Dandragon
-
Posts
4,180 -
Joined
-
Last visited
Content Type
Profiles
Forums
Events
Everything posted by Dandragon
-
No response. No orders. Elaine sat still in the cockpit, waiting... Watching... But neither side moved to make the first strike. Was it a stand-off? Or simply just the stage of the fight where everyone thought carefully on their attacks. It had barely been a minute, but Elaine didn't need, nor did she want, to wait any longer. Elaine attacks Hyperion #3 with HMS-22 Seeker Missiles
-
Apotheosis. Just as she had expected. And quite a number of them, as well. But, outnumbered as they were, Elaine wasn't intimidated in the slightest. Her usual, battle-ready smile crept along her face as her radar now registered the many mechs that stood against them, conveniently colored red, as always. It was an interesting formation they had, though not necessarily one used as a blockade. From the way that Cressida and Hyperion were positioned, Elaine could only guess that they had been heading in a different direction before they had encountered them. Then again, Apotheosis hadn't seemed to expect them, lately. One lone blip on her radar caught her eye. It wasn't in formation with any of the others. It was just sitting there. Alone. And as much as Elaine tried, she was unable to get a visual on it. She was too far away for her visor to see it, even with zooming in. "Head's up." She called over the comm system. "One of them is on their own. Might be nothing, might be someone dangerous. Either way, probably best to keep your guard up."
-
"Huh?" Elaine had just finished up checking on Thorvald's Legionary when the old mechanic, Ignatius, had called to her. At least, she was sure it was her, considering he was walking over to where Elaine now stood. "A module against beam weapons, eh? That'd definitely come in handy." While she wasn't entirely sure if they had a 'leader pilot', though if they did, it was probably Thorvald, she did know that Apotheosis had plenty of beam weapons to use against them. It wasn't the only type of weaponry they had, as was clear by the Luna's sword from yesterday, any protection was better than nothing. Elaine quickly typed up a message to Thorvald to let him know. "I definitely appreciate something like that." Elaine said to the old man as she hit 'send'. "I'd stay in chat but I gotta get back to these bots. So...thanks!" And with that, Elaine was back jogging to the next mecha suit, specifically Tarquin’s.
-
"Not the Alkaevs. Not the Artemis. Got it." It wasn't anything other than a quiet reminder to herself, but she said it, anyway. Immediately, she was off towards the Heracles that she had been piloting, which admittedly wasn't placed that far from the Crescent Moon in the hangar. Stepping onto the lift, she raised it up to the cockpit door, and slipped right inside. The startup procedure wasn't long, and it took even less time to see that everything was in working order. What stopped Elaine in her tracks was her mind running off on it's own, again. In hindsight, Elaine would probably connect it to her time with Abby, yesterday, possibly from the comment about completely ignoring her all day, but as she sat in the Heracles's cockpit, modified from whatever the original looked like, she thought about the ties that Abigail might have to this bot. And she began to reconsider her stance towards Abigail just simply getting it back. It was a simple argument. She had invested time into the Marionne, back in Italy. Of course she would have a problem if someone else began either drastically changing it or piloting it without her say so, even if it was Jane, herself. It was her creation, her own personal robot that she had worked on. Granted, Elaine wasn't in the same circumstances that Abigail was, and her distrust of the former mercenary still kept doubts fresh in her mind, but was it really so wrong for her to get it back? Had Abigail already proved herself capable of being trusted? These questions were still on Elaine's mind as she exited the cockpit and hopped back onto the lift, only for her to shake her head. Right now, she had to boot up all the others mechs that she could, and check if everything was in order. The time for reflection would be later. Much later.
-
"Buck? What are you doing up there?" Elaine placed her hands on her hips. Didn't he realize that they needed to prepare the bots for deployment within the hour? She shook her head, as if to say 'what am I gonna do with this kid', but she still had a smile on her face. Elaine made her way over to the Crescent, and took the time to inspect it closely. The design itself hadn't changed that much. From her view of the mech itself, she could only see that the arms had been swapped out for a pair that was only slightly bulkier than the previous, sleeker pair. The color was a much brighter red, one that Elaine could personally appreciate, but much of the yellow from the original form was gone. Still, even the most minor of changes that Buck did made the mech look, and apparently work, so much better. In a way, it made Elaine a little jealous that Buck, someone much younger than her, had the brains to make such design changes to two different robots they had salvaged from the enemy. She would have to discuss the details with him later. "Buck! Did you get the message the XO sent out?" Elaine called out again. "We're deploying in an hour! I was gonna help you with preparing the mechs, if that's alright!"
