RP: ISC Phoenix [Mission 3] - Rocking the Casbah

[Luca]

A FEW MOMENTS AGO...

Crimson Kestrel, Lounge Room
♫ Secret of Mana - A Curious Happening ♫

With Aiesu half-dying of embarrassment, Luca and Echelon were left to their own devices again. The balls of his daring SOS Rescue plan had been figured out, but it was now a matter of actually getting the team together once they finished that thing with the dice and the paper that Luca didn't understand.

If they wanted to go save the world, then they could do it right here, right now on the Phoenix as opposed to in some fantasy land. Besides, they were all the same, those fantasy worlds. You had your elfins, your stouts, your tuskmouths, your short annoying people and other short annoying people.

"W3 SH0ULD B3 WR4PP1NG UP S00N," Echelon said, "MY TURN 1S C0M1NG UP N3XT."

"Cool. Tell the others, will you?"

"'K4Y."

And soon enough, Echelon had done just that while usurping their little game.

JUST NOW...
Luca watched Seiren, Allison, John and Echelon walk in. He gave them all a smile as he watched them sit down.

"So, boss, what are we doing today?" Allison asked as she looked at the image of the Harvester Class behind him on the viewscreen.

"We got an SOS from that ship, so, we're going to send ourselves in, and investigate it," Luca said, nodding and smiling, hands on hips as he tried to avoid exactly what the ship was doing out here. John seemed to tilt his head, he could sense something was amiss.

Echelon seemed to narrow her single eye at the screen, and then an image of what sort of a ship it was appeared. Luca's expression remained frozen for a few moment's while Allison's head tilted. "Oh-oh my! Is this where our next holiday is?" John meanwhile didn't expect what Luca was hiding to be this and snorted as he held back laughter.

Luca blinked at Echelon. Well, tit for tat, she defended Luca, now she had her way with him. "No. It's giving an SOS signal because it's been attacked by pirates, we're going to jump on, deal with it, and leave, simple as that. We won't exactly have time to..." he looked at the image behind him. That was a melon. "...stretch."

"Sure we can't stick around?" Allison leaned in, head resting against her hands, smile on her face and cheeks a lovely shade of scarlet while Luca's palm was burying itself in his face, starting at a gently tittering Echelon. "I'm sure once the pirates are gone they'd love to have an autograph session with you!"

Grasping for straws at the ridiculousness of the situation, Luca sighed. "We'll see," he conceded.

The image vanished as Melissa walked in from her room, rifle over shoulder. "ey," she said before sitting next to Allison.
"Hey," Luca replied.

"Why's erryone blushin'? Is it hot in 'ere?" she asked as she looked at Allison, then Luca, then John, then back to Allison.
"No reason~!" Allison replied quickly. Melissa stared at the redhead and blinked at her.

Sometimes, this job surprises me still. Luca wondered with narrowed eyes at the ceiling as he folded his arms and waited for the others to get over here so he could repeat himself.

 

[ShotJon]

Zeta listened on the job, it was simple. Swoop in, bad guys and get the glory. Well simply said. The group still had to move in somehow, to not get attention too and jump the pirates with their pants down. Figuratively speaking of course. If the pirates would really have pants down, then Zeta would have to kill them all. There are many crimes and rape is one of the worst of them.

"Honey," Zeta said as swooped behind Luca, hugged him and gave him a kiss on a cheek. She looked on the screen in front of him until it was turned off. "You seem worried. This does not seem like too special a job. If we will be clever, it should be pretty easy. Gives us a chance to get new members into the team properly as well."

 

[Yoshi]

Leaning against the door frame, Mako had been listening to the con conversation about the SOS and the ship with pirates. "Boss, should I got and suit up? I can go alone to the ship and blow the airlock with some det-cord and get the joint ready for you guy..."

Tani Mako smiled and stood up a bit more formally, her patchless SAoY uniform wrinkled and slightly midsized for her, but it was clean, stood out among the rest of the crew.

 

[Reynolds]

Shayla was lagging behind the others, having stopped to move her stuff out of the way. And to polish off the last of her snacks. "What's this about a mission?" She'd heard the initial announcement, and had picked up a few other bits as she joined the rest of the team in the Lounge. Unlike the other Neko, she'd ditched her uniform for one of her furry outfits as soon as they'd settled in. "What're we boarding some cruise ship for? Vacation time already?" She snickered.

 

[Lamb]

When Enzo finally got back from wherever he went to stow the dice, he was a markedly more colorful man. He knew the kind of ship they were boarding. Knew it well, one could say; and he couldn't wait to get aboard. And so he was decked out in something strange. It was a business suit, or perhaps had once been before coming upon a terrible accident of some sort. The thing was sharp and purple with flowing red embroidery in the shape of thorny vines crawling from the lapel to the inseam. At some point the sleeves had been removed from both the coat and the shirt, leaving Enzo's bare arms and leather gloves open for the world to see. The collar was unbuttoned, too; showing off the conman's sweet clavicle. Once again, the make-up kit had been brought out. This time; however, the make-up used was more like what a woman would wear. Fake frosty blonde hair, dark red lips, bright red contact lenses, just a touch of hazy green eye-shadow, and a sultry million-DA smile brought it all together.

