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RP: YSS Heartbreaker [Mission 2] Remember To Always Think Twice

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Medical Center

Carlos came to a halt, every word from Cosima slowly piercing the vale of his thoughts. He turned to look towards Cosima, still fighting his stream of consciousness until her last skittish yelp finally burst the dam. "F-forgive me, Medici-Heisho. I'm a bit-" his apology would be cut short, the bright simmer in his cheeks would seemingly fly under the radar, as he took note of the distant look on Cosima's face. He'd tilt his head in kind, an unconscious movement in a subconscious attempt to understand what had her attention. This would prove unnecessary as Cosima's porcelain visage suddenly put snow to shame. Cosima's panic, as she relayed the captain's order, brought minutes old worries to the forefront of his mind, and with them, a small spark of excitement.

A single deep breath would push these thoughts back and stoke this small ember of challenge. " I'll begin prepping medical scanners." his voice clear, with an even meter, carried by a soft determination, and punctuated by a reassuring smirk. Carlos pulled the device off of it's charging station. His hands began going over it's odds and ends in a practiced motion. He'd first replace the hypo-spray injector needle before plugging it back into the wall mount to install a fresh batch of nanobots and then have it placed on a counter near the examination bed. From here he'd go back to his pacing loop, pulling sterile gloves, antiseptics, and the likes from various containers along the rut he would one day walk into to this ship.
 
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Ee'ith Ambassador Sphere

Rin listened to the message from Tsukusaki-taii streaming into her helmet, radioing back publicly for the others to hear. "Hai, Senchou. This seems to be the best solution to our problems. Judging by our visitor's reactions, it appears the I'ee are in agreement with this plan of action." Indeed, the frantic packing up done by Sally and her sister was hard to ignore. The teal haired, armor clad officer nodded once affirmatively to the warrior who called herself 'Yui', as she confirmed their going along with things.

Hoshitomo-shoi's voice was soon filled with a sense of urgency. "We only have minutes to execute this ruse. Blesi-hei, Leverton-hei and Eir-hei... escort our two ambassadors and their precious cargo back into the safety of the launch bay as quickly as possible." She then turned to face the SAINT agent who had pinged her, as well as the engineer. "Yes, Inukai-hei, I require you... and Masashiga-hei, if she wishes... to use your optical camouflage to mimic the appearance of our three visitors. I will masquerade as Edtoto at the helm, and the two of you can appear as Sally and Yui to increase our chances of fooling them. Try to figure out how to send a provoking message to the Thoot, and stay near the viewports for maximum visual confirmation by our adversaries." Rin then pointed to the airlock. "As soon as we have all of their attention on the sphere, we blow this open, and EVA back to the Heartbreaker under stealth. If we time it correctly, we will hit Hyperspace before anyone will be the wiser."

The Minkan finally took a step closer to the console, starting up a scan of it's internals, trying to figure out how it functioned as her Yama-Dura gauntleted hands reached out testingly for what she believed to be the helm steerage of the alien vessel. She didn't turn her head around, but rather projected the voice through the armor speakers in Sally's direction, seeming in that moment a lot like her sister in personality. "You have 15 seconds to instruct me how to make this craft go forward," Rin requested sternly, followed by a note of regret for a split second...

Here she just met these wasp-like aliens and now the XO was about to purposely wreck their ship. Without intending to, she was yet again repeating the curse of Yamataian history in dealing with foreigners. First Contacts always ended with something being blown up dramatically and blamed on the Empire. Hopefully, their guests wouldn't let this sour things going forward... as she needed the valuable, unbiased information they had.
 
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Ee'ith Ambassador Sphere

"W-wait, Yui! What about the rest of those?", Sally whined, pointing to a few of the crates still left in the cargo cage up above. Yui climbed down to ground level with the last few pieces of luggage. "No time.", she answered flatly. "Now help me move these to the other craft." The little ambassador whined again, like a sad puppy, but did as she was bid, dragging the crates from where they lay to the airlock door.
"Edototo.", Sally addressed her Vekimen friend, pointing a claw to the crates. "Could you help us move these into the other ship? We need to leave." Edtoto tilted her head, but rumbled in the affirmative, assisting the two I'ee in their heavy lifting.

As Sally returned for another crate, she heard the voice of Rin speak to her, starting in surprise before looking around to be sure of where she had heard it from. "M-me?", she squeaked, giving Yui a nervous glance, to which her sister simply nodded. "Um, yes, of course!" The I'ee tottered over to the towering, armoured figure and peered past her at the controls. "F-forgive me, I do not know your rank, but, uh...", she stammered reaching over to point at the control console.
The console itself was like a small bed set between the two view ports at the front of the craft. There were six sets of controls set in a roughly circular formation around the 'bed', each apparently designated to be used by a single limb. Sally's claw indicated the front-most right-hand set, specifically a small shaft with a spherical hand-hold at its top.

"This is... a throttle, I think it best be called. Push it inward to apply acceleration to the craft. The stick here...", she indicated a similar handhold beside it, much shorter in length, and with a curved handle covered with cyan markings. "This is the braking system. Pull it gently to slow the craft, but be sure to have the throttle released when you do so." The I'ee paused a moment, tapping her left mandible in thought, before touching a claw to Rin's armoured arm in a somewhat feeble attempt to command her attention. "I should warn you, though. Our craft's drive projects dangerous particles that could damage your ship. It might be wise to give your craft a little time to back away. Speaking of which...", she tapped a claw on the warm-orange glowing monitor set on the wall directly in front of the control console, specifically a sun-flower yellow symbol that was currently unlit. "If this flashes, the particle core that powers the engine is damaged. If the containment fails, my ship will likely be torn apart. I don't know if the Thoot will shoot at you once you begin your ruse, but take care that the core is kept safe. I... don't want you hurt."

