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| Greetings, citizen! It takes some gall and wit to survive in our world. If you think you've got the courage to face some frightful situations, the balls (metaphorically) to stand up for what you believe, and the openmindedness to embrace every creed, color and sexuality that roams these vast deserts, then To Dust might be the place for you! Enlist! If you're already enlisted, what are you waiting for? Log your ass in! |
| ONE: The New Recruits | |
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| Tweet Topic Started: Nov 24 2013, 06:48 PM (2,700 Views) | |
| Rob | Nov 24 2013, 06:48 PM Post #1 |
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Asschicken
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[Note: Aaaand BEGIN!] Rob checked himself over one more time. Pants, pressed. Boots, shiny. Hair, in place. Good. He took a deep breath and steeled his face, judged his expression against the small mirror of the office wall. His face judged him back, but the serious expression looked pitifully out of place against his youthful features. He sighed. It would have to do. He took a cursory glance around the office to be sure that everything was in order. The convoy of transfers were coming in today, from March Town. Not just new recruits like before, although surely some would be new, but also other offices and really, Rob had no idea. But it would be interesting to see some new faces around. Perhaps even- Rob bit his lip and shook the thought away. Not the time. He left the office, head held higher than he actually felt, and made his way over to the Garage, where Alex- Captain Silvershield- was supposed to be prepping a truck for tomorrows raid into the City. "Alex!" Rob called, entering the garage, "You still here?!" |
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| Alex | Nov 24 2013, 10:46 PM Post #2 |
Peon
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From beyond the lift, Alex heard someone shouting. She had spent the last few hours with her hands burried into the inner workings of one of the many nigh-derilict transports Delta had been "issued". These hulks of scrap all "functioned"; just none of them functioned too well. There were always rumors among recruits that the millitary never threw anything away... the sight of the garage only tended to exaggerate these. Alex scrabbled out of the pit and came to attention beside the old transport she had been working on, presenting a stiff salute. "Major Oliver, Sir! All four jeeps have been inspected, Sir. I am finishing my inspection of our newest transport. I will have my report ready for you this afternoon." It was almost painful to describe the vehicle on the lift as new - the only thing that seemed to have been replaced since the last world war was the paint, and even then they just painted over the old coat. In places chips revealed several layers beneath, showing that this wasn't a new practice. "Any news on the new recruits, sir?" She asked. |
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| Rob | Nov 24 2013, 10:56 PM Post #3 |
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Asschicken
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Rob nodded, returning the salute with a grin. He knew both Alex's parents were pre-war military and wasn't quite used to the less formal practices of the Free World Army. "Rob," he reminded her, perhaps for the zillionth time, "Call me Rob. And we're still waiting on the convoy. Shouldn't take too much longer now." He wandered over to take a look at her work- great work, as per usual -and sighed. All of their scrounged materials were delivered from March Town to Alpha Base, where it was sorted, cataloged and passed out according to regulation. You'd think, considering how necessary Delta Base was, that they would be given more respectable equipment. Nope. "Do you think it'll be ready for transport, tomorrow?" he asked. It was a long trip to the city, several days there and back, and the last thing he wanted was his people stranded in the middle of the desert. OR worse- stranded in the City. |
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| Noodles | Nov 25 2013, 03:51 AM Post #4 |
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Queen
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Emmanuel grunted and clamped his hat down hard on his head as the rickety bus bounced across the rocky terrain. Dust billowed out on either side of the vehicle, the cracked windows doing a lousy job of keeping the grit on the outside. He didn't want his hat falling off and onto the dirty floor of the bus. He would look dusty enough upon arrival, and he wanted to make at least an attempt at a good impression to whoever would be receiving them. His eyes wandered over the rest of the passengers, and he grinned at anyone who made eye contact with him. Still, he kept a hand tightly gripped on his rucksack - couldn't be too careful, especially when most of what he owned was in that bag. He licked his lips in anticipation and hoped they would arrive at the base soon. |
| You can always count on a murderer for a fancy prose style. | |
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| Alex | Nov 25 2013, 10:04 PM Post #5 |
Peon
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Alex had to fight to stife a sigh. "Yeah, they'll be ready. The jeeps are all in working order, but I'm having some problems with this transport. They'll work alright, I just can't guarantee it'll be a quiet ride. Here, I'll show you what I mean." Stooping over, she pointed out a small clamp in the wheel well. "These brake pads are shot. Unfortunately, we'll have to take stops easy - there's no rubber left here. Any time the driver puts his foot on the brake, this beast'll squeal like a banshee. The jeeps are quite a bit better, but they're still quite worn. Everything is more or less here, but if something breaks while we're out on the field we may be screwed. I'm putting together a laundry list of nice things it would be to have for when we're out. Ive also got a few ideas I can try in the meantime, but I don't think I can do anything for the stopping power of this one." "I'd suggest if we can find anything we can strip for parts, we should bring it back. If I can get a couple of good guys we could convert the parts, make something work. Any news on the Petrol rations?" |
