Day 44: Lunch

[mizuhomaiden.livejournal.com]

That had been a very frustrating shower. For many reasons. At least Raine was going to at least look at Forte. Hopefully, she'll actually heal him. The showers had also succeeded in making the ninja feel like a pervert. A mild one, but still... It was as if Yukari had picked that spot in the showers because she knew the ninja could easily see her.

Ugh! Damn youkai.

Squirreling herself away in a corner of the cafeteria, Sheena finger combed her wet hair before pulling it back with the bright red ribbon. She so needed her own hair ribbon back. She was attempting to formulate her plan of acquisition - she was ninja after all - as people started trickling into the room. The plan was put on pause, though, when her stomach rumbled.

Food now - plan later.

[Closed to Haseo and Endrance]

Comments

[att-901.livejournal.com]

"It's okay, you don't have to--" but the nurse was gone and Randal was left with the man who introduced himself as Manfred von Karma. Now Randal (who was not a very good judge of character) thought that Mister von Karma must be a very authoritative and powerful man. His experience under Section III taught him that powerful men were not always good men, but Randal believed in the best in everybody. Though he was admittedly afraid of Mister von Karma, he was very grateful for his kindness. Yes, kindness. Mister von Karma could have scolded him for his clumsiness, as any normal man would, but instead asked the nurse to get him a replacement for his salad and some napkins. That was kindness enough.

"Randal Oland, sir," he said, turning his attention away from the nurse back to Mister von Karma. "Corporal in the Imperial Army, Section III: Pumpkin Scissors." That was more than just his introduction to Mister von Karma, it was also his own affirmation of where he belonged. Not ATT-901, Section III. Now that glorious moment was over (for now). He was back to worrying about the problem at hand, his lack of salad and how he spilled it on the man in front of him. "Thank you, sir," he added with an embarrassed tone.

[lawful_perfect]

"Hn. Don't mention it," the prosecutor responded in a dispassionate tone of voice, his arms folded as he gave this Mr. Randal Oland an exacting gaze for a moment. He then closed his eyes, pondering on what this young man said about his occupation.

Hmmm. A corporal in the "Imperial Army?" Despite there having been one such army in late nineteenth century Germany, there were none that von Karma knew of in the modern world. Furthermore... "Pumpkin Scissors?" A strange appellation for an army unit. A code name, or...? Was this "Corporal Oland" from one of these -- the prosecutor was still loath to even admit to such a ludicrous possibility -- alternate universes? Or was this whole military experience a mere delusion on the boy's part? At least one thing, von Karma was almost certain that Oland had never heard of him before, which was advantageous to him so long as he didn't allow his less-than-altruistic nature to manifest too readily.

"Corporal Oland," he finally said, opening his eyes again and nodding his head. "Though I have heard of a number of armies in the Western world, I have yet to hear of yours." He cocked his eyebrow skeptically. "Tell me more of this... 'Pumpkin Scissors' section. Where is it based, and what is its mission?"

[att-901.livejournal.com]

"Sir?" And him forgetting the Section's oath. But then, nobody had the oath memorized save for the Lieutenant, who would try to punish them for this and fail. It would be three against one, and she was just one girl. He would have to get by without the oath for this one.

"The Pumpkin Scissors specializes in war relief, sir. The war between the Empire and the Frost Republic was declared to be over, but that doesn't mean that our job as soldiers is over." Now how would the Lieutenant say this? "We're a non-combat section, sir, just doing the best we can to help."

[lawful_perfect]

Again, the prosecutor raised an eyebrow. The "Empire" and "Frost Republic?" Now von Karma was almost certain that this boy was indeed from another... universe; to his knowledge, there had never existed any "Frost Republic" in any period of time. It was still quite possible that Oland was lying or delusion-ridden, but von Karma received neither of these impressions from him so far. Furthermore, there had been that thread of discussion on the bulletin board yesterday morning regarding twentieth century Earth conflicts; perhaps this war unfamiliar to the prosecutor was related to the information that the note's author was seeking.

Still, the prosecutor was dubious. He had just met this young man, and while he seemed simple and trustworthy enough, von Karma preferred to first learn more about him and this "Pumpkin Scissors" unit before allowing him to assist him directly. After all, simpleness was all too often a facade for a deceptive mind; the several thousand innocent-pleading defendants in his career were testament to that.

"Indeed. The aftermath of a large conflict can be just as devastating -- and often more so -- as the war's active phase." He nodded knowingly before peering at Oland again, an exacting look in his eyes. "You said that your unit does not specialize in combat. But even war relief can prove dangerous, depending upon the circumstances of your deployment. Have you ever had occasion to use your basic combat training while on one of these war relief missions, Corporal Oland?"

[att-901.livejournal.com]

[I'm sorry, I spaced out ;A;]

He was suddenly very conscious of the scars on his face. His basic combat skills were far from basic. To go against a moving tank was suicide. Odd as it was, he was forced to do this time and time again during their war-relief operations. War or no war, tanks were still powerful weapons.

"I have. Just a few minor scuffles. It's nothing compared to the war." And to say more, when they still don't know who was supplying the dissatisfied nobles with tanks and prototype weapons, might be a breach of military intelligence. He tried to laugh about it, making light of the situation, but couldn't. Not convincingly, at least. "I'm just doing the best I can, sir. I'm not that smart, but I can at least do something."