Just like me

The Pranksters

Chapter: 1 "The Pranksters"

Patrolling was such a bullshit job. Having to walk up and down hallways repeatedly for hours on end was not fun nor did he think it was necessary. Nobody even knew that their squadron was here at this black site. It was a secret operation that had all its details redacted to protect its members and they had no missions to carry out or objectives to protect, why would they need to invoke such frequent patrols? Was there nothing else that could be done to pass the Private's time?

Of course that was a rhetorical question. Anthony knew why he was placed there and there was only one person in particular forcing him to wander around in the cold halls late at night. That person would be Captain Diction, the bear-like man with a temper as big as a nuke. He just couldn't take a joke sometimes. In fact, if Diction didn't have that stick so far up his arse he would have just laughed off his pranks and perhaps even have gotten him back. But no, he had to be a jerk about the situation and pull rank on him.

How bothersome but- Private Chilled leaned his head again the wall behind him, smirking in remembrance- but it was so worth it.

Being bored after his daily duties, he had filled the Captain's boots with mounds of snow that he had painstakingly snuck into the base. His hands were frozen and pink by the time he was finished but the reaction he got was priceless. He remembered hearing the squishing noise in the mess hall when Diction slipped them on and yelped from the cold. The bear-like man growled almost animal like before bellowing Chilled's name and chased him all the way down to the holding cells (two floors down). How he knew it was him, he'll never know. But he got good exercise trying to dodge Nick as he tried to catch him the whole time they were running about.

But in the end this was his punishment, to stand in the frozen hallway in the middle of december waiting for absolutely no one. That was just freakin great and everyone was probably asleep by now seeing as how it was a quarter past eleven. All Anthony longed to be was curled up under his blanket in a tight ball to keep him warm, The heater in his room was busted, had been for several months, and his bed was small and lumpy but even those would be a blessing compared to where he was now.

The italian huffed lightly, his breath fogging up his visor and making it hard to see anything. He wiped at the front useless for a few moments before deciding to brave frost bite and removed his helmet. That was probably the worst part of standing guard, having to do the whole thing in full uniform. How was he expected to fight off intruders if he couldn't see a damn thing? Knowing Diction he probably didn't expect him to even fight back, just die loudly so everyone can hear what's going on and be prepared.

Chilled's hair was pressed to his scalp, damp with sweat and he ruffled the dark strands till they were standing up at every angle like they usually did. He breathed in the cool air, the air feeling sharp in his lungs and wisps of white leaving his lips with every exhale as the cold nipped at him. His eyes closed while he was leaning his head against to cool bricks behind him. He was all about ready to just pass out, his feet barely holding him up anymore and he slid down into a loosely seated position.

The night was deathly quiet, no noises from either the old creaky building or any animals outside. Months ago that feeling of isolation would have engulfed him in a bubble of unease but now he was used to it. Although it still bothered him knowing that his family had no idea where he really was, that he could die and they would only get told he was killed on duty with the reserves. Anthony as well as everyone else in this base technically didn't exist, at least on record they didn't.

He took a deep breath at that thought and held it for a heartbeat before letting it out again, his ears picking up something in the heavy silence. He could hear the soft tapping of footsteps making their way closer to him. Wait, what?