Phoenix

Changing Rooms "So what's going on, exactly?" Euphrosyne asked, "Where did that blood come from?" "Got it! I think ..." Hitomi examined the small box first, deciding to open it to check the contents. "No labels on anything ... don't you ever do any brand name shopping? I can't even tell what this tube is or what's inside it." "No," Euphrosyne scowled over at her. "Just bring it here, Hitomi," Carmen sighed. Front Courtyard "I like it," Irvine grinned as Leto made her way back with his steak, "It's pretty, quiet ... peaceful ... the girls were brought up on milk and honey or somethin', and I can't get over the fact there's just a couple of frames standing over there by that crowd. Oh right!" Irvine paused as Leto served him his filet mignon and birch beer and jutted his arm over at the exhibit's ranch. "Can you believe those horses are actually robots? How'd they--Hold on a sec. Hey, Leto? How'd you guys put those things together for this?" "I'm not certain, actually," she smiled an apology, "You may want to ask one of the exhibit's organizers, Master Donnell." "You guys don't share intel?" "Irvine, this is almost painful for me," Alexis' voice came out of the table, "Leto is a robot, just like those horses you're so impressed with. Not all the servants are real so please keep that in mind." Having been outed for the sake of Alexis' sanity, Leto's smile widened. "Yes, I was only programmed yesterday morning, Master Donnell. I don't have any information unrelated to my duties here at the estate." "... right. I gotcha." "By the way, James just got off the metro. He should be here in a minute or two. I'll be 'lurking' in case anything comes up." "... right. Ci, madre ..."

Changing Rooms "A panic attack?" Carmen was glad Ninos wasn't around to hear that explanation. His commentary was always harsh enough to spark arguments with outsiders and crewmen alike. The others were right, though. Monika didn't need to force herself into something she wasn't comfortable doing. They wanted volunteers not conscripts. "Hopefully I wasn't laying it on too thick about serving Lord Riaz ... anyway, can you hold still for a moment? I'm going to try something. Hitomi, there should be a small kit in the first drawer from the far right side of the counter. Can you bring it to me?" "Like a first-aid kit?" Hitomi asked, already heading in that direction. "In this instance ... I suppose so," she shrugged. Suddenly, the double doors to the changing rooms opened and Euphrosyne stepped through carrying a beige bag in both arms. A lone scarab was riding on her left shoulder and another was perched precariously atop her head as she stepped into the room. "So it turns out the lanes leading to the second floor were closed off. I've got someone looking into it but we're in a hurry now, so I just brought this batch up with me." "That's at least one hundred, Euphrosyne," Carmen winced. Did they even need a quarter of that for getting the girls ready? Field "What, you mean how quickly you can convert or just responsiveness in general?" Nero wanted so desperately to just hijack the Cavalier now and give a demonstration in the hangar. The Journeyman was fine for a demo as well but its mobility was based more on sustained output than acceleration; it could keep up with ships, but couldn't escape a close range engagement as easily as the Cavalier could. Nero knew how to pilot both machines, but unfortunately for him, the Cavalier was essentially Euphrosyne's. In normal G-frames this wouldn't be much of an issue, but these custom models weren't as easy to swap around. Once they fully adapted to the bio metrics of a particular pilot, it was best not to put anyone else at behind the controls. Performance was worse across the board otherwise and repeating the process to get a new pilot to that level could take a year or longer. "Can they evade a MAC round fired inside three kilometers?" A random guest piped up. "The Cavalier can, yeah ..." Nero nodded in boredom.

The second Twin Bird Maneuver went off flawlessly! "Alright! Reign, let's circle back for another pass. And thanks for the assist, Chris." To think they had Marianne running scared at this point. Brant couldn't deny it felt good to pay her back in fear more than in outright victory, but they couldn't afford to take any chances here. Chris and Vera may have been on the warpath right now, but they had the right idea. Astin and Marianne had done more to harm them than most in Apotheosis just by being on the Riese. Letting them get off with just a good scare was out of the question. Deftly dodging Marianne's counterattack, Brant guided the Regalia high enough to get a good view of the battlefield and update his mental map of what was going on. "Let's see ... not bad, not bad. Once they run out of regulars we can start focusing down the tougher suits. The snowball's starting to roll ..." Firmia clenched her fist as Terry radioed her asking for fire support. ... just this once. She would not make a habit of helping these people or get too friendly with them. It wouldn't be a popular decision, but the Alkaev reminded herself that she needed to set the record straight before she sent the androids in to retrieve the scientists. As soon as they defeated Apotheosis, this alliance with Apotheosis' old side show clowns was over. For now, she was content with mercilessly lighting up the opposing Luna. "We won't let that traitor warp out of here this time! MARCIA, INCINERATE THEM!!!" "All this yelling ... everyone's just done today, aren't they?" Tonya sighed. Firmia attacks Astin with AA Missiles! Revolutsiya (Chapter II)

"Right," Brant nodded, glad his explanation hadn't left a negative impact, now of all times. Chris even fired back, aiming to get them both pumped up for the remainder of the battle. "I'm alright, Hannah. It's not our problem. Our problems are these guys ..." It was too bad this was going to be a long slog once even after the regulars were dealt with, thanks to those powerful lead units and warships ... or not. "Well, there goes one of them." There wasn't any time to reevaluate their chances against the Sacarian leaders, as Hannah just sent them the signal. They hadn't had the chance to really master the move, but it was time to attempt another Twin Bird Maneuver. Practice makes dead enemies. "Hang on, we're going to hit the Ceres as hard as we can here. We're ready!" Given their positions and energy, they might actually be able to pull this off twice ... something to keep in mind if the first left them in a good position. The Reign still handled the high speed maneuvers better than the Regalia could but they landed their combination attack easily. Sure enough, while the damage wasn't decisive, they were still in a good position to hit the Ceres again. "Hannah's being pretty damn courteous, Marianne," Brant radioed the traitor, much of his contempt hitting her name, "You don't want to know what the others would do to you for trying to kill Christina." ... that said, "Let's give'er another!" ... Firmia watched the Twin Bird Maneuver on the radar, and to her surprise, they immediately turned and pulled another one. They wouldn't be able to keep that up for long, but the Alkaev couldn't complain about their choice of targets. If Marianne got away today ... well, obviously Firmia would just hunt her down and kill her, but it was more the very notion of her escaping in the first place. She couldn't let that happen, but the Riese was still vulnerable, so the Avalon couldn't break away to assist directly. Not just yet. What they could do is give Astin something to think about. "Marcia, target the Luna--the stupid one--and prepare to fire missiles!" "snrk The stupid one," Tonya tried not to look back to see what sort of fresh hate was on the captain's face this time. Brant cast Strike and Focus moves to 9,17, uses Twin Bird against Marianne! Firmia cast Marcia's Strike! Revolyutsiya (Chapter I)

It looked like not everyone could help with this. Carmen was just starting to approach when Hitomi leaped from the changing room, fully dressed in the maid attire and looking duly concerned. "Bleeding?!" "If it's nothing serious I can handle it ..." Carmen didn't have the confidence in her voice she normally would. They needed to clean up the blood, but she might be able to deal with the wound all on her own. Her waning confidence stemmed from the uncertainty in trying. With a light wound, she ought to be able to ... but maybe it was better to simply fetch a kit. One of the smaller scarabs would have also been extremely helpful here, but they weren't showing up for some reason. "Kei, are you going to be okay?" Hitomi winced when she saw the blood, "I don't even know how you can bite down that hard ..."

