Imminent Dawn: Callisto

[Ursali]

Daeran felt a chill go down his spine he felt Arielle's attention on him, tensing up slightly. He managed to at least remain straight faced as his question was answered, even if it only gave him that much more to consider; everything being a recent development made sense, the CEN had only received word of the rebels a little over a month ago. But why things had progressed to this point was the kicker, a questioned Daeran had full faith that Sia intended to find the answer to. His question answered, and no more on his mind, he was content to mimic Lieutenant Park's salute as they left the CEO to her office, now on to meet with her head of security.

He let out a sigh of relief as they entered the elevator, the tension from meeting with Arielle finally out of his system even as Kazue was already starting to apologize. Anything was better than the weight of politics and it seemed like this bump was well on its way to being smoothed over. "I second Lieutenant Park's suggestion, as long as we don't see a repeat occurrence during this meeting with Arielle's head of security. Who knows what sort of person this Shezsacosh is? We were lucky that Arielle, at least on the surface, doesn't seem to overly care about the situation with the rebels. Her head of security may have entirely different opinions on this matter."

---

Alriana huffed, letting out a muffled growl from her helmet. "Why am I only one that has to wear my armor?" She knew the answer to that question but she asked it anyway, mainly out of spite for the reality of her situation. While augmented humans were common, it was beyond a stretch to call her one; between the color of her skin, the faint pulsing glow of the red stripes along her body, and the matter of her double set of razor sharp teeth... There was only so much augments could do and she was far beyond them. Thus, the only way she could be present without arousing suspicion was to be present in her entire set of armor, complete with her helmet.

She wasn't... that interested in the conversation between the others, only having the briefest of understanding of the topic. She huffed, her long tail flicking behind her, the only part of her not covered in armor, and only partially at that. "If you all keep talking like this and they overhear it, they're not going to believe anyone but me is actually part of the security team."

Edited February 9 by Ursali

[Mercenary on the Winds]

Kazue, Daeran, and Louise all tried to cool Sia's words asserting that it was simply heat of the moment, and that it was to be expected from an outfit as young as theirs. In the end, things had ended amiably, if haphazardly. Admiral Erichtonius always chided her over her preference for smooth missions.The difference between a smooth mission, and a rough one, is how long the report is at the end of it--your job isn't to do things perfectly, your job is to do things well. You're good at that, so keep doing that, and don't get hung up on the specifics. Sia sighed, and nodded, "Yes, I am going to be leaving it at this, this time. Nothing came of it, thankfully due to the Ambassador's quick work, but we may not have safety nets like that next time..." 

With all aboard the elevator, the doors slid close, leaving the business magnate's office behind. A quick flurry of notes into Sia's notebook. Focused on her control over the moon, and not much else. Strictly focused on her business. Doesn't appear to be violently interested in controlling the moon, preferring to control the populace through her business connections... so it's unlikely that she's involved beyond what she's told us. That said, avoiding crossing her authority is the safest course of action right now--she's in near complete control over the terraformed parts of the moon which makes any actions against AHI difficult to execute without operating out of the untamed parts of the moon. 

The elevator came to a stop once more, and the doors opened on the floor below. "Ensign Fujiwaru, I would like you to keep a close eye on Lieutenant Vhane, and Ambassador Huang. A precaution, nothing more." Sia was the first to disembark, and into the large office, this one was less lavishly furbished, but it really was impossible to match the kind of wealth that Arielle had to wield. There was an immediate, tangible difference in this room though, Arielle had been the only one in her office, but here, the woman sitting at the desk with flanked by a large, dark skinned man, a red haired woman holding a tablet, and dressed in a labcoat--a researcher it seemed like, and, an android of their own? It was difficult to determine, it was covered head to toe in some sort of armor, finished with a helmet. "I'm assuming that you're Miss Shezsacosh, head of Security? Apologies for such short notice, I'm sure that you have a lot to do with what's happening here. Captain Selensia Silverwind of the CEN Celestial Navy, it's a pleasure to make your acquaintance." 

[Nanami Touko]

"Well... About that, Alriana... Mmmm... Nah. Never mind. Let's be on our best behavior, then~ And you know why you're wearing that helmet, Aly. Even if our cover is blown, your cover has to remain in tact. Those teeth of yours are your strongest secret weapon... Don't let anyone know beforehand~" Toki rummaged around inside her desk for something, sliding it into her hand, eagerly awaiting the Dawn's group. I really don't like playing nice... So I don't think I will~

Kazue nodded. "I will do my best." They weren't going to get into a fight here, were they? Surely not. Kazue steeled herself either way. So long as she could help it, no harm would come to Huang, Daeran, or the Captain. Focus, Kazue...

However, nothing could have prepared the ensign for what happened next. As the group entered the office and Sia addressed Miss Shezsacosh, the fox woman smiled. "Well, well, well..." So this is the famous Selensia Silverwind... She's certainly got the body all the rumors mentioned. Not as impressive as Miranda, but still. More importantly... Let's see... Leon, shocked they let his ass onto the Dawn, but I guess he really is here. Mercenaries, you just cant trust 'em. Louise... I wonder just how damaged that 'accident' left you. Kazue, the Earth famous fighter.  Only because I picked up the previous one, heheh~ One fossil left from CEN's closet, huh? You sure age won't get to you first, Bonner? ...And you... Daeran~ I've missed you, I've really, really missed you... Too bad about your lineage. Real shame. Oh well.

"So you're the crew causing me problems. Just had to stick your little noses into my plans... I don't like that. Sorry, Tanvir, but I'm not a nice lady." She was all smiles, but in a motion, not too swift, but too smooth and mechanical for a regular human, a pistol was pulled out and aimed right between Sia's eyes. Hannah was in front of the Captain before words could be exchanged further, and Louise had drawn her own firearm, trained on Toki.

"Pfthahahah~ That's some nice reaction time. What model is that android, huh?"

"[Captain, the situation has become quite dangerous. Please evacuate with the pilots.]" Hannah was acting the part of a shield, but wasn't engaging Toki for some reason...

Louise had her sidearm trained tight onto Toki, eyes glancing between her and the rest in the room, afraid to speak up without instructions from Sia, and more afraid of why Hannah hadn't moved to apprehend the threat...

"Your robot's pretty smart. It knows how dangerous I am... Lemme guess, you've got some thermals or otherwise that are letting you see just how much of a problem I am, eh? You know that if we get into it, they all die, and I get out of here alive... Good news for you! I just wanna talk~"

Kazue had jumped in front of Daeran, hands up, ready to fight. She was panicking internally, trying her best to put on a brave face... I... I recognize that man. Her eyes locked onto Tanvir, unable to look away. Why is he here!?