Sally paused a moment, awaiting any questions that Rin might pose, then gave the tall, suited figure a little hug around her leg before scampering away again to help Edtoto and her sister; who had almost completed their task by now.
 
Ee'ith Ambassador Sphere

Skade shook herself out of her reverie as her XO ordered the SAINT agent to stay on board and asked her if she wanted to stay. Well, since this is probably the closest I’m going to get to doing anything productive in this engagement, why wouldn’t I?

“Yes, ma’am,” the Technician replied. “I’ll stay. In fact,” she said, a grin spreading across her face, “I have a perfect idea for a message we can send.”

The best thing to do, Skade thought as she looked at the remaining consoles, would be to upload the files onto the computer itself, so I don’t have to leave any equipment behind. But unless they’re system is somehow compatible with Yamataian music files, that won’t work. So, the next best thing will be to make a holder for my communicator to put it as close to the speaker as possible, then apply as much Molecure tape as needed.

The Technician put her Fabrication Module to work, extruding a cup-like container that was big enough to hold her communicator and shaped to hopefully focus the sound well. I knew I should have taken that stupid music elective.

Remember girl, try to be polite. Only the higher ups and scary SAINT officers get to be rude. Taking said communicator out, she made sure her visor was clear from the outside, waved at Sally to get her attention and introduced herself, “Hi, Sally. I’m Skade Masashiga, one of the Heartbreaker’s Technicians.”

Sally skidded to a halt when she saw another of the suited Yamataians signalling her, and rushed over to greet her, huffing and puffing. "It's lovely to make your acquaintance, Skade!", she squeaked, listening intently to the Yamataian's queries.

The Neko continued. “Sorry to take you from your work, but I have a few questions, so if I could take a moment of your time, that would be great. Just to warn you, the questions are going to be technical in nature, so if you get confused, feel free to ask me to clarify.”

She held her communicator in front of Sally, then gestured at the remaining consoles. “First, I’m trying to send a message that is stored on that device to the Thoot ships, so which station has the communication console?” Shaking her head, she continued, “I mean the one you send messages to other ships from.”

"The communications system is over here," the little ambassador pointed to a smaller control console beside the pilot's 'seat' where Rin was currently occupied, leading Skade to it and pressing a small button. The console's monitor flickered to life, glowing a warm orange that seemed to dominate the interior of the small ship.

Well, goes to show that I don’t need to be too simple, the Technician thought to herself. She then asked, “Second, do you know if your computer systems are compat…can use Yamataian files? Hmm…let’s hope Sally gets that.

Sally squeaked with delight when Skade asked her second question, nodding her head eagerly. "Yes! My craft is fully compatible with your technology, at least to the extent we understand it.", she stated, pointing to a small, familiar-looking socket near the comms console. "Since our specialty is communicating with your people, this ship's computers can utilize the same files as yours."

Sweet! Now I won’t get yelled at for leaving equipment in the field, the Neko thought with a grin as she stopped her Fabrication Module from making the makeshift holder she had ordered it to. Hmm…where did they get they get the tech to interface with our devices? Skade shrugged. This is definitely above my pay grade. “Third,” she continued, “where is the thing you speak into to be heard by other ships? And finally,” she said, “how do you set the system so it sends a message to all the ships in the system?”

For the last couple of questions, Sally tapped a few buttons on the control panel, her wings buzzing softly as she worked. "I have set the system to broadcast to all available contacts.", she stated, pulling a small microphone on a cord from a socket and indicating a button on the side. "And this is the microphone. Press the little button on the side to begin broadcasting."

Finally, Sally stood back, hands behind her back, looking quite proud of herself. "Is there anything else I can do to assist you, Skade?"

Other than doing the rest of my job for me? the Technician thought as she took in all the information the Ee'ith had given her. “Nope, I think you covered all of it.” Skade smiled and nodded at the ambassador. “Thanks, Sally. Time for me to get to work on the Shekhinah System’s first Aethersperm concert.”

After isolating the more sensitive parts of her communicator behind a firewall, the Neko put it in the socket of the communications console and started downloading the music files onto the system. After a few minutes of getting used to the interface, Skade turned to her XO and said, “Ma’am, I’m nearly ready for my part of the distraction. Just let me know when to start.”

- Paragraphs with Sally’s lines credited to LittleWasp
 
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Ee’ith Ambassador Sphere

As the I’ee began scrambling to collect their cargo for transfer, Ingrid joined in and helped them, taking advantage of the increased strength and speed of her Mindy. She counted the number of objects and packages that were brought out of the cargo racks to be transferred over to the Heartbreaker and sent a message ahead to Pecan Tart. She warned her to prepare space for diplomatic cargoes and sent the preliminary manifest.

She then signalled to the Medical Center, “Cosima, Carlos, the shoi is getting a crash course in alien starship operation. As soon as they’re ready, the ambassador and her entourage going to come across to the Heartbreaker. You’ve only got a moment to prepare for alien diplomatic personnel, so make sure your hands are warm.”

