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Super Robot Wars ∀: Deep Space IC Thread - Part 2: Of Dire Tides


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Dwight gave a brief sigh as he observed Jess's confidence seem to crumble again at his points, which had been rather the opposite of what he was attempting. "There will be a next time, even if not this specific scenario. I can't imagine that the road ahead will be one without difficult decisions to make, Captain. But they can certainly be made easier. And... I will take your word on the stutter." He was largely skeptical on that, but it didn't seem to be an argument worth pursuing. "I would advise caution when dealing with the more upset members of the crew, Captain Gefalscht. Juria in particular was particularly unhappy to see Abigail simply walking around with Brant, and had... I assume some very choice words of Japanese, I admit I'm not fluent in it whatsoever, but the tone certainly didn't lend to being pleasant. It is hard to fault her on her anger, considering recent events, so I would think it best that they be kept separate whenever possible."

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"You know what mean, Avery maintain, complete Mk.III. Sure not entire own project, but rare anything actually made one person. But if want, suppose can think about bit more. Just go Velite for now, see if come up something." Kim replied, shaking her head a bit at Avery's reply. It was a bit silly to her, what was wrong with the name it had already in the Mk.III Unit 0, but if it would make Avery feel better, she could at least give it a bit of thought.

"Definite not that, though. Past or not, that just dumb, Avery." Seung-Min concluded, sticking her tongue out at the head mechanic.

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"Well, I'm just going to head ba--whaa, Juria?" Suddenly they had a crying girl clinging to their shoulder, preventing any sort of leaving that they had intended on doing. "I..." They awkwardly tried to pat her head as a reassurance type of thing, but it wasn't really working. Maybe Thorvald's words would, and as much as Astin wanted nothing more than to not be there right now, they knew they should try and help. "Yes. I don't think that the captain purposely excluded you or thought more about what Abby wanted... I think she thought about what she wanted. And what... what she thought was best for the crew. I think that... I think that she thought she was thinking of the crew. At least as far as making sure we had the best fighting chance we could. And while I don't agree with her reasoning, I don't think it was meant to be harmful. It's just... naive."

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Between the combined chastizing from Brant, and the robot itself, Abigail found herself flushing with guilt, red rising up to the tips of her ears. How was this any different than what Juria had just done to her? Well, for one, she was a living being, complete with soul and genuine feelings, while that mass of molded metal was little more than a marionette. But for the sake of appearance, if nothing else, she should at least try to rein things in. She'd just finished talking about how she wouldn't let her anger rule her during the elevator ride. After a few moments with her jaw clamped shut, grinding her teeth, Abigail relented.

"A... Apology, accepted," she forced herself to squeeze out, begrudgingly. "And as for the trip to the hangar... I suppose I should count myself fortunate to have run into you, despite every fiber of my being that was screaming otherwise." Abby turned away from the robot, addressing Brant at the end, "This'll give you a chance to take care of whatever was supposed to have happened after 'five minutes', won't it? Feel free to just, baton pass me over to... the robot, I guess, if you need to."

She still didn't trust it. The fact that it hadn't been sent ahead specially as a plant didn't dissuade her doubts about it, and she would continue to distrust it. But... it couldn't just murder her in cold blood on-board the ship here, certainly not in broad view of any and all of the mechanics in the hangar. Could it? Abigail bit her lip thoughtfully.

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Brant shrugged. Rosa would be annoyed that he didn't pick up after this long, regardless. Still, they were in something of a hurry. "Alright, I'll leave you to it. Just please try to stay out of trouble ..."

Heading back into the lift after leaving Abigail in Hannah's capable hands, Brant went straight back up to the first deck, hoping Jessica was still in the area. He took the time to speak with Rosa on the way up. "Hey, sorry for the bad time estimate."

"Just get Captain Gefalscht on the line," Rosa said, sounding surprisingly frustrated and impatient, far more so than Brant expected. "We're nearly out of time."

Some of the blood drained from Brant's face at the alarming news. He knew they were rushing things, but now they were nearly out of time? "What's going on?" he asked, not really looking forward to the answer but needing one just the same, "Is Apotheosis attacking you?"

"Of course," Rosa nodded. Given how calm she sounded, she probably wasn't at the site, herself. Either way, this was bad. It was the exact scenario they'd both been hoping to avoid. "The main facility is being evacuated as we speak, but it's going to take some time. Now, would you kindly put Gefalscht on? Sending a specialized plane into ANF territory isn't going to end well if we don't get clearance ahead of time."

"I'm in the elevator," Brant scowled, "Pretty sure it's going as fast as it can." And just on time, he'd arrived back on the uppermost deck. As soon as the doors opened, Brant took off running down the hallway and toward the meeting room. "Just a second!"

It was really happening this time, wasn't it? Jessica was going to meet Rosa. Last time things hadn't turned out like anyone had expected, from their attempt at relaxation at the ship's pool to the surprises that followed ...

Spoiler

"Doesn't s-sound like a very pleasant old man t-to me..." He sounded like an awful devil, from the way Brant was telling things. Live fire, to a ridiculous degree... It was insane. Definitely insane. For once, Jess felt the need to keep Brant safe, despite how well he'd been doing that for himself. Even when this was all over, she didn't want to give him back to such an awful place. He's a person, not a toy to test... Disgusting. He did her a favor and gave her a different venue to think about, one that wouldn't upset her.

"In a n-normal setting? Huh... I guess..." The ANF would be normal, to him. She didn't quite know what pilot training entailed, but... "For me, i-it was a lot of lectures, simulations, a-and tests. I'd a-always make the makeup tests, heh... Never did t-too well on the first ones, but as long as y-you presented a knowledge of the, uh... The subject, then, y, you'd get a pass. I think they gave up to, third tries... As for the people, they were... Friendly, I suppose. I knew some people that were j-jealous because of how well I would do, but... I don't think it was ever meant in envy, or anger. We were all w-working for the same people, after all... Maybe they're angry now that I'm flying this, but... There was never any competition, or harsh training." Jess' stuttering slowly slipped away as she talked about her past, smiling a bit.

"I did get put into pilot training for a few months, in basic... I was dreadful. Couldn't manage to pilot a suit by myself, could barely pilot a plane... At least I did better there; I didn't crash, heh. But, I always got shot down in the simulations with a Velite, or otherwise. I can't deal with all those movements... A battleship is a lot better. I was great at the firing range, so it's just like a... A big gun! It's perfect for me."

