Chapter 1.0 Operation Cataclysm!

Briefing room 5 NSS Thanatos.

Commander Nero Vega stood against the wall smoking, as he waited for the CO to arrive. He hated to looks he got from his old friends who were Captians. They treated him as a tratior and some asked for his head. This had caused Nero to act much colder than he used to. He let smoke out as the CO from Corvus flight Captain Leo Hugh walked by. He used to be good friends with Nero but now all he did was look away in disgust. Nero just looked away and studied at the room. The room was very spartan. Several rows of chairs lined the room with a podem against the far wall. Nero had arrived early, not being able to sleep again. He was sure he wouldn't sleep again in a long time. As he waited, he sent a reminder to the flight that they needed to meet here for a debrief. After he sent the messages, he looked up hearing the heavy foot falls of My'ean.

She didn't quite look right in a Nepleslian uniform. The proportions were designed for an entirely different body-type, granted the height was about the same and many of the features he'd noted of her weren't quite so emphasized. Her fingers played about the collar of the uniform, not entirely uncomfortable with its revealing nature as she took a seat at the front-end of the room, looking upon empty seats. Turning about, her wings could be seen: the fit again, not quite right. Oddly, rather than her looking wrong in uniform, it was the uniform that looked wrong on her. The psychologist Nero had met earlier was already present, eyes glued to her data-slate, tapping away, heeding no attention to the others at the back of the room, behind the chairs, pinning the flight team in the middle: Not an aggressive gesture, more that Dr. Kalopsia preferred to stay out of everybody's way.

Nero snapped off a salute. "Good morning Captain." He grumbled. Nero's lack of sleep was obvious. His hair, normally well kept, looked like he hadn't touched it at all that morning. His sunken eyes looked even more tired. "The team should be on their way soon. I sent a reminder that they need to get up." He finished putting his E-cig in his pocket.

Jayden entered into the briefing room with his DataJockey in hand, having swallowed the bitter pill of being relieved of command, no longer the XO of the Aquilas. His face was mostly neutral, lacking the hard edge he normally had. He seemed to lack the fire he had only days ago, and yet at the same time, it was like a huge weight was temporarily lifted off his shoulders. With a crisp salute, he regarded both My'ean and Nero who were already there preparing for the briefing. "Definitely not the uniform for her," he noted of the NSN uniform she wore, "the other definitely had more... appeal to it."

"Good morning Captain, XO." His voice even, golden hazel eyes scanning over them both once more.

"Morning" she nodded in Jayden's direction, eyes exploring his features before eyeing the number of seats again, then her watch.

"Its good to start early. How long does it usually take for the flight to arrive?"

"Morning XO...I mean Lt.Commander." He said, absienlty. "Shit I'm sorry Jayden." He said turning to answer My'ean. "It should take them 10 minutes after they get that message I sent."

"You'll have to figure out how not to keep doing that, yes?" Jayden replied nonchalantly. "I didn't know Lorath Wine was so..."

"Intense? Provocative? Intoxicating?" My'ean attempted to find words.

An unflattering image appeared in her mind. She wondered if Jayden shared it.

"Any of those words, and perhaps a few more." There was a very subtle smirk Jayden held then shook his head. Something had flashed through his mind, that much he couldn't hide.

My'ean's brows rose. A look of thoughtfulness. Perhaps it was best for Jayden's sake she didn't repeat the truth of it to him.

Nero coughed, as to remind the two that he was still there. "Well?" He said waiting for orders?

"Well, it wouldn't make much sense to start going over things without the rest here, unless there's things the two of you need to discuss as the formal command of the unit now." His eyes shifted to Nero, then back to My'ean. After a moment's delay, he stepped off from the Captain and her XO taking a seat in the rows of chairs that would soon be filled.

Jo made her way into the conference room. She gave a proper salute to those present as she made her way towards the seating area. She had received the message from Commander Nero. Why Commander? What happened to the Captain? She wondered, not for the first time. Being one of the most junior of the officers present, as well as still green from flight school, Jo couldn't worry about it too much. She didn't recognize the woman standing with Nero, though she did note that she looked familiar to the one who had done her psych eval...even though at first Jo didn't know anything about it. Regardless of it all, Jo found a seat near the back, letting those of higher rank get the better seats. She was also wishing she had her sketchbook...or even a notebook of some sort. Anything to help pass the time during this briefing.

Briefing room 5 NSS Thanatos

Edward stepped into the room looking unusually professional in his smartly pressed uniform and his garrison hat set just right on his head. He did make the transition into the room very slowly with a nervous look at the doorway.

Today was a lucky day for Edward as his portal mishaps seemed to have taken the day off. He saluted the cluster of higher ranking officers and moved to a seat at the front of the room. He placed his data jockey onto the small writing table and started to play a simple tower defense game to pass the time.

Briefing room 5 NSS Thanatos

Ensign Knight walked into the briefing room in the standard issue uniform although he seemed like a man who was slightly tired, sunken eyes glance about past his greying bangs those who were there already, wandering over the alien present in their midst the mans nostrils flared slightly in annoyance. Leo decidedly ignored the most unusual presence among them, regaining enough composure to snap off a salute before moving to stand in a relatively isolated corner of the room where nobody would bother him until the briefing. Or so the man rationalized. Unlike their previous gathering he actually got there on time.

