As Frost and Indie were leaving the lounge, they stumbled upon their teammates at the end of the hallway, right at the corner of the staircase to the commander’s office. They were waiting there, pretending to chat while keeping an eye out for Frost and Indie, though it was clear from their expressions that they were still eavesdropping. Indie didn’t say anything and continued heading to the staircase with Frost, but as they passed through their teammates, their composed attitudes sparked some curiosity in their squad.

–So, you two good? Did you make out-... I mean make up??– Panda asked hesitantly, turning nervous as he couldn’t tell what had happened. With the little he got to hear, he was the weariest to address Indie, and as he began stammering, his teammates cracked a laugh, relieving some of his worries as the environment turned lighthearted.

–We’ll have a brief meeting with Snake. Wait for us outside…– Indie replied briefly, without looking back at Panda or anyone else, as she walked up the stairs to the office. Frost followed behind, though he did give his teammates a quick, critical glance that put them on edge. But as they were already walking away, the squad could only gossip behind their backs while they waited for their meeting to conclude.

–Notice how they went quiet for a moment? I think she might have done something to… calm him down…– Nitro whimsically whispered at his teammates before Indie and Frost walked out of view. His joke got another laugh out of everyone, except Candy, but it did spark some doubt in their minds, prompting them to theorize all sorts of scenarios that could have taken place in the argument at the lounge, which appeared to lean more into the indecent side.

–Yea, probably…– Panda replied thoughtfully before coming up with some speculations of his own. With everyone listening carefully as well as contributing some ideas and assumptions, Frost and Indie were able to focus solely on their meeting with Snake, even though they could still hear them sharing conspiracies before reaching the office door. They met with the two usual guards, who let them in after a quick check inside, and without hesitation, Indie walked in, though Frost didn’t seem too confident when he followed her, staying quiet to let her have the word.

–Good morning, sir…– Indie greeted Snake in her usual polite but solemn demeanor. The commander was caught in the middle of talking with his assistant, but as always, he brushed her aside as Frost and Indie diverted his attention when they walked into his office. He turned around, surprised to see them come in but still inviting them to take a seat, although they refused to do so, which began prompting some questions.

–Good morning, why are you two here? Did someone die?– Snake asked skeptically, giving both of them a good look to assess the situation. But as Indie made sure to ease his worries with a negative gesture, he sat on the edge of his seat and leaned in to listen closely.

–Not quite. We were actually under attack by a group of enemies during a training game outside the forest…– Indie responded in a firm but self-assured tone that caught Snake off guard, even worrying Frost for a second after hearing her admit what had happened so casually.

–Oh, really? Should we be worried?– Snake asked in a mix of concern and curiosity, seeing as Indie and Frost showed different reactions. Frost almost panicked, trying to step in to come up with an excuse or response to downplay the situation, but Indie remained composed, convincing Snake not to overreact with her carefree demeanor.

–No, Frost already took care of them as soon as they arrived, but they got here in a carriage…– Indie replied nonchalantly, drawing Snake’s attention to Frost, who awkwardly looked back at her, only to then glance at his commander and give him a forced smirk as he took a moment to think.

–That’s quite strange… What were they doing here?– Snake asked thoughtfully, but this time, he was only addressing Frost, which caused him to stutter for a second before coming up with an improvised answer.

–Umm, I believe they wanted to gather some materials from the woods to take back to their base…– Frost replied with a flimsy tone, trying to imitate Indie’s, but since he wasn’t as assured as her, his voice didn’t come off as convincing. Although, after some consideration on Snake’s part, Frost’s response still managed to intrigue him enough to look past his uncharacteristic attitude.

–They have a base nearby?– Snake asked curiously, prompting Frost to hesitate again to respond. But before he could come up with an answer, Indie interjected to respond for him, taking charge again as she took one step forward, standing in front of Frost to give him a chance to recompose himself.

–Yes, that’s what we presume. Frost has been staking out the training grounds and the forest at night to see if there are enemies nearby. And from what I’ve gathered, I believe he has located some of them, right?– Indie replied with certainty, her tenacious expression enthralling Snake so much that he didn’t even put thought into the implications of their information. But as she turned to Frost for him to confirm her claim, he quickly realized Snake was credulously listening to everything they had to say, so he picked up on Indie’s plan and played along.

–Yes, I managed to catch a glimpse of some of them, but I never actually confronted any of them in case they could bring any backup– Frost added, now sounding more confident as he stepped forward, though he still chose his words carefully to back up Indie’s deception. But even though his deliberately constructed response managed to sound cohesive, it still wasn’t enough to keep Snake from getting suspicious.

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–Wait, what were you doing at night on the training grounds? Why didn’t you tell us before?– Snake asked with mild concern, giving Frost a stare similar to Indie’s when she scolded him. Now that he was asking real questions, Frost’s bluff began crumbling, turning remorseful for a second as he formulated another thought-out response. But as he kept his composure fairly well, he played into his apprehension to be more straightforward.

