RP: YSS Eucharis [Mission 11.1] The Torchbearers

Re: [Mission 11] The Torchbearers

Eucharis Bridge

"Suggestion on that subject, Taisa." Helen spoke as she thought over the topic. "To be entirely honest, I think we are taking the wrong approach to this Lorath situation. What happens, is that we keep tip-toeing around them... to them, that appears subversive, sneaky, deceitful. To better approach them, and through them the people of the United Outer Colonies, would be if you were to personally show your presence on the prospective battlefield, while also attempting to win the hearts and minds of the locals... that would at least cause them to refrain from outright shooting at us the moment we show up. So long as we don't shoot at them in the process. Well... at least that is what I suspect from my knowledge of them as a people, and much the same goes for the Jiyuuian population of the United Outer Colonies, Taisa."

Re: [Mission 11] The Torchbearers

This seemed to be concurrent with Michael's current spat of luck. Being assigned to the YSS Eucharis, that was something he could deal with. The ship had a good record, and seemed to be lucky. Even so, Michael had quickly been informed that the Eucharis itself was about to leave port. It was so close to leaving port, infact, th-

"Oh Goddammit They've already started to retract the gangway!" The Caelisolan cursed, as he sped up, breaking out into a run, hoping to time it right as he leaped off the end of the gangway, giving his wings a flap to push him through the air, barely making it through the rapidly closing door.

Barely

Michael rolled to a stop, the tips of his wings barely clearing the door, and even then, the Caelisolan felt as though he had lost a feather or two. Standing up, Michael looked around, getting his bearings on exactly where he was on the ship.

Re: [Mission 11] The Torchbearers

Main Passageway

A blue-haired engineer with a Chui rank pin helped Michael up.

"You are a little late, but at least you are not AWOL," Blueberry told the Elysian. "Go ahead and get settled in and find the other infantry troops in the cargo bay. We will be doing a probe retrieval soon."

- - -

The Eucharis moved out of the stardock and into open space where it joined the other ships of Task Force Torch.

Re: [Mission 11] The Torchbearers

Engineering

Takeyu had just entered engineering, putting his pad back into his pocket and taking a seat at his station. He ran a diagnostic and saw that one had already been performed, he stopped and undid the command then checked all available systems. "Everything seem's green," he said without looking around. "All systems show clear," he checked more status systems and nodded.

"Chusa?" Takeyu turned in his seat. "Is it alright if I can ask you a question after we leave dock and enter foldspace?"

Re: [Mission 11] The Torchbearers

Eucharis Bridge

Sune took the Science station and routed his diagnostics to there. All systems were showing green with regards to his responsible systems.

Seeing that Helen had joined them on the bridge, he paused before responding. "Taisa, our guest's suggestion has some merit. But for the time being I would say the decision about who should lead an away team should be decided based on information available at the time. Flexibility is our best asset at this time."

Re: [Mission 11] The Torchbearers

Mikael filed out of the wardroom along with the rest of the crew. Once he was outside of the room, he slid out of the way for the rest until Kiko had emerged. He then proceeded to walk with her. "Inoue-Hei, meet me in the Cargo Bay in 10 minutes. It's the only place around here we will be out of the way of the rest of the crew. Not to mention I am sure it could use a little cleaning." he said smirking a bit.

With that he proceeded straight to the Cargo Bay. Once he arrived, he squatted down besides a container and waited for Kiko.

Re: [Mission 11] The Torchbearers

Michael bolted upright as the Chui, Blueberry, helped him up, his initial reaction to salute her fought down by trained regulation that led to him bowing to her.

"Understood, Ma'am." The Caelisolan said curtly, and, after a bit of difficulty, entered his assigned cabin, though he was surprised by what he found there.

"That is... My roommate seems to like the color pink. Guess that means I'm with a girl." Stretching out a bit, Michael dropped his duffel bag on what he presumed was his bed before turning to leave, eventually finding his way down to the Cargo Bay.


But first, He had to make a brief stop over in the Powered Armor bay in order to suit up. Standing in front of the Hikael assigned to him, the Caelisolan couldn't help but smile. Unlike the Anthedon, the Hikael was a much more rounded suit, capable of dominating in Melee. And unlike the Mindies used by his new team, the Hikael was far less modular. But that suited Michael, just fine. He was no newcomer to using the Hikael, so donning the PA was like stepping into a second skin for him.

Re: [Mission 11] The Torchbearers

Deep in thought over the upcoming operation, Mikael barely registered the tall Elysian into the cargo bay. But when he did, he simply remained in his low position and just simply started to study him.

