• Ready to join Post Terminus?

    Click to get started and submit your first character.

    Getting Started

[All O] Week ---: Outsmart Bullet

  • Thread starter Thread starter K3
  • Start date Start date

K3

The Angry One
Staff member
Supporter
Latens
-2,131✦
Exa
⏆8,358
Bounty
⏈0
Dahlitium (⏆50 per)
0⌯
Bigatium (⏆100 per)
0⍨
Auritium (⏆300 per)
0⍫
Vitatium (⏆1200 per)
0⌭
Caelitium (⏆6000 per)
0⌬
Mouko bounced on the balls of her feet, anticipation written in her posture. Her charcoal eyes were alight with enthusiasm, her ponytail bobbing with the motion. Only when the thick steel doors of the Orpheus Training Lot began to open did she rein herself in.

Standing at ease, the Major was dressed for combat. Her thick flak jacket was unzipped, revealing the dark olive shirt underneath. Her normal combat jacket was tied around her waist, the smeared greens and browns of camouflage decorating it, a pattern shared by her matching combat pants. With an impatient tap of her black combat boots, she drummed her fingers against the stock of her rifle.

The strap of Draugr was slung over her right shoulder, the barrel angled towards the floor as she rested her hand against it. At her left hip, the holster for her revolver sat snugly, the gleaming silver within denoting Mercy's presence.

She watched the faces slowly peek their heads into the Lot, before beginning to enter outright. For her, this was a long-time coming: Orpheus was finally training their officers.

A simple chalk outline denoted some manner of pathway in the lot, the bright white standing out against the dark gray of concrete, and the blackened steel of the rails. Her eyes shifted to her left, and she noted the small box that hung from the ceiling. Suspended by a thick cable, a few buttons denoted different configurations for the training grounds.

Mouko continued to drum her fingers, waiting for every necessary agent to file.

[ 257 / 257 ]
 
The girl wouldn't have to wait long, however. The massive steel door that dominated the far end of the space split open with a metallic thump as massive tumblers churned over. Hydraulics whined and hissed, slowly forcing the olive-drab hunk of steel to swing inward. Stomping over the threshold with a cigarette pressed between his lips, Masato offered the girl a quick salute that was returned in kind.

"Major," he uttered, wisps of smoke trailing from his lips as he spoke. Amber eyes peered around the empty space slowly before returning to Mouko; the General letting out a frustrated sigh. "...The rest of 'em should be here by now."

His voice lacked its usual grit and exuberance. Certainly, it was unusual for him to treat his protege so formally. It was as though the General was on auto-pilot, his mind clearly elsewhere. With everything that had happened recently, it was easy to see what had the gunslinger preoccupied. The attack on Orpheus and it's allies was still fresh in their collective minds. Tokyo had once again been scarred by their conflicts, and the General bore the weight of their failure on his shoulders.

Gripping his cigarette between his thumb and forefinger, the gunslinger took a long, deep drag before flicking a glowing pillar of ash to the grated steel floor at his feet.

"I'm guessin' everything's ready to go." he breathed, leaning up against a nearby munitions crate. "...I want to brief everyone before we get started."
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Aragon had only gotten the word minutes before the time to meet rolled around. It was one thing to be late, however it was something else for him to be the late one especially to something like this. Aragon was just a half step behind Masato and with a little refresher in reiatsu control he was able to get inside before the doors closed on tail of his tattered duster.

Underneath his coat, were two iron rods strapped to his waist like a set of revolvers. Aragon still had not made it a priority to go to the armory. Half the problem was finding the time in the schedule that his immediate report had him running ragged on to actually make the trip. The once dead man hoped that a quick demonstration of his new powers here would allow him back into the field, however he knew the devil he shook hands with and there was no way of knowing what this little surprise would create.

Rubbing the tips of his fingers, Aragon waited to see what would happen with the taste of anticipation on his lips. This was the first time he bothered to actually start taking notice of the room that he found himself in. The first thing he noticed was that he in an ironic twist was the lowest ranking member in the room, at least by current rankings. Following a quick mental rundown of the people around him, Aragon began to read the room however he let his mind do so as if it were a background program focusing more on Masato than anything else.

[269/269]
 
Perhaps the last to arrive, perhaps the first, Caleb Fletcher appeared abruptly from nothingness. He wore a black leather jacket, over white henley shirt and a pair of dark-blue jeans. Strapped to his back, as per usual, was the imposing form of the Miss Moneypenny. It was no doubt already primed and ready to go.

