Chapter 2: Imitatio

January 5th, 2544 (12:35 Hours – Military Calendar)

Epsilon Eridani System, Reach

Csaba Mountain Region, Viery Territory

:********:

When Nova told him that they were having a squad meeting, a pool party was the last thing he had been expecting. But that was essentially what this was.

Once everyone had gathered in the Dante building's lobby, the Staff lead them out of Falchion in their personal Warthogs. They headed 2 kilometers southwest from Mount Csaba until they reached their destination: a dormant Volcano.

Thankfully, any sign of its destructive visage was covered up by forest overgrowth, making it indistinguishable from the neighboring mountains.

They had driven up a few hundred meters, parked at the base and trotted up a long trail until they reached a deep, ovular ground depression. It was an ancient fissure vent sealed by cooled magma. The magma floor allowed the depression to collect rainwater overtime until it created a steaming pool that bubbled and frothed at a comfortable 38 degrees Celsius. That was what the Staff had told him at least. Duncan was still hesitant to try it out, unlike the rest of Squad Epsilon who, with bare-chests and shorts, jumped in one after another, disappearing under the water for a moment before coming back up to relax on the sides.

Duncan stood at the precipice of the vent in the pair of shorts he'd been told to bring.

Nova and Zack, the only other two yet to jump in, walked up to either side of him.

"Scared, Irish?" Zack chided from his left.

"No." Duncan said apprehensively.

"Don't worry." Nova said from his right as she gently placed a hand on his shoulder. "Think of yourself as a marshmallow in a mild cup of chocolate."

"Very hot chocolate." Zack said.

"No, I don't think-" By the time Duncan realized it was a mistake to allow the two so close to him Zack had already kicked his left leg out from under him, leaving him unbalanced enough for Nova to grasp his shoulder and push him over the edge.

Duncan plunged headlong into the hot depths. Bubbles raged around him and skin bristled at the heat. He swam back up to the surface and grabbed onto the side.

When he did, he was met with jeers and cheers alike. "Work on your form, Irish." Rico called over. There was that name again.

Duncan looked back up just in time to see Nova, dressed in a two piece, dive with good form. She arrowed through the surface and came up on the opposite side. "Eight out of ten would recommend, Nova." Hector said, clapping.

A shout from up above brought everyone's attention to a nearby tree. Zack ran along its highest branch, launched himself into the air with the grace of a dove, fell 10 meters then crashed into the water with a resonant PAP.

"That," Nova said, "did not sound promising."

"He's probably a tomato by now." Hector laughed.

Zack resurfaced a few seconds later, the skin on his chest and face a bright shade of red. He appeared unphased however and looked expectantly at the others.

"…Are you okay?" Yuri asked.

Zack put on a confident smile. "Don't know what you mean Yuri ole' boy, I'm perfectly fine."

"Uhuh." Nova said. She turned to the Staff who had reclined in a small alcove.

"As for today's business." He began. "I called you all out here so we could have a more informal meeting with Mr. Irish. That way we can get to know him better, have a little heart to heart."

"You have a heart, Staff?" Deaks grinned.

"None that you know of, Deaks." He replied drily. "I thought of asking you for a spare but I figured you probably cut that out too."

"Silver Buddha only likes teeth, boss. You know that." Deaks said, his grin only widening.

"Noted. Duncan, tell us a little about yourself beyond the files. All I know is you're 24, you graduated from Ravenport and you somehow ended up getting mixed deployment orders."

Duncan felt everyone's attention rest on him. He tried figuring out what to tell them. "I'm a Cryptoanalyst sir. I did some computer work as a Marine Reserve back in my home city of Chicago. That's 'cause I was stationed as part of the groundside security team for the local Space Elevator, the Victoria, so I had to be around to help out with technical problems."

Deaks gave an impressed whistle.

