fandomhighdorms | Behind the Dorms, Tuesday Afternoon

Beyond the rapidly-healing scratch on his left arm, Arthur looked downright sprightly today, for whatever measure of the phrase. He rubbed his gloves together as the reservists arrived, and didn't stop until everyone was there. "Two weeks ago, we spoke about guerilla tactics," he said, "I hope you've remembered some of it. Today, we'll be focusing on the stealth, rather than the immediate location of the ambush. We must find ways to render ourselves completely inaudible when need be, both through the use of tools, and our own skills."

He considered the group. "If any of you - including those of you affiliated with the other groups rather than this one - know of any tools at your own disposal that will minimize our own noise, especially in forestal environments or cobblestoned roads or the like, please share those with everyone so that we will know what options we've got if the time comes."

"As for the skills, a bit of hands-on practice might be needed." He nodded towards the preserve. "A while ago, we hid and sought each other out in the woods. Now, I propose something similar, but different. Form up pairs. One of you will venture deep into the forest, and then attempt to return here--" He leaned back to pat a particular spot on the dorm wall, "Without being spotted. You may draft others onto your team, if need me. The other must, at the very least, fully discern the location of the first, and whether or not they're alone-- and if possible, catch them."

He crossed his arms. "Remember that the movement of our troops and their numbers alone is valuable information in the hands of the enemy," he finished, "So it's key that you make sure you are not seen, nor heard enough to find."

[[ ~~wait for the~~ ocd up! have at! ]]

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That got a laugh out of Zack, as well. Apparently he was getting better at catching accidental innuendo, after a few months on Fandom. Go him!

"Materia? There are some spells that work fine, but my magic would probably run dry before I actually managed to off one of those things in real life. I've found it's just a bunch easier to get behind them and chop at their backs with my sword. They turn around sometimes, but if you hack at them hard enough, they're too busy recoiling from the wounds to actually turn around and poison you."

Or worse.

Not nice critters, those Malboros. The fact that the monsters in the Training Room could be just as dangerous as the ones in the real world? That was something Zack wasn't going to share.

Best not, yeah. That'd horrify Dinah all over again. Once she stopped giggling.

"That's good, to have a strategy going in, though," Dinah said approvingly. "Has anyone you know run into one? Are they really common?" She gave him a worried look. "'Cause I know how fast you are and how far you can jump, but jeez. I worry about that place, sometimes." See, this was why whatever ShinRa was up to didn't really bother her too much; there were hands-on problems that Zack could solve that needed handling. All the rest of it would work itself out, somehow.

"Angeal probably has," Zack mused. "They're more the sort of monster that they send 1st Class SOLDIERs out after, you know? And they're pretty rare, thank goodness. They don't just wander into towns or anything, not by a long shot."

Well. Not typically.

"The Director is usually pretty good about matching up missions to the people who can actually handle them."

"That's cool. Angeal's the one who recruited you, right?" Dinah grinned, noting the hero-worship. "And good intel makes all the difference, doesn't it? I had to do Barbara's job back in June. I wouldn't have it for the world. Not yet, anyway."

"Angeal's the one training me," Zack amended, shaking his head and grinning. "I wasn't really drafted into SOLDIER or anything, you know. I decided I wanted to be, so I left home and I joined."

At thirteen.

Oh, Zack.

So, so young. Any wonder he was still a bouncy idealistic poster-boy?

"Gotcha." Dinah grinned back. "I know you volunteered and all. I still wonder at them taking you so young, but I know stuff there starts a lot earlier. And you're so good at it now."

"Thanks," Zack replied, smiling faintly. "Different worlds, different standards, I guess. Thirteen is still pretty young on Gaia, sure, but if I can handle the job, why not?"

Dinah's knee-jerk response when she'd arrived here would've been thirteen is too little, but hey. Tony had been on the street at thirteen. She's run away at twelve. "Here, they want to make sure you know what you're doing, so it has to be eighteen. Not to mention full-grown. But too, I think the number of thirteen-year-olds who could handle it would only number about a dozen, so. Moot point."

...

Blink.

"Why wouldn't thirteen year-olds be able to handle it?"

"Most kids here are don't know from weapons, and don't want to. At least in this country. Lots of other countries here, that's pretty standard, I guess." Dinah tilted her head, and said, "Maybe I'm the one underestimating them, but you know you're kind of unique, don't you? I don't mean the modifications from ShinRa, just-- being able to shoot things and handle it well. Defend people from monsters and all." She paused, then grinned. "Then again, if they all had the shot at being stronger and faster, a lot would jump on it, even if they didn't know what to do with it after."

Zack raised an eyebrow, and then scratched his head, looking at the other people assembled at the meeting.

"Looking at the people here, I'd say I'm not that unique. I mean, there are Jedi, here. People who have been trained before they could walk. Heck, plenty of people my age run away to join SOLDIER, you know?"

Dinah reached over to hug him. "Maybe you're right. For here, anyway." She tilted her head against him. "But here isn't everywhere. And I'd still say you were pretty cool for it."

Zack laughed, and then shrugged and hugged her back.

"Hey, if you say so!" He wasn't going to deny that he was cool, darn it! "You're pretty cool yourself, I think."

"Also, you get the glory that is sugar," Dinah said, hugging him again, then looking up to grin. "Even if I can't indulge as much now. We need to do that again, maybe to celebrate when the play's done."

"Sounds like a plan," Zack laughed. "Ice cream, maybe. It's been all hot and summery, lately."

Not that he really noticed the heat, much.

Behind the Dorms, Tuesday Afternoon

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