RP: YSS Eucharis [Mission 25] Stolen Pride (YE 38)

Marcus didn't bother interjecting his views. He had to remind himself that this wasn't his world. Nor was Blackberry a human. Plus, his inability to hear or see clearly altered a good deal of the interactions between the others. He recognized that he was being addressed, but with the amount of commotion, it was impossible to decipher what was said or by whom. About the only thing that was clear was that Blackberry wasn't going anywhere.

That being the case, Marcus followed Wazu's directions to the medical bay. With a good deal of straining, he managed to figure out the ABMU. Thankfully, it was similar to AMCS (automated medical care system) back home. It took some time, but within thirty minutes, his physical wounds had been treated by the machine. He was especially impressed by the cellular spray. Areas he'd expected to have to favor for a few days were mostly rebuilt within minutes. The tissue was fresh, and would require care, but he could use both arms, again, and walk without a limp.

The next task would be to get clean. By now, most of the showers would be vacated. Being more concerned with his own modesty than the others, Marcus took to questioning the computer before going any further. He first learned the location of the showers, then the Emrys jumpsuits and other clothes on the second floor, before going and getting clean.

With the drugs Wazu had put in his system, he knew he wouldn't be able to sleep for a while. So, while the others ate and rested, Marcus prepared. His vision and hearing were starting to return to a functioning state. That would help.

He still had the pistol. But, that was a small comfort. The rifle was useless now. This lighthouse was intended for this sort of situation, and he intended to make full use of it.

ON> Shuttle Bay,

Natsumi guided Wazu away from the shuttlecraft. "That's all taken care of" she said in answer to his question of getting to the nearest sensor terminal to scan for ships. "What you need is a hot shower and some rest" she said as she moved him towards the down ladder.

"You are just humoring me... I do not think anyone is on the sensors..." Wazu said, more out of spite than anything as he reached the ladder... and reclutantly started climbing down it. After all there was little point in resisting unless he wanted to burn all his bridges here, "... But I also suppose that now you are just trying to keep me removed from the situation." He would reach the bottom of the ladder fairly quickly, and wait for Natsumi to catch up, covering himself up again as best he could while he waited, "Or is it, keeping me out of their hair?"

"I am trying to make sure you get rest, like everyone else" Natsumi replied, no hint of any frustration or reaction to Wazu's short tone in her voice. "Everyone has had a rough day, some of us can bounce back from it better thanothers" she added as she floated down to his level.

"I know you want to keep going and raided the med bay for stimulants, but you're just going to burn yourself out if you keep this up" she said. "If we are going to retake the ship, everyone, including you, need to be well rested and in good health. Right now you drugging yourself into perpetual counciousness and getting into arguments with our doctor is doing no one any good"

She guided him over to a shower and turned on the water for him. "In you go" she said and smiled.

Wazu stumbled into the shower, bracing himself against the wall as he felt the water running down his body. He quickly went to work clearing the bug leftovers from his body... though he couldn't quite tell if the water was hot or cold... it was just a sort of pressure against his skin at this point.

"9 hours left on Hanako's timetable, less if more Rixx show up. Another and a half for travel out of the FTL deadzone, another hour and a half to the Eucharis, 2 hours to breah and clear the ship tops. Thats 14 hours and I can DO 14 hours while full of adrinaline and modonafil. I can afford to burn the candle from the inside out a few more times." He explained as he washed off.

"Maybe" the snowy haired neko replied. "But what if something goes wrong and it takes longer, or you are required to do heavy physical tasks. I saw how you were stumbling on the planet" shesaid. "I cannot risk you faultering because your body succumbs to exaustion or your drugs wear off, Wazu. You need to stop. You need to rest" her red eyes were fixed on his head, "And no amount of arguing the point is going to make me change my mind"

"I can manage. The Nermians had much better drugs..." Wazu stopped himself, realising he was already getting off on a tangent. He wasn't exactly focused on her, getting more soap, applying it to his hair, his attention entirely invested in the immidiate task of cleaning himself while she drilled into the back of his head with those eyes, "Besides, I was stumbling on the planet because I was shot up and Aikiko and I still managed to keep Blackberry from getting killed. I have done this before. A lot. I am normally quite good at it."

"I'm talking about before the bugs showed up" she replied. "You need to stop with the drugs. You are going to permanently damage yourself someday, someday soon." she frowned. "I know you are trying to help as best as you can, but it cannot be at the cost of your health"

"Uhh...." Wazu exhaled strongly, "... You know, I have never had to have this conversation before..." He tucked his hairtie around his wrist, and continued to wash out his hair, wringing the filth out of it, "Normally... I would avoid the stimulants... well, besides caffinee... I... This was an emergency situation. I would be far less useful as just a body hiding behind a rock on UX1...." Wazu didn't sound too sure of himself on that one. After all, he had charged out after Aikiko and ended up nearly killed.

Natsumi nodded, "I understand, and you did more than you needed to there, but now that there is time to rest, you need to rest" she said and smiled.

"You have quite the one track mind," Wazu replied, quickly soaping and rinsing off the rest of his body. He spent as little time as possible in the shower, just long enough to get the job done and not sticking around to indulge in the hot water. He would turn around and stop himself just short of running into Natsumi who had planted her feet right outside of the shower door. "... Would you hand me a towel?"

"I can multi task plenty" she said and handed over the white fluffy towel she had grabbed when Wazu had stepped into the shower.

He would quickly towel off his face and hair, before running the towel over the rest of his body, ending by wrapping it around his waist to return some level of decency. He would hold the towel closed with one hand, the other rubbing the bridge of his nose for a moment like he was having a headache that just wouldn't go away, "Maybe I need to be doing something ok?"

Natsumi raised a snowy eyebrow. "Yes, like going to bed" she said. "You will feel better and be more clear of mind after a few hours of sleep" she added, offering her hand to him.

"Nekos can clear this stuff from their bodies nearly instantly. It will take me nearly two days. If you make me lay down I am just going to be laying there without sleeping. Worse yet if I do start to come down AND fall asleep then I am going to be completely useless for the next 24 hours or so. I would rather be doing something useful than just laying in bed and thinking about what fantastic story I can tell you in order to get out of it." He said, not quite moving to leave her, but not quite moving to take her hand either.

"You need the rest, anyways, there isn't anything for you to do. If a ship shows up, the computer will inform Hanako and I" she took a step forward and gently took his hand in hers.

"You need an engineer to rig up a transfucti... Trans-Fusion kit for blackberry. You need someone to canvas this place for usable weapons. You need an expert to monitor this facility's sensor systems. You need a strategist to go over the rescue plan in progress for the Eucharis. This is no time to be sleeping for anyone except the soldiers you are sending in." Wazu stated flatly, pausing for a moment before adding.

"Just, let me do something other than lay in a bed." His voice sounding like a genuine request this time, instead of just bluntly making statements.

"Wazu, all of us are going to be the soldiers going in" Natsumi said and sighed. The expression on her face changed, her eyes closing, letting slip how tired she was after all of this. "I'm worried about you.. About everyone in the crew" she said, opening her eyes again to look at him. "Weapons arn't an issue, neither is planning. The transfusion will be managed and Blackberry will be stablized. I trust my shipmates to do what they are doing." she glanced at him, falling quiet, having run out of any more arguments to make.

"I do not want to sleep, and if I push this anymore I am going to damage this relationship," He stated, "Maybe we should talk about something else? I take it you have killed people before?"