-
Elaine rushed out the elevator door and through the hallway, towards the hangar, having gotten the time to actually look back at the message and see that it would be about an hour before they reached the unknowns. A bit embarrassing, but it didn't slow Elaine's pace down. There were plenty of things she could do in an hour. As she rushed into the hangar, she called out. "Buck! Hey, Buck! Where are ya?"
-
The remaining miniscule scraps of her meal had now been deposited into the trash bin, along with her disposable paper plate, and all that was left was the now half-full coffee mug, still warm to the touch. And just in time, for the communicator beeped now with the typical urgency of an important message from the captain or XO. A quick skim was all Elaine needed. ”Heh. Knew it.” With no time to finish her drink, she quickly set her cup down on the nearest table, and bolted out of the cafeteria, accepting of the fact that by the time she returned her drink would be far colder. There was no need for her to stop by her room, for Elaine had already been wearing her pilot suit, once again a result of her adapting to the unfortunate pattern of the last few days. Whenever the sun rose, Apotheosis was ready to strike. This time, so was she.
-
8:30 AM, and Elaine was already up and making breakfast for herself. It was a simple meal for herself, some scrambled eggs and an apple, along with a cup of Coffee to get her started for the day. After all, a little bit of caffeine wouldn't be too bad, especially when the last few days had been nothing but deployments and fights. It was only five days ago that they were back in Nevada, just training against dummies before getting interrupted by Apotheosis agents, and yet so much had happened in those five days that it felt like it had been far longer. "*Gulp* Ah...Okay. Awake. Ready for anything. Not gonna catch me of guard this morning."
-
Two blinks and an eyebrow raised. That was Elaine's response to the absolute random number that the new pilot seemed to come up with. Yes, as expected, Abigail had some sort of quip for her coming along, angry that she hadn't bothered to appear for the competition for piloting the Heracles, but before she could even make some sort of response, apologetic, sarcastic, or otherwise, the new girl, who now introduced herself as Aliza, had suddenly said '6.5', after what looked to be her sizing her up. Was...was she rating her? If so, for what? Maybe she couldn't exactly let her guard down around this one, at least not as much as she thought. "Uh huh..." She said, trying to see the humor that Abigail was trying to put into the situation. Props for trying, she supposed. "Okay. Well, I'm Elaine Hendrick. And it's nice to meet you, too." She smiled back at the two, and let them lead the way to the cafe, preferring to stay behind them for the moment.
-
"Hey." The word came out before she could even think. It took a moment to even realize it was her own voice. Elaine had stood there, ignored by both Abigail and the newest occupant on the ship, awkwardly listening in on what was the end of a conversation. It was too late to look like she had just walked around the corner, and even if it wasn't, Elaine knew it would feel awkward to try and make it look like she was only now arriving at the spot. "You, uh...You two mind if I join? I'm a little hungry, myself." No, you're not. Why are you lying to them? Weren't you just thinking about how you had no reason to go back to the Cafeteria? Elaine did her best to smile and seem friendly, though she knew that Abigail wouldn't but that for half a second, not after the way she treated her the first time they ever got a chance to speak. ...And yet, as she stood there waiting for a response from the two ladies, she knew it in her own heart that she was lonely. The entire mole business had taken so much out of her, and she hadn't gotten a chance to speak with Cheryl about anything. It was a pathetic feeling, but it wasn't something she could ignore any longer. So, rather than try and mend relationships she had already broken, something she should have done long ago, Elaine was taking the easy route, and trying to form a friendship with someone new to the crew. It was unlikely the brunette was the mole, so she was safe on that front, right?
-
I don’t think you are understanding what people are asking for, right now. What is your hack beyond ‘fe16 leaks’? What is the gameplay going to be like? Is this going to be a difficulty hack? I feel like I’m literally just repeating what others have told/asked.
-
1. thats not a good figure of speech 2. then please request to change the title. you can do that. 3. ...yes. unironically yes. put it here. in the thread. so people get interested.
-
how do you have half a writer? how is hiring when no one gets paid? why is the only information on this hack you are going to give "its based on the fe16 leaks"?