"Cap'n Pavone is blushin' on accounts of dis ship if fulla kinky freaks, takin' a trip for some nice space fuckin'." Enzo informed Mel as he was applying the last touch-- a thick line of eyeliner around the edge of his already darkened eyes. When he was satisfied with the state of his attire, fully matching the look of some sort of foul space pimp, Enzo spread the purple coat open and went about reaching for the way-too-many pistols he'd stowed in various places-- making sure he could reach each and every one. While he was rattling his signature way-too-big snub-nose revolver, Enzo smiled back up at Mel and asked earnestly, "What'd yous thinks maybe after we saves the day we take one of the soft boys, stick 'em in a pretty dress and then yous an' me get a room on that ship for the night? Yous can finally unnerstand why I gots to live the way I does when yous lives a night like I does."

 

[Gallant]

Vitalia couldn’t apparently turn invisible, but she had a way of moving that seemed to emphasize her relative unimportance. In that way, she ghosted in behind the others, and lingered near to the door, listening to Luca – an uncommon occurrence, as normally Luca’s daughter preferred to keep the whole business relatively at arm’s length. After all, her father took care of it by himself most of the time, and that’s why he hired the rest of them; muscle, brains, tech.

A true support person didn’t really belong here – but she appeared, anyway, wearing a subtly impish look that, for once, promised a little mischief out of the shy, but edgy loner girl.

 

[Sham]

Soruk had scoffed at Seiren, grumbling to himself, "Not a perfect strike every time. Say that after spending your life practicing." He spent a little more time watching the group miraculously finish off their boney adversaries, rather unimpressed with the manner they had accomplished it. What had interested him far more was Echleon's somewhat irritating voice announcing that Luca wanted them in the lounge for a mission briefing. He spent little time watching the group pack, immediately hopping up, gripping the lip of a vent and pulling himself in. As the rest of the team took the slow way around the ship, the Gartagen crawled and generally had a great time in maintenance ducts.

By the time he made it to the lounge, he found that vents were not the fastest mode of travel. Of course, it saved him the trouble of walking with the noisy group. He heard their voices echo into the vents, keeping him informed as he dropped into the room. By what he heard, apparently the mission was... questionable in nature. The blademaster glanced up and was presented with a rather flustered Luca. All he knew was a ship was calling for help and said ship was not normal.

He didn't bother asking any questions to Luca, knowing he would get around to the briefing on his own time, without everyone on the crew asking the same question. Instead, he turned to Tani and frowned, "Instead of blowing up the door, why don't you just open it? The element of surprise is valuable and should not be squandered." Soruk himself could have reached the ship and probably taken out most of the invaders by himself. If he was paired with one of his own, he could have done it all.

 

[Luca]

Crimson Kestrel, Lounge Room
♫ Mystical Ninja - Secrets of Old Man Plasma ♫

"Oh Enzo yer jus' tearin' me apart. Been achin' fer a good root," the more Nepleslian than most men Melissa replied. "We'll split one if they tag along with us."

Luca meanwhile had his eyes on the Gartagen. Hm, he seems all huffy, Luca noted to himself as he saw Soruk walk in with his nose up and seemed to be sneering at everyone - positively sneering. "Would it ever, EVER pain you to use a door," Luca sighed.

"H3'S CURS3D 4T B1RTH N3V3R T0 US3 D00RS," Echelon's robotic body twiddled her fingers menacingly at the Gartagen, and it was in an infinite amount of jest as to how the Gartagen, haughty and yet so ridiculous for how the crew got there before his shortcut did. Luca seemed to laugh along with it, as did John. Egos were not defended from mockery in this ship.

"Pack it in, Echelon. We'll be leaving in ten to get in and take the ship back by force. Get your gear together and meet me at the Hangar. Tani, bring good explosives for knocking walls down, I trust your judgement. I repeat: This isn't a vacation, we're on duty."

"Oh, yeah, if any of you are short of a gun, there's an armoury near Seiren's workshop," John nodded. "Just try not to bring anything back in pieces or I'll bill you for it." He then rolled his shoulders. He managed everyone's pay cheques on this ship and in any working environment it was good practice not to annoy that person. "I meanwhile will be ferrying you to and from this ship. Ech will let the Kestrel do covering fire if anyone shoots at us. I should be able to fit a mech inside one of the Shuttles, so Seiren, Cass, whoever's first in is best dressed," he nodded.

Vita then poked her head up from around the corner and asked with a sly grin: "Dad, can I come too?"
"No V., this is, uh, grown up stuff," Luca nodded back to her.

