[NSMC 309th] Mission 2: Creating Hope

The helmet of the Golem looked at Minnie before replying. "Survival..." The visor of her HUD went clear for a moment, showing a wistfulness in depth of those green eyes before the visor regained its tint. The Geshrin gestured up to the sky. "You can only prepare for so much eventualities. One moment, the mission could be going well and the next... nothing but fire and pain, then... darkness." She paused again, remembering the sensation of dying on the fields of Kennewes, her grip tensed on the rifle.

"Some times... you go in with your unit and then, they are gone. You have nothing to save you but your kit and your wits.... you may never know when the enemy will find you, when you're going to run out of adrenaline and food... when the fear gets too much and death finds you," Autumn's voice was gentle, almost a whisper as she continued, "When it's just you the only thing that keeps you alive is your faith that you will make it to the next beacon, that you can make it another day, that you will fight until you can find your way out of hell to get home.... You might be alone at the end, but you will be alive with the memory of those that couldn't be recovered."

Her voice normalized again as she remembered the better times between drops. "Just remember, to look up. There is a way home out there. If you don't lose hope, you can live and fight. You might find others and make it out together. Make the happy moments that get you through the shitty ones when you can. It doesn't have to be lonely on the battlefield."

"We wont lose anyone!" Minnie interjected at the end. Completely missing the later half of Autumns reassurance as the only sound filtering into her now was the sound of her own increasing heartbeat and the blood rushing to her head. She almost slipped as she turned too quickly to look at her senior. But quickly righted herself and apologized to one of the local girls on the tank for almost taking her down with her. "Im better than that, I will be better than that!"

As if to drive her point home, She pointed accusingly at the Sol next to Autumn, the evidence of her hard work and her trade fused almost perfectly to the flesh conjoining his new arm to his old.

"Anything we lose i can fix, I can put back. But better and more perfect than ever before!" Minnie used the arrogant tone of any doctor that had yet to be broken by their first death, Her voice cracking as she fought not to simply "Squeak" out every word.

In truth, She knew Autumn was right. The past month she had spent more than just a night awake. She knew a handful of marines, a tank, and a suit of powered armor could only contribute so much to the offensive before it ground back to a halt. What could they do if the tank cooked off? What could they do if the Aggressor reached passed its optimal operation time if they got cut off? What could eight marines with scarce small arms accomplish if their technological advantage was suddenly ripped away? She knew Autumn was right but refused to openly acknowledge it.

Minnie, As quickly as she had turned towards Autumn, looked away. Finally putting on her mask. If only to hide how flushed she had become and how embarrassed she felt. Fang's message helped take the sting away a little. And gave her a quick distraction to bury her face back into the Datajockey and avoid looking back towards Autumn.

"Better than that." Minnie rambled off a few more times. Oblivious to the proximity comm still transmitting as she sunk into one of her bouts of frustration.

Autumn watched the Mouse's declarations. It was good to see that sort of determination. "Good. Keep that fire in you when we stare down the barrel at death. That's your real enemy. I'm only here now because my squad was able to recover my CC from the bloody crater that was my body on Kennewes. If you don't give up on life, you will survive." The seasoned Marine did not mention the Marines on Rok'Veru that they were unable to recover due to decomposition and Mishhu parasites. This little medic was scared of losing people. She was optimistic enough to believe that fear would keep them alive in the future battles to come.

Her eyes followed the medic's frantic gesturing behind the tint of the visor. Yes, this woman was scared. There was no comfort in it, it would never get better, she might become numb but that was never an improvement. "Combat is a good time to find faith in something. As the medic, you could be our savior, our beckon of light, if you kept the faith that life will beat death through your capable hands."

Fort Puckett, Armor Bay

The bickering of the others aside, Juno could do little more than sigh and try to tune into his comm headset. Slutty gunner rubbing aside, his focus turned to radioing to the Aggressor and Fang.

"Just stay in formation... we'll be moving slow enough to not endanger anyone, so the Aggressor should easily keep up."

