Imminent Dawn: Callisto

[Bluemask 96]

Roku wasn't expecting a reply back, and almost jumped as made his was towards the cafeteria. [Um, sure? I'll need to talk to the head chef first, but it should be fine as long as you avoid using anything for tomorrow's meal plan.] Speaking of meal plans, Roku hurried his pace, to be early is to be on time dad would say. 

Roku continued his way on down the hallway, and made note of all his prep duties.

---

Kiria was a bundle of energy, and her near spill from her chair got a chuckle out of Gean. "Just call me Gean, keep it simple." Yeah, I was nervous for live battle, but Captain's orders were pretty solid. Probably should hit up R&D for some more options for the Dawn, we could use multi-target weapons."  Lt. Reed was right they were still on duty, Gean could hear her mom's voice telling her to straighten up. Though there was nothing on the radar there was still questions to be had about this whole situation, but those would be handled with or without Gean. For now, it was sit and look pretty. Well, I made it to Callisto. Hopefully that means I made it to you Luci...

Edited December 29, 2023 by Bluemask 96

[TheRoon]

"...oh, is that how that works? Military life sure is different from how mercs run." Of course they got paid yearly, that made sense. He started to regret skimming on some reading. "Ahaha, well I can't make any promises but I'll at least keep them in mind when I do work." He turned his head to the side. Looks like I'm gonna have to introduce myself to the mechanical staff, let em know I might be another problem. As he planned out his approach and apology he removed his own helmet to let out his fiery locks.

"Lemme ask you something, miss Park...Louise, if you don't mind me calling you that." He turned back to the comms. "Most of the squad are inexperienced, so I was expecting some hard whiplash when the action picked up and lives were on the line. But you seem pretty composed, almost scarily so for someone who probably never killed before today. At least I'm assuming that's the case...what's going through your mind right now?" Louise stood out like a nail to Leon, for more reasons than one of course. Hearing her cold words on punishing lives was something Leon didn't expect, but it did catch his interest.

[mcd900]

Cia slowed down her run towards Esther's machine, glancing off to the side to catch Avery approaching - well, hell, it was one clunker of a Gen 1. Some serious care put into it, sure, but that's a Gen 1 alright... well, beats Gen 3 maintenance. Can fix up a Gen 1 with an arc welder and scrap steel... "Alright, alright... You're right." She groaned, looking at the machine. "Egh... no, I've got this one. You take care of the others. Check on Silvavolke when he gets back - that chobham armor took some hits, don't know what made it under."

Amy was reining her in as well; her shoulders fell a bit - was she being too harsh? Eh, maybe a bit... "Yeah, yeah, okay. It's probably fine, but..." She keyed her comm, looking up at the Dawn's HEXes as they hopped back up into the hangar, their pilots zipping down from their cockpits for some needed rest. "Hey, bring up a spare right leg with the modular armor plates from supply. We're half an hour out from the capital, I don't want anyone doing any cowboy fixes on this million-credit equipment to do it in time - we're gonna do a swap and refit it in the workshop. I want a full diagnostic on it." She waved to a couple nearby techs, gesturing vigorously at Esther's machine, pointing to the far side of the hangar to indicate where she wanted it. This was gonna be a long thirty minutes.

"Hey, watch that zipper in the hangar, alright? You're gonna give one of these wrench jockeys an eyeful, you keep that up.."

---

Alrenne stood by on the bridge, steadfast as Sia continued to give orders, despite struggling somewhat; she was doing an adequate job nonetheless, though. "Yes, I agree, Captain. Once all are aboard, let's get underway as soon as we can. Debrief... will likely have to wait until after any discussions we hold at the capital - I doubt there will be time before we arrive. You should... focus on recovering until then. If necessary, I can handle the remainder of the pilot recovery, ma'am."

She certainly seemed as if she could use a couple of minutes...

---

Kiria gave Gean a mousy nod as she let her know to refer to her more casually. "Oh, uh, okay, sure! Gean, then. Mm, um... yeah, that'd probably be good! The Dawn's so big, I'm sure they can figure something like that out." She gave a quick look off to her side towards Reed, who was still all business, monitoring the comms traffic between the Dawn and its pilots. A quick nod to herself, and she got right back to watching her radar screen, tuning the distances, checking, checking... still coming back blank.

---

---

---

Cia grimaced a bit as the Arde was left in a bit of a heap on the hangar deck. Hmm, what have we got here... Have to pull the data from the onboard systems, what else can we do with this... maybe a new cockpit, we can probably refit this at some point. "... huh, wait, what's this?"

Still stuffed in a holster at the lead Arde's hip was what looked like some kind of custom weapon - never even drawn.

SR point bonus: The Dawn obtains a 145mm Quickdraw Revolver!

[Nanami Touko]

"Kihahahahahah!" Viv rolled around on her bed and cackled, laughing and squirming so hard that she-- "Kyah!" fell off of her bed, collapsing onto the floor, continuing to laugh. "Damn! She's so fuckin' salty! This is great~! Ahhh... Gotta choose wisely~"

[the only POV i see is the POS you rode in on LOLOLOL holy FUCK did you have to beg your squad for those four kills or did you just finish off folks after getting clapped KAHAHAHA]

Viv finally got her laughs out of her system, settling against the floor. "Man... So funny~"

---

[That's fine. Take your time. You let me know when you're finished and I'll wait for you. If you're going to be extra long, then I'll bring something down to you instead. Consider it my helping with the repairs, in whatever way I can. I'd be delixcited to.]

