Departure for ZAFT's Dinner and Dance

[Valiant 96]

The East Wing hangar was bustling with activity. Mercenaries arriving and departing as they went about their business. Some returned to the home base to catch up with comrades, while others came to report to their superiors. Some were leaving the base on a new assignment, while others were on their way home to visit their families. The traffic in the East Wing hangar was unlike that of the West Wing hangar. Here, space shuttles or mobile weapons docked or took off. Whereas in the West Wing hangar, heavy vehicles transporting supplies for the base made up the bulk of the traffic.

 

The man stood at Bay 11. His well-toned body threatened to tear the tight, plain black tank top he was wearing. An automatic pistol was sheathed on each hip, hanging from the black leather belt that held his cargo pants. He was early. He always was. Xavi had a habit of arriving early to survey meeting points, even the fact that he was in the safety of his own headquarters, surrounded by hundreds of men loyal to him could not dispel such a habit. He was going a formal dinner at the invitation of ZAFT. However, he could not stand the thought of having to wear a suit throughout the several hours he would be spending on his flagship.

 

He was reminded of the ZAFT Dinner and Dance. He had been puzzled by this unexpected invitation. The Soldiers of Fire worked frequently with ZAFT on freelance assignments. The partnership was insufficient a reason for them to invite the Soldiers to be a part of the event that has traditionally been attended by members of the PLANT military only. For them to go against such a restriction amused and worried Xavi at the same time.

 

It would have been most discourteous for him to turn down the invitation. Besides, ZAFT was an employee who paid well. He would rather now displease his customer. The curiosity to experience such a special event spurred him to accept the invitation.

 

If only more of the veteran Soldiers were available, he thought to himself. He was unwilling to bring fresh recruits along as representatives but he was even more reluctant to attend the event without a handful of his men around. I'll just have to look after the young ones... as well as Adrianna, of course.

[Infinitedge 0]

Allan Frost stood, dumbstruck, upon learning that he would, once again, travel amongst the cold and infinite vacuum known as 'Space.' As he had just reached the moonbase he was excited to be on solid land, rather than in space. Merely hours after he was assigned to his Living Quarters, a senior officer had told him to report here, bring formal clothes, and to prepare for space travel... Allan couldn't think of anything worse... Except that he had no idea where he would be going... So there he stood...

 

Allan was carrying a flamboyant red shirt, a smartlooking tie, and a nice Coat. Although these were not exactly 'his,' and merely something he had brought as a memory, seeing as though he would never thought he would have to use it. He felt odd though... As if he was out place amongst the workers, all wearing ripped or dirtied clothes... While he was the only one who seemed to be "going" somewhere. ' Maybe this is just a joke...' He thought... ' Maybe they had me come here as a practical joke like some sort of initiation...'

 

'Well, if this is some sort of initiation, better get it over with now...' He looked at his assignment, and the "briefing room" -more like a meeting place- was the West Wing Hangar, Bay 11. Allan knew that he was in the West wing Hangar already. All he had to do was find Bay 11. He counted them down as he saw them, as if awaiting a horrendous and horrible event... 'Bay 6, then 7... Then 8...'

 

He felt a little nervous, not knowing what would await him... 'Here's Bay 9... Then 10... And finally 11!' He glanced around quickly looking for dangerous objects. However all he saw was a man who clearly looked unhappy. He got a little closer, but, minding his business, he kept his eyes wandering , and intended not to stare. Maybe it was the muscles that made Xavi seem unfriendly, but Allan kept his distance and decided to wait...

Edited April 2, 2007 by Guest

[Valiant 96]

The boy approached hesitantly. An amused smile touched Xavi's lips. The young man's uncertainty was apparent as he attempted to look casual while walking towards Bay 11. Xavi levelled his gaze at the boy. This made him more nervous and he stopped some distance away from the commander. He looked uncomfortable in the formal wear. Fresh and inexperienced, Xavi smiled to himself. He was once like them, a greenhorn in the harsh reality of the hostile world of mercenaries. They either grow stronger and make their name as a freelancer, or simply fade away and drift off to another job.

