#gold team

[antpop]

More old art. I was partial to the blue team but I knew the gold team had the heavy hitters.

[brodygold]

The Captain's Call

This trip was everything I needed. After weeks of grueling training and relentless matches in soccer, baseball, hockey, and many more, Spring Break had finally arrived, and I’d decided to treat myself to some well-deserved R&R at a resort straight out of paradise. Sun, sand, and a poolside chair by the ocean – the perfect combination for utter relaxation.

I stretched out on my lounge chair, my hair still damp from a refreshing dip in the pool. Closing my eyes, I let the sound of waves crashing in the distance lull me into a half-dreamy state as I was working on my tan. But before long, the sun was too much, and I needed another drink.

Grabbing a cold bottle of water from the bar, I made my way back to my spot. That’s when I saw it – a shiny gold envelope resting on my lounge chair. My name was written on it in smooth, elegant cursive. The strange thing is I hadn't told anyone where I was staying. Who left this for me?

Curiosity got the better of me in the end. I tore it open and slid out a card embossed with the unmistakable crest of the Golden Army. My eyes widened as I read the message inside.

“Brody, you are cordially invited to compete in the Golden Army Beach Volleyball Tournament. Pack your bags and return to the stadium. We’ll be waiting. Remember teams of two will be competing”

A surge of excitement rushed through me. The Golden Army had always been about pushing boundaries, challenging ourselves to become the best versions of who we could be. But a beach volleyball tournament between the bros? That was new. And it sure sounded like fun.

Without wasting a moment, I dashed back to my room, tossing clothes into my bag like my life depended on it. Relaxation could wait. There was competition calling my name and I knew just who to partner with.

The plane ride back felt like forever. But the moment the stadium came into view, all those restless jitters transformed into pure energy. I slung my bag over my shoulder and hurried inside, my feet instinctively guiding me to the captains’ office.

I rapped my knuckles on the door before pushing it open. Sure enough, there he was – Scott, lounging at his desk like he owned the place (which he kinda did. Captain perks). His British charm and cocky grin were all too familiar.

“Well, well, well. Look what the tide dragged back in,” Scott said, kicking his feet off the desk and standing up to greet me. “Heard you got the invitation.”

“Damn right I did, bro. And I’m ready to show our bros what the Golden Army is made of,” I replied, flashing him a grin of my own. “You in?”

“Always, bro."

“Exactly. We’re gonna crush it.”

The nearest beach was only a short drive away, and the sun was still high in the sky when Scott and I made our way onto the hot sand. I tossed my shirt aside, letting the warmth hit my bare skin, and looked over at Scott. His competitive glint matched my own.

“Alright, mate,” he said, smacking a volleyball into my hands. “Let’s see if those golden reflexes translate to the sand.”

We started practicing with a ferocity I hadn’t felt in a long time. Diving, blocking, spiking – every move fueled by the desire to prove we were the best. Scott’s banter kept me on my toes, his sharp wit and relentless focus making sure I could keep up with the best of them.

Sweat poured down our bodies, muscles aching in that beautiful way that only hard work could provide. And the more we practiced, the more we found our rhythm. Two captains who knew how to work together. Two players hell-bent on showing their bros why they were the captains. We got our titles for a reason.

As the sun finally started to dip below the horizon, Scott and I finally collapsed onto the sand, laughing and out of breath.

“We’re ready, Brody,” Scott said, his voice steady and sure. “Those poor souls competing against us won’t know what hit ‘em.”

I laughed, the adrenaline buzzing through me like fire. “You’re damn right.”

The tournament couldn’t come soon enough. A little competition never hurt anyone, after all.

[polo-drone-084]

Grayden’s Struggle (Part 1): Grayden’s Long Day

Grayden, the head mascot and roster manager of the Golden Army, had recently taken on a lot of tasks for the team. As Head Mascot he had to keep the Golden Pups in line and try to coordinate all of the mascots, then as Roster Manager he had to coordinate with the office staff to ensure the roster was up-to-date. That was on top of being a member of team management and helping to direct and structure management meetings. Grayden was exhausted some days, it felt like he spent all his time making sure the team was successful.

But things only got weirder for Grayden, after the team’s winter away game that Grayden was in charge of, he started having dreams. He was in his mascot costume when a snowball fight broke out during practice. That wasn’t uncommon, Grayden helped the team many times during soccer, football, and other practices in the snow. The team did love a friendly snowball fight. The weird part was though, when he removed his golden knight helmet he didn’t look like himself.

