Training(Mani4c, Saber)

[Prythian]

Domain stood with his hands clasped behind his back, looking at the people who'd come for his training session. While he didn't smile normally, he usually had one for his sister, Mirror, but even she couldn't get him to smile during a training session. He'd actually told her earlier: "When we're here, I'm not your brother. I'm your teacher. And I will be a rough one, because I'm here to teach you and others how to stay alive." In any case, he stood still, looking as his (for now) students. "Today we're going to start with effective surprise attacks. While not necessarily considered honorable, managing to sneak up on an enemy and strike a decisive first blow can be crucial to ensuring a victory, especially against a more powerful opponent."

He began to pace back and forth, gesturing with his hands to emphasize each point. "There are three parts to this. Firstly, you need to be able to move through whatever terrain you find yourself on. You must not be seen or even heard; there must be no way of detecting your presence for the target. You also need to move swiftly, or your target may get away from you before you have a chance. It helps if you can find a way to camouflage yourself." He turned to look at them. "The second part is examining your target. Determine the most effective place to strike. Places where there is no armor, or it is weakened. Places that they cannot defend themselves properly. Anywhere that will be a decisive blow. And lastly..." He held his hands up, closing one into a fist, and slammed it into the other's palm. "Pulling off the strike itself. It must be powerful, it must be swift. And you must take into account how your target moves so that you strike the correct place."

He stopped moving and let his hands go behind his back again. "Any questions before we begin?"

[Mani4c]

Mani4c raised his hand, "Yeah, is this strictly CQC? Or are we doing long range as well? All I know is that this is combat training. Sorry if it's a stupid question, I didn't get a message for some reason." Mani4c's expression was a mixture of exhaustion and nervousness, He'd been AWOL recently and he was still a bit on edge being back in the NPD.

[Prythian]

Domain turned his gaze onto Mani4c. "For this particular exercise, I want you to try and get as close to your target as possible before striking. If you can find no other opportunity, then yes, you are free to use your long-range weapons. However, seeing as a major part of this is seeing how well you can travel through terrain silently with ease..." His voice went dry. "I expect you to make a solid attempt at getting up close and personal. Especially since the closer you are, the more likely you are to hit where you're aiming for. When it comes to surprise attacks, close range is always the best option. Now if we were talking ambushes..." His voice went back to his normal calm state. "...then which would be best is entirely dependent on the terrain around you. But that's not what we're doing now."

[Saber]

Baretta gulped when Domain confirmed that this would be a close range preferred situation. She was never good at close range, preferring to use her guns from a distance when she could. And stealth was also not one of her strong suits either. Knowing where her enemy was at all times was something she preferred in combat, and that sneak attack by Integrate only reminded her of how bad she was at close range. She stood silently, waiting for someone else to speak up, or for training to begin.

Saber was next to respond, after Domain's explanation of the purpose of today's training "What about programs? Are we limited to our add-ons, or can our operators assign programs for us to use while in this simulation?"

[Mani4c]

Mani4c nodded, "Sounds simple enough, though I doubt it actually will be in practice." Mani4c stood up, "Seeing as I asked the question, I suppose I should go first." Mani4c looked at Domain and cracked a grin, "That is the plan correct?"

[Prythian]

Domain held his arms pointed downwards, the large silver spikes jutting outwards from them and extending. "You can use any add-ons and programs that you like, provided you keep in mind the rules on stealth and swiftness. Now, as for how exactly this exercise will work..." Domain nodded at Mani4c. "You are going first, but not in the manner you think." Deliberately, he stabbed the floor underneath, and energy pulsed down from into the ground, spreading outwards. This was the first time Domain had actually used his power in these training sessions, and that meant that for Baretta, Mirror, and Mani4c it was the first time they would see it in action. Mirror stared, fascinated.

"Mani4c, you will stay here in the center of the arena. The rest of you, walk out to various sides of the arena. I will be watching via camera to see how you all do. Mani4c... for this first exercise, you are the target." His lips twitched upwards for a brief second. "Your job will be to keep moving and try to catch the others sneaking up on you. Call out their name when you see them, and they will be 'out'. Baretta, Saber, Mirror... your job will to get a successful surprise attack on Mani4c. Don't hold back; the arena's damage-to-paralyzation mod is in effect. And you aren't just trying to catch Mani4c..." His lips twitched upwards again. "...you are meant to be the first one to do so. As soon as Mani4c is either disabled or you three are out, we'll start again with a different target in a different terrain."

[Mani4c]

Mani4c smirked, somehow unaffected by the display of Domain's power "Ohh, I LOVE Hide and seek!" Mani4c activated his armor, "So...are we ready?"


Inside of Mani4c's code Viral Mani4c had a mad grin on his face, "Oh, this is going to be FUN!"

[Saber]

Saber started running ideas through his head how to use an effective stealth tactic, sending Jake a text message requesting the use of Savage mode, it's stealth capabilities would come in handy for an exercise like this. "Sounds like a plan, let's get started."