Maybe a tad too formal, but he wanted to be polite and honest about this-- You're polite and honest about everything, Tristan, this isn't something new. Hahh... You've gotta learn to be more casual with people. Especially beautiful people that seem to have taken something of an interest in you... Something to think about later. For the moment, the ship was back on track for its destination, as per the captain's orders. They would be ready to move as soon as the patrol returned. At least you played along with her mix up. I wonder if that was on purpose...?

---

"Awww... Alright. Guess it's the waiting game for me and Junkyard." Azame's shoulders fell a little, sighing quietly.

"Not quite, miss." Avery nodded towards Azame, having already waved over some of the pit crew to refuel her machine. "Got orders to work on Silvavolke's machine and he ain't back yet, so yer first on my docket-- Amy, hun, you mind checkin' in on Drachenheim's model? Saw you talkin' to 'er the other day, figure you got some kinda rapport more'n me. I'll make sure the hot shot in the chobham's m'first priority once he shows... And then we can both tackle the Ensign's. No doubt that damn karate girl's got her stuff torn up harder'n a cowboy playin' tag with bulls."

"Wait, really? Hurray~ I'll stick around and watch, then; it's always interesting to see how the different crews go about fueling up Junkyard... I bet the Captain's really busy post combat, anyway, so I shouldn't go wandering. Even if I find her, I probably can't see her right away, right?" Azame shrugged slightly, but was all smiles again, slowly wandering after Avery to watch them do their magic on her clunker. "Ah! And make sure to restock the repair spray!"

---

"I do mind. Ms. Park, preferably Lieutenant. We are not-- and hopefully will never be-- so close that you can call me Louise so casually." She huffed and rolled her eyes. Men were always like this. Blew past the boundaries without waiting for a response... "Wouldn't you like to know?" Perhaps had her mood been foul, she'd have fired off plenty of complaints and whines, but right now... "Combat like this was always to be expected, so anyone that can't handle it shouldn't have signed up in the first place... I've stared death in the face and survived. Judging by how calm you are, I surmise you've done the same. Shooting down these lowlives... Maybe they had their reasons. Maybe they had their motives. Maybe the pay was just good. No matter the case, they chose to get into these steel killing machines and attempt to take my life. I paid back the favor in kind... Do you really want to know what's going through my mind right now?"

She grinned wide, not that he could see it. "How I'm going to ask the Captain out. She's a lovely woman, smart, capable, well developed in all the right places... And something tells me I know exactly how to get some alone time with her. So if you don't mind, Mr. Silvavolke... I'll be hedging these bets first~"

[Ursali]

"Understood Captain, Lieutenant Vhane out." With a flick the line to the bridge was ended. "Shit." Comms to Kazue still muted, Daeran swore under his breath; he hadn't expected Kazue to be this green, but he wasn't sure why. The signs were all there, talk of immobilizing enemy craft, her disregard for her own safety, how worked up she had gotten over the rebels being targeted... Deep breaths Daeran, she's reaching out to you so the least you can do is be the rock that you so desperately want to be... Another deep breath and he unmuted his comms to Kazue.

"..." Despite his prep it still wasn't easy being put on the spot like this. When he did finally find the words they were rushed, speaking a stream of consciousness with little filter. "I'm the son of a local politician, I'm not sure if you've ever heard of the Vhane name before you met me. I assume not because you've lived your whole on Earth and had no reaction when I said it before  so I don't know why I thought you'd have heard of the name-- Er, that is to say this is an awkward sort of homecoming for me, one that I never anticipated when I signed up for CEN and I'm not entirely sure how I feel about it yet. What we saw to today isn't helping my feelings any--" He cut himself off as Bonner's voice came over the comms, reason behind his words kicking back in.

"W, We're fine, sir. The Ensign is struggling with the deaths of the unknowns, but aside from that the both of us are physically fine."

[Nanami Touko]

"Hahh... Hahhh..." Right... That is right. Daeran must be suffering right now... And I am tasking him with further. You KNEW there would be killing. Would be death. You just did not know you would be so close to it... So what? The middle of the battlefield is no place to lose your composure. Not any further. Scream and cry in your room if you must... But not here. Not putting it on anyone else.

Kazue wasn't fine, still far from it, but she focused and steeled herself, taking one final deep breath. "I... Will be okay. Thank you, Daeran. Lieutenant Commander, I am sorry to have worried you. I will, be returning to the ship. I... Will need someone to provide me with a mop. There is a mess inside my machine, that I must clean. Hahh..." She slowly put her hands back on the controls and began to move her HEX again, swallowing hard. 

"I am sorry, once again. I will... I will be better. I will. Thank you again, Daeran, for the help. And you, commander, for worrying." She knew she'd be thanking them again. It was in her nature.

[scorri]

Iskra slowly maneuvered into the hangar, settling her robot back down into its docking spot. She took a second to give one more look over the robot before exiting. It was in a good enough state given the quick pit stop she had made during the battle, but she was sure the mechanics would find something to do with it. Stepping out, she called the elevator up, appreciating the few extra alone seconds she was granted because of that. They were going to need to have a meeting, she knew that, but for now she just wanted to retreat to her room. She rode down to the base of her robot, grabbing her jacket from where she had left it nearby, and swung it on. Time to leave, unless someone grabbed her on the way out. She needed to retreat back before she had a breakdown. It wouldn't do to have a panic attack over killing someone in front of everyone. She had to put on a better face than that, she had a duty to perform here after all and there was no room for these emotions.