Grayden, about a week after joining the Golden Army and meeting Herc, kept his hair blond and his facial hair trimmed pretty short. He had some shadow, but not a full beard or mustache. But in this dream, the man that was supposed to be him had brown hair and a full well maintained beard. Who was this man? Why was Grayden dreaming about him? Was he him? Grayden tried to remember before he joined the team. His hair used to be brown, it was his natural color. However, he never styled his hair and facial hair like the man in his dreams. That man looked like some fairy tale prince. He looked suave and majestic.

Maybe it was just the stress of trying to balance everything getting to him. Grayden knew talking to his bros would help, he went to Daniel #16. Daniel was always calm and welcoming. Grayden enjoyed talking to Daniel as they tended to see eye to eye on most things. Daniel was a great listener whenever Grayden had ideas.

(Picture by Daniel/016)

But as Grayden approached Daniel, the normally welcoming demeanor of Daniel looked a little annoyed.

“Grayden, what have you been up to? I had to lead practice since you were late.” Daniel said, slightly annoyed.

“Sorry bro, I haven’t been sleeping well. I’ve been having these weird dreams.” Grayden responded, feeling a little bad for Daniel having to pick up his slack.

“Bro, I’m not angry. You know I’d do anything for you, next time just tell me first. But I haven’t seen you in drone training either.” Daniel replied, his caring nature starting to come through.

“I haven’t felt super connected lately. It feels like every time I look there’s just another task to do, another practice to lead, more mascots to corral. I just haven’t had time to let 084 out.” Grayden stated, with a tinge of annoyance in his voice.

“Bro, I have training covered and there’s no management meeting today. Relax and go let 084 do a workout. I heard 070 was there. I’m sure he’d assist.” Daniel responded, before going back to leading the soccer practice.

Grayden left as Daniel tried to give the goalkeepers some pointers. He moved to his gym locker where he had one of his rubber polos stored. The rubber polo would bring out PDU-084, Grayden’s drone persona. Grayden had a stronger will and ability to control his drone persona than most on the team. He had to switch between being himself and PDU-084 a lot to keep up appearances, but he did let PDU-084 help him remain focused during workouts, training, and office work when needed. The drone’s emotional suppression and obedience to the team and the Hive helped Grayden forget about his stress of trying to keep the team afloat some days. He was thankful for that rubber polo shirt after some of the days management meetings led to arguments.

Grayden felt the cool embrace as he lowered the rubbery polo shirt over his head. The smooth rubber clung to his skin as it slid down. Grayden switched into his matching shorts as PDU-084 started to take over its host.

PDU-084 operational. Host Grayden is currently suppressed. PDU-084 has a new objective. It will engage in physical training to strengthen its body for the Hive and to alleviate its host’s stress. 084 will link with 070 for physical training to achieve unity and perfection.

Entering the gym, PDU-084 saw PDU-070. The bald, muscular, French drone was a busy body just like Grayden. Maximus, 070’s host, was one of the key members of office staff, management, right fullback for the team, and recently had also joined the mascots. If anyone understood the aspect of balancing so many tasks for the team that Grayden had to do some days, it would be Maximus. PDU-084 greeted 070 and the two engaged in joint physical training.

A regimen of weight lifting, squats, lunges, burpees, and more trained the drones’ bodies. They were Polo drones. They served the team and the hive. They were united. Physical training was an expected daily requirement of the drones. Sure break days happened to allow for resting your muscles, but in 084’s memory banks it knew Grayden had made excuses to miss a few. Whether it was he spent hours checking the roster, mascot training went late, or he was too busy working on promotional material for the team.

PDU-084 could feel the positive effects of physical training though. It was needed for the drone. After a long grueling hour of workouts, 084 went to head to the showers when 070 stopped it.

“084, wait. PDU-070 has a message from it and its host.” PDU-070 stated in its monotone with a slight French accent still coming through.

“Please remember the Hive, team, and management are always here to support you. Sometimes this drone and the team believe you may forget that. Support and unity creates perfection.” 070 continued.

“Thank you for your assistance in training 070. Unity is perfection. We are Polo Drones who serve the Hive. 084 will now go shower before allowing Grayden to resume control for his responsibilities.” 084 acknowledged.

After a long shower, PDU-084 removed the polo and switched back to the Golden Jersey. It knew Grayden would want control back, even if he was a little stressed out.

