RP: YSS Eucharis [Mission 5] The Secret Battlefront

Nana was just putting her boots back on as she received the message from Toshiro, nodding silently in response and exiting her quarters without a word. Hands slowly crept behind her back, fingers interlacing in idle, nervous motions as she headed for Engineering.

She still appeared to be a bit groggy, her hair a somewhat scruffy, disheveled mane that, once noticed, she struggled to smooth down with her fingertips. Her lips twisted into a displeased grin as she imagined the situation down on the surface, her stomach turning, but it was all quickly masked behind a neutral stare as she tried to push thoughts of the potentially dying crew from her mind.

Like a ghost, she appeared in the doorway, rolling her shoulders and rubbing her palms together slowly, "...I'm ready."

We've finally made it! No sign of the other team though. Hope they'll make it, Hotaru thought to herself. Immediately after arriving she set her two tactical drones to passive sentry duty, high enough to be hidden by some of the canopy so they are difficult to see from below but not high enough to be detected from above.

Between Konoka and herself, they briefly searched the perimeter for anything hostile. Not finding anything suspicious, they returned to the tree and sat down. Listening to the continual patter of the rain while awaiting the remainder of Alpha Team to show relaxed Hotaru a little, happy to finally have some rest. Wondering how Konoka was coping she turned and gestured, getting a response.

Hotaru decided to set up a bit of a watch system, and took first watch, allowing Konoka to rest and possibly get a bit of sleep. Hotaru laid her rifle partially across her legs still keeping it in a ready fire position in case they get surprised.

Kumiko yawned, and stood up, runnning her hands quickly through her hair, then down over her clothes to make sure she was at least presentable. With that, she stood up, and after popping her neck and back out, got moving. Falling asleep in such an uncomfortable position had left her unimaginably stiff, but strecthing out really quickly would fix that. So she went ahead and did that, then set off, arriving there moments after Nana, but yawning slightly, and still stretching her arms out.

"Midnight meal is open," Mango quietly announced on the intercom, making sure not to exclude the crew cabins from the notice. Up in the wardroom, Mango had a pile of piping hot baked potatoes, along with butter, sour cream, chili, bacon bits, cheddar cheese, and chives.

Hanako wandered in to fix herself one. The team was on her mind, but she had to wait...food was a welcome distraction.

Misaki and Kim took longer, taking several different paths through the jungle in case they had been followed, so anyone whom found their rendezvous for the night would not track them easily the following day. Glancing around at the drones, the XO checked their power levels. She didn't need them getting blasted for having those running free of the other armours. What did they have left more than a crate of food, and 12 days combined together in their power armours?

Slipping her helmet off, the Chusa tapped her lips, motioning for Hotaru to eat. Darkness had fallen upon the jungle, but any of them could see her with the helmet or not, at least the ones living still could. Using hand signals to relay the watch, she indicated she would take the last. Being awake before they moved out would ensure she wasn't as tired and could direct all her senses to it. After the one that looked already asleep was up, it would go to Kim, whom would wake her for the final stretch to morning. Turning to Kurosora, she asked if she had any explosives with her.

They would keep going. Finding a log to rest on, the soldier planned their next move while waiting for a reply. Four...only four. I hate this planet.

Konoka was very happy. They'd made it! The final paces, she actually skipped again. She felt so happy, so relieved. Though, she did feel a little gnawing bit of sadness: There were four of them alive. Four. Fish. This had been an unforgiving planet as yet. She felt sad for a little longer, then stopped herself. For the first time since she'd entered that horrible jungle, she had the chance to be happy. Yes, it was selfish. But she'd be damned if she didn't find this moment to be positive. She was OK. Hotaru-san was OK. She'd cracked an eyelid long enough to know the Chusa and Kurosora-Hei were OK. And she WOULD be happy about that.

When they found nothing hostile, she'd been relieved.

Sleeping, she reviewed the past several hours in her mind. She liked sleep. She'd gotten off the shuttle. Shortly after, there'd been shelling, and she'd been there when Cherry-Heisho...she had to think it...died. She tried not to think about it, how she had felt totally useless. Then she'd followed Hotaru-san and Karei-Hei. She'd felt helpful again. I twas a good feeling. They'd found the pod. It had given her hope. There was an explosion, and she'd pushed Hotaru-san out of the way. Yay to self. Then, she'd found Karei-Hei. Dead. She'd felt bitter, useless, and she'd punched a tree, which she felt guilty for. The tree wasn't hurting anyone. She'd wandered through the jungle in a bad mood. Now she was OK. She smiled, and thought, Yaaay, we're OK. When I wake up....what fate wills will come. For now, the neko medic slept on.

