[ open ] Help I'm alive, my heart keeps beating like a hammer

[childofaxios]

who: Cadet Chyler Silva + YOU
what: Monthly log/catchall
when: January, wibbly wobbly time
where: Currently, Perimeter Guard places and communal housing. More TBA.
warnings: None atm.



i. perimeter guard - boot camp/general

a. obstacle course
[ This is, at the earth kids say, Chyler's jam. She's in the lead, hopping barriers, climbing ropes, crawling on her back underneath barbed wire like she was made to do it. She's a standout at the team obstacles in particular, encouraging those around her, waiting until last at the wall to be pulled up to the top, boosting others up with more strength than a sixteen-year-old girl has any right to possess. (Which doesn't mean she can boost people up without help.)

She comes off the field with her eyes bright and the implication of a smile on her face, even if she's breathing hard. This is familiar. It's safe. It's almost like home. ]


b. firing range
[ She doesn't miss. It's the one thing that stayed true from drill to battlefield. When Chyler pulls the trigger, she hits her target. She had the school record for accuracy at Corbulo, with rifle and small arms both.

When they hand her an assault rifle, t's a relief to handle something so familiar, even if she has to learn a slightly more primitive system. She's not as perfect with it as she wants to be. Which is why she's at the firing range in the evening after the rest of her class has gone to their barracks, with one of the instructors looking over her shoulder. There are others there practicing as well, but none of them seem to care much that someone so much younger is tagging the target like she was born with a gun in her hands. ]


c. hand-to-hand
[ Chyler isn't quite as good here as she is at the firing range. She's small. She's not heavy. She has to push herself that much more to succeed, and she thrives on the challenge of it. It's something new to do, something different to perfect.

Except she has a partner who won't hit back. His blocks are weak, his blows worse. The longer they drill against each other the more aggressive Chyler gets, drive giving way to frustration. Each hit lands harder. Her blocks start to push against his attacks. She backs him out of the line without meaning to, thinking Come on, come on, do something.

She's about to yell at him when the instructor yells at her.

"Silva! Ease up. Everyone, take a break. Cool down. Then we'll switch partners."

Chyler's caught between the shame of being called out and aggravation of the same. She braces her hands on her hips and does a circuit of the room, winding her temper in, finding her control. ]


ii. communal housing - rooftop

[ She wants to find a Spot. Somewhere like Lasky had at Corbulo. She liked that she was able to dangle her feet when they shared his. That she was in some sense able to leave the ground.

It's why she tries to roof of communal housing first, one late night after boot when she can't sleep. Not without nightmares.

She should have gotten some of that purple incense. She still can, if she wants to, but there's some risk now of someone she knows seeing her do it. She doesn't want the pity that might come with seeing her need the help.

So here she is at the railing, leaning over the edge until her feet almost leave the ground. There's no suicidal intention in it. Chyler just wants to get as much of her face into the updraft climbing the building as possible. The wind feels good. Clarifying. She needs that. ]


iii. wildcard

[ Other ideas? HMU. Might be adding more prompts later but these are the ones my brain was capable rn. ]

Comments

Shooting Range

[igotusout]

*Guns were not a mutant's friend. For starters, the X-Men were very anti-killing, and so the boys they left in charge of the Underground didn't like guns. Plus, being mutants, owning a gun was illegal. On top of how being alive was illegal, and having powers was illegal, and generally mutants didn't need guns, they had powers, but the law wasn't meant to be fair or make sense. As such, all of this, meant Lauren had no confidence firing a gun, holding a gun, or doing anything with a gun.*

*Which is why Lauren is getting some extra practice, it isn't really helping, so that's a problem. Lauren's using a handgun instead of an assault rifle, there's no reason for someone who needs at least one hand free to make shields to carry anything that big. She still closed her eyes as she pulled the trigger, her hand shook as she aimed, and if her target had a hole in it that was more statistical anomaly than any level of personal skill. Naturally, when she looked at what Chyler was doing she was impressed, and a little jealous, but tried not to dwell.*

[childofaxios]

[ Chyler is hyperfocused, intent on her targets. She doesn't even notice Lauren is there until she's packing it in, handing the weapon off to the instructor in spite of her instinct to insist on cleaning it herself. That's not the way things are done here. That rifle isn't hers, it's not assigned to her, it's not going to be inspected to make sure she's maintaining it. (And that, she thinks, is a vast oversight on the part of their teachers here.)