Briefing room 5 NSS Thanatos

Lt.JG Mochizuki appeared at the entrance of the briefing room as ordered, giving those present a respectful and silent salute. Her standard issue naval uniform and medium length green hair seeming like some grassy floatsam upon a cerulean ocean. The Jiyuuian pilot's neck and part of her chin was still obscured by that dark colored aviator scarf she insisted on wearing, both serving as a means of obscuring her vulnerabilities and seeming somewhat mysterious and intimidating like the former IPG agent she was.

Her visible features however were frought with deep concern as her emerald eyes took in the scene before her, darting among the people present. The rumors were definitely true about Nero's demotion, as his gold bars were absent and now turned a dull silver in color that matched his defeated and angry countenance. The Fyunnen at the front of the room now wore the Captain's rank, one of two Lorath present that were hard to miss and stuck out more than Sayoko did amongst the flight. It was bad enough to be run roughshod by the sudden changes in the command chain, but that was the least of her concerns once she matched the visual data of the newcomers to her limited mental database she retained from her time in the UOC.

Making her way quickly over to the (now former) XO of Aquila Flight, Sayoko found a seat there and immediately addressed him in a hushed tone. "Commander, can you explain why Nero has been demoted and we now have not one but two two prominent -- and possibly dangerous -- Lazarus connected individuals here, one at the head of the flight?"

It was not like Mochizuki to express such deep concern openly, and the manner in which she spoke indicated she had definite reasons not to trust them... even though one would assume she would be the first one to support the Lorath considering her former loyalties.

NSS Thanatos, Briefing Room 5

The first few members of the Flight into the room drew a bit of a surprise from Jayden, and not a good one he thought. For a moment, he began to doubt anyone noticed or cared about the change in command, until Sayoko came over to him. He, the former XO, was sitting in a seat waiting for the briefing to get started. He had become just another part of the Flight, really of no fault of his own. It was a bit of a pill to swallow, even if it were a formality.

"To my knowledge, Orion is playing hardball. He knows Nero knows too much, but he can't do anything directly so he's interested in making the Commander's life a living hell from here on out." His voice was low, but still carried forth in a matter of fact manner. "As for the Lazarus personnel, we are being asked to play nicely under the DATASS treaty for the sake of testing and development. Oh, and command thinks we are all bat shit crazy - aside from being incompetent. My'ean... I think she's just another curveball thrown at Nero make him self-destruct, but what Orion doesn't know is that she's more interested on helping us."

Virgil looked troubled. It was adorable. Disgusting, but adorable. It was like he thought he was people. As if he actually believed for just a split second that anything he did had any effect on the currents raging in the midst of an enemy mole and a hidden game of spy versus spy. Still, he entered the room with as much pomp as he could manage, saluting firmly before removing his cover and sitting politely.

"Why do they sneer, Commander?" He asked softly, ignoring the new assets for now. He was naturally wary of Lorath women, but only because of the things they seemed to think belonged in his orifices. Brushing aside some of his perfectly settled blonde hair the same way he brushed aside this internal discomfort, he leaned back in his seat and focused hard on the truest issue: Aquila Flight was in some sort of disgrace. "They know that if we'd done anything truly wrong, we'd have all been cashiered. But we haven't. So why are they giving us all these looks?"

He didn't mention the Captain who stopped him on his way to the DFAC earlier to ask if he'd thought about his career lately, suggesting as she slowly shifted her coffee mug from one hand to the other that they might talk about it in her quarters. This, he kept to himself, almost certain that the woman had meant to suggest he transfer to supply or something awful because he was too stupid to realize that his girlish handsomeness could be used to purchase escape from this terrible position he found himself in. Furthermore, he was too stupid to realize this terrible position he'd found himself in-- loyal to his squad and his flight just like a character from one of his cartoons.

NSS Thanatos, Briefing Room 5

Sayoko listened silently to Jayden's thoughts on the matter, letting go a brief sigh and a frown. "Perhaps surviving the destruction of Fort Sentinel is indeed a fate worse than our deaths," the IPG agent mused, "That just makes it more critical that we persevere to discover the truth of what's going on at the top of the command chain. My'ean is a skilled test pilot for the Consortium, I will give her that, but it is actually Ms. Kalopsia that I do not trust entirely, meddling with our pilot's heads. Her reputation for both good and ill proceeds her, and is well known from where I come from."

"Before I forget, this is for you, Commander." Her face relaxed some from the concerned look, as the Jiyuuian glanced towards Jayden's DataJockey intently. The Peacekeeper rank necklace she was wearing seemed to glow purple for a brief few seconds, and a moment later there was a ping on the Commander's device, indicating the receipt of a preliminary report delivered via encrypted wireless emulator from Sayoko's digital brain. The promised file was clearly marked for his eyes only, and contained the counter-intelligence officer's findings from the past several days for his perusal. Lt. Mochizuki definitely had not spun her wheels on the flight in, and the recurring problem of sabotage now manifest in the engines of the NSS Oracle was finely detailed. Faulty parts of the starship and Jayden's Uno X fighter were tracked back as far as she could in the supply chain with her still-active security clearances, along with other significant incidents of record.

Nero watched silently as everyone walked in, returning everyone's salutes as they entered. He tossed a quick glance at Sayoko, noticing the concern in her eyes. He made eye contact, and gave a her a shamefaced smirk quickly turning back to his icy demeanor. As the last of the team filed in, he walked to the podem. He cleared his throat, and tapped a button on the desk to shut the doors. He looked at everyone, letting his gaze linger for a moment before he began speaking.