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| Rob | Nov 25 2013, 10:20 PM Post #6 |
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Asschicken
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"At least it runs," Rob offered, wincing as he mentally recalled the great Jeep debacle of last spring. "I put in for petrol, but it's scare, and we haven't found any in raids for a little while. Hopefully tomorrow's will be a little bit more forthcoming." He twitched nervously, he was never great with vehicles, didn't know a carburetor from a funungulator and made a mental note to add Alex to tomorrow's raid list. She'd know the parts, and he didn't want to waste the trip by bringing something back that didn't turn out as useful. "You do good work, Alex," Rob nodded, clapping her on the shoulder, as the sounds of engines filled the air. "And on that note..." Rob tipped his head in goodbye, and exited the garage, kicking up dust as he travelled the hard dirt ground over toward the gate. Just beyond, he spotted the convoy approached. A bus for the recruits and transfers, and a second transport for supplies. Good. They were getting low on food rations, and it was almost time for lunch. "Open the gates!" Rob hollered, and the Private on gate duty did so; the gate swinging wide and the convoy entered, stopping just inside. The gate closed, as the engines on the vehicles were killed and Rob stood physically at ease- if not mentally -and awaited to see the types of soldiers that had been sent to him. |
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| Noodles | Nov 26 2013, 12:32 AM Post #7 |
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Queen
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Emmanuel had to restrain himself from pressing up against the dirty windows once they pulled into the compound. Before the bus even came to a stop, he jumped up from his seat and jostled to the front of the line, and he was the first to step off of the bus. He pulled his ID - faked, being underage and all, but passable - out of his bag and other recruits filed out of the bus to get checked in. He scanned the base excitedly. There were only a couple of buildings, and even though everything had a bit of rust and dust to it, it still felt so official. Not to mention many of the officials were quite cute. He caught sight of a green eyes man and winked at him as they waited to be addressed. |
| You can always count on a murderer for a fancy prose style. | |
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| Rob | Nov 26 2013, 01:10 AM Post #8 |
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Asschicken
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Rob caught the wink, a heat of embarrassment rising to his face. The man was good-looking and some inappropriate ideas dashed across his mind, but he quickly pushed them away, assuring himself that it probably meant nothing. Of course it meant nothing, he chastised himself, He's new, they're all new, don't be an idiot. Chatter and the thump of boot against ground filled the air, and Rob frowned. The Free World Army was lax, more-so than pre-war military institutions, but that didn't mean they weren't any less official, or important. "To attention!" Rob shouted, above the noise. The group were startled into action, pulling themselves into a halp-hazard 4-line formation, adjacent the bus. Rob put on his best serious face and examined them harshly. Unathletic, undisciplined... He reached the man who had winked at him, and quickly moved by, not meeting his eyes. Through Rob's scrunity, the crowd grew quiet, an air of tension rising, and he hindered a smile, moving in front to address them. "I am Major Robin Oliver," he started. "You may call me Major Oliver, you may call me sir, and if you are off-duty, and only if you are off-duty, you might even get to call me Rob without me planting your face into the ground. I am the leader of Delta Base, my word is law. You will obey me, and your respect will not only extend to me, but to every other member of this camp. Any disrespect of any persons in this camp will not be tolerated. Male bunks are here-" Rob pointed toward the buildings as he spoke, "Female bunk, is there. You will travel to your bunk, put away your shit and meet in one hour at the Mess Hall for lunch. If you are late, you will not get lunch. No matter how true, if you state to the lunch staff that the food tastes like piss, then that is disrespectful. After lunch, the real work begins, and you are off-duty until then." He gave a quick once-over to the crowd, to see if any looked like they had questions. "Dismissed." And the crowd dispersed. |
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| Noodles | Nov 26 2013, 04:08 AM Post #9 |
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Queen
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After winking at the man, Emmanuel turned to look at the other new recruits. He'd have to start making friends, working in groups always made things easier, and he wanted only the very best. Before he could join in any of the chatter, though, an authoritative voice cut through the noise. His spine snapped straight at the call for attention, but it only served to make him grin. He slid into the first line of the formation, right in front to get a good view of the base. If it gave him a better view of the green eyed man, well, that was just a bonus. He wasn't disappointed when he breezed passed him, but it did make it harder to keep his eyes straight, rather than on... other parts. He managed to stay in some semblance of proper attention during Major Oliver's speech. He glanced at either bunk as they were pointed out and wondered about how the insides of each were divided. He didn't mind a lack of privacy that much, but he certainly didn't need anyone finding anything to betray his age. His hand clamped around his ID, but, to his surprise, they were dismissed without being checked in. Maybe those applications had just been for show. Well, no need to look a gift horse in the mouth. Stuffing the card back in his back, he slung the rucksack over his shoulder and jogged up to Major Oliver. He could catch up with the rest of the recruits later. "Major Rob," he greeted the man with a salute, testing the off-duty exception, but not quite ready to get his face shoved into the ground. "Name's Emmanuel Cruz. Honor to be here. Say, what kind of work are we getting up to after lunch?" |