She spots Lauren and comes over with a smile, waiting until the girl is done firing before she gets too close. ]

You're... [ TERRIBLE. ] The practice will help.

[igotusout]

...So you're saying I suck?

*She's smiling cause she's more than aware she's bad at this. She's brand new at this, it'll take her a while.*

In my defense, back home touching a gun could get me thrown in jail for the rest of my life. I'm just glad I don't need to use one of those assault rifles like you were firing.

*Being aware of her surroundings is a part of her skills. She needs to be able to toss a shield up around anyone in danger.*

[childofaxios]

Thrown in jail? Why?

[ Chyler can't imagine a world where a weapon isn't a basic means of simple self defense. Where even touching one could have consequences like those. Clearly, someone where Lauren is from has to have weapons, or those kinds of laws could never be enforced in the first place. ]

ic.

[brightline]

[The Perimeter Guard Captain had been harassing him about this for months. Seriously months. Going on and on about how even if he's in the Flyboy unit he has to do basic just like all the other boots. She hadn't been particularly impressed with him when he'd asked her to speak English either, and so here he is, being put up against one of the 'most impressive new recruits' for basic hand-to-hand training.

And man, this is awful when he's not in gorilla morph! Seriously, being a massive hulking gorilla means you totally don't have to have any real battle strategy or coordination or anything really, because when your fist is the size and weight of a cement block, you don't really need to think much about how you hit. And also, it's not like he's the type who cares about hitting a pretty girl or underestimates pretty girls because he'd met Rachel, but this girl is really, really pretty, and it's really, really weird in human form.

She's also really, really kicking his butt.

When the instructor calls her off, Marco's nursing bruised forearms and a bloody nose, and shoots a look after her that's halfway between impressed and resentful. There's something really familiar about the way she stomps off with her hands on her hips looking angry about the whole thing, and Marco can't help but grin a bit. After a few moments of regrouping, he trots over to her, still wiping at his nose.]

Man, you have to teach me a move or two, that was awesome, you totally kicked my butt.

[childofaxios]

What?

[ She was braced for an argument, for him complaining about how hard she hits or how mean she was. ( She's heard as much in whispers from cadets outside of Hastati Squad. "She's merciless," "she's brutal," "she's ruthless." All different words for effective. )

His nose still has blood under it. ]

You weren't even trying.

[brightline]

Well, yeah, I mean, I suck at fighting.

[Marco scrubs his hand across his nose again and then wipes off the blood on the thigh of his pants, seeming more than a little unconcerned about the fact he's bleeding.]

I don't usually fight in human form, and it's not like I ever got trained until today. Sorry, I kept getting distracted by how gorgeous you are.

[A non-committal shrug, and he tilts his head, snuffling a little bit in the aftermath of the bloody nose.]

Anyway, what do you say? Teach me something?

[childofaxios]

[ WHY WOULD YOU TREAT YOUR CLOTHES LIKE THAT, MARCO. Chyler scowls. ] First lesson: don't get distracted by looks. They're pointless on the battlefield.

[ She looks him over, clearly disapproving. He is, as the kids say, a hot mess. ] What do you mean, 'human form'?

ii

[thisisamazing]

[Sometimes being on the ground floor makes it hard to sleep. Hiccup has always had the loft, back home, and he's generally more at ease being high up. Sometimes, like tonight, he comes up onto the roof with Toothless and a blanket, and they curl up together to look at the stars and fall asleep like that, somehow farther away from the glares of alarm clocks and electronics.

Tonight the roof isn't empty, though, and Hiccup watches the other person leaning over the railing for a moment, while Toothless turns in a circle nearer to the door, sparking up the concrete to warm it before he lays down. The blackened ring he flops down on says he's been here before.]

It's a long way to fall. [Hiccup says mildly, glancing outward over the city.]

[childofaxios]

[ It goes to show how far into her own head she was that she didn't hear him or Toothless arrive. She drops back to the roof, preparing a deflection, an excuse, but then she looks past him and sees Toothless and her mouth opens in shock. ]

What...? [ She looks at Hiccup, then at the dragon again. ] Is that-- Is it-- here with you?