That being said, he remained far removed from his public persona. Silent, contemplative, brooding almost. Words that did not characterize Mister Fletcher. The cause was evident, heavy and deep scars covered his body and face, remnants of the impalement at the hands of the mercenary he has encountered just weeks before. His muscles still contracted tensely at the thought of it.

Content to not make a fuss, he retreated behind Mouko and to the far edge of her peripheral vision.
 
Whereas Miyazaki Kaede hadn’t officially been inducted into the Orpheus ranks, and was thusly absent, a somewhat old, familiar face stood off to the side of the Initiative’s former Brigadier-General. Yoshikawa Miki, Lieutenant in name and mission drive, but otherwise not one to step up to the front lines too much - preferring mostly to stay out of sights - was resting silently, and quietly against the wall.

Whether she bothered to show up because this was an important meeting, or because she wanted to spend every single waking moment with Aragon was left hanging in the balance, but no one really minded anyway. They never did.


[110]
 
Arriving at the training lot moments after the others, and possibly last (but not last), was a small slender woman with an almost porcelain complexion and delicate doll like features. A slight smile played across her rose pink lips as her eyes scanned the group of people she had come to meet and train with, at least that's what the message had said they were doing here.

One of the three men in this little gathering was familiar to Hayashi Sachiko, he was a regular at the small tea house she had worked at until recently; she almost hadn't recognized him with out his dog at his side. The other two gentlemen she hadn't had the pleasure of meeting yet, but hopefully that change here today.

Long onyx hair bounced lightly about her shoulders as she sided up next to one of the other women in the group, the one that seemed to know what she was doing and dressed the part. Sachiko wasn't too worried with putting up her hair, but maybe her black long coat would have to go. Silently, the young woman unbuttoned the coat, but otherwise left it on until things got under way a bit more.


198
 
Last edited by a moderator:
For a long moment, an uneasy silence fell on the group. None spoke in the presence of the two superior officers of the Initiative, nor in the presence of a walking legend such as Aragon. Then, with a click of her tongue, the Major cast an observant stare to each gathered officer. "We're lacking... Kite... Suijinja, Tsao, and Phillips,

"And two of those gathered aren't outfitted. Tenbato-san," She inclined her head respectfully to the former General. "You'll find some weapons at the range. Nothing you're not used to, but you'll need them."

Jabbing a thumb at one wall of the Lot, a small number of concrete booths denoted a permanent shooting range. It was small, occupying only a secluded corner to avoid interrupting the training of others. Atop one of the sills of the booths, were a pair of firearms. The staple handgun of Orpheus, the Grave-keepeR III's sat waiting to be taken up. Leaned against the same booth, a larger weapon was ready.

Patting the shoulder of the dark-haired woman who had taken up her flank, Mouko nodded to the rifle. "A Revenant AUG, you'll be getting some hands-on experience today Miss... Hayashi, was it?"

Out of the corner of her eye, the onyx-eyed Major could see her mentor's scowl deepen. She nodded at him, words formal but lacking the same emphasis as she had given Aragon, "General. I'll get things ready, what regimen were you thinking of, sir?"

[ 240 / 497 ]

Notes
Consider the guns on loan, you guys aren't obligated to keep them, but you'll need them for this thread.
 
“Sorry I’m late!” Ed announced his presence to the room. He breathed a sigh of relief seeing that the arm breaking armaments were already handed out shortly before he stepped through the door.

“The latest round of trying to be rid of these damn burn scars took a bit longer than expected.”

Most of the scars Edward referenced were beneath his shirt, while some crawled up his neck and down his arms. They were a still painful reminder not to be hit by molten metal. Now wasn’t the time to show his over all frailty compared to the more common members of Orpheus. Sparing a look to anyone else the corporal un-slung his rifle case in practiced motions.

Time to see what he could learn from these guys, he thought with a sigh before falling in.

[136]
 
Choko walked slowly into the training lot, unsure of what to expect. This would be the first time she had talked to any of the other Orpheus agents since joining besides her recruiter. I still haven't talked to him since then either, she thought, falling into line with the other agents.

A hundred agents all stood at ready in the training facility, and Choko shifted uncomfortably in their presence. All these people here have probably killed thousands of demons, while I've been running and hiding to survive all my life. She chuckled lightly and drew her weapon, the gravekeeper felt strange and a little weighty in her hand. It was different from holding the light metal of that shinigami's zanpakutou. The one I don't have any more. Damn that ugly bastard, she cursed angrily then sighed to calm herself, No use in grilling myself, I've got to focus right now on training.

