Forums » Sci-Fi Roleplay » Comfortably Numb (Semi Open, Ask First)

"I killed people," Josh replied with a sigh. "What do you think?"

"I kill people for a living. Sorry to burst your bubble, really, I am, but you gonna have to learn how to use a gun, otherwise, you're dead meat. Everyone here has their own firearm, and everyone knows everything about it. As soon as I get inside, I'll get to work on you two. I heard Matt has a couple of Thompsons that he could give away. His has "God's Warrior" Engraved on it." Sanders said, and couldn't help but laugh at that. It was funny that he engraved it on there.

Josh shrugged, picking at his fingernails.
"This is the kind of kid who lets the spiders in the house go," Randall murmured, massaging Josh's tense shoulders. "You'll get used to it, Josh."

"You guys will do fine. Trust me. Both of you will do fine. Hey, Randall, Matt himself might be able to train you. That would be something," Sanders showed complete admiration of that idea. "Sadly, you will get used to it. To a point where its not even... a thought. Just a reaction,"

That was the deal... Josh didn't want to get used to it. But of course he didn't say that.
Randall let out a weary sigh and rested his head on Josh's shoulder, listening to their surroundings carefully. It was quiet, kinda funny considering they were in a freaking war zone before.

"You won't like it at all. I didn't when I joined the Army. But talk to Jacob about it. He might want to give advice. And here he is!" Jacob was indeed walking down the open area between hell and safety, a .50 sniper rifle strapped across his back, a Thompson on his shoulder, the revolver in his pocket, a cigarette smoking, and his aviators shining. Sanders stepped back, and let him talk.

"Thanks Sanders. Now, listen. My name is Major General Jacob Robbins. I am the second in command of this group, the deadliest person here, and I will be personally see to it that you two are well taken care of. But we must hurry, for I have pressing matters to attend to." Jacob opened the gate, and nodded to Sanders. This could be an interesting group.

Randall hauled Josh to his feet, waiting until he was steady before releasing his shirt collar. He studied Jacob cautiously for a moment, sizing him up to see if he was a threat... Probably not.
"So what, we're in the Army now?" Josh asked, raising an eyebrow. Lovely. "Look, I'm not gonna be the best at fighting, that's Randall's job- I'm not fast and I'm not strong and I have a bad leg from getting it caught in a bear trap. Long story, don't ask. But, uh, I don't think I'm completely useless- I know some basic medical skills and I'm a quick learner..."
He trailed off awkwardly, realizing he was probably digging himself into a hole he couldn't get out of.

"You aren't in just the Army. You are in HRA now. Learn, Live, Adapt. That's our motto." Jacob stopped when Josh said what he said. The kid could probably be good with Corinth, but that was up to him. Jacob still wanted him to learn how to use a gun. "Kid, you are stuck in a bear trap, but it's for us. You will have to learn how to shoot, and that, but yes. I know a medical officer who would be more than happy to help you out.

He nodded, glancing down at his feet. "Yeah, that's be best. I'm better at fixing things than I am at destroying them."
"Good motto- living is important," Randall commented absentmindedly, gazing into the distance blankly before shaking himself back to reality.

"Well, don't just stand there! Come in!" Jacob closed the gate behind the little group, and walked towards the makeshift fortress. There, on one of the towers, was his nest, so to speak. He liked being up there, and went there when he was feeling depressed. Right now, he wasn't feeling too depressed, though he might get an episode that night. He sent Josh off to find Corinth, and sat down to talk to Randall. "So, how good are you at aiming?"

"I'm decent," he replied with a shrug, pacing back and forth with his hands in his pockets. "Gimme a scope and I can nail just about anything. Josh is better since he's farsighted so he doesn't need a scope, but he's not exactly the combative type." He shrugged slightly. "Can't blame him, but yeah. I can adapt fairly well to weapons in general."

Josh limped along, the shock of everything finally crashing down on his thin shoulders and forcing him to stop and lean against a wall.
How many of those people had brothers, sisters, girlfriends, wives, children? Did they have families, friends? How many wanted to be there, who got drafted? What would happen to them now?
He was thinking about this way too much, but he couldn't help it. Josh didn't like fighting and killing, instead taking the diplomatic route whenever possible.
And he was only fifteen, after all.

"If this was a normal situation, I'd say go get some target practice under your belt. But it ain't, and the only way to learn is to learn on the job, sadly. Which means that you just might be on the job with me. So, whadda say? Want to be trained by the deadliest person here?" Jacob said, and then sighed. He was really tired, and god knows what else. Not a lot happened to him that day, but what he had to go through was worse. He had been through a helluva lot. "Go get some sleep. We gotta work in the morning,"

"So long as you don't kill me or my brother, I'm fine," Randall replied with a ghost of a smirk. "Speaking of my brother, I'm gonna go find him... God knows where he went, he has a habit of wandering off."

Josh finally got himself together and got off the wall, running a hand through his thick black hair and looking up. He was supposed to find Corinth, right? Who in the name of everything good and holy was Corinth?

Corinth was in the hall, relaxing. He had no idea that there was new arrivals. Moreover, he didn't realize that one of them wanted to be a medic. He had his medic sleeve on, so if Josh didn't know what he looked like, at least he could tell who he was.

Sleeve... Medic?
Josh approached him timidly, eyeing the sleeve to make sure it was real and he wasn't just imagining things, which was quite possible with his current mental state.
"Uhh... I'm looking for Corinth...?" he murmured uncertainly, looking the huge man up and down.

"You found him. How can I help?" He stood up, stretching out. He was just under six feet tall, but was wide, and had many strong muscles. This man used to be a commando, and had medical experience in wars. Which is why he was a medic.

Josh was quite dwarfed by this guy and didn't doubt that he could get snapped in half like a pencil by this guy. Hell, he was thin enough and light enough.
"Jacob told me to find you. I'm interested in being a medic," he explained, rubbing the back of his neck. "Fighting isn't exactly my forte."

"Well, you've come to the right place. I understand you completely, though, I can't say fighting isn't that good. I've done my fair share of it. And I still do. No one ever puts down a gun. Realize that." Corinth walked to the medical center, where they would begin training. He showed the kid books, and began immediately. The medical skills would come first, then the shooting.

Josh paid attention, watching and listening in fascination. This was the stuff he liked, not killing people he didn't even know; if they died, at least he could say he had tried.
He was so absorbed in the different things that he didn't notice Randall leaning against the door frame, patiently waiting for his brother to finish up and come to bed.

After a bit, Corinth stopped. It was a helluva lot that they did. He had made him memorize what to do in basic situations, taught him the basics, and whatnot. It was a good day for the first day. But there would be more. But not tonight. The kid had to sleep, and sleep a lot.

"I've worked you enough for one day. Good night,"

Jacob woke up after a horrible nightmare. He was sweating everywhere. He tried to breath, but he couldn't. He didn't know what it was. Then he realized that it was a panic attack. He got up, and drank an entire glass of water. He needed air.

He grabbed a pair of shorts, sandals, and a button t shirt, not even bothering to button it. He ran out, not caring if anyone saw him, and ran to the tower. He got to it, and climbed up, getting to that nest of his. He turned on his music, grabbed a beer, and stared out into the ruins.