and Hoshino visibly tensed as the man turned. Her four compatriots turned toward her, all visibly worried, but Hoshino showed them to stay calm.
She marched out, following the big man toward the main 'command' building of this area of the base, a concrete structure built nearby the barracks her company was stationed in. As they walked, the girl saw more and more troops doing their work. From MPs patrolling to Engineers doing the standard Engineer things of construction, appraisal and ensuring everything ran. Even as they entered inside the building through an automatic sliding door, the place was full of Officers and logistics staff working overtime, trying to bring the new recruits up to snuff.
As they marched through the place, Hoshino caught glimpses of shadows in the sky and through the windows, noticing their more boxy, familiar appearances. UNSC starships floated amidst the clouds, barely visible between the peaks of the mountain range. Frigates and Troop Transports, she'd presume. There were 'classes', companies of Recruits graduating ahead of them. They were barely starting their own journey.
Apone spoke, "Kid, I'm gonna be honest with you… This whole 'Halos' thing's weirdin' every single man and woman on this base out," which caused Hoshino to look at him, raising a brow. He continued, "You and your friends are the strangest group of people even Smage Diego's seen in a while. And trust me, she's seen plenty'a'weird around here."
"I'm sure she'll tell me the same thing, sir," The girl replied quietly as they walked forward.
"Ha," Apone snorted, "You wouldn't know the half of it," and they approached the door to the Sergeant-Major's office. Apone knocked, then said, "Sergeant-Major. Lead Angel's here, as you requested!" as he put his hands behind his back and straightened up. She did the same, more out to prove she was respectful to the authorities.
"Come in," The softness with which the woman had spoken slightly surprised Hoshino. The door slid to the side, revealing a decent-sized office housing exactly what one would expect out of a decorated NCO's place. Pictures lined a wall to the right, showing images of a Marine force in combat, all of it dated to the 2510s and 2520s, five to fifteen years prior to the Covenant's arrival.
On the left, sat on oak wood shelves were ornate boxes each containing the woman's service medals, while a television of some kind was on the 'front' wall, facing the oak desk which also had a bunch of paraphernalia, including a picture of a young woman, on it. Hoshino realized, however, that that young woman was not SMage Diego. It had a black ribbon on the top-left corner.
Hoshino knew those types of photographs. The two women looked alike and the one in the picture was even wearing a Marine BDU when the photo was taken, but there were some small differences visible in their faces. A crease here, a sharper cheekbone there, a smaller jawline… Hoshino looked at the Sergeant-Major and snapped a salute at the same time as Apone.
Diego nodded, saluted them back and said, "At ease. You're dismissed, Sarge Apone. Get back to Bravo," and the older dark-skinned man nodded and stepped off, mouthing a 'good luck' to Hoshino. The Sergeant-Major sat herself down on her leather chair, back to the window separating them from the outside as the morning light of Epsilon Eridani's sun poked through. The two stared each-other down, Hoshino trying to keep a straight face, while Diego simply stared at her.
The silence, much to Hoshino's joy, was soon broken by Diego, "... You know, I've seen weird alien creatures, machines the likes of which would make even our tanks blush and worlds that'll make an Earth civvie's jaw drop," before she leaned forward and continued with a terrifyingly calm voice, "I've never seen anything quite like you and your four friends, Recruit Takanashi."
"M-Ma'am?" Hoshino blinked.
"Five seventeen-year-old girls with weird, floating halos floating above their heads like Holograms, a message straight from ONI HQ to tell me to keep an eye on you and then an old friend contacting my dog-ass to tell me to make sure all five of you wind up in some menial job off-world when training's done and dusted," The woman told her, leaning forward, "Halsey said she sent that letter to have me ask you if you're all serious about fighting after witnessing Skopje turn to glass. To offer ya another chance to go back."
