Hereford Base; Bravo Squad Dorm

After an hour of playing poker you decided to head back into your own separate room to see Grizzy still streaming. And heard alot of argueing. Even through his headphones.

Grizzy: I didn't kill them, I wasn't even near the body!

Yumi: Could've vented.

Grizzy: Yea because the crewmate on the left side of the fucking map vented and killed, someone on the right.

Yumi: Yea pretty much.

Puffer: So we're voting Grizzy?

Grizzy: I swear to fuck if you vote me out you're throwing.

McNasty: I'm fine with voting Grizzy.

Grizzy: Hold up stop! I have an idea, Locust.

Derek: Yea?

Grizzy: Who do you think the Impostors are?

Derek: Puffer and Mcnasty.

Puffer: Huh!?!

Derek: Its so obvious, Puffer is pushing out voting Grizzy and same with Mcnasty.

Grizzy: What about Yumi.

Derek: Yumi doesn't even know what he's talking about half of the time.

Yumi: Yea thats true.

Derek: Guarantee if you shit stains vote for both of them you'll win.

Grizzy: Ok ok ok, please for the love of god, Yumi and Soup vote Puffer out.

Puffer: Why me!?!

Grizzy: Because you're a killer!

Yumi: I will vote with you, what happens if he's wrong.

Derek: I'll let you shoot a gun, I don't fucking know dude.

Soup: I can do that whenever.

Yumi: Yea something different.

Derek: I'll hook TheDooo up with someone here.

Yumi: Voting Puffer.

Soup: Yea same.

Puffer: What!!

After Puffer was voted out, reactor was called and after the reactors were back to normal, another meeting was called and with no word Mcnasty was voted out. Crewmates won.

Mcnasty: How the fuck?

Derek: Dont even question it, after training squads at camp Dwyer, I know a thing or two when someone is bullshitting.

Mickey: *in the main room* Thats because nobody likes them!

Derek: I know, that's why I do them!

Grizzy: Well thats enough for tonight, gonna end the stream now.

Derek: I'm gonna get some rest.

Grizzy: Not gonna get out of gear?

Derek: Eh, too lazy.

You took off your boots and helmet and laid down on your bed. You closed your eyes and sleep took over.

The next day

Time: 6:34 A.M.

You woke up and looked around the room to not see Grizzy anywhere. You kept on wondering where they left to sleep aswell. You got out of bed and grabbed a pair of clothes and went into the bathroom. You started to turn on the water to take a shower. You took off your balaclava and shirt. You stared at yourself in the mirror and inspected the new slash across your left eye.

Derek: Well there's a new scar to add to the collection.

You took off the rest of your clothes and got into the shower. After your shower, you began to dry off and put on a pair of jogger sweatpants with a Jekyll and Hyde T-shirt. Your fairly detailed Phoenix tattoo on your right arm was slightly visible. You walked out of the bathroom and put your gear away while putting on a pair of black van hi-tops.

You walked out of your room to see everyone in the main room.

Mickey: Hey we were just about to get ready to get breakfast, you coming?

Derek: Nah, my sis leaves today so I'm gonna spend my day off with her since its been years since I last saw her.

Mickey: Respectable, so where are you meeting her?

Derek: In the cafeteria, I'll go down with you guys.

Mickey: *putting on balaclava* You gonna put one on?

Derek: Since we're going out I'm just gonna put on a regular mask with a hat.

Bulldog: You're taking this covid shit seriously?

Derek: Fuck no, I just don't want someone bitching at me.

Mickey: Alright well put the mask and hat, we're about to go.

You grabbed a black mask from the counter and grabbed your hat and put them both on. You all left the room and started to walk towards the cafeteria. Once you opened the doors, you looked over and saw another group of recruits at the girls table with your sister giving you a quick glance.

Mickey: What the fuck is it now.

Derek: I'm about to find out.

You started to walk over to the table with some of the girls giving quick glances and realizing what is about to happen.

Derek: Hey dipshits.

Recruit 1: Huh?

Not giving him time to react, you gave him a quick and hard right hook, knocking him to the ground. The other 4 recruits looked over at you from every side.

Derek: Didnt learn your lessons the first time did ya.

Recruit 3: That new blondie looked like she wanted it.

Derek: Bitch please, if she wasn't so lazy she could knock you on your ass right now.

Recruit 4: Theres 4 of us and one of you.

Mickey: Oh please, leave the LT. to have all the fun?

Bulldog: Theres 6 of us. News flash, you won't be having a pleasant week after I'm done with you.

Recruit 2: Come on, lets just go.

They picked the one recruit on the ground and started to walk away.

