RP: 4th Fleet (NSN) [4th AASP] Recruitment

If Orion could smile he would've, but the only humanoid part within him was a brain and a couple of organs to keep it alive. Regardless, the optic fibers running through Orion's body would now glow green in a gesture of 'gladness', and so Orion's cameras turned to aim at her and he extended his right arm towards her. It was a large, 4/4.5 foot long arm that had a very muscular look to it, covered in dark gray carbon fiber weave and about three optic fiber strands circulating down the arm all the way to a gloved, 1-foot large human hand.

His hand opened up for her to shake it. "Good evening Ms. Anson. It is a pleasure to meet you! I hope you look to our future working together as much as I do! Oh, how Sith smiles upon us today!"

After the pleasantries were done, and a very 'awkward' hand shaking had taken place with the interior designer, Orion approached the subject of the reporter and the Drei system in a single bound and lowered his arm to his side once more, letting it rest against the metal tray he was sitting on. "Ah, yes, of course! But what better image to the media than for them to know we will be creating the weapons that will protect both the Freespacer and Nepleslian space nations from the horrible Mishhuvurthyar threat, am I right!? But truly, Heram, I worry for the worst if Drei were to become used against us. I will do my best to keep that from happening, but I cannot guarantee anything. I however, respect your decision, as I know that a lot of my worries must be interpreted by you as my Freespacer indoctrination.

I humbly suggest reading the teachings of The Art of Never Again, to anyone who is listening! It's texts are filled of wisdom from great philosophers and from the mind of the citizenry of the Free State!" In a minute, he had almost become a preacher. Fortunately, he wasn't one to judge or be critical. His 'religion', wasn't one to be so judgmental, or to condemn others. It was one meant to enlighten, and it was more of a philosophy than a religion per-se. Of course, yelling something like that out loud into the restaurant could be considered something rather odd... if somewhat humiliating by some.

“It is nice to meet you both,” she replied while giving a sincere but uneasy smile after shaking his hand.

Orchid then took the empty fourth seat at the table and remained politely quiet while Orion gave his sermon.

“There are numerous ways Drei could be used against us if her systems became compromised. Again, part of the reason we are here is to ensure that can not happen even if we have to setup Drei to run as a completely isolated system.”

Wazu would then turn to look back at Orchid.

“Our goal right now is to mitigate the effects of the war in a favorable way for Nepleslia. While the other larger fleets handle the day to defensive operations we have the authority to do what we want in pursuit of our goals. Of course Nepleslia is a lot smaller than Yamatai or the NMX’s empire, but I plan to make up for that with quick, effective action and advanced technology.

However none of that is possible without the right kind of people.”

Right as he finished one of the waitresses, dressed in a similar button down white shirt and short black skirt, would walk up to the table, asking, “What would you like to drink?” to Orchid.

Wazu would let her speak and then finish his own line of thought, “How do you wash your hands Orchid?”

"Yes! Of course! And what better company than myself, Ms. Anson and Heram to force the NMX back to where they came from! Well said, Heram!" Orion was still a bit excited, it seemed. It was almost child-like, the way this robot behaved. The green glowing optic fibers didn't seem to want to change to any other color than green for the moment.

When the waitress came and asked Orchid if she'd like to drink something, Orion asked politely. "If it is not so much to ask, I'd like an alcoholic drink! 14% or lower, please! I don't want to drink myself to a stupor!" He laughed heartily. "Oh, and I'll take your previous offer on the radioisotopes. Freespacers have to keep themselves healthy, you know!? Specially in atmospheric conditions like these!" He laughed again.

Not having been around a freespacer before, Orchid was trying not to stare at Orion or draw attention to her curiosity about him. She welcomed explanation aimed at her as it drew her attention away and diverted her from what she was sure was rude behavior. When Wazu had finished a waitress had shown up.

“A sangria please,” Orchid replied to the waitress.

Her face betrayed just a hint of her confusion at the order placed by Orion, but she was quick to move on with the conversation.

“Pardon me Mr. Wazu, but what exactly will we be designing to aid this initiative?” She asked.

"In the drink or separate?" The waitress asked Orion.

