Ursali

"Mhmm..." She let out an almost meek sound of acknowledgement as Versaris began to list of his feelings for her, the creation feeling her cheeks heating up further, sure now that her face must be a heavy shade of blue. She shared most of these feelings, the absence of her thoughts not meaning a void of feeling. The fear that she'd wrested with had been born out of a desire to see Versaris safe and well, that he would remain around for her to spend her time with him. As he got more subjective her feelings stopped lining up, but she blamed that on her lack of understanding, she still lived very much in the moment and rarely stopped to think about the things Versaris had started to describe. She didn't have a bold declaration like he did, no passion filled unspoken promise. Instead, all she had were three words, spread out over a short sentence. "I... Think, I l, love you, too..." The words were a struggle, her voice refusing to be anything but meek as she quietly declared her love for the not-elf. She remained clinging to him, almost melted against him, as she continued to try to hide her face from him.

Any interest the lizard had in watching Iris react to Jeremiah's return was swiftly abandoned as Versaris called her name, turning her full attention back on the not-elf. She stared at him as he told her what she was feeling couldn't be anything other than love, her thoughts drifting back towards her conversation with Alvira. These emotions she felt were unique to Versaris, or in the very least he was first person to make her feel this way; however, she doubted, barring the exception of Iris, that any of the other Tigers would be able to make her feel this way. Was this love, then? Could her reluctance to utter the words also be classified as love, not wanting to hurt Versaris in case she was wrong? "..." She remained silent, readjusting her grip on him to properly cling to him and not crush him to death in her grip, shifting her head some to avoid matching her eyes with him. He'd told her to let everything out, yet there wasn't much more that she had left to say; or least nothing that she had understood enough to express beyond what she already had. Nothing except for one question. "What, does it feel like, to love me?" She nestled her head further against his chest, intentionally hiding her face from him. She didn't know where this sudden bashfulness came from, feeling her face heat up as she struggled to commit to the words that she knew would make Versaris beyond happy. "Think... Might..." She couldn't do it, not until she had his answer to this final question.

Once the proverbial dam had been broken there was no stopping her flood of emotions. Tightly, perhaps even a bit painfully, she had wrapped her arms around Versaris and buried her face in his chest; crying into it as she clung to him, almost as if she was afraid to let go. His attempts to reassure her and assuage her emotions only caused her to cling even tighter to the not-elf. "I... I know that...!" She managed between breaths, speaking between the sharp inhales, tears still rolling down her face. "You already promised, wouldn't do again... Believe you. That you, will be with me? So why? Why hurt, not go away?" She knew the promises he had made to her, trusted in him to uphold them, so then why was she crying, why had the tightness not left her chest? She knew that people cried when they were sad or upset, that picturing Versaris dead made her sad, but there was so much more there than just sorrow. Loneliness, even if she would still have Iris, Alvira, the rest of the Tigers. Fear, her life wouldn't be the same, something about her had fundamentally changed. This feeling was wholly unique to Versaris, but... "Don't understand...! Why? Why do I care about you, so much? More than others, even Iris..." Her tears had subsided, but her voice was still soft and had a slight waver to it, still being muffled as she spoke into his chest. "Trust you. Worry about you. Want spend my time with." When had these changes happened? She couldn't pinpoint any one moment, there was no decisive turning point to be found. It felt as though these feelings had snuck up on her; the first time she actively had acknowledged them was now. "But more than that! Don't want, to lose you...! Can't, lose you..." The twinge in her chest had returned, acknowledged with a final quiet, "Why?" She hadn't even heard nor noticed Jeremiah's approach until the man addressed her directly, but that wasn't enough to unglue her face from Versaris' now damp chest. She didn't even know why he had come over, as far as she was concerned their quarrel was still ongoing; he still owed Iris an apology before she would want to be civil with him. Why then was his attitude so different? She hadn't done anything to make amends, just had tolerated his gaze on her. He began to address Versaris, giving her time to mull over his motivations, the possible reason for his shift? Was it because Versaris was now present? The Voice was still silent, but she could feel it latch onto that idea, a sudden influx of vitriol for Jeremiah rising to the surface... She hadn't expected Jeremiah to address her again, actually turning from Versaris to look up at him. The Voice wanted her to growl, to tell him off for even approaching her, but the smile on his face, no matter how faint, left her confused, almost stunned. She didn't know if he was expecting a response, but regardless of that she found herself incapable of giving one, unable to do anything but stare at him as he turned to leave shortly after, walking towards Iris.