When Yui and Edtoto brought the last of the crates out of the racks, Ingrid said to them, “If this is everything I’m going to hop across to the Heartbreaker and we can start bringing it through the airlock. Let me know before you come through so I can lead you straight to the medical center. It’ll be the safest place on the ship for you until we can get away from the fighting.” She climbed across the interface and began catching packages down below and setting them aside in the hallway until Pecan could get it all squared away in the hold.
 
Heartbreaker, Bridge

Now that the Thoot were pulling back, the Heartbreaker was able to slow to a stop, rerouting more power to charge the fold drive. Nakane and Sunny were having a grand time dealing with the cobbled together ship's first real space battle. Tsukisaki listened to the plan her First Officer was setting up, taking her time to respond to the requests (more like demands, really) of the less friendly aliens. "We did not intend to interfere in any disagreement between members of your species. We were investigating the...fugitive vessel, then acted only to defend ourselves." She quickly checked the information coming in, hoping they had bought enough time for the Away Team to finish preparations. "We are releasing the shuttle and the three fugitives into your custody now. Do with them what you will."


Airlock, Zero-G Passageway

Sally, Yui and Edtoto were packed into the airlock along with Ingrid and their luggage. As the door sealed them off from the small sphere and opened into the Heartbreaker, the alien guests were treated to a bit of a surprise. They were staring down at a long corridor straight in front of them, as if they were standing on a wall. Which they weren't for long, as the lack of gravity caused them to begin drifting. Ingrid didn't seem bothered by this at all, of course, immediately moving to toss packages down into the hallway where they lazily drifted around, waiting for Pecan to retrieve and properly store them.

Speaking of, the curly haired Neko leaned out from the main horizontal passage to look up towards the group. She had hastily stuffed herself into a AMES for safety, although she hadn't managed the helmet quite yet. Therefore it was easy to see how big her eyes got as she looked at their new guests. Her helmet was left floating in the passageway as she fled back towards the safety of the Cargo Bay, letting out a very unprofessional shriek.


Medical Center

Cosima finally managed to control herself, standing and getting to work as Carlos began prepping supplies. "I'll prepare the Containment Cells. J-just in case. You can inject the nanites before they're sealed in, and scan from out here." She tried not to get all worked up again worrying. "...who knows what kinds of diseases they have. Even their beneficial bacteria could be deadly to us! Not to mention parasites...or what if they breathe out poison gas!?" She was breathing quickly again, before shaking her head. "N-no, the scans showed an atmosphere in their ship similar to ours, w-we'll be fine...we'll be-"

At about that time, Pecan could be heard running past the Medical Center on her way to the Cargo Bay, still shrieking.

"...fine."


Space

With their guests safely on board, the Heartbreaker severed their connection to the small shuttle. Letting the sphere drift free, before nudging 'down' and away from it, giving it room to maneuver. The Heartbreaker began to reorient itself for its coming jump, conveniently aiming the open Launch Bay towards the little alien ship as its engines reached full charge.
 
Ee'ith Ambassador Sphere

Sayoko was, at the moment, caught between a figurative rock and hard place; although her fellow soldiers - as well as the "Thoot" - seemed intent on sacrificing the latter's vessel, the SAINT Agent had another set of orders to follow - and among those orders was one that explicitly stated it was of utmost importance to preserve any unknown technology encountered. Torn between her duty to her crewmates on the YSS Heartbreaker and her duty to her superiors at Star Army Intelligence, the NH-33S Nekovalkyrja uncharacteristically failed to take notice of the flurry of activity around her - and almost missed Hoshitomo-Shoi's reply to her earlier query.


"A-Acknowledged" was the Nitô Hei's response, barely able to be heard over the background din; with an brief mental sigh, she watched one of the insectoids ( Sally) explain the strange ship's controls to the XO, making sure to record the entire thing - as should the impossible happen and the Shoi somehow become incapacitated, well......one of the first things the silver-haired Neko learned in SAINT was to always have a contingency plan. Or two. Or three. Or twenty.


Despite her best efforts, however, Sayoko's thoughts drifted back to the fierce conflict raging within a corner of her mind. The problem, really, was a question of final authority; although she was on paper under the jurisdiction of Star Army Command (via Taii Tsukisaki Valesti), Star Army Intelligence - via one of its innumerable, faceless, and completely anonymous handlers - had issued to her orders that were rather......different in nature. It all came down to whom the Nitô Hei trusted more - and which of the two organization truly represented the Empire's (essentially, the Empress's) will.


Had she been older, wiser, stronger......she would've known the answer. With as young as she was, though......


Inukai Sayoko just didn't know.


And she had no intentions whatsoever of breathing a word about it to anyone else.


Personal quandaries aside, however, the SAINT Agent was yet again yanked back into reality when she (through her Mindy's audio sensors) heard something.


The Neko blinked. ...Nani? That's......extraordinarily improbable. A quick glance (performed without even moving, thanks to the M2-SA's ability to "see" through its armored skin), however, confirmed the insectoid's words - and set off a lot of red flags within the pale-skinned NH-33S. Observation [Thoot]: Vessel equipped with Star Army standard interface. Probability of covert surveillance and/or espionage on Imperial outer territories? High. A thought then occurred to her as Skade-Hei mentioned something called "Aethersperm" - and as Ingrid-Hei's departure caused Sayoko to feel the unfamiliar sensation of...longing? F-Focus, you baka! Personal feelings are to be addressed after the mission's completion!


