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Once the captain began her explanation, the Heisho began paying attention. She listened to ever word taking it to memory. However, soon her train of thought was interrupted by the questions of the lower ranked people, she curiously looked at them for a moment before looking back towards the captain wondering what he answers were for the last two questions.
Hoshitomo-shoi considered the presentation carefully put on by the captain, the bulk of it not being anything new to her so far. Still, to see it laid out in such a way only renewed the First Officer's feelings that they were doing something unique and possibly setting a new course for the history of the empire in the process. The knowing glance from the Taii towards her was met by Rin's calm nod, as the pangs of curiosity had to wait for a more closed doors setting to handle the classified intelligence Miho-hei had mentioned desiring to see before. It was a great honor but also a great responsibility for her to handle, not being used to such secrecy in her previous career.
As the room filled with questions, Rin seemed ready to jump in to assist, though she held her tongue at the outset to allow all concerns to be voiced first by the rank and file. So far, all seemed to be reasonably good inquiries... and she unfortunately did not have the answers to them. So she folded her arms across her chest, and adopted a wait and see approach to how Tsukisaki would initially handle them. Then she would jump in at the appropriate time to help in fielding them in an orderly fashion should the Taii become overwhelmed.
The Captain's permanent frown deepened ever so slightly as Josva was the first to speak up. "Good question, Santo Hei." She stood up a bit straighter, adjusting her belt. The extremely heavy ceremonial sword tended to pull it down far more than a normal blade would. "Our main objective is to discover the fate of Uesu's Fleet. We will make no assumptions about their possible survival or destruction until we have decisive evidence. Exploration will be handled with the utmost care and attention to detail, but is not the highest priority. Unless there is reason to believe further information about the Fleet can be discovered, we will not engage in any unnecessarily thorough investigation. Similarly, we are not expected to run down any lingering NMX presence in the area, nor are we properly equipped to handle excessive combat. The Yui is a scout ship, and our resources are limited."
She thought the red-skinned crew member was simply muttering to himself at first, before he spoke up more clearly. "Santo Hei Nakane." Valesti paused, recalling this was the one stray crew member that had wandered off to Engineering instead of staying in his cabin. His interest was obvious, but hopefully harmless. "The ship's MEGAMI possesses a large about of data regarding the Fleet's original mission and planned course, along with further information sent after the ship's...abandonment. She was left online but had no ability to restart the ship or send communications, only receive. After spending these years alone...ahem..." The Captain glanced aside at nothing in particular, perhaps worried the MEGAMI would take offense to her comments. "...her personality is what some might call 'eccentric'."
Tsukisaki tapped at the data pad again, the projection fading. She began gathering up the devices in a neat stack. "If there are no further questions...clear out and report to your stations, everyone!" She raised her voice just a bit, shifting out of the somewhat more polite, conversational tone of her briefing and explanations to give orders. "Prepare the Heartbreaker for launch on the hour!" Lingering for just a moment in case there were any final concerns important enough that someone would consider lagging behind to speak with her, the Neko turned to her First Officer. "Hoshitomo-Shoi, please accompany me to my Suite." With that, she turned to exit the same way she had entered.
Rin took in the answers dispensed by her superior, relatively satisfied with them for the most part, and it seemed the crew was as well. No further questions appeared from the assembled enlisted members, but some of those with less fortitude could also simply be in disbelief that they were on a mission such as this, and held their tongues in front of the imposing Nekovalkyrja out of a degree of fear.
On the matter of Josva's question, the First Officer piggybacked on what was said, added curtly to the Nepleslian pilot. "You will have your opportunities to prove yourself, Skirnir-hei, of that I am most certain. Be prepared for anything at this point."
There was then a notable change in the atmosphere as the projection died away and Tsuksaki's booming command voice rang throughout the wardroom suddenly instead. The time for talk was past, and soon the time for action was at hand. The Heartbreaker had a date with open space very shortly, and the Yui-7 Scout wasn't about to be fashionably late for it. Hoshitomo-shoi arose from her chair and echoed the sentiments in a firm and resolute voice of her own, "You heard the Taii... meeting is dismissed. Prepare the ship to go to readiness condition 4... duty stations, please."
She then turned to glance at the obviously nervous red giant murmuring in the corner, "I know you are interested in the MEGAMI, Nakane-hei, but right now I need you to get back down to Engineering and make sure that our CFS systems and fold drive are online and ready to go."