Daeran kept his gun trained on the armored person asking about killing him; between them and this... Tamara lookalike, he was confident they were the more dangerous of the pair, at least in the context of how far they were willing to take this current confrontation. Outside of the now, Tokiwa was far more dangerous, of that there was no question. He tried to ignore how dejected she seemed by his refusal of her request, but he couldn't push the thoughts out of his head. Why? How? I never believed that she was dead, but to see her again, like this, what the hell happened!? Tokiwa's further taunting only drove the wedge between the augmented fox and Tamara further, but the words out of her mouth all but confirmed that they were one in the same. "Don't see why we need to wait until then, right here. But fine." She relented with a huff, but didn't take her eyes off of the target. She didn't understand the point in helping them understand their goals or motives, but this was Tokiwa; she didn't understand a lot of what she did. "R-Right..." He was taken out of thoughts with Kazue, Bonner, and Hannah's prompting, shaking his head to get his bearings, before beginning to back out of the room with his gun still trained on the unknown, Kazue still in front of him. Their attention was still definitely on him, he wasn't going to risk turning his back on them. Once he was finally in the elevator he let out a breath he didn't know he was holding, leaning into the wall. What the hell am I supposed to do now...?

"...!?" The sudden escalation of the hug surprised Alriana, her face suddenly pressed squarely up against the not-elf's chest as he held her tightly against him. Her grip on his v-neck slowly loosened before she eventually let go, her hands falling to her sides as he apologized to her. Her gaze shifted upwards to stare up at him as he pulled away, her bows furrowed as she did her best to understand. "Why? For making feel lonely?" Was her response to his apology, voicing some of her thoughts out loud. It made sense that if it was his fault he should apologize. However, while his promise to start spending more time with her gave her some relief, and made her feel a little bit of happiness, the ball of emotions that had settled in her chest remained, wound so tight that her continued focus on them almost felt painful. "Still, don't understand." A claw rose to her chest pointing at her heart. "Feel happy, that you will spend more time with me. But, chest still hurt here. Tight. Feel happy, but also hurt. Feeling, maybe worse even if happy." It sounded contradictory, but... I don't want to be lonely, so why does Versaris saying he'll spend more time with me also hurt? It doesn't make sense. I don't want to be alone... "These feelings, around since compound, when you..." Still she shied away from voicing the words, the feeling in her chest only getting worse as she finished the sentence in her head. She didn't realize it, but tears had started to well up in the corner of her eyes. It felt like a vice was tightening on her heart, it hurt to breathe, the feelings almost suffocating. "When you almost died...!" Her voice cracked as she forced the words out, distracting her as her first tears rolled down her face.

"I know you like to fight Kagi, recklessly at that, so allow me to heal you while we still have the time for it." Kagi and Silvano had taken his place on the edge of the woods so the best he could do, without over exposing himself, was tend to Kagi's wound. Cyrus to 14, 19 Heal Kagi.

Alriana hadn't expected the hug, tensing up for a few seconds before settling into it, her cheeks softly alight with azure as her forehead rested against his chest. Her tail however continued to flick and roll behind her, much like when she was agitated, the lizard still clearly frustrated. "Mrrrr... No, not jealous." The mention of the man elicited the slightest of growls from her, but not for the reason Versaris suspected. "Know what jealousy is, this... Not it. Have problem with Jeremiah, but this not that. These emotions only about you." The mention of the word caused her tail to stop, a chance at understanding before her. "When you gone when wake up, feel bad. Then don't even see you for rest of the day until night. Then, you so tired barely spend time with...!" Her claws had found her way onto his shirt, grabbing the edges of the v-neck. "Feeling only been getting worse, as spend less time with you. That, loneliness...? I, lonely? But..." She'd never been lonely before, not even when Grelbiria spent days in a row paying attention only to her research. What had changed? What was different? Why did these feelings only apply to Versaris? "I still don't understand..."