"Good morning ladies and gentlemen. As you have probably heard, we have had a change of command." He paused. "Due to my poor performance during the Evacuation of Fort Sentinel and the deaths of Lieutenant Yuri Okulov and Lieutenant Alexis Martínez, the two pilots who were killed when their shuttle crashed, I have been relieved of command. Effective yesterday at 1900 hours, I was demoted to Commander and relived of my command." He stopped. Taking a moment to collect his thoughts, he twisted his engagment ring around his finger. "I have failed each and everyone of you, and I am sorry."

He moved to the screen behind him and tapped it. A holographic image of the Oracle came into view. "The Oracle sustained several hull breaches here, here, and here." He said tapping them. "This one was the shot the crippled her main drive. This problem was compounded when a faulty modulator disabled the fabricator computers. What was initially supposed to be a two day repair on the main CDD turned into a full blown eight day repair due in part to a major malfunction in the fabrication bay, requiring the bay's computer be fixed first before the drive would see repair. The on board fabracaters were able to create the parts needed to fix it after the faulty parts were replaced. We were able to evacuate 85% of the base's personal. Unfortunately, the base was glassed and those still on the base are KIA. We lost several brilliant mechanics and technicians that tried to get everyone else out. We will never forget their sacrifice. " He bowed his head for a moment of silence, then continued. He tapped the screen again and brought up a new holographic image of Lt. Commander Solaris's new fighter design. "Good news is that we have new birds. Lt. Commander Solaris's Scythes are prepped and ready to go. I have taken the liberty to send each of you the specs of your new craft." He looked to Miranda. "Lt. Bannings, your Hornet has been moved to the same hanger as the Scythes. The techs are also preparing it for you." He turned back to everyone else. "At this point I will turn things over to your new CO. Captain My'ean Idoku Fyunnen." He finished stepping off to the side and staring off into space.

Stepping past Nero to take his place was a tall figure with impossibly wide shoulders. A woman's face, but strength a Nepleslian woman couldn't really posess. Her voice was low but in the realm of what some might joke were lesbonics rather than anything strictly male. Dark skin. Black hair: Not soldier short but longer and a tad wild. It was hard to tell the color of her eyes but there was a scar running along her jawline.

"Now then!" she called out, voice crisp and firm, "Its nice to meet you all. I don't imagine you're terribly confident in me, but I've been in the cockpit for most of my natural life -- being Lorath this means I've been in the air longer than most of you have been alive. Maybe even double in some cases. My credentials specifically are as a test-pilot and professional instructor for the last ten years or so and prior to that, as a flight-lead. My specialization is grazing, or what Yamatai calls 'danmaku': basically weaving through an enemy's AA solution to make surgical strikes and staying there instead of making passes. I prefer to lead by incentive rather than punishment but I'd prefer you not get on my bad side; everything you've heard about Fyunnen is true."

She began pacing.

"That aside, let's get something straight: I'm not replacing him. Oh no. In fact, I was at one point asked to... But I don't think a single fuckup should end someone's professional career. What I am doing is though is babysitting you. All of you. The problem we have here is that we have a group of people here who are very very talented in the cockpit. But you are not pilots. See, pilots are soldiers. You're warriors: going off and pursuing your own interests, locked in one on one. I mean come on, target fixation is basic stuff guys, come on. Then there's all this drama. Really, you need to coordinate. You are professionals. He too, needs to learn this lesson. You're all potentially legendary in the making. But you desperately need to get your shit together and just do your jobs before you have any bright ideas or get creative."
She paused, something of a smile. Wondering if they hated her yet.

"Still not convinced? Oh absolutely, I wouldn't be either. I'd want to knock me down a peg. So let's make this interesting: If you can work the way you're supposed to, the way you're paid to and he can too, you'll get him back and I'll step down. Otherwise, you're stuck with me" she shrugged, nonchalant in her ways.
Soon, an image of the new fighter appeared, replacing the volumetric image of the oracle.

"Let's get to business."

The lights dimmed further. A set of bullet-points, listing suggestions of a few vague specifics about the aircraft's handling, performance and layout - mainly it would seem to get the pilots wondering these things.

"I'm sure you're going to be getting really intimate with her. As a professional test-pilot, I think it would be in poor taste for us to deploy without some final touches. I know you'll be running through sims but what I really need out of you is feedback. As formal or as casual as you want. Does she bleed speed too much at a given AoA? Not happy with the cockpit layout? Convergence on the gun clusters? See, Solaris only knows what he knows and I'm making it your job to tell him anything else he needs to know: If I catch any of you bitching about this bird after you come back fubar and you didn't tell us the fault first, I'm going twenty rounds with you in the gym if you don't get a two rank promotion first. The truth is, I'm sentimental: I'd be pretty upset if I were to lose any of you because something was in the wrong place or didn't feel right, you know?"
Next slide. A few... Variants?

"He hasn't planned any but given how we've got a bit more muscle in our budget, its worth remembering each and every single one of you excel differently. You've probably been trained differently. Some of you might have prior specializations from other departments. If you can see any further mission specialization or specifics you think she's capable of that might involve special equipment, we'd really like to hear it. On the drawing-board, we're considering a reconnaissance type so far. Beyond that, we'd really like to know where the bird falls short, given that this early on making changes to her is quite easy. Even if you don't know the specifics, we can plug it into the computers and see what the engineers and pit-crew make of it. Like I said, incentives, not punishments."