"So... Here's the deal, Miss Captain. I've got a few demands and warnings. Uhhh, one. You all keep quiet about this. You've got no leverage on me; I control everything that goes on in this building and everything Arielle ends up seeing... So I can frame you real easy and get the CEN in shit with AHI. Enjoy cleaning that up! She wouldn't believe you, anyway, even if your android is recording, right now. I'll just say it was doctored. Present my own doctored footage, we see whose side she takes... You get the idea."

She leaned back in her seat, the pistol remaining trained at the proper elevation and angle, her arm automatically adjusting for the shift in position. "That's one. Two: don't get in our way, yeah? You already did once, but you didn't know, so we can let that slide... But going forward, you stay out of AHI issues, yeah? If you cross some of the fucks I've hired and they aren't wearing AHI, whatever, their problem. If you mess with my plans, you're dust, yeah? You, your ship, your pretty little pilots. Dust. Callisto is rotten to its little core... And I plan on uprooting everything causing it~ Eheheheh... So, do we have an understanding-- Oh! Right. Daeran." She winked at him. "You leave him with us. Right now."

"[Please evacuate, Captain.]" Hannah hadn't answered anything Toki had said to her, but it was clear something had halted the Android.

Edited February 9 by Nanami Touko

[Mercenary on the Winds]

There really had been a couple things off to Sia as they entered AHI; it didn't feel like they were taking things nearly as seriously as they probably should have after their bases were suddenly being raided by the rebels. There hadn't been much of a security presence throughout the city, nor in AHI's main building, and especially not in Arielle's office. Perhaps it was simple to explain that away as Arielle believing herself invincible, but... perhaps there was more to it, and the moment that the gun was leveled in her direction, things started to fall into place. All of that likely wasn't a coincidence at all, and they had found the crux of the issue, just not in the place she expected to find it. Sia barely flinched outwardly, but her heart rate shot through the roof, nearly pounding its way out of her chest. 

"Huh, what?! Aren't we supposed to be keeping this under wraps?! What are you--" Tanvir noticed something out of the corner of his eye, the gaze of a martial artist, one who seemed to know. Tanvir turned away from Toki to meet the focused gaze, his surprise turning into a bit of a grin, "...I knew I recognized some of those movements. What a surprise... What, do you actually recognize me? You might be mistaken, you know, I'm just a guy lost to time." Tanvir turned back to Toki, "...So what, we're just gonna strong arm them into inaction?"

Miranda shrunk away over behind Tanvir, tablet held in front of her, "Uh, hold on a second, this was not in the message!" Miranda at best was a mechanic, she worked with their machines, and augments, but unlike the three in front of her, she was not a combatant in any traditional sense. She didn't have any time to work any of her magic, there were two strapping young men on the other side, but if there was anything she knew about humans, it was that the drive to survive was far, far stronger than any sort of drive that she could play upon in this moment. So it was best for her to become small, and hide behind the mountain that was Tanvir--this was not a battle where her strengths factored. 

H4na implored Sia to withdraw, but Sia stood still, outwardly uncowed by the brazen display, "...This really is the perfect sort of setup, isn't it? Perfect control of the building, so any information that leaves here has to come through you, so you can bend it whichever way you would like. Arielle seems to trust you enough to handle all of the security, so anything you tell her would likely win out over anything I could possibly say." Even more so now after Leon and Kazue's outbursts... Miss Shezsacosh then rattled off her demands, effectively confirming a number of Sia's suspicions, and ending in a brazen threat. There was something about how absurdly confident she was that made Sia wary; H4na stopping at protecting her was also a great cause for concern. There was something very wrong about the woman with the pistol, but there was something to talk about. So if she wanted to talk, Sia was going to oblige, "...Might I ask you a question? Let's say that I didn't acquiesce to your demands. You're right in that nothing I could possibly say to Miss Ayvndor would be taken over your word, so I don't quite have a choice in the matter there. But your second demand... if you simply wanted us out of your way, why wouldn't you just finish us now? Now that we're not hiding behind platitudes, it is rather obvious that you were in control of the situation at the base, but it didn't quite make sense to me all that happened. The autonomous units slaughtering the rebels, sure, easy enough to wave away as the rebels biting off more than they can chew. It was the other force that made things... murky. They weren't there to assist, no, they were there to cause problems, wreck havoc... Is that what you mean by getting in your way? If it is, then I'm afraid we may be at odds... I don't quite know what CEN sent us here for, but, as far as I know that I am here on a peacekeeping mission, and to protect the civilians on this moon. I will not be compromising on that." Sia then shook her head at the final demand. The first hint of disdain crept onto the captain's face as she spoke, "Lieutenant Vhane is a part of this unit, and if he is to leave, then you'll have to take that up with CEN Chain of Command, because I'm not even going to entertain that, so we can move onto the rest." 

Edited February 9 by Mercenary on the Winds

[TheRoon]

As expected, Sia's words dug in deep. His stone cold expression winced ever so slightly, the inhaler didn't help either. Shit... Though his mood lifted a little when Kazue chimed in with her attempt to get him off the hook, and when Louise of all people did the same...well that absolutely shocked the ex-merc! It made Leon turn his head to the two ladies, and Daeran who seconded the idea. "Aaah..." Kazue seemed to really be concerned for Leon's well being, Daeran was a bit of a hard read, but Louise was something else entirely. But in the end Leon realized this was not the time to suspect his own squad of anything, not while he was at fault in the end. "...I appreciate it guys, but Kazue you didn't make me step up and protest. I did that myself, and while I'll never regret protecting my team I agree with the captain that it wasn't the right way to do it. I'm the most experienced soldier on the ship...present company excluded of course sir!" He turned to Bonner and gave him a brief salute, and then he turned to make eye contact with Sia. "But that means I have a duty to set an example for everyone on the ship. So like miss Park said, I'll take this lesson to heart and promise I won't act out of line like that again." Though deep down inside Leon knew he probably wouldn't be able to keep that promise if things go awry, it was just something he had to handle when it the time comes. I know you want me safe too, Sia. But in the end I'm just a-

His thought was cut as soon as they had reached their destination, and once they did Leon instantly regretted making that promise right when he did. A single woman had been surrounded by a group of unique individuals that fired off several alarms in the red head's mind. His uncle had taught him to instantly spot out danger and threats, and this room was just overflowing with both. The fox woman wasted no time in getting down to business, and before anyone knew it a pistol was aimed right at the captain. Leon's face turned to a horrified one. Though thankfully, Hannah was on the case. She acted as a shield for the captain at just the right moment and instructed Sia to leave with the crew, but Shezsacosh demanded Daeran stay. Leon stood by Sia's side, ready to take her and run back to the elevator, but the captain stood her ground with no fear in her voice. She attempted to negotiate their way out. Argh, dammit! What can I do...? He grit his teeth in frustration, tempted to do...something, anything. But miss Shezsacosh had a point, they seemed to have stronger control over the media. Leon had already stepped on thin ice on top of that too. He was trapped between his impulsive side and his tactical side. But in the end he decided to trust in Sia to de-escalate the conflict for now; he took a moment to scan the room briefly for any other sudden moves. Given everyone's surprise she did this on a whim, this plan of hers might fall apart at any minute...