The Shoi then swiveled her attention to the power armor element members, "Matonaka-heisho, you and your fellow infantry squad members Gunshin-hei and Baek-hei should head to the PA bay to familiarize yourself with your assigned combat equipment, which is a compliment of Mindy M2-3A's as well as M6-2A Daisy's for planetary engagements. We need your team ready to defend the Heartbreaker and conduct investigations, so discussing some tactics for those scenarios amongst your group is highly encouraged."
Rin did not forget the mini-neko assistant hanging about her, and had a task for her as well, considering she could not follow to the second private briefing. "Nakamura-hei, could you do me a favor and run a few searches on the UX-series systems and any recent notable ship activity in them? NMX, in particular is my concern, but there may be others. Have that report to me before we launch."
Rin then bowed her head quickly to the stern CO's request and dutifully prepared to fall into step with her back into the hallway, although a few feet behind incase any stragglers needed her. "Hai, Captain. I believe we are done here."
Kamatari walked to the higher ranking girl who was hinting at things she did not know and when he was next to her he just simply said "I don't like organics, inorganic things interest me, a old MEGAMI on a ship i have only seen in books interests me to no end, I can see you think I have feelings for the MEGAMI let me be honest on a ship the MEGAMI is the only person I feel comfortable talking to that is it, I don't have that sort of feeling to anyone." With that the red man leaves the wardroom still slightly annoyed at the woman but chose to ignore it, he had work to do in Engineering.
Engineering
Kamatari entered engineering feeling calmer and more at ease with himself, he made a note that who he acted was wrong and would go apologise to Rin later in the day. He spent the next few mintues making sure everything was calibrated and working properly his mind clear of anything else except his work as he smiled eagerly "That should do it, everything is not perfect, well for the time being" he patted the hull and smiled "You are an amazing piece of machinery Heartbreaker."
Wardroom
listening to the replies from the captain and first officer Josva's curiosity was sated, and he felt somewhat proud that people seemed interested in his question and offered him support. Josva sat back in his seat thinking on what Rin had said. "Plenty of opportunities to prove yourself" A small smirk appeared on Josva's face. He couldn't wait to prove himself to the crew, to put some of the doubts to rest and prove that he deserves to be here, You could say that Rin's short speech spurred Josva on.
Shortly after the meeting was dismissed and the mood changed drastically. Everyone grew quiet and serious as they made their way to their stations, Josva just as solemn as the rest of them as he made his way to the hangar. Just outside the hangar doors Josva stopped and took a deep breath to himself before a small smile curled on his lips, this was it.
Wardroom
Kyou nodded to herself, and started out of the room, barely sparing a glance for her fellow infantrymen on her way out. So far as she was concerned, there was no need to ask questions or get into specifics about their goals or missions. Not only would most of that end up changing as they went along, but they were soldiers. Orders were orders, and she'd follow them regardless, it was simple and easy. Plus, she wanted to get a chance to look over and refit her PA; it had been a while since she'd been in actual combat, might as well make sure everything was tweaked to her liking, even if she was out of practice.
As she entered the PA bay of the ship, she mentally queried the ship's computer to make sure none of the armors had been claimed by someone specifically, and picked out one at random once she had. She quickly set about opening up the armor system, mentally running down a checklist of things that she wanted as she worked. With a starbase nearby, odds were good they could get whatever they needed if they didn't already have it, but the sooner she knew everything, the better.
Josva entered the shuttle bay to find himself greeted by silence, the bay was empty save for the shuttle and of course, Josva's Heart of Glass. The whirring of machines gave a little sound easing the strange feeling Josva was having in the shuttle bay. His smile had still not left his face since stepping foot in the shuttle bay, he was excited, his first placement, and it was a big deal too. He even started to sound like broken record to himself. He made his way over to a some crates resting by the way and climbed up on them taking a seat. He looked out over the shuttle bay and began to think of how different things are now. As much as he was excited he knew there were no screw ups here, not like the academy, not like basic, every little action had a consequence, even him kicking his feet up back in his cabin probably set something in motion, whether that was for better or worse remained to be seen. Thinking back on the past again Josva began to wonder how different things would have been had he chosen to remain with his squadron in basic, chosen to become and infantryman.
Yamatai Army Training Facility.