The lights raised. Bright again. Almost painful.
She turned to face them.

"If you're in a hurry to get out, I won't stand in your way. With a new bird and a CO you probably don' trust, I'd want out too. Maybe next time I'll have refreshments or I'll take you all out for ice cream" she tapped her nose, sounding now more like an older sister than a pilot, her hard edge having softened.

"Otherwise, if anyone is comfortable enough in their chair to stay behind, I'm happy to have some Q&A or talk more about the fighter."

NSS Thanatos, Briefing Room 5

"...aah! Sorry for my lateness!" The resident bombardier squeaked as she dashed in at the last second, sliding from the doorway to one of the rearmost seats in a single motion and trying her utmost to blend in with the furniture. Her exhausted panting and disheveled appearance didn't help either, she shuddered as she tried not to think of the poor sailor she had plowed into at full speed in her mad dash to the briefing room. I hope he's okay back there...

Shrinking into her chair as Captain Vega-no, Commander now, was it? What's going on? mentioned her name, she almost didn't notice the strange person standing on the stage until said person came forth to speak. A-Alien?! Miranda abruptly started upon spotting the little wings poking out from the woman's back, almost falling off her chair in shock. From that point onward, everything blurred out as she stared, transfixed, at the two little "limbs" with stupefied awe as her brain tried to reconcile the scary-looking Captain Idoku Fyunnen with the feathery digits. T-those wings! D-do they f-flap?

...wait, that's racist, isn't it?!

As the lights turned back on with a blinding flash, Miranda snapped out of her trance with a soft "eep" and ducked in an attempt to make herself as unnoticeable as possible. "Mochizuki-san, what's happening?" she whispered to the Jiyuuian IPG Agent in a confused and panicky voice.

NSS Thanatos, Corridor

Milo - bottle of Jäeger in hand, thanks to a bit of smooth-talkin' conducted with a female logistics officer the night before - paused mid-stride at the sight of an unconscious crewman sprawled across the deckplate. Shit, looks like someone ain't a morning person. I mean, I know I'm not exactly one myself, but damn......wait, fuck! The fighter jockey had a brief moment of panic as he realized that the aforementioned crewperson could be dead; fortunately, his fears were quickly resolved after checking for (and finding) a pulse.

Exhaling in relief, the Nepleslian took a swig of alcohol and continued on his way as, after all, he didn't want to miss the entire briefing - rather, he just wanted to avoid the incredibly dull "Introduction-and-Useless-Background-Information" part of it.

Still, though, mused Milo as he approached the creatively-named 'Briefing Room 5,' that's one hell of a caffeine crash. Haven't had one of those since...shit, since back before I joined.

Then he entered said briefing room - and immediately wished he hadn't. Oh, fuckberries...




NSS Thanatos, Briefing Room 5

Upon entering, Milo had noticed four things.



First was the presence of the....Design? No...ah, Construct that had given him Kalmiya. Shit. Her again? Fuck me...

Second was the presence of the Jiyuuian (one Mochizuki Sayoko, according to a couple of conversations he'd overheard), which, as one might expect, caused the Nepleslian to tense up. Fuck me twice.

Third was confirmation of the rumor that had been floating around: Captain Nero, for one reason or another, was now Commander Nero. Heh, so he did get demoted...looks like somebody seriously done fucked up...oh, damn, I hope they didn't replace him with our beloved XO, Mr. Jayden Hardass...

Fourth was the... Lorath wearing a Captain's uniform? Alright, time the hell out. First that contractor, now this? The actual fuck's going on here?



Milo - almost - let an expression of shock make it through his facade as he strode towards the compartment's "front." Sure, the life on the Installation was boring as fuck - but goddamn, it wasn't as fricking insane as this!


His features still their usual, charming selves, the LT lazily saluted his superiors before sliding into one of the vacant front-row seats, his (well-practiced and, in all honesty, slightly inebriated) posture and demeanor that of someone who really didn't give a flying fuck. "Ladies, LCDR" - his expression turned merry - "Capt-wait...hot damn, sir, what did you do this time?"

Milo grinned, then took another swig from his beloved beverage. Yeah, I'm gonna get bitched at for this later - but fuck it, this shit's hilarious!


Then the cyborg's world went bat-shit crazy as a faint, musical tone could be heard emanating from the tiny storage compartment in the fighter pilot's right arm - the tone that, unbeknownst to Milo, indicated the completion of a ROM Construct's compilation process.

To those that could see his facial expression (essentially, those at the front of the room), the Nepleslian's lone visible eye widened as he freaked the actual fuck out - for someone had spoken to him from within.

<Hello, World!>

Edward raised his hand and spoke up, "While I think the neural link is a brilliant idea, how proficient is it at interpreting different levels of brain patterns? While it can keep up with basic multi tasking I'm sure, can it also keep up with say, piloting, and complex mathematics? Also, this shows it has the basic fall back controls. I need a keyboard with mechanical keys and 2 number pads minimum."