 

Xavi's unfriendly front was a façade to teach them the importance of not trusting others easily, especially strangers. A mercenary that is too trusting would end up losing money, or even pay for the error with their lives. The real world is cruel. They have to learn fast if they wish to stay long in this line of business. Pushing these thoughts to the back of his mind, Xavi beckoned for the boy, "You there! Identify yourself and explain your loitering around my hangar bay."

[Balancer 0]

Thankfully, he had gotten up early just for this day. As always, he was nervous as hell that he was going to, what he called a "party" formal or not. In all honesty, he didn't like them so much and for allot of reasons he did not wish to think on at the moment. Stretching out his slim form as he stood in his room, his clothes neatly stacked on one side that he would be bringing, he went through a series of warm up s before he took a shower and got dressed in a black collared shirt, and dress pants.

 

No, of course this wasnt his outfit for the dance, but thankfully, all he had to do was slip on a ties, coat and one or two other items and he was ready instead of having to fully change clothes. With a heavy sigh, he brushed his hair, made sure he was neat and clean before grabbing his bag of goodies (Clothes mostly), and took off to the dock.

 

Thus the reason why he arrived a tad bit late. More like a minute behind because, well, he got lost on the way.... again.. He was STILL trying to find his way around and though he found a HANGAR, it wasn't the right one. He was in the west hangar, not east where he should be. Muttering a curse as he looked at the time, he bolted straight towards the east hangar after asking for directions, and rushed to the large man in a black tank top and cargo pants. "Sorry I am late. Got lost on the way...." Kanon clearly wasnt happy at that fact as he forced a friendly smile, though aggravation at his own lack of direction was clear in his voice

[Infinitedge 0]

Allan was once again dumbstruck as the the tough-looking mercenary was now leering at him, after demanding an explanation to why he was here. Allan didn't really know how to respond, but all those army-type movies he had scene seemed to unrealistic to fit his situation. While he stood, clearly hesitant, another person arrived, however Allan could barely hear himself think as the Officer's words echoed in his head, let alone hear his voice.

 

Allan fixed his composure, from a lax stance to a more - rather to an overdone- rigid stance. "S-sir! I am Allan Frost! I received orders to arrive at this time, Sir!" He didn't realize whether or not he sounded either completely stupid, or like he was messing with the officer but he felt out of place after saying that. What's more, was that in his attire he seemed even more foolish. The blood was pounding in his head after waiting for some kind of response. He stole millisecond glances at the new arrival because he was unsure that if he took his eyes away, the officer would pull a gun to his head, however he seemed a bit relieved to see that the other mercenary was also sporting a formal attire.

Edited April 7, 2007 by Guest

[Valiant 96]

((Xavi is not exactly an officer. He's known as the Commander because he commands the Soldiers of Fire. It's not a rank, so to speak.))

 

Kanon arrived before the boy could respond. The former apologized, thinking he was late. Xavi smiled at him, "You are early. It's still a quarter of an hour before the stipulated reporting time."

 

"S-sir! I am Allan Frost! I received orders to arrive at this time, Sir!" The boy blurted. He seemed extremely nervous. The commander nodded curtly in response. "So you're the recruit that just joined us. I believe you have not met your fellow recruit, Kanon. I briefed them a while before your admission was confirmed. And since then I couldn't find time to speak to you. Is there any issues you need clarification for?"

[Infinitedge 0]

((I tried to make it seem like he didn't know who he's talking to... I was thinking that he probably thought that Xavi was a ranking officer. O.o... It was a bit over-thought, I guess ))

 

Allan felt like a punctured balloon. He had all that pent up anxiety, as if waiting for a someone to take out a gun... However Allan was surprised by the Xavi's accepting response. Although there was a little dissapointment that no one took out a gun, Allan quickly got over it seeing that he was taking just a little bit to long to respond. He didn't really know how to address Xavi, so he stayed away from the name calling part. "Actually, I don't really know where we are headed... I was just told to bring formal clothes..."

 

Allan, who wasn't really sure what to say to Kanon, was standing in a lax stance. He looked at Kanon and decided, 'may as well just say something,' and so he said, "Hello, nice to meet you." Although he tried to say it naturally, something sounded a bit odd about the statement but he passed it off.