Changing Rooms "We definitely have a plan, Euphrosyne nodded. She immediately walked over to the wall where the entrance to the changing area was located and knelt down over the scarab running lanes. "Just have to call them up here. I usually don't have to deal with the little guys, but Sheridan isn't here ..." In the meantime, Carmen waited around for the others to get changed, making sure she was available to help anyone that needed help. Within a few minutes, they had their first arriving volunteer maids, Karina and Melanie. The two certainly had different ... attributes. The exhibit wouldn't be wanting for variety at least. "We can probably loosen that up for you, Melanie. To answer the question, yes, we'll get started on your hair and eyes once Euphrosyne's done with ..." "Why aren't they coming?!" Carmen winced, wondering if she should try and help or suggest some alternative. Calling Sheridan seemed like one such alternative, but she was still welcoming guests and collecting the entrance fees. They couldn't afford to take up too much of her time, right now. "Alright, all of you wait here," Euphrosyne made for the double doors in a huff, "I'll be back soon and then we'll finish with your makeup. Just focus on changing and getting comfortable." The doors shut behind her and they were once again down to one serf and a small group of volunteers. "Once she has the scarabs we'll be nearly done," Carmen explained, "so we'll just focus on the outfits for now." Speaking of which, Hitomi in particular was taking WAY too long. The girl could completely swap between her Battlenet uniform and a flightsuit in just less than ninety seconds. The maid costumes were 'involved,' but they were far from complicated. Then again, Carmen felt she ought to actually try squeezing into one before she made a final call on that point. "Hitomi? Monika? Are you two having trouble? I'm here to help if you need anything ..." "I'm fine!" Hitomi called back, "J-juuust practicing some maid moves!" Carmen supposed that made sense, wanting to practice poses and the like in total privacy. She'd never been properly embarrassed in her life thanks to serf psychology, but for this lot, it was another matter entirely. It made her feel almost alien whenever she noticed the difference. For normal people, when it came to exchanging clothing and exposing figures, embarrassment would take a prominent spot beside pride, fear, and excitement. Carmen understood those three well ... just not the former. Field Someone was asking about the Cavalier's top speed, now? To say Nero wasn't technically inclined wouldn't be accurate, but the serf was definitely wary of raw numbers, given how situational they all were. Case in point, depending on the environment, a G-frame's top speed varied from 'fast' to 'ludicrously fast.' It was more a matter of how much of its power and propellant could be brought into the equation and what medium they were traveling through. Of course, different people meant different things by speed, and the Jovians were typically concerned with the more aesthetically pleasing stats like combat mobility. That was where things got exciting, and it was what really made the Cavalier such an effective unit, even in very long-range engagements. Before Nero was ready to clarify, he realized that the one who'd hit him with the speed question was wearing a mask of all things. Jovians had all sorts of random gadgets on them, so Nero couldn't be sure if the mask was a AR-HUD, a camera, some combination of the two, or just a regular mask. It didn't bear on the question, so he opted to leave that matter alone. He couldn't have Euphrosyne or Mary jumping down his throat for accidentally starting something with a patron. "Eh ... depends on what you mean. Combat-wise, you can't even touch this thing at BVR, not even with a long gun. At least a hunter class or a fig couldn't. Even on Larsa-" Might as well use it as a baseline since it really did look like they were inside the shield world, "-this little speed demon tops out at about a thousand two-hundred meters a second close to the ground. Obviously the thinner the air, the less drag and the higher it tops out. And that's not even getting into TK profile shaping." "It's faster than the Journeyman?" "Obviously," Nero rolled his eyes at the next one. He didn't know why these people were trying to find the 'better' unit here. They had completely different jobs in the field. More over, their best pilot was using a Hound, which was statistically inferior to both the Cavalier and the Journeyman across every relevant category ... yet he could put both machines down for a long nap even in a two versus one scenario ... if only Thomas wasn't babysitting Ninos, he could come and deal with these people.

Changing Rooms "It really wouldn't be worth it having you all wandering around aimlessly out there," Euphrosyne noted as she approached the group. "Don't worry about hair dye," Carmen chimed in after Karina, "though if you've got lenses you might want to use those instead." She couldn't imagine any of them wanting to deal with the smaller scarabs poking and prodding at their eyes. Some of them were probably already going to be freaking out with the things crawling all over their faces. No point bringing that up until they were fully committed to helping out ... "Everything begins with your mindset," Euphrosyne continued, taking one of the costumes from Hitomi, "Remember, first and foremost, you're a servant. Your pride and dignity are meaningless next to your master's. That's who you represent to the rest of the world. His honor, family, and legacy are your life and purpose." "Who's our master?" Hitomi asked. "Erm-" Euphrosyne flinched. She hadn't been tripped up by the question, per se ... she just didn't like the first thought that came to mind ... "For this event," Carmen took a step forward, hand on her chest, "You are all servants of House Riaz. Lord Dagon Riaz is your master." She announced the head of House Riaz with such fervor that Hitomi couldn't help but straighten up and put her own hand on her chest as Euphrosyne nodded approvingly. Field "Yes, the barrier is strong enough to destroy missiles on its own," Nero scowled, "What kind of question is that?" Another curious guest put in a question of his own, quickly running through a list of G-frame telekinesis thresholds he'd probably put together himself. "Can these sustain a full barrier and still use TK assisted AMBAC?" "Of course," Nero rolled his eyes. It wasn't quite that simple, but the G-frames themselves could handle something like that. Unlike figura, a G-frame's potential was closely reflected by the pilot. The better the pilot, the more its innate capabilities could benefit them in battle. "What's the upper limit on individual targets?" a different attendee spoke up, his hand raised to stand out as much as he could, "With targeted telekinesis I mean." Nero shrugged with an irritated grin. This was another issue where the pilot was of equal if not greater importance than the frame. Most pilots could 'mentally acquire' up to a couple of dozen targets but acting on them individually was another matter completely. "If you're a lousy esper, your G-frame's telekinesis isn't going to be much better. Just look at it that way."

A deer? A deer?! Was true power a joke to Xalrei? Regardless, the notion, while incredibly insulting, was somewhat tempting, if for no other reason than the fact that any sustenance would do at least stave off the slow drain of Requiem's power at this point. The cursed blade wasn't convinced that trying to instigate a conflict wasn't the better option, but at the very least, Xalrei seemed willing to do something about the cursed blade's minuscule reserves of energy. Deciding not to tip its hand for now, Requiem said, 'You were warned.' No point in dignifying the deer suggestion just yet ...

Getting away from the meaningless conflict of the arena should have been a good thing. It might have been, mused the cursed blade, if only this collection of individuals hadn't opted for yet another peaceful stop. Requiem was still contemplating quietly to itself, trying to find some effective path to a bloody conflict. Anything. Even the group turning on itself over some minor misunderstanding was far, far preferable to starving while they nourished themselves. The nerve of these cretins ... There were options for turning this odd adventure into a bloodbath, but very few that could be acted on right now. Requiem had to get to know this group one soul at a time, and through that, learn how best to manipulate them. What little energy the cursed blade currently held was enough to form purely rational thoughts between bouts of fighting to retain that same energy, and it was obvious even in this sorry state that the game was over as soon as an incident led back to the shape-shifting sword itself. Requiem's options were indeed limited ... Time seemed to march on in mind-numbing fashion until Requiem sensed something familiar, a presence that was almost comforting in this atmosphere. It approached, coming closer, and closer, and with each passing second, the cursed blade's anticipation of a fight grew. Was this strange, almost alluring soul coming in the pursuit of blood? Was there a chance Requiem could take in the lives of the fallen? It didn't matter who wielded it in the end, as long as it could finally feed and grow. There were no allies or enemies here, only potential victims. If there was ever a time to nudge these creatures toward the edge without being seen as a liability ... it was now. 'I sense a hunger for conflict, pure and marvelous ... and this is no arena.' Admittedly there was something highly restrained about said aura, but this wasn't about accurate assessments of the situation, it was about giving its arrogant handlers the nudge they needed to converge, weapons drawn, caution abandoned. 'Prepare yourself, Xalrei. You will need this power to prevail.' The cursed blade couldn't grin ... but its barely perceptible crimson glow told its own story.

