trans_9 | Not Everyone Loves The Beach [Open]

To say that Kelly was having trouble relaxing would have been an understatement. Perched on the tallest, rocky outcrop she could find, the waves crashing against the smooth stone far below her, she was throwing stones across the water almost absently. The way her eyes refused to remain still however, attested to the fact that she was alert and wary as ever. Unlike the other members of the crew, who seemed to have taken the shore leave well enough, the Spartan had never been comfortable with inaction. Zokez II may have been a rest stop, a play-planet as it were, but to be on a strange planet, disallowed weapons and worst of all, her armor put her slightly on edge. Of course, a Spartan didn't need weapons to be deadly, but they sure as hell helped when it came down to it. In stark contrast to other members of the crew who had happily shed the majority of their clothing in favour of beachwear, Kelly's attire had hardly changed.

Dressed in cargo pants, combat boots, and a tight singlet with 'U.N.S.C.' stamped across the chest (something she had undoubtedly done herself sometime) she was the picture of discomfort. Her too-pale skin seemed to gleam in the sunlight as she sat, ignoring the gleeful cries of the people surrounding her. She kept a watchful eye on any member of Stacy's crew who was within sight, all the while lobbing rock after rock into the sea. At the rate she was going, it was surprising that she hadn't run out of them yet.

R&R simply wasn't her thing. She could appreciate rack time as much as the next person. A good soldier knew when their body needed rest. But this, relaxing, not doing anything. Unarmed and completely open to enemy attack. She didn't like it. The Ohm were out there. Who was to say they wouldn't hit this planet next? And without weapons, completely unprepared for such an attack, how would a single member survive. Her entire life had been a battlefield. Honestly, she couldn't remember a time when she hadn't been fighting, recuperating from a fight, or preparing to fight. This sort of relaxation simply wasn't for her. At the moment however, all she could do was keep a watchful eye out for anything that may have signaled trouble. Leave the others to enjoy the water and the sun. She would make sure they were safe.

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John noted the woman up on the rock. Clearly military, and probably for a long time. Only sort of person that would wear that sort of clothing in a place like this. Of course he was one to talk as he was dressed much the same the exception being he had a plain t-shirt on instead. He was at least a little curious about her. There were more soldiers on this ship then he'd originally suspected, and he was curious to meet some of them. Carefully he made his way to her position making sure she could see him. Last thing he wanted to do was sneak up on her, and have an incident.

Once he was close enough he gave her a nod, and spoke. "Not enjoying your leave either?"

As the man made his way up toward her, Kelly didn't pay him much mind. He was coming up, that was no bother to her. She did keep an eye on him, marking his progress now and then, but other than that, she paid him no mind. It was a free beach, and if he wanted up onto the outcropping as well, she wasn't about to stop him. The way he was dressed though, spoke volumes. And she was sure he was having much the same problem she was. Inactivity.

When he approached though, she nodded to him in return, dropping the remainder of her rocks back onto the ground. "Not exactly. Inactivity doesn't sit well that's all. Back home, it got you dead."

"Same here. Also standing out in the open, and not having a weapon with you at all times got you dead too. Been trying to stay busy with stocking up on supplies. Only so much of that you can do though before you need to take a breather." He'd found a lot of what he'd needed so far, but there was still so much that this planet simply didn't have. Well you always had to go to war with the supplies you had, and not the ones you wanted. "Already took care of your supplies I'm guessing?"

"Not too much of a problem here, my kind don't go down that easy. Real danger's complacency." She half smirked, just the corners of her lips curling upward slightly. At his chosen field of activity though, she nodded. She knew just how tedious gathering supplies could be. She knew firsthand about supplies in wartime. It seemed this man had some experience too. And by the way he carried himself, he was obviously military of some sort. "First thing I did. Not ideal, but I'll have to make do."

Though the polishing oil for her armor was completely awesome.

"Your kind? Aren't you human?" He didn't think she was a machine so that left alien maybe? Whatever she was he had to agree with her that complacency was one of the worst killers out there. It was the reason his war had even begun. All those generals, and scientists so complacent that they truly believed there was no way their technology could turn on them.

"Human yes. Baseline...not quite." Her lips quirked upward again, just slightly. She'd seen Marine be cut down because they'd grown soft with the Spartans around. She'd seen Sangheili destroy entire cities with no resistance simply because the populations had so believed that the armies would protect them, that they hadn't bothered to prepare themselves. It was always a waste.

"Super soldier project?" It seemed the most likely thing. Military plus enhanced human meant super soldier. Humans were always looking for better, and more efficient ways to kill each other. What better way than tweaking humans themselves into weapons.

She nodded. "They call us Spartans." Offering him her hand, she met his eyes. "Kelly-087. Petty Officer Second Class, UNSC Navy." It was a formal introduction. But one that she'd grown used to giving. Besides, she was sure this man would be able to appreciate it.

He firmly gripped her hand, and shook it. "John Connor, General, Human Resistance against Skynet."

It was a bit awkward referring to the Resistance like that, but it had never truly had a formal name so it was all he had. There wasn't any other resistances from which it needed to distinguish itself from. Everyone that chose to actively fight Skynet became a part of the world wide command.

Her grip was equally firm, though there was a promise of far more strength behind it. it didn't usually sit well to crush people's hands upon first meeting. Unless you really didn't like them. But that wasn't quite the case here. At his rank though, she tilted her head. "General?" He was much younger than any of the other generals she'd ever met, he seemed much more in tune with the soldiers who did the actual fighting for one thing. "What's Skynet?"

The name wasn't of much consequence. It told her what they did. And it wasn't burdened by un-necessaries, she barely paid it any mind. It was the man's rank that seemed to interest her the most. He didn't carry himself like any general she'd ever met.

That's because John had never really left the trenches even after he'd taken over leading the Resistance. Too many missions that still required his skills, and they had to few bodies as it was. To take himself out of the fight because some thought he was too important was stupid. They had to few bodies in the field as is so he wouldn't be helping anyone. It was how those old fools in Command had gotten themselves killed. Besides this is the war HE was meant to fight.

"I know I don't look like a typical general, but I'll take that as a compliment. I haven't exactly been fighting a typical war. Our enemy are machines controlled by Skynet a defense computer program that became self aware, and tried destroy humanity thirteen years ago. It almost did. We've been fighting for survival since then."

Not Everyone Loves The Beach [Open]

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