Growing Up Rainbow

Lessons At Obstacles

"Hey, Space Cadet Orange, if you were going to infiltrate the Wild Women, how would you do it?" asked Awana. She, Annabelle and the other members of the Obstacles were sitting around the grandstand eating truly awful rations. The two pre-rainbows had been trying to get the Cadets to talk about what it was like to be a Space Girl, but the others claimed all ignorance on the subject. Therefore the two of them had started to compete on who could get them to talk the most. One thing they'd learned was the Cadets almost instinctively answered scenario questions.

"Space Girls are strictly forbidden from any contact with the Wild," answered Orange.

"Really? Why?" said Annabelle.

"They think we are spies," said Purple. "Space Girls, not cadets in particular."

They think you are a lot worse than that, thought Awana. She'd actually hoped to get something like this answer from the question. To find out if they would admit to the Wild's claims.

"Oh, so you gals - who always follow the rules - can't infiltrate the Wild," prompted Awana.

"Yeah, you're incapable of it," added Annabelle.

Orange rolled her eyes and said, "I see what you are trying to do there, A-bell. Won't work."

"Need to learn subtly," said Yellow.

This brought a laugh from everyone, "Like you, Yellow?"

"No," answered Yellow, who was proud of her propensity to break things, "like Orange."

"Come on, Orange," said Awana. "I'm not asking how to actually do it. Or asking you to actually do it. It's all hypothetical."

Orange narrowed her eyes at the two young ones, but shrugged and said, "Fine, as a hypothetical. There are multiple ways to do an infiltration. What works best depends on the mission objectives. The key in general is to not be noticed, and there are two main ways to do that.

"First is not to be seen," Orange got a far away look, "The Wild Women live in their own forest in the middle of Capital. So you could just try to sneak into the forest at the border."

"But that's probably guarded," said Red. "They have a lot of ex-Warriors and are very touchy about their borders."

"True," said Orange. "Plus you'd have to be a great sneak. Which I might be, but A&A aren't."

Awana had gotten good at noticing when Annabelle was starting to bristle. That comment had raised her hackles. Before she could take things off track, Awana said, "So, what's the other way?"

"To been seen but not noticed. In this case you'd want them to think you were Wild little-uns. Dress like them. Act like them. Don't attract notice," said Orange with that planning look still in her eyes. The others around the circle were also lost in it.

"You are little-uns, so that would be a start, but you'd need to dress like the Wild," said Red.

"Yeah, so steal some Wild Little-uns clothes to start," said Yellow.

This brought a scowl from Orange. "Or you could just buy some. Thieving adds a new risk to the operation, dim. They have a market every weekend that non-Wild are encouraged to come to and pay inflated prices for Wild Wares."

"Then we get into mimicking the target culture. Which is beyond what you little-uns have any idea about. You'd need to actually talk with people who live there about what it's like, and they'd be onto our little terror's plans," said Orange.

"We never said anything about actually doing anything," said Awana, trying to sound nonchalant. "Just curious how you Space Girls do things."

"One way they do things," said Space Woman Black as she materialize out of thin air, "is through actual effort and not daydreaming."