14:00 Dock The Rear Courtyard "I see," Ninos pondered the situation he now found himself in, "So it's not me you need help from specifically ... but since I'm her captain and have charge over her ..." "Need is a strong word," Rebecca smirked, taking a sip of some red wine, "I'd simply prefer it if our acquisition goes smoothly. According to our records, she should be able to control it, even at a distance." The acquisition Rebecca wanted to make was definitely a big one, but it made sense. The League's government would probably try to find some way to stop her if they knew the Iron Kingdom was wise to their hidden weapon, which made things just a bit dangerous for everyone involved. "I'm certain you're aware that it would be unwise for me not to first consult my father about your offer. And yet, I can sense that you would prefer it if I left Lord Riaz out of this. Am I wrong?" "If I believed there was no way to broach the issue without involving him, I would have contacted him myself. Having said that, I'm giving you a very rare opportunity to work with me and improve your own standing, not just within House Riaz, but also with my people. Your Lord will appreciate your efforts if you don't cause him any trouble in the long run. Yes? Surely that's why you've been given command of your own ship and the freedom to conduct business with the Jovians as you see fit. Either way, the choice is yours. You aren't wrong to seek your father's guidance, but any gains made for your house fall solely to him if you do." Ninos grimaced. Rebecca wasn't pressuring him as much as he expected, given what she was trying to take from Eupraxia Grand Station, but she was still putting him in an uncomfortable place. Of course he would prefer to handle this himself ... but he was having trouble with the very crewmember Rebecca was trying to borrow for part of her acquisition. This would make it back to Lord Riaz a lot sooner than she thought if they went through with this. Even if the deal went perfectly and everyone got what they wanted, Ninos couldn't be completely sure his father would approve. He definitely wouldn't berate him for it, whatever the outcome, but the risk of disappointing his father to that degree was almost too big of a risk. "Please, think it over," Rebecca offered with a gesture, "but do let me know if Lord Riaz becomes aware of my proposal. I'd like to continue this discussion with him at that point." Subtle, but Ninos still felt the jab. She wasn't wrong; he was just an extension of his father, and irrelevant once Lord Riaz was brought in on this. The Field Kneeling over a small crowd of mech enthusiasts and curious guests, the Cavalier and the Journeyman went a long way toward making the estate look like a real private property on Larsa. Many noble houses tended to make customizations to their G-frames, particularly for their best pilots. These one offs were sometimes extreme, but usually, the unit they were derived from could be worked out visually. The Cavalier and the Journeyman were quite similar overall, borrowing aesthetics from both the 3rd Generation Hound and the Fourth Generation Ishkurite frames. The Cavalier had a massive central thruster with three binders for enhanced AMBAC performance, while the Journeyman opted for two back thrusters and a rack for two subunits. Because both units had legs derived from the Ishkurite class, they had room for additional integrated weapons. The Cavalier took things one step further by mounting its shield to its left shoulder and a large beam cannon to the right. The shield also contained a visible plasma link, which would prove devastating at close range. Both were well-rounded units, however, the Cavalier was clearly designed for high octane hit and run attacks while the Journeyman was a capable escort with all angle attack options at close to mid-range. With the help of a few spare servants, Nero was able to handle the small crowd's onslaught of questions. Like Euphrosyne earlier, Nero wasn't wearing a servant costume and instead had on similar coveralls to her, with a black, loose hanging sleeveless undershirt. Like all modern serfs, his skin was ghostly pale. His hair was white, relatively short and running wild at the top. The rest--the long portion--was contained behind him in a loose ponytail that tapered off at his waist. Nero didn't look like he wanted to be there dealing with this, but Euphrosyne had left him to deal with it. Every time he glanced up at the Journeyman, his trigger finger twitched. Still ... a whole our until he could actually pilot. Still, that was far better than standing around being asked about how it all worked ... ... maybe he could ... just hop in and ... give a little demonstration ... The Estate Main Building The main building wasn't all fake, there were real partitions in use throughout much of it, though not enough to simulate every room in the estate. Some walls could be walked through if one didn't mind being briefly dazzled and disoriented. Surprisingly, the serfs had managed to create a safe, functional second floor. Most of the fake walls and decor were up there, as well as the changing rooms. The estate also had restrooms with flush toilets. Considering they weren't part of the hangar itself, the water system being used was likely well hidden and at least somewhat portable. In terms of decoration, the estate was shining with golds, whites, and blues. Rather than the lions and other beasts of ancient Babylonian architecture, the halls of the mansion were lined with artistic portrayals of G-frames, some standing ready to do battle, others standing in line and flanking some of the larger corridors. While subtle, the building also featured authentic design considerations, such as the running lanes, small rectangular outcroppings separating the floor from the walls. They had accessways leading to higher and lower floors. These were used by the scarabs to travel throughout Babylonian style buildings without needing to negotiate human and varan traffic. Since the running lanes appeared in all of the larger rooms and corridors, and small entrances could be opened up into most rooms, the scarabs could be summoned to any part of the building where they were needed. The running lanes also served another useful purpose. They were just wide enough to discourage the curious from thoroughly investigating whether a particular wall was fake or not. Not knowing what was on the other side, one ran the risk of losing their balance and simply falling through any holographic walls they were lucky--or unlucky--enough to find. The Estate Main Building - 2nd Floor Changing Rooms The volunteers had to make their way up a branching central staircase to reach the second floor. From there, it was a short walk down the 2nd-floor hallways to reach the changing rooms. Aside from some chairs, countertops, those everpresent scarab running lanes, and mirrors lining two of the four walls--one sharing space with the countertops and the other taking up an entire wall on its own--there was very little to the place. The individual changing rooms weren't much different from closets, with a simple door for privacy, a bench, racks for the clothing, and a mirror for some good old self-assessment. By the time Euphrosyne arrived to meet the volunteers and the volunteered for herself, Carmen had already shown them the outfits ... "I mean ..." Hitomi held one of the outfits' dress portions up in front of herself and examined it through the mirror wall, "It's kind of tame by modern standards." "You mean Jovian standards," Carmen grinned. "Alright," Euphrosyne stepped into the room and closed the dual doors behind her, "How many do we have and ... do they even ... look the part ...?" She answered both of her questions by simply scanning the room. She wasn't completely disappointed but she knew they had their work cut out for them getting everyone to look like they belonged. As for the girl with the feline appendages, she didn't know what to make of that situation or how to address it. Front Courtyard Irvine, having finished up his investigation of the outer limits of the exhibit, wound up in the courtyard just in front of the main building. He had a seat at one of the many tables set out for the guests and had a look at the food menu. While things were of a Babylonian style, the exhibit itself was certainly Jovian friendly, with each table having a smart glass layer for easy access to any of the local networks, as well as said menu. The table still had a porcelain texture to it somehow, but the integrated display was crystal clear. Other guests, about five in total, were also seated in two other groups and were looking through the menus. The Remaining guests were either over at the ranch, walking around, or inside the main building. The food was one of the big draws for Irvine, personally. The Babylonians were extremely particular about not only the types of meats they ate, but also how the animals were raised. They had also managed the seemingly impossible within the last century, meticulously engineering derivitive livestock bested suited for particular planets; they had done this without the usual negative side-effects. Overall, Babylonian cuisine had a bit less variety in animals, but nutritional profiles neither the League nor the Alliance territories could ever hope to match using their current methods. Irvine decided to keep things simple today and just try out one of their steaks. The exhibit was apparently going to be open today and tomorrow, so he had the rest of Batcon to sample more of the menu. He just had to choose a cut, now ... One of the servants from the exhibit managed to approach from outside of Irvine's field of view, so he didn't notice her until she was standing over and slightly off to his side. She looked like a serf but was wearing one of those high cut maid outfits the others had gone off to try and squeeze into. She introduced herself as Leto, welcomed him to the exhibit and inquired about his choice of steaks ... she seemed to have already noted that he had at least the basic item selected on the menu. Irvine opted for the filet mignon, something he could actually make a comparison to what he normally ate ... at least what he normally ate when he could treat himself. His diet mainly consisted of chicken, pasta, sweet drinks and alcohol. Finishing up his order with his drinks, he ordered some water and some birch beer.

So Karina was volunteering, and Mewlanie was volunteering, both herself and Monika. Hitomi was amused to see the situation slowly sinking in for the latter. As for her, she wasn't sure whether she wanted to volunteer or not, yet. She definitely wanted to try some of the food and drink here, particularly a genuine Larsan Shake since Carmen already confirmed for her that they were on the menu. As long as she could still do that ... There weren't any volunteers among the men; Irvine had already headed inside before the suggestion came up and Aska was more interested in checking out the G-frames, a noble pursuit during Batcon. Linus might still throw his hat in and put on a costume, but that was yet to be seen. "Oh Euphrosyne," Sheridan closed her eyes and called for her fellow serf, though her voice couldn't carry nearly far enough to reach the woman if she wasn't already present. Hitomi didn't see anyone when she looked around, so maybe Sheridan was on a call. It didn't look like it, but some people had implants ... not that Sheridan looked like she had any cybernetics, either. That was far too rare with serfs. "There are some volunteers for the exhibit. Carmen is bringing them to you, now." Carmen slowed her pace accordingly, letting the others catch up, and since Hitomi was planning on heading in anyway, she decided to just pipe down for a bit and see where she wound up in all of this. Maybe she would just end up watching this silliness unfold from behind the scenes, maybe she would get handed one of these maid costumes and told to put it on. Either way, this was fun~