Edited April 11, 2007 by Guest

[Dimitri 0]

Five minutes until deadline. That was exactly how long Dimitri had when he showed up from the departure. He liked being early. But when he got there, he almost felt like he was late. The commander was there, and so were two others. Lucky him. But there were other things to worry about other than time. Why were they being taken to December city for a ZAFT dance, he had no clue. It was actually pretty suspicious. Especially when Dimitri kept thinking about "three moths ago" as a metaphor in his mind. By that, he meant September City, and his fugitive status there. Technically, he wasn't one yet, but Alexi was.

 

As for dress, Dimitri had chose to change pre-emptively. He was a clean guy when he had the motivation, so he wasn't going to do stupid things like eat a hot dog with loads of ketchup and mustard before arrival. It was a simple navy blue dress suit. It's cut was sharp and crisp, and there wasn't a frayed thread or ball of lint anywhere. Under that was the typical white dress shirt. Overall, it was just a classic, solid getup. Nothing fancy, nothing trendy, just a classically good look that would never fully go out of style. Something befitting a soldier in service to his commander, if he did think so himself. And of course, as a soldier, it did come with it's toys; a forty-five caliber pistol under the right breast, held in pace with a holster like in all the cop movies and such, an extendable baton held to his right leg by velcro, and a few spare clips of ammo inside the jacket. All of it pretty well concealed. It was no problem for a guy like Dimitri to conceal a few weapons.

 

"Commander, sir! Dimitri Shirokov reporting for duty!" Dimitri had come up and immediately stepped into a perfect salute, as so demonstrated in his orientation.

[Balancer 0]

Kanon stood there, watching and listening quietly as the others spoke, and then his name was brought up. Thats when he really paid attention, just in case he should say something. Eh, for the most part, the only thing on his mind was the upcoming ball. Parties were not really his cup of tea, and he had quit a few bad moments at past parties and balls he attended.

 

Next thing he knew, his name was being brought up and someone was introducing them self to him. "Oh hello to you too. As mentioned, my name is Kanon, nice to meet you." He said to the other one politely, giving him a friendly smile. Actually, he still felt tired from all the running around, and it was starting to put him in a grumpy mood. Thankfully, he was good at hiding such things

[Infinitedge 0]

Allan was waiting for Xavi's response as yet another mercenary appeared. He stated clearly, "Commander, sir! Dimitri Shirokov reporting for duty!" Allan turned his head nervously, 'Commander?' he thought. Other than that, Dimitri was sporting some nice and clean clothes. There was something odd to Allan though, as if a sixth sense was warning not to get in this one's way. Inexplicably, and he felt this way about most of the people here, it didn't seem abnormal to him. He didn't really want to be the next one to break the eerie silence among the assembled mercenaries so he simply listened intently and thought about the party that they would soon be going to.

[Xen 0]

The man's gait was relaxed, yet purpose was evident in each stride.  While his shoulders were squared and his back was straight, there was an easy look about him.  Dark brown eyes surveyed his surroundings and took in details as easily as a cat toys with a mouse.  The fact that he was a new recruit and low on the pecking chain didn't seem to cast a shadow of self doubt over the man.  He wasn't here to impress anybody nor was he here because he had any great self-ambition; so, what was the point of getting worked up over meeting his fellow recruits and future commanders?

 

Hiding a yawn with the backside of his right hand, Xen glanced upwards at the bay numbers as he neared his destination; two more to go.  The fact that he wasn't as early as he'd like to be bothered Oso a bit.  It wasn't that he felt like he was obliged to make a good impression on everybody, he just preferred arriving early at most scheduled events.  Doing so gave him a chance to monitor the environment, compose his thoughts while alone and to put himself at ease if anything in particular was troubling him. 

 

"Bay 11."  He murmured softly as he stopped and swung his body to face the massive entrance.  "Hmmm, this place is pretty impressive.  SoF knows how to treat its members right." 

