Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts.
16
years old
|
Heterosexual
Single
|
Initiate
|
Palisade
is Offline
|
33 posts
|
Dauntless
|
Post by Drew D. Gallagher on May 22, 2014 21:27:55 GMT -5
The food here was quite good to say the least, Drew had managed to finish his portion before settling back into one of the many seats again. Zelda had left earlier so he was probably going to lurk in the corner again like a loner. He preferred to keep to himself usually, seeing as he didn't like to bother people unless he had questions. What he was most curious about was jobs Dauntless had. He knew there was the possibility of becoming an instructor - but ordering sixteen years olds around wasn't exactly his cup of tea to be honest. There had be to be other things he could do though, and if he managed to find a least threatening Dauntless person to talk to, perhaps he can figure out what job he may hold if he passed initiation. Zelda had already made her decision about that, considering all she really wanted was run off to stare at the tattoos at the tattoo shop, so it was only natural that if she passed, that was what she aimed for.
Drew on the other hand was a little bit on the fence, and he wasn't even sure if now was too early to say if he could've obtain a Dauntless job. Training was still underway here, so it didn't seem like he'd know if he got in for awhile now. It was certainly not a faint of heart, the trials here were definitely challenges. If he thought the Erudite tests were hard, the Dauntless ones would probably be worse, or at least that was what he had been told. He had to find that out since hadn't participated in any yet. He just hoped they didn't involve any enclosed spaces…he wasn't fond of being closed in. It was a childish fear, but one he hadn't quite grown out of yet. He had a few others as well but they seemed to be unlikely in this environment.
His dark eyes flickered as he glanced around the room. He hadn't spotted anyone to question yet. A lot of the people eating were either guards or other initiates, and he already knew about those kinds of occupations. Still the dining hall was an ideal place to run into people, given the fact it fed the sector on a daily basis. Though he wasn't one to usually talk, he was quite surprised to find that he did have a few things to say about what went on around here. Well that and scolding his twin sister, she had a tendency to just do what she wanted, including climbing on things and leaping out from corners in excitement. She was a lot more agile than he was and the fact that it was her goal to scare him one day was a little annoying to him. He wasn't scared easily - at least not when it came to things like that. |
|
Too busy fixing things on computer screens while the grass grows green.
17
years old
|
Heterosexual
Single
|
Security
|
Quinn
is Offline
|
15 posts
|
Dauntless
|
Post by Teagan R. Grant on May 22, 2014 22:57:18 GMT -5
Teagan burst through the doors of the dining hall, the frost whispies of her red hair sticking to her forehead covered in a thin, glistening layer of sweat. Damn it was hot in the rest of the compound. She was so used to sitting in the air-conditioned Control Room all day that she forgot that people perspired profusely when they were down here. She used the sleeve of her leather jacket to wipe her forehead, but it seemed like a silly venture to wipe sweat with leather, so she just slipped it off all together.
She threw the jacket onto the bench at one of the tables, hazel eyes scanning the room, looking for a familiar face. Maybe Parker...Lucas? She crinkled her nose ever so slightly as she made her way around the tables, snaking through the people to try and locate a friend. Grant found that she didn’t get a chance to meet up with people for lunch very often - her schedule was a little sporadic and mindless. She went to lunch when she was hungry, no regard for the time. She shook her head - it didn’t seem like she had made it down here in time to meet any of them...which meant another lunch alone. She was the weird tech girl from level eight - there were few people that actually wanted to talk to her outside of asking if she saw anything interesting on the screens this morning.
Shrugging her shoulder she grabbed some food. It wasn’t until she was headed back to her jacket that she noticed an initiate sitting relatively by himself at one of the tables. Teagan debated it for a little while...she could get some valuable ‘her’ time if she ate alone. But she would miss the chance to get to know one of th newest members of their society. Which would it be? She seemed to know the answer somewhere in her subconscious because before she even realized what was happening, she had put her tray down right across from him and hopped over the bench, “Hope you don’t mind, initiate.” She didn’t know their names, just their faces from what she saw on the screens. It was a good way to get to know things, “Whatcha lookin’ for?” She asked, observing the way his eyes darted around the room before she completely plopped down in front of him and picked up her cheeseburger with one hand.
notes; my posts will get longer - i swear! XD
|
|
Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts.
