Still Not Safe [M&M 2nd ed]

[ChronicLunacy]

Ben Brooks

"I wish they'd just give us our amplifiers back already." Ben said, tapping his foot on the pavement. "Isn't it kind of stupid to leave us powerless until the last possible moment? What if 01B shows up earlier than expected?" he frowned. "What do you think, Laura?"

Laura was the "senior" powered individual there, and she'd had the most experience when dealing with the Shifting Entities. Ben usually deferred to her, at least outside of combat, and took whatever she advised to heart. He'd trained and prepared but he'd never really know what it was like until 01B made landfall. He trusted her not to screw around and give him a straight answer, even if was just "I don't know."

[Cubey]

"I thi... think I know what they are doing." Even if she's trying to hide her nervousness in any way, Laura is failing at that. "SECT does not want us to have amplifiers until right before the operation... maybe because it will alert the SE to our presence... or maybe they want to make sure you don't transform right away and get tired before the fight. Or maybe..." She gulps. "Something happened..."
The steadily growing business suddenly doesn't look so innocent.
"Devon..." She whispers quietly, with a note of reproach.

[Drascin]

"Air? I see a pattern here..." Emi gives Lorne a long look, and then does the same with Ben, Cat and Andy.

Andrés can't help but chuckle at this. "Indeed. We're looking like an element-coded Sentai team more and more, aren't we? Well, we're fighting for Earth as a whole, it rather makes a odd, kinda mythic sort of sense when you think about it."

..."the devil flee at the first crowing of a fowl." is his only response as he sips his coffee.

At this, Andy nods. Good answer, and good symbolism. Gotta give it to this Lorne guy - he has the style. More than he does, he thinks to himself.

Well, better start getting ready, he thinks, as his grin evaporates. We're going to start soon. And failure is not an option. He listens to Ben and Laura, but says nothing yet. She seems very worried. This makes Andy uneasy. He knew the plans would undoubtedly go to hell - they always do - but come on! Things going wrong already?!

[Tengu_temp]

Andrés can't help but chuckle at this. "Indeed. We're looking like an element-coded Sentai team more and more, aren't we? Well, we're fighting for Earth as a whole, it rather makes a odd, kinda mythic sort of sense when you think about it."

"And where does a chicken come into this picture?"
The revelation of what lies beyond the name of James' armor only ensured Emi in the notion that everything here is crazy, and her "if I keep being deadpan I might retain my sanity" face shows it. And Laura's words don't help at all.

[Haven]

At this, Andy nods. Good answer, and good symbolism. Gotta give it to this Lorne guy - he has the style. More than he does, he thinks to himself.

((Not that Lorne doesn't--but that was James))

Or maybe..." She gulps. "Something happened..."
The steadily growing business suddenly doesn't look so innocent.
"Devon..." She whispers quietly, with a note of reproach.

Lorne realized the significance of this--he'd read up whatever information was available to him about Devon's armor's capabilities, once he'd heard how, in the sense of providing surveillance abilities, they were similar to his own. "Something happened? Laura, are you saying Devon might be involved somehow?"

[Cubey]

"No..." Laura shakes her head slowly. "But she ought to be here... she was the most determined to fight SEs, and now she... left us behind..." She closes her eyes and takes a heavy breath. When she speaks up again, there is a tone of resolve behind her words.
"I will have to take care of her part too."

[Drascin]

(Ooops. My bad)

"And where does a chicken come into this picture?"
The revelation of what lies beyond the name of James' armor only ensured Emi in the notion that everything here is crazy, and her "if I keep being deadpan I might retain my sanity" face shows it. And Laura's words don't help at all.

Andrés smiles a bit, sardonic, but he doesn't really laugh. He's a bit nervous too, right now- eagerness mixed with curiosity mixed with the slightest twinge of fear for all these people around him. "I could tell you a bit about the mythic applications of chickens and other domestic birds against the forces of evil, but I ramble something fierce and I don't think we have time for a two hour speech. 'sides, I didn't bring any slides" he winks, trying to dispel the mood a bit.

[Haven]

"No..." Laura shakes her head slowly. "But she ought to be here... she was the most determined to fight SEs, and now she... left us behind..." She closes her eyes and takes a heavy breath. When she speaks up again, there is a tone of resolve behind her words.
"I will have to take care of her part too."

"Well, it seems there's no lack of determination here." He says, attempting to be reassuring despite his own ambivalence at the value of hot-bloodedness in this situation, and nodding in the direction of his more enthusiastic teammates.

