Z
Zack
ON> Warehouse near the city's edge
Rubi was given a blue soldiers jacket and the rifle she asked for... one of much higher quality than the crude impliments scraped together by the rebels. It had fine lenses, an impressive leather case to keep the dust off it, and fired cartrages! Wasting so much metal on a casing would see wasteful to a soldier like her, but this is the kind of war they were now fighting. Her allies had access to more resources than the Rebels had ever seen, explosives, poisons, and rifles made by master craftsmen.... even so this all seemed to come up a bit short compared to what she was trying to face down.
Over the past few hours Soldiers were slowly gathering at a Warehouse just inside of the city limits. General Braith had sent out an order for remaining elements of the army to arrive here for new orders. Of the thousands upon thousands of soldiers the city used to be able to command, only a scant few hundred were willing to show up. Most were clothed in uniform, and many were unarmed except for knives or other small tools. For the most part there were no soldiers in the streets. Looters were still too afraid to come out as were the people, an eerie silence making the town feel like it had been entirely abandoned. The only real sign of life were the two guards at the main door to the warehouse. It was just about all that Braith could reasonably muster on short notice... dicipline was poor as was the security, but the only thing they were afraid of right now seemed to be the metal men.
"Soldiers... you have fought with distinction." Braith said, climbing up onto a small stage where a podium awaited him.
"But our enemy is no longer the rebels at our gate, or the metal men who have arrived from above. Things have changed suddenly, and unexpectedly, but they have changed. We can no longer view this world through the lenses of the past. Our way forward is to work with our visitors. Our government will be rebuilt, and we will once again command our own destiny. I have asked one of them to meet us here today. Please listen to what he will have to say."
Receiving everything she was asked for, Rubi donned the blue jacket she was given over her vest and wore a bandanna to hide the lower half of her face. As for a hat, she scavenged a stentson off one of the corpses who were killed not to fire from the front during the initial invasion and wore it to hide the rest of her face. With her disguised completed she moved to the enter the warehouse with the rifle slung over her shoulder, eyeing the surrounding the buildings as she pushed into the crowd while listening the speech.
Braith would pull away from the podium, to let a tall man dressed in grey fatigues and a black trench coat on stage. "Good morning gentlemen. My name is Raphael Castiel. I know that all that has happened in the past few weeks has been... jarring to say the least." He said, beginning to pace. "Your world as you know it has been turned upside down. There are other sentient beings out in the universe, some more friendly than others. That is why I have brought you all here. I am here to train you all. I am going turn you all into elite intelligence operators and analysts. You will be the eyes and ears, and on occasion weapons of your world. To learn about your new world that has opened up for you." He stopped pacing and looked back at them. "And to protect it from the new threats hiding in the dark." He paused looking across the assembled men. This is not mandatory. I will accept volunteers. If you don't want to protect your world and it's people there's the door." He added gesturing to the warehouse doors. "So, anyone want to leave?"
Despite the offer, Rubi remained in the warehouse with everyone else. She didn't remember hearing about a Raphael Castiel but it would seem to be a bad idea to leave him alive to replace Braith... But Braith comes first for right now. Seeing what Raphael's like would make it easier to take him out when the time comes. For now, she was another soldier looking to see what this man...thing, had to offer.
It seemed that everyone was content to stay in the warehouse, at least for the time being. There was a slight murmur raising up from the crowd, no doubt plenty of people quietly questioning what was going on but no one was quite ready to raise a hand against them just yet.
Raphael smiled. "Good, at least you mean have a spine." He said jumping from the podem and landing in front of the men. "You men will become the first line of defense for your world. You people will become the stuff of legends. The galaxy will speak your names with fear and admiration." He said spreading his arms wide. "You will be infamous, you will bring honor to your families and to your planet." He said crossing his arms. "Now, any questions?" He asked with a raised eyebrow
"WHY'D YOU COME HERE!?" Someone finally yelled out from the back of the crowd.
Raphael smirked as if knowing this question would come up. "We are here because we need you. We need your man power to create an empire that will stretch across the stars. In return we will jump your technology ahead hundreds of years. We can cure your sick, bring you prosperity, and bring you security that you could have never dreamed of. What's more we want to unite your people under a single banner. Your entire world under one flag. No more killing each other. We will give you a purpose. A chance at a better life." He said smiling.