Classroom style tests and simulations? That sounded almost too good to be true. Maybe it was boring as hell; there had to a trade off somewhere, right? That didn't make Brant's own situation any more appealing, but what benefits he did have were huge. There were few money concerns up to this point, for one. If he could make his case well enough, the Alkaevs would grant certain luxuries. Now that he was in the ANF, money felt even less important.

Brant could definitely relate to having jealous peers. The other test pilots weren't telekinetics. Those were Rex, his older brother, and Firmia, and the latter wasn't even an official test pilot to begin with. Despite how horrible his training was in the field and in certain simulated areas, Brant had to admit that he might have been getting somewhat preferential treatment at times, particularly when he was much younger. Other than his mentor, Brant didn't closely befriend any of the other pilots, ever after Rex left to join the EU. Firmia was the eventual exception, and she was the dominant one in the relationship. Despite how demanding she could be, she was still one of the least oppressive forces around. Being an Alkaev just made it a little ironic.

What Brant's could even begin to relate to piloting a ship. He hadn't so much as done a simulation of something like that, though Jessica certainly made it sound appealing. Even fun. A big gun definitely sounded nice, though Jessica had taken hers to nearly its full potential and was now just shy of an experimental space to ground weapon. "Can't argue with your accuracy," Brant noted with a grin, "So you actually pilot the ship yourself? I always imagined the captain only got to give orders and pray everyone else knew what they were doing. Piloting yourself sounds a lot more ... everything; fun, exciting, engaging, efficient." Frankly, it reminded him of a captain of an old sail ship manning the helm himself. He couldn't fire the cannons but steering the ship had greater appeal, anyway. At least for Brant, it did.

"Thanks... Uh... Well, I-I guess it's more fair to say that, the whole bridge does. I can take direct control of anything if the situation arises, but the bridge hands tend to take care of moving the ship. I do the ordering, in this case... And I hope I've done an alright job so far. As for shooting... W-Well..." Jess flushed more red, the water and her embarrassment getting to her.

"I... Find an odd joy in aiming and firing the main cannons. I don't really kn-know how to place it, and it... It makes me feel awful; we're firing at real people, but... It's like I was born to do it. I dunno. That feels stupid... I-I feel stupid, but... When I r-really have to make the shot, it always feels like I can do it, no matter what. Like, despite all my bumbling around, I have real skills, I can... I can do something worthy of being on here."

Whether or not that feeling extended to the rest of her captaining skills, or Brant agreed with them, that was how she saw the bridge experience. A multimanned giant plane. Brant would probably get a headache if there were six or so other people trying to help him fly... S-Speaking of heads, mine's getting kinda light; this water's r-really hot... But... I wanna keep talking to him, and h-he'll see all of me if I-I stand up.to get out... Oh, geez...

Steering oneself or control of the main guns. That was actually kind of a tough call, but Brant still preferred the former. Luckily, as a pilot he got the best of both worlds, just dramatically scaled down. In Jessica's case, being able to make such difficult shots herself was not only natural, but highly reassuring in an otherwise inexplicable situation. She was right, too; her combat skills were, in all likelihood, why she was in charge, not her social skills or command ability. The ANF's stuttering captain had led the mission to rescue a colony that would have been destroyed otherwise, and fended off Apotheosis without a single casualty. Given what the team had accomplished so far, Jessica should have been fully vindicated.

"So, you can do it no matter what?" That was some skill, alright, "Then you should definitely keep making those shots. I hate that we've got to fight real people too, but the alternative is a lot worse. Speaking of ... how's your ... 'self chastising' coming? Do you still use it? Do you still need to, I mean?"

"Well... Feels like I can. I haven't had issue with that... I've never thought about it, but I guess it's really w-weird... Out of everything, it, f-feels like I never have to try twice to hit a target. How strange..." That was mildly alarming; no one had really questioned her, she'd always just performed and done well... Now that Brant was asking about it, it was too odd to ignore. Why did she mess everything else up once, but aiming and pulling the trigger came most naturally? She shivered, despite the heat. It was a dreadful thought.

"Th-That? I still use it, s-some, times... Gets a bit h-hard to concentrate, when I'm talking t-to someone as important, as the... Admiral, but... You know h-how it ibghh..." Wait, why is my face so warm... Oh, I slipped under the water... Gotta move, but... Hhhh...

Brant was left all but scratching his head for a moment as Jessica submerged herself mid sentence. Leaning forward and dipping down into the water, a few seconds after her, he tried to make eye contact. Although there was a small part of him that was worried, he wanted to be sure there was a problem before he tried anything drastic. Five more seconds. After that, he'd grab her and pull her up.

Sure is comfy down here... And warm... A-And I can't breathe... Head's too foggy to move, oh, no... This was a bad idea.

... and that was five seconds. Brant moved in quickly, hooking Jessica under the arms and swiftly dragging her up to the surface. It was over in an instant, nothing at all like his simulated water crashes. Those took entirely too long, and from the flooding of the cockpit to those last desperate moments just prior to surfacing, there was no guarantee he'd make it.

"I'm used to you freezing up, but this is on a whole 'nother level, Jess," Brant said, a mix of concern and humor in his tone, "What happened?"

She coughed as she popped up from the water, slowly shaking her head and looking around. "Hah... Haha. S-Sorry... Guess, I just o-overheated a bit..." Maybe the pool would've been a better place to start. Cluing back into reality clued her into being in Brant's arms, causing her to actually freeze up. "U, Uh... Y-You can let go, I'll g-get out..."

Brant scowled. "You had your chance. I'm helping you out," he said, only releasing her on one side. He kept a gentle but secure hold, placing one arm around her waist and attempting to guide her to the edge of the hot tub.

"But, B-Brant, I... Hhhh..." With an embarrassed whimper, Jess could only flinch and squirm as Brant kept a hold on her to help her out. They were far, far too close, and she was definitely way too embarrassed to even consider speaking. Y-You can't do this for me Brant, that's just not fair! Ahhh... I was trying to avoid getting near you in the first place...

She let him walk her out, taking a seat on the edge, folding her arms like they'd cover anything. "S-Sorry... Thank you..." was all that slipped out, Jess' face still red, despite not overheating anymore.

