(no subject)
Introduction
While a rundown of everything that happened when Bonzo went home would be interesting to some, it would in many ways be a waste of time. Suffice it to say that the war everyone was expecting began, albeit a lot slower than expected by most. However, within a few months, in the middle of the summer following the Third Invasion, the war began.
It began over a few shots exchanged in Central Europe...Russia had been doing a wonderful job consolidating its hold over its former dominions, but Germany decided not to take Russian demands lying down, and Russia did not like no for an answer. Given a few weeks, everyone was shooting at eachother in a classic example of Europeans Behaving Badly, very much along the lines of the Second World War.
Russia's first strike was what caused all of the Battle Schoolers to get pulled out of retirement. In a matter of days, the Russians had taken Berlin, Leipzig, and Vienna, and were threatening Hamburg, Munich, and Hannover; in the space of four weeks, they would take over all of Germany, northern Italy, and Denmark. Even with American aid and a universal draft being called up, Western Europe was in a bad position.
About three days into the war, the reformed forces of the European Alliance (essentially NATO without the US) called up a draft. All of the Battle Schoolers of their nations were called up, and brought into active service, mainly to work as strategists, etc. Even if the governments didn't want to trust them with field command just yet, they certainly didn't mind having the extra minds coming up with ideas; and older Battle School grads who were old enough for field command were more than welcome to staff what was rapidly shown to be a badly atrophied command structure.
Into the steadily expanding chaos, Bonzo Madrid was called up as one of the youngest Battle Schoolers not dumped behind a desk (and one of the few older than their mid-teens who were not stuck in outer space somewhere), as his command record from Salamander suggested that he "would be better suited at the tactical level than the strategic level" due to his rather persistent habit of not yielding any authority to subordinates. He was assigned a command position in Southern Germany, put alongside a seasoned-but-outclassed division commander who was giving ground to the Russians like it was a fire sale, sent in there, and told to do what he could to stop the loss of territory.
A truck sped down an autobahn in the middle of the night, carrying several men in the back, in its armored compartment. Racing towards the command center of the 18th Division of the German Army just north of Munich, it contained Bonzo and a few subordinates with information for him...and several who were being brought up just to fill gaps in the middle of the command structure brought on by the fighting. Bonzo and a lieutenant, with most of the information for him, were talking over the din.
"What kind of a mess is my division in, lieutenant?"
"The Russians control almost evertthing to the north of your position..."
Kriff.
"...and are moving to take Ingolstadt, to the northwest..."
Not good, either.
"...in addition, Salzburg fell this morning."
This just keeps getting better.
"None of those are in your area of action."
"Well, then what the hell is?"
"The northern approaches to Munich. The commander there has been a bit overwhelmed..."
"And so has the entire German army! And the Belgians, the French, and the Brits for that matter. Tell me something I don't know, or that might help me fix this mess!"
"Sorry, sir."
The lieutenant talking to Bonzo (whose name Bonzo had not bothered to remember) took a deep breath, and after an appropriate pause, continued.
"When we get there, you won't technically be in command. That will be General Schroder. But he knows he's in trouble, and the rumors are that he'll be relieved enough to have someone to blame his next defeat on that he's willing to let you do whatever you want with his men."
Great. At least that should keep him out of my hair.
"Finally, some good news."
"Sort of. He...well, the reason you were assigned to this job is that he's managed to lose close to half of his division. He got unlucky with his initial location, but he also...didn't pay much attention to warnings about his position being a potential initial target."
Bonzo simply closed his eyes, and shook his head. "Lovely." Pause. "Sorry I snapped at you there...I really shouldn't be shooting the messenger because I don't like the news."
"To be frank, sir, I can't blame you."
"Still..." Bonzo let the thought hang in the air...he wasn't ready for a mess like this. Not by a long shot.
The truck arrived at the command center about 20 minutes later. Bonzo hadn't said a single thing the rest of the way there. As he hopped out of the truck, the lieutenant glanced at an odd bent cylinder attached to Bonzo's belt.
"Sir? Can I ask what that device on your belt is? I've never seen anything quite like it."
"It's a non-standard piece of personal property." Bonzo grinned. "More than that, I really can't say."
The lieutenant looked at him like he was crazy.
"Anything else?"
"No, sir."
"Alright. Let me go deal with this mess."
Bonzo swept into the commander's office without regard for the objections of his secretary or any of a half-dozen subordinates protesting that the general was not ready to see him. He really didn't care; he wasn't ready to beat him up, but his respect for the chain of command was momentarily not what it should have been. He simply opened the door to the general's office and startled the napping senior commander.
"General Schroder, Bonzo Madrid, reporting as ordered by...whomever ordered me here."
Schroder woke up with a start, and looked around, surprised to see the teenager in the room, in spite of his military uniform. "You're the Battle Schooler they sent as an assistant, right?"
"Correct."
Schroder looked Bonzo over for a moment, considering him, and shook his head. "They sent a boy to run my division for me. Idiots."
Bonzo closed his eyes, kicking the irritation at the comment away from his mind as best he could, and not letting a very strong desire to 'correct' the general's assumptions of himself take over. He is my superior...for now. Just wait...you won't be stuck with him forever. "General Schroder, just tell me what to do and I'll do my best."
The general took him up on his offer, telling him to prepare plans in case of an attack from any of a number of directions in the next few days. Bonzo readily complied, looking over maps, lists of forces available to deploy, etc. and coming up with no less than a half-dozen partial contingency plans for attacks, and promptly handing them over to the general. Schroder seemed more interested in ignoring the plans and digging his troops in, hoping for reinforcements, which irritated Bonzo, but at least kept the general out of his hair.
They were lucky...the Russians didn't mount a major attack for two days after Bonzo arrived, giving Bonzo some time to become more familiar with some quirks of the land...a few roads not on the maps, for example, as well as several other details that he Russians had been kind enough to revise without advising the maps. When they attacked, however, the troops weren't anything resembling ready, in spite of the efforts Bonzo put into getting them positioned to absorb the attack.
When the attack opened, Bonzo was catching a nap in the 'office' that had been given to him. An artillery barrage put an end to that, and sent him rushing out of the office and into the conference room, where several officers were quickly assembling to await reports from the front and orders from the general, who stepped into the room a few minutes later, and promptly recieved a handful of notes from aides and subordinates detailing incoming calls.
"Madrid, did you account for an attack in the center of the line in your plans?"
"I did, general."
"Put that plan into action, then."
"I will, general, as soon as you free up the following units from their entrenchments. I need them to bolster the defense of that area."
Bonzo handed the general a list of units, which got an immediate glare from Schroder.
"This will endanger our positions everywhere else!"
"General, I need men to halt an attack. If you can't spare the men, I would advise pulling back approximately two klicks to this position and at least transferring these two reserve units to that position to assist them in blunting the assault."
Another glare shot from Schroder's eyes, and he glanced at the other officers in the room. "Alright. You can have these units...but you're commanding this operation, Madrid."
Bonzo looked rather surprised. "General..."
"What? Your superiors wanted you to have combat experience. Here you go."
Fifteen minutes after that conversation, Bonzo was on his way to the front, in the back of a troop transport. The bumpy ride did nothing to untangle the knots rapidly forming in his stomach. Yeah, I've been shot at, but that was nothing next to what this is going to be...that was nothing...
As he got near the position where the units were forming a defensive line, he looked down at his right hand, where he'd been shot once before, and shuddered mentally before shoving all of the thoughts associated with that somewhere in a corner of his mind.
When Bonzo's transport arrived at the battle, Bonzo was the first one out of the back, rushing towards a pair of officers shouting orders into satalite phones. Rather than try to interrupt the calls (something that would likely bear little fruit), he just handed one of them his orders and stood back, ducking more than once as explosions went off overhead. After a wait that seemed like more than a few hours, but which was probably no more than ten minutes, the officer turned to Bonzo.
"Schroder said to expect you. Madrid, right? So...what's your grand plan, kid?"
"Hold them off as long as we can, maybe throw them back a bit. Where are your men deployed."
"Didn't Schroder show you a map?"
"That's where the last plan Schroder agreed to said they'd be. Where are they actually?"
The officer, pleasantly surprised, pulled out a small datapad that had more than a bit of wear on it and pointed to a few locations on the map. "Here, here, and here."
"And the Russians?"
"Everywhere farther back than those locations."
"Great." Bonzo paused for a moment, thinking things over, and then opened them and began issuing a volley of orders. "I want the troops I brought with me to guard the left flank, and aim at any Russians who come through the woods over there."
The commanders on the scene looked at Bonzo, surprised at both the orders and the fact that he was issuing them so quickly, which elicited an angry glare from Bonzo. "Now!" Idiots.
It only took a few minutes for the men to begin moving into place; it didn't take even that long for the Russian attack to heat up again. Fortunately, whomever was commanding their guns had demonstrated particularly bad aim thus far, and had only managed significant casualties among trees, shrubbery, and wildlife so far with their artillery shots, enabling the troops to move fairly quickly into their assigned positions. Bonzo remained with the main force guarding the road, however, barking out orders to get the men prepared for the eventually impending attack.
The attack finally started up in earnest 20 minutes later. The Russians began pounding the hell out of the German positions, forcing Bonzo and the rest of the command staff present to take cover behind a small mound that had been raised for just that purpose. About 10 minutes later, the bombardment lightened up, and Russian troops appeared in the distance down the road, prompting Bonzo to start shouting into his communicator.
"Right flank, hold your fire. Repeat, hold your fire until they get either in front of you or just past you. Left flank, do the same."
The flanks did a decent job of obeying; no shots were fired from the sides until the Russians had made it to their positions on the road, when fire opened up from three sides on the Russians, forcing the Russians to retreat with heavy casualties. Bonzo smiled smugly at the sight of the retreat, and called for a report from the flanks.
The right flank had taken only light causalties having not been a part of the battle until they started shooting, but the left flank had been seriously crippled. Bonzo was just getting this news when a second attack, stronger than the first began.
"Kriff."
"Sir?"
"They used the first attack to figure out what our positions were...prepare to have the flanks retreat slowly."
"Retreat?"
"Yes, retreat! And I don't mean go and reflect on their lives, either! We can't hold their extended positions, but we can at least make it take longer for the Russians to get here!" You idiot went unsaid.
"Yes...sir."
Bonzo turned back to the road, and looked. The Russians were coming in force now, and there was lots of shooting. The shooting was getting closer, but he wasn't going to abandon the position he was holding...it was well-prepared, and he could at least hope to contain an attack for a while here. He looked through some binoculars, and saw the actual shooting. A tank exploded, and the Russians went dodging for cover as a series of explosions went off inside the tank. That should keep them from bringing much else down the road. More shooting ensued, and while Russians fell, more came up to take their places. Even so, this is going to be rough.
Over the course of the next two hours, the battle raged up and down the road. The Russians advanced repeatedly, but well-timed attacks put them back a long way on at least two occasions. Still, the advance was inexorable, and soon, they were about a hundred meters down the road, taking aim at the command position. Bonzo could be seen barking out orders, micromanaging the battle with a certain degree of success, and occasionally chewing out subordinates more than was probably necessary. However, he was soon under cover, reaching carefully for the bent cylinder on his belt while trying to calm himself. You're not going to die, Bonzo. You're going to come out of this alright. It's just like when you and Obi-Wan went to rescue Petra. You'll walk away fine. In spite of his best efforts, however, Bonzo was slowly slipping towards a minor panic over the matter of dying.
If I die, at least I'll wind up in Milliways. And Milliways usually intervenes before people die, too.
That thought was enough to at least keep the panic down once it came into his mind, and he closed his eyes for a moment, thinking. "Men, prepare for close combat." And let's get this over with.
The Russians only took another 15 minutes to reach Bonzo's position. In spite of his men's shooting, they managed to pick off enough of his men to make a charge viable in spite of their numbers also being reduces.
"How're the flanks holding up?"
"Both are holding just fine. The forest is giving them good cover."
"Alright. Let's just hope we can hold on here as well."
With that, Bonzo looked up and saw the Russian charge about ten meters away. He rapidly pulled the bent cylinder off his belt and ignited it, revealing it to be his lightsaber, and didn't bother to draw his sidearm as the Russians reached the position and attempted to climb over the mound. Amid a blur of light, the handful of Russians near him all went down, mostly screaming loudly. Bonzo then pulled his gun out of its holster and started taking shots at the Russians as quickly as he could fire them off, emptying a full cartridge into the Russians. Extinguishing his lightsaber, he ducked back down to switch cartridges. One of the men looked over at him as he was reloading, surprise visible at what he'd just seen.
"What the hell are you?"
Bonzo just smiled at the question. "A long story." Then, his gun reloaded, he looked over the rampart and started shooting again.