[TheRoon]

Louise was very quick to lay out her desired relationship with Leon, or rather the desire to not have one at all. As the woman continued Leon quickly realized she was a very different beast compared to the other rookies, she even brought up her experience in challenging death; which was something he didn't expect. Her cold voice and harsh words were enough to convince him that he didn't need to worry about her on the battlefield, at least not right now. When it came to the captain however that was a very different story. "...you're really somethin' else aren't ya? Alright, I see your game." He brought his tone down to a serious mood. "You're right, Ms. Park. I've cheated death more times than I can count. The battlefield is a chaotic place, I know that all too well. No matter what anyone's reasoning is the only ones who should kill are those who are prepared to be killed, that's just how it is. I'm glad you picked up on that right away."

After a brief moment, his tone shifted back his usual free spirited state. "But damn, so much for being friends. You even called me Leon earlier too...boo hoo." She could hear a chuckle over the comms. "You're right again though, she's a complete package. If you're looking for competition look no further, Ms. Park. I'll take you on, I even got my own game plan ready. Just no hard feelings when you see us cuddling in public, ok~?"

[Mercenary on the Winds]

It seemed like Cia was on her way to calming down. Good, she was the voice of reason when it came to the engineers, and if she was heated, everyone else was going to be so much more annoying. Her phone buzzed once more, but the swing of work had begun, so there wasn't going to be too much down time as the pilots started to fly in. Cia did give her one more jab about her zipper--she was one of the few women mechanics aboard, and definitely the only one who was as frontloaded as she was. Amy just smirked at the woman, "Well, maybe they could use a bit of a morale boost~" A joke, really, a lot of the engineers definitely weren't people she'd be flirting like that with. She had no hesitation with showing off, but it was more fun to show off with someone who she cared about, and a lot of the engineers certainly didn't care much for her beyond her good looks--if they could even get beyond her reputation. 

Jest over and done with, it was Avery's turn to call her attention--it took her a bit to remember the woman's name. She had been one of the nicer ones, likely someone who didn't quite know of the deeds foisted upon Amy, but if she didn't know, she didn't know. "Drachenheim... Scylla, oh, yeah, I can handle that one, and then... Cowboy playing tag with bulls?" Amy paused for a moment to let that vision play out in her head, and then slowly nodded, "I... got that, I think, but yeah, if we divide like that, we can work on that one together." Now Scylla was someone she could mess with, provided combat hadn't gotten to her too badly, but hey, maybe a good tease or two would help with that. 

---

"I'd... appreciate it, XO. Ugh... That combat lasted longer than I would have liked it too... I should have prepared a little better." Sia then nodded her head, "Yes, assuming we... make good time, between getting the HEXes aboard, repairs, and other things, debrief... simply doesn't fit." There were a lot of things that didn't quite fit. This fight was something that didn't make much sense at all. At first it was simply an excessive use of force from AHI, and then there was terrorist involvement, and to top it all off, there appeared to have been someone watching them. To what end? Then there was the fact that the rebels vacated the area without so much as explaining what they were doing here; helpless or no, their actions might not have been entirely permissible... 

"...Mmm... no, in the absence of enough information, the preservation of lives is always the correct step." Sia mumbled the words to herself, as if to confirm her decisions. Sia eventually, slowly, pushed herself out of the chair, and looked at Alrenne, "...I suspect that... that our musings... about this mission not being as simple as we thought... may have been spot on." 

[Nanami Touko]

"Pft... Hahaha... Ahahahah~" Louise couldn't help but laugh. "A game plan ready... and not already in action? Let me guess, did you even realize you'd missed her birthday? You know it passed while we were traveling... Ah, well, I'm sure your 'game plan' is plenty well thought out. But that's all it is right now, isn't it? Thoughts. Not actions. We are not the same~" The elation that Louise was receiving was making her grin from ear to ear. 

"Weeeeellllll, don't worry, Mister Silvavolke. The ship is full of beauties. I'm sure someone else will find you handsome..." She wasn't concerned with him anymore, already going over her plan of attack in her mind. Ahh, Sia... You've been so kind, already. More than most. Going through all that trouble to learn to sew was worth it... But now, we've got to take things a bit further. Time to get some hands on experience... "Looks like the coast is clear." Louise pulled Markus into their comms.

"Lieutanent Stewart, it looks like we won't be receiving anymore enemies. Long range scans are picking up nothing, and the ones we have encountered seem to have been the entirety of the squad... We won't be picking up until the ship moves to leave, of course, but do stay close to it. You're the most damaged of us. I've got you covered, but still..."

[GoldsbroTSG]

Markus flinched at the sudden call over comms from Louise. He had been lost in his focus, not paying attention to much else but his radar and the surface. With an exhale, he started to move his back closer towards the Dawn. How far had he gone out.

"Roger, Lieutenant Park. Moving back towards the Dawn." The blonde moved back a good several meters before stopping again. It seemed like an okay distance. "Thank you again for the cover. It just... made me feel better to affirm myself that we were clear. Sorry if I worried you." He leaned back in his seat, collecting himself. Markus felt... a little better. Moving his machine further back to the Dawn, he fiddled around for his phone. Once parking it, he got onto Round Table and starting texting to Miz.

[Hope everuthings's okay. Fighr's ocdr. I shojld be back soin, on parrol rn.]