[Fri]

Sipping his coffee without looking at his team mate, James continues. "Fowls... were used as a bait for evil spirits so they won't attack humans. And that is... my job." he says in his deep voice. "I don't know that this squad is supposed to have an elemental theme, but that's fine with me. I'm the fowl of this squad." he looks at the distance

[Matar]

Todd sighs dramaticly and places the back of his hand on his forehead. He tilts his head back and speaks in a serious voice, bordering on narm.

"Ahhh! The seconds fly by, and the minuets slowly tick past. The sands of time move forward, no matter how much we wish for them to stand still. And as our date with destiny grow ever closer, I must ask one thing."

Todd drops his hand off his forehead, while his face shows some annoyance.

"Is the Commander always cut it this damn close?"

[kamikasei]

Cat smiles at James. "Well, I'm sure it's just coincidence. The armours are a subconscious thing, right? I guess elemental imagery is just a likely thing for people to latch on to. We must just be the unoriginal ones - a cockerel, you must be very imaginative!"

Her smile becomes a theatrical grimace of worry. "But Todd's right - are we going to have enough time to go over the plan?"

[Tengu_temp]

"It seems that Rooster Boy himself doesn't need any slides, though. And his explanation makes a lot of sense. It's almost frightening."
Despite the light tone of the covnersation Emi does not manage to relax as much as she'd want to - Laura's worries make her lose confidence slowly. After all, if the most experienced group member has doubts, how should the rest feel?

[ChronicLunacy]

Ben Brooks

"Seeing as the 'plan' is probably just to hit it until it breaks and keep it from touching the other one, I don't think that'll be much of a problem." Ben said, cupping his coffee between his hands to warm them. He was now just trying to ignore Todd and the ridiculous chicken imagery. Fowl, cockerel, whatever...it's a chicken. About as intimidating as a wet toy poodle. Wait, scratch that...the poodle has teeth. It was less intimidating. He rolled his eyes and glanced in the direction of the command tents.

[Cubey]

"Time is not a concern, I assure you." An older male voice suddenly interrupts the conversation. It belongs to a steadily incoming man of about 50 years of age, with dark brown (but graying) hair and a short beard. He wears a high-ranked SECT uniform, complimenting it with a military beret. His identity is obvious to all of you.

"C... Commander! When did you..." Laura is as surprised as the next person. Quite literally - the SECT operative next to her looks quite shocked as well, although he quickly gets over it and salutes.

"I just arrived. Another chopper is carrying your amplifiers - it is landing as we speak." Commander Richard Clayton says the truth - a helicopter is landing.
"An emergency occured - our SE is steadily slowing. We had to make sure 01A is not anywhere close, the results would be catastrophical. But it seems it isn't here, at least yet. So." He responds to the salute with his own, extending it to you all. "Ladies and gentlemen, time for the briefing. This sudden happening bought us an extra 20 minutes at least, but that's no excuse to dawdle." He raises a megaphone to his mouth. "THIS IS COMMANDER CLAYTON SPEAKING. THE OPERATION IS STARTING NOW - MSAS SQUADS, SHIFTER SQUAD, TO THE BRIEFING AREA. NON-ESSENTIAL PERSONNEL, EVACUATE AS SOON AS YOUR WORK IS COMPLETED. EMERGENCY RESPONSE SQUADS, AT STANDBY."

Every person on the plot and its surroundings starts to move at double the pace after hearing the message. Clayton himself walks towards the MSAS-wearing agents who were readying their suits a bit away from the rest - it seems some folding seats were preapared there, as well as a screen and projector. Laura follows in his steps wordlessly, but with a relieved look on her face - that must be the briefing area. You can also notice that, despite most vehicles around being boarded and leaving the area, around ten people in fact leave the helicopter that just arrived. Each one carries a silver metal suitcase.

[Matar]

"Finally! The time to prepare for "Waaaaaagh!" has finally begun! Let us go, brothers in arms!"

Todd heads off to the briefing area, a grin is etched on his face and a small bounce to his step. His eagerness is obvious, even without him having to say anything.

[ChronicLunacy]

Ben Brooks

"It's about damn time..." Ben muttered. He tipped back the remains of the brownish liquid in his styrofoam cup and savored the flavor and the heat for as long as he could. The cup got cold so quickly after that. He just frowned and discarded it in the nearest trash bin or gave it to one of the passersby, whichever was easier. Then, adjusting his collar to cover more of his neck, he followed Commander Clayton and Laura to the makeshift briefing area. He stuffed his hands in his jacket pockets and gave a mighty yawn before sitting down in the front row. He turned his chair around and A.C. Slater'ed it, propping his chin up on his elbow.