Josva was stood in the mess hall, a more youthful look on his face and a warmer expression to boot. He was stood with several members of his squadron, all of which looking happy and confident. They had just passed basic and were talking about the future. Most of the squad were looking to go the route of the infantryman, others were thinking of become intelligence operatives. "Skirnir, what about you?" Yelled Taigen, a squad-mate of Josva's, a strong commanding figure, she was the leader of the squadron in most of the exercises.
"We already know what Skirnir's doing, he hasn't shut up about it since day one!" Interrupted Watanabi, clearly the loudest of the group, but a talented rifleman. Watanabi was then shoved by one of the other members of the squad.
"Well, Josva?" Taigen said with a soft smile on her face.
"I'm gonna be a pilot" Skirnir said with a soft smile of his own curling to his lips. Josva went on to explain his dream only to be mimicked by his squadmate in a playful manner. Josva soon lost track of himself and laughed before the squad began to say their goodbyes to one another. each of them slowly left, all heading on their way until only Taigen and Josva were left. The two stood in silence politely yet awkwardly smiling at one another.
"I wish i was as confident as you" Taigen said breaking the silence.
"What?" Skirnir said half listening.
"You know, where you are, you know where you're going, i admire that. I wish i had half a clue what i was doing" She said taking a seat on a nearby chair prompting Skirnir to move closer.
"If anybody can figure it out, it's you" Josva said taking a seat next to Taigen "You lead our squad all through basic, we never failed a mission, you were always so sure and so commanding, You'll figure out what you wanna do, and i'm sure, you'll kill it." Josva said smiling at Taigen as the two began to look each other in the eye.
"Flattery will get you everywhere" Taigen smiled, playfully diverting her gaze.
"So i'm told" Josva replied just as playfully.
"I wish the squad would just stay together" Taigen the said, her smile falling from her face. "If it was us going into battle together i would know exactly what to do, i would have you guys at my back." She continued,
"We'll always be at your back, as cheesy as it sounds Taigen the squad might be splitting up but we aren't leaving forever, were still friends and we still have your back. Like i said whatever you do, you'll kill it." Josva then said leaning over to try and get Taigen to look at him. Suddenly she grabbed his face and kissed him, the two grabbed each others waists and pulled each other close, embracing one another. Taigen then pulled away with another soft smile on her face.
"Thank you" She said climbing to her feet. "I'll see you soon" she said as she began to walk away leaving Josva to sit alone with a smile on his face.
YSS Heartbreaker Shuttle Bay
Josva found himself back in the Heartbreaker's shuttle bay and realised that more time had passed than he thought he had already been sat in there for about half an hour. Thinking back on his departure from basic made him think. He knew that everybody was in the same boat as him, scared, excited, nervous. The crew was young and they had to stick together and Josva's attitude thus far had not been a shining example of how to act. He thought to himself how he was going to try and make an effort with the crew, to try and forge a bond with them. They were counting on him and vice versa, they needed to trust one another.
Josva then climbed down from his crates and made his way over to the shuttle. He couldn't think of much to do so he decided to do a systems check on the shuttle, make sure everything was in order. Just to be safe. If anything was to go wrong he would rather be prepared.
Tsukisaki exited, heading for her Suite, pausing at the door long enough to ensure Rin had finished with her orders and admonishments and caught up. Once inside, she placed the handful of data pads on top of her desk. Her bags were still packed and the room crisp and unlived-in, although it was doubtful she had any interest in making it cozy and relaxing.
Rin could hear the door locking behind them. "Take a seat." It wasn't an offer or a question, as the Neko gestured to the only chair in the room. Ignoring her desk and her luggage, the Captain produced a small data stick from somewhere inside her jacket. Apparently it was important enough to keep close at hand.
The First Officer glanced behind her briefly at the sound of the entryway sealing shut. The concerns of the individual crew seemed to ebb from her mind at that trigger, as now it was merely the two of them alone in the cold room. Rin took the seat that was reserved for her silently, straightening up her duty uniform idly and refocusing her ice blue eyes cooly upon the Captain. She tried hard not to show the anticipation that tugged at her heart.
"Everything that I said during the briefing is true. But that was not the whole story." Valesti glanced at the door as well. "Ochiko has very specific orders to keep all private communications between us secure. Despite her...eccentricities, she is loyal, trustworthy and dependable. She will ensure noone is physically, electronically or telepathically eavesdropping."