Infantry panels....check. Human with wings, obviously Elysian...man I miss having that chain gun... Mikael thought to himself. But who the heck is he?

Re: [Mission 11] The Torchbearers

Eucharis Bridge

"We have 36 ships total in the Task Force," Hanako told Sune and Helen, "of which 30 are from the First Expeditionary Fleet and 6 from the Second Expeditionary Fleet. 35 of the ships are warships and the remaining one is a mobile farm, sent for humanitarian reasons. The task force consists of 1 battleship, 1 carrier, 4 heavy cruisers, 3 escorts, 15 gunships, 10 scouts, a science vessel, and the farm/supply ship. The scouts and gunships will fold first and scan the destination area, and then the big ships will arrive follow. We will assist any Lorath or UOC ships in combat with the Mishhuvurthyar. I do not think stopping at Lor would be prudent, though."

With a few commands, Hanako plotted the Task Force's first destination, the former SMX depot system of Bizankro. The ships jumped together with flashes of sparkling teal.

Re: [Mission 11] The Torchbearers

Kiko was present for the briefing, not that anybody would have noticed without paying close attention. She managed to look stoically silent, but the truth was that she was too intimidated to speak. It was just as well; the only ideas she had that weren't spoken for by others were along the lines of killing all Lorath attackers and not reporting the engagement in order to prevent a war, and that probably wouldn't have gone over very well.

She nodded to acknowledge Mikael's invitation and split off from his path. After perhaps half a minute, she sent a telepathic message asking "Would you mind terribly if I meet you earlier than you requested, Harris-hei? I don't know what else to do." If Mikael didn't express some objection to her presence before 10 minutes were up, she went to the cargo bay herself and took a position on the other side of the crate from him.

Re: [Mission 11] The Torchbearers

Engineering

"That's fine, Nayacesen-Heisho. If you need to talk to me about anything, go right ahead." Yaichiro said, not a big stickler for pushing his rank around. Perhaps that was a reason he wasn't as rushed to command his own ship or Battlegroup again. Still, it was his job to note the soldier's tardiness.

"It might be safer to be a bit more timely in the future though. Not only do we have to be on guard by default, but our performance is being observed by dozens of ships and a SAINT Officer. At least you're not as late as the others, though...hopefully they're at least busy with something." Yaichiro said, noting the lack of other personnel.

Re: [Mission 11] The Torchbearers

Engineering

Takeyu blinked and glanced away and at the far wall, he wasn't aware he had been late. Rubbing the back of his neck nervously, he said. "I.. wasn't aware I was late, I'll make up for that," he then turned his attention to his station and started monitoring power feeds to the various systems, including the hyperdrive.

After a few moments, he turned toward Yaichiro, "During our last mission we couldn't use power armor, the Aetheric Generators onboard and the NMX's ability to detect Aetheric Energy, would've proved to be a fatal combination. So I've been trying to figure out some way for the Mindy armor to be used without them needing to have its generators online," he stopped and turned his attention back to his console for a moment. "I've tried seeing if a large battery pack could work, but it's inefficient and would be depleted quickly depending on what the pilot is doing," he sighed. "I'm afraid I've hit a road block, and can't figure out a possible solution, I... don't suppose you have any ideas?" he then turned back toward Yaichiro.

Re: [Mission 11] The Torchbearers

Bridge

Sune pulled up the specifications for the ships in the task force. Six of the of them were designs that had not even existed when he enlisted two years ago. Also they were combining forces from two different fleets.

He wanted to familiarize himself with their capabilities, there was no telling what they were going to encounter, and being aware of how each ship could operate might be of benefit.

While the data was transferring to his Isolated Computer Pad, he considered Hanako's question prior to their departure. They were going into a region of space with two different forces that at least three of the senior officers were infinitely more qualified. Weighing the factors he came to a simple conclusion.

He turned his chair around to face Hanako, "Taisa, after due consideration about the Away Team situation, potential encounters, the experience of more senior officers, and how things turned out the last time I had to deal with the Lorath.

I respectfully recommend that any away teams should be lead by yourself, Kage-Chusa, or Klein-Shosa. Especially since it is most likely that we need multiple teams.

The three of you are all more familiar with the Lorath and the UOC, I will remain here on the Eucharis and man the bridge. I believe my skills as Science Officer will be of more benefit here." he said.

Re: [Mission 11] The Torchbearers

Engineering

"...I've actually pondering the exact same issue." Yaichiro confessed, debating if he should reveal it. It was a Project THOUGHT element, but it wasn't a critical piece of technology.

"I believe a nuclear fusion reactor combined with a high density capacitor could be reasonably effective. The Daisy's detachable fusion-based propulsion system provides a full day's worth of output at full speed, and is an attractive prospect for modification into a supplemental power source...its output can even be throttled down.