The Staff nodded. "You know, Nova is our resident Combat Engineering Specialist. In terms of squad callsigns she's 'Ep-2'. Chances are you'll be working with her from time to time. Be careful though, she tends to fly off the handle if she thinks you're messing things up."

"Csak ha ez egy szörnyű munka." Nova sighed. "I only bite a little."

"I'd like to see you try." Deaks said, egging her on.

Nova growled. "I'll-"

"Corporal Corry Deaks here," Staff said, "is our squad's designated sharpshooter and unofficial orthodontist, callsign 'Ep-3'. As you've seen, he's got a thing for teeth and he's something of a government sanctioned sociopath. However, he's a crackshot with an SRS. You wouldn't want anyone else covering you from long range, I guarantee."

Duncan nodded. "What's up with the teeth thing?"

"Don't ask questions you don't want to know the answers to, Iris." The Staff said and carried on.

"Heck's our ground vehicle specialist, callsign 'Ep-4'. You can trust him to get you out of a tight spot in almost any mode of land transportation. Turns out he used to drive limos for high profile celebrity royalty on Tribute."

"I decided to take a vacation." Hector said, easing his head back. "The lady I was chauffeuring was too much. Bootcamp was way easier to handle. I'd take driving a burning pod through the exosphere over another air-conditioned limo with that piece of work any day."

Duncan tried to ignore just how bizarre that statement actually was and took it at face value.

"Over there is what we call a Yuri, callsign 'Ep-5'. It's our Aerial Vehicle Specialist and Squad Pitbull on occasion. You need wings in the sky, he's your man. He's had experience piloting almost every aircraft under the Air Force's roster."

"You name it, I've flown it." Yuri declared with pride.

"The only problem is his temper has a bad habit of flaring up at the worst times, and me or Nova have to reign him in."

"More like every day." Nova commented.

"Not every day." Yuri grumbled. "Why do you try make me sound so bad in front of rookie when I done no'hing wrong to nobody?"

"We're still working on his English." Nova admitted.

"Next." Staff said. "Is Rico over there, our explosive demolitions specialist, callsign 'Ep-6'. He seems nice now but he can sometimes get too serious when we're doing wet work, even for me. His temper is surprisingly non-existent though so that's a plus."

"Gave it all to Matchstick over there." Rico said, giving Yuri a thumbs up.

Zack perked up, realizing it was his time to shine. "I-"

"'Ep-7', he carries our radio."

Zack instantly deflated, earning a laugh from everyone in the pool. Even Duncan couldn't help himself. Zack looked pleadingly to Atell. "Staff." He whined. "There were better ways you could've said it."

"Like?"

"Long Range Communication's Specialist? Combat Controller?"

The Staff gave him a dismissive nod. "I'll remember that the next time we introduce Duncan to the rest of the squad. Or even better, when we finally get our CQC Expert and Medic."

Defeated, Zack retreated into the water until only above his nose remained visible. Nova swam over to his side and gave him a reassuring pat on the back. "You'll be fine."

"I don't count as CQC, sir?" Deaks asked.

"Using a butcher's knife to raid corpses that you already put a 14.5 millimeter through from half a kilometer away doesn't count as close quarters."

Deaks shrugged and said nothing else.

"As for you, Duncan, your callsign is 'Ep-8' from here on out. Looks like you'll be our Cryptoanalyst. And that's about everyone."

"Not everyone, Staff." Nova said. "What about yourself?"

He shrugged. "Not much to know. Callsign 'Ep-1'. Just your standard grunt. Like all of you, I came to save lives from the Covenant and to take just as many from them in return. Maybe even help bring a stop to all this if it's possible."

"Now that we're done with all the intros." Deaks said. He held up his hand and opened his fingers to reveal a rock. A familiar rock.

Duncan winced. It was his. "How'd you-"

"Found this rummaging through some of your stuff while you were gone. Why do you have this thing anyway?" Deaks threw it into the air and caught it perilously close to the water. Duncan's heart dropped into his throat. Without warning he swam towards Deaks at full speed. He emerged right in front of him, much to the sniper's surprise, and reached for the rock.