 

Reminded of the old saying that, 'time is money', Oso brushed aside any extraneous thoughts and stepped into the bay, searching for others dressed like him.  Spotting a small gaggle of formally dressed men, he turned in their direction and assumed his relaxed walk.  As he drew nearer, Xen mused over the orders that had brought him here.  It was odd for a new recruit to be invited to some sort of Dinner and Dance event; it was even queerer that he'd been invited.  Did the Soldiers of Fire neglect to examine his personal history?  Perhaps they hadn't, but they just didn't care.  In any case, Xen would play nice with the ZAFT members tonight.  He didn't doubt the fact that in the future, he would be pitted against them in combat and he'd be able to vent his resentment towards them then.  There's always a time and a place.

 

As Xen drew nearer, he brought his right hand up in an informal salute towards the group.  Glancing around, he chastised himself for not bringing a tie to the occasion.  Sporting a black suit with a sporty cut, Oso had opted to be fashionable and sport a shirt of pure black as well.  Instead of buttoning all his buttons, he'd left the top two open in an attempt to strike a look between classy and casual.  Polished, black dress shoes, a black leather belt with a silver buckle and a thin, modern-looking watch completed the simple ensemble.  In retrospect, his choice of attire probably wasn't the wisest of decisions, this being the first time he was meeting his fellow peers and commanders.  Unfortunately, there was nothing he could do to remedy the situation, save to act casual and comfortable. 

 

Stopping within a few feet of the group, he nodded to them all before speaking quietly, but with an confident undertone.  "Sorry I'm a bit late.  First day here...took me a minute to get my bearings.  Name's Xen Oso.  Pleased to meet you all."

Edited April 13, 2007 by Guest

[Valiant 96]

Seeing that his men had gathered, he snapped his fingers to get their attention. Though they were strangers, these new recruits will grow to like their comrades and eventually become close partners in this line of business. That the way it is. Alternatively, if they fail to impress...

 

Xavi noticed that his men were waiting for him to address them. "Let's board the ship. This is our flagship, Hephaestus."

 

"This is currently the largest ship that the Soldiers own. She's a Nelson-class battleship. She has served us well," he said as he led the way up the ramp to the ship. "We can only travel to the border of the PLANTs. From there, we'll have to proceed in a civilian shuttle. As much as I feel uncomfortable with going on an unarmed spaceship, I don't wish to antagonize our potential customers. I would like you to place your belongings in your assigned cabins and meet me in the bridge. The journey would only take a few hours. We can spend that time getting to know each other better."

 

Leaving the boys to find their way around the ship, he headed for the bridge. Xavi wanted them to explore, instead of simply guiding them there. This way, they will learn and remember their way on the ship.

 

He sighed. He was bringing a ship with skeletal crew. There were no mobile suits in the ship's hangar, except for his own. The decision to travel there in Hephaestus stemmed solely from his need to make an impression. The reputation of the Soldiers have to be maintained. We need to convince them that we are the best mercenary group.

 

The crew in the bridge stood and saluted as he entered. He returned the salute and dropped himself in the captain's seat. "Prepare for launch. We take off in five minutes."

 

The CIC officer made an announcement to inform all crew to prepare for take off. Ground crew in the hangar scrambled to make last minute preparations. Xavi tapped the screen before him and started to check his email.

[Xen 0]

Nodding to Xavi as he finished laying out his directives, Xen gave the man another one of his lazy salutes before picking up his soot-colored duffel bag and hoisting its strap onto his shoulder.  Without a second glance at the others, the new recruit slipped away from the crowd gracefully and settled into his customary, relaxed walk.  The trip to his temporary quarters was quite uneventful with the sole excitement coming from a madly careening maintenance cart that nearly flattened Xen as it barreled down the hallway with its owner stampeding after it.  Shooting the man a deathly glare as he ran past, Oso rolled his eyes and continued down the hall before stopping at a closed door.  Running his ID card through the security pad, he waited patiently as his identity was confirmed.  The quiet click that emanated from the door indicated the locking mechanisims had disengaged and the door swished open half a second later. 

 

"Comfy."  The dry comment echoed in the sparse room.  Furnishings consisted of a bed, desk, computer station and a matching table and chair set.  These rooms had no individual bathrooms; instead, the occupants for this row of cabins shared a communal rest area near the end of the hall.  All in all, everything was there for a purpose and creature comfort was a distant thought. 