"In the drink would be fine." Orion answered matter-of-factly and turned to look at Orchid. "Excellent choice, Ms. Anson!"

The waitress would then look over at Wazu.

“A Confederate,” He said.

She would smile and nod before excusing herself to go to the kitchen and deliver the drink order to the chef who would solemnly nod and pass on the order to another chef, and then another, and then finally to a large ID-SOL wearing a chef’s hat and accompanying white clothing who quickly ran out of the kitchen to a storage room just outside of the restaurant.

--

Wazu would turn back to Orchid, “We are going to design the Crew Module again first.” He said. “Just like how most people who have not given it much thought only wash their hands by putting a little soap on them and rubbing them together, we have the basics now. The goal is to come up with the best way of doing things. For example, the optimal way to wash your hands is to use soap and interlock your fingers while rubbing in order to maximize the cleaned surface area and ensure that nothing is left unwashed. We’ll be doing the same to the current crew module, determining what changes need to be made in order to maximize its effectiveness.”

“There are several other projects to consider as well. Orion and I have been discussing upgrades to the Drei AI and your input would be appreciated. There are also numerous other pieces of technology that have not been fully designed yet. Things like high end tanks and other ground support units as well as civil projects such as finding the best way to modernize nepleslia’s power and data transmission systems.

The 4th fleet also needs to carry out a diplomatic operation of some importance. The senate passed a bill that requires someone to set up a joint forces network with the Yamis and I would prefer to be the one who gets that done. I have reasons not to trust our own diplomatic core. The question is do we approach them directly or send a message ahead to ask for a diplomat to meet us in a neutral location. The second method is more traditional but the second would give us a chance to do some investigation and take the initiative, for example: showing up at Elysia and asking to speak with one of their ships would let us check in on our old Elysian contacts that disappeared right before their government decided to ally with Yamatai. Of course if you have other ideas or any input please speak up.”

He would then turn to Orchid.

“Of course you are probably wondering why you would get involved with this in the first place. Government development contracts, development resources, and access to some of the best minds NAM has to offer. Plus you would be able to get out, see the world, save the universe, and all that fun stuff… Are you going to come with us?”
--


While the rest of the men in the kitchen began mixing and pouring various colorful liquids into various different glasses and mixers, the ID-SOL who had gone to the storage room was pushing a man sized cylinder filled with weird buttons, knobs, and hatches into restaurant, leaving it right up next to one of the tables that made up the open kitchen area in the center of the restaurant. Buttons were pressed, plugs were connected, dials were turned, and a single drink was placed inside of one of the hatches on the cylinder. With all of the seriousness of scientists carrying out an experiment, a final switch was flipped and they all carefully watched the various lights and readout blink from green to red. The machine would fill the room with a deep hum, the lights would dim, and then finally a high pitched ‘DING!’ would signal the end of the sounds as the lights went back up to full strength. The waitress would then put on a pair of thick gloves, opening the machine and pulling out the drink, setting it down on a tray next to two others as she walked back towards the table.

“A Sangria,” The waitress said, placing a tall glass down infront of Orchid.

“A Confederate,” She said, placing a drink down infront of Wazu

“And a Nepleslian Coffee, Glowing,” She said, placing the warm ceramic mug that had just recently been pulled out of the machine infront of Orion. “12% alcohol by volume with whipped cream, a small amount of sweetener, cream, and 20 seconds in our baker’s cyclotron. “

Orion would turn his attention back to Heram, optic fibers turning blue again. Thankfully, his excitability was usually somewhat temporary and only came when he met people or when they inspired him. He would stay quiet until he heard something that reminded him why he shouldn't be here.

Uso said:

“Just like how most people who have not given it much thought only wash their hands by putting a little soap on them and..."

Click to expand...

The hybrot sitting by the table visibly stirred back to life. "Oh! That reminds me!" He turned to where the waitress had gone and shouted, as loud as his speakers permitted. "DO WASH YOUR HANDS THOROUGHLY FIRST! REMEMBER, US FREESPACERS ARE PARTICULARLY SUSCEPTIBLE TO BACTERIA AND OR VIRUSES!" The speakers boomed in a surprising display of stereo power. The shout out was sure to catch the attention of the whole restaurant, and maybe some of the people outside... Orion was becoming a bit of an annoyance to the restaurant by now, it seemed. Most people were just politely ignoring him, but they were visibly flustered and annoyed by the inconsiderate robot sitting on the metal tray.

