Outwardly, Vonys presented the appearance of any typical soldier. Neat and clean uniform, pressed to perfection. Her fur groomed and trimmed neatly, with extra attention paid to her beard. Sadly, it wasn't as long as she'd have liked, but there was nothing to be done. Hooves and horns polished faultlessly, one always had to be ready to impress after all. She stood there, back ramrod straight with both hands clasped behind her back. From the outside, Vonys looked prepared, attentive and ready for anything.


Inwardly, with her thoughts far from prying ears, Vonys was petulantly bemoaning her fate.


She hated mornings, more than anything in the world. An attitude that left many to wonder why she'd willingly choose a line of work that required early mornings, and equally late nights.


There was no answer, because Vonys operated on a logic understood only by herself. The short of it however, was that it seemed like a good idea at the time.


The Ibex had gotten better at hiding her disdain for early mornings over the years. Stifling yawns, and fighting the urge to blink blearily at everything around her. Instead she adopted and almost permanent glare in a valiant effort to keep her eyes open. It did very little to make Vonys look friendly, but that was just as well seeing as she couldn't be bothered to speak most mornings either. Speaking took energy, and she needed that precious energy to function as if there was nothing amiss. A task far easier said then done.


The all to familiar feeling of a yawn brewing at the back of her throat was fought back valiantly. She was a professional, damn it! Despite her confusion and no shortage of misgivings, her presence on the dock at that ungodly hour was a requirement. It wouldn't do to look as if she could handle the barest requirements of her job, and if that were the case then she'd never fare against whatever was to follow.


Though, she might fare better than most if she were to guess. An Otter, half her age, nearly flew face first into the dock as she scrambled to fall in line. Slightly more alert than she had been previously, Vonys took a brief moment to eye the shorter woman in silence. She didn't seem hurt, at least not enough to warrant her intervention. The Ibex hoped that the Otter's clumsiness was a result of haste, and not a defining characteristic. Otherwise she'd be patching the smaller woman up quite frequently.


'There's always one, I suppose.' She thought dourly.


Vonys was inwardly relieved that she wasn't the only one present fighting the last vestiges of sleep that morning. The man that was presumably to be their commanding officer looked as if he'd barely slept a wink, and had much less time to prepare for the day after waking. It was a reassuring sight, if a bit troubling.


'I just hope his work ethic is in better condition.' Was all that she thought, listening with marked interest as the man spoke. His words held some interest to her, and Vonys found her curiosity fully piqued. If anything would put some pep in her step, it would be whatever awaited them on the small boat moored nearby.