RP: YSS Miharu Mission 5, Part 2: The Fight For The Lost

"You ever hear the thing about counting your eggs before they hatch? Because you're doing it. But no, I don't have anything planned for afterwards, assuming I survive and remember anything." Kyou was simply ignoring the sounds around her, a trait that develops quite well when you're the non-participating one as a young neko.

"Y'always count ya eggs before they hatch, y'know. That way you know what cn'come, n'whatcha lose along tha' way. Can't really sum up tha' future wit' some ducks, Gunny. Makes ya a pessimist." informed Asher, before looking back to the floor and spotting a little bit of a mess on his boot. "Considerin' how this goes, y'wanna do somethin?"

Kyou cocked at an eyebrow at him, even though she knew he couldn't see her. "A pessimist is what an optimist calls a realist. But sure, I have no problem with doing something after."

"Y'see, thass' where ya wrong. Realists 'sume they know wass' gunna' happen next. A pessimist 'sumes tha' worse, n'an optimist 'sumes tha' best. Y'see, tha' biggest misconception a'most folks is that 'dey 'sume I'mma optimist. N'there juss' plain wrong." Asher looked over at her, cocking an eyebrow as well in her direction. "You're a realist, an' no matter how good lookin' y'are, no one likes a know-it-all."

Kyou snorted. "Nobody likes a smartass either, but I get by just fine anyway. And I don't assume you're a optimist, I assume you just roll with it."

"Y'know, y'wouldn't be too far from tha' truth!" replied the Malifarian, his stomach rumbling slightly from the lack of food within it. "Y'pretty cool, Gunny. When I first met ya today, I thought you were one a those whiny, civvie bitches wit' an average rack n'a nice ass." He chuckled under his helmet. "Guess I wass' wrong."

Kyou almost turned her head to look at her butt before she caught herself. "Why would you say that? I've never acted like I was afraid to take this fight." She left discussion of her chest and butt out of it for now.

"Gunny, take a good look at me n'then take a look at everyone else in this squad. They're all reasonably normal folks. Y'really think I see things tha' same way they do?" reasoned the Malifarian, keeping still for the fast-paced, telepathic conversation. "They can take people a'any kind and call'm a soldier, simply 'cause they passed through their basic. We got engineers, bridge crew, caretakers, and power armor pilots who think they're soldiers. They can all call'm soldiers if they want to, and got no problem wit it. Me? There's only two kinds a people. Civvies, and Soldiers. Civvies can't keep it straight, soldiers can. N'I assume every green-off-their-ass 'soldier' iss' a civvie 'til I seem perform."

Miyoko gasped as she was abruptly hurled aside. The Yamataian kicked in her gravitic manipulation to stop herself, but not before she'd impacted the wall and almost fell over. After the tumble, it took her a moment to regain her bearings, and she soon enough noticed the shadowy mishhuvurthyar. She lifted her rifle when she did, leveling it at the monster and moving to the side, doing her best to get between it and Kotori without getting too close to the thing.

Miyoko's heart was racing... this was the circumstance she'd prepared for, but it certainly wasn't one she wanted to happen. "Both of you, fall back!" she suggested as she inched back from the mishhu. In these tight quarters, she was almost afraid of accidentally hitting them herself as she was of the mishhu reaching them.

Kyou shrugged. "I have to admit, I agree with you on that. Regardless of combat experience, I have to think that people like engineers have places they could be much better used in then this. And it would be nice to have a few more dedicated combat people around at times like this. I guess I should take it as a compliment you've grouped me with the 'soldiers' regardless though."

"Y'deserve it, Gunny. Like I said, y'not juss' an average chest n'an nice ass." the Malifarian looked over to Kyou and nodded at her respectfully. "Take it from a fella' who's been doin' this longa' than you've probably been alive, y'fight good. Hell, I can't wait t'fight wit' you again. Iss' been pretty fun so far, pairin' up and gettin' shit done."

Kyou's mouth quirked up at one side. "Despite the source, I think I can honestly take that as a compliment. Now lets just hope that we work together well enough to survive this shit, or I'm not sure it will matter much anymore."

Masako nodded at Mara as she watched the other two leave. Popping up from her cover once more, the Warrant Officer fired off the last two thermite rounds at the tunnel entrances before ducking down to eject the magazine. She had started to load it back up with frangible rounds before she received the distress call from Ayumu.

"Shit," the raven-haired Neko cursed. "Shizuka, take the Bazooka. Load in with Frangible Rounds for the...swarm," Masako transmitted as she pulled her LASR-SLAG rifle from its hardpoint. "I'll go back and protect the Taisa," Masako completed as she used her inertial flight to retreat from the Defensive Line and back towards the Hoshi.

@black Knights:

The elevator came to a stop and the door's clamshell parts swiveled and collapsed into each other before the bundled up covers swung into a slot in the threshold, opening the way to their destination.

The scenery was the same, and yet different. The elevator's arrival lobby had the same organic, semi-slimy cast as the rest of the vessel, but it had a more corridor-like structure. Nyton wasn't sure of where he was in relation to his last visit, but he knew this layout; it contrasted with the other parts of the ship which had been less ideal for non-humanoids.

Melisson was certainly humanoid.

The corridor ahead was in a L-shape, with both ends leading to circular doors that were triple-seamed in a fashion that was alarmingly similar to cardiac valves of the human heart. The impression that they were getting at the heart of thier enemy's stronghold was getting pretty strong.

