RP: YSS Eucharis [Mission 22.2] Echoes of the Past - Part 2

Armor Bay

Taharial listened to Hanako interested and nodded, "the thing is, we know the ship isn't crystalloid, but that doesn't mean what is inside isn't it..... From last time we should only carry projectile based weapons, no energy just in case." Taharial tried to move her hair. "Does anyone have anything for my hair, so it stays in a ponytail? I will be useless with hair in my face," she blushed slightly as she asked.

Taharial looked at the others as she stood there embarrassed of speaking up about it then smiled as she stretched.

YSS Eucharis, PA Bay

Dirjon began looking through the tool chest by his station. "I don't know, my plasma rifle seemed pretty effective on the little bug things and we only have two cannons left, one is on Tsuguka's armor. Here, try this." He tossed her a container of large zip-ties.

Power Armor Bay

Tsuguka finished lugging the folded gauss cannon onto the shoulder mount by hand, and then tested the deploying operation. Everything seemed to work well enough.

"Talking of weapon choices, well... Technically speaking..." She didn't look at either Taharial or Dirjon whilst loading the shells into the aperture, but her body language suggested she was talking to them. "Close-in blade attacks and blunt force were the only confirmed kills of the larger target during that operation... If we really do encounter anything like that again, I'd prefer an organized retreat over another close-in melee brawl any day..."

"But, please don't take that as cowardice. The Eucharis has bigger guns than a power armor could ever carry... So it stands to reason that drawing the enemy out and flattening them is a better tactic than playing around inside their fortifications, by their rules." The autoloader blinked and made a chirpy noise to let her know that the loading cycle had reached full capacity, at which point the red neko finally broke off and made direct eye contact again. That green-eyed visage seemed to jab right at Ulvson in particular, a bit like a housecat eyeing up an unwelcome guest, given the difference of height. "I'm not trying to belittle you, Santo Hei, since you did save us. But please remember that we are a team next time. My ears are always open to new plans of action."

A small distraction. The short oni's eyes regarded the box of tie wraps that the Nepleslian had given their angelic friend, then produced a small hair tie of her own. It had a pair of pearl-colored baubles on it. A spare, identical version of the ones in the crimson Nekovalkyrja's own hair. "...Here... You might damage your hair trying to cut one of those out. This is more efficient."

Pointed ears twitched as she held it out, a face still blank and emotionless. Perhaps she was just tired, but Tsuguka was really laying the 'inhuman doll-thing' vibe on thick today.

Armor Bay

Mitsuko hesitated as Tsuguka entered with the caffeinated beverages, watching others swirl around the red Neko. She wasn't really that thirsty, but it would be rude to not take one, after she had gone through that trouble. Thanking her politely, Murakami retreated to the wall again once she'd taken a canteen. She made a point of quickly taking a sip from it, before going quiet again until Hanako entered. Scowling at the unfriendly sight visible through the now-open doors, she approached the captain after properly organizing her worries.

"Shosho, were sensors able to penetrate the hull? It would be helpful to know the layout of the interior, not to mention any possibility of life signs or other activity. Is there any life on this planet?" Her frown deepened. "...it reminds me of Ether." Mitsuko shook her head to force those memories away, taking another sip of the warm drink, giving herself a moment to recover. "Does the ship match anything on record?"

Armor Bay ::

Aikiko listened to the general chatter going on around her as she pulled out her Mindy with the manipulator arm unit attached to it. The Mindy was looking a bit more battle scarred with it scrapes and dings.

Aikiko glanced over at Tsuguka, taking note of her guestures and mannerism. She kept her thoughts to herself even though she was concerned for Tugs. OJT was a bitch, she was learning.

Aikiko finished up her Mindy's load out which was the same as the last mission. Turning to her demolition kit, She grabbed 5 blocks of Type 31 Plastic Explosives, 2 satchel charges, 40 meters of Type 31 Det-cord, and 5 of each type of detonators (remote and delayed).

After looking through the Eucharis collection of explosives, Aikiko frowned wishing she had high grade thermal putty that would burn through, instead of using concussive/kinetic energy to rip open bulkheads.