Megumi wasn't sure what to think when Jessica brought up the issue of radio silence. The doctor personally preferred things this way. She and Ignatius could focus more easily. The odd thing was that the Captain herself knew it wasn't necessarily a good idea and was still going to do it. Classic? If her address to the pilots and allied ships was anything to go by, it was classic indeed. Megumi sighed as she switched instruments in the SIEG tank. "While I'm glad you're feeling better, that was definitely a mistake. You could have boosted morale by leaving it at 'I'm alive,' but now they're going to be wondering about the sudden amnesia." The doctor didn't know if she was going to get grilled about that--Firmia already knew--but she didn't have answers for them. There may have been some organic bits in her skull, but for the most part Jessica was a machine and Megumi couldn't say much about what was happening. ... Destroying Cressidas had gone from being a good portion of the Alkaev's battlefield workload ... to downright boring. Apotheosis' grunts weren't enough to distract her from the undercurrent unfolding on the Riese, and Firmia scowled hard at the radar's representation of the Riese as Jessica threw her curveball of an announcement. She could only observe as her mind frantically tried to plot out events post-battle. It was an aggravating exercise that she was powerless to interrupt. The same blasted question repeated in her mind, one she would be loathe to ever repeat aloud, but it was there and it was hounding her even more now than before. With Jessica's announcement, everyone knew she wasn't yet privy to some very important information, not just a handful of people. Firmia hadn't changed her mind about the likely results of this bout of memory loss, but her mind still insisted on working out every angle. "I wish I could drink during battles. Just have to wait a little longer to change that ..." "Change what?" Tonya glanced back toward the captain's chair, "You shouldn't drink while in command whether you're the legal drinking age or not." The Alkaev supposed she couldn't fault Tonya for not knowing what she was alluding to ... "I'll be able to handle it eventually, but for now ... I'll wait ..." And try to stop myself from fighting for a lost cause ... How did Brant deal with this?! ... Meanwhile on the Regalia ... "She can't remember anything?" Convenient, Brant thought. Part of the news made him a little sad. Hearing that everything on her end had been essentially wiped clean put some things into perspective. Sighing, he glanced down at his radar, trying to get a fresh look at the state of the battle as he said, "Just so you know ... I'm not ... feeling down because she doesn't remember us. As far as the Avalon crew's concerned that's probably a good thing." Jessica's take on the battle had been fairly optimistic given how much ammunition and energy they were burning through. Not to mention the damage to the Riese, which was more than they could manage in the middle of a firefight. Whether they would actually survive this was still somewhat up in the air. After all, they didn't have reinforcements in range, but the enemy just might. Brant focused his eyes back on the battle in front of them, scanning visually for targets of opportunity. As for what he had been trying to say to Chris, he continued in an even softer tone. "It's just ... hearing her so blissfully ignorant now really drives it home ... how awful it really was." Brant could see faint, tree-like branches in his mind's eye, each divergent point representing another failure to prevent the situation from getting worse. Following them all the way back to the root, he could see his situation so much more clearly now. "I was the only one that should have been hurt back then. Instead, I tried to protect something even less valuable than my last relationship, and nearly everyone I know suffered for it. That's all, just regret rearing its head. Rex wouldn't have cared ... my old man would have been relieved ... for his own reasons ... Sasha would have shrugged since he's done this dance before. I'm the one that swaps a motto that glorifies suicide missions for common sense. Can't undo any of it though, as much as I'd like to. Just have to make sure you, the girls, and number three aren't ever taken for a ride like that going forward." Brant would have included Firmia, Hannah, and Tonya, but that would have deluded his point toward the end. His regrets were for the course he'd personally taken, not the destination, at least with regard to the Avalon. Eyes on the Prize (Final Chapter)

Irvine headed inside the dock and took in the sights. The serfs had really given this place a makeover. It looked like they had stepped out into the inner surface of a shield world, with continents and oceans in clear and partially clouded views overhead, all illuminated by a small but potent central star-like light. This was definitely a Larsa knockoff, and an excellent one at that. Even the breeze felt like part of a much larger climate. "Ah man, I'd love to take a vacation to a place like this." Bringing his gaze back down to ground level, Irvine spotted the ranch over on the far right side of the mansion. He could see a couple of riders carefully getting familiar with the horses the exhibit had advertised. Not sure how far out they could ride before colliding with the disguised inner wall of the docks, Irvine started to wander around, trying to see how the corridor leading into Eupraxia Grand Station proper, and C-142's Agarthan aesthetic reconciled with one another. As it turned out, looking back at the entrance the guests were coming into the dock through, it was disguised as another building without a clear purpose. It was also obviously a disguised building seeing how it wasn't nearly as long as the corridor inside it. Approaching the side of the hangar wall, Irvine managed to find the real cracks in the illusion ... though they were by no means immersion breaking, not for him at least. The words, Please Return to the Exhibit, slowly faded into view along the invisible wall as Irvine came closer and closer to it. The text also followed him laterally as he walked along sideways, clearly marking the spot where air met metal. "So that's where the back wall is ... which means for a dock this size ..." Irvine glanced around and started toward the mansion, "Others must be way over there ... there ... and there?" He guessed at the distances but couldn't be too sure without knowing how large the occupying ship was. The Sipa Lugal was outside, and that alone made this place seem larger than normal. Add in the holograms and one really had to investigate to break the illusion. As Irvine drew closer to the front courtyard, he saw a few individuals that really stood out. Two were serfs, and one was a varan, much like the one loitering at the corridor entrance. One of the serfs was wearing the leggy maid costume while the other was wearing coveralls and looked a lot like a grease monkey ... a fairly attractive grease monkey by Irvine's standards, but there it was. He decided to investigate~ C-142 Corridor And they finally heard back from Makala, so that was good. It still took some interpretation but everyone was accounted for, now. Linus replied back, so there was nothing else that needed doing on that end. As for where to meet up, Hitomi figured the best place to gather would be wherever they would be watching the show from. Unfortunately, she had no idea where that would be ... "Uh, Sheridan? Where should we be when the show starts?" "Oh, anywhere should be fine, really," Sheridan smiled, "The greater frames will be heading outside and flying in approved zones. We have plenty of monitors prepared, as well as camera rentals available for anyone who would like them. On that note, if you've brought your own, please give them to Euphrosyne before 15:00." Hitomi was pretty sure Sheridan was referring to those cheap little flight cameras. They were essentially budgie sized drones that could take pictures from the sky. There was no way in Jove they could keep up with a G-frame, so handing them over to one of the pilots likely meant they were going to be telekinetically 'towed' along inside the G-frame's biofield. If that was all on point, then this was standard fare for an airshow ... aside from Thomas, of course. The Babylonians tended to reserve showing off with G-men for actual battles. That still didn't tell them where they ought to meet up, so Hitomi decided to make a suggestion at random. "How about the courtyard behind the mansion?" The Rear Courtyard Ninos had opted to relocate since more and more patrons were arriving by the minute. One of the three G-frames assigned to the Sipa Lugal, the Hound, was present and kneeling a dozen meters from Ninos' table. Even kneeling, a G-frame was exceptionally tall, though neither Thomas' large body nor the mansion itself provided any shade from the light shining directly overhead. Only the occasional cloud could manage that. The captain of the Sipa Lugal had been hoping to at least manage another glass before he called it an afternoon and headed back to the ship to rest ... but Thomas had some sobering news for him. "You have company," the metallic giant's voice seemed to manifest from the air itself, "Three. All espers. Cutting directly through the main building." Ninos sighed. "They must be searching for me in particular ... and three espers, you said?" "That's right. None of ours." Ninos stood up from the table and turned to face the mansion's back doors. "Let's see what this is about then, shall we?" Two men, clearly Babylonian warrior servants, opened the doors to let a surprisingly tall, cloaked woman through to the rear courtyard. Ninos pegged her at six feet and two inches without the form-fitting boots she was wearing, and six feet and four inches with. Her hair was jet black and her complexion just a shade or two darker than the average Jovian. Her cloak covered most of her body, but her outfit was similar to the bodysuits worn by Alliance and Jovian pilots. The markings and cuts of the design were distinctly Babylonian, however, meaning this woman and her two escorts were with the Iron Kingdom. "Good afternoon," Ninos greeted her, "To whom do I owe the pleasure?" Despite his best efforts, Ninos couldn't hide his irritation, only his nervousness. He normally wouldn't feel particularly vulnerable, even to a powerful esper, especially not with Thomas right behind him, but he had a feeling this woman was royalty, which meant she probably wasn't altogether human. "Captain Ninos," the woman smirked at him, "So good to finally meet a Prince of Riaz in person. My name is Rebecca, Fourth Daughter of Lord Ishkur." One of Commander Ishkur's children ... and being such a low number meant she was likely in her early forties, despite her youthful appearance. Said youthful appearance, along with her sheer height, also hinted at her being an Archon. Ninos' instinctive nervousness was now fully justified. Thomas could take her down easily in this situation, but if for whatever reason Rebecca decided to end Ninos first, she had all the time in the world. There was no reason for hostilities, but Ninos was always ready for a situation to go sideways and violent. He blamed a certain serf of his for much of that. "A daughter of Lord Ishkur? Pardon my asking, but what brings you here?" "I'm on this adorable little island on behalf of my father," Rebecca answered easily as she approached, "I have a business proposition for you, Captain." "... a business proposition, is it?" "Why don't we sit down and I'll explain the matter in detail ..." C-142 Corridor "Oh, you're volunteering to help? My my ..." Sheridan was beside herself, though her own biofield kept her from ever having a substantial reaction to anything, no matter how surprised or excited she was. "Well, we certainly have extras, more than enough for anyone and everyone in your group. Euphrosyne normally wouldn't allow this, however, since some of you are Carmen's former teammates, I'm willing to wager that she'll make an exception~" "You're not serious, are you?" Carmen blinked. "Of course we're serious! Euphrosyne said it was just you, Sheridan, Mary, and Georgios, so that won't do." "I appreciate it, but aren't you here for a team meeting? Serving guests is going to be distracting ..." "We'll have the meeting right after the airshow before we head out. Simple." "... alright," Carmen shrugged, giving Melanie a few more good ear scritches before preparing to head inside.

Firmia activates Focus (20sp), moves to 11,8 and attacks Cressida 10 with Avalon Funnels!