He hit enter without trying to correct all the spelling errors. [Sirry. Globes giving me fT finger.] After hitting enter again, he rearranged himself a bit. Aside from the panic, to him, it felt nice to fly in a real HEX, and put everything he'd learned to real work.

---

Rosa exhaled as she made her way back to her office. She had taken cover as recommended while combat was going on, but it seemed quiet enough for her to return to her office. Once reaching the door to the infirmary, she flipped her little sign that she was open, and made her way to her desk. ID in her computer, and logged in, she grabbed the coffee mug she had left there earlier. Despite it getting cold, and spilling on her desk, she drank it anyway. She couldn't let a perfectly good cup of coffee go to waste. Once finishing it, she set it down, and went to grab her phone.

There was a worried sigh as she went to RT, and began texting Markus,

[Hey micky ur okay right?]
[It got quiet]
[Srry for being annoying i gotta make sure]
[💖]

She waited a moment but she soon got back,

[🤙]
[Can't twxt wrll. Fat fonghr be l8ke. Ttys.]

"Thank goodness." She nodded. "Okay, let's clean up a bit in here, someone's bound to be on the way." Her smile returned, and Rosa was quick to start setting up rooms.

[TheRoon]

Louise's laughter and taunting words got Leon to make quite a face. "What the hell? Where do you get off-" Before he could go off on the woman she pulled Markus in and ended their private conversation, the ex-merc just let out a small groan to himself as he pulled his head back and put his hand over his face. Louise was more than he expected, she wasn't just a rival she was a full on tyrant. She didn't even consider him a threat at all either. Geez, I knew we wouldn't get along...but she makes Viv sound like a saint. Leon was in a decent mood and it was out the window now, he made a mental note to keep interactions with Louise brief...unless he won the captain courting competition of course. You want action I'll show you action, I'll make Sia mine. He texted Roku back a simple.

[Thanks.]

He wasn't in a chatty mood.

[Nanami Touko]

Louise was on top of the whole world. She got herself ready to send a message, before Markus responded with... some rather genuine appreciation. "I... Er." She paused. It wasn't like she hated to hear it, or was upset that he'd caused her such pause. She just... Hadn't expected him to thank her. Or apologize. Or anything. She was just doing her job. Maybe a bit of grandstanding to impress the Captain, but... "... mm. Of course. Just make it back to the ship safely."

Her elation melted away and she sank in her seat some, resting her head against her hand. Suddenly, all that success during the fight didn't seem to matter as much... Her drive had fallen, but not in a bad or annoying way. "How odd," she mumbled, slowly shaking her head. "Mm..." You're just not used to having comrades you can trust. That's all. Now... Sia~ Oh Captain my Captain... They say that relationships with higher-ups in the chain of command are quite the no-no, but this isn't exactly a regulation ship or a regulation setup, is it~?

She quickly picked herself back up, fingers typing away softly, message sending towards the Captain~

[Sia. Once we've held a debrief over the combat, arrived at the capital, and done what business we need... Would you mind if I requested some private time? I've an activity in mind that I believe we'll both enjoy... And as lascivious as that sounds, I promise you'll be happy when you hear it~ Let me know when you're free enough to speak. Great work today. You handled things wonderfully, between the ship, and your orders as Captain.]

"Hahh... Sia... Mmm. Here's hoping you like this as much as I think you will, miss Hubble graduate..."

---

Miz had been wrapped up in the blanket in her room, in a sweater, with a pillow over her head during the whole course of the battle. As the dull thuds from outside died down, she slowly let the pillow down, and then her phone went off and the blanket pile nearly jumped off of the bed. "Hwahhhnn... M-Markus...?"

He was typing weirdly... Did something happen? Was he okay--!?

"Oh. Gloves. Hah. Ahaha... Ahhhhh... This is so difficult..."

[please come back soon]
[i'm so glad you're okay...]
[thank you for being okay]

Edited December 27, 2023 by Nanami Touko

[Mercenary on the Winds]

Instead of her communicator, it was her phone that buzzed as she stood up. She rummaged through her pocket, taking out her inhaler, and then studying her phone. She blinked for a moment reading over the message; she hadn't expected anything of a sort so soon, but it was in text on her screen. 

[I don't see why not... but I have to say that may be a bit longer than you realize. We won't be able to properly debrief before we arrive at the capital, and that will be our first order of business. After that... well, the best I can say is that we'll see--there's no telling when such a break will arise with all of his other nonsense to decipher our way through...]

Sia sent the first message, and mulled over the other half of the message. There were a number of things that she could have done better, but for what she did do, she didn't particular feel as if she'd made any errors in judgment. Until proven otherwise, they were on a peacekeeping mission, and that meant that the lives of the rebels were to be protected. The terrorists made their choice, and were content to push forward. 

[That's supposed to be my line... you all performed admirably, and thank you for taking something of a supporting command role for Lieutenant Commander Bonner. I'll have more to say when we get a chance to debrief. Thank you Lieutenant Park.] 

[Nanami Touko]

"Oh, goodness, already...?" Louise nearly jumped in her seat, message coming back so quickly... That same feeling again. It was starting to become something uncomfortable, only because she didn't really understand it. She'd never been praised or hailed as anything more than a problem in school. The teachers were happy with your progress before the incident, but... They never cared to congratulate me after. What, were they that scared? Because I was willing to go as far as they wanted me to? They were training us to kill! And yet, they shied away when I showed such initiative? Ugh...

Her memories were conflicting with the appreciation Sia and Markus were showing her, leaving her squirming in her seat some. "Rrr..."