As the golden jersey came down, Grayden came back to the forefront. The golden bro felt a little better with the workout done. But his head was still full of questions and worries. Why was he having these dreams? How much did he have to do for the team today? Grayden decided he needed to take a walk to clear his head.

Grayden walked outside the stadium and around the nearby town. He remembered about a month ago walking through town with the help of Bucky and Matthew to post mascot tryout posters. Grayden normally walked around town with recruitment fliers as the Golden Knight on off days. It felt like he never stopped. He took some time to just walk and scan the town, seeing a few nice restaurants he’d remember to have dinner with a few of the bros at.

After a nice 30 minute walk, Grayden was headed back when he saw a strange sight. A man he hadn’t seen before wearing one of the team’s Rubber Polos. PDU-067 his polo said. That was odd, Grayden could have sworn the team just retired the team member with that number a week or two ago. They even returned all of their polos. So why was this guy here? Who was he?

The drone approached Grayden. Grayden had to ask, “Who are you, how did you get that polo?”

The drone replied, “It is a drone. It obeys the Hive. However, it does not obey the same Hive as you, Grayden. This drone can sense your stress and tension. Its analysis reveals you should remember to breathe. Don’t let everything make you forget to remain calm.”

“I’m breathing, I’ll take deeper breaths. Wait a different Hive? Are you a different drone in disguise?” Grayden tried to ask, but as he turned around the drone he saw as PDU-067 was gone.

“That was weird.” Grayden mumbled under his breath. He knew he’d have to report some of this stuff to Percival. If anyone knew what was going on it would be him. As Grayden approached the stadium he realized it was already starting to get dark, the day had gotten by him. He knew Percival was an early riser and early to leave.

So he wasn’t surprised when he reached Percival’s office and saw “Gone for the night. Good night bros.” Dang it, Grayden thought. He needed help, Percival would have known. He was a little frustrated and confused. Grayden figured maybe an early night’s rest would do him good. But maybe also the polo would help. Maybe a proper drone recharge would be more effective than regular sleep. Grayden went to his locker and grabbed the Rubber Polo. He wasn’t sure if he would wear it to sleep, but he knew he needed it to make sure he got more done tomorrow.

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Part 2 coming soon

Daniel is @danielgold-16

PDU-070 is @polo-drone-070

The fake PDU-067 is based off someone who I am keeping anonymous. They know who they are.

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Interested in joining the Golden Army? Contact @goldenherc9 or @polo-drone-001 . We'd love to welcome you bro.

[malcolmgold82]

As much as I tried I couldn’t resist the pull of the Gold. I picked up the golden jersey ready for my life to change and for me to join the team and become a Golden bro. I put it on and felt my body and my mind change as my new Golden personality took over for good, my old self washing away with little resistance, becoming another proud and loyal bro on the team

Now I’m Malcolm Gold #82, defender for the Golden Army. Ready to serve the Gold and advance the golden cause, as well as serving and supporting my new bros!

Thanks a million to @brodygold for recruiting me! Glad to be on the team and obeying the gold!

[iapetusgoldbros]

Back on that golden grind bros. Should put to my bro @polo-drone-001 for making this to welcome me back. Makes me feel fucking alpha!

[thomasgold95]

The Golden Army has arrived in NYC! We r everywhere!

But b4 we start wurkin we both like 2 take in the NYC sites!

And take in sum NYC views 😈

Back to wurk. First the finance district where we had a chat w sum finance bros. Ez to recruit em cause they r alrdy bros and other bros always like us and get along w us.

And jus like that there’s 4 of us now. Whose next? Maybe u bro?

U can’t resist the gold. U won’t look back once u join. Just give in bruhs! U know u want this. Hit up our recruiters @hades-gold19 or @brodygold or @hamza-goldenarab to receive ur kit and becum golden 4eva!

[thomasgold95]

Bin gettin a lot of stares since goin’ golden. They all want a piece of this gold 💪💛. Want some too bruhs? Hit up one of our recruiters @hades-gold19 @brodygold @hamza-goldenarab to get your kit and become your best bro self 4eva.

[thomasgold95]

Did sum decoratin and my bruhs helped out. We feelin dat Halloween spirit 🎃. Of course we had sum fun afterwards 😈🍑💛💛. Come join us broskis! Be golden 4eva w us. Hit up one of our recruiters @hades-gold19 @brodygold or @hamza-goldenarab to get you sorted and brocessed and become a golden brutha 4 lyf! You know you want this 🍆🥇