Edited February 9 by TheRoon

[Xinnidy]

Bonner watched the group's feelings on the meeting mellow out as the elevator descended. He wondered whether he could part with additional words, but maybe it was best to let Sia acclimate to her role slowly. Bonner wasn't about to accidentaly undermine her authority like some others, no, these were growing pains he'd need to let her resolve. Guidance only when asked.

It was best to keep his mind unoccupied, after all, which allowed him to grab his sidearm quickly once they met the 'chief of security' and were greeted with a gun trained on Sia's face. How great, just the kind of trouble to add onto their first meeting. "Hannah, explain the danger's nature." Bonner understood enough of the android's security measures, as well as took heed of the threatener's taunt, to figure something they couldn't outright see was putting them at risk.

It was odd how certain they were about the situation, too, with numbers on their group's favor, including an android... What card did these terrorizers have up their sleeve to start with this threat? "Hm." Bonner couldn't add to the fire, it was time to leave the dialogue to Sia... his firearm for now trained on the mostly ignored element, the armored android of some sort, though Bonner could barely see a chink in that armor to aim at. Would that be the danger?

[Nanami Touko]

"Of course I recognize you," Kazue bit out, holding her gaze on the least of their problems. "To think you would fall to this... Did the sport mean nothing to you? Did you learn nothing!?"

"Becaaaause," Toki said, rolling her eyes, "the Dawn is a huge playing card on the table. Come on, Sia. You ripped through a bunch of automated machines and a whole squad of hired goons without losing a single pilot! Who would want to take that much power off the table for nothing? You could be of great use to me, much better alive than dead, but I do want to force your hand a little. So yes, Tan, I'm trying to strong arm them, but not into inaction. Here, Sia, lemme try my best to explain~"

"[Acknowledged, Lieutenant. Head of Security Tokiwa Shezsacosh is augmented beyond my means of handling. Were this to become a fight, I would lose, and you would all be in extreme danger. As well,]" Hannah glanced ever so swiftly at the helmeted individual, eyes training back on Toki. "[That... Being, is not in my database. I have no information on what that is.]"

"Hey, hey! No peaking, android! Eyes on me if you wanna get a look at something. Tsk, robots... Anywayyyyyyyyy... Peacekeeping is really, really fucking vague. State of the art, primo, top of the LINE battleship, equipped with the LATEST and GREATEST in CEN's leading technology. Come on. Come on, Sia. Can I call you Sia? I'm gonna call you Sia. Use your brain. What are you really being sent here to do...?" She scoffed some and waved the gun around a bit, tail swaying behind her. "CEN wants you to ENFORCE some peacekeeping, genius. If you were here for talking, you wouldn't be drowning in guns. This tiny moon, all the way out in space, SURELY you don't need all that ammo to protect yourselves."

"Evidently we did," Louise spat, "now that you've played your hand far too early." She didn't have an out, and Hannah's confirmation of her fears was chilling. She was afraid to even think of plans. If this woman was that augmented, so much that she could handle an android in hand to hand, the slightest twitch could result in a bullet firing. She didn't dare lower her gun, either way...

"Early? Nooooo, this is just pleasantries. Anyway... I'm here to tear the whole moon down. Top, to, bottom~ That involves a certain amount of chaos, yes. We're a small group. I can threaten you, sure, but I can't threaten all of AHI. I kill miss CEO, their entire facility comes down on me, and I'm pretty strong-- on foot and in the cockpit, but I'm just one little fox~ Gotta dismantle it piece by piece... Since you're so against my demands, I'll give you a suggestion." She lifted her gun and leaned onto the table, smiling wide. "Why don't you go and find out more about Callisto? What's buried beneath the surface. Why there's an arms race on this pseudo-planet so far off in space... And once you have, call me. You know where to find me. We can rethink deals then... But, we, might, cross~ In the mean time... Just a consequence of business."

Sia's not handing over Daeran was expected, but still annoying. "Let me make this easier, then. Daeran?" She looked over at him with the perhaps most sincere look she'd given between her whims. "Would you like to come with us? You're more aware of everything here. More than the people you're standing beside... Don't you wanna tear it all down? You deserve the chance. So ignore her. Do you want to come with me?"

Edited February 10 by Nanami Touko

[Xinnidy]

"Tch." So that was no android, from the sounds of it... the thought of two heavily modified humans to give their android pause was alarm enough to cut some ideas --no point taking gambles when the house was that rigged. Our best option is to disengage and give chase in ways where we avoid confrontations on foot... what a situation, the brass thinks really highly of me if they thought I could guide so many fresh recruits through this one.

[Ursali]

Alriana heard Toki's words, but as the augmented fox reached into her desk and pulled out a gun the lizard eyebrows raised her eyebrows, quietly scoffing into her helmet. If she was going to pull a stunt like this, then why was she so against her thrashing a few of the Dawn's pilot's during their little bit of interference from earlier? It frustrated the lizard, but not enough to make an attempt right before the Dawn's crew arrived.

---

"I can hold my own just fine, I assure you." Though he had been slightly shaken by Arielle's apparent interest in him, he was confident that he didn't need any sort of special protection. "We're all here as your and Huang's bodyguards, captain. I'm prepared to do my duty regardless of my unique political status; with all due respect, while I appreciate your concern, I don't need any special consideration." He was here simply as a soldier of the CEN, regardless of his background and status. He knew it wasn't that simple, it would never be, but that was how he wanted it to be.

As they entered the Head of Security's office, Daeran was immediately struck by a strong sense of déjà vu as he got a good look at this Tokiwa's face. She was the spitting image of Tamara, if a little older in appearance from his memory. But there was no way that this was her, it couldn't be possible. If she'd have survived and ended up in a position like this, he was certain she would've contacted him... He was so focused on her he didn't even react for a solid few seconds as she pulled a gun on the Captain, nor did he notice the strange thing in the corner of the room staring solely at him. He scrambled to pull his out his own gun, unsure if he should be aiming it at the man that had Kazue attention or at the Tamara look-a-like, the latter of which he was hesitant to do.