[I was only doing what was expected of me, nothing more. Thank you for the kind words... And there's no rush. I'd be a fool to put a date in front of everything we've discovered and must report. I can wait for you, Sia. You're worth it.]

She felt herself blush a little on that last line, hitting send and setting her phone down and away at the other end of the dash. "So stupid, getting so worked up... Hahhhh... Focus, Louise, focus. You're doing good. Just, keep doing good."

[Xinnidy]

"Ugh, sorry, mechs. Won't happen next time." With even the ground crew focused on getting her HEX's parts replaced quick, Esther put on the sweater she kept by her cockpit seat back on and kept walking, hoping  to just was this bad taste off her mouth with some distraction. "I'll figure out a different loadout, if you want to pull those weapons out. Will try to go lighter. Keeping the crane arm, though, that helped." 

Esther's gameplan went from kills to efficiency, something she didn't think much of during simulations --she could just go full aggro in those...

"Haah..." And of course, more messages buzzed her comm, opening up to... more viv shittalking, eliciting a good long sigh.

[still not seeing you help us out here. i got my shots FAIR AND SQUARE]

"Ughhh... video games." She was going to take the enrichment where she could. "Stupid viv..."

---

"Ah, the first feeling of live fire... take your time, it's never easy." Offering some condolences, Bonner watched the two HEXes. "Some time away from your machine will help. We don't know when the next skirmish will be, so it makes for important time." Novices always had that struggle... thankfully, Bonner was no stranger. "Keep an eye on her when you go up, Lieutenant Vhane."

Now all that remained was to locate those unknowns for a proper talk.

[GoldsbroTSG]

Markus gave a rock-on hand sign to Louise's reply, even if she wasn't going to be able to see it, then sat back in his seat. There was a beep at the phone, and he picked it up. Miz had responded. Taking a second, he unstrapped one of his gloves and tossed it aside. If he was gonna text someone, he didn't need the gloves getting in the way. Even then, he wasn't sure how he'd respond to Miz after that. He pondered a moment, before moving to his chat with Viv. He'd at least give her the good news.

[I survived. 🖖]
[Doing some lookout, and we're debriefing when we actually land]
[After that, you're doomed 😝]

He chuckled as he sent that last message. Maybe he would be fine, if he was still able to crack jokes. That finally brought him back to his chat with Miz. He took a deep breath. He had to make sure he didn't worry her.

[Don't worry, I just volunteered for overwatch, and we're debriefing once we land]

Markus sighed again. He tried not to overthink this.

[💖😊]

[Nanami Touko]

[you'll see me out there when i'm sure i can come back without looking like that HAH]
[god you're so salty]
[bet you'd be an easy down in the sims right now]
[wanna skip your debrief and put yourself to the test???]

Viv realized what she was threatening, but... If it meant putting this gamer down some more, she was up for leaving her room. "Come on. Come on, take the bait. Do it~"

And there was Markus. Good, he'd made it. At least if she braved the hangar, there was someone she could trust, there...

[u'll never beat me gamer]
[gotta play like ur life's on the LINE]

---

[Okay... Take care of yourself. I'm so glad. That's good. Ok--

She was going in circles in her text, so much so that she stopped typing and put her phone down for a second. "Ugh!" She wasn't upset or disgusted or bothered or anything, she was just... Overwhelmed. "I didn't know getting close to people that put their lives on the line like this would be so stressful... And I'm not even doing any of the fighting. Just sitting here waiting for them to come back... I... Hwahhnh..."

She picked her phone back up and almost instantly dropped it, seeing the emojis that he'd sent.

"H-Huh...?" A heart? What does... I, h, huh... Does he, really, but, I mean, he's cute, I, I like spending time with him, I, bu, f-fast? It's fast, isn't it...? Is it? You're already twenty eight, Sam... Sam? Oh, wow, he's really got my brain spinning...

[Okay. I'll... I'll see you when you get back, Markus.]
[💖💗💖]

"And send... Ahhhhhhh! Is that too many!? You're almost thirty! You can't be texting like a highschooler, ahhhhhh!" She flopped over on the bed and whined, slowly peeking up to stare at the wall. "You're just a mess... He's just being nice... Geez, first guy you get this close to once you're free from it all and you start falling head over heels. Stop it... He's just... Being nice."

Edited December 28, 2023 by Nanami Touko

[Bluemask 96]

Kiria and Reed were back to business, which left Gean to her own devices. She wouldn't be doing much unless anything actually showed up on radar, and even then, only if the captain decided to engage. Well, you said you would look into upgrades, may as well start the conversation. Gean opened her phone and ran through the list of engineers, "I think her name was Sen?" Gean stopped on who she believed was the person in charge and opened a chat.

[Um, hi, Sen correct? This is the Gunner for the Dawn. Name's Gean. Can we setup a time to talk? Have some ideas about outfitting the the girl.]

Edited December 29, 2023 by Bluemask 96

[scorri]

Iskra managed to escape into the hallway before collapsing into the wall for a moment, clutching her jacket around herself like a security blanket. Can't breakdown. Not yet. Distraction. Text someone. Then keep moving. 

She pulled up RoundTable and quickly shot off two messages. The first was to Louise, her friend. She knew that Louise would be OK, so she was safe to text. There would be no emotions in the responses to amplify her own. 

[Good work out there, Louise. You helped keep us all alive with your work. Thank you. See you in debrief.]

