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RP: YSS Miharu Mission 3, Debrief

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Masako calmly pondered the subject of the NH-23. There wasn't much to discuss about it really. Keeping a secret from the crew would be for the best. The young Warrant Officer was actually good at that since the classified operations to stop the 5th XF incident while on board the YSS Confidence.

"No, Taisa," she replied simply. There wasn't much else they could discuss on the subject. Well, at least nothing she could think of on said subject.
 
Kotori glanced briefly to the silent Yukari. There apparently was nothing more to add on the NH-23 topic for the moment. She gave a nod and moved on.

"The next topic I wish to address is ranking and promotions regarding Miharu's personnel," Kotori began. "I've read your report, set my eyes on your recommendations. However, I feel there is more which requires discussion."

"Rank... is not just a priviledge. It is a responsability. People of lower rank look up to their superiors for instruction, for guidance and as examples. This said, a person given a certain rank must be able to uphold the responsability tied to it. If the person cannot, then she does a disservice to herself as well as those she commands."

"Mizuno-Hei and Nakamura-Hei have shown they could follow orders, but they have not shown me that they are seasoned enough to command people around as NCOs. Until they become capable of doing such, I will not promote them to Heisho rank."

"Kimura Takuma-Heisho has by contrast not shown us he could adequately manage a department in his field, leave alone handle himself in the same, so he is likely facing demotion back to the Hei tier until he shows he can rise up to that challenge."

"Saito Miyoko has been recommended for promotion as well, and I face the same problem. She is an Heisho, and has no one under her command, nor has shown the capacity to handle personnel. I am not moved to demote her, but I am reticent in promoting her further and I wish the situation addressed. If she is a Heisho, she should have the responsabilities of an Heisho, not an Hei."

"From what I've read, Ashitaka Sanjuro-Heisho did adequately in such a capacity and was instrumental in keeping things running in the medlab. I'm not ready to promote him yet, but I am very satisfied of his performance. By contrast, I am not so sure of the same for Ketsurui Sora-Shoi. She may be a blue blood and all, but I am seriously considering recommending an administrative demotion in her case. The fact that she was so much subordinate to Ashitaka-Heisho in her own field of expertise make me even wonder if she deserves to be recognized as a commissioned officer, let alone a warrant officer."

"As for our male samurai, Hagesawa Sumaru-Juni... well, he's more than able from what I've heard, but he's really not mine to promote."

The Taisa eyed them and then said: "I'd like your feedback on the observations I've made, and also solutions on how you feel these matters would be best handled and resolved."
 
Nyton listened to Kotori's feedback and assumed his thinking pose. "I certainly agree that Mizuno-Hei and Nakamura-Hei are not ready for promotion. They are on the right path as shown by their performance. I would say a few more missions, more experience, and some guidance will let us know when they are ready. As for Takuma-Heisho he should be on probation for the time being. He has shown initiative for correcting himself so I would give him some time before he gets any sort of demotion. The same for Ketsurui-Shoi, perhaps a little bit of time and a future performance review to determine whether any administrative action must be taken. As for positive notes, Ashitaka-Heisho performed well according to his rank. I feel he is fine where he is now. Let him continue to work within the Heisho tier and then after some more positive reviews promote him higher. The same goes for Hasegawa-Juni. Let him focus on improving himself and being a better Samurai before trying to add leadership responsibilities to his belt."

Nyton paused for a second before continuing. "Saito-Heisho needs to continue working within her tier for the time being. This should be the place where she begins polishing the leadership a bit. Although you have a point in that in order to learn that she needs to have subordinates under her to command. Perhaps she could be put in charge of some of the minor sprite details? She does not have to be a subject matter expert on their jobs but at the very least supervise them and keep things running efficiently for them. Depending on how she performs she can then be put in charge of more critical tasks." he suggested.
 
Tom pondered Kotori's analysis for a few moments, sorting her analysis with what he had observed during his mission.

When Nyton spoke his analysis, Tom nodded along. After he was finished he looked to everyone.