[Prythian]

Mirror started moving to her position away from the others, but she was at a major disadvantage, even moreso than Baretta. Her standard form just didn't have any real capabilities to it... unless... she glanced at Domain as he was walking away. Around Mani4c jungle began to sprout up; thick trees and vines, spreading rapidly. It hadn't reached Baretta, Saber, or Mirror yet; Mirror knew the moment it did the hunt would be on. Domain called out as the area continued to spread, Mani4c having vanished into the sudden growth within seconds as it sprang up around him. "Ready... go!" Before the trees blocked out her view, Mirror swiftly turned into a copy of Domain.

It felt odd, copying a male again after having been female for over half a week now, but Mirror would deal with it. She shot out a hand on a chain, gripping one of the tree branches near her, and pulled herself off of the ground into the branches.

[Mani4c]

The second the ground sprouted up, Mani4c activated his scanner, tagging Baretta, Saber and Mirror. 'There, now if I see them, they'll stand out.' When the forest finished growing, Mani4c looked around for a branch or stump to position himself on, he located a tall tree and climbed up. 'Now I wait...' Viral Mani4c chose that moment to cut in, 'want some help?' 'At the risk of sounding like a jerk, how can you help me without a body?' Viral Mani4c chuckled, 'I can see things as they happen, even if YOU can't, provided it's within your visual range. I can act as your second, I watch your back and sides, and you focus on locating the hunters.' Mani4c thought for a moment before answering, 'Fine, but give me a decent amount of forewarning if you see something alright?' 'You got it.'

[Saber]

Saber rushed out towards the trees, sending Jake the signal to trigger the program. As his armor generated itself, it quickly changed into his black and red Savage armor. Triggering the chameleon armor system, his armor began to take a skin pattern similar to a soldier's forest camo. But as he summoned up his blades and quickly climbed up the nearest tree, his armor began to blend in with the tree itself, looking more like a lump on the trunk than anything. He got up onto one of the higher up branches, near the canopy, and activated his data filter, to scan for everyone in the forest.

Baretta decided the best way to do this was to try and use her skills with a gun instead of try to get up close to the target. She dove into some nearby bushes and checked her surroundings, trying to spot Mani4c so she could get the first shot in.

[Prythian]

Mirror slowly began moving through the branches. Domain's body was heavy enough that she had to be careful, but large enough to give her enough reach to grab branches without relying too heavily on Domain's chain-fists. She was actually figuring out the best way to sneak up on Mani4c, when a thought occurred to her. My brother is the teacher here... if I approach Mani4c upfront, pretending to be him trying to say something about the exercise, he might let his guard down and then I can strike hard. Domain never said that we couldn't be sneaky, just that Mani4c had to call out our names when he saw us. First, though, I have to get closer to him to be able to approach him correctly...

[Mani4c]

Mani4c had been waiting for about 15 minutes, and nobody had found him. 'WHAT...THE...HELL! Am I really THAT hard to find?' Viral Mani4c just chuckled, 'Well, you CAN get their attention, remember those viral fireworks?' Mani4c nodded, 'Well...set them on a delay, when the fools start funneling in...' Mani4c smirked deviously, 'I can one up that.' Mani4c set about his work, setting up approximately 50 viral flares, when the hunters came to investigate, Mani4c would spring the trap. 'Now then... for the finishing touch.' Mani4c created his biggest firework, it would create a 50 foot wide array of color and would sound like a thunderclap going off. 'Now, it's set for a 15 second fuse, time to amscray to a new hiding spot.' Mani4c leaped to a new tree hiding in a dense thicket of branches. Mani4c then began counting down in his head. 'Three...Two...One...Annnd.'  Right on cue the big firework shot up into the sky before exploding in a cacophonous display of sound and color. 'It begins...' 

[Saber]

Saber was filtering through the code of the forest from the treetops, looking for movement. He spotted a form moving around and shut off his filtered vision to see Domain moving cautiously a few trees away. It didn't take long for Saber to realize it was Mirror in disguise *Clever move, kid, taking an easier form to hide in...But not who I'm looking for.*

He reactivated his visual filter and looked around some more, noticing someone hiding in some bushes in the distance. After clearing his vision again, he saw Baretta hiding out and looking for Mani4c to take a long ranged sneak attack. Ignoring her, he returned to searching through the filtered code. He then spotted what could only be Mani4c, fussing around with something. Shutting off his visual filter, he crept along the tree branch, leaping from tree to tree, and maintaining his camouflage to keep from being spotted too easily.

Then, the fireworks went off.

"Guh! What the hell!" Baretta shielded her eyes as the fireworks went off, the sudden explosion accidentally setting off her gun as she instinctively puled the trigger, and shooting a bullet into the air in a random direction. Saber was focused on Mani4c in the meantime, following him from above and laying tight to the tree trunks whenever he was within visual range. Slowly, but surely, he would get close enough to strike, but he needed the right moment to make his move, and the right distraction to keep Mani4c's attention off of him.