"Anytime," Brant nodded, "so are you going to be alright? I don't want to ruin the outing-" Even though I'm going to have to ruin the ending, regardless, "-but that could have ended very badly ..." Brant had seen people drown before. He never had time to help them. Between the distances they had to cover to reach the surface, and the distances between their separate cockpits, it was impossible to help anyone else. There were divers that aided in the simulations; it was their job to grab anyone that lost consciousness and get them out of the water to be resuscitated. All Brant could do was silently pity them.

"Seriously ... I want to make sure you're alright."

"I... I'm not alright... A-A-And I c-can't tell you, why, hahaha... Ahhh... I'm an awful, c-captain..." Now she couldn't even look him in the eye, hands slowly reaching up to bury her face in. This was a terrible idea... Ugh, I-I want to leave, so badly... but if I try to run out right now I'll trip, or he'll chase me, and I'll look so, so stupid...

Brant squinted, suppressing his habit of tuning out others, and trying to figure out what was bothering Jessica so much. Trying to wade through the torrents of embarrassment emanating from her was getting him nowhere. About the most he could tell was that she wasn't hiding any medical problems from him, which was good, because that was his primary concern. Her anxiety, he could handle ... in certain portions.

"You're an awkward captain," Brant corrected her with an amused grin, "but not an awful one. If you were really that bad, we'd be mostly dead by now." He thought back to Colony One and all the people they had managed to save, as well as the battle against Apotheosis, earlier today. Jessica definitely wasn't an awful captain. If anything, she just needed more motivation to blast Apotheosis out of the sky. "Look, if you can't tell me what's bothering you, it's alright ... but ..."

What did he mean to say? Brant couldn't quite complete the thought before he'd spoken, and now that he was out of words, he couldn't figure out the rest.

How did he manage to be nice in every situation? Was that part of his Alkaev training? No, it probably made sense to be kind to someone who'd almost just drowned... but it didn't help her situation. She didn't know how much Brant could or couldn't tell from her brain, but there wasn't much left to say if she wasn't about to run away from things.

"I like you." Jess gently pulled her face away from her hands to look up at Brant. Hopefully, he wasn't oblivious enough for her to have to say it in a more direct fashion.

Almost immediately, Brant could have sworn he'd heard a reverberating snapping sound in his head as realization dawned on him. Some of Jessica's embarrassment was now passing on to the telekinetic, who admittedly hadn't been in a situation quite like this, before. The women he knew all fell somewhere between assertive and straightforward to aggressive and completely domineering. Without one past example of a more passive woman to fall back on, the best Brant could compare his current circumstances to were some strange romance scenes in some of the shows he was occasionally made to watch.

Despite everything, Brant also felt relieved at Jessica's revelation. Attraction was something he at least knew how to work with, regardless of which side it originated on. "I can see why you'd want to keep that to yourself," Brant smiled, "but at least now there's nothing to worry about." Save for maybe Jessica's motor skills. Either way, it was best not to leave her hanging on a confession like that. In fact, there was something he now deemed it appropriate to say. "I'd be lying if I said I didn't like you, too. You're not only cute, you're the first authority over me that hasn't been suffocating, overly demanding, or just sadistic. I'm more grateful for that than I can really explain .... It might sound like a strange reason, but it's important to me, more important than most things."

Nothing to worry about? Oh, that... It was just her brain being stupid, not that she was actually in any danger. That was fine, she supposed. Probably... No, none of this was fine, she just told one of her lieutenants that she liked them! Romantically! Maybe? She didn't know, this sucked! Ugh!

Still... Brant didn't seem upset. He seemed happy? Wait he liked her too!? And he wasn't upset? "Uhh... I, uhm... Th-Thank you..." What a foreign emotion... Being liked back by someone. It would be lying to say that Jess had never been infatuated with anyone, going to the academy, or before, at school. This was... Just an unfortunate symptom of being around such wonderful people.

"I-It's still wrong, isn't it...? I... I'm happy, but... I'm the c-captain, that's... T-Too, dangerous a relationship... Isn't it?" She didn't know, now... "Why is that s-so important, Brant? That... I mean, I'd hate those things, t-too, but... It sounds like, you have different reasons..."

At first Brant was taken aback by the word 'wrong'. He had no idea what Jessica was getting at until she mentioned her role as a captain. Even then, the telekinetic wasn't sure if that posed some real issue or not. He knew that a lot of military organizations limited or outright prohibited certain kinds of relationships, but he'd never been interested enough in those regulations to investigate them, primarily because he had more pressing rules of his own to follow. Brant had also never been a part of such an organization, possibly until recently. Now that he was, Jessica might have a point, albeit a moot one, as the pilot had never been free to pursue a romantic relationship to begin with. The Alkaev family had their own rules they enforced with him and to a lesser extent, Rex. Those rules would be in effect even after joining the ANF.

Brant's smile slowly changed, carrying with it just as much resignation as appreciation. "I'm honestly not sure I could explain it, but if you want a timely example," he paused, holding up a finger and injecting some amusement into his smile and tone, "I'm not actually allowed to date anyone, anyway. Not staff members, or outsiders. Not even while I'm away and on loan to the ANF. That's pretty suffocating for a non military organization, don't you think?"

"Not allowed, huh..." Jess didn't really know what to say to that. What kind of organization were the Alkaevs that they wouldn't allow any of that. "Are you j-just an asset to them...?" Was that all he was? Just an expensive TK tool... 

Jess gently reached up and put a hand against his stomach. She paused to wait and see if that was okay with him, before trying to talk. "It doesnt, h-have to be dating... If that's not, o-okay, you know...? I... I could talk to them, I... I sound, p-pretty desperate, don't I..." Jess bit her lip and pulled her hand away, wrly smiling.

"Ahhh, this isn't a good look for me is it... Isn't good at all... Sorry, Brant, I... I should probably stop." Jess shrunk back and tried to look everywhere else, mind running a mile a minute. This is going to make everything awkward... My stupid mouth... Can't keep it shut, can't keep it shut, cant, just...

Was he just an asset to the Alkaev's? More or less. The arrangement they had with his parents wasn't very complicated, but they didn't know a thing about what he'd been through under the 'care' of the Alkaev family and the staff at their remote testing facilities. Brant wasn't sure how to address the question without making Jessica feel even worse for bringing it up, so he simply gave her a reassuring smile. At least, despite everything up to this point, Brant could look at himself in the mirror, and see a decent enough human being.