If you use it to charge something based on the Daisy's Ke-M2-G3001 Leg Capacitors or the Teleportation Module capacitors from our own Mindies, that's more beneficial. Nuclear reactors are less detectable than Aether, but still put out heat and infrared, so it's good to have a readily charged capacitor ready for stealth operations alongside a throttled nuclear reactor.

At best we'd shield them with thin layers of Zesuaium and Xiulurium to prevent detection further, but if it's a field fix, we can use some centimeters of water around the reactor or have the pilots jump into a body of water to recharge their capacitors if they're that close to being detected by the enemy.

We may also want to explore using some non energy-based weapon options for more efficient use of power planetside. We should have some 50mm Gauss Cannons and the like available for our Mindies."

Re: [Mission 11] The Torchbearers

Mikael made a nod towards Kiko when she arrived in the Cargo Bay. "Well now that we are all here. Tell me, are you trained as space or planetary infantry?" Mikael asked from his low position to the ground. He only made slight shiftings of his weight.

Re: [Mission 11] The Torchbearers

Engineering

Takeyu tapped his lower chin thoughtfully. "A fusion generator... huh... wonder why I didn't think of that," he glanced toward the wall, his face was a bit red from embarassed.

He pondered the new idea. "Hmmm," he looked back at the screen with the power systems information scrolling on it. "So I should take the Daisy's thruster module and just remove the fusion generator, and modify it from there?" he asked but then quickly added. "Would the Taisa even allow me to modify one of the Daisy's modules like that, or do we by chance have the materials onhand to fabricate it?"

Re: [Mission 11] The Torchbearers

Cargo Bay

"I can perform in either," Kiko said, bending her knees to pick up a crate. "Why do you ask?"

Re: [Mission 11] The Torchbearers

Bridge, YSS Eucharis, Bizankro System

Hanako maneuvered the gunship way from the formation of ships and closer to the Chibi-Megami probe that had been watching the area for the last four years. A pair of starfighters from the carrier followed. One of them had a special towing system installed.

The Taisa got on the intercom. "Armor team prepare for deployment. In this operation you are assigned to secure the probe to the to line carried by the starfighter and bring the probe to the task force's science vessel, where you will help unload it. After that you will return to Eucharis by shuttle."

Next, Hanako synchronized speed with the probe and lined the ship up so that the probe was visible from one of the power armor bay's large doorways. It was cylindrical in shape, made to be launched from a torpedo tube. There were a number of attachment points around the nose but also a number of sensors to avoid touching.

Re: [Mission 11] The Torchbearers

Michael was, of course, about to but into the conversation between Kiko and Mikael, but the captain's announcement put a cap on that. Donning the Hopilite-Armor themed helmet of his Hikael, Michael went through all of required checks, making sure that the seal was airtight and all of his sensors worked.

Turning to the two grunts who shared the cargo bay with him, Michael looked them both over. One was a Nito Hei, and looked to be about four years younger than himself. From his facial features and posture, along with his way of talking, It was obvious that he was Nepleslian born. The other infantryman was obviously a neko, slightly more muscular than the average. Possibly a second generation instead of factory born. Hopefully, if this mission went south, both of them had some combat experience. Regardless, those two were his team now.

"Alright you two. You heard the Taisa. Check your armor's systems, I don't want to have to haul anything else other than that probe today. Before either of you ask who I am, I'll let you know. I've been transferred in from the Tenth fleet to the Eucharis as Infantry, and in the process I was busted down to Santo Hei despite five years of service in the Elysian Celestial Navy. So I'll let you know, I don't expect to taste defeat at the hands of the NMX, because help me lord I will personally kick the ass of every damn squiddie we see, and I hope that you both feel the same way. That is why I transferred to the Eucharis, I heard that she was the Fightingest ship in the entire Star Army."

Re: [Mission 11] The Torchbearers

"To the power armor bay" Mikael said to Kiko and he ran as physically fast as he could to the main lift. He could most likely be heard cursing every word in the Neslepian and Yamataian languages once he was in the lift and after waiting for what seemed like an eternity to him, he bolted down the passageway.

He nearly slid past the doors to the Power Armor Bay in an attempt to slow down. He quickly opened the doors and proceeded towards one of the stored Daisy Armors. He donned it as safely and quickly as he could. He wasn't sure if the Taisa had ordered M16-Bs or not, but from the outside it looked like one.

He proceeded to do a systems check once he was fully in and his helmet on. "Inoue-Hei radio check." Mikael said testing his suit's communication.