-
Elaine had stayed in the changing rooms a few minutes longer than she had to, but finally the doors opened once more and Elaine stepped back into the hall, at a loss as to what to do now. She walked down towards the private quarters section of the bottom deck, not interested in whatever was happening at the Farm or Cold storage, and having already convinced herself that today was not the day for exercise. She could certainly go back to the Cafeteria, but she had already eaten, and honestly just didn't want to deal with Tarquin and Nikolai if they were still present. The sounds of conversation reached Elaine's ears, though the voice she couldn't recognize. Elaine hastened her steps, uncertain and questioning many things, ready for anything, and followed the voice, until she ended up near her own quarters and, coincidentally, Abigail's. There, at the door to Abby's was a brunette, speaking to someone, most likely Abigail herself. It didn't take long for Elaine to recognize her as one of the pilots defending themselves at Corona Ten today, having seen her at the hangar when everyone returned, though never actually speaking to her. No. She's not the mole. She just got here.
-
wait, if its only 21 minus Luck, then is it possible to completely negate the chances of the Shadow Sword backfiring? -
It was only a few minutes, but the passing of time for Elaine slowed as she relaxed in the refreshing waters of the Jacuzzi. It felt like it was far longer. Elaine opened her eyes. Had she dozed off? If so, it was good that she hadn't sunken beneath the water in her sleep. Elaine looked around. She was still the only one present at the pool, though she wasn't entirely sure it had been that way the entire time. Elaine took a few more moments before slowly stepping out of the tub, careful not to slip off of the small set of steps. She switched off everything and closed up the tub, then went to go find a towel to dry herself off with. Elaine felt relaxed from the hot water, her stress having melted away, if only slightly. And that was enough to brighten up her spirits. It almost made her forget everything that was going on in her life. Almost. A few more moments was all it took to dry herself with a towel, and off she went back to the changing rooms to get back into her pilot suit. Really, she wanted to be able to dress back up in more casual clothes, but that wasn't something she could afford to do with danger lurking around every corner. It was a shame, but comfort wasn't the highest priority. Though, if that were the case, Elaine probably shouldn't have gone into a hot tub with the possible danger that more terrorists could start attacking. Well, something to keep in mind, I guess. Better one person caught with their pants down then the entire crew.
-
The doors to the changing room opened, with Elaine now wearing her swimsuit instead of her pilot suit. It felt odd wearing it for a third time since on the Riese, specifically because of getting spied on at the pool party, yesterday, but she didn't feel like asking for something else to wear. Not when it could reveal the fact that she'd been speaking to Apotheosis. No, she would bare the uncomfortable feeling. The pool area was nice and quiet, and the Jacuzzi looked as inviting as ever. Without anyone else to take up space, or anyone to distract her by pelting her with a beach ball, Elaine had it all to herself. Everything was set up, and as Elaine flipped on the jets, she climbed up the steps and dipped her foot in. The temperature feeling just right, the rest of her body slipped right inside as she felt warmth and comfort overtake her. "Aaaaah~" How long had it been since she could just sit in hot water like this? Her apartment at Colony 2 certainly didn't have one, neither did her Uncle's home in Italy. The last time had been in the public one that she and her friends used to go to at the local pool, backing during her school days. It was a pleasurable feeling to dip into one, again, after all those years. Even if she couldn't submerge herself underwater without burning up her face, it still felt as good as swimming in a pool. Water wasn't as fun when you're stuck in a giant mech, it didn't give her the same sense of calm that this did. She could never figure out where these feelings came from, but to her, it didn't matter. She knew what she liked, and today, Elaine wanted to treat herself. "Oooooh~ I could just fall asleep like this."
-
Elaine was no telekinetic, that much was certain, but from the way Tarquin had glanced at her... She could feel his disdain for her, the same way he had looked at her on the very first day they had worked together. No...This time it was worse. And rather than return such a glance, Elaine...actually looked away from Tarquin. She could easily guess that he hated her, and she certainly held similar feelings for Tarquin, but after what she had found out about him and Talia, Elaine just didn't have it in her to act antagonizing towards him. In reality, she probably never should have if she ever wanted to have any sort of credibility over a 14 year old boy, grown like a plant or no, but she had always held the feeling that she shouldn't treat someone who had taken a life as a child. Especially someone who did it willingly. But...had it been of his own will? Was anything of Tarquin's own will? Elaine took one last gulp of her beverage of choice, before collecting all the scraps leftover to toss into their respective bins. Whatever she personally thought of Tarquin, the cafeteria was no longer so comfortable with him around. It felt tense. As much as she could have deprecated herself over the fact that a boy was causing her to leave a room, she just focused on what she could be doing. Elaine recalled some sort of warning along the lines of '30 minutes before swimming' or something like that, but was sitting in a hot tub really swimming? She didn't think so. Placing the dirtied tray where it belonged, Elaine 'power-walked' her way out of the cafeteria, not once looking back at Tarquin or his goblin companion. She passed by the many rooms of the residents that stayed on the bottom floor of the Riese, quietly wondering why in the hell her room was sandwiched between Nikolai and Abigail. It didn't matter, her room wasn't her destination. The changing room door opened and Elaine stepped inside.