16
years old
|
Heterosexual
Single
|
Initiate
|
Palisade
is Offline
|
33 posts
|
Dauntless
|
Post by Drew D. Gallagher on May 24, 2014 0:29:42 GMT -5
It was hard to tell what other jobs could be found here when he couldn't tell what job each Dauntless held. They all dressed in a similar fashion - the customary black, in a variety of styles. That didn't necessarily have anything to do with what they did, which made finding one that would not only talk to him, but be able to explain the hierarchy around here would be like finding a needle in a haystack. He would prefer no to confront any of them, that would've been a callous move on his part, but he couldn't just sit around here all day, sitting on a bench with nothing to do but stare. That certainly wouldn't be a Dauntless thing to do, seeing as he was basically loitering if he did. And Drew would rather not be that guy.
When a young woman suddenly sat before him, he flinched, before realizing it was probably one of the older Dauntless - seeing as he hadn't recognized her as an initiate. That and what she said pretty much confirmed that. "Hope you don't mind, initiate." Drew flinched, but managed to regain a somewhat calm composure as he answered her. "Not at all." he answered quietly. He blinked, finding a moment to process the sudden development before hearing the lady speak once more. "Whatcha lookin' for?" Looking for? Oh right, he had just been staring around the room for no apparent reason.
Drew hadn't realized he had been so obvious, that was a little embarrassing…"Oh…nothing, was just observing." A little white lie, but it did hold some truth - but what exactly he was observing, well he'd keep that quite for now. His eyes flickered to the cheeseburger in the woman's hand, that meant she would be here awhile to eat. He had never seen her here before, so maybe she held some important information. Or she could just be another guard, that could've been the case as well, but he wouldn't know until he asked.
"So what exactly do you do around here?" That question came out a little rough admittedly, Drew honestly wasn't the best at wording things. He just hoped it hadn't come off as hostile, he was really trying to be polite - but assertive as well. He wouldn't get anywhere being passive and standing off to the side all the time - even though he was more comfortable doing that. Zelda was a lot better all this social interaction, but he was slowly working on it, even if that meant looking awkward doing it.
|
|
Too busy fixing things on computer screens while the grass grows green.
17
years old
|
Heterosexual
Single
|
Security
|
Quinn
is Offline
|
15 posts
|
Dauntless
|
Post by Teagan R. Grant on May 25, 2014 8:42:46 GMT -5
Teagan was slightly amused by the fact that she had managed to surprise him. It wasn’t often that the red-head took the element of surprise. In fact, she was probably one of the few Dauntless who lacked that certain je ne sais quoi. Tea took a big bite of her burger and nodded toward him when he said he didn’t mind that she was sitting with him. Of course he didn’t mind - he probably thought that she would beat him up if he refused. Such an amusing thought, considering the red-head had barely been able to beat anyone during initiation. She was more of a behind-the-scenes kind of girl.
‘Oh...nothing, was just observing.’
“There’s a lot to see.” Teagan said through a bite of her cheeseburger. It wasn’t until a few seconds later that she realized how incredibly rude she was being. Swallowing and wiping off the corners of her lips with her fingertips, she shrugged her shoulders, “I’m going out on a limb and saying you’re a transfer, eh? Not that it really matters-” She was a transfer too...well, in so many words. Actually she had been a nobody before her choosing day. Just a faceless factionless in the streets. The memory was seared into her cerebral cortex forever, “Teagan. You can call me Tea.” She figured she should at least introduce herself to the initiate instead of just letting them both sit there in silence. But the silence didn’t last long at all.
‘So what exactly do you do around here?’
