RP: YSS Eucharis [Mission 18.2] Into The Night

[Gabriel]

Wardroom

After finishing eating, Ramiro quietly brought his dishes over to the proper area and deposited them before making his way out of the room. He proceeded down to the crew cabins, ignoring the rest of the lounge, and entered his own cabin. Pacing back and forth he muttered to himself before stopping and slamming his fist into the wall.

"Damn it!" He shouted as his eyes began to tear. Straightening up, he tightened his expression and wiped his eyes. "A soldier doesn't cry Ramiro, remember? That's what your bastard of a father used to tell you. A soldier doesn't cry Ramiro."

His face dropped to face the ground. He paused for a moment before he spoke, barely audible, "It's not fair." He exited the room.

Bridge

Ramiro came walking into the bridge, his expression still sullen and his shoulders hunched.

"Blackberry-Shoi, would you remind if I relieve you?"

"Not at all!" She responded as she got up. "Are you alright Ramiro."

"Fine," he said with a sigh. "I just need some time with myself, my station, and Charisma."

"I know the feeling," she said with a smile. "An operator has no greater friend than his MEGAMI. I'll leave you alone." She left the room.

"Thanks," he said with a forced smile before dropping into his seat, bringing a hand up to massage his brow. "Charisma, how long have we been together?"

"1086 days, excluding when you were at Fort Ready."

"A thousand days," he said quietly. "So you would tell me if I was being an ass right?"

"Of course I would."

"Was I being an ass?"

"You were being an ass Ramiro."

Ramiro sighed as he brought both hands to face and rubbed his temples.

"I mean, I have a right to be upset though, right? Sune and I stepped foot on this ship together, bunked together. We were best pals, and he doesn't even think to tell me the most basic details of his life anymore. How was I suppose to react to something like that, finding out that he relations with Cherry and is now seeking relations with Hanako."

"Ramiro..." Charisma replied with tone of warning.

"And for the matter, why should I be surprised? He's always been the favorite. When I leave for Fort Ready I don't get so much as a goodbye, he leaves for an assignment that she asked him to go on and she goes out of her way to see him off, give him a sappy goodbye, and loses herself when she has the opportunity to see him again."

"Are you jealous of Ketsurui-Shosho's affection for him?"

"You know the answer to that Charisma, so don't think to patronize me. It's way beyond her playing favorites with him, it's her doing the opposite thereof with me. Takeyu has spent fewer days on this ship than I, yet he has outranked me since the day that I returned, and outranked me by far. A year goes by with me on the ship, I'm advanced no further than a starting Heisho, another year goes by without me and Sune is an officer, Takeyu is an officer, several recruits there less thank six months outrank me."

"Ramiro, you've told me yourself that you wouldn't accept Shoi even if it was offered to you."

"I know that, but it's the principle of the matter. She could at least ask. Even after Sune and Helen were gone and she wasn't sure what the officer situation was going to be on the bridge, for all I know I wasn't even considered. But if it had been Sune in my position she would have jumped at the opportunity to reward him, because everyone loves Sune. Most of the people on this crew don't even exchange words with me. I've spent leaves doing nothing but following Hanako around to protect her because I care for her like I would my own sister.

"You don't have a sister Ramiro."

"Exactly!" At this point Ramiro stood and started pacing the bridge. "But it's just like back home with my bloody father. He didn't give two shits what I wanted, I lived on my own, for years, not even an adult yet, because being cold, miserable, and near-death under a tree was better than living under his roof. I don't kniw why I even bother getting upset though, it's not like I shouldn't be used to it! Besideds, nobody around here even notices." He sighed and dropped his shoulders, lowering his head to stand at the ground. "Nobody... It's just not fair Charisma."

"Ramiro, you know I care. We've worked together a long time and I've gotten to know you well. You are a good man who has lived a hard life, but one day you too will have your day in the sun, you too will find love, and you too will finally have a place to call home."

"But I do have a place to call home. It's right here, but sometimes it feels just like my old home, I want to be here but nobody else wants me here."

"I want you here, and that should be enough."

"I know, thank you Charisma."

"You are very welcome little one."

Smiling a little, Ramiro set himself back into his seat and laid back, just monitoring the data going through his system.

 

[Wes]

Airlock

In the airlock was Ketsurui Hanako, an admiral, senator, and celebrity known for exploration and having a planet named after her. The Shôshô (Rear Admiral) was a woman of small stature, standing 152 cm and weighing a mere 41 kilograms. She had back-length teal hair and big, expressive eyes of shiny gold.

"Thank you, Hei. Welcome aboard the Eucharis," Hanako greeted the two new crew members. "It pleases me to meet you both. The lounge and crew cabins are on this deck directly across the main zero-G passage. Cabin 5 is available so you can be roommates in it. We are on the night shift so feel free to rest up. Fourth meal is available in the wardroom if you are hungry. I will see you both in the morning. Do you have any questions?"