And down it goes. "Nice shot, Elaine," Brant praised the kill. Despite how well things were going, nearly all of the enemy's major players were still on the field. Trying to clean out the grunts first was safer overall, but they weren't going to have much left in the way of ammunition for the final stretch if they weren't extremely careful. Not to mention the Riese was still heavily exposed with a whole squad moving toward it. Nothing the Regalia could do about it at the moment, unfortunately. "Urgh, we're burning through ammo and we've still got an army on our hands. This is Merlin to Vivian. Are you sure the other ships are too far out to help?" "Not even picking them up on the horizon," Firmia replied, "So yes, they're too far away. Just try to conserve your energy. If the situation or our strategy changes, I'll let you know." "Copy that ..." Brant sighed. Eyes on the Prize (Chapter VI)

Oh no, Melanie gave her a surname ... a fancy one, but that was all Carmen would need to fall back on her usual habit. "Ms. De la Croix," Carmen sighed in relief as she began stroking Melanie's ears. Her pronunciation was rather on point, too. "No pulling." Simple enough. She was gentle with Lyra, too. "Now you've done it," Hitomi shook her head at the feline streamer, "They trained her to always use honorifics to the point she has to undo it one person at a time. You're stuck with Ms. De La Croix or Mewlanie for a while," she explained with a pitying grin. Hitomi had just been inching toward Melanie's tail to poke at it with her finger when Linus arrived and chimed in. Excellent ... and hilarious with Melanie turning into something of a sideshow. They should seriously look into adding a cat maid to the roster for the afternoon. "Linus," Carmen greeted him with a smile. She didn't stop what she was doing, which left Melanie helpless for the moment. "I'm glad you could make it. And don't worry, I'll be especially careful with this one~" "It was Carmen's idea actually," Hitomi clarified, gesturing at the woman, "but I'm 100% positive curiosity would have gotten us here eventually. She's going to be wearing one of those maid costumes, after all." Carmen barely flinched at the reminder. She had to go get changed ... but ... reunions and ... fun with the catgirl ... Karina and Aska arrived in short order, followed by none other than Irvine. He stepped out of the latest arriving train a few seconds after the former two had greeted the gathering. "Oh hey, guys," Hitomi waved to them, "So far so good. No one who knows about the team pestering to join." "Now that's what I'm talkin' about!" Irvine made his way past the group, though he at least spared a toothy grin in greeting, before heading over to Sheridan at the entrance to C-142. "Afternoon, Lovely Lady~ Say did Beebs cover our fees yet or do I have to wait?" Sheridan struggled with her composure just a little but managed not to laugh. "We're still waiting on the rest of your group from the look of things. That said, the corridor is somewhat congested, now. Since Carmen invited your group, feel free to head on inside. We'll sort out the entry fees later." "Thanks, Angel," Irvine gave her a thumbs up and turned to address the others. "Hey, I'm headin' in to check out the place! By the way," he turned back to Sheridan, "Anyone else wearin' these?" he indicated her outfit. "... not just a lure, is it? Oh yeah, and you've got actual G-frames here too, right?" "Oh, I'm not the only one ... for better or worse," she nearly betrayed the serfs' predicament with a forced smile. One of the people waiting to pay their entry fee started chuckling. "Our greater frames are the Hound, piloted by Thomas, the Cavalier, piloted by Euphrosyne Alba, and the Journeyman ... usually piloted by Nero Bellomo or Carmen Cass. We have a show planned for 15:00, but until then you're free to speak with Thomas or any of the pilots." "Awesome. Thanks for the info." "... kinda name is Euphrosyne?" Another man in line spoke up. "Ancient Norwegian if I remember right," his friend clarified. Sheridan didn't bother correcting him.

Oh little did Melanie know that Carmen had something of a glitch with formalities, one that took entirely too long to conquer. While 'Ms. Moto' was definitely an amusing thing to be called back when the team was first forming, Carmen finally working her way up to just Hitomi was a welcome accomplishment for the latter. Her former teammate seemed to address the problem more easily with callsigns. At least somewhat. As for Melanie's invitation to touch her ears ... "Don't mind if I do," Hitomi said, going at it first. "Erm ..." Carmen was at a loss. What odd timing ... "I know she's not Lyra, but just imagine if she was," Hitomi said, gleefully stroking the tips of Melanie's ears with her fingers, inside and out. "See? They're definitely real~" It had been about a week since Carmen had seen Lyra in person, and the 3DI, while very modern and useful, didn't measure up to the real thing. Admittedly, sheer curiosity was also weighing in. The Babylonians knew all about the wild body modifications some people would have done to them, and it was generally frowned upon, and Melanie's reason for getting these modifications made were disproportionately mild. At the same time, it was also comparatively innocent. Carmen figured if she ever ran into someone with working animal bits, she'd have wound up in a red light district, somehow. Carmen decided to take just a moment to indulge and humor them. "Well, if you insist ..." "You both need and deserve this," Hitomi indeed insisted, letting go of Melanie's ears to give Carmen a go. That was when the streamer's tail gently bumped her leg, pulling her attention downward. "Hmm ..." "There aren't any ways you wouldn't want someone touching your ears, are there, Ms ...?" "Not telling you her surname~" Hitomi stuck out her tongue. "Ms. ... M-Mewlanie?"

"Yeah, I think we're the first ones here," Hitomi replied with a somber nod. She wasn't sure how long to wait for the others before heading inside. They had heard back from everyone but Makala and Sage, so that was also weighing on her somewhat. Not that it was ever easy to get a large group of people together in one place at a particular time, but they were awfully close for a first attempt. "High profile guests?" Carmen asked, but quickly thought better of it. Sheridan tended to expound when it made sense to do so; her vagueness suggested Carmen should go see for herself. "Alright, I'll go get changed in a moment." First, she wanted to sate some of her curiosity regarding the new members of Team Odyssey. Hopefully, Linus would arrive in the meantime, as well. "This is going to be a glorified maid cafe," Hitomi explained half-jokingly as Monika also made her way over, "Babylonian style." "It's not actually a maid cafe," Carmen grimaced, "We have more going on than just the estate setting. Euphrosyne could fill in the details. Sheridan, too, actually. I need to get going, though ..." At some point in her attempt to elaborate, she noticed that Melanie's hair wasn't just sporting oddly positioned locks, and that thing swaying back and forth wasn't some kind of strap. "Are those body modifications?" Were they real and fully functional? "Huh? Oh, yeah." Somewhat gleefully, Hitomi presented one friend to another. "This is Melanie, or Mewlanie if you want to dodge the formalities. She's half cat, and half homebody~"

