Post by Guardsman Patrick on Oct 12, 2006 23:14:19 GMT -5
Chapter 17: Preparing for War
Alex awoke suddenly at the sound of the elevator opening to his room. Rachel walked into his room and climbed into his bed, pulling the covers over her as well.
“So, why aren’t you up yet?” she asked quietly, as if they were sharing a secret.
“Because people keep waking me up,” Alex smiled, “you know you’re not helping, right?”
“Yeah, I know, but I have the solution. The best way to keep people from waking you up is to be awake when they come to wake you,” Rachel smiled and climbed back out of Alex’s bed.
“Well, what is it that you wanted exactly?” Alex asked, putting on his silver glasses that were sitting on his nightstand.
“I came to tell you that Patrick says that Andorg looks clear for the most part, so that means we have some time. Go eat breakfast and get your game face on, because we are going to have to prepare for anything,” Rachel said sternly, acting like a loyal soldier, even saluting Alex at the end.
“Thank you, private, you are dismissed to do whatever it is that privates do in their free time,” Alex joked, looping his belt through his jeans. He then clipped the sheath over the belt and sheathed his sword.
Rachel left causing Alex to have to wait for the elevator to return. When it did, he stepped inside, the metal doors sealing behind him. The elevator ride passed quickly as it made its way up to the seventh floor. Alex rubbed his eyes and yawned as he stepped out again, walking into a room that was cold and shadowed. Around the room were various screens, computers and whatnot that ran, scanned and controlled many of the tower’s functions.
Patrick was sitting in a chair watching the screen in front of him, making sure it was processing well. He would roll from screen to screen; making sure everything was online and ready to go whenever it was needed.
“So, is there a thermostat in this room somewhere? It's freezing in here.” Alex scanned the walls for anything that wasn’t a computer.
“The computers run more efficiently at a colder temperature, so that’s why it’s so cold,” Patrick said and didn’t even look up at Alex as he continued to roll back and forth across the room.
“So, do you think you have it all covered in here?” Alex asked, not really intending to help if he really needed any.
“Nah, I have it all under control, but you could go and make sure the shield generators are still in good shape.” Patrick only moved faster as he said this.
“Sure thing,” Alex didn’t think until he was in the elevator that the shield generators were on the side of the tower, covered by a layer of thin bricks. Alex didn’t know how he would make them eject out of the side…he would have to figure that out when he arrived out there.
Shade watched the scurrying troops in the underground bunker, hurrying to build tanks, planes and jeeps to begin the final assault on the Gym Master’s tower. “I guess building a couple extra wouldn’t hurt,” Shade thought out loud, knowing that they were already making a ridiculous amount anyway.
“Well, we don’t plan on taking all of it, just most of it.” Zanthor knew that the vehicles they already had would suffice, but, if the enemy were to win, by chance, they would need something to protect the Andorg base.
Shade jumped down into the pit below, walking in between the stations that the many minions worked at. He looked at each troop in turn and inspected them thoroughly. Some of them were very small; maybe about five foot three and wide, while others were tall and thin. The one that caught Shade's eye the most though was a man that was about six foot seven and was extremely muscular.
“Hey, you!” Shade pointed at the man, and all the hard working men went quiet. The one he pointed at looked confused.
“Me sir?” He pointed at himself.
“Yes, you.” Shade was slightly irritated at his skepticism.
The man put down the huge metal plate he had been holding and stepped over to Shade. Shade had to look up to see his face. He was half a foot taller than Shade and was more buffed up.
“What’s your name?” Shade asked impatiently, acting as if he was being cheated out of valuable time.
“Arcane sir, I’m one of the elites. Have I done something wrong?” He looked back to where he had been working, seeing if he had accidentally put something on the plane wrong.
“No, you have done nothing wrong, I just wanted to know if what I have heard is true.” Shade gave Arcane a look of satisfaction that made him relax a little. “Because I hear that you told General Zanthor to retreat in the attack we just had.”
“Yes sir, I did. Listen, I’m just here to earn what little money I can to feed my family, I reall-” Arcane tried to apologize and suck up so he wouldn’t get fired like he thought he would.
