X-COM Enemy Unknown - Season 3 - JOURNALS

[Zain Shah]

Zain's Camera Overnight Accidental recording

Nothing happens until exactly 11:00, a dark figure wearing a hat and a trench coat opens the door however it is too dark to detect the facial features. The door slowly creaks open and the figure stands there looking at Zain but most likely observing him. The figure finally comes into the room and looks around room, checking bags and cupboards but when he realises the red light on the camera (showing it is recording), he walks over to the camera and takes it.

He walks for 2 minutes and looks at the camera; somehow he knows how to operate it and manages to take the memory card out. He then proceeds to throwing it on the floor and stomping on it. What he doesn't realise is that the camera has internal memory so he keeps it on not knowing it is still recording and returns the camera to its original position and turns it off. He then simply walks out the door and closes it carefully behind.

 

[Zain Shah]

This is a collaboration between Zain Shah and Sharkdragon96

Zain again starts to feel bored while the rest of the team are out on a mission then he remembers that Ayame told him about some other people who may have been interested in training so he goes up to the room that Ayame said and knocks on the door.

Persephone sits up in her bunk writing something down in her journal and hears a knock at the door. She answers it and finds herself caught off guard to be greeted by one of the captains from officer training.

"Oh! Uh... Captain Zain!" She exclaims with an awkward solute.

Zain replies with "Are you Anna or Persephone?"

"Persephone, sir"

"Alright so the reason I'm here is to train you inactive recruits for real missions, so would you like some training?" said Zain trying to sound as nice as possible.

"Uh... Sure, I suppose. I could use a little something to clear my writers block."

"Soooo, what kind of training do you want?" asked Zain

Persephone thinks for a moment.

"I could use a bit more practice with my reflexes. It could be a handy thing to have if I ever bump into someone on overwatch."

"It isn't my expertise but the key to avoiding enemy fire while moving is to know where you're going so that you can use the quickest route and another thing is to move fast but don't slow yourself down when dodging bullets because the enemy then can get more shots on you..." Zain then feels somewhat hesitant to say what he wants to say but says it in the end ; "Er... Erm... Oh... How well do you know Ayame?" Zain said hesitating.

"Oh, no reason." Zain pauses then continues "Actually I want to get to know some people on base so that I have some friends here." Zain starts to feel comfortable around Persephone.

Persephone gives Zain a somewhat suspicious look.

"Fair enough I suppose." She responds.

"You know I've been doing some thinking since Colin died. I hate the fact that he's dead, but on the other hand I'm still glad to have known him as long as I did. Now I'm almost starting to feel sorry for not knowing Joel or Rex very well. So I suppose I see where you're coming from."

Zain recognizes the strange look and immediately responds with "I know that my reasoning may sound a bit weird but you have to become as close as you can with the people around you because they may be the last people you see. I know that my death can come at any time and when it does, I want to have known some great people along the way." Zain subtly compliments Persephone.

Persephone smiles faintly. "You're probably right. I mean I'm determined to make it out of this war for the sake of the friends I do have, but if I don't make it I'm more then happy to have met them, and I hope my death would provide them the motivation they need to keep moving forward."

Zain starts to look impressed "That's the spirit I wish everyone had but knowing that some people believe in my ideals is quite heartwarming."

"Chances are good that if they don't believe you now they probably will soon, which is both fortunate and unfortunate."

Zain looks to the ground, thinks for a little while then looks at Persephone once again "Well, the world isn't perfect." Zain then looks to the ground, thinks for little while then takes a deep breath and finally says "I heard your conversation with Ayame at the shooting range and I won't tell anyone but do you want to talk about it?" said Zain quickly as if to get it over with as soon as possible but he feels relieved.

Persephone sighs.

"I..." She briefly glances towards Ayame's bunk. "I don't know! It's a bit on the personal and even I don't have all the details figured out yet."

"Oh... It's fine, I just needed to talk to someone about it and let it out because I didn't want to tell someone else and ruin your privacy, but if you ever need to talk to someone about it, I'm always happy to help." Zain felt like she took it a lot better than he was expecting.

"Thanks, but I think I might be able to handle it myself." She says with just a small hint of annoyance in her voice."

Zain senses the tension and says "I think I'll go to gym now, hope that I wasn't too forward." Zain hoped that this would not determine the rest of his relationship with Persephone.

"See you around I guess." Persephone heads back to her bunk and continues writing.

 

[Zain Shah]

From- ZainS@XCOMHQ.net
To- AyameK@XCOMHQ.net

I writing to you as I feel that you should know that I heard your conversation at the shooting range, I have already talked to Persephone and I'm keeping my mouth shut about it because I shouldn't trifle in your personal matters. I am just telling you this because it's only fair that I share my knowledge with you and Persephone.

 

[AaronBryant]

Audio Log 12

"Audio log begin recording" woosh goes aarons bed as he plops down on it. "I had a good day" Aaron begins rolling around " Dr. Faye told me that having a strong group of friends to support me is good for my mental health as well as getting out and about." Aaron lets out a sigh. " I wish every day was like this. Full of laughs intelligent banter and witty quips. I would die for the world to be like that every day and i guess that why im here. My first friend Stevie is a captain my superior officer already and he was just an apple techman go figure right? I know he is gunna do well on the field. Ayame is before me but soon it will be my turn and ill finally get to take the fight to them. I just hope that Ayame and Stevie leave something left for me. Audio Log end."

 

[ZombieSplitter53]

The following is a collaboration between AaronBryant, Jhon Markith, & ZombieSplitter53

PART ONE

X-COM Target Range
1600 Hours

Ayame stands alone at one of the booths. She has a rifle and several clips, seemingly ready for practice. She notices Stevie dragging Aaron into the shooting range. She loads up and starts firing. After the first shot is fired, Stevie notices her. "You seem to be a good shot, can you help me with Aaron. I tell him he can't win with just hand to hand combat."

Ayame looks at the two, saying, "Well, hand to hand is important, but I do agree that a little shooting practice would defiantly be in order, especially with the aliens getting deadlier and using more and more powerful weapons. Plus you could stand to leave the gym, Aaron." She smirks at Stevie. "But don't think I haven't noticed you being a bit antisocial lately as well. Aaron isn't the only one who could use some practice."

"I want to help Aaron get better regardless of my position, and If I can help you, I will," Stevie responds.

Ayame winks at Aaron, saying, "Of course. What did you have in mind?"

"THIS IS LUDICROUS! ALL YOU DO IS POINT AND SHOOT!" Aaron grumbles. "Special forces said guns were a luxury, and that if we couldn't kill a man with our hands, we weren't good enough." Aaron sighs. "But if I have to, I wanna shoot some pistols. We used them more than any other gun for close quarters stealth." Aaron starts piecing the gun together and slides a round in the barrel.

"Trust me, not knowing how to fire a gun properly can cost you." Ayame absentmindedly rubs her left shoulder. "But I agree, handguns should be a priority. However, half of the front-liners use rifles, so perhaps we should practice with those as well." Ayame grabs a rifle and three full clips.

"Thank you, Ayame," Stevie says. "You might be able to talk some since into him. Now where is a sniper rifle, I'm gonna practice my aim as well."

"Well, I'm not the most competitive person...but why don't we make this interesting. Um..." Ayame thinks for a minute, then says, "We could use all three weapons, and see who can hit the most targets...and who is the most precise. What do you think?"

Stevie nods. "I'm up for it. Aaron?"

"Fine! Stupid guns." Aaron grabs the rest of the guns and places them within reach.

"All right, how about we start with pistols." Ayame starts typing on the programing computer. As she does, she asks, "So, what are the stakes? What do you guys have to do when I win?" Ayame grins maniacally.

