(( Made a minor adjustment to my previous post -- three people just seemed too small for a proper squad, so I edited to increase it to four. It'll at least allow more interaction within the group... ))
Anonymouse wrote:For about a half an hour, the CTC crew doesn't seem to pick up much of anything at all. There's background radiation, of course, but it's just the normal mix of minor color contaminants, faint nuclear fallout, and wild magic that one gets by scanning anywhere around Muffinville...no real signs of anything special.
Of the four CTC soldiers, the scientist seems to be the most active, walking around the area with her sensors excitedly in an effort to determine what might have occured. The EDU robot simply stands at attention, while the older of the two male soldiers simply finds a tree to lean against. The younger shifts a bit uneasily, glancing around in concern, until he finally provokes a sigh from the older soldier.
"Listen, kid, if something's gonna happen, it's gonna happen. We're here to make sure if anything does happen, the professor doesn't get hurt. No sense fretting about it until it happens, though."
The younger soldier swallows. "Well... I understand that, sir, but... I've heard a lot of stories about what kinds of things can happen around here."
The older one looks over his charge. "How long have you been here, kid?" he asks.
"Seven months, sir, although I've mostly been doing VR training and patrol duty in Academy City. This is my first field assignment in Muffinville proper."
The other soldier chuckles. "Ahhh, I see. And it's got you worried?"
The younger one hesitates, but finally nods. "Some of the things I've overheard the other grunts talk about... I mean, things like getting brainwashed so you even forget who you are, who you were, everything about yourself..." He shivers, involuntarily.
The older man nods knowingly. "Kid... don't tell anyone, but I hear yeah. I think a lot of the people serving here worry about things like that... but you can't let it get to you. It'll just wear your nerves away to nothing." He sighs. "There's people who've been working to make sure we're taken care of. We've got CRAVEN gear, the ED, and we look out for each other. I can't guarantee you'll be fine, but one thing I will tell you -- I'll do everything in my power to watch your back and look out for you. I'm trustin' you to do the same for me, and for the doctor over there." He nods towards where the scientist is still walking around, starting to curse under her breath at the apparent lack of progress.
The young man pauses, and then nods, looking a bit relieved. "You're right, sir. Thanks."
"Don't mention it, kid."
Anonymouse wrote:It's not until about the thirty five minute mark that they might begin to notice the very faint buzzing sound in their ears, like a television that someone left on three rooms to their left.
And then, all at once, the readings go crazy. The scanner starts to pick up all sorts of things, a mad jumble of heat and cold, light and dark, life and vacuum! It's like the poor thing's been suddenly fed every signal it knows how to understand, and its not quite sure how to cope! And as the ratings increase in bizarreness..they may notice the air around them starting to fizzle, like static!
Time passes uneventfully, and the younger soldier almost starts to relax. As the readings suddenly go crazy, however, the scientist lets out a yelp of surprise, and the EDU robot suddenly stiffens, moving to attention. Noticing these reactions, the older soldier readies his weapon, scanning the area for any immediate threats, while the younger takes a moment longer to ready himself, moving to sweep the opposite arc to his superior.
"What's the situation, doctor?" the older soldier calls out.
"Something's happening... I can't narrow down any specific readings." She begins to feverishly try and adjust her equipment. "I'm getting all kinds of signals... it's almost like there's multiple realities converging on this point, cosanguine spaces..."
The soldiers don't really understand what she's getting at, but as the air itself seems to start fizzling and crackling, they all move together, the older soldier grabbing the scientist by the arm to keep her close by. "Well, kid... I guess it's time for the show to start."