Bonzo managed to hold his position in that battle, but just barely. The Russians hadn't counted on the stubborn resistance on both flanks combining with a particularly vicious hand-to-hand battle on the road to pile up the casualties. The lead tank in their attack column getting blown up hadn't helped; neither had the fact that a number of men panicked when they saw their comrades losing arms and legs to a device that few were familiar with, and that honestly scared those who were familiar enough with it to know what it was.
After the advance had been blunted, Bonzo ordered the troops on the flanks to push forward if possible. They were able to counterattack, and quickly surrounded the front of the Russian attacking force. Realizing that they were surrounded, the Russians threw down their weapons and raised their hands in surrender.
"Call General Schroder and tell him that we have some prisoners for him."
"Sir?"
"These Russians are now our guests." He shot a look at the subordinate. "Tell General Schroder." Then, he turned his attention to the Russians. "Men, make sure they're disarmed." He looked down at the ground, and saw one of the men he'd injured laying there, badly burned on his right side from the lightsaber cut, the smell of his burned flesh apparent in the air. "And get a medic for these men." With that, he excused himself from the front for a few minutes to deal with Schroder...and to get some time to himself.
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The prisoners were not particularly informative. Most had a general grasp of Common; most of them also didn't use it regularly enough for it to be useful, and the result is that Bonzo was getting used to broken Common and gibberish being the most commonly-used languages. It also meant that getting useful information out of them was unbelievably difficult, and not something that Bonzo had time to deal with. While he'd managed to put the Russians back a good kilometer when he broke up their offensive, as well as leaving their lines in the area in disarray, his forces were badly weakend and he needed either reinforcements or a new position...preferably both, when he asked Schroder for either.
"No. We need that position, and I can't spare any troops."
"And I can't work miracles here."
"Then what's this image that one of my subordinates showed me?"
Image? Oh boy...
"What's it of."
"Something that you're holding. A glowing stick of some kind."
I hate picture phones.
"Uh...not quite sure what to tell you about that, General."
"I'm not sure what to think of it being, Madrid, but I've never seen anything like it."
"You sure someone wasn't having fun altering images?"
"Possibly. I don't know, and I don't have time for this. Just hold your position, Madrid. Out."
Great. Life just got more interesting.
The troops spend the next day fortifying their position. A few troops with minor injuries from earlier in the campaign got sent to reinforce his position, but Bonzo was left with little to back up his position except for some more ammunition. Schroder also cursed up a storm and told him not to send any more prisoners back, as they were too short on provisions and men to keep an eye on POWs. This left Bonzo steaming. I should be the one running this damn war. I'm the Jedi. Schroder isn't. I know what I'm doing. Schroder doesn't.
Another attack was repulsed two days after the first, but withdrawls elsewhere along the line forced Bonzo to pull back from his position to avoid being surrounded. Even Schroder gave it his blessing, without knowing that Bonzo had already ordered his men to pull back.
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Amid the withdrawl operation, Bonzo found a few minutes to himself. He checked his datapad, and looked over a file from another datapad and another time. Lovely. There's supposed to be an earthquake in China tomorrow. Well, time to get something done. With that, he began hacking, inserting information into the relatively minor sources where it should be picked up, both in the earthquake prediction systems that were still inept after 200 years of work, and in news sources. He didn't care who got blamed for tampering with the files; he just wanted to make sure people saw it coming.
The tampering caught a number of eyes in the ensuing week. It wasn't that someone had inserted warnings into a bunch of local governments predicting an earthquake; that was what bored students at CalTech did once every few years when they got particularly bored. It's that someone was dead on, giving the exact time and place of the earthquake, and even suggesting certain neighborhoods to evacuate that were hit hard, as well as the fact that someone had done this several times before, once with a hurricane and several times with flash floods. Such incidents did not escape prying eyes around the world, though the source of the tampering was as yet unknown.
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About two weeks into the war, Schroder finally got sacked. A new general, by the name of Schmidt, was put in charge of the forces in Bonzo's area, and he brought a pair of Battle Schoolers who had been cleared for working in headquarters with him who took over much of the planning, in spite of both being younger than Bonzo. This left Bonzo steaming yet again.
Another insult was piled on when he was ordered to defend a road with only two brigades when there were numerous ones being held back to defend other positions...and then got slammed with three divisions of Russian troops. In spite of clogging up their attack, he was overrun and forced to abandon the position, making a steady delaying action as he fell back, when his pleas for reinforcements were ignored. When he was finally recalled to headquarters, he was promptly blamed for the loss of the position and chewed out for it. Shortly following this, he was reassigned to a desk job by General Schmidt, and then given a three-day leave pass.
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Bonzo was badly in need of the leave. In spite of his training, both under Dooku and at Battle School, nothing had come close to preparing him for the realities of a shooting war. On more than one occasion, he had been put in morally ambiguous situations; the stress of trying to reconcile everything with an innate desire to win was taking a toll on him.
For the break, he was sent to a resort in France with a number of other officers on similar leaves, where he could be called back if needed be, and where he was out of the line of fire (so he could actually relax). He got some decent rest during the break, but on the last night of his break, as he was returning to his room, he felt a sharp, sudden pain in his back, and blacked out.
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[AIM RP 1]
JuniperEarth: The boy is upon the floor quite unconscious. When he awakens he will see a room bare of anything but a simple bed. Military Grade doors are the only indication that this room is quite secure. There are no windows.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo comes out of his blackout with a bit of a throbbing headache. "Where am I...?" This...this is not good.
JuniperEarth: He isn't met with any reaction.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo looks around. Great. Slowly, he gets to his feet, and looks down at his waist, to see if his lightsaber is there.
JuniperEarth: Which it isn't. Without any fanfare the door opens and a few people, they should look like doctors enter the room.
GrayAnderson5: Oh, kriffing hell. That's the thought in Bonzo's mind when he sees the lack of a lightsaber. Then, the doctors come in. "Where am I?!?" His irritation is highly audible, and he really wants answers about what's going on rather quickly...this just has a bad feel about it.
GrayAnderson5: (poke?)
JuniperEarth: *coughs*
JuniperEarth: "Lay down" That seems to be about the only answer he is going to get right now. If he doesn't lay down the adults seem quite ready to pin him down.
GrayAnderson5: And Bonzo looks just as ready to put up a fight, headache or not.
GrayAnderson5: (Lemme expand on that)
GrayAnderson5: And Bonzo looks just as ready to put up a fight, headache or not. "Like hell. Where am I and where is my lightsaber?!?" That last part is a furious comment...kid seems to be momentarily forgetting that whole 'don't give into your anger' thing for a second, though he does his best to cool off after that comment.
JuniperEarth: Is there a flicker in the mind. "Lay down, or would you rather we held you down?"
GrayAnderson5: "Answer my questions first." That is grunted out...he's ready to resist. That whole bad mood thing.
JuniperEarth: "Well, we could hold you down, or you could lay down. Which would you choose?" Not that the man in question really seems to care. The other three have come ti stand next to him.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo is finally intimidated into backing up towards the bed. "What're you going to do?" Hey, he's cooperating...
JuniperEarth: Dryly, "Making sure you don't die." Dramatic? Maybe. They don't seem to care. They'll let him get on the bed before they begin the examination.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo sighs and lays down. Alright, there's a good chance there's something he's not being told. He'll play along. "Why would I die?"
JuniperEarth: They don't answer, they simply do a quick check though, then without a word, leave. There is a tray with food on it placed upon the floor.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo looks at the food. Well, it looks edible. So, he leans down and picks some of it up and sniffs...like that'll tell him if he's being poisoned.
JuniperEarth: And thus he's left alone for a while. He's probably being video taped.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo decides against the food...for now. Rather, he sits down, calmly, and begins meditating. Not like there are many other options for him.
JuniperEarth: Nothing happens for a while. Say... a few days. As the lights say as they go on and off, and food is deliered.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo eats very little. Yes, he eats some. But he also changes what he consumes somewhat randomly. Other than that, lots of meditation, and occasional attempts to question the people delivering food, Bonzo does nothing more, sleeping aside.
JuniperEarth: Time continues to drag on.
GrayAnderson5: Although Bonzo's questioning get more pushy, he generally keeps up the routine. His agitation is showing ever so slightly, but he realizes that he's not getting anywhere with the questioning...still, he's at least got to try.
JuniperEarth: second
GrayAnderson5: k
GrayAnderson5: (pokes the entered text?)
JuniperEarth: None of his questions are answered, and it is about a week before he sees anyone but the silent adult that leaves the food. When the door opens it is a boy a few years younger than Bonzo who walks in. The boy might recognise the boy, but then again, he might now. The last time he faced this person was after Achilles'd gone though puberty.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo doesn't recognize him too particularly well, but something looks vaguely familiar. "Who are you?" That's as close to a calm inquiry as he's come in quite a while, btw, and it still isn't terribly calm.
JuniperEarth: Achilles leands against a wall. "
JuniperEarth: ... not done
GrayAnderson5: *nods*
Go on;-)
JuniperEarth: I will! Promise...
JuniperEarth: Achilles leans against a wall. "A kindred spirit. My name is Achilles."
GrayAnderson5: Blink. Oh boy... "Achilles?" Pause. "I feel like we've met somewhere before..."
GrayAnderson5: (OOC: ;-))
JuniperEarth: "If you agree, we could come to know one another quite well." Achilles hasn't moved from where he's leaning against the wall.
GrayAnderson5: "Agree?" Pause. "Agree to what?" Mixed emotion on that point.
JuniperEarth: "Working together. From what I've seen you have a way to pinpoint exactly when natural disasters are about to happen."
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo blinks. He knows. Lovely. "Oh?" He's playing coy...this is Achilles, after all.
JuniperEarth: "I have influence that you need. I assume that you're working to..." delicate pause, "Save lives?"
GrayAnderson5: Blink. "I am..." Pause. "What can you offer me that I don't have already?" The offer does intrigue him, to say the least, but he's not about switching sides without a damned good reason.
JuniperEarth: Achilles shrugs. "Only an in into countries that would normaly ignore the 'warnings', or choose not to force people to leave when the time comes."
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo blinks. "You can do that?" Once again, he's wary...but let's just say that there's an idealism about him that won't hurt in being manipulated.
JuniperEarth: "Of course." Som
JuniperEarth: *deleates the "som"
GrayAnderson5: "How?" Pause. "I mean...you're younger than I am.
GrayAnderson5: *endquote
JuniperEarth: Achilles smirks. "Some of us didn't disgrace ourselves so badly at Battle School."
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo glares at him...that hit a nerve. "Disgrace?"
JuniperEarth: Achilles smirks. "I know a great deal about you. How you had a chance to the best and threw it away."
GrayAnderson5: Ender. The fact that, for him, it's been somewhere close to four years since then doesn't make it any easier to deal with; this results in a visible wince. "Alright. You know Ender was in my army." Pause. "I think the rest of the galaxy knows that, too."
JuniperEarth: A smirk is on Achilles' face.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo frowns at the smirk. "Anything else I should know?" Pause. "Like where my lightsaber is?" Hey, he called it that earlier...and he wants that thing back now.
JuniperEarth: "It's safe. Shall I leave you alone while you consider my proposal?"
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo closes his eyes. "Let me sleep on it." Not like he has any better options, but...he'd like to sleep on it. "And...tell me where I am, at least?"
JuniperEarth: "Russia, where else?" And Achilles is gone, and the lights in the room flicker off behind him.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo makes his way over to the bed, and lays down. Great. What a choice I have. Well, he'll sleep on it, but he's already made up his mind in some ways...he just doesn't want to rush into a decision that he knows he's going to have to make sooner or later.
GrayAnderson5: And night passes...as it usually does...with Bonzo not sleeping particularly well. Naturally, morning follows night, and arrives all too soon.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo wakes up in the morning from what sleep he's gotten...and sighs. He looks around. Let's get this over with.
JuniperEarth: The door opens as the lights flicker on. The familar form of Achilles enters the room. "Do we have an accord?"
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo gets up, and nods. "We do." He offers a handshake as a way of cementing the deal (more out of custom than anything).
JuniperEarth: Achilles does not shake the hand. "Follow me then."
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo drops the hand, and follows Achilles as per his order. I do not like doing this...but those idiots in Germany just don't know how to use my...talents. And it's not like I'll be commanding troops, either...
JuniperEarth: Achilles walks out of the room, leading the way down a corridor, around, so forth. "I have the feeling it would not bode well to place you with the rest of the children."
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo takes a deep breath. "Yeah, we didn't get along too well." He's still following Achilles.
JuniperEarth: Achilles opens a door and flicks on a light. "This will be your work room."
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo looks around. "And my datapad?"
JuniperEarth: Achilles pulls something out and holds it out. "This?"