[Fri]

"What's the plan?"

[Tengu_temp]

Finally something is happening! Emi follows the rest and sits down in one of the chairs - somewhere on the side and away from the main cluster, where she could listen without grabbing a lot of attention.

[Cubey]

Before you have a chance to arrive at the briefing area, the operatives with suitcases catch up to each one of you. They act in similar ways for everyone - after confirming your identity ("Miss/Mister [name]?", followed by an optical inspection, that is gazing at you very intently), they unlock the suitcase with a produced key and unceremoniously hand it to you, then quickly leave. There is another security measure on each suitcase - a fingerprint lock. You can open it without any problem, revealing the precious contents - each suitcase holds a personally customized amplifier. An outside observer could mistake it for an expensive custom wristwatch at a brief glance, but you know that it is so much more.
"You can wear these, but do not activate your PSA yet. Wait until you are given permission - this is a direct order." The commander warns.

There are surprisingly few people at the briefing - only a few technicians who help with the presentation, you as the Shifter squad, MSAS-wearing soldiers who do not occupy any chairs but rather stand behind them (these suits are too heavy for any chair to carry their weight - and you can't bend your knees that well inside them anyway), and of course the commander.
"Is everyone here? Good. I would like to have everyone's undivided attention." Clayton stands by the screen. The projector starts to emit an image - a familiar photograph of the SE.
"You have all received a report on this creature, SE 01B. I take it that everyone is familiar with its contents already. This report is partially outdated - the situation has changed. This SE has visibly slowed down, and will reach this point in roughly half an hour. Perhaps more, but we are monitoring its movement so you should know well in advance." There is little reaction from the Alloy Suit squad. Apparently they already knew.
"Now, our objective is simple - we must not let 01B meet with its Earth counterpart, 01A. 01A's whereabouts are unknown, which only makes our current mission that more important. We must destroy this SE - this is our utmost priority." The image changes into a view of the whole nearby area.
"Taking our somewhat limited resources at the time, I have devised a plan. 01B will be ambushed at this very parking lot. Of course, the problem is that SEs have a supernatural ability to detect those who can harm them. In other words, everyone of you."

"Yeah, we'll harm them alright!" A confident yell from the Alloy Suit part of the audience, which the commander ignores.

"But we will block that ability out. Our engineers constructed four bunkers." He points at various points on the image. Only one of them is on the parking lot, others are elsewhere. "They used mixed Sophium alloys as a building material. Sophium alloys shield against Shifters and SEs, and our past experiences tell us that this affects SEs' senses as well. As long as you are hiding inside, 01B won't be able to detect your presence."

He continues: "The bunkers were built so that they collapse to the outside. It is an easy and fast process, and safe for whomever is inside the bunker as well. Our plan is simple at its base - we wait for the SE to close in, luring it into a good position if necessary, and as soon as it is in range of all the squads, the bunkers will collapse and you will commence your assault. Alloy Suit squads will provide support fire, and Shifters will use their most potent means available. I trust your training and powers, so I know you can do this. If all goes well, you will be able to destroy your target before it has a chance to retaliate." He changes his position - rather than addressing everyone as a whole, Clayton faces you - the Shifters.
"These are instructions for the PSA squad: Do not Shift unless given explicit orders to do so. You will be able to attack this SE perfectly well while unshifted. Should you receive an injury, evacuate immediately at highest possible speed. The MSAS squads will ensure that your escape is covered. If any of your squad receives an incapacitating or..." He pauses for a second. "A mortal wound, everyone evacuate immediately. Do not try to retrieve the body - I know it sounds harsh, but that is what the emergency response squads are for. They cannot Shift, so the SE will not target them. Finally, evacuate immediately if you receive such an order. Do not throw your life away - you can regroup and try to attack a second time, but only if you are not killed in action." He sounds concerned, but not overprotective like a worried parent. Still, it may be surprising that the MSAS-wearers did not respond in any way to such treatment - they must realize that Richard Clayton just indirectly described them as more expendable.
"Group designations: Alpha - the whole PSA squad. Bravo - first support MSAS squad, 7 suits total. Charlie - second support MSAS squad, 6 suits total. Delta - just one MSAS suit. Delta has a special role - your bunker opens first and you serve as a distraction, to draw the SE's attacks away from other squads. I have nominated Frank Symes to this role - it is extremely dangerous so you have an option to refuse now. What do you say, Frank?"

