RP: YSS Miharu Mission 3, Debrief

[Fred]

Kikyô Star System, in orbit of Yamatai
YSS Miharu NJ-X1-00, Kotori's quarters

Around noon, most of Miharu's extra passengers had vacated the ship by shuttle to a Star Army Personnel Command installation downplanet. Those included Camellia and Sayuri, along with most of the remaining Sekkou crewmembers other than a few whom elected to stay as nurses or caretakers.

In addition, the Murasaki Aoiko matter had been handled, so she was no longer assigned to Miharu. Kôsuka's two pupils bade their farewells to the samurai trainer and returned on planet, while Kotori's mother remained onboard for now. Asher, not looking forward to the impending prospects of promotion, requested a reassignment to a training facility where he could show new trainees how to properly kick arse and take names. Yuril, desirous to hone her skills further, tagged along with Westwood.

By evening, the crew had dined and Kotori was ready to host the debrief in her quarters. She invited Yukari, Nyton, Masako, Tom and Kôsuka to sit before her desk in chairs that had been prepared for the occasion. Once settled, she offered them a slight smile and a respectful nod.

"Thank you for coming," the Taisa opened with. "The first order of business this evening would be a formallity... but I consider it an important one. I offer you and your respective teams my gratitude for what you have done on this ship's previous mission, and would also like to congratulate you on its success - something all of you and those you command have contributed to in one fashion or another."

This said, Kotori - whom had not yet been seated herself - dipped into a bow. It wasn't just a polite bow: her hair hung like a black curtain around her head, reaching quite below the edge of her desk.

 

[Abwehran Commander]

Evening had set in and Masako was seated in front of her Taisa's desk with a full stomach. Her hands were clasped together and rested upon her lap as she sat straight up in her seat quietly. Earlier that day, the young Warrant Officer had aided in organizing the departure of their guests, which had been fairly easy considering that everyone had cooperated well. Saying good-bye to Asher had been a bit of a challenge, since she didn't want to let her emotions show.

Masako had been honestly disappointed in him, but that was all water under the bridge now. He had voluntarily left to become an instructor while taking Yuril along with him. She had been quite surprised when Akiko and Shizuka had been allowed to stay on board with a few others. After her conversation with Yukari, the Warrant Officer had expected them to be taken away by SAINT. Apparently, it had not been the case.

She was glad she could help the two enlisted women, but wondered how they would fare overall on board the Miharu. She would have to see if they were up to par on their Power Armor Operation skills and possibly train them if they were not, but Shizuka's thirst for vengeance could be a problem. It would probably be best to keep an eye on her.

The smaller Neko's thoughts were interrupted as Kotori began to speak. Even if it was just a formality, Masako was quite taken back by the praise they had been given. And the deep bow of respect seemed to have taken her off guard as well, since one didn't expect Princesses to bow to them in that manner. But if there was one thing Masako had learn, it was that Kotori wouldn't do anything like this unless she absolutely meant it. The small Warrant Officer couldn't help but smile slightly and bowed her head in silent thanks.

 

[Nyton]

Nyton found himself once again at Kotori's desk for the second time today. He sat, waiting for the meeting to begin while reflecting on the day's events. He hoped he had pursued things adequately enough. To leave loose ends was not something he liked.

At least dinner had been pleasant. Now the meeting would soon begin and as Kotori expressed her gratitude Nyton smiled a bit and bowed his head slightly.

 

[Tom]

Tom Freeman sat at a chair near the edge of the table and returned Kotori's words of thanks and bow with a nod of his own. Moments before, he had been concentrating on how exactly to report the situation Miharu was under. He decided that it would be necessary to either report it near the end of the debriefing or when asked by the Taisa directly.

He remained silent and awaited further words from Kotori... the whole experience of her bowing was a little awkward for the engineer.

 

[Doshii Jun]

The rest of Yukari's day had gone by in a breeze of logistics and the occasional communication with some of the ship's sprites. And the bookmarking of a couple future purchases for her own personal collection.

But sitting across from Kotori in the Taisa's quarters, and seeing her bow that way, made Yukari blush. Rarely did a commander bestow such high praise on subordinates!

She could not help but speak. "Thank you for your words and deeds, Taisa. We are honored to serve you."

Kôsuka did not move from her seat, nor make any other gestures of gratitude. Her daughter, she felt, was just being a good commander, ensuring the loyalty of her troops. She did not feel she was one of those, as she had no position here other than that of Samurai.