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo looks at it, and nods. "That." The fact that it's of a model that shouldn't be public for another year or two isn't an issue here, is it?
JuniperEarth: Achilles holds it out to the boy. "That is an intirest hobby for a battle school brat."
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo shrugs. "I have connections." Pause. "From very odd places...none you'd find useful, I don't think, however."
JuniperEarth: "I suppose they came from the same place the personal files came from also."
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo blinks. He hadn't thought of those. "Much the same place."
JuniperEarth: "I have errased thoes. I do not believe they will be helpful in what you will be working on."
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo groans. Lovely. "You didn't find them useful for your own ends?"
JuniperEarth: "I can't reveal my sources." Achilles is smirking. "The door will be locked."
GrayAnderson5: "Not like I'd have anywhere to run to, is it?" Pause, with a pardon begged for his sarcasm there. "What do you want me to do, Achilles?" Another pause. "And why are you helping me with this?"
JuniperEarth: "Call it my due to someone like myself. We must help one another get a head in the world." He avoids the other questions quite neatly.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo sighs. "Can I get some help with this? I'm not the best hacker on the planet, you know." And it's made for some sloppy insertions of information, too.
JuniperEarth: "You will send your information via email to a list already programed into the computer," he nods at the computer on the desk, "and it will be done."
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo sighs. "Alright." Pause. "How many of us did you kidnap? Just the Jeesh and myself?" Another, slightly sickening, pause. "And what about Ender?"
JuniperEarth: Achilles' expression doesn't change. "I do not believe that is something you need to know."
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo resists the urge to inquire into Petra's whereabouts. "Alright." He's quietly steaming at the lack of information he's being given, but...at least he can do something with his information here. "I'll get to work." He takes his datapad and slips over to the computer. I can't believe I'm working for Achilles...I can't believe it, but it's not like I have a choice, is it? And...at least I can help people from here. I hope.
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Some time into working with Achilles, Bonzo got wind, through the news, that disaster warnings he was writing up apparently weren't getting out. It wasn't that they said so specifically, but whenever a warning got out, it was almost always mentioned in the news story. Is Achilles not sending the warnings out? Is he using me? What's going on here? This happened two or three times over the course of a month or so while Bonzo worked in relative seclusion, and each time, it frustrated him more and more.
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JuniperEarth: The door opens and Achilles saunters in.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo looks up from his work, and glares at Achilles as he rises. "Why the kriff aren't my warnings getting sent out?!?"
JuniperEarth: Achilles doesn't look peturbed he sits on the table, "We've been having some... department difficulties. How would you like your own staff?" It isn't exactly a question. More or less a statement of what is going to happen.
GrayAnderson5: Blink. A staff? That's a twist on things. "Please tell me they'll be more competent than that idiot I was put under in Germany."
JuniperEarth: "Their competence will be up to you. You have a file on your computer with names, profiles everything. You get to choose five." He holds up his hand as if to empahsise it. "And you will run it."
GrayAnderson5: ...wow. Bonzo smiles just a little at the thought, but he's still preoccupied with that first issue. "Have my warnings been getting out, or have you been sitting on them, Achilles?" He knows enough about Achilles to believe that he'd do something like that.
JuniperEarth: "As I said, we've been having some department difficulties which have been cleared up." Achille's expression doesn't change, but the boy should know well enough how they were cleared up. "I suggest you get to work."
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo blinks, and the thought sends a shiver down his spine. Just the same, he gets the message. "Will do." With that, he steps over to his computer and begins flipping through the files to select his staff.
GrayAnderson5: ((Will the staff list be Battle Schoolers?))
JuniperEarth: *headshakes*
GrayAnderson5: ((Honestly wasn't sure; had to ask))
JuniperEarth: Achilles exits, a smirk upon his face. From the file the boy had on him he figured that he would know exactly what he'd done.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo gets to work. There's now a bit of nervousness in Bonzo's mind...he hadn't heard of any of that happening from Petra...not that it was unexpected, but it still really unnerved him.
JuniperEarth: Achilles arrives later with people and equiptment in tow. They do not wait for direction but begin to set up quickly.
GrayAnderson5: When the people arrive and set up, Bonzo has his five selected. He punches a button on his computer, and glances over at him. "You have my selections."
JuniperEarth: Achilles glances at Bonzo. "Good, they'll be here in an hour. Have you had lunch yet?"
JuniperEarth: ((*goes to switch laundry around*))
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo shakes his head. "Haven't really had time." There's never enough time in the day, is there?
GrayAnderson5: ((*nods))
JuniperEarth: "Lets go then." Achilles doesn't seem to need to watch people set up computers. Without waiting to see if the boy follows he leads the way down a hallway to another office.
JuniperEarth: ((Anderson?))
GrayAnderson5: ((Sorry...dozed off))
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo follows Achilles down the hall in near silence.
JuniperEarth: ((No worries, gave me an excuse to actuly work on my Algebra homework))
JuniperEarth: Achilles opens the door and ushers the boy in. It should look rather familar to the boy, but not exactly.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo gets a bit of a start when he's shown the office. It's a little different, but not too much. "Nice office."
JuniperEarth: Achilles casts an apraising eye over the room. "It works. Have a seat." Achilles settles himself in a chair and waves at another for the boy.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo sits down in the appointed seat, still quietly...which shouldn't be out of the ordinary. He's been fairly quiet the whole time.
JuniperEarth: "While we're waiting, why don't you tell me what you expect to accomplish while in my employ?" For the moment they'll ignore the fact that Bonzo isn't getting paid anything.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo is slightly surprised by that, but doesn't show it too awfully badly. "I...I'd like to keep doing what I'm doing." Pause. "I just wish I could intervene in things more openly, rather than hiding behind a curtain and shouting warnings at people who sometimes ignore them."
JuniperEarth: "What would you do? You're just a washed out kid, how could /you/ come up with a prediction system better than what there is already in place?" Achillies is more than slightly mocking.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo rolls his eyes at that, letting it roll off his back. "Ever notice how I'm never wrong?"
JuniperEarth: "How many natural disastors are you willing to let happen so they'll believe you?" An upraised eyebrow at this.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo blinks. "How many?" The thought really hadn't occurred to him. "How many would I have to?" Why, it's the natural follow-up question!
JuniperEarth: "Not a question I can answer. Here is what I am going to do." The food arrives then, and Achilles waves it to be set in front of him, then waits for the people to leave before continuing. "You are going to create a new weather prediction system and we are going to brodcast it. After... four... five are predicted perfectly governments will be coming to /us/ for the information. A perfect in."
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo blinks. Wow. .o0(Is it ethical? No. But it's also the only way to make this work. It's the only way I'll be getting to actually make these things happen.)0o. And it just does cross his mind that if he can get back to Petra's world, he could make a perfect system, too...not that it's have a damn thing to do with actual weather prediction. As such, a grin emerges on Bonzo's face. "I'm willing to do that."
JuniperEarth: "First I believe it would be a good idea if you were returned to your command. The world seems to want you. I'll send for you in a few weeks. I suggest you resign."
GrayAnderson5: "How do I explain where I was...and my sudden reappearance?"
JuniperEarth: "I could always set up a 'rescue...' you /were/ kidnaped."
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo nods. "That would work." Pause. "And my lightsaber?"
JuniperEarth: "You can have your toy back when I trust you." Achilles never trusts anyone. "Do try not to double cross me, I would hate to have to kill you."
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo looks Achilles in the eyes. "Look, you're offering me what I want. I have no reason to double-cross you." Pause. "It wouldn't be honorable, after all." That should be in the files as a sort of buzzword for him.
JuniperEarth: A simple raised eyebrow here. Achilles pours a drink, "You will be rescued within the week. Do try to look suprised."
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo grins just a bit, and in a nice, indignant voice... "Well, it certainly took them long enough!" And there's a wink associated with that.
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Sure enough, within the week a rescue operation retrieved Bonzo from Achilles' facility. The operation was slightly messy, as such operations tend to be
He didn't resign immediately. He gave it a few weeks, letting a reason come up to walk out in an irritated fit over, and sure enough, two weeks after he came back, reassigned to Schmidt, he got his reason when Schmidt tried to put him on desk duty. Citing that his talents would be better used elsewhere, Bonzo announced...rather loudly...his intention to resign. Although nice, vague promises of a better assignment...including one by President Anderson (who was loudly pushing for Battle Schoolers to take a bigger role in running the war) personally...were issued, Bonzo was openly obstinate, though he hinted that he might be willing to take a different sort of role in the war.
After a brief trip home, he got an email inviting him to a 'meeting' in Switzerland (now almost 50% bordered by Russian control) to 'interview' for a job with a weather forecasting firm. Packing his bags, Bonzo went to the rendezvous, and was uneventfully-but-quickly whisked away to the facility in Russia, after a brief for-show interview.
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JuniperEarth: Upon reaching Russia the boy will find himself on another plane headed south. If he's been reading his news he will have heard of the release of the children, with one exception. The Russian government still has yet to locate Miss. Arkanian. The plane makes a few unimportant stops, and Bonzo shifts flights e
JuniperEarth: each time ending up finaly on a small two-man plane headed for New Dehli.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo sits in his seat, looking out the window...and wondering why on earth he isn't heading to Russia.
JuniperEarth: Achilles is standing near the runway waiting for the plane to run its course and stop. The pilot helps the boy get his bags and nods for the boy to go meet Achilles.
GrayAnderson5: Once Bonzo has his bags, he walks over to Achilles. "Hello, Achilles." Taking a note of the unusually warm air around him (at least for Spain or Russia), he sighs. "I hope the office has air conditioning."
JuniperEarth: "I'm sure you'll find it to your satisfaction. We still have a bit of a journey left, lets get on with it." Achilles leads the way to a car and motions for Bonzo to put this things in the back and then climb in.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo follows. It should be noted that he's in a coat-and-tie, not anything even remotely military...and that he has nothing military with him, either...save for perhaps a picture or two of him, younger, that he's lifted from old security vids.
JuniperEarth: The car ride is uneventful, and silent. Achilles ushers Bonzo into the building once the car has stopped, up some stairs and into a room. It isn't exactly what one would call the most comfortable situation around, but it was servicable. There was a bed, a dresser, and a desk with a computer on it. "This is where you will be staying."
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo nods. He's not exactly used to large, comfortable rooms...between Milliways and Battle School, he's always lived in rooms no larger than a hotel room. He sets his bags down on the bed, but he'll be unpacking just a little bit later. He looks Achilles in the eyes, and smiles just a bit. "And where will I be working?" Let's just say that his mind is more than slightly preoccupied...he'd been doing his best to insert information even when he was sent back, after all...
JuniperEarth: "Grab your computer and follow me. I'll introduce you to your staff." Though that might be an exageration. Achilles doesn't "Introduce people" He announces and expects people to follow.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo grabs his computer and walks along behind Achilles.
JuniperEarth: Achilles leads the way to another room on the same floor. Within five people work silently. "This will be where you and your staff," he waves at the people, "Will work. Instead of the tedious cracking we will be doing something diffrent. When you're settled we'll discuss it."
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo nods. "I look forward to it." .o0(As long as I get to do my thing, I'll tolerate whatever he throws at me)0o.
JuniperEarth: "If you need to reach me send a message and someone will come to show you the way." Achilles leaves quite abruptly at that.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo nods, and then turns to his staff. .o0(Alright. What do I do now?)0o. "I'm Bonzo Madrid, and as you've probably noticed, aside from Achilles, I'm in charge here." Pause. "I don't know what any of you are used to doing, but let's just say that we're probably not going to be doing any of what you're used to doing." And a small grin emerges at that. "Achilles has assigned me to predict the weather." And then he punches a few buttons on his datapad. "For example, tomorrow there will be a tornado in Kansas City, Kansas that will destroy 50 houses and kill 6 people when it goes through a trailer park. Then on Friday, there will be a flash flood in Chihuahua, Mexico, that will kill 5 and destroy the better part of two villages. And let's not even start about hurricanes and typhoons." Bonzo looks at the men, who should be dumbfounded, with a nice, cocky grin on his face.
JuniperEarth: Bonzo's help are silent, but they nod. One finaly speaks up, "We've been told we will be making up the mathamatics and working with known weather systems to 'predict' this."
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo nods. "Of course." And another smile. "Models are always more accurate when you know the results ahead of time."
JuniperEarth: Bonzo's help doesn't smile. Nor do they introduce themsleves. They nod and turn their attention back to their computers, and will stay that way unless Bonzo turns out to have something to say.
GrayAnderson5: Which suits Bonzo just fine. There's only one more comment. "I'll send you the files for the next two weeks, and keep the files updated two weeks out. From there, I need the models generated to predict these disasters. Programming is not my specialty, after all, it's yours." And he'll just take care of earthquakes and the like on his own...that just involves some minor tampering, not anything complex, and he can plot those out farther in advance, too.