Looking to his command module, he'd open up the communication network and feed supplied from their new nifty base. The connection was swift and bridged them up to the Hray in orbit, allowing the ship to provide plenty of information. It wasn't all that accurate, since the pirates had threatened it with their modified ship cannons aimed at the stars... but it did provide him a simulated route to the wall. If they were willing to roar fullspeed and tear up the slums, they could be there in no time... but there was a new point marked not too far from the Fort and near the outskirts of the mega-city. A reinforcement point, based on the information available, with a timer. Juno could do little more than grumble as he pushed the buttons gently and spoke up for the others within the tank. Primarily, of course, aimed at Ella.

"Let's get moving, Duville. Change of plans... we're going to go rally at a point nearby within a few minutes. Everyone, hold on tight... we got help on the way."

Outside of the ship, the infantry could see and hear the shifting of the skies above. The clouds parted, with an oddly angular grouping of ships in a five-ship wedge formation descending. Massive guns, appearing large as the ships and their shadows sailed along, were gently whirring along its sides. The ships were slow-moving as they pushed out toward the west, with only one breaking formation and heading toward the southwest. And as it did, it would begin to descend and lower, clearly intending to land within the nearby plains. But the group would get to bear witness to something far more interesting as an unmistakable sound tore through the rather quiet Nepleslian world.

Hundreds of missiles broke from the backs and sides of the formation, the smoke dark and the combined noise enough to be a loud whistle even from so far away, as the vessels fired off at the far-distant plains. It must have been only a few seconds of firing, but as they stopped the swarm of DARTs advanced ahead into the blistering distance with no doubt a devastating impact somewhere far away. But the ships weren't done... they were already firing larger missiles upward and then onward from VLS systems in the center of the ship. Though there were fewer total launches, nearly fifty or so had to be on their way out. By the time those massive pincers were opening at their fronts the destruction could have been enough. But to Nepleslian fashion, they fired a group of eight, large Curbstompers out into the oblivion. Whatever they had fired at was likely to be seen in the coming future, but these new ships were nothing but another sign of the coming war for New Bernese.

NSS Heckler

The Second Lieutenant could see the carnage unloading from his place within the belly of the sole Jackdaw that didn't take part in the barrage. The monitors in the busy hangar were all showing shared feeds from the ships as they recorded and identified various hits in coordination with original intel reports. If it was to be believed, the Jackdaw had essentially crippled the Pirates along their northern flanks and cut off many of their improvised roads. The various green recruits for the 309th were all in the hangar, some getting suited into their Golems, and all of them were smirking and cheering. Reinforcements had come... and as the ship set-down and its elevator-style lift descended with the first grouping of supplies, he could taste it.

It was the first sign of conflict Nepleslia had sorely lacked over the years, recognized even if their foes were something as insignificant as pirates and some Red impostors.

So that's what war looks like these days.

The Second Lieutenant busied himself with his own Golem as the Marines in the bay cheered in the wake of the barrage that ravaged the opposition's lines. One of his black eyes kept a track on the monitor, observing the carnage, while another eye tracked program activity on his veteran-model Datajockey. Much like other veteran models, it resembled the typical Marine model with flashier, silvery details. The exception with this one was the name that was stenciled on the back.

2LT CHIAKI, KOKUTEN G

For the past few minutes, he had been working the pad into a mode that made it ready for operation with the Golem's systems. It took a few moments, but he had managed to get the interface just to his liking. This came with an extensive array of fresh, supplemental data that would support their push into the warzone.

A cheap cigarillo poked from the edge of his mouth, whipping a thin trail of smoke from the glowing, red end. The Second Lieutenant had made sure to stock up before going out, but personal possessions would be limited. He'd probably run out well into the second week, but part of him hoped that the quartermaster would be kind enough to restock. If not, he'd have to figure out a way to barter off the locals. Smoking was a bad habit, he knew, but it was one of the few creature comforts he allowed himself beyond drinking. In all honesty, it was pretty tame by Nepleslian standards, or at the very least, better than he used to be.