As the crowd murmured again, Braith would go back to the podium overlooking their visitor, a grin on his face. "This is an opportunity for more than our old government could EVER give us. Better homes, better food, wealth, power... and you all will be getting in at the start of this great enterprise."
The crowd seemed a bit more appeased, though the mood was still tense. Braith would look down at Raphael and ask,
"What would you have them do?"
Rubi waited, almost wide-eyed at the opportunity in front of her. A chance at a better life, probably better than just killing people for a cash grab. What would mother think?... Focus, she thought to herself. Braith needed to be killed and Raphael needed to be dealt with as soon as the chance presented itself. The resistance needed her. The resistance that didn't even trust her... She stood there, waiting for what the stranger wanted the group to do.
Raphael nodded at Braith. "I am going to run you through rigorous testing. Those who test high in certain areas will become analysts. You will be in charge of sifting through data and determining what someone is planning to do. You will be able to tell me what someone is planning based on troop movements, supply requests, recorded conversations etc. The other half of this coin will be the operators. Operators will be inserted on other worlds, given the task to infiltrate a certain government or organization. You will then create contacts and set up ways to take information from under your targets nose. You will then send that info to the analysts. I will also create one last group. This group will be the best out of you all. These people will be sent on high risk, high reward mission. They will be the silent weapons. They will eliminate threats before they can become strong enough to threaten us." He said looking over the assembled men again.
"I think these men are up to the challenge. I do not see them leaving... though I suppose there isn't much out there for them at this point." Braith said.
"Quite true Mr. Braith." Raphael said with a somber look. He then looked over the assembled men. "Now, how this will work. I will be your commanding officer. The leader of this organization will hold the title of Director. Under me will be two Generals, under them will be four Colonels and so on..." Raph said begin to elaborate on the rank structure of the organization.
"And I assume you will be picking who holds those positions?" Braith asked.
"You will hold one of the General positions Braith. The other will be for the one who shows me that they have the most leadership potential." Raph replied. He looked out amongst the crowd. "I want who ever held command positions to step forward. Commissioned and NCOs." He said
Rubi stepped forward among several other men. To hell with Grant and his doubting, she was going to multitask this mission. She techincally an officer within the Syndicate itself and did lead a few teams of mercenaries before the war, but the mission she pulled off a few days earlier was about the most she had done with leadership. Still, bound to be better than some of the regular officers here.
Raphael paced. He knew that some of these people were only trying to get themselves an early promotion. "All right. You all follow me. General, dismiss these men. Tell them to report back in a week." He said as he looked at his new officers. "I will test and see just how well you can lead. Do well and I will make you my high ranking officers. But trust me." He said with a stern look. "This accelerated training will be difficult. But, for those who succeed, you will be rewarded greatly." He said with a smirk.
And with that, Rubi saw her chance to get in deep with the invaders. This was probably going to throw up a lot of red flags for to the Resistance, but she'll prove them to them her loyalty. And if they wouldn't believe her then had quite the ace in her pocket to make them regret it. Several more thoughts about what to do swirled through her head as she followed Raphael.
Raphael led the group out to a set of smaller buildings near the warehouse. Raphael was quiet as they walked, occasionally looking back to make sure they were still following. The small building looked like it was meant for offices. The entire building had been gutted and turned into a classroom. Several rows of desks all had a piece of paper and a pencil. "You will all be tested on your ability to lead. If you don't pass this exam then you will be sent back with the standard recruits." He said nodding towards the seats. "Begin the test please." The test was a personality test. No wrong answers, but said a lot about someone.
Rubi seemed perplexed by this somewhat. Is this how they decide leaders where ever they were from? Surely this is some sort of joke. She filled out some tactics based question like how to approach smoking out an enemy or what positions would be best for a defensive stand with her own knowledge. When it came to the ethical questions like is there a how to treat civilians who sympathize with the enemy or how many men should be sacrificed for smaller, more specialized group to infiltrate a position, she hesitated for a moment. Ethical concerns were never much her strong suit if the half-burnt city meant anything. She decided to use Grant as an example, answering the questions with what he would've done.
