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Description
The pole that Ocelot stood on was only about a foot in diameter. It was also about 15 feet high, but dwelling on that detail wouldn't lead to anything good.
"Raise your hands up above your head." Came the voice inside his commlink. Make sure to It was just a minor exercise AI putting him through the motions, nothing that insightful. He did as he was told.
"Raise your right foot and place it on side of your knee." Once again, he did as he was told. His balance was perfect. Mostly thanks to the augments built into his ears, enhancing his balance control to unseen heights. He could tightrope walk if he wanted with a bit of practice.
"Now close your eyes and hold."
He shut his eyes and remained where he was, aware that he probably looked like some Chinese kung fu master. Alas, it was harder to look the part in the gym hall.
He stood there, content in the stillness, when the pole he was on began to wobble slightly. Briefly, a moment of panic surfaced. But he remained on top steadfast. It was probably just his weight shifting. The poles in this room could be removed as needed; their mountings were not always tight.
That was when something with the force of a small car hit. The jolt instantly shook Ocelot awake. Even with his augments, he suddenly strained to keep upright on top. Crouching down quickly he shifted his center of gravity and gripped the pole again. The vibrations faded away.

After getting his bearings once again, he looked down to find Snorri's blond-bearded face with a nice shit eating smile looking back up at him.
"Thought things were getting dull around here." Snorri said.
"And messing up with my workout routine makes it better?"
"Well that, and the fact that I need a spotter for the bench." Snorri said with a shrug. "You wanna get your girly butt down here and help?"
Ocelot scowled at him. That only elicited a proper laugh from the viking. "You look just like my sisters cat!" Snorri called out. "Do you want me to grab the laser pointer?"
Ocelot dismounted the pole's top and slid down like a fireman. Snorri motioned him over towards the gym's benches. The place had a wide variety of equipment on hand, weights, treadmills, gymnastics mats, rock walls, and even a ninja-warrior style obstacle course. All rated for cybernetics of course.

As they selected the appropriate weights for the bench, Snorri spoke up again.
"Are you managing okay around here?"
"How do you mean?"
"Well, being part of this, this project under Havelock and stuff... you liking it so far?"
Ocelot shrugged. "Havelock did well by me, and I return the favor."
Snorri nodded as he laid down on the bench, only to pause for a moment's thought. "Well that's nice... but it doesn't answer the question does it?" he said. "Do you enjoy working here?"
Ocelot was silent for a moment. "You mean do I enjoy being a cybernetically enhanced assassin killing bad guys across the world for a clandestine organization?" he said with a critical voice.
"Well you don't have to put it that way..." a perturbed Snorri replied. "Okay, 'enjoy' was probably a bad choice of words, what I mean is, how do you feel about this? Working with us? I mean, we're not exactly the most well paying option on the market or anything, the PMCs offer more. So it must be more than money that keeps us here right?"
Ocelot crossed his arms thought for a moment, trying to figure out what to tell Snorri.
"I like this team." Ocelot finally answered.
Snorri blinked. "...Really?"
"You're all good at your jobs, you have standards... you keep those standards." Ocelot answered. "It's a good thing really."
They were silent for a little while. Then Snorri flashed a smile. A good reason as it was he guessed. Ocelot gave a small smile back in turn. Not everything needed to be complicated.

---------------

I'm not sure why, but I was never really satisfied with Ocelot's design. Granted this one's colors are a bit less exciting, but more cohesive at the same time. I might have had to downplay the aztec motifs a little. Overall I'm much happier here. And look, I even managed to give him a proper story this time.

Description
The pole that Ocelot stood on was only about a foot in diameter. It was also about 15 feet high, but dwelling on that detail wouldn't lead to anything good.
"Raise your hands up above your head." Came the voice inside his commlink. Make sure to It was just a minor exercise AI putting him through the motions, nothing that insightful. He did as he was told.
"Raise your right foot and place it on side of your knee." Once again, he did as he was told. His balance was perfect. Mostly thanks to the augments built into his ears, enhancing his balance control to unseen heights. He could tightrope walk if he wanted with a bit of practice.
"Now close your eyes and hold."
He shut his eyes and remained where he was, aware that he probably looked like some Chinese kung fu master. Alas, it was harder to look the part in the gym hall.
He stood there, content in the stillness, when the pole he was on began to wobble slightly. Briefly, a moment of panic surfaced. But he remained on top steadfast. It was probably just his weight shifting. The poles in this room could be removed as needed; their mountings were not always tight.
That was when something with the force of a small car hit. The jolt instantly shook Ocelot awake. Even with his augments, he suddenly strained to keep upright on top. Crouching down quickly he shifted his center of gravity and gripped the pole again. The vibrations faded away.

After getting his bearings once again, he looked down to find Snorri's blond-bearded face with a nice shit eating smile looking back up at him.
"Thought things were getting dull around here." Snorri said.
"And messing up with my workout routine makes it better?"
"Well that, and the fact that I need a spotter for the bench." Snorri said with a shrug. "You wanna get your girly butt down here and help?"
Ocelot scowled at him. That only elicited a proper laugh from the viking. "You look just like my sisters cat!" Snorri called out. "Do you want me to grab the laser pointer?"
Ocelot dismounted the pole's top and slid down like a fireman. Snorri motioned him over towards the gym's benches. The place had a wide variety of equipment on hand, weights, treadmills, gymnastics mats, rock walls, and even a ninja-warrior style obstacle course. All rated for cybernetics of course.

As they selected the appropriate weights for the bench, Snorri spoke up again.
"Are you managing okay around here?"
"How do you mean?"
"Well, being part of this, this project under Havelock and stuff... you liking it so far?"
Ocelot shrugged. "Havelock did well by me, and I return the favor."
Snorri nodded as he laid down on the bench, only to pause for a moment's thought. "Well that's nice... but it doesn't answer the question does it?" he said. "Do you enjoy working here?"
Ocelot was silent for a moment. "You mean do I enjoy being a cybernetically enhanced assassin killing bad guys across the world for a clandestine organization?" he said with a critical voice.
"Well you don't have to put it that way..." a perturbed Snorri replied. "Okay, 'enjoy' was probably a bad choice of words, what I mean is, how do you feel about this? Working with us? I mean, we're not exactly the most well paying option on the market or anything, the PMCs offer more. So it must be more than money that keeps us here right?"
Ocelot crossed his arms thought for a moment, trying to figure out what to tell Snorri.
"I like this team." Ocelot finally answered.
Snorri blinked. "...Really?"
"You're all good at your jobs, you have standards... you keep those standards." Ocelot answered. "It's a good thing really."
They were silent for a little while. Then Snorri flashed a smile. A good reason as it was he guessed. Ocelot gave a small smile back in turn. Not everything needed to be complicated.

---------------

I'm not sure why, but I was never really satisfied with Ocelot's design. Granted this one's colors are a bit less exciting, but more cohesive at the same time. I might have had to downplay the aztec motifs a little. Overall I'm much happier here. And look, I even managed to give him a proper story this time.