NSS Thanatos, Briefing Room 5

"To answer your question Edward, the system is significantly more robust than anything Nepleslia has fielded prior to now. It has the proven ability to work as a starship grade SQUID link, optimized for use within our fighter." Jayden said without getting up from his seat, just turning his head instead. "Between your ACE and yourself, you'll find that the 'Kraken' is plenty capable keeping up with both inputs, especially as it learns you."

"It's extremely intuitive, but as the saying goes... 'You have to walk before you can run.' As for the fall back controls..." He turned back to his DataJockey and clicked through a few things, then sent a file to Edward. "You'll notice that the ECM setup on your fighter is a bit different than everyone else's." He figured the Electronic Warfare Specialist would appreciate the recent changes to his assigned craft.

"Anyone else have questions about the new craft?" He shifted in his seat to be a little more conducive to the group as a whole, rather than speaking to all but only regarding one.

Leo just sort of spaces out for a long while till the offer to make inquiry about the craft and then he appears to jolt up from his previously relaxed posture beginning to wonder of the awesomeness that awaited in the new craft. Intentionally trying to brush aside the implications of the idea that the neural link would become the new standard, especially when the AI got involved... That would mean, oh shit.

"How fast does this fucking thing go? Is it going to glue me into my seat or what?!"

Oh shit. Neural link, not good. Surely any hope of brushing off previous intentions when joining the squad would go to crap if he had to link with the crafts learning artificial intelligence interface for to long. He seemed like a man in the midst of an awkward internal revelation who very apparently disguised it in the form of the nervous if not downright horrible quip.

Knight sighed inwardly and thought yet again. Oh shit...
Scratching the back of his head out of anxiety. Ohhh shit!

NSS Thanatos, Briefing Room 5

Her intel duty done, Sayoko turned to the fashionably late bombardier to try to alleivate her panic. "Welcome, Bannings-san. It appears Nero has been demoted to Commander, taking the blame for the events of Fort Sentinel, and Captain My'ean Idoku "Blackwolf" Fyunnen will be the flight lead going forward, as we test a next generation fighter Commander Solaris helped design." Lt.Mochizuki paused, recalling Miranda staring at the black feathery appendages of their new leader, before replying quietly, "Is this your first time seeing a warrior-caste Lorath? Those wings are vestigal, if that is what you are thinking... they can't fly with them quite."

Sayoko brushed away her lingering doubts about the motives of the Lorath present and focused on the meat and potatoes of the new craft presentation. A lot of it she was already familiar with from the files that Jayden had shared with her and Nero behind closed doors, though one thing really did stand out to her. Namely the "Kraken" neural interface, which was really just NAM's obvious trademark on a technology she knew very well. The SUperconductive Quantum Interface Device, or SQUID, was an innovative Jiyuuian replacement for the old Yamataian SPINE interface that all their starship control schemes employed, and to see it scaled down to be used in a fightercraft was a pleasant surprise and it brought a modest smile to the soldier's lips that was noticeable. Commander Solaris had definitely been thinking outside the box on this one, merging technologies that before would have sat disused apart -- no wonder the Reds wanted his ideas so badly, for they could change the playing field for Nepleslia on the galactic stage. However, first the Aquilas had the dubious honor of being test pilots of the first prototypes... a risky prospect perhaps, but after what happened at Fort Sentinel the pilot was all too eager to reclaim the technological edge, and by extension the victory this promised over their NRF enemies and Phantom Flight.

When she delved further into the presentation, the stealth capabilities of the Scythe and how they were generated seriously piqued Sayoko's interest, enough to raise her voice and ask the question that was really on her mind about the Consortium's involvement being instead strictly business related about their technology featuring heavily in the design. "I for one am interested in low-observable and reconnaissance abilities of this craft. Is it true it is equipped with a CFS system via Lazarus Gravitic Centrifuge technology? That would make it not only fast, but highly capable of stealth operations... especially if it is possible to use Lorath-style Distortion techniques." Lt. Mochizuki figured Blackwolf would appreciate this line of questioning from one veteran to another, as her UOC history made her familiar with many battle tactics of the sister LSDF.

NSS Thanatos - Briefing Room 5

Jo was sitting in the back of the room quietly. She noted the others that had entered into the room, even as she idly tapped her finger on her datapad to await for what was going on. She heard what had happened and, though she was a bit concerned about the whole demotions, she also knew that it would take the Flight as a team to work together to get those who were supposed to be their Captain and Commander back to where they needed to be. In the meantime, she would just quietly listen to the presentation as it was given, her gaze going down to her datapad as she got the specs to be able to look them over better. A lot of it was over her head, for she didn't fully understand most of this technology, but she was willing to learn all that she could.

When the lights came up again for the Q&A portion, she remained seated as she focused on what the others asked the new Captain and waited for the answers. She, herself, had no questions come to mind at the moment, but maybe, depending on the answers, she may...if others didn't ask the same questions herself. Perhaps, if things were still unclear to her own mind, she could ask her own questions in private.

As My'ean began her part of the briefing, Nero partially listened. He wasn't quite convinced with the Scythe. It was a lean mean fighting machine, yet it still raised some concerns. Plus, Nero had flown Unos his entire career. He wasn't fond of ditching the tried and true. As My'ean finished her part of the briefing, Nero moved to slip out only to be stopped by Milo. He reeked of Jagermister, and just couldn't hold his tongue. Nero looked him over and noticed the bottle. He snatched it from Milo and looked at him with pure disdain. "Yes Lt. Frost, I was demoted. If you would have been here on time you would have known." Nero unscrewed the drink and took a wiff. He then looked at the bottle and looked at Milo. Without warning, He dumped the entire bottle over his head and threw the bottle into the trash by the door. As he left he added. "Come to one more briefing with alcohol in your system or in your hand, I will beat you within a damn inch of your life." He said storming out.