Teagan raised her eyebrows at the boy who could have only been a year or year and a half younger than her. He certainly cut straight to the chase, didn’t he? She reached up with her free hand and pushed some of her red hair out of her eyes before setting her burger down and folding her hands neatly in front of her, “I’m a control room analyst and one of the heads of the security detail.” She said. It was something that she was rather proud of - although she had been one of the last to pick a job in her initiation class, she had lucked out landing herself somewhere that she could really blossom. Everyone took notice and it wasn’t long before she was the one that was coding new security programs and looking after the monitors, “Basically I work with the coding system and work out new security protocols. It’s a lot of binary work and observing the different cameras. Incredible stuff really. You get to see the entire world. Honestly, it’s like I’m in control of everything because-” She realized that she was rambling and probably frightening the poor initiate. A slight blush rose to her cheeks, “What jobs have they pitched to you so far?”
notes; --
|
|
Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts.
16
years old
|
Heterosexual
Single
|
Initiate
|
Palisade
is Offline
|
33 posts
|
Dauntless
|
Post by Drew D. Gallagher on May 25, 2014 21:22:40 GMT -5
Drew watched her quietly as she continued to eat. When she responded again, he blinked, before nodding. "Yeah, I came from Erudite." he answered, he was well aware that some Dauntless didn't like transfers. He really didn't care what they though so any comments about his faction would probably go unanswered. He didn't really like to argue so they could just go on thinking they were hot stuff while he kept training to get ahead of them. "Teagan. Call me Tea." Like the drink, well that wouldn't be too hard to remember. At least she didn't go by a nickname, quite a few people around here, initiates included had their own sort code name of sorts. It was a bit silly, Drew himself just went by his nickname - which was basically the shortened version of full name, nothing odd there.
Then again they may have wanted to create a whole new persona for themselves, he could certainly understand that. Not that he wanted to be a different person, but wanting to build yourself up again after a fresh start wasn't all that bad of an idea. Transferring from one faction to another was kind of like that, except it was more than just a name that changed - it was a way of life. "I'm Drew." he answered, before frowning. "You may have seen my sister Zelda already, she's rather flamboyant." His sister had a way of making friends and showing off - it was basically her element. He other hand wasn't quite so lucky, he didn't exactly fit into the typical out there Dauntless, he was more on the quiet, well stable side, not that he couldn't be if he wanted to. It was a matter preference.
"I'm a control room analyst and one of the heads of the security detail." The control room…he had heard of it when he had arrived but hadn't given it much thought. “Basically I work with the coding system and work out new security protocols. It’s a lot of binary work and observing the different cameras. Incredible stuff really. You get to see the entire world. Honestly, it’s like I’m in control of everything because-” As the woman continued on, he realized he was leaning in to learn more. Did she say coding? As in computers? Cameras? Control. It all started to connect the synapses in his brain now. She was definitely speaking his language.
"So I guess you've seen me on the monitor before, are you around computers all day?" he asked, his voice rising. He was getting excited which was rare for him. Back in Erudite he was very fond of working on the computers there. It was better than socializing with people all day really. He even took apart his father's computer once as a kid…though he never did figure out how it went back together. "What jobs have they pitched to you so far?" Not many to be honest…"Just initiate instructing, guarding and leadership." he answered quietly. Leadership had been more explained than pitched but it felt like it was more of a nudge to the Dauntless born than the transfers to be honest.
|
|
Too busy fixing things on computer screens while the grass grows green.
17
years old
|
Heterosexual
Single
|
Security
|
Quinn
is Offline
|
15 posts
|
Dauntless
|
Post by Teagan R. Grant on May 26, 2014 15:10:43 GMT -5
He admitted that he was an Erudite transfer and Tea grinned at him as she took another bite of the burger. She was already half-way finished, but she couldn’t help it. Another day sitting in front of the screen had left her almost completely famished, “Factionless.” She admitted to her previous alignment and then shrugged her shoulders. People often thought her previous ‘faction’ was hard to believe, but it had once been home to Teagan Grant, “Pleasure to meet you, Drew-” She said through a bit of her chewed food. Tea realized she was being obnoxious and immediately swallowed before she said anything else to the boy.