Raph silently watched as they took their tests. He silently evaluated each of them. He could easily spot those who were only attempting an early promotion. They looked around, wondering what was going on. As everyone finished he took their tests and placed them on a desk in the front. He grabbed another set of papers and placed it out. When he handed it to them, it was blank. "I have given all of you a blank sheet of paper. Tell me why you're here. Why should I even consider you for my officers? Why should I waste my time?" He said taking a seat on the desk.
Rubi seemed to struggle with this part a little more. The first question was easy, it was the same excuse she used for her original job as a bounty hunter: To assist in restoring the law and order of the land as much has possible. The next part was harder for her. There will a million things could be said, but it would be bad to bluff her way in. Everyone else in the room probably had more military experience than herself... But none of would probably understand just how a underdog rebel would react. She took a quick couple of glances around the room, remembering that most of these men were government officers, they were trained most of their careers to fight armies, not vagabond rebels! She put that down in her answer. She knew how and underdog force would fight and conduct themselves among these new overlords.
Raphael patiently waited as they wrote down their responses. He gathered the papers and set them in another pile. After that he opened the door and pointed outside. "Good, time for PT. Get moving recruits, day lights burning and I don't have all day!" He yelled in his best drill sgt voice. "I want three row of five. Hurry it up people!"
Rubi blinked before stepping in a line between a man who seemed like he spent most of his like bare-knuckle boxing with how torn-up and tatted has hands were and another who was almost burly enough to have been a canonner.
"Good that wasn't hard now was it?" He pointed to the edge of the nearby forest. And by near by, that meant two miles... "I want your sorry asses to run to the forest and back. Gives me time to grade your papers. Now move it recruits! I don't have all day." He said pointing in the direction they needed to start running.
And with that, the group started running. Rubi kept in pace between the men, almost ready to run over the boxer in front of her. The first mile went about easy for the group, the second mile on the other began show a bit of a toll on some more out-of-shape of the group. Some of them began lagging behind by a few paces. As they turned back and began the two miles back, the distance began to widen between the group and those who were already lagging. Rubi on other hand didn't have much a problem with keeping up. She already made a mad dash at almost the same length while being shot at a few days earlier. By the time group returned, about 43 minutes had passed.
As they ran, Raph began to grade the papers. He quickly scanned each one, throwing out the obvious idiots. Once he finished he had ten officers left. 'It's a start...' he thought dry as he stepped outside. He watched as the first set of people began to arrive back. He gave approving nods to those who had made it back first and told them to get some water. As they stragglers arrived he became more and more angry. "Let's go ladies! How did you bastards make it through basic?" He waited until everyone arrived to begin speaking again. He held out their stack of papers. "I have reviewed your tests. Some of you have a real knack for leadership and tactics." He then held out another stack of papers. He threw this est into the air. Threw the large stack of paper into the wind. "While some of you haven't a damn clue." He held up the first stack of papers. "I will read the names off of here. If your name isn't on it, get the fuck out of my sight." He began to rattle off the names. He called out the first nine names, each man stepping forward. He looked up as he read the last name. "Rubi! That is it. The rest of you get the hell out! My ten recruits back in the classroom." He said turning and walking back into the room.
The men looked around, confused at hearing a woman's name. Rubi took off her bandana and stentson with a smirk, tossing them to the side as she walked in to join the others in the classroom.
Raphael smiled as they all walked in. "Welcome boys and girl. You are now on the path to become the first set of commissioned officers. We will have to preforem an accelerated training program to get you on the field as soon as possible. I can't train an army myself can I?" He asked with a smirk. "Go home, get some rest, and say good bye to your loved ones, because after today you are going to go through hell. Come back safe so I can mold you into damn fine officers. If anyone has questions feel free to saty behind and ask. Otherwise you are dismissed." He said with a wave of his hand.
Rubi didn't really want to stick around but it was ill advised to head back to meet with the rebels at this point. She left and decided rent out a hotel room not to far from the warehouse she was just at. As the day turned to night, she did one last thing before retiring for the night. She returned back to one of the dead drop sites the Procurer used, leaving only a small note before returning back to the hotel.