"Your allegiance to me." Stevie smiles. "Just kidding, though I think it should be something risky."

"Risky?" Ayame nods. "I like risky. Did you have anything in mind?"

"I want to see Stevie in a tutu, and hell, you too, Ayame! Its either that, or find me a bottle of scotch. I have a hankering!" Aaron tests the sights on his pistol. "What would you have me and Stevie do if we lose, Ayame?"

"Weeeeell...there is a really fancy restaurant in Tokyo I wouldn't mind going to. Its always been a bit out of my price range, though...if you catch my drift. And as for you, Stevie?"

"Well, let me think, this is hard for me. Umm...That might be interesting, you two both get wasted, I put you in two random halls and I'll see what happens. No, don't want another alcohol band. In the cafeteria, I'll shout out 'everybody dance now', and you two have to start dancing. That's it."

"That's....creative, but okay." Ayame finishes typing, and turns to the other two. "Alright, I've programed the system for eight stationary targets and seven moving targets, as well as one blue "civilian" target. They'll pop up randomly for three seconds. You get twenty shots to take them out. Body shots are worth one point, head shots are worth three. Hit the blue target and you lose ten points."

She picks up a handgun and a clip and offers them to Aaron, saying, "Aaron, since you're so confident, why don't you go first?"

"It'll be my pleasure, I'll have this thing dancing in no time." Aaron stand in the ready position, closing his eyes, listening to the whirring of the engine moving the targets. He breathes deeply once, twice, three times, His eyes flare open. BANG BANG BANG goes the gun. In its flashing, wondrous light come two bodies and a head shot, to Aaron's giddy delight. 17 shots to go, BANG, 16 left oh no, this one's a miss. BANG BANG two more in the chest. 14 shots BANG BANG no twelve and two more holes in the heads of the targets. A Flurry of shots 10 in total 5 to the chest of target number 4 and 3 to the head of number 1. Number 5 now has a lovely pair of eyes.

Blue pops up, Aaron flinches, the trigger nearly squeezed, but the tension is released. BANG BANG the last two fly hitting two targets straight between the eyes. "HAHA, like I said, dancing." Aaron twirls his gun circa western movie style, and then kisses the barrel. "OW, shit. I'm an idiot, ha." he winces in pain, then thinks. "39 if I'm counting right? The pistola is my favorite weapon. I doubt I'll do so well with the others." He scowls slightly at the assault rifle, as if his lack of practice with the weapon is some how it's fault.

"You're next, Ayame." Stevie says.

Ayame smiles, grabbing her gun and standing ready. But at the sound of the starting buzzer, her smile drops, and she's all business. She lets out a pair of shots at the first two targets, both in the head. Good start Ayame. Little do they know you do this kind of practice every day with twice as many targets. The third target starts moving across the range. Lead it, Ayame. Focus. A second, stationary target pops up, an easy shot. Forget it for now. You'd have to refocus on this one. She takes out her current target, then hits the new one, scoring two more head shots. You were told you go for head shots too much. Two more in the fifth's head. You were told they'd be much harder to hit on living targets. BANG BANG BANG. Three more moving targets down, three more in the face. But don't worry about that right now, this is a competition. Another head shot to target number nine.

That's ten shots. Ayame hits the release and swiftly grabs the second clip, slapping it in before the other hits the ground. She's able to fire the moment the next target pops up. DAMN IT! Blue Target! Ten points down the drain, plus the points for that bullet! Ayame is barely able to score head shots on targets ten and eleven before they drop. Focus, Ayame! Let it go! Target twelve is another mover. Ayame fires two rounds, both head shots, but the second nearly misses. Come on, Ayame! What would Anna or Persephone think if they saw you choking like this? Target thirteen receives a quick pop to the face. That's better, but you have four rounds left and only two more targets. The two targets pop up. And of course they have to both be moving targets that come at the same time! The targets move towards each other. You don't have time to line them both up when they're separated, so bide your time. Then, at the last moment, as the two targets are only a foot apart, BANGBANG BANGBANG. Four final head shots.

Ayame puts down her gun, a furious look on her face as she attempts to contain her anger at herself. She glances at Stevie and Aaron, and at the sight of their worried expressions, she calms down, saying, "I'm sorry, I guess I'm more competitive then I thought. It won't happen again. Um, that's...(Sigh) 47 points. Your turn, Stevie."

Aaron stares at Ayame like a slack jawed idiot. "B-But you just GAHHHHHHHH! I CAN STILL LIFT 350!" Aaron laughs at himself and looks over at Stevie. "Dude, I think I'm going to need to rent a tux. Ayame, how fancy is Fancy." Aaron begins thinking about his fanciest outfit, realizing its dark jeans and a button up.

Ayame crosses her arms and pouts, saying, "I don't think that will matter. I was a actually counting on a perfect score with pistols to win, but I got arrogant."

"OK then, now that it is my turn..." Stevie puts ear buds from an MP3 player in his ears, and puts the second clip by his left wrist, tightening it up. "Lets begin."

 

[ZombieSplitter53]

PART TWO

The buzzer rings, the first target pops up, Stevie hesitates for half a second, then opens his eyes, without missing a beat shoots the head for his first 3 points. Two more pop up and down the second they'd popped up, both head shots, 9 points, 17 bullets. A target pops, Stevie Pulls the trigger, the blue target releases in front of the main target, Stevie sees the pop, "Shit", the bullet just passes by a hair, "Never mind, focus, another head shot." Stevie searches the range and in the corner of his eye a target pops up, Turns aims, the target is moving, makes the head a bowling ball. Stevie whispers "21 points ,13 bullets , 6 moving targets left, and 4 stationary, almost th..." a target pops up, shots "22 points, 12 bullets and 3 Stand stills, focus just a slip." Stevie closes his eyes, whisper "I scratched your name in the side of a..."hears the next target, opens his eyes fires for a head shot, "Bullet." Three targets pop up, he fires another round aims for the next, pulls the trigger, *Click Click* "Shit", he lets down his left hand, extends the left wrist, presses the button letting the current clip fall, puts the tip of the other clip in the handle, tilts the gun to the right a little, slams the gun against his wrist, snapping the clip into place, pulls the trigger twice and both head shots to one target, the other falls with no damage."34 points, 8 bullets." knowing the final five are moving he starts pointing the gun on the other side of were he is looking. Pop, turns his head to were the gun is, pulls the trigger and lets the recoil take the next aim, one body and one head. Two more targets pop up, Stevie aims and hits two body shots and one head."43, 3, I got this I got this." the final three pop up and he fires from left to right. Two head shots and one body, "50 and 0, done."

Stevie turns around and see an impressed look on Ayame's face, and a fucked look on Aaron's. "Well, I like guns." He looks down and looks back up and says "Well, um um, w.. whats next then."

"Assaults, i guess." Aaron says, gently smacking his forehead against the wall " I don't go first." Aaron picks up his rifle and begins fiddling with the sights, grumbling to himself and crouching, adjusting the stock.

Ayame lets out a soft growl as she walks over to the computer, grumbling as she types. "We'll rotate. Next will be me, then Steive, then Aaron." After a minute, she steps away, turning to the others and saying, "This time we'll go for number of kills. We get two 30 round clips and sixty seconds to take out as many targets as we can. Targets are worth two points each, for a maximum of sixty points. Multiple hits do not count, each target is worth two points max. Sound good?"

Stevie nods. "Sure thing."

