trans_9 | Proving Ground [ Open To All ]

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Proving Ground [ Open To All ]

The sensoriums made for a convenient training ground for all the right reasons, but most of all because they allowed Motoko to cheat. It hardly seemed fair for the world around to be controlled by whatever constituted the strongest mind, or the most established, but on these proving grounds, as ever, fairness was not part of the equation.

The world was a sleepy summer day, warm with cicada song and dry, ragged grass, knee-high in places, scorched to the earth in others. An abandoned, decrepit skeleton of a Soviet military base dominated the landscape, dotted here and there with holes like dark hollow eyes among the crumbling walls and roofless, exposed innards. Once, this place had been alive, and now it was as bleached as bones in the grass, as nature retook what man had conquered.

Here and there the rusted-out remains of tanks slumped where they had been abandoned. Red paint, incongruously fresh, marked a series of them as targets at the far end of a carefully 'makeshift' firing range, though most sat aimlessly, unmarked and unattended. The place nearest the door was dominated by one such tank, perhaps in slightly better repair than the others, and perched upon it was the reason for all the fuss and trials. Major Kusanagi folded her arms and leaned her back against the treads, casting a sidelong look at what was left of Section Nine.

It was going to be a long day.

[ OOC: ~~Wait for Subthreads, please.~~ OKAY, GO GO GO GO! ]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Mmm, blunt force trauma, an old favorite really. Dean was of course armed when he entered the sensoriums after getting the note on the omnicomm. His eyes sharply took in the surroundings, and frowned a little at the setting. It felt too much like that future Zac hurled him into. Camp Chitaqua incarnate again. He almost expected a Croat to show up for an attack. Still he approved of the firing range. He was just about healed, or healed enough to handle a hunt. He could handle this too.

A hunt of another sort, really.

Dean gets a nod of recognition as he enters, and the Major greets him with cool professionalism, "Mr. Winchester."

Yes, she's read your personnel file, you silly boy. She reads everyone's.

That's all right, he's used to being recognized. Mostly. He gave a nod back.

"Just Dean, if it's all the same, ma'am. Mr. Winchester makes me sound too much like my old man."

He clapped his hands in front of him, and gave them a brisk rub as he gave another sweep.

"So how are we doing this?"

"I'll begin working with people in Melee combat exercises in a few minutes," she informed him blandly, not bothering to verbally acknowledge his preference in names, "For now, I want you to head over to the range and see how you do."

He nodded at that. His favorite. Sam may not mind using knives at times. But Dean? It's always been about the guns.

"You got it." He got into an easy jog to the range.

John stared at the new arrival. He had a certain manner in his movements, and stance that reminded him of someone in the Resistance. Could he be that lucky to run into another member? If so where had they been hiding all this time? Only one way to find out. Walking over John gave him a nod of his head. "You Resistance?"

Normally he would never be so blunt, but he needed to know.

Dean tilted his head at that. Studying the man in turn. Something about him... reminded him of that hardcore woman who helped him a few times. Sarah.

"Depends. Resistance against what?"

"Skynet," he said flatly. Either the guy had kept real low profile, or he wasn't from John's verse. Damn! He could use another ally right now. Well might as well get the pleasantries out of the way. "I'm guessing you've never heard of that so I'll just introduce myself. I'm John Connor."

Well didn't that just clinch it? Dean smirked at that.

"Actually I have. Your mom told me all about it, and you. Word is Destiny was wanting you to spread your ass cheeks as well. Be savior of humanity and all that shit? Not sure if I'd take your robots over our angel and demons crap, but it'd be a nice change. And it's Dean Winchester, and your mom's a damn good cook. Lady can hold her liquor too."

That was not what John was expecting to hear. He didn't know what was more shocking, that his mother had trusted this man enough to tell him about her son, or that his mother had been social enough to meet him in the first place. "She always was." Provided you liked Mexican, which he did. "So how badly did she drink you under the table?"

Dean might look tough, but John knew his mother. She'd control her booze out of sheer willpower regardless of what her body thought of it. It had been valuable lesson for him.