The outer door hissed shut behind Conrad and Egil and the locking and mechanism made a loud "CLUNK" noise, followed by more hissing and the hydraulic noise of the tube being retracted. The inner door opened to reveal the ship's interior, which had padded white walls and red carpeting, and standard gravity throughout, except for the large vertical main passage.

 

[Reynolds]

Wardroom

"I don't know why she said those things." Mitsuko shook her head. "...but, um...I have learned that, sometimes, she acts before thinking..." She let out a sigh, quietly finishing her meal.

Cabin 4

While crew members were being transferred, Murakami returned to her cabin. Even if her roommate was there, she wasn't sure she had the strength for another odd conversation today. It had been a long day for the young Neko, and she needed some time to recharge and clear her mind. Hopefully everything would make more sense in the morning.

 

[Emblem]

Airlock

Following the motions of his fellow Hei, Conrad made a deep bow for his new boss, the Shôshô. The gesture felt odd and he felt more secure with a salute, seeing how his current greeting looked more as if he was protecting her from rain, or perhaps providing shadow, then a proper greeting. Then again, it is standard procedure upon boarding which he had to adhere to.

Conrad was silent for the duration, but couldn't resist the urge to use this one moment of asking. He had heard there was a store and would buy himself a stack or cards (or two) when able to, but one thing remained wandering in his mind. He wouldn't want to wait until the next shift to find out.

''Shôshô-sama, I have one small question. What is the estimated length and width of this ship's maintenance tunnels and shafts? The YSS Firebird's hatches already gave me enough trouble.''

Seeing he was going to serve as one of this impressive ship's mechanics, Conrad worried about the 'how' more then the 'what'. He wished to talk to a senior mechanic about this, but could not let this go until tomorrow. He'd grab another bite in the wardroom (for both nutrition and ship exploration) then proceed to Cabin 5.

 

[Riko]

PA Bay

(A little more than halfway through night shift)

Bors sat shirtless in a chair looking out on the orange gas giant looming outside of the force field wall. He was having nightmares again, though he should say nightmare because it was always the same. Bors took a long drag from his Ecig, letting the blue smoke cast eerie shadows in the orange lit room. The Nepleslian soldier starred out at the orange ball of gas, admiring the shapes that its atmosphere was forming in an attempt to clear his mind of his nightmare but it was of no use.

It was always the same, The eventful day that had started Bors long and eventful trip to Yamatai. He always rembered the fire, and the screaming, thats what got him it was the screaming, the sounds of his friends and comrades burning alive because of a mistake he made. Standing up Bors flung his chair against a nearby wall, before attempting to regain his composure.

"Like that will bring 'em back."

He said out loud to himself, his words laced with bitter humor. He knew he couldn't do anything for them, that's why he had made a promise to himself to never let it happen again and so far he felt that he had kept that promise. Gently moving his chair back to its spot, Bors searched around for his jug of whisky that he had stashed away after his first mission with the Eucharis crew, busting it out on special occasions or whenever he needed to relax, and poured himself a drink before refolding his uniform top and placing it back over the chair.

"Might as well stay here for awhile, Only about three hours till wake up anyway."

Taking another drag Bors reclined in his chair, staring back out towards the orange globe in front of him, enjoying the few hours of solitary silence before he had to wake up.

 

[Wes]

Airlock

Their new captain returned their salutes.

"The maintenance conduits are a meter in diameter," Hanako replied, looking up at Conrad, who was a full two feet (61 cm) taller than him. "I do not think the Army makes armor that would fit you," she commented.

Hanako then turned and went to the bridge, on the way back to her cabin.

 

[Yoshi]

Takeyu turned to glance at the wall, curiously studying its features while he sat there in though, arms folded over his chest. "Never be afraid of what might come next, fear can be the mind killer and can cause you to make mistakes far worse than those you've felt that you've made. If you feel you made a mistake during the previous mission, study that mistake and then do ensure you don't repeat it."

Engineering
Note: Before time jump

Misato stood there thinking for a few moments, "But sir What happens if the mistake that happened is yourself? I keep going over everything, My PA's target camera footage, the after action reports. The only thing I can figure out it the fact that I kept jumping out in front having to protect everyone. I don't know what else i was supposed to do in those circumstances." Misato was looking for an answer that she was sure didn't exist.

 

[Krious]

Airlock

Egil had no further questions seeing as he was now formally welcomed onto the ship, had been assigned a cabin and had some time off until his duties in the morning. Conrad made a valid point, he had been stooping through the passageways and had to make an effort to get through the doors and airlocks. He pictured the big man in a suit of armor, but concluded he wouldn’t really need it with a body like his.

