008 [ video / action for mahogany ]

[imthe_shit]

[ Hello, Mahogany. Snake is feeling better than he has in weeks, truth be told. Plus, it was a sunny day and it was pretty damn hot out, too. He couldn't really ask for more, but the sun agitated him a bit so he was just gonna catch some of the shade under this box.

Yeah.

So anyone catching this video is going to notice that it's quite dark and pretty close to old-man-face. ]

... Hn. Kind of nostalgic. [ Smirk. ] This is Snake. Getting out some practice again... Haven't really had the time or the need to do any stealth training. I've got all the experience I need, but it never hurts to dust off the old skills.

[ Suddenly, everything shakes. Snake looks alarmed, and there's a muffled crooning sound from outside... wherever Snake is. ]

...

[ The crooning becomes louder and the shaking intensifies until suddenly VOOP! There's bright sunlight, Snake lets out a growled cry as everything is flipped upside down and he lands on his back-- and there's a giant Onix face stuffing itself into the camera feed. ]

Dammit, Solid--... S2! I told you, not while I'm in the box!

[ ... oh. "S2" doesn't appear to hear Snake at all, instead nuzzling the camera, and then suddenly it moves to the old soldier, and by the sounds of Snake's grunting, nuzzles were had by him, too. ]

Comments

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[strongestoftheturks]

[What do we have here? Rude raises an eyebrow at the ending of the feed, but the words 'stealth' and 'training' caught his attention immediately.]

You a soldier?

[imthe_shit]

[ This text is returned about ten minutes after it was received. ]

Yeah.

[strongestoftheturks]

[Give him a moment to figure out how to phrase this in non-Midgar terms.]

Specialized tactics?

[imthe_shit]

Special operations forces. [ Well, he wasn't with FOXHOUND anymore, but he did keep the know-how. ]

[strongestoftheturks]

You see the front-line much?

[imthe_shit]

Not so much the front. More like the back alley, and then some. [ Dohohoho. ]

[strongestoftheturks]

Active or retired?

[imthe_shit]

Both.

[strongestoftheturks]

Can't stop, or won't stop?

[The answer will always be the latter for him. Though technically the Turks have always been iffy on their retirement policy (nobody ever asked, mostly because they tend to die before the retirement age).]

video;

[bertall]

Training...? Like a soldier?

_{[Man just how many soldiers are there in Route? Maybe he should start keeping track of this.]}

[imthe_shit]

[ Grunts a bit, rubbing the back of his neck. ]

Yeah... Like that.

[bertall]

What kind of military has soldiers use boxes?

_{[Other worlds are weird.]}

[imthe_shit]

[ Hey. Hey. ]

A cardboard box could save your life. Don't underestimate it.

[bertall]

How?

[imthe_shit]

[ HERE WE GO Snake stares into the video feed, leaning against the Onix who has settled beside him. ]

A cardboard box can be used for more than just carrying or storing things... It can also be used to sneak around in. Finding a box that can cover you entirely is a very effective way of staying out of site... Most people won't suspect a cardboard box, and why would they? [ He gives a smirk. ]

I can't count the number of times a cardboard box got me out of a tight spot.

[bertall]

People, sure... B-But what about things that aren't um... Things that aren't human?

_{[Because he can see how it'd work against normal people, but against titans... That could be either genius, stupid, or both.]}

And what you can't fit in a normal one? Wouldn't they suspect a big one just sitting around?

[imthe_shit]

[ Shakes his head. ]

Well, dogs can identify you by scent, so a cardboard box isn't going to mean anything to them. Animals are out of the question by default... And anyway, you're not going to use a box that's too small because then it can't hide your body completely. Using a box out in the wilderness is asking to get you caught, but in an urban environment? It's perfect.

[Video]

[gardentrainer]

What were you doing inside a box? Is that part of the stealth training? [She looks a little confused.]

[Video]

[imthe_shit]

[ Grunts, rubbing his back. ]

A cardboard box is one of the most useful tools in stealth training.

[Video]

[gardentrainer]

Whenever my dog jumped into one, it didn't seem all that stealthy.

Do you just pretend you're a box or something? Like in cartoons?

[Video]

[imthe_shit]

Well, most people don't suspect a box... Especially on the battlefield. It can be useful for sneaking around undetected.

It's not really good for cover when you're being shot at, though, so don't try that. [ IT WAS CURIOSITY I SWEAR ]

[Video]

[gardentrainer]

I guess that makes sense! But wouldn't you notice a box moving though?

I don't think I would have done so, anyways. How would I retaliate if I'm in a box? Not that I would want to shoot someone unless I had to!

[Video]

[imthe_shit]

The point is to not be noticed. If someone sees you moving around in a box, then you might as well be running around with a flag that says "shoot me".

[Video]

[gardentrainer]

So people just don't notice a box that might be there when it wasn't before?

How do you carry it around with you?

[Video]

[imthe_shit]

In my inventory.

[ A beat. ]

Just like how you might carry a bike around here.