What happened next was something of a surprise. Jessica's hand felt a bit cold given how long she'd been in the hot tub, but before he could even speculate, she alluded to an alternative to 'dating.' Brant would have been scratching his head if that didn't require at least some small conscious effort. Jessica seemed genuinely interested in him, not just attracted. Eventually he just had to let it all go and laugh for a moment. "Don't worry so much," he eventually said, carefully placing both of his hands on her shoulders, "This is way more considerate than what I'm used to. I don't mind, at all, honestly. Can't speak for anyone else, but who cares?" he shrugged as his hands slipped away.

"I-I do worry... I don't know how a-any of this is supposed to work. If it works, at all..." She squeaked quietly as he placed gentle hands on her shoulders, feeling herself shrink further, but not minding it all that much. What to do, in a situation like this. Way more considerate... He wasn't giving straight answers. Was that because speaking with the Alkaevs was going to bring more bad than good? She didn't know, ugh, why didn't she know? They should've taught this in school, not algebra...

"L-Let me talk to them," she said, trying again. "A-And, even if they say no... If, we could spend more time, together... Or, anything like this. I'd really like it. As much of a mess a-as you turn me into, I like, talking to you. It's not a foreign feeling... but it's definitely something, I-I'm not used to." She smiled, looking up at him, trying to relax a little. "Thank you, Brant."

They'd all have a good laugh about this someday ... maybe, but for right now, Brant had a real dilemma on his hands. He had to introduce Jessica to Rosa anyway, and soon, but now the captain had her own personal reasons for speaking to the acting CEO of the Alkaev company. If this could all end well and good, Brant just didn't see it. At best, Rosa wouldn't take Jessica seriously, and use her preoccupation with Brant to her advantage. At worst, the test pilot's past would come up in more grim detail, and any talks would break down on the spot.

"I guess since we're on the subject," Brant scowled at the floor, but soon his expression went neutral, and he brought his gaze back to Jessica, "she does want to talk with you. It's about my mobile suit, though. I honestly don't expect her to budge when it comes to me and personal relationships." He also wasn't sure if he could easily rebel against her. The woman trusted him to stay with her teenage daughter in a Las Vegas hotel room, after all. If that wasn't confidence in her ability to control him, what was?

"Oh. Sh-She does? Well, why didn't you say so? Wait, she? Who's she? I thought the old... You know, was the person in charge of all that ridiculous stuff?" Maybe there was someone else specifically monitoring Brant... She hadn't been told much of the Alkaevs, and Brant's file was... An encrypted mess. She could have taken the time to get into some more of it, but with Apotheosis doing what it was, she didn't have the free time to sit down and spend a few hours on that. Even this little adventure was likely only going to last another half.

"Well... I don't know how you feel about me, so I... I-It's not like I'll ask you to t-try and budge her with me, but... I'll, ask anyway. Whoever her is. Oh, wait, a robot? Like, a personal mech? Wow... The Riese sure is getting a lot of new tech on board, isn't it? First that Mark III surprise, now this... I wonder if it's all coincidence. Probably... What with the war, and things."

"I guess I should clarify," Brant mused aloud, "Rosa Alkaev is officially in charge, these days. The ornery old bastard I mentioned is Dima Alkaev, her father. He's retired, but he's still the law. They're only sending the Regalia over to help keep me alive, but they probably want some field data, too." There was no telling if having a machine fighting alongside ANF forces would yield more valuable combat data or not, but at least the chances of retrieving the thing in tact were higher than in Eastern Europe.

Unsure he could adequately answer Jessica's indirect question, Brant tried to clarify one other thing for her. "It wouldn't be the first time I was interested in someone, but I've never had the freedom to move forward ... and I probably never will."

"Rosa, is it... Then I-I'll talk to her. Even if that's the only r-reason for the robot, it's... It's still good to have more help on the ship. A-And more to keep you alive." Jess froze a moment, looking down-- could she take it, if one of the crew ever died? She'd thought about it before; it never got easier to imagine. She'd decided on no, but with the situation as it was, would she have to force herself through it, to make it to the end of this conflict? Would there be time to grieve after that?

Jess shook her head, awful thoughts, they didn't need to be there. What else didn't need to be there was this notion that Brant... What? "Wh... do you, think they own you? B-Brant... I... I don't know what's happened to you, i-in the past, but you're not someone's property... Not, the Alkaevs, n-not the ANF's, not... Not anyone's. And if... If you don't think you can g-get yourself away from that, then I will! I'll, do it for you..." Jess huffed. What a ridiculous notion. No freedom, to be or decide, that was so stupid! Who thought that was productive for anyone? You couldn't just stifle a person like that...

It was only natural Jessica wouldn't accept the idea, regardless of how Brant presented it. Admittedly, he didn't really want her to, only to understand his situation a little better. Now, they were getting a little too close to the core of the matter, and Jessica seemed to be gearing up for yet another war in which the odds weren't in her favor. Now that he was hearing such a strong objection to his circumstances, Brant couldn't help but wonder if he was being too casual about it. It wasn't worth crying over or complaining about, but short of trying to assert himself more and being put back in his place, what else could he do? While he occasionally tried to mull over his options, Brant never hit up on anything that would improve the overall situation. Really, being loaned out to the ANF, even temporarily, was an astonishing improvement.

"For now," Brant said, trying to hint at the future, "I'm just glad I've got some distance between me and them, and a captain that's easy to get along with."

"For now..." You really have given up, haven't you, Brant? "Y-You're gonna be a hard nut to crack, huh? Well... Let me talk to her, r-right now. Get this over with... A-And I'll show you what I can do." Jess puffed up a bit, putting her hands on her hips, and pushing her chest out... Then remembering what she was wearing, squeaking, and shrinking back down again. "Wh-When I have proper clothes on!"

Was that innuendo? No, probably not. Brant shrugged, figuring Jessica wasn't going to budge anymore than Rosa would ... at least not until a direct confrontation. At that point, things would probably get ugly and depressing. As soon as Brant opened his mouth to tell her he would get her in touch with his benefactor, Jessica came to her senses ... partly. She was willing to confront Rosa about something trivial like relationships, but not while in her bathing suit. Fair enough.

"Heh, yeah you want to come at this more formally or she's not going to take you seriously," Brant explained, "Should we get out of here, then?"

"I-I suppose... Ahhh, sorry! I... We were supposed to be r-relaxing... I'm not very good at this, a-am I?" She smiled, wryly, sighing and walking over to her towel. She could at least put on a decent face for this... If they were even around to be spoken to. The hot tub had been a quick reliever of her stress, either way, even if it had ended earlier than expected.

