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

Power Armor Bay

Now seeing that Hanako had gotten into her armor, Masumi looked up at her, and then at Candon. Hanako's words yesterday were far off in her head and now she thought more on the intended targets and how to deal with them appropriately. She was all the more experienced from her last venture into Kuvexian-filled space and had the mental scars to prove it.

Now, she had the added sting of having not listened to Natsumi-taii after the XO had belayed Saiga's orders. That was not an experience she wanted to remember. She thought idly how she hadn't seen too many outright successes on the Eucharis, but if that to be expected in the real world outside of the ninety some days and science training, she didn't know.

She was looking between the two people she trusted the most. She was to go on a mission with them both and she felt positive that the mission success would be secured for the away team. She felt uneasy about the ship as a whole, mind on her chrome eggs in her room and her specialty pantsu in her room, underneath her pillow. She snapped her mind back to attention after having processed this feeling and set it aside. It wasn't a logical course of action to begin questioning the skills of others, especially not of Natsumi-taii. Not again.

She leaned into a stretch, body still facing Hanako, as she prepped during the briefing's beginnings. Her hair pressed against the back of her neck and was almost itchy until Masumi turned off her receptors there.

Power Armor Bay

As the youngest Neko in the room, it was expected that there would be many firsts in her life, but, the sensation of sinking lead in her stomach was not one Noriko expected or looked forward to. Not that she ever did really 'look forward to' something. Her whole purpose in life was to serve The Empire in the most ruthless and efficient manner possible. But...but this? Apparently even the Garta-alien noticed her distress despite wearing the power armor and helm. This was all good reason to be distressed too.

On top of the officer in charge passing the briefing to an NCO, the briefing itself was thus far...underwhelming. Lax. It wasn't the fault of the NCO most likely. But the other soldier speaking up about what happened last mission? Was he talking about killing non-combatants? It only confirmed what information the snowy haired Neko had gathered about the previous sortie, and validated that uneasy feeling in her gut.

Behind her faceless helmet, Noriko's eye twitched as something started to crack.

Power Armor Bay

Jax glanced over at Wazu and shrugged, then casually flipped open a small box in his armor rack, revealing a few.

He sighed. Everyone was still so tense about yesterday. And they were ignoring the new guy, who wasn't quite used to the way things were done here. Couldn't leave the young ones to their own devices to stew in bad thoughts. Lest they get a repeat of yesterday.

He strolled over to Noriko and patted her shoulder.

<Hey, relax.> said the catboy telepathically. <Just follow your orders, don't shoot at anything unless it shoots at you first, make sure to read every new post in its entirety so that you don't accidentally miss something important, but most importantly: remain calm. Every crew has missions that go bad. 'Tis a part of life.>

Leaving her with that, he continued on his way to stand next to Tsuguka.

"Ready when you are." said the NCO casually to his contemporary, checking his rifle before stashing it on his right shoulder.

Power Armor Bay

Freyja listened to Tsuguka intently. She was starting to feel confident that her mistake could be left in the past, and maybe her relationship with Natsumi could be fixed. Hearing Candon's brutal reference to the last mission, she felt as if she had been slapped. She mostly maintained her composure outwardly. Her traitorous tail betrayed her, swinging back and forth wildly.

Inside she felt the pain of the last mission all over again. She also felt that Candon was perhaps unstable. Threatening to execute one of his subordinates on the spot for a mistake? She thought, glancing at the Shosho. To say that right in front of Hanako-Shosho, he must be confident she'll back him. And he is SAINT.

She breathed a sigh of relief when the conversation moved to the Shosho's distraction plan. Anything to keep the Rixxikor off of them was fine with her. Tsuguka did have a point though. She gathered up the nerve to speak up. "If I may say so, Shosho, I would like to second Tsuguka's concerns. After the last mission, I believe the Rixxikor will treat any Star Army vessel as hostile. Also, I think that seizing the station could prove useful but I don't think we have the time or manpower to clear the whole place of hostiles. If anything we should prolong the boot cycle until we can get a proper force to secure the object."