"Like whaaat~?" she drew out the 'a' sound. As if on cue, the embarrassing images flashed on screen behind him, and judging by the horrified expressions on John and Melissa's faces, Allison's head tilting and blushing and Echelon snickering to herself in an electronic drawl. "Dad, you're a louse." Luca figured out, perhaps a few moments too late that Vita and Ech were conspiring to embarrass him - purely for amusement of course. Luca's gloved hand met his palm again, and he snapped his fingers on his other hand to turn the screen off.

"I'll stay here Dad, you can have your fun."

"I totally want in on this!" Allison shook her fists and stood up in her chair, grinning ear to ear. "I mean, that was a-"
"You're babysitting Vita," Luca told Allison, "no ifs or buts."
"Damn - wait, hey Melissa, you know that 50 KS you owe me?"

"Wot of it?"
"I'll wipe it clean if you can babysit V."
"No deal." Melissa replied. "I wos up here for yonks, now it's time fer me to get some fun with me squeeze 'ere!" She clapped her arm around Enzo's shoulders, gaudy and audaciously dressed.

Allison threw her hands down and stamped the floor. "DAMN!" The chance of a lifetime on one of the best Pleasure Cruises in the Galaxy denied.

Luca and John just looked at each other and sighed, then left the briefing room to get ready. Melissa and Echelon stood up and followed them, the Delsaurian sniper shooting a cheeky grin back at Allison for her duty imposed on her. Allison just pouted at them, then looked at Vita. "Well kid. If your dad's such a fuddy duddy we're going to have no fun."

"I wouldn't be so sure," Vita grinned back at her, catlike. Allison reeled backwards. She'd only seen that smile in a handful of other places, and they were before Delsauria. "Oh lighten up, I've got the entire first season of Magical Girl Aeternalis on Ultra Definition. I love the twists it makes at the end."
Allison was still tense as a lynchpin in a bridge or the golden rivet in every Yamataian ship's bulkhead.

Crimson Kestrel, Armoury Area in Cargo Bay
John had quietly been turning a corner of the Cargo area of the Kestrel into an arsenal for all to take a weapon. He'd been ordering bulk and surplus purchases of ammunition and weaponry, then got Melissa and Echelon to go the stock and see if it was good to go as the manufacturers and resellers had marketed. Ninety percent of the time, they were honest. The other ten were shortchanging the Ultimate Badass' courier, and when John let that fact drop, they refunded.

In this arsenal, for all to take at their need were Fatboys with red dot sights, GP-1 Rifles with solid stocks and reflex sights, Zen Arms 10mm SMPs with included solid stocks back from the early days, and Shot-12s with a bracket on the side opposite to the ejection to hold extra cartridges. In addition, there was a large box of sidearms just sitting there, from Luca's yuletide present. For all the long-arms and sub-machine guns, ammo was provided not far from where they were racked, while for the pistols it was first come, first serve and bring your own.

And this was on the way to the Hangar. Luca and John were already waiting in the shuttle, geared and ready, but John would be making a return trip once the shuttle had landed. Luca, however, in addition to his normal set of equipment and the changes Seiren made to the Grapple Stunner, the purple-jacketed Captain had something in his hands that looked as though he'd thrown it together with scrap in his spare time under Seiren and Allison's noses. "What is that?"

"This is my battery railgun," Luca grinned as he held the thing up. Two barrels, semi-automatic, insta-matic, battery launching destruction. "I'll let it speak for itself when we board. It's called Thunderbird."

"Thunderbird, yeah whatever. Are those your... batteries in there?"

"Yep. Bought a box of 250 on the InterNEP."

"Have you fired it before?"

"Nope!"

John furrowed his brows at Luca, conceding that he couldn't be angry with him because he'd done something constructive with his spare time, but without much thought or forward planning.

Elsewhere...
"I was told that this ssship was a Mineral Carrier!"
"Our intel was wrong?"
"Ssshut up! You pinkies always think the guy leadin' yasss is the guy makin' decisionsss. It'sss outta my claws."
"O-okay Sir. Well, what are we going to do about the prisoners then?"
"I don't give a ssshit, just keep them quiet, make sssure they don't-"

"Sir?"
"WHAT? Don't interrupt me when I'm ssspeakin', boy!"
"There's a ship nearby. I think someone snuck out and called SOS on this ship."
"Feck. Well. Uh. Fortify the ssship."
"Some of us still aren't back from checking out the rest of the ship."
"Do I give a ssshit about them? We can negotiate, hossstage, ransssom, that sssorta thing! We could come out of thisss with sssomething after all!"
"Y-yeah. Okay. Good thinking, let's... uh, fortify the display booth over here - Damn, that's some capacity she's got there... like... three false eggs-"

"Quit yer gawkin' at that pot-bellied Lorath tart and focusss!"
"Yes Sir Mr. Lizard Man."

 

[miss_story]

Phoenix shook his head quietly when Vitalia extended an invitation to the tabletop roleplaying game. He had a feeling it wasn't his sort of thing, or that he would somehow get in the way. The game seemed to involve a certain level of self confidence and shamelessness that he lacked at the moment. For now he would simply observe. If he changed his mind he was sure the others would happily involve him in the future. Watching them pick off their enemies, and watching them explain to Soruk just what was so fun about leaving things to chance in their game was certainly amusing, but Reeves perked up some when they were all called to the Rec room for a meeting about a mission.

