Sit Rep & Gossip

Vas sat in a chair outside the briefing room. He looked left and then right and slid out a Doki bar and quickly took a bite, hawkish looking around.

Nate gave him a look of disapproval. “You couldn’t wait five minutes?” He asked.

“Jesus fuck! You're like a judgmental ghost!” Vas said, scraping what little dignity he had left while jamming the bar hastily in a pocket like it was a dirty secret. “You need a bell.”

“I literally said Vas, with me for debriefing,” Nate said with a shake of his head. “It’s not my fault you failed situational awareness.”

“And here I was going to share my Doki bar with you.” Vas said like a put out toddler. “Are we done? Can we go now? This place is too … sterile.” He complained.

“Listen, I’m going to need you to by-the book this one,” Nate told him. “Don’t ask questions, I don’t know much, but I need you - all of you - to be as under the radar as you can get.”

“Yea yea yea …” Vas said dismissively. “... well be good dogs…”

“I mean it,” Nate said, lowering his voice as he looked around. “Something big is going on, and this is one time I don’t want us to be at the forefront.”

“Is it true?” Rey asked, as he and Jai stepped out of the stairwell to join them for the debrief. “Leo’s whole team was decommissioned?”

“Zip it,” Nate ordered, keeping his tone quiet.

Vas was about to open his mouth but thought better of it.

“What I miss?” Jai asked frowning. “Are we gossiping? Tell me I did not miss out on the good stuff.”

“Brahv you miss out on everything.” Vas snorted.

“God fucking dammit …” Jai huffed.

“We’re not gossiping,” Nate snapped.

“Leo’s whole team was decommissioned,” Rey repeated. “Zev says Hellhounds are being repurposed.”

“Zev knows shit,” Nate hissed. “Leo’s team was on the bottom of captures. They may be headed for retraining.”

“Not what Zev says,” Rey protested. “He heard funding was cut for the whole program.”

“Okay guys. Chill.” Vas said. “Were fucking Hellhounds. Who the hell else are they going to send out to play fetch? And as far as I know none us are training our replacement.” Vas pointed out. “How much more optimised can they make us. Also Leo’s team also sucks … especially next to us.”

“Like I said, by-the-book on this one,” Nate repeated. “Until we know anything for sure.”

“At least tell me we have a plan just in case this shit is real.” Rey hedged.

“You don't have a plan?” Vas said looking at Rey in disappointment.

“Brahv …” Jai said, shaking his head.

“Right. Because you have a plan if the Hounds get shut down,” Rey accused.

“Literaly everyone had done the hypothetical bug out. We do it. Cops do it …” Vas said dismissively. “... soldiers do it. The hypothetical what if or if I had to bail. You have never seriously thought if it all went tits up ... how would I bug out?”

“Nah, my hypotheticals always involve the shield going down in Blackridge, not my own team plans to fuck me over.” Rey admitted.

“Not going to be necessary,”Nate declared.

Vas made an iffy gesture. “Its good mental exercise."

“I said zip it,” Nate repeated. “It won’t be an issue.