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Vanguard Word Update
🕑 Added 2023-10-20 03:10:57 +0000 UTC2.1k word update.
***
A few days after their successful mission in the sim, the team was back in the armoury again, splitting their time between configuring their weapons and testing out the combat armour that would be standard-issue for all Alliance forces. It was an exact replica of the armour used by the UEC, save for the blue highlights that had become the staple of the Navy. Ryan was intimately familiar with the gear already, so he spent most of his time with his weapons, trying to force himself to learn how to properly disassemble the platform. The going was a little easier without the Captain standing over his shoulder, and he found a quiet spot in the workshop to go at his own pace.
His team had become the talk of the base ever since their score in the sim started to spread among the soldiers, and while he’d been praised for his efforts, the real attention had gone to the Balokarids and their ability to create a shield wall whenever they wished. Some were saying it was giving team four an unfair advantage, and Ryan agreed. It was hard to believe he’d been of the opinion the aliens would be a drag on his performance, Samiha especially, but now he thought he wouldn’t have gotten this far without them.
As if on cue, the armoury door slid open, a certain rusty-coloured alien striding into the room, Ryan nodding up at her in greeting. “Hey Sam.”
“’Sam’?” she echoed. “Great, now you’re using that stupid nickname Brindley gave me.”
He grinned, turning back to his work, listening to the sound of Samiha’s talons clicking on the tiles as she walked over, leaning a hip against the workbench as she watched him.
“What are you doing?” she asked.
“Putting together this coilgun, obviously.”
“I know that, smartass, why are you here, and not with the others? The Captain just delivered some special helmets, a few made for Balokarids only, thought you’d like to come see them.”
“I’ve used combat armour before, you know that. As for coilgun assembly, it’s something I need to work on.”
“You got that right,” Samiha chuckled, watching him struggle to find the right screw in the mess that was his workstation. She was teasing him, but not in a malicious kind of way, she’d learned to loosen up after the past couple days.
When he picked up a screw, fumbling it into the socket, Samiha exhaled through her beak, taking him by the arm before he could force it through. “Stop,” she said. “that’s the wrong one. Use the bigger one over there.”
“Oh. Thanks. I don’t know how you guys know which one goes where.”
“It’d be easier for you if you didn’t leave such a mess,” Samiha chided. “Step aside,” she added, bringing an arm down on the bench, and clearing all the weapon parts, bolts, screws, and other tools in one big sweep of her wing, extending her sheath out with a flex of her muscles. She started plucking at seemingly random bits, placing them down in different piles. “Your efficiency is only as good as the cleanliness of your station. Don’t discard the parts randomly, sort them as you go, and don’t mix them up, or you’ll fail before you’ve even started.”
“I don’t need you to do my job for me,” he muttered, Samiha arranging the piles into a sort of crescent shape, the half-assembled coilgun sat in the middle.
“I’m not. You helped me learn to aim these weapons, and now I’m returning the favour. You see what I’ve done here? I’ve arranged the parts so that you must work from left to right, there’s very little chance of getting things mixed up now.”
Ryan couldn’t help but ogle. She’d taken one look at the gun and knew exactly how far away he was from completing it, and what order the remaining bits went in.
“You a mechanic or something before you became a Rakshal?” he asked, taking back his place as he set about attaching the barrel to the coils.
“We Balokarids have an affinity with assembly,” Samiha replied, puffing her chest out proudly. “On the homeworld, dust and sand gets into everything, and most of our lives are spent maintaining our machinery and households. Our hatchlings are encouraged early on in life to know how to keep things from falling into disrepair, and everyone learns to earn their keep in the clan.”
“But this is an alien rifle to you,” he countered. “How can you go from cleaning out sand to putting a gun together?”
“Fabrication is the same at its core, no matter what form it takes,” she replied, her wings bobbing as she shrugged.
“So that’s why the Captain said you Balokarids were speeding up our production on the station, you’ve all got a knack for tinkering.”
“Pulling weapons apart is nothing compared to what our engineers are doing in your shipyards. They have the same complaints as I do with your tech. Too much variation in size, and there’s no universal blueprint, everything is different in a hundred ways.”
“Doesn’t seem to stop you, though,” he said. “The way you put these guns together is… amazing.”
She beamed at him, taking his words as praise. “Thank you. Tilu used to work on landships when she was younger, so she’s a lot faster than I am. Don’t put the muzzle on just yet by the way, do the sink caps first.”
“Right,” he said, putting the part down. “Staring to wish I had a talent for building stuff right about now. Not eager to hear the Captain yelling and screaming at me again.”
“Don’t sell yourself so short, you have other qualities to be… envious of.”
“Oh yeah?” he asked, perking up. “Like what?”
“Humans have an incredible gift of developing technology, Balokar is almost primitive in comparison to this station, but you specifically? You’re a natural leader, you know when to listen to your comrades, and when to take action. You are patient, and I don’t think I’ve seen you miss a single shot, which is more than can be said for me.”
“Did you just compliment me, Samiha? I’m not sure whether to be honoured or concerned.”