No sooner than the Dawn's captain had greeted them, Toki's spur of the moment plan was already going in to effect, the fox's gun aimed at the captain. Alriana had already identified their target; the visual data given to them was a perfect match, starting directly at him even as a black-haired woman moved into a defensive position in front of him. This was their change wasn't it? He was right here, well within striking range of her. She only hesitated to act because she knew that one wrong action from either side would result in an exchange of gunfire; she wasn't concerned for herself or Toki, but the odds of Tanvir or Miranda coming out unscathed as well were low. To be fair, she didn't care about that either, but she knew Toki would be pissed if anything happened to them and if they were gone she'd be the only one to deal with the fallout of that.

She briefly flicked her eyes over to the old man and the android as he called for it to analyze her while he trained his gun on her, before turning her attention back onto their target. Her armor would be more than enough to protect her from the small arms that the Dawn's pilots had on their persons; even were he to aim for her helmet it would take more than one shot to get through the visor, and by then she would have him in pieces. Her tailed swayed and rolled behind her as she waited for the target to answer Toki's question, nothing remotely mechanical about its movement. If anything, it looked rather similar to something a select few had seen earlier today...

The Head of Security's demands were just as ridiculous as the situation itself, though the out of place request that he be left behind with this group gave him pause. The captain was quick to deny the request, but that only prompted her to send a direct question his way, bypassing Sia. "I..." There was no way this Tokiwa was actually Tamara, was it? The only thing similar was their faces, everything else couldn't be more different. But why the interest in him? How much did she know about him, know about the rest of the Dawn's pilots? Was her knowledge exclusive to him and he'd been singled out by some coincidence, or was she just as aware of the other pilots and only wanted him? He didn't know, there was too much unknown about this situation. "I... If you're who I think you are, then you should know my answer. If you're goal it to cause chaos and endanger innocents lives, then there's no way I'll be joining you!" Tamara, why? If this really is you, what the hell happened!?

"Should I kill him then?" Though muffled some by the helmet, the unknown spoke. Much like her tail's movements, there was nothing mechanical about her voice. The question had caused the target to train his gun on her, but that was also fine. She could see the slight shaking of his grip, rattled either by Toki's question or the situation as a whole. Either way, she was confident he wouldn't be able to do anything with his gun; at least, not to her.

[Mercenary on the Winds]

Tanvir nodded at her question, "Yeah, I learned plenty from my time in the sport. Remember all of it too; including how quickly they were ready to put me in my grave just to make a quick buck. I'm real glad that you ain't like me. Because if you were, you'd know what I was talking about... or maybe not, you might be dead." 

Miranda tried to stay out of the line of sight of all of the guns now being pointed around the office. If she'd known that things were going to go down like that this, she would have just let the three of them handle it. However, that was off the table now, so now she needed to hide behind the safest place in the room. The android with the peacekeeping unit was quite impressive; figuring out that Toki was a huge problem, and nearly divulging Alriana's real threat made it a near top of the line machine. Miranda kept her eyes on Sia; an impressive woman to be sure, but whether everyone made it out of the room alive depended on what the young captain said next. Toki seemed to be familiar with Daeran, yet another thing that hadn't been mentioned to her, but then again, Toki was an enigma compared to the rest of them. Their orders had been to kill the man, but Toki was more interested--at least in the moment--at getting him to join their side. Deep breaths, deep breaths... Toki why did you bring ME here if you were just gonna do this?! Ughhhhh... I don't even get to take in the cute ones on the other side because they might SHOOT me! 

Sia listened as Toki revealed her intent in keeping them alive in this moment; something they could leverage in this moment, but she shook her head. "You misunderstand, Miss Shezsacosh. The voyage over here was enough to tell me that CEN wants us to... flex our might in the moment. Why else would the send state of the art machinery to this single moon? No, that much is obvious, but I don't know what the point of that is... nor do I plan on following that to the letter." Sia could feel her body trying to shiver as her anxiety started to build in the moment, every word could so easily end with a bullet, but she had to remain firm, at least here, at least now. "If it is the heavy hand of AHI that is causing the problem, then the heavy hand of CEN is not the answer I intend to employ. Perhaps we won't need what we've been entrusted with to protect ourselves, but they may become necessary to protect the people of the moon." At Bonner's call, Hannah confirmed that Miss Shezsacosh was heavily augmented to a point that even Hannah realized that she couldn't handle her, and before she could do the same to the armored unit to the right of her, Toki demanded Hannah's attention on her. Sia turned for a moment, and then... the swaying of the tail caught her eye. She'd seen it before. "Wait..." Where had she seen it? It wasn't coming to her immediately, but then, the footage came to mind. The shimmering, there was a sway to whatever it had been... almost identical to this. "...Was it you? Were you the...?" 

Before she could ask her question, Toki announced her intent on tearing the moon down completely. Suddenly, the men from before made perfect sense where they hadn't made any before--because that was the point. She wanted chaos, she wanted to destroy the moon, and from the sounds of it was willing to do whatever she needed to do to achieve that goal. The correct question then was, "Why?" But Toki seemed interested in letting them find out the answer for themselves. Her words, and gaze upon Daeran were the most genuine that she'd given the entire conversation--it seemed as if she knew Daeran beyond just as a target--but they were met with Daeran's refusal, "There you have it, Miss Shezsacosh... however, I've had my misgivings with this mission from the start, and if you think that there is something for us to find by investigating the moon, then I intend to take you up on that. For a moon that is supposed to specialize in mining, and to be the first Celestial colony of humanity... an arms race is concerning for a number of reasons." Sia could feel her legs desperately trying to wobble. Not, yet, Sia... see everyone out of here alive, and then you can fall apart. 

Perhaps most chilling then, was the fact that the unknown spoke. It was muffled, but it wasn't a mechanical sounding voice, and it sounded perfectly sentient. The words were terse, but spoken so sharp that Sia could almost feel each word cut through her faltering mask. "...As Captain of the Dawn, I can't let you do that. Daeran will be returning in one piece with us to perform our mission." 

[Nanami Touko]

"... I see." Toki looked genuinely upset, like she was feeling more than what was being said. "I had hoped... You of all people, would..." She mumbled some words over the tense situation, before her gaze went back to comical and smiling, staring over at her armored associate. "No, no... We stick to the plan. He dies later. You know exactly why, I've explained it before... If you want to fight with them so badly... Hmmm~"

Toki tapped the gun against her head and then smiled wide, fangs and all. "Hey, great idea! Here's where we're attacking next." She tapped a communicator on her wrist and Hannah's eyes flashed, receiving the message. "There, check your android when we're done here. That's a warning. Or a challenge~ Either you can listen to me and keep away from our plans, or you can stick your nose in where it doesn't belong and get it sliced off... Your call, Miss Captain." 

