Utterly Mad

Timeline: Roughly 2 years before the cataclysm.
Characters involved: Hector, Nathaniel.

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Hector looked the papers over, giving a little sigh as he shook his head, before glancing back at Nathaniel. "So why are these guys making this offer, anyway?" he asked.

"Hell if I know. All I know is it's probably the easiest I'm gonna have it at this rate." Nathaniel remarked, and Hector gave an irritated glance at his friend. "Are you sure this is a good idea though? What if they're, you know..."

Nathaniel knew exactly what Hector as referring to, remembering how others had been wary, whispering in hushed tones behind the sergeant's back after the visit of that strange man, the man who pulled a few of the others from their unit aside to make an offer to them. Strange fellow in a uniform that looked half Army, half Marines, with unit patches neither of them could quite recognize.

They did recall one image, one distant image of men in similar outfits, in intermittent reports of small-town relief efforts, claims of water treatment plant failures and other small-scale disasters. And the uniform now sparked hushed questions and whispers among most of the others.

"I know Hector. There has to be a reason for all this shit though." Nathaniel pointed out, and Hector regarded the papers with a critical eye. "Why, though? Is it really because training will be more lax? Of all the idio-"

"Hector, I'm barely keeping up as it is." Nathaniel remarked, and Hector just glared at Nathaniel for the interruption. "You're keeping up a lot better though. Not all rail-thin like a year ago. Just takes time." he remarked. He knew why Nathaniel seemed so willing to join this strange unit. The recruiter, or whatever the hell he was, seemed to explicitly hint at how much easier it'd be, among other things. As if he knew exactly what to say to goad and bait Nathaniel into considering the offer.

"Hector, it's not about that either though. Think about what could happen, or what they're doing if half the rumors are true. Stranger shit aside, it seems like their main thing is disaster relief. We could be putting our training to good use here."

"Nathaniel, this is an armored unit. What the hell sort of disaster relief needs to go out and pester tank crews to get recruits?" he pointed out. Despite his concerns, he was on the fence. He wasn't really sure how much was true, and Nathaniel's idea did get him thinking. He ended up more or less dragging Nathaniel into this unit because he himself was well-suited to his new role in a tank, suiting his mechanical interests and what he already knew. If things had gone differently he might've ended up in a CEV instead, in a different unit entirely.

"I know. There's got to be a good reason though. Either way, I don't know if I can pass up on this offer. You with me?" Hector considered things for a moment, staring down at the form the strange officer had passed out copies of. He'd pretty much dragged Nathaniel into this, after all.

That day, he gave his answer. Little did he know that, a whole world away, things would play out differently. Similar thoughts were running through that Hector's mind, similar discussion took place. Similar strange questions and rumors were mulled over. But the greatest difference that day was the answer.

"Maybe I...there is a reason, yeah. And I can't just leave you when I dragged you into this mess to begin with."

"Nate, I can't. Not without knowing for sure if it's the right choice."