YSS Eucharis, PA Bay

If she wasn't trying to belittle him now Dirjon couldn't imagine what kinds of hell would break loose when she was trying. "Yes, ma'am," was all he would reply. Even with a superior rank Dirjon wasn't the type to dispute things publicly, especially in front of the Shôshô, a member of the royal family.

A flamethrower and large tank containing the gas for plasma was removed from the armory and brought down the line to Dirjon's armor where he began securing the sprayer to his thruster pack's left weapon holder while the rack was attaching the tank to his left shoulder hardpoint.

Armour Bay

Taharial looked at the two offers and took Tsuguka's proper hair accessory "thank you kitten" she smiled as she meant it to be a cute little nickname for the crewmate and hoped she liked it. Taharial then started to work on what she wanted on her MCAS armour and shoves as much medical gear as she could in the butt pack "hmm needs a bit more but we are close to the ship anyway so as long as we can carry the wounded if there is wounded back here when they are wounded, not hours after when they have lost a lot of blood".

Taharial wasn't that eager to go, she wanted to be on the ship to help the wounded but accepted it "so if anyone needs any medical assistance, talk to me over comms with who you are with or who needs it, I will come running or tell you to head back to here, everyone understand?" She looked over at everyone, lingering on Tsuguka "and you, your staying near me, I don't want you to bleed to death."

Power Armor Bay

"Thanks for understanding." Was the red neko's response to Dirjon. It was lacking warmth but not conviction. Perhaps she just didn't realize that there were feelings to be hurt. "It's important we all work as a team. I can be wrong too."

After that, Tsuguka just nodded to Mitsuko curtly, before glancing over to the gear that Akiashiro was cladding onto her Mindy. Certainly exposed the hole in the Yamatai armory for medium-yield weapons designed for close quarters. Maybe she could talk to Kale about alternate rounds for the armor pistol later, like a more sensible version of those that went with the grenade launcher.

Taharial distracted her before she could say anything. Kitten? An accusing glance. Clearly, the Tsuguka was even more confused by this nickname than she was by 'Tugs'... Was the concept that she was cute too impossible to comprehend, or was her brain getting a blue screen over-thinking that there was some incredibly intricate joke involved? Outwardly, there was no way of knowing for sure.

Power Armor Bay

"The ship did not seem to match a known design, but its technologies seem to be fairly standard," Hanako said. "However, the interior is strange. From what I saw it looked like the inside of a loaf of bread," Hanako answered Mitsuko. "There are chambers of air in a solid organic mass. The layout is more like an anthill than a boat or skyscraper configuration. You will have to see for yourself to know more."

Armour Bay

Taharial smiled and nodded "sounds interesting, I have never heard of a ship like that before" she thought what it could be inside as she made sure that her suit was ready for the mission.

Taharial had no idea why she had called Tsuguka kitten, they had only met yesterday and she didn't know Tsuguka that well yet but she just thought that Tsuguka look more like a kitten than anything else and would tell her in private it was a slip of the tongue.

PA bay

"Just don't kill yourself old man." Kale muttered clapping Dirjon on the shoulder.

He listened as the captain described the interior of the target vessle. Something seemed off. If the technologies used were "standard", Kale read that to mean synthetic, then the interior just didnt fit.

"Shosho. Is there any reason to believe that the interior of the ship is the original? It may be some form of infestation that repurposed the ship shell for its own needs. If it happened during flight I suppose it even could have caused this crash. However such things are not my area of speciality, and this is somewhat conjecture on my part." he stated simply.

Within its cradle the mindy he had been assigned was humming away quite happily as it went through its POST, the results being fed directly to the engineer's brain. The unit itself was a bog standard model. After all he'd never had need to upgrade the system, versatile as it was. Kale removed his personal effects along with the belt they were attached to, placing the items in his locker. He removed the Mindy's helmet, watching as the suit split down the front allowing him entry.

"Welcome back, pilot Namach."

Armor Bay

Aikiko listened to the various conversation going on around her as she finalized her load out and stowed it on her Mindy. She paid close attention to what Hanako said of the ship design and interior. She glanced at Hanako briefly, giving a nod of acknowledgement that she had heard.