"With your permission," he said as he pulled out his communicator and tapped buttons on it as he spoke.

"I agree completely with this definition of rank. Promotions should always be weighed carefully, especially in regard to a clandestine operation such as Miharu, where the responsibility and information obtained upon promotion can be intimidating. However, it is also my opinion that we should give those with potential an opportunity for advancement."

He brought up a volumetric window of some notes he jotted down and video he obtained from the AIES.

"With that in mind..."

The volumetric window displayed Mizuno Yoroko in two windows, one from her perspective and one from the perspective of a soldier closest to her. The engineer, it seemed, had spent some time and used his computer brain and engineering for a little highlight reel.

Yoroko's video started with her in the Black Spiral compound where she had begun engaging the nekomachina before being mobbed by four of them. "Mizuno-hei had a rough start," the image cut to her being near the blast radius of a psionic grenade, then almost getting her head torn off by one of the nekomachina. But then the image cut to her doing all the little things right, communicating with her fellow soldiers, supporting the team and bravely engaging the Mishumachina. "But she came to shine as the mission progressed. Her earlier nervousness gave way to what I see to be seeds of growth." The video cut to the moment right after Nyton was nearly decapitated by Eve.

"Let's move!" Yoroko shouted to Sumaru, "We've got to cover Nyton-Taii." Yoroko ordered her aerial drone to move down and fire on Eve as well.

"Here." He paused the video. "Mizuno-hei is demonstrating an ability to improvise and a sense of urgency and initiative that assisted in the saving of the Taii's life. She was the first to act, utilizing both bullet and explosive to distract Eve."

The screens went blank, Tom gently rubbing a strand of hair that had fallen in front of his eyes.

"We should nuture that seedling and see if it grows into something sturdier. There is room to test that out, Joto Hei, without going into a full shift of responsibilities for the soldier."

Then the image cut to Kai Nakamura. The images of him fighting, rather effectively too, were interposed with moments of his carefree conversation.

He caught a bit of the conversation between Mara and Nyton, and added Jokingly "Y'know, Mara, I've got an extra pair of legs for you to borrow if you need some help," Indicating the Nekomachina legs atop his shoulders with his rifle.

"Nakamura-hei demonstrates a solid ability to fight, accentuated with a rather calm attitude towards danger." The video shifted to him burning himself severely escaping the tentacled Mishu, then to him valiantly fighting the Mishumachina despite the grevious injuries he suffered to his body. "His very high tolerance for pain and willpower may be fed by this, but I am, hm, uncertain if these are the qualities of a leader or of someone better served as a specialist and trainer. Still, it is hard to argue with his performance, which, statistically, seemed to be slightly superior to Mizuno-hei's."

The video cut off again.

"The two seem to get along fairly well and may feed off each other. Maybe an opportunity for friendly competition would suit them both."

He noticed that he had been speaking for quite some time.

"Your thoughts?" He asked, turning a tad red in the cheeks. It seemed his geeky side had taken over a bit with the presentation.
 
Nyton smiled, visibly impressed by Tom's use of mission footage to make his points. "Well done Freeman-Juni. Good observations. You certainly have a knack for personnel analysis." he complimented.

"Yes those examples are what fueled my own thoughts. Nakamura-Hei may seem to be more on the specialist side than a leader but he still has time to improve. Like I said, let him perform a few more missions and gauge where he is at then. Mizuno-Hei would seem to be on track and simply needs time to grow." Nyton added.
 
While a corner of her mind was impressed by Tom's analysis, Masako was more concentrating on the video information. She was forming her own analysis on the duo based upon the information given to her and her own experiences with them in conversations. Being the Armor Wing Leader, she had more contact with them outside of missions than the others had, though most of her conversations had been with Yoroko than Kai. "From the data shown, I would wait for the two of them to gain more experience before promoting them." she began as she tapped a few keys on the volumetric keyboard projected by her wrist computer.