"Give it back!"

"Tell me why first." Deaks said, pushing him back while holding the rock away. When Duncan got too close, he tossed it over to Hector. The man inspected it for a moment then threw it to Yuri once the owner came barreling towards him. Yuri passed it to Zack and Zack to Rico. Everyone except Nova and the Staff participated in the game of hot potato with Duncan unable to stop it.

"Come on, give it back!" Duncan demanded as the rock came back to Deaks.

"Tell me why first." He repeated

Duncan stopped. "It's important, alright?"

"Why's that?" Deaks pried.

Duncan breathed out a sigh of defeat. "It was from my dad. He got it for me for my birthday as a kid."

"What's so special about some rock your dad got you? Couldn't he have given you a real present or was he just that cheap?"

Duncan's face deadpanned. "He died getting it to me so I wouldn't call it cheap."

A deafening silence overtook the pool. The venom in Duncan's voice and what it connotated was potent enough to paralyze even Deaks. The sniper's sly demeanor subtly slackened. He seemed to lose some of his playfulness. "…Um…so what'd he do exactly that he died for something like this?"

"He was an ODST." Duncan replied. "In the 7th."

All eyes were on Duncan now and he felt them staring, just like they had at his mother's funeral in Old Saint Mary's cemetery.

"He fought early in the war. I don't know the specifics, only that he was killed, but somehow he managed to mail home that same rock to me from the planet that he died on."

A flicker of empathy appeared on Deaks' face. "Where'd he-…um…. which planet was it?"

"Harvest."

Deaks stood still for a full five seconds. When he finally moved, he focused on the rock. He held it, but not like he had before. He was gentler and more cautious. He looked at the thing in his hand like a man who had just found a childhood toy long lost. Then he seemed to be looking through the rock to something else.

The sniper came back from his daze once Duncan held out his hand.

"Here." Deaks suddenly reeled the stone back, about to throw it. He saw an urgent expression rise on everyone's face and laughed, dropping it into Duncan's hand. "Kidding."

Duncan gave him a wary look before swimming back to his side of the pool.

"Sorry about throwing your stuff man." Zack apologized.

"Yeah." Rico echoed. "Lo siento."

Hector and Yuri also apologized. Duncan nodded to them in turn, shrugging off any seriousness left in the situation. The tension amongst the squad slowly evaporated and the air returned to a relaxed air.

"By the way." Nova chimed in. "On the topic of Fathers, Duncan just so happens to be one in waiting."

That got the Staff's attention. "That's true, Iris?"

"Yes sir." Duncan said. "I-"

He spotted Zack off to the side, cuddling himself and making obscene kissing noises, even giving him a wistful look. He yelped when Nova slapped him on his raw back and quickly slipped underwater to soothe the stinging sensation.

"Like I was saying, I've got a little boy on the way. Nova also happens to know my wife pretty well. Who knows? She might end up being Noah's godmother at this rate."

"Noah?" The Staff asked.

"My kid's name." Duncan said. "We named him after my dad."

Duncan saw something flare in Atell's eyes, a spark of some understanding perhaps, though he couldn't tell exactly what. It disappeared just as quickly as it came.

"I see." The NCO said.

"Speaking of babies." Rico added. He flexed one of his biceps. In doing so he allowed the tattoo of the flaming Japanese Kanji on his skin to be seen. "How long do you think Duncan has to go before he gets one of these, Staff?"

"What's that?" Duncan asked. "A tat?"

"A mark of honor." The Staff answered. "It's given to an ODST after they've more than proven their worth as a soldier. We all have one. Well, almost..." Their attention turned to Zack.

"I don't know what you're talking about, Staff." Zack said. "I've got one. It's just…private…anyway-its-time-to-go-I'm-getting-all-wrinkly." He turned away and started to climb out. Nova reached up and pulled his shorts down so that his bare backside showed.