"I'm in." One of the mark II suits nods its head. It's hard to see the face of the man inside, but he sounds calm and mature.

"Excellent. We are counting on you. Each MSAS squad will be accompanied by a supporting engineer, to open the bunker manually in case automatic release mechanisms fail. Alpha squad's members are not encumbered by Alloy Suits and will do it themselves - just pull a marked switch you will find inside. The timing is as follows: currently we are at -30 minutes until contact. -15 minutes: all squads enter their bunkers. -6 minutes: permission granted to activate MSAS materialization. -5 minutes: permission granted for Alpha squad to activate their PSAs. Do it at that moment: if earlier, you will unnecessarily exhaust yourself before the fight, if later, you will not have enough time to react if something goes wrong with the PSA summoning. Contact: flares and spotlights will be used to try to draw our target's attention. Contact +1 second: Delta bunker opens. Contact +1.5 second: Alpha, Bravo and Charlie bunkers open. Attack immediately after your bunker opens. We have built several additional fortifications, using remaining Sophium alloy we had at hand." The commander points at various places on the future battlefield. It's true - you remember constructions were made in roughly the same spots. "So make sure to use them if your first attack is not enough to destroy the SE. You will now receive papers with callsign designations - make sure to memorise them. This is all. Any questions?"

"So our Shifters summon armor while in bunkers already? Damn... I was hoping to see how cool they are before we're all inside metal boxes." Some young guy (different from the previous yell, though) sounds jokingly disappointed, followed by several quiet laughs of other MSAS operatives. The laughter is somewhat nervous.

Some other SECT agents move around and hand a sheet of paper to each person. Like promised, they list the callsign of everyone participating. Alpha Squad is listed as follows:

Spoiler

Show

Laura Ericks - Alpha 1
Benjamin Brooks - Alpha 2
James Redford - Alpha 3
Lorne Leander - Alpha 4
Andres Merina - Alpha 5
Todd - Alpha 6
Catriona O'Donovan - Alpha 7
Emi Kurokawa - Alpha 8

Other squads have 6, 7 and 1 field agents listed, as well as one engineer - but their names do not sound familiar. There is one difference though - apparently Delta's emergency release engineer is no one else but commander Richard Clayton himself!

[Drascin]

Andrés nods gravely, clutching his amplifier and ready for anything. This was it. Now, he had to give it his all to make sure the people around him weren't harmed. He knew in the bottom of his heart that this was it - where he proved whether he had the mettle to be a hero or not. He directs a longer gaze towards Frank Symes, the bait, and will give him a nod of respect if he looks in his direction - that man has balls of solid bronze, to go alone in one of those tin cans. I would've felt much better if I was the bait, I'm more resilient than the suits. He would have to make sure to finish things quickly and decisively, for the good of everyone.

Damn it, he should have worked harder in getting a good finishing hit. But either way, that overgrown squid was going down.

He heads towards their assigned bunker.

[ChronicLunacy]

Ben Brooks / Alpha 2

Ben strapped the amplifier to his wrist as he listened to the briefing, committing every detail to memory. Every once in awhile he would look up at some landmark that was being pointed to on the map in order to familiarize himself with the actual topography of the situation. He was a little less heated now that they had their amplifiers and there hadn't been some emergency that screwed everything up. The amplifier was like his sword and to go into battle without it he was beyond useless against an SE. Sometimes he wished that they could develop some way to implant the amplifiers into his body or even better some way to allow them to call their PSA's without an amplifier. Having to rely on the devices made them vulnerable, and that was something Ben hated being.

When Frank Symes accepted his role as bait without hesitation, Ben turned to give the man in the bulky Mark II a nod of appreciation. It occurred to Ben that even after five years he hadn't let himself really get to know a lot of the MSAS drivers. When he thought about it, though, he supposed he didn't want to make any friends with them because they were the most likely to be crushed like tin cans or vaporized during an SE fight. If he had to mourn good friends dying that often, Ben might go crazy. He was glad that his new teammates had relatively longer life expectancies. Maybe after this was all over he'd be able to connect with some of them.

"So our Shifters summon armor while in bunkers already? Damn... I was hoping to see how cool they are before we're all inside metal boxes." Some young guy (different from the previous yell, though) sounds jokingly disappointed, followed by several quiet laughs of other MSAS operatives. The laughter is somewhat nervous.