Her interest was in what Kotori would do next. And how she would handle the NH-23.

 

[Fred]

Kotori smiled in appreciation to the responses of the others and sat down on her own seat. "Next would be a few points I've seen raised in the after-action reports you handed to me earlier today."

Amber-eyes shifted to Masako. "I will start with yours, Kurohoshi-Juni."

Kotori raised her hands to seize something like half her hair and drag the assembled black locks to drape them over her shoulder. Idly she began stroking her fingers over it as a thoughtful expression came over her face.

A moment later her eyes focused again on Masako. "Close to our departure from the Bowhordia star system, I very nearly ordered you and everyone under your command to die. I saw your alternative, how you changed my order to you, and I feel it begs explanation."

"I will be honest," Kotori narrowed her eyes, the stroking of her hair stopping. "Had I been on my previous assignment on the Sakura, under the command of Taisa Rufus Sydney, and was given an order like that... I am not sure I would have obeyed. This said, I assure you that I can relate with your interpretation of the orders I gave you."

The Taisa took a breath and gave her hair another idle stroke before she continued. "Masako, I was stuck in a situation where I might potentially have to lose people under my charge and people I cared about. Seeing the threat looming on us, I had the choice to make a decision in which I was not willing to make any sacrifices... but potentially lose everything; or make a decision in which I could sacrifice a few, to have a considerably better chance of saving the rest and perhaps even reversing the situation into a possible victory."

"It was a situation with little margin for error," Kotori added. "I feel your plan added to this margin of error. Our opponent had powerful psionic capabilities. Our armor's PSC units do not work as well inside an hostile PSC zone. It was my worry, Masako, that once you appeared in an enemy vessel that your mind would've been taken over by a NH-17T present on the scene."

The expression of Kotori's face was tight, as if she had tasted something unpleasant. "I feared that you would not only have been stopped, but captured. I was captured by Black Spiral once... and frankly, I thought death was preferable. In your case, I made the same judgment. It was preferable that you go and strike quickly, without giving them any chance to turn your mind against you - even at the price of your life. Even the AIES cannot protect you from your own order for it to belay previous commands and stand down - regardless of precautions."

"If you would have had been captured, we could not have rescued you - you would have failed us, so, most of us would then be dead or captured. Those surviving would live on... but if the haunted looks of some of the people we rescued would be any indication, our tomorrows would have been fairly bleak."

Kotori closed her eyes, sighed and then opened them again to look at Masako. "This was why I gave the orders I gave. I tell you this, because I feel it is important that you understand why. Because I feel it is important that we each know how much we can depend and trust each other."

 

[Abwehran Commander]

Masako's expression was one of polite attentiveness as she listened to Kotori address her report. Sitting quietly until the end, the small Neko's expression didn't change at all throughout the explanation of why Kotori had made the decision and trying to justify the order. "I understand, Ketsurui-Taisa," was the first statement from her lips when Kotori finished. "I understand and I would have followed my orders as well. My orders to my team was the program their computers to activate their self-destruct systems upon a pilot's termination, just in case they were unable to execute the mission," Masako explained calmly before frowning, the first expression she had shown.

"I will be honest in that I hadn't taken into account the possible psionic influences that could have been placed upon my team," she admitted. "And I probably should have before changing your orders so blatantly, and I apologize for that." the raven-haired Neko said soberly. "It disturbs me that it could have ended with me possibly betraying the crew or failing in my mission to protect you all, but...I can't help but believe I'd choose to modify that order again if it came." she spoke softly.

"Of course, I would also take into again psionic attacks, but even if I am fully willing to sacrifice myself to protect this crew...I must also, as an officer, be willing to give my subordinates every chance they have to live." Masako explained as she looked straight at her Taisa with her almost pupil-less, black eyes. "It is, after all, my duty to try and bring them back alive. But I also know my duties and if they require that I sacrifice my subordinates and myself to accomplish them, than you have my word that I will do so." With those final words, Masako's expression became a stone mask of polite attentiveness.

 

[Nyton]

Nyton listened to the princess and armor leader's exchange and felt it had gone well. Kotori pressed her point and Masako understood while defending her own. It was interesting to note that Masako gave a compelling case in trying to preserve the lives of her squad. In the end though he thought all sides felt heard. He couldn't help but feel a little responsible for the event.

With that done so far Nyton continued to listen.