"Yes I have" she replied. "will you at least go somewhere more comfortable than the shower to talk. I can bring up a volumetric window for the station external sensors for you if it'll make you feel better" she added.

"I think this was my first time... " He said, finally agreeing to let her lead him somewhere, following as she tugged on his hand, "I mean, first time killing some sentient creature up close... with a gun. Starships, missiles, push-button warfare... I am sure I have a kill count rivaling even Hanako."

"Maybe" Natsumi said. "Its different when the enemy is there, in front of you, rather than ina distant ship. My very first mission was an assault on an NMX station, we went in with power armor and boarded, my very first combat was against enemy nekovalkyrja"

She had killed people not to different from herself before ever encountering or firing on one of the Mishhu squids in that battle, even as she thought back to it, she was not sure how that sat with her.

She kept them on the level they were on, it had the only rest areas really, save for the mess. But Natsumi did not feel like having a private conversation with the rest of the crew in earshot. She stepped into one of the quarters and went to the computer terminal, accessing it and calling up the stations external sensors display, as well as a rotating feed from the external cameras. These she put up in a series of volumetric windows, then sat on the couch set between the sets of bunks, her eyes fixing on the sensors readout, watching the nothingness around the artificial sattelite.

Wazu sat down next to her on the couch, looking at the sensor readout, "Switch to thermals, compare changes in activity over the last ten hours." He said... pausing a moment before realizing that the computer might not respond to voice commands. He'd then reach for the window and make the adjustments to the readouts himself.

"Even as a kid I was told that kind of thing is supposed to change you. That you are supposed to feel different afterward..."

She shrugged "I don't know if that is true or not" she replied. "I was six months old when we attacked the Nest facility, so everything was changing for me back then" Natsumi said with a shrug. "Not to mention, I came out of the tube programmed to fight onday one if it was needed"

Natsumi glanced at Wazu, her big red eyes studying him for a long few moments. "Do you feel different?"

Wazu chuckled, "Not in the least.... something is probably seriously wrong with me."

Natsumi smiled lopsidedly, "Well, I already knew that" she said and poked at him with her elbow.

Wazu smiled and looked over at her, "Maybe I am just being overly tense. The number of people I work well with I can count on one hand." He would sigh, and then add, "I really am trying to be more of a team player, but I am also very used to not being able to rely on a team."

"And I'm used to the opposite". Natsumi shrugged. "I have been with the Eucharis ever since I finished my basic instruction period, so my entire life. I've always worked close with my shipmates.. And I think you have beendoing a good job working with us since you got to the ship" she said. "I know it's not easy some times, but you can rely on us. This is the best crew in the fleet" a hint of pride slipped into her voice as she spoke. Sure she was biased, but she believed it and had no reason to think otherwise.

"You are the best crew in the fleet," Wazu replied, clenching his teeth abit, then leaning back against the couch, "I am not part of the crew, nor am I part of your military. Eventually my pull with Yui and Hanako will run out, or the Nepleslians will decide to play hardball, or Yuumi will decide to pay me back... Eventually I will be on my own again."

Natsumi tugged the towelwrapped around her head off, her now mostly dry white hair cascading about her pale shoulders. "Any of those eventualities may come to pass, or not" She spoke, turning towards him. "Eventually we are all alone at some point. I know some day I will leave the Eucharis, I don't know when that day will be, or what it will bring. You may leave us soon, or not for along while. It does not mean you should stand yourself apart in preparation for that eventuality"

She placed a hand on Wazu's cheek, "And you are wrong about one thing. While you may not be part of our military, you are part of our crew" she smiled. "I trust in you and believe in you as much as I do anyone else on the ship"

He had to fight the urge to pull away, instead looking down, then off to the side, trying not to focus on her face. Natsumi was certainly attractive, a complementary color choice for hair and skin, a cute choice of how she kept her hair... and that is what made it all the more insidious. A built in feature of her race that made them all the more disarming. It would certainly work on him, if he let it.

"I..." Wazu started, unsure of how to finish the statement, eventually falling back upon bluntly describing the situation after an awkward pause, "... am grumpy and distrustful... what do you want from me?"

"That's not what you have shown me" she looked him in the eyes. "What I have seen is a brilliant scientist who likes kareoke" she smiled. "As for what I want from you?" she repeated his question, "Nothin. Just for you to be well"

"It is..." Wazu was still doing his best to avoid and deflect, only letting his eyes linger on her for a few moments before darting away. She was merely talking to him and it was putting him on the defensive harder than ever. He did not have a great response ready, or a way out... trapped and held under threat of having an intimate conversation. "... you are making this difficult."

"You're the one who wanted to talk about stuff" she replied, though with no tone of resent or triumph over his stuttering reaction in her voice, just her usual cheerfulness.

"But, if you like, we can just watch the sensors in silence" she said after a moment and scooted closer, resting her head on his shoulder as she turned her attention to the volumetric window and the sensors data.

"I suppose I do not know what I want," He finally admited, adjusting so that he could put his arm around Natsumi, letting her nestle right into a comfortable spot. This certainly didn't feel like just pressure.

"It's okay not knowing what you want" Natsumi replied, the warmth of Wazu's proximity and arm about her making her spine tingle. She had never been in close contact with a member of Wazu's half of the population before, not close like this. Her original roommate when she had joined the Eucharis had been a Nepleslian man, but his interests had been in explosives, swearing and heavy weapons, never in the then squeaky new operations neko.

She could feel herself start to tense just ahair as Wazu's arm went around her, but she felt comfortable in the warm space it created and instantly relaxed against him. "I'm not sure what I want a lot of times too"

Wazu was still carrying a lot of weight on his chest, the least of which was Natsumi's head. It did feel better to be told it is ok not to know, even for someone with so much of their self worth wrapped up in knowing what to do next. For the time being, silence seemed just as comforting.

Natsumi didn't speak either, she had found a spot that was warm and comfortable and now watched the sensor feed, her cat ears twitched slightly as she listened to Wazu breath.

Hangar

Taharial sighed happily as she could have a little more calm around the injured "Thank you guys... And Tsug that would work when her inner wounds heal, but before that you will just be making it worse." She closed her eyes "I wonder what those drug addicts left down in the medical bay, there may be something for Nekos... Tsug darling, could you go down and check for anything as I want to stay beside Blackberry and keep her from flat lining."

She went back to concentrating on Blackberry, she didn't move from the crewmembers side all the time mumbling to herself about a lot of random things while she kept checking on the woman's vitals.

Mitsuko had already left the floor the shuttle was parked on by the time the argument began. She always seemed to just miss the others as she moved through the Lighthouse. Even in this rather small space, somehow the unobtrusive Logistics Neko continued to go unnoticed. Gathering supplies from across the storage floors, she began assembling what she thought would be best for the mission the others were still planning for. She knew better, but it was good to keep up appearances.

The Lighthouse didn't store any weapons, unfortunately. There wasn't even many choices of objects to improvise a weapon with, except for some of the tools from the kits she'd already brought upstairs. Improvising some cleaning products was a bit more manageable, though. She began gathering up towels, even the ones the crew had just used (if they weren't too bloody), along with jugs of water. Loading up the main elevator with the environ suits along with some other clothing and a few stray tools they might be able to assemble into makeshift mops or brushes, she moved to the floor below the shuttle to begin unloading everything.

She wasn't going to just start cleaning it up by herself, of course. Natsumi was the pilot, so she'd make sure the other Neko approved of the idea, first. Of course, Mitsuko was still hoping to talk to Suites and confirm their rescuers were on the way, which would make the cleaning project unnecessary.