“I’m just trying to cheer you up, little monkey,” she added, shoving him by the arm. She hadn’t used all her strength, but Ryan almost toppled over anyway, grabbing the bench for support. “Let’s get back to the gun,” she continued, Ryan leaning close as she plucked the handguard from the pile. “There are places for the bolts here, and here. Which ones do you think will fit?”
“Uh… these ones?”
“That’s them. Now do the one on the left first, good. Not too tight, okay? You don’t want to put too much strain on the plastic. Now the right…”
After ten or so minutes, the coilgun was back into its original shape, Samiha keeping a vigilant watch as she challenged him to do it all again in half the time, offering the occasional tip when he needed it. There was a certain kind of zen about building something, focusing only on attaching the parts and nothing else, and the company was a plus as well, Samiha’s expertise putting a real boost to his overall progress.
At some point during the reassembly, the door to the armoury opened, Ryan looking up to see an alien walk in, but it wasn’t Tilu. Kith Sahliyya was still wearing her signature ornate robe and headdress, the decorative plumes scraping the ceiling as she moved inside, a rifle in her hands. It wasn’t any coilgun Ryan had seen, however, it was something else.
“Kith?” Samiha asked, standing to attention as she noticed the alien. “What brings you here?”
“The humans just gave me the all-clear to introduce some of our own weaponry to the arsenal,” Shaliyya explained. “And not a second too soon. The new recruits arrived today.”
“What new recruits?” Samiha asked, the Kith turning her head towards the door and saying something in her alien language. Ryan couldn’t understand her, but he didn’t have to. One, two, then five more Balokarid females filed into the armoury at her behest, each one of their feathery coats a different colour. They were looking about the armoury with wide eyes, their expressions full of apprehension as they noticed Ryan off to one side of Samiha. They looked almost terrified of him, and he couldn’t blame, they were being thrust into an alien environment, and probably hadn’t been properly introduced to a human yet.
“I’m glad I caught you here, Corporal,” Shaliyya continued. “The Seargent’s running a little late today, and I need someone to help introduce the recruits to the coilgun. I was hoping if you weren’t too busy, you could assist me?”
“I’m flattered, Kith,” Ryan began. “But I’ve got to finish up my work here, then head out. But Samiha here’s a pro, she’ll help you out.”
“I will?” Samiha asked, her feathers twitching as she glanced from the group to Ryan.
“In that case, I’d appreciate the support,” the Kith replied. “Whenever you’re ready, Samiha,” she added when she didn’t move from her spot.
Hiding his smirk, Ryan gave Samiha an encouraging push, the hesitant alien peering back at him nervously as she started walking. The question in her eyes was obvious: why are you doing this? But all Ryan did was give her a thumbs-up, returning to his work as his alien companion started to explain what the coilgun was to her kin.
With the recruits busy with Samiha, he got a chance to chat with Kith Shaliyya, the two speaking quietly so that they didn’t interrupt Samiha’s teachings. “Guess we’ll be seeing more of you around the base,” he began, Shaliyya nodding her head.
“After word reached me of your teams performance in the simulator, the next batch of Balokarid recruits was given the green light. As long as they do well, there should be more to follow.”
“Will they be teaming up with humans too?” he asked.
“Of course, our species are allies in this war, and we must learn to fight in cohesion. We have dedicated training areas for ourselves on the other side of the quadrant, where we practice our own skillsets, but I believe Pioneers will be a well worth investment for our troops.”
“Didn’t know you guys had a spot on the torus.”
“It’s just a simple area where we can sharpen our skills, prepare for taking the fight to the UEC, and to our fallen world.”
“Dur’shala? You want to take it back?”
“Why shouldn’t we? It is our clan’s home, ripped from us in its most prime hour. Invasion plans are already underway, and once the Hub and its allies are secure, we will enact them. Our colony will be reclaimed.”
Before long, the armoury door once again opened, this time it was a human. Judging by the insignia on his sleeve, Ryan guessed the was the Sergeant that Shaliyya had mentioned.
“Sorry everyone, emergency call from the Major. Now, let’s get you recruits fixed up with the… ah.” The Seargent looked up from his datapad, noticing that the aliens were already breaking down a couple of coilguns between them. “I see you’ve already started! Showing some good initiative there recruit… Samiha, correct?”
“Yes, sir,” Samiha replied.
“Well then, you have my gratitude, I’ll make sure the higher ups know about this, but I’ll take it from here. Let’s get you recruits some target practice, follow me. Kith Shaliyaa, if you’d like to accompany me?”
“Of course. If you’d excuse me, Corporal.”
He bid her goodbye, the recruits following their superiors out of the armoury, soon leaving him and Samiha alone again. “Why’d you do that?” she asked, her feathers twitching as she came over. “You could have claimed the credit from that Seargent, but you gave it to me.”
“You know your stuff,” he said. “people ought to know that.”
She gave him a strange look, humming under her breath as she looked him up and down with those large, unblinking eyes of hers. He felt a little self-conscious all of a sudden, clearing his throat with a cough. “So, uh, put the coilgun together while you were busy,” he said. “What do you think?”