A few moments later, the SAINT Agent replied "Likewise, Hoshitomo-Shoi" after her technically-minded crewmate had announced the completion of their task - then hacked into said crewmate's communications device wirelessy via her PA's AIES - or would have, had the Agent's efforts not been utterly and completely rejected - for upon entering the aforementioned override code, an error message appeared...

Code: 
=== ERROR 503-57A ===

ACCESS DENIED. CODE IS INVALID AND/OR HAS INSUFFICIENT ACCESS RIGHTS.

...thereby making it impossible for the Nitô Hei to obtain any information whatsoever: actually conducting an electronic invasion of her crewmate's communicator would be far too obvious (given the Agent's lack of advanced knowledge in the area), while anything physical was for obvious reasons unfeasible.


Inukai Sayoko blinked yet again, her mind refusing to comprehend what had just occurred (N-Naze.........?) or, more disturbingly, what it implied............
 
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Open Space

Distant flickers of light at varying distances shone from the darkness of space as the rest of the mining fleet continued to pour into the tiny bowl of activity surrounding the Heartbreaker. An especially large flash of yellow marked the arrival of the Thoot's mothership, and quite literally Thoot herself; the queen of the I'ee family was nestled deep within the large vessel. Fortunately, the hundreds of vessels that had now gathered were thousands of kilometers away from the Heartbreaker, and did not approach; instead simply observing silently and invisibly to the naked eye, concealed as shadows between the stars.

The remaining patrol craft still near the Heartbreaker were beginning to surround the tiny Ee'ith sphere in a semi-circular formation, training their broadside cannons upon the helpless vessel, ready to fire.
Your actions lead to far less of my children dying., a discreet and surprisingly eloquent message was broadcast to the Heartbreaker from where the mothership was nestled within the fleet. But we will always hate you for what you have done. Unlike the Ee'ith you have undoubtedly spoken with already, we do not want to understand you and we do not want you. Do not approach the fields we ply, or the business we deal in again, or we will kill ourselves upon your honourable Star Army, and do so with an endless passion; one you shall never understand, despite the efforts of our ambassador cousins.

Airlock, Zero-G Passageway

"Um...", Sally's mask displayed a confused frown at the sight of the interior of the Heartbreaker, then switched to an alarmed, wide-eyed expression when the Zero G took effect. "O-ooh! Oh no! Weightlessness...!" The little ambassador flapped her wings out of instinct, sending herself flying up to the ceiling, where she thudded with a squeak and slid across the metal until she impacted the wall, flailing her little limbs in confusion.
Her sister Yui was more controlled, keeping her wings still as she climbed out of the airlock and into the room, keeping a firm grip on any available hand holds. "My sister never quite... got used to the sensation of weightlessness...", she murmured off-handedly to Edtoto and Ingrid, glancing curiously around at the room before beginning to pull some of the crates out into the open with her.

Sally, meanwhile, continued to flail and squeak up near the ceiling, her wings still buzzing in intermittent bursts of instinctive flapping, and now clung to a nearby hand hold for dear life. "Help meeee!", she squealed. "Am I upside down?! Where am I?!"
 
Ee'ith Ambassador Sphere

Rin listened carefully to the briefing provided to her by the insectoid ambassador, as she rested her Aether Beam Saber Rifle against the cushioned bed that the controls surrounded and leaned over it with her taller model Mindy to manipulate them. It was awkward positioning, but for their brief skirmish, entirely acceptable. The XO was curt in her response, but thankful in tone. "Unlike the Nekovalkyrja, I have flown manual before... in my battles before my body upgrade." The teal-haired woman wasn't sure if the I'ee understood such technology as Soul Transfer, but that was a chat for a later time, as the alien pointed to the flowery indicator. "A crude, but effective propulsion method. I doubt we'll stay close for very long, however."

There was a pause as Hoshitomo-shoi's sensors read the contact of Sally hugging her leg out of worry for her safety. Was this part of her diplomatic training to show empathy, or did she actually mean it? The stern Minkan looked down a moment at the I'ee ambassador, before tapping the module on her back once. "My armor will protect me, as it has done through countless other battles I have survived. I wish I could extend that promise to your ship, but sacrifices always have to be made... be they in blood or metal. Now, go to your sister... time is running short."

Rin began to initiate her active optical camouflage system, as Sally watched the smooth pattern of her power armor become a simulacrum of their Vekimen passenger, now appearing in the viewports as manning the control of the craft. As soon as all were debarked and the sphere set to free float, she gave an approving nod to the two Nekovalkyrja near her to start up their own image projection systems as well. Her AIES began slow charging of the Barrier Shield Module's CFS in the background, now that no unarmored occupants that could be harmed by it's effects were present. If the core indeed was damaged, it would absorb the worst of the radiation long enough for them to escape...

Once the Thoot mothership came into view with it's unexpectedly eloquent communication and the smaller crafts began to line up their cannons, the XO grasped the manual throttle with a hard jolt forward, followed by a sudden brake and a drop below the formation. "They say wasps dance to communicate... so, let's tango." That was the signal for Skade to hit the music.
 
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Medical Center

" Blesi says that like I go out of my way to have cold hands." Carlos chuckled as he lined up supplies on, what he seemed to have claimed as, his prep counter. He gave Cosima a nod and a grin in the affirmative of her plan, more eager than he'd like to admit to be up close with an unknown species, let alone two. In an attempt to stifle the growth of grin, Carlos would continue to mentally go over and physically work out his prep check list while vocalizing a list of another ken.