"And wait until they inevitably hit this place, ma'am?" Hoshino replied immediately, causing the woman to pause. She spoke, "Permission to speak freely," as if demanding it. The Sergeant-Major raised a brow, but snorted and gave her the go-ahead. Hoshino then said, "With all due respect to you and the Doctor, we've made our choice. We're staying. I'm staying… It may be futile. It may be pointless. The Covenant may be some sorta unstoppable juggernaut… But it'd be worse if we just rolled over and died."
The Sergeant-Major smirked, standing up from her desk and approaching Hoshino before telling her, "And that is the kind of Spirit that's driving us all forward to keep up our own fight… We might go down, but we'll take as many of these motherfuckers with us as possible," then she cast a glance at the photo on the table, a proud smile on her face.
She sighed, however, then looked at Hoshino and said, "Catherine isn't exactly secretive about you all being aliens, though," before crossing her arms, "You landed in our world and the first decision you made was jumping in to help us and, I imagine, get some payback for the trauma the Covvies gave you when they hit…"
"Something like that," Hoshino spoke, casting a quick glance at her cracked halo. The woman ahead of her had noticed the crack and visibly winced, clearly wondering if that's how PTSD showed on Kivotos-born beings. She told the Sergeant-Major, "I know I'm probably signing my and the girls' death warrant, but… Don't go easy on us just because we're kids, okay? Our Teacher wouldn't like it if he knew we got preferential treatment, I don't think."
"He sounds like a man of principle," The woman replied, looking Hoshino in the eye, "And don't worry. You're training to be Marines, kid. The premier fighting force the UNSC has that can respond to any given threat anywhere. If you slack off here, you're gonna fucking die out there… And I don't do cleanups for ONI. Not with my old heart."
The girl chuckled awkwardly, "Uweh… Sorry…"
"Don't apologize to me yet," The woman joked as she sat back down on her chair and offered the girl a cup of coffee. Hoshino thanked her and refused silently by raising her hand. Sarge then continued, "If you do wind up bitin' it, I'd like a written apology letter in triplicate shipped right here to this office," and that got Hoshino to actually chuckle a bit, even if awkwardly. The woman sighed as she poured herself a cup, then gazed upon Hoshino, dead serious now, "... If there's any trouble, you come to me in private. I ain't promising I can solve it on the spot, but you're my recruits. My boots. I will keep mine safe. For as long as I can…" and she cast a glance at the picture on her desk.
"... Will do, ma'am," Hoshino replied, snapping a salute and smiling. Once she was dismissed, Hoshino walked out and marched back to the Company Barracks. Inside the girls' side, she found Ayane and May already engaged in a bit of nerdy small-talk, smiles on their faces. Shiroko, meanwhile, sat on the bunk, talking to Serika and Nonomi, the latter of which finally seemed to have hit the fifth stage of Grief about losing her hair. Namely, she'd seemingly accepted it. For all the good it did to her mental health.
When the others noticed her, they smiled and waved her over, with May speaking, "Why didn't you guys mention you were from a cool-ass place like Kivotos!? Seriously, the area sounds awesome!" as she jumped giddily. She added, "Like… Open-carry guns? Catpeople and wolf-people like Serika and Shiroko?! Civvie owned and fully-functional tanks and combat mechs!? Man, I wanna move there now! It sounds sick!"
The pink-haired leader of the FTF let out a laugh, before stating, "Well, when we're done out here, we can probably go visit!" which got the girls to visibly perk up. Sure, the situation was relatively bleak considering the Covenant and the chat she just had with the Sergeant-Major, Hoshino thought, but she might as well keep up the appearance of the fearless leader for them all. And herself. She didn't intend to die here if she could help it.
"Hell yeah!" May pumped her fist up into the sky, smiling brightly. She was very much a more outgoing Ayane, Hoshino thought to herself as she put a hand on her own hip, staring at the group with a smile. The other women in the barracks chuckled at the sight, while Shiroko cracked a small smile, too. Nonomi perked right up, though, beaming like usual, while Serika gave a thumbs up, though didn't broadcast all that much emotion.
Something told Hoshino they just raised a few Death Flags for some people, though…