GrayAnderson5: With that, he sends a message to Achilles that he's done in the office for now.
JuniperEarth: It takes about fifteen minutes, but there is someone at the door gesturing for Bonzo to follow him.
GrayAnderson5: And Bonzo follows.
JuniperEarth: He's led off the floor, he might notice that the guard has to place his hand on a palmpad to open the door, down two levels and then around to another office. He opens the door for the boy.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo follows the guard, and then enters the office he's ushered into. Why he's being kept behind all of this security is honestly somewhat frustrating; he has no desire to escape.
JuniperEarth: Achillies waves Bonzo to a seat, but he's on the phone so he doesn't say anything right now. "Yes, I understand...." "I'm sure that can be arranged." "Farewell."
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo sits down, as directed, and waits for Achilles to finish his call.
GrayAnderson5: *poke?*
JuniperEarth: Achilles puts the phone back in the cradle and turns to his guest. "What do you thnk?"
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo smiles a bit. "I can work with them. I trust that they can all program fairly well?" Hey, it's a worthwhile question.
GrayAnderson5: (Gimme about 7-10 min...I need to take a shower)
JuniperEarth: "Of course. As for our divation I spoke of earlier," Achilles outlines his plan which begins with creating their own 'prediction' system, then publishing the information, allowing the governments to use or not use it as they will, but after that taking the information directly /to/ the government in question. "Once they realize we are always correct they will give quite a bit for what we have."
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo nods. "And what do you plan to request for this information?" He's got some scruples about demanding money, but...this operation won't run for free.
JuniperEarth: "Just more connections to spread the information around, and of course, the demand they get the people in question out safely." Achilles is smooth. He'll tell Bonzo exactly what he wants to hear.
GrayAnderson5: And Bonzo nods. Hey, the offer sounds good, and he's even beginning to forget the psycopath-ish nature of Achilles ever-so-slowly. "Sounds good." A pause. "Why is security so tight here?"
JuniperEarth: "Plenty of information here that needs help. If any of your staff do not perform do tell me and I will see them replaced." Is it really an answer? No, probably not.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo decides that the 'answer' is most of what he'll get. "Alright. Is there any way, under guard or otherwise, to get some fresh air?" The security is irritating, but one thing Achilles should notice, at least as time goes by, is that Bonzo is not trying to escape, and he's really going to work hard at his job.
JuniperEarth: "I'm not here to keep you prisionor, any time after the work day or durring your lunch that you wish to go out you will be allowed to go to the grounds." The city is of course, out of the question. "Just knock at the door at the end of your hallway and one of the guards will accompany you."
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo nods. "Thank you." He masks his slight frustration at this, but he has a feeling why. "It is a shame that some of the others don't want to cooperate." From his point of view, it's just interfering in a process that could (and probably will) save thousands of lives, at the very least.
JuniperEarth: Achilles waves his hand and turns away. The guard opens the door to some unknown signal. the conversation seems to be over.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo proceeds out the door and back into the hall.
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Bonzo begins his work in earnest. He's probably the hardest worker in the facility; he could give a damn about Achilles' psycopathic nature, as all he's concerned about is saving lives. .o0(It's my job. It's my duty. As a Jedi, if nothing else.)0o. And so he thinks that to himself as he does his work, getting files prepared. It should be noted that there are no messages hidden in his emails. He's just not opposing Achilles at all. As it is, there's only one sticking point: Bonzo wants his lightsaber. If he has that, in all honesty, he's quite content to keep working for Achilles. So, as time goes by, he broaches the issue again...a bit more aggressively.
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GrayAnderson5: Bonzo presses the button to call for the guards. He's been working away at the models, etc. for a month or two now, and seen some successes. Now, he wants his toy back.
JuniperEarth: ((This'll be intirsting.))
JuniperEarth: The guard opens the door promptly and asks, "where to?"
GrayAnderson5: "Achilles' office." Bonzo is quite ready to follow.
JuniperEarth: The guard raises an eyebrow. "Is he expecting you?"
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo looks the guard in the eyes. "If he knows me, he should find me to be overdue."
JuniperEarth: Bonzo shrugs and mutters something along the lines of "It's your head." And he leads the way to Achillies office. Once their he promptly turns his back on the door and lets /bonzo/ knock.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo knocks quite readily, too.
JuniperEarth: "Come!" Achilles sounds slightly annoyed that someone is knocking.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo walks in quite briskly as he opens the door. "Evening, Achilles,"
JuniperEarth: "What is it?" Achilles faces Bonzo his arms crossed looking /very/ unhappy.
JuniperEarth: ((Ever thought of the absurdity of this? Bonzo is Eighteen, Achilles is what, 14? Maybe? Maybe closer to eleven?))
GrayAnderson5: ((I know...but Bonzo also knows who has the guns, too))
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo sighs. "I've been waiting for at least two months, Achilles. I want my lightsaber." A bit of control comes back to him, but he stares at Achilles. "You took it from me, and your scientists have probably not been able to achieve much with it other than hurting themselves."
JuniperEarth: ((Sorry))
JuniperEarth: Achillies is /very/ much not happy. Only the thought that he /needs/ this person keeps him from calling the guard to dispose of him. Temper check, "What would you do with your little toy?"
GrayAnderson5: "Practice." Pause. "You're more than happy to keep guards in the room with me with guns; it has no range. If I tried anything, it'd be a knife in a gun fight." Bonzo is steaming quietly, but he's willing to be...diplomatic about this.
JuniperEarth: "See, pictures tell me that you are quite willing to take on an armed guard with your glowing sword." Aren't picture phones wonderful?
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo keeps staring. "And I also had guns backing me up, including one in my holster at the moment. I wouldn't have had a chance in hell if they weren't only a few feet away. Until they got that close, I was using my guns, after all."
JuniperEarth: "Rooms are small." Achillies' voice is matter of fact.
GrayAnderson5: "I'll be happy to use it outside. That's big enough they can be a safe distance away, and I can't do a number of practice moves safely inside, anyway." Pause. "Besides, if I did try to cause trouble, I have no doubt that you have enough guards to ensure that I would regret it." That is said with a look straight into Achilles' eyes.
JuniperEarth: "I don't allow civilians within my buildings carry wepons."
GrayAnderson5: "Then I'll use it outside only, and put it in a secure location when I'm not practicing. I have no problem with that."
JuniperEarth: "I will have a secure location for it." Achillies corrects. Is he really going to give it to the boy?
GrayAnderson5: He probably should. Bonzo is willing to satisfy his security concerns; he just wants his damn lightsaber back. "Does that mean I can practice with it?"
JuniperEarth: "No. I have work to do." And that answers that question, Achilles turns back to his desk, and the door opens behind Bonzo.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo doesn't turn to the door. "Achilles, I would like to note that I came here of my own free will." He's steaming with anger. "The lightsaber is mine; you took it from me when I was first held under guard, and while I can understand your reasoning when I was being held in a cell, I am here because I chose to come serve you." Another pause. "I don't care if you trust me, but it is mine and I merely wish to use it in the time that is mine."
JuniperEarth: Achilles is ignoring the boy. The guard outside has come and he is about to put his hand on Bonzo's sholder and force him out of the room.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo turns and walks out silently. He's furious...only his project is a consolation.
JuniperEarth: The guard closes the door and the pair walk mutely up the stairs, about halfway he stops.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo notices the guard stop, and stops as well. "Is something the matter?"
JuniperEarth: "You realize you die when you stop being useful." Its a statment in a whisper.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo takes a deep breath. "I'll never stop being useful." He looks the guard in the eyes. "I know more about the future than just those weather files, and I'm the only one who can keep them updated."
JuniperEarth: The guard shakes his head and leads the way back the rest of the way without saying anything.
GrayAnderson5: (Note: A certain degree of false bravado is in there)
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo follows the guard back.
JuniperEarth: /end scene
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The refusal, combined with the guard's comments, eat at Bonzo. Still, he doesn't stop working. If anything, he works harder and makes no attempts to contact anyone. He doesn't care if he's been refused his lightsaber; all he wants is to save as many people as he can.
This continues for a few weeks. He stews on the lightsaber issue overnight for a few nights, and then emails Achilles. He wants another meeting.
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JuniperEarth: The guard is at Bonzo's door fifteen minutes later. "Lets go."
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo follows the guard to Achilles' office silently, doubting what he's about to do. But he goes ahead resolutely...he's thought this through for at least a few days.
JuniperEarth: If it is possible for Achillies to sound /more/ annoyed then he did last time he does now. "What is it?"
GrayAnderson5: "You have a disloyal guard, Achilles.
GrayAnderson5: (endquote)
JuniperEarth: "Oh?"
GrayAnderson5: "The one who brought me in last time."
JuniperEarth: "Are you going to continue to waste my time, or are you going to get to the point?"
GrayAnderson5: "He stated that when I ceased to be useful to you, you would kill me." A look in Achilles' eyes. "I don't believe that it's true. If it isn't, he's trying to spread dissent. If it is, I honestly don't care, since I'm the only one with access to the information you need." Which makes him non-expendable.
JuniperEarth: "You have thirty seconds to get to the point. What do you want?"
GrayAnderson5: "I want my lightsaber, but that is beside the point. You can check the security vids for yourself." Don't you care that you have a traitor in your midst?
JuniperEarth: Actuly, Achillies really could care less. Or he seems to. "We've had this conversation. The answer is still no."
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo looks rather shocked at the apparent lack of concern. "How can you not care about a possible leak?" Pause. "Look, I only came to offer you a warning. It's yours to do with what you want...just don't mix up actions taken out of concern for my project or for the security of your operation with things done to further a point of mine." With that, he withdraws.
Later that day:
JuniperEarth: A guard knocks on the door. "Achillies wants to see you."
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo stands up and opens the door, slightly apprehensively. "Lead the way."
JuniperEarth: The guard leads the way, but instead of Achillies office they find themselves outside. The sunlight is exceptionaly bright. Achillies stands in the middle with some other people, something metalic in his hands.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo recognizes the lightsaber. Still, he's apprehensive, and he's squinting in the sunlight. "You wanted to see me, Achilles?"
JuniperEarth: "You brought to my attention a little problem. I've been working out how to deal with it, and I thought you might have a suggestion." Achillies nods at the group standing at the other side of the yard, to someone chained to the wall. Bonzo should recognise the guard.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo gets the picture in well under a second after he recognizes the guard. There's a deep breath. "I think I might be able to help you with it." .o0(This is wrong. Wrong, wrong, wrong...but it's the only way he'll trust me...it's wrong, but it's acceptable...I shouldn't be doing this...but it's the only way...)0o. He extends his hand for his lightsaber.
JuniperEarth: Achillies holds it out to the boy, his face expressionless.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo accepts, and starts to slowly walk across the yard, steadying himself against the rising lump in his stomach. .o0(If you don't do it, he will. Refusing saves nobody. And you can make it quicker than anyone else can.)0o. His steps are slow, steady. .o0(And besides, this man is a traitor. If he'll speak out against Achilles to me, nothing says he won't leak against Achilles to a real opponent. And that would endanger my work.)0o.
JuniperEarth: Achillies watches impassivly. No one makes a move to stop the Bonzo. When he's close enough the guard looks up, "I really thought you were better than him." He stands as if he doesn't have shackles on him and looks Bonzo quite in the eye.
GrayAnderson5: That comment hits Bonzo hard. He just shakes his head, igniting the lightsaber. As the summer-sky blade extends, he looks the guard in the eyes, hands trembling just a tad. "Achilles has let me put information I have to use on a scale no nation on earth would let me." His voice is cold, impassive. "And you pose a risk to that. Stand still, and it will be over quickly." Silently, he mouths 'I'm sorry', and then he rapidly steps forward, going through one of the moves he's memorized, hoping that he can at least spare the man whatever suffering Achilles would have inflicted on him.
JuniperEarth: The man dies still staring Bonzo in the eyes. Achillies claps in the background. "Very good. Maybe I will let you keep your toy."
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo now has a haunting image to go alongside those in his mind. How ironic the images are, too. He turns back to Achilles, clearly at least slightly disturbed by what he just had to do. Extinguishing his lightsaber, he hooks it on the belt of his pants and takes a deep breath. "He was a liability." Pause. "I'm not going to let people like that endanger my...our...work, Achilles." And a look in Achilles' eyes. "There's too much we can do to risk it failing."
JuniperEarth: Achillies smiles. "Of corse. I trust you will deal with dissent on your own now."
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo nods solemnly. "If you will allow it, I am willing to deal with it." .o0(You never know where spies will be lurking, after all.)0o.
JuniperEarth: Achillies nods. "Time to get back to work." And he leaves without a word.
(OOC: Will be tweaked to look better soon! Promise!)