Yaichiro noted the two ladies' arrival.

"Sorry about the early wake up call, but the Taisa has given us orders to make a probe capable of acting as a sensor and visual periscope, among other things. If you don't already have the schematics and specs of the Weapons pod downloaded, you can find get them from Charisma.

Our goal? Make a audio/video/passive sensor drone with camouflage as small as possible, to act as a periscope for Eucharis. We will start with this Weapons pod as a basis, and work from there. I'm shooting for a two foot diameter size or less if possible."

After spending a bit of time on watch, she saw the Chusa and Kurosora-Hei enter the clearing. A short while later, Misaki mimed for Hotaru to eat something. Hotaru saw her and nodded before getting up and going over to where they were camped. She took her helmet off before reaching into her pack and grabbed the first ration pack, it was Shrimp Fried Rice. Mmm, nice, now where did I put that fork?.

Sitting down she began to eat, keeping her senses alert in case of intruders. She also drank some of her water before letting the rain fill it up again once it passed through her filtration device. She grinned, I just KNEW this rain would come in handy sometime!

After finishing her meal, she packed up what she had out so there would be no evidence of anyone staying here before stowing it in her pack. Seeing that it was almost time for Konoka to take up her watch, she gently shook her awake and indicated it was her shift.

Konoka smiled, opening her eyes to find Hotaru-san shaking her awake. She took the hint and went on her watch. She smiled serenely at the peaceful rain. She realized it was kind of beautiful. She breathed in, then out. She loved the calm beauty of nature. After a while, she ate. The environment was relaxing. She sat quietly, thinking about her joy of watching out for others, and the beauty of the planet.

The day wasn't ending so horribly.

When morning came, the rain slowed to a fine mist, and thick, steamy fog rolled in rose the jungle lowlands as the sun began to shine. Visibility was limited to a few meters. While the sunlight made it easier to see, it also made the team easier to track.

Unbeknown to Alpha team, the hostile footsoldiers were fast on their trail. They had started at the wrecked vehicles and Cherry's abandoned body, and then to the escape pod, where the mine had caused so much destruction, and then beyond. Their pursuers knew there were survivors; they had found Karei's looted corpse.

Going by their radar, some few miles ahead, Alpha Team would find a large cliff of some sort, a wall of jagged, moss-covered rock - and it was either climb it or risk detection by using anti-gravity.

- - -

Round sausage patties sizzled on the galley stove, adding background noise to the wardroom where already a few crew members were up, eating sausage egg and cheese biscuits or chicken biscuits. at the main table, Blueberry and Lime were conversing in hushed voices.

Hotaru started to awaken shortly after sunrise. Yawning and sitting up, she winced as her side was still tender from the mined escape pod. Cricking her neck she looks around and realises the visibility is low, this is going to be fun, I wonder where the Chusa is... After a couple of minutes feeling and breathing the morning air and the mist damp on her face Hotaru started to get up.

Deciding to have a quick stretch, she took a few deep breaths then stood as she scooped up her helmet with one hand before doing a few brief stretching exercises to loosen herself up.

Knowing they had to get moving soon and with no sign of Kurusa-Chusa in their little clearing she shook both team members to wake them up. As she did this she kept searching the clearing for the Chusa. Putting her helmet on she utilised the armour's UWB radar to check the surrounding area.

The 3 Engineers had made significant progress designing the probe. Before them sat a two-foot diameter probe with several optics, audio and radio transcievers, assorted sensors including power and infrared signatures, and both quantum and laser communication systems. It also had a modest propulsion system capabile of movement in water or air, and the ability to tilt or even invert itself in flight. Yaichiro was in the process of installing a small dome on top of the unit, housing a 360 degree by 200 degree panoramic camera.

"We're almost done, and hopefully the Taisa can use the laser to communicate with the team should we locate them."

They then recieved the call for food, and Yaichiro realized just how late (early) it was.

"Hm...pack up your tools and go to breakfast, Ladies. I'll be up once I've finished and tested this camera. It should be done then."

Konoka woke up to Hotaru-san shaking her awake...again. She smiled to herself. What wonderful and good things would she encounter today? She got up, yawned, stretched, and smiled at the beauty of a new day's possibilities. Uh oh...where was the Chusa? Great. Now she was worried.

Worrying for the Chusa's safety, she followed Hotaru dutifully, trying not to trip. Hummm...this would be a long day.

An armour broke from the morning haze, with the distinctive shape of Misaki's MINDY. Climbing up a nearby tree in the direction they were headed gave her an idea of the wall of rock they'd have to conquer en route to the objective. If she was lucky, extremely lucky, the opportunity to take out the shields would present itself before nightfall if they made good time. She signaled the others. It was time to go. She looked through to the four remaining soldiers through a different spectrum, and waited for them to form single file line. Hotaru had to be last, there was no other choice to her. In front of her was the new Medic, and behind Misaki came Kim with the supply crate.

