RP: YSS Eucharis [Mission 27, Part 4] The Sleeping Giant (YE 39)

Machine Planet Labyrinth - Room #28

As the flames dissipated around her armor, Junko let out a sigh of relief. She sheathed her plasma blades and took out her Aether rifle.

"We need to explore this room first, before we proceed.", Junko said in response to Masumi's efforts to penetrate the door. With that, Junko initiated scans on her surroundings, searching for any recording devices, cameras, robots, life forms, or hidden weapons.

Once she was done with her scans, the blue-haired Nekovalkyrja jogged past Masumi. Masumi would hear a sharp hiss and an intense scream when Junko activated her plasma blades and impaled the door. Sparks and molten pieces of metal flew in all directions as they began to melt and cut through the thick metallic material.

Machine Planet Labyrinth - (Flaming) Room (of Fire) #28

For a moment, Noriko did a double take at Junko and what she just heard. Was it sanity, ringing in her ears?

"Hasegawa-hei is correct," the unsocial Neko began at Masumi, words cool and level. It was bizzare, hearing words of reason coming from Junko, but she was going to take anything she could get. "We are on point, however, you may help in designating through which doors we go through as well as assisting us with your sensor readings and analysis," Noriko explained to the 'confused' scientist. Once the room was secured, she stacked up at the door, ready to breach once Junko got at ripping and tearing through.

YSS Eucharis - Bridge

Natsumi was mostly lost in thought as she quietly observed the goings on in and around the ship via the sensor data displayed on her volumetric windows. "Understood, keep scanning for any further hostile activity" she said, then returned her attention back to her readouts.

"What is it?" she said, glancing back up as Takao spoke again, breaking the relative silence in the command center.

Room #28

"Keep an open comm channel and breach this door yourselves!" Masumi said, moving immediately to the door to the right of them. "Explore at your own risk, Santo Hei, Nito Hei!!"

She tried to open the door, ready for an attack with a square stance or to manually kick open the door.

Bridge

Takao asked his question simply, "Do you know where or who I could shack up to get out of the spare beds in the cargo bay? I don't mind sharing the thing but it does get a bit cramped compared to even the other rooms I've had on similarly sized ships." He checked his console visually for a second before looking directly and the XO again.

Entrance to Room #63

The black-shrouded shadow of Tsuguka's armour simply hung in the corridor for a moment, reviewing the camera feeds from the distant team and even delving into the vital signs of the engaged members. It really did not surprise her to find Candon's signals completely out of whack due to some kind of interference, likely the sheer mass of the metal planet blocking the transmissions relayed back and forth from their ship overhead...

Masumi going AWOL again instead of following her as ordered, through, that was an eye opener. She really must be attached to that slippery SAINT. And he did customarily need someone to dig him out, so...

"Noriko-Hei. Can I get a status report? You engaged some kind of bug enemies, and a teleportation system of some kind?..." It was a literal transcription of events, since she had the video playing back in a second window of her mind's eye. It was also no coincidence that they were talking to the calmest team member, experienced or not. An audible pop. Why did they switch to a different encryption?...- "Please keep visual contact with princess K. If anyone is watching us, this chaos is the perfect time for them to seize an opportunity."

"Masumi-Hei. Please calm down and use your science equipment. Look for his FOF, or perhaps examine the box for yourself." The tone was as mechanical as clockwork. Internally, through, she might even have been a little jealous. The red one wondered how things would have turned out if she allowed herself to care like that, but was sealed like concrete under the weight of responsibility here and now. "I know you are worried, but this isn't helping anyone by dragging us into unknown territory so quickly, without a plan... We cannot fight the entire planet by ourselves."

"Mister Wazu... I'm marking the location of those creatures on the map. I think they are wild, and I didn't take care of them yet, so please be careful. No idea about their composition." A shrug. Even as they were talking, the mindy's physical shape was growing and morphing into a long, skinny robbed figure. Transparent veiny wings spurted out the back as they sculpted the program in real time, then a couple of random insectoid claws, before finally a hunched praying mantis head was copy-pasted into the space beneath the cowl. "I'm going to try something new. If you can't get scans from a distance, then please stand by..."

Tsuguka knew she couldn't perfectly imitate the size and shape of a Rixikor, they were too small. But approaching them as a 'Rich space cat girl that either murders you or gives you food' was no good either. So she decided to make the most of her currently solitary position, and hack together something that probably looked more familiar if uncanny valley to the uncouth space bugs...

"Hello honourable friends I am an insect person also!" A warped voice, trying and probably failing to talk to them like a 'normal' person would. Speaking Trade was probably an oversight, but eh, she was never in the school play or anything. Close enough. "I am a little lost and would like some information on this place. Are those nasty flying biters edible? I could share some with you, if you're willing to help..."