Sleeping Quarters

Aikiko ears flickered at the sounds of voices in close proximity of where she laid sleeping. An eye opened to look across the room at the backward volumetric displays. In the light of the displays she saw Natsumi with Wazu, laying together. From her perspective. It could mean anything. But with him bare and all she could was Natsumi's Trademark hair on his chest.

She watched for a few seconds and then rolled over on her bunk to face the other way, resuming her healing sleep. She made very little sound not to disturb them nor interfere with their tryst as they viewed something on the volumetric displays. She flexed her damaged knee a bit and stopped when a twinge of pain shot up her leg. But at least healing by the infernal itching. But this itch was a good sign that her body's healing capabilities were working over time to repair her knee.

Hangar -> Medical Level -> Hangar

Tsuguka just nodded understandingly to the red-winged angel, before briskly getting on with the task. Only upon walking away did it suddenly feel strange how cold the encounter had been between them, given the secret world they had shared with one another not so long ago... Here and now, they just didn't feel like the same people. Making her way down the unfamiliar access ladder, the Eucharis felt a world away, and the soldier was thrust into the uncomfortable feeling of considering her future if the worst were to happen. Part of her longed for another timeless sleep in the arms of that soft-natured, loving woman. But they weren't here right now. Tsuguka, at least the part of her that had become more than a mindless war doll, wasn't really showing their face either. None of it seemed to have meaning right now.

The passing of Mitsuko-Hei dragged her consciousness back to the present. Tsuguka still made a quick bow of acknowledgement, through perhaps not as enthusiastic as it once might have been. Too much else was going on to make formalities seem important.

Autonomous basic medicine unit. Tsuguka recognized the model even if she didn't understand the precise workings. Blood all over the patient platform... Automatic cleaning filters dead due to age, probably. Somebody had walked off with the injector head anyway. Would the removable gurney even fit up the lift shaft?... Seemed kind of big...

Some kind of case?... An 'Emrys medical kit', according to the label. Didn't look like it had been raided.

Hefting the case back along the return route, Tsuguka stopped to wince for a minute, a painful reminder of what happens when you practice nursing on yourself in the rush of the moment. Had to get that leg seen to properly before she actually needed it.

Back on the shuttle deck now. The red neko intentionally stopped short of the grotesque vehicle, and plonked the case down onto the empty deck space, wary of exposing their only medical supplies to the haven of bacteria that was their ad-hoc life raft. It was close enough so that the Elysian could see the contents when the soldier opened it up, however.

"What do you need, Nito-Hei Chasan?"

Bisen Lighthouse, Floor 6, Shuttle Bay


After showering Candon had a chance to inspect the pants he'd previously been wearing, what wasn't burnt was made stiff by the blood that had soaked it earlier. Along with many rips and tears the pants were a lost cause. After visiting the AMBU for shrapnel extraction Candon arrived in the Shuttle Bay wearing the one of the environ suits Mitsuko had left out, minus the Upper Body Module and helmet he was carrying under his arm. He was absolutely exhausted but he was an NCO now, food and sleep could wait for him to ensure that things were in order. Anything less could cost someone's life.

Mitsuko's presence when he was injured on Higaflan had been calming for him, a calming feeling Candon had noticed as he lost consciousness hours earlier. As far as he knew he owed her twice for warding off death. A pang of guilt ran through him as he looked her in the eyes as he entered. The telepathic conversation they'd shared had gone one direction but his actions were fairly different. By all means he had intended to contact SAINT for help but as he flew to the Bisen he had time to think, something that would never cease to cause problems.

Doing his best to keep his nerves in check he began heading towards the group of people but stopped dead in his tracks as he saw Blackberry on the floor. Candon knew as soon as he saw her face, she was dying and there wasn't a thing they could do about it without Eucharis. He'd seen people on Death's doorstep more than enough times to a identify a lost cause and yet seeing her, someone he barely knew, made him nauseous with anxiety.
Guilt had taken on a new meaning. Here she was, dying and being told we might be able to save her in 10 hours when a rescue could have arrived within three hours well over two hours ago.
Candon had killed her.

The UBM clattered onto the floor along with the helmet which had the good sense to roll across the floor away from the situation. His ears were still damaged but he wouldn't have heard the noise anyway as the gravity of his action's consequence set in. Without a word or drop of blood in his face he turned around and almost ran for the ladder, grabbing the sides and sliding down as far as he could until his feet made contact with floor 1.



Bisen Lighthouse, Floor 1, Utility


Reality felt fake as he left the shuttle bay and entered the privacy of the utility room. He couldn't shake the feeling of shame despite being as far as he could physically be without spacewalking. He pressed his back against the closest wall and found himself sitting with his head buried in his hands.

Hangar

Taharial seemed to snap out of a trance when Tsug came back, she gave Tsug a kind smile "Hey darling, I will need Bandages, that Needle, the Forceps, the Suture Kit and anything that can be used to stop the bleeding" she looked at Blackberry and sighed then walked to Tsug and hugs her gently "Sorry if I was a bitch to you, I was angry, tired and worried, but after we sort out Blackberry and your leg, why don't we find somewhere to have a little nap."

Taharial took the stuff from Tsug and smiled "Thanks for helping me darling" she headed back to the shuttle "If I call for anything will you bring it too me, when I start this I won't be able to leave her side till I finish."

She had wiped clean a table that she could use to start the surgery and gently put Blackberry onto it, she checked the pulse and scans of her crewmember just to check if she could start the surgery, she smiled as Blackberry was in a coma-like state so the surgery wont cause that much known pain. She gulped as she used a scalpel to slice open the side of Blackberry to let the blood leak out and quickly got to work opening the girl up, then she cleaned and sewed the inner tears up and making sure it wouldn't bleed anymore. She then gulped as she cleaned up all the cuts to make sure that they were fully clean, checking that Blackberry was okay "Okay, blood is still above worry level" she smiled and sew up the Nekos body then scanned her "Blackberry just about stable , just needs rest and then her bodily functions should heal her."

Taharial stepped out of the shuttle and walked to Tsug "Now miss, sit down and let me check out your leg" she didn't let her red companion argue as she pulled Tsug to a place to sit down and forces her to sit "Good girl, maybe you will get something special from listening to me" she giggled while she gentle took of the Red skinned Neko's boot and splint and tested around the leg feeling what could be wrong "Hmm it feels like just a muscle sprain but there could be some small bone damage that we can't see or feel."

She looked over at the Shuttle "I don't want to leave Blackberry alone though, if I could find us a basic cot, we could rest here, if you are okay with that darling?"

Hangar

"Don't worry about me, we all have bigger problems right now." Tsuguka just shrugged. It wasn't quite a rejection, and she cared about how the sanguine medic felt, but it just seemed too self-indulgent to be wasting time on personal endeavors with the way things were. A quick glance spoke of more things left unsaid, but the stoic woman chose to keep herself reserved and unemotional, and therefore useful.

Tsuguka was fine with acting as a nurse for just a while, diligently handing over tools so that Taharial wouldn't have to remove her focus from the patient, and obsessively sanitizing each piece once used. Floating back and forth not too difficult, even with her busted leg. Hard to tell if the procedure went quickly, or they were both just so tired that the entire situation was like being on autopilot.