While the others were packing up he slowly made his way over to the lounge and sat down quietly in the corner to listen to the mission details. He had seen pirates before, but most were relatively civil dealings aboard his old ship. Reeves shook his head wondering if he could ask Enzo for a spare gun again. Just in case things went a little rotten. He tensed slightly as he overheard parts of a less than savory conversation from Enzo's side of the room. He held his breath for a moment until exhaling slowly when he realized that he would simply be able to take a gun out from the armory. That might be a better bet than asking the greasy conman for any favors while he was in his pimp getup.

Reluctantly he got to his feet and patted down his pockets to make sure he still had his multitool and datajockey neatly tucked into the inside of his coveralls.

When he reached the Armory he stared at the weapons a little dumbfounded. He had done some research on basic weaponry but the world of guns was still very foreign to him. He chose a sidearm for himself as well as a fatboy. The energy smg looked like something he at least hope to aim more easily because it was equipped with a laser sight. Biting the tip of his tongue he nervously began to try to figure out his new guns while walking toward the shuttle. "That... is an interesting gun... does this one here have a safety I should know about?" He asked pointing his thumb back towards the fatboy he was holding, as he spoke.

 

[Yoshi]

Cargo bay
By her crate

Tani Mako stood there suiting up in her Mindy. She had taken a bit of time to paint the left shoulder with the Phoenix logo. She wasn't sue she liked the design but the fact that She owned Ech so much, she figured it would be fine.

She strapped her NSP onto her hip and her Aether/Scalar Submachine Gun on her back. As she suited up she was thinking of the type of metals that would be used for the walls of that ship, and how thick they would be. With each calculation she started working through how much explosive she would need to bust them open.

Once she was fully in her PA, she went to the Armory and started loading explosives and detcord along with all the detonators she would need for it all, into a satchel pack. it would drape from her shoulder to her hip opposite of the NSP. Once the bag was fully loaded she walked back over to Luca, with her helmet face open she smiled.

"So.. I'm about to break like 30 of my country's laws, most are death sentences... Can we get going?" She smiled a with a glint of excitement in her eyes.

 

[Moogle]

Seiren, of course, didn't even get the chance to see Luca showing off his new gun, having opted to go full-on LEAF and away from the others for a few moments.

Now THIS is what a mech is supposed to be like! Seiren thought as he booted the sturdy, stout Frame up. Soon enough, it met the group on the shuttle with a steady hum of its motors running. So confident was he in his setup that he didn't even bother to bring anything besides a few of those death-candies he got from Nostrovia and his GP-13, tucked neatly in his sleeve.

 

[Lamb]

With a manly woman like Melissa on Enzo's girlishly pimp arm, there was a sort of horrid appropriateness to it all. Enzo himself wouldn't be putting on any bras or silk stockings, though-- that was a job for the 'ladyboy' portion of the menage-a-trois that he'd instigated. No, Enzo was the andro, and Melissa was the butch. Not that the greasy conman would ever divulge this or the frequently accepted pre-written standards for gender-role confused threesomes. He'd just try to orchestrate one, or at the very least give Melissa the prescribed root whilst maybe they wrestled or fought on the bed or on the floor or in the bathroom or in the kitchen or on the bridge. After all, she was taking on to him for once-- something that occured once in a blue moon. Just thinking about it, the criminal cackled mischievously and rolled his shoulders in Melissa's hands.

"Nows I'm suitably motivationalized dese two-bit assholes don't stands a chance." Cackled the King of Two-bit Assholes, "Me an' my squeeze's gonna squeeze the blood outs 'f 'em."

Hangar
Enzo's arrival would've been unceremonious were it not for his incredibly ceremonious attire.

"Heya, toots." He belted out, though it was unclear which person was 'toots' in this case until the conman sidled up next to Reeves and peppered the poor boy's rump with a playful slap. "Lookitcha-- gots yous-selves a Fatboy, yeah? And you need to find the safety, right?"

With the hand that wasn't worming its way around Reeve's waist, Enzo reached down and flicked the safety off, then twisted the battery the rest of the way into the stock. The weapon most likely hummed to life because this is sci-fi and things either hum or whirr.

"There yous go, pal." Enzo cheered, holding a hooked trigger-finger in front of Reeve's face. "Dis lil' goi right here is the only safety yous needs. It's like my ma always said: 'Keep ya booger hook off the boom button'. Until you're ready to dust some chump, that is. Heh. How d'yous likes my get-up?"