“Ah so Zelda belongs to you.” She laughed as she put the burger down on her tray and leaned forward a little bit more so they wouldn’t be overheard, “She’s all over the monitors.” That was part of the perks of her job - she knew just about everyone, sometimes she just had to put the pieces together. Of course for Zelda Gallagher, that wasn’t that difficult. The girl seemed like she could be in a thousand places at once. Like a worker bee...zooming about from flower to flower, collecting pollen, running errands. Those were the kinds of Dauntless that Teagan had to watch out for. More often than not, they would get themselves in trouble.
Teagan found that the more she talked about her job, the closer that Drew would get. Coding had him practically six inches from her face. She was grinning wildly now, catching on to the fact that Drew might actually be interested in the Control Room and Security Detail. She could use people that were enthused about her kind of work.
He asked if she had seen him on the monitors and she nodded, “Watching initiation is enjoyable to say the least.” Her brown eyes lit up with delight as she tucked a piece of her red hair behind her ear, “I make bets on who’s going to make it-” She winked, letting him know that she was only joking of course. There were a few in the security detail who actually betted on them, but Teagan secretly hoped that everyone made it. She had been right on the line, so she knew how it felt... “All day, every day.” She returned his comment about computers with almost the same level of excitement. Tea hadn’t even bothered to back up and they were now busily talk about her job from a few inches apart, “Computers, programming, hard-drives, you name it. It’s a shame that they don’t tell you guys enough about what people like I do. All the data from the initiation tests? Sent straight upstairs.” She nodded toward the glass ceiling, “Level Eight, control room.”
NOTES; --
|
|
Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts.
16
years old
|
Heterosexual
Single
|
Initiate
|
Palisade
is Offline
|
33 posts
|
Dauntless
|
Post by Drew D. Gallagher on May 26, 2014 17:36:55 GMT -5
He hadn't met a factionless person before, his parents had told him that they were a plight on society. Though he reserved the right to judge until he saw what they were like. Tea didn't look like what he had pictured - but then again she had transferred to Dauntless. "Is it different than being in a Faction? Well…I mean besides the obvious of being the fringe of society." he inquired, though realized that may have come off a little snobbish. "I mean I'm just curious about what it's like." he added, hoping that would patch up his poorly worded previous statement.
"So Zelda belongs to you." Unfortunately that was the case, Drew loved his sister, but she was just a little too overdramatic. She was bright, not exactly in an academic sense but she could function well in society - even more so now that she had transferred to Dauntless. He had to look out for her though, she was naive enough to follow everyone else's example and if someone asked her to jump, she would ask how high. It was the main reason they decided to join the faction, he had to watch out for her. Drew could take care of himself for the most part, but Zelda…well she required supervision.
"She's all over the monitors." Of course she was…she wasn't camera shy, and on some occasions she would even poise for the cameras, like she was a model or something. Drew wasn't as fond of them, but he did understand their purpose. Dauntless was a fairly large compound and to ensure the safety and security of its members, such measures were needed. "Thought so." he murmured with a frown, but he lightened up a bit as their conversation continued. It was just starting to get interesting. At first he stared blankly at her as she made a joke about betting on initiates.
Who was the odds on favorite? Would she share that with him? He was actually curious of where he stood on this whole betting thing. he had never bet on anything in his life but he knew of the practice. It was a great to gain or lose money, though more often the latter. After she winked however, Drew felt more at ease - so she wasn't being serious, he was worried there for a second, he pushed the questions about at the back of his mind as he finally spoke up. "I'm guessing we don't seem that great yet, since we have yet to start." he assumed with a concerned expression.
Though the Dauntless born already seemed pretty good right out the starting gate. He was very worried about them, seeing as they were raised in the faction, which gave them a leg up. His mind wandered away from those thoughts however, as soon as she mentioned computers. His eyes widened as he became more engrossed in the conversation. “Computers, programming, hard-drives, you name it. It’s a shame that they don’t tell you guys enough about what people like I do. All the data from the initiation tests? Sent straight upstairs.” Now he was even more intrigued - the control roomed seemed to be the media hub around here, and that meant he wanted to be all over that.