Alriana heard Toki's words, but as the augmented fox reached into her desk and pulled out a gun the lizard eyebrows raised her eyebrows, quietly scoffing into her helmet. If she was going to pull a stunt like this, then why was she so against her thrashing a few of the Dawn's pilot's during their little bit of interference from earlier? It frustrated the lizard, but not enough to make an attempt right before the Dawn's crew arrived. "I can hold my own just fine, I assure you." Though he had been slightly shaken by Arielle's apparent interest in him, he was confident that he didn't need any sort of special protection. "We're all here as your and Huang's bodyguards, captain. I'm prepared to do my duty regardless of my unique political status; with all due respect, while I appreciate your concern, I don't need any special consideration." He was here simply as a soldier of the CEN, regardless of his background and status. He knew it wasn't that simple, it would never be, but that was how he wanted it to be. As they entered the Head of Security's office, Daeran was immediately struck by a strong sense of déjà vu as he got a good look at this Tokiwa's face. She was the spitting image of Tamara, if a little older in appearance from his memory. But there was no way that this was her, it couldn't be possible. If she'd have survived and ended up in a position like this, he was certain she would've contacted him... He was so focused on her he didn't even react for a solid few seconds as she pulled a gun on the Captain, nor did he notice the strange thing in the corner of the room staring solely at him. He scrambled to pull his out his own gun, unsure if he should be aiming it at the man that had Kazue attention or at the Tamara look-a-like, the latter of which he was hesitant to do. No sooner than the Dawn's captain had greeted them, Toki's spur of the moment plan was already going in to effect, the fox's gun aimed at the captain. Alriana had already identified their target; the visual data given to them was a perfect match, starting directly at him even as a black-haired woman moved into a defensive position in front of him. This was their change wasn't it? He was right here, well within striking range of her. She only hesitated to act because she knew that one wrong action from either side would result in an exchange of gunfire; she wasn't concerned for herself or Toki, but the odds of Tanvir or Miranda coming out unscathed as well were low. To be fair, she didn't care about that either, but she knew Toki would be pissed if anything happened to them and if they were gone she'd be the only one to deal with the fallout of that. She briefly flicked her eyes over to the old man and the android as he called for it to analyze her while he trained his gun on her, before turning her attention back onto their target. Her armor would be more than enough to protect her from the small arms that the Dawn's pilots had on their persons; even were he to aim for her helmet it would take more than one shot to get through the visor, and by then she would have him in pieces. Her tailed swayed and rolled behind her as she waited for the target to answer Toki's question, nothing remotely mechanical about its movement. If anything, it looked rather similar to something a select few had seen earlier today... The Head of Security's demands were just as ridiculous as the situation itself, though the out of place request that he be left behind with this group gave him pause. The captain was quick to deny the request, but that only prompted her to send a direct question his way, bypassing Sia. "I..." There was no way this Tokiwa was actually Tamara, was it? The only thing similar was their faces, everything else couldn't be more different. But why the interest in him? How much did she know about him, know about the rest of the Dawn's pilots? Was her knowledge exclusive to him and he'd been singled out by some coincidence, or was she just as aware of the other pilots and only wanted him? He didn't know, there was too much unknown about this situation. "I... If you're who I think you are, then you should know my answer. If you're goal it to cause chaos and endanger innocents lives, then there's no way I'll be joining you!" Tamara, why? If this really is you, what the hell happened!? "Should I kill him then?" Though muffled some by the helmet, the unknown spoke. Much like her tail's movements, there was nothing mechanical about her voice. The question had caused the target to train his gun on her, but that was also fine. She could see the slight shaking of his grip, rattled either by Toki's question or the situation as a whole. Either way, she was confident he wouldn't be able to do anything with his gun; at least, not to her.

Daeran felt a chill go down his spine he felt Arielle's attention on him, tensing up slightly. He managed to at least remain straight faced as his question was answered, even if it only gave him that much more to consider; everything being a recent development made sense, the CEN had only received word of the rebels a little over a month ago. But why things had progressed to this point was the kicker, a questioned Daeran had full faith that Sia intended to find the answer to. His question answered, and no more on his mind, he was content to mimic Lieutenant Park's salute as they left the CEO to her office, now on to meet with her head of security. He let out a sigh of relief as they entered the elevator, the tension from meeting with Arielle finally out of his system even as Kazue was already starting to apologize. Anything was better than the weight of politics and it seemed like this bump was well on its way to being smoothed over. "I second Lieutenant Park's suggestion, as long as we don't see a repeat occurrence during this meeting with Arielle's head of security. Who knows what sort of person this Shezsacosh is? We were lucky that Arielle, at least on the surface, doesn't seem to overly care about the situation with the rebels. Her head of security may have entirely different opinions on this matter." Alriana huffed, letting out a muffled growl from her helmet. "Why am I only one that has to wear my armor?" She knew the answer to that question but she asked it anyway, mainly out of spite for the reality of her situation. While augmented humans were common, it was beyond a stretch to call her one; between the color of her skin, the faint pulsing glow of the red stripes along her body, and the matter of her double set of razor sharp teeth... There was only so much augments could do and she was far beyond them. Thus, the only way she could be present without arousing suspicion was to be present in her entire set of armor, complete with her helmet. She wasn't... that interested in the conversation between the others, only having the briefest of understanding of the topic. She huffed, her long tail flicking behind her, the only part of her not covered in armor, and only partially at that. "If you all keep talking like this and they overhear it, they're not going to believe anyone but me is actually part of the security team."