Blackberry seemed fine in the end. The red soldier just nodded to the elysian's closing words, not really sure what to feel. Having not really talked to the cherry-rose skinned Chui operator lying before them on previous occasions probably helped with keeping the whole operation impersonal, really... Alrough that in itself did hit her with a pang of guilt.

Being forced to sit broke her out of the weird train of thought again. Seemed to be happening a lot. Maybe she really was running on empty. Having her only semi-mended limb examined did not feel good, even by the gentle hands of her angelic companion.

"Nekovalkyrja healing. It was definitely a lot worse before I set it." Despite putting on a brave face, there was a certain look of illness that Tsuguka simply couldn't hide away. "If you think it will clear itself up how it is, then I trust you."

"Try the storage level for blankets." A quick change of subject, trying to remain positive and practical. No flowery messages or flatteringly formal titles, but they weren't going anywhere. The look in their eyes spoke of a person struggling just to stay awake. "They had Emyrs survival kits in the other place, big green things... Would you like me to fish one out?"

Bisen Lighthouse
UX-3 III Orbit
About 10 hours later

10 hours later, the crew had gotten their opportunity to heal and rest, and now it was time to get moving again. Hanako crawled out of bed in her white yukata and went to the command center of the small space station and used the intercom system. "Attention everyone, please get ready to leave. We are going to go get back to our ship. This is obviously going to be a risky mission, and I ask that only willing volunteers come with me. If you want to stay and get picked up later, I will allow that. If you want to join the away team, meet me in the shuttle bay with whatever weapons and gear you have. Out."

Hanako then went down to the supply level and dressed in an Emrys Ship Jumpsuit, and layered her tattered, bloodstained Star Army Type 35 Duty Uniform jacket on top of it. She checked her NSP battery levels and went to the shuttle to meet the others.

Bisen Lighthouse
UX-3 III Orbit
About 9 hours later:

Aikiko was dressed in her coveralls, which turned out to be Emrys Ship Jumpsuit and boots she had absconded with from the Storage. She tested her knee out and it was solid as if it never gotten wounded. It was an rare occasion that the Shosho had a good idea. It was time to recover the ship. But first things first. Recovering her NSP. Hoping that Wazu still had it.

She was putting the finishing touches to the interior of the Confiscated Rixxikor Shuttle. It was clean from taking advantage of Mitsuka's efforts in gathering the necessary cleaning supplies. The interior of the shuttle was clean and smelled fresh from several old air fresheners she found buried when she was scrounging stuff to wear.

hour later

Just as she was putting the finishing touches to the shuttle, came the announcement for everyone to meet at the shuttle that volunteered to go. She tossed the last of the empty buckets out of the back of the Shuttle. All of the seats were still wet from the soakings they received earlier. She smirked and settled down near the hatch where she could watch the Shosho appear. She was busy cleaning the Confiscated Rixxikor weapon. It was a rare one, and there was still ammo left for it. Projectile weapon, yet it was still deadly in the right hands.

Aikiko gave a brief, yet respectful nod to Hanako as she assembled the clean Rixxikor weapon.

Command Center

Marcus was pleasantly surprised to find that he was able to wake up when Hanako came in to the command center for the announcement. His vision was clear, and the squeal was gone from his hearing. Instead, he was experiencing one of his sister's symptoms of mental damage. His head was pounding in pain.

~"Not good."~ He thought. If he was, in fact, experiencing a headache for the same reason Katarina did, things were worse than he first thought.

He stood, grabbed the supplies he set aside and waited for the admiral to finish her announcement, then started following her to the shuttle. "Hanako, I need to ask a favor. I'm going along with your away team. I would ask that you utilize my data clone. I'm only going to be of so much use before...well...before my usefulness ends. He'll be in peak physical and mental condition, plus he'll be on the ship with access to items we simply don't have here. When I can't go any more, he'll be able to continue for quite some time."

♫ Japanese Piano Music - Japanese Tales

Deck 3

The stew was amazing, plain and simple. Jax remained quiet as he helped himself to seconds, reflecting on the day in an almost meditative trance. Sure, the battle was horrifying, and he'd probably need therapy, but it paled in comparison to the overwhelming feeling of loss and emptiness he'd experienced when the Eucharis was stolen. Suffice to say that it was an odd feeling, knowing you had nothing but the clothes on your back. He'd experienced it before, and he didn't want to ever have to live like that again; begging, fixing machines for pennies. The people of Yamatai were nice for the most part, but they had no time for a poor, uneducated peasant like himself. Maybe it was his jeans that irked them...

None the less, if they failed to retrieve the ship, if they were forced to report their rule-breaking to SAoY Command, they'd all get booted for sure. The others might live on. Hanako would probably go back to whatever royal posse she knew. Candon and the other infantry could go become hired guns, or security. Umeshu and Natsumi were far too valuable to simply sweep under the rug. They were just the right rank to send off to their own vessels. Taharial could easily transition into the civillian medical sector. But Jax? He was a dopey grease-monkey who couldn't do much else besides write a sentence and fix a starship. Two very specific skills that couldn't get you much anywhere in Yamatai. Nekos could be produced a million at a time and be trained to do the same within weeks.

He... He had to get something off his chest. Sooner rather than later. He pushed away his bowl and excused himself.

Deck 1

Without drawing attention, the engineer slipped away to the first deck, where he was positive no one would come down and check. He hesitated for a moment, unsure of whether or not he should go through with it, but he knew he had to. It wouldn't be right.

<Umi? You up? I-I need to talk to you. I-In private. I'm down on the first floor.>

Umeshu was still on Deck 4 of the lighthouse, having taken up residence on the unoccupied bed there next to the open survival kit where she got her current traditional clothes from. Sitting up with the bottom of the yukata partially moved out of the way, the officer was focusing on treating the many red surface lacerations that yet graced her purple legs. To this end a Type 32 Star Army First Aid Kit from the footlocker was laid out painstakingly, as the Taii applied liquid bandage from a tube onto the numerous smaller cuts, while wrapping the larger ones in clean gauze pads with tape when she recieved Jax's message. It sounded important.

<Hai, Jax-san. I can meet you... just a few moments, please. My legs are still tender from the bandages.>

If she had been in good health, it would have taken no time to zip down the hatches and ladders that stood between seeing her lover. However, Umeshu this time actually rode the lift, using the excuse when asked that she was going downstairs to check to see if the civilian-grade Emrys Communicators in storage were working or needed to be charged before the operation tomorrow.

As the central platform came to a rest, Jax could see the tired-looking operator's white-clad figure half-hovering, half-shambling out of it, her lower extremities adding to the ambience that he had just awoken some kind of sleeping oriental mummy queen from an old Nepleslian horror flick instead of his gentle bridge bunny.

Upon her entry, Jax tried his best to smile, but it couldn't hide his grimace. There was clearly something weighing on his mind, and he looked as if he'd regretted calling her down here.

"H-hey, Umi..." he greeted weakly. He stood and walked to her, and as he did so vivid images from earlier flashed through his mind. He pushed them down and wrapped an arm around her in an attempt to help her move. He guided her to the wall and sat, motioning for her to do the same in a spot next to him.

What was he thinking?! She shouldn't be here! She should be in bed, resting!

Despite Jackson's internal struggle, he steeled his resolve and spoke.

"Umi, before we go after the Eucharis, there's something I have to tell you," he paused, then glanced at the floor as if to contemplate whether or not to say more. "If this relationship is going to work, we need to be honest to one another."