Aaron sighs once more, his training once again putting him in the opposition. Stealth did not make for quick take downs of multiple targets. He resigned himself to clean it all up with the sniper rifle. "Alright." Aaron slowly realizes that this may be a very expensive or embarrassing week. "Where do we hit for two points? Head shot? And are we allowed to select the burst rate?"

"This one is about kills. We can save accuracy for the sniper rifles. You can hit anywhere, but it'll take two body shots to take down a target, and one head shot. You can fire however you wish." Ayame grabs a rifle and a clip and takes her place in the booth. She steadies her breath, and tries to relax as much as possible.

BUZZZZZ. The target pops up. Ayame lets out a single shot. CRAP! First shot is a miss. She lets off two more shots, both body shots. Two points in three shots. A bad start. Three more targets pop up in a line. Ayame fires three shots. The first target is hit in the chest, the second in the head, and the third shot misses. Gotta compensate for the recoil, Ayame! She hits the third in the head, and fires at the first, but it drops before she can hit it. Eight shots and six points, gotta do better. Four more targets, again in a line. Ayame quickly switches to semi-auto and lets out six shots, using the recoil this time. The first two targets get two body shots each, the third is hit in the head. The fourth is missed. Get it! A quick change back to single fire and the fourth is taken out with a head shot.

Half a clip for twelve points. Not looking good. Three targets pop up one at a time. Finally some singles. She takes them out quickly, the first two with head shots, the third with a pair of body shots. 19-18, catching up. Four pop up, two on either side of the range. Figures. Ayame lets out three shots, taking down two targets. She turns to the other two and scores a head shot on one, let the other one go. 23-24. I could salvage this. BUZZ. SHIT! Thirty second warning! How could I forget about the time. A single target pops up, and receives two in the chest. 25-26. Five in a row. Gotta worry more about points then conserving ammo now. She lets out a burst of five shots. Three targets fall, and the other two go down while she switches clips. 30-32. So much for sixty points. Two more targets on opposite sides. She fires at the first, hitting it four times. Damn it, forgot to switch off of semi. She hits the second with four more shots, then switches to single shot. 38-36. BUZZ. BEEP...BEEP...BEEP...Ten seconds. She switches to full auto, and unloads on four targets that pop up, dropping them all. One last target pops up. She hits it once in the body, but doesn't have a second shot to take it down.

Ayame slowly puts down the rifle, trying to keep calm. She rubs her tired arms, forcing a smile and saying, "44 points. Better then I expected, but I'm sure you guys will beat it easily. I guess I should have made it a maximum of forty points." She steps to the side, motioning for Stevie to step up.

 

[ZombieSplitter53]

PART THREE

"Congrats, Ayame, now its my turn." Stevie walks to the gun, loads it, adjusts the sights and waits for the first target. With three rounds he knocks down the first target. Stevie Switches to single shot, three targets pop up, hits one misses two, "56 bullets 2 points." four targets pull up, one by one they all fall down. 3 more targets pull up, BANGBANG BANG, Stevie looks at the clock, 52 seconds left, two moving targets and one stationary target pop up, Stevie waits for two to line up, fires, "another 2 points" Bang, the third is down, "51 bullets 8 points 47 seconds left" pop, pop, pop, BANGBANG BANG, pop, pop, he listens to the gears turning and grinding, BANGBANG. as seconds pass, Stevie racks up points, 13, 15, 19, 21, 27, 29. Pop, another one pulls up as Stevie reloads, Click, BANG. Pop, pop, pop. BANGBANG BANG, one miss two hits. "27 bullets, 31 points, 23 seconds." Pop, Pop, Pop, Pop, Pop, five more targets, BANGBANG BANG BANGBANG. Four targets pop up, BANGBANG, BANGBANG. "18 bullets, 40 points, almost there. Shit, 9 seconds left," Pop, Pop, Pop, BANGBANG BANG, "2 more to go, 4 seconds" Pop BANG Come on, 1 more" Pop BANG BUZZ.

"Wow, that was close. 60 points for me." Stevie turns around and sees Ayame's face bloody red and Aaron looking down. "I'm going to stand over there."

"Alright, hold up, wait a minute, let me put some oomph in it" Aaron grabs the gun and clips, laying them very specifically in front of him in a row. "I'm about to show you all a little something My favorite C.O. taught me. He wasn't very inventive, but he called it the triple head shot." Aaron picks up the gun switches to three round bursts, and says "HIT IT!" Ayame starts the counter.

One target comes up Aaron does nothing the second pops up he does nothing the third pops up and he moves like lightning. Leaning into the gun to compensate for recoil by using his weight Aaron pulls the trigger once and moves the gun over each target. First bullet hits a head shot Second bullet hits a neck shot and the last bullet gets a body shot. Four through six pop up as well. Unable to clean up the sloppy third shot with out losing the other three Aaron adjusts his stance sweeping with the bullets once more moving more elegantly than his size would relay. All three head shots. He sees switches to single shot and fires in tandem 7, 8 two body shots each 50 shots left 14 points. He slows his breathing and enjoys 9, 10, 11, 12 using the high accuracy of the single shot to his advantage. Four shots soon equal points 46 shots left and 22 points on the board.

He hears the buzzer. Aaron blinks and sees a blur in his mind shooting three shots wildly missing. Focus, dumbass He compensates with three more head shots though looking a slight bit frazzled. 40 shots left 28 points you can not loss this time! Three more targets pop up and he goes for mass over points getting three kills with 6 chest shots. 34 Shots left and 34 points haha coincidence. Targets pop up left and run the gun is now silent in his mind as he simply turns and clicks back and forth elegantly weaving death like strands through netting netting him 5 more kills through the chest and 4 through the head. 20 bullets left 54 points BEEP time up.

"Damn, 20 bullets left and 54 points. I'm mildly impressed with myself!" Aaron holds the Assault rifle in a very chummy manner. "Your not nearly as bad as i remember! So next up is snipers right? Haha that's... well, it was my second most used weapon when i was training. Stealth ops with a silenced 50 cal sniper rifle, it was like you had God's finger." Aaron shivers a bit.

With a worried look, Ayame lets out a nervous chuckle, saying, "W-Well, I guess I've shot myself in the foot here." She shrugs, pretending not to care, and walks over to the sniper section of the range, where two soldiers are practicing. She talks to them, asking them if she can use the range. Their shaking heads and facial expressions show she is unable to convince them to do so. She then says something to them while pointing at Stevie and Aaron. The two give each other a nervous look, wave at Stevie and Aaron with a sympathetic smile, and take their leave. Ayame motions for Aaron and Stevie to join her, and she starts typing on the computer.

"What did you say to them." Stevie asks.

Ayame blushes slightly, saying, "Please don't be mad. I couldn't convince them to give me the range, so I told them...um, that I was beating you, and if they didn't let you try to do better then me with sniper rifles...um, y-you'd be embarrassed over losing to a little girl." She stops typing and looks Stevie in the eyes. "I'm sorry. I know that wouldn't be true, even if I wasn't in last place, but it was the only thing I could think to say to get them to give up the range."

"Ha ha, nice." Aaron slightly giggles to himself.

"That's okay," Stevie says, "at least we get to continue our little game."

 

[ZombieSplitter53]

PART FOUR

Ayame nods, and types for another minute, then turns to the other two. "Alright, final challenge, 7.62 bolt action sniper rifle. Like the other two guns, the maximum number of points will be sixty. We've got five shots in the weapon, plus an additional clip of five. Ten shots for ten targets, three targets at 400 meters, three at 600 meters, and four targets at 800 meters. Each target will pop up one at a time, and you'll have five seconds to hit them . Body shots are worth three points, and head shots are worth six points. With our rotating turns, Stevie is first, then Aaron, then myself." Ayame steps to the side. "When you're ready, Stevie."