"It really is. It's sounds fascinating. I can imagine that being around computers all day must be fun." he murmured before grinning. Well he knew where he wanted to go if passed initiation. Knowing everyone's business was something he always like to know and the added benefit of being able to keep an eye on his twin sister was too good to pass up. "How complicated is the programming and coding? Are you the ones that that determine the initiate list?" He had to calm himself down now, his voice was becoming a little too squeaky and any minute now and he was going start using hand gestures and embarrassing himself.
|
|
Too busy fixing things on computer screens while the grass grows green.
17
years old
|
Heterosexual
Single
|
Security
|
Quinn
is Offline
|
15 posts
|
Dauntless
|
Post by Teagan R. Grant on May 26, 2014 23:06:24 GMT -5
Tea cocked her head ever so slightly as he asked about her being factionless. She had honestly forgotten that the newbies didn’t exactly know about her previous situation. Shrugging her shoulders, Tea brushed some of her red hair away from her eyes, “Fringe of society, canned beans and meat, pissing in whatever holes you can find-” She shuttered at the thought, “And there’s nowhere to buy kick-ass leather.” She held up the jacket that was resting on the bench next to her and then laughed. She didn’t take offense to his words - she knew that the Factionless were the bottom-feeders of society. He probably thought that she was crazy at this point, but it didn’t really bother Tea. If he wanted to know about her life, she would gladly share, in exchange for information about his life as well. Teagan Grant was a woman that operated on information. She loved knowing everything about everyone...it was both a blessing and a curse.
“Im guessing we don’t see that great yet, since we have yet to start.”
She could see the obvious discomfort in the way that his face contorted at her suggestion and she was glad to see that her wink had done the trick. She hadn’t meant to put him on edge, the red-head was simply making a joke. Teag laughed, “Don’t sell yourself so short.” She grabbed an apple from the table center and bit into it before using her hands to talk through it, “You can learn a lot from watching people. Who’s quick, who’s calculating, who’s too bold for their own good...” She was referring to Zelda at that point, but she wasn’t about to pointedly
“Well I don’t spend all day there-” She grinned across the table, “Sometimes I get lunch breaks and actually get to see the sunlight.” Another wink in his direction and a bite of her apple before they were back to talking about the programming system and the way things worked in the control room. Honestly, it was refreshing for her to be interacting with someone who seemed to really get what it was all about. The technical side of things was so important to Teagan, “Took me about three weeks to catch on, but that’s because the previous head of the security detail had his head so far up his-” She stopped herself before she went any further and simply raised her eyebrows. He had been an idiot and she was the obvious successor. She had taken over as Head Control Room Analyst about six months ago, “I’m sure you could catch on in a week or two. Once you have more free time during Phase two, stop by. I’d be happy to give you a crash course.” Was she actually inviting him up to the Control Room? Her sanctuary? She couldn’t help it thought - he genuinely seemed interested...especially on how they ranked the initiates, “It’s actually based on an algorithm. The trainers give us their rankings and then we enter them into the programs and it adjusts the numbers to reflect the averages of all the trainers and days. Basically, get in good with the instructors.”
NOTES; --
|
|
Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts.
16
years old
|
Heterosexual
Single
|
Initiate
|
Palisade
is Offline
|
33 posts
|
Dauntless
|
Post by Drew D. Gallagher on May 27, 2014 0:17:00 GMT -5
Tea's description of being factionless was worse than he had thought - but unlike his parents, he didn't seem them as a burden, but really just people cut-off from society just trying to survive. It was probably reasonable to say now that Drew wasn't a Erudite, at least not anymore. He may have been apart of the culture for the past sixteen years, but he was beginning to become his own person that his own opinions on things that were unbiased by his faction. To be obedient was his original goal growing up, but now…he wanted to understand others more than ever.
"I'm sorry to hear that you had to go through that." Drew answered, his voice low as his eyebrows knitted together. "Sometimes I wonder why the factionless even exist…everyone has a place in this world, so why kick out the ones that don't make the grade? It doesn't mean they're not worth it - they just haven't reached their full potential." Now he was really veering away from his Erudite values. He had been raised that they were indeed bottom-feeders, the scum of the earth that was siphoning off our food supply. But in reality they just were chosen by their faction and were surviving the best way they could.