" We're about to find out what diseases they may or may not have, Heisho." Carlos pulled up his sleeves as he answered back to Cosima's self pointed question. " The low temperature will probably help keep off bacteria. The gloves too." He'd sterilize his hands with a quick, hot, scrub. " As for poison breath...uh, I got nothing. It's just improbable." Carlos shrugged and slipped on a set of sterile gloves. As he was about to interject on Cosima's affirmations, he'd find himself interrupted by Pecan's screaming diversion. " You, uh...do you want me to go look into that, Heisho?"
 
Ee'ith Ambassador Sphere

Okay, girl, Skade thought as she turned her Mindy’s projectors turned on to mimic Sally’s appearance. Which song should we go for? F&#% the Whole D@%^ System? No, too emo. Screwing Around in the Funky City? No, that relies too much on knowing Nepleslian culture.

I got it, she thought, snapping her armored fingers. Let’s play Come On You Dumb F&#%*^& Aliens, Let’s F&#%! Totally flies in the face of the Thoot’s last message and it has an excellent guitar solo in there. In the end, it might just be more confusing then threatening, but whatever. I’ll just have to bleep out the lyrics where it talks about screwing the Empress and I won’t get in too much trouble…

The Technician went to work and by the time the XO gave the order to start the music, she had sanitized the lyrics enough that she should only be in trouble if her commanding officers knew the song. Which would be just my luck, but whatever. Time to talk to our audience.

Double checking that the microphone was keyed to broadcast and that there wasn’t a hidden camera somewhere, the Neko disguised as Sally said, “Hey, Thoot! Here’s a message from the Star Army about how much we care about what you think!” I’m so going to have to apologize to Sally when I see her later…

For those who had never heard Aethersperm before, Skade had a few ancient pre-Nepleslian songs that she got from one of her instructors who had introduced her to the band in the first place. She sped up the songs to simulate the speed and near incomprehensibility at which Aethersperm played, to see if they could handle that baby step. There was some language in those ancient media files, but none of them came close to the swear words that were now being broadcast to the entire system. The music also played inside of the Ee’ith ship, reverberating off of the walls and making an exceptional sound stage. Well, if you like Super Heavy Death Speed Glam Hair Metal.

With nothing else to do but tap her feet to the beat of the song, the Neko checked on the communications mast the ship used to broadcast its messages. Conveniently, it was located in between the two cockpit windows and directly across from the pilot’s seat. A cursory glance at the UI brought something to her attention, something that Sally had neglected to mention. Probably because I hadn’t asked. While the primary mode of broadcasting of the ship used radio waves, it had a near-infrared laser as a more precise and longer-ranged alternative. Hmm…I wonder.

As the song got closer to the guitar solo, the technician realized that she might be able to turn the mast into a weapon. Just pump enough power into it and it might punch through these ships’ armor. Or just tickle it while it explodes literally in front of our faces. In the end, that is for people higher up to decide.

After turning the volume down, Skade turned to her superior officer and said, “Hoshitomo-shoi? I might have found a way to be a more…proactive distraction.” She then explained what she had found and waited to carry out her XO’s orders. I might fire a weapon in this battle after all!
 
YSS Heartbreaker, Passageway

As Ingrid led Sally, Yui and Edtoto from the airlock into the Heartbreaker, Pecan’s reaction startled her. There wasn’t anything she could do to calm the quartermaster right now though, so she turned back to her guests just in time to watch Sally buzz herself into the corner.

“Lizard hind-brain, meet primal bug brain,” she muttered under her breath, then more politely she said, “Sally, hold still, and I’ll help direct you.” She reached out to the diplomat and gently took one of her limbs. She pulled Sally’s face out of the corner and using her suit’s gravity control, she kept herself as a solid anchor against any further spasms from the I’ee. Yui and Edtoto had themselves under control, so she said, “If you’ll all follow me, I’ll take you into medical so we can hunker down.”

Still holding onto Sally’s arm, Ingrid orientated herself upright with the corridor and proceeded towards the medical center. She signaled ahead, “We’re coming down the hallway. I’m going to stay in the Mindy for sentry purposes, but I’ll help with analysis as much as possible. I know enough about bio engineering that I can spot signs of tampering by Uesu’s forces or the Mishhuvarthyar.

“We’re entering now,” she finished and opened the door to the medical center and led Sally and the others inside.
 
Heartbreaker, Bridge

"Empress willing, our paths will never cross again." That was all Tsukisaki sent in response to the unexpectedly eloquent reply from the aliens. She watched the main screen as it showed the small golden craft drifting away before those engines kicked on. Followed by a screech of hideous noise that burst into the Bridge before Funabashi hurriedly dialed down the volume. The Captain didn't even flinch, although her eyes did narrow. "Hoshitomo-Shoi, we will begin fold in exactly one minute. Return yourselves and your equipment to the Heartbreaker promptly."

"However, ensure all data concerning this weaponized audio disappears along with the alien craft. It is far too dangerous to be allowed to return to the Heartbreaker, Ittou."


Medical Center

Cosima sighed, rubbing her forehead. "No, no, I'll handle it. I'll get Kiwi to assist." She glanced back at Carlos before heading out. "Be careful. And listen to Blesi-Hei." The Neko entered the corridor just as the aliens were being herded into it. She took one look and seemed quite confident in her decision to leave this to Carlos, walking at a rather brisk pace towards the Cargo Bay.