“No, I’m not here to tell you that you’re fired. I’m here to tell you that I have put in a word with the head man here, and you may even get a raise, seeing as how nobody except me could see that our General was making a mistake and he was out of his place to force so many to charge, though he knew all of them were doomed.” Shade’s expression didn’t change as he spoke, knowing that Arcane would be happy to hear this.
“Oh, thank you sir. I was only doing what I thought was best for where I work. I need this job badly, and I’m glad you didn’t come down here to fire me.” Arcane smiled, and Shade saw all the potential that he had. He could tell that Arcane was thoughtful about everything, and he could tell that he could also be very strong when it came to keeping troops under control.
“Well, I will see if I can’t get you a position that means something a little more. Maybe you could be a General some day.” Shade turned on his heels and walked back up the stairs to the catwalk, throwing up a hand to show that he had respect for Arcane.
“What was all that about?” Zanthor asked, looking at Shade suspiciously.
“I was talking to the elite who told you to retreat and told him he was right and that he may be promoted.” Shade watched as the fury rose in Zanthor’s face.
“Troops do not tell me when I am right or not, and I chose to do everything I did and I stand by it,” Zanthor looked over at the station where Arcane was working.
“Well, you may stand by it, but the boss man doesn’t, and so I let Arcane know he was right in doing it. So you can get mad all you want. It doesn’t change the fact that you were wrong,” Shade knew that Zanthor was going to take Arcane aside for this, but Shade knew that he wouldn’t be able to do anything if his master frowned on it.
Alex and Patrick’s blades locked in the vast arena that was located on the third floor of the tower. Both of them had minimal armor on and no other form of protection. Their fury was evident, as Patrick slammed his sword into Alex’s thinner blade. Patrick fought in a way that was so unbelievably fast and strong, it would make anyone who was skilled look like a novice.
Alex’s form was very different though. His was extremely fast and defensive, but on the offensive, he was so much faster than many advanced fighters. He could have them finished in less than a minute, rarely more than two.
They each fought to their limits, catching each other’s blades so fast that you wouldn’t even think they had moved.
Rachel came down into the training zone and whistled at them loudly to get their attention. Alex and Patrick both stopped and looked over at her still standing in the elevator, holding it open.
“Quick, get in. You need to see this.” Rachel’s eyes were wide with fear. “Now!”
Alex awoke suddenly at the sound of the elevator opening to his room. Rachel walked into his room and climbed into his bed, pulling the covers over her as well.
“So, why aren’t you up yet?” she asked quietly, as if they were sharing a secret.
“Because people keep waking me up,” Alex smiled, “you know you’re not helping, right?”
“Yeah, I know, but I have the solution. The best way to keep people from waking you up is to be awake when they come to wake you,” Rachel smiled and climbed back out of Alex’s bed.
“Well, what is it that you wanted exactly?” Alex asked, putting on his silver glasses that were sitting on his nightstand.
“I came to tell you that Patrick says that Andorg looks clear for the most part, so that means we have some time. Go eat breakfast and get your game face on, because we are going to have to prepare for anything,” Rachel said sternly, acting like a loyal soldier, even saluting Alex at the end.
“Thank you, private, you are dismissed to do whatever it is that privates do in their free time,” Alex joked, looping his belt through his jeans. He then clipped the sheath over the belt and sheathed his sword.
Rachel left causing Alex to have to wait for the elevator to return. When it did, he stepped inside, the metal doors sealing behind him. The elevator ride passed quickly as it made its way up to the seventh floor. Alex rubbed his eyes and yawned as he stepped out again, walking into a room that was cold and shadowed. Around the room were various screens, computers and whatnot that ran, scanned and controlled many of the tower’s functions.
Patrick was sitting in a chair watching the screen in front of him, making sure it was processing well. He would roll from screen to screen; making sure everything was online and ready to go whenever it was needed.
“So, is there a thermostat in this room somewhere? It's freezing in here.” Alex scanned the walls for anything that wasn’t a computer.
“The computers run more efficiently at a colder temperature, so that’s why it’s so cold,” Patrick said and didn’t even look up at Alex as he continued to roll back and forth across the room.
“So, do you think you have it all covered in here?” Alex asked, not really intending to help if he really needed any.
“Nah, I have it all under control, but you could go and make sure the shield generators are still in good shape.” Patrick only moved faster as he said this.