Alriana didn't even look as Iris made a fuss and was dragged away by Lucretia, her attention solely on the not-elf. As he looked up her he wasn't met with her usual stoic expression, her brows were furrowed and the vortex of uncertainty flickered behind her eyes. She huffed as he slowly righted himself and patted his lap, her tail flicking out from under him now that there was no fall to cushion. She looked around, seeming to suddenly caring about privacy, before she stepped forward and sat herself down on his lap, almost certainly to the not-elf's surprise. Her voice was unexpectedly quiet, on the edge of murmuring. "Told you before that wanted punch you, but also not. Don't have urge anymore, but still left with all other feelings. Too many of them, don't know them, first time feeling like this." She almost growled, entirely out of habit, but the action didn't feel like it matched the emotions she was feeling so she didn't. "Chest feels tight when try to focus on them, hard breathe if do too long... Don't understand, frustrated that feel like this and don't understand, but venting aggression not do anything! Just make feel worse, but not more aggressive..."

"That still what happened!" Alriana barked back; she didn't care about, or she just didn't understand, the portrait she was painting of Versaris to their audience. In this moment her sole focus was to understand her own emotions. She had nothing to answer his complaint with. It was most likely true that she should've bypassed this fight in its entirety, she couldn't deny that. Versaris' heart wasn't in this, she could tell, even before her blows had worn him down. But he wasn't done just yet! "...!" Despite how slow the punch was, Alriana still ended up taking it unguarded, caught up in her thoughts. It was enough to shake her from them, and she answered with a quick jab of her own. That was Versaris' limit, it seemed, the not-elf wobbling on his feet before toppling to the ground, the slight delay at least allowing Alriana to slip her tail around to cushion the fall. She was left panting and huffing, standing over Versaris. The urge to punch him for his transgressions at the compound had finally subsided now that she had actually done so; however, to the Creation's dismay, as the only direct source of her aggression towards Versaris faded none of her other emotions followed it. She was still left with a vortex of muddled emotions that she couldn't explain, that, despite her lack of understanding, still caused her chest to ache if she tried to focus on them. "...Why? Why still feel this way?" Usually expending her aggression made her feel better, or at least left her feeling 'normal'. She'd never felt worse before, at least in a manner that didn't generate more aggression or frustration. "Don't understand..."

"Ghhrgh!" She grunted heavily as she managed to guard one of his fists only for the other too completely slip past her guard and nail her in her chest. She coughed, stomping her feet and using her tail to keep herself firmly grounded. Like her, his appearance didn't match his strength; with how often he let her toss him around and carry him she had forgotten that his strength was on par with her own. "Already tried to talk! But you, had 'other' idea!" She growled, fighting down the blue that threatened to tinge her cheeks. She had to focus on the fight, focus on expending these feelings, or she was just beating on Versaris for no good reason. She wound her arm back as she prepared another swing, telegraphing it so that there was no way he could miss it. As she let it fly she jabbed with her other, hoping her feint would get her past his guard!

As the wave of healing magic washed over her, Alriana felt the final aching in her chest dissipate -- the aching caused by Versaris' blow, at least. She stood upright, still sore, but at least the pain was subsiding. "If this work, then won't be need to explain." That was all she was going to give him now, and hopefully all she would have to give him. Putting all her eggs in a basket she might have been, but now that she had come this far she had little choice but to commit. Versaris tossed aside his sword but she didn't have to worry about her dagger, that was back on the ground several feet. There was no reason to feel him out at this point, this was going to be little more than a brawl. She wasn't trained with anything other than a dagger, but it wasn't magic to throw punches at someone. She waited until she was sure he was ready, feeling slightly bad about the sucker punch. But once she was sure he was ready, she made the first move, aggressively stepping into his personal space with her arm already winding back as she readied her first punch. It was blatantly telegraphed, but when she finally let her fist fly it had just as much speed as proper brawler's punch would!

She'd gotten her hit on Versaris, but the feelings hadn't faded at all even if she'd probably struck him harder than she needed to. There was little time to think about that, Versaris had shoved her from him with his full strength and immediately followed it up with a swing so fast she could barely track his blade. In the split second she had to react she chose to leave herself undefended even if her instincts screamed at her to block; far more damage would be done to her arms than her armor. "HgrRahhhhhhhhhh!" She wheezed as the air was forced out of her lungs by the impact, left with nothing. The creation didn't realize she had left the ground until she landed with a thud, actually struggling to breathe as her mouth opened but her lungs wouldn't inhale air. Versaris was already above her, but she couldn't form words with nothing. When the shock finally wore off she gasped for air, inhaling hard, her chest heaving as she desperately fought to catch her breath. She'd been knocked unconscious before, thought she was about to die before, but never before had she had the air knocked from her lungs and been conscious to experience the terror of her body failing to function. However, this wasn't going to stop her. She had know above all else if fighting Versaris would work and what she'd just done was hardly a fight, more akin to being knocked aside by a giant. Slowly, before Lucretia or Renais began to heal her, she rolled over, first to her side, then her belly. From there, she forced her knees and arms to bend, slowly rising up into a curled ball. She forced her arms to tense and push her upwards until she had managed halfway to sitting, before forcing her legs to do the same until she was finally standing; hunched over and looking haggard, but standing. She was unsteady on her feet, but her tail made for an amazing counterweight if she let it go limp. Her face didn't betray any sign of anger or malice towards Versaris as she brought her gaze up to match his, which made the fist she rocketed into his gut all the more of a surprise! "A... Again! We fight, again. Fists, only... No swords, no daggers. You, me, fight...!"

