RP [YSS Azalea II] Episode 1: Fresh Water

Hangar Bay Two, Tentacle Three, Aquarius Star Fortress
In Proximity of YSS Azalea II

“Welcome to the Azalea II, Heis.” Sasaki smiled as she returned the salutes from Asami, Akane, Aoi, and Nasrin, who were perhaps four of the best pilots she had on the ship. The twins worked well when flying tandem fighters together, while Nasrin was a hyperactive firebrand of a pilot, and Asami a SASO NAV-STRIKE rated pilot. It went without saying that Sasaski was eager to see how well they would perform together, and she expected nothing less than excellence out of them.

“There’s food in the wardroom, after you get settled in.” Sasaki addressed the group, before shifting her attention to Asami. “Your fighter assignment is listed as a Super Kawarime.” She began. “Is that the one you specified? If you want, there’s still time to change.”

All the while, Sasaki processed the message she had received from the Medic, which first elicited confusion, then realization.

hyralt said:

"The Captain's clear implication was to be the vanguard for the crew's health and verify that the food is prepared to a rigorous standard of safety. My final judgement is: acceptable. I will report in to the Captain."

To Hotaru Sasaki: Captain,

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Though her outward manner didn’t show it, mentally, Sasaki facepalmed.

FrostJaeger said:

“Shoi Matokai Masato, r-reporting for duty, Captain.”

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“Welcome to the Azalea II, Matokai-Shoi.” Sasaki replied. “Nishizaki-Hei and her technicians should already be in the hangar bay, getting settled into the Kodate. If you need anything else, let me know.” She finished with a wink.

Yujin would nod some and then say toward Pierre, "Ah ok well I'll keep that in mind then." He smiles taking some more bites of his food. He was hungry and yet also did not want to be rude. After making sure his mouth was free of food he would laugh a little at the joke of being intubated and then says " Well I hope not as it would be not a good way to start out my career."

Hearing Kari start to talk about all the ways that she could help a choking victim breathe once more he stammers some and then says in a joking manner " hey hey I'm still eating here!" Then laughs once more after making sure he had finished the food in his mouth again. Nearly done he looks over the few remaining nigiri and tries to decide if he needed to eat them as he was feeling full.

Hangar Bay Two, Tentacle Three, Aquarius Star Fortress
In Proximity of YSS Azalea II

When she was pulled out of the reserves yet again, Kim Eun-kyung was not expecting to be assigned to a vessel heading into kuvexian space. At least that was as much as she was allowed to glean from the sources of information she had available to her. Never one to really complain, she gleefully accepted the position.

Arriving at the appointed location at the appointed time, the Chui looked around and wallked over towards the white panel before stopping and bowing.

"Chui Kim Eun-kyung reporting for duty!"

Hangar Bay Two, Tentacle Three, Aquarius Star Fortress
In Proximity of YSS Azalea II

demibear said:

"Chui Kim Eun-kyung reporting for duty!"

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“Welcome to the Azalea II, Chui.” Sasaki responded, returning the Mission Operator’s salute. Sasaki felt much the same awkwardness as before when Pierre had arrived, due to their identical rank, but that matter was more towards the back of her mind. She was confident that she could execute the task Star Army Command had given to her, or else she wouldn’t have been the one chosen for the mission.

“When you get settled in, there’s a small gathering in the wardroom for lunch.” Sasaki continued. “We’ll be setting off in a few hours.”

YSS Azalea II
Bridge

Before long, the remainder of the crew arrived and were registered as present. With that task complete, Sasaki entered the bridge to begin preparations for launch, running through the last series of checks and tests before the Azalea II was ready to set off into the void. In preparation for that eventuality, Sasaki activated the ship’s PA system to deliver a message to the crew.

“This is your captain speaking. Welcome to the Azalea II! As of now, all members of the crew are present and accounted for. As such, we will begin launch sequences within two hours, so please finish settling in and prepare to report to your duty stations.”