"From talking with Mizuno-Hei, she seems to be very insecure over a great many issues. She doesn't have the confidence I would expect from a Non-Commissioned Officer, so I would rather have her stay as Hei so she can build more confidence in her abilities," the raven-haired Neko explained, remembering the little crisis of morale she had to deal with when it came to the taller woman.

"While I haven't spoken to Nakamura-Hei as much, his confidence and ability are well suited for being an NCO. From his records, he also has some tactical abilities on the squad level, but I've yet to see them for myself," she admitted calmly before putting her computer on standby. "I would honestly wait a couple of more missions for him to gain more experience, but when it comes to attitude, he could probably hold his own as an NCO." she recommended softly.
 
"Thank you for the compliment sir," he said with a nod.

He listened to Masako's comments, acknowledging that they conflicted with his own for the most part. "Ah, I hadn't taken into account that you've spent a lot of time with the two and are a better judge of their character," he said. "I'm glad to have your input. There's only so much the mission data can show."

A moment later, he shifted his attention to his screen. "Continuing."

The video went to Kimura Takuma, who was fighting effectively, shooting nekomachina and following his orders. But then came the fateful hacking attempt and the loss of limb.

"Takuma-Heisho had a very hard day," Tom said with a shake of his head. "But, as Claymere-Taii said, he has made efforts to fix his mistakes. I will defer to your judgement on how he should be handled, but I have to admit his performance does not look good in comparision to the enlisted below him. Still, a demotion may only serve to discourage him further. I recommend consulting Sanjuro-Heisho for a character analysis before making this decision."

The screen turned black with the name Saito-Heisho on it.

"Since Saito-Heisho was on the bridge of Miharu during the mission, I am incapable of commenting on her performance. In regard to your problem, however, Taisa, I completely agree with Claymere-Taii. Let her grow into the role of Heisho before considering moving her further up the ladder."

He looked to Yukari.

"The Shosa's imput, however, will supercede any commentary on my part, since she was by the Heisho's side for all of the mission."

The screen changed to Sanjuro. It showed the no-nonsense doctor at his best, tending to the wounded. "Sanjuro-Heisho. My opinion on him is conflicted."


The video stopped. "Sanjuro-Heisho is absolutely dedicated to his profession and is a model for how a doctor should behave. As already stated, his ability to handle the injured prisoners was extremely important in our successful extraction. However, this argument happened at a critical juncture where the assault team was holding back an oncoming horde of nekomachina. His altruism here may have turned the mission sour had the assault team not performed so admirably. And, in both of our defenses, we each had our reasons for our words."

The video paused and he turned to face everyone.

"As support team leader, I was aware of the depleted numbers we had and was unsure of our team's ability to hold the area. With this in mind, I was willing to cut our losses and extract everyone who was ready, at the risk of adding fatalities to our mission. It is not something I am particularly proud of, but had our walls not held, it could have been a massacre."

"Sanjuro-Heisho, on the other hand, acted according to the demands of his profession at the possible expense of mission success. I could not fault him for that, so I made the compromise of extracting those who were ready and having Hasegawa-Juni protect the doctor. I am grateful that it paid off, but it was an uncomfortable decision to make. As officers, I would like your input on how this situation could have best been handled after I conclude this presentation."

Click. The screen moved to Hasegawa-Juni, the samurai. The silent death dutifully and expertly cut through lesser foes and mishu before the video switched to his climactic battle with the Eve clone.

"Hasegawa-Juni is an absolute expert in combat and was a key asset in our mission success. It is hard to find fault with his performance. But I feel his length of service to be a bit too short to have formed the necessary requirements to be an officer. Although he is cordial and polite, frankly, I don't think he has a strong enough bond with the crew to warrant the promotion."

He paused a moment, hesitant to continue.

"In light of recent developments... I think promoting another Samurai to this circle could also prove potentially dangerous. He is as duty bound to protect the empire as Kosuka-San, and as already been stated, his commitment to Ketsurui-Shoi would complicate things greatly. After my conversation with him, I... believe he could compromise the entire ship in the pursuit of that commitment. This is also why I agree with the demotion of Ketsurui-Shoi. Their mutual entrapment would only serve to complicate the difficult decisions we have to make."