Brant shrugged at first. "It's fine, really." He headed over to his own things, hoping to at least get his hair from dripping to damp before heading to wash off. After that ... another conversation with Rosa, though this one was promising to be far more interesting than usual. Brant just hoped Jessica could handle herself around the Alkaev company CEO.

Once Brant had gotten his towel, bag, and sandals, he called over to she who could not relax. "I'm going to wash off really quick. Where are we making this call from? My room or someplace else?"

Jessica was a bit more casual about going back to the ship, quickly running the towel through her hair and then wrapping it around her waist, shirt returned to where it belonged. It was a bit wet, considering she hadn't gotten entirely dry, but she could deal with that in her room changing into proper clothes.

Walking up after him, she paused. "Uhhh... Y-Your room? I suppose? I don't know what would be better..."

"Yeah, me neither," Brant shrugged. At least if they were taking the call in his room, others wouldn't randomly walk in on the exchange. That was the last thing either of them needed, the captain pestering foreigners about the pilot's personal life. It was a funny thought, cute even, but the bickering that could result was best avoided.

"Y-Your room, then. Just give me a moment to put real clothes on..."


It didn't take Jess long to swap back into her captain's clothes, hat aside, not wanting to get it wet. Her hair wasn't soaked anymore, but it was still damp, and that would seep into the fabric quickly enough, depending on how long talks went. As she approached Brant's room, having let him go ahead first, she'd started to open his door on her own with her ID, realizing that this wasn't the meeting room, just a meeting room.

"Wh-Whoops..." Catching herself, stopping, and clearing her throat, she knocked instead.

Having stopped just short of making the call, Brant opened the door to let Jessica inside. "I hope you're sure about this," he frowned, giving her another opening to back out of at least one area of the upcoming exchange.

"I-- O-Of course I am. Why wouldn't I be? I, I need to talk to her about y-your machine, anyway... So... B-Best to get disappointments out of the way sooner than later, right?" The best part about not getting your hopes up, was that you didn't have far to fall. "B-But I'll still try my best!"

Brant sighed. It was time to face the Rosa, then. He stepped over to his computer and brought up the call window on his main monitor. Within a couple of seconds the call had connected ... slightly faster than expected. Maybe Rosa had been-

"Who is this?" came an accented ... condescending ... possibly amused? ... elderly male voice. The picture resolved to show a man that looked to be in his early sixties. Brant knew Dima Alkaev to be significantly older than that, but if there was one thing the Alkaevs were good at, it was taking care of themselves, individually. Dima's slicked back white hair and shaved face signified a man who never failed to keep up an executive-esque appearance. His pale blue suit helped the image somewhat, and was clearly visible beneath his dark winter coat, suggesting he had either just arrived in Rosa's office, or was about to leave, again. "Huh, Abrams, is it? Don't tell me you're homesick already, boy."

As if ... "No, this is strictly busi-" Wait, why was he giving Dima any details? Not that the man wouldn't get them anyway, but this was quickly turning into a situation where he'd prefer Rosa to Dima, especially with what the captain was planning to bring up. "Never mind. Is Rosa there ...?"

Dima's face lit up in amusement. "You want to see Rosa? Hah, this must be about your new toy. No matter. I'm here. You'll speak to me."

"Th-That's not..." That's not Rosa... Was this the elderly Alkaev that Brant mentioned to her? The one who... No, that wasn't what this call was about. And she didn't have the jurisdiction to go mouthing off to one of their contracts. Brant could get sent back, or worse, if she tried that. She had to discuss business... And then pleasure.

"H-Hello, sir." Jess stepped into the frame, giving the man a salute. "I am a-acting Captain of the Heion Riese, Jessica Gefalscht. I was told that I h-had to speak to the Alkaevs regarding Brant's m-machine, and its delivery..."

"Ah, so that's what that was." Dima rubbed his chin while closely examining Jessica through the monitor. "Quite young to be captain of such a big ship. You must have had fantastic simulation scores." He wasn't wrong, Brant noted. Based on the look in the old man's eye, he wouldn't have had any qualms about recruiting Jessica based on those scores, if not for the current chaos.

"My daughter is overseeing this project, but naturally I have all of the necessary information. Abrams' toy isn't ready yet, but by this time tomorrow, they should be prepared to send it out to you." Dima's eyes narrowed inquisitively. "I wonder what you're going to do with it ...?"

Brant wasn't sure if the veiled question was for him or Jessica, so kept quiet for a moment.

"Ah, yes... S-Second to none, sir." While that was the truth, it was only about her simulation scores. If any of the Alkaevs knew of how she'd acted on the bridge during earlier missions, they'd likely have already requested Brant back.

"We're c-currently engaged in combat with Apotheosis over US soil, and... Well, any extra firepower would help. I expect it's being sent over to h-help Brant in providing fire... And a f-few others reasons, of course." This man had such an intimidating aura about himself. Would Rosa even be any better? She couldn't bring the other question up, could she...?

Dima clasped his hands together and smiled. "Something like that, yes."

Brant noted that Dima either wasn't reacting to Jessica's stuttering, or didn't care. That could be good or bad depending on the man's reasoning. Normally he was indifferent to other people's quirks so long as they didn't give him any second hand embarrassment.

"It's a shame we're being rushed. I had envisioned so much more when we started this project ... but no matter. I'll see that we wind up exactly where we need to be in the end." Dima's eyes narrowed at Brant briefly, then leaped back to Jessica. "Captain Gefalscht, tell me something. Can your ship's mechanics be trusted not to poke too deeply during repair and maintenance? The Regalia is a late prototype, but the frame and drive systems are nearly identical to mass production models. With only Abrams there with you, this is a very sensitive arrangement."

"Th-The mechanics? Of course... If this machine is o-only on loan from the Alkaevs, then, th-there's no reason for any of them to go poking around inside... I can p-promise to relay a message, just to make sure. Our h-head mechanic is trusted among the staff, they'll l-listen to her."

Talks seemed to be wrapping up... She looked at Brant, but she couldn't expect his help with this. How could she? She knew what he'd said, so it was just up to her..."

"How... How free is Brant to pursue... I-interests, while he is aboard the R-Riese?"

"Hmm ..." Dima seemed to be in deep thought about Jessica's response to the trust question. "We shall see, then. Now ... as for these 'interests,'" his gaze shifted and captured Brant's, "What are you so 'interested' in?"