[qupte]"Don't panic. Party will be delayed for an indefinite time, need to spend some more time with the guests. New party plan has been identified. - Solder."[/quote]
Rubi was given a blue soldiers jacket and the rifle she asked for... one of much higher quality than the crude impliments scraped together by the rebels. It had fine lenses, an impressive leather case to keep the dust off it, and fired cartrages! Wasting so much metal on a casing would see wasteful to a soldier like her, but this is the kind of war they were now fighting. Her allies had access to more resources than the Rebels had ever seen, explosives, poisons, and rifles made by master craftsmen.... even so this all seemed to come up a bit short compared to what she was trying to face down.
Over the past few hours Soldiers were slowly gathering at a Warehouse just inside of the city limits. General Braith had sent out an order for remaining elements of the army to arrive here for new orders. Of the thousands upon thousands of soldiers the city used to be able to command, only a scant few hundred were willing to show up. Most were clothed in uniform, and many were unarmed except for knives or other small tools. For the most part there were no soldiers in the streets. Looters were still too afraid to come out as were the people, an eerie silence making the town feel like it had been entirely abandoned. The only real sign of life were the two guards at the main door to the warehouse. It was just about all that Braith could reasonably muster on short notice... dicipline was poor as was the security, but the only thing they were afraid of right now seemed to be the metal men.
"Soldiers... you have fought with distinction." Braith said, climbing up onto a small stage where a podium awaited him.
"But our enemy is no longer the rebels at our gate, or the metal men who have arrived from above. Things have changed suddenly, and unexpectedly, but they have changed. We can no longer view this world through the lenses of the past. Our way forward is to work with our visitors. Our government will be rebuilt, and we will once again command our own destiny. I have asked one of them to meet us here today. Please listen to what he will have to say."
Receiving everything she was asked for, Rubi donned the blue jacket she was given over her vest and wore a bandanna to hide the lower half of her face. As for a hat, she scavenged a stentson off one of the corpses who were killed not to fire from the front during the initial invasion and wore it to hide the rest of her face. With her disguised completed she moved to the enter the warehouse with the rifle slung over her shoulder, eyeing the surrounding the buildings as she pushed into the crowd while listening the speech.
Braith would pull away from the podium, to let a tall man dressed in grey fatigues and a black trench coat on stage. "Good morning gentlemen. My name is Raphael Castiel. I know that all that has happened in the past few weeks has been... jarring to say the least." He said, beginning to pace. "Your world as you know it has been turned upside down. There are other sentient beings out in the universe, some more friendly than others. That is why I have brought you all here. I am here to train you all. I am going turn you all into elite intelligence operators and analysts. You will be the eyes and ears, and on occasion weapons of your world. To learn about your new world that has opened up for you." He stopped pacing and looked back at them. "And to protect it from the new threats hiding in the dark." He paused looking across the assembled men. This is not mandatory. I will accept volunteers. If you don't want to protect your world and it's people there's the door." He added gesturing to the warehouse doors. "So, anyone want to leave?"
Despite the offer, Rubi remained in the warehouse with everyone else. She didn't remember hearing about a Raphael Castiel but it would seem to be a bad idea to leave him alive to replace Braith... But Braith comes first for right now. Seeing what Raphael's like would make it easier to take him out when the time comes. For now, she was another soldier looking to see what this man...thing, had to offer.
It seemed that everyone was content to stay in the warehouse, at least for the time being. There was a slight murmur raising up from the crowd, no doubt plenty of people quietly questioning what was going on but no one was quite ready to raise a hand against them just yet.
Raphael smiled. "Good, at least you mean have a spine." He said jumping from the podem and landing in front of the men. "You men will become the first line of defense for your world. You people will become the stuff of legends. The galaxy will speak your names with fear and admiration." He said spreading his arms wide. "You will be infamous, you will bring honor to your families and to your planet." He said crossing his arms. "Now, any questions?" He asked with a raised eyebrow
"WHY'D YOU COME HERE!?" Someone finally yelled out from the back of the crowd.
Raphael smirked as if knowing this question would come up. "We are here because we need you. We need your man power to create an empire that will stretch across the stars. In return we will jump your technology ahead hundreds of years. We can cure your sick, bring you prosperity, and bring you security that you could have never dreamed of. What's more we want to unite your people under a single banner. Your entire world under one flag. No more killing each other. We will give you a purpose. A chance at a better life." He said smiling.