The tall Neko paced for only a few steps, marking out the small area between that seat and the wall, before turning to face her First Officer. Her frown had deepend, although it seemed more from worry than anger. "Beyond we three, the Royal Family and their military and political advisors, I am unsure how many people are aware of these facts. I hope you understand how serious I am about ensuring that number does not climb even one higher aboard my ship."
Rin nodded slowly as she explained about the MEGAMI's intentions regarding their privacy. "I admit I was concerned about that very fact, due to the nature of Ochiko's core as a veteran system. But from what I have seen so far and your words now, I trust her to respect our wishes."
Hoshitomo-shoi's eyes then followed the Neko's pacing, her worry becoming a palpable pressure in the air as the gravity of the situation quickly became obvious. "This is a very great burden to place upon our shoulders, yet it must be carried by a few for the good of the many of the Empire," mused Rin softly, "I will do all I can to maintain that number." Her eyes then drifted sligthly downward to the Captain's sword belt. "I was decorated once by Taisho Yui herself for my service, and I would not betray that trust. That is likely why I was called upon."
The Captain nodded, thinking back to her earlier work on the station. "Aye. Duty is a heavy burden to bear. Simply dying for Yamatai would be far easier." She seemed pleased that Rin understood, even if her rigidness only relaxed by a hair. And then her hand went to the hilt of that sword, as she straightened up again.
"I would rather die than explain our failure to the Taisho, or Her Imperial Majesty, or any Ketsurui." She shook her head, trying to push past her worries to get back on topic. "As I said before, Star Army sent no ships after Uesu and his fleet. They came to us."
She lifted the data stick with the hand not clenching her sword's hilt. "This contains data concernting sightings of ships that were officially registered as lost with Uesu's Fleet. Within the last year, they have reappeared deep within Yamataian space, close to Yamatai itself." Tsukisaki took in a breath. "Their representitives have contacted the royal family. Uesu himself is believed to be alive and well...and, potentially, still in command of a very large precentage of his forces. In fact, it's entirely possible their numbers have grown." Her expression was grave. "I don't believe I need to detail the possible political implications of the leader of the Uesureyan Star Empire and twice former Emperor of Yamatai returning to known space at the head of a new superpower."
Rin's cool exterior cracked visibly several times as Tsukisaki explained the truth of the situation to her. She opened her mouth in what could only be described as disbelief at the tail end of it. "You mean, all this time... Emperor Uesu survived his seemingly suicidal exile and has possibly built an entirely new Empire in the deep south? And his scouts and envoys are now secretly probing our borders?" She folded her hands in her lap and looked down, her teal hair falling in front of her face. "Captain... then this... this mission is not a rescue, but instead a desperate gamble to prevent a civil war? Or worse."
Valesti's expression was dour. She'd likely gone through the same reactions and conflicting emotions herself. "Yes. Ketsurui Uesu was a great man. Perhaps too great. But much has happened in these last few years. The war, the NMX. Politically...he was not present for the debate surrounding Imperial Decree 20: Imperial Stance of the Rights and Restrictions on the Nekovalkyrja Species, amongst other advances." Of course, she might have more of a stake in such an event than the Minkan.
She tried to remain strong, that stony facade slipping just slightly during the discussion, stepping forward to hand over the data stick. "Even in the best case scenario, his return would bring political upheval. Worst case...civil war might still be an understatement. We'd be talking genocide. The destruction of whole planets. Think of what horrors the Occhestians visited upon their own people." After a short pause to compose herself, Tsukisaki turned to head for the door. "Transfer the data, destroy the device, then take a few moments to gather yourself. I will see you on the bridge." With that, the stern captain left her First Officer to pick up the shattered pieces, obviously not the comforting, maternal type.
Rin lifted her head back up high, though remained sitting in the chair still a bit shell shocked by what had just transpired in the moments prior. She admirably mustered the courage to formally thank her superior with a "Hai, Tsusaki-Taii," though to the Captain's ear it was noticeably lacking the unwavering crispness that was Rin's hallmark. She was soon left alone in the room with little solace from the towering Neko, staring at the tiny encrypted data stick for what to her seemed like an eternity. "Father..." mumbled the Minkan to herself in reverie, "You always said that Uesu would be back someday. That he never abandoned the Geshrin, it was us who forced him out. He would come once again to exact revenge, or lead us into a new golden age. I laughed once at your misguided loyalty when I was a youth... but now, as much as I hate to admit it... you may be right in the end."