Hangar Bay

For the pilots and technicians, seat fittings and craft assignments had been scheduled prior to the launch. Rowena Fay was among the first of the pilots to arrive. Standing at a diminutive 3’10”, the tiny bluenette knew just how important it was that she get the right fit for her seat in order to ensure that she could actually see out of her cockpit. If not, she simply wouldn’t be able to fly. Not to mention, Rowena had a particular craft she was hoping to get assigned, one of the experimental NGFP candidates on board the ship. While she liked the Hayabusa, the prospect of getting to test a new fighter was something that she couldn’t turn away!

Medical Laboratory

All the while, Sadow Masami made her way to the wardroom to grab a quick snack before floating into the medical bay with a plate of sliders in hand. The sepia-toned Nekovalkyrja was dreadfully late and worse yet, she was hungry and still needed to get her physical! She could only hope that the medics didn’t get on her case for bringing food!

Deck 1 Medical Laboratory

Kari Sunde was leaning against one of the treatment beds when Sadow entered. Without looking up from her datapad, she greeted her sternly. "Masami-hei, you are late. Come here."



Kari kept her eyes on the datapad as she crossed to a corner of the room with a bed, cabinets, desk, and chair; an anaesthesia machine was tucked into the corner. This corner of the room was separated from the rest by a curtain that was presently pulled to one side, indicating nobody was currently being examined. Once Sadow entered the space, Kari slid the curtain closed to give them some privacy, switched off and deposited her datapad onto the desk, and finally looked up.

"I see that you are eating," Kari noted neutrally when she finally noticed the plate of sliders that Sadow was carrying. "Are you experiencing unusually high levels of hunger? Or are you simply trying to maximize the use of your time? If the latter, I appreciate your efficiency. In the case of the former, please tell me when this increased hunger began. Sit down on the bed."

Medical Laboratory

Masami took a deep breath as she entered the laboratory, but her relief was short-lived. Upon registering the stern-mannered medical specialist’s greeting, the sepia-toned Nekovalkyrja felt the tension return to her muscles as her expression shifted to a more neutral set, though she was compelled to hold back a frown in doing so.

It seemed that she wasn’t going to be let off the hook for being late or for bringing food.

“My apologies, Sunde-Hei.” Masami answered as she followed the taller Nekovalkyrja into the private treatment area, briefly grimacing as the seemingly cold-blooded medic closed the curtain and deposited her datapad on the nearby desk with a chilling clack. Accordingly, Masami felt her heart begin to race, but it slowed down when the blonde medic made an inquiry regarding her food.

Now, she was confused.

“I was just hungry and uhh...” Masami's words trailed off, anxiously batting her lashes as she did. “Is there something wrong? Just wanted to keep my energy up.” She added, before taking a seat on the bed.

"Nothing's wrong, Masami-hei," Kari replied in her usual tone that seemed like a mix of dispassionate hatred and heavy disinterest, despite her best attempts at seeming warm and welcoming. "My concern is rooted in the fact that you're the first person to bring a tray of food with them to a physical examination that I have conducted. If you are simply maximizing the use of your time by doing several things at once, then I'm impressed."

Kari spent a few cycles inspecting Masami's bottom-heavy figure before she continued. "You seem tense. Do you normally experience high levels of stress? Or is this an acute phenomenon related to physical examinations, or perhaps to my presence in particular? I have noticed that my patients tend to be quite uncomfortable when I'm around, so don't feel compelled to lie to spare my feelings. I assure you that I'm a professional and will not take it personally."

Pulling out a sealed package, the likes of which she carried at all times, she tore it open and put on the pair of sterile latex gloves that was within. "I would like to examine your head, eyes, ears, nose, and throat. This will require that I touch you and move your head from side to side. I will endeavour to be gentle. May I have your consent to continue? And are you allergic to anything, particularly latex?"

Sometime later Yujin walked into the hanger and looked around for some of the techs, Finding one he would try to get their attention, and after moving closer he said "Hi, um I'm one of the pilots and I'd like to request a certain fighter, and get the fitments for it started. I would like to be assigned to a Hayabusa II starfighter with a pilot pod, It was what I was most proficient in basic, and would like to be at my optimal for this mission." Looking around at the hive of activity distracted Yujin a moment and then looking back he blinks "Oh I'm Santo Hei Toyoda, I can't believe I forgot to say my name." Yujin sighs some cheeks slightly red in embarrassment.