"Don't worry, soldier. You'll be able to see us plenty well once things heat up." he smirked, giving the young guy a thumbs up. "If you take any pictures while you're sitting happy down on the ground, try to catch my good side, alright?" he let that smirk turn into a full grin before his attention was drawn to the callsign sheet.

Alpha 2, huh? he thought, looking over to Laura while they all began to spread out and attend to their duties.

[Tengu_temp]

Emi straps the amplifier to her wrist and stares at the document she was handled, listening to what's happening around her but not commenting. She looks deep in thought, maybe even a bit melancholic.
MSAS pilots face even greater danger than us here, yet this... Frank Symes, yes, basically agreed to be the sacrificial lamb here. Why? I'm certain he knows that if anyone here will die, it's going to be him. Is he suicidal? Is his duty the most important thing for him? Or does he know that someone has to do it? Or maybe he holds a grudge against SEs? I don't know... I don't even know if it's brave, or foolish...
Emi doesn't move from her chair. She will probably sit there until someone grabs her attention, or until it's time to enter the bunker.

[kamikasei]

Cat sits through the briefing looking earnest and uncertain - understandable, as this is quite a sudden jump up from the basic training she's been dealing with up until now, almost all directed towards learning to handle her armour rather than military protocol. While watching the projector screen, her right hand goes to her left wrist, thumb absent-mindedly stroking the amplifier.

When the briefing ends and the squads start dispersing, she remains in her seat, looking around to see who's doing what and take her cue. Seeing Emi lost in thought, she approaches the other girl and taps her on the shoulder.

"Hey, 'Alpha 8'," she smiles. "Shall we join the others? We should probably be coming up with a plan of attack."

[Tengu_temp]

Emi blinks and snaps back to reality.
"Um, yes, that's true - we should." She gets up and heads towards... wherever the others have gone. The bunker, probably.
"You don't have to call me like that, though... It makes me feel devoid of individuality. I'm a human being, not a number."

[Haven]

He's distracting it from us? I suppose it makes sense tactically, to allow us some free time to judge its capacities, but we would be more effective and harder to hit...I guess the commander's done the calculations and decided the cost of us sustaining injuries times the probability is greater than the cost of the man's death... Lorne inwardly shudders a little at this thought.

Having taken his amplifier, he heads over to the bunker and stands in a corner, awaiting the time of action.

[Matar]

Todd's leg couldn't stay still at all during the briefing conference; his foot silently tapping the ground the whole time the commander spoke. He understood full well what was going on. Frank was going to be an expendable distraction. His heart burned when he heard him agree to it. No hesitation, no second guessing, What an incredible man! To be so readily to give his life for the glory of battle!

He had to speak with him, he had to say something.

He walked towards Frank and stood in front of him, staring him straight in the eyes (Or where his eyes would be, seeing as how Frank was in his MSAS armor). His voice was full of pride and determination.

“Know that you are the greatest mankind has to offer!”

Todd bites his palm, hard enough to draw blood. He doesn't wince, and lets the blood pool in his hand for a short moment before laying it on the chest of Franks Mark II.

“And I swear, by the very blood that flows through these veins, that we will see this enemy defeated!”

He grins.

“And I except you to see it as well!”

Todd turns on his heels and walks to his team mates, strapping on his amplifier to his wrist on his way there. We will win he thought. Of that I have no doubt.

[Fri]

"Understood"

James equips his amplifier in silence, though you can see from his eyes that he's nervous too.

There is first time for everything...

He looks around. It seems that everyone is rather taken aback by the MSAS' team seemengly suicidal mission.

"They're not civilians. They willingly take the risk, in full consent, as professional soldiers, trying to defend what they love. Don't think we're better than them or they're sacrificing their life for nothing simply because we got this alien armor and everything.

SECT simply doesn't know our capabilities yet. Let's simply prove that we can handle this."

Actually, the one that's been bothering him is the other PSAs. This is such a a ragtag bunch of crew. Some looks dependable enough... but the others... In fact, he's not sure that, unlike the MSAS' team, they took this job willingly and with real consent. They're minors after all. There are reasons why there are laws like age of criminal responsibility and age of consent.

Especially that irish girl, Cat. She looks... so sad and delicate, so out of her element here. Not that he thought that women are less capable than men. In fact, Sarah... would be far more in her element here than... himself. That's why he's able... to escape then. Because he's not as good as her...