Their luggage was left floating in the vertical corridor behind them as Ingrid led the new arrivals to Medical. Carlos was the next crew member to get a good look at the aliens, with Ingrid looming over them in her Mindy. Although the PAs were generally not allowed inside the ship outside of a few designated areas, escorting aliens with unknown capabilities was one situation where exceptions could be made.


Ee'ith Ambassador Sphere

The three crew members still inside the alien craft, now disguised, could see the Heartbreaker slowly moving further and further away. The Thoot crafts encircling them, beginning to block the welcoming sight of that open rear Launch Bay. That horrible noise echoing inside the sphere, as red numbers in the corner of their Mindys' HUDs counted down the remaining seconds before the Heartbreaker would leave without them.
 
Edtoto had no idea what was going on, but she did notice the positive reaction to her knocking. At least it was positive. For the rest of the time, she would just do what was needed to be done. She carried equipment onto the heartbreaker, still wearing her own combat gear. Once they were escorted onto the ship and lead to the Medical wing, she was greatly confused as to why her weapons and armour were not taken from her. She had been holding them since before the interaction began, and they weren't exactly weapons that could be concealed, nor she tried to conceal. Were these being so advanced they knew her equipment was far inferior? Or were they so advanced that they had taken an arrogant view and simply believed she was not a threat. Not even a request to release any weapons they may have on their person.

She looked around the medical centre, her head moving to indicate that she was. It was far more advanced than anything they had on the station, but she doubted they were under the same situations. It was clean as well, sterile clean in fact. The hiss and the buzz of all the machines bothered her, regardless of how loud they may be, and she could see a group of very... Odd creatures. They had no scales or exoskeletons to be seen. Just... Flesh. Several thoughts flashed through her mind, which would certainly disturb her company, but she couldn't relay it properly thankfully. She was curious as to what they would do to her.

Given the fact the first place they came to was a medical centre, they obviously would want to examine her. Given she was wearing a full Exo suit that made it hard for them to identify much more than her elongated face, horns, and tail, she figured she should start removing it. She started with undoing the clasps to her helmet, removing it and the head covering all in one motion to reveal her face fully. She shook out her mane, before staring at those around her, blinking her reptilian eyes to adjust to the high levels of light. "Bright..." She said in Trade, her secondary eyelid sliding over to help her.

Other than the obvious fact that she was an alien, the first noticeable thing about her would be her maw. Two long incisors poked out from under her lips, and when she spoke, you could see her teeth were caked in a brownish-black substance. To accent this, in what was a sterile environment, her breath permeated the medical centre with what could only be described as the worst case of halitosis ever. Her muzzle ever fully shut either. It hung open, her tongue poking out slightly as she looked around which could possibly give her an "endearing" or "silly" appearance.
 
YSS Heartbreaker, Passageway -> Medical Center

Sally clung on tight to Ingrid, audibly squeaking with each panicked breath she took until finally she began to feel the weight of gravity pulling down on her again. "I-I can walk now.", the insect said, climbing shakily down from the Mindy and joining Yui's side. As the door to the medical center slid open, Sally leaned forward to peek her head into the room curiously, having quickly regained her composure. "Ooh!", she exclaimed upon seeing the interior, and Carlos, and toddled inside to stand in front of him, a wide smile flickering onto her mask as she peered up at him.

"Are you the medical specialist?", she asked, apparently testing her knowledge. "If I can help you with anything, please tell me!" The ambassador curiously twitched an antenna, seeming to peer at Carlos' uniform, then turned and pointed a claw at Edtoto, who had removed her helmet. "That's Edtoto!", she said, this time in Trade speak. "She's my friend!"
In utter contrast to Sally's boundless excitement, Yui removed her armour silently, placed it to one side piece by piece. She took off her helmet first, flipping up the front plate like the visor on a motor-bike helmet so as to let her antennae slide free, then removing the helmet proper and dropped it at her feet with a thud. Next came the plating on her limbs, loosening the straps binding them to her body before shaking them free. Then came the armour on her thorax and abdomen, both of which were designed to split into two pieces, which she similarly allowed to drop to the floor with a loud sound.

Open Space

When the sweet sound of Aethersperm shot across the cosmos and assaulted the Thoot, it bought the team aboard the Ee'ith ship a few precious seconds of absolute befuddlement as the aliens listened silently to Nepleslia's finest. Then they began to fire. The tiny, spherical ship suddenly had what sounded like compressed, metallic thunder inside of it, clashing with the music that Skade was playing, as projectiles impacted upon the hull.
Each patrol craft was firing in unison, in a 'one-two' pattern, so that their target was placed under constant attack.

From the inside, Rin's team could see the dull, orange-brown walls of the craft visibly denting inwards around them, the little computers around the flight console flashing alarms of varying colours. One of which would stand out the most to Rin: the sun-flower yellow symbol, flashing its cheery, bright colour. The patrol craft on the port side was focusing its fire upon the Ee'ith sphere's engines.
One of the prongs had already been snapped off, its parent exhaust port heavily damaged and crackling ominously.

Skade's little trick, meanwhile, was making the antenna at the front of the sphere wobble uncomfortably, increasing the power behind its optic transmission until it projected a blast of light powerful enough to flash across the weapons' control centre of the patrol craft in front. The antenna exploded violently a moment later, abruptly cutting off the broadcast. Whether it actually did any damage was impossible to discern.
 