 

[Reynolds]

Shayla just had a puzzled look on her face during the explanation, glancing from the video, to Allison's protests, to Enzo's disguise. "...this is what you guys do? I uh..." She just scratched her head with one big hand, not sure what to make of all this. "I expected weird, but not this kinda weird." She eventually managed to shake it off, as everyone began drifting off to prepare. The giant Neko clapped a hand on Soruk's shoulder in a friendly manner. "Ya got a good point! Got a feelin' they're gonna be pretty loud. Maybe I should tag along with you, Sai. Watch your back if we get deep in the dren, you watch mine if I gotta provide some professional attention to these weirdos we're rescuin'?" With her minor in xenobiology and time spent learning one alien language, it wasn't much of a surprise that she'd picked up some other bits of slang here and there. "Just gotta pick up my stuff."

Cargo Bay

The Neko reappeared after grabbing some supplies from her room, joining the others as they armed themselves. The standard issue Star Army Utility Belt she was wearing clashed with the orange and green stripped fur outfit she'd picked today, but it was useful. Shayla also had a hide pack on her back, made of some black, oily material. A few knives obviously made of bone were scattered about her person as well. Noticeably absent was the giant weapon she'd dragged through security when they departed. It probably wouldn't have been much help in an infiltration. Shayla peered at the various firearms laid out, not seeming particularly keen on any of them. She did have her NSP packed, although it wasn't her first choice.

Eventually the reskinned Nepleslian could no longer resist the urge to paw through the jumbled box of miscellaneous weapons. She grumbled to herself, still not convinced, until one made her bark out a laugh. "Where the hell did you get one of these?" She dangled the Covert Ops Pistol above the box, grinning. "Alright, let's play secret agent then." McBelle seemed amused, tucking away the silenced weapon and a spare magazine, just for fun.

Following the others toward the shuttle, she eyed Tani's Mindy up and down. "No kiddin', how the hell did you manage to keep ahold of that thing?" She initially hadn't been too concerned with how the young Neko had joined up with this motley crew, but her past as an officer had made her just a bit curious. The debut of the armor had tipped her into full alert. "Did you leave while wearin' it? They usually keep that stuff locked down tight otherwise. For good reason, they ain't always safe to operate around people who ain't armored. With the CFS on, you could walk right past someone and gib 'em." Shayla hadn't been in a leadership role for months, or in charge of young Neko for years, but it was hard not to slip into that role, frowning down her. "The arm gun could probably punch through half a flimsy ship like the one we're headin' to."

 

[Yoshi]

Cargo Bay

"What's it to you? all you need to concern yourself with is: This is mine." She glared at the half neko, not giving a single care for the tone Shayla gave her. "And I'm fully aware and trained in its operation. I'm not a arsewipe with a new toy." She looked down at the little pistol Shayla had in her hand and smiled. "Brining the big guns?" She winked and put her helmet on and waited the brief moment as the huds fully came up.

The Mindy's AI chimed up and greeted Tani and the internal temperature of the suit was adjusted to her preset settings. "Good afternoon Luv' how are we feeling today?" The Mindy replied with green across the board, along with a notice that some mail to answer when she got back to the ship

 

[Luca]

Crimson Kestrel, Armoury & Hangar
Melissa walked through the armoury with Cass and retrieved her prized and heavily modified Styrling Longbolt. Large adjustable scope, heavy chassis, straight-pull bolt for quicker cycling between shots, and a smiley face painted onto the lens cap when it was flipped open.

Cass' LEAF was parked near Seiren's LEAF, and the pint sized Inventor had gotten himself strapped into it and was already heading towards the Away Craft. John, spotting Cass nearby made a note to have people pile into the Big Bird instead of one of the shuttles. It seemed like it'd fit onto the clamps on top of the Cruiser they were trying to board with a bit of jimmying.

"So, Cass," Melissa asked as she flicked the cylinder on her rifle open and snapped it shut with a grin. "You a girl who likes to spray it up close," she asked as she got a handful of bullets and put them in her pocket, "or do you like to reach out 'n do yer touchin'?"

Normally, guns weren't her forte - Cass remembered a time when she would do anything to not be in the same room with a gun. (Emphasis on anything.) But guns on a mech, well...

"I do whatever seems like fun." She'd say 'appropriate', but that wouldn't be in the spirit of the double entrendre, would it? "The mech's prepped for both, really."

Melissa clicked her tongue and smiled back at Cass, "'atta girl. Never had the fingers fer a mech though. Must be safe as houses in one of those. Pipsqueak seems ta think so too."

Echelon walked by with their Fignale's Revenge rifle on their shoulder, playing music from a galactic radio station through their speakers and projecting a holographic smiley face as she grabbed a GP-1 and walked past without another word.

"Even mechs need protection." Screw (har har) what anyone else said, she couldn't resist a bit of wordplay. "Trust me, someone's always got a way to crack open a mech. It's like infantry combat, I think. You still need cover, you still need mobility..."

"Oh yeah. Can't go without that fer long if yer by yerself," she nodded as she grabbed a sidearm, an old Zen-Arms pistol and replaced her rifle's scope with a reflex sight better suited for the closer-quarters indoor battling.