Finished, he put away the screens and silently awaited responses.
 
Nyton thought a little bit before replying to Tom. After a few seconds he looked at the other man and gave a slight shrug. "Unfortunately there really is no 'right' answer in the given situation between you and Ashitaka-Heisho. Each of you had a job to do and you each performed it well. The enemy may have been held back, they may not have been. That is one of the paradoxes of command I'm afraid. In this case both of you were 'right' the situation thankfully fell in our favor is all."

Straightening up again, Nyton then resumed his thinking pose. "With regards to Hasegawa-Juni, your input supports my thoughts to let him remain where he is. Right now his greatest contribution is his combat skill. Let him focus on that for now. That is not to say he does not have command potential, it is just not the time for him to dwell on that. As for Ketsurui-Shoi, perhaps I am being too lenient. From my recollections-" he paused as data from the memory recorder uploaded, "Ketsurui-Shoi has served on previous combat heavy ships and experienced several missions already. If after that much experience she is still not measuring up to her command status then perhaps it is time for administrative action after all. Merely being in combat seems to be too much for her. She functioned quite well up until Hasegawa-Juni arrived. It was at that moment that she froze up."

Letting out a breath Nyton then narrowed his eyes. "Well, aside from that addition Freeman-Juni echoes my own thoughts on the rest of the individuals mentioned. Does anyone else have anymore insights?"
 
Nodding to Tom for his compliment, Masako continued to listen to the Engineer's character analysis of the enlisted in question. She hadn't spoken to many of the people he was talking about, other than Miyoko, and she didn't have much contact with them to form an opinion of their character. She wanted to correct that as soon as she could, considering knowing a subordinate's character could aid Kotori in a great deal of decision making involving her enlisted personnel. And Warrant Officers did have the capactity to get close to enlisted personnel without stepping totally out of their realm of authority.

"I have yet to speak to Takuma-heisho at any level currently, but I'd have to agree with Freeman-juni's analysis. We must give him the chance to prove he can act as an NCO should before making decisions that could affect his morale." she stated softly. "I would trust Claymere-Taii's opinion of the Heisho's character, but an analysis from Ashitaka-Heisho couldn't hurt."

Pausing for a moment to mentally review the good Doctor's data, Masako could only frown a bit. "While I admit that Ashitaka-Heisho is probably the best among our medical personnel, I have some doubts about his ability as a soldier." she commented softly. "His conflict with Freeman-Juni, while right by his duties as a medical professional, could count as insubordination to a superior officer and put the lives of his comrades in a very dangerous situation. While I'm glad that everything turned out for the best, everyone in that room could have been killed if things had gone any other way." Masako stated, pausing for a moment after her scathing report on the Doctor. "However, his experience and knowledge as a Doctor are too important for him to receive demotions and I can't quite recommend he be promoted either. Personally, I'd like to warn him about proper military decorum, but he seems to be quite..." she faded off for a moment as she tried to think of the right word to describe him. "Set in his ways," she finished hesitantly as she remembered the on going 'feud' between Miyoko and Sanjuro.

Clearing her throat, Masako realized she had skipped the medical assistant/science specialist in her analysis. "Saito-Heisho does have a strange place on the Miharu," she commented with a frown. "While she is trained as a medical assistant and could be the NCO in charge of the Medical Bay since we've gained a couple of medical technicians from the Sekiko. She is also the only Science Specialist we have on board. Plus, with her training in operating the Miharu's sensor suite, she can operate systems as a Bridge Operator as well." Masako continued before pausing a moment to gather her thoughts. "Saito-heisho has many skills that are useful to the Miharu and while her working relationship with Ashitaka-Heisho is on the rocky side, she is still an excellent assistant. I would recommend Saito-heisho to be either a permanent Bridge Operator or a permanent Medical Assistant, but acting part-time for both could be a bit overwhelming." she explained as her left ear twitched slightly.