She proceeded to open up her Mindy to enter it and climb in. Letting it close about her as she settled in and feeling the SPINE interface come alive and the pinprick to activate the Manupilator Arms. She made sure her weapon of choice was fully charged and loaded for action, before securing the hook ups and stowing it where it went on her Mindy.

"Okay Big Loui, once again into the breaach!" Aikiko muttered to her Mindy as it powered up and ran checks, and comms check with the Eucharis by standard radio freqs, IFF Data feed, Medical, Laser, and Subspace. Any other she could think of that the Mindy was built with.

Armor Bay

Crossing the armor bay on the way to the shuttle bay were the crew members that Hanako decided were either not pulling their weight or too injured to be capable of continuing. There was Sheila Vonderbrink, Nunagawa Mio, Tankyusha Hitotsu's seemingly lifeless android body on a floating stretcher, tiny medic Umeki Ayame, and Hisoka. While the armor team was getting ready to go on the mission, they were getting ready for a long, boring ride back home in the "extra" shuttles Eucharis had acquired on its mission. Specifically, they'd be heading for the personnel center at Fort Minori to await a new assignment.

"Safe travels," Hanako told them as they passed by, before returning her attention to the armor team.

"I do not know," the Shosho replied to Kale. "You will be second in command of the away team, with Tsuguka in charge again as last time. The team is free to deploy as soon as she gives the word. I will be watching your progress from the bridge once that happens."

Armor Bay

Mitsuko nodded at Kale's suggestion. "That's what I was worried about." She began looking up information about this planet in general, wondering if it had any sort of native life that might have made the wrecked ship its new home. "I would recommend they examine the wreckage quite thoroughly from outside before venturing within. A full drone sweep would be a good idea." She continued to frown at the inhospitable conditions outside as she tried to find any further information about this planet and its possible inhabitants, to hopefully give them some hint about what to expect.

PA bay

"Aye, ma'am." he acknoledged respectfully.

He definately agreed with Mitsuko's suggestion. It made very good tactical sense after all, not to mention things were starting to smell a bit mishy and he really didn't like it.

"Indeed a good idea, Mitsuko-san," his face took on a calculative gaze as he internally ran the numbers, calculating the volume of the wreck and thus the time required. Once done he faced the captain and possibly more importantly his team leader once more.

"Dirjon and I could handle the scanning. Given the approximate size of the crash site I'd reckon about half an hour to get an adequate quantity of data. We would need two drones a piece." he offered as he tucked his helmet under one arm.

"What do you think Tsuguka?" He asked somewhat defferentially. He wasnt sure about his suitability as second in command but by Empress and Empire he'd give it his best.

PA Bay::

Aikiko smirked at the one of the departing crewmembers of Eucharis. She may not be liked by the Shosho, or the others. She particapaited and did what was expected of her in her own unique way of doing things without bucking the Star Army system of doing things.

She was happy that Stark had found someone she could relate to and be happy with. She just was unsure of herself with this crew of overly smart people, Aikiko felt to over-specialized in explosives and police/infantry tactics.

Power Armor Bay

Tsuguka grasped the bridge of her nose and considered all of the options for a moment. The grave state of Tankyusha and the departure of Nunagawa in particular made her feel as if she had lost the two most like-minded spirits of the team. As many strengths as Akiashiro, Dirjon, Taharial, and the untested Kale had, they all seemed to have specializations beyond the red neko's own understanding... Which, of course, also made them naturally independent in their actions. Was Hanako placing so much faith in her simply because she was the only member who could be depended upon to do things by the book? Could that even be said to be true anymore, with the current state of affairs?

The lynx faced towards the alien landscape, took a deep breath, and cracked her knuckles. It would have to be true. It wasn't about personal conflict anymore. If that was what the Shosho needed, then it was her duty to deliver, to be that keystone.

"I agree with that plan of action, Nito Hei Kale." She turned slowly, angular form now backlit by the scarlet-hued rays of the gas giant beyond. "Everybody is in one squad, staggered formation. I don't want any incursions into that shell without direct permission this time... Until further notice, we have no reason to believe that this is not the work of those crystalline tripods once more. The placement is just too convenient."