[thisisamazing]

[A quiet laugh.] Yeah, he's here with me. Don't mind Toothless. He sleeps better up here sometimes. [Despite the cold, anyway, which is the only reason they still sleep down on Floor 1 at all. Come summer and they'll probably sleep on the roof all the time.] Even trained dragons are still wild in some ways.

[childofaxios]

He's a dragon.

[ Incredulity. Not as much as she would have had a week ago. Not when she was supposed to be dead, not when she's been inside a grand ballroom that was bigger than the palace that held it. ]

Can.... [ She hates how naive the question sounds, but the creatures here have been one of her small sanctuaries. ] Can I touch him? Do you know how it works? [ She gestures to her own mouth, already stepping away from the railing and closer to Hiccup and the dragon. ] The flames, or whatever that is.

ic;

[neversurrender]

[Steve likes to observe the boot camp training when he has time. Those being trained will, of course, eventually be out in the thick of it with him and he likes to know what those at his back are capable of. One girl in particular has caught his eye. As young and as small as she is, there's something fierce about her that he really begins to see during the hand-to-hand training.

He's been small before, and in training where everyone tries to tiptoe around being the one to land the wimpy asthmatic on the ground. He can feel her frustration keenly every time her opponent holds back, weakening his blows. Going easy on someone is not a way to prepare them for true combat.

So he waits until the class wraps up, not wanting to impose on the instructor's command, before walking over her before she has a chance to pack up for the day.]

You did really well out there. It's a shame you didn't have a better partner. [He smiles.] But I have a little free time right now if you really want to show me what you've got.

i'm sorry for her dialogue sob

[childofaxios]

[ Her first reaction to Steve's presence is to come to attention. Her second is to think he's big. She almost looks behind herself when he speaks to her, thinking there must be someone else there. She's too well-trained to do it, but there's the temptation.

But no, he mentioned her partner.

This is a test. ]

Yes, sir.

[ This might not be Corbulo, but she's still in training and he's clearly Perimeter Guard. The only responses she's allowed to give, as far as Chyler is concerned, are "Yes, sir," "No, sir," "No excuse, sir," and "Sir, I don't understand." ]

[neversurrender]

[It's impossible for him to miss the way she automatically and immediately stands at attention. It comes off as natural from her. Too natural to be something she's only just learned. But while he appreciates the respect, it's been a long time since he was in the Army, and he's hoping for more of a casual discourse from her.]

At ease, solider. [He smiles.] There's no need to stand on tradition with me.

[childofaxios]

[ She relaxes, a little, though she's clearly uncomfortable with him telling her not to stand on tradition. ]

Yes, sir.

[ It's a small act of defiance, even if she feels like it shouldn't be. This place is far too lackadaisical in its approach to its military. Still, she's looking him right in the eyes with the smallest glare as she says it.

Chyler pls. ]

ia; youre doing amazing sweetie

[bythehand]

[ Finn's intuition is right yet again, and he has no one to say "I told you so" to.

Look, he said he'd keep an eye out for Chyler to hit boot camp, and he's a man of his word. As much as he can be between the things that he kind of has to do around here, as part of the actual job that he's getting paid for. It's no First Order rotation schedule, though. Finn knows how to make it work.

Obviously, he doesn't interrupt. What's he gonna do, distract a crop of cadets in the middle of something? That would be a bad look all-around. But he can afford to hang for a bit, wait for the field to clear. Watch Chyler Silva blow everyone out of the water like a badass. No big deal.

Anyway, basically, GUESS WHO'S HERE AND IMPRESSED, IT'S HIM. ]

So how's your two weeks of nothing treating you?

[childofaxios]

Finn! [ Oh hey, for a second there's an actual, real smile breaking across her face. Blame it on the endorphins. There's a part of her (a small, largely ignored part of her) that's glad to have him see her doing well.

Even when she notices she's smiling and gets it under control, she still looks happy. Which is more than she's felt in the week before she started boot camp. This is where someone with a freer sense of humor would make a joke about how easy everything has been, but she's just happy to have something so close to home. She's too grateful (too serious) to make a joke. ] It's not nearly as regimented as Corbulo. I'd be reprimanded by now just for talking to you.