Fortunately for one Lieutenant Frost, the bottle was for the most part empty. Unfortunately for one Lieutenant Frost, that was still a waste of the incredibly precious substance known as Jäeger. MOTHERFUCKER!

With a grunt, Milo rose from his seat (quite intent on taking Nero up on the latter's challenge) - only to fall back into his seat as he (seemingly) hallucinated again. <Whoa, Cowboy! Easy there...> The fucking hell?

He glanced at the aforementioned trash can. Was that shit spiked or something?

The tall Fyunnen gave little more than raised eyebrows and a mental note of it. Judging from her expression, this wasn't something she hadn't seen before, then the can before her, eyes were immediately back on the job. She didn't have time for this, so she let him get on with it.

Jayden watched the exchange between Nero and Milo, his golden hazel eyes capturing the entire scene, and wondered if the eager pilot that he met in the hallways of the Oracle was just some clever ruse to attempt to get on the good side of things - his good side when he was the XO. The sad truth of things seemed that Milo Frost was much more interested in getting drunk, getting some ass, or a combination of both at his leisure since he hadn't actually had his first experience in a fighter with his new squadron. Maybe, Jayden thought, it was just another case where he was able to correctly judge the character of someone by their first impression.

The major difference in this particular occurrence, Nero was dealing with demons on both sides of things which lead to a much shorter fuse but also a few better judgment calls. The other difference... Jayden wasn't in a position to have to say anything, nor would it be warrented. His only real outwardly displayed reaction was a bit of a nod to Milo and a look that said, "Get it together." He then averted his eyes and looked back to his DataJockey, rolling his shoulders a bit.

Nero walked down from the briefing room to check on the state of the new PA's he inquired about. Instead of the bulky Hostile suits, he was planning on having the flight use the much lighter Raider PAs. He got to the Armory and walked up to Quartersmaster and gave him his data jockey. "Excuse me Ensign, but are my Raiders ready." The Quatersmaster, looked at him then at his datajockey ." Oh, it's you...Sir." He added. "Yes they are done. He pointed to the suits and noticed the line of Raiders with the Aquila Flight patch on the chest and shoulder. At the end of the row was his Raider with it's new paint job a full black suit with his... wait... what is that...

Nero walked over to his suit. Where the White Skull was supposed to be, there was a Red Cross. "What the fuck is this?" Nero asked. "Oh, Captain Hugh and Captain Yumi said that you asked for this new paint scheme." The young Ensign answered, confused by the question. Nero stormed out and walked down to the hanger.

'Great, now the other CO are actually acting on the news of my demotion.' He added. He walked along the line of Scythes and reached his Uno X, with it's new black..." Aww damn it!" Nero yelled out as he saw his fighter. Over the Cockpit was the same Cross that was painted over his Raider. As he looked it over, he recived a message from The COs of Corvus, Hydra, and Tarus flights. "You still claim to be the Southern Cross. Here is the only reason you should be called such. You are no Ace." Nero took his DataJockey and hurled it across the bay.

"Looks like you're letting them get to you, as always." Called a familiar voice from behind. "Are we back to the days of "Faceplant" again?"

"Damn it you grunt, not now." He said walking around his ship. He sighed. "Well at least all they did was paint it." He said grimaceing. Nero turned and looked to Captian Xander Winter and gave him a mock salute. "Captian's on deck." He said with obvious sarcasm.

"Let's cut the shit, and get on with it... shall we?" Winters made it clear he wasn't there just to shoot the breeze. "I came to check on you, heard what went down. You know, I'm the only one that stuck up for your ass? Needless to say they don't agree with me, and told me to keep my nose out of it if I wanted to keep my ship."

"Yeah..." He started. "The Rear Admiral decided that the blame for the loss of the fort has to come down on someone. I was the top brass' way out. They blamed me for everyones deaths..."

My'ean had apparently been watching from a fair distance for a while now, making careful note in her mind exactly how the two spoke to eachother. She made no effort to hide herself but at the same time was safe in the knowledge that pilots being pilots, both were too absorbed in what was happening in the low light to even know she was there.

"You don't get it do you." Winters shook his head. The old Marine turned Navy Captain wondered if Nero could get out of his own head to see the bigger picture. "Aquila Flight, the entire flight, has been disgraced. Your names all have been dragged through the muck and the mire, not just you Nero."

"Damn it Xander I know this!" He yelled. He turned lowering his voice. "My flight, my friends, my own fucking father, they're all suffering because of me. You almost lost your ship because of me. I FUCKING UNDERSTAND." He said dropping down and sitting against the wheels of his ship. "Everyone that I care about is suffering. The ones that used to give a shit abandoned me, and the ones that stuck with are now paying the price." He finished placing his head in his hands.

"Get up, you don't get to play the victim card just yet. I told you before if you went down this road, things were going to fall apart. I FUCKING told you. There, I said it." Xander crossed his arms in front of his chest, eyeing Nero the same way an older brother would regard a younger sibling when they fucked up, disappointment showing in his eyes.

