Lt. JG Natasha Cole - The Last Target Isn’t the Point
Natasha Schell
((Security Training Facilities - Security Center - USS Artemis-A))
Natasha watched as Gavrin stepped forward with a wry grin tucking himself against a recess. He had taken a peek from his cover and after another beat moved into the corridor and immediately was tagged by a target he’d missed.
She didn’t flinch at the hit. She would rather Gavrin learn what rushing cost him, under holodeck safeties, than in a real corridor where mistakes would be far less kind. Every instinct in her wanted to step in and clean the corridor for him. She ignored it.
Natasha shifted to the side of the corridor and raised two fingers in Gavrin’s line of sight, a silent reminder of how many hits he had left.
Tarsan: Damnit!
Cole: First lesson: the corridor doesn’t care if you’re ready. Breathe. Then check it again.
She nodded back to Gavrin as he glanced and saw the target. His first shot splashed against the cover, but the two that followed connected. That made her smile, as did the way he hugged the wall before diving, narrowly avoiding being hit a second time.
That was better. Not elegant, not clean, but better and that is what mattered the most. He was starting to adapt instead of just reacting. She breathed a sigh of relief.
Tarsan: Forgot-- holodecks aren't all that padded…
Natasha knelt beside the cover line, one forearm resting lightly on her knee as she angled herself so he could still see the corridor.
Cole: No, they are not. Stay low. ::gesturing towards the cover:: Since you’re already down here, use the cover.
Tarsan: Yeaaah I definitely don't want to get up anymore
Cole: While you’re tracking your first target, remember this: if one of them is trying to get you to chase them, assume another is waiting for exactly that.
She pointed first toward the target’s last position, then to the opposite recess farther down the corridor.
Tarsan: Right. Drawing me out.
Cole: ::getting to her feet, letting the silence sit just long enough for the lesson to land:: Again. Slow is smooth, smooth is survival. I care more about you surviving this corridor than looking impressive in it.
Tarsan: One on three doesn't seem all that fair...
That was part of the point. Out in the field, things were rarely balanced. It was one of the reasons she had chosen this exercise. She had run it herself more than once, with a few uglier variables.
As Gavrin pressed himself against the crate, Natasha followed his line of sight. He timed the movement better this time, leaned out just enough, and fired. The shot landed cleanly. One of the targets flickered out of existence.
Cole: ::smiling proudly:: Nice shot. Better angle, better timing. Keep that.
Tarsan: One down - two to go.
She gave him a small nod, but the motion barely finished before she saw him glance around the edge of the crate again. That was all the second hostile needed. A burst of simulated fire clipped his shoulder.
Natasha held up one finger.
Cole: Don’t get distracted, learn from it.
Tarsan: Right. Don't do the same thing twice?
Watching someone adjust in real time was telling. Instead of peering around the same side again, Gavrin shifted, popped up over the top of his cover, and fired a quick three-shot burst. All three landed. The second hostile flickered out of existence.
That drew a genuine smile from Natasha. Not because the shot was pretty, but because it was smarter than the last one.
Cole: There you go. The corridor rewards problem-solvers, not just good shots.
Tarsan: Okay, one left. But... where?
Natasha’s eyes moved once down the corridor, tracing sightlines, shadowed recesses, and the spaces between cover.
Cole: If you were the last hostile in the area, would you sit still and wait to be shot?
Tarsan: response
Cole: Good. Then stop looking for where it was, and start thinking about where it wants you to look.
Tarsan: response
Cole: No, but it is useful.
She folded her arms loosely, letting the silence stretch just enough for him to listen to the corridor in front of him and behind him, instead of just stare at it.
Cole: The last target isn’t testing your aim. It’s testing whether impatience can talk you into doing something stupid.
Tarsan: response
Tags/TBC
----- ◌● -----Lt. JG Natasha Cole
Security Officer
USS Artemis-A
A240205NC4