Clack, clack. He blinked, bringing both of his eyes on to his Datajockey. His metal hands placed the device in the Golem's interface slot, and then cut a glance in direction of the growing sunlight in the bay. The lights of his eyes glowed green against the shine, a neutral color in the face of the sounds of a growing battlefield. The officer was well aware of what that color meant, and that bothered him, the lack of anxiety, the lack of fear.

In a past life, he would have been turning over in his stomach, puking his fear into a disposals chute before combat. Now, there was little more than a small tension pulling in his spine, only the barest of reminders that he was somewhere truly dangerous. For a minute, he mused that he had finally caught up to his old comrades, with him having a muted courage that could now match the unerring bravery and zeal. That same muted courage caught sight of the blasted planet they were all reserved to bleed on, and it squared his shoulders.

He took a look at his helmet, a small, white cloud magnet attached to the left, parietal portion. With a ginger flip, and spitting out his mostly finished smoke off the edge of the elevator, he saddled the helmet on his head and secured it with the chinstrap. Then, he tested the radio.

"Anyone else catch those fireworks? I think the Navy's trying to show off."

On top of Soko Neko

Autumn settled down after the Mouse went silent. She hadn't meant to upset the medic, she had meant to encourage her. She inwardly sighed and returned to watching the landscape stretch by as the area ahead of them was lit up by naval gunfire.

"Anyone else catch those fireworks? I think the Navy's trying to show off."

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A familiar voice echoed in the Geshrin demolitionist's radio. Her heart skipped a beat and she started to rise to her feet as her head jerked up towards the airships, as if she could see the speaker from her position on top of the tank. Her eyes went wide. She recognized that voice, it was embedded in her memory from her resurrection on the NSS Alliance. "Sergant Chiaki?! Read you loud and clear, wherever you are! "

Four years. It had been four years since she had any contact with her friends from the NSS Alliance. The prospect of seeing just one of her friends made her giddy. Please don't be a figment of my imagination!

Inside Soko Neko

Fitz watched through her view screen as everything unfolded, she was not happy about what she saw either, with all the firepower that was present, she might not get a chance to fire the main canon, and that was something she just didn't find acceptable. With an annoyed expression, she looked back at Juno and spoke through the tank radio "I -will- get to fire this thing right?"

NSS Heckler

As the Heckler began to undertake replenishment procedures in earnest, the 2nd Lieutenant proceeded to check his M3 before they moved further. He had to make sure he was carrying what he needed, besides the other essentials. His axe was situated next to the rest of his magazines, for a quick draw if he needed it, his hypolate rested on the other hip. A SSS .45 rested at his leg, with a spare magazine cinched by the holster. Certainly, it was a much heavier kit than he was used to taking into combat. Not the heaviest, of course, but there was different weight and strength to wearing a Golem than a CSS Suit.

He hit the mag release on his rifle, and checked the stack of ammunition inside the container.

"Sergant Chiaki?! Read you loud and clear, wherever you are!"

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The magazine almost fell out of his hand.

Hell, he almost dropped his rifle.

Autumn?

The next thing that rose into his mind was suspicion, biting at him from the edge of his thoughts. He had come off a long tour of shadowy plots and terror, and for that he couldn't believe fully he had heard what he had received. A moment of silence passed where he exercised caution in responding, an armored finger hovering over the edge of his helmet, a full magazine dangling from the remaining digits.

Finally, he jabbed the gauntlet to open the channel, excitement taking off the guarded shell.

"Private Wilde?" Chiaki began searching for her off in the distance, pacing up and down the deck, "Private 'Skips-Her-Post-Mission-Screenings' Wilde?"

On top of Soko Neko
The presence of the Naval ships overhead, though temporary were always a welcome ship to Autumn since Rok'Veru. It always signaled to her that they had a way home. That they were not forsaken by Nepleslia and the war could still be won. The distant rumbling and explosions were comforting, it reminded her that she was still alive.

2LT Chiaki said:

"Private Wilde?" Chiaki began searching for her off in the distance, pacing up and down the deck, "Private 'Skips-Her-Post-Mission-Screenings' Wilde?"

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Private First Class Wilde searched the distance for the source of the broadcast. She could see the black smoke rising in the distance and the shape of the rally point. She brought up her HUD to see where the IFF placed the broadcast and it pinpointed where the NSS Heckler had set down with the rest of the reinforcements.