"Follow the longer corridor ahead left," Hinoto instructed. "I'm not sure how you can open those doors. Maybe brute force it with power armor strength, or blast through-" The communication cut off with a surprised: "AHH!"

@Bridge:

Hinoto made a ground somersault to avoid the incorporeal tentacles of a second Ghost Mishhuvurthyar which emerged from the vestiges of the main viewscreen. She scrambled away for more space, and that gave her just enough time to evade the swishing tentacles until Hoshi could respond to Ayumu's plea for help and generate an interphasic pulse through the halls of the ship.

What seemed like a crackling wall of bluish power coming down from Hoshi's frontal drive system passed through the room. The Ghost Mishhuvurthyar was revelaed 'in the flesh'. Hinoto, now standing on the upper tier of the bridge, drew out both combat knife and her service pistol, her eyes flashing an angry gray, ears flattening back and teeth bared in hostility.

She was not retreating.

@Decon Room:

As Miyoko interposed herself between Kotori and the enemy, she was largely blocking the exit of the shower stall, covering the Taisa but also not giving her much room to get out - the tentacle coverage of the dark-shelled phased mishhuvurthyar made any feasible retreat for the crouched Kotori unfeasible.

Her hesitance to shoot due to allies being close was not shared by her enemy. The Ghost Mishhu had no such compunction, and it attacked, snapping its tentacles in a whip-like fashion through Miyoko with Ayumu's shots unfortunately proving to be little deterrent.

Insubstancial tentacles that went through her, apparently harmlessly... until it inserted three mishhuvurthyar whelps into her. When the tentacles retracted, the three smaller creature phased to solidity inside Miyoko's torso, three fist-sized lumps that suddenly vied for the limited local estate that was the insides of her body.

Miyoko was well aware of the incubating practices of the Mishhuvurthyar, having her plenty of horror stories about tough men coming into hospital complaining about stomachaches only to have the small things bloodily burst out of their abdomen - often with fatal results for the host. Even worse, Miyoko knew the creatures inserted were already born and alive, so they could work their antics in her insides right now, rather than in a few days.

The interphasic pulse swept through the ship, revealing the Ghost Mishhu in all its corporeal glory, the towering black beast now casting shadow over her.

@Defense Line:

As Masako left, it appeared as if her retreat inside could not have been more badly timed. The roar of engines sounded from the two lower tunnels and two Mishhuvurthyar battlepods - actual battlepods inside the ship! - flew into the chamber like impromptu attack gunships.

Railguns on side turrets started hammering over the position of the defenders, with the powerful underslung missile packs that jetted out and streaked over the defense line.

Explosions rocked their surroundings, cover crumbling, Daisy armors flying aside, barriers depleted at the very least. Masako heard Tsuya cry out. She saw the unit status of Takuma Kimura, her partner and teammate during the Meng Po boarding action, reveal the yamataian man's death as his Daisy armor was torn apart.

Masako's power armor was the only Daisy around that was still standing. The battlepods' railguns homed in to finish off the fallen. Under them, the zombies and thralls charged.

Miyoko took a startled step back as the mishhu's tentacle whipped toward her, but not fast enough. It became solid inside her stomach before she could escape, and she felt the three bulges sliding into her abdomen, making her give a pained grunt as organs were pushed aside to accommodate them. Gritting her teeth, she took an unsteady step backward, just trying to get away from the monster looming over her, just in time for the pulse to make it fully solid.

Her arms shaking from the adrenaline rush and the pain in her abdomen, Miyoko raised her LASR and fired a three-round burst at her attacker.

Masako's surprise was total as the Battlepod tore at the defensive line. Halting her retreat, the Warrant Officer turned and launched a pair of Countermeasure Mini-Missiles at the Battlepod before diving back towards her cover and to the Bazooka she had left behind.

Hoping to make it in time, she grabbed the 50mm and shoved a Depleted Uranium Round into the chamber before closing it to aim at the Battlepod who had killed her comrades. She couldn't think about them now. Masako had to keep the horde and the Battlepod from doing their job...even if it cost her yet another life. Using her AEIS and careful aim, she launched the DU round directly at the Battlepod's cockpit area.

Yukari heard Hinoto's cry and knew time had run out. They had to find Melisson, now!

"MOVE!" she shouted, taking to the air. "TO THE DOOR! Westwood and Gunshin, blast it open!"

"Yes ma'am!" said Asher as he activated his barrier module and raised his shield. "C'mon, Gunny! Time t'make some squids sweat!" Then, the Malifarian shot forward, switching from his flamethrower to his 50mm Bazooka. He weaved on up and settled at a comfortable distance from the directed door, and raised his his bazooka at the sealed entrance. He waited for Kyou to get in position, and when they were both ready, he'd unload as many rounds at it would take to open the door.

"On it, ma'am." Kyou settled in near Asher, settling on her Gauss cannon herself, though she only planned on firing 2 or 3 shots herself, figuring Asher's bazooka was a bit more suited to giving them new doorways then her cannon. "I like the way you think, buddy. Let's hope one of them is on the other side of this thing." That said, she opened fire in tandem with Asher using their computers to time things so that her shots would hit right after one of his, punching through weakened pieces in theory.

Tom felt a twinge of panic rise in him with Hinoto's abrupt cutoff, but he crushed it under his armored heel as he moved.


He took point in a small V formation and swiftly made his way to the junction point of the L-shaped corridor, scanning for enemy presences while the door team worked to blast open the door.