The second was slightly harder, given she didn't know how Miz was going to be. The other woman had seemed so nervous at the start of battle. Hopefully the fact that all of them had made it back alive would help keep her calmer now. 

[Back safe. Headed to my room to take a shower. After debrief maybe we can watch a movie, if you don't have other plans.]

She closed the app and her eyes. There. That had helped. The panic and anxiety was all still there, but it wasn't quite as close to the surface as it had been. She would be able to make it back to her room. Opening her eyes again, she pushed off the wall and headed towards her room. She could put on some music, curl up, and deal with everything there. She just had to make it.

---

Thin pale fingers drummed an irregular beat on a cluttered workbench as Sen frowned down at a seemingly normal pistol. There was nothing obviously wrong with it, but something about it had drawn the woman's ire. "Tcch. How can I possibly try and scale this up if it already isn't working at this size? I'll never get the justification to try at scale if I can't..." Her grumbling was interrupted by the quiet chime of a message being received. She sighed, pushing away from the bench over to a slightly less cluttered desk, where she dug for a minute before unearthing a phone in a battered case. "Right, so, I wasn't in the hangar for repairs after the battle because... I was working. And if she asks what I was working on, that pistol is technically something that could scale up someda-- oh? Not from Cia. Interesting~"

Sen scrolled through the message with one hand while quickly pulling up the dossiers of Dawn personnel. "Gean... Gean... Ah, this will be her, I bet. Aegean Levion, gunner. Hmmhmm~" Sen giggled quietly as she quickly looked over the woman's bio and ID photo before turning back to the phone. "Well, I've been bored and that Leon was interesting but didn't seem to want to play just yet. Maybe this Gean will be more fun~"

[Senani, yes. I never mind a cute girl calling me Sen though~ I would be delighted to meet up with someone who has ideas for projects. It's always a pleasure to find someone who is willing to take the initiative like that. You can come to my workshop any time~]

[workshopmap.png uploaded]

[Just find your way to the X, and you'll find me~ Don't keep me waiting too long though, I might get bored and find other projects to play with... ;)]

[Bluemask 96]

Roku continued his trek towards the kitchen, and put his phone away after reading Leon's oddly short message. He began to look up when he felt a familiar pain, clutching the side of his head, the young chef focused until the pain dulled enough for him to push forward. As he looked up, he could see someone coming towards him in a hurry, one of the pilots. That’s when he felt it, if only barely. Panic and stress. "Um-" Before he could properly talk to her, she was down the hallway. Roku let out a sigh and continued on his way.

Once he arrived at the kitchen proper, Roku set about washing dishes and prepping his station, he had chicken to trim the fat off of.

---

Gean looked back at the message  reply a bit surprised at how... informal and playful it was. It wasn't necessarily unwelcome, but a bit unfamiliar, particularly from a coworker. "Ok..." Gean took a minute to look around on monitors as well as her crew members before  typing away a response.

[(•-•)b]

[Might need to run things by the boss lady for final say, but we should have some time once we reach the capital.]

Gean put her phone down and sighed, this was probably her least favorite part of the job, but it was job worth doing.

Edited December 30, 2023 by Bluemask 96

[mcd900]

"Yes, I fear that may be so, ma'am. We'll need our wits about ourselves." Alrenne snapped a brief salute to Sia before turning to the tactical map, taking over. "Recovery of the wreckage is complete... good. Lt. Reed, bring the patrol in as soon as possible, and let them know to get themselves somewhat presentable - we'll need to speak to Avyndor Heavy directly." He tapped a couple buttons on the map, nodding quietly, then glanced over to Reed again. "And send a message ahead to the docking authority to let them know we're coming. They'll have seen us, but... no need worrying them about a battleship fast approaching."

"Yes, sir - right away."

---

---

---

The rush of motion from after the battle slowly came to a close, and as the radar reports came back clean one after another, it was time to collect their patrol and move on. The Dawn made good time to the lone city of Callisto, the industrial city and heart of Avyndor Heavy Industries' presence on the moon. At a glance, it might have resembled any other city; but a lingering look would reveal its carefully planned nature - wide streets, large enough for bigger industrial vehicles or worker HEXes to walk down, without exception, and buildings of modular construction, their boundaries carefully measured in numbers of lots, the most of which being industrial or corporate buildings of some type. It had all grown 'naturally' over the course of years here, and was missing only a scant few of the urban luxuries found in the colonies or Earth - but any growth remained only within those bounds such as the company allowed. Dotting the roofs of larger buildings were atmospheric defense batteries; with terraforming as incomplete as it was, and only a localized atmosphere maintained, the risk of asteroids or other debris from years of war throughout the system impacting the surface from orbit was an ever-present threat. There was a life here for people; but the AHI logo was never out of view, a constant reminder of the watchful eye and guiding hand.

---

The sight of the CEN's new model battleship drew many an eye without fail, but all was relatively normal as they docked at the city's larger shipyard, the only one that could handle the size of the Dawn, having initially been designed for the largest class of cargo vessels. Touching down, the crew set about readying to meet the CEO of Avyndor Heavy, one Arielle Avyndor; it was time to see about getting some answers as to their - putting it lightly - rough arrival to Callisto. The plan was straightforward; the Dawn would remain in port with XO Alrenne holding down the fort, half of their pilot's complement remaining with the ship, while Captain Silverwind would - accompanied by the other half of their pilots, as well as one of the CEN's ambassadors - head directly to the corporate headquarters of AHI for a now rather overdue meeting. 