Umeshu perked up noticeably when she saw his smile, and the arm he placed around her body to help guide in that moment was certainly welcome for more than just some support. At first the ex-samurai tried to fold her legs into a seiza position out of habit, but with her tender shins protesting she soon thought better of it... instead choosing to gently slide down the wall and rest on the floor next to Howard-hei sitting up, leaning into him so that her head was on his shoulder.

Jax could feel the sensation of a few wisps of her as yet unbraided long plum hued hair draping down to the fold of his yukata. The rank pin hastily affixed to Umeshu's breast glinted once in the storage area's lights as the somewhat reluctant Taii heaved a relieved sigh to finally have some intimate moments with him, away from everyone's eyes. "Yes... though it seems like the only time was can find alone is by being dishonest to others."

Jax felt his lips spread into a small smile at the contact. He draped his arm around her shoulders and gently held her against him. He rested his chin on top of her head, inhaling the tantalizing scent of her shampoo with deep, slow breaths. The nekojin spent several long, sweet moments in silence, enjoying the moment for everything it was worth.

The grimness of their situation, the stress of war, the everlasting fear of sudden death and of the uncertain future bombarded his mind constantly- like an endless torrent. When he had these moments with his love, he still felt those negative emotions, but also felt a powerful, warm strength that would carry him through it. It was better than any drug. It's high unlike anything an artificial substance could produce. He craved this high with every fiber of his being.

"...I know," he whispered into her hair. "They'll find out on their own, eventually. Not that I mind. Why should we hide it?"

He knew he was stalling. Time to cut to the chase.

"But that's for another time. I... wanted to talk to you about something else. The... real reason I.... joined the military."

Umeshu was also enjoying the precious moments of quiet closeness, free from all of the doubt and self-deprecating thoughts that ate away at the edges of her being. Her failures at the Bisen before seemed like only faint dreams that faded before the reality of the sounds of Jax's close breathing. A gentle hand soon found its way inside of his yukata, as sensations of her still tender, healing flesh danced across his muscular chest before settling on his artificial body's beating heart. It's rhythmic pulsing matched her own, the two's budding love far stronger than the shadows of death they had faced less than an hour ago.

She was slow to hear his voice return at first, either from the relaxing state Hashimoto-taii was starting to slip back into in Jax's warm embrace or the fact her eardrums were not yet 100% repaired from their injuries. But her ears twitched all the same, half-lidded soothing green eyes snapping back open at the unexpected topic of their intimate chat as a soft "hmm?" escaped her purple lips.

Her digital mind got to work recalling their first meeting with the hull breach in the wardroom of the now missing Eucharis, and the night together afterward with the Lorath wine that started it all. "I remember you saying something about being the 'black sheep' of your family..."

Jax stiffened at the more intimate contact, and felt a more primal urge course through his veins, one that he would have acted upon under different circumstances.

He nodded.

<Yeah, that was part of the reason...> he affirmed. <But the truth is... I joined because I had to, not out of my undying love of country.>

He clasped his free hand over the lavender one which caressed him. Blue eyes met green in a gaze that carried love, fear, and shame. He loved her dearly, and he feared she wouldn't love him anymore once he revealed his secret to her. He hated himself for keeping it from her for so long.

<Umeshu, I'm poor,> He stated plainly. At first the words were slow, but increased in speed as he spoke <When I came to Yamatai, I had very little money. I spent the last of it on this body. After that, I lived on the streets. I never went to college. All white collar work is off limits for me. Literally everything I had was stolen alongside the Eucharis.

If we ever took our relationship further, I couldn't afford to raise a child, or buy a home. I can't give you anything. No palace in Kyoto, no romantic honeymoon, n-nothing...>

He choked on that last word, having to fight back the urge to cry. He pushed down the lump in his throat.

<I-If you don't want me after this, I-I understand...>

A tear fell, and he looked away to hide his weakness. Another one followed, then another. The though of her leaving him combined with his fatigue was crushing him.

The Nekovalkyrja listened to the former Nepleslian's silently transmitted words as he recounted his hidden secret, seeing the emotions along with it welling up within his gaze as it met her own. It suddenly seemed strange how she always had pictured him as happy and vibrant, but in truth he also had his own shame that was locked within his heart not unlike her own. She knew that feeling well, of being inadequate... but it nearly brought Umeshu to tears to hear it now coming from her lover's mind.

<So, that's why you seemed to hesitate...> she began, as the hand over his heart moved up to frame the side of his face with a gentle caress. <Onegai.. please don't cry.> The skilled archer's fingers wiped a tear away from his visage, her presence echoed in his mind alongside the soothing wisteria colored countenance.

<Oh Jax-san... you have been worried all this time because of... money? Have you forgotten so soon where I have come from? In Samurai House I had nothing but the same chest I still carry with me, as wordly things had no place there in the training hall that was all that I knew. By this token, I was perhaps even poorer than you when they then cast me out into the world, a failure...>

Umeshu then put on her warmest smile, trying to now give some of the joy he had inspired in her before back to the young engineer. <Even if I managed to get into the Academy, I realized that the only currency I truly desired was... people. People who would love and accept me for who I was, and not who they wanted me to be. People who could give me new, and exciting experiences beyond that simple life...>

There was a pause, as a sparkle appeared in her sage green eyes as she rubbed the finger that caught his tears slowly across his cheek. <People like... you, Jax. Whether it is cruising the stars together in the good times... or just having you here beside me in the difficult ones, like this... I already feel like the richest person in the world.>

The tears had stopped, and visible relief filled his features. Jax smiled tiredly, hiccuped, and sniffed. His eyes and cheeks were a deep red. He was ecstatic. What had he ever done to deserve a woman like her? If he still felt inadequate, it wasn't because of his economic status- it was because he felt he couldn't do enough for her. Jax held her close, and pledged to do whatever he could to make her happy. He looked into Umeshu's eyes for several, long moments, trying to find words. He could find none, so he whispered:

"I... I love y-you."

The words were quiet, but they could have been screamed from the rafters the way they reverberated in Umeshu's heart. She eventually voiced this shared echo as she soon found herself getting lost in Jax's joyful and relieved stare like a wide open blue ocean, "I love you, too..."

A set of familiar plum lips trembled and unconsciously started moving closer to his, as if to formally seal their renewed promise. There was no judgements loaded into the young Neko's kiss, just the unabashed yearning for the simple warmth of one another... something to be savored like a fine wine, for one never knew when the next life or death moment would come.

Jax melted into the embrace, joyful to have his sentiments returned. In the warm bliss, he felt his eyelids become heavy. The events of the day were catching up to the nekojin.

<...Bed.> he thought drowsily. Slowly, almost regretfully, he pulled away. He stood, yawned, and took a step towards the lift. He stopped when he realized he'd forgotten something.

Before she could say anything in protest, Jax reached down and scooped up Umeshu in his arms.

<...Bed?> he asked with a small, sly grin. Sure, he may not have been coherent, but the message was clear as day.

She too felt the haziness eating away at the corners of her awareness, as her hemosynthetic body's operating system yearned for a chance to relax and repair itself properly underneath all of her wrappings. As Umeshu was quickly scooped up into Jax's arms, she really could think of no better place for the two of them to recover than near each other for a few hours in one of the quarters above. The ex-samurai wasn't going to let her code about public affection get in the way this time, should someone catch them...

A small sound of affirmative finally came from the purple-skinned officer towards her boyfriend as he stepped into the lift, followed by a drowsy nod. <...Bed.>

Deck 4, several hours later...