"Yes am sure. Not on level, but need to fight you. Need to know..." If these feelings will go away if I act on the aggression they make me feel. If these feelings are completely mine... Versaris wasted no time once he was sure of her challenge, drawing his sword but not taking an overtly defensive stance. Despite his casual stance, Alriana knew that he was ready. She drew her own dagger, ensuring that it remained in its sheath; she trusted Versaris to use the flat of his blade, she couldn't quite do the same with a dagger so she would have to deal with the additional weight and adjust accordingly. "Rrrrrr..." She couldn't help but let out an annoyed growl as Iris chirped up, beginning to circle Versaris, stance low and ready to pounce. Iris wasn't even far off the mark. She'd given up on wrestling with her feelings, the conclusion she'd come to was to try to expend the aggression she felt towards Versaris and hope everything fell into place. If it didn't... She didn't have a plan for that. She did have a plan for Versaris, however. He was nearly untouchable in melee combat, the only hope she had was to overwhelm him all at once, or deal a blow so debilitating that he'd be unable to fight or be otherwise forced to surrender. There was the slightest tell before she leapt at Versaris, a fraction of a second where she entirely stopped before she charged him with her sheathed dagger in hand. She closed the gap nearly in an instant, her strike connecting with Versaris' shoulder; in a real fight he was would have been dismembered, but here it would just be a bruise at most. That did, however, mean that he was still free to counter with that arm, one that she had greatly overextended herself to strike...

"Ahh...!?" Alriana actually jumped in surprise as Ullr spoke, so focused on Jeremiah her attention had been. It was unusual, for her to be so absorbed in something, let alone someone, that someone could 'sneak' up on her; especially without meaning to. This quarrel with Jeremiah, though she lacked the understanding to describe it as such, was beginning to border on obsession; however, the worst part was, she wasn't sure how much of it was 'her' at this point. "S, Some sort of training, with Jeremiah. Don't know exactly what happening." No sooner than she had given her answer did Iris come bounding by, far more enthusiastic than the Creation expected her sister to be in any sort of proximity to Jeremiah. Had something happened over these past two days? She looked towards Ullr, but hesitated to ask her question and the wolf was quick to follow after Iris before it ever left her lips. She followed along with the group, slowly closing the distance until she was in line with the Tigers as they moved to the training grounds. Jeremiah quickly outlined his plans for the Tigers and asked for a volunteer, which she felt compelled to answer. An urge to take her shot at Jeremiah, even if he would be holding back. But Alvira was the first to stake her claim, and the dragon had just as much of a reason as she did. They were meant to pair up themselves while those two fought, but she really only had the desire to fight one other person present. As Alvira and Jeremiah began, she approached her target. "Versaris. Fight me. Don't hold back, supposed to go all out in this training."

Alriana slowly made her way towards the training grounds, having woken up after Versaris had already left for the day. It was a recent development, dating back to Jeremiah's arrival and subsequent accompaniment of the Tigers, but still not one she was entirely used to after getting accustomed to sharing a bed with the not-elf. Every morning with his absence brought her still unresolved feelings towards Versaris dangerously close to the surface, as well as a twinge of yet another unknown emotion, but with him gone in the morning they were left to slowly dissipate throughout the day. The only exception was the morning after the Tigers first night in the Gaffney's castle; she'd had a chance to try to resolve her feelings the night before, but instead she'd indulged Versaris' alternative suggestion. At least he hadn't woken and left before her that morning, and the rest of the day had been nice as he'd taken her on a date, and actually minded his purchases this time. She was in no hurry to be the first to the training grounds, not with who would be conducting this training. The only Tiger privy to her ongoing quarrel with Jeremiah, save Iris, was Alvira and the Creation had no intention to end up alone with the man if at all possible, not when other Tigers could be arriving at any moment. Still, she hadn't expected to be nearly the last of the Tigers to arrive. She kept her distance from the forming cluster around Jeremiah, standing at the periphery where she could hear what was being said, but giving little indication of her presence other than a brief wave towards Alvira and Versaris. Only a few Tigers remained unaccounted for, Iris, Ullr, and Tasha. The Iron Tiger herself had likely gotten involved in something, but where were the other two? She was unaware of if Iris had further contact with Jeremiah, but surely she wouldn't dodge this training and drag Ullr into it, would she?

