Sokka the 38th - [Action]

[markofthewise]

[Shortly after the draft meeting, Sokka has been hanging out inside, pouring over the recon information Albert had provided a month prior, and matching it up with what Caesar had gone over. He wasn't the designated leader of his team, not really. There was possibly more qualified people for that. Brook and Erza came to mind, for that. Still, he could work on their own strategy. Their best defensive position would be the river. They just had to get there. Maybe... it wouldn't hurt to go talk to the people he'd be working with. If he can't stop them after they leave the meeting, he'll be going to the homes of any of his soon-to-be comrades. Well, assuming he knows where they live, at least. "Team A", huh.

... heh. Kind of like Team Avatar. Only without the Avatar.

Afterward, he figures it wouldn't hurt to make a few more stops. Since seeing Brook, Usopp and Chopper already necessitated a trip to the Straw Hats, he'll be making some quick stops at Mayoi's, Winry's, Xion's, and even Edward's. Lastly he'll even hit up Paru, since they are neighbors, after all. Of course, who's to say the people Sokka's looking for will actually answer the door and not someone else? No one, that's who! Once he's done making his rounds, time consuming as they are, he'll be spending the rest of his evening on his front porch, reviewing the plans. Silverbergs. Jeez.]

((tl;dr version: Sokka is all over the place. Do as you will.))

Comments

[markofthewise]

[Once the table is cleared off, Sokka will unfurl the map. It's the same one Albert put in the journals over a month ago, but Sokka has take the time to copy it and enlarge it by hand for easier reference.]

There's six teams of about ten going into this battle. We're in Team A. We should be arriving about here. [He points to a spot on the map, not too far away from the river.] We have no idea what it's going to be like when we first arrive. We could be ambushed immediately. But primarily, we want to get here. [He shifts his finger towards the river.] My sister's waterbending will give us a defensive advantage once we're there.

[He looks up at Donnie.] So you're going to need to be able to find us the safest route to get there and what to expect when we arrive.

[i_speak_softly]

[Don studies the map, rapidly memorizing the territory.]

Good. I don't know what waterbending is, but if I can get to a river, no one can follow me.

[He glances up.]

Am I going first, then?

[markofthewise]

[A nod. He'll get to waterbending in a bit.]

Without being spotted, is the plan. Once we arrive, you'll need to break from the group as soon as you can and start to get a lay of the land. You might want to bring a telescope or something, so you can find a good secure spot where you won't have too much interference.

[i_speak_softly]

[... He's heard better plans.]

I'll break? Leaving you guys to fend for yourselves when you think there's likely to be an ambush? Not happening. [He leans back.] Have you done this before, Sokka?

[markofthewise]

[A frown.]

Not immediately, just as soon as you can. After the initial onslaught, there's going to be enough of us to find a better position until we can move on.

[i_speak_softly]

[Reining in his frustration. It's not your fault.] Do you really think we'll be attacked right away? Can't the people organizing this find a safer place to drop us off?

[markofthewise]

[The people organizing it is a senile old man, so a shrug is about as much as he can offer.] We're being dropped into enemy territory. We might not be ambushed, but it's better to plan to be attacked immediately. We're not getting much of a choice about how we're deployed.

[i_speak_softly]

[... And sometimes he forgets how gifted Leo is with these things. He shouldn't expect the Malnosso generals to be up to the same standard.]

This has happened to me before, Sokka. I was accidentally teleported to another planet, and within sixty seconds people were shooting at me. It's not an experience I'd like to repeat.

[markofthewise]

[A slight wince at that. It's a wonder the turtles are even alive.]

Well, at least the Third Party doesn't have any guns. They only have bladed weapons and slight control over the elements. Still... it wouldn't hurt for us to go into the battle with some smoke bombs. It could give us the element of surprise.

[i_speak_softly]

[No kidding.]

[No guns. Good. And bladed weapons, that gives Raph an advantage.]

[... Did someone call for smoke bombs?]

What kind of smoke bomb did you have in mind?

[markofthewise]

[He thinks back to his battle with Xion.]