Instead of having a look at the ship and talk to someone on the night shift he opted to simply go to his chambers and get some rest. The Shôshô left, seen off by a crisp salute, and Conrad went to get another snack as they passed through the wardroom, leaving him to examine their new quarters by himself.

Cabin 5

The door to cabin number 5 slid open upon his approach. The room was certainly big enough for two but wouldn’t exactly fall under the category large. A few storage compartments, a bed that seemed way too small for his colleague and a desk should they ever require a place to work in peace. Satisfied with his inspection he moved over to the lockers, hung a fresh duty uniform, along with the necessary equipment, ready for the morning and left his bag in there as well. He’d sort out the rest of his stuff later.

 

[Gunsight1]

Wardroom

Dinner finished quietly with little more conversation before Mitsuko left, leaving Natsumi in solitude in the wardroom. It seemed like everyone was in a bit of a off mood. The white haired Neko sighed, cleaned up her place and left the compartment. She might as well call it a night and get some sleep so she could be well rested for her shift in the morning.

Cabin 2

When she arrived in the living space she shared with Bors, she found the small compartment to be devoid of any lift. She wondered where her roomie was so late at night, but then figured he might want some alone time.

With the room to herself she took her time getting out of her uniform and undergarments, carefully folding them up and stowing them away before changing into her exercise uniform.

She slipped into bed then and pulled her blankets up and got comfortable before closing her eyes and drifting off to sleep.

 

[Emblem]

Cabin 5

The doors slid open once more, allowing entry to a slightly crouching Conrad. The room just got a whole lot smaller. Conrad moved towards the locker compartment and placed his bag in one of the compartments. He'd unpack later. He still had this interview coming up.

''Well, guess we're official bunk buddies now.'' said Conrad with a small smile.

Conrad sat down on the lower bed. He was getting used to beds being too small for him, they were on the training facility, but at least he could stick his legs out there. He assumed Egil would get that the big guy was not going to climb on the top bed. That would result in endless torment, hilarious for others but not for him.

Conrad took in his surroundings and nodded. He liked it. It was small, but then again, it wasn't going to be a place where he'd be all the time. Only thing he might've wanted to add was a small extra table. To place things that would obstruct the desk. He'd see if he could get something like that later, it wasn't a big concern.

''So...uh...Egil. Say we pass the interview. What's your specialization? Any clue what you're gonna do here?''

 

[Nashoba]

Cabin 1
Sune was unpacking his possessions and putting them in their place. He kind of missed the spacious cabin he had on the Firebird. He placed his sword shelves on the wall with molecure tape and carefully positioned his katana. He hung up most of his uniforms, and changed into a working one.

Next came the bookshelf that Hanako had given him and all the books he owned. He organized them into two groups, the first group were those he had read, and the others he had not. Once he was satisfied with his initial unpacking, he picked up his stored power armor and took it down to the power armor bay.

Power Armor Bay
Sune carried the armor easily down to the bay and found his station still vacant. He positioned his Mindy 2-3a in the rack and restored his mission load preferences.

 

[Kyle]

Misato stood there thinking for a few moments, "But sir What happens if the mistake that happened is yourself? I keep going over everything, My PA's target camera footage, the after action reports. The only thing I can figure out it the fact that I kept jumping out in front having to protect everyone. I don't know what else i was supposed to do in those circumstances." Misato was looking for an answer that she was sure didn't exist.

Engineering, before time jump

"We all make mistakes Misato-san," Takeyu said, getting up from his chair and walking over to the soldier. "Our goal is to learn from those mistakes, and ensure that we don't repeat them in the future."

As he stood there, he thought a bit on the soldiers remaining statement. "One thing to learn about being a soldier is to always think first about a situation, never jump head-first as doing so can get you killed or even the entire team."

"Take it from someone who didn't think first during one mission and almost injured the Shosho, that mission and incident taught me to never run head-long into darkness."

 

[Yoshi]

Engineering
Note: before time jump.

Misato stood there thinking about what Takeyu just said. the idea of thinking before she acted wasn't something didn't already know, but more she thought about it more she started realizing she never took the time to do it during the mission. everything was a snap reaction for her. "Sir thank you for you words, and for tanking the time to talk with me. I think I need to go and find the Ittô Juni, and apologize for my words." she bowed deeply to Takeyu before she headed out of engineering.

///time jump//

After stopping in the baths to freshen up Misato Asked Charisma where Ramiro was. Finding out he was on the bridge she made her way there . She entered the bridge and found him sitting there. She came up and Bowed then waited for him to acknowledge her.

 

[Krious]

Cabin 5

Egil had slipped into an exercise uniform and had pulled himself on the top bed when Conrad entered the room. He seemed pleased with it after a brief look around and tried out the lower bed. It would be interesting having him as a roommate.