As the torchlight came into view Cyrus uttered a quiet swear under his breath. Light at the bridge was already bad enough with their limited time before Evelyn came crashing down on them like a rabid hound; to see it in the trees, as well as the dregs hiding in the shadows, truly wasn't far from the worst case scenario - that being Evelyn herself hiding in the trees of course. With Rivane's order there was little time to dwell on it, actions needed taking. As he moved to act on Kagi's opening he hesitated for the slightest moment, the sound of a gun was near unmistakable, though with with his spellcharged rounds perhaps they would mistake it for thunder magic. He had little option otherwise, save to throw himself at the bandits and hope to crush them under the weight of his plate, and that thought was far too ridiculous to even have deserved the seconds it spent occupying his mind. "Hopefully those dolts on the bridge aren't well versed on their spells..." His mumbling was inaudible to all but himself, drowned out as fired on the bandit. Cyrus to 15, 18 Magishot Merc 2.

Daeran refrained from letting out a sigh of relief as Kazue bit back the challenge to the Captain's authority that was mere seconds from leaving her lips. It was one thing for her to vocally take issue with how AHI was handling their security forces, it was entirely another for her to then continue undermining the Captain's authority by openly challenging it. Such a showing, in front of AHI's CEO no less, would not only have had potentially serious repercussions for their discussion, but also likely wouldn't have been taken lightly, even for someone as generous as the Captain. With Kazue now quiet and keeping to herself, or at least it seemed likely she would with Leon pledging the same, Daeran was content to resume his role as silent security escort. He was by no means looking to stand out here, face-to-face, with Arielle Avyndor; though his father was a politician, he was a colony politician, and within striking range, so to speak, if Arielle ended up needed an outlet for CEN caused frustrations. In short, while Arielle wasn't his father's boss, he had no intention of making trouble for the man by standing out and attracting Arielle's attention, regardless of the bizarre set of circumstances, in retrospect, that led him to being present for this meeting. Between the Captain, Huang, the Lieutenant Commander, and Lieutenant Park, the conversation seemed to be well back on the rails, with the chance to obtain necessary information back within the realm of possibility. There was no need to add on any further to either their questions, though perhaps it was his proximity to Kazue, or just his own concern for the Jupitarian populace, but a question of his own sprang to mind, regardless of his desire to be as much of a ghost a possible. "If don't mind a further question, Miss Avyndor, what sort of disturbances to the peace do the rebels usually cause? Are they usually so brazen to conduct raids on AHI's research facilities, or is this a more recent development?"

The long elevator ride gave Daeran some time to ponder how this meeting was going to go, key points that they needed to go over to get a better grasp of the situation on Callisto. They were almost entirely in dark; they only had their skirmish with the security forces and the terrorists to paint their view of the situation, which lined up rather neatly with CEN's initial understanding of the situation if you discounted the terrorist presence. It would surely be an important talking point, but one that he was confident Huang and the Captain would be suited to handle. While he may have been born to a politician, it was his distaste for the game of politics that steered him away from making it his career. He was still confident he could hold his own if needed, but that wasn't the role he was supposed to fill; they were all here as the Captain and Huang's security escort. As they filed in her office, Daeran couldn't help but think that the woman overlooking the city was exactly what he had expected to see and, once she opened her mouth, exactly what he expected to hear. A business woman, in every meaning of the word, but lacking in malice if they were to believe she was the mastermind behind the situation. Though it was only his first impression, the way she spoke of the rebels lacked true resentment; they were an obstacle to AHI, yes, but no more than an inconvenience at worst. As much as it got under his skin to have Jupitarian citizens viewed as such, regardless of what or why they were doing, now wasn't the time for them to be picking fights with AHI, especially if they were actually the mastermind behind this situation... That was why his eyes went wide as Kazue stepped up and spoke her unfiltered opinion, followed quickly by Leon as he went to provide support to her incredibly brash action. There wasn't really much to do about it now, however, and the Captain was quick to take back control of the conversation. All he could do to support Kazue, without worsening their already precarious position, was to stop her from digging her hole any deeper. As Bonner spoke up to reinforce the Captain's point, he stepped up next to her, his voice in a quiet whisper. Hopefully the CEO doesn't have something as inconvenient as augmented ears... "No matter how you feel about what miss CEO says next, you need to listen to the Captain. We need to present a unified front, especially if AHI are actually the ones pulling the strings here on Callisto. Anything less and we paint a target on our backs, moreso than there is already." He gave Kazue a reassuring smile. "Trust in the Captain and Huang, they know what they're doing."