"Fortunately you got a band of professional animals, and 'im," she nodded towards Luca, standing nearby and fiddling with his... frankenstein of a Battery Railgun thing. "I still 'ave no clue wot makes him tick tho'. So, you gettin' that mech fired up? Might be room fer two."

"If you squeeze in a little," Cass said, half-serious. "...And my hands might end up in places." Deadpan, that time. She'll reserve her judgements for Luca when she was sure she was in private. Even if it was just 'oh, I think he's eccentric', well, you had to be professional.

...okay, at least not-insulting toward your employer.

Soruk already had their guns, and walked past John and Luca and piled into the Big Bird, looking for the nearest hidey hole. He didn't like the Big Bird. It was too small, and there weren't any good hidey holes...

 

[miss_story]

Reeves had managed to zone out Enzo's arrival to the hangar bay because he was focused on inspecting his borrowed weapon. He had assumed that his passing introduction had been to one of the other people gathered and waiting to leave. So when the conman slithered up next to him and clapped his hand against his bottom he nearly jumped out of his skin. "Oh? me?" He responded breathlessly. He glanced in Enzo's direction before looking down at the gun again. "Yeah, that's exactly right. I don't really have much of an an... affinity for weapons." He admitted. He didn't doubt that Enzo already knew that, but it didn't hurt to drive that point home once more.

With one arm snaking around his torso he found himself being pulled closer to Enzo while the rogue quickly switched his fatboy on for him. "Thanks for the help Enzo, I owe you."

He took a deep breath, then promptly turned the thing back off again by doing the reverse of what he had just seen. " I --I'll keep that in mind. Your mother sounds like an interesting lady." As he spoke he spun around in an attempt to squirm out of Enzo's grip while at the same time getting a better look at his 'getup'

"Its certainly no Stapleton. Very colorful. " Reeves' wardrobe was very plain and colourless so he almost felt invisible with Enzo's snappy dressing and exciting disguises. It was kind of odd seeing the man with red eyes. "I think something happened to your sleeves though. Did you notice they were missing? Its nice though." He had lowered his voice slightly as he spoke not really sure how he should respond to the situation. As exciting and unique the costume might be it was hard to keep himself distracted from the task at hand. "Do you know if we've got an actual plan... or are we just running in blind?" He tilted his head towards the better equipped section of the crew that were standing a bit farther away from them. "I mean..." He took a deep breath. "Are we splitting up? maybe accessing ship systems manually to gain an advantage? " He couldn't seem to stop talking about what really was bothering him. " I mean... we could probably use the lift system shafts to get around quietly. What usually happens?" He pinched the bridge of his nose and shook his head. "Sorry... I'll just shut up."

 

[Phe0n1x]

Makari strode into the re-purposed hangar, jacket swirling in tandem with his stride. He paused to take in the scene. Guns. Guns EVERYWHERE. Makari swore it must be Christmas come early.

The shine of a Fatboy reflected off of his rose tinted glasses. Mesmerized, he moved towards one and snatched one up. He inspected it thoroughly, wiping off any stray fingerprints from the last person who held it. "Now this is a nice weapon. You are a weapon finding GOD, John. I've been wanting one of these babies for a while. I just never tracked one down. I think I may take one of these with me. Can't have too many backup weapons, right?," he chuckled to no one in particular. he patted all the weapons he was weighed down with: HHG on his left hip, the "Peashooter" on his right, a SiZi Model 30 in his left breast pocket, a Standard General Assault Rifle on his left shoulder, his Styrling Auto Twelve on the right, and the shiny new Fatboy in his gleeful hands. This was not to mention the numerous ammunition he carried in every nook and cranny on his person. There was going to be a firefight and he was more than ready. He was a walking arsenal, what could go wrong, right?

He climbed into the Big Bird, "Ready when you are, boss."

 

[Luca]

Crimson Kestrel, Hangar + Big Bird
Two mechs, many heavily armed people, Luca, and whatever Rebeka was supposed to be clambered onto the Big Bird, the Sourcian following the pint-sized Inventor to watch how they handled a frame, striding right past everyone without picking up a single armament. Her hands were too large for anything John could offer - an assault rifle would've been a machine derringer to them - while even the biggest guns of Melissa's rifles were just peashooters to the strange woman.

"A-aren't you going to grab anything?" John asked as she ducked into the ship, squatting down next to Seiren's LEAF frame without a word or a glance at the pilot. As she stayed still by Seiren, her hands smelt distinctively of burning plastic. The woman was unperturbed by the smell and stared into the bulkhead hard enough that if she was projecting laser beams, she would've bored a hole into space.

Melissa's nose wrinkled at the smell, but she was glad to have another ally. She pulled a balaclava over her face with a crude grin painted into it - partially to shield herself from the smell, and mostly because it looked cool. The uncanny Sourcian's stare was something she rankled at though. She couldn't shield herself from that.

"John, she keeps her weapons with her," Luca assured them as he did a brass, well, Battery check on his gun. "Seiren told me. You'll see."