| You can always count on a murderer for a fancy prose style. | |
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| crapshoot | Nov 26 2013, 08:25 AM Post #10 |
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(b)latent evil
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Gene was behind the armory, aimlessly chipping cement off the wall when the gates opened and a convoy stopped inside as people filed out. Are they the new recruits? The thought was confirmed as Gene saw the group form up at Major Oliver's command while he gave a brief speech. After being dismissed, a young man at the front caught Gene's eye as he approached the major. He seems like the playful type. I hope he'd like to talk to me ... Pfft, you're such a stalker, Gene thought to himself, looking away from the two men. Besides, I'm just yet another random soldier, not some bigshot like the major. |
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| Rob | Nov 26 2013, 03:32 PM Post #11 |
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Asschicken
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On the winking man's approach, Rob's throat went tight and he saluted back. Major Rob? Really? He resisted the urge to groan, the last thing he needed was another smartass. Especially one who was so- nope. Not going there. "Eager to get to work, Private?" Rob replied darkly, trying his very best to leave an authoritative impression, "Then why make you wait? Drop your pack at the men's barracks and report back here, ASAP. Always need more hands to help unload the new transports. Thank you for volunteering." Rob paused, shooting a glare over to Private Argent, near the armory, "That means you too, Gene! If you've got time to fuck about, you've got time to help your fellow man! Get your ass over here and help me unload this transport!" Looking away from Gene, Rob met Emmanuel's eyes, cocked an eyebrow, "And that's Major Oliver, to you, Private." Without waiting for a reply, Rob turned on his heel and headed for the transport vehicle. |
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| Noodles | Nov 26 2013, 05:05 PM Post #12 |
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Queen
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Wow, my very first orders! That's definitely one for the scrapbook. Emmanuel couldn't bring himself to be aghast at having to skip lunch, or at having to do work so soon. He actually was pretty eager to get to work, and even if he missed out on socializing with the new recruits, he'd at least have a chance to get to know those who'd been on base longer. "Roger that, Major Oliver!" he called to the man's back. He waved to Gene, thinking that this one looked nicer, before following Major Oliver to unload the transport. The boxes of supplies were too heavy for him, if his straining arms were any indication, but he put on a show of strength for his superior officer. |
| You can always count on a murderer for a fancy prose style. | |
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| Rob | Nov 26 2013, 05:20 PM Post #13 |
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Asschicken
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There were several boxes, but not half as many as Rob had hoped. He was vaguely impressed that the Private managed to unload as much as he did, considering how his arms shook. Not used to physical exertion, Rob noted. That'll change. He waved the driver off, signalling that everything was unloaded, and the driver nodded to him. They'd stay long enough to eat and then probably head back to March Town. Done with the driver, Rob lifted a box easily, gesturing for the Private and Gene to do the same, preparing to deliver it all to Storage. Out of the corner of his eye, he peered at the Private. He wanted to start a conversation, get to know the man a little better, but Rob was never good with general social interaction. He bit his lip, they were already beyond 'hello', so he had no idea where to even start. Edited by Rob, Nov 26 2013, 05:25 PM.
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| PandaGirl | Nov 26 2013, 06:00 PM Post #14 |
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Panda
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As Abigail climbed off the bus, she stood behind the other taller Male soldiers. Although she new her height was an advantage to her, it make her faster, quieter and ultimately deadlier, Many didn't see her that way. Her long red plait sat over her shoulder, her jacket opened at the front, revealing her Cropped Sports top. Abby didn't like people looking at her with nothing but a sports bra on, but she had decided that her ability to move around freely would be needed more than her need to cover her midriff. Although she was unseen, she still stood at attention and saluted with respect. She did as she was asked, picked up her small pack and dashed away to the female quarters hoping she could remain unseen until lunch. |
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| Noodles | Nov 26 2013, 06:58 PM Post #15 |
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Queen
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By the time they were done unloading the transport, Emmanuel's hair was stuck to his forehead with swear and his arms were shaking. It was a bit embarrassing, really, and he quickly wiped his brow when Major Oliver wasn't looking. He sucked in a breath, heaved up a box and struggled to keep pace with the Major. "Good thing I was here to help, Major," he wheezed through a smile. "I don't know how you would handle these with only one other man." |
| You can always count on a murderer for a fancy prose style. | |
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