Dean shrugged at that, "Dunno, might have tied there. She got lucky at the darts though. Mostly." Yeah, luck, or more skill really, though his aim was pretty sharp too.

"You actually played darts with her? I hope you didn't bet any money." She'd have cleaned him out, and if that failed she'd have probably outright robbed him after he passed out. "So you said angels, and demons? Like biblical wrath of god stuff?"

It wasn't an area in his education his mother had been especially mindful of. There wasn't a need for it. God wasn't going to save humanity, John was.

"Nah, just a lot of people in the bar betting on us," And good luck there, the guy sleeps with a gun or knife under his pillow.

Dean nodded, "As in the actual Apocalypse. Revelations, End of the World, all of that bibilical shit. And my brother and I in the middle of the shitstorm."

"Clean house?" If he knew his mother he knew she'd rig the game with Dean to pocket all of the dough and split it.

"So the actual Apocalypse...christ. Can you do anything about it?" If Judgment Day for his world was inevitable how much more so for a place where God himself was bringing it down?

"Nah, just dealt with some assholes that were eying us too much. Especially your mom, but she took care of them."

Dean sighed at that, "We're trying, or were till the Ohm fucked the planet over. Uh, found out Heaven and Hell been dicking my family for a long time so they could have their little showdown. Took my mom when we were kids, and my dad a few years ago in the process. Only thing is, fight between their chiefs would fry half the planet in the process, and they wanted to use my brother and me for the big fight."

He then added, "Where I come from? Demons and angels can ride people, use them as their vessels or meatsuits. Angels have to ask permission first, but they're not above coercing a yes out of a person either."

Hopefully they could still breathe without mechanical assistance after Sarah had dealt with them.

"So they needed you two to burn everything down, and I take it they weren't happy with you messing with their plans?" He knew what destiny could do if you tried to buck it. It tended to get real unpleasant, and remind you that some things you just couldn't avoid no matter how hard you tried.

"Yep, and yeah, both sides been pretty pissy with us about not wanting to buck up and toe their line. Most angels are dicks, and demons are worse. Screw them both."

Dean added, looking like he was going to be happy to punch something hard in the practice today, "Got some recent intel that we could only change part of it." He wasn't losing his brother, not ever. Damn the future.

"That's the way it usually is. We still have a choice though." Sometimes that choice was whether or not you embraced what you were meant to do. "Not always an easy one I know that. Decided how you're going to handle it yet?"

"Keep telling them to screw themselves and try to find another way that doesn't involve my brother saying yes." Him saying yes was another story. Dean was finding himself tempted to do so to spare his brother.

"What happens if you keep saying no?" He was honestly curious. John had never really had the option of saying no to what he was. Even when they'd destroyed Cyberdyne it could be argued that he was still fulfilling his destiny just a few decades early.

Dean shook his head, "I haven't got all the details about that from Cas. But we've been keeping under the angels radar so they can't find us." Which hasn't always worked, like with Gabriel.

"I don't really know, and Lucifer was loose in the world. Maybe the Ohm took him out for us, but we're usually not that lucky."

John was certainly familiar with flying under the radar. He'd spent his whole life doing it, but to do all that with the Devil loose wrecking havoc? That was a new level of screwed up even for him. "I'm pretty sure the Ohm did take him out. They take out everything else they get the drop on. Not much of a comfort though."

"Yeah." Some of his and Sam's nightmares suggest otherwise, but they could hope.

Dean then added, "Look I mentioned this to your mom, and it goes to you as well, you guys need anything, let us know, and we'll be there."

That was another surprising thing for him to hear. Mom had been doing good work. An ally was just about the most valuable thing he could think of on this ship. "My mother extended the same offer to you I assume. Thanks, it's been a bit hairy here sometimes. People don't really want to listen. A bit too attached to their machines."

And it's better to have Winchesters on your side then not. Even though their associates haven't fared well over the years. Still when both are just as cursed... perhaps there's some neutral common ground.

"She did, extended it first after we compared our hellish worlds. And yeah, well. Depends on the machine. Ships and cars like my baby are one thing. But GLADOS is a total bitch. Stacy's all right, if too damn cryptic still, and a creeper with all the watching."

Proving Ground [ Open To All ]

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