Hoshitomo-shoi clenched a fist around the device and arose with a touch of long-suppressed emotion from the past, and turned to the door that opened before her. It seemed this ship would truly be living up to the name "Heartbreaker" after all.
Miho found herself on the bridge before the captain and her roommate, somehow, but thought nothing of it. She made good of the time by placing her requisition order, making sure that the things she selected would hopefully last the duration of the mission. Then, she dug deep into her behemoth of a database - at least, the non-highly classified stuff - and compiled the report that was requested of her. Though, at the end of the first page was a summary to keep things simple.
It read, "There seems to be very little activity overall. There is some NMX presence in the systems we're traveling through, but should be negligible for the most part until we start pushing the frontier. I expect we'll be relatively safe for our first few stops, although the situation is always subject to variables and change. Otherwise, average frontier space-level civilian and military presence at start."
Keep things simple and results will follow. That was a lesson that Miho needed to consistently remind herself.
"Captain on the Bridge!" The Neko manning the Systems station was the quickest to spot the door opening, rising to her feet along with another working the Science station. Tsukisaki seemed to have recovered her stoic expression, pushing away concerns about the far away future to deal with the here and now. "As you were." The pair of Neko returned to their seats and continued to prepare the Heartbreaker for its inaugural launch, once the Ikoi was in position.
Securing her sheathed sword in the inconspicuous holster attached to the side of her chair, the Taii settled into the seat at the center of the room. "Nito Hei, contact the Seisenkyo and confirm we are on schedule. Prepare for coordination of the undocking procedure once we reach our destination." She turned to address the Mini at the Communications station, nodding to her before focusing her attention on the console in front of her. Noticing the requisition order awaiting approval, she looked over the list of items before passing it on to the Ikoi's Logistics department. The mobile Starbase could store far more than the Yui, and would be able to fill the request before they separated.
Engineering
"Mou, Kama-chan~ You were so rude to Rin-chan, yes?" The reprimand was punctuated by a firm bap to the head by the MEGAMI's volumetric fan. Ochiko tsked down at the tall Minkan, appearing this time with several more cushions stacked up specifically to loom over him during her admonishment. "You certainly can't protect me if you're reassigned, yes?" She grinned, teasing the socially awkward Santo Hei.
"Nakane-Hei, status report. Are all propulsion systems online and ready for our departure? We will be executing an immediate fold to UX-29 once we are a safe distance from the Seisenkyo. I will not excuse any delays." As the Captain's voice piped up from Kamatari's Engineering console, the MEGAMI's projection vanished as suddenly as it had appeared, leaving the crew member to his work.
PA Bay/Launch Deck
"Matonaka-Heisho, prepare the Infantry for launch after we make the jump to UX-29. Baek-Hei, Gunshin-Hei and yourself will be escorting us into the system. Skirnir-Hei, you will launch your fighter to accompany them. Consider yourself under the Heisho's command unless you are required to coordinate piloting maneuvers with Hoshitomo-Shoi." Next her voice emanated from speakers in the Power Armor Bay and the cockpit of the Heart of Glass, before Valesti leaned back in her chair, expecting the return of her First Officer at any moment, the Operations chair awaiting her.
Normally, Hoshitomo Rin would not even allow herself to be even one moment late to such a momentous event as the launching of one of the most unique ship's in Star Army's history. Then again, she had never had to do something like what the Captain entrusted her to do. To take on the actual encrypted classified ship roster information download happened in an instant into the Minkan body's computerized brain, and so too was it nary a moment to properly "zeroize" and destroy the data stick. But, having this foreign knowledge felt as though someone just added the wight of the planet Yamatai itself to her shoulders. She knew they were strong enough to carry it -- yes, they had to be for this assignment -- yet, under all the high tech biology of her Minkan body her human soul was troubled deeply. A perhaps overly simplistic faith in the Empire had been shaken to its core... and the fact she couldn't immediately put her emotions back in their mental box in a moment or two perhaps worried her more.