Takumi had indeed followed Saiga to the PA Bay and had been working on his own armor while listening to the briefing. His face frowned as Candon announced his threat, but if the Shosho did not say anything about, how could he? To be fair, Candon was SAINT, so letting another SAINT member take care of his own was probably more appropriate.

The Minkan stole a glance over at the already armored personnel and wondered briefly what was going through their thoughts at the moment. He then shook himself from those thoughts and removed his green paneled duty uniform to get into his own Mindy. Being an "old school" PA pilot meant that Takumi had no qualms stripping down to his birthday suit during the process.

Once fully suited up, the science officer enjoyed the snugness for a moment and flexed the suit's arms to activate his muscle memory. It had been a long time since the last time an armor encased his body. These newer models were even more comfy, too. His suit was of default configuration as he was not sure what to expect on this mission.

Following brief adjustments, Takumi joined the others at the briefing as Tsuguka made her suggestion. Theoretically, it was a solid plan. If the Rixxikor or robots had long range weaponry, the shuttle might still be in danger, though.

"I like that idea," he chimed in finally, "There are still some risks, but they are largely mitigated. This course of action would also meet the stated objectives of distracting the Rixxikor in a relatively clean manner."

Power Armor Bay

"We want to make sure the food arrives at least somewhat intact. The dropoff could be anywhere and, once the Rixxikor discover the cache of food, they will probably swarm it. The ideal site would be somewhere where there are only one or two of them around. I agree that they will probably see the Star Army as hostile. I also agree that we don't have the force needed to secure the planet so. We only need to focus on our personal security while we are exploring. If the planet were to wake up, it could change the situation drastically. It could be good for us but it will probably be bad, as it must have a lot of power and none of that power would be under our control. Frixxaqz said there are Rixxikor trying to fix the reboot cycle so perhaps we need to find those Rixxikor and 'convince' them not to do that."

It is as at this when Bronzi spoke up. "Tha chief bugger tossed out what I figgered ya be a bomb." He said speaking to Hanako after hearing her thought on the matter. "It wasn't. Dat bugger tossed some kinda homin beacon dat summon lots o botz."

Bronzi's tail flicked. "Even if da bugs are shot bout tha food, dat was a lotta bots. Now yer looking at being shot at by two forces rather than one. I got some experience on wat ta do. But y'all won't like it."

Power Armor Bay

Were these people mind readers?!

First the xeno, and then the cat man! Noriko quickly put her feelings in a burlap bag and mentally kicked it several times. The white haired Neko realized that she was 'sulking' perhaps, and supposed that power armored sulking was still sulking in a fashion, and stood up straight after Jackson made his way to the red skinned Neko. The whole situation was bizarre, unconventional even, but at least Hanako Shôshô was taking the lead now it seemed. Standing tall and firm in her armor, she paid attention and waited - there was nothing for her to say, at least not yet.

"So we use the ship's gravity beam to slow the drop of the food, as well as make sure it spreads out over a wide enough area to ensure both detection by the Rixx and a sufficient time to collect." Wazu said, the human now being trailed by nearly two dozen flashlights.

"The bots are not alive. I have no problem frying them with the EMP. I would rather avoid using the ship's ASC to fry the whole planet... but we can explore those options once we know a little more about this place."

Candon seemed to get it... maybe the little rebellion against Natsumi was doomed to failure, or at least those with a less bloodthirsty approach still had those they could count on. Hanako also seemed to be adopting Bronzi's own less lethal approach from earlier. However, Wazu wasn't ready for optimism just yet.

Power Armour Bay

A nod of agreement came after Wazu spoke. But then Bronzi's concepts combined with Freyja and Junko's qualms in Tsuguka's head, causing the dusky crimson feline to simply grunt uncomfortably, and then gaze up at the ceiling without saying anything. A thumb tried attempted to raise itself to her lips unconsciously, only to plink off of the transparent visor before her agitated face.

The soldier did not generally like thinking long term, especially with so many variables that they knew nothing about, but...