While a rundown of everything that happened when Bonzo went home would be interesting to some, it would in many ways be a waste of time. Suffice it to say that the war everyone was expecting began, albeit a lot slower than expected by most. However, within a few months, in the middle of the summer following the Third Invasion, the war began.
It began over a few shots exchanged in Central Europe...Russia had been doing a wonderful job consolidating its hold over its former dominions, but Germany decided not to take Russian demands lying down, and Russia did not like no for an answer. Given a few weeks, everyone was shooting at eachother in a classic example of Europeans Behaving Badly, very much along the lines of the Second World War.
Russia's first strike was what caused all of the Battle Schoolers to get pulled out of retirement. In a matter of days, the Russians had taken Berlin, Leipzig, and Vienna, and were threatening Hamburg, Munich, and Hannover; in the space of four weeks, they would take over all of Germany, northern Italy, and Denmark. Even with American aid and a universal draft being called up, Western Europe was in a bad position.
About three days into the war, the reformed forces of the European Alliance (essentially NATO without the US) called up a draft. All of the Battle Schoolers of their nations were called up, and brought into active service, mainly to work as strategists, etc. Even if the governments didn't want to trust them with field command just yet, they certainly didn't mind having the extra minds coming up with ideas; and older Battle School grads who were old enough for field command were more than welcome to staff what was rapidly shown to be a badly atrophied command structure.
Into the steadily expanding chaos, Bonzo Madrid was called up as one of the youngest Battle Schoolers not dumped behind a desk (and one of the few older than their mid-teens who were not stuck in outer space somewhere), as his command record from Salamander suggested that he "would be better suited at the tactical level than the strategic level" due to his rather persistent habit of not yielding any authority to subordinates. He was assigned a command position in Southern Germany, put alongside a seasoned-but-outclassed division commander who was giving ground to the Russians like it was a fire sale, sent in there, and told to do what he could to stop the loss of territory.
A truck sped down an autobahn in the middle of the night, carrying several men in the back, in its armored compartment. Racing towards the command center of the 18th Division of the German Army just north of Munich, it contained Bonzo and a few subordinates with information for him...and several who were being brought up just to fill gaps in the middle of the command structure brought on by the fighting. Bonzo and a lieutenant, with most of the information for him, were talking over the din.
"What kind of a mess is my division in, lieutenant?"
"The Russians control almost evertthing to the north of your position..."
Kriff.
"...and are moving to take Ingolstadt, to the northwest..."
Not good, either.
"...in addition, Salzburg fell this morning."
This just keeps getting better.
"None of those are in your area of action."
"Well, then what the hell is?"
"The northern approaches to Munich. The commander there has been a bit overwhelmed..."
"And so has the entire German army! And the Belgians, the French, and the Brits for that matter. Tell me something I don't know, or that might help me fix this mess!"
"Sorry, sir."
The lieutenant talking to Bonzo (whose name Bonzo had not bothered to remember) took a deep breath, and after an appropriate pause, continued.
"When we get there, you won't technically be in command. That will be General Schroder. But he knows he's in trouble, and the rumors are that he'll be relieved enough to have someone to blame his next defeat on that he's willing to let you do whatever you want with his men."
Great. At least that should keep him out of my hair.
"Finally, some good news."
"Sort of. He...well, the reason you were assigned to this job is that he's managed to lose close to half of his division. He got unlucky with his initial location, but he also...didn't pay much attention to warnings about his position being a potential initial target."
Bonzo simply closed his eyes, and shook his head. "Lovely." Pause. "Sorry I snapped at you there...I really shouldn't be shooting the messenger because I don't like the news."
"To be frank, sir, I can't blame you."
"Still..." Bonzo let the thought hang in the air...he wasn't ready for a mess like this. Not by a long shot.
The truck arrived at the command center about 20 minutes later. Bonzo hadn't said a single thing the rest of the way there. As he hopped out of the truck, the lieutenant glanced at an odd bent cylinder attached to Bonzo's belt.
"Sir? Can I ask what that device on your belt is? I've never seen anything quite like it."
"It's a non-standard piece of personal property." Bonzo grinned. "More than that, I really can't say."
The lieutenant looked at him like he was crazy.
"Anything else?"
"No, sir."
"Alright. Let me go deal with this mess."
Bonzo swept into the commander's office without regard for the objections of his secretary or any of a half-dozen subordinates protesting that the general was not ready to see him. He really didn't care; he wasn't ready to beat him up, but his respect for the chain of command was momentarily not what it should have been. He simply opened the door to the general's office and startled the napping senior commander.
"General Schroder, Bonzo Madrid, reporting as ordered by...whomever ordered me here."
Schroder woke up with a start, and looked around, surprised to see the teenager in the room, in spite of his military uniform. "You're the Battle Schooler they sent as an assistant, right?"
"Correct."
Schroder looked Bonzo over for a moment, considering him, and shook his head. "They sent a boy to run my division for me. Idiots."
Bonzo closed his eyes, kicking the irritation at the comment away from his mind as best he could, and not letting a very strong desire to 'correct' the general's assumptions of himself take over. He is my superior...for now. Just wait...you won't be stuck with him forever. "General Schroder, just tell me what to do and I'll do my best."
The general took him up on his offer, telling him to prepare plans in case of an attack from any of a number of directions in the next few days. Bonzo readily complied, looking over maps, lists of forces available to deploy, etc. and coming up with no less than a half-dozen partial contingency plans for attacks, and promptly handing them over to the general. Schroder seemed more interested in ignoring the plans and digging his troops in, hoping for reinforcements, which irritated Bonzo, but at least kept the general out of his hair.
They were lucky...the Russians didn't mount a major attack for two days after Bonzo arrived, giving Bonzo some time to become more familiar with some quirks of the land...a few roads not on the maps, for example, as well as several other details that he Russians had been kind enough to revise without advising the maps. When they attacked, however, the troops weren't anything resembling ready, in spite of the efforts Bonzo put into getting them positioned to absorb the attack.
When the attack opened, Bonzo was catching a nap in the 'office' that had been given to him. An artillery barrage put an end to that, and sent him rushing out of the office and into the conference room, where several officers were quickly assembling to await reports from the front and orders from the general, who stepped into the room a few minutes later, and promptly recieved a handful of notes from aides and subordinates detailing incoming calls.
"Madrid, did you account for an attack in the center of the line in your plans?"
"I did, general."
"Put that plan into action, then."
"I will, general, as soon as you free up the following units from their entrenchments. I need them to bolster the defense of that area."
Bonzo handed the general a list of units, which got an immediate glare from Schroder.
"This will endanger our positions everywhere else!"
"General, I need men to halt an attack. If you can't spare the men, I would advise pulling back approximately two klicks to this position and at least transferring these two reserve units to that position to assist them in blunting the assault."
Another glare shot from Schroder's eyes, and he glanced at the other officers in the room. "Alright. You can have these units...but you're commanding this operation, Madrid."
Bonzo looked rather surprised. "General..."
"What? Your superiors wanted you to have combat experience. Here you go."
Fifteen minutes after that conversation, Bonzo was on his way to the front, in the back of a troop transport. The bumpy ride did nothing to untangle the knots rapidly forming in his stomach. Yeah, I've been shot at, but that was nothing next to what this is going to be...that was nothing...
As he got near the position where the units were forming a defensive line, he looked down at his right hand, where he'd been shot once before, and shuddered mentally before shoving all of the thoughts associated with that somewhere in a corner of his mind.
When Bonzo's transport arrived at the battle, Bonzo was the first one out of the back, rushing towards a pair of officers shouting orders into satalite phones. Rather than try to interrupt the calls (something that would likely bear little fruit), he just handed one of them his orders and stood back, ducking more than once as explosions went off overhead. After a wait that seemed like more than a few hours, but which was probably no more than ten minutes, the officer turned to Bonzo.
"Schroder said to expect you. Madrid, right? So...what's your grand plan, kid?"
"Hold them off as long as we can, maybe throw them back a bit. Where are your men deployed."
"Didn't Schroder show you a map?"
"That's where the last plan Schroder agreed to said they'd be. Where are they actually?"
The officer, pleasantly surprised, pulled out a small datapad that had more than a bit of wear on it and pointed to a few locations on the map. "Here, here, and here."
"And the Russians?"
"Everywhere farther back than those locations."
"Great." Bonzo paused for a moment, thinking things over, and then opened them and began issuing a volley of orders. "I want the troops I brought with me to guard the left flank, and aim at any Russians who come through the woods over there."
The commanders on the scene looked at Bonzo, surprised at both the orders and the fact that he was issuing them so quickly, which elicited an angry glare from Bonzo. "Now!" Idiots.
It only took a few minutes for the men to begin moving into place; it didn't take even that long for the Russian attack to heat up again. Fortunately, whomever was commanding their guns had demonstrated particularly bad aim thus far, and had only managed significant casualties among trees, shrubbery, and wildlife so far with their artillery shots, enabling the troops to move fairly quickly into their assigned positions. Bonzo remained with the main force guarding the road, however, barking out orders to get the men prepared for the eventually impending attack.
The attack finally started up in earnest 20 minutes later. The Russians began pounding the hell out of the German positions, forcing Bonzo and the rest of the command staff present to take cover behind a small mound that had been raised for just that purpose. About 10 minutes later, the bombardment lightened up, and Russian troops appeared in the distance down the road, prompting Bonzo to start shouting into his communicator.
"Right flank, hold your fire. Repeat, hold your fire until they get either in front of you or just past you. Left flank, do the same."
The flanks did a decent job of obeying; no shots were fired from the sides until the Russians had made it to their positions on the road, when fire opened up from three sides on the Russians, forcing the Russians to retreat with heavy casualties. Bonzo smiled smugly at the sight of the retreat, and called for a report from the flanks.
The right flank had taken only light causalties having not been a part of the battle until they started shooting, but the left flank had been seriously crippled. Bonzo was just getting this news when a second attack, stronger than the first began.
"Kriff."
"Sir?"
"They used the first attack to figure out what our positions were...prepare to have the flanks retreat slowly."
"Retreat?"
"Yes, retreat! And I don't mean go and reflect on their lives, either! We can't hold their extended positions, but we can at least make it take longer for the Russians to get here!" You idiot went unsaid.
"Yes...sir."
Bonzo turned back to the road, and looked. The Russians were coming in force now, and there was lots of shooting. The shooting was getting closer, but he wasn't going to abandon the position he was holding...it was well-prepared, and he could at least hope to contain an attack for a while here. He looked through some binoculars, and saw the actual shooting. A tank exploded, and the Russians went dodging for cover as a series of explosions went off inside the tank. That should keep them from bringing much else down the road. More shooting ensued, and while Russians fell, more came up to take their places. Even so, this is going to be rough.
Over the course of the next two hours, the battle raged up and down the road. The Russians advanced repeatedly, but well-timed attacks put them back a long way on at least two occasions. Still, the advance was inexorable, and soon, they were about a hundred meters down the road, taking aim at the command position. Bonzo could be seen barking out orders, micromanaging the battle with a certain degree of success, and occasionally chewing out subordinates more than was probably necessary. However, he was soon under cover, reaching carefully for the bent cylinder on his belt while trying to calm himself. You're not going to die, Bonzo. You're going to come out of this alright. It's just like when you and Obi-Wan went to rescue Petra. You'll walk away fine. In spite of his best efforts, however, Bonzo was slowly slipping towards a minor panic over the matter of dying.
If I die, at least I'll wind up in Milliways. And Milliways usually intervenes before people die, too.
That thought was enough to at least keep the panic down once it came into his mind, and he closed his eyes for a moment, thinking. "Men, prepare for close combat." And let's get this over with.
The Russians only took another 15 minutes to reach Bonzo's position. In spite of his men's shooting, they managed to pick off enough of his men to make a charge viable in spite of their numbers also being reduces.
"How're the flanks holding up?"
"Both are holding just fine. The forest is giving them good cover."
"Alright. Let's just hope we can hold on here as well."
With that, Bonzo looked up and saw the Russian charge about ten meters away. He rapidly pulled the bent cylinder off his belt and ignited it, revealing it to be his lightsaber, and didn't bother to draw his sidearm as the Russians reached the position and attempted to climb over the mound. Amid a blur of light, the handful of Russians near him all went down, mostly screaming loudly. Bonzo then pulled his gun out of its holster and started taking shots at the Russians as quickly as he could fire them off, emptying a full cartridge into the Russians. Extinguishing his lightsaber, he ducked back down to switch cartridges. One of the men looked over at him as he was reloading, surprise visible at what he'd just seen.
"What the hell are you?"
Bonzo just smiled at the question. "A long story." Then, his gun reloaded, he looked over the rampart and started shooting again.