Bulldog: Yea thats right, be the little bitches you are and pussy out!

Derek: hey, you alright?

Ashley: yea im fine, nothing i couldn't handle.

Derek: yea well, don't want to see you wasting your time.

Ashley: Derek what happened to your eye?

Derek: Oh yea, it got slashed while in a fighting an assassin at close quarters. Its just a scar, my eye isn't effected.

Ashley: Thats a relief, so where are we going?

Derek: I don't know yet, I haven't taken much free time to get to know Hereford so this'll be a first.

Ashley: We're gonna get lost.

Derek: Oh come on, don't trust me?

Ashley: Well you are younger so...

Derek: Lets just get to my car.

Ashley: Woah, you have a car?

Derek: You make it sound like I'm poor.

Ashley: So what kind of car you got?

Mickey: He's like every other marine who ends up going back home.

Ashley: I don't get it.

Derek: Dodge Hellcat at Veronica's home. But here I have a Ginetta G40R.

Ashley: Oh, wait they do that?

Derek: Its more like any muscle cars that are still made. Come on lets go, theres bound to be a place to go.

You both made your way to the garage and got into your car. You checked your phone for a place to go and set it on the GPS.

Ashley: So what place did you find?

Derek: King Street Kitchen.

You pulled out of the garage and left the base through the front gates and started to drive into Hereford.

Ashley: So, when did you get that tattoo?

Derek: During my second year. Its a common tattoo symbol to have but it had alot of meaning to me.

Ashley: Mom always loved birds.

Derek: Yea she did, poor dad had to always keep making bird feeders cause she always drew in a crowd.

Ashley: *laughs* It was like that every spring.

You arrived at the kitchen and got a table for two. You both got water and ordered food and waited for it to come.

Derek: So, how was your early days.

Ashley: How early are we talking?

Derek: During basic.

Ashley: I was the Drill Sergeants favorite.

Derek: They never have favorites.

Ashley: Well it was more like favorite to scream at.

Derek: Yea I know what you mean.

Ashley: Yea it was a rough time, everytime I learned something, a new thing would be brought up and I felt overwhelmed.

Derek: Still managed to finish at the top of your class.

Ashley: I found out afterwards that the reason I was mostly screamed at the most, was because he knew I could be the best.

Derek: Its good to know they saw your fighting spirit.

Ashley: Yea it was achieving, so how was basic for you?

Derek: Like I said yesterday, I finished at the bottom of my class.

Ashley: How come?

Derek: Because I never listened, I always did my own thing and even though I was better than everyone there, they still had to finish me at the bottom because of it.

Ashley: But hey, you're a lieutenant now.

Derek: Yea I guess you're right. Hey listen, I'm just glad you're safe.

Ashley: Who knew my savior would be my own brother.

Derek: Yea, except I had to find out the hard way.

Ashley: What do you mean?

Derek: It was an operator only meeting, I decided to snoop around and found out that it was a rescue mission for you. So I barged in with my squad and volunteered to do the mission.

Ashley: You sure don't act like a recruit there.

Derek: Mom didn't raise a bitch.

Ashley: Yea, she really didn't.

Derek: When you leave tomorrow, just be careful out there. If there's ever another campaign, lets just hope I'll be with you.

Ashley: It would be nice to have a lieutenant I can trust with my life.

Derek: Wish I could say the same.

Ashley: Your squad was under the leadership of Lt. Miller right?

Derek: Yea, but sadly we were overwhelmed back in Washington D.C. and he ended up getting shot and killed. Thats sorta when I started becoming much more aware of my role in my squad and started climbing up the ranks.

Ashley: You deserve every rank you recieve.

Derek: But enough of the sad war stories, how's your basic life been.

Ashley: Actually after I enlisted I found the love of my life.

Derek: Thats good, how's that been going.

Ashley: Its been going great, he proposed a few years ago when I was on leave, I still have 7 months on my contract so he's gonna have to wait alittle longer to see me.

Derek: If you ever need assistance, let me know. Six can give me and my squad leave and we'll be there to help you.

Ashley: I'll remember that. I actually had a child aswell 5 years ago.

Derek: So, I have a niece?

Ashley: Mhm, her name's Jane. Gotta say though, she's a fighter.

Derek: Definitely takes it from her mother.

Ashley: You think so?

Derek: Well I never saw you on the field, but you've been there longer than me.

Ashley: You seem to have seen more though.

Derek: More than you'll ever believe, I couldn't see you, but I was glad to see that your name wasn't listed for MIA or KIA and that you weren't in any squad back at Washington.