"Sorry for the interruption Heram. Please continue."

Orion would just pay attention to his employer's words until he noticed the waitress was coming back with a large machine and some men to deliver their drinks to them. He would then turn one of his cameras to fix in on them while having the other two aiming at Heram.

Uso said:

The machine would fill the room with a deep hum, the lights would dim, and then finally a high pitched ‘DING!’ would signal the end of the sounds as the lights went back up to full strength. The waitress would then put on a pair of thick gloves, opening the machine and pulling out the drink, setting it down on a tray next to two others as she walked back towards the table.

“A Sangria,” The waitress said, placing a tall glass down in front of Orchid.

“A Confederate,” She said, placing a drink down in front of Wazu

“And a Nepleslian Coffee, Glowing,” She said, placing the --

Click to expand...

"Ah! Thank you, you're too kind!" Orion's arm extended to touch the waitress' arm and stop her before reaching down on the table. "I trust the gloves were properly washed and sterilized? I'm sorry, miss, but I cannot let you put that cup on the table. It would just be exposing it to the germs! I hope you understand."

Then a hatch on Orion's right shoulder opened up. It released a foul smell... as if it lead directly into the stomach. "If you would kindly deposit the coffee into the hatch, you would be doing me a great favor. I would do it myself, but my hands have touched alien surfaces that I do not trust."

“Thank you,” Orchid said as she received her drink from the waitress.

“I can see how several changes would need to be made to my original designs. Having never actually been in space before I am completely unfamiliar with what would be the module’s day to day practical use. I do have some idea of the differences of the environment of course, but I lack the personal knowledge necessary for final schematics. This was all in my report submitted along with my original designs. I’m afraid I also designed the module for my typical clientele and I can see now that was rather narrow minded of me. I believe joining your initiative would broaden my experiences, give me a chance to work with the two of you on making the crew module something more appropriate for both space and potential passengers, and seriously when does a chance to save the universe not sound like fun? Count me in please,” She said.

Various tables were calling their waiters over, exchanging hushed words as the waitress closest to Orion picked up the coffie and tried pouring it into the freespacer’s hatch. In this process she would be leaning backward, trying to stay away from the smell emanating from the robot. The warm liquid would leave the cup, some of it splashing into Orion’s shoulder. “Of course, these are surgical gloves. They are sterilized before useage and are made out of an anti-bacterial plastic.” She would say, placing the empty cup back onto her tray, “And it would really help me if you kept your voice down, my boss is giving me weird looks…” She added, trying to defuse the situation as best she could.

Heram, meanwhile, would be doing his best to try and read Orchid’s lips. His ears had decided to stop functioning for the time being after the loud blast of sound from the Freespacer.

“Yes well… Do you want to see the ship?” Wazu asked with an eager smile. “The best way of getting experience with these things is to be there in person and there is a shuttle on the roof waiting for us. Order something to go and Drei will handle getting it up to the ship.” Wazu would hand over his menu to Orchid and then look over at Orion, “I assumed you were capable of eating our food, but perhaps that was a bit much of me. What do you require for fuel exactly?” He ended up asking.

Naturally this was a Nepleslian restaurant and although there were various other things on the menu, Yamatain fishes and rices and Elysian beef, the majority of the items were different kinds of Steak and Potatoes ranging from high end cuts of meat all the way to burgers and frys.

The 'spacer felt much relieved thanks to the reassurances of the waitress and her incredible hospitality. It was heart-warming to him, really. The hatch closed when she had finished pouring his drink inside, leaving whatever had been spilled outside the hatch to slowly drip down his metallic frame. Once she was done and proceeded to tell him that he should keep his voice down, Orion closed his right hand in a fist and flicked it up and down, an expression alike the one someone would use because he 'made the goal'. His voice wasn't nearly as high as it had been before, but he did speak with excitement behind it. "Thank you, miss! Your hospitality towards us Freespacers is incredibly educated and should be praised! And I will make note to keep my voice down. I'm just so excited to be here!" He laughed, and then motioned his hand as if he had to stop himself.