And so there they lay, surrounded by warm sheets and lovingly entwined on one of the small bunks in the quarters of the Bisen. Jax currently played the role of "big spoon", and being much larger and taller than Umeshu, played the part well. His large frame easily encompassed her in its warm embrace. His long, fluffy tail was draped lazily across her midriff. The engineer had been exhausted when he'd fallen asleep, so his purrs were low in volume and soft, creating a sweet white noise that could lull anyone to sleep and keep them there.

If anyone had anything to say about it, they could go choke on a gummy bear.

At hearing Hanako's voice over the intercom, his ear swiveled towards the noise, and his eyes snapped open. He frowned, and suddenly felt very angry. What he wouldn't give to simply lay here, face buried into the nape of his woman's neck, listening to the sounds of her soft breathing.

He spent as much time as he could enjoying the moment, but eventually climbed out of bed, dressed in nothing but a pair of trousers. His yukata lay on the floor nearby.

Before leaving, Jax leaned down and planted a soft kiss on Umeshu's forehead. With that out of the way, he trudged out of the quarters and to the laundry room, where he donned his work uniform, which had been cleaned. His NSP only had one magazine left.

He picked up his rocket launcher and satchel of ghetto-missiles from earlier, and then moved for the hangar.

~~~

Umeshu was in a deep, dormant, healing state, placed in a sense of serenity just listening to the steady, calming purring of Jax and feeling the contact of his warm skin with hers. Her white yukata was also discarded on the floor, the only clothing a pair of cotton briefs from the survival kit and her layers of bandages. The announcement of Hanako over the intercom system sounded so distant, that the starship operator barely twitched at first. She soon felt the movement of Jax pulling away from her as he reluctantly left the bedroom, the kiss planted on her forehead causing the Neko to show a bit of her own cat-like traits, stretching and grasping at the bedding nearby with a cute, almost mewling sound that Jax no doubt caught the tale end of as he departed.

Her sage green eyes opened slowly as Hashimoto-taii realized with disappointment that the only thing in her hands now was a cool, rumpled pillow, and a sheet draped across her purple abdomen where his fluffy tail once was. A short sigh escaped her lips as she rolled over and stared at the door longingly for a moment, the recorder in her digital mind replaying the Shosho's message at the back of her mind. Duty called her once again to action... but at least for that brief few hours, the ex-samurai seemed to have finally found... peace. And that, indeed, was something worth fighting with all of her spirit for.

Umeshu steeled herself for the daunting task she knew lie ahead of them, rising up half-naked from the bed with a renewed purpose. She was an officer of the Star Army, and also needed to remember the bigger picture at stake than just this beautiful, private world she had shared with Jax. As she bent down to pull the Taii rank pin that Hanako-sama had decorated her with off the yukata, she clenched the heart-shaped medal in her now-healed hand and brought it to her own bosom. Silently, she prayed to Chiharu for the strength to prevail over her enemies -- vowing that for her love of the Empire, and of her newfound passion, she would not fail again.

Deck 6

After taking some time to quickly sample the emergency rations when her stomach reminded her that she had missed Aikiko's dinner earlier, the wisteria-skinned bridge bunny soon appeared on the landing pad where the captured shuttle was getting set to launch. Unlike before her hair was now done up in a bun with the beloved kogai dagger through it, and she was, like her captain, clad in an Emrys Ship Jumpsuit with her battered, but still serviceable grey-paneled duty uniform jacket on top of it (her skirt and tights were, sadly, a shredded, lost cause).

Umeshu did however have some unexpected equipment on her person, in addition to her trusty NSP... namely a roll of the high-strength cord from the excursion supplies wrapped around one of her arms, and a folding saw from the survival kit in a small pouch. There was also a box in her hands containing a few Basic Communicators that were charged and synced to the group's existing SAoY fequencies that anyone could help themselves to.

"Ohayo gozaimasu, mina-san," Hashimoto-taii declared her morning greetings cheerily in Yamataigo with a polite bow and a surprisingly energetic smile for someone who was barely walking a few hours ago.

Bisen Lighthouse, UX-3 III Orbit, Storage Floor, 2 hours before Hanako's Rally

Tsuguka didn't stay the entire time that Taharial had been asleep, in their makeshift camp site upon the shuttle landing ramp. Even before others had been to clean the rest of the vessel, the murky urges of her soldier's brain had lead her down into the cargo and maintenance spaces, attempting to acquire new weapons for the desperate assault they were about to partake in.

Thinking about her angel sleeping alone up there still hit her with a silent pang of guilt. Candon had been looking like the walking dead a few hours ago, and she hadn't said a thing. Hadn't even tracked down Umeshu at all.

Shotgun in hands. Receiver still broken. No ammo anyways. Worthless. Couldn't find Akiashiro's gifted knife. Probably lying in the dirt on UX-1 somewhere. Not a single damn extra magazine, or even a fire axe, on the whole damn station.

Clasped fingers, heavy breathing. She wasn't a mindless doll, never was. But without a clean-cut objective in front of her eyes, it always seemed to come down to this. A personality custom built for being knee-deep in gore and nothing else, Tsuguka knew that now, and she hated it. No tools at all to comfort other people. No way of separating the boiling hatred she now felt for the Rixxikor, and the strange unworldly passion that seemed to streak into existence every time she was in touching distance of Taharial's carmine flowing feathers. Obsessive, that was the only way to describe it. But giving the devil a name didn't give her any power over it.

Only thing that could be done was to shut out all of the other noise, and pray that throwing herself at the enemy once more would give her the absolution she itched for right down to the core of her being.

Yes. Logic. If she was useful in combat, that was good enough. A functional, if temperamental, thing. Not useless. They should be able to tolerate her for that, in the long run.

Bisen Lighthouse, Shuttle Bay, Current Time

The red neko answered the Shosho's call instantly, at least with her presence. They said nothing, outwardly the same unblinking statue of a woman as always, internally burning to be ordered into action. Ears and limbs healed as best as possible in the short time that they had. The service pistol remained their sole armament. Both more than enough.

ON> A Sofa

For the past 9 hours Wazu had been delicately trying to learn more about the station they were on. With Natsumi resting against his chest, he couldn't move without waking her and she needed sleep. The volumetric display was just out of reach of his hands, so he had been trying to operate the device with his foot. It took him nearly an hour just to get a floor listing alongside of the sensor display that had been put up earlier.

He would slowly try and reach out, trying to get his toe to press against the screen with the PA turned on.

"Attention everyone, please get ready to leave. We are going to go get back to our ship. This is obviously going to be a risky mission, and I ask that only willing volunteers come with me. If you want to stay and get picked up later, I will allow that. If you want to join the away team, meet me in the shuttle bay with whatever weapons and gear you have. Out."

Click to expand...

"Natsumi, time to wake up," He said softly, applying a gentle pressure to her shoulder with his hand. "No more time for sleeping."

The snowy haired neko sturred, her red eyes opening as the touch to her shoulder woke her. She yawned and pressed herself against Wazu's warmth, not wanting to wake yet. "Mmm just a few more minutes" she murmerd.

Despite the amount of pain killers he was using, it actually hurt a bit having to say it, "Hanako is getting ready to leave without us. We need to get up... Come on, stand up, move your legs, get some circulation going!" He would slowly turn up the volume of his voice until it had reached the usual speaking tone. His hands would move to her shoulders, pushing her off his chest so that she was laying back against the chair so that he could stand. With one hand holding up his towel, the other would take her hand, his fingers sliding up from the elbow, along her wrist, and then settled in her palm. While his fingers held the outside of her hand, the thumb would press against her, pulling her hand up towards him and away from the sofa.