"He told me he wants to have his done on the left one when he earns it." Nova said.

Zack panicked and dropped back into the water. When he came back up trying to fix his pants everyone was already laughing.

"How long would I have to fight to earn it?" Duncan asked.

The Staff shook his head. "It's not how long, but about how much."

"Cryptic." Deaks said.

"And what does it mean?" Duncan asked.

"By the time you get it, you'll know what it means." The Staff replied. Duncan thought on it for a good while. He hoped that it was worth it. If the responses of the other ODSTs as they showed off their tattoos was anything to go by, it undoubtedly was.

The display was interrupted however, when the Staff suddenly stood up in the water, pressing his finger to a comm-device in his ear. "Understood mam. We're on our way."

He turned to the others. "Pack it up ODSTs. We're heading back to Falchion."

:********:

Lieutenant Colonel Garrison looked over the 3-dimensional holographic display of the city projected over the table before him. The scenery of abundant skyscrapers was slowly rotating to the left thanks to the holotank projector.

He used his hand to magnify one building in particular. Its eye-catching design and position made it easy to understand why it was chosen to host what was going to be the most important event in the war since Admiral Cole's Last Stand.

If Falchion Base revolved around The Center, The Center revolved around The Coronary: the primary logistics and strategic coordination room on the top floor. Inside, several dozen Military Tech Personnel worked around the clock, issuing deployment orders to ODSTs on and around Falchion, organizing supply lifts and unit transits to and from the base, and delivering and receiving situation reports from other entities. This room effectively made Falchion a node in the comprehensive network of installations that comprised the UNSC presence on Reach.

Garrison stood on an elevated platform above the rows of console stations and virtual readout graphs. It was a cross-like platform that divided the room into its four sides: Operations, Asset Procurement, Personnel Management and Service Distribution. Though separated, they connected everyone both on and off-base, acting as the collective brain of Falchion.

"Tell me something Will." Garrison said. "Do you think Hood really intends to make an appearance at this thing?"

A separate hologram materialized itself from billions of individual bytes into a single, crisp image of a man dressed in 11th century chainmail and a Scottish Kilt. The AI known as William or 'Will' had fashioned himself after his historical counterpart, claiming everything save his last name Wallace. His thick beard and Scottish Claymore wisped about in a simulated gale that represented the millions of subroutines and micro-processes he was running simultaneously.

If the Coronary was the brain of Falchion, William was its very soul.

He was readily available to help anyone on base given the appropriate request, even the personnel in the Coronary. But the bulk of his capacities were spent primarily on working with other AI to ensure the continued information security of the greater Military Network on Reach. Since Falchion was a node in that network, it was just as much his stronghold as Callendar Wood was to his counterpart.

Beneath the Center, a basement 20 meters high by 5 meters wide contained his Riemann Matrix. All of his higher functioning processes were performed there through his code directory. It essentially was William. But for Garrison it was easier to see the projection of the rough-looking Scottish Warrior as more 'William' than some complex machine underground that he had neither the time nor patience to understand.

"Time is short, sir." William said, mirroring Garrison's thoughts as he often seemed to do on purpose. "The Admiralty needs to act swiftly and decisively if they wish to pull a win out of this one." His Scottish accent was well integrated and easily understandable.

Garrison considered it as he reexamined the city. "This is going to be a big deal. Waypoint's probably going to have coverage from wall to wall."

"You say it like it's a bad thing, sir." Wallace said.

"It's a neutral element that could be used against us." Garrison explained. "This is as much for PR as it is for the actual war effort. Morale's always been rock-bottom across the UNSC but it took a critical blow when Cole went out at Psi Serpentis. It might've sunk us for good if he hadn't taken all those ships out with him so we could at least call it a win. It took everyone else almost half a year to hear about. But if the media livestream something at this meeting that shouldn't be seen…"

"I'm still of the opinion that someone like Cole wouldn't go out so easily." William said, taking out his large sword to lean on it contemplatively. "His actions at the Battle of Theta Ursae Majoris during the Insurrection, as well as Groombridge-1830 during the present war reflect one thing: he has an unerring track record for surviving the impossible."