"Well lets see, if I use a 7.62 bolt I would not have to worry about too much power, but I would have to worry about the range, I think I could make it work though. I'm good with the current set up."

Stevie picks up a clean and smooth 7.62, grabs two clips and loads it, and walks to the stand, "Ready," Ayame turns on the range and the clock begins. The first of the three in the 400 slot pops up, Stevie aims, takes a deep breath and relaxes, BANG, a head shot, the next pulls up, BANG, body shot, the last pulls up, BANG, "Dammit, I missed!"

The next target in the 600 zone pulls up, BANG, body shot, the next comes up, BANG, another body shot, he reloads and the final pulls up, BANG, head shot. "That's 21 points and 6 shots."

At the 800 mark the first of the four pop up, BNAG, the bullet skids on the ground, the next pulls up, BANG, the bullet skids again, the third pops up, "Aim higher Stevie" BANG, a body shot just below the neck, the final target comes up, BANG, head shot, "That's 30 points."

"Well I have 30 points for that round, your next Aaron, you might have better luck than me."

Clearly at ease he strides over to the sniper and thinks to himself like the most beautiful claymore I wield thee with skill he picks up the sniper and the ammo. He then thinks to himself about his first training mission and how he missed his first shot with a sniper but took the target down when he went to investigate what had made the sand jump. He bows to Ayame " When ever you wish to begin my lady" He turns to the range and sets up in a kneeling position once again putting his weight into the gun and using his other arm to stabilize the rifle by resting it in his elbow crook. The clock began and he softly hummed a nonsensical tune as he enjoyed each shot taking the full five second for each one and knowing to never rush what must be done. The first three almost glide up as if in slow motion Aaron gently puts the cross hairs over each head and fires subsequently all three head head shots land gorgeously. 7 shots left and 18 points, He continues humming as the next three pop up. She lays there on the street body torn mangled the life inside gone twitching she rises now undead brought about by the four legged purple monsters. His first shot is an utter miss he slows his breathing down and refocuses the next one is down with a body shot and the one after follows with a head shot. He begins humming once more 4 shots left 27 points. The last four glide up some where in the back of his mind the buzzer had gone off signaling half time and he ignored it knowing that this delicate art could not be rushed. His targets line up ready to be executed the guns noise is almost drowned out in his unmatched focus BOOooooooom...... BOOOooooooommm...... BOOoooom... BOOOooom...... and four holes appear directly between where the eyes would have been severing the brain and the spinal cord causing instant death had these target been real. Aaron gently stands breaths in deep and says "WOOOOHOOOOO!!!!!!!! AWWWWW YEAAAAH! if my count is correct that's 51" He notices the minor glares he is getting "Okay, I'll shut up now," he mutters with a smile.

Ayame walks up to the booth and lifts the rifle. She looks it up and down for a moment. Hm, very similar to an M24, maybe even a heavily modified Howa M1500. She takes aim, her breathing slowed. She relaxes her thoughts and allows instinct to take over. As the buzzers sounds, she mumbles to herself, "He took his vorpal sword in hand: Long time the manxome foe he sought-" The first targets pop up. Present height, 150cm; target height 172 cm; range 400 meters; velocity 790 m/s; adjusting sights. BANG...BANG...BANG... Three head shots, 18 points. "So rested he by the Tumtum tree, And stood awhile in thought." The next three next targets make their appearance. "And as in uffish thought he stood, The Jabberwock, with eyes of flame," Present height, 150cm; target height 172 cm; range 600 meters; velocity 790 m/s; adjusting sights. BANG...BANG... two head shots. Ayame quickly reloads and cleans up the third with a body shot, 33 points. "Came whiffling through the tulgey wood, And burbled as it came." The next two pop up at the end of the range. "One, two! One, two! and through and through, The vorpal blade went snicker-snack!" Present height, 150cm; target height 172 cm; range 800 meters; velocity 790 m/s; adjusting sights. BANG... body shot. Readjusting sights. BANG... Head shot, 42 points. The final two targets. BANG... another head shot, 48 points. She takes aim at the final target. As she shifts her weight, a sharp pain shoots through her leg. DAMN IT, AXTON! She quickly pushes the pain aside, recalculates her aim and fires. BANG... the last target drops from a head shot. "He left it dead, and with its head, He went galumphing back."

Ayame puts down the rifle, and exhales deeply. She turns towards the others, saying, "That's 54 points. About time I did a decent job." She closes her eyes for moment, then says, "I believe that leaves Stevie with 140 points, Aaron with 144, and myself with 145." She lets out a nervous chuckle, saying, "I guess that makes me the winner, though I hardly think that's fair, considering how close all of our scores are."

Stevie shrugs. "Well, congrats Ayame, I just don't know where I fucked up in this competition. Aaron, prepare to get your check book out, then again, I should be saying that to myself, I did lose in last place."

Ayame nervously scratches her chin. "A-Actually, I have, um, something of a confession to make."

"OH GOD, NOOOO, YOU WANT SOMETHING MORE EXPENSIVE!" Aaron kneels before Ayame. "Hark ye, and slay me now, for I have not the coin with which to provide your worldly wants!!" Aaron looks at Stevie. "Too dramatic?"

Stevie smiles. "I don't think that's what she meant."

Ayame giggles, saying, "No, no, nothing like that. I just failed to mention that the restaurant I wanted to go to...was kinda destroyed a month or so ago during an alien attack."

"Then, wait," Stevie thinks, "well I guess me and Aaron could give you some, SOME of our lunch. Its something right."

"Well, how about you guys owe me a favor that you'll pay me back after the war." Ayame earnestly points her finger at them. "And that means you two can't die, or else you won't be able to pay you r debt."

"And here I was looking forward to getting all fancy," Aaron says, shrugging his shoulders. He sighs. "Fine, I guess, I'll stay alive for your ridiculous favor." Aaron turns to Stevie. "Hey, you ship out soon, yeah? Promise to let me watch your back some time, eh? Until then you'll just have to make do with Ayame." Aaron smiles coyly, then lays his hand flat in between his friends.

Ayame smiles, placing her hand over Aaron's.

"Well, I guess that we are the Three Musketeers." Stevie joins his hand with the others.

"Huzzah! And you know, why not" Aaron says, laughing at Stevie's quip.

Ayame nods. "All for one, and one for all. Just get us three Rapiers, some French lessons, and our own d'Artagnan and we'll be all set."

The three traipse out of the range, quite content and jubilant.

 

[Zain Shah]

I haven't given much basic information on Zain so here is most of his basic info:

Name - Zain Shah
Age- 26
Sex- Male
Rank- Captain
DOB- 20/8/1988
Place of Birth- Rawalpindi, Pakistan
Nationality- British Pakistani
Height- 6'3
Weight- 68kg
Profession- Hunter
Hair Colour- Black
Skin Colour- Slightly tan
Eye Colour- Dark Brown
Marital Status- Single
Siblings- 1
Blood Type- O+
Brief Historical Background:
Born in Pakistan, Zain was born to an upper middle class family however his dad was in the army therefore his family had to move to where his dad's posting was and so he didn't have many friends other than his cousins. When Zain was 7, he and his family moved to the UK so his dad could find a better job but within a few days of being in the UK, Zain had an psychological breakdown due to his claustrophobia and him living in a small apartment but he soon recovered, got good grades and went to college. He studied medicine at college but decided that he would do something he wanted to do before he committed to being a doctor so his hobby of hunting became his job. A year later, XCOM chose Zain as one of their recruits and he joined.