Toki finally put the gun down and leaned back, hands resting on the back of her head, legs up on the desk. "Well, we're done here, I guess... Sucks that we couldn't come to an agreement, but that's your fault. You just don't know how bad this place is. That's okay. You'll learn, or die trying~ And maybe once you've learned, you'll come crawling back to me... Ta-ta for now. Don't let those legs fail you on the way out." Toki grinned and scowled, her eyes boreing right into Sia.

"I can feel your fear, Miss Captain. It's all you can do to stay standing... You think you can hide those feelings from me? Act strong? You can try... But it's radiating off you like a heater. Walk out of here with that tail between your legs, Selensia Heather Silverwind... And don't face us if you can't stand your ground without that iron fortress keeping you safe."

Louise narrowed her eyes. A newtype, then? As if she wasn't problem enough... "Captain, we should take this offer to leave... Now." Louise wasn't going to back out until the Captain was safe, but she did eye the door with a swift glance.

[TheRoon]

Toki was nothing short of insane, at least in Leon's book. She seemed disappointed by Daeran's answer, but snapped right back to her happy go lucky phase. All while holding a gun at the captain and Hannah, and proclaiming her intent to throw the moon in anarchy. It was obscene to look at. So the situation on the moon is a lot more twisted than we thought. All the more reason to do some digging... He intended to anyway, but it seemed like they had a lot more motivation on their plate. The fox woman lowered her gun and stated Sia was afraid, which heavily hinted that she was also a Newtype on top of being a cyborg. Wasn't friggin' trained to handle something like her that's for sure...

Though truthfully, Leon didn't need to be a Newtype to guess Sia was afraid. She put on a great front, but with the threat of being shot and the situation as tense as it was she was only human. But...that's fine. Once the situation had rolled to a close Leon stepped close to Sia and put his hands on her shoulders. "Y'know, fear is an excellent motivator miss Shezsacosh. Take it from someone who learned the meaning of it, the captain's done an admirable job here gotta say." He looked Shezsacosh in the eye with an unflinching gaze. He knew his action may have put the room back on edge again, but it didn't stop him from supporting Sia. "Don't worry, I'm not gonna do some crazy ass stunt everyone's expecting me to pull. I just want to personally thank you for the information you've given us today, it's a powerful tool. It's something I'm sure everyone will simmer on back on the Dawn. So captain, by your leave..." He kept his gaze on the fox woman, and his hands on Sia's frame to keep her from shutting down right there. At the same time, he shifted his weight slightly on his heels, and was ready to move the second Sia gave the order to...or someone tried to make another move.

Edited February 14 by TheRoon

[Mercenary on the Winds]

There was that sincerity again. Daeran's refusal hit something in Toki but the woman was crestfallen only for a moment, as her playful affect returned. She chided the armored person, stating that Daeran would die later as was planned. Not if I have anything to say about it. Surely, they walked into a terrible situation, and they were going to be able to handle the group as they currently were, but strength wasn't all there was to conflict and Toki was gonna figure that out first hand next they met. 

Unfortuanately, that meeting might be sooner than Sia would have liked; as Hannah received a message from Toki about their next target. Toki really was just going to force their hand into action, but at least, they going to get straight to the heart of things. Toki was starting to get on her nerves--in an entirely different way--Sia's competitive nature was what kept her focused when everything difficult, and Toki's confidence in this moment, while deserved, was no less upsetting. That wouldn't be enough time for them to devise plans for the augmented terrorist, but she'd be damned if she let that keep her from doing her job.

Sia opened her mouth to counter, and then, Toki's words went more personal. Sia knew she hadn't let her fear show, she knew she had been nothing but calm, and firm on the surface, but Toki just... knew. Sia kept her eyes locked on Toki's, there was only one explanation, and that made things much more problematic. "...You're a newtype." Iskra and Esther had been Sia's crash course, and she wasn't entirely sure she grasped all that she could about the emerging empaths. Sia pondered her words carefully, but at this point there was no reason to hide her fear anymore. Leon's sudden hands on her shoulders made Sia visibly jump, as he started speaking. Surprisingly, he wasn't shooting them in the foot as he did earlier with Arielle. Though, he sure did jack her heart rate up even more. 

Sia audibly sighed, "...I suppose you wouldn't have to be a newtype to have seen that. To be frank, this is my first meeting with a gun in my face, so this... is new territory for me. That said, we will be taking our leave, and we will be seeing each other again. We will figure out this truth about Callisto that you're so adamant on destroying, and even if my legs were to fall apart on me now, I will still do my job as commander of this task force. I will never be so afraid as to damn all who live on this moon." Sia turned her back to Toki, taking a deep breath as she did, "We'll be in touch, I'm sure. Everyone, we're finished here." Sia's hand tapped Louise's gun arm, as she started to make her way back to the elevator. Toki could sense her fear, that was fine, it was only a tool that Toki could use to mess with her more, a tool that Sia wasn't going to give her.

[Nanami Touko]

Louise only lowered her gun, and only halfway, as Sia tapped her arm, walking backwards towards the elevator. "No matter how much you can cheat your way into our heads, you'll never understand how determined someone can be, no matter how afraid they are. If you think your little show scared us, think again, terrorist filth." She kept backing away slowly, finally making it into the elevator next to the rest of them.

"Hmmm... You're a funny one, aren't you, Louise? You're actually not scared at all... Not for yourself, anyway~ What's up with that? How'd you get so hard boiled, huh~?" Toki mused over Louise's tough shell, waving the Captain off... she made a gun shape with her hand and aimed it at the Captain, firing off some fake bullets. "Bang~" Show me you're stronger than me. Show me you're right. Only then will I let you take this moon's course and steer it where you think is best... "See you later, Daeran. We'll be in touch... We can reminisce more privately, next time~" She all but blatantly revealed her identity to him, giving him a wink. "And don't get too cozy there, Leon! Mercenaries are a dime a dozen... I'd know."

Kazue kept herself in front of him and Bonner. She hadn't had a response for the man she believed to be Tanvir, the former world champion of Earth's mixed martial arts... He had suddenly gone missing, months before she would've had her chance to challenge him, leaving her up against a much weaker opponent for the title match. If they'd truly removed him like they were claiming... There would be time to think about that later. "Daeran, Bonner, let us leave. Carefully."