"Shosho... May I ask what the Star Army's future plan actually is for this base? Is there one?" A slight bit of ease was taken by placing a talon of a hand on Jax's shoulder... Through, for him, it was an unintentional death grip, making obvious certain warlike emotions hidden just below the surface. What she was about do say did not come easy. "I mean, it depends on what our supply situation is. I somewhat doubt it could be used as a forward base, even if we manage to take the facility over, and, well..."

She was doing that face again. Wild unblinking eyes of piercing green.

"In truth, is letting the Rixxikor take over the facility a bad thing? It would be different if this was in Yamatai space, but instead, we are on the Kuvexian's doorstep... Excuse me if you think I'm being too forward, but I think having some giant annoying bug fortresses around actually helps are position in this situation, doesn't it? The Rixxikor don't care about blues or cats, they care about guns and dinner!"

PA Bay

Junko saw the tail begin to swing from the corner of her eye. It was hard for her to miss that kind of a tell. For a moment, she listened and waited as questions were fielded and answered. When she wasn't in the direct line of attention, she unobtrusively crossed to the other side of the bay.

She came to a stop just next to Freyja, close enough she could have just leaned her head on her shoulder.

"You'll do fine. I know you will." She said over a one-to-one. "You know theirs no one else I'd rather have watching my back."

A pause as she considered her choice of words.

"And not just because I like the idea of you watching my back." She said with a very particular lilt.

Power Armor Bay

Masumi shifted in her power armor as she had been standing straight up and at a ready position for the time after she had ended stretching. She adjusted her HUD to show Hanako and have all else blurred. She wanted to pay attention to her and only her. She listened to Hanako's answers and in between, thought about her behavior the day before and how she would redeem herself after countering Natsumi's belaying of orders.

She was acting on instinct when that happened. Instinct to protect her own and instinct to be there for them when nobody else was allowed to. Doing anything but listening to orders came in close second next to being there for her team. She didn't think Hanako would say anything that went against that motive. That motive to protect those the Star Army needed. She found her HUD snapping to look at Candon, then Takumi. She breathed in sharply when her attention had centered on the other scientist for an instant. She had shared, or was given, rather, so much information about him in a brief span of time. She filed the thoughts away and would go over them later.

Her vision focused on Tugs, now. The endearing if not hostile Neko that had only minutes before been gripping Masumi's collarbone and checking her vitals over the armor. She had been jumping in to save Tsuguka, and Junko, too. She looked to the Neko that had only just arrived. She didn't know much about them, just that they were over the moon in love. What had made Masumi want to save her, she realized she would find out with time spent with her, not by holing herself up in the lab and cabin 6.

Masumi waited for the Shosho to speak again and looked with a nod to her once more.

Armor Bay

"Putting the Rixxikor in control of a planet-size supercomputer, and probably superweapon, seems as unwise as putting an NSP in the hands of a preschooler," Hanako replied to Tsuguka. "We won't decide on a plan for this facility until we get down there and investigate what we are dealing with, but the eventual options are probably capturing it or destroying it. However, destroying it outright means a possible loss of significant knowledge and resources."

Armor Bay

"With all due respect, ma'am, either the Kuvexians are already giving them weapons, or they've been finding them on their own." Tsuguka closed her eyes and bowed respectfully, even as she said it. The Heisho was already expecting a reprimand, but what good was council without honesty? "I won't push it, but if these alien auxiliaries really do just work for the highest bidder, that's something I think we can use to our advantage in future. If their is one great shame about our difficulty in negotiations, it's that it would be nice to know how willingly they even serve such masters."

Bronzi watched the exchange unfold. They had insufficient forces to take the planet sized object. "Uh, even if we take it, how are we fixin on keepin it? If tha Rixx got here an can Work da bots, what's gonna happen when tha Kuvies show up? Wouldn't surprise me if they were comin in force fer tha same reason we are hea. Blowin it up is betta than the risk of the kuvies using it against tha home worlds."

YSS Eucharis, PA Bay

Candon wanted to ignore Junko but was having trouble doing so. He wasn't intending on calling her out I front of the team and admiral just before the sortie but he had no intention of letting it go.
He was a natural, even invasive telepath. With his deep familiarity with the Neko Operating System he could easily send a message she wouldn't soon forget.