 

[ZombieSplitter53]

(The following was written in collaboration between Zain Shah & ZombieSplitter53)

Project X-COM Base Gym/Physical Fitness Center
1115 Hours

Zain Shah is doing bicep curls with 2 10 kg dumbbells and is struggling immensely. He soon drops the weights and starts doing press-ups "One...Two...Three...ah...Four...Five." Zain drops to the ground and angrily shouts, "F*CK ME, I can't even do my regular routine now." Zain lifts himself back up and leans towards the wall for support.

Ayame walks into the gym and, spotting Zain, quickly approaches him. Upon noticing him leaning, she slows her approach, and with a raised eyebrow, she asks, "Is everything alright, Captain?"

"Uh ... Yeah," said Zain, not noticing it is Ayame and, upon trying to stand up, he immediately crashes onto the floor.

Ayame drops to his side, frantically looking him over. "What happened?! What's wrong, Captain?!"

"Oh, I just woke up really sore." Zain finds the strength to get up and instantly says "Ayame?" He then lowers his voice "Did you get the email?" Zain continues with, "I didn't think you would want to talk about it, because Persephone definitely didn't want to."

Ayame's expression momentarily sours, but quickly returns to a small smile. "Captain?...Zain, can we, um, talk in private?"

Zain understandingly nods. "Where do you want to talk?"

"Over in the locker room. It'll just take a moment." Ayame starts walking over, motioning for Zain to follow her.

Zain grabs his water bottle and thinks about what he is going to say, then takes a deep breath and finally follows Ayame to the locker room. As the two enter, Ayame quickly surveys the room to see if anyone else is there. Satisfied, she turns to Zain, suddenly rushing forward and pressing him against a locker. She is livid, her expression showing nothing but rage. In a demanding voice, she shouts, "How much did you hear?!"

Zain doesn't resist, and instead he says, "I heard enough to know about your drunk night and your, er... sexual preferences." Zain stops, but before Ayame can talk, he immediately starts to talk again. "I'm sorry, I just didn't know what to do when I heard you two." Zain waits for her response.

"Because of that trial and that damn lab tech, half the base probably knows about me, but they don't know about Persephone. I know all about what military organizations think about anyone who isn't straight, especially ones that are so heavily funding by America as this one. Persephone doesn't deserve to be held back and disrespected just because of her preferences, and we both know there are plenty of people that are ignorant enough to make that happen!"

Zain tries to ease Ayame's stress. "Don't worry, I haven't told anyone, and I don't intend to. Believe me, if there was a way of erasing the whole memory from my mind, I would do it, but the only thing you can do is trust me." Zain then quietly says, "I know that trusting me isn't something you want to do, and I don't want to have this secret burdening me, but we have to work together instead of against each other if we want to keep the secret private."

Ayame's expression softens. She steps away from Zain, sitting down, and placing her face in her hands. She speaks softly, saying, "I'm sorry. I just...I...I don't want her to suffer because of my affection. Not again...not like..."

Zain waits for Ayame to finish, but realizing she doesn't want to talk about it, he starts talking. "I'm going to give you some advice; no matter how shitty things get and no matter how much you just want life to end, you have to be believe that after that suffering comes reward." says Zain, recalling a past event. "Maybe your reward will be that Persephone feels the same way, or it might come in some other shape or form." Zain sits down next to Ayame and pats her on the back.

Ayame chuckles weakly, saying, "You're a optimistic guy. I wish I shared that with you. I'm just afraid that Persephone will end up like the last person I was really close to. She...she died...because of me."

"I know its tough to see your loved ones die, especially if you're quite young, in fact, I used to live in fear when I lived in Pakistan, I heard of bomb blasts across the country, and I was just waiting for when a bomb would be the death of my relatives, and that day came when I lost my uncle." Zain wipes a single tear off his face and then says "I don't know how complicated your life has been, but I suspect it has been quite eventful, and while I cannot relate to that, I can help you get through it." Zain realizes that he has started playing a father figure in Ayame's life.

Ayame sighs. "I'm...I'm sorry for my harsh reaction. Especially considering the way I found you. I...I have a bit of a temper."

"Don't worry about it, I would be pretty annoyed as well if someone listened to my private conversation." Zain smiles at her.

Ayame smiles back. After a moment, she asks, "So...what was your uncle like?"

"Actually, he was the one who would take me out hunting and let me shoot at some easy targets, and he was the inspiration behind me becoming a hunter." Zain eyes fill with tears "He was great." Zain struggles with how to describe him after he had been such an inspiration in his life.This time he uses his arm and rubs it across his face, still leaving tears.

Ayame says, in a sympathetic tone, "I'm sorry. I can tell by your reaction how much he meant to you. I feel the same way about my sister." She hesitantly rubs Zain's back. "I envy you. My uncle taught me everything I know about Martial Arts, but he was so hateful, I felt nothing when I...when he was killed."

"So your sister is dead, and your uncle is dead, that's a pretty traumatic childhood. Did your parents help you through it?" asks Zain, surprised at how bad her life had been.

Ayame looks down, biting her quivering lip. "My parents died...the same day as my sister...and my brothers. My uncle adopted me after they died."

Zain starts to put the pieces together. "And after that your uncle died?" Zain feels really bad for Ayame and, learning where her pessimism comes from. "Well, consider me as your family." Zain smiles directly at Ayame, as sign of him waiting for her approval.

Ayame puts on a smile. "Thanks. I appreciate that." She stands, saying, "Well, lets get out of here before anyone gets the wrong idea. We can exercise for a while...if you're up for it." She gives Zain a concerned look.

Zain, seeing an opportunity to bond with Ayame, decides to take her offer. "Sure, but I don't see you as a weight-lifter, so what do you want to do?"

Ayame grins, saying, "I mostly compensate for my, ahem, lack of upper body strength with leg training. You know, if you can't be the strongest, try to be the fastest."

Zain replies with, "Well, I do need to be fast for a support, so how about a 5k run on the treadmill?" Zain has already started stretching.

"Sounds like fun." The two exit, taking their places on the treadmills. When they're finished, they head their separate ways, Zain graciously assuring he'll wait half an hour before hitting the showers to give her a chance to go first.

Zain cautiously waits until Ayame comes out of the showers, then upon entering, notices Ayame's dropped headband. He puts it in his pocket and thinks, 'I'll give it to her next time we meet.'

 

[Dahlexpert]

(The following was written in collaboration between Dhalexpert & Zain Shah

Project X-Com base Shower/gym

Zain is walking back from the showers when he notices a rookie going into the gym. "Hey, you're Axton aren't you?" said Zain curiously.

Axton: Depends on who's asking,who the heck are you

"Well I'm Zain, I'm one of the top ranking supports of XCOM." said Zain arrogantly. "Since you haven't been on a mission, how about some coaching so you're ready when the time comes."

Well,unlike most people on the base I spent most of my time fighting and been in a crap tone of gun fights so i'm already combat ready.But there is some thing you can help me with.

"What do you want help with?" inquired Zain.

Well,I can do all most every class here except for the support class, see i'm good at giving and receiving wounds but I can't treat people in battle so can you teach me to be a combat medic or how to use the smoke gernade effectively.

"Well you came to the right person, they key to using medkits is to use them just for temporary healing and if you use them efficiently, you can triple its use." said Zain to Axton.

Great so use medkits only when some one is near the brink of death got it, now what about smock gernads.

"Well the Commander doesn't use smoke grenades often but the trick I've learnt is to use it defensively when you have lots of aliens and not lots of cover as it can be the difference between life and death." said Zain trying to put as much details as he could.