Ee'ith Ambassador Sphere

While Skade was waiting for Rin to give permission to fire, the incoming Thoot fire shook the ship and made the Neko grab the communications console to steady herself…which accidentally activated the macro she had set up to fire the makeshift laser weapon. Oh, dang it all.

She tried to cancel the sequence before it could fire, but failed to do so as the laser briefly flashed across the space between their ship and one of the Thoot’s patrol craft. Briefly, because the communications mast was never supposed to take the kind of power the Technician was putting in it, so it exploded like a cheap firework, over too quick and obnoxiously loud. And I guess the music isn’t broadcasting anymore…

“Sorry for firing without permission, ma’am,” the Nitô Hei said to her XO, biting her lip in embarrassment as the internal speakers turned silent as the ship started falling apart around them. “You can deal out whatever punishment you want once we get back home.”

Oh, yeah, the Captain said this needed to disappear…Skade thought as she pulled her communicator from the communications console. Turning towards the hatch that led out to space, she saw that the SAINT agent was staring at her. Uhh…crap. Must not be a fan. How to appease the very scary intelligence agent…? “Sayoko-Hei,” the Technician said, trotting towards the other Neko and handing her the communicator. “Look, I know that the Captain said to get rid of the music, but I’m a little worried about alien computer viruses. So,” she continued, moving towards the hatch, “I put a firewall on this thing and I’ll give you the password to it once we get back to the Heartbreaker so you can make sure its clean of alien stuff and banned music files. Or you could just destroy it now. Don’t really care, see you there!”

Space

I’m just glad I have backup copies, Skade thought as she activated the CFS system of her Mindy armor and shot towards the YSS Heartbreaker, releasing a pair of mini-missiles from her Countermeasure Augmentation Pods, one heat & EM scrambling and the other gravitaic & chaff dispersing. She also brought her Sabre-Rifle and Gauss Cannon to bear on the Thoot patrol craft that was closest to her flight path to the Heartbreaker and fired, alternating between the Gauss Cannon and the Sabre-Rifle beam, so her aim wasn’t thrown off by the Gauss Cannon’s massive recoil.

She fired a total of four shells before she took stock of how much damage she did to the enemy vessel, making sure to dodge any incoming fire that her activities had attracted.
 
Ee'ith Ambassador Sphere

The Thoot weren't the only ones caught in a momentary confusion, as the teal-haired XO at the helm of the alien craft looked Skade's way, the Mindy's helmet obscuring her look of partial disgust as guitar riffs of Nepleslian metal belted out over the communications channels. "Of all the.. you had to choose that uncultured Nepleslian trash to play?!" grunted Rin with obvious annoyance at the engineer, as the captain's displeasure also figured into a set of orders to destroy the audio when this was concluded. "Hai, Senchou... I'll do so... gladly," she replied to Tsukisaki-taii with icy edge.

Hoshitomo-shoi attempted to draw fire for as long as she was able, keenly aware when the rear engine prong was shattered by the constant pelting of the patrol craft's guns and the sunburst light lit up like an angry star about to go supernova. It was also about that time that the overloaded communications mast exploded into sparks as well -- it was just to be expected, after playing that raucous music her speakers would've blown out too. "Nevermind that now!" dismissed the team leader of the blue-skinned Santo Hei's apology, as she freed up her connected Aether Beam Saber Rifle. "The alien's particle reactor is about to go critical. All hands, abandon ship! "

Normally Rin would've felt shame at issuing such an order, but there was not much love lost on Sally and Yui's tiny golden home. She gouged into a weak spot by the airlock where one of the munitions had dented with her energy beam, tearing the thin skin of the craft open like a tin can. The vacuum of space immediately flooded into the compartment, taking the XO with it into the void. Her Barrier Shield Module was indicating full power, as she engaged the Mindy's thrusters and angled for the Heartbreaker, avoiding the dangerous radiation from the rear of the heavily damaged Ee'ith craft that was now more like a spiny ball than a perfectly round sphere.

"Activate your stealth to blend into the cosmic background and..." Hoshitomo-shoi was cut off mid-sentence by the sound of Skade suddenly starting to fire her Gauss Cannon and ABSR, along with Countermeasures. "Masashiga-hei!" she growled in that tone only a condescending superior could, "You were supposed to hold your fire! You are compromising our position!"

As much as she wanted to tear into the impetuous young Neko more for her SNAFU, there was precious second remaining to reunite with the ship before they were stranded. Rin quickly pulled up her Mindy to the rear of the retreat vector and focused all her spare capacitor energy on maintaining the enhanced CFS bubble around them to blunt any incoming counterattacks from the Thoot.

The fact that the XO was shielding Skade despite her disobeying orders was quite telling... obviously the Shoi wanted her alive to receive a proper punishment...
 
Ee'ith Ambassador Sphere

The mind of one Inukai Sayoko was still trying to determine just why her attempt at access had failed...

{Shoi} Hoshitomo Rin said:
"They say wasps dance to communicate... so, let's tango."
Click to expand...