Oh boy, the old man just had to hear this from Brant's own mouth, didn't he? It made sense; he was standing right there in front of the monitor ... it was just inconvenient as hell was all. "Err-lots of things. I've got more free time than you'd think, now," he began, trying to disguise the issue while he worked his way toward it. That didn't work, though ...

"AIs?" Dima unclasped his hands, letting his palms face upward as he shrugged, expectantly, "What is it? What is it you want permission to do out there?"

"... a- ... a-anything and everything," Brant blurted out, going for broke.

"Hah!" Dima burst into laughter, eventually veiling his mouth behind the fingers of his left hand.

And now the old man was laughing... Ugh, was that a good thing or a bad thing? Brant had asked for full permissions, but not the specific topic at hand. Did Jess have to? This was her only change, she's breached the topic, Brant had tried, despite earlier.

"I-I... Would l-like to pursue a romantic i-interest with Brant."

Although Dima's laughter had petered out initially, it seemed to make a brief return in the form of a long, quiet chuckle. Brant couldn't tell whether the old man would acquiesce or drop the amiable routine and start setting them both straight ...

"Mmm, no," Dima said, though his tone suggested it was just his personal preference in the moment. Sure enough, he continued before either could chime in. "Captain Gefalscht, you are a career woman, yes?" Brant squinted at the question, his mind jumping ahead to try and figure out where the elder Alkaev was heading.

Ah. The expected reply. Jess had prepped herself for it, but it was still difficult to hear. "Career woman? Er... N-No. This is my first position in the ANF... Right out of p-pilot school, to the biggest ship in the fleet. You'd... A-Actually be surprised by the free time we have, as bad as things are. Having to travel between e-each battlefield really cuts into o-on deck time." What an odd question... He'd probably run it into his point, but Jess couldn't find the point in it.

"Clearly the ANF has high expectations for you, at least," Dima nodded, seemingly at his own assessment, "Very much like my expectations for Abrams."

Thinking back on things, the old man did tend to be surprisingly strict in this area, in particular ... except for when it would have really done some good, of course. Violently blinking away that god awful string of memories, Brant began to scratch at his temple, wondering what expectations were at risk, here.

"As you know, Abrams' assignment aboard the Heion Riese is only temporary, though our relationship with the ANF may go well beyond that." Well that was something, but what was he getting at, Brant mused? There wasn't a chance in hell Dima cared about him getting attached and heartbroken when he had to leave. "Whether it does or does not, I have forbid Abrams from any unnecessary entanglements. Experience has shown me that genitalia can get quite entangled, so it is best avoided. I'll spare you the details ..." More like he'd keep his secrets inside the company ... "If you're truly interested in this 'romance', send me your genetic information via network. I have my doubts, but if I find your data interesting, I may reconsider down the road ... pending some special arrangements."

"I suppose," she gave, not getting into her issues regarding her usefulness and whether or not this was the right position. But, his lecture only reminded her that they likely considered Brant not much more than an asset. Still... Only that much? "Give me an address and I will forward them immediately." Special arrangements... "C-Can I ask what arrangements?"

Dima smiled cryptically. "If I find what I'm looking for, certainly."

Brant didn't have a clue what Dima was on about this time. No, that wasn't exactly right. He had a clue, but it didn't seem to line up very well with Dima's usual machinations. It would explain his strictness with regard to Brant's relationships, though, at least in part. "Is this because of my parents and ..." How to word this in front of Jessica? "... how they decided to handle things?" It definitely wasn't a topic he wanted to get into, but his curiosity wouldn't let him stay quiet when Dima couldn't reach over and smack him. Worst case scenario, he'd just keep being elusive.

Dima shrugged indifferently. "It could be." Glancing at Jessica, he said, "This address will do for sending your information to me, Captain." In other words, Brant had it on the system's contact list. "Now then, was there anything else?"

She wanted to question Brant on what this was all about, but considering how much pressure this Dima put on him, if she were to pry at all and he joined in, Brant would be forcing answers, not letting her know. She didn't want that... So with a mildly disappointed salute, she nodded. "Yes, sir. Thank you for your time." Way his parents handle things... Brant's life is a lot more complicated than I'm thinking it is.

"Very well," Dima nodded, "We'll be in touch, I'm sure. Good hunting. Both of you."

Dima's image disappeared and the window collapsed, leaving Brant with a slightly perplexed look on his face. Dima had warned him less and less over the years to not go against his decisions, but it was still surprising to see him not taking the opportunity to do so here and now. After all, Brant was a quarter of a planet away. If ever there was a time for warnings, it was now. Then again ... Brant didn't have any intention of going against the old man's decision ... Dima probably just knew that, too. He didn't get to be eighty-something years old being an idiot and not knowing how to read other people. It was the same with Rosa, who could trust him alone with her youngest daughter in a foreign country.

"Well," Brant shrugged, "you did okay. Dima's got more authority than Rosa, so you don't have to talk to her, right now." That didn't make him feel better about what had just gone down here, so Brant doubted it would work on Jessica, either. It certainly felt like she was buckling under the pressure.

"Of course..." Jess let her salute fall as the video finished, shoulders dropping with it. "Did o-okay... Wahhhhh!" Jess turned and stuck herself to Brant, quietly crying. "H-H-He was so s-scary! I didn't, th-think I'd be able t-to say anythiiihihihiiiiing!" As much as she'd been trying to put on a strong front, the latter half of Dima's conversation had really been putting her in a bind, with replies. She'd never felt this powerless before; at least with Roxanna she had final authority so whatever was said could be vetoed. Dealing with someone like that old man, it was a lot of what she'd feared from ANF authority. If Alphonse had ever been like that...

Brant smiled softly, placing a hand gently onto Jessica's head, the other onto her back. The verbal reassurance hadn't worked alright, but at least the tension was gone from the room. Trying to lighten the mood probably wouldn't work either, but what else could he do? This was his world Jessica had stumbled into. His whole life. "You've just joined an elite group, Jess, the chosen few who can deal with the Alkaevs and not blow it or get rolled over."

"Geez... H-How do you put up with it all? That's... Horrible." Jess was embarrassed, sure, being that close to him, but the comfort was really nice. At least, for a little bit, before she awkwardly pushed herself away, sniffling, red in the face. "S-Sorry... Uhm... Why does he want my D-DNA? If it has to do w-with you... Is it, for TK things?"