"Additionally, with the way that their tunnel system changed and twisted so easily..." A small pause, whilst she bit on a thumbnail. "I'm inclined to say that they only entrances we should take are ones that Santo Hei Akiashiro makes."

"As before, no preference in firearms, since I want you to play to your strengths. We leave once everyone is suited up. Any questions?"

YSS Eucharis, PA Bay

The idea of having such a young man be second in command surprised him mildly but he could at least take confidence in the intelligence young man had demonstrated the previous night.

Zain Snowpaw said:

"Dirjon and I could handle the scanning. Given the approximate size of the crash site I'd reckon about half an hour to get an adequate quantity of data. We would need two drones a piece." he offered as he tucked his helmet under one arm.

Click to expand...

"I don't know if it'll help any but if we just task all of the team's drones to you, you could relay the data to us. It should make things a little quicker or at least easier," he suggested.

Dirjon could see Tsuguka's anxiety over the mission. She was right to believe that the bug things may be here given the short distance between the crash site and the base with a mass driver for launching things into space. "Ma'am, last night I went over some of the mission details. I've mounted a flamethrower with plasma gas in the event that you'd prefer a quieter, less intrusive approach so we'll have more explosives in case we need a rapid exit," he explained, "also, I wrapped some of the electronic packages on our armors in aluminum foil in case we run into those EM fields again..... It probably won't work but it made me feel better."

~~Cabin 3~~

With a moan Tony leaned over and kissed Natsumi on the cheek. "As much as i want to stay here all warm and spoiled in these feather beds, I need to eat, the dress, I can't just magic clotheson." She opened one eye en a mock glare, "Like some here..." She grinned and climbed out of bed dragging a sheet with her.

She Took a bite of one of the sandwiches before starting to dig out a fresh uniform. She was glad she didn't have to wear those hideously Yamataian uniforms. Pants and an over-shirt was nice, specially if she had to crawl around somewhere.

she slid on a pair of panties before grabbing her socks. A trick that she learned form her boyfriend was to put on her boots before pants. It made it easier to run out the door if needed. Next came her jeans, and bra. Pausing she took a swig of her bottle of whiskey, and another bite of the sandwich.

"So You taking the day shift? I'll take nights?" Tony asked hoping it didn't cause Natsumi to get upset again. As she spoke she slipped her shirt on over her head. With a sigh she grabbed the over shirt and her belt. Once the last of her clothes where in place she grabbed her side arm from under her mattress, it was in a good place for her to reach when she was in her bunk, though with the Neko in bed with her, she wouldn't have been able to grab it.

Power Armor Bay

"Kale-Hei... Your speciality is data processing, isn't it? Think you can handle that many drones at once?" Tsuguka had begun to suit up, but the chest plating was still left wide open whilst she tested the function of the limbs. The neko wasn't really sure why Dirjon had suggested such a thing, taking control of the situation away from himself, but she had to admit that having one person attain a complete picture of the entire battle field sounded better than two people with two halves. "And thank you, Ulvson-Hei. Having a good variety of weapons will alow us to test for specific weaknesses."

The Daisy's torso armor clasping completely shut now, she felt the full systems surge through her spine unit. Not that she would admit it to the others, but the sensation was beginning to leave a bad taste in her mouth lately. It made her worry about what dire state the group was going to be in when she got out again.

Solemnly, she righted herself, and walked over to the weapon racks to collect an aether sabre. She was certainly no technician, but judging the new added weight of her shield arm did give her a couple of extra ideas about the electromagnetic wave problem.

"...As for tinfoil, well... Remember that your shields are made of Zesuaium, and EMP doesn't just turn corners. It's a beam, just like a radio wave, or a ray of light. As long as we are outside of the complex, making a 'shadow' over your chest with it should be effective." Walking over to Dirjon now, Tsuguka made a weird motion as if wanting to put a hand on his shoulder, but then quickly retracting it, and settled on a respectful little bow of the head instead. The lukewarm creature didn't feel right being intimate; Not exactly breaking news. "I'll take point if that happens, of course, seeing as you gave me this little present to play with."