-
The elevator door opened up to the bottom deck, and Elaine stepped out, her destination in mind being the cafeteria. She hoped it would be quiet, but if it wasn't she could always just take her tray to her room. At the risk of getting called by Louise, again. With the fear of being called by her, was there any place where she could get some peace and quiet? ...Well, there was the hot tub, though she had been considering the possibility that there was still a bug or a camera at the pool. Ultimately, she made the decision that she would try and relax in the hot tub after she ate. She needed the relief, and exercise just didn't seem too appealing today. Among the several other options she had to deal with stress. Elaine turned the corner into the cafeteria, thankful that it was still fairly quiet, and made her way over to make herself some lunch. She opted for a simple cheeseburger, some fries, and a soda as her beverage. It had been the usual meal she had eaten many days on Colony 2, although on the ship, she wasn't walking off the carbohydrates as much as she had been walking back and forth between her apartment and the local fast food joint she went to. As she placed in the burger in the microwave, Elaine looked down at herself, wondering if maybe exercise was the better option. She hadn't weighed herself in what felt like ages, and almost worried that she might have gained a bit of fat. Almost. Who am I kidding? She thought. No one's been looking at me like that since I dropped outta school. And why would they? The microwave beeped, Elaine took her meal out, and placed it on her tray. I'd be lucky to even get someone staring at my ass for too long. Elaine nearly slapped herself. Had she really just thought that? She let out an exhale through her nose, resigning herself to the fact that there was definitely more than one thing wrong with her. A visit to Cheryl wouldn't be a bad idea, though she had already approached Talia, and was most likely dealing with her issues already. For now, it was time for her to eat, and eat she did.
-
With the captain dismissing everyone, Elaine stepped out of the briefing room, letting out a built-up sigh of relief as she rested against a wall. Reporting was a lot more stressful than she thought it would be, but she had gotten by without any issues. A first for her ever since joining the crew of the Riese, which was pretty sad now that she thought about it. Still, some of the edge had been taken off thanks to Tarquin's secret being revealed to the crew, which left the spotlight centered on Tarquin more than herself. But, if she couldn't get used to that sort of spotlight, how could she ever handle being treated as a hero? The answer was simple; it was something she would have to get used to. The time was at noon, perfect time to get some lunch and to relax for a bit. While she hadn't been particularly praised, the entire group had been congratulated on a job well done. Honestly, even if the mission had been a failure in her own personal book, there were some victories to be taken, including the two mechs they had gotten from Corona Ten. They had saved some people from the facility, and had come out with everyone alive and-...well, alive. Yes, Kim and Christina had to go to the med bay, and thus weren't present at the meeting, but Elaine had a good feeling that the both of them would shake this off, easily. Of course, the downsides, the failures, still had to be considered. Many casualties, no data collected, and Apotheosis had still made off with what they came for. And to top it all off, Elaine still had no idea who was supplying Apotheosis audio and video logs of them. Who was a spy among the crew, and why? Did it even matter why? It would certainly be nice to know, but she doubted she would ever get an answer if she found out. There were several ways that Elaine could go about finding out, and one of them was one she didn't even want to consider... She had certainly been offered a position in Apotheosis, and wondered if it would be possible to trick them into letting her in and revealing who else was on their side. It was a dirty tactic, and one that could put her in more danger than ever before, yet Elaine couldn't help but consider it, if only for a moment. As she rode the elevator down to the cafeteria floor, she wondered if it was the only option she had, not just for finding the mole, but for her own possible safety. The longer this fight went on, the larger the advantage Apotheosis had. And with that large, snake-like bot, the 'Regina' as Louise had called it, able to wipe out a battleship in a single blast, things did not look good for anyone apposing them. It would certainly be easier... Elaine shook her head. No. She wasn't going to let this get to her. If she betrayed the people she fought her, then what was the point of joining the ANF in the first place? No, she could never live it down if she did, no matter how tempting Louise made it sound. Elaine was a fighter, and she was not about to back down on her own principles. Not now. Not ever.