As she approached the door to the bridge where the Captain and the rest had already taken up their stations, the Shoi took a deep breath and paused right before tripping it open. In that moment, Rin finally understood why Tsukisaki wore the nearly constant scowl she did all the time... it was the only way she could cope with these feelings, and keep people distant so they actually could be shielded from the dangerous knowledge that could upset their entire paradigms. Could she do the same, though? Despite her reputation as an ice queen amongst others, Rin did not want to shut herself out completely. There was a job to do, and as XO she was the lifeline of the Captain to the crew. She had to find the strength to remain approachable, yet keep her solemn oath to never speak of these sensitive details again outside of that room. She knew how to wall off her heart of hearts... after all her father Yoshi had trained her in that all too well. It was about to be tested, as the entire crew of this vessel soon shall be by the unforgiving blackness of the heart of the frontier. She wasn't sure what she would do if they actually met Uesu... but for her sanity's sake, she hoped it was a distant ghost yet to chase.
Bridge
Not tolerating any further thinking of such dark matters, the Minkan pushed herself forward onto the bridge proper, the door swishing open to announce her arrival. Her face was paler than before, and now a mask of businesslike seriousness that seemed more forced and artificial than her usual cool exterior, though only the Captain knew the real reason behind it. She gave a deep bow, "I apologize for the delay, Tsukisaki-taii, but I have done as you have requested," she stated matter-of-factly to the statuesque Nekovalkyrja sitting in the command chair. As Hoshitomo-shoi straightened up after speaking, her gaze drifted to the hilt of that sword again for the briefest of moments, before the ice blue eyes met those of the Captain. Tsukisaki could see through them like a window that her First Officer was not going to back down from the challenge ahead, even after all she had to endure.
The Shoi walked a semi circle around the bridge greeting every one of the Neko's present, stopping particularly at Miho's station to receive the report. Especially right now, the Mini-Neko's brevity in her writing was a welcome sight. "Thank you, Nakamaru-hei. I appreciate your thorough work in preparing this so promptly. I will be counting on you," she spoke in what seemed like genuine praise to the soldier, before continuing onward to the front of the bridge.
Hoshitomo-shoi then took the empty seat at the helm, and settling into the cushions it seemed a far cry from the hotseat she was placed on in the Captain's Suite only a short time ago. This time, she was now in control of things, a comforting, familiar feeling that started to push the shadows away from her eyes. The SPINE connections in her back began to unconsciously seek the terminals in the chair, and once the connection was established, what remained of her doubts was washed away by a flood of information and energetic pulse of the Heartbreaker itself. This was the first time she had done this outside of training simulators, and considering her old Yamataiian body did not have this feature, it was understandably sudden. But, right now, it was perhaps the best therapy possible... and as she tried to make sense of the sensations to prepare for takeoff, a little voice in her head of her mother Masako whispering:
"The birds do not worry, they just spread their wings and fly. It is their nature, they know nothing else. Be like those birds. Hear the sky and stars calling to you. The lost wants to be found... let go, and find it."
"Connection established. Preparing to initiate undocking procedures at your signal," Rin announced, as her hands moved across the control panel in a trance, following her operator's training to ensure the ship was at CFS system readiness for its maiden voyage, and all navigational trajectories for travel beyond the Ikoi's protective embrace set once they arrived at UX-29. The MEGAMI of the ship could also feel the teal-haired woman's presence via the SPINE linkup as she probed and tweaked into more technical areas of concern, sending the AI a simple request as she worked: "Ochiko, we are going to find him, together. Then I will know what to do."
"Understood!" Baek-hei responded to the Taii's orders.
Standing in front of her M6-2A Daisy, SeonJi spooled up her hair behind her head and slid a clip in, keeping it secure for suiting up before her imminent launch. She had grown quite attached to the hardware during the events on HX-13, and it was too bad, she figured, that it likely wouldn't get as much use on this assignment unless they really planned to touch down on every piece of atmosphere from UX-29 to wherever they were going to end up. Still, it wasn't like the M2-3A wasn't a terrible machine. Space combat could be interesting in its own way, though SeonJi did far prefer the more intimate contact that ground assaults had with ground, cover, and the enemy.
"Matonaka-Heisho," the red-eyed Neko addressed her team leader for this mission, "All Mindys for the escort, correct?" The Shoi had mentioned-- conducting investigations, and what if there was a Mishhu ship lying in wait? They had supposedly fled the system, right? But what if it was a ruse? And what if we need someone to assault the vessel? And wouldn't it be better to have specialized hardware ready!? SeonJi's imagination was starting to run a little while and she smiled thinking about the outlandish scenario she had concocted, biting her bottom lip gently.
But, that was all a fantasy. It had been a while since she'd been involved in a real engagement and her eagerness to get back into the heat of things even surprised SeonJi herself. Likely, the arrival at UX-29 would be uneventful and they would move on. Space was large and by far Space was empty.