Immortal Cyan said:

“There’s food in the wardroom, after you get settled in.” Sasaki addressed the group, before shifting her attention to Asami. “Your fighter assignment is listed as a Super Kawarime.” She began. “Is that the one you specified? If you want, there’s still time to change.”

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Asami shook her head "No thats not right, give me a Mamushi for now i need to sort some stuff out." Asami said and went back into the ship.

@Immortal Cyan

Hangar Bay
Nasrin Naceri
After grounding her gear in her new quarters, Nas made her way to the hangar. She’d never seen a Mamushi outside of a simulator, but today was the day to see one in person. Soon, she’d be in the cockpit. The rookie was nearly bouncing on her toes as she entered the hangar. The Azalea’s fighter complement seemed to be a composite squadron. Most of the birds were the venerable Hayabusa II fighters or the newer Super Kawarime fighters she’d trained on. The handful of Mamushis, practically mythical creatures at this point, exuded an air of sleek predatory menace. Somehow the discontinued multirole wasn’t the most exotic craft in the hangar. There were a few small, angular fighters of an unfamiliar design and a few large craft with a similar design philosophy she could only describe as “angry shuttles” berthed in the hangar. While the rare Mamushi still sang to her, she wanted to take everything from the hangar out for a spin.

Somewhat failing not to look like a window shopper the day after a holiday, Nas made her way over to where the other pilots were mustering. She fell in next to a tiny, yet impossibly curvy woman. Nas thought she was at least two feet taller than the other pilot. These Yams never cease to amaze with these Minkan bodies, she thought to herself. Even though she was something the Empire categorized as a permanent immigrant, large parts of Yamatai society and culture were still alien to her.





Pierre Ruike

What even is my duty station? Pierre wondered as they shoved a final piece of sushi in their mouth. Sure, they’d been planning to camp the liaison station on the bridge during missions in order to analyze real time battle data, but the Rikugun officer wasn’t truly needed anywhere. Well anywhere but out of the way. Truth be told, they wanted to pester the techs and logistics crew about some of the fighters and special munitions brought aboard, but they’d be busy. There were three, THREE, NGFP entries on this ship. The Chui was practically dancing with excitement thinking about how quickly their project had progressed. Well, the pilots are being prepped and settling into their new fighters, Pierre reminded theself, and there were two whole hours till launch. Pierre could find somewhere out of the way in the hangar to observe the happenings in the hangar. A craft’s maintenance and mission preparation requirements were just as important as it’s combat performance when it came to acquisitions trials.

Spark looked up from the volumetric call with her wife, just finishing putting her uniforms away. "Hey, honey, I gotta go. We're launching, soon. I love you. I'll call you as soon as I can, okay?"

As soon as the pair exchanged their last words for the chat and Angela hung up, Spark rolled her shoulders picking up one of the cornflower blue uniform jackets and sliding it over her arms. Struggling momentarily with it, she managed to get it closed, grumbling about it being too tight before she started moving, holding up a small hologram disc in her cybernetic palm. "Hey, Ancilla. Time to get up, kiddo. Looks like we're on launch prep. Unless you want me to go to Medical and get my check in physical done before heading to the Power Armor bay and your new body? I mean, there's still a lot of outfitting to do. Apparently we're on the next gen program's ship, so I don't know if we're going to be rocking a Mindy or if my request to not get a Revenant was denied."

A small holographic girl appeared, stretching her small arms as she yawns. “Decisions, decisions tough choice, partner, on one hand, medical good, on the other.. We get a Mindy to play in! According to your last medical report, you're fine. And the outfitting stuff will take time.. Not sure there's an outfit that can handle an amazing 6’3 you though! Teehee! “ She said pausing a moment ”you know what? Let's do it, go get outfitted and check to see if we can rock a Mindy! besides, if their armor is anything like ours, I’ll be able to do your check up myself!”

The tiny girl said looking up at Spark as her outfit flickered and changed from a cute pajamas to her uniform.