"He blew up a star." Garrison said bluntly. "If you want to calculate the chances that he was the first person in history to somehow survive a supernova at point-blanc range, be my guest."

"I'll take you up on those odds someday, sir." William quipped.

"I know you will. For now, let's focus less on the hypothetical and more on the tactical."

Garrison highlighted four buildings. "Army elements from the 27th and local MPs are providing security details for every building within a kilometer save for these four. They're too far out to be of any trouble but close enough to act as observation posts. Since UNICOM wants us involved, we'll have four Falcons patrolling the outer perimeter while four teams are on overwatch in these buildings."

"Understood. Who do you want on dispatch?"

Garrison thought for a moment. "Where's Harper's platoon right now?"

"Captain Harper, Sergeant Joels and Staff Sergeant Atell are currently at the RTETC with their respective squads." William squinted at something Garrison couldn't see. "They seem to be running a training exercise in the urban warfare unit with only a single ODST. Private Duncan Iris, I believe."

Garrison glanced up at the mention of the name. "Iris huh? They must be testing him out. Say Will, you've integrated the necessary paperwork for all the new arrivals from the Sol, Beta Hydri and Alcides systems, correct?"

"That's correct, sir?"

"All of them?"

William ran a cluster of background subroutine checks to confirm the paperwork had been processed in less than a microsecond. "All, sir." He answered after waiting the AI equivalent of a full day for the Lieutenant Colonel to finish the 'm' in them.

The leader of the 7th Battalion nodded. "Brief Harper's troop on the mission details. I want her and her platoon making preparations immediately after."

"Understood sir."

"And crack a window. We need some daylight in here."

Garrison walked away from the table and headed across the path separating Operations from Asset Procurement. He came to the long window strip circumventing the entire floor as the shudders pulled away. The light of afternoon filtered in, dispelling the darkness inside. It allowed Garrison to take a good look at the base and the men and women moving throughout.

It was beautiful and peaceful. He hoped that it would stay that way, but he knew well enough by now that one of those things tended to run out before the other.

:********:

Duncan pulled the trigger on his MA37, putting a three-round burst through the 'skull' of the Grunt that had tried to flank him. It was a movable cutout, but the fact he was finally using live ammunition gave this latest exercise a whole new dimension of realism. The status light above the stubby alien flashed red indicating a kill shot. The two-dimensional figure fell back, 'lifeless'.

Upon arriving at Falchion, the Staff brought Epsilon to the base' Real-Time Environmental Training Center or RTETC. First platoon's Captain had wanted to run a team training simulation to see how well Duncan could integrate with the squad. However, the Staff Sergeant had convinced her it would be better to see how Duncan fought alone to gauge his individual skill. That left the young trooper in a bit of a spot since most of his training revolved around operating with a team. Perhaps that was why the Staff had suggested it, because he understood that a team was only as strong as its individual members. For that reason, Duncan was currently stuck behind a public fountain inside a spacious courtyard with only 2 minutes left to finish the exercise.

The mission was a simple assault run; eliminate all enemy forces within the sector.

So far that wasn't going so well. Thirty seconds in to the four-minute exercise he had gotten pinned by a pair of 'Jackal Snipers' posted on the far end of the courtyard. He hadn't gotten their exact location before the two individual TTR rounds cracked overhead, forcing him to take cover.

The cutout frames baring the depictions of various Covenant Forces were stand-ins for the real deals. Gyroscopic spherical wheels gave them a free range of motion in any given direction. The computer hardware built into the frame controlled how fast they moved, often in conjunction with the known movement profiles of the hostiles they represented. The Jackals were likely stalking around the rooftops somewhere while the 3 other Grunts that were trying to converge on his position were coming towards him in a slow waddle. He heard their advance stop once he had gunned down the closest of their comrades.