The huge mutant mantis thing clasped it's hands together in a merry expression, through of course the catgirl inside was very mindful of using those shoulder-mounted missiles to save needing to raise her gun, if it came to it...

YSS Eucharis - Bridge

Natsumi raised an eyebrow at the question referring to quartering, rather than the mission and hand. She was not expecting the jarring shift of subject and tapped at her controls, bringing up information as her red eyes glanced to the selected volumetric display.

"I, um" she frowned and brought up the manifest of ships company and their quarters. "Why are you still in the extra crew module?" she asked, but then did not give him time to respond as she went on. An officer, even a Shoi Kohosei like Takao, should not be stuffed off in the spare module. "Cabin seven is unoccupied at the moment, I believe" she said and notated it on her list. "You may move in there"

Bridge

Takao grinned, "That's good news, I'll move my stuff once I get the chance. Thank you Yamashiro-Taii." The Kohosei, now much happier than before, turned back to his station and resumed his observations of the planet, the surface, and the space around the Eucharis. He made himself the mental note to not only move his stuff but to thank the XO in some way.

He did know that he could have probably found out himself, but he thought this as a good excuse to try and cheer Natsumi up. He turned back to smile at her once before he turned back again and focused back on the job at hand. There was a time to do these things, but it was not now.

Machine Planet Labyrinth - (Flaming) Room (of Fire) #28

"Confirmed," Noriko tersely replied to Tsuguka. "Howard-Heisho appeared to teleport after opening a box. One that is no longer here," she clarified. The young Neko didn't like what Masumi was doing, but hoped that by stacking up against the door, ready to breach, it would keep her from doing anything rash. At least, she hoped for a few more moments at minimum. "All hostiles appear to be eliminated," Noriko added, scanning the smoking, burning environment again to be sure.

Looking over at Junko, she continued, "We are about to breach another door at Oshiro-Hei's urging."

YSS Eucharis - Bridge

"Enemy sensor contact," Charisma abruptly announced. "Ten Kuvexian Navy ships emerged from hyperspace at bearing zero one zero mark 35, distance 50.68 billion kilometers. Tracking."

A warning tone sounded and the bridge lights dimmed and went red. "Attention all hands, this is Charisma, battle stations, battle stations. Set condition 2 throughout the ship. This is not a drill."

The main screen changed from the view ahead to a chart showing the machine planet's solar system and the new Kuvexian task force poking around in the system's edges.

Room X

Bronzi let Wazu take point but kept to his heels ready to pull him down or out of any little surprises that came around the corner. Bronzi snorted at the remark about a fear of the unknown. “I don’t give two licks about wat I don’t know.” He responded.

When they turned down the hall way Bronzi halted Wazu and did a quick scan with his rifle before proceeding with him. “But. I’m worried bout the ship. Only a matta o tiem before somebody else shows up.”

YSS Eucharis - Bridge

Natsumi felt the hemosynth in her veins chill as the alert came from Charisma. She cursed as her red eyes fixed on the points on the sensor display.

"Takao, take us down as low as you can and hover us above the surface. I want our ship lost in the ground clutter from the surface" she said. "Prepare weapons to fire, but do not fire until my order- keep an eye out for those robots, I'm sure they'll pop out of the woodwork if we hang around too long" she continued as she grabbed the handset on the command chair armrest and dropped into the landing party channel.

"Shosho, this is Eucharis actual, ten enemy vessels have just entered the system. I am going to evade them as long as I can, but I suggest the away mission be scrubbed and that all hands return to the ship asap" she said to Shosho Hanako, while at the same time, she sent, wirelessly, to Charisma; "Send tight beam communication to the fleet, enemy task group of at least ten vessels has entered the system, requesting immediate reinforcements. Transmit, then take the ship to full emissions control, I don't want to radiate any signal strong enough for them to pick up on."

YSS Eucharis - Bridge

Takao immediately barked out a slightly loud and somewhat rushed "HAI!" His mind went to work as he tapped the maneuvering thrusters more than the primary ones to minimize the emissions given off by the Eucharis. All weapons immediately dropped their safeties, each one showing an individual readiness status before his screen showed a full weapons capacity.

As Takao leveled out a mere forty feet above surface, the primary weapons battery slowly began to track towards the incoming fleet of Kuvexians while the point defense turrets slowly tracked around the blindspots of the main battery, looking for any sign of the robots on the surface. Takao's hands were pressed into the console, his mind doing everything his hands couldn't while his eyes were locked on his screens. The veteran weapons operator bit at his lip and slowed his breathing.

They were on a gunship, gunships had guns, he'd have to be prepared to use them.

