Post by Kage Jaeger on Sept 23, 2015 23:27:07 GMT -5
The camel was irritating Kage immensely. It spit, it stank worse then anything he had ever smelt before in his life, and it was down right irritable at having to carry him and infinitesimally worse Sturmgeist across the harsh desert. The camel had not seemed to care to much about carrying Kage when he bought the beast of burden, however as soon as he had emerged from the little hovel he had slept in with his dragonling after packing the camel the creature had gone berserk and tried to run away. If it hadn't been for Sturmgeist's agility the camel would have disappeared in to the desert. Luckily, the dragon had cut off the camel's escape and scared it back to Kage who had grabbed the reins and heeled the camel in and promptly tied it off. After a length amount of time coaxing the animal, he had finally gotten it to stand it's ground and let him ride with the dragon. The creature was STILL not happy about that and the constant spitting and attempted biting him constantly.
So now here he was, riding this filthy creature along the sandy dunes of some back water Middle Eastern country and hoping that he had not just been lied to and sent upon some wild goose chase by the Mūnsasori. Of course they would be exceedingly upset as well, and would attempt to track down anybody who had shamboozled them in such a way. However the person he was suppose to be meeting, far out here in this desert simply may be late or perhaps gotten lost. Then again, perhaps he was lost, for it was extremely difficult to tell where he was when the nearest feature was nothing more then another sand dune or stubby bunch of brush. He released the reins for a moment with one hand and reached beneath his cloak sheltering his head from the head and scratched his chin. One thing was certain, an ambush out here was certainly out of the question. If if somebody had burrowed under the sand it would be noticeable because the sands where almost completely flat around here, blown by the wind and a large bump in the middle somewhere or multiple bumps would stand out like a sore thumb.
Stopping his camel beside the clump of shrubs, he slowly slid off the beast and stood there gazing around the desert. The instructions had told them to meet a representative here, who would accompany them along the mission as well as fill in the missing details such as where exactly this place was and what exactly they where suppose to be retrieving. They had not wished to provide the exact details in case something happened and they lost the item they wished to get. So they had sent a middle man, a low person who was slightly expendable. Something Kage could understand though he didn't rather relish the idea of baby sitting some nerd technician through a possible combat zone. Especially one with no training in the shinobi arts. So, the male had come well prepare this time. His specialized hanbō, his four throwing knives, his shuriken, his karambit, and even small short bow with the wooden staff acting as his walking stick, the twine for the bow tucked in a belt pocket and twelve arrows in a saddlebag on the camel. He also brought his kaginawa and tetsubishi because one simply didn't know when they might be needed. With this sort of mission, he would rather have them and not need them then need them...and be shit out of luck.
Post by Nathaniel Graham on Sept 24, 2015 0:48:36 GMT -5
From the distance, a figure appeared on the back of a camel. As it drew closer, those with a keen eye could make out a few of the approaching figure's features. A young man, he was lean and athletic. His face was nearly clean shaven, showing hints of stubble that would have to be attended to at some point, lest they grow into a beard.
His figure was blurred by a cloak, hiding all of the clothing he wore underneath with the exception of his boots. On his back, one could discern the outline of what was either a rifle or a shotgun, along with a pack that presumably carried supplies.
All of this Kage would see before Gram had finally reached the designated meeting point. The young man glanced at his wrist, checking the gps coordinates to be sure he was in the correct place. He was. Of course he was.
Having learned of the man he was meeting some time ago, Gram had been considering Kage to assist him in some of his research projects. He seemed competent, something that was in short supply nowsadays. And the young man was always looking for good talent. Before he sent Kage on any heavy missions, or even revealed his identity, Nate had wanted to test his abilities.
Under the guise of a simple but mission critical techie, the young man planned to observe how Kage handled himself on a mission and how well he played with others, particularly noncombat specialists such as himself. Nate's alias was Boberto Robertson.
The two of them would be infiltrating a small base manned by less than twenty paramilitary members located a few miles away. The base wasn't too heavily fortified but it had basic surveillance and a surprisingly sophisticated satellite uplink system for it's footage and data. No matter, Gram had done his homework and none of it would be a problem. That left the human element. Kage's job.
