"Oh come now, a little brisk weather for a chance to take the fight to the Jerries. Sounds like a fun time to me. The coffee is just a bonus." Brian responded with a chuckle.
"So anyone want to share just what it is they can do? I'm rather curious to know just what it is we can all do."
"Ah showing off a favourite pastime of mine, the others being drinking and fighting." Taking off his jacket and rolling up his sleeves, JR began. "Now gentlemen you'll notice I?ve got nothing up my sleeves." All of a sudden a leaver action rifle appeared in front of him with a small POP. Working the action once, JR took aim at a coffee cup on a nearby table and pulled the trigger. A golden flash leapt between the rifle and the cup, knocking the cup back, without damaging it. "Now that was just for demonstration, in a fight I can kill a man at 200 yards with little effort."
With a showman's smile, JR tossed the rifle in the air where it vanished. "I can do the same with pretty much any object so long as it's not too big, or there aren't very many." Cracking his knuckles, he continued. "Now here's the really fun stuff." Once again the lights flickered and the buzzing returned, but this time a glow began emanating from his outstretched hand. "Now is this state I can, depending on where I am, produce a blast that'll melt a tank. Although trust me when I say that is kind of a last resort move." Dissipating the energy, he put his jacket back on. "To make a long story short, I can manipulate energy for my own needs." Sitting down, he waited for somebody else to show their stuff.
" I'm Mr. Sterling, it's good to have you here Mr. Hicks, now that we have you we can begin." He shook Art's hand before he left to gather everyone else. He went over and clapped JR on the shoulder, " Enough showing off, there'll be a time for that soon enough," Then he turned to address everyone else, also I want you to know arrangements to have your luggage air-dropped have already been made." Now that we have everyone, please accompany me to the central yard." As he lead everyone into the complex of buildings he stopped at the temporary lounge where the other recruits where relaxing. He entered the door and took off his hat, " Gentlemen, if you follow me as well."
He continued along until he reached a space between the buildings, 50 meters by 50 meters courtyard in the center of the compound. High lamp-posts left the place starkly lit. Sway led everyone in attendance into forming a circle, and then stepped forward. When he did he shed his great coat and scarf, leaving only his hat, suit, and mask.
"Greetings, once again," He said as he scanned the faces of everyone around him, " Allow me to mend any misconceptions you might harbor. We are not, a part of any countries' military or intelligence communities. No, we do not exist to ensure victory of other powers of Germany. Yes, we work to create the downfall of the Nazi part, and to capture or destroy their work. Yes, each and every one of you has been chosen, by me, for having strengths, skills, powers, talents, powers, and abilities, uniquely suited for this work. Yes, I am your commander. Yes, this is voluntary, you may choose to leave at any time, and continue as you will. Yes, you will be tested. Yes, you will be asked to risk your life. Yes, you will make a difference, in this war." Sway took a breath, and allowed it all to sink in.
" Now if any of you have doubts, or wish to reconsider, you should down now, the planes will be ready to take you back in thirty minutes." Sway waited, and scanned their eyes, no one looked away, no one stepped down. A smile spread behind the mask.
"Very well then, we can begin. Let's start with some introductions, I'll start.
My code name is Mr. Sterling,
I what's been called an Occultist,
I am from Britain,
My skills are many, I've studied almost every form of combat as well as the occult." With this he took a step forward, and unsheathed his cane-sword. He through the sheath directly above him, and waited for it to come down. When it was exactly and arm's length away, he thrusted with the sword. The cain separated into seven lacquered wooden pieces, which stuck upright in-front of everyone else. He then put the sword under his arm, and went back to his spot in the circle.
" Someone else now if you don't mind." He invited.
So this is a good time to officially introduce your character to everyone else, and give and example of how they use their powers.
@Avashka; Awesome drawing! Anyway we could get you to do drawings of other characters?
"Well I guess I'm up then" says Claude responding to the open invite.
"Hi how's it going I already introduced myself to some off you and to the rest I'm Claude Glass. First I want to say I'm really looking forward to see what everyone can do." Claude says to the group as he begins to take his jacket off.