"Thank you for all that you have done. What is your name, that I may remember to repay you kindly?" After the answer, he'd continue. "Alright, I'll inform Heram to pay you in excess." And then he turned back to the conversation, waiting for her to be far away enough to speak without her hearing him. "The waitress here is very kind. She should get paid handsomely for her above-par service."


He only spoke when he was spoken to. When he was, he noticed it was a casual question, and found it nice of Heram to have considered it. He looked down at him from his sitting position and answered. "Good question Heram. We Type Fours have a nuclear fission reactor that needs very little fuel if modified. My T04 Fallout Reactor was modified to run on natural uranium, so it probably won't run out before it has exhausted itself, which would, in an estimated expiration lifespan, be 25 years, 43 hours, 21 minutes and 9 seconds; though to avoid any unlikely variables from happening I would probably change the reactor before that time has come close. For aesthetic reasons me and my father designed this hybrot body not to have the control uranium control rods exposed; coincidentally, the design allows me to interact with radioactivity-susceptible creatures, which to my pleasure includes Nepleslians.

The consumption of food my body undertakes is merely to keep my biological brain alive. I eat a considerably lesser amount of food and nutrients to keep myself alive than that of most sentient races, but I have to watch my diet very carefully to make sure I will not suffer from loss of essential sugars, proteins and minerals such as the much required isotopes. A much more important aspect of my reactor is to make sure it has sufficient coolant to prevent a meltdown. That is something that has to be constantly seen to and can have almost immediate consequences if neglected.

I am able to drink and eat some of the food that you could but at a much more minimal scale, and there are many that would be detrimental to my Bio-Refinery system. In fact, after having this drink, I might be in a bit of a drunken state for a couple of days, I might guess. But the main problem with your food and your drinks is lack of sterilization.

In our homeships, sterilization is a constant factor. So much so that our immune systems have grown decadent due to lack of exposure to disease over our generations! What you Nepleslians call 'the common cold' could well kill us Freespacers in a matter of days! Ugh... just the thought of it makes me want to clean my mouth time and time again! Too bad I don't trust any of these articles for cleaning have been properly cleansed..." Orion drone on and on. He looked like he was ready to continue talking about the subject. Orion fancied having finally been able to provide some talk about his race in what little time he had been with Heram.

Never ask a Freespacer a question that might require a detailed answer. It might be the only answer you need to whatever other questions may have followed.

She unfolded the menu Wazu had handed her and glanced at what was available while Wazu was talking to Orion. She settled quickly on what she wanted. Then she turned to listen to Orion talk about his nutritional needs. As he was going into the specifics she pulled a note pad and pen out of her clutch and jotted a few short notes of equipment that she would need to add to the ship designs to accommodate freespacers’ needs. She made sure to look up once in a while so he didn’t think she was tuning him out. Once Orion had finished, she put the note pad and pen back and took the opportunity to respond to Wazu about the trip to the ship.

“Well I think going to see the ship sounds like a wonderful idea,” Orchid responded enthusiastically.

She called their waitress over and began her order, “I would like the beef medallions with sides of asparagus and roasted potatoes to go please.”

“Very well,” The waitress would reply with a smile and nod, turning her head to look at Orion. "My name is Anya,"

--

Wazu would then nod at the Spacer, agreeing that the waitress had indeed been tactful in handling the spacer’s unique needs and showing that he was at least paying attention to the long explanation that the spacer was unloading upon everyone at the table.

“Surprise me,” He would tell the waitress as he pushed his chair backwards, turning to look at Orchid.

“Lets get going.” He said as he stood up, looking over at Drei for a moment so he could say, “Please handle things here and have Zoey meet us on the way to the shuttle.” His hand would reach down, picking up the dark purple drink that the waitress had set in front of him and quickly downing the liquid in the small glass, his pupils getting just a bit wider once the liquid was gone. A few brisk steps would take him away from the table before he would turn around and again look at Orchid.