She left the safety on and positioned her hand over it, "They'll just have to help me use this thing I guess."
 
Last edited by a moderator:
A slight snicker formed across his stubble-covered mug. Nodding in acknowledgement to Mouko, Aragon casually crossed the training center towards the newest model of Grave-keepers. Picking up one for each hand, Aragon first checked to be sure the clips were full. Then without really thinking about who was watching or what he was doing, Aragon started slow by first just twirling the guns in his hands.

Somewhat satisfied with the way they felt in his hands, he began flipping over his head and catching them behind his back. Grabbing them finally with both arms extended out with the safety locks off; he lowered them back to his side. ‘Balance is good, but the overall weight is different. Might just be me...’ Pulling the iron rods from their hip holsters the returned agent replace the three foot pieces of rebar with the Grave-keepers. As he turned around there was a slight disgruntled look upon his face that was difficult to suppress as if he had just had an acrid beer at the wrong temperature. ‘Hope they operate the same way I remember, else after that stunt I’m in deep shit.’

Falling back in line with the others, Aragon waited for the next step of what was to happen while trying to keep his cool as the realization of what was seen by the others sank in.

[225 / 494]
 
Blue eyes followed the Major's nod in the direction of fairly good sized firearm leaned up against a booth. The whole thing seemed like some sort of mistake, weren't the larger ones more powerful, or something? Sachiko was sure she had heard something about the big guns having a crazy amount of kick back, yet she was being paired with some sort of assault rifle.

The weapon was really just intimidating in appearance, this wasn't going to be the first gun she had fired by far, but it was going to be the first that wasn't a small revolver or handgun.

"That's much more impressive than what I originally thought I'd walk in here and use, and Hayashi is correct." She remarked with a smile strolling over to the rifle and picking it up, the weight was pretty much was she had expected out of it; something roughly over five pounds give or take. The new recruit pointed the rifle down range, testing out the sight on the weapon while holding it in a slightly awkward manner, not entirely sure how one of these was held.

With a sigh at her own lack rifle of knowledge, Sachiko slung the strap on cross body and returned back to her position with the others.
 
To the side of the group, the General let out a smoke-filled sigh, turning eyes in his direction. Stepping forward, the gunslinger took his cigarette between his thumb and forefinger, flicking a glowing pillar of ash from its tip.

"Agents," he breathed in a tired tone. "...Fall in."

In a heartbeat, those assembled had snapped to attention, forming up single file in front of the General. The corner's of Masato's lips curled upwards slightly. It was good to see that they could take things seriously when needed. He had always been content to let his comrades make their own choices, to act freely. He was happy to support them, pick them up when they fell and push them to greater heights. But such a hands-off approach was out of the question, now. Things were going to get harder for all of them, himself included. It was time he played the role that he was given.

Clasping his hands behind his back, the grizzled agent paced up and down their ranks, meeting the gazes of each of his comrades. Some new faces, some old. These were the agents who he and his protege had deemed most in need of their instruction.

"By this point," the gunslinger began slowly. "...I'm sure most of you have heard about the situation in Tokyo."

A few of those gathered shifted uncomfortably at the mention of it.

"Make no mistake. We are at war." Masato barked, halting his pacing and turning to face the group. "...And the enemy has made the first move. We weren't prepared for it, and people died as a result. Civilians... Mothers, fathers and children. Comrades. Fellow agents. Human and Shinigami. All of them..."

He met his fellow's gazes once more, eyes burning with conviction. A few returned his glances, others looked away. The truth was a bitter pill they would all have to swallow before their training was finished.

"...We failed them. Orpheus failed those we were sworn to protect because we weren't ready." he breathed in a voice full of venom. "...Never again."

Casting a sidelong glance at Mouko, the General gave his protege a curt nod, gesturing for the agent to step forward.

"Now I don't know about you lot," the grizzled gunslinger sighed, taking another long drag on his cigarette. "...But I ain't waiting around for our enemies to kick us while we're down. It's high time we got our act together. And it's gonna start right here, right now, with all of you."
 
The words stung, perhaps more harshly on Mouko than others. A heady sigh escaped her lips, and she haphazardly pressed two of the buttons on the suspended control panel. At once, it retracted to the ceiling, the noise of machinery drowning out all other sounds.

Within a few moments, the Lot was transformed. From the rails above, various targets were carried to the far side of the lot, arranging themselves into various patterns. From the rails below, sheets of steel began to zip along pre-determined paths at varying speeds. Some remained entirely motionless as they reached their final destination, while others trundled slowly along their tracks.