The race was on. With that, Hitomi broke into a jog and Carmen followed her down the corridor. They couldn't check any more incoming messages on a bigger screen until they found another smartglass pane, but that was fine. While they waited for more of the team to check-in, Mewlanie offered to pay Monika's entry fee. That was nice. 'Take the offer! I know I said I'd pay, but this is a good way to build some strong team bonds!' Hitomi sent that to the group as the next wave of messages arrived. Aska, Helena, and Karina had all reported in and were various kinds of onboard. "That's almost everyone. We're just missing Linus, Sage, and Mack ..." "You were betting against 'Sage,' right?" Carmen asked, almost overtaking Hitomi as the girl slowed her pace a little. "Uh, I'm betting Sage will call first but I'm hoping Linus does." And speaking of the Captain ... "Yes!" "Yes, as in you lose?" "Exactly! Kind of?" 'Stakes were neg, but all is well. Just waiting on Sage and Mack now ... for some reason.' 'Serval Sage will rendezvous with you at Dock C-142 a little late.' That message was from Alexis of all people. 'There's nothing to worry about. I'm simply passing this along on his behalf.' "Alexis?" "Another teammate?" Carmen asked. "She's the ward AI from before. I wonder what Sage is up to if she's telling us for him ...?" 13:39, Dock C-142 Eupraxia Grand Station's ship docks had all been designed by somewhat forward-thinking engineers. Rather than have a set number of large docks for large vessels, and small docks for lighter commerce, most of the docks were of a uniform base size, but could be expanded or contracted through moveable infrastructure to accommodate the needs of the time. Docks leased to organizations or individuals shared this versatility and were quite popular as a result. The Sipa Lugal, while not even approaching the scale of a Jovian battlecruiser, was still large enough to present a few unique problems for the exhibit the crew wanted to put on. To make a long story short, the ship needed to be moved to just outside the docks, in open space, though still out of the way and hidden. Dock C-142 was fully pressurized, and the artificial gravity was reduced from the 0.5gs most living on Eupraxia were accustomed to, to the Babylonian preferred 0.34gs. This gave the serfs all the room and comfort they needed to put up a mansion using portable partitions, holograms, and a slew of items from the Sipa Lugal, herself. The entire hangar was in use, with the Golden Kingdom styled Babylonian Estate sitting serenely in the middle of a beautiful courtyard and ranch, beneath a holographic sky. Several real G-frames, one of whom was Thomas, were also present. The backdrop of this vibrant scene was made to look like the inner surface of the shield world, Larsa, and so rather than endless blue skies, a central star hung overhead, and beyond the thick clouds were other landmasses that hinted at a spheroidal, Agarthan world. Ninos wasn't particularly happy about any of this, of course. He sat at a table in the courtyard just in front of the estate, wearily imbibing some white wine as Euphrosyne and Georgios tried to address the monetary concerns ... "Trust us," Euphrosyne said, "We'll make back far more than what we've spent so far. We honestly saved a lot by putting together the holograms and robots ourselves." She had her platinum blonde hair held back in a ponytail and wore gray coveralls, tied off at the waist with a white t-shirt. The look was nothing that would stand out elsewhere, but in this particular instance, she looked out of place, even for a serf. Georgios, her brother, also stood out, though for entirely different reasons. On top of standing at closer to seven feet tall than six, he was one of the unlucky crewmen forced to wear the servant costumes. Like the Jovians tended to prefer, the female versions were sexualized, with some cleavage exposure, thigh high stockings and boots, and embellishments all over the place. The male variant was a multi-colored suit of a similar style, though for Georgios, the coat was missing and his sleeves were rolled up to better show his muscular frame. The colorful vest kept this coatless version from looking too plain. "You idiots are cutting into the team's Frame Ops funds," Ninos noted with a scowl, not buying the profit projections after seeing how much they had already spent. "I'm rather impressed you managed to cut some of your costs, however, I never agreed to let you people put on a show outside the hangar, as well. Why did the authorities even agree to something like this? Furthermore, how did you rope Teoma into it? He knows better than to show off ..." "With all due respect, Captain," Georgios risked weighing in, "Regarding the funds ... you already bought three warships for the team, as well as two units and equipment for every member. Does Team Nessus really need the rest right now?" "That doesn't even matter; we're going to give it all right back at the end of Batcon," Euphrosyne threw her hands up. "And as for Thomas? He knows that every little bit helps when it comes to getting along with the Jovians." "I suppose that's why the women are wearing those ridiculous clothes, as well," Ninos smirked, taking another sip of his wine as Euphrosyne snarled at him, "You may as well set up a brothel on the second floor while there are only a few patrons here. Do that, and I have faith you'll more than make back what you took from me. Spirit of power ... what nonsense." "Look, asshole! We had the scarabs put together the extra servants and the horses for the ranch, and even the wildlife! It's all homemade!" Georgios tried to calm his sister down with a gentle hand on the shoulder, but Ninos' laughter had her clenching her fists in the space of a heartbeat. "House Riaz goes out of its way to create the most powerful and innovative batch of serfs to ever exist, and all they can think to do is flaunt their bodies and scheme Jovians out of a little money. Fine then. Prove to me that you can earn back every last credit at the very least, and then perhaps I'll start taking you seriously. You are undoubtedly skilled on the battlefield, however, in political matters, you aren't even playing the game." "We'll show you how the game's played, adoptee." "Easy, Euphie," Georgios winced. "Both of you go run your little exhibit and leave me in peace," Ninos shooed them with his hand. "Don't let any of your guests approach me, either. I'm not in the mood to socialize with this station's riffraff, right now." 13:42 Dock Transition Having to pass by one of the metro lines to reach the docks, Hitomi half expected to run into at least one team member on the way to C-142, but there were a good number of people coming through, fortunately, most of whom had nothing to do with Batcon, and therefore wouldn't be pestering them in all likelihood. The trains came and went at incredible speed between the nine tracks on that level. The infamous advertising robots roamed the whole area, colorful, lanky or trashbin shaped things trying to grab the attention of anyone who didn't have special privileges on the network. All professional Frame Ops players were exempt from these aggressive machines, so they wouldn't be bothering Hitomi or Carmen either. The companies and third parties employing these outdated tactics avoided military personnel, both on and off duty, as well. Those poor tourists, though. They had to endure this like no one else in high traffic areas like these. "How long have you guys had 142 leased for anyway? A few years?" "A lot longer than that," Carmen explained as they passed over a train speeding by on the tracks. Rather than rails, they were protected by transparent panes on both sides, both of which were device compatible for the odd phone call or network search. "It's a House Riaz dock, so they've been using it since before the Sipa Lugal was even constructed. I think that arrangement even predates the war." "Sheesh, how much money do you guys have? I couldn't afford to rent two square feet of a hangar for one day, but you've had that spot for almost twenty years?" "I'm just glad it's not coming out of Ninos' coffers," Carmen sighed as they approached the far end of the tracks, reaching the ground floor. There, passengers were boarding and disembarking from the trains and the adbots of every make were on the prowl. "Otherwise he would be even more upset than usual ... all the time." "I still think the Lugal should mutiny." "I know ..." Around the time they reached Dock C-142, Hitomi got an urgent notification, and her device connected to a smartglass pane automatically, bringing up a notice not too far from the entrance. Others were getting the same notice. This was nothing new or especially noteworthy, they were simply leaving Eupraxia I's jurisdiction. Weapon and esper wattage restrictions weren't as harsh beyond this point, so the notification was warning people accordingly. Eurpaxia I. only had immigration authority beyond this point, being able to allow or prevent anyone from entering any farther into the station at her sole discretion, but Scipio and the private security firms controlled not only the weapons, but also the surveillance systems of the docks. At the entrance, there was a bit of a crowd building, but nothing like what Odyssey had braved at the cafe. Hitomi looked behind her to see a steady stream of people breaking off from the normal traffic to come to C-142. There weren't any signs or the like put up past the entrance at the end of the large corridor, likely to try to keep things both manageable and Batcon relevant. Hitomi still didn't see how just a handful of serfs could handle this many people, but maybe they had a plan? Oh right. Just ask. "So, what are you going to do about all of these people? You can't split a hundred people between five servants and ... have that work out ..." Carmen laughed nervously. "We actually built some serviceable bots to pick up the slack, but Euphrosyne thinks we should have as many real serfs as we can manage ... which wasn't many, admittedly. I can't blame them for not wanting to wear skimpy outfits like those, but we're trying to appeal to Jovian culture as much as we can ... it's a hard balance. Honestly, I want to find Mary. I almost can't believe Euphrosyne talked her into this." "Is Mary the regal, angry one?" Hitomi asked, trying to match the name to the faces she knew. "That's her, yes." 13:44 Dock C-142 Entrance Finally, a familiar face! Hitomi was thinking about Melanie, who she just spotted. Carmen was thinking about Sheridan, who was welcoming people inside and collecting entrance fees. She supposed if anyone ought to be handling that in the early stages of the exhibit, it was her. There was one varan playing bodyguard at the entrance. The Sipa Lugal had four varan marines attached to it, which was a small number, but more than enough for their security needs most of the time. Sheridan was also something of a security measure of and by herself. Little did most people realize, but this particular serf's esper abilities were completely identical to those of Queen Ishtar, the woman she was genetically derived from. She had gone out of her way to follow in the woman's footsteps in every way possible. As such, when her energy reserves weren't being crippled by the station's esper suppression devices, she possessed a biofield orders of magnitude more potent than a commercial-grade harmonizer. This caused anyone within roughly twelve meters of her to experience similar effects to that of a harmonizer. The closer one was, the greater the effect, dramatically lessening the odds of any sort of violence breaking out anywhere near her. Hitomi was feeling it the closer they got, a subtle sense of ease gently washing over her. "Hey, Melanie! Over here!" Hitomi waved to the streamer, though it was almost difficult to exert herself as they drew closer to the entrance. She felt so calm and mellow, now. "Carmen, you're here," Sheridan softly called out to her as she let the next group through into the C-142. The woman's silvery white hair was boundless, nearly reaching the floor, and her outfit ... her outfit was the talk of the corridor, and dozens of pics were going onto the network every second. "You should head inside and get changed as soon as possible. We already have some very high profile guests inside~" Carmen squinted, dubious about that last part.

'Another fights ... yet only for "sport,"' Requiem noted, its cold rumbling voice intruding on Xalrei's mind even in the din of the crowd. 'You have proven your strength, now take up this blade and go to a place where it ... no, where I might do the same.' There was no purpose in battle without bloodshed for the cursed blade, and so the only recourse was to seek out conflict, however small or petty. That was far preferable to waiting around for these mock battles to end. Even being hurled into a pigsty was preferable. At the very least one of the creatures might wound itself, giving Requiem the opportunity to siphon its life away.