"My code name from what I understand is Quarry, I'm from Detroit Michigan back in the good ol' U.S. of A and well my job before this was private investigator. For skills *scratches his head* well I'm pretty handy with these two *motioning to his side arm and trench club* but I really specialize in the hand to hand affair, especially when I'm like this." Claude waits a moment to make sure everyone has a good view.
With that he begins to squeeze his hands into fists as his muscles tense. In a second his skin seems to darken as a stone like substance begins to form over his skin but under his clothes stretching them as he grows out and up a bit taking on a more intimidating build. "The thing is like this I guess I'm more or less indestructible and with the stone coating I get pretty nifty strength boost." Claude says to the rest of the group
"But to be honest I'm not entirely sure on the indestructible part since I haven't gotten to test it out much though I figure I'm gonna be finding out real soon whether I meet the definition or not." As he finishes the last few words the stone like armor begins to shrink and retract till its back the wiry young man with brown hair who quickly dons his jacket again to help fight the cold.
"Interesting, guess it is time for me to reveal what it is I do." Brian said as he stepped slightly away from the group.
"Name's Brian Mcintyre, but my friends gave me the nickname Storm Shaper after they found out about just what it is I do. The name rather gives it away though, I can create storms and work with what goes into them as well." With that he focused a bit to siphon off some energy from the light in the room and the air to create a small thunderstorm next to him. Unfortunately due to the temperature it came out as a snow storm that shot lightning.
"I also happen to be a pilot with the RAF, meaning I am a citizen of the crown. Those chaps in the Luftwaffe and Kriegsmarine really don't like me." With that he dissipated the small storm he had created.
Oh, I loved this game back in summer camp. Everyone getting to show off their useless talents and pet rocks.
"My turn, ladies."
Art stepped in the center of the circle, getting a sudden memory of his long gone boxing career, He clapped his hands together, making a loud smacking noise.
"My name's Arthur Hicks, but my friends call me Art. We're all going to be best of friends, right?"
With his hands shaking and beads of sweat starting rolling down his brow, Art begins his show.
"I'm sure that ya'll are a educated bunch, right? So, I'm sure you're familiar with Adrenaline. You know that feeling you get when you're about to get your head bashed in by some Goon or about to make sweet love to a lady? That, my good friends, is adrenaline. Adrenaline releases the animal inside you and lets you rip that Goon in half.
"Why am I giving you this science lesson? Well, I'm explaining to you how I'm able to do what I'm going to show you." With a quick glance around the room, Art points at Claude Glass. "Mr. Quarry, mind if I borrow you for a moment?[footnote]I've gotten N_of_the_Dead's permission before hand[/footnote]"
With a confused look on his face, Claude steps up.
"If you would please, would you take that Billy Club of yours and smack me in the gut."
With a brief moment of hesitation, Claude grabs his Trench Club and hits Art in the abdomen with a blow that should've knock him to the ground, gasping for air. Yet, Art is still standing there with a huge grin on his face.
"Thank you, Mr Quarry, you can go back now."
"What Mr. Glass just demonstrated is how I can use my Adrenaline, which by the way I can produce without the hassle of being in a fight or flight situation, to become a super human. The only drawback is, I tend to get a little overheated when I'm in this state for to long. If you're lucky, I might show you how I fixed that problem later."
Sway nodded as the recruits showed their powers. He only knew about their powers through investigation and other reports, for the most part he had never seen their powers in action with his own eyes. As he watched he further considered the roll each one would play in the field.
"Well since we're being all formal, I guess I'll go again." JR said, chuckling a bit. "My name is John Richard Wayland, but most people just call me JR. I guess you could say I"m a Canadian, but I was there before the nation was founded. You see, aside from the other fun stuff I was demonstrating earlier, my energy manipulation allows me to prolong my life." Enjoying the confused looks on most of the group's faces, he went on. "Despite appearances to the contrary, I am in fact 93 years old."
"Anyways, like I was saying before. My abilities allow me to play with the energy in the local environment. Everything from a simple glow to provide light, to a blast that'll melt a tank, to raising the air temperature, and even increasing the air density enough for me to survive a 3 000 foot fall.' Sitting down, JR materialized a flask and took a pull. "Oh and I can summon a limited number objects that I've previously 'dispersed'."