"Is everyone here? Good. Now, some of you will be accompanying the Captain to her meeting. You're not expected to carry on any of the discussion yourselves, leave that to the Captain; just maintain your decorum and protect the Captain should anything happen. The rest of you will remain here; in the Captain's absence I will hold command on the ship. I have Ensign Fujiwaru, Lt. Park, and Lt. Vhane selected, plus HAn4. I'll need two volunteers."

Alrenne didn't have to wait long; Leon and Bonner were ready and willing. "Excellent. In that case, the two of you will also be going. Now, Ambassador Huang will also be with you; Ambassador Ryeilleur will be going to the embassy to make some inquiries as to the situation here. If there are no questions, let's be about it."

---

The small group found an escort from the company waiting to convey them directly to the headquarters, the intent of the Dawn having been made known to company officials as they docked. There was no shortage of hushed murmurs as they walked to the cars, but from there all was near quiet save the hum of engines, leaving the crew to take in the city as they traveled.

Soon enough, they were walking through the pillared front of AHI's corporate headquarters, the vaulted ceiling inside rising high above the doorway, the reception desk some twenty meters within the building itself. The entrance hall certainly spared no expense, nor wanted for space, a grand expression of wealth standing in contrast to the more urbane and regular setting the rest of the city presented; without a doubt this was the seat of power of the company. Huang's eyes darted around the place, taking it all in, shoulders relaxing slightly, lips forming a thin smile. "Well, that rather messy business as we arrived aside... perhaps I was overconcerned over being assigned to such an, ah... remote, position. It seems that Callisto is not as lacking for character as I had worried."

The receptionist was hurriedly tapping away at her computer, though as they came in she looked up to meet some of their eyes, expectantly. "Hello, and welcome to Avyndor Heavy Industries - we have been expecting you. Miss Avyndor is awaiting you in her office on the top floor; please let me know if I can assist in any way."

[Mercenary on the Winds]

Another buzz, almost as soon as she had finished typing--that was probably a good thing, since it meant that there wasn't much pressing on their patrol and they'd be back in short order. Sia quickly scanned the message, as she started to make her way off of the bridge; by now the Ensign who appeared during the fight would have docked, and that needed to be taken care of sooner rather than later, and perhaps she'd run by the doctor in that time too--she wouldn't have the time when everything really started ramping up. Sia looked down at her phone again as the door off the bridge slid open.

[Expectation and execution are too very different things--A captain can expect the best of her pilots, but her pilots then have to execute. You all did, which is reason enough for praise--]

Sia looked closer at the message. She'd mulled over it three times, but perhaps her moment was still bothering her a little as she missed an important word, 'Date'. She hadn't thought about it, but it did come off as that, didn't it? It had been a month since meeting everyone, and so far, she and Louise appeared have a good rapport, "It really has been a month since we boarded... time moves so quickly..." Sia returned to her phone. 

[And yes, we'll have to put off our private time at the range until the dust has settled... Thank you for the kind words, hopefully I can continue to meet them.] 

Sia hit send finally, and started making her way down to the hangar to find their ensign, slowly--she'd always been instructed to never hurry after an episode lest she relapse at an inopportune time. Sia clicked her tongue, and then held her head high; even with her moment of weakness, she'd made it through her first encounter as captain and everyone returned alive. That was more than some people expected of her, and she'd continue to prove that she deserved her place even in spite of her frailty. 

---

The whirlwind of events that followed their impromptu combat were just as exhausting as the fight itself--first her conversation with Ensign Nishimiya alerted her to the fact that their top contact, Ambassador Virion Shiva, was missing and had been for some time. Had it been at any other moment, Sia would have believed it was just a case of the man slipping away, but at this  moment foul play was just as likely, and all the more damaging. She didn't find the time to hurry over to the Doctor, so she'd just have to make do with what she had. Arrival at Remansburg went without much of a hitch at least, and selection for their detail went quickly--Kazue, Louise, Bonner, Daeran, Leon with H4na as support, and without much more fanfare, the group was off, and away from the Dawn.

The streets of Remansburg were as utilitarian as the buildings were built almost entirely to facilitate the terraforming effort of the moon, but some people were out and about now that the Dawn had moored at the dock. Sia was quickly jotting down notes as they drove, some points about Remansburg to remember, questions to ask, lines of thought to follow later... by the time she'd run out of things to write, they had arrived... where as the city had been utilitarian, the headquarters of AHI was more aligned with the dwellings of the wealthy, opulence shimmering on every surface. Even Huang seemed to be placed more at ease by the sight; Sia herself had seen such enough times to be less intrigued by the sight, and more by how stark the differences were. "Yes... it does appear that there is a bit more than meets the eye on the moon... That may be part of our problem..." The inequities were stark, but not out of the ordinary especially on such projects. 

They were swiftly met by the receptionist, confirming that they had been expected, "Ah, yes, our apologies for being a bit behind schedule. Introductions appear to not be entirely necessary... Is there an elevator that we are to head to in order to make for the top floor?" Sia kept looking around as she spoke, looking to see if anyone else was around--it had been quiet so far. 

Edited December 31, 2023 by Mercenary on the Winds

[Nanami Touko]

"Hmhm... 'Private time at the range'... So many mixed signals, Sia. You play along sometimes, even get physical over a gift, but then you set these boundaries. What does it mean? If you're not interested, just be honest with me. Don't leave me hanging..." Louise idly twirled a stand of her hair, not losing all of her motivation, but definitely feeling something of a hamper on it as her assumptions spiralled down to-- does someone like you even deserve such happiness? A killer like you?