"There's no need to apologize, Kazue. I-- We're all here to support each other, that's part of being a cohesive unit. Try to get some rest before we dock, especially if you're still feeling sick." Daeran leaned back in his seat, letting out a sigh as he forgot Bonner was still on the comms. Truthfully, he was glad he hadn't been part of the action with the manned HEXes; it was impossible to know who the pilots were, but there was a good chance they were Jupitarian; or, if they weren't, then the rebel's almost certainly were. He had joined CEN to protect the peace of Jupiter and it's moon, not 'deal' with a rebellion and whatever the hell else was brewing. "A-Aye, sir!" Daeran hastily responded to the Lieutenant Commander's request, startled out of his thoughts and raising his arm in a hasty salute even though the man couldn't see him. He sighed and put his hands back on the controls, following after Kazue's machine. As he made preparations to board he hailed the bridge one final time; they had requested he keep them updated, after all. "This is Lieutenant Vhane. The ensign has regained her composure and is boarding the Dawn. Following after her. Over." He'd have to make time to talk to Kazue about all this after they were debriefed, help talk her through it before something like this actually put her in danger, made her freeze up on the battlefield, or worse: get her killed. There ended up being little time to talk after the debriefing; Daeran needed his powernap that had been interrupted. Their arrival in the moon's capital was thankfully uneventful compared to their attempt to reach it, no sudden alarm screeching as they pulled into the dock or other such inconveniences. It was truly for the best, he was still tired from the sleep he had been missing, more so after his first live combat as one of the Dawn's pilots. It may have been that same tiredness that caused him to hallucinate, but he swore he caught a few of the dock workers doing double takes as he passed them, some even staring. Once they were in the limo he let out a big sigh, but stayed quiet the rest of the drive to Avyndor's headquarters. If he wasn't hallucinating from exhaustion, then that meant the rumor mill was already beginning to turn; he wouldn't be able to go out in public without some sort of cover. Instead of going down the rabbit hole, he instead focused his attention on the city; though he was a politician's son he had rarely left the colony he was born and raised in. Callisto, compared to Terminus, or at least Terminus IV where he was raised, was much more industrial, corporate in nature. Everything meticulously planned, all the pieces slotted into their place; truly the seat of AHI's headquarters. Terminus' cities were much more organic, developed alongside the people's needs at the time, though surely with more redundancies; more akin to the cities he'd seen on earth than what he was seeing now. As they entered the lobby the contrast between the interior and exterior just a few meters away was almost jarring, but it wasn't as though he was unused to opulence or even opposed to it. In a way it gave him a sense of normalcy, letting him relax some, though his expression stayed straight-laced unlike their accompanying diplomat. The Captain was quick to ask for the nearest elevator, though that sparked some interesting comments from both Louise and Leon about carrying the captain up the stairs, if needed. He raised an eyebrow at the unprofessionalism of it, but made no outward comment. He did turn to give Kazue a reassuring smile, however. She seemed tense and on guard, which was good, but perhaps more than she needed to be. Her attention seemed focused more on him that Sia, as well...

"That's probably for the best, at least for now. If I had my way you'd already know, but who am I to deny the last of Halspria's honest royalty?" There was a wry smirk on his face, shaking his head, but it quickly faded and his expression turned dour as his thoughts ran away from him. The Mad Fool was only that and the former Queen, while unremarkable, still allowed her husband's madness to go unchallenged as far as he was aware. Jilyn seemed to have fallen far from the tree, and he would protect her with his life if need be, but he was not so quick to trust her words. He shook his head, fixing his expression to one more nonchalant, as he remembered where he was. "Starting from the very beginning, eh? It's a long story, one we don't have the time for with the Evelyn looking to put out heads on spikes and parade us around the countryside, so I'll keep it simple. Maybe I'll tell you the whole thing over drinks once we're in Bravia, aye? But anyway, this isn't my first time living in squalor. As much of a paradise as the Western Isles appear to be, the land is not without its unfortunates. I was one due to my parents ill-luck, not their lack of work ethic, so I still had food to eat most days. I took to tinkering with the scrap they wouldn't be able to sell, or other parts that were otherwise discarded to sell them for some extra money on the side. Eventually, that knowledge made me valuable, and I was able to prove it due to a lucky find in the one of the discard piles I frequented and a lot of blood sweat and tears." He unholstered his firearm, showing it Rivane, barrel pointed away from the man and towards the ground. "You know how my bullets always pierce our enemies' defenses, magical or physical? That's an application of what I learned in the islands and, as I hope is obvious, that knowledge is applicable outside of the Isles and their relics. This thing's a hunk of junk, granted a reliable one if properly maintained, but I can still work my magic through it." He blinked, realizing that he'd gone off on a tangent when he'd said he would keep things simple, stuttering before correcting himself. "Er... That is to say, with knowledge like mine, many door open for you and some opportunities are too good to say no to, if you catch my drift." Though slight, there was the faintest hint of a wistful look in his eyes. "To actually keep it simple this time, one thing led to another and I was knighted in Bravia and my competence and my plausible deniability led me to be assigned to Bravia's Special Forces, which eventually led me to my position here with you and the Falcons. Apologies for rambling, you are rather easy to talk to."