The details would be gone over later with his associate. For now, a meet and greet.
"You Kage?" Boberto asked. Just in case he'd been tricked, the young man fingered the suppressed .45 he held underneath his cloak. Upon approach, he'd managed to rule out any other possible hostiles. Kage and his camel were the only others for miles around.
Post by Kage Jaeger on Sept 24, 2015 1:15:22 GMT -5
Kage was seated by the time the camel came in to view. His back to the scrub brush behind himself, his backside settled upon the hot sand beneath. What little shade there was to be had by the stunted plant life was upon his back to help him stay somewhat cooler. He watched as the camel mounted male approached, his face partially hidden behind his cloak's hood. When the camel stopped and the male upon it began to disembark, Kage finally stood and with a quick deft swipe of his hand brush the sand from his cloak and simply stood there. His eyes took in everything visible about the man, from his cloak and figure to the weapon slung over his back. Firearms, what loud bothersome things they where. So uncivilized to kill a person from such a distance and not be able to stand there and watch the light dim from their eyes. It was not that he thought firearms should never be used and was in fact trained with a few himself just in case things ever devolved in to such horrific violent it was necessary. However if it did devolve that much, his mission was more then likely over and he was simply fighting for his life to get away.
When the man finally approached, and asked if he was himself, Kage could not help the left eyebrow that raised over his left eye. Somebody with the resources enough to track down the Mūnsasori then ask for himself specifically surely knew what he looked like and that this was, indeed, himself. At least himself enough to not state that he was not in fact himself, meaning that somebody was impersonating himself. He had heard of beings that could change their shape, sometimes subtly or sometimes extremely drastically, whether it was simply in the mind or actually a physical change he was not aware. However one of these would surely not be unintelligent enough to blatantly state that it was in fact an impostor. However, Kage decided it was probably some sort of formality, and thus simply nodded his head in a simple bow that did not take his eyes from the man before himself. Although a shinobi, Kage was not with out honor.
Post by Nathaniel Graham on Sept 24, 2015 2:13:39 GMT -5
Taking the other man's simple bow as both confirmation and greeting, Boberto gave a satisfied grunt. He slid the pack from his back. Still standing, the young man began to dig through his pack. A moment later, he produced a file that was roughly one quarter inch thick. Kage would find that it would include information on their target, including the number of men guarding it as well as more technical defenses such as electronic locks, security cameras, etc.
"We've been hired to assault a small outpost guarded by a small paramilitary group. A low wall of 8 feet in height surrounds the perimeter. Four sentries stand watch at each cardinal point of the wall at all times. Within the compound are four more sentries who act as a second layer of security, in case one makes it past the first layer. Within the compound there is one main building. The front serves as a rec and mess area for the men while the back serves as the barracks."
"The shift changes are staggered so that at least one layer of sentries will be relatively fresh when the other is tiring and preparing to change. Due to this, there are usually at least four men in the rec room awaiting the change in shifts. Intel has shown no more than 20 men on site. Though, if alerted, reinforcements have a response time averaging 8 minutes. 4 of those 20 happen to be non combat personnel. Technicians, cleaning, cooking, etc."
"Underneath the compound is a light bunker. This bunker contains what we are here for. A hard drive containing data that is valuable to our employer. The door is simple enough to break if locked, but doing so would take time. If any forces manage to sequester themselves inside, it is unlikely we will be able to make a clean escape before reinforcements arrive."
Confident the remaining details vital to the operation would be found within the file, including light dossiers on the soldiers within the compound, Boberto watched Kage's face, looking for anything that might give away any potential unreliability. He could handle himself but the compound was too tough a nut to crack for one techie. A combat expert was needed to accomplish the mission as efficiently as possible.
"The compound is roughly 4 miles east from this location, beyond the hills. You needn't worry overmuch about the electronic security. That's what I'm here for. We will begin leave to begin our infiltration at 2 AM. Oh, and one other thing."
Boberto replaced the pack on his back and watched Kage closely.