Louise felt herself flinch, narrowing her gaze. No, I'm not a killer. I'm doing my job. They were terrorists! Posing as security for the company on this moon, they got what they deserved--

They DESERVED it? They deserved to die? You wanted to kill them. You wanted them to feel as scared as you did. You're just running from the past, Louise, you're not getting any better you're just burying--

"Shut up!" Louise yelped and sank in her seat, holding her face. "Shut up. Shut up... I'm not like that. I'm not happy about killing people. I'm happy about my piloting. My aiming. My actions, not what those actions caused, shut up..." She shivered, sat up, took a deep breath and shook her head. "I, am doing wonderfully. The best I have in years. These anxieties are nothing but a stain from my earlier years... And I intend to clean that up. This is just the first step..." In her momentary panic, she hadn't even noticed that Iskra had sent her more thanks, smiling wider as she checked them. "See? I'm doing, just fine."

[Of course, Iskra. You did well, yourself. I look forward to our unit achieving more together.]

"Just fine..."

---

"Oh! Iskra... I should, reply to her too. Yeah. Movie... A movie sounds great." Miz took a deep breath and started to tip-type away.

[I'd love to watch another movie! Maybe I can bring someone along if that's okay? He's on your squad, so it shouldn't be too rough on you, right? It's Markus. If that's okay. Just let me know! Yeah.]

"Bguhh..." She wasn't happy with her words, but she hit send anyway, sighing. "Emotions are hard..."

---

---

---

"This city is about as charming as I'd expected..." Louise wasn't that shocked that Callisto, especially Remansburg, was all industry and business, even on the part of the moon where people lived. She did a quick glance around their group as they travelled... The native, Daeran. Their best on their feet, Kazue. Their three volunteers, Leon, Bonner, and herself. She'd expected Leon to volunteer as soon as she had, trying not to let it get to her. Bonner was a bit of a surprise, but he was a veteran of many combats, he likely had some wiles about him that only experience could provide. I'll just have to keep my wits about me... And my mind. If we were attacked by AHI forces, there's no telling how deep this runs... At least this eye will be good for paying attention to anything out of the ordinary.

At least the interior designers of AHI's industries had some sense. It was like walking out from a capitalist dystopia into a properly modern business sensed building... Louise's eyes darted around the place, her mechanical eye scanning everything that it could. If they hadn't been attacked while inside their transport here, they weren't about to be, now. It would be much easier for them to scatter and mount something of a defence. "If we need to take the stairs and you need someone to carry you--"

"[I would be happy to help with any of your needs, Captain.]" Louise was cut off by the android, the machine smiling and nodding towards her words. "[It would not be efficient to leave the Captain's carrying in any of your hands during a worst case scenario.]"

"... Of course. Ahem. If you need someone to carry you, the android will happily do so... Though, I'd be stunned if a building like this lacked an elevator of all things."

Kazue had kept quiet the entire time, having done nothing but grab water after she's disembarked her HEX on the ship. Her body was still feeling the fatigue of her piloting exhaustion and her moment of panic, but her mind was sharp. She had been brought along not for talks, or her opinions, but to keep the rest of them safe if they were assaulted. She was ready to do that at a moment's notice, but... She couldn't help but be somewhat distracted by Daeran. This was his home. This was his issue... His father was a politician, so however deep this ran, it affected him at some point. I will keep you safe, Daeran. If it is the last thing that I do.

Edited December 31, 2023 by Nanami Touko

[TheRoon]

The red haired man leaned back in his seat and put his hands behind his head, a brief rest after the fight. Leon was pretty thankful the banter with Louise had ended, it was a good thing Markus was here. His honest outlook was a much needed balancer for the situation. I sure hope you're doing good Mark, Kazue too...I'll check on you soon. While Louise took the battle way better than Leon expected, he knew not everyone would turn out as well. It was a first step toward being a soldier, an unavoidable one even. Kinda sucks that I can just shrug this off nowadays, but that just comes with the territory. His thoughts turned toward his days as a rookie under the wing of a dangerous man, a life so far away from his current one. The battlefield did bring back some memories though, so it wasn't as far as he thought it would be.

---

Volunteering to be an escort to the captain was a no brainer to Leon, especially when Louise did the same. He put aside any anxiety he had at the risk of seeing a potential officer he had wronged and hoped he wouldn't be recognized. Ramensburg was quite a sight, an industrial city with a lot of business to boot. There was a lot to do and see, if he wasn't on duty he would have been tempted to see if they had a casino. He gave the city a brief scan and a whistle. "Hell of a sight, I could get lost for hours in here..." The ex-merc couldn't help his wandering eyes as they made their way to the receptionist, he admired the work and money AHI put into the building. When the group stopped he gave a brief glance at Louise and the android, they both offered to carry the captain if she needed it. "Heh, if neither one can do the job for whatever reason you know I'm open, captain." He presented her a winning smile before he turned away.

He noticed Kazue didn't say a single word during the trip over, he assumed she was still on edge from earlier. "Kazue." He leaned toward her direction and addressed her with a lowered voice. "I don't wanna make assumptions on how you're feeling after the fight, or how you're doing right now. I just want to let you know that you're not alone; I got your back no matter what happens." Even though Kazue was the muscle Leon was no slouch himself, he was more than ready to keep everyone safe.