"[All personnel, please evacuate. I shall follow in last. I repeat; all personnel, please evacuate.]"

 

Edited February 12 by Nanami Touko

[TheRoon]

"If I had a dime every time I heard that one I'd treat everyone in this room to a five star meal, but either way...till next time." He kept his gaze on Toki as he continued to step back toward the elevator. While they were more or less off the hook the most tragic ends are always when backs are turned to the bigger party. Judging from the size of Tanvir, they were absolutely the bigger party. Still, he kept his mind as blank as he could now that he knew she was a Newtype. When Sia got on the elevator he stepped back into it himself and kept Daeran in his field of vision. They wanted him after all, I'll bet this ain't the end of that deal. 

[Xinnidy]

"Roger. Let's retreat." Sighing. Bonner kept his weapon trained as he stepped back. Nothing to do as they were so disadvantaged, might as well take the chance to run away as it was graciously given to them. She seems quite comfortable with some of our Lieutenants, what a bother. Best to ask some questions once we're out. For now, with a nod Kazue's way, Bonner walked back to the elevator, never turning his back --never good to take threatheners on every word, with how quickly minds changed, and that woman certainly seemed to have a penchant for sporadic decisions. "Come on, Daeran." Seemed like it was just him, Kazue, and the android left...

[Ursali]

Daeran kept his gun trained on the armored person asking about killing him; between them and this... Tamara lookalike, he was confident they were the more dangerous of the pair, at least in the context of how far they were willing to take this current confrontation. Outside of the now, Tokiwa was far more dangerous, of that there was no question. He tried to ignore how dejected she seemed by his refusal of her request, but he couldn't push the thoughts out of his head. Why? How? I never believed that she was dead, but to see her again, like this, what the hell happened!? Tokiwa's further taunting only drove the wedge between the augmented fox and Tamara further, but the words out of her mouth all but confirmed that they were one in the same. 

"Don't see why we need to wait until then, right here. But fine." She relented with a huff, but didn't take her eyes off of the target. She didn't understand the point in helping them understand their goals or motives, but this was Tokiwa; she didn't understand a lot of what she did.

"R-Right..." He was taken out of thoughts with Kazue, Bonner, and Hannah's prompting, shaking his head to get his bearings, before beginning to back out of the room with his gun still trained on the unknown, Kazue still in front of him. Their attention was still definitely on him, he wasn't going to risk turning his back on them. Once he was finally in the elevator he let out a breath he didn't know he was holding, leaning into the wall. What the hell am I supposed to do now...?

[Mercenary on the Winds]

Kazue pulled herself back onto the elevator, followed lastly by Hannah, and Sia hit one of the buttons. Which floor they were going to was not in the forefront of her mind; they just needed to not be here right now. Sia kept her eyes focused on Toki until the door squeezed shut, and the elevator was in motion. Sia looked around, making sure that everyone had pulled back into the elevator. "...Good. Everyone's here, and we all made it out of that... alive." Sia looked at Daeran for a moment, the sheer confusion palpable on his face. "...Looks like we've gotten more than we'd bargained for." As soon as Sia's body started to come down from the adrenaline, and the sheer force of will, her legs gave out, and she just collapsed to the floor of the elevator, back against Hannah's legs. "Oww... Fuck... This is just... not my day." Giving up any sense of professionality, Sia flopped on the ground, and lied there. "A newtype terrorist basically in control of AHI's security, and with technology beyond our means. Fantastic... where was this on the dossier...? Uggh..." 

Sia tried to push herself to her feet, but quickly gave up. "Hannah... I'm sorry to impose, but... between the fight, and now this, I, I can't move." She knew that either Leon or Louise would have offered had she asked, but this was the simplest way forward. Especially if they were to be pursued. 

---

Tanvir grinned as Kazue couldn't find an answer for his words, choosing to remain in front of the Vhane boy. "Yeah... it might be better for you to stay that way. Miss Fujiwaru." Tanvir's eyes drifted over the rest of them, the red haired man seemed to... have some idea of what was going on and how to handle it. The others had weapons drawn, and the Captain... had they not been in the thick of it, he'd almost have complimented her. To stand so resolute in the face of certain death, staring down a threat that could have killed them all right then and there... it was impressive, almost as impressive as her figure. But when the doors to the elevator closed, it was Kazue Fujiwaru, the reigning world champion, who kept his gaze. It had been a very long time since anyone had recognized him. But now they were on their way, and now it was time to deal with the real issues. 

"Miranda, you can come out from behind me now. Geez, you get any closer, and I swear you'd be hugging my ass. I guess I wouldn't complain, but--" 

The red haired woman popped out of hiding, "You were the quickest--and largest--place I could get to when everything started. Speaking of which," Miranda turned on Toki, "¡Pero qué coño--" Miranda covered her mouth, before quickly trying again, "What the hell was that about, Toki!? I thought we were talking with them?! If I'd known that we were going to Mexican standoff, I would have left the three of you to it! I brought my guns, I didn't bring my gun! I could have died!"

"I don't think I'd be yelling about it like this... but Miranda is right, I know you and Aly would have been fine, and... I might have been, but if we'd all started blasting, I don't think the desk, or me, would have kept her alive..."

Edited February 21 by Mercenary on the Winds

[Nanami Touko]

Kazue could only chide herself for not having a response in the moment. Why is he here!? Why...!? Ugh... No matter. If I do not have the words for him now, then my fists will share my feelings when we meet in combat. That is all there is to it. She clenched a fist tightly, eyes locked onto Tanvir as the elevator doors finally closed. She turned her attention to the group, and Daeran, checking everyone over just to make sure nothing had been missed-- or planted. "You are all okay, yes? Beyond the Captain..." Sia seemed exhausted... No doubt. After a hectic battle like that and then, having to deal with the mental battle that was... this.

"[Acknowledged, Captain. Allow me to assist.]" With precision care and comfort, Hannah lifted Sia off of the elevator floor and held her close in a princess carry, eyes watching the door.

"I suppose that is what androids are for... Still, who does that woman think she is...? Does she think we'll kowtow to her demands because she got the jump on us once? Ugh." Louise was furious with no outlet... There was nothing to be done about it for the moment, but she'd be giving Tokiwa a piece of her mind at the end of a rifle barrel if they met on the field of battle. "Hannah, can you forward Sia's communicator the data you received?"

"[Acknowledged, Lieutenant.]" Hannah's eyes beeped red a few times, then she nodded. "[The data has been scanned and sent. It appears to be a set of coordinates. Galatea will be able to match them to a map of Callisto when we arrive back on the Imminent Dawn.]"