Duncan risked peeking over the rim again. He spotted the Grunts standing behind some of the many plastic barricades that served as cover across the courtyard. He increased the magnification on his visor to search the several buildings bordering the yard. He scanned their rooftops until he stopped on the third. The presence of the 2 Jackals there confirmed his suspicions. The first was standing out in the open while the second remained hidden halfway behind the rooftop door.

They were waiting for him. Duncan decided he wouldn't make them wait too long since he was on a short leash himself. The mission timer ticking down on his HUD was a constant reminder of that.

He went for the second Jackal first since it would be the harder target out of the two. He quickly rose up and fired half a magazine into the distant rooftop door, forcing the targeted Jackal cutout to retreat behind it. He ducked just as the Grunts and the first Jackal returned fire using holes built into their handheld weapons that loosed TTR rounds in place of Plasma.

Duncan peeked over the other side of the fountain and focused his targeting reticle on the first Jackal. Thanks to suppressing the second, he was instantly free to fire several three round bursts into it. The rounds tore through its frame. Its status light winked red and it collapsed to the ground.

The ODST ducked again as the Grunts finally reacted to his change in position. He reloaded his rifle then got on his stomach and rolled out into the open, much to the surprise of the Grunts. This way he presented a smaller target while giving him a direct line of sight on the last Jackal as it peeked out from its cover. He gave the trigger two light squeezes, producing two precise individual rounds that caught the last sniper in the neck and forehead. Its light winked red and it collapsed.

The Grunts panicked and started to run. Duncan got up and gunned two of them down. He found the third waiting to ambush him from behind a barrier and cut it down with a bullet through the eye.

With the slight reprieve, Duncan took the chance to look around. Everything looked clear. All he had to do now was reach the other side and the exercise was over. He broke into a jog.

Near the end he caught movement in the corner of his eye. He had a split-second to throw himself behind another barrier before a hail of TTR splattered his position.

"Where'd they come from!?" He asked to no one in particular. He had seen them just in time: the cutouts of the two-meter-tall creatures that sported blue armor. Two of them had rushed out in a lateral intercept course to Duncan from wherever they were hiding. Their speed was incredible. They peppered his position with TTR and weren't letting up.

The two Elites were of the Minor Rank from what he could tell by occasionally peeking out. They fired bursts from one position then rushed over to new ones so that he couldn't get a bead on them.

Duncan noticed his timer was at 40 seconds. From what he had learned from the drill instructors, an ODST could handle a pod of Grunts or Jackals alone, but an Elite was a different story. For survival purposes, it was better to face one with at least a fireteam to back you up, even of you were an ODST. And here he was alone with two of them.

He was considering what to do next when he noticed something next to his foot, a rock the size of his fist.

Whether it was there by accident or on purpose it didn't matter because it gave him an idea. He picked it up, reeled back and tossed it to the Elite on his left. The cutout's sensors prompted it to move immediately, registering it as a grenade. Duncan used that against them. He had thrown it so that the only logical direction it could go to avoid it was closer to the other Elite. They were close enough for the frag grenade he threw between them a second later to take full effect.

The detonation produced shrapnel and an explosion big enough to envelope them both.

Duncan immediately strode out from his cover with weapon raised and advanced towards the smoke. As the haze cleared, he saw that one of the Elites who had been closer to the blast was down for the count. The other had its status light flashing yellow, meaning it was wounded but alive, still a threat.

The hardware the cutouts were made of could take a beating, even a grenade explosion. That said, the Elite cutouts were purposefully made more resistant to ballistic and explosive damage to accurately account for the strength of the energy shielding technology that the real ones implored on the battlefield.

