Adventures of Scott and Ezra

Scott looked down at her, and he smiled lightly, trying to make her feel better. "It's going pretty good. We had to go through an obstacle course today. It was...hard," he said with a small sigh, and he looked down at the time. He didn't want to leave her, but time was running. "I'm sorry, baby, but I have to go. I had a thirty minute break, and going back there is going to take a bit," he said. "I love you, Tatum. I'll be home soon, I promise," he said with a small smile.

Tatum nodded as he described the obstacle course. She could only imagine that it wasn't nearly as fun as one may be in gym class. When he said he had to go, she sighed and dropped her gaze to her lap. "All right. I should probably head to bed anyway," she whispered, but she was reluctant to let him go. She missed him so much. "Try to make the most of it, and tell my dad I said I love and miss him," she continued with a weak smile. "I love you too Scott," she whispered before she waved and blew him a kiss before she disconnected.

Scott smiled down at her. She was just so beautiful, and he couldn't seem to figure out how he ended up with her. "I'll make sure to tell him. I'll call back as soon as I can. Hopefully it will be longer," he said, and he blew her one more kiss before he shut down his laptop and rushed to get back outside. He glanced at his watch, and he smiled. He would actually be a minute early. That was a new one. He soon reached the training spot, and he walk over to Tatum's father. "General Hancock, I just finished speaking with your daughter, sir," he said. Hopefully he wouldn't punch him in the face.

General Hancock had been taking a break himself; even though it may look like his job wasn't tedious, it was more work than people understood. He had his water in one hand and the letter that had been sent to him in the other. He looked up when he heard Scott speak and followed the letter instantly. "You did?" he inquired, furrowing his brows as he checked the time. He then stood and crossed his arms over his chest thoughtfully. "How is she?" he asked. He rarely was allowed to speak with his family, and the few letters he had time to send out didn't do much. He missed them.

Scott nodded, and he looked over at him. It sure didn't look like a lot of work, but he knew that he was probably wrong. If it wasn't a lot of work than he would talk to his family all the time. "Yes sir. She told me to tell you that she misses you and she loves you. She can't wait for you to come home," he told him with a small smile, and he bit his lip. "If you have nay free time, you can use my laptop to Skype her. I didn't get to talk long with her, but every minute counts," he said.

General Hancock furrowed his brows as he recounted what his daughter had told him. He slowly nodded and sighed, running a hand through his hair. "I honestly don't know when I will be allowed to go home. I started early than I should have because the war is getting...well it is getting bad. They only asked me to stay behind to train more soldiers because I am one of the best," he stated, shaking his head. He then returned his attention to Scott when he heard his offer. "I might...," he said after a long moment.

Scott nodded as he listened to him, and he smiled softly. "I told her I would talk to her as much as I could and tell her all that I can. I'll be happy to relay any message, or you can talk to her yourself," he said, and he glanced down at the ground. "I, uh, just wanted to let you know, sir," he said before he went back into the line and stood at attention. He felt as if he was starting to bond with him like he was before Toby died. Maybe there was a chance.

General Hancock nodded slowly as he thought that over. Maybe he would if he could. He missed his family more than he could ever describe. He moved to stand in front of the line of soldiers. "Last thing for today, and then you are all homefree. You have practiced shooting targets, but as I have mentioned before, the enemy will not stand still for you so you can shoot them. So, now you need to practice with moving targets."

Scott had to think for a moment when he heard General Hancock. Could he really shoot a moving target? He couldn't even shoot a normal one. He was going to have to just take a deep breath and try his hardest. If he could at least get close to shooting one or maybe even chip the target he would be happy with himself. He would only get better with time anyway. Today was just the first day. It wasn't like they were going to put them in war next week, right?

"On to work, burning daylight!" General Hancock stated and glanced at Scott with a smirk. "That means you to, Cadet Kenway," he stated before he walked off. Keith held the gun with the fake ammo in his hand. "Heh, this shouldn't be too hard," he mumbled under his breath. He had forgotten about playing the part. Caroline was probably screaming at him, telling him he was delirious and needed to focus. But he wasn't pressing the button. The cuff worked both ways. In order to hear her, he had to press the button, and he realized, he didn't want to hear her. If only he could get it off. He lifted the gun and followed the target before pulling the trigger. Bullseye.

Scott couldn't help but smile while General Hancock called him out. "Yes sir!" he said before heading over a grabbing a gun. He got in the station beside Keith, and he gave him an odd look. "This is going to be insanly hard," he said, but he was in shock as he watched him. He almost dropped his gun. "H-how did you do that? Dude, that was awesome!" he said with a laugh. But he paused for a moment. "You either got insanly good in one day or your were lying earlier," he said, and he gave him a look. Why would he lie about being good at shooting?

Keith mentally swore. He had screwed himself up. There was no way he could explain; he couldn't even begin. "Uh, dumb luck?" he suggested, but he knew it was pointless. No luck would make him hit the bullseye full on. So, instead, he shifted the gun and stated, "It's kind of hard to explain." He rubbed the back of his neck and focused on the target once more. "I didn't really want to stand out. Kind of just want to fit in, you know?" he said, and it was partially true. But it wasn't the full truth.

Scott had to admit, he was a little bit fishy about the whole thing, but he needed to learn to trust people more. He walked gave him a small smile, trying to come up with an explanation for everything. "Your father showed you how to do this?" he asked. He aimed his gun, and he fired at the target, but he missed again. "Could you teach me?" he asked him with a smile. Maybe something good will come out of their friendship. He still felt protective over him though.