Definitely not the ones that stink. I have some already... but no sense wasting what we have here. We can request as many as we like once we're there. [Although Sokka will be bringing his own just in case these magic vending machines are broken.]

[i_speak_softly]

[Aww, but that's not any fun.]

All right. Tell me about our team. Who else is on it?

[markofthewise]

[Okay, time to run down the list.]

Besides you, me and Raphael... we have my sister, Katara, and Toph. Katara is a waterbender, which allows her to manipulate the water that's nearby and change its shape, using it as a weapon. Toph is the same way, only with the earth. We also have three of the Straw Hats... Brook is an extremely skilled swordsman- and uhh, a walking skeleton. So don't be too freaked out by that. Usopp is a sharpshooter, I don't think he's too much good in close combat. And then Chopper is... a reindeer. And a doctor.

I also have San coming along with us. She's kind of a human who thinks she's a wolf. And she hates humans. It's... complicated, but she should be able to handle herself okay. And then there's Erza Scarlet... I don't know much about her. I still need to talk to her.

[i_speak_softly]

[Nod.] Yes, you mentioned you had a sister. Usopp I know... [His thoughts get derailed there.] Aren't the Straw Hats a gang of outlaw pirates?

[He will get back to this 'reindeer' and 'human-wolf' thing later.]

((Also, to keep my CR straight: Don met Brook once, but didn't get his name, and apparently didn't notice he's a walking skeleton. He also briefly met Toph during the rescuing-Raph incident but didn't learn her name either.))

[markofthewise]

[A nod at that.]

They're not your... typical pirates. More adventurers, really. Anyway, there's not much for them to steal here anyway. [It's a wonder what a place like Luceti will do for your opinion of pirates.]

[i_speak_softly]

I heard they're wanted criminals, evading capture. Can we trust them?

[markofthewise]

[A sigh.] You've been talking to Smoker, huh? [He leans back and drapes one arm behind the chair.]

They're fine. It wouldn't be the first time I've trusted them with my life.

[i_speak_softly]

You've met him too?

[Considers this. He doesn't know you all that well, but... all right.]

[He pulls the map towards himself again.]

It sounds like a lot of us have an advantage near water. So, the river. What else can we do to increase our odds?

[markofthewise]

[Sokka nods.] Yeah, we've been training together.

[But back to business. His finger moves to northeast of the river.] There's a rest area here. There might be survivors there too. It should make a good defensible position too. At some point, we'll want to move on from the river to Levi Creek. Finding them and getting them to safety is one of our priorities. [He looks up.] Getting us there will be your job.

[i_speak_softly]

[Nod.] Good.

Tell me more about our team. Who's the lowest common denominator?

[markofthewise]

[Oh jeez Donnie, does he really have to answer that?]

... it varies. I'm not sure Usopp is much use in close combat, he's better suited for picking off enemies from a distance. Toph is blind. She can sense movement through the ground, but she might have issues with flying enemies and projectiles that she can't detect with her bending. And then... [He looks up at Donatello, hating to have to say this, but knowing it's inevitable] there's Raphael. I don't know if he'll stick with the group.

[i_speak_softly]

[... Are you suggesting that Raph doesn't play nicely with others?]

He won't go far.

That's all useful to know, but I was thinking in terms of mobility. [Tracing a finger over the map.] This terrain looks rough. I'll need to find a path that the least able person can handle.

[markofthewise]

[He might be. It's an inedible accusation, I know.]

In that case... probably Chopper. He's kind of... [Sokka indicates that Chopper isn't so big.] He might not be able to handle rugged terrain if there's a lot of climbing. [Or so Sokka thinks...]

Actually, I should just show you what they look like. [Sokka sets his journal on the table. It shouldn't take him too long to flip through the pages and find different entries from each person, so Donnie can look at their portraits.]

[i_speak_softly]

[Very astonished by the picture of Chopper. He makes Sokka stop and go back.] He's a mutant?!

[markofthewise]

Huh? [Going back to Chopper again.] Uh, I don't know about that. I think he had a Devil Fruit? I've never really asked. [After Chopper's happy dance, Sokka stopped asking questions altogether.]