 

[Fred]

Kotori frowned, her amber eyes tightening. "One day, Masako, you may be in command of your own ship. At your every command, lives will be held in balance. Things may unfortunately become more than a matter of 'bringing everyone home' and rather become 'bringing the majority of them home'."

"You may have to choose, one day, who to order to die to achieve what you see as possibly the best outcome you can get from the situation," the Taisa continued. She obviously sounded bitter. "Perhaps you will be lucky, as I was, and see that price in blood not needing to be paid. Perhaps not. Your own role presently is a microcosm of mine and it goes beyond duty and sacrifice. For example, think of how the majority of you want me to be safe - as an wing leader, are you any less important in the eyes of your subordinates?"

"Perhaps those under your command in the future will resent you for taking such decisions," Kotori added. "Maybe they will be oblivious of how you were trying to do your best, how heavy hearted you felt after giving such orders, how you just wished everyone could come back home safely but knew that reality would likely not be so accomodating. How you would feel you would need to be ready, to be prepared for the very worst so that you would be able to keep as many of those you care for alive."

"Because you will know, and fear, the price of failure if you are not prepared to take these measures. Failure which may take everything - a consequence which is unacceptable."

"Then you may wonder if they will trust you again to command them adequately; if they will believe that if you ask for their lives, that it will be worth it. If they will consider that their lives will have genuine value to you... or if you are willing to heartlessly discard them just to be successful." With a flick of her hand she tossed her hair back over her shoulder.

"Do you understand, Masako?" Apparently, Masako's response had missed something... something Kotori seemed very determined that the other neko understand.

 

[Abwehran Commander]

Now that was something Masako never really thought of...commanding her own starship. In fact, Masako had no will or desire to command a ship of her own. She'd rather continue commanding Power Armor than command her own vessel, but the responsibility for lives was still there. Even if she rose through the ranks to command larger detachments of Power Armored Infantry, Masako would still have to be willing to send subordinates into battle...to their deaths. Quietly mulling Kotori's words in her head, Masako looked at the Taisa's amber eyes with her space-black eyes.

"I understand, Taisa," Masako spoke softly, but the agreement with Kotori's words could easily be heard in her tone. Masako was no fool after all, she understood the military life all too well. While she may be quite new to command, the raven-haired Neko knew full well what it came with.

 

[Fred]

"Excellent," Kotori nodded, straightening in her seat a moment and then regarded the rest of those she had assembled before her. After a pause - perhaps to allow Masako to regain her composure at least inwardly, she continued.

"Next on my agenda, I would like to cover certain chain of command issues. I raise them not because I feel any of you have been lacking, but instead for clarification."

"I have found myself of late often conferring with Claymere-Taii," Kotori continued, lightly resting her forearms on the edge of her desk and joining hands together. "I have taken him as my retainer, due to my position inside the Ketsurui clan, but I have been concerned about how I seemed to communicate much more with him than even my first officer, Yukari here."

"I trust Yukari with an important position," she continued. "As Miharu's first officer, she has a few roles. The first is supporting me in the day-to-day operations of this vessel. Concerns which are often on my mind are the completion of mission objectives, how to surmount adversity and planning for this ship's next move. She, on the other hands supports me that making sure the ship runs and operates well in order to complete those said requirements. This goes from bridge operation and ship logitics to crew management issues going from work assignments to disciplinary measures."

"I also entrust Yukari with another important task, which is to be able to run this vessel in the event that I am unavailable to command - this involves from me being absent to I being missing or killed in action. If such eventualities happens, I have full confidence that she has the knowhow and skill necessary to accomplish objectives in the same spirit I would as well as insure that this ship returns safely to port."

"Finally, I entrust her with the task of being perhaps my most open critic. I believe that we mutually understand each other... but Yukari is conservative where I am ambitious, cautious where I am bold, principled when I may be moved to be pragmatic. She is a most valuable asset for me, helping me see alternatives... the two faces of the proverbial coin. I cannot always have the good ideas, and sometimes in my drive to accomplish goals I may take things too far." Kotori smiled. "She's the one I trust to being me back to reality."

Her eyes shifted to Tom. "Tom, though he does not always have my ear, has a trait very similar to her which I value and respect, even if we do not always agree. Earning victories in the military, our survival standing on a razor's edge, can be daunting and push people to extreme actions. We must remember why we do things, why we risk our lives, and make sure we stand faithful to ourselves in that respect. Yukari and Tom, I find, are strongest in that aspect."