"I'm not setting foot on that ship," John replied. "I'll be coming back here to keep an eye on things with Vita and Allison. This could be a trap after all."

"Y34H, M41N M3 W1LL B3 ST4Y1NG H3R3," Echelon said. As if on cue, her claimed Mimicom had just walked out of the armoury with a pair of stockless Fatboys and spare magazines for both.
"I'll be taking point here, though." "If you need H4X, I'll do it remotely."

"BY TH3 W4Y. N1C3 GUN," she said, looking at the Battery Railgun that Luca had constructed.
"Thanks, Ech."

"That's everyone, isn't it," John said as he counted the people on his fingers, "Where's Zeta?"
"I think she's sitting this one out. Plus, we have someone here in case we get boarded ourselves." Luca nodded as he got comfortable inside of the Big Bird. "Let's move."

"What about Lodemucker?"
"Ehn... don't know either." Luca wondered where the noodly-armed Freespacer had gone.

"Soruk?" Luca asked.
"He's here." John replied. "Let's get this show on the road. We need some crew behind in case."

"H4PPY HUNT1NG!" Real Echelon waved goodbye to them as the hatch closed.

-

Elsewhere...
"This is the Nekovalkyrja on this ship, boss."
"What? Kill them! Ssslaughter them!"
"But sir- Lizard Man."
"I don't care! Thossse Nekovalkyrja can be a problem."

"Sir - they were already tied up and they're with the hostages before we even arrived."
Lizard Man seemed perplexed. "What?!"
"M-maybe they're a uniform fetishist with cat ears. I mean, did you get a look at the colour of their skin?"

The Neko's skin was lavender, and her hair was bright pink as were her fuzzy ears.

Lizard Man pondered. "Yesss... makes sssense. No threat, then. Maybe just a Yamataian. I am jussst paranoid."
"I bet they're pink downstairs too, aheheh."
"Find out later..." Lizard Man sighed.

"Sir there's a ship approaching!"
"What!? Doessss thisss thing have any weaponsss?"
"Er, no sir Mr. Lizard Man, we can't shoot at it with this ship. It's meant to be escorted and we... kind of blew up their escorts."
Lizard Man was aggrieved. A long string of Delsaurian swearing came out of his mouth. He was very rude.

And right in front of the poor Neko too!

"Where'sss our ambush?"
"They'll be here in fifteen, Mr. Lizard Man, sir."
"Good!"

-

ISC Big Bird
"Landing on target - no resistance. An oxygen bubble and gravity field is present out here. It'll give you guys a way to walk onto the ship from the hull." John explained as he landed on top of the Fruna Ruica. The Big Bird was quite large, taking up two landing spaces compared to a smaller shuttle. One of its wings covered the pirate's attack shuttles and scratched the paintwork. "Make it quick. Opening the Airlock out in three... two... one..."

The back hatch opened and Luca was the first one out, running across the hull and towards the large elevator airlock down. "Let's go, go, go!"

It looked as though the entrance was intended for people of all sorts, and probably doubled as a cargo elevator in a pinch too. The two LEAF frames that were piloted by Seiren and Cass could fit on it comfortably with the crew.

Melissa and Echelon dashed out with their armaments in hand. "Caaaaaaaaaaaaarn!" Melissa let out her warcry, "th' Phoenix is comin' fer ya!"
"Let's Foxtrot, Sierra, UN1F0RM," Echelon yelled. "B1TCH3S!" For emphasis.

Luca remained quiet as he approached the airlock first. No signs of resistance.

Crimson Kestrel, Lounge
Allison and Vita were left to their own devices. Allison was watching what was unfolding with the Phoenix Team from Echelon's point of view, streaming it directly to her.

"Truth or dare?" Vita suggested.

"You sure you want to?" Allison replied, looking to one side. "Ech probably already told you everything you need to know."

"She didn't. I asked when I got wind of it, and she told me to ask you directly."

"Uh..."

 

[Eistheid]

Fruna Ruica, Main Convention Floor, Deck 3

She was hungry.

Despite this, Sesshoseki Tamamo once again reviewed the data she had pertaining to her situation; continuing much as she had in the recent past, coming to varying conclusions as she shifted projected variables and analyzing her options, all in a vain attempt to stave off her boredom.

Once again she reviewed her recent past.

It was of special note to her that initially she had been on her way to Kyoto as she had been ordered upon the completion of the last segment of her training. While waiting between shuttle trips at a spaceport, she had found herself in the company of others taking part in an attempted bout of social interaction, much as her Commanding Officers at her training facility had so frequently insisted. This attempt at socializing had ended with her amongst a crowd of individuals, who at the time, had been interesting and somewhat charming.

Proceeding events guided her onto what was in hindsight clearly the wrong shuttle, led by her 'friends' as they had been fond of calling themselves. A relatively short shuttle trip later, and she had found herself boarding a strange ship, one that she would learn a short time later was known as the Fruna Ruica. Her time wandering the ship seeking information, and a way back to her intended destination had proved rather fruitless. The ship as it turned out was strange in many ways, and she had quickly discovered that many things did not make sense when viewed from the perspective in line with her previously learned social conventions and interactions, thus a fork had been created.