“…Oh, you probably have personal things that you’d like to take with you…” He said, pausing for just a moment as the now fairly confused waitress stood in-between him and the group, “… we’ll come back for those. Elysia and back is a short trip, we can have you back home before you miss the place and I am sure we can fabricate anything you really need while in route.” He then looked over at Orion, “And you can order something here or we can build something more custom suited to your digestive system when we get up to the ship. I am sure you have some sort of readout that lets you know what levels your essential sugars and such are at right?” He would take another step towards the door, pause, and turn back again.

“What exactly do you need for a day long trip Ms. Orchid?”

The hybrot would get up from its sitting position, towering over both Heram and Ms. Anson when Heram stood up. It was an interesting day thus far... if you didn't take into account the fact that he was swimming among bacteria infested beings. He'd have to make sure to be sterilized as soon as he could. He noticed Heram had told Drei to stay, and looked at her. Chances are there would be another Drei aboard the ship they were going to, or wherever it would be that they were going. Considering Heram was the one that invented her, for the most part, that meant that he was going to use her to her fullest.

Regardless, before leaving, Orion would wave at her good bye, and then continue walking with the rest of his group; namely Ms. Anson and Heram.

Orion assumed Zoey was the reporter, and instantly understood the pattern. Interesting. Heram had invited each of his guests and had scheduled them to arrive exactly one hour away from each other. That was possibly to have each of the members speak with their contractor for enough time to get to know each other. What a thoughtful man!

Uso said:

“…Oh, you probably have personal things that you’d like to take with you…” He said, pausing for just a moment as the now fairly confused waitress stood in-between him and the group, “… we’ll come back for those. Elysia and back is a short trip, we can have you back home before you miss the place and I am sure we can fabricate anything you really need while in route.” He then looked over at Orion, “And you can order something here or we can build something more custom suited to your digestive system when we get up to the ship. I am sure you have some sort of readout that lets you know what levels your essential sugars and such are at right?”

Click to expand...

"Ah, yes! Well. I left my belongings at my room on board the docking station to Funky City orbiting just above us. If possible I'd like to get to them later, though I don't have to. We Freespacers have very little value as far as personal belongings go, you see... I left my hybrot maintenance and repair kit there, so if I don't retrieve it it would be necessary to create one for my use. Going on without proper maintenance for more than ten days, particularly without scheduled replacement of my coolant, might have lethal repercussions. --There is one thing that I will have to pick up later. It's a little stuffed rag doll of one of my deceased lovers, so it means a lot to me. I hope you understand it if I would like to go back in the near future to get it.

And don't worry about me. I probably won't be hungry for another day, so it's fine.

As for my readout systems, yes, I do. Once the food enters the compartment located on my right shoulder, they first have to go through a containment chamber which analyzes the food carefully for unnecessary or potentially harmful particles within it. It then separates the food with use of enzymes and lesser acids created by one of my Bio-Refinery's organs, and selectively translates the useful nutrients into the digestive system. I can override it, of course, as I am right now. Alcohol is not a necessary nutrient, for instance, but at the moment I am feeling like having it!" Orion chuckled, optic fibers glowing green for a second or two and briefly resumed his explanation. "Of course, the readouts might or might not detect certain viruses and bacteria within the chamber, and it might be possible for them to slip by... Which is why I'm always careful about sterilization. It is of utmost importance for all the food I ingest to be sterilized, lest I become infected by some stray disease... I feel sick already... I do hope Anya did not forget to sterilize those gloves." Then he went as far as to gasp.

"Are airborne diseases common in Nepleslia!? If so, I should leave immediately!" Orion was visibly shaken, optic fibers glowing a color they had not changed to in the whole day: violet. The hybrot was looking everywhere frantically, as if trying to spot floating diseases wherever they were.

Orchid stood up following Wazu’s lead.

“I need would need a change of clothes, basic toiletries, and because of the nature of the trip I would need a computer. I have the software and most of my designs with me but I need access to a computer capable of expanding the program and information in order to do modifications,” Orchid replied.