Bonzo managed to hold his position in that battle, but just barely. The Russians hadn't counted on the stubborn resistance on both flanks combining with a particularly vicious hand-to-hand battle on the road to pile up the casualties. The lead tank in their attack column getting blown up hadn't helped; neither had the fact that a number of men panicked when they saw their comrades losing arms and legs to a device that few were familiar with, and that honestly scared those who were familiar enough with it to know what it was.
After the advance had been blunted, Bonzo ordered the troops on the flanks to push forward if possible. They were able to counterattack, and quickly surrounded the front of the Russian attacking force. Realizing that they were surrounded, the Russians threw down their weapons and raised their hands in surrender.
"Call General Schroder and tell him that we have some prisoners for him."
"Sir?"
"These Russians are now our guests." He shot a look at the subordinate. "Tell General Schroder." Then, he turned his attention to the Russians. "Men, make sure they're disarmed." He looked down at the ground, and saw one of the men he'd injured laying there, badly burned on his right side from the lightsaber cut, the smell of his burned flesh apparent in the air. "And get a medic for these men." With that, he excused himself from the front for a few minutes to deal with Schroder...and to get some time to himself.
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The prisoners were not particularly informative. Most had a general grasp of Common; most of them also didn't use it regularly enough for it to be useful, and the result is that Bonzo was getting used to broken Common and gibberish being the most commonly-used languages. It also meant that getting useful information out of them was unbelievably difficult, and not something that Bonzo had time to deal with. While he'd managed to put the Russians back a good kilometer when he broke up their offensive, as well as leaving their lines in the area in disarray, his forces were badly weakend and he needed either reinforcements or a new position...preferably both, when he asked Schroder for either.
"No. We need that position, and I can't spare any troops."
"And I can't work miracles here."
"Then what's this image that one of my subordinates showed me?"
Image? Oh boy...
"What's it of."
"Something that you're holding. A glowing stick of some kind."
I hate picture phones.
"Uh...not quite sure what to tell you about that, General."
"I'm not sure what to think of it being, Madrid, but I've never seen anything like it."
"You sure someone wasn't having fun altering images?"
"Possibly. I don't know, and I don't have time for this. Just hold your position, Madrid. Out."
Great. Life just got more interesting.
The troops spend the next day fortifying their position. A few troops with minor injuries from earlier in the campaign got sent to reinforce his position, but Bonzo was left with little to back up his position except for some more ammunition. Schroder also cursed up a storm and told him not to send any more prisoners back, as they were too short on provisions and men to keep an eye on POWs. This left Bonzo steaming. I should be the one running this damn war. I'm the Jedi. Schroder isn't. I know what I'm doing. Schroder doesn't.
Another attack was repulsed two days after the first, but withdrawls elsewhere along the line forced Bonzo to pull back from his position to avoid being surrounded. Even Schroder gave it his blessing, without knowing that Bonzo had already ordered his men to pull back.
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Amid the withdrawl operation, Bonzo found a few minutes to himself. He checked his datapad, and looked over a file from another datapad and another time. Lovely. There's supposed to be an earthquake in China tomorrow. Well, time to get something done. With that, he began hacking, inserting information into the relatively minor sources where it should be picked up, both in the earthquake prediction systems that were still inept after 200 years of work, and in news sources. He didn't care who got blamed for tampering with the files; he just wanted to make sure people saw it coming.
The tampering caught a number of eyes in the ensuing week. It wasn't that someone had inserted warnings into a bunch of local governments predicting an earthquake; that was what bored students at CalTech did once every few years when they got particularly bored. It's that someone was dead on, giving the exact time and place of the earthquake, and even suggesting certain neighborhoods to evacuate that were hit hard, as well as the fact that someone had done this several times before, once with a hurricane and several times with flash floods. Such incidents did not escape prying eyes around the world, though the source of the tampering was as yet unknown.
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About two weeks into the war, Schroder finally got sacked. A new general, by the name of Schmidt, was put in charge of the forces in Bonzo's area, and he brought a pair of Battle Schoolers who had been cleared for working in headquarters with him who took over much of the planning, in spite of both being younger than Bonzo. This left Bonzo steaming yet again.
Another insult was piled on when he was ordered to defend a road with only two brigades when there were numerous ones being held back to defend other positions...and then got slammed with three divisions of Russian troops. In spite of clogging up their attack, he was overrun and forced to abandon the position, making a steady delaying action as he fell back, when his pleas for reinforcements were ignored. When he was finally recalled to headquarters, he was promptly blamed for the loss of the position and chewed out for it. Shortly following this, he was reassigned to a desk job by General Schmidt, and then given a three-day leave pass.
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Bonzo was badly in need of the leave. In spite of his training, both under Dooku and at Battle School, nothing had come close to preparing him for the realities of a shooting war. On more than one occasion, he had been put in morally ambiguous situations; the stress of trying to reconcile everything with an innate desire to win was taking a toll on him.
For the break, he was sent to a resort in France with a number of other officers on similar leaves, where he could be called back if needed be, and where he was out of the line of fire (so he could actually relax). He got some decent rest during the break, but on the last night of his break, as he was returning to his room, he felt a sharp, sudden pain in his back, and blacked out.
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[AIM RP 1]
JuniperEarth: The boy is upon the floor quite unconscious. When he awakens he will see a room bare of anything but a simple bed. Military Grade doors are the only indication that this room is quite secure. There are no windows.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo comes out of his blackout with a bit of a throbbing headache. "Where am I...?" This...this is not good.
JuniperEarth: He isn't met with any reaction.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo looks around. Great. Slowly, he gets to his feet, and looks down at his waist, to see if his lightsaber is there.
JuniperEarth: Which it isn't. Without any fanfare the door opens and a few people, they should look like doctors enter the room.
GrayAnderson5: Oh, kriffing hell. That's the thought in Bonzo's mind when he sees the lack of a lightsaber. Then, the doctors come in. "Where am I?!?" His irritation is highly audible, and he really wants answers about what's going on rather quickly...this just has a bad feel about it.
GrayAnderson5: (poke?)
JuniperEarth: *coughs*
JuniperEarth: "Lay down" That seems to be about the only answer he is going to get right now. If he doesn't lay down the adults seem quite ready to pin him down.
GrayAnderson5: And Bonzo looks just as ready to put up a fight, headache or not.
GrayAnderson5: (Lemme expand on that)
GrayAnderson5: And Bonzo looks just as ready to put up a fight, headache or not. "Like hell. Where am I and where is my lightsaber?!?" That last part is a furious comment...kid seems to be momentarily forgetting that whole 'don't give into your anger' thing for a second, though he does his best to cool off after that comment.
JuniperEarth: Is there a flicker in the mind. "Lay down, or would you rather we held you down?"
GrayAnderson5: "Answer my questions first." That is grunted out...he's ready to resist. That whole bad mood thing.
JuniperEarth: "Well, we could hold you down, or you could lay down. Which would you choose?" Not that the man in question really seems to care. The other three have come ti stand next to him.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo is finally intimidated into backing up towards the bed. "What're you going to do?" Hey, he's cooperating...
JuniperEarth: Dryly, "Making sure you don't die." Dramatic? Maybe. They don't seem to care. They'll let him get on the bed before they begin the examination.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo sighs and lays down. Alright, there's a good chance there's something he's not being told. He'll play along. "Why would I die?"
JuniperEarth: They don't answer, they simply do a quick check though, then without a word, leave. There is a tray with food on it placed upon the floor.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo looks at the food. Well, it looks edible. So, he leans down and picks some of it up and sniffs...like that'll tell him if he's being poisoned.
JuniperEarth: And thus he's left alone for a while. He's probably being video taped.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo decides against the food...for now. Rather, he sits down, calmly, and begins meditating. Not like there are many other options for him.
JuniperEarth: Nothing happens for a while. Say... a few days. As the lights say as they go on and off, and food is deliered.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo eats very little. Yes, he eats some. But he also changes what he consumes somewhat randomly. Other than that, lots of meditation, and occasional attempts to question the people delivering food, Bonzo does nothing more, sleeping aside.
JuniperEarth: Time continues to drag on.
GrayAnderson5: Although Bonzo's questioning get more pushy, he generally keeps up the routine. His agitation is showing ever so slightly, but he realizes that he's not getting anywhere with the questioning...still, he's at least got to try.
JuniperEarth: second
GrayAnderson5: k
GrayAnderson5: (pokes the entered text?)
JuniperEarth: None of his questions are answered, and it is about a week before he sees anyone but the silent adult that leaves the food. When the door opens it is a boy a few years younger than Bonzo who walks in. The boy might recognise the boy, but then again, he might now. The last time he faced this person was after Achilles'd gone though puberty.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo doesn't recognize him too particularly well, but something looks vaguely familiar. "Who are you?" That's as close to a calm inquiry as he's come in quite a while, btw, and it still isn't terribly calm.
JuniperEarth: Achilles leands against a wall. "
JuniperEarth: ... not done
GrayAnderson5: *nods*
Go on;-)
JuniperEarth: I will! Promise...
JuniperEarth: Achilles leans against a wall. "A kindred spirit. My name is Achilles."
GrayAnderson5: Blink. Oh boy... "Achilles?" Pause. "I feel like we've met somewhere before..."
GrayAnderson5: (OOC: ;-))
JuniperEarth: "If you agree, we could come to know one another quite well." Achilles hasn't moved from where he's leaning against the wall.
GrayAnderson5: "Agree?" Pause. "Agree to what?" Mixed emotion on that point.
JuniperEarth: "Working together. From what I've seen you have a way to pinpoint exactly when natural disasters are about to happen."
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo blinks. He knows. Lovely. "Oh?" He's playing coy...this is Achilles, after all.
JuniperEarth: "I have influence that you need. I assume that you're working to..." delicate pause, "Save lives?"
GrayAnderson5: Blink. "I am..." Pause. "What can you offer me that I don't have already?" The offer does intrigue him, to say the least, but he's not about switching sides without a damned good reason.
JuniperEarth: Achilles shrugs. "Only an in into countries that would normaly ignore the 'warnings', or choose not to force people to leave when the time comes."
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo blinks. "You can do that?" Once again, he's wary...but let's just say that there's an idealism about him that won't hurt in being manipulated.
JuniperEarth: "Of course." Som
JuniperEarth: *deleates the "som"
GrayAnderson5: "How?" Pause. "I mean...you're younger than I am.
GrayAnderson5: *endquote
JuniperEarth: Achilles smirks. "Some of us didn't disgrace ourselves so badly at Battle School."
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo glares at him...that hit a nerve. "Disgrace?"
JuniperEarth: Achilles smirks. "I know a great deal about you. How you had a chance to the best and threw it away."
GrayAnderson5: Ender. The fact that, for him, it's been somewhere close to four years since then doesn't make it any easier to deal with; this results in a visible wince. "Alright. You know Ender was in my army." Pause. "I think the rest of the galaxy knows that, too."
JuniperEarth: A smirk is on Achilles' face.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo frowns at the smirk. "Anything else I should know?" Pause. "Like where my lightsaber is?" Hey, he called it that earlier...and he wants that thing back now.
JuniperEarth: "It's safe. Shall I leave you alone while you consider my proposal?"
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo closes his eyes. "Let me sleep on it." Not like he has any better options, but...he'd like to sleep on it. "And...tell me where I am, at least?"
JuniperEarth: "Russia, where else?" And Achilles is gone, and the lights in the room flicker off behind him.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo makes his way over to the bed, and lays down. Great. What a choice I have. Well, he'll sleep on it, but he's already made up his mind in some ways...he just doesn't want to rush into a decision that he knows he's going to have to make sooner or later.
GrayAnderson5: And night passes...as it usually does...with Bonzo not sleeping particularly well. Naturally, morning follows night, and arrives all too soon.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo wakes up in the morning from what sleep he's gotten...and sighs. He looks around. Let's get this over with.
JuniperEarth: The door opens as the lights flicker on. The familar form of Achilles enters the room. "Do we have an accord?"
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo gets up, and nods. "We do." He offers a handshake as a way of cementing the deal (more out of custom than anything).
JuniperEarth: Achilles does not shake the hand. "Follow me then."
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo drops the hand, and follows Achilles as per his order. I do not like doing this...but those idiots in Germany just don't know how to use my...talents. And it's not like I'll be commanding troops, either...
JuniperEarth: Achilles walks out of the room, leading the way down a corridor, around, so forth. "I have the feeling it would not bode well to place you with the rest of the children."
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo takes a deep breath. "Yeah, we didn't get along too well." He's still following Achilles.
JuniperEarth: Achilles opens a door and flicks on a light. "This will be your work room."
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo looks around. "And my datapad?"
JuniperEarth: Achilles pulls something out and holds it out. "This?"
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo looks at it, and nods. "That." The fact that it's of a model that shouldn't be public for another year or two isn't an issue here, is it?
