Walking into the air conditioned building was like heaven after sitting in heavy boston traffic in an old military humvee that had missed out on the AC upgrade, it looked like it was going to be another scorching summer for massachusettes, or a fairly regular one for the people that normally live there.
The Ranger and the Lieutenant walked through the entrance, there couldnt be a greater contrast, the young officer was in imaculate dress uniform with shining boots and Brad was still in his dirty and torn field gear with a flowing green cape fluttering lightly behind him as he walked, now this cape, or more accurately, cloak, wasnt there to just look cool, it worked as a poncho, a sleeping bag and a makeshift tent, it was also a hundred times easier and cheaper to make than a trench coat.
As they were walking through the lobby they heard whispers and gasps, they could feel the people staring, everyone there knew of the legendary Rangers of Albion but it was so incredibly rare to see one and this one was doubly special as he was not just one of the best, he was the first.
The Ranger was shown where the meeting would take place and then brought to his room, the accompanying officer mentioned that unfortunately he would have to share due to a shortage of free converted rooms. After, he was issued a pass that would grant him access to these areas and left alone.
Bradley stowed his kit on one of the beds taking note of the gear on the other one (it was another ranger from the looks of the equally beat up gear) then he changed into some shorts and a light shirt, he debated clipping his trusty cloak on too but it was just too damn hot even with the air conditioning, not to mention it would look wierd over his civilian clothes and draw attention that he really couldn't be bothered with.
Looking at his watch he decided it was too early to settle down for the night so he set of in search of the cafeteria, he didnt get to finish his lasagna after all. After asking for directions from a passing soldier, who to Bradleys suprise was actually Irish, he found a huge room with a tonne of tables and a large buffet courtesy of the United States Air Force. Grabbing himself a tray he just got a little bit of everything and looked contemptuously at their attempt at tea before grabbing a cup anyway.
Sitting down, he took notice that there was only a few people around, a couple of USAF airmen close to the buffet and what looked like a civilian woman in the corner, leaving them be Brad started digging into the mountain of food he'd built for himself.
After shoveling half of it down like a starved dog (the usaf knew how to cook) he sat back and just enjoyed the feeling of a completely full stomach, it had been a long time.
He sat contentedly and was even starting to drift off before he recieved a light tap on the shoulder, which jolted him awake, he didnt even think he just grabbed the small combat knife that he had tucked into his shorts, pulled the person in and put said knife to their throat, all in less than a second, to say the woman was suprised was an understatement.
A few seconds passed before Bradley came to his senses and promptly released the woman, brad then quickly placed the blade on the table before starting to apologise profusely, the woman who Bradley recognised as the person sitting in the corner simply waved it aside and smiled before saying "oh its ok, i shouldnt have snuck up on you, lets just forget about it and start again shall we?" she offered her hand and said "my name is Scarlett, can I assume you're one of the Rangers that just arrived?" taking her hand and shaking it gently he replied "sure that'd be great, and yeah, the name's Bradley".
They spoke for awhile before Brad decided he needed some sleep, they bid each other good night and headed to their rooms, which awkwardly enough were in the same direction which turned a whole lot more awkward when they both reached for the same door handle, they looked at each other for a few moments before Brad just sighed and went through "i guess we're sharing" but Scarlett wasn't so calm, she stormed off stating that she was going to find an officer to get this sorted.