 

Shrugging, Xen unslung his bag and tossed it lightly onto the bed where it bounced once, twice, then settled onto the tautly pulled blanket.  Glancing at himself in the small mirror located above the desk, he let a small chuckle escape his lips.  "Can't believe I'm actually here.  Might as well enjoy myself."  Moving towards the bag, Oso unzipped it and peered at the contents.  A 9mm pistol lay in the center of the mess along with its shoulder holster while next to it, a set of three throwing knives had found a cozy home amongst Xen's extra clothes.  Some mints, basic toiletries and his portable music player rounded out the collection of random items. 

 

Popping a few mints to kill any bad breath that might be present, Oso decided to leave his weapons for now and proceeded to leave his simple quarters.  Backtracking the way he'd come, he wound his way towards the bridge, committing the various hallways to his strong spatial and visual memory.  It didn't take him long before he found himself where he'd been dismissed earlier by Xavi.  Stepping towards the bridge doors, he was let inside by security after given a cursory glance. 

 

Once inside, he sought out his fellow recruits and realized he was the first to arrive.  Pleased with the situation, Xen stepped up next to the captain's chair before saying quietly.  "Magnificent vessel you have here."

[Infinitedge 0]

Allan Frost was a little disappointed, that in all the hassle, his question was still unanswered but he shrugged his shoulders and wandered willingly until he found the area for cabins. He didn't carry many belonging's except the bare necessities, however he looked at his cabin to take in the feel.

 

'Not very homely, is it...?' He thought to himself. He examined the room closer to find that it was in good shape for being the largest ship here, but Allan noted that it had just been slaved over and cleaned for the pass 3-5 weeks. It was obvious because some of the paint was "cleaned off" with the dust and grime. He felt a chill go down his spine. 'Glad I didn't have to take on such a menacing job.'

 

He had just now noticed that he hadn't slept since the trip TO Cleostratus and the overwhelming weariness of looking for his L.Q.((Living Quarters)). He didn't intend to fall asleep but the bed seemed more alluring to him. Rather than take any chances he opted for the chair. He pulled out and the chair and sat down, to give himself a little time to rest. He took off his coat and laid it onto the table, leaving him with his dazzling red shirt. He reached into the right pocket of his coat and pulled out, what appeared to be, a normal piece of gum. Yet he knew better, the gum he was now chewing on was, apparently, made to be a substitute for coffee. So he got up again and peeked outside his cabin door. There was a rest room across from his cabin...

 

Although he resisted the urge to see if any of the others were still in there cabins, he knew that he should have headed down to the bridge by now. Allan put his coat back on and trudged through the halls. He was very good at memorizing pathways, if you could tell the difference between them , so he easily found his way back to where he started. From here he continued down a bunch of hallways and found himself in the bridge. It seemed that the so called, "Xen Oso" was the first one to arrive. Allan waited by the entrance to the bridge, and leaned against the wall behind him. A fatal mistake... He misjudged the distance between himself and the wall and had to prevent himself from falling by saving himself with his hands, thus alerting everyone in the room that he was here...

[Valiant 96]

"Magnificent vessel you have here."

 

Xavi smiled at Xen, "The Hephaestus is the best we have in our fleet. She has served us well but there are more advanced models in the market that I would like to get hold of."

 

"Perhaps we could land ourselves a few well-paying assignments from ZAFT. We would then be able to invest in better equipment," he gestured at the screen of the console before him. He was looking through the profiles of the various ZAFT dignitaries who would be attending the function. He wanted to be sure he knew their names and background. It was always good to impress, especially if the people in question are potential employers.

 

Before he could elaborate further, Allan stumbled into the room. The boy seemed a little embarrassed. However, he kept his composure and approached them. Xavi nodded to acknowledge the recruit's presence.

 

"I wonder where the others are..." he thought out loud.

[Dimitri 0]

Dimitri went to his quarters, but all he put down was his bag of back-up clothing and his laptop. The laptop rarely went any further away from him than a few rooms. It was his pride and joy, and it was also proof of Alexi's existence. So of course, the laptop was something precious to him. Which was exactly why it was equipped with a thermite trigger, in case he had to eliminate any evidence he had on him. As he extracted the laptop from the bag, still encased by it's own stand-alone messenger bag, he wondered just how long he could keep the charade up. Shaking the thoughts from his mind, he slung the bag over his shoulder and walked out towards the commander's designated meeting spot.