"All enemy personnel within the base are to be eliminated. Our employer was very clear on that. Every last one."
Post by Kage Jaeger on Sept 24, 2015 2:30:09 GMT -5
Kage extended his left hand, taking the pack as his birthmark showed in the bright sunlight around them. Finger lifting the file, he slowly held it in one hand and allowed it to fall open in to his hand as his fingers parted to open. His gazed settled upon the file, flipping through it exceptionally slowly as he listened to the male speaking. He occasionally nodded his head, or glanced up to the male before looking back down at the paper he was holding. He was clearly perusing the dossiers of the men. Not that it really matter that much about them honestly. In many instances, knowing about the people might help you get inside their heads and give you an advantage. However, there would not be any talking these people down because they where to be killed. Perhaps if they where going to be released afterwards, then it would have made a difference. That was, however, apparently not going to be the case.
He glanced up from the file and slowly closed it and stared directly at the male before him. He simply nodded once again, showing that he understood the man's words. He then brought his camel over, and gently coaxed the anxious creature to kneel down upon the sand and rest. Then Kage sat, his back to the camel where the creature's shadow was cast and began to study the documents silently, his right hand turning pages as his left hand rested upon a soft saddle bag upon the camel's back that he seemed to stroke softly on occasion as he read the papers in his lap.
Post by Nathaniel Graham on Sept 24, 2015 13:36:24 GMT -5
The entire time, Gram's pale green eyes never left the other man. He took note of Kage's birthmark, filing the information away with the other facts he knew about the man. He wasn't much of a talker. Nate appreciated that. It lent him an air of professionalism. More importantly, though, the other man didn't so much as blink when he was informed that all of the compound's personnel were to be killed, including the noncombatants who were essentially just civilians who were being employed on the base.
Shortly after the young man had finished talking, Kage began reading the files Nate had handed him. He appreciated that. Gram knew that a lot of the information wasn't entirely essential but assembling it all had taken some doing.
While Kage read, Nate began to dig a shallow hole in the sand. Once that was done, he set up a small tent that blended in with the surroundings. A small bump would be visible against the horizon, yes, but the desert mirage didn't exactly make the environment in the distance seem entirely even. Gram's tent would be relatively indiscernible from a distance and from above, in addition to providing him with shade while he waited for night fall.
To pass the time, the young man began to read a small paperback book in the relative comfort of his tent.
Post by Kage Jaeger on Sept 24, 2015 17:54:22 GMT -5
Kage sat against the camel, studying the papers and watching the sky. The heat was, of course, very hot but he was use to it. All part of the training, to learn to put aside one's own discomfort no matter what the situation. That did not mean letting oneself become sick or ill, but simply to ignore the worst and survive the rest. The heat would pass soon, and then the sun would go down and it would be cold. Extremely cold, which was why he brought a single blanket in his saddlebags, and that along with his cloak and cloths would keep him warm during the night. That and the body warmth of the camel and Sturmgeist. However he had wanted to keep the little dragon hidden until the fight. Much to the dragon's extreme discomfort and irritation, he had made a whole saddle bag in to a lined bed for the winged creature and ordered him to stay put there until he told him. Which was exactly what his left hand was rubbing now, the small body of the dragon through the saddlebag.
Having finished the papers, he closed the file and stood up. He glanced at the sky, where the sun was just about to set and nodded to himself. It was about to get dark, and they would need to be up early to get there at the designated time. He pulled a canteen from a saddle bag and sipped some water, then re-closed the container and set it back inside his saddle bag before pulling out his blanket. He was going to get some sleep while he waited. One simply never knew when sleep would be useful, or when you might get some again. So he pulled out his sand colored blanket, and using his cloak as the bottom cover he laid upon it and pulled it over himself, hiding himself and looking like nothing more then a small sand dune blown up against the side of the camel he had been riding upon.
Post by Nathaniel Graham on Sept 24, 2015 20:35:41 GMT -5
Hours later, the sun had gone down. Gram awakened from his power nap and set aside the book he'd left open on top of his chest before checking his watch.