Darryl had brought the case containing his gauntlets with him from the lounge. While watching the others, he took a moment to take out one of the gauntlets. He put it on and the locks closed with a clicking sound and the crystal hummed quietly as the device came to life. Darryl closed and opened his fist, enjoying the feeling of having the gauntlet on. After JR finished, Darryl stepped up.
"You're from Canada too, eh? Small world. Though it was probably a lot smaller in your time," he said. "But, getting to business, my name's Darryl Sitton, from Ontario, Canada. I'm guessing some of you are familiar with magic, or what some might call the mystical arts, that's sort of what I do. When I started getting into the practice, I found it didn't come as easily to me as it did others, so I worked on a way around that, which is what this is," Darryl said, as he showed the gauntlet to the rest of the group.
"The basic idea was to use the crystal here as a conduit for magical energy since I couldn't be. As a result I can use this glove to focus the energy into a blast or a shield. It can also move things with enough precision. Also, since the crystal channels magical energy, it can detect when other sources are nearby, could be useful for tracking or just looking for traps nearby,"
And with that, Darryl stepped back, waiting for he next person.
Bolshevik spoke, although the sound didn't come from the notch in his face that appeared to be a mouth, but from speakers on his shoulder plates. "I am Colonel Oleksandr Petrovich. Codename Bolshevik. I have had combat experience fighting in the Great War, our recent Civil War to overthrow oppression, and the Winter War against Finland. Due to battle injuries sustained in the Civil War, my brain has been placed within the metal shell you see before you. It allows me to kill you without the use of weapons with minimal effort on my part, in addition to it's numerous other qualities."
Bolshevik opened a case and withdrew a PPSh-41 submachine gun and took aim with it one-handed, aiming at a tree perhaps thirty meters distant. He squeezed the trigger and the tree's trunk began to break apart, Bolshevik's aim not wavering slightly. Then Bolshevik took it and proceeded to twist the barrel into the shape of an eight.
"Eleven percent of the bullets missed. I must make a note to retrieve German firearms. My analysis suggests many of them have superior performance."
Danse watched the various demonstrations with about as much raptness as one who was frigid and is now pleasantly warm can. That is, mostly casual interest with some surprise at some of the more outlandish demonstrations, such as Hicks' and Quarry's, and a wince at the gunfire from Bolshevik's.
With the others having made their demonstrations, the agent quietly set the still-steaming mug of coffee aside and rose, shrugging off his coat as he did to reveal the olive drab and black body suit he typically wore. It had the unintentional side effect of showing Danse's build, or lack of it.
"Hallo," he began, voice high and distinctly feminine, albeit almost sing-song. "I am Mika Desmarais, codename Danse. I'm afraid I don't have anything nearly so dramatic. But hvhat I do have.."
He raised his hands to either side, a small smile forming. "I can do -zis-." A pair of flickering flames appeared on his palms. He lowered them now, letting the fires dance about him, forming into helix of fire that wreathed him yet set nothing aflame. And then, with a dramatic flourish, the fires suddenly were extinguished, leaving just a hint of brimstone in the air.
Then, almost dismissively, and with a lower tone, he added "I'm also a trained covert agent but I suppose that's less visually impressive, mm?" before climbing back into his seat. Coffee. Neeeed even MORE warmth.
"Well this group will certainly be an interesting one won't it? The Jerries are going to very much hate our existence." Brian said from where he leaned. He had started to play with a small bolt of lightning, making it jump from one hand to the other.
"But why do the need to fear us? Why not get the brits to do your bidding? What is so special about the Nazis that you require a golum, wizards and a giant robot? Just something that has been bothering me for a while."
JR was pretty well into his flask by now, and starting to feel it. "Well now Arty, if'n you'd seen some of what the Nazzies had sprung on the Poles last year you might not'a asked that." Gesturing to Mr. Sterling he said. "I'm sure our host can give you better info that I can, but I understand why we're needed."