[Prythian]

Mirror hadn't spotted Saber or anything, but once the fireworks went off, she turned her head, swiftly making a decision. This was either Saber, Baretta, or Mani4c's doing, and having copied Saber and learned most all of his DPs, this didn't seem like something he'd have done. From the gunshot in the distance, it also wasn't Baretta. It occurred to her that this was the perfect excuse for pretending to be Domain when she found Mani4c. Find him (he'd surely be nearby the fireworks, ready to who came in blundering in; that was almost certainly not something she should just walk into), walk up to him while demanding an explanation, and if he fell for it, strike hard. After all... they were supposed to be hunting him. Surprise attacks. He knew they were out there (and could hardly avoid that for this exercise), but if he was laying an ambush, that was something else entirely.

She nodded to herself, and lowered down to the ground. If she was going to pretend to be the teacher, she was going to act like it. Moving quickly, but calmly and deliberately, she simply started WALKING towards where the fireworks were, scanning the trees subtly. Since her eyes were hidden behind Domain's helmet, he wouldn't even see her looking up. That said, she wasn't going to get there just yet.

[Mani4c]

Mani4c had to hold in the urge to cackle manically at his creation, Saber had triggered about 1/3rd of the flares, meaning that if anyone else got near him, they'd be blinded by the remaining flares. Viral Mani4c interrupted Mani4c's glee by clearing his throat. 'Look up, and about twenty degrees to your left, do you see Saber in the tree?' Mani4c scanned the trees and saw a vaguely animalistic shape flattened against a tree, he knew that it was Saber in his Savage mode. 'Cheeky bastard.' Mani4c smirked and pointed at Saber, "YOU'RE OUT SABER! PLEASE INSERT 4 QUARTERS TO CONTINUE!" Mani4c cackled and started leaping from tree to tree, moving rapidly to throw off any bystanders.

[Saber]

Saber cursed under his breath, getting from laying against the branch and sliding down the trunk of the tree, lifting his camouflage program and glaring at Mani4c as he walked out of the forest "...Would've had you if this wasn't a training exercise..."

Baretta was thankful that Mani4c hadn't pointed her out, or even noticed her gun randomly discharging into the sky. Once she heard Mani4c call Saber out, she instantly knew Mani4c was using some trick to spot them, because she didn't' even notice Saber until his camo program was deactivated. Then she noticed Mani4c's back was turned away from her, and she took the chance to take aim. Making sure to get a good bead on her target, she fired both guns, ducking beneath the bushes again and looking through the brush at Mani4c to see if he was hit or not.

[Prythian]

Mirror nodded as Saber was out, as if marking off something. There he is. Mirror noted to herself, as Mani4c began jumping back and forth. "Mani4c!" She called out in Domain's calm, gruff voice. "Get down here." She pointed to the ground right in front of her as she stopped walking forward. "You've got some things to answer for. You've gone outside the spirit of the exercise." Which, true enough, he probably had. This was about surprise attacks, not laying ambushes.

[Mani4c]

Mani4c dodged the blasts, nearly getting hit because of Mirror's sudden appearance.(Though he wasn't aware that it was her) "WHOA!" Mani4c nearly fell out of the tree, but managing to recover. He looked at "Domain" and smirked, it wasn't his happy smirk either, it was his "I'm going to drive you nuts by being a d***" smirk, "Last time I checked you didn't lay down any restrictions teach, and FYI, I only listen to Baretta." Mani4c formed another large viral Firework, "And besides... NEVER RESTRICT AN ARTIST!" Mani4 chucked the Firework at "Domain" and triggered the rest of his flares simultaneously, the amount of light and noise was tremendous. Mani4c laughed like a madman and tore deeper into the forest, flipping "Domain" the bird as he did so, "NOW YOU CAN PLAY TOO TEACH BWAHAHAHA!"

[Saber]

Baretta kept ducked beneath the bushes as Mani4c pulled his stunt, waiting for him to either pass by and have his back turned, or follow after him if he rushed further away. Sending Kate a request, she had Kate install split shot, and homing shot on her dual pistols, using the sync-shot add-on so that each gun shared half of the DP load-out. She wasn't cut out for this type of exercise, she wasn't accustomed to stealth missions and covert operations, that was more Saber's thing. Which was something that confused Baretta, why was it Mani4c was able to see Saber, when she could barely see any signs of him before he was visible?

*He Must have pulled one of his sneaky tricks again, leave it to Mani4c to cut corners and give himself an unavoidable advantage.* She peeked her head out of cover to see where Mani4c was, ducking behind cover again if she couldn't see him right away. Sticking out like a sore thumb like this, the smallest slip-up could spell failure for her in this exercise.