"Fair nough. I never got confirmation on my request to use a Mindy. Got scanned for one, with backups of us both made in Basic, if you remember. So we might have one. But I was thinking on using that elliptoid shield at least, preferably with the missile launchers on the left side. Swap out the gatling on the forearm with a fourteen inch punching sword like the Revenant III, plus a blowback shotgun... Maybe go chaingun on the left shoulder and mini missiles on the right, just for your ease of adaptation and the variability of that rig... You got any ideas?"

The giantess seemed surprisingly nimble for her bulk, heavy footfalls showing a life in power armor and a casual ease of grace, used to walking where her feet were protected in the armor's heavily protected calves and her hands mechanical and controlled deep within the forearms. A simple uniform was uncomfortable, alien for her, or so it seemed. But it didn't show. She knew that it would only take a few moments to swap from her feigned-hidden discomfort, and she knew her confident and tall stride put her well over the heads of many of her new crewmates.

"And besides, you know checkups have to be verified and calibrated for us. At some point I'd like to see about getting my flesh arm back. The nerves should have healed by now." And so the pair moved towards the power armor bay with the practiced ease of someone who had spent most of her Basic Training studying Yamataian ship deck plans.

Ancilla nodded her tiny head as she listened to Spark talk about her ideas or their Mindy load-out. “Well, you know me, I do like the boom and the drrrr!”she said, sounding out and miming the effect of rapid-firing guns. The image turned so that it appeared as if she was walking beside Spark. The sensors in the device emitting her did allow her to see enough, but it was one of those Ancilla eccentricities that Spark was used to. “Still, the more boom we have, the heavier the armor will be, hmm” She places her finger to her lips in typical thinking fashion.

Spark was right, checkups did need to be verified and calibrated, and it was better for another separate person to do that. If she did that, there might be some questions as to her capability. “How about this? We make decisions regarding loaded when we see what we can work with. How’s that sound? I think what you thought of would work, but that would work for a revenant. Not sure about Mindies, though, since we’d never been in one. Actually, didn’t they send us info when you and that silly girl got in that match outside of Obsidian City?” She said and thought I could review from that info yeah!.

"Oh, what, the match between me and miss Sadow? I remember that... I didn't want to destroy her completely, so I didn't have you on board. But you still have the combat data from that, right? And we have the briefing on Sadow's armor, not really too detailed on the Mindy Platform and its other attachments... I've kinda been browsing catalogues, so I don't even know what we have on board. You have access to the MEGAMI yet?" Spark's head tilted slightly to look into her palm as she walked, considering the situation carefully.

But she was never the smart one of the pair. If anything, Spark's intelligence was average at best, subconsciously geared towards blood and pain fuelled rage and destruction, or fierce, defensive loyalty to a person or cause. The smart, reasonable one, especially in battle had always been Ancilla. When Spark had gone into battle seeking to minimize the killing and seek opportunities to take prisoners rather than simply kill the enemy, it was Ancilla who had always seen the opportunity coming and administered just the right dose of electric shock for her to focus, hesitate on the trigger just long enough. Kept the adrenaline from flowing for just long enough to spare a life. On the other side of the coin, all of the fine adjustments, computer targeting, point defense, and every dose of combat stims or medical nanoes had been Ancilla's doing. Even when a training accident had taken her arm. "You good? Nervous?"

Ancilla nodded her head, ”Yeah, I do in fact have that combat data, I could review from that, and the briefing, and I’ll be able to get a good enough idea. She nodded, having seen that Spark had been browsing when she woke up. “Yeah, I do have access to her, she invited me to tea in the ships Cyber space systems. I think she wants to get to know the foreign Power Armor AI that’s companying my girl Spark!” She commented “You and Lady Nyx are quite the team, honestly, I hope she liked the comfortable sum-chair I left her.”

She thought about her question “Nah, I got you, and you got me so no nervousness in my systems! I’m green across the board!”

"You sure about tea time with an AI that's hundreds of years older and smarter? She will be easily able to pull apart the idea that you're just a power armor AI. Like hilariously easy for her. You asked me to help you keep it secret and I agreed because you saved my life and I owe you for that. If anything happens to you, I'm not sure if I could handle it," Spark's musings crossed her mind as she probed over her thought that Megami had just been a massive database system, or even just a collection of shipboard dumb AIs. She knew that most ships had smart or sapient AI avatars.

