Boot 3:
Porphyrogénnētos
You walked over to Team Purple and was honestly very surprised by the three members that were greeting you.
Daisy waved and gave a smile as you walked over. "Hey." She said softly, looking at you with an exhausted, but otherwise happy gaze on her face. She was… coping with the last few hours well. She seemed like she was sore, tired, and exhausted, but being among other people made her happy, despite her fear.
"Hi." you replied, feeling a total sense of discomfort from saying hello. The people around you certainly were… different.
Ralph… he was jittery, looking up at the sky and otherwise wishing he was not there to deal with… the situation all of you were present in. and despite the short brown hair and the otherwise jittery attitude, he was also quite… well… normal.
Normal as one could get in this place. He was tired and wanted to go home to his parents, you could see that in his eyes. He was scared.
"Hey." Ralph said, giving a nod before he looked back to the Course that was in front of you.
The only one who was not scared… was Caleb.
He looked at you, and you saw the very large scar that went up and around his head, from his chin to the top of his skull, like he had been in an accident. On his shoulder, he wore a small piece of purple cloth, and it was tied to his shirt.
"Hello." Gave a curt and quick smile. "Put this on everyone." He then handed over three other purple cloths.
You knew something was going to happen. So you did as he asked.
"You seem calm." You stated to Caleb, who was quietly looking at you. Well, more glaring at you with a hopeful gaze in his eyes, before turning to Blue Team.
"I'm not scared, fear is…" He paused. "For others, not for us."
You shook your head. "It's natural to feel afraid."
Caleb then smiled. "I don't need to, I have you guys."
"OKAY BOOT! WELCOME TO THE PLAYGROUND!" Mendez stated. "THIS IS AN OBSTACLE COURSE! YOU WILL CROSS THE COURSE AND RING THE BELL!"
There was quietness amongst the recruits. "THE FIRST TEAM TO REACH THE END OF THE COURSE WILL GET A NICE FEAST TONIGHT OF MASHED POTATOES, HAM, STRING BEANS AND ICE CREAM!"
The thought of Ice cream made your stomach growl in hunger. How long has it been since you had some?
Damn, now you needed to be in the top three teams, if only for the ice cream alone.
"BUT IF YOU ARE THE LAST TEAM, YOU WILL GO WITHOUT DINNER TONIGHT!"
You looked at the obstacle course. It was a long course of balance, climbing, and momentum places, with obstacles that require multiple people to get across.
Light gave a whistle. "Oh, bribing you with food, a classic psychological trick… are you going to fall for your body's most basic instincts because of sweets?"
"Yes. It's ice cream." You found yourself saying aloud.
Light chuckled. "Good point. Kick some ass Gian. And help the team, you need them, just as much as they need you."
You and your team took position as you waited.
Bring it on.
A Starting Shot:
1D100 => 78
You then realized and remembered the words that the Chief said. "Hey, we need to work together." You said.
Caleb smiled, but he said nothing, and with a quick nod, Daisy tilted her head sideways and Ralph huffed.
"Who died and made you a leader?" Ralph asked.
You gestured your head over to Mendez. "Our childhood." The bluntness of the statement made Ralph shiver. "Listen, we may be in a shitty situation, but we have to make the most of it and work with each other, or we don't get to eat." you pause. "And I don't know about you, but I want ice cream tonight at dinner."
Ralph for his part, nodded. "Alright, what's the plan?"
You looked at the obstacle course. "I don't know… to be honest, I didn't think I would get you all to listen on the first try… I actually didn't expect to get this far."
"Well, you got my attention," Daisy stated. "So, What's the plan?"
"Light help?" You silently whispered to your companion.
"Oh no, you walked into this yourself, you need to get through this yourself." Light replied.
"I hate you." You groaned.
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You stood at the starting line, and your team was all ready to go.
"GO!" Mendez shouted.
And 74 children took off running, while one single person, a kid you did not see shoot off like a canon, leaving his team in the dust, and quickly reached the first section of the Course before everyone else.
Section 1:
1D100 => 85+5 (A Temporary Trust)=90
The first section was a balancing bridge, a thin redwood log that was about twenty meters across. Your team all held hands and Ralph, ever the sure-footed, grabbed your wrist before you fell face-first into the mud.
"Left, right, left," Ralph stated. "Don't forget that."
"Thanks." You replied.
You looked forward to seeing that the kid from earlier was already halfway through the second part of the course.
Second Section:
1D100 => 64+5=69
The second section was a wall that was far too large to climb on your own. How the kid managed to climb it alone. You chalked it up to either Adrenaline, extreme skill, or just plain fucking luck. You hate to call it luck, but there was no other way to explain it.
"How is he so fast?" Daisy asked as you reached the wall.
"Don't focus on that, he's going to lose." you replied.
You took a moment to study the wall… It was impossible to reach the top alone… but not with a team.
"Ralph, let me on your shoulders!" You barked.
That was when Caleb crouched down and held his hands in a cup. "Better way." He stated.
You nodded, placing your foot into his hands, and pushed up, reaching as high as you could.
Your fingers gripped the top of the wall and you lifted with all your might to get up, feeling your muscles strain in pain as you pulled your legs over the top.
You stopped and breathed heavily… before you offered a hand down. "Come on!"
Daisy took your hand, and you helped her up. Then Caleb, and then Ralph.