"Well the Commander doesn't use smoke grenades often but the trick I've learnt is to use it defensively when you have lots of aliens and not lots of cover as it can be the difference between life and death." said Zain trying to put as much details as he could.


You no when you put it like that,I think I would rather be a support that uses smoke gernads instead of using a medkit because like I said i'm no healer like most of the supports here I would rather use smoke gernads in stead of medkits,just to be different.

"Yeah but I'm sure you would have to talk Commander and he doesn't like his soldiers telling him what to do." inquired Zain

Well,if the commander is going to tell me how to do my job the least I can do is tell him what path I want to go down if I become a support or any other class for that matter.


"Already tried and he said that only he is allowed to make decisions." uttered Zain

Relay what did you ask him?

"I asked him to be more aggressive with his supports because none of our supports are as high levelled as the other classes but he disregarded my advice"


Ah I see the problem,see you asked the commander to change his battle tactics what i'm asking for is to be a little different then what he normally does for every class

"Well you can try but I don't think you will see results even if you try to be nice"

OU I'm gonna ask him all right and i'm pretty sure hell listen to me.

Well alright, you see me next time we will find out who was right; see you then (Zain walks away towards his room).

Right see you then Captain(Axton walks in to the gym).

 

[Sharkdragon96]

Name: Persephone
Date: 6/19/15
Current rank: Recruit
Status: Unsure
Mission: Off duty

One of my superiors stopped by my bunk last night asking me if I wanted to do some training with him at some point. I know I shouldn't feel too iffy about the offer especially since he's been doing this with all the inactive recruits but... I don't know, I have some mixed feelings about this particular captain. I'm sure he's not a bad a guy, but the way he just casually brought up that conversation Ayame and I had back at the shooting range just seems... sketchy. Like "Hey I just so happened to be eavesdropping on a really personal conversation between you and your friend, but don't worry. I TOTALLY swear I won't tell anyone WINK WINK NUDGE NUDGE!" I would've had less of a problem if I'd actually known he was even there during that whole talk I had with Ayame. Maybe I'm just overreacting, I mean he doesn't seem like the kind of person who would actually do something like that. However, should our little secret somehow become aware to the other recruits, he's going to have a hell of a lot more to worry about then Mutons and Chryssalids!

 

[Dahlexpert]

From-AxtonVd@X-COMHQ.net
TO-ChristopherO@X-COM.net

Commander I have a request about my self,once I get promoted to one of the four classes I want to go down a different path then most of the soldiers.Let me explain if I get promoted to support I do not want to be a medic,I am not good at healing others i'm good at killing not healing people, so if I become a support Sargent(If I live that long)I want to use smoke bombs because that is something i'm use to.

Now if I become a heavy I want to say this,I am not a rocket manic like Zhang.Even when I was a bounty hunter I barley used rockets so if I become a heave please make me a gunner,and by that I mean make me a heave that uses his gun and not rely on explosive.

Now sniper,i'm not a layed back sniper like Booker is,I like to move around and I know you want your snipers to be like Booker,but i'm not Booker I like to move with my sniper rifle and not stay in one place.

And Assaults,if I become an assault I want to beat down the enemy and all I ask for is you to let me do as much damage to the enemy so if you can make me do that i'm happy.

I no i'm asking for a lot but before you just say no,just think about it.

 

[Teaslurper]

OOC: Sorry about the lack of journals for a couple of weeks, School/ucas stuff got bit hectic for a while. but I should be free enough now so feel free to PM if you want to do any RP.
Name: John Cooper
Rank: Trainee
Status: Anxious

John is currently sitting in the armoury, stripping and cleaning one of the rifles.

"So..Sorry about the lack of updates, It's been a bit hectic with some of us being added to the active rooster, as well as the creation of new armour and the laser rifle being adapted for use in close quarters combat and sniping. However it looks as if the addition to the combat rooster is actually a replacement after Joel and Rex were killed....Shit man. I didn't really know you, but I hope you pleased whatever god you worship. I...no, we will avenge you.....heh, well try to at any rate."

"I gotta say, since two of the replacements are Stevie and Axton, I'm starting to feel impatient. It feels like I'm the only guy in our room that currently isn't doing anything other than waiting...Waiting for others to cop it so I can take their place. And I really don't want want to do that. My roommates have become a second family to replace the one I lost, and I'd rather not loose this one too....Though I suppose I'm just going to have to wait for my turn, I trust that the Commander knows what he is doing."

John gets up and returns the now clean rifle back to its spot on the weapons rack. He then takes another, returning back to his seat and starting the process over again.

" Man I wish the others would clean these things...huh, that reminds me. I watched Ayame's little betting group from here the other day, They're shooting impressively for sure, although I still don't get the aversion of shooting at the center of mass. haha, It's a shame that Stevie had to loose this one, the idea of Ayame and Aaron dancing at the bar would probably have been hilarious. Anyway that's all there is to report for now, so John signing off. bye"

 

[Dahlexpert]

Name: Axton Van Dam
Rank: Rookie
Sex: Male
Age: 26
Place of birth: Alaska
Nationality: Native American
Height: 5 ft 8 in
Weight 200 pounds
Tattoos: One on back,and a sleeve on his left arm
Eye color: heterochromia,(One dark blue, one ice blue)
Status: Can't complain

The camera shows Axton loading most of the guns in his room, and sharpening his knife, Sigh well I met another one of my commanding officers named Zain I think he's our high ranking medic on the base, and unlike my encounter with Zhang he was not fishing for information the hole time he was talking to me, and specking of that wana be solider he's finely out of the med bay and that's just great. Axton roles his eyes of the thought of Zhang ordering him around.

any way. There is a roomer going around well it's been out there for a while and people are saying that Ayame is gay, now I have no problem with her being a lesbian hell most of if not all of the women in my family are bisexual, so I have no problem with her being gay nor do I care, unfortunately some on the base are wondering how a lesbian got on base to begin with, and it is stupid I mean were facing aliens that are ready do destroy the world and your worried about a lesbian in a secret military. Axton rubs his forehead out of frustration. let me move on from this topic before me head explodes.

ou yea and speaking of Ayame I need to give her some thing the next time I go Ayame and Anna room ill give it to her.

End log.

 

[Zain Shah]

Captain Zain Shah
Kills 14
Missions 10
Support

Zain is about to turn on his camera but instead uses his journal for privacy.

Now that I have made a promise to Ayame to not tell anyone about the conversation and I feel unsafe writing it down in my journal, this is the first time anyone on the base has put their trust in me but this is a huge burden and I hope it won't affect my performance. No, I can't risk anything.

Zain scribbles out the words he wrote and thinks "I can't risk anything."

Well I think I might have f*cked up my friendship with Persephone, I might have to talk to her again because she gave me some suspicious looks. I also talked to one of the new rookies, Axton was his name and he wasn't too keen on being a healing support but I did warn him the Commander doesn't usually take advice from his soldiers so we have a bet going to see if the Commander will listen to him. I'm hoping this soreness I'm feeling can be healed with some stretching because this is probably the worst time to start having problems. Seems like the inactive recruits are a lot more sociable than the active ones, it will be interesting to see them go out on missions and while I haven't taught them anything life changing, I hope that my advice helps them on missions.