Realizing he'd, perhaps had too much to drink, he went over and poured himself another coffee. "Say Colonel, if you want a Jerry automatic see if you can lay those giant mitts of yours on a MG-34. Not as handy as your little subgun there, but I've seen'em tear through a squad in a single burst." He said, with a sad shake of his head.[small]Those poor polak sons of bitches never stood a chance. [/small]
"Indeed, that's a pertinent question, why us?" Sterling asked, before continuing with, " It's because we're the only ones who can get the job one. They shall fear us, because they know that we, are the only ones capable of foiling their victory. We will not be fighting un-opposed, you can bet that the Third Reich shall pull from it's most extreme resources to stop us. But they will fail. They must fail. For if they succeed, then the consequences will be nothing short of a Nazi world dominion.
"I have seen their intentions, the Nazi government wishes to tap into forces that maintain the very fiber of the universe. Under no circumstances can they be allowed to even attempt this. To that end you all have been selected not only for your extra-ordinary abilities but also because I believe you have the drive to stop them. So I have gathered you here, to create The Vanguards, to fight back against Axis powers.
"We have one month to prepare. One month to equip you with everything you need to fight against he German menace. So here we are, at the former laboratory of Dr. Petrov. Here we have prepared facilities to assist you in your preparations, workshops, test courses, firing ranges, labs, libraries, and munitions. Use this precious time to learn about the people you will be fighting with, you'll find that may well be the difference between life and death out there.
"But enough of the dramatics, let's get to some more relevant matters, housing, you will all be sleeping in what was Petrov's house it's on the south side of..." And so on Sway went explaining the most basics aspects of the camp.
Now, how the rest of Boot Camp goes by really depends on how you guys want it to. The entire point is that it would be logical to give your characters some time to prepare for war as a group before plunging them in. This would be a logical time for your character to gain a basic knowledge of skills necessary for combat or operating behind enemy lines. For the purpose of discussing this and other issues, I've created a user-group that you all join.
It's at this URL: http://www.escapistmagazine.com/groups/view/Operation-Vanguard
Over the course of the next month, Art and thr other Vanguards perfected their current and learned some new ones. On the night following their arrival in Russia, Mr. Sterling recuited Art to instruct the other recruits on.the art of hand to hand combat due to Arhur's extensive Boxing career. For every other day at four in the morning, Art taught the Vanguards the basics on how to kill a man with their bare hands.
When ever he wasn't coaching, Art was getting his own lessons. In addition to Mr. Sterling's teaching and the other recruits advice, Arthur became a master of the Browning Automatic Rifle. In his years working for the local criminal syndicate of Chicago, he became fimiliar with the BAR to intimiate shop owners, he never got comfortable with it. In addition to the BAR, he can handle the Thompson and M1 Garand with ease.
By the second day, Art hired a egghead scientist to design a special suit for him. A suit that can keep his body tempature from reaching lethal level. By the near the end of the month, the scientist showed off the finished product. A bodysuit filled with pockets of circulating coolant that can keep him in Flight or Fight longer.
Brian had taken to training the others in the survival skills the RAF had taught him. Having copies made of his own handbook copied by a few typists and distributed to the group to keep on them. He had proven himself already by being dropped into the Russian wilderness and being expected to make it back to base in a day. The hardest part had simply been the walk itself for Brian. After some other tests he was told what he would need to teach the others and was allowed to set to work.
When he wasn't teaching them how to navigate and survive in the wilderness and behind enemy lines, he was improving his own skills. He had been pouring over vehicle manuals for tanks, German planes, and ships. He was also studying enough German to understand the various names for instrumentation and enough to not get caught while reaching the vehicles. Brian also spent a considerable amount of time on the firing range practicing his rifle marksmanship and continuing it to the point he was an expert marksmen.
He hoped that by the time the month was over he would at least be on his way to being to drive the team's way out of any situation they might get themselves into while not simply needing to be behind the wheel or stick all the time.
Claude spent the beginning of the month using himself as a target to test his invulnerability whether it was testing small arms fire against his skin or seeing if he could hold a grenade in his hands and stop the explosion.
After that he spent his time working on his fire arms practice he found the Browning HP to be simpler to put repair and more accurate than his father's M1911 pistol but lacked that extra punch. Claude found the first aid and navigation training to be very intriguing but lacked the survival skills beyond tracking.
His remaining week revolved around more dangerous power testing mostly involving Claude seeing whether or not he could take a tank round without falling down, it took him the better part of the week but eventually he got the hang of it.
Claude's last two days were spent learning military strategies commonly employed by the Germans.
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