Alriana studied the princess' face as the she suddenly began to vent thoughts that she didn't think the woman would've had, given how boisterous she acted. The weight of Cassandra's responsibility was beyond the Creation, the lives of many a burden Alriana doubted she would ever shoulder. "Either will win, or won't win. Likely won't live long enough to worry if lose. If win then there will have been no reason to worry. Unless worry will give you ideas on how to win, there no need for it. Don't plan on losing." She looked down at her claw, clenching it into a fist. "Made promises that wouldn't get hurt, cause if I get hurt then bad things happen. To me, maybe to Tigers, but mostly to enemies. If don't get hurt, then impossible to lose, and also enemies will be dead." Alriana's voice was as flat and lacking in emotion as usual, but there was an undeniable resolve in the lizard's eyes; she would beat the Voice, one way or another... "Learn something new everyday, yeah?" Was all the hellhound had to retort to Kise's unexpected answering of her question. She gave the multitailed fox a wave as the group departed her stall and made their way down the hill and into town proper. The dragon and the sheep departed with Jesse, so that left the non-Tiger group down to Miria, Syta, and Laniva. -------------------------------------- Ember could only smirk and shake her head at Amera's never-ending excitement over the prospect of seafood as they walked around town. She'd always appreciated the cat's lighthearted, and slightly airheaded, attitude; it was a welcome relief in their line of work to always have someone so bubbly and happy to be there. "Could also stop into that bazaar before lunch if you guys aren't that hungry yet." She offered to the remaining Tigers. "Down for whatever, personally. Heard they have some crazy stuff in there, but inventory changes so fast it's more like a grab bag for what you'll find inside."

"Understood Captain, Lieutenant Vhane out." With a flick the line to the bridge was ended. "Shit." Comms to Kazue still muted, Daeran swore under his breath; he hadn't expected Kazue to be this green, but he wasn't sure why. The signs were all there, talk of immobilizing enemy craft, her disregard for her own safety, how worked up she had gotten over the rebels being targeted... Deep breaths Daeran, she's reaching out to you so the least you can do is be the rock that you so desperately want to be... Another deep breath and he unmuted his comms to Kazue. "..." Despite his prep it still wasn't easy being put on the spot like this. When he did finally find the words they were rushed, speaking a stream of consciousness with little filter. "I'm the son of a local politician, I'm not sure if you've ever heard of the Vhane name before you met me. I assume not because you've lived your whole on Earth and had no reaction when I said it before so I don't know why I thought you'd have heard of the name-- Er, that is to say this is an awkward sort of homecoming for me, one that I never anticipated when I signed up for CEN and I'm not entirely sure how I feel about it yet. What we saw to today isn't helping my feelings any--" He cut himself off as Bonner's voice came over the comms, reason behind his words kicking back in. "W, We're fine, sir. The Ensign is struggling with the deaths of the unknowns, but aside from that the both of us are physically fine."

As their discussion on their route had settled on Bravia, Cyrus felt a wave a relief wash through him, despite the situation the Falcons now found themselves in. While he wasn't a Bravian native, it was still the land he considered his home and he had some familiarity with the land and it's people; in the Halidom he would be no different than when he had moved to the mainland: a stranger in a strange land. The march south was thankfully uneventful, both from their pursuers and from their prisoner, as was the establishment of their camp for the night. He had announced he would be momentarily retiring to his tent to Rivane once camp had been set up, having just finished undoing the clasps of his armor as the knight entered his tent. He gave the man a friendly smile, and it would remain as such as long as he didn't intend to pry into the topic forbidden by Jilyn. "That depends on what you want to know, sir. Aside from what the prin-- Empress has forbade me from divulging to you, there is little limit in what I am willing to tell you. The state of the war, the routes we should take through Bravia, insight into my mission, the details of my past... Whatever it is you wish to know, I will most likely be willing to share it with you; you have my utmost trust, sir."