With the Alkaevs serving as his reference point for the general behavior of authority figures, even knowing it wasn't normal, Brant couldn't help but treat it as such. He didn't have a good answer for Jessica regarding her genetic data, either. "I'm wondering the same thing," Brant admitted with a grimace, "It does remind me of how my parents wound up having kids, though."

"Having kid... Uh... I-I, that's... You, don't think... S-So, er, th-thank you for giving me your time, B-Brant!" Jess muttered, offering him an awkward hand shake as the realization of necessary DNA dawned on her. K-Kids, with Brant!? I, th-th, th-that... That's too much to e-even process... I, w-wow...

Talk about heading in the other direction at full speed. When did they downgrade back to handshakes? On reflex, Brant shook her hand anyway, but he felt the talk of kids may have implied more than he intended. Maybe that was exactly what Dima planned; drop a hint and let them talk privately until the realization scared Jessica away from the prospect. Oh brother, what an evil genius that old bastard was if that was what happened.

Even if Jessica called him on the bluff and sent him her data, he could still say no, couldn't he? Either way, he won, so long as Brant himself retained free will comparable to an ant's.

"You okay? I thought for sure we were going to end this outing with a bittersweet hug or something like that ..."

"Th-That's... Okay, if you want that... I... Too much imagination, is all. Don't mind me. Uhh... I don't want to c-call it bittersweet, yet. If you think I'll g-give up like that, then you don't know me well enough. I always succeed at the s-second try. So... I-I'll send him what he wants, and we'll w-wait and see, okay?" Jess was still red, but tried to smile, stepping up next to Brant.

"S-So if you want a hug, then... W-Well, any time."

"Okay, hopeful hug it is, then," Brant chuckled, pulling Jessica into a hug, one of those difficult yet endearing embraces. As the shorter of the two, Jessica was left to figure out where to place her forearms while her upper arms were effectively pinned by her subordinate's.

"I'm not sure how all of this is going to pan out, but ... thanks, Jessica." Maybe someday, things would be different, a bit easier. Not like this. Not with the old man or Rosa telling everyone else how things would be and Brant himself nodding along for want of a rebellious spirit.

Jess' arms chose his back, sighing into the hug. How silly it was, really, for two adults to be this close, but be so far apart, because of the whims of other adults. Jess had always figured that the military life she'd gotten herself into wasn't going to affect her love life. What a laugh.

"We'll just have to s-see. Maybe by then, I'll have this stutter under control..." Positive thoughts were good to keep one's self going. Let's see what the old man had to say about my genes.

Rounding the corner to the meeting room, Brant rushed inside. "Hey captain," he said, taking note of Dwight's presence there, "It's Rosa. They're trying to send us the suit but the main facility's under attack, right now."

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Idol Blasted

"Iffin ye can't think o' somethin', poke yer girlfriend, see iffin she can figure somethin' out," Avery said, nonchalantly joking. "Cuz, ye don't, an' I'm at least callin' it that... Why not go fer some greek deity er somethin'? Thas where the ANF gets most o' its names fer bots an' stuff. Velite, Legionary, all that sorta stuff. Kraken Class, Leviathan Class... Y'all get what I mean. It'd fit. Anyway, thas all, so y'all can get t'doin' whatever it is y'all want to. Gonna ship this thing over t' th' hangar an' get started on yer paint job."

Guided Tour

"That is... Fine, Miss Abigail. I would be more than pleased to escort you to the hangar. I assume that you are getting a robot fitted to you for combat? Having recently participated in battle with one of the ship's extra Velites, I can assure that you will be pleased with the quality of machinery. Let us go." Hannah turned towards the hall leading down to the hangar, keeping a gentle pace so that she did not outspeed their new arrival.

The hangar was rather busy, with the mechanics working near double time, considering all of their combat. Buck had finished with Hannah's Velite, or so it seemed, and quickly spotted the android returning to the hangar. And then spotted Abigail, stopping in his tracks.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, wh-what's with you all and letting the bad guys out of their cells? You're gonna give us all a heart attack..."

"Greetings, Buck. Miss Abigail has been given the same treatment that Nikolai and Private Troy have been given, and has been tasked with being assigned a new robot... I assume." Now Buck had two things he was confused by.

"Buh, wha... A-And you're not... But she's... How are you... D-Did... I... O-Okay. Sure. Wh-Whatever, I-- Avery must've done something, so, just... Wow." Buck stammered things out, shaking his head, readjusting his backwards ball cap. "Well... Miss Abigail. What model do you want? Think we still got one more Velite and Legionary on standby. If you're cleared for take off, pick one, and I'll walk you through how it works."

Quick Response

"I'll make sure to watch out for her, D-Dwight. I know I'm... I'm s-stepping on a lot of feelings with th-this decision, but I'd rather people b-be angry and alive, than content and d-dead. Another body out th-there fighting for us will cut risks. R-Risks that we can't afford to take. I'm s-sure of it." Tip toe-ing around Juria was going to be mildly troublesome, though. She was their head engineer, and one of their best mechanics. If Abigail was going to be in the hangar a lot of the time now, they were going to see each other. Jess messed with her hair a moment, thinking of a solution-- and not having the time to do it.

"Brant? What's-- Wh-What!?" Jess leapt out of her seat, making sure not to trip as she rushed over to him. Dwight would just have to listen in. "I-Is she on the line right now? What's happening? Under attack-- Apotheosis? I..." Nice intro, Lieutenant...

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"Yeah, and she's on," Brant nodded, lifting up his wrist.

"Captain Gefalscht, I trust you can hear me clearly?" came Rosa's voice through the alpha tool. Although she didn't sound especially alarmed, there was just enough of a hint of urgency and impatience in her tone to suggest she was well out of her comfort zone. Given what was happening and how little time they'd had to prepare for it, that was understandable. "Listen carefully. Our main facility is being evacuated, and the Regalia's transport plane is being prepped for takeoff as we speak, but we have several issues that need to be addressed as soon as possible. First, we need any help we can get in establishing a safe route to the plane's destination. The second problem is friendly fire. This cargo plane won't show up through normal scans. It's a double edged sword since the ANF must be warned in advance, but it's the only reason the planes have any hope of escaping the area on such short notice. Regardless, if the plane is unable to get clearance to enter ANF controlled airspace by the time it leaves Siberia, its orders are to turn around and link up with the other evacuees in the south. We ... very likely won't get another chance at this."

"Won't get another chance?" Brant winced. That made the situation sound worse than Rosa had initially let on.