"Yamashiro-Taii, all weapons are ready and able. Currently holding altitude at forty meters, ship rigged for silent running." His mind was split at watching the engine output as well as the emissions currently flowing out into space. His eyes glared at the targeting screen and the sensor readout. He wanted to know everything that was going on.

Wazu really wanted a look at those birds... and what they were eating.

He frowned slightly when he realized he didn’t have any kind of humane bird trap thing...

“Do you think we could catch one of those birds in this bag?” Wazu asked Bronzi, staying outside of the room as he pointed to his dufflebag, “...and the ship will be fine. We can always make an escape if we are outmatched and besides, what are the odds of enemy ships showing up now?”

Just Down the Hall From Room 63

Jax was following Tsuguka, for the most part, at least. So far there'd only been some screaming mushrooms and blood-thirsty, parasitic birds. He named them "banshees" and "lawyers" "mosquito-hawks" respectively. He'd taken a moment to hang back and observe the mosquito-hawks in more depth. From a distance, of course. They reminded him of Gut-Stripe and the I'ee. Gut-Stripe was a sentient wasp about the size of a four-year-old child whom he'd been randomly matched with last Love Day.

No. Seriously. He went on a date with a freaking talking wasp! He couldn't make that shit up if he tried!

Looking through Tsuguka's feed, he noticed the two Rixxikor, froze, and cloaked up.

<Remember: not too formal in your speech. Think Nepleslian with a little more growl in the back of the throat.> he instructed to the red oni after listening to her initial attempts at contact. Trying to think of something else that could be useful, he added: <Oh, and the value of autographs depends on the fame of the signer, the condition and age of the thing signed, and it's rarity. Also, if it's a famous group, like a band, you need ALL of their signatures.>

Like his signed Aethersperm album? Pretty worthless with just one signature, but he'd gotten the whole band-

...

His engineer-senses were tingling. Someone, somewhere, wanted to damage his beautiful ship.

Ah, screw it. It was the Eucharis! If the Kuvexians weren't already using them on propaganda posters to boost recruitment against Yamatai, what were they doing? It was probably nothing.

Just paranoia.

And nothing more.

Bronzi paused looking at the birds. “I mean. If ya wanna. I’ll walk over and flush em out. Den ya can nab one.” Bronzi said pausing and adjusting his face mask. “Yea. Yer right, ship crew is prolly bored as hell.”

He then started walking, circling around the birds. “Aye, could always dig yer gun to stun em.”

Machine Planet Labyrinth - Outside Room #25

Candon rounded the corner and found a 5-meter-long passageway. There was a buzzing coming from the walls but it didn't seem to be coming from anywhere in particular. Both doors were strong looking and both were stuck. But the one on the right (North) was stuck halfway open. Inside the room a narrow shaft fell into the room from above, and group of draconic faces have been carved into the south wall. It was otherwise empty and there was a reinforced blast shutter closing the North exit.



Machine Planet Labyrinth - Outside Rooms 28 and 81

In the small corridor connecting the two North doors to the next room (81), Masumi found there were 6 withered corpses literally nailed to the wall with what appeared to be tent stakes. They appeared to be humanoid but it was hard to tell what species specifically.



OOC: I didn't get to react to everyone yet, but I am trying to at least get out some posts.

Machine Planet, Room 25->58

As Candon stepped into the hallway his subspace radio reconnected to Eucharis as it dropped in altitude. Relaying his message through the ship he called to his allies while his beacon transmitted his position to them. "Away Team, this is Candon Suites, does anyone hear me?" He asked as he knelt under the half open door on the Northern wall, "I want my sword back, I can't open doors."

As he stepped into the room(58), still cloaked, he missed the faces to his rear as he stepped toward the shaft coming from the ceiling.

Machine Planet Labyrinth
Outside Rooms 28 and 81

"C-Candon?" Masumi called back. "Candon!" She felt a tremor run through her as she said his name. The scientist took quick scans with the hand not on Kōku Ken in the hallway of bodies before taking a knee to the right of the door where there appeared to be a short dead-end passage.

Masumi focused in on her objective and called out, "I am getting comms from Suites-heisho, Shôshô!" She checked behind her, making sure the couple of infantry behind her were indeed there. She tilted her head towards the door the hallway had led to and said to the nearest, "Clear it!"

Machine Planet Labyrinth
Outside Rooms 28 and 81

Taking point again, Noriko stormed into the room, weapon at the ready. Though the bodies looked like they had been dead for centuries, she didn't play any second chances, and stayed frosty. "Room clear," she cooly spoke over the comms. "Multiple bodies, desiccated. I note two more doorways," the snowy haired Neko observed.