There were many more green dots on her screen than there were before but only one of them pulsed with life that was of interest to her. She did not see any new armors heading to their position from the naval ships but Juno said they were going to a rally point. She'd find him there.

She switched her COMMS channel to broadcast only to Chiaki once she identified his signal. "You're a long way from Cirrus Station, there.. Serg... 2nd Lieutenant Chiaki. I hope you're not lost, this is definitely not a pretty station." Her voice had perked up. "We've got about four years of catching up to do and if you are really that insistent, about that many post mission screenings missing from my record. I'll find you at the rally point." She sent an additional text message to her friend, "~<3 "

She was standing as the tank rumbled along, staring towards the rally point. She finally had something to look forward to besides the next engagement. Perhaps Fang's Gods were smiling in her favor today, they had given her a new group to call family and had returned an old friend to her.

Inside Soko Neko

With the lack of response and clothes stripping from Fitz, Ella took it as a sign that she got her point across with a silent grin. But the grin quickly dropped as new blip appeared on her HUD for the rally point. At least it wasn't the slums right now, she silently hoped. She shifted gears and diverted towards the rally point with speed. The people on top could grab onto something if she was moving to fast.

Minnie cheered out in response to the Navies show of force. It was a welcome sight to everyone as it appeared. And Minnie even waved towards Fang in the Aggressor, pointing ecstatically towards the formation and its wrath, Making sure she wouldn't miss it in her peripheral. She didnt know too much about what type of ships they where, But their effect was considerably better than the Hray's had been in the last engagement.

There was still the question in the back of her mind of just what the navy had been firing at? She turned towards Autumn, Hoping to break the tension that she admittedly had put between them. But seemed to be noticeably occupied, The muted clicks from her mask signifying she was in a private conversation with somebody, Though she couldn't hazard who.

Instead she turned to "Metal Chest" and jerked a thumb up towards the ever distant ships and their actions ensuing, Gripping onto the hutches of the tank tighter as it picked up speed and changed its course.

"Whats over there worth shooting at? The Fatnecks don't have anything big enough to challenge the Hray to merit that, Do they?"

NSS Heckler

PFC Wilde said:

"You're a long way from Cirrus Station, there.. Serg... 2nd Lieutenant Chiaki. I hope you're not lost, this is definitely not a pretty station."

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Kokuten threw his arms up into the air as Autumn gave him a response, the sounds of near-by war couldn't be further away. The Golem-clad man was quite a sight in his silent conversation with his old friend. Likely, he appeared to others like he was ready to get his kill on with the rest of the marines. Even more, with a trained motion, he set his magazine back in its place and rested the rifle against his front, appearing even more battle-ready. While he was set for a fight, his excitement was fueled purely by the idea of his own suspicions and doubts proven wrong in the light of a delightful truth.

PFC Wilde said:

"We've got about four years of catching up to do and if you are really that insistent, about that many post mission screenings missing from my record. I'll find you at the rally point."

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That gave him a little pause, while he searched for the source of her signal on the horizon, and the meaning in her words.

PFC Wilde said:

"~<3"

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The green glow behind his helmet's visor gained a noticeable, pink hue, as he found that Autumn hadn't changed too much since he had last seen her. It was there that his helmet lit up the mechanized unit she was attached to, and the Maximus tank that came surging in their direction. A bit of caution caught him in the excitement, and he tossed a free finger out in Autumn's direction, as if she could see it.

"Now you'll keep those hands where I can see them, Private Wilde," asserted Chiaki, like he had any real sway over his old friend's machinations, "Those 100 exams we'll catch up on will be purely professional! I'll make you regret it! You ordinance bunnies all toss your asses around on bombs, but you'll never show up to medical to save your lives!"

The officer nodded at his assertion, huffing audibly, "Besides, judging by where I heard where you were going last, you might need a turn in a pretty station."

ON TOP OF SOKO NEKO

Autumn couldn't help herself and audibly laughed, running a gloved hand over her Golem's helmet. "I'll be damned. He hasn't changed a bit." She stared towards the blip as they approached.