"Get back on your feet, act like a man - and a smart one no less - and make them all eat their words. Don't play the game, and for Fuck's sake, grow a fucking pair."

A low whistle rang through the hanger. Then hands. A slow clap. Slowly, My'ean advanced on their position.

"Not bad, not bad. Now we have a motive. You, with the angst. Shame about the paint. If you know where he is, we can negotiate something; my employer has their fingers in the prison industrial complex and we can probably weasel something if you grow a backbone and ask. You, playing fam. I like you; there's command material in you yet. I take it I've come at a bad time?"

Nero, about to hurl thousands of explicitives at Xander turned when heard the whistle and did a mental facepalm. 'Great, strike two.'

"You look like you're shitting bricks" My'ean replied. "Not the kind that scare you, more the kind that are uncomfortable that take hours to pass. I can talk to the doctor if you're pent up. This isn't prison but apparently according to the Nepleslian charter, congical visits are a thing your military," she joked.

He turned to My'ean. "With all do respect ma'am.."

"Ah, ah. I've heard that one a million times." she interrupted him. "Lose the formality; say what you're thinking"

"Okay My'ean, Shove it." He finished.

"Much better" she smiled.

"'Faceplant' here has been more or less a pain in my ass for the better part of my career. He was too good for the Marines, but we've been through a lot regardless. I guess that makes us brothers." Winters addressed My'ean before turning to look... up at her?

"Well, fuck me running, I think I've seen it all now." Eyeing the Fyunnen with both curiosity and confusion. "I don't think we've had the pleasure. Xander Winters, Captain of the NSS Oracle"

"Command material indeed" she smiled, her salute casual but quite warm; "Acting captain, LSDF First Lieutenant flight-instructor My'ean Idoku Fyunnen at your service, sir. Blackwolf will do. I'm one of the two consultants; if I trample any feet, be sure to tell me. You've got quite an interesting family here, captain."

"Xander, Winters, or Boreas will do. I've heard that I needed to make preparations for the consultants to stay aboard the ship, I wasn't familiar with one joining the squadron, but I've briefly met the Doctor."

"Aaah, she's quite the little trouble. I don't like her, but she gets results so we often end up working together. We've got a machine-shop we'd like to setup somewhere. Somewhere to store some materials. Somewhere we can put a few servers. Maintanance crew cooperation. Beyond that, an office and some quarters. I hope we're not too much trouble."

"She's an interesting one to say the least." Xander gave her an interesting look, something that said he hadn't a clue what to really think of Doctor Kalopsia. "There's plenty of room in the Fabrication Bay, finally finished and operational. Everything else won't be any trouble at all."

"Good, good. I hope we don't overstay our welcome." My'ean eyed Nero, reminding him that she hadn't forgotten his presence. Though she smiled, something about it said that if he bolted, she'd give chase. With the captain present, his options were slim.

He looked back between his 'brother' and My'ean. At that moment Cipher came over the Uno X's loud speakers. "Good to see you again Winters. Hello Ms. My'ean, it is a pleasure." Cipher paused for a moment. "Sir, are you okay?"

Nero punched the hull. "Shut up party pooper. I am fine."

"Bullshit you are" My'ean replied. "You smell like your wife just asked to take the house and kids."

"Doing just fine Cipher. I came to make sure Nero wasn't going to try and hang himself on your wing tips or some shit." Winters replied to the ACE.

"He can hang himself on mine" she replied, scenting through her nose, licking the corner of her mouth in thought. "So, goldenboy, let's hear some more about the old man. If you give me specifics, my partner in crime can probably find him and with the right motivation, probably get him out. You do want him out, don't you?"

"No shit." Nero replied. He looked up at the cockpit. "Buddy, how is the digging going?" he asked.

"Well it wasn't that hard to find the arrest record. he is being held in the Brig at Funky City Boot Camp. They are planning on moving him to the state penatentary within the next 24 hours." Cipher finished.

Nero looked up at My'ean. "That enough info. Can your friends work with that?" He asked

"It'll be a few days before we have positive bites. There's always someone who can be bribed somewhere in the chain. Assuming all goes well, where do you want him? He's still legally a convicted felon but all things considered, this mission is worth more than the state's expendatures on a single man who did something ultimately insignificant in the grand scheme of things. I hope you can overlook this, captain."

Winters smiled a bit devilishly. "Over look what? I've done my fair share of underhanded or shady dealing in my day, this is nothing new."

Nero thought for a moment. "His old Co-pilot lives on Sparticus. He was like a brother to Dad. He should be safe there." He surmised.

"I would hope for all these brothers and extended family members, someone got to enjoy themselves. You know, really got their rocks off." Winters joked.

As Nero was about to retort, Cipher interupted. "Excuse me everyone, but a priorty one message has just been sent by...Shit Face..."

My'ean slapped her hands together, rubbing them gleefully in a way that by Nepleslian standards would be considered quite morbid.

"This should be interesting."

Cipher tried to protest. "Sir, must I have to call..." Cipher attempted to fight the directive Nero gave that said Rear Adrmial Orion was Shit Face. "I can't say it, but you know what I mean."

"Cipher, out with it, quick like." Winters said sharply. "What's the message?"