-
Elaine held back a smile, happy that she felt this...plant boy was finally being treated like a normal soldier, and getting punished for the endangerment of the entire crew. But, with that feeling of happiness, there was also a feeling of guilt. Despite her feelings before, it didn't make her feel good to, for lack of a better term, 'feel good' about Tarquin's punishment. She wasn't dumb, and knew that she had been just as guilty as Tarquin was of endangering everybody with her own actions, if her pot-shot at Colony 1 was any indication, and yet she hadn't received anything more than words. Not to mention, she had also punched a fellow pilot in the face, even if it was justified to her. It was conflicting to her, and not something she wanted to dwell on. "Well, if what Talia said is true, and honestly, I don't have any reason to believe it's not, then the Professor is most likely the reason why all the data in the facility was wiped." Her attention and turned back to Jessica, trying to move away from the negative feelings in her stomach by looking away from Tarquin. "We have no idea what went through his head, but what matters now is that Apotheosis has even more resources to their name with the Professor now on their side, especially if he is cooperating with them, instead of resisting." Elaine took a small glance at Thorvald, who was...still silent. Almost frustratingly so. It had been a team effort to get inside the base, the least he could have done was say something. "With that all said, what are we going to do with these new mechs?" Elaine asked the captain, referring to both the Aria, the mech they found in the facility, and the one that Talia brought with her, the Umbra. "It'd be a bad idea to leave them behind, so I say we take em with us, but...well, the decision is up to you, captain."
-
“...Well, that explains a lot of things, doesn’t it.” Elaine looked at Tarquin the entire time he spoke, waiting until he was entirely finished with his explanation. Even when Talia spoke up to finish the explanation, her eyes were on Tarquin. “The fact that you’re only 14 serving on a military vessel, your insane pilot scores at your age, even why you went launching without permission.” Not to mention how you act so superior to everybody. She thought. Judge me all you like for how I act, and then you pull this shit? Fuck you. Nikolais choice of words for Talia made her feel disgusted with him, even more than she had before. But, despite every urge to start yelling at him to back off, Elaine had to keep her cool around him. Even if he didn’t do the same, and got off relatively fine for it. Instead, she chose to focus on Astins words. “Astin’s right. What were you going to do if you were told to shoot us down?” He’d probably happily do it. It would probably be the easiest thing for him to do. Just pull the trigger on people inferior to you in every way, right?
-
Elaine stood with Thorvald, this time, waiting for her superior officer to begin their report on their findings in the base. He never did. At least, he didn’t in time to stop her from getting impatient and doing the report herself. ”Regarding the facility,” she began, “There was one other survivor. Doctor Eugene Icks, one of the scientists that worked at the facility. Everyone else...dead. And none of them by bullets either. They were all cut open by large slash marks, some if them even sliced in two.” It was never pleasant to tell anyone how people died, but this wasn’t a detail that could simply be left out. “As for the database... wiped. No security footage, no records, nothing. There was one thing we found, though...a mech. And in working condition.”
-
"...No. We're not friends." When Talia had asked, Elaine had turned her attention towards Tarquin, now being surrounded by both the captain and Nikolai. Tarquin was the furthest thing from a friend on the boat to her. He was a smug brat that had way too many privileges just because he had good piloting scores, practically unnatural. He was a 14 year old boy serving as a pilot on a military vessel, and Elaine knew that he was judging her every time he even looked in her direction. Elaine turned back to Talia. "We're both pilots and that's it. Frankly, I got nothing else to say about him." She let out a sigh, knowing full well that there were plenty of things she wanted to say about Tarquin. But, this was neither the time, nor place. "Back to the matter at hand." She said, unfolding her arms. "If you don't wanna talk to Doctor Hart right now, that's fine." It was obvious that Talia wasn't entirely thrilled to go talk to a therapist, ironic considering Elaine's own situation, but she didn't need arguing someone who was going to be yet another person coming on to the Riese, especially someone as...emotionally unstable. "But, it's probably best you visit her at some point." Maybe I should follow my own damn advice. "So... about the facility itself. What can you tell me about it? And is there anything you want us to salvage from it while we're here?"
-
"In your room, huh?" Well, that didn't help much, beyond knowing for certain they were looking for someone, not something. Though, I guess hiding in your room is probably how you're going to survive a raid on a base. "Well, that's alright. You were pretty brave to get into that mech." She said, smiling back at her. It was clear that Talia was not comfortable around Elaine, and that just made getting any answers out of her more difficult. There were the surviving Legionary pilots that she could question, but it didn't feel right to leave Talia all alone, even for a moment. She looked weak, dependent, and needed someone to help her. But...Elaine certainly wasn't the person for that, if her track record was indicative of anything. "Listen, Talia. Why don't I bring you to Doctor Hart's office? You look like you're having a rough time, and she can definitely help with that."