And their senior, Laura. She can't be that much older than themselves. But she got responsibilities this heavy on her shoulders...

He shook his head. It's why he's here. So others won't have to.

He pats Laura's shoulder. "Don't worry. We won't disappoint you."

[Cubey]

"Haha! That's a deal then, I'll take a picture once this whole crap's over." The young soldier answers Ben. One of the mark I suits gives you a thumbs-up, so he's probably inside it.

Todd's actions are met with a calm gaze (the suit's visor is open, so you can see Frank's face - a long one, belonging to a man about 40 years of age, with a barely visible scar on his right cheek).
"I do what must be done. Don't worry - I don't intend to die today." There is a tone of kindness in his words. He puts a hand on Todd's shoulder, then turns around and walks away to his bunker. The whole scene is accompanied by several comments. "Hey, that kid's kinda cool." "Keep it up! The SE's a goner!" And similar appreciation. The spirits are rather high as operatives move out, each one to their own bunker - those who wear mark II suits are accompanied by engineers carrying Weapon Packs (three Ranged support versions and one Main battle - for Frank, unsurprisingly), while the ten mark I suits obviously are not.

At the same time, the commander is approached by no one else but Laura (who only gave a worried smile as a response to James).
"Commander... why have you chosen..."

"We both know that Frank Symes has the greatest chance to survive that task. This is why he serves as a distraction."

"No... that's not it." The young woman shakes her head nervously. "Why have you chosen yourself as Delta's engineer? This is... dangerous! What happens if we lose you?"

"I cannot idly stand aside while you all put your lives on the line." Those of you who are closer see that Clayton smiles reassuringly. "My conscience wouldn't let me. Besides, don't forget - I am only an ordinary human. I cannot Shift, and I do not wear an Alloy Suit. The only way 01B could harm me is if it unshifts itself - and then it's dead on the spot. We have snipers waiting for this opportunity, and artillery and airforce are on standby. Finally... I think Frank could use some company in that lonely little bunker."

"Oh..." Laura holds her wrist again. This time, there is an amplifier there.

"It will be alright. Similar plans worked great in the past, remember?" The commander raises a megaphone to his mouth again. "ALRIGHT! LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, ON POSITIONS PLEASE. EVERYONE, GOOD LUCK! BE CAUTIOUS AND TRY TO STAY ALIVE."

The Alpha bunker looks like a four-sided pyramid, with one side lying flat on the ground so that you can enter. It is large enough to accomodate all of you semi-comfortably, and at the moment it's attended by a young, tanned woman with short black pigtails, wearing an engineer's uniform, worker gloves and a baseball cap.
"Phew! All done." She nods, noticing the first one to arrive (probably Andres). "Right on time, too. Welcome! Get inside, I'll show you around." She smiles and walks into the pyramid. The inside is lit - there is a light on each wall. There are no windows, and small ventilation holes are set up only on a wall that will not face the incoming SE. "All the walls will open up to the outside when it's time. Quite nifty, huh?" She points at one of the walls. "Here's the emergency release lever. If the place doesn't open up, pull it strongly. This is the radio - the cables are set up underground, so mixed Sophium walls won't block transmissions at all. And here's the first aid-kit." She shows each subsequent item, all of them located under the walls so they don't get in the way. "But I'm sure you won't need it. Make sure to tell others where everything is. Laters!" She winks and leaves the bunker before you have a chance to react.

Laura is one of the last people to arrive at your bunker. She doesn't say anything by herself, unless spoken to by anyone of you.

[ChronicLunacy]

Ben Brooks

Ben just stood silently while everyone crowded into the tiny bunker. They all fit comfortably, but it still felt a little claustrophobic to him. It didn't seem to bother him too much, though, as he just closed his eyes and crossed his arms over his chest. He settled into a sort of meditative state, silently counting down the minutes until the Commander's voice came through and gave them the order to shift into their PSA's. He seemed remarkably calm except for the fact that the muscles in his neck were tensed and standing out as he tightly clenched his jaw.

[Matar]

Todd stands in the bunker, his hand moving over the amplifier constantly. If the SE was in the air, he wouldn't be able to get to it unless he jumped, and if he did that and the SE hit him in mid air, who knows how far he would go flying. No... what he needed was something to throw at it. Something that would do the most damage, something heavy, something...

Todd grinned. He had no idea if the dude would agree to this, but it would be freaking awesome if he did. He walked over to Andy, put an arm around his shoulder and muttered something into his ear.