"Hmm," Hitomi gave Melanie's reply some thought. They weren't that far from the Sipa Lugal's dock, were they? Whether it was a compak or the metro, people heading for the docks in any of Eupraxia's six cities would eventually wind up in the inner side of the docking bays surrounding each saucer. Both of the main forms of transportation made use of the tunnel system, and both were extremely fast. If they walked from where they were, Melanie could potentially get there first, but that depended on where she was right now. "Thoughts?" Hitomi showed Carmen the message. Carmen shrugged as another message came in. She smiled and let Hitomi check it first. "Wha ...? Extra budget?" Hitomi frowned, "It sounds like she's close to the red." "There is an entry fee, but we're just trying to cover the ad time we bought. I could ask Euphrosyne to wave-" "I'll pay, it's no problem," Hitomi interjected quickly. "Or that ... alright. As for picking us up, I think we're close enough. No one's going to be waiting long. That and you should probably gather everyone up before heading inside." "Right, though I'm not sure if everyone's going to show, yet." Hitomi sent a reply back to Melanie. 'We're good. Race you there?' She followed up with a message to the group as a whole. 'There's an entry fee but I've got everyone covered, so don't worry about that.' 'Hey, I just checked out that Estate thing those Babronies are doin'. You can count me in. I'm already on my way there. And thanks for coverin' our fees, BeeBs.' "... Irvine," Hitomi scowled. She had her suspicions for why he was so enthusiastic.

Game On Scenario Page 13:30 Tuesday, February 1st, 2405 A.D. An unknown location. Some things just didn't make sense to Hitomi, not the least of which was Carmen's skill with a plasma blade. The two squared off in an old temple ruin. Sunlight only reached the inside through missing sections of wall, ceiling, and various crevices. The only light besides came from the clashing weapons wielded by Hitomi and Carmen. Hitomi simply didn't understand how she couldn't even scratch Carmen while the woman was carrying only a single blade, and she two. They had done this before, of course, and Carmen always warned her that the additional blade wouldn't be enough to beat her. Hitomi figured she could adapt over time and at least win once. It wasn't as if Carmen's approach to defense ever changed, though it was a stark contrast between how the two handled themselves in Frame Ops. Catching her breath, Hitomi rushed in with her two blades and tried a different combination with them. She swiftly brought her main hand down for an overhead swing while winding up to follow with a wide slash at Carmen's abdomen. It was a fast move, but Hitomi was fairly short and lacked the reach of a conventional swordsman, so Carmen didn't have nearly as wide an area to defend. The serf woman deftly batted the downward swing up and away from herself, nearly knocking the weapon out of Hitomi's hand. For a brief second, Hitomi was completely open. Rather than ending the fight there like she normally might, Carmen moved to parry the sideswipe, stepping away from it to position herself off to Hitomi's right. Letting the shorter girl's momentum force her too far forward, Carmen lightly tapped the hilt of the plasma blade in her right hand, damaging critical components, cooking Hitomi's hand, and effectively destroying the weapon. "Ow! R-really ...?" Hitomi had little choice but to drop the roasted cylinder and take up the remaining one in her dominant hand. "You only need one, Hitomi," Carmen said, mentally exhausted by her friend's stubborn insistence on dual wielding. "Why does this keep happening, though? I know I'm not 'built' for it, and yeah, you practice every day, but with beam swords, you don't need to be strong to take someone down. I only need to glance you to get the advantage ... so how do you defend every inch of yourself while I keep getting minced?" "Not every inch, but if you manage to land a glancing blow, that probably would make a big enough opening for you," Carmen agreed, "The problem is you don't have good form and you can't hold back my attacks, so even with one blade you're in trouble. Dividing your arms and focus between two weapons makes it even easier for me, believe it or not." Deciding to demonstrate, Carmen abandoned her seemingly insurmountable two-handed grip and began languidly waving her plasma blade around. "Do you see this? This could work for someone who's trained for it ... and has good strength and coordination, but you don't have either, and you're doing this with both hands. I can disarm you whenever I want when you fight me like this. Maybe if you use a shorter blade for parrying and ... well, I'll give it some thought and offer some serious suggestions, later." "Whenever you want, huh?" Dejected, Hitomi sighed and began trying to mimic Carmen's ready stance, even as the serf resumed hers. She mirrored the serf as best she could, but neither the form nor the confidence was there. "Sooner or later I'm going to beat you." "Maybe someday," Carmen smiled apologetically, "but not today." The two women closed the distance between them and clashed. Another pass followed. Hitomi swung from the left hard hoping to take off Carmen's head, but the plasma blade passed right over Carmen as she ducked. ... having been soundly defeated multiple times after missing a high-risk attack like this, Hitomi could only wince while her instincts cried out, begging the impossible ... "HAH!!!" Carmen struck hard and Hitomi collapsed, struck down by her taller, stronger, faster, and more experienced opponent. "Match." 13:32 Tuesday, February 1st, 2405 A.D. Providence, Eupraxia Grand Station, Jovian Sphere. Hitomi crawled out of the immersion pod. Carmen's pod was right next to it, and she was already out and putting her shoes on. The room they were in was considerably better illuminated than the temple ruins of the game they were just playing. Most of the other immersion pods weren't in use, and those that were hummed quietly as other players in the store enjoyed themselves. Hitomi and Carmen were preparing to head out, though. The Launch game store was no arcade, neither in terms of sheer scale or quality of games, but the two gamers sometimes stopped for occasions like these. "Next time ... oh right, we didn't really go over everything with the rogue AI ..." "No point in doing so," Carmen grinned, "I don't know anything about it that wasn't in the news reports. Even Kirara mentioned it. Her take seems less dramatic than a lot of the others ..." Hitomi forced a smile. Jovians were easily bored, and that led to some interesting journalistic tactics. "Considering how serious she is and the fact she was actually there when it happened, that doesn't surprise me one bit." Hitomi wondered if Kirara had actually taken the time to mellow out and get back into character for that report, or if she was like most famous journalists and just used dupes for the busywork. Considering she was a hardcore Frame Ops player, Hitomi was willing to bet Carmen was watching a dupe deliver Kirara's report on the fiasco at Stratus last night. "I'd ask Ninos if he's heard anything since he has some impressive sources here on the station ... but that means having to approach him. My apologies, but ... I'd rather not." "No need to apologize!" Hitomi rushed over, "After selling off your cat just to get even, you should be avoiding him." "Oh ..." Carmen paused, thinking about something. While Hitomi was left hanging for a moment, she wasn't anticipating anything too bad. "I could tell you about what Lord Riaz did while we decide where to go. You wanted to meet up with the team soon, right?" "We haven't picked a place yet since we're a little too well known, now ... heheh. We're close to being able to call this a real team again, but first, we need to get into some battles and get used to working together. Anyway, Linus said he'd call when he found one, but I'll bet you fifty credits that Sage is going to do a group call sometime in the next five minutes. He's so quick on the trigger ..." "Is he playing team manager or something?" Carmen chuckled, "I thought Motherloader was the one you were having trouble with." "No ... he just ... he's really assertive when it comes to the tech stuff, I guess? Anyway, we'll wait for Linus to call. So what'd Lord Riaz the Magnificent do this time?" Carmen smiled earnestly. "Saved a piece of my soul ..." The Lord of House Riaz When Carmen stepped into Ninos' quarters, she was only given comfort by the fact that she knew why she was there, and the reason was a mostly comforting one. She was there to speak with Lord Riaz over a live video feed, and not necessarily to deal with Ninos directly. Incidentally, Ninos was looking seriously irritated when she arrived. From the look of things, whatever was said to Ninos had him feeling helpless, at least that's what that expression usually meant. Ninos took a step to the left of the large monitor, giving Carmen all the room she could possibly hope for. "Well, here she is ..." Lord Riaz smiled at her over the monitor, a gesture she couldn't help but return. "Wonderful to see you again, Carmen." "Likewise, Lord Riaz," Carmen bowed her head briefly. "Right, then. I had Ninos summon you because I have a surprise for you." "A surprise?" Carmen echoed, not sure what to think. If Ninos' sudden, almost silent, "Hmph ..." was anything to go by, it was something he didn't want her to have, but that her prime benefactor did. Lord Riaz raised up his hands off to his right, as if holding them out to receive something. Someone offscreen then carefully handed off a small cream-colored animal to him. Carmen recognized the creature instantly. Happiness? Joy? Both understatements. "Is that ...?!" As Lord Riaz gently turned the young feline toward them, he said, "Yes, Carmen, Lyra is here with me." "... h-how?" Carmen pleaded, still overjoyed, but also confused. Ninos had only sold her cream striped friend to an interested buyer and her husband here on Eupraxia Grand Station mere days ago. Even if her Lord managed to get Lyra back somehow, getting to Babylonia in that time seemed just ... barely feasible. Not impossible, but ... "Worry not," Lord Riaz soothed, "She is no clone or anything of the sort. I am well aware of the friction between you and your captain. Ninos overstepped in contacting that couple. I decided to have one of our people on the station purchase Lyra back from them later that same day. A difficult negotiation; we paid them more than triple the original asking price. Afterward, she was placed on a fast ship and brought straight to me for safekeeping. Until the situation aboard the Sipa Lugal is more stable, I plan to keep Lyra here in Babylonia. However, this is not a punishment for either of you, I simply plan to keep this poor creature out of the crossfire." "Thank you, Lord Riaz!" Carmen could barely contain herself, "Thank you so much. I'm just happy she's alright ... with those people, I wouldn't have any idea. I would probably have never seen her again ..." "And it would have been a valuable lesson," Ninos muttered bitterly. "Hardly, Ninos," Lord Riaz smiled as he gently stroked Lyra's head, "If you plan to lead your crew the same way the Iron Ilk lead theirs, you won't be in command for much longer. Many of the serfs aboard that ship carry the spirit of power, as well as royal blood. Marduk, Ishtar, Semiramis, Rachel ... They may be servants of House Riaz, but everything that led their forebears to greatness resides in them. You would do well to remember that." While it was a stern warning, likely a rehash of the tail end of their previous discussion, Lord Riaz had an aura about him. He wasn't particularly upset with Ninos, and the Captain hadn't reached the end of his Lord's patience with him. He was simply letting Ninos know that his current approach was ... at best, counterproductive. "I'll remember," Ninos conceded, "Well then, if that's all, father ... I'd like to get back to work. These powerful serfs, these inheriters of Marduk, Ishtar, Semiramis, and Tiamat are planning to put on several shows for the Jovians starting tomorrow. I need to make certain everything is in order with the authorities." It wasn't long into Carmen's retelling of yesterday's events that Hitomi realized exactly why House Riaz's serfs were so fond of its current leader. Carmen, especially. No more jokes at the man's expense, then. Maybe putting Ninos in charge of the Sipa Lugal hadn't been the best idea, but he clearly had his reasons, and the serfs in the crew were bearing with it as well as they could. With Lord Riaz keeping a watchful eye on things, maybe it would all work out in the end. It probably wouldn't help them get Carmen back onto Team Odyssey, but that felt like n entirely different problem. "It would be nice to see Lyra in person, but I got to spend some time with her over the comm system. That's good enough for now." "The Lugal's got one of those smartcell 3DIs doesn't it? So it's kind of like being there in person," Hitomi offered with a smile and a soft shrug. Carmen nodded. "Yes, but it would still be nice to hold the real Lyra and not a bunch of smartcells." "True ... Alright, well it hasn't been five minutes yet, but I'm still betting Sage is going to do his thing, first." Right then, Carmen received an alert and made a short detour to a smartglass pane nearby in the walkway. She tapped the screen with the back of her index finger and made the connection. A framed display appeared and another serf woman took up the vast majority of it. "Hey Carmen, get back to the ship! We need you!" Carmen grimaced. She doubted it was too serious, but with Euphrosyne it was sometimes hard to tell ... "What's happening?" "I tried, I really did, but absolutely no one else is willing to wear these stupid things. You, Georgios, Sheridan, and Mary are it ..." "Costumes?" Hitomi glanced back and forth at the serfs, wondering what was going on. "Is ... this for Batcon? You did say the Lugal crew were putting on an exhibit or something ... but what do you need costumes for?" "How did you convince Mary of all peo-! ... erm ... I guess I could do it, but can we hold off on the Estate for a few more hours? I'm sure people care more about Thomas than a bunch of serf maids." "Really?!" Hitomi grabbed her sides and hunched over, the mental image nearly flooring her, "It's a maid cafe?! Hahahahah!" "Not quite, but ..." Carmen couldn't really argue over it. That was a fair way to describe what they were doing. The serfs working on part of the Sipa Lugal's contributions to Batcon wanted to share some of the Golden Kingdom's high culture and serf servants were an important part of that. As for why they were wearing 'costumes' as opposed to traditional servant attire, that had more to do with Jovian culture and their flare for the absurd. An honest, if misguided attempt to build bridges and downplay the seriousness of their societal differences, something that had them yapping at each other to this day ... "I guess I should hurry back, then." Glancing at Hitomi, who was just now recovering from her laughing fit, Carmen got an idea. "I know I might regret this, but what if Odyssey met up at the docks? I guess it's technically enemy territory, but we're all busy right now. The most Ninos could do is send mean looks your way." "You know what? That would help us avoid most of the random people trying to cannonball onto the team, too," Hitomi reasoned, "Besides, you're our friend. We should be there to cheer you on and help round up any troublemakers." "Round up troublemakers?" Euphrosyne scoffed, "Just leave that to us. We appreciate the thought, though." "Alright," Carmen sighed, "let's call Linus and the others and see if they're alright with this." "On it~" 'Hey everyone, it's BB! I have a meeting place where we won't get buried in bodies, but I want to make sure everyone can make it. Carmen's people are holding some exhibits down at the docks, so that's a good place to meet up. I'm pretty sure they'll be serving food and drinks, too. Also, Thomas is here. For those of you who don't know who that is, he's House Riaz's best pilot, and he's also a G-Man! Anyway, directions are attached, so let me know! P.S. Did this before Sage! Hah! P.P.S. Linus, reply back before I lose my bet with Carmen!'