Signaling in sign was bad enough, but looking back to ensure Kim had a line of sight to her (continuing all the way to the back) was downright annoying and necessary all at the same time. They were headed through the jungle and by this time the XO had a grim determination to lead them in, and out of the fire.

Kumiko started. She too had lost track of time, and was surprised to learn just how long they'd been working. She gathered her stuff up, then paused, a look of concern on her face. "Sir, are you sure? I'm not overly hungry," which was actually a lie, "so I'd be glad to stay and help you finish. It's no trouble."

Seeing the Chusa, Konoka sighed in relief, bowing on reflex. She realized it was time to go. She felt a little worried. There were four of them. Four. And it wasn't over. Shaking off her negativity, she promised herself all four would return alive. She'd make sure of it. She cared about all three of the others. Even though she'd spoken to the Chusa once, and only briefly, and she had never actually so much as told Kurosora-Hei her name, she cared deeply about each and every one of them. She felt the need to watch out for them. After all, someday, they might be very good friends. There was no reason they wouldn't. Well, except if she never saw them again. But that would be so sad!! She, even if they hadn't spoken, had met them, even for a little while, and...she cared about them. They mattered to her. She wouldn't let anyone else get hurt.


She filed into line. She glanced back at Hotaru-san, who she liked, and already considered a new friend. Then she looked forward at the back of Kurosora-Hei. She seemed like a tough one, and a good soldier. She hoped they could talk sometime. Maybe even be friends. However, she got the feeling Kurosora-Hei was not as optimistic as herself. Then there was the Chusa. A true leader. She admired her. She wondered how she felt, having to be the responsible one, the leader, the one who made decisions. That was tough stuff. The Chusa seemed good at it, though. She would be happy to work under her, and hoped she would like her. She worried for all of their safety. She realized that not once during the mission had she thought about herself, or her own safety. Then she smiled. Why would it even matter? If everyone else was OK, she was happy. She would look out for them. She cared. And why not? Compassion and caring were her lot. Helping was her life. And so, she carried on.

The jagged, mossy cliff lay before the four surviving team members, starting from a waterlogged pile of rubble and leading up to a plateau perched roughly a hundred meters above (and out of the fog). It looked like a difficult climb, but not an impossible one.

- - -

Hanako ate breakfast, her mind on the armor team.

Yaichiro was about to protest, when his stomach growled...he'd not eaten since the breakfast of the previous day, and he realized that these two were pushing themselves as well.

"Well, I suppose we've earned a break. We do have to eat. We'll just have to hurry up our breakfast and return down here, finish this for the Taisa, and start the cleaning and inspection cycle for the day."

He rose and started packing up his tools. Sure, Yaichiro may have been used to skipping more than one meal before, but back then there were vending machines and a water fountain just outside his R&D facility, and he was in a different body accustomed to it. Lastly, he shouldn't expect the same of his subordinates.

Keeping file and in sight of Konoka-san within the fog while being rear guard had kept Hotaru on her toes. She hadn't picked anything up visually or otherwise but she began to feel a little uneasy. Not liking the feeling she doubled her efforts expecting something to happen, constantly eyeing her surroundings.

Arriving near the base of the cliff Hotaru was the last to make it. Her nerves were feeling a little taught that nothing had materialised so far. She began to calm down a little but not enough that she didn't keep a sharp lookout around them as she held her rifle in the ready position with finger on trigger.

Oh Boy! she thought briefly looking up at the climb in front of them as she kept an eye on the Chusa for further signals.

Misaki grimaced inside her helmet.

There was a cliff. It always had to be the jungle combat with things like that, didn't it? Feeling the edge of her determination cutting in more the Chusa looked through the fog on a few passive spectrum. The patrols out looking for them wouldn't spot them if they climbed, instead of using anti-grav.

She hoped.

Signaling with her hands, the veteran soldier ordered a staggered ascent, by a few seconds what she estimated would make someone just able to see the boots of the armour above them. The sooner they pushed to the final objective the better. After reiterating that the remaining people should remain radio silence, and hiding Kim's ration box away she told her to check the pile of rubbish, being careful herself to step as little on the center of as possible before grabbing the rock face. The fog was a blessing to her, just a little less conspicuous to have a MINDY and a trio of DAISY shuffling up the hill like ants against the enormity of their surrounding environment. She was ready for fire.

The XO started the climb, keeping her passive sensors tuned to everything, assured that her team would follow behind with precision.