It was nearly time for them to head out and get this child's errand over with. The young man wouldn't have even bothered coming if this wasn't a test. The drives inside the base contained some minor intel that wasn't particularly valuable. Before he hired Kage to do a real job, Nate needed to know that he could depend on him. He needed to see the guy in action.
Gram scarfed down a few energy energy bars and drained a bottle of water. The young man climbed out of his tent and walked away a short distance to relieve himself. That done, he cleaned his hands with the wet wipe he'd brought before heading over to Kage.
"We'll need to leave soon. Are you ready?" Gram asked him, running one hand through his messy blond hair. He checked his watch again. Almost.
Post by Kage Jaeger on Sept 24, 2015 21:28:43 GMT -5
Kage rested for several hours before a soft movement beneath his hand awakened him. He had opened his eyes and smiled, finding a certainly little purple creature nuzzling his hand seeking permission to leave the saddlebag and move around (nevermind it had already left the saddle bag to in fact come ask his permission to do such). He chuckled softly, and nodded touched the little dragon's nose softly.
"Go, stretched your legs and wings Sturm and return to me in with in the hour." He watched as the reptilian creature streaked off in to the darkness, disappearing to fly and stretch it's wings. Kage was certain the dragonling would find some snack or another as well. Perhaps some lizard or other unfortunate creature out attempting to do the same. He sat up, and with in three minutes had his blanket put away, cloak repositioned about his frame shrouding himself in darkness, some water drank and a small bit off food stored in a saddle bag eaten to keep himself energized. The man soon left his tent, and Kage watched the male moving towards himself checking what was clearly a watch of some kind.
Kage shook his head, thinking about how the world was driven by an insatiable urge of time. Everybody was in such a hurry to do things at this certain time, to get things done as quickly as possible. He rarely cared about such things, only caring or bothering to keep track of the time when it was a vital part of a mission. Other then that, he simply just did what he wished to when he wanted to. He ate when he was hungry, drank when he was thirst (or when he knew he need to, seeing as the body's thirst reaction was actually a response to dehydration and meant you where already dehydrated), and relieved himself when he felt the urge. He tried to maintain an air of practiced calm and ease, because this usually lead to a more effective being as well as making his life lack a lot of the stress others felt. Even his brother shinobi where constantly hustling about, attempting to do more and get more as quickly as possible while it was not unheard of for Kage to spend half a day simply meditating silently.
Post by Nathaniel Graham on Sept 24, 2015 22:50:00 GMT -5
Gram ran one hand through his messy blonde hair and sighed before walking away to break down his tent. It took seconds and once he was finished, the young man tossed it into the hole before covering it with sand. After a wind had it for a few hours, it would look like just another barren patch of sand.
Nate sat down and spent the last half hour checking and prepping his weapons. For this mission, he'd brought a suppressed .45 and matching carbine. Both weapons were fairly silent and extremely deadly. Armor piercing and specially modified by the young genius himself, the weapons were unassuming in appearance but provided a very nasty experience for those who were unfortunate enough to find themselves at the end of their barrels.
Time to leave, Gram stood up and shouldered his pack. He signaled to Kage that it was time to get going and he started walking, leaving his camel behind. The animal created an unnecessary amount of noise and sound tended to carry over flat distances such as the desert. Once they were past the dunes, the extra height would only make them easier to spot from a distance.
Post by Kage Jaeger on Sept 25, 2015 0:03:28 GMT -5
Kage rubbed the camel's head softly, knowing they would have left behind the creatures. They where simply to unruly, and would have made noise that would have gave them away. He reached out, and felt that Sturmgeist was nearby and he gave the dragon a soft mental prod, bringing the creature in towards him. Kage turned, and as he did so the small dragon crawled around the camel. The reptilian crawled up his leg, and settled upon the man's shoulder underneath the cloak. It created a small lump, but Kage did not mind the lump. It was dark, and anything the other would see could easily be explained away as a weapon. Kage pulled out the arrows along with a quiver, and slide them around his waist to hand at his left side. The "walking staff" he had he strung with a piece of twine from his pocket and he held in his left hand while his hanbō he held in his left and actually used as a walking staff.