What Teagan said about observations was quite interesting - he did collect a lot of intel on others that way. Perhaps if he continued to observe the other initiates…he could have the advantage. The first part of every battle was knowing how to attack your opponent. He could formulate a strategy from there and keep himself above that dreaded red line. He was doing well at the moment, but he could definitely do a lot better. Dauntless was his faction now, he was going to make himself worthy of it. "Then I can definitely use it to my advantage." he said suddenly, realizing where Teagan was heading with this.
The programming of the computers on the Dauntless compound was a very pertinent subject to Drew. He listened closely as Teagan continued to speak, his eyes flickering as he held onto every word. He smiled when she made a comment about the previous head of her department - Teagan seemed to be an expert in her field, he definitely wanted to keep in contact with her. What she said next almost caused him to leap up and slam his fist onto the table to accept but he restrained himself. "That would be awesome, thank you." Another grin spread across his face. He could actually get a look at it? Learn it? It was a dream come true.
He couldn't wait to get phase two - he was going to put everything he had into pass phase one. What was even more fascinating was the calculation process. Another program? That was music to his ears honestly, he was even more excited to become Dauntless now. If he was chosen, the security department was his first choice for a job. So what Teagan had said…was to get in good with the instructors. Right socializing, not his strong point, but today hadn't been too bad. Perhaps the other instructors wouldn't be that bad either. "I see, when I'll keep that in mind." he murmured, as he took note of that. It seems like I have a lot to learn." he admitted, but he wasn't so perplexed about it this time - he was beginning to formulate his strategy for passing initiation.
|
|
Too busy fixing things on computer screens while the grass grows green.
17
years old
|
Heterosexual
Single
|
Security
|
Quinn
is Offline
|
15 posts
|
Dauntless
|
Post by Teagan R. Grant on May 28, 2014 13:39:55 GMT -5
Tea pressed her fingertips to her lips - she hadn’t meant for it to sound like a sob story, “Don’t worry about it. I’m Dauntless now.” In all actuality, it wasn’t that bad to her. She had her family, her younger brother, her mum, her dad...all of them were factionless. It wasn’t like she was alone there. An entire support system. Like he had said before, it was just like being in another faction...only far less glamorous. Drew was sweet, she could tell from the way he seemed invested in her story already. Would he last? Was he too nice? She offered him a smile when he started talking about the factionless. He was right of course, why had they been kicked out? Her parents hadn’t made it in Dauntless...but did that mean they deserved to be practically homeless? “The whole system is based on timeliness, you know? If you’re not rearing and ready to go, they think, ‘well? what use are they?’” Teag rolled her eyes, “Sucks for late bloomers.”
She grinned, “I’m telling you-” They were already leaned in close, chatting away about computers and programming, but she knew that she was disclosing information that would probably give him a heads up, “Look out for the-” Tea tore her eyes from Drew for a moment to survey the room and then returned, “The weird one that doesn’t talk a lot. Erudite...Diggs? You probably know ‘im if you came from the same place.” She had watched him practically try and murder Payton McHale the other day on the monitors - it was terrifying. They had practically been at each others’ throats.
He thanked her for her offer and Teagan flipped some of her red hair over her shoulder. As much as she pretended that she was full of herself, there was a part of her that felt satisfied that she was helping someone else find their place in the Dauntless compound just like she had.
“You’ll catch on quick. You’d have to.” She returned. Drew was going to need a lot of work, but if she - a previous factionless member - could make it through initiation, there was no telling what he could do. Tegan Grant was beginning to develop attachments to the initiates and she would be sad to see most of them go...except for maybe a few on the outskirts of their faction already.
A sort of silence fell between them and Tegan took another bite of her apple. They hadn’t put out the cake yet, but as soon as they did, she was going for it. It was one of the best things about Daunltess - the others being the Control Room and watching everybody through her screens. A few moments passed, “Why’d you pick Dauntless?” She blurted, unable to keep it in any longer. She wanted to know...no, it was more like a need. Teagan needed to know why he had picked their faction. It was part of her weird habits - the constant need to know everything about everyone.
NOTES; --
|
|
