07-05-2018, 09:09 PM
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The Freelancers, in general, had been an interesting group from the beginning. They had been given very vague information from basically the very beginning. They were rarely ever given time frames and when asked when something would be done, they would usually get a response saying that it would get done when it was done. Which had been fine with Washington, because he was patient in that regard compared to the rest of those that were in the program. There had been around 50 super soldiers that had been accepted with applications into the Project. Which was good, but it also meant that Washington had competition. He had never been the most competitive, but he knew taht even he himself needed to be pushed when possible. He couldn't just lay back and do the minimum that was required of him. That wasn't how he had ended up getting to be Corporal when he was in the UNSC. He didn't know the backgrounds of those that he would eventually be teamed up with. Instead, he just fought with them and figured out their personalities and what they were strong with doing as their specialties.
Not everyone could be good at everything, after all, so everyone had their own quirks that were waiting to be revealed. There had been several talks before he had even been accepted into the program. The program was massive, and it was basically held on a massive ship that went by the name, Mother of Invention. It was almost ironic that it had that name because they were indeed inventing a lot of things on that damned ship. Most of those that were there were fairly likable. He wasn't sure how he felt about the Counselor because each time he talked to the guy, the guy basically tried to analyze his mental state, even with a basic conversation. It turned everything awkward because he wasn't about to ask everything that he questioned about. He could be doing countless other things than with talking with the Counselor. If the Director wanted to know something then he would make sure to tell the Counselor so. Then the leaderboard came to be, and they were arrange based on their skill level. Carolina, of course, being at the top of the list while he had been at the very bottom. Being the worst of the best wasn't exactly a bad thing. He was still capable, and he had no intention of climbing up the ranks like the rest of them.
Mentally though, Project Freelancer took his toll a little bit. There were times where he would wonder if he was doing the right thing. If they were the good guys. After all, they didn't exactly go after any alien troops and only went after humans. Having been in the military though, Washington didn't have nightmares about those that he had ended up killing. He had learned to turn away those thoughts a long time ago, practically having been trained to do so. It was one of the reasons why he was able to keep such a clear head when it came to slaughtering an entire ship with the rest of his teammates. No. He wasn't a good guy. He had been on the wrong team from the very beginning, but it wasn't like he knew this till now. He had been led astray, lied to, and stabbed in the back from the program that he had trusted with his life and believed would reach higher levels in the future. He did state the reason he had wanted to join the program was that humans were losing the war and this seemed like the next best option. Which it had been for a short time. After they were able to run a mission after mission together, they grew to what almost could be considered a family.
That's the way that Washington had looked at it, as they would protect each other in battle if they needed to. Especially the Twins because they were both families already. They could walk around without their helmets off without having the barrier between them when having a face to face conversation. Something that Washington refused to do in the current outpost that he was taking shelter in. Carolina having saved his life plenty of times. It would probably be hard to replace him being the top 6 if he was to get blown up. At least that's what he wanted to tell himself but he knew that wasn't true. Even if they did act like a family in and out of armor, they weren't against trying to beat the hell out of each other in the means of training. He saw plenty of times everyone going all out. Breaking each other's ribs. Breaking noses and cracking bones. And yet there was no ill grudges that were left from those blows. Instead, it was almost like a silent note for someone to get better so that they wouldn't end up getting said injuries. While he had been giving information to Carolina, he began to think about what was going to happen to those that lived in this outpost. He was the only one that was maybe keeping Carolina in check if he could even catch her.
She didn't have her armor, so it wasn't like he could put her armor in lockdown like what his armor was capable of doing. She was going to potentially even fight anyone that looked at her the wrong way. Sure, there were other's around that were quite nice, but at the same time, he didn't know exactly how far that facade really went. He wanted to get out of here probably just as much as she wanted to. His eyes darted back toward Roy and Imperia, and then Roy finally spoke up. The Colonel was obviously pissed, and he didn't blame the guy. Although he wasn't sure exactly why, because he wasn't one of them. He was just some random soldier that was in the wrong place and wrong time. Washington didn't say anything to what Roy said, mostly because he knew that if he said something and try to give any instructions his arm was as good as broken. He would greatly like to keep his arm, especially in this strange place. One thing that Washington did not know though was why Carolina tensed at the mention of the name Church. Washington had never gotten close enough to get to know the Director and who he was.
