Little Bit Of Disregard [Rina!]

[Tally]

They would be looking for him by now.

Col continued on toward the rec room and didn't deviate from his course, even as that knowledge occurred to him. He was skipping drills...again.  And they'd warned him that there would be consequences if he did it again, but he was so sick of them screaming in his face or trying to give him extra work and thinking these things were intimidating at all.  The yelling wouldn't quiet him into submission and he skipped the extra work as often as he did the drills.  If they wanted him there they'd have to drag him bodily.

It wasn't even that he didn't like the drills, either.  He just chafed at being told when and where he had to be.  And that sergeant running the drills.  It was a woman, and she was small even then.  He felt like he could have broken her in half.  How was he supposed to take someone like that seriously.

The rec room was nearly empty when he got there.  Most of the candidates were where they were supposed to be, at drills or classes.

[Anonymous]

Well well.

Looks like Roman gave him another little treat. He was gonna piss in that bastards coffee next time he saw him. He always like to give him the trouble makers. Good old Bart. He would deal with them.

Dickhead.

And his new candidate was an interesting little case. Brought up from Midhaven. That couldn't be easy, culture shock was an understatement. But that didn't mean he got to skip drills or refuse to follow orders.

Tracking the kid down wasn't hard, thanks to all the lovely security measures around the complex and Bart entered the rec room, lounging against the door and watched Col, "Well, well...looks like we got a runner. So Savage, ya got a little bit of explainin' ta do. Yer supposed to be in a drill right now."

[Tally]

Col looked up at the sound of a voice, then back at the TV.  So they'd finally decided to send a Pilot after him instead of one of the lower officers.  He knew someone would come. He hadn't bothered trying to be evasive or stealthy—no point to it in this place.

"Yeah," he agreed.  He was supposed to be at drills. Gold star, way to state the obvious.  He was also supposed to be saluting, but he didn't do that either. He was instead reclining on one of the couches, remote in one hand, the other arm folded behind his head as a pillow.

[Anonymous]

"Welp, we're gonna need ta have a little talk here." Bart gestured for the few candidates in the room to leave. Heading over to Col, Bart reached over and snagged the remote, clicking the TV off, "Now, that's just rude darlin'. I'm tryin' ta chat and yer watchin' TV."

Taking a seat, Bart stretched out his legs and watched Col, "'M Pilot Hamilton. Gonna be your mentor and I think we should be talkin' about the problems yer havin' here. Why skip drills? And I should be callin' ya on yer lack of respect for an officer. 'M curious for your reason."

[Tally]

Col tensed when the Pilot dismissed the others from the room.  He knew what came next, was prepared for it whenever he flaunted his insubordination to their faces.  He watched the Pilot with the same expectation he'd give a chasm viper with it's stripes lit—knowing it would strike, just not knowing when.

But the attack he expected never came.  This one acted like he wanted to talk. That was new.  It could also just be a petty trick. The attack might come later.

"I didn't feel like going," he said, sitting up.  "And I don't have any respect for you."  Why should he?  He didn't know this guy.  He hadn't earned any respect so far as he considered it.  "But ww...wwhy ask?  Can't you find all the reasons yourself?"

It was something he'd wondered about ever since he got here. The Pilots asked you questions like they couldn't pull the answers right out of your head.  Didn't make any sense to him.

[Anonymous]

Bart lit a cigarette, inhaling the smoke while he mulled over what he wanted to say. Wouldn't do to break this one, not this early and Bart felt it was a sign of failure if they had to be broken. There were better ways than brute force.

"Well, I'm a Royal. Now, that might not mean much ta ya yet, but it will. I didn't get ta that rank sittin' on my ass." He watched the kid, studying him, "Why don't ya wanna go? Ya gotta go if ya wanna pass."

Taking another long drag, Bart grinned, "I could read yer thoughts, sure. But, well, we're havin' a nice chat and I don't have a reason tah invade that privacy. Don't like ta honestly."

[Tally]

Nice chat.  What bullshit.  The Pilot was playing him, like they all did.  He didn't trust a one of them to have a genuine emotion or concern.  They were like cogs in this machine in which he found himself.

"Yeah well, ww...what if I don't want to pass?"  Sometimes he thought June had the right idea.  Piss them off enough to get trimmed. At least then you made a decision about your own future.

[Anonymous]

"Well, then ya wont pass and you'll end up in a real bad place." Bart looked a little sad at that, "I would hate ta see that happen. TRIM is a bad place kid, they don't see ya as a person there, ya ain't a person there anymore, just something to experiment on. 'Sides, why don't ya wanna pass? How about we figure that out."

[Anonymous]

Dropped due to lack of a reply