She continued with Tom. "Tom is our chief engineer, our specialist at meeting Miharu's more physical needs. Things run on this ship largely thanks to him and his technician staff and we defer to his expertise in that field - which makes him our Chief Engineer. Effectively, he is Yukari's subordinate when he's on duty. When not on duty, I'll admit I have not figured out if he was the uke or the seme."

Kotori couldn't keep from having her face split in a grin. It was obvious she was goodnaturedly teasing the couple.

 

[Nyton]

"Your highness, if I may add something." Nyton said, taking the moment to interrupt. "I would like to apologize to Suzuka-Shosa for any impression I may have given in regards to her authority. Like you say, I do tend to go directly to you for a wide range of matters. Upon retrospect some of these subjects I should have discussed with her. My intentions have never been to circumvent the chain of command and the position of executive officer."

Nyton then turned to look at Yukari and bowed his head a bit. "Forgive my impertinence Suzuka-Shosa. In the future I will work towards a working a little more closely in respect to your position."

 

[Doshii Jun]

"Do not be concerned, Claymere-Taii." Yukari looked at his eyes for a brief second, then seemed to fall to his rank pin. "As the Taisa has stated, I am not a tactician. The details of how a mission is accomplished are not as vital to me as the spirit in which they are concocted and executed."

She caught Kotori sidelong in her gaze, her hands flat on her lap, before looking directly at Nyton again. "The Taisa knows what we are good at, and has cultivated those talents to her advantage. I do not fear that cultivation or its effects on the chain of command. We are, after all, not so beholden to the various admirals of the fleet."

Yukari left the "who wears the pants" comment unanswered. She was not sure herself.

 

[Fred]

Kotori nodded. "Which brings me to Nyton here. Nyton stands as our chief tactical officer - that puts him in charge of most offensive and defensive aspects of the ship and ways to implement our resources to assure our continued survival and successful completion of assignments through which we confront adversity. Therefore, it is not surprising in itself that I should confer with him often on that basis - we both seem to be very compatible in that respect."

"His second role is effectively that of second officer. If both Yukari and I are not in a position to command, he in turn command's Miharu. If Yukari is in command, then he serves as her executive officer. Yukari and he share about a similar contrast as Yukari and I share. Therefore," the Taisa nodded emphatically, "it would indeed be good if the two of you spent more time working together."

"Finally, Masako is effectively a direct subordinate of Nyton. Her role aboard the ship is to assist Nyton in his tasks as the vessel's Chief of Security. Her secondary role is that of armor wing leader. All assets related to both functions are hers to deal with, and to report to, to Nyton in turn, to help him retain a good grasp of what is at our disposal and how best to use it."

Kotori eyed Yukari, Tom, Nyton and Masako. "I expect all of you to be able to command this ship and by extension the auxiliary vessel Hoshi. I do not want an instance when depletion of command personnel crippled the operation of this ship entirely. If we separate, like on last mission, I want to be sure that each side has the necessary command structure."

"This is what I had to say on this topic. Comments or questions?" Kotori finished.

 

[Tom]

Tom listened intently to back and forth between Masako and Kotori. The openness between the two and the sharing of their feelings was something that the Raltean agreed with, especially between the higher ups on the ship.

When Kotori reiterated the roles of everyone on the ship, he simply nodded. He hadn't really noticed a breakdown in the chain at all. In fact, he cast a sidewards glance at Nyton, a small smile on his lips, at the mention of Nyton's role as retainer to the Taisa.

As the topic moved onto him and Yukari, he remained professional, not revealing any emotions outwardly, but a tremendous feeling of pride came to him when Yukari's importance was stated to everyone.

Then, the topic shifted to him and his relationship with Yukari.

He blushed, but Kotori swiftly moved onto more important matters of the chain-of-command.

"Understood, Taisa. I have no questions at the moment."

 

[Nyton]

Nyton nodded and smiled a bit at Yukari in understanding. As Kotori went on he listened again and looked to both Masako and Yukari again as though absorbing the point being made. His side view caught Tom's glance but he did not react to it.

"It would seem we all have some work to do in the near future. Especially in regards to establishing our command lines with each other." he commented.

 

[Abwehran Commander]

Masako blinked as she listened to her position in the chain of command. While she always knew that she was a direct subordinate of Claymere-taii, the Warrant Officer hadn't realized that her duty as Armor Wing Leader was secondary. The way Kotori explained it, Masako was technically an Assistant Tactical Officer rather than a Wing Leader. It was definite different from how she viewed it, but if that was how it was to be it was probably best that she accept it. Besides, it would probably help in her efforts to bolster the Miharu's Armory with SAW-type weaponry.

