Posted by Captain Marceau Renault (Commanding Officer) in Memory: End of First Year Training Mission

Posted by Lieutenant Helena Laursen (Helm/Nagivation Officer) in Memory: End of First Year Training Mission

Posted by Captain Marceau Renault (Commanding Officer) in Memory: End of First Year Training Mission
Posted by… suppressed (4) by the Post Ghost! 👻

(snip)
It was their watch that saved them all from embarrassment. The idea was to get an hour or so of extra sleep after the last two days. Kenneth was on watch with Marceau and the rain and low clouds made it darker but through the first break of sunrise Kenneth saw something. Figures moving toward them. Other hikers probably. Someone had thought to bring night vision binoculars and he used them and then hurried to find Marceau. “It’s the commodore and a Cmdr I don’t recognize. Headed toward the camp. We should wake everyone up.”

Kenneth started for one half of the tents, reaching in to shake them awake if need be. That rewarded him with a kick to the elbow at one tent. “Commodore’s coming. Get up! And it’s raining! Let’s go.” Kenneth sighed in disappointment, he was really looking forward to breakfast that wasn’t a protein bar.

Marceau helped wake everyone up and get them out. He hadn’t realized the commodore and another officer would be giving them orders in person. At least, he assumed that’s why they were there.

Helena heard the commotion and got out of her bag and pulled on her boots. She nudged Akela awake. “Come on we gotta get up.” Akela was chipper as always. Helena reached into her pack for her rain gear and climbed out of her tent looking around. She spotted Marceau and went over. “What’s going on?”

Helena

Marceau shook his head and shrugged. “We spotted the Commodore and a Commander approaching the camp site. We thought it would be better to be awake when they arrive but we do not know what they want.”

~ Marceau

Flinza and Gerard had turned into their cooks. They both seemed to enjoy it. They got to work very quickly prepping oatmeal. It was hardy and would stay with them for awhile. Considering the commodore was approaching there was no telling what was in store for them. Flinza stocked the fire into blazing while Gerard added water to a couple of the small mess kit pots. He also rummaged around in the ration packs everyone had left out for dried fruit.

The rest of the squad was finishing morning routines or straightening the camp. Commodore Yin and the unknown Cmdr got to the edge of the camp to be intercepted by Jones and Kenneth. “Good Morning Commodore Yin,” Jones said coming to attention next to Kenneth. The Commodore looked them over and glanced to the rest of the camp, who hearing Jones speak up all came to attention. The Cmdr with him looked bored. “As you were,” Yin’s voice carried and they got back to what they were doing. “Cadet Jones, Cadet Kenneth. How is the squad this morning?” Jones glanced at Kenneth and looked a little sheepish. “Just waking up, Sir.” Yin nodded, “Well I suppose it is early. Not quite 0500 yet. Take us in please.” Jones and Kenneth turned and led them into the center of the Camp. Yin found a seat on a stump and waived at Flinza and Gerard, “Continue cooking Cadets. Take a good meal when you can get it.” Commodore Yin had a reputation as being a kind of grandfatherly figure. Caring and supportive, but not patience for foolishness.

“How was the hike out? Any injuries or complications to report?” Akela shook her head, “No Sir, Commodore.” He nodded but glanced at the faces. He knew sometimes cadets, on this first trip out, would with hold thinking they would lose points, but he didn’t see evidence of that today. “Pop quiz, what’s the protocol for securing your camp base when you have to leave and explore?”

Jones piped up immediately, “In a group this size, Sir, you leave a two members behind to keep the camp secure while teams of at least 2 scout in different directions.”

The Cmdr nodded, “Over the next 4 days you will ignore that protocol. The tasks set to you will require all of you to be present. This is not considered hostile and is secure except for the wild critters around here.”

“Ah yes, my companion. Cadets this is Commander Hoyand. He’s taking charge of your training for the next four days.” Hoyand nodded to Yin, “Thank you, Sir. A half mile south west of here is a clearly marked trail head. You will follow it for an hour at steady pace. You will meet me there at 0930. Expect to stay there all day and return here tonight. Any questions?”

Helena

“Sir, no, sir!” Came the response of the group. The hike was not overly difficult but a brisk pace was needed to make the Commander’s expectations, and once they were there, they could see their task for the day had to do with some kind of obstacle course.

~ Marceau

It was gruelling. Helena thought their first week of basic security training was bad…this was Purgatory. No one finished within time the first day. By the second day some had finished, but others still couldn’t complete it. The ones who did only had because they happened to be close together and could help. Kenneth brought it up on their hike back to the tents. “Emilio and I had an easier time of it that last run. We helped each other. I thought we would get yelled at by Cmdr Hoyand, but he just watched. I swear he might have nodded when we got over the wall. Isn’t this supposed to be ‘team training’? Maybe we should think about our best time, rather than our individual times.”

Yvette capped her water bottle and nodded, “Cmdr Hoyand did say we all finish or we all fail.”

The next day that’s what they did. They approached each obstacle as a group and worked out how to get everyone past it. It was slow the first round, but once they had figured it out their times quickly improved.