"Understood, Hannah... Hahhh... What a mess of individuals. It didn't even look as though the rest in the room were in the know for her plans. Loose cannons... Hannah, you mentioned something in the room. Who was that other person?"

Hannah paused, then shook her head. "[Data inconclusive. Heatmap appeared to indicate augmentations, but no augmentation signals were picked up from the target. They appeared entirely biological.]"

"What!?" Louise bawked at Hannah's statement. That tail had to have been an augment... "Then, wh-what were they, an alien...? That's preposterous... What could..." She didn't have an answer, shaking her head and biting at her thumbnail.

---

Tokiwa laughed at Miranda's frustrations, waving the gun as she shook her hand at the woman. "Relaaaaaaax, do you really think I would've let anything happen to you two? If things came to a shootout, of course I would bodyblock you before anything else. There's no way their standard issue sidearms are gonna do anything to me beyond a headache... You've seen my skeleton, Miranda. It's all titanium in here. You think a nine millimetre is gonna cause me any trouble~?" She hopped up and stuffed the gun into a thigh holster hiding under her qipao, stretching some. "I know I'm smaller than you and Tan, but that's why you duck behind the desk while I play human shield. We'd be fine, and by the time the dust settled, Alriana would've killed them all. They aren't getting through her armor and their skin's not stopping her teeth~"

Tokiwa was confident that everyone on the Dawn's team would've died if they'd gotten bright ideas about firing. She was about seventy percent confident she could've saved Tanvir and Miranda's lives, but they didn't need to know those odds~ "What matters is we've gotta get ready for the next show... Which means picking up some more mercenaries. Hopefully better than the last crew... They sure lasted, like, a few minutes. Ugh. Did you hear that guy's attempt at playing AHI security? Terrible. We need some people with charisma, that can really keep those Dawn dogs second guessing their choices. Maybe some of the less righteous rebel groups around here would like a generous offer of parts and funds..." She was already getting to thinking, tails swaying happily behind her.

[mcd900]

Huang spent the exchange cowering behind the no-longer-very-diplomatic detachment of CEN's finest; to his credit he at least retained enough of himself not to be actively cowering and shuddering, instead opting merely to be utterly frozen with fear. The second the doors slid open, though, he was one of the first through the door and slumped against one of the walls of the elevator as they slid shut. "Oh... oh, no... w-what was that? That, that wasn't supposed to happen, we, the information, we were supposed to... oh no, oh no... C-Captain, we can't let them do this, we need to stop them, and we need proof! They're, they're not going to listen to reason, are they..."

As the elevator began its descent - somehow feeling agonizingly longer than their initial ascent, despite the elevator being top of the line - the ambassador slapped his face with both hands, taking a deep breath to cut off his own hyperventilating. "A-hem. Okay - alright. Hr-hm. Best faces now, everyone. We - we represent the CEN at all times. Let's - let's leave quickly. I know what that women said, but I don't want her changing her mind before we leave the building. Ah, do help the Captain to the car, android. Yes, I do believe I'll be staying aboard the Dawn unless strictly necessary...

---

---

---

JULY 10TH, 2174
15:52

Alrenne grimaced. Assembled loosely behind the desks in the briefing room were the ten-odd pilots of the Dawn, with the Captain seated at the head of the room; he was standing off to the side, looking notably dour. The away team had come back about an hour and a half ago, and seeing the looks on their faces, not to mention the rather discomposed Captain as they'd returned, he'd scheduled everyone to report to the briefing room to report. He'd listened patiently to each as they gave their account of the events, quiet, though the look on his face was shifting towards grim.

"So - you're telling me that Arielle Avyndor doesn't have the slightest clue what's going on, what - one? two? - floors beneath her, and on top of that the meeting with her was... what, mediocre at best? I don't doubt that we are in some way being used, here, but... I don't understand why she'd tell us."

He palmed his face briefly, before knocking an errant strand of hair underneath his officer's cap. "That group you saw is obviously extremely dangerous, and yet it seems they have no intent to actually endanger us; at least, not at this time. The data retrieved from H4na suggests that their next move will involve..." He tapped his comm, and the holoprojector in the room brought up a topographical survey of what looked to be one of many industrial clusters on the Callistan landscape, if not for the CEN flags flying proudly from the buildings' eaves. "...a CEN research facility on land that the company is essentially loaning to us as a show of cooperation. It's not a well-defended facility, so tactically it seems sound from their perspective... I suppose us knowing who they are means they can attack indiscriminately."

He pinched the bridge of his nose briefly; this voyage was certainly going to be no shortage of trouble - it was growing exponentially by the day, it seemed. "Well, in any case... Captain, I believe it'd be best for everyone to recuperate for the rest of the day before we head out there. We can monitor outgoing traffic from the capital in that direction; if any kind of force heads towards those labs from here, perhaps we can tail them." He looked around the room; cheerful enough as some were, there was turmoil on a number of faces, apparent enough even lacking familiarity with some as he was. "I believe we will have freedom to move around the city during our time here, at least; nominally we are here as allies of the corporation, and... well, if that woman intends to use us for her own purposes then there will be scant risk of us being attacked by any of her people... hopefully. I think we can give the crew freedom to go about Remansburg today, Captain. Especially if it means we might gain intelligence about things; what little we have seems to be shrinking in proportion the longer we spend here."

The ambassador certainly won't be doing us any services, not with how he's locked himself in his room... Well, perhaps Ambassador Diana will have slightly more luck.

Edited February 24 by mcd900

[Mercenary on the Winds]

Sia sat at her desk while Alrenne went over what they had learned off their conversations with Arielle, and then, the real enigma of the hour, Tokiwa Shezsacosh. She felt lucky that she'd found time to visit the range afterwards with Louise, and take a moment to swim to clear her head from events, she figured that she might have had a lot more to say to Leon after his outburst with Arielle. But now that she was on the same page with both Louise, and Leon, it was a little easier to think about the future, and that involved crossing paths with Toki, and her group again. "Yes, to say that Arielle is focused solely on the power that AHI's control of the moon affords her would be an understatement. She... doesn't appear to pay much attention to anything that wouldn't improve AHI's bottom line, to the point, that she hardly knows much about Shezsacosh's actions, and we don't have the standing with her to even try to inform her. Tokiwa has complete control over the cameras within the building, so if we so much as tried to relay anything, she could doctor footage, and cast us as the aggressors."