“Sure thing,” Alex didn’t think until he was in the elevator that the shield generators were on the side of the tower, covered by a layer of thin bricks. Alex didn’t know how he would make them eject out of the side…he would have to figure that out when he arrived out there.
* * *
Shade watched the scurrying troops in the underground bunker, hurrying to build tanks, planes and jeeps to begin the final assault on the Gym Master’s tower. “I guess building a couple extra wouldn’t hurt,” Shade thought out loud, knowing that they were already making a ridiculous amount anyway.
“Well, we don’t plan on taking all of it, just most of it.” Zanthor knew that the vehicles they already had would suffice, but, if the enemy were to win, by chance, they would need something to protect the Andorg base.
Shade jumped down into the pit below, walking in between the stations that the many minions worked at. He looked at each troop in turn and inspected them thoroughly. Some of them were very small; maybe about five foot three and wide, while others were tall and thin. The one that caught Shade's eye the most though was a man that was about six foot seven and was extremely muscular.
“Hey, you!” Shade pointed at the man, and all the hard working men went quiet. The one he pointed at looked confused.
“Me sir?” He pointed at himself.
“Yes, you.” Shade was slightly irritated at his skepticism.
The man put down the huge metal plate he had been holding and stepped over to Shade. Shade had to look up to see his face. He was half a foot taller than Shade and was more buffed up.
“What’s your name?” Shade asked impatiently, acting as if he was being cheated out of valuable time.
“Arcane sir, I’m one of the elites. Have I done something wrong?” He looked back to where he had been working, seeing if he had accidentally put something on the plane wrong.
“No, you have done nothing wrong, I just wanted to know if what I have heard is true.” Shade gave Arcane a look of satisfaction that made him relax a little. “Because I hear that you told General Zanthor to retreat in the attack we just had.”
“Yes sir, I did. Listen, I’m just here to earn what little money I can to feed my family, I reall-” Arcane tried to apologize and suck up so he wouldn’t get fired like he thought he would.
“No, I’m not here to tell you that you’re fired. I’m here to tell you that I have put in a word with the head man here, and you may even get a raise, seeing as how nobody except me could see that our General was making a mistake and he was out of his place to force so many to charge, though he knew all of them were doomed.” Shade’s expression didn’t change as he spoke, knowing that Arcane would be happy to hear this.
“Oh, thank you sir. I was only doing what I thought was best for where I work. I need this job badly, and I’m glad you didn’t come down here to fire me.” Arcane smiled, and Shade saw all the potential that he had. He could tell that Arcane was thoughtful about everything, and he could tell that he could also be very strong when it came to keeping troops under control.
“Well, I will see if I can’t get you a position that means something a little more. Maybe you could be a General some day.” Shade turned on his heels and walked back up the stairs to the catwalk, throwing up a hand to show that he had respect for Arcane.
“What was all that about?” Zanthor asked, looking at Shade suspiciously.
“I was talking to the elite who told you to retreat and told him he was right and that he may be promoted.” Shade watched as the fury rose in Zanthor’s face.
“Troops do not tell me when I am right or not, and I chose to do everything I did and I stand by it,” Zanthor looked over at the station where Arcane was working.
“Well, you may stand by it, but the boss man doesn’t, and so I let Arcane know he was right in doing it. So you can get mad all you want. It doesn’t change the fact that you were wrong,” Shade knew that Zanthor was going to take Arcane aside for this, but Shade knew that he wouldn’t be able to do anything if his master frowned on it.
* * *
Alex and Patrick’s blades locked in the vast arena that was located on the third floor of the tower. Both of them had minimal armor on and no other form of protection. Their fury was evident, as Patrick slammed his sword into Alex’s thinner blade. Patrick fought in a way that was so unbelievably fast and strong, it would make anyone who was skilled look like a novice.
Alex’s form was very different though. His was extremely fast and defensive, but on the offensive, he was so much faster than many advanced fighters. He could have them finished in less than a minute, rarely more than two.
They each fought to their limits, catching each other’s blades so fast that you wouldn’t even think they had moved.
Rachel came down into the training zone and whistled at them loudly to get their attention. Alex and Patrick both stopped and looked over at her still standing in the elevator, holding it open.
“Quick, get in. You need to see this.” Rachel’s eyes were wide with fear. “Now!”