...until, upon hearing the word "tango" (short for target), the SAINT Agent's training reflexively took over - thereby causing her to frantically whirl around in search of the aforementioned target. Hostiles detec-


Said SAINT Agent winced as her ears - even with her Mindy's sound-filtration systems - were subjected to obscene levels of audio-based assault. Empress be da-


It was then the "hostiles" mentioned earlier by the XO made an appearance, via the CLANGCLANGCLANG of objects striking the hull (audible despite the unholy, inhuman-sounding rampage emanating from the ship's speakers) and the far more ominous degradation of the alien vessel's structural integrity. Observation [Thoot]: Projectile-based weaponry employed by spacecraft. Probability of ship's destruction? High. Observation: Evacuating would be a very good id-


Distracted by conflicts both internal and external, the Hei in question didn't notice the presence of her crewmate until the latter handed the communicator to the former, who - after a moment's delay, owing to her surprise at the engineer's kindness - accepted the device and stored it away in her Mindy's Butt Pack. Dōmo arigatōgozaimashita, Masashiga-Hei.........arigatōgozaimashita. Note [Self]: Recommend to Tsukisaki-Taii upon mission conclusion that Masashiga-Hei be awarded the Good Conduct Award.

{Shoi} Hoshitomo Rin said:
"The alien's particle reactor is about to go critical. All hands, abandon ship!"
Click to expand...

"Acknowledged, abandoning vessel" was Sayoko's reply to Rin's orders, followed by a pair of mental commands. CFS, Camo: Online.

Code: 
Acknowledged.

CombiFieldSys......ACTIVE
ActiveCamo...........ACTIVE


With a nearly-subsonic thrummmmmm and a brief shimmer, the M2-3A Mindy currently worn by the Heartbreaker's resident spook activated its Combined Field System and Active Camoflauge, thereby allowing the SAINT Agent to propel herself out into the void through the hole created by Hoshitomo-Shoi seconds earlier......


UX-HB-2 'Shekhinah'




......and sigh at the antics of the previously-mentioned engineer, whose trigger-happiness was almost...appalling in Sayoko's opinion, given that the mantra of "one shot, one kill" had been ingrained in the NH-33S by her SAINT instructors at Black Sands. You Class-A baka! Never reveal your location unless absolutely necessary! - a pause, then - Note [Self]: Disregard previous note regarding Masashiga-Hei's award recommendation.


As she zipped towards the welcoming portal of the Heartbreaker's hangar bay, the Nitô Hei paused, taking note of the defensive tactics being employed by Rin. Observation: Suppressive fire may increase probability of Hoshitomo-Shoi and Masashiga-Hei surviving.

Hoshitomo-Shoi,

Permission to break concealment and provide suppressive fire?

Inukai-Hei
Click to expand...
 
Medical Center

Carlos couldn't keep himself from letting loose an impressed whistle, it was all he could do to ease the tension of stifling a dozen other, much more self deprecating, expressions of amazement. Chitin, hard armour, antennae, his eyes ran over their every detail until they met Edtoto's armaments. Every muscle in his body seemed to coil as he took a step forward, and was quickly snapped back into reality by Sally's synthesized voice. " I, uh..." His gaze darted over Sally, giving her digital smile a sheepish grin. " That, uh...that's right!" His friendly tone returned with all the tact of a fox in a hen house. "My name is Carlos Luna and I'll be your medic for your stay here on the Heartbreaker."

The stench of Edtoto's pungent maw would tear his attention back to the armed reptile before Sally could, if only by a second. While it was a forceful distraction, and the catalyst for a slight bit of jealousy pointed at Blesi and her environmentally sealed attire, Carlos ruminated over Edtoto's mixed features between stifled coughs. A mane like a mammal, reptilian scales, horns and evidence of an 'aromatic' diet.

" Don't mean to be rude, Ms. Edtoto." He spoke to her in trade, oblivious to Edtoto's tenuous grip on the language, and glanced back at Sally, trying to gauge how well he pronounced her name despite not knowing a thing about Sally's body language. " But I'm going to be injecting you guys with nanites to get a scan of your bodies and I'd prefer not get shot because someone is afraid of needles."
 
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Open Space

Skade's pre-emptive and unauthorised weapon's fire seemed to baffle the patrol craft around them, who ceased their attack on the now ruined hunk of metal that was once Sally's ship. Even after Rin intervened to stop the engineer from firing, the I'ee ships remained motionless; one of which now bearing several sizable dents and scorch marks from where Skade's weapons had struck their mark.

It almost seemed as if the Thoot were baffled by the thought of being attacked by something smaller than the Heartbreaker, if only for a few moments. With the characteristic, unnerving silence of space, each ship began to turn slowly to face the Yamataian scout craft, turning their ire upon it once more. Engines flared, pushing each craft slowly, but surely, to ramming speed, and it seemed like the crew of each did not care for the consequences.

YSS Heartbreaker, Medical Centre

"Nanites?", Yui and Sally both asked, almost precisely in sync with one another, with only the slight difference in pitch to discern their voices. Sally had a claw touching her mandibles thoughtfully, a simple, open-mouthed expression of curiousity showing on her mask. In contrast, her warrior sister was subtly grinding her metal-clad mandibles together, staring in Carlos' direction. Both seemed unaware of what a nanite was.
"Will it hurt Sally?", Yui spoke up again, her claws rapping quietly against the bench she had taken a seat upon.
"Will it hurt Edtoto?", Sally added, tilting her head to one side; the expression on her mask changing to display a great number of paired dots rather than a face. At least, if it was meant to be a face, it was none that would be immediately obvious.
 
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