[ That. Might be a joke? If you squint. Like real hard. ]

this is the cutest shit ive ever seen in my life

[bythehand]

[ Finn smiles back, and because he has no chill, he doesn't end up wrangling it under control at all.

It's good to see her doing okay. Excelling in general with boot camp, yeah, and also just... a little more together, doing a little better. Nothing's an easy fix, but sometimes it's enough to be able to go one day at a time for a while. This is a good fit with what she said she needed. He's glad. ]

I know the feeling. You get used to it.

wildcards it up

[valr]

[Kara had told Chyler she'd get in touch, about heading out into the forest, and eventually she makes good on her word, after doing all the necessary prep. The perimeter guard aren't exactly a military, but Kara still checks with them about the whole process and then eventually texts Chyler with a time and place to meet.

She gets there a little early, assuming that Chyler definitely will, armed with a hunting rifle and her sword at her hip. There's a part of her that feels naked without a shield, but she ignores it, knowing that there's not much point in carrying one in a place where terrain may be their biggest issue.

When she spots Chyler, Kara lifts a hand in greeting.]

Ready to go, cadet?

[childofaxios]

[ Chyler has approval to take PG gear out with her on this one. She's wearing tactical gear of a kind that won't slow her down outside the wall, a handgun at her hip and an assault rifle with its tactical clip hanging from her chest, so she can carry it one-handed.

She looks more relaxed decked out for war than she did at the party, that's for damn sure. She's a little surprised that Kara is here early, but not very. She raises her free hand in response and stops close enough to cover and wide enough that she can fire her weapon without the risk of hitting Kara at close range. ]

Ready, sir.

[ Old habits. ]

[valr]

[It's been a few years, since anyone's consistently called her sir, but it's not so unfamiliar that she can't adjust quickly.]

You expecting much trouble?

[It's a genuine question, rather than an admonishment at the gear. By the point, Chyler's training as likely involved some kind of information about what the expect out there, so she's got an advantage over the light reading Kara's done as prep.]

c.

[deploy]

Water up, cadet. You're looking a little salty.

[A bottle of water tossed underhand Chyler's way. If Chyler's not distracted by the source of the voice, she'll catch it, easily. If she is distracted, the bottle might just clock her in the face.

Either way, John is watching with interest. Same as he's been watching her for the past couple hours, through shooting, close quarters combat, and general boot-camp activities. Out of sight, and out of mind, until he makes a point of being seen.

John doesn't spend much time in the training areas, but today's an exception. The referral he'd given to a 'C.Silva' called in, and the cadet's file brought to his desk for review.

Seeing her face, young, and already too serious, had been something of a surprise to him. He imagines it'll be something of a surprise to her, too. Because they've met before this, far too recently to be forgotten, under less professional circumstances.

Watching a person fight can explain a lot about them, and seeing Chyler go to town on that boy, angry, and with something to prove, says a lot about her.

Almost as much as the fireworks.]

[childofaxios]

[ She catches the bottle, instinct responding even though she is distracted by the voice. It's familiar. His face is even more so, though she doesn't immediately know why.

She wasn't, to put it mildly, in the best mental place when he found her before.

Chyler watches him in silence, opening the bottle and taking a few small sips, expression closed and professional, back straight. She's about to give him a standard thank you, sir, when she recognizes him.

She almost drops the bottle. ]

[deploy]

[It's funny, the way things pan out sometimes. If John weren't a mathematician at heart, he might believe in fate. As it is, he's pretty sure most strange events can be boiled down to coincidence, dumb luck, and alien tampering.

John leans against the door-frame, balancing his clipboard on one hip. It's the same as all the other squad leaders, recruiting to their units, and Chyler's profile is sitting at the very top of a thick stack. John licks his thumb and flips to the next page, onto the grading scale.]

Good eye. Good arm. Nice work out there in survival skills.

How do you think you did on the mats, cadet?

[John doesn't have his plates on, because he's bad like that, and unlike the other uniforms in their colours, is wearing sanitized black on black BDUs. Some people do things the right way, some people do things the wrong way, John Sheppard has always done things the John Sheppard way.]