Weapons in hand, he turned and began to follow the male, moving almost noiselessly except for the soft slithering of sand beneath his feet and the rare hiss of the hem of his cloak grazing along the sand, sounding like s snake slithering past. He moved with out word and continued to hike after the man ready to finish the mission and be out of the sandy world around them.
Post by Nathaniel Graham on Sept 25, 2015 14:03:21 GMT -5
As he walked, Gram kept his eyes on the surrounding desert. This little errand was supposed to be relatively easy, mostly intended to just see how Kage handled himself, but it was still dangerous. The young man didn't particularly enjoy risking himself but Gram was also unfortunate enough to not particularly enjoy trusting others with important tasks, either. Walking through the desert, the only audible noise being the sliding of sand as it was displaced by their weight and steps. It would leave tracks, but the wind would take care of that by morning. Besides, the two would be long gone by then if all went well.
Nate would be lying if he said that he wasn't tempted to question Kage, maybe get to know the man a little better. After all, the young man was considering him for a fairly important project. But no. Now was not the time for such things. They were in the middle of an operation and chatter could get them killed. So he just walked.
Post by Kage Jaeger on Sept 25, 2015 19:04:42 GMT -5
Kage also walked in silence. At least his was a physical silence, for inside he was speaking with his dragonling about plans. Based upon the plans and information provided, it was going to be extremely interesting get in to the base however it was a pretty easy accomplishment. He needed a distraction, a distraction of which Sturmgeist could provide with ease. Which was what he was giving the little dragon instructions on doing.
With the dragon's acidic saliva, he was going to have the dragonling first take out their communication's equipment. A simple enough task, a few good spits and they could not call in for whatever reinforcements they had waiting whether they where detected or not. Then the dragonling was going to kill one of the inner guards, causing havoc inside the compound itself to draw the attention of the people inside to the dead guard. Kage meanwhile, along with the techie, would already be moving as Kage would be able to sense when Sturmgeist struck. So by the time the guards had rallied enough to realize there was not an attacker inside the gates and there was a potential attack coming from outside, Kage and the techie would already be inside. A simple enough ruse to pull off if they timed it properly, and even if they did not with communications disrupted they would be unable to call for help even if they wanted to.
Post by Nathaniel Graham on Sept 25, 2015 21:26:57 GMT -5
During the long walk, with nothing to do but observe his surroundings, Nate felt disembodied, as if he were watching himself and Kage from above as they made their way through the desert. The landscape was rendered so surreal, so ethereal, illuminated as it was by the moon. Gram felt like a ghost. That made him chuckle. Silently of course. Ya know, 'cause he was about to make some?
With a silent sigh, Gram looked up at the night sky. It was beautiful. The sky over the desert seemed so much bigger, so more clear, than it did in the city. Almost magical. But the young man knew that it was due to the lack of light pollution out here. And the night sky certainly wasn't worth leaving the luxuries that were available to him in the more urban parts of the world.
It wouldn't be long now. They'd come a few miles and were nearly past the dunes. The compound would be coming into view very shortly.
Post by Kage Jaeger on Sept 25, 2015 22:31:51 GMT -5
Kage was mentally keeping track of their progress, and knew that they where coming up upon the compound. He gave a silent, quiet command and the lump from his shoulder slithered down his left and off in to the shadows, the dark purple scales although not a perfect camouflage helped blend in the dragon slightly in the darkness to start doing what it was the dragon needed to do. With that settled, Kage continued walking as if nothing at all had happened. He came around toward the male ahead of him, increasing his pace just slightly to catch the male before they topped the dunes and came upon where he said the compound was.
Moving carefully, he drew a single black arrow and knocked it upon the bow so just in case he needed to loose it quickly he could. All they needed to was to stay quite until Sturmgeist accomplished his first goal, then hopefully slip inside unnoticed. With that done they could work their way inside, then back out killing as they went. Another way to ensure a nice 'clean' kill was to rig the base to explode. A very good cover up and would ensure everybody was either dead, cooked to a crisp or running away making them perfect targets to pick off on at a time.