Still others zipped by at such speeds as Mouko could feel the rush of air as one passed by her left hip. The lights dimmed, to an uncomfortable level. A dim orange barely lit the entirety of the lot, Mouko's face just barely visible and her features indistinguishable amongst the newly introduced darkness.

"Seventy-six." With an uncharacteristic edge, the Major's words filtered out as the din of the Lot's configuration retreated. Only the near-silent motors that kept certain pieces moving could be heard against her cold words. "Seventy-six civilians died. Shinigami deaths are still being tallied. The deaths of our own agents are still being tallied."

Only the most perceptive could pick up on the faint tremble in her voice, but she pressed on. "Seventy-six people died because of our incompetence. Seventy-six and however many more... and so seventy-six will be the number of times you will have to do better."

A rush of movement, the pale oval of Mouko's face disappearing with it. An instant later, Edward lurched sideways, dragged to one side of the Lot. Another moment passed, Sachiko succumbed as well, her balance thrown and disorientation taking hold. Finally, Choko was all but thrown after the other two, leaving the trio in a sprawled pile.

Mouko stood over them, her barely visible form once more static as she spoke. "Hayashi Sachiko. Suijinja Edward. Kisarage Choko. It is time for your formal induction as members of Initiative: Orpheus."

Low growls echoed in their ears, feline eyes glaring through the dark with bright orange eyes. Those who had not been selected by the Major, slowly turned to face the darkened silhouette of Masato.

[ 380 / 877 ]
 
A flash of orange split the darkness, illuminating the gunslinger's face for the briefest of moments as he lit another cigarette and took a long drag. Around him, three individuals remained; Caleb Fletcher, Aragon Tenbanto and Miki Yoshikawa. Turning, sharp amber eyes surveyed the scene unfolding around Mouko. It was a harsh lesson for them to learn, and harsher still that it had fallen on Masato to teach it to them. Sharing the burden with his protege brought the General no joy; Mouko cared about her comrades as much as any of them present. But it meant that she understood just how necessary the lesson was.

They had to do better. For themselves, for their friends and allies, for every single person whom they'd failed.

Inhaling slowly, flecks of ash danced on the agent's breath as he reached for his weapons. Hands wrapped around the cold, steel handles of his firearms. Only the most perceptive of their group braced themselves for what was to come; Caleb raising one arm defensively as the other grasped for his sidearm.

Not fast enough.

The dull thump of steel on bone sounded as the side of the General's gun collided with the agent's forearm, post-human musculature straining against the force of the hit before momentum overcame it; sending the MI5 spook careening across the training lot.

Ducking low, the gunslinger turned his sights on Miki, her every action appearing torpid and supine. A combat-booted foot slid outwards, pulling the girl's legs out from under her as the General brought his weapon down, another grueling crunch sounding as she, too, was hurled away from the agent. Finally, Masato's gaze met Aragon's, who given ample time to respond, had already brought his newly acquired weapons to bear. The sound of steel on steel rung out as the gunslinger's weapon glanced off Tenbanto's, shoving it out and away before bringing the butt of the second around, clipping the man in the collar bone and sending him tumbling head over heels.

Masato exhaled in a puff of smoke, steadying his stance with his guns at the ready.

"Come hell or high water, you're all going to learn how we do things here, even if I have to bash it into your skulls myself."

The General's tone was low and devoid of any kind of warmth. He meant business.

"...How can I rely on any of you like this? How can anyone?"

His voice wavered, quaking with barely-contained emotions.

"...Pick up your guns. We'll do this as many times as it takes. Fletcher," the gunslinger barked, amber eyes turning in the direction of the spook. "...You're up first."

stuff

Masato's going to be dispensing some SKT instruction, as well as Quick Draw and his trained style. Unsurprisingly, this is going to require you to draw quickly, as well as engage in some gun-fu sparring. Lets get to it
 
Caleb reeled back from the sudden impulse, more shock than pain coursing through his body. His senses were honed, perception spiraling outwards to truly staggering states. A smirk appeared on his face, testosterone and adrenaline coursing through his body. He needed this, after the humiliation he had suffered at the hands of the freelancer. He was careless then, brash, and cocky. He needed the skill to back it up.

The agent torqued his body, transitioning the momentum and stabilizing himself. Though slower than the General, a fact took him by surprise, he drew the high-caliber Noblesse in a single fluid motion. A sudden spike of reiatsu exited his body, the sensation of hundreds of watchers falling over those involved. In a manner that mimicked both the General and his second-in-command, but in some ways surpassing it, they all fell under his domain.