She switched her channel back to private as she replied back to Chiaki again. "" I don't know, Doc, you were pretty thorough with me on Prime. I think I might need your capable professional touch again. What can I say, I love a good explosive release." She grinned behind her helmet, glad to be able to focus on a happy memory again towards a more tangible reality than her battered memories of Rok'Veru and the fragments she had of dying on Kennewes. She didn't know what had gotten into her, it wasn't like her to be so serious all the time. Had Rok'Veru and the Mishhu really hurt her that badly and she just never realized it?

She knew that she hadn't really talked about any of it until the Mouse asked her for survival tips. Perhaps, it was about time for her to realize just how messed up she was. Shell shock was how she remembered it being described a long time ago on a television program her dad watched. Was she shell shocked? She looked back to the smaller Marine and switched her channel to local. "Hey Minnie, are you all right? I didn't mean to upset you."

BESIDE THE SOKO NEKO

Fang-Yin slowed down a little to watch the thunderous display of ordinance, zooming in to the vast ship above for several moments. A bit difficult to get such a vantage point on the area they were bombarding considering the woman was lower to the ground, but they certainly got a few glimpses of pixelated flares and building-sized fireballs through the odd gap in the foliage.

"What's going on, Private Minnie? Are the reddies shooting back?..." The hulking woman replied in their normal slightly spaced out, husky tone. They had the distinct feeling that everyone on the back of the tank was engaging in some kind of conversation judging by the body language, and thus felt a little left out... But not so childish as to butt in, when they really should be focusing on the mission anyway. "Shouldn't we be-"

'-Speeding up?' was the end of that sentence, but it was cut off by the tank doing just that. Fang had to considerably up her walking pace into a light jog, throwing their arms wide with a careful balance as her steel boots smashed through tree stumps and stray rock formations like misplaced toys. Cold metal around their face and chest... Whole thing still felt more like a virtual reality training session. Or like she was a walking science experiment.

"...Lu-.... Lieutenant Juno?..." Another query, this time onto the tank's own radio. "Should I be scouting ahead? This... This thing doesn't hover. It is difficult to keep this exact pace."

A fast-ish tank and a slow-ish power armour. Not exactly a match made in heaven. Fang didn't really want to experience flying so soon, but this... This just felt like sitting in the open with a bucket on your head. A very expensive bucket that people would get angry at you for damaging.

Yes. The sky was closer to the heavens. So the sky is safer.

Soko Neko

"Cant see, Cant tell." Minnie admitted to fang over the proximity net, Shifting occasionally to keep from slipping off the haunches of the tank. "Navies breaking the ice with somebody over the horizon. Checking with the locals, Let you know when i know more."

She rushed the last transmission when Autumn reached out to her again. She had been looking for a way to re-establish a conversation with her after her frankly unprofessional outburst. If she was going to be serving with the 309th on the front line for the foreseeable future, She had to make friends with the immediate squad and get along.

"Good to go!" She responded over her shoulder. Giving the demolitionist a thumbs up and a weak smile, Despite the obscurity of the mask. "Just a little tired is all. Past month has been a slog on the table, Not enough hands to go around."

ON TOP OF SOKO NEKO

"From the look of it, we're about to get outfitted with some new personnel," Autumn's voice was increasingly cheerful like she had just won the lottery. "Things will pick up! How's Fang doing in the Aggressor?" Her eyes drifted from the Golem to the 13ft Aggressor that ran alongside the tank. She had hoped that Chiaki would respond to her teasing offers but she was waiting for them to reach the rally point. In her mind she could see his eye lights turning pink at the teasing, unless, he had grown more bold in the time she had seen him last. Perhaps, he wouldn't need the liquor to loosen up this time.

Joe was having a pretty great time so far, yeah he was for the most part being quiet and not in the direct conversations going on around him but thanks to his special nature he really enjoyed his personal pry into everyone's lives. He listened here and listened there, he even knew some were talking on a private channel though he couldn't quite make out what they were saying.