Alrenne's musing about Toki's unit were apt, Tokiwa herself, and the armored figured were both incredibly dangerous, Hannah's assessment of the both was incredibly troubling, but the giant man didn't appear to be any less threatening. Kazue seemed to recognize him, so perhaps she'd need to have that conversation with her sooner rather than later. The only one who didn't appear to be as large a threat as the other three was the red haired woman in the labcoat, had it not been for the eccentricity of the group she was apart of, she would have stuck out more but she was hidden behind the giant, and then the desk, clearly fearing for her wellbeing. The point remained though, Tokiwa's unit was exceptionally dangerous, and watching their backs around them was paramount, but as far as Sia was concerned, they were going to have to move directly against them. 

"A CEN research facility..." An obvious target if Tokiwa's words were to be believed, and if it wasn't well defended, then... She really is testing us... But for what purpose? If your goal was to just destroy the moon as you say, then... Alrenne continued to speak, suggesting that the unit take the rest of the day to relax from what occurred, and to see Remensburg. His logic was sound; taking the time to see Remensburg, and perhaps learn intel that they wouldn't otherwise acquire if they were to move today was an excellent one. "I second that, XO. From combat into our... meeting with Arielle and then Shezsacosh, I think everyone could use sometime to relax before we formally get underway here. There's still things that we need to handle before we head out that way anyway, and... I do think we should take this time to see the city, and figure out what we can. We're already behind." There was also another question weighting on the Captain's mind, "XO, there wouldn't happen to be a timeframe in which our message from 'Head of Security' mentioned they would begin their attack, is there?" 

If there isn't, I might expect that we might be the timing they'll use... No other reason to warn us of what they're to do, unless she's just that overconfident. But... she didn't strike me as the type.

Edited February 25 by Mercenary on the Winds

[Xinnidy]

"They will accost that facility expecting our resistance. There's little other way too interpret that." Bonner knew they wouldn't be fools, fighting to defend that facility would be more trouble than it is worth, unless... "Actually, do we have clearance to know the nature of the research there?" Another angle sprouted to mind, a bold assumption, but still...

"Mm, for now, learning what we can is the best trajectory. We can't to much until they play their next card." The house was rigged, and Bonner wasn't a fan of gambling to begin with. Sia seemed stuck on another line of thought that seemed valid, but they were just grasping at straws at the end of the day.

 

Esther was kind of annoyed that she didn't go, but with how she had blown off the last meeting for a... very stupid reason, she couldn't complain. Don't think too hard about it... "A newtype terrorist, huh..." She was already having a terrible time, so Esther focused on reigning in her thoughts for now. Best to hop on the medical ward as soon as the meeting was done.

Edited February 25 by Xinnidy

[Nanami Touko]

"[Lieutenant Commander,]" Hannah's eyes beeped red and she spoke up, turning her head in his direction, "[due to the company's nature as a CEN research facility, we are allowed the broad strokes. It appears to be a facility focusing on research into high performance boosters at HEX size. Any names or further details are unavailable through AHI's connections. If we are to find out, we will either have to contact them, or arrive in person."] She saluted Bonner and then turned to Sia, shaking her head. "[Captain, I was not sent any data resembling a time. My apologies.]" She finally turned to the XO, saluting. "[And my apologies for heading off your question, XO. I was already speaking; it seemed logical and efficient to continue with my knowledge.]" Her eyes turned away and she returned to her idle position near the door, staring off at nothing.

Louise sighed. She'd planned on changing back into her uniform, but with the sudden call for a meeting, she'd put everything back on she'd worm at the shooting range. At least her leg was still covered under her skirt... She needed to go into that focused on nothing else, lest she be thrown off and have a moment of panic. Just because Sia was nice doesn't mean everyone else will be... No. No, I need to trust them, just... Just, not right now. Not during a meeting. Maybe after, if at all... She shook her head; she couldn't keep thinking about this. It was already enough to be ignoring her eye as best as she could.

"If this was issued as a sort of challenge, I see no reason for us to back down. We can't allow a radical force to do as it pleases, not on this moon, and especially not at a CEN facility, no matter if it's loaned land or not. And if Hannah is correct... They're likely using the Dawn's movements as their signal. It's hard to miss such a ship taking off and setting down... But, if we leave it behind to approach with just HEXes, or God forbid on foot, we might end up severely outgunned and with no avenue of escape should things take a turn for the worst. Alas... If we're to take them seriously, part of that involves playing right into that woman's hands." She didn't like it, but it wasn't like they had much of a choice. This Tokiwa was likely using the Dawn as her signal, but, if the ship took too long to move... There's always the possibility she'll see our inaction as a sign to enact her plans anyway. We probably can't react in time... Hahhh... What a pain. Truly, what a pain. Not that I expected this to be smiles and rainbows, but... She glanced at the captain and smiled slightly. At least there's someone worth fighting for, here. I'll do what I can to keep everyone safe... I can't imagine her face if one of the pilots came back dead.

Kazue was sitting at the meeting table, staring down at it. She was off in her own world, thinking too hard about why Tanvir had been there. Why... And what did he mean? That they tried to get rid of him... Why would anyone... If, you are the world champion, you are a star! You are everything for the circuit... I cannot understand... Just... She let out a quiet sigh, furrowing her brow. Questions would achieve nothing, not without someone to answer them. I will get him to answer me the only way a fighter knows how. With my fists. If he cannot do that much, then I will no longer care... So speak to me, Tanvir. Hit me with your feelings. Make me understand what has brought you so low...

Edited February 25 by Nanami Touko

[GoldsbroTSG]

Markus had returned to his service dress after his excursion. He felt it the most comfy for a meeting like this, no matter how short. His hands were tented, covering his mouth as he sat and listened to his fellow crewmates discuss what Sia's group had gone through in their meeting. Despite the selfish feeling in his gut, he felt thankful he hadn't been there. A situation like the ambush could've ended poorly for him... had he lost his temper. Instead, he gave a sigh of relief, a bit of a silent prayer to himself, grateful that no one seemed to be hurt. However now, for his sake as well as for his crew, he'd have to remain vigilant, especially if the pilots were being cut loose for the day.

Leaning back into his chair, Markus returned his hands to his lap. He didn't have much to add, but he kept his attention towards the table.

[TheRoon]

After his actions at Avyndor's office Leon had decided not to input a whole lot to the meeting and simply left most of it to the superior officers, he was too busy pondering on the events to do so anyway. Despite everything that's happened today Shezsacosh is right, we can't make a difference without knowledge. It was one of the most important lessons his uncle and father taught him, the difference between a skilled merc and a bad merc is knowledge. It was the cornerstone of every single war, and the difference between victory and defeat. Alrenne suggested the crew go about the city to relax, Leon saw it as an opportunity to gain info. He needed to learn more, he couldn't rest until he did just that. Time to redeem myself.