“Drei will be able to handle that easily enough. Be sure to ask her for a datapad when we get onboard and give her your measurements. Wazu told Orchid before turning to look at Orion, “And the personal effects for either of you can be gathered and brought to the ship but I think you would be more comfortable doing it yourself. Orion, specifically, you should talk with Drei about your maintenance needs anyways to ensure that we will have proper equipment to take care of things in an emergency. Relaying your nutritional information to Drei will also allow us to make sure that we have an appropriately tailored nutritional item for you to consume when it comes time to eat...” At this point Wazu was trying to talk over Orion’s concerns about airborne diseases.

“… and Orion, I assure you we have top notch decontamination and medical systems onboard the ship. Anything you come in contact with now will either be vaporized or destroyed by the time you reach our medical bay. Please, relax…”

As they left Drei behind, Wazu would lead them up a short staircase to the top of the building, a mild crosswind was blowing and on the open rooftop was a single T2 transport shuttle with its wings folded down enough to allow one to walk up the ramp they created and right into the interior of the shuttle with its rows of chairs. Standing by the shuttle was Drei, again, and an Elysian woman in a tight fitting blue bodysuit with various pieces of attached electronics.

“And this is Zoey,” Wazu would say as soon as everyone was within sight of each other, “She’ll be handling human factors for the time being.”

Zoey was a fairly meek looking plebeian. She was a bit wirey, thin, and pale looking like most of the undernourished Plebeians were. Her eyes were brown and her hair was white. She had a certain... angularity. Her wings were not large enough to fly or glide, and were barely large enough to wrap around someone small like an extra pair of arms. They fluttered meekly with a touch of nerviousness. She was looking down at her feet. Her face was sweet, and perhaps a bit cute. She was pretty but not remarkably so. All in all she was a fairly middle of the road specimine for a Plebeian.

A collar rested around her neck, and she was clothed a tight fitting blue body suits. "Hello" she said softly "How may this humble one be of service? Are you the others being hired by Master and Mistress?" She seemed incredibly meek, as though worried that she would upset people by being too bold here.

Well, if Heram's intention had been to calm Orion, he certainly had. Furthermore, he had made him completely forget hesitating going to the shuttle over getting Elexcia's rag doll before boarding. His slight mysophobic tendencies and a need of self-preservation would start to surface now that they would begin moving out of the restaurant. Being within walls had eased Orion's worries, plus getting to know others and the such had kept him distracted. But now they were going outside again...

Ooohhh... these detestable things called planets! Why did they have to exist!? Orion certainly enjoyed the company of his new friends, but he hated having to be in a place where bacteria and viruses could easily kill him before he got to know them well enough to be family.

"Ah, good. I can't wait to get on board then! Up and out of the planet we go!" He even went as far as to get ahead of Heram with a bit of a jog, following the Active GPS system he was currently linked to through his Polysentience Terminus unit. Through it he could see the shuttle Heram had been talking about, and instantly summed up the equation that that's where they were headed. So while Heram and Ms. Anson walked to the staircase, the hybrot pretty much ran up it, heavy thuds and some shaking ensuing as he did.

Once he was at the rooftop near the shuttle, he felt wind and nearly jumped to his death. He froze there and began walking slowly towards the shuttle, cameras moving from side to side. As he did that, it gave Heram and Ms Anson ample time to catch up with him before he had reached the shuttle, Zoey and Drei.

Upon meeting Zoey, Orion looked at her and noticed what Heram had mentioned before. The poor woman was definitely not in her right wits. Right now, however, he was not in his wits either, so he couldn't properly greet her. "Ah, yes... Heram spoke much to me about you! Uhm, Heram, if I may... I would like to board immediately. Can we leave introductions for after we're inside the shuttle?" Orion said in a rather fidgety voice. Germophobia and agoraphobia aside, though, Orion's hatred for the NMX grew bigger. He would do his best so that they could be enslaved by others to the point of no return, that they should suffer the same tribulations they had imposed on others. But Orion was too busy worrying about getting inside at the moment to get properly angry, his optic fibers still glew violet.

Orchid walked with Wazu while Orion ran ahead until they reached Zoey. Upon seeing her, Orchid was a bit taken aback by the sickly look the girl had and the odd effect the addition of wings had on her appearance.

After Wazu’s introduction and Zoey’s peculiar response they had arrived on the shuttle and Orchid smiled at her politely and introduced herself, “My name is Orchid Anson, nice to meet you.”