She stepped over to the nearby M2-3A, ready to board it as soon as the Heisho gave the clear, and unclasped the belt on her Type-22 uniform. Using the nearby storage bin to keep the sundry bits safe for the mission, SeonJi stripped off the Type 35 jacket she'd been wearing over the bodysuit and then her boots as well. The older Mindys had required the pilots be completely nude, but this model only required a SPINE or helmet interface. Though SeonJi was a bit-- cautious of non-Nekovalkyrja PA pilots who could only use the helmet.
Looking over to Gunshin-Hei who she had run into before the briefing, SeonJi asked, "Do you have a preference? Between the two suits I mean."
Yumi followed her orders and headed to the PA Launch Deck and once there listened to the captains orders to prepare people for deployment as soon as they came out of jump. "Hai, Valseti-Taii." She replied in due retinue. She considered her options, she had two at the moment, the Daisy's or the Mindy's. Both had their pro's and con's in a situation such as this, however her thoughts were broken when she was approached by SeonJi, she slowly looked towards her red eyes studying her for a moment before nodding. "Aye, Mindy's for the escort. Everyone go over your diagnostics and make sure your mindy's are in tip-top shape." She steps over to her own personal Mindy and began diagnostic checks and such, making sure she had all her stuff in order before going around and double checking all the lower ranked and newbies diagnostics and ammo capacity.
"Alright Ladies, and...Man." She addressed them. "Our goal is to ensure that our escort mission is a success. That means no mindless chatter, no distractions. I don't want the ship or any of our infantry to receive any fatalities. If any of you receive a fatal blow and die, I will -personally- claw my way down to hell and drag your sorry asses back to the duty you need to fulfill. Do I make myself clear!" She called out to the group of Neko's, and single pilot. Despite her slightly heated voice, it was clear that there was some care for her squadron in there. She moved back over to her Mindy and looked up at it before stripping down to her birthday suit. She was used to the older Mindy's, and further more she felt that being nude in the Mindy brought little inhibitions. She would become one easier with the suit and this made her more comfortable. She climbed into the Mindy, and got situated within the suit before checking her interfaces, raising her rifle to eye level, and then looking through the scope.
She took a deep breath and was more than happy to note that she had successfully done her diagnostics run. She turned and looked towards the others as she waited for them to get into their suits. She wondered idly how this new group of soldiers she was in command of would fair against the oncoming dangers. They were nekovalkjyria, well lacking the pilot, she held them all in high expectation.
Kyou shook her head slightly, an almost jerky tinge to the motion. "No, I'm... I'm more familiar with the Mindy, but that was a long time ago. I can use either with no problems, though." Despite the hesitancy in her voice, her hands moved with the assured grace of much practice, opening up the armor quickly, and running through various quick, small checks of the joints and meshing points of the armor. With just a slight hesitation, she then stripped down, and climbed into the armor, checking her seals and joints again after everything had resealed itself. She took a deep breath, and then put on the helmet, re-sealing the armor entirely, then activated all of her suit's systems one by one, doublechecking each one for errors as it came up.
"Understood!" the Miyamae Neko responded to the Heisho.
Mindy it was, then! SeonJi reached out for the M2-3A's helmet and removed it from the suit, using her radio telepathy to communicate with the suit's IES and begin preliminary boarding procedures as the body of the powered armor unfolded before her like a metallic flower. "Most of my sorties have been in the Daisy," she explained to Gunshin-Hei, "So I've little practical combat experience in one of these." As she stepped into the legs of the suit SeonJi added jokingly, "I did pilot an NMX Battlepod once," referring to her first descent onto HX-13.
Glancing at the red-skinned NH-33 leading the team as the powered armor folded back up around SeonJi, she had the IES do a diagnostics run on all systems through the SPINE interface on her back once it had connected. Radio telepathy was good and all, but she wanted to do at least one run through via a direct link just in case. The Heisho seemed firm, and Gunshin-Hei was very professional as well. It was a very cozy feeling for SeonJi, being part of a small Nekovalkyrja task force like this right from the get-go.
Well, there was also the Nepleslian pilot sitting atop some crates with a huge grin on his face. He was sort of an outsider in more ways than just his nationality, SeonJi figured.
