[ open ] Welcome to Chile, Cadets.

[supportadmin]

Characters: ALL.
Location: Valparaíso Shatterdome, Chile.
Date/Time: February 15th-28th.
Summary: The first shipment of recruits into the new Jaeger Academy program arrive. Some are staggered throughout the month, but they all have the same basic greeting. Here you are, there's where you sleep, here's what you wear, get going.
Additional Notes: See here for additional information. For information on the current weather, check out this link.

The Shatterdome didn't look futuristic, swatches of metal and concrete transforming a portion of the harbor into five enormous bays. Nevermind that only two were currently in use. The stark greys stand out against the colorful face of the city, a hulking monolith that's been carved into the face of the city that had once upon a century been termed the Jewel of the Pacific.

Note: Players are welcome to start their own interactions outside of the three main prompted scenarios. Go wild!

Comments

[inurhead]

The civilian salute is there and gone too quickly for Yancy to bother releasing the kid from, but he returns it anyway, and hopes no one saw that. This cadet is wound tightly enough as it is, an upbraiding wouldn't do the kid any favors.

"Ranger Becket." Yancy introduces himself. The kid probably knows who he is anyway, but it doesn't hurt to be friendly.

[nisemoron]

Of course he knows Becket. That's the problem. He wasn't prepared to meet such a distinguished figure, much less on his first day. It's silly, though. Did he think they kept the rangers in glass cases until they were deployed?

"Cadet Shimogamo." He manages a neutral tone despite the lingering flush. "It's an honor to meet you, sir."

He's not looking at Becket. His eyes are scanning the courtyard, searching for anyone watching them. He's still half-convinced that this is either a dream or a setup.

"I'm sorry sir, I don't mean to be forward, but... is it all right for us to be speaking like this?"

[inurhead]

Yancy snorts quietly. He can't help being amused by this kid. Technically the question itself is a little impertinent, but the sentiment is certainly respectful. He throws the cadet an easy grin, to try and calm his nerves.

"They don't give Rangers demerits, Cadet. At your ease." That's his second favorite command, a close second to 'Relax.'

Out of his pocket comes a bag of glass candy. Raleigh's, but is it really his fault if the kid grabbed the wrong jacket this morning? He takes a piece himself and then offers it to Shimogomo. "Toffee? I think this is toffee..."

It's butterscotch, actually. Yancy isn't the family expert on sweets.

[nisemoron]

Yaichirou doesn't return the smile. Becket is doing a fine job of setting him at ease, but as the anxiety recedes it makes room for irritation. This isn't how things are supposed to be. These lax standards may work out in his favor right now, but this is supposed to be a military outfit. What happened to discipline? What happened to order? And did his superior officer really just offer him candy?

He has to take it. It would be rude not to. It might even be insubordination.

"Thank you, sir." He keeps a straight face as he accepts the candy, but it doesn't last long. The thing tastes like burnt sugar and shoe polish. He turns and, for the first time, is willing to look Becket in the eye. "Sir, this is foul."

It's improper, but so is trying to poison recruits. For shame, Becket.

[inurhead]

Funny thing about the Drift. While Yancy himself can see how someone would call this candy foul, he can't completely agree with the sentiment. Sure, it tastes like crap to him. But Raleigh likes it. There's a response to it that's left over, not from him but from his brother, that finds the taste comforting and familiar.

All the same, he has to agree with this kid that his brother has some shitty taste in comfort foods. Yancy chews his and swallows it with a minor grimace. No expectorating on PPDC property, dude. You're going to have to handle that in some other way, unless you happened to bring a napkin along with you for emergencies.

"Yeah, it's something else. Ya know, I've had worse, though. Ever try the sugar free stuff? Now that's an aftertaste."

[nisemoron]

Yaichirou's favorite comfort food is fried chicken of all things, so he really shouldn't judge, but that doesn't stop him. He doesn't spit it out though. Even if he weren't on PPDC grounds, that's the sort of thing that ruffians and children do and he’s man enough to handle a little candy. There's a lot of grimacing involved but that's allowed, right?

"I can't say I've ever tried the sugar free kind. I like to think that I have better judgment than that." Yaichirou is the kind of boy who doesn't do anything halfway; if they've already strayed from protocol, he may as well say exactly what he thinks. "Do you make a habit of carrying around food that you don't like, sir?"

[inurhead]

"Nah." Yancy responds, again ignoring the slip in etiquette. He yawns, and tucks the bag of candy back into his pocket. "It's my brother's. Ranger Becket must have dressed in a hurry today."

More important than the lousy candy was the fact that this kid clearly had a stick lodged all the way up his. There had to be some way to get him to act human during this precious bit of free time. The trick was probably to get him talking about something he enjoyed, but aside from pulling out the rule book and combing over it together, that was going to be tough to sort out. Maybe they'd better just start small.

"What brought you here, Cadet?"

[nisemoron]

If Becket was expecting Yaichirou to relax, he would be sorely disappointed; if anything, he looked even more uncomfortable. In Yaichirou's mind, rangers were supposed to be perfect. Now here was one who ignored protocol and gave cadets disgusting candy, which he had stolen from another ranger who couldn't even dress himself properly. Suddenly he understands why you should never meet your idols.

"I believe in the cause. The PPDC does more good than any other organization I could serve, and I hope to be part of that. Besides, I have younger brothers. I have to consider their futures as well."

It's a carefully crafted statement. He could mean the lofty goal of preserving the human race, or the significantly less noble cause of getting military benefits for his family. The truth is more the latter, but he can't admit how far the Shimogamo family has fallen since his father's death. The rumors are shameful enough already.

[inurhead]

Yancy wasn't aware of the Shimogamo family's standing one way or another, and if he'd ever been asked to rub elbows with them at fundraisers he didn't recall it. The statement he took in thoughtfully however, possibly with better understanding than Yaichirou would've been comfortable with if he'd known. Raleigh wasn't his only family, after all.

"Those are good reasons. Just keep 'em in mind. You'll do fine."