 

[ZombieSplitter53]

Name: Ayame Kasagi
Rank: Trainee
Sex: Female
Age: 20
Place of Birth: Central China
Nationality: Chinese/Japanese
Height: 150 cm (4 ft, 11in)
Weight: 42 kg (94.5 lbs)
Hair Color: Black
Hair Length: To the small of her back
Eye Color: Heterochromia (One Dark Brown, One Hazel)
Known Relatives: None (All Deceased) [Update: One possible]
Place of Residence before joining X-COM: None

Audio Log [Recorded in English]

"I've decided to start recording these in English," says Ayame, her eyes darting back and forth. "I...I, ahem, decided that, if I should...you know, not make it, I'd hate for my friends to try and watch these and not be able to do so without a translator." She shifts uncomfortably in her seat before continuing. "You know, I have to admit, I'm really starting enjoy Aaron's and Stevie's company. It really makes me feel bad for the way I treated them when we first met. Man, even if you take out me attacking them, and that's a big if, I was so rude, so bitchy, I should be ashamed of myself. Maybe I should tell them how bad I feel about it." She chuckles lightly, adding, "Knowing them, they'll probably say there is nothing to apologize for, but I'll do it anyway. I kinda get the impression they let me win our little game. Of course, after I got that head shot in the end, maybe I deserved the win, heh heh....damn it, Axton."

"They started dissecting those mini flying saucers. Is dissecting the right word? They're robots, right, so wouldn't dismantling be more accurate? Hm...I guess the semantics aren't important. At any rate, I hope they release the findings on them soon. I've always had a fascination with that kind of thing. You know, robotics, artificial intelligence, cybernetics, and so forth."

Ayame nervously looks at Persephone's bed. "I know Zain said I could trust him, and I'm going to try...I mean, it isn't like there is anything I can do about it, so I have no choice, but I can't help but worry. I don't want her to suffer because of me." She slams her fist n the table. "DAMN IT! Why wasn't I more careful?! I professed my love for her, hoping she'd return my feelings, without thinking of what would happen if she did and people find out." Her eyes shift from anger to sadness. "I haven't said anything to Anna or Persephone, but ever since that trial...people have been looking at me. And...they've been saying things. Things they either don't realize I can hear them say...or they don't care. (Sigh) Its High School all over again."

"I...I had an...unusual dream last night. Maybe I should commit it to memory here before I forget it." Ayame sits in silence for a moment, trying to remember it. "I, um...I was in the middle of a destroyed city, after a great battle, probably with the aliens. I saw Joel and Colin, and immediately ran towards them. But as I approached them, they were surrounded by a poisonous mist, and just...I don't know, melted. It was so disturbing, I collapsed in tears."

"When I opened my eyes, everything was white. I heard giggling, and ran towards the sound. After a while, I came across Anna, Persephone, and Elizabeth, and they were...uh, th-they.....they were...ahem..." Ayame's face flushes, turning bright red. She stares daggers at the camera, as though it was accusing her of something, shouting, "SHUT UP! It was just a dream, I can't control it!" She takes a moment to regain her composure before continuing.

"I walked up to the women as they...ahem, and I was about to ask them why they were here, when suddenly, a huge hand appeared around Persephone's throat. It was a Muton, and it lifted her in the air, carrying her away by her neck. As I ran after her, I heard Anna scream, and turned back in time to see a Chryssalid pin her down and vomit into her mouth. Again, I tried to run to her aid, and again, I heard a scream from behind me. It was Elizabeth, but as I turned to help her, I found a Thin Man standing directly in front of me. His face, though, it was...his face. He smirked at me, and I could hear Lizzy screaming behind him. I tried to get past him, but he wouldn't let me, always standing in my way with that wicked smile planted on his face."

"I lifted a sword I hadn't known I had until then, and leapt forward, driving the sword into his chest, and was rewarded with a blast of poison to the face. I coughed and gagged, and frantically rubbed my eyes. As my vision slowly returned, I realized I was in a flower filled field, with a beautiful shimmering lake nearby. I walked up to it and scooped up some water, washing out my eyes. I looked at my reflection, and after a while, I realized there was something wrong with it, something off. I couldn't quite put my finger on it at first, but then it hit me; my reflection was far too young."

"I then realized that I was looking too far to the right, and correcting the direction of my gaze, I found my normal reflection was, indeed, present. So where was the other reflection coming from? I turned to my right, and sure enough, there was a young girl next to me, nearly identical in appearance to me but half my age. 'Excuse me,' I asked, slowly approaching her, 'who are you?"

"'That's a silly question,' she said in Japanese, laughing. She slipped off her shoes and socks, and dipped her feet into the water, shivering at the cold. She casually sloshed her feet back and forth, and looked up at me, asking, 'Do you think I would have been happier if I...I had normal childhood. You know, with a mommy and a daddy, and brothers and sisters and friends?'"

"I followed her example, taking a seat next to her and placing my bare feet into the lake. I told her, 'I'm not sure. I guess I would, but...I'm just not sure.'"

"'Why aren't you sure?' She asked, giving me a curious look. I couldn't find an answer, and after a moment, she laughed again. 'I think I know,' she said. This time, I gave her the curious look. 'Maybe its because you have lots of friends now, and you're afraid you would never have met them if things were different.'"

"'Yeah, you're probably right,' I said with a smile. 'I just wish...what's the expression? To have my cake and eat it too?'"

"'Maybe you can, silly,' she said with another laugh. 'After all, do you really think he would be honest with you.' I thought about this for a minute, but I wasn't sure what she meant. I turned to ask her, but she was gone. I looked for her, only to find her running across the field towards a young woman, taking her hand upon reaching her. As she happily waved goodbye, I tried to make out the woman's face, but it was obscured. I assume it was supposed to my mother, but...I'm not sure. For some reason, I feel it was...supposed to be someone else. Maybe I should talk to Persephone and Anna about it, they might have some insight. I've never been good at interpreting dreams."

Ayame flushes again, adding, "Of course, there are a few things I'll probably leave out", before switching off the camera.

 

[Zain Shah]

Zain and Booker's Room

Booker is not in the room but you can see Zain on his laptop, his eyes widen and his mouth opens at what he sees on the screen. He immediately shuts the lid forcefully and slams it onto his bed. Next, he kicks his bedside table knocking the lamp off but injuring his foot "Motherfu..." Zain lets out a huge growl then procedes to punching the wall, saying something before each punch "FUCK" "MY" "LIFE." He starts to cry and bangs his head on the wall, finally he slides his back down the wall and eventually sits down. He looks at his right hand and notices it's bleeding but just looks at it with an angry look on his face and then feels the back of his head with his left hand then looks at his hand, to his horror, it is covered in blood so he gets up and limps to the infirmary, avoiding anyone from seeing him. When he reaches the infirmary, the doctor has a surprised look on his face "Well, how did this happen? As far as I know, there are no soldiers coming back from missions." Zain then thinks on the spot and simply says "I fell." The doctor shows a suspicious look, "how did you fall?" then Zain's temper gets to him "Can you FUCKING cover these wounds and then I'll tell you everything."

An hour later, Zain comes out with a bandage on his knuckle and stitches in his head. He explained to the doctor that he had missed the punching bag and hit his hand on the wall; the doctor knew he was lying but let him go anyway. On the way to his room, he walks through the cafeteria and everyone suddenly goes silent and all eyes are on him, he ignores everyone and walks to his room. There he turns on his laptop, "I can't believe I could have saved her but I didn't, MY SISTER IS DEAD." Zain cries himself to sleep.

 

[Dahlexpert]

This is a collaboration between Dhalexpert & Zombiesplitter53

Axton seen in front of Ayame and Anna room "Man I come here so much I might have to move here next". Axton knocks on the door.

Ayame opens the door, saying, "Yes, who...oh, Axton, you knocked this time. What can I do for you?"

"Well I kinda wanted to talk to you about well...our friendship".

"Our...friendship...right. Alright, um...would you like to come in?"

"Well I was hoping we can talk in my room."