Combat for sport? Easily a foreign concept to the cursed blade. Perhaps there was a way to change the situation, a way to turn this arena from a game into a killing field. Tempting as the notion was, these people were already demonstrating remarkable restraint. They had broken off hostilities during the last life and death struggle with ease. Xalrei set Requiem aside in order to fight at a disadvantage ... for 'sport.' They could easily decide not to make use of this power once again, especially if Requiem was knowingly involved in the incident. The arrogance of morality seemed to be a constant thorn, dangling meat in front of a starving hound and thinking nothing of it ... 'Grrrrr ...' A frustrated, resigned groan was all that followed Nessraya's brief explanation.

What was this? Xalrei had wielded this power before and had easily triumphed with it, but now she was ... somewhere else. There was a distinct sense about this place and the area Xalrei was in. Violence, subdued, but unmistakable. Souls clashing against other souls while surrounded by ... onlookers, perhaps. It was difficult to reach out so far in this state, but that was the least of Requiem's frustrations. Xalrei was fighting without the cursed blade at her side. For what purpose? To say this was vexing to the cursed blade would be a stupendous understatement. Angered and confused by the circumstances, Requiem began to give off a very faint, bloody red glow. Only one thing to do, it seemed ... 'Tell me ... what is happening? Why am I here ... and Xalrei ... elsewhere? Why has this power been forsaken?'

From the sound of it, they were still good on the ship front. Hitomi was admittedly relieved, though Aska's offer to go half and half on the purchase with Melanie was surprising. Melanie was a streamer, but what did Aska do for a living? Maybe he was some kind of performer ... As for whether it was a good idea to split the bill or have just one person handle it, Hitomi wasn't really sure. The best ship offers in the catalog were so far beyond her budget, she couldn't even fathom what kind of investment it was for either of her new teammates. She only knew they could at the very least afford to be making these offers. Somehow. "I um ..." Hitomi forced a smile, "I guess I'll let you two sort it out once we decide on the ship we want ..." Serval Sage took a moment to fiddle with his glasses, which had a small display built into them. "One sec, Karina ..." Before long, just about everyone had received a message from him, one that would let them all sync up their contact details once they opened and confirmed said details and their consent. Even without it, they could still look each other up on Battlenet, but this was more a matter of convenience. Helena chimed in, letting them know she was sticking with Odyssey, and went on to ask if they should discuss tactics. Tempting as it was, that was getting a little ahead of ... well, everything. Makala also agreed to stay, or at least that's what Hitomi thought she heard. There was also something about hard drives, but that didn't seem to be directed at her or Linus, so she put it out of mind. With Helena and Makala having given their affirmatives, that was everyone accounted for. They now had ten members, the required minimum for participation in all of Frame Ops PvP game modes. Not a magic number by any means, teams benefitted from having a few extra members in case someone was unavailable, and might otherwise bring on a freelancer temporarily, but having ten active meant they couldn't be excluded from any competition based solely on their numbers. "That reminds me ... before we do anything else, I should start getting everyone registered," Hitomi said, looking down at the table and pulling up a fresh display of her own. "Just make sure you all agree once they ask for confirmation, okay?" With that, she put a call in to Battlenet ... Kirara was definitely done here ... at least she hoped so. Between Matsuo's attempts to recruit her, and Melanie's attitude, she'd prefer to be doing something more productive elsewhere. Turning her attention to the display, she asked, "If you're going to keep an eye on them then I'm free to go, right? We've gotten all the information from them we can get at this point." "I wish you would give up this loner lifestyle. Anyway, we do need to discuss a few things. Head home and we'll get started." "Home, huh? Okay." Kirara wasted no time in heading for the exit. "Good luck this season, Odyssey. Sorry for not being in the best mood, today ..." "Completely understandable. Take care, Kirara," Matsuo waved with a big smile. Once she left the cafe, Matsuo spoke to the AI. "So far I've been able to piece together that Kirara works with you wards ... I'm just not sure to what extent." "Yeah, I've read about stuff like that," Sage chimed in, "Random people doing random things for Eupraxia. Is the pay good? If so, sign me up." "There's no need to ask about that," Alexis shook her head, "If we wanted someone to do something for us, we'd contact them, not the other way around. Putting it bluntly, if we haven't reached out to you, we don't need you right now. If you're truly interested in working with us in the future, consider this incident with the rogue AI your evaluation."