"I'm getting too old for this. I've got the paperwork ready to go if the ship decides to rat you out..." She gave a deep, heavy sigh. Spark's head shook before her chest rumbled, grumbling softly that "By the end of this week, I'm gonna have to explain why my power armor's got a copilot..."

Ancilla blinked her eyes at the realization that Spark was right. It would indeed be possible for the ship’s AI to figure out she was smarter than she acted”crap, your right” she said as she realized the trouble that would cause the two of them as well as her. “Perhaps I should cancel, I mean we will be busy figuring out systems anyways. Sorry Spark for the trouble my presence might cause,” she told her dang it, she just wanted to be friendly, but of course her little secret could be found out!

"It's not my choice, Ancilla. If you feel it's time, and you're not worried about being reassigned, then go for it. Have fun, Really. For what it's worth, I'll be okay. What's it been? Six ish years? I trust you with my life. Angela and Anne trust you, too." Reaching across, she brushed the avatar's head with one fingertip. "If push comes to shove, either way, it'll feel nice being able to let it off my chest. You're one of my closest friends. Your freedom and safety are more important than my having a copilot. And when we get back, let's go ahead and stop bulshitting, okay? I'm sure Sera will want to get data on the Revenant III from the AI's side. And the idea of infomorph copilots would be a boon for everyone involved. How many times have you saved my life?"

YSS Azalea II
Power Armor Bay

Upon entering the power armor bay, Spark Pine would find her familiar Revenant situated in one of the racks, pristine and untouched. However, her eyes would also find one of the two crew members who were even bigger than Spark herself, that of the eight-foot tall Tröll armorer, Bjorn Wikkedson, son of the legendary berserker, Pansarkedja Wikkedson.

“Welcome to the power armor bay.” The gentle giant rumbled as he approached, clad in regal blue coveralls with the collar popped open to expose the upper segment of a broad, heavily-muscled chest. “You’re the NDC transfer?” Bjorn continued as he stuck out a big green paw for a handshake. “I’m Bjorn. Bjorn Wikkedson. Santô Hei. Got a lot going on in here, but feel free to take a look around. That's nice looking armor, by the way. If you need any parts fabbed for it, let me know and I’ll make sure to get ya’ sorted.”

Hangar Bay

“Okay flycats, seat fittings and craft assignments!” A tiny doll of a Nekovalkyrja clad in coveralls barked out as she flitted around the group of assembled pilots. “We’re gonna do this quickly and efficiently. When your name is called, I want your ass in here so we can take your measurements.” The Mini-Neko began, pointing to a walk-in scanning device surrounded by a small army of similarly fairy-like technicians who were floating about with various scanners and equipment in hand. “When you’re done, I'll show you your assigned fighter, you look at it for no more than eight seconds, take pictures, caress the hull, give it a name, yada yada, then you LEAVE!” She finished, her voice echoing across the hangar bay with such resonance that it seemed uncanny for a being so tiny to have produced such volume!

“Got enough on my plate as it is…” The Mini-Neko grumbled under her breath.

Medical Laboratory

hyralt said:

"My concern is rooted in the fact that you're the first person to bring a tray of food with them to a physical examination that I have conducted. If you are simply maximizing the use of your time by doing several things at once, then I'm impressed."

Click to expand...

Masami blinked.

hyralt said:

"You seem tense. Do you normally experience high levels of stress? Or is this an acute phenomenon related to physical examinations, or perhaps to my presence in particular? I have noticed that my patients tend to be quite uncomfortable when I'm around, so don't feel compelled to lie to spare my feelings. I assure you that I'm a professional and will not take it personally."

Click to expand...

Masami was never one to tell people in other MOSes how to do their jobs. However, she supposed that maybe this particular medical specialist could have used a little bit more socialization training. Regardless, the sepia-toned Infantry Neko smiled, making a conscious effort to relax in doing so. However, whether it succeeded or not depended on how perceptive the medic was!

“No, I’m just nervous from being late and all.” Masami said, a half-truth. “I apologize if I caused any trouble with your schedule.” She added.

With that, Masami shook her head upon being asked if she had any allergies, before dutifully allowing herself to be examined while following Kari’s instructions as needed!