–Because I believed there wasn’t enough evidence to worry about, it took me a long time to gather enough important intel on these guys, and for that, I apologize. But now that they have reached our base, I believe we must track them down to locate their base and find out why they are collecting materials around the area– Frost responded earnestly, sounding adamant but forthright enough as he gave Snake a sincere look. In response, he had to consider his response for a good second, long enough to make Indie wince. But as Frost didn’t yield to Snake’s highly skeptical gaze, after withstanding some intent staring, Snake loosened up and laid back on his chair.

–Alright, so what are you proposing?– Snake asked eagerly, being flexible as he allowed Frost and Indie to think of ideas. But now that Frost was able to cover up his mistakes, it was time for Indie to take the lead once again and propose a plan.

–We are asking for permission to scout the area and follow these scavengers to their base. In case we find one, we will take them down and return with information that might prove useful to secure the area in the region– Indie replied assertively, remaining polite to charm Snake into considering her suggestion, though as much as he thought about it, it looked like he wasn’t completely keen on her suggestion.

–I don’t know, it sounds too risky to go out there without knowing who is waiting. How could you be so sure that they have a base out there, and better yet, how do you know it isn’t a trap from the enemies?– Snake asked with increasing doubt, remaining somewhat open-minded but staying realistic, which discouraged Frost from continuing with the plan. But as he stared nervously at Indie, waiting for her to come up with the perfect response, he was relieved to see that it took her no more than a second to think of something.

–Frost has found a pattern and has pinpointed their location. They aren’t exact, but I trust his instincts– Indie replied persuasively, even becoming doubtful herself, but it only made her response more authentic. Snake had to analyze her attitude critically, but as she was talking candidly and even gave Frost a trustful glance that seemed to embarrass him slightly, he began to consider it more and more. And just when Snake had stayed silent for too long, prompting Frost to almost question the plan, they had arrived at a definitive decision.

–Alright then, I grant your request. If you do find a base, you need to inform us immediately, just in case there are more enemies in the area and all that…– Snake declared in a carefree manner, immediately turning back to Viper after clearing all of his doubts. As soon as he turned his back to them, Frost and Indie looked at each other with contained amusement, but after giving him a confident wink, Indie turned back to Snake to accept the order.

–Of course, Crisis will take care of it, and we’ll ask for backup in case things get heavy– Indie responded gratefully, even bowing down for Snake with a genuine smile. But since he didn’t seem to care about what they had to say anymore, he proceeded to dismiss them with a gesture.

–Okay, you are dismissed…– Snake said uninterestedly as he got distracted chatting with Viper, leading Frost, and Indie to walk out of the office just like they came in, without saying a single word until they were far away from the guards. Once they were out, they walked to the base of the stairs, and when they were out of the guards’ sight, they circled the second floor and stopped to talk on the balcony overlooking the main entrance of the base, opposite to the hallway where their squad was waiting.

–See, I told you I could make it work…– Indie bragged in a smug and upbeat manner before looking over the base with a small, proud smile on her face. Frost stared at her for a moment, seemingly in disbelief, as he kept processing the fact that they had convinced Snake to give them a mission. But after a brief chuckle, he also turned to watch over the entrance yard, where some of the students from the game were chatting their way over to the barracks and jobs.

–Wow, that was actually impressive. I should ask for your help more often…– Frost said sarcastically, though sounding genuinely grateful, even when he tried to hide it, which got Indie to scoff at him before they both turned to face each other.

–Yea, but now we are relying on your intel. You better have something to lead us because I based this whole mission around your theory, and the commander will kill both of us if we return empty-handed…– Indie replied more seriously, giving him the usual stern and demanding stare that he had seen plenty of times today.

–Oh, trust me, I got loads of leads…– Frost scoffed with as much confidence as she had before, laughing her threat off before looking away, which caused her to worry for a second, though his concise response did seem to finally settle everything.

–Good, I’m going to gather everyone and brief them then…– Indie said with a brief nod, turning away right as his expression took a sudden shift back to its previous uptight state. Satisfied with his answer, Indie walked away, heading back to the team, leaving him alone to think on the balcony for a moment. But after a few seconds, he looked back to wait for her to leave his sight, and once he made sure she wasn’t coming back, he ran back up the stairs to Snake’s office, catching him and the guards by surprise as he just barged in the room.

–What? Why are you back here?– Snake asked in shock and irritation after being interrupted, pushing Viper away from him as she was about to kneel in front of him next to his desk. They suddenly looked away awkwardly and tried to regain their composure. And after receiving some suspicious looks from Frost and the guards that tried to stop him from coming, Snake turned his full attention as Frost walked right up to his desk with determination.

–Sir, I have one last request to make…– Frost answered with a resolved tone that sparked some interest in Snake, who started listening closely to whatever he was going to demand, which was both brief and unexpected. And with one last request, Frost left the office in a hurry, seemingly heading downstairs to gather with his team, though it took him longer to prepare for their mission.

| I WAS SLEEP LIKE A CHILD

I WALKED THE IDIOT MILE |