"Uhhhhh," Ayame nervously thinks, "g-give me a moment." She ducks back into her room, closing the door behind her. A minute later, she steps out, saying, "l-lead the way."

Axton leads Ayame to his room.OK this is my room,.ou and Ayame a word of warning you will see a lot of weapons wanted posters and a few other weapons in here,so please don't tell any one that I have these things in here."

"Um, okay, I guess." Ayame nervously scratches her head. "As long as I don't see anybody's severed limbs, I won't say anything."

Great , Axton opened his door welcome to my home away from home.

Ayame cautiously steps in, quickly surveying the room. And a moment, she turns to Axton, saying, "A-Alright, I'm here. Now what?"

Axton closes his door,"Right I wanted to talk to you about well our friend ship,see ever since we met we been kind of up and down with each other."

"I'll say," Ayame says, shaking her head. "I'm trying to give you a chance, Axton, but so far, you made Anna question her role here, you walked into my room when I was half naked, and you nearly broke my leg. In all fairness, I think I've been pretty patient."

"OK let me explain my self to you, OK I was born in Alaska and unlike you Anna and every one else here I never went to school I was home schooled,well let me say that again I was training to be a killer at a very young age,see when you were a kid you probable ran around swing on swings and made a lot a friends.Me I was training to kill and learn how to take down the human body so my people skills are not the best.

"Now the reason I brought you here is so we can properly no one another,talk about our past and our family and try to be better friends".

Ayame crosses her arms, a sour look on her face. "You shouldn't make assumptions about people. I'll have you know my happy childhood ended when I was seven and I lost my entire family. From then on, it was nothing but Martial Arts training under my abusive uncle. And I had no friends. Everyone hated me because of my mixed blood and...because I was different. I only ever had one true friend, and she died when I was only sixteen. So, again, I'll ask that you don't assume you know me."

"Wait your family died when you were seven,hold on. Axton pills a picture out of his drawer,is this them.

Ayame rolls her eyes, taking the picture from Axton and examining it. She stares at it, her apathetic look turning to confusion. "Where...where did you get this?"

OH OH YOUR.....your that seven year old that did my job,and that I avenged."

"I...I don't...what you mean, did your job. And what do mean, avenged. I don't understand."

OK listen to this, six year ago I went to china for a bounty on a sorry gang that worked for this big time criminal, and when I got to the police department they told me that a seven year old killed the gang,now I didn't believe them until the told me what happen,they said that only two survived the attack the oldest left china,and the seven year old was still in china but she went to school.
Now I wanted to make the seven year old a bounty hunter and then I thought no she seen to much all ready,she does not need to see any more death or me. Axton walks to his dower and pulls out a old bounty now Ayame do you no this guy.

Ayame examines the paper, concentrating. "Its...been so long, but...I think he used to gamble with my father. He was a real asshole, and my mother told my father to stay away from him, but my father said this guy was rich and really bad at gambling, so he was the perfect opponent."

Yea that's him so since your dad beat him he,ordered a hit on your dad and sen't his goons to kill you dad and any one that was a witness am I right.

"And you're saying...you're the one who killed him? Why? Surely it wasn't to avenge some little girl you didn't know."

I didn't kill him I sent him to prison,because I believe if your gonna kill a man that beat you fair and square in poker you deserve to rot,now your wrong I did do the majority of it to avenge that little girl, because I am not your typical bounty hunter I don't care about money,I care about killing evil me and doing some good so yes I did do the majority of what I did to avenge you, because I believe that you did not deserve to lose your family over a stupid poker game.

Ayame sits on Axton's bed, rubbing her temples. "I'm sorry, its a lot to take in." She sits in silence for several minutes, Axton waiting for her to recover. Finally, she chuckles softly, saying, "Its a small world, isn't it. I guess I owe you my gratitude. And thanks for not killing him, I'm sure that must have been hard."

Ou yea you have no idea,he told me what he did tell me what he did,and I wanted to kill him so badly,but even though I didn't kill him he won't be walking any more because in my rage I realized I had two shot gun shells left in my gun and I kinda shot his legs.

"Hm, normally I'd be appalled by such violence, but in this case I don't feel too bad." Ayame looks up at Axton. "Who hired you to go after him and his men? Or is that classified information?"

Some Chinese in the u.s, hired me to take them out she offered me sixty thousands bucks for the job but when I went back to her I told her it was free of charge.

"I see." Ayame raises an eyebrow. "Did you say there were two survivors? So one of the thugs made it, huh? What happened to him? He in jail, too?"

"No one of the victims survived the attack, apparently she was in the barn and waited for the police to come".

Ayame chuckles, saying, "No, you must be mistaken. The only women there besides me were my sister and my mother. I saw...the knife in my mothe'rs...n-neck..." Ayame shakes her head violently before continuing. "And my sister was...she...she was...I saw them r...assaulting her, and she...I didn't...my...my uncle...nonono, m-my uncle would have told me! He was terrible, but he...he wouldn't have..." Ayame trails off, staring blankly at nothing.

Axton walks to Ayame and puts his hand on Ayame shoulder,Axton start to put the pieces to gather and he gentle says to Ayame,Ayame your sister is alive and the reason no one new about it is because the police took her and sent to the u.s,were she hired me to get revenge for what happen.

"I...I don't think I...but...I'm sorry, I...I have to go, I...I..." Ayame mindlessly exits the room, not bothering to close the door behind her as she slowly walks back to her room like a zombie.

Wait Ayame, hold on I no this is a lot to take in but before you leave I have some thing to give you,Axton runs back to his room,and returns to Ayame with a small card.Here this is her number now i'm still in your dept for what you did for me,and this is not repaying it this is just me being a good guy,Axton gives Ayame his clients number.

"Thank you, Axton," Ayame says weakly, taking the card. She tries to force a smile, but is unable to, and takes her leave.

Good luck my little warrior. Axton returns to his room.

 

[ZombieSplitter53]

Project X-COM Medical Log
Chief Medical Officer Richard Picardo
June [X], 2015

Keeping the soldiers healthy is proving to be a more daunting task then previously believed. These plasma burns are extremely difficult to heal. The tissue deterioration is remarkable, much like radiation burns. We've made quite a few advancements over the months, though, and we are now able keep scaring to a minimum. I wonder if the soldiers know how much effort the medical staff puts into keeping them alive and fit for duty.

Of course, the level of self-mutilation says otherwise. First, there was the late Joel Freeman, who I'd swear stuck his hands in a blender. Then came Axton Van Dam, who I swear just casually stabbed himself like he was cutting his hair. And now, we have Captain Zain Shah, CAPTAIN Zain Shah, who looks like he got in a fight with a brick wall and lost. I don't know what to do any more. If I insist that every one of these men be taken out of service, we'd lose one of our best supports, so that isn't an option. What we need is a psyche ward, but I know that isn't in the budget. So short of assigning a morale officer, which is a burden I doubt anyone would willingly take on, I'm at a loss.

If nothing else, at least we are making some advances in medical technology thanks to the aliens (my nosy nurse informs my I need to try and be more optimistic). The technology for our med-packs alone has advanced by decades. It is largely thanks to several of the aliens, especially the sectoids and the thin men, having anatomies that are very similar to humans. By combining our medical knowledge and advancements in nanotechnology, we can stabilize almost any injury received on the field, if only temporarily. As it stands right now, we'll have enough to research for the next century, assuming we survive this war.

As for now, I think I'll send a message to both Van Dam and Captain Shah for a complete check-up. I'd like to have a more complete examination of them. Considering what I've heard of Van Dam's attitude problems, and the Captain's reaction to my questioning of his injuries, I have my work cut out for me. I'll have my migraine medication on hand.