Commodore Yin showed up for the final run. All they wanted to do was collapse at the end, but they didn’t with Yin and Hoyand standing right there. “Good work, Cadets. I suggest you get back to camp, you have a long day tomorrow.” Yin chuckled and he and Hoyand left. Arriving back at their camp an envelope was waiting. They had another 100 miles to hike, but they had 5 days to do it.

Half way through the first day they found out why they had so much extra time....the terrain was brutal.

Helena

Marceau had trouble keeping up on the hikes. He’d played soccer in school, he wasn’t a total couch potato, but he wasn’t an avid exerciser and this trip was a lot. He didn’t complain though. The mission was intended to test them. It took them nearly the entire time frame to make it to their next destination where an envelope was waiting for them.

~ Marceau

They arrived early afternoon the last day. Packs were dropped and everyone sat. Even Jones who had more intensive security and fitness training already sat and downed a bottle of water before anyone bothered to read the envelope.

Cadets,

Congratulations on the completion of your last task. You have a reprieve. You have until the end of tomorrow. Repair your gear, take stock of your supplies, and if you need to replenish, check the clue cards that will lead you to water, rations, and other items that you may find useful.

It was a hard hike, make sure everyone is well hydrated, has eaten, and has no unknown injuries that could create problems later. The morning after tomorrow, you’ll start your next task.

Cmdr Yin.

Helena groaned. “We need to set camp, and all get a good nights sleep.”

Yvette nodded, “But it’s early. Let’s take advantage of that. If these ‘clues’ take all day I don’t want to spend half of it figuring out what to do first.”

Akela nodded, “Marceau let’s get everyone checked out. Yin is right. Some of us could have pulled or bruised muscle and not realized it.”

“If anyone did, it would be me,” Marceau said, finally giving in and complaining a little. As he said it though he was pulling his medical tricorder out in order to quickly scan the others.

Work got started, much slower than usual, but efficient.

As food was prepped later, Yvette turned out to be right. The clues had to be translated. Gerard and Alvida were at it for awhile. They had to figure out the pattern, cipher, and code before they had a solid idea of what the clues said.

Helena

Marceau helped with the clues. The cipher took them a while to figure out, and even once they had the clues deciphered, they were riddles the crew would have to figure out. This definitely wasn’t meant to be easy.

~ Marceau

Helena read over the riddles, “Sounds like…listening to a kid give directions. They don’t know street or place names, so they describe everything, and it’s from a child’s point of view, so until they point out that the grocery store is the big porch with the rocking chairs, you have no idea what they are talking about.” Kenson took a seat next to Marceau and glanced at it. “If that’s the case, we’ll have to wait till the morning and try to find the first clues. It’s getting to dark to really see details.”

Helena was on the second watch that night with Yvette and Jones and Flenza. It was quiet, the occasional scurry of an animal or the hoot of an owl. The logs in the fire split and settled sending up sparks. The heating packs in the rations made good coffee, but Kenneth knew how to make it with a camp fire, which had been amusing to them all. The smell of brewing coffee mingled with the wood smoke, and the flavor and heat was welcome. Helena was walking the southern edge of the camp about 10 feet away from Yvette. She was taking her time, really trying to see the details in the dark, going over the clues to see if anything stood out to her. She heard a noise and she glanced off to the left sharply. Whatever had made the noise or what exactly the noise was she wasn’t sure, but it made her feel like someone had dropped ice into her gut and her heart seemed to stop. She shook herself and let out a laugh. It was the woods and ghosts and monsters weren’t real. It was probably some animal. Actually, for all she knew another of the teams was near enough for the sound to carry.

Helena moved off to continue her circuit around the camp. She was probably getting tired in the quiet and dark. Hopefully the next pot of coffee would be ready soon. She made her way around a tent and grinned. The snoring of one of the occupants sounded like a engine running without a muffler and then a thwunk as a pillow got thrown, more snores, and a groan of frustration. Helena shook her head and moved on. Someone wasn’t getting a lot of sleep tonight.

A single lone howl carried through the trees and Helena thought she would die. She found herself, back pressed against a rather large tree, and then the howl was answered by another and another. She backed up around the tree, her head felt hot and her body like she’d been dunked in a frozen lake, and her vision did this weird warbling blackness thing. Her throat ached, I will not scream, I will not scream… She tripped on something, fell and passed out all at the same time.

Flenza had refilled coffee cups and had brought them around. He was 10 feet from Helena when he watched her fall. He hurried over, “Hey Laursen you gotta pick your feet up when you walk or you’ll be tripping on roots.” She didn’t answer though, “Hey, Helena…” Flenza glanced up, “Yvette! Get the docs, some thing’s wrong with Helena!” Yvette was closest to Marceau’s tent and with a zip of the pull she stuck her head inside. “Marceau! Wake up. Something’s wrong with Helena.” Then she was gone, dashing toward Akela’s tent to tell her the same thing. Flenza shout had gotten the attention of those in the nearby tents and had them crawling out of their tents as well.

Helena