"You can sleep naked all day long as soon as we get the ship back... but we may want to find some real clothing before then."

Natsmi let herself be pulled to her feet, her red eyes blurry with sleep. She didnt notice her towel slipping loose as she blinked and stretched, coming back to being awake.

"Alright, I'm up" she said, yawning again and taking a deep breath.

His eyes would linger on her a moment longer than they should have before he turned around,

"Looks like there is some gear on the lower levels... enviromental suits, clothing.... ugh, this place has Hemosynth fluid air filters, we could have use the spare fluid to heal Blackberry..." He said, his hands finally able to reach the display and key in the commands he had been trying to run with his toe all night long.

"Come on Natsumi... just four more hours and you can sleep in your own bed..."

Natsumi blushed and quickly scooped up her towel, pulling it back into place. "Well" she started, "I was pretty confy" she gave him a little grin, then glanced at the volumetric window Wazu had been working with.

"Okay lets get some of those environments k suits then swing by the laundry. I don't want to leave my stuff behind"

She gathered up her hat, gunbelt and NSP and eyed Wazu as she started for the exit. It wouldn't take long for the two of them to reach the lower floors. Wazu didn't waste time and just took the ladder, carefully going down rung by rung. Though he certainly looked a lot better than he did before, he was still working around a lot of sore spots.

When he reached the correct floor he found that plenty of the crew had already stopped by the lower levels, leaving some of the items unpacked.

"Enviromental suits and... uh Kimonos?" He disliked the idea of just going commando, but the white Yukata's wouldn't fit well under the suits. He went ahead and pulled out one of the suits and tossed it over towards where he thought Natsumi was, then grabbed another for himself. "You don't happen to see any weapons around here do you?"

Natsumi grabbed the suit Wazu had picked out for her that was sailing through the air and draped it over her arm. "Feeling bashful now?" she asked at the mention of kimonos." After we pretty much slept naked together? " she flashed him a mischievious grin." Well, at least some of our clothes made it into the station laundry" she said. "So I'm going to check there before I just slip into the envyronment suit"

She bundled up all of her suits componants. "As for weapons.... I think it's just what we brought with us. NSP's and the few rixxicore rifles we captured. This is a civilian station, so chances are nothings here." she shrugged. "That said, being more prepared and not on a surprise defensive, the next action should go a lot smoother"

"The people we attack may not be as easy to knock of balance as me," He replied, giving her a bit of a smile as he examined the suit. "... and you are really knocking my off balance today."

He would drop his towel, and get started on pulling the enviromental suit on, "Hull patch kits... I mean, I may be able to do something with those... " He thought outloud, looking over the other supplies in the room, "... and I left Aikiko's pistol with Blackberry... I probably should get that back..." She had only been up for a little while, and already Wazu was retreating, getting squirly and uncomfortable.

Natsumi raised an eyebrow. "Knocking you off balance how?" she asked, watching him with her red eyes. "You're standing just fine" she added.

Wazu's eyes narrowed.

"... do I have to spell it out?"

"I know what you mean, don't worry" she said and stuck her tongue out at him. She didn't know why she was having fun teasing Wazu. She had never really interracted with anyone from the male half of the population outside of a strictly professional setting before though. Maybe that had something to do with it. She would have to figure that out later.

"At least I'm not shooting at you" she added with a smile.

"And that certainly endears you to me. I do love the way you avoid shooting me," He replied, finishing getting his jump suit on. "Sorry, I do not mean to be harsh... "

"It's okay" she replied. "This has all been pretty stressfull" she said, "I hope things go well today and" she shrugged, hugging the environmental suit to herself as she nodded for them to start off for the station's laundry.

"That is not quite what I mean," He said, putting her arm around her and pulling her close as they headed towards the Laundry, "4 hours to save the Eucharis, 24 more to sleep... maybe another 1 to get dressed and shower... but after that how about another round of kareoke?"

Natsumi blushed as Wazu put his arm around her and drew her up close as they walked. "I think I'd like that" she said and looked at him.

"Great.... I have been trying to a song that will top our performance of Yamatain Woman" He said, walking them both back towards the ladder.

"I think we can come up with a few" she replied. She was enjoying being held in his arms again as they walked, but they soon reached the ladder thst would take them to the level with the laundry. She activated her counter gravity and floated off the deck by an inch and let herself slowly slip out from his arm.

He would let her go ahead... and pause a moment before looking up and following her.

Natsmi floated up, paying little heed to the fact she was still just bundled up in a towel. Reaching the appropriate level, she drifted into the laundry and set her stuff down before quickly going to work sorting out hers things, now all fresh and clean. She about had everything sorted when Wazu arrived.

"Clean laundry!" she announced and shed her towel before grabbing her undergarments to put on.

Wazu would wait by the ladder, giving Natsumi some space to get dressed.

"No time to waste" she said and reached out the door, grabbing Wazu and pulling him into the laundry. "Get your stuff, unless you want to leave it behind!" Natsumi said and started dressing.

"Its all torn... I can just get a change once we get back the ship. This jumpsuit will do fine for the time being." He replied, following after Natsumi, doing his best to keep pace as the Neko preformed a combination of hurrying, flying, and dressing all at once!

"Oh.. Well.." She trailed off as she slipped on her jumpsuit, then put her uniform tunic on like a jacket. The skirt was not needed for now and she put it and her stockings aside, wrapping them in a towel to keep them clean on the soon to come trip in the bug shuttle. Then she strapped on her gun belt, checked her NSP and slipped her feet ibto the boots that went with the environmental suit.

"Guess thats it then?" she looked at hik, seeing if he was ready to go as she put her officer hat on and affixed her new rank pin into it's proper place on her uniform tunic.

Wazu managed to find Aikiko's pistol when they reached the hanger, picking it up and holding onto it for the time being, "That is it, no time for any more prep work here... though we should talk strategy. This will be a lot easier if we can get a few spare bodies from the Eucharis or remote pilot the power armors from its armor bay."

"Power armor would even the odds a lot" Natsumi nodded as she peered into the shuttle, noting it had been cleaned up fairly thouroughly while they had been away. She noted that even the foul stench was gone. She would have to find out who had put in the effort to clean the shuttle and thank them.

She found the rifle Mao had tossed to her during the battle on the planet and checked it's power, which was still fairly good. "If we can still communicate with Charisma, it would not be hard for her to germt some or all of the crew still aboard to assist with their power armor, or at keast deploy some for us. Also the ships guns should be able to blast away at the enemy.. That is assuming they hsve not been disabled and Charisma is still with us"

"The ships guns may not be reliable here." Wazu replied, "I mean, they must have the ship inside of some chop-shop or research complex right? The backblast from using the guns in close quarters would be dangerous to us and likely also the ship itself."

He would give it a little bit more thought before adding,

"Does the Eucharis still have that Kenetic Shield spike thing? It may be easier to use the ship's shields to force open doors and the like to allow us entrance."

"The main battery guns and aether shock cannon would be a danger for sure, but the anti-armor guns would be okay to use" she frowned as she thought it over too.

"You know, we do not have to fire the main gun in order to use it. Just the energy that thing puts off from charging up would put their whole facility on alert. I think we should get as many of them looking at the Eucharis as possible, that means less people looking at the shuttles. If they know what they are doing, they will have already locked out this shuttle's transponder and fire on it the moment we are in range.

Of course, if we can not use the Eucharis, we should have some other plan for distracting them so we can slip the shuttle in." Wazu replied.