“That we are.” Egil responded as he started at the white ceiling. He wanted to get some sleep in but couldn't exactly get himself to close his eyes. His new roommate asked him what he thought he’d be doing on board, which was an easy question to answer since he had applied for a specific position. Didn't Conrad go through the same process?

“I’ll probably be responsible for the maintenance and security of the digital infrastructure on board. I started out as a tech, branched into IT almost immediately and took a lot of side courses that captured my interests. What about you? Don’t tell me you asked the Shôshô that question because you’re going to have to fit inside those shafts.”

 

[Wes]

Lounge

After it appeared everyone had settled into their cabins, Pineapple and Victory quietly went down to the cargo bay and brought Hanako's presents up the lounge and placed them under the yuletide tree so that they would be found tomorrow morning. They were wrapped in gold paper and tied with red bows. Each one had a name tag on it.

 

[Gabriel]

Bridge

Ramiro glanced over at Misato before returning his attention to his sensors.

"You know, sometimes I really hate that formality stuff. Just for future reference, you don't need to treat me as a commissioned officer, because I'm not. When we're in fairly informal settings, there is no need to bow around me or wait for me to speak or any of that bull. The bridge is empty, I'm lounging around doing basically nothing, and we just got off meal time. We're friends around here. On that note, I couldn't give two shits the way you spoke earlier. You said what was on your mind, nothing more, and you didn't go out of your way to flaunt your opinions or your speech. Given all that, next time you speak out against me you best leave the room again because I may just decide to clock you one in the jaw. Are we clear?"

 

[Wes]

Bridge

A blinking light began to flash on Ramiro's console. Upon investigation it appeared the ship's long-range sensors were picking up signs of starship traffic around HX-24, the system where they were supposed to visit next. It was unclear what types of ships they were and who they were working for, but there we no known Yamataian military ships in that area.

 

[Yoshi]

Bridge

When Ramiro started speaking Mistao stood and listened to him. She moved and sat down at an empty station. "I understand sir... err... I understand. and I wouldn't blame you if you did take a swing at me. I deserved it. I just wanted to apologizing for me snapping at you... I..uhh.. have been dealing with a lot of things since we got back from the last mission. I let it cloud my judgement and caused me not to think before I acted. I apparently have been doing that a lot as of late."

She paused thinking over what Takeyu had said to her. "I know that it is all excuses and they don't make it any better. I just wanted you to know that I don't really believe you an ass, a person of ill timing, but not an ass." She smiled, "Me on the other hand was a complete ass."

She sat there for a few moments. "Uhh.. you seem in the know... I seem to have been developing feeling for another crew member.. and I'm not sure what to do about it... It's not like I have had a lot practice in this field nor did I get any training for it back in basic."

 

[Emblem]

Cabin 5

''Eh...well..I'm not one to ask the Shôshô , of all people, any irrelevant questions.''

Conrad scratched the back of his head, thinking it must have looked somewhat humorous, him asking about the diameter of maintenance shafts. The answer was rather problematic though, he'd have to think of something.

''I think I'm going to be just another gearhead on here. Mechanic. Had the training. But it might not be all seeing I can't get everywhere. I'm also a cook and well, you ..could.. call me a janitor. Did enough cleaning back in the day.''

Speaking as if it was decades ago, Conrad laid himself down on the bed, trying to find a way to lie down and be as comfortable as possible. As he was shifting around, he mumbled under his breath.

''Damn...big ship...damn small beds...''

Conrad decided on laying on his side and sticking his legs out a long way. He wouldn't want his bunk buddy to stay awake because of him.

Then again, Conrad himself could hardly sleep. Understandable seeing the novelty of everything and the list of things he wanted to do. Find himself a stack of cards, find his place...find a bigger gun and be allowed to shoot it...and most of all, finding the best way to serve on the Eucharis, doing whichever tasks he is asked to do. He had to try to get some shuteye though.

''...G'night.''

 

[Gabriel]

Bridge

Ramiro turned to face Misato just in time to miss the blinking light.

"Shit happens, I understand that, it's what makes me different than most NCOs, or WOs, but hell what's the difference. You weren't being an ass, so you should stop worrying about it. As for the guy, it's Bors isn't it? Assuming it's a guy..."

Ramiro started grinning as he turned his head back towards the station. Getting a quizzical look, he pulled up the readings from the scanners.

"Charisma, in Yamataian please," he said using the common figure of speech. "What are we seeing?"

Turning his attention back to Misato, Ramiro's grin reappeared. "It's fine if it is him. These things happen, and as you should know Yamataian culture is fairly free-spirited when it comes to relationship, whether physical or emotional, and the Star Army is no exception. He's not not under your supervision, nor you his, so you don't have to worry about fraternization violations or anything of the sort. In fact, since you guys are the same rank it shouldn't be a problem, under the stipulation that it doesn't affect your ability complete the missions."