"As for Hasegawa Juni and Ketsurui-Shoi, I honestly have no idea what to do with them," she stated with a shrug. "Hasegawa-Juni, while under my supervision while in Power Armor, is still a Samurai and under Ketsurui-Shoi's direct command. Ketsurui-Shoi is a dedicated physician with more experience in combat situations compared to Ashitaka-Heisho, her experience is lacking compared to Ashitaka-Heisho's medical experience. While it was unable to keep his jobs in the practices he worked for, I believe it is mostly due to his personality rather than his ability." she explained calmly.
 
Yukari kept her mouth shut about most of the promotion talk. She agreed with Kotori's idea of how promotion should be treated, and silently accepted the likelihood Miyoko would not receive a promotion. There were other incentives that could be proposed, but Yukari was not sure about them at that moment.

The others she had little to say about. All of her experience with the individuals in question was strictly outside of combat. She had ideas of how well they performed in a peaceful setting, which was fine. She had nearly no interaction with Nakamura-Hei and Mizuno-Hei, and limited interaction with Hasegawa-Juni and the medical staff.

There seemed very little for her to add to the conversation.
 
"I'll see that medals are distributed as you recommended," Kotori answered. "I've the intention to promote Mizuno-Hei and Nakamura-Hei to Jôtô Hei, as suggested. How the skills of both individuals are fostered will be up to their superior officers." Her eyes flicked meaningfully between Masako and Nyton.

"For Kimura-Heisho, I'm afraid I can't go soft on him," the Taisa added. "During our second mission, my asking around revealed that he kept himself aloof from the crew and coasted, doing as little work as necessary just to get by. I reported that half-hearted attitude of his to Personnel Command and he was warned that if he exhibited obvious failings in the same vein, that there would be consequences. His case is not compelling enough to warrant an exception in my eyes."

"I will demote Kimura Takuma to the rank of Jôtô Hei. If he shows ability, he will be able to redeem himself by earning himself a better rank. This will have the added advantage of giving him more people of a similar rank to communicate with and in addition, seeing that Mister Takuma and Saito-Heisho share affinities in computer technology it might very well solve the issue of Saito-san lacking subordinates."

"Ashitaka-Heisho is doing well where he is and I don't plan any changes there. Saito-Heisho will remain at her current rank and we will see how she handles herself."

Kotori sighed and then added: "Like I said before, Hasegawa Sumaru is not mine to promote. His Juni rank is more a declaration of equivalent authority as a samurai than a military rank. As for Sora, I'll see if I can discuss the issue with her grandmother. Even if an administrative demotion would be in her interest, there's still the matter of her being a blue blood in addition to what it could do to her self-confidence."

Kotori turned her head to look at Yukari. "Anything you'd like to add, Shosa?"
 
Masako saw Kotori's glance and nodded respectfully to the Taisa. The Warrant Officer knew full well what that glance meant and it was proper. Yoroko and Kai were under her supervision and would require more training to help their skills blossom. This meant simulations and hopefully, live exercises in power armor.

It also meant that she would have to train the two in leadership skills, since she would need to delegate sprites to their command if necessary. After all, if they took away the support personnel (medical, bridge, and engineering) that really only left three dedicated armor pilots and whatever technical sentries could be released from engineering duty. Over all, not a good sign in Masako perspective. Unless they received new Armor Operators, Masako was going to be short on trained personnel.

This would be yet another thing to discuss with Nyton after debriefing, but for now Masako had not been called upon to make any more comments.
 
"No, Taisa." Yukari's mind was clearly not fully invested in the briefing. "I believe the others have covered anything I could add to the discussion."
 
Kotori eyed Yukari a moment longer and then her eyes swept across the rest of her subordinates. "Then I've covered mostly everything I wanted to broach in this meeting."

"Tomorrow morning, we should be welcoming aboard a few additional recruits. I'll be leaving their reception and assignments to the Shosa."

"Furthermore, we may need to head in Nepleslian territory tomorrow to deliver one of our guests back home - Yukari and Nyton will convene and discuss the specifics required to cross the border and arrange the return of Heram Wazu."