Not even his real name, and instead he only knew Carolina's father by the name of Director. And even then, he didn't know that Carolina was the director's daughter either. When he did feel the tightening of her grip, he stopped breathing, thinking that he had said something wrong that had actually pissed her off. What that could have been though Washington had no idea. The other was going to let him up, and he released the breath that he had been holding for who knows how long. Finally, he wasn't going to have his arm broken. At least for today. However, she wanted to see Church for some reason. "Sure thing Boss" Washington would say complying with her order almost immediately. Mentioning that the other knew a little bit about Project Freelancer must have peaked her interest, but he wasn't sure how the leopard was going to treat Church when he did arrive. He noticed that her attention turned from him back to Roy, and he clenched his jaw. But his arm was finally released. Agent Washington didn't get up right away and instead waited for Carolina to shift herself into a standing position and say that he could get up.
From there, he would roll himself over onto his stomach getting up. His armor shifted a little bit back into place, and he rolled the shoulder of the arm that Carolina had held. Washington had known to get up when only told to in this kind of situation, as any wrong move could lead to some sort of punishment. It was proper to follow orders from someone that was higher ranked. Hearing her talk back to Roy wasn't good. The guy was a Colonel and held a rank in this outpost. He took one small step toward Carolina to hopefully try to calm her down. If that was even possible. "Carolina, he lives here. Considering what just happened he might think you'll attack his teammates. He's a Colonel." Washington was quick to inform Carolina of the other's rank. Which was pretty high in military terms, at least to him anyway. The armored smilodon looked toward Roy and lowered his shoulders as if to say a silent sorry for Carolina's attitude. He knew what she was going through, and it was certainly jarring. Then she asked about his sleeping quarters and his body language came back to the soldier stance that he usually took.
Gesturing with his helmet in the direction toward the base. "Their base is this way. They live in an abandoned observatory that was abandoned by humans. And this outpost seems to peaceful in regard to its residents. Their base is in the middle of the area that they do control. Trees are located at the perimeter and mostly wide open plains make up the majority of the rest. There are a couple other landmarks here and there but I've swept it for any signs as to the rest of us but over the past couple weeks there have been no other signs other than the simulation troopers." Washington's words would come out fast and informative. He made sure to give her the time frame that he had been here. Literally alone with civilians. Which had been a change in itself that took a while to get used to, to realize that these guys weren't exactly soldiers. Speaking of the one that they wanted to talk about, Church had made his way over. He turned his head hearing the simulation troopers voice, and the muscles in his shoulder tensed. Well, this was going to either go good or go very bad. "Church, this is Agent Carolina." The armored smilodon would introduce the leopard with a small pointing of his paw, although it was more of a vague gesture than anything.
He was pretty sure that Church would already know that she was a Freelancer considering that he knew he was a Freelancer basically from his name when they first met. When a shadow passed over them though, his helmet snapped up to look at the sky. Oh no. It was this guy. Washington had to stop himself from saying anything as the large guy was above them. With wings. He still didn't know what the hell this guy was. The other's words to Washington were passive aggressive to him. Was the other going to attack Carolina? Even if it was a misunderstanding he was going to protect someone that understood what he was going through. He took one small step toward Carolina. Not for her safety, but to stop her with the way that the beast was addressing her. He had never caught the other's name. How was he going to diverge this situation now? "Uhh I'm actually just taking shelter for now. I'm not sure calling someone a member who hasn't contributed anything is the right term to be used to describe me." Agent Washington would state calmly, and therefore what he said was null and void and Carolina would be allowed to hurt him. He didn't need them to protect him. He was capable of protecting himself. He wasn't one of them and was going to make sure that he was never going to be. "speech"
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