She nodded. "Yes, having access to the Eucharis would make things a lot easier" she agreed, liking the idea of just the buildup phase from the aether cannon acting as a decoy. No one wanted one of those charging in their base. "Thoughts on how to get in if we don't hsve the ship as support?" she asked.

Shuttle Bay

"Taii, for your consideration... A shuttle can be used to accelerate a nekovalkyrja at great distance, then our own gravitational organs used to slow down gradually." Tsuguka chimed in to Yamashiro's conversation, completely out of the blue. The completely blank tone spoke of the fact she knew just how dangerous and insane the idea was, but plainly spoke her mind anyway. Better to suggest it now, than wasting time on half-hearted ideas. "Space suits environmental systems need to be turned off, through, or they'll see the heat. Should be able to get inside undetected, and pave a way for the others."

"Plan of action after that depends on the exact vessel situation. The situation and memories of Mister Rodia's clone, also, if that action is utilized."

Bisen Lighthouse, Floor 6, Shuttle Bay


Candon awoke to Hanako's call. After only a half hour rest he looked like hell but he was more ready to dish it out than he'd been in what felt like an eternity. Before him sat the Upper Body Module of his environ suit, but it was different now. Under the thrusters was a bulky Osmiridium wrapped 10L bottle full of a sticky flammable gel insulated with the insulation pulled straight out of a wall in the Bisen. Mixing the sterilizing fluids from the AMBU and styrofoam pieces from the insulation in the walls Candon had made poor man's napalm to be used in conjunction with a HE round from his HHG to ignite and spray the fiery fluids in what he hoped would be a hallway in the enemy ship. The presence of napalm would undoubtedly burn up the O2 and heat the entire ship to a dangerous level with enough time and even he could draw a picture of what Hanako would do to him if he set it off in Eucharis.

He carried the heavy UBM as he approached the others to strategize. "That's crazy, Tsuguka-Hei," he chimed in, "I like it. If we choose crazy this may help."
Candon unhooked the straps attaching the bulky Osmiridium tube to the UBM and held out for the team to see.
"It's a firebomb, it's tough as hell to extinguish once it ignites. If I can set this off it'll put that bird-thing out of order for about ten minutes if the OpFor can fight it correctly. Might make a good distraction while we recover our ride."

Floor 5

Mitsuko had been shocked, then angry, then just disappointed. That sense of crushing disappointment had slowly transitioned to dull acceptance. Why would he disobey their living legend of a Captain and listen to someone that literally only existed to do paperwork and perform other menial tasks the actual soldiers didn't have time for? She thought it had been logical to doubt the two civilians, especially when one's arrival had coincided with this attack. However, logic had never seemed to properly affect the Eucharis or her crew, so why should this situation have been any different? She had been looking at things all wrong. The problem here, she decided, after eight or so hours to think, was her.

They would be fine. They would easily find their missing ship, recover it, and make a daring escape. They would probably even learn more about their new enemies in the process. They would return as heroes. Again. Another round of medals, promotions, celebration. Another vacation on the beautiful planet named after their Captain. It was just how the universe worked. For those on the Eucharis, of course. That sort of logic-defying life, as if their existence was guided by some higher power that needed everything to happen just like so, wouldn't apply to her for much longer.

Once it had been safe to move Blackberry to the small medical lab, where she could somewhat more comfortably recover, Mitsuko had settled herself in to wait. Star Army would find her, or Candon's friend, or the Eucharis would return for them after doing just what their fearless leader had said they would do. But Mitsuko wouldn't be part of that story. She no longer lived in that bubble. Even though nothing had really changed, she could feel the difference, deep in her bones. The Eucharis was no longer her home.

Bisen Lighthouse

Aikiko took stock of those that showed up at the Rixx shuttle. Realizing that their logistic officer and Blackberry were still missing. She slung the Rixx weapon over her shoulder by the straps and gave everyone a quick bow of respect. "Excuse me. I'll stay protect Logistic Officer and Blackberry." She darted off to find the Logistics Officer.

Bisen Lighthouse, Shuttle Bay
(OOC: JP by Wes and @Rhysis)

"Having two of you seems like too many," Hanako said. "I am not sure it applies out here, except on the Eucharis herself, but Yamataian law is that there should only be one copy of a person active at a time. Are you planning to go out in a blaze of glory and rise again back on the ship?" the Shosho inquired.

Marcus knew that question would be coming, at one point or another. He was forced to reveal something of what they could expect to happen to him. "I'm still not at 100%. But, to be useful, I'm going to have to tap my mental modifications, again. I've never done it before I've been fully recovered from a previous use. I, honestly, have no idea what will happen. I can assure you, though, that if I have to do what I fear I'll have to do, there will be no waking me up with any amount of technology. My alternate self will know what to do. When it becomes available, I'll need to be sent back to Ayenee. There are...other methods...of reviving someone that simply aren't available here."

"My father was a necromancer," Hanako revealed. "I understand." She ran a hand through her soft aquamarine hair. "So the original goes home and the new you starts a new life here and stays here," she pondered aloud. "If we create this clone your original self would probably have to go back anyway," she speculated.

"Truth be told, I don't see much of an alternative." Marcus handed over the comm units he'd gotten from the kits before he fell asleep. "When my modifications take hold, they'll do a massive amount of good for getting us on the ship and making me aware of what's going on."

He paused, sighing. "Unfortunately, without my father's presence, or at least his notes, I don't have any idea what utilizing them will end up costing me. I can pretty well guarantee that, when the time runs out on me using them this time, nothing here will be able to make me useful, again."

"Run me through how it works again," Hanako asked Marcus.

Marcus nodded. "It functions with a similar principle as theoretical transporter technology. Our researchers found that they weren't able to successfully transmit a sentient being without damaging them, but with the research they'd done, they could create a rapid clone. While it was still in the formation stage, they figured out they could insert information into the clone so that it would know necessary information when it was formed. The price for that is that some other information had to be lost."

"I programmed a duplicate clone, knowing that I didn't have the necessary knowledge to run a successful commercial farming business, especially in a foreign universe. I chose to replace some of the information that links me so strongly with my family back home. That maintains all the vital information I programmed into it, and everything I know about most other subjects. The control panel inside the pouch I entrusted to Aikiko can accept a voice command to run the program that's waiting to start the cloning process."

The Shosho nodded. She wasn't entirely sure about this, but she was willing to give it a try. And it wasn't like she could stop Marcus from trying it anyway, if he was set on it. "Alright," she nodded. "Do what you feel you have to do. My team is going to get in that enemy base and get to our ship. I'll see the other you on the other side."

Marcus cleared his throat. "It will only take a few seconds, once we're within communications range, to begin the process. If there's anything you want someone on the ship to do, or rather, anything you think I'm capable of doing if I were on the ship, then my clone will be able to do it. If there's a way to get me into the base with your team, I'd be more than happy to assist in that endeavor. I've managed to find makeshift weapons, and when I reactivate my modifications..."

The pause seemed to unnerve the big human. "I'll be faster than I was on the other planet. Faster and...well..."

He shook his head in an attempt to rid himself of the thoughts. "I'm a guardian by nature. Everyone I associate with has made the observation. I know you have a ship full of people who would die for you out of duty. I'm well aware I'm just a strange businessman making insane proposals in a world where I don't belong. Nevertheless, I am more than willing to sacrifice everything I have and am for you and your crew."