He was totally their with Fitz though, "She is right, I am hoping we didn't get all dressed up for nothing, or dressed down depending on how this trip goes," Joe laughed quietly. He leaned back as well as he could and continued to listen to the chatter, he tuned the radio as well, figuring if anyone could find some informational communications it would be him, heck maybe he might even fall upon some enemy chatter, anything was possible with his big old ears.

PFC Wilde said:

"I don't know, Doc, you were pretty thorough with me on Prime."

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The officer flattened his mouth at that, seeing her game from the lengthy distance they stood apart from one another. His helmet tipped forward a bit, the pink glow under his visor glowing a bit warmer as those memories came back to him. They had met in a bar with some other Marines to drink to a friend's death, and they drank well on past the foam and onwards. Captain Miller had picked up the tab that day, which wasn't too cheap, but neither too expensive for a war hero of Nepleslia.

After that...

PFC Wilde said:

"I think I might need your capable professional touch again."

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He remembered that next morning, everything was sore, everything had a headache. The most vivid memory was the sound of their DataJockeys pinging at max volume with the loudest music they could decide on, because it was a 'good idea at the time'. They hadn't counted on not being able to find them, and it sent them scrambling for several minutes. Not that it had been a bad thing, the two of them both had shuttles to catch, going in opposite directions in a mere hour of their stumbling wake-up ritual. He went back to the Cirrus Station, and she went to Rok'Veru.

PFC Wilde said:

"What can I say, I love a good explosive release."

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Oh c'mon! glowered an embarrassed man to a woman he couldn't even see. What he could imagine was her reveling in his discomfort like she always liked to do. Even as the steam began to spit out from his helmet, he was a bit glad she hadn't been all too changed by the constant tours and combat.

"If you think I'm going to rise to your tail-wagging then you've got another thing coming, Marine," said Kokuten, growling his frustrations. He had been on this planet for five minutes. "I'm here to do business, and that business is war, unless you've got one of those slender dresses and a bottle handy. Which, I bet you don't; not on this pirate-blasted, red-infested dirt-bucket."

"Private Zhou? Said something about the Reds. But i didnt catch it all. She does sound a little off though. Completely at odds compared to the first time I met her!" Minnie watched the Aggressor keep pace with the tank, Shifting as it turned. "She seemed more at ease when Private Mallan was in the Aggressor and we where on the deck, She might not be comfortable in a suit."

Well maybe At Ease hadnt been the best way to place the mood of her first encounter with Fang Lin Zhou. She did seem off in the Aggressor. She recalled Fangs instructions to keep her safe, And chalked it up to some growing attachment between them. When they met, It had just been Fang and Private Mallan before Minnie had caught up to them. They had worked like a well oiled machine together and Minnie wondered if maybe there just might have been something between the two and that Fang was anxious without her partner?

She wouldnt pry. If Private Zhou wanted to keep her love life a secret, Minnie wouldn't interject. As the sole medical practitioner for the squad, She needed to remain a professional source of courtesy for such matters. So she naturally made herself a quick note to call a Safe Sex seminar at some point in the future for the squad back at the HQ.

"To be fair it is a giant suit! It's twice the size of a Raider. It kinda reminds me of the old NDI suits we used to wear," Autumn looked over at the Aggressor with an appreciative whistle at 13 FT of Nepleslian badass engineering. "It's a lot of nasty metal to throw around, if you aren't ready for it. It was a last minute thing, right?" "You got this, Private Zhou!" She yelled to the Marine inside the Aggressor. She gave the other demolitionist a thumbs up.

She grinned behind her mask at Chiaki's latest response and sent him a short reply. "So it's a date then? XD ~<3" The Geshrin's mood was steadily improving as she rocked on her heels on top of the tank. Her attention returned to the medic on top of the tank with her and redirected her communications to Minnie again.

" What happened to Private Mallan?" Autumn was all about prying, she didn't know much about her fellow marines yet and she had some time to kill before they reached the rally point. She wondered if the Private had gotten injured since Minnie didn't make it sound like she had lost a Marine in battle yet. The small Marine's soul seemed yet untainted by the battlefield and the loss of a comrade at arms.