JuniperEarth: Achilles holds it out to the boy. "That is an intirest hobby for a battle school brat."
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo shrugs. "I have connections." Pause. "From very odd places...none you'd find useful, I don't think, however."
JuniperEarth: "I suppose they came from the same place the personal files came from also."
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo blinks. He hadn't thought of those. "Much the same place."
JuniperEarth: "I have errased thoes. I do not believe they will be helpful in what you will be working on."
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo groans. Lovely. "You didn't find them useful for your own ends?"
JuniperEarth: "I can't reveal my sources." Achilles is smirking. "The door will be locked."
GrayAnderson5: "Not like I'd have anywhere to run to, is it?" Pause, with a pardon begged for his sarcasm there. "What do you want me to do, Achilles?" Another pause. "And why are you helping me with this?"
JuniperEarth: "Call it my due to someone like myself. We must help one another get a head in the world." He avoids the other questions quite neatly.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo sighs. "Can I get some help with this? I'm not the best hacker on the planet, you know." And it's made for some sloppy insertions of information, too.
JuniperEarth: "You will send your information via email to a list already programed into the computer," he nods at the computer on the desk, "and it will be done."
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo sighs. "Alright." Pause. "How many of us did you kidnap? Just the Jeesh and myself?" Another, slightly sickening, pause. "And what about Ender?"
JuniperEarth: Achilles' expression doesn't change. "I do not believe that is something you need to know."
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo resists the urge to inquire into Petra's whereabouts. "Alright." He's quietly steaming at the lack of information he's being given, but...at least he can do something with his information here. "I'll get to work." He takes his datapad and slips over to the computer. I can't believe I'm working for Achilles...I can't believe it, but it's not like I have a choice, is it? And...at least I can help people from here. I hope.
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Some time into working with Achilles, Bonzo got wind, through the news, that disaster warnings he was writing up apparently weren't getting out. It wasn't that they said so specifically, but whenever a warning got out, it was almost always mentioned in the news story. Is Achilles not sending the warnings out? Is he using me? What's going on here? This happened two or three times over the course of a month or so while Bonzo worked in relative seclusion, and each time, it frustrated him more and more.
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JuniperEarth: The door opens and Achilles saunters in.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo looks up from his work, and glares at Achilles as he rises. "Why the kriff aren't my warnings getting sent out?!?"
JuniperEarth: Achilles doesn't look peturbed he sits on the table, "We've been having some... department difficulties. How would you like your own staff?" It isn't exactly a question. More or less a statement of what is going to happen.
GrayAnderson5: Blink. A staff? That's a twist on things. "Please tell me they'll be more competent than that idiot I was put under in Germany."
JuniperEarth: "Their competence will be up to you. You have a file on your computer with names, profiles everything. You get to choose five." He holds up his hand as if to empahsise it. "And you will run it."
GrayAnderson5: ...wow. Bonzo smiles just a little at the thought, but he's still preoccupied with that first issue. "Have my warnings been getting out, or have you been sitting on them, Achilles?" He knows enough about Achilles to believe that he'd do something like that.
JuniperEarth: "As I said, we've been having some department difficulties which have been cleared up." Achille's expression doesn't change, but the boy should know well enough how they were cleared up. "I suggest you get to work."
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo blinks, and the thought sends a shiver down his spine. Just the same, he gets the message. "Will do." With that, he steps over to his computer and begins flipping through the files to select his staff.
GrayAnderson5: ((Will the staff list be Battle Schoolers?))
JuniperEarth: *headshakes*
GrayAnderson5: ((Honestly wasn't sure; had to ask))
JuniperEarth: Achilles exits, a smirk upon his face. From the file the boy had on him he figured that he would know exactly what he'd done.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo gets to work. There's now a bit of nervousness in Bonzo's mind...he hadn't heard of any of that happening from Petra...not that it was unexpected, but it still really unnerved him.
JuniperEarth: Achilles arrives later with people and equiptment in tow. They do not wait for direction but begin to set up quickly.
GrayAnderson5: When the people arrive and set up, Bonzo has his five selected. He punches a button on his computer, and glances over at him. "You have my selections."
JuniperEarth: Achilles glances at Bonzo. "Good, they'll be here in an hour. Have you had lunch yet?"
JuniperEarth: ((*goes to switch laundry around*))
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo shakes his head. "Haven't really had time." There's never enough time in the day, is there?
GrayAnderson5: ((*nods))
JuniperEarth: "Lets go then." Achilles doesn't seem to need to watch people set up computers. Without waiting to see if the boy follows he leads the way down a hallway to another office.
JuniperEarth: ((Anderson?))
GrayAnderson5: ((Sorry...dozed off))
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo follows Achilles down the hall in near silence.
JuniperEarth: ((No worries, gave me an excuse to actuly work on my Algebra homework))
JuniperEarth: Achilles opens the door and ushers the boy in. It should look rather familar to the boy, but not exactly.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo gets a bit of a start when he's shown the office. It's a little different, but not too much. "Nice office."
JuniperEarth: Achilles casts an apraising eye over the room. "It works. Have a seat." Achilles settles himself in a chair and waves at another for the boy.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo sits down in the appointed seat, still quietly...which shouldn't be out of the ordinary. He's been fairly quiet the whole time.
JuniperEarth: "While we're waiting, why don't you tell me what you expect to accomplish while in my employ?" For the moment they'll ignore the fact that Bonzo isn't getting paid anything.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo is slightly surprised by that, but doesn't show it too awfully badly. "I...I'd like to keep doing what I'm doing." Pause. "I just wish I could intervene in things more openly, rather than hiding behind a curtain and shouting warnings at people who sometimes ignore them."
JuniperEarth: "What would you do? You're just a washed out kid, how could /you/ come up with a prediction system better than what there is already in place?" Achillies is more than slightly mocking.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo rolls his eyes at that, letting it roll off his back. "Ever notice how I'm never wrong?"
JuniperEarth: "How many natural disastors are you willing to let happen so they'll believe you?" An upraised eyebrow at this.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo blinks. "How many?" The thought really hadn't occurred to him. "How many would I have to?" Why, it's the natural follow-up question!
JuniperEarth: "Not a question I can answer. Here is what I am going to do." The food arrives then, and Achilles waves it to be set in front of him, then waits for the people to leave before continuing. "You are going to create a new weather prediction system and we are going to brodcast it. After... four... five are predicted perfectly governments will be coming to /us/ for the information. A perfect in."
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo blinks. Wow. .o0(Is it ethical? No. But it's also the only way to make this work. It's the only way I'll be getting to actually make these things happen.)0o. And it just does cross his mind that if he can get back to Petra's world, he could make a perfect system, too...not that it's have a damn thing to do with actual weather prediction. As such, a grin emerges on Bonzo's face. "I'm willing to do that."
JuniperEarth: "First I believe it would be a good idea if you were returned to your command. The world seems to want you. I'll send for you in a few weeks. I suggest you resign."
GrayAnderson5: "How do I explain where I was...and my sudden reappearance?"
JuniperEarth: "I could always set up a 'rescue...' you /were/ kidnaped."
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo nods. "That would work." Pause. "And my lightsaber?"
JuniperEarth: "You can have your toy back when I trust you." Achilles never trusts anyone. "Do try not to double cross me, I would hate to have to kill you."
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo looks Achilles in the eyes. "Look, you're offering me what I want. I have no reason to double-cross you." Pause. "It wouldn't be honorable, after all." That should be in the files as a sort of buzzword for him.
JuniperEarth: A simple raised eyebrow here. Achilles pours a drink, "You will be rescued within the week. Do try to look suprised."
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo grins just a bit, and in a nice, indignant voice... "Well, it certainly took them long enough!" And there's a wink associated with that.
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Sure enough, within the week a rescue operation retrieved Bonzo from Achilles' facility. The operation was slightly messy, as such operations tend to be
He didn't resign immediately. He gave it a few weeks, letting a reason come up to walk out in an irritated fit over, and sure enough, two weeks after he came back, reassigned to Schmidt, he got his reason when Schmidt tried to put him on desk duty. Citing that his talents would be better used elsewhere, Bonzo announced...rather loudly...his intention to resign. Although nice, vague promises of a better assignment...including one by President Anderson (who was loudly pushing for Battle Schoolers to take a bigger role in running the war) personally...were issued, Bonzo was openly obstinate, though he hinted that he might be willing to take a different sort of role in the war.
After a brief trip home, he got an email inviting him to a 'meeting' in Switzerland (now almost 50% bordered by Russian control) to 'interview' for a job with a weather forecasting firm. Packing his bags, Bonzo went to the rendezvous, and was uneventfully-but-quickly whisked away to the facility in Russia, after a brief for-show interview.
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JuniperEarth: Upon reaching Russia the boy will find himself on another plane headed south. If he's been reading his news he will have heard of the release of the children, with one exception. The Russian government still has yet to locate Miss. Arkanian. The plane makes a few unimportant stops, and Bonzo shifts flights e
JuniperEarth: each time ending up finaly on a small two-man plane headed for New Dehli.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo sits in his seat, looking out the window...and wondering why on earth he isn't heading to Russia.
JuniperEarth: Achilles is standing near the runway waiting for the plane to run its course and stop. The pilot helps the boy get his bags and nods for the boy to go meet Achilles.
GrayAnderson5: Once Bonzo has his bags, he walks over to Achilles. "Hello, Achilles." Taking a note of the unusually warm air around him (at least for Spain or Russia), he sighs. "I hope the office has air conditioning."
JuniperEarth: "I'm sure you'll find it to your satisfaction. We still have a bit of a journey left, lets get on with it." Achilles leads the way to a car and motions for Bonzo to put this things in the back and then climb in.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo follows. It should be noted that he's in a coat-and-tie, not anything even remotely military...and that he has nothing military with him, either...save for perhaps a picture or two of him, younger, that he's lifted from old security vids.
JuniperEarth: The car ride is uneventful, and silent. Achilles ushers Bonzo into the building once the car has stopped, up some stairs and into a room. It isn't exactly what one would call the most comfortable situation around, but it was servicable. There was a bed, a dresser, and a desk with a computer on it. "This is where you will be staying."
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo nods. He's not exactly used to large, comfortable rooms...between Milliways and Battle School, he's always lived in rooms no larger than a hotel room. He sets his bags down on the bed, but he'll be unpacking just a little bit later. He looks Achilles in the eyes, and smiles just a bit. "And where will I be working?" Let's just say that his mind is more than slightly preoccupied...he'd been doing his best to insert information even when he was sent back, after all...
JuniperEarth: "Grab your computer and follow me. I'll introduce you to your staff." Though that might be an exageration. Achilles doesn't "Introduce people" He announces and expects people to follow.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo grabs his computer and walks along behind Achilles.
JuniperEarth: Achilles leads the way to another room on the same floor. Within five people work silently. "This will be where you and your staff," he waves at the people, "Will work. Instead of the tedious cracking we will be doing something diffrent. When you're settled we'll discuss it."
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo nods. "I look forward to it." .o0(As long as I get to do my thing, I'll tolerate whatever he throws at me)0o.
JuniperEarth: "If you need to reach me send a message and someone will come to show you the way." Achilles leaves quite abruptly at that.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo nods, and then turns to his staff. .o0(Alright. What do I do now?)0o. "I'm Bonzo Madrid, and as you've probably noticed, aside from Achilles, I'm in charge here." Pause. "I don't know what any of you are used to doing, but let's just say that we're probably not going to be doing any of what you're used to doing." And a small grin emerges at that. "Achilles has assigned me to predict the weather." And then he punches a few buttons on his datapad. "For example, tomorrow there will be a tornado in Kansas City, Kansas that will destroy 50 houses and kill 6 people when it goes through a trailer park. Then on Friday, there will be a flash flood in Chihuahua, Mexico, that will kill 5 and destroy the better part of two villages. And let's not even start about hurricanes and typhoons." Bonzo looks at the men, who should be dumbfounded, with a nice, cocky grin on his face.
JuniperEarth: Bonzo's help are silent, but they nod. One finaly speaks up, "We've been told we will be making up the mathamatics and working with known weather systems to 'predict' this."
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo nods. "Of course." And another smile. "Models are always more accurate when you know the results ahead of time."
JuniperEarth: Bonzo's help doesn't smile. Nor do they introduce themsleves. They nod and turn their attention back to their computers, and will stay that way unless Bonzo turns out to have something to say.
GrayAnderson5: Which suits Bonzo just fine. There's only one more comment. "I'll send you the files for the next two weeks, and keep the files updated two weeks out. From there, I need the models generated to predict these disasters. Programming is not my specialty, after all, it's yours." And he'll just take care of earthquakes and the like on his own...that just involves some minor tampering, not anything complex, and he can plot those out farther in advance, too.