As the crowd murmured again, Braith would go back to the podium overlooking their visitor, a grin on his face. "This is an opportunity for more than our old government could EVER give us. Better homes, better food, wealth, power... and you all will be getting in at the start of this great enterprise."
The crowd seemed a bit more appeased, though the mood was still tense. Braith would look down at Raphael and ask,
"What would you have them do?"
Rubi waited, almost wide-eyed at the opportunity in front of her. A chance at a better life, probably better than just killing people for a cash grab. What would mother think?... Focus, she thought to herself. Braith needed to be killed and Raphael needed to be dealt with as soon as the chance presented itself. The resistance needed her. The resistance that didn't even trust her... She stood there, waiting for what the stranger wanted the group to do.
Raphael nodded at Braith. "I am going to run you through rigorous testing. Those who test high in certain areas will become analysts. You will be in charge of sifting through data and determining what someone is planning to do. You will be able to tell me what someone is planning based on troop movements, supply requests, recorded conversations etc. The other half of this coin will be the operators. Operators will be inserted on other worlds, given the task to infiltrate a certain government or organization. You will then create contacts and set up ways to take information from under your targets nose. You will then send that info to the analysts. I will also create one last group. This group will be the best out of you all. These people will be sent on high risk, high reward mission. They will be the silent weapons. They will eliminate threats before they can become strong enough to threaten us." He said looking over the assembled men again.
"I think these men are up to the challenge. I do not see them leaving... though I suppose there isn't much out there for them at this point." Braith said.
"Quite true Mr. Braith." Raphael said with a somber look. He then looked over the assembled men. "Now, how this will work. I will be your commanding officer. The leader of this organization will hold the title of Director. Under me will be two Generals, under them will be four Colonels and so on..." Raph said begin to elaborate on the rank structure of the organization.
"And I assume you will be picking who holds those positions?" Braith asked.
"You will hold one of the General positions Braith. The other will be for the one who shows me that they have the most leadership potential." Raph replied. He looked out amongst the crowd. "I want who ever held command positions to step forward. Commissioned and NCOs." He said
Rubi stepped forward among several other men. To hell with Grant and his doubting, she was going to multitask this mission. She techincally an officer within the Syndicate itself and did lead a few teams of mercenaries before the war, but the mission she pulled off a few days earlier was about the most she had done with leadership. Still, bound to be better than some of the regular officers here.
Raphael paced. He knew that some of these people were only trying to get themselves an early promotion. "All right. You all follow me. General, dismiss these men. Tell them to report back in a week." He said as he looked at his new officers. "I will test and see just how well you can lead. Do well and I will make you my high ranking officers. But trust me." He said with a stern look. "This accelerated training will be difficult. But, for those who succeed, you will be rewarded greatly." He said with a smirk.
And with that, Rubi saw her chance to get in deep with the invaders. This was probably going to throw up a lot of red flags for to the Resistance, but she'll prove them to them her loyalty. And if they wouldn't believe her then had quite the ace in her pocket to make them regret it. Several more thoughts about what to do swirled through her head as she followed Raphael.
Raphael led the group out to a set of smaller buildings near the warehouse. Raphael was quiet as they walked, occasionally looking back to make sure they were still following. The small building looked like it was meant for offices. The entire building had been gutted and turned into a classroom. Several rows of desks all had a piece of paper and a pencil. "You will all be tested on your ability to lead. If you don't pass this exam then you will be sent back with the standard recruits." He said nodding towards the seats. "Begin the test please." The test was a personality test. No wrong answers, but said a lot about someone.
Rubi seemed perplexed by this somewhat. Is this how they decide leaders where ever they were from? Surely this is some sort of joke. She filled out some tactics based question like how to approach smoking out an enemy or what positions would be best for a defensive stand with her own knowledge. When it came to the ethical questions like is there a how to treat civilians who sympathize with the enemy or how many men should be sacrificed for smaller, more specialized group to infiltrate a position, she hesitated for a moment. Ethical concerns were never much her strong suit if the half-burnt city meant anything. She decided to use Grant as an example, answering the questions with what he would've done.