Cipher actually let out what sounded like a sigh. "The message is orders for Aquila Flight. An SOS has been recived by a nearby cargo freighter. Command has asked to scramble Aquila Flight for this task. I have already messaged the flight to reconvene in the briefing room. Tactial map is already on the display." Cipher finished.

"Great, now we get to jump at shadows. Isn't this something for one of the training flights?" Nero asked no one in particual.

"Um sir," Cipher added. "...Shit face... also sent you a message. It reads. "Here is an easy job for your crew of fuck ups." Cipher finished.

My'ean's disappointment had visibly grown throughout the course of conversation, soon looking genuinely disheartened.
The look on her face said something to the tune of 'Priority One' meant something in my day.

"W-Well, beggars can't be choosers."

"Priority One my ass." Winters spat, with a bit of a huff. "From the looks of things, the Oracle isn't ferrying you out for this one."

"All things considered Captain, routine missions of this sort are pretty rare." My'ean said, being careful with her words. "Complications are almost a given, considering the territory we're in and the luck we've had; Something about this really stinks about this whole thing".

"I don't disagree with you one bit, Blackwolf." He said nodding to her, moving to leave and let them prepare.

"If I can help, let me know. I'll be on the Oracle." Winters offered over his shoulder as he left.

"Got it. Nero, can you get your people together? I want us ready ahead of time for this; I'd rather play it safe."

Nero saluted the two Captians. "Done and done." He said turning about on his heels.

"And Nero. Where I come from, family is everything. I'll get the doctor to look into your case. As soon as we have any news, you'll hear it."

He paused for only a moment. "Thank you My'ean." He said as he recomposed himself and let the battle hardened Veteran take over. "Cipher, spool up the engines and prep all the ships for launch." He tapped his ear piece. "Thanatos Actual, this is Aquila Lea... This is Aquila 2. I need a Fighter bay prepped for my flight asap." He finished, terminating the link before whoever it was got a chance to answer.

Meanwhile...
NSS Thanatos, Briefing Room 5

Jayden watched Nero storm off, in typical fashion, then My'ean left after him of course as it was her job to make sure the former Captain didn't do anything stupid.

"Well Knight... I can assure you, you haven't been in a fighter this fast, capable, or powerful before. The effects of its top speed, most likely wouldn't even be felt thanks to the CFS that allows the craft to move in a distortion bubble without the effects of gravitation forces pulling on you. Although, with the powerful engines on board the ship, she's plenty capable of pushing you well beyond your physical limits if you're not careful." He looked to Sayoko to continue about the CFS technologies. "Yes, you are correct. We have the first Nepleslian fielded unit to feature the same technology Yamatai has lorded over known space with. Thanks to the Centrifuges I acquired from the Consortium and had installed, we will be able to operate in significantly more AOs than ever before. And this is just the tip of the iceberg..."

"I-I see..." Miranda murmured, a little unsettled by the severity of the situation. "W-wait! About th-!" she started as she recalled something, before abruptly cutting off into a sudden coughing fit. Darn, the run must've put me off balance, the ashen-haired lady thought darkly, silently cursing her carelessness as she cleared her throat. I almost forgot that I'm not supposed to talk about it...

I wonder though, did the traitors I was warned about pull this to deal with the Captain? Miranda's face bore a subtle frown as she looked off to the side, deep in thought. That'll mean that they're in the command staff. Not good at all.

"Wait a minute, she's a Lorath as well?" Caught off guard by her musings, the little pilot almost spluttered as she looked back and forth at Doctor Kalopsia and the doorway which Captain Idoku Fyunnen had exited from, her mental gears grinding as she struugled to reconcile the two clashing images. "B-but, Ears! Wings!"

Now looking like a poor confused puppy, the bombardier was devolving into random hand signals as her eyes took on a faraway look. "They look so different..." the poor girl finished, rather lamely.

NSS Thanatos, Briefing Room 5

As Miranda cleared her throat and Nero departed with the Fyunnen pilot before she could address the question, Sayoko shook her green haired head once to herself, recalling that look he had given her. She wondered if the Lorath really were here to babysit him in a fashion, and if the former Captain had really learned anything from recent events involving his demotion. He was always the center of attention and controversy, and being an XO usually was a job reserved for the more level-headed of officers. Once again he was out of his element and it showed... maybe if he got into the air things would fall back into that aggressive style she saw walk up in that Hostile before.

Jayden thankfully brought her attention back to the matters of import as he fielded things instead, noticing his mood markedly improved with the ability to focus on the technology he so lovingly had put together. "Indeed, Commander. It's no wonder the Reds feared and respected your innovative designs enough to try to sabotage us. I'm glad you survived to get this off the drawing board for Nepleslia. The technology behind this looks very solid... though I must wonder just what kind of a deal with the winged devils you had to make to get it?" The Jiyuuian glanced Dr. Kalopsia's way for a moment, before returning her eyes back to the former XO with a pregnant pause.

It was about that time that the still terribly confused Miranda was going on about ears and wings. Lt. Mochizuki gave her a sympathetic look with her emerald eyes before launching into another lesson for the junior pilot.

"All Lorath peoples have wings, but there are three different castes all bred for different physical abilities. The Doctor is a L'manel, for example -- they are shorter than the warrior Fyunnen and have long ears. They are highly in tune with nature and their own bodies, and bonded to a specific animal that shapes who they are. Literally -- some are actually very skilled in shifting their own anatomy."