As the captain''s voice echoed through the shuttle bay entered the shuttle bay the mood grew deathly serious, the first operation was underway and Skirnir needed to get to work. "Skirnir-Hei, you will launch your fighter to accompany them. Consider yourself under the Heisho's command unless you are required to coordinate piloting maneuvers with Hoshitomo-Shoi." The captain said over the booming PA
Josva began to get ready, He quickly pulled on his flight suit and made his way to the Heisho. His determination to shake of the poor impression he had made earlier at the fore front of his mind. The officer gave a show of dominance, a speech to both put the crew in their place and rouse them before the coming operation. Josva was the sole Nepleslian amongst these people, the rest were all Nekos, a seemingly good bunch, but it meant there was no room for error on Josva's part he needed to bring his A-game. After the speech the rest of the crew ran to get their kit on, something Skirnir had already done, but as he saw people climbing into suits he noticed the Heisho stripping naked before climbing into her Mindy. Josva averted his gaze, he was a confident man in control of himself but such a sight shocked him for a moment. He resolved to immediately make his way to fighter.
Climbing into the cockpit of the Teisatsu, Josva felt a rush of excitement run through his body it had been too long since he had been in the cockpit of a ship. It had in fact only been a few short weeks but those weeks felt like an eternity to somebody like Josva who lived for flying. After a brief systems check he was ready to go. He flicked a switch opening comms between himself, the shuttle and the Heisho. "Heart of Glass ready to launch" Skirnir declared in a friendly yet professional tone. "let's get to work ladies"
Kamatari nodded to the MEGAMI "Yes I was..... I need to apologise, when the ship is in space I will go and apologise, as best as I can, okay Ochiko?" he sighs and looked down "I am not really comfortable around others so I never know what to do." He made his way to the console to respond "Yes Captain, Heartbreaker is ready to go, I will stay her and make sure nothing goes wrong while we take off."
SeonJi couldn't help but grin as she watched the Nepleslian pilot's gaze when he passed by. Something about how he seemed to completely disregard the equally naked form of Gunshin-Hei and focused on that of their communal commanding office. Do you think it's her rank, or her newer model body? the Miyamae Neko joked with Kyou over radio-telepathy, leaving the Heisho's more obvious physical difference unsaid.
Her suit's diagnostic check seemed to be going okay. SeonJi noted that her feet felt much heavier in the Mindy compared to the Daisy, and the movement of the pulse cannons on her back felt like she had a pair of wings on her shoulders. Aether shooting death wings. Noting the missile capacity of leg pods, she idly wondered if a shoulder unit would've been a better choice. After all she was going to have plenty of ranged power gripped in her hands. Thinking about it, she picked up and double checked her W2913 submachine gun. SeonJi mentally compared it to her favorite gun, the Type-35 AGL which was stored alongside her Daisy. Similar to the difference between her powered armors SeonJi far preferred the grenade launcher. However, for a mission out in the empty vacuum of space the AGL wouldn't be nearly as useful as the SMG.
The red skinned Neko was none the wiser to the talk and ogling of her body, while she wasn't ashamed of her ample body and beautiful features, she had a different focus at that moment. In particular, she was mentally preparing herself for the fight that was sure to be ahead. She began the diagnostic check of her weapon, particularly her weapon of choice was the Ke-M2-2901 Aether Beam Rifle when in a Mindy, it was a bit different then the Sniper Rifle she used in her Daisy... but it wasn't unfamiliar. She raised the gun up to check the sight, and then lowered it with a sigh of pleasure. She then looked around the hangar for the moment, making sure everyone was doing what the should be doing. She was particularly impressed with how on the spot Skirnir was, of course he was Nepleslian, and while they were most definitely brutes with the lowest amount of brain power in existence they were very effective in means of warfare.
Without giving away how she felt on that subject she smirked behind her armor before confirming with Skirnir. "Roger that, Heart of glass..." Snicker, such a funny code name, but a decent code name none the less. "Gunshin-Hei, SeonJi-Hei, Report in. Any issues with diagnostic checks, or anything of the like?" She wanted to make absolutely sure that there was nothing that was going to go wrong when they got out there. She has witnessed death before, she was not a very big fan of her allies dying... Especially young Neko like SeonJi. Though, if she was completely honest, she trusted in Gunshin and Seonji, and even this Heart of Glass, to do what they were supposed to do and make sure they themselves as well as their team-mates don't die. She was more worried, however, about the unknown and what may happen in the future that they can't perceive...
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