"Finally, I'll require that the engineering staff assemble for me a complete evaluation of the ship's needs regarding repairs, refit and resupplying. I've seen enough gloomy faces to know it's worse than it looks but I don't want only bad news; I want solutions."

She gave them a nod. "You have the rest of the day to yourselves. Dismissed."
 
Tom stood up and bowed by his seat.

"Taisa, I have collected most of the necessary figures and reports and would like to discuss them with you as soon as possible," he said before returning to a standing position. "Also, should we discuss the performance of the sprites during the mission as well?"
 
Kotori grimaced and sighed. "Tom, this is the second debrief I've had with my senior staff. The first time, I butted heads with Yukari over a ranking issue. This time, I inadvertantly brought about a family quarrel before by subordinates."

"Because of that, I think we're all pretty much out of it. I'm not sure how long Masako can retain that angelic composure of hers. Nyton's composure is quite admirable, but he's still pawing his arm as if he was amazed it was still there. Yukari looks really out of it. Your knuckles are clotting and that tells me you probably feel like crap and finally: this is my sanctuary and until you are all out of my room, I can't start tearing at my hair in frustration and rant like a madwoman about how much of an idiot I am."

"Whatever you want to talk about, we can talk about it tomorrow - it's just a trip to Nepleslia so I'm sure we'll be able to spare the time." Kotori gave them a brave smile. "So, thank you for coming, thank you for being very indulgent... and please get out of my room without saying anything more. Now."
 
Tom winced and turned around, escaping the room quickly.

Agh, I got swept up too much in the business! Way to miss the mood of the room, Tom. Guess there won't be any virtual tennis tonight, either.

He was halfway to his room when he noticed just how exhausted his body was. The pain in his hand had subsided, but the small red splotches the Taisa noticed were pretty visual.

Whatever. A creeping irritability was rising in him as well. As soon as he reached his room, his clothing was off and he was sprawled, nude in the pit he shared with Yukari.
 
Nyton stood up and silently bowed. The meeting was over and there was nothing left to say. He almost hesitated and was about to address Kotori if there was anything she needed. However she had already given him an assignment and he instead decided that if there was anything she needed, she would make it known to him. Otherwise he would inquire much later. The meeting had been emotionally draining to the princess, moreso than actual combat.

Stepping out of the room Nyton then waited for Yukari so that they could begin hammering out the details of crossing the Nepleslian border to deliver their guest. After having hopped the border several times to visit family it was something he was familiar with. However that had been as a single Nepleslian travelling alone. This time it would be a whole Star Army ship making the journey. They would likely have to arrive at the outermost edges of a star base and declare their intentions. They may even be able to just send a shuttle to the base to make a quick drop off. He made a mental note to check on Heram Wazu later. It was not something he would look forward to but at least it would likely be very brief.

He could not forget to see what it was Masako wanted to address to him. She was about to say something when the meeting reconvened. It was probably something in line with her new responsibilities they would have to discuss.

Then maybe once he had his own time again he could finally find the time to think about a few things.
 
As Masako stood up and bowed politely, she caught a few words Kotori had said to Tom. Well, it was quite hard not to catch them considering her name had been used in conjunction with them.

Kotori said:
"...I'm not sure how long Masako can retain that angelic composure of hers..."

She immediately shut the rest out, since it wasn't proper to be listening into other conversations. Personally though, she couldn't quite think of herself in that way. Retaining angelic composure was probably the last thing on her mind, though maintaining the proper professional composure was important.

Leaving the Taisa's room, the Warrant Officer couldn't help but grimace, but forced herself not to sigh she glanced over towards Nyton. No, he probably had important business with Yukari first. Her business and concern could wait until later. Bowing politely to the Nepleslian Taii, she headed towards the wardroom to get something to wet her tongue.
 
Yukari caught the hint. She exited.

Nyton was waiting for her, which she was thankful for; anything to distract her mind was perfectly acceptable to her.

"Taii," she said in greeting. "You have ideas about our mission for the day?"
 
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