Duncan rushed the wounded Elite, firing full auto into its center of mass as he ran. Its status light flickered more sporadically with each shot but it refused to flash red. The thing was still standing by the time his assault rifle clacked empty and he was too close to retreat. He leaped up and slammed the butt of his rifle into the Elite's chin. This time the status light winked red. It fell back from the blow. Thankfully, it stayed down.

Duncan couldn't allow himself to breathe easy just yet. The 20 seconds remaining on his timer prompted him to sprint across the courtyard

He reached the other side right as it hit zero.

"Cutting it close there with that last Elite." A female voice said over the room's PA system. "Overall, it's a job well done. I can't complain. Come back up here Private, asap."

Duncan turned towards the opaque viewing window on the far wall and snapped off a two fingered salute before jogging towards it.

Inside the observation room, the Staff watched as Duncan ran across the courtyard towards the exit. "I think he has what it takes to keep up with the rest of the squad. What do you think, Captain?"

He turned to the woman in question who was also watching the new ODST, both from the viewing window as well as the several screens showing camera feeds of the courtyard. Her steely gray eyes watched the displays depicting Duncan on replay at different angels, examining him. At length she ran her hand through her short, brunette hair in consideration.

"He's good." She said simply. "He'll definitely have to get some of his rough edges sharpened but at least we have a feel for his capabilities."

"I think that'll only come through experience."

Captain Harper and the Staff Sergeant turned to the origin of the voice. The hefty man standing behind them could have easily passed for a bodybuilder. Considering his lengthy routines in Falchion's gym as well as the muscles that bulged under his fatigues, he might as well qualify as one. Even for an ODST, Sergeant Joels was rather built. He stroked his thick beard in thought.

"Iron sharpens iron." He said. "In the same way, Hell molds a Helljumper. Got to give him some credit for using that rock to trick the sensors. It shows he's got some ingenuity. That might come in handy."

"Maybe so." The Staff said. "We'll just need him to be on his best game for whatever this mission is that Garrison wants us on."

"We'll all need to be on our best game, Atty." Harper said. "If it's as big a job as we think it is then everyone's going to need to give their top performance."

The squad leaders of 1st platoon had wanted to test Duncan individually then see how he fared with the rest of Epsilon. That plan had been scrubbed once Falchion's 2-foot tall AI appeared in the observation room while Duncan was still running the exercise. William explained to them that Garrison had specifically requested them for an important mission briefing. Harper had decided to wait until Duncan finished the course before the platoon took any action. She wanted to see what particular brand of crazy might be lurking in this Helljumper, and now she had a pretty good idea.

The door to the observation room opened and the BDU-clad ODST stepped in, saluting his higherups.

"At ease." Harper said. She allowed him to relax his stance. "If what you did in there is anything to go by, you should do just fine in this outfit. I warn you though that it doesn't mean you'll last long. This isn't Ravenport. You'll need to take whatever chance you can get to improve quickly. Out here, its do or die, so which would you rather prefer, trooper?"

"To do, mam." Duncan said. "And let the enemy handle the second one."

A partly impressed smile crossed Harper's face and she nodded to him, turning to the Staff. "I like him already."

"Thought you would, mam." The Staff said.

Harper pressed a button on the long console lining the viewing window which caused the entire thing to enter standby mode.

"We're leaving now." The Captain said. "Something's come up; a new mission we've been selected for. We won't have the time for another practice run with the rest of your squad. You'll simply have to work on integrating during this operation."

Duncan processed the new information quickly. "Understood mam."

"Alright." She said, addressing everyone. "Atty, Joe, are your squads still in place."

"They're still in the lobby." The Staff answered. "Right where we left them."

"I hope so." Joels sighed.

"Good." Harper said. "We'll link up with them and head to the briefing room. Whatever it is, let's get this job done, nice and smooth."

The Staff smirked. "Do we get it done any other way, cap?"

Imitatio - Imitation