GrayAnderson5: With that, he sends a message to Achilles that he's done in the office for now.
JuniperEarth: It takes about fifteen minutes, but there is someone at the door gesturing for Bonzo to follow him.
GrayAnderson5: And Bonzo follows.
JuniperEarth: He's led off the floor, he might notice that the guard has to place his hand on a palmpad to open the door, down two levels and then around to another office. He opens the door for the boy.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo follows the guard, and then enters the office he's ushered into. Why he's being kept behind all of this security is honestly somewhat frustrating; he has no desire to escape.
JuniperEarth: Achillies waves Bonzo to a seat, but he's on the phone so he doesn't say anything right now. "Yes, I understand...." "I'm sure that can be arranged." "Farewell."
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo sits down, as directed, and waits for Achilles to finish his call.
GrayAnderson5: *poke?*
JuniperEarth: Achilles puts the phone back in the cradle and turns to his guest. "What do you thnk?"
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo smiles a bit. "I can work with them. I trust that they can all program fairly well?" Hey, it's a worthwhile question.
GrayAnderson5: (Gimme about 7-10 min...I need to take a shower)
JuniperEarth: "Of course. As for our divation I spoke of earlier," Achilles outlines his plan which begins with creating their own 'prediction' system, then publishing the information, allowing the governments to use or not use it as they will, but after that taking the information directly /to/ the government in question. "Once they realize we are always correct they will give quite a bit for what we have."
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo nods. "And what do you plan to request for this information?" He's got some scruples about demanding money, but...this operation won't run for free.
JuniperEarth: "Just more connections to spread the information around, and of course, the demand they get the people in question out safely." Achilles is smooth. He'll tell Bonzo exactly what he wants to hear.
GrayAnderson5: And Bonzo nods. Hey, the offer sounds good, and he's even beginning to forget the psycopath-ish nature of Achilles ever-so-slowly. "Sounds good." A pause. "Why is security so tight here?"
JuniperEarth: "Plenty of information here that needs help. If any of your staff do not perform do tell me and I will see them replaced." Is it really an answer? No, probably not.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo decides that the 'answer' is most of what he'll get. "Alright. Is there any way, under guard or otherwise, to get some fresh air?" The security is irritating, but one thing Achilles should notice, at least as time goes by, is that Bonzo is not trying to escape, and he's really going to work hard at his job.
JuniperEarth: "I'm not here to keep you prisionor, any time after the work day or durring your lunch that you wish to go out you will be allowed to go to the grounds." The city is of course, out of the question. "Just knock at the door at the end of your hallway and one of the guards will accompany you."
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo nods. "Thank you." He masks his slight frustration at this, but he has a feeling why. "It is a shame that some of the others don't want to cooperate." From his point of view, it's just interfering in a process that could (and probably will) save thousands of lives, at the very least.
JuniperEarth: Achilles waves his hand and turns away. The guard opens the door to some unknown signal. the conversation seems to be over.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo proceeds out the door and back into the hall.
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Bonzo begins his work in earnest. He's probably the hardest worker in the facility; he could give a damn about Achilles' psycopathic nature, as all he's concerned about is saving lives. .o0(It's my job. It's my duty. As a Jedi, if nothing else.)0o. And so he thinks that to himself as he does his work, getting files prepared. It should be noted that there are no messages hidden in his emails. He's just not opposing Achilles at all. As it is, there's only one sticking point: Bonzo wants his lightsaber. If he has that, in all honesty, he's quite content to keep working for Achilles. So, as time goes by, he broaches the issue again...a bit more aggressively.
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GrayAnderson5: Bonzo presses the button to call for the guards. He's been working away at the models, etc. for a month or two now, and seen some successes. Now, he wants his toy back.
JuniperEarth: ((This'll be intirsting.))
JuniperEarth: The guard opens the door promptly and asks, "where to?"
GrayAnderson5: "Achilles' office." Bonzo is quite ready to follow.
JuniperEarth: The guard raises an eyebrow. "Is he expecting you?"
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo looks the guard in the eyes. "If he knows me, he should find me to be overdue."
JuniperEarth: Bonzo shrugs and mutters something along the lines of "It's your head." And he leads the way to Achillies office. Once their he promptly turns his back on the door and lets /bonzo/ knock.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo knocks quite readily, too.
JuniperEarth: "Come!" Achilles sounds slightly annoyed that someone is knocking.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo walks in quite briskly as he opens the door. "Evening, Achilles,"
JuniperEarth: "What is it?" Achilles faces Bonzo his arms crossed looking /very/ unhappy.
JuniperEarth: ((Ever thought of the absurdity of this? Bonzo is Eighteen, Achilles is what, 14? Maybe? Maybe closer to eleven?))
GrayAnderson5: ((I know...but Bonzo also knows who has the guns, too))
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo sighs. "I've been waiting for at least two months, Achilles. I want my lightsaber." A bit of control comes back to him, but he stares at Achilles. "You took it from me, and your scientists have probably not been able to achieve much with it other than hurting themselves."
JuniperEarth: ((Sorry))
JuniperEarth: Achillies is /very/ much not happy. Only the thought that he /needs/ this person keeps him from calling the guard to dispose of him. Temper check, "What would you do with your little toy?"
GrayAnderson5: "Practice." Pause. "You're more than happy to keep guards in the room with me with guns; it has no range. If I tried anything, it'd be a knife in a gun fight." Bonzo is steaming quietly, but he's willing to be...diplomatic about this.
JuniperEarth: "See, pictures tell me that you are quite willing to take on an armed guard with your glowing sword." Aren't picture phones wonderful?
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo keeps staring. "And I also had guns backing me up, including one in my holster at the moment. I wouldn't have had a chance in hell if they weren't only a few feet away. Until they got that close, I was using my guns, after all."
JuniperEarth: "Rooms are small." Achillies' voice is matter of fact.
GrayAnderson5: "I'll be happy to use it outside. That's big enough they can be a safe distance away, and I can't do a number of practice moves safely inside, anyway." Pause. "Besides, if I did try to cause trouble, I have no doubt that you have enough guards to ensure that I would regret it." That is said with a look straight into Achilles' eyes.
JuniperEarth: "I don't allow civilians within my buildings carry wepons."
GrayAnderson5: "Then I'll use it outside only, and put it in a secure location when I'm not practicing. I have no problem with that."
JuniperEarth: "I will have a secure location for it." Achillies corrects. Is he really going to give it to the boy?
GrayAnderson5: He probably should. Bonzo is willing to satisfy his security concerns; he just wants his damn lightsaber back. "Does that mean I can practice with it?"
JuniperEarth: "No. I have work to do." And that answers that question, Achilles turns back to his desk, and the door opens behind Bonzo.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo doesn't turn to the door. "Achilles, I would like to note that I came here of my own free will." He's steaming with anger. "The lightsaber is mine; you took it from me when I was first held under guard, and while I can understand your reasoning when I was being held in a cell, I am here because I chose to come serve you." Another pause. "I don't care if you trust me, but it is mine and I merely wish to use it in the time that is mine."
JuniperEarth: Achilles is ignoring the boy. The guard outside has come and he is about to put his hand on Bonzo's sholder and force him out of the room.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo turns and walks out silently. He's furious...only his project is a consolation.
JuniperEarth: The guard closes the door and the pair walk mutely up the stairs, about halfway he stops.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo notices the guard stop, and stops as well. "Is something the matter?"
JuniperEarth: "You realize you die when you stop being useful." Its a statment in a whisper.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo takes a deep breath. "I'll never stop being useful." He looks the guard in the eyes. "I know more about the future than just those weather files, and I'm the only one who can keep them updated."
JuniperEarth: The guard shakes his head and leads the way back the rest of the way without saying anything.
GrayAnderson5: (Note: A certain degree of false bravado is in there)
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo follows the guard back.
JuniperEarth: /end scene
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The refusal, combined with the guard's comments, eat at Bonzo. Still, he doesn't stop working. If anything, he works harder and makes no attempts to contact anyone. He doesn't care if he's been refused his lightsaber; all he wants is to save as many people as he can.
This continues for a few weeks. He stews on the lightsaber issue overnight for a few nights, and then emails Achilles. He wants another meeting.
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JuniperEarth: The guard is at Bonzo's door fifteen minutes later. "Lets go."
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo follows the guard to Achilles' office silently, doubting what he's about to do. But he goes ahead resolutely...he's thought this through for at least a few days.
JuniperEarth: If it is possible for Achillies to sound /more/ annoyed then he did last time he does now. "What is it?"
GrayAnderson5: "You have a disloyal guard, Achilles.
GrayAnderson5: (endquote)
JuniperEarth: "Oh?"
GrayAnderson5: "The one who brought me in last time."
JuniperEarth: "Are you going to continue to waste my time, or are you going to get to the point?"
GrayAnderson5: "He stated that when I ceased to be useful to you, you would kill me." A look in Achilles' eyes. "I don't believe that it's true. If it isn't, he's trying to spread dissent. If it is, I honestly don't care, since I'm the only one with access to the information you need." Which makes him non-expendable.
JuniperEarth: "You have thirty seconds to get to the point. What do you want?"
GrayAnderson5: "I want my lightsaber, but that is beside the point. You can check the security vids for yourself." Don't you care that you have a traitor in your midst?
JuniperEarth: Actuly, Achillies really could care less. Or he seems to. "We've had this conversation. The answer is still no."
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo looks rather shocked at the apparent lack of concern. "How can you not care about a possible leak?" Pause. "Look, I only came to offer you a warning. It's yours to do with what you want...just don't mix up actions taken out of concern for my project or for the security of your operation with things done to further a point of mine." With that, he withdraws.
Later that day:
JuniperEarth: A guard knocks on the door. "Achillies wants to see you."
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo stands up and opens the door, slightly apprehensively. "Lead the way."
JuniperEarth: The guard leads the way, but instead of Achillies office they find themselves outside. The sunlight is exceptionaly bright. Achillies stands in the middle with some other people, something metalic in his hands.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo recognizes the lightsaber. Still, he's apprehensive, and he's squinting in the sunlight. "You wanted to see me, Achilles?"
JuniperEarth: "You brought to my attention a little problem. I've been working out how to deal with it, and I thought you might have a suggestion." Achillies nods at the group standing at the other side of the yard, to someone chained to the wall. Bonzo should recognise the guard.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo gets the picture in well under a second after he recognizes the guard. There's a deep breath. "I think I might be able to help you with it." .o0(This is wrong. Wrong, wrong, wrong...but it's the only way he'll trust me...it's wrong, but it's acceptable...I shouldn't be doing this...but it's the only way...)0o. He extends his hand for his lightsaber.
JuniperEarth: Achillies holds it out to the boy, his face expressionless.
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo accepts, and starts to slowly walk across the yard, steadying himself against the rising lump in his stomach. .o0(If you don't do it, he will. Refusing saves nobody. And you can make it quicker than anyone else can.)0o. His steps are slow, steady. .o0(And besides, this man is a traitor. If he'll speak out against Achilles to me, nothing says he won't leak against Achilles to a real opponent. And that would endanger my work.)0o.
JuniperEarth: Achillies watches impassivly. No one makes a move to stop the Bonzo. When he's close enough the guard looks up, "I really thought you were better than him." He stands as if he doesn't have shackles on him and looks Bonzo quite in the eye.
GrayAnderson5: That comment hits Bonzo hard. He just shakes his head, igniting the lightsaber. As the summer-sky blade extends, he looks the guard in the eyes, hands trembling just a tad. "Achilles has let me put information I have to use on a scale no nation on earth would let me." His voice is cold, impassive. "And you pose a risk to that. Stand still, and it will be over quickly." Silently, he mouths 'I'm sorry', and then he rapidly steps forward, going through one of the moves he's memorized, hoping that he can at least spare the man whatever suffering Achilles would have inflicted on him.
JuniperEarth: The man dies still staring Bonzo in the eyes. Achillies claps in the background. "Very good. Maybe I will let you keep your toy."
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo now has a haunting image to go alongside those in his mind. How ironic the images are, too. He turns back to Achilles, clearly at least slightly disturbed by what he just had to do. Extinguishing his lightsaber, he hooks it on the belt of his pants and takes a deep breath. "He was a liability." Pause. "I'm not going to let people like that endanger my...our...work, Achilles." And a look in Achilles' eyes. "There's too much we can do to risk it failing."
JuniperEarth: Achillies smiles. "Of corse. I trust you will deal with dissent on your own now."
GrayAnderson5: Bonzo nods solemnly. "If you will allow it, I am willing to deal with it." .o0(You never know where spies will be lurking, after all.)0o.
JuniperEarth: Achillies nods. "Time to get back to work." And he leaves without a word.
(OOC: Will be tweaked to look better soon! Promise!)