“On your orders, General,” he replied in a tone laced with sarcasm. The high-pitched whir and blinding light of two Lawbringer rounds surged from the barrel of the gun, pinpointed towards the man’s heart and head.
 
Having been caught somewhat off-guard by the General she still didn’t view as her ‘true’ general - especially now that Aragon was found to be still alive - Miki dusted herself off, straightened her clothes out and got back up on her feet. She’d kind of hoped that this wasn’t going to be one of those kinds of meetings, but of course it was always going to be that way with Orpheus.

Placing her left hand to the spot where Masato had hit her, she rubbed it slightly and softly for a few minutes as the pained look on her face lessened. It hadn’t exactly hurt a whole lot, but it was still a bit of an annoying sting as she hadn’t expected to be thrown to the ground about ten minutes into the whole ordeal.

“Overall,” she said, her gaze fixated on Aragon for a bit, “I think I liked your leadership better than his.”

[155/265]
 
Choko did happen to be one of those perceiving few. Hmm, As strong as she feels I guess she still has a heart. She gritted her teeth and quickly untangled herself from the still dazed group, As far as I'm concerned she might just believe I've got something to do with all this, after all it happened right after I arrived, after my first mission really. I'll have to earn her trust if I want it.

She stood in a loose, defensive position as she prepared for the woman's next strike. I wasn't able to help then because I was weak. Her face took on a look of grim determination, I was weak. Too weak to help them, and possibly thousands of them died because I was weak... "That will not happen again, " she said more to herself, than to the Mouko. She locked ruby red eyes with the hard steeliness of the Major's and thought she saw a flicker of something. Acknowledgement? Confusion maybe?

Whatever it was she wasn't about to let an opportunity slip away. With a silent charge she leapt at the Major in a fencing technique, closing the distance between them in seconds, and lunging with the spiritually powered weapon like a knife. "Here goes nothing," she muttered under her breath.


[215/389]

notes
Sorry, if I overstepped with the eye flicker thing. I thought it might make sense since Mouko met Hikaru during the tournament, and he asked her to look out for Choko. I thought it would be interesting to make the connection now. I'll change it if you want.

Reiatsu: 1000
Combat: 400
Agility:400
Fortitude: 200
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Oh good, my second induction to the crazy gun toting organization is being thrown around like a rag doll. Again.

Ed hopped to his feet out of the tangle of limbs, bracing for what ever was to come. Dozens of possibilities came to mind, she was rather straight forward in her approach. Or so he remembered from the very incident they were training to avoid in the future. He locked eyes briefly with the tiger before them, or the tiger he could barely see in the darkness. Up came his rifle to the ready, hopefully in time to act in the right manner.

Instead he was just in time to watch Choko start his charge forward. Before Edward could warn his colleague into waiting for a unified approach his makeshift partner went on the assault.

“I’ll cover you from back here then?” he both notified her as well as asked, unsure of what they were supposed to be doing.

[159/295]
 
If Choko heard the confused man's call to her, she obviously either didn't care or didn't hear. Keep up, she thought as she continued her charge; flowing smoothly from her thrust into a feint then her strike, spinning on the ball of her foot with shining blue hair swishing around behind her, and brought the side of the weapon down across where she hoped the Major's face was. She'd have no qualms about it later, as this woman held no importance to her, a human's just a body with a name. It’s not special to me without a reason. As for Kisarage's mind, not even her titles held significance, all that mattered was power; and that was the extent of her respect. That being said, seeing in all that dankness was hard and she was barely managing it. It was hard to see in all that dark, and it was impeding her judgment. Not to mention her aim.

[156/545]
 
The darkness had been a surprise, the violent shove had been more along the lines of a shock. One moment she had been standing in a line and the next she was tossed off to the side, she wasn't too sure what she had expected to experience in a training exercise put together by these people, but it wasn't this. Sachiko's eyes strained to make out the forms of those around her, the glowing of feline eyes being the only thing that clearly stood out in the lot. Getting to her feet, the raven haired woman could just make out the silhouette of the other new girl reacting prematurely.

Stepping up next to the man that had been tossed, quite literally, onto her team. He seemed to have the right idea, not rushing into combat without thinking things through first.

"I'm sure I don't need to tell you this, but we should work together. Teamwork is invaluable in a situation like this, even if we end up minus one." She nodded in Choko's direction while readying the rifle that had been loaned out to her.

"It could benefit us anyway, that girl acting as a distraction."
 

Current Date in Araevis

Back
Top