Keith arched a brow and hesitated, shrugging his shoulders. "Uh...sort of...I kind of mostly...taught myself," he replied. This wasn't a lie either. One of Caroline's henchmen, he believed he was a man named Logan, had taught him a few things. However, Keith had taught himself everything else. He glanced back General Hancock and suddenly wondered if his father had taught him anything. He caught on pretty fast to shooting. "Okay, the key is following the target with your eyes. Don't move your whole body, just your arm. Focus on where you want to hit. The enemy will try to trick you, so always pay attention to their body movement, never their eyes," he explained before he demonstrated by finding a moving target and taking only a moment or two before shooting it. Bullseye.

Scott listened to him the best he could, and he nodded. He was going to need that advice more than he realized. He took a deep breath before following his advice. Once he had a good aim on the target, he followed it before pulling the trigger. He actually hit it. It wasn't a bullseye, but it was better than nothing. He smiled to himself and looked down af Keith. "So I have agility and you have aim," he said. "I think we make a great team." A man soon came to General Hancock, and he pulled him to the side. "You need to get the soldiers ready by next week. The war is getting worse, and if we don't get more men, we are going to lose everything."

Keith chuckled at Scott's comment. He shot at the target once more and chuckled softly. "I guess you are right. I think I would rather be able to run the obstacle course without delay than be able to shoot a target. Shooting doesn't go too far," he commented with a sigh. General Hancock furrowed his brows in confusion as he was pulled aside. When the man spoke, his eyes widened slightly. This was not news he wanted to hear. "How do you expect us to do that? Most of these men are new recruits. We can't just send them out unprepared. That's a death sentence."

Scott looked down at him, and he shook his head slightly. "I think that in an environment like this, shooting his very important," he said, and he aimed for another target, following Keith's instructions. The man sighed, and he took a look at the cadets before turning back to General Hancock. "I'm not sure how you will do it, but it needs to be done. We all have to do things we don't want to do, and this is one of those times. I don't want to, but if we are going to save this country, those boys are going to have to go into battle. Some of them joined to die anyway." He watched the cadets for another moment or two before pointing out Scott. "Keep an eye on that one. I have a feeling he won't make it."

Keith contemplated that and then shrugged his shoulders. "Maybe you are right," he agreed before he pointed his gun at a target and continued to shoot. General Hancock let out a frustrated sigh. It wasn't going to get them far. "Some of them were drafted. Are you telling me to send unwilling men out there unprepared? They expect to return to their families," he muttered, rubbing his forehead. As he pointed out Scott, a frown slipped onto his face. "Why do you say that?"

Scott stopped stopping for a few moments, and he trained his gaze on Keith, analyzing his every move. Maybe if he studied him enough, he would learn a thing or two and make it home in time. His mind than began to drift to Tatum. Oh how he missed her. He wanted her to be in his arms again. The man sighed, and he closed his eyes. "If you look at it that way, yes, that is what I am asking. It's not my orders," he said, and he looked at him as he asked him why he thought that about Scott. "Watch him. He is too absent-minded too often. That alone will get him killed. It won't matter if he can run through the obstacle course the fastest. If he doesn't focus, he is a dead man."

Keith glanced at Scott and sent him a half smile before he turned back to his work. Shooting at the target wasn't so hard. The obstacle course was a different story. Was there even really a way for him to get through it? General Hancock let out a frustrated sigh as he raked a hand through his hair. This was not in his job description. As he talked about Scott, he glanced over at him and furrowed his brows. "All right," he said finally, sighing.

Scott gave him a small smile, and he watched him a little bit more before trying to shoot. He managed to get closer to the bullseye, but it wasn't as close as it wanted it. He sighed, and he ran a hand through his hair. The man sighed, and he put a hand on his shoulder. "Good luck," he said, and he walked off. Soon, training was finished, and Scott yawned before walking over to General Hancock. "Want to see if I can get a hold of Tatum?" he asked. He had no idea about the talk that he just had with the man.

General Hancock frowned slightly when Scott came over and thought over what had been said before he spoke. "No....no, I don't think that is a good idea," he said, sighing. "I think you should refrain from talking to Tatum. You need to be focused on training, because once you are out there in the real battle...you can't be thinking of anyone back home. If there is a time to be selfish, now is that time," he stated, raking a hand through his hair. He knew it sounded harsh, but it was the only way.

Scott gave him an odd look when he first answered, but as he continued, his eyes widened. "No!" he said at first, but then he paused for a moment. "I can't just not talk to her," he said. He promised that he would talk to her every day. "I need to talk to her," he said, and he sighed to himself. He knew that he should have focused, and on the battle field, it wouldn't end well, but he couldn't not talk to Tatum. "She needs me!"

General Hancock let out a long, frustrated sigh as he raked a hand through his hair once more. "Well, if she needs you, she needs you alive. And if you are thinking about her the whole time you are training and out on the battlefield, you won't be able to make it back to her. You need to be focused," he muttered, fixing him with a hard look. "You have to understand that."

Scott gave him a hard look, and he narrowed his eyes. He listened to him, and he closed his eyes. "Fine, okay. I won't talk to her as much, but I am not going to completely block her out. She'll go insane without talking to me," he said, and he looked up at him. He bit his lip, and he sighed to himself. "I'll go insane without talking to her," he said. He knew that Tatum needed to talk to him, but he knew even more that he needed he her more than he could imagine. Without talking to her, he would go insane.