In the midst of learning the new rules of her present situation, Tamamo had been beset upon and cornered by a quartet composed of a trio of large Lorath women, and a male Separa'shan. Curiously, they had proven to be gentle and kind, encouraging her to 'loosen up' and have fun. By the end of the disarming and unexpected encounter, she had somehow ended up bound by a length of shiny red rope which had been tastefully tied in an artistic pattern over top of her teal paneled duty uniform, leaving her able to walk but restricting her arms and torso.

Left to wander once again, despite her acquired decoration Tamamo was elated to discover a floor plan posted on one of the walls, likely intended for reference in emergency situations. Observing the map, and in the process plotting a route to the Bridge, with the hope of asking one of the less rowdy occupants of the ship as to how she might leave.

This was not to be however, things had changed.

The previously lively and loud ship had rapidly become silent. Its occupants reacted to subconscious cues, alerted to a danger that only became apparent as the gunshots, yells, and screams began, carrying their way through the ship from an unknown point of origin.

The chaos that followed came with a new learning experience: Helplessness. Bound as she was by the affections of the ship's residents Tamamo was in a poor position and had no chance to attempt to arm or defend herself, instead she was easily mixed deep amongst the panicked crowed and herded against her will as all the others were. Finally she was left with her group, many bound in a much more utilitarian manner and left in a seemingly arbitrary location while those who had taken control of the ship pursued whatever mysterious goals drove them.

-

"This is the Nekovalkyrja on this ship, boss."

The words drew Tamamo out of the review of her recent past, her focus on the conversation around her sharpening as she realized that she could very well be in peril. The immediate follow-up in the conversation only seemed to confirm her fears and increase her anxiety as the Delsaurian was quick to order her immediate termination.

Oddly the order was never carried out. Despite the ruthless demand the line of conversation shifted, distracted, as the subordinate mused. Left to wonder why her physical traits mattered at present, Tamamo was further confused as the conversation continued and they referenced some ambiguous 'Downstairs' despite her never having provided any sort of information that might allude to her owning real-estate of any sort. Left in a nervous silence, muted by pragmatism as she knew that words would do her little good in her situation, she greatly desired to observe her captors however she knew better than to draw their attention with open study.

Before the discussion of her proposed homesteading or physical traits could continue, something new, unexpected, and valuable was brought to her attention.

There was now a ship.

Elated by the concept of a possible rescue, or at the very least a distraction that might draw her captors' attention, Tamamo was greatly excited by this new variable and her mind set to work plotting out just how the development might allow her to subdue one of her captors, and obtain a weapon.

Twitching her ears Tamamo felt her body coil, muscles flexing as if remembering their existence and readying for combat, however she was getting ahead of herself. Forcing her mind onto a parallel track Tamamo instead engaged the task of puzzling out the meaning of the Delsaurian's string of profanity allowing herself to fall into a more relaxed idle state. With her excitement at the turn of events checked Tamamo began mediating herself actively attempting to keep herself acting like those around her, nervous and meek in disposition. She doubted she was doing a good job considering the eager curiosity that rushed through her mind, very much desiring to observe the results of this newest element.

 

[ShotJon]

The Big Bird - SPACE!!!!

Zeta was a bit angry at herself. She was late for the lift off and they did not wait. Well they could not wait. Zeta had to find and put on her Impulse Power Armou on. She did not wear it in like a year, only doing maintenance on it every now and then. She did not plan on taking it this time either, but she saw the cat putting on a her Yammie Cat-Suit and then pipsqueak and new gal took their mini-frames. Since they were all going full power, she took of her body armour and went to get her Impulse.

It was a special kind of Impulse. For once it had much better AI in it, then usual armours had. This AI was called Wesley and sounded like upper class nepleslian from Kennewes. Normal AIs would not call other people 'Chaps' or 'blokes'. The suit was coloured black and had assault pack mounted on its back. Zeta opted to take her Gamma Ray Vulcan as main weapon. She also put her Plasma revolver to her side and her Fatboy on the pack. She also of course took her knife with her. One should never leave without a knife.

Of course as she ran into Kestrel's hangar, the Big Bird was already taking off. She took too long. So she did the usual. A silly thing. Activating her thrusters, she lifted off and grabbed onto the side of the Big Bird. She attached herself to the ship by a cable and activated magnetic shoes on the suit. Now it was just time to enjoy the flight.

As the ship was nearing Fruna Ruica, Zeta looked up. The target was quite a big ship and she did not fance all of them going in though the same spot. To take the ship this big, the enemy had to be either pretty stong or great in numbers. Possible with PA like Demon or Impulse armours. So Zeta decided to find her own way in.

As John started slowing down to land, Zeta unhooked herself and let go. She aimed herself at the spaceliner and used her assault pack to fly to it, looking for alternative entrance. If nothing else, the enemy might not notice that.