Your body felt like it was going to fail you. Your heart was pumping erratically like it could not maintain the blood flow… your breathing shallow.
But it did not, as your wrists were grabbed by your team, and you climbed to the top.
You had lost some time, and another team had passed you. That boy who had passed you was at the bell now.
That idiot didn't have his team with him.
Third Section:
1D100 => 76+5=81
The Last Section… was… Well outlandish.
Ten instructors armed with pistols… were pointing them at the third Section... crawling under Barbed wire, in muddy water.
Wonderful.
When you got down, they shot you.
It was a blank bullet, but it hurt nonetheless.
They were willing to shoot children.
You were going to complain… greatly… if the next round wasn't a bullet to the back, and it was real… or worse, in the head.
"I've been shot in the head before by an anti Tank weapon… though I was wearing power armor at the time, so… It didn't hurt that much." Light stated as if he heard your thoughts.
But you managed to get through… Somehow, without getting shot.
At the bell, the one kid who was in front was there… he had rung the bell without his team, and… Mendez did not look happy.
The Bell:
1D100 => 98+5=103 Placing:
1D3 => 1
You reached the bell next, and with a little bit of hopping, and a bit of climbing on shoulders… you managed to reach the bell.
"WE HAVE ONE WINNER!" Mendez shouted.
He looked impressed… at least you thought he looked impressed. His stone-faced barking was… very hard to read.
The next team that won was Red Team: Fred-104, Linda-58, Will-043
And the third team to win was Green team Li-006, Anton-044, Grace-093.
"ALRIGHT THAT'S ENOUGH. WE HAVE OUR WINNERS!" Mendez stated. "ALL OF YOU FINISH THE COURSE AND RUN BACK TO BARRACKS! BLUE TEAM WILL NOT HAVE DINNER TONIGHT!"
You felt pity for Blue Team, just slightly, but you were more concerned about eating food and making sure everyone was alright.
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You ate well that night… and the next day, you saw Blue Team win it all.
Whatever Mendez said to John 117 stuck…
He was just a little late to the whole idea.
Somehow, you thought he was going to be a good leader.
Reward: Team Purple Formed. Brothers in Arms Met. Daisy-023, Caleb-095, Ralph-103.
You have been noticed.
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What do you do for training Before the next Arc in Boot:
(Note, these are skills.)
Choose 2 that are not chosen for you
[X]Soldiering: You are going to learn how to be a soldier, so that means marching in formation, shooting, and teamwork
[X]Riflemanship: You are being taught how to use, maintain, and clean a standard battle rifle.
[]Battlefield Tactics: You are going to learn how to command people on the battlefield.
[]Robotics: "Do not rely on this machine to win your battles."
[]Hand to Hand: Time to learn how to fight well.
[]Vehicles: "Technically You are not supposed to learn how to drive until you are ten...but Fuck what Ackerson thinks."
[]Piloting: "Good thing we have flight sims."
[]Cybernetics: There were a few cool movies you saw. Scary ones but the way the hero replaced his limbs with robotic ones was amazing.
[]Information Warfare: You want to learn how to use computers to destroy the enemy.
[]Starship Tactics: You want to learn how to lead a battlefleet. It feels… right.
[]Spycraft: You want to be a Spy.
[]Engineering: Light wants to… Well, he doesn't know why, but the one thing he was never able to do was engineering… You are going to change that.
[]Weapons Mastery: You want to learn to use all the weapons on base, to proficiency.
You have some free time on Sundays… something about military tradition or something, what do you do with it.
Choose 4
[]Spend time with Purple Team: You are going to learn how your team operates, and get to know them. Caleb for one, has… something interesting going on. Daisy is a thief that likes shiny things, and Ralph is...well, Ralph. He likes explosives more than you care to admit.
[]Spend Time with another Team: You want to spend time with your other spartans. They are your family now. (Write in a Team Below this option)
[]The Black Market: It seems that Linda and Daisy are going to start a Black Market of Contraband goods. Might as well give them some help and pointers for base security.
[]Request to Speak to Dr. Halsey: You wish to speak to the good Doctor, and see how much has changed since your last encounter.
[]Psychological Evaluation: You have been requested to take a Psych Evaluation. (Note, not taking it now, will not harm you, but you must take it in the next two turns, or lose actions)
[]Go for a walk: You know what you're tired of being on base, you're going for a walk.
[]Gamble with the security group: You have nothing better to do, might as well build a reputation.
[]Talk to Chief Petty Officer Mendez: There are some questions you wish to ask. Like why is he acting like an asshole to a bunch of children who are clearly frightened and are not coping with the situation?
[]Snooping Around: Oh what is this, an unlocked door, and a computer that is open… don't mind if I do?
[]Request to Speak to the Commanding Officer: You want to talk to the commander in charge about the legality of this operation, and how to avoid problems. Because you can tell there will clearly be problems with this operation. If not from you, then from the dozens of children there.
[]To Plan and Plot: You are going to make the Marines who live here… at least their lives, a living hell. You have a sneaking suspicion that Mendez wants them to get angry at you, and try to attack you when the Spartans least suspect it. You are not going to allow that, so you are going to make sure they don't have any malice towards you... so you will know for certain if it is the marines acting on their own prerogative, or orders.
AN: Enjoy and Please, Vote in Plan format