But the mission came first, and he needed soldiers at their peak, bold enough to take an enemy's life yet scared of him enough to avoid taking an innocent life. If they wouldn't watch their trigger fingers on account of Natsumi's order, they sure as hell would to avoid his depleted uranium slug.

Running several dozen lines of code at the speed of light he tapped into her Mindy via its link to the ship, there would be no evasion of his telepathic communication.
"I believe I deserve respect enough to be spoken to face to face," he scolded Junko telepathically, "If your feelings hurt by my death threat go cry in the shower. I need soldiers out their, not little girls, and definitely not thugs. What are you?"

His brain would push the conflict with Junko aside until relevant, there were to many things on his mind to be 100% consumed by a single comment, and Masumi kept creeping back in like a leak in a boat's floor. He couldn't focus, it felt like he was sinking.

There was lust for sure, no shortage of that. What he couldn't decipher is whether it was love, and more importantly whether his own emotional attachment would endanger her life. As far as SAINT was aware his name, his true name, was still floating around the sector's more illicit social pockets and there was definitely someone, many someones, who wanted him to suffer.

Would Masumi be the mean by which these unknown enemies to attack? Would someone so young be able to tolerate someone as damaged as Candon? He well knew his desire for a companion who could understand himself was unreachable. Was he settling for her or stealing a better future from her? At the end of the thought he couldn't help but wonder if the real issue was only in his own point of view.

Regardless, he would have plenty of time to think it over when he got back from killing people.

Power Armor Bay

A deep and sultry voice began to speak.

"If our objective is to investigate unmolested, what is to be done with the station is not immediately relevant," Noriko pointed out to them all. There was very little point to think too deeply about it until then. Did they understand that? The white haired Neko wasn't even sure anymore - she only hoped her opinion couldn't drop any lower. "It can be destroyed with a fleet of aether, emptied of air, or even be cleaned by those machines if we control them. But none of that matters until we finish our search." Looking at Hanako with her faceless helm, she asked,

"Following the bait and distraction, are there any points of interest we should investigate Shôshô?"

Power Armor Bay

"We are on the same page." Tsuguka didn't seem to take any offense to Noriko's critique, only shrugging. "Clarity in our objectives, that's the concern."

For the moment, Wazu was wondering why he never managed to come up with something both useful and life saving. Some type of super-wheat... or something consumer-grade... For all his talk of wanting to help people and wanting to save the universe, whenever he really thought about something the only designs that tended to pop out were for weapons. It was effortless, automatic, instinctual. Of all the ways to blow up a planet using only the materials on hand, Wazu would arrive at the one that would cause the least amount of collateral damage.

"If we are worried about the planet, I could put together a Yuuko-Howitzer demolition charge and carry it with the Heirophant. Worst case scenario we could use the bomb to core the planet. It'd ruin whatever computer is down there with minimal damage to the structures on the surface."

Power Armor Bay

Freyja smiled at Junko, even though she couldn't see it. The gesture meant a lot to her. She tried to ignore the other comment. It still made her cheeks darken and her knees weak. She had dreamed and fantasized about that voice for months. Payback for what I did, she thought. Would love to keep escalating the teasing but I need to be focused.

"Thank you, Junko-chan. I'm better today, and I don't plan on making the same mistake ever again. Talk more later.. hopefully in that voice." She said, trying to mimic it herself. In her voice it somehow sounded silly.

Overhearing Wazu's suggestion, she decided to get back into the discussion. "That would be the last resort I think. Noriko-hei did have a good idea. If the Rixxikor can summon them with a device like that Frixxaqz had, Howard-heisho or Wazu-san could do the same. We can use something like that to distract the robots."

Freyja paused a beat. "The Hierophant was useful in the last encounter. I would appreciate support from Bronzi-san and Wazu-san on this mission." She desperately wanted to inquire about Natsumi-Taii. As much trouble as she was already in, she didn't dare.