 

"I wonder where the others are." Dimitri heard just before rounding a corner into sight of the room.

 

"Here sir, sorry for any delay." Dimitri gave the stiff salute he'd been taught, standing in attention until told otherwise. As had been said before, he needed work, but at least he'd been trying to act the part of a professional soldier-for-hire. "Requesting permission to express concern over our lack of defensive measures while in ZAFT territory, sir." He had basically said all that needed to be said about his concerns right there, but the pseudo-soldier was trying his best not to screw up. After all, the commander had to deal with a bunch of ZAFT officials. If they saw that his recruits were just a rag-tag bunch of hooligans, they weren't likely to get any jobs. No jobs, no money. No money, no Pocky. It was that simple.

[Valiant 96]

"Requesting permission to express concern over our lack of defensive measures while in ZAFT territory, sir."

 

"I understand your concern but rest assured that we will be in no danger. We are allowed to carry weapons while we are in the city. They would only relief us of our weapons during the dinner and dance itself. Security will be extremely tight since many important figures of ZAFT would be present," Xavi explained. "Besides, we are guests for the night and they would definitely try to take good care of us. Imagine the damage to their reputation if their guests were harmed in their own backyard."

 

He glanced at the console before him. They will be reaching ZAFT territory soon. Once they were within ZAFT borders, they were expected to power down their weaponry. Escort ships would protect them and guide them to the appropriate hangar bay.

 

"They will be allowing us to land in one of their military hangar bays. It might cause quite a stir in the public if they were to see a battleship docked in a civilian hangar bay," he smiled to himself. "I doubt we would chance upon any top secret information but I want you to keep your eyes open and take note of anything you see or hear in their military base that could be of use to us."

 

Just then, he noticed that the recruits around him were all well-dressed. A glance at his casual clothing made him stand and walk out of the room. "I better get changed. Meet me at the ship's exit when we have docked."

 

[align=center]-------[/align]

 

The shower was refreshing. Despite the fact that he liked to feel clean, he was often covered in dirt and oil, especially when he was working on upgrades or maintenance of his mobile suit. Sometimes he had to go on days without bathing while on certain missions.

 

Having changed into the suit, Xavi admired himself in the mirror. He wore a black blazer over a blue shirt. The black slacks and leather shoes completed the outfit. He had tried several ties but none suited the limage he wanted to portray for the occasion. In the end, Xavi gave up and decided to go for a more stylish and slightly informal look by simply loosening the top two buttons of his shirt.

 

Satisfied with that his reflection, Xavi went to meet his subordinates.

[Infinitedge 0]

Allan hadn't said a word after he embarrassed himself... Or so he thought... As Xavi dismissed them, and carried on with the preparations, everyone remained loitering in the bridge. He was hoping he would be able to catch a little shut eye... However, the fact that he would be, one of the persons, representing SoF at the Zaft's Dinner and Dance was enough to wake him up completely. After all, he hadn't learned anything that could "prepare" him for what he had to go through. He sighed and trudged towards the exit of the bridge. Just as he did, he felt extremely refreshed...

 

'Seems that gum really does work,' he thought to himself...After he rounded the corner of yet another corridor he had realized that he had taken 2 wrong left turns. As he tried to undo his error, he realized another thing... That the corridor he was in was completely different then it was before... Or rather... the unthinkable... He was lost...

 

Or so he thought... As he frantically stumbled down the corridor he reached what seemed to be the entrance/exit of the plane via another route. He sighed, and composed himself once again. He then took a look around... It seemed that no one had arrived yet... He thought back to what Xavi had said...

 

"We are allowed to carry weapons while we are in the city. They would only relief us of our weapons during the dinner and dance itself." Allan was pretty happy about this considering he was unarmed... But other than that there was something bugging him from the back of his head... Something about the dance. As he thought about it some more he realized that he had heard about the dance. Something about only a select few would be able to go... But there was something else bugging him... He decided to put it to the back of his head and silently awaited the arrival of the other SoF members...