Ashley: I only saw the news and heard stories of survivors there, it sounded horrible.

Derek: Believe me, it was. But it was always better knowing I had a team who always seemed to level the mood whenever we had a breather.

Ashley: Mickey seems like a great guy.

Derek: Yea, he is. He's actually getting married soon.

Ashley: Wait really?

Derek: I wish I was lying, him proposed to Veronica while he was on vacation after a mission. I convinced Harry to give him a couple of my off days so he could be with her longer.

Ashley: Well that was nice of you.

Derek: And it worked out in the end because not only did he propose, I'm his best man.

Ashley: Aw that's nice.

The waiter came back with your food and placed them down on the table.

Waiter: Here's your food.

Derek: Thank you.

Waiter: You're welcome.

Ashley: Do you think we should be fast with eating? You need to be back soon right?

Derek: Oh no you can take as long as you want, I have a day to take a breather after that mission. Enjoy the moment.

Ashley: This is a nice city.

Derek: At the end of every week I would go on the roof back at base and look towards the city. It's quite nice.

Ashley: All I'll be mostly seeing is sand, sand, and even more sand.

Derek: Only for seven more months.

Ashely: Yay me.

You took off your mask and let it hang off of your right ear. You began to slowly eat your food.

Ashley: Been so long since I saw your face.

Derek: Its been awhile since I saw yours.

Ashley: I'm sorry for leaving you at the orphanage alone.

Derek: Dont be, It was only a matter of time before I left aswell. So how have your friends been lately.

Ashley: You saved his life but Hilkins is a friend of mine back in highschool that enlisted with me.

Derek: Thats nice, how come he's still a private?

Ashley: He's alittle dense when it comes to strategy and following orders.

Derek: Maybe I'll have to whip him into shape.

Ashley: *laughs* Maybe.

The waiter came back to grab your plates and handed you the check. You both put your masks back on before she came back.

Waiter: I just have to say, you guys seem like a cute couple.

Derek: *laughs* We're actually siblings.

Waiter: Oh I'm so sorry.

Derek: Dont be, it happens to all of us.

Waiter: Thanks, I'll be back in a minute to get your check for you and you should be good to go.

Derek: Take you time.

She walked away and you looked at the check. You put the cash next to the check and put 20 pounds as a tip.

Ashley: Thats a thoughtful amount.

Derek: She seems nice and was a good waiter, so she deserves a good tip.

Ashley: 20 pounds though for a 30 pound meal?

Derek: I'm in a generous mood right now.

The waiter came back after a couple minutes and took the check back along with the tip. You both got up and walked out of the restaurant and got back into your car and started to drive back to Hereford Base.

Ashley: Wish I could go shopping around here aswell, just wouldn't be able to bring anything back.

Derek: Hey, when your contract is over, feel free to come back here. Just have to know when I have a mission in order to figure out when my break is.

Ashley: That'd be great, could bring the whole family.

Derek: Now did Jane just turn 5 or is she turning 6 soon.

Ashley: She'll be 6 in June.

Derek: Sucks that you'll just miss it.

Ashley: Yea, it is.

You started getting closer to the base and someone stopped you at the front.

Guard: Staff I.D. number?

Derek: D-0591

Guard: You're good to go, Six also wants to speak with you in his office.

Derek: Take care.

You drove towards the garage and parked your car. You both got out and started to walk through the halls of base.

Derek: So where are you planning on going?

Ashley: Meghan wanted to go workout. Wants to see what my capabilities are.

Derek: Tough woman, have fun with her.

Ashley: She seems nice like everyone else.

Derek: She is.

Ashley: I'll see you late, alright?

Derek: Can't wait.

Ashley: Dont leave your CO waiting too long.

Derek: I'm not.

You both split paths and you headed towards Harry's office. You approached his office and knocked on the door, hearing an audible "come in". You opened the doors and saw Harry at his desk.

Harry: Please, take a seat.

You walked closer and took a seat on a chair in front of him.

Harry: I watched footage back and thought about it all of yesterday and most of today. We both know you and your squad don't want to be operators. You want to do your own thing, you're highly skilled for a bunch of recruits and but also have different roles than those of an operator.

Derek: We follow our own rules.

Harry: I've studied that, so I will give you an offer. I was always planning on creating a third group, those who do their own missions and have their own tasks, on their own terms.

Derek: Where are you going with this?

Harry: Derek, how would you feel, about turning Bravo Squad into a taskforce.

Derek: If we fight on our own terms and my squad doesn't split with others, I'll be honored to lead one.

Harry: Thats good to hear, now what will you be calling this task force?

Derek: 052...