"Understood, Taisa," Masako replied with a nod. No questions came to mind at the moment, though it would probably be best to talk to Nyton after the meeting and explain the plans she had discussed with Yukari earlier that day.

 

[Fred]

"Very well," Kotori nodded and moved on to the next topic. "There are two matters I have been keeping secret that I believe I should share with you." She soberly eyed Tom and Masako. "You two are the ones out of the loop, but you've been with me since the beginning - I believe you are entitled to know as much as Yukari, Nyton, Miyoko and our ship's avatar."

"In Year 28, the NH-22M nekovalkyrja Kotori suffered grave, possibly fatal wounds during the raid into the PNUgen complex. When she was brought back to her assigned vessel for treatment, her ship's medical officer was unable to attend to any patient so an envoy from SARA came to fill in. We've discovered that this envoy illegally made a Soul Transfer copy of Kotori's mind while managing to keep her alive despite her grievous wounds."

"The copy," Kotori tapped meaningfully over her breastbone. "was believed at first to be one of the first stealth variant of the Type 29 series Nekovalkyrja. However, the man from SARA falsified the records: he had actually made the copy into a secret, experimental anti-psionic nekovalkyrja weapon which was named a 'Signaler'."

"The Signaler was initially a variant given to the NH-28 NIWS that was to counter any psionic signal emitted by powerful psionic-trained combatant such as the one you encountered downplanet. Then, it would either cancel out the psionic signal, or reverse it - the stronger the psionic attack, the stronger the possible counter."

"However, the NIWS proved a poor platform for the ability. The Signal Reversal capability required to be used by a mind with more volition, of imagination and reptilian brain functions such has primal fear and desire for survival... something only a living, sentient mind could offer."

"So, I was made. But there are significant drawbacks. Firstly, I'm largely untested. Secondly, the Signaler function protect my body from any kind of outside access or probes... and this includes ST backups. It makes 3 years I have not had a backup so if I am killed, there is no way to recover me. No one cared for that limitation on a NIWS, but it's a different matter for me."

"On the other hand, if I happen to be at a distance under 5000 kilometers from any psionic-user like the one the ground team met, I should be able to cancel out most of their abilities. If I can see or picture what they are doing, I can potentially use it back against them. No matter whom is it; even Eve herself."

 

[Tom]

Tom cupped his face with his right hand as he reclined in his chair, rubbing his closed eyes in a futile effort to massage the headache out of his brain.

Unfortunately, he didn't have a quick fix for the 'your-captain-is-a-clone-of-a-mistakenly-thought-to-be-dead-body' headache. So, the pain just sat there and throbbed to its content.

"If I may ask, where's the original, 'Kotori' then? Does SAINT have a hold of her?"

 

[Fred]

Kotori gently shook her head no.

"I don't pretend to know the reason, but the original body was taken by the SARA envoy and he took advantage of its customizable test nature to upgrade it. Though it is believed he did so out of desesperation or coercion, he ended up using her as a base to create his equivalent of the NH-23 nekovalkyrja type - the NH-22M was the closest match for it."

"There is only supposed to be one NH-23 Nekovalkyrja: Yui. Yui-Taisho's body allows her nodal powers drawn out directly from her environment and other nekovalkyrja. She also benefits from strength and combat capabilities in the realm of NIWS and power armor. Most importantly, though, the NH-23 Empress Nodal Nekovalkyrja's mind is not confined only within her body, but also the PANTHEON network itself."

"I surmise that allows her administrative priviledges over pretty much everything that depends on PANTHEON. Also, seeing her mind is how it is, if her body is destroyed, she can just have her mind access any medical lab and recreate a new body for herself."

"Usually, the knowhow to create a NH-23 Empress' body is confined to very few people, but Karl Sylvester - the man in question - apparently managed to figure out how to do so on his own thanks to his years of experience working on other nekovalkyrja projects. In creating another NH-23 that was not Yui, much less a Ketsurui Empress, he ended up creating a potential security breach in PANTHEON - if she falls in non-yamataian hands, the consequences could be disastrous."

"In answer to your question, though..." Kotori sighed. "The NH-23 facsimile, the original Kotori, is stored dormant and in stasis in Miharu's cargo holds."