Raph silently watched as they took their tests. He silently evaluated each of them. He could easily spot those who were only attempting an early promotion. They looked around, wondering what was going on. As everyone finished he took their tests and placed them on a desk in the front. He grabbed another set of papers and placed it out. When he handed it to them, it was blank. "I have given all of you a blank sheet of paper. Tell me why you're here. Why should I even consider you for my officers? Why should I waste my time?" He said taking a seat on the desk.
Rubi seemed to struggle with this part a little more. The first question was easy, it was the same excuse she used for her original job as a bounty hunter: To assist in restoring the law and order of the land as much has possible. The next part was harder for her. There will a million things could be said, but it would be bad to bluff her way in. Everyone else in the room probably had more military experience than herself... But none of would probably understand just how a underdog rebel would react. She took a quick couple of glances around the room, remembering that most of these men were government officers, they were trained most of their careers to fight armies, not vagabond rebels! She put that down in her answer. She knew how and underdog force would fight and conduct themselves among these new overlords.
Raphael patiently waited as they wrote down their responses. He gathered the papers and set them in another pile. After that he opened the door and pointed outside. "Good, time for PT. Get moving recruits, day lights burning and I don't have all day!" He yelled in his best drill sgt voice. "I want three row of five. Hurry it up people!"
Rubi blinked before stepping in a line between a man who seemed like he spent most of his like bare-knuckle boxing with how torn-up and tatted has hands were and another who was almost burly enough to have been a canonner.
"Good that wasn't hard now was it?" He pointed to the edge of the nearby forest. And by near by, that meant two miles... "I want your sorry asses to run to the forest and back. Gives me time to grade your papers. Now move it recruits! I don't have all day." He said pointing in the direction they needed to start running.
And with that, the group started running. Rubi kept in pace between the men, almost ready to run over the boxer in front of her. The first mile went about easy for the group, the second mile on the other began show a bit of a toll on some more out-of-shape of the group. Some of them began lagging behind by a few paces. As they turned back and began the two miles back, the distance began to widen between the group and those who were already lagging. Rubi on other hand didn't have much a problem with keeping up. She already made a mad dash at almost the same length while being shot at a few days earlier. By the time group returned, about 43 minutes had passed.
As they ran, Raph began to grade the papers. He quickly scanned each one, throwing out the obvious idiots. Once he finished he had ten officers left. 'It's a start...' he thought dry as he stepped outside. He watched as the first set of people began to arrive back. He gave approving nods to those who had made it back first and told them to get some water. As they stragglers arrived he became more and more angry. "Let's go ladies! How did you bastards make it through basic?" He waited until everyone arrived to begin speaking again. He held out their stack of papers. "I have reviewed your tests. Some of you have a real knack for leadership and tactics." He then held out another stack of papers. He threw this est into the air. Threw the large stack of paper into the wind. "While some of you haven't a damn clue." He held up the first stack of papers. "I will read the names off of here. If your name isn't on it, get the fuck out of my sight." He began to rattle off the names. He called out the first nine names, each man stepping forward. He looked up as he read the last name. "Rubi! That is it. The rest of you get the hell out! My ten recruits back in the classroom." He said turning and walking back into the room.
The men looked around, confused at hearing a woman's name. Rubi took off her bandana and stentson with a smirk, tossing them to the side as she walked in to join the others in the classroom.
Raphael smiled as they all walked in. "Welcome boys and girl. You are now on the path to become the first set of commissioned officers. We will have to preforem an accelerated training program to get you on the field as soon as possible. I can't train an army myself can I?" He asked with a smirk. "Go home, get some rest, and say good bye to your loved ones, because after today you are going to go through hell. Come back safe so I can mold you into damn fine officers. If anyone has questions feel free to saty behind and ask. Otherwise you are dismissed." He said with a wave of his hand.
Rubi didn't really want to stick around but it was ill advised to head back to meet with the rebels at this point. She left and decided rent out a hotel room not to far from the warehouse she was just at. As the day turned to night, she did one last thing before retiring for the night. She returned back to one of the dead drop sites the Procurer used, leaving only a small note before returning back to the hotel.
[qupte]"Don't panic. Party will be delayed for an indefinite time, need to spend some more time with the guests. New party plan has been identified. - Solder."[/quote]