"You think the Kremlin is happy about us sending prototypes to the ANF when they could be using them, instead?" Rosa said wryly.

Ah. Politics. Right on schedule ...

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And just like that, off he went. Looks like Brant might have just been tagging along out of a sense of obligation after all. A bit of a sigh, as she was left alone with the killer robot, Abigail followed it along into the hangar, not saying much of anything. Why speak to a machine? Especially that machine.

When they pulled up into the hangar, seeing the hustle and bustle managed to cheer her spirits somewhat. Getting your hands dirty, right up in there, down to business with the mechs was an oddly comforting feeling at times. Putting in hard work and then seeing the fruits of your labor was certainly rewarding, and sure enough just looking on it vicariously, drinking it in second-hand, seemed to be having an effect on her. Abby was almost smiling, in fact, when a kid, looking like he was barely out of junior high, if that, had come dashing over to the robot, only to freeze in place when he caught sight of her following along behind it.

Resisting the urge to ask him where his mommy was, she couldn't help leaning forward a little and looking down on him, though. "You're a little young for heart attacks, aren't you? And I'm not a 'bad guy'," she started in with, before letting the murder machine do a bit more explaining. In the end, the young assistant seemed confused in more ways than one, but he appeared to come to grips with his non-Abigail related surprise by attributing it to the work of this Avery, who must have been his mother.

Ignoring the feigned politeness, bordering on disrespect, in his intonation of 'Miss Abigail', she scowled a little at being only offered a choice of Velite and Legionary. She really should have expected it, to be honest, after the conversation she'd had with Jessica, but she had still been hoping... Maybe it still needed to be repaired, and they were just making sure she had a back-up option? Better find out for certain.

"Eh, I'm not really the biggest on those models to be honest, though I'll admit it beats being stuffed into a coffin with wings. Why don't you just set me up with the machine you dragged my sorry ass in on here? I've put a lot of love and time into that fella, fixing 'm and modding 'm. Pretty much fits me like a glove at this point."

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Escaping Plane

"Yes ma'am!" Time to be all business, as Brant brought up his screen, Jess taking in everything this woman was saying. Apotheosis was even attacking Russia, huh? God, they were everywhere. What an awful group. It was probably a detachment sent over from Europe, but still, getting involved in third parties... I thought their aim was just to take down the ANF and the EU? This is going too far.

"Yes, the plain will have clearance. I'll send over ANF codes right away-- Brant, how do I use this thing? A-As well, the Riese is heading towards G-Great Lake base, it's located in Arkansas-- and y-yes, I know it's an odd b-base name so far away from the a-actual lakes. I'll send the location along w-with the clearance... Are the pilots g-going to be alright?" Things sounded rather dire, especially if they weren't going to get another chance at things. This woman's mention of the kremlin made her wonder just how important this prototype was...

Ex-Heracles

"Your machine? Your--" Buck instinctively pointed at what he had been working on, before slapping his arm down and staring at the floor. "Ahhh, haha... Y-Yeah, I, uh... I-I don't think you'll be able to use that. You should pick another one!"

Hannah blinked. "I believe what Buck means--"

"N-No, Hannah shut--"

"--Is that he has been working on changing your suit--"

"Hannah, come on--!"

"--to something more suited to the ANF. I believe that robot over there is the Heracles model that he has been engrossed with."

Buck pulled his hat over his face, hoping to disappear. "L-Listen, they never let me tinker with anything around here! And I finally got permission to break something and put it back together, a-and you were in a cell, and, just... Ugh! Hannah, you stupid robot! Why'd you tell her?"

"It would have been unfair to lie to Miss Abigail after she has been so graciously added to the ship. Was I not supposed to tell her?"

"No, you weren't... Ughhhhh."

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As the young fellow's arm snapped in a direction, apparently unbidden given his effort to quickly quash the motion and divert attention elsewhere, Abigail turned her head and followed along its path with her gaze. Her lips, which had been near to a smirk there for a moment, drew tightly down into a line, and, after the robot finished ferreting out the truth from him, her voice fell an octave as she replied.

"Look, kid. Let me explain something that'll be useful as you grow up." Her face having grown stiff and stony, Abigail stepped forward and placed both her hands on the boy's shoulders while he was preoccupied with his cap and couldn't see her coming, then bent her knees till she was looking him straight in the eyes. "You see, there are two things in this world you don't want to be caught lying to someone about having been fooling around with behind their backs: a person's lover and a pilot's mech. I'll let you off the hook this time, because you're too young to have known any better, and because it's kind of cute how excited you seem to have been to take a crack at things... But if I ever catch you laying hands on 'm again..." she trailed off ominously.

Abby closed her eyes, sighed, then broke contact, standing back up straight once more."So how bad's the damage? What did you break and when can we get 'm up and running again? I'll lend a hand."

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Wait

What was she trying to do? Buck put his hat down when he felt hands on his shoulders, but the confused expression as she talked didn't leave his face, even as she got up. "Are you... Trying to intimidate me, or something? I, uh... Your robot works just fine. I put it together myself. You know I'm one of the head mechanics, right?"

"I do not believe she is acquainted with your profession, Buck."

"Right." He straightened his hat onto his head, lip facing back, before proudly putting his hands on his hips. "The name's Buck Matthews. I'm one of the best mechanics you're ever going to meet! In fact, I just finished updating the cockpit to fit ANF standards, with a new OS to boot. You can be used to whatever you want lady, that thing's going to run faster and better than it ever did. And no more manually updating targets; the heck's up with that? Anyway, you can't have it. Sergeant Elaine's using it. You'd have to get the Captain's permission or talk to her about it."

"I do not believe she will be pleased about that, Buck."

"Yeah, sue me. Elaine and you both, it's not my problem. I just work on the robots. Who pilots what is up to the Captain and the crew."

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"Will give look over, suppose. Good luck with paint... also not girlfriend. Not yet." Kim replied with a sigh... as much as she wasn't particular about the name itself, if Avery was going to threaten her with such lunacy, she had to at least try to come up with something... Greek deities, huh? Giving the mechanic something to ruminate on before turning away to allow Avery to do her thing, Kim pulled up her multi-tool, and pulled up an internet browser as she began to walk over to the cafeteria. May as well get something to eat, she figured... along the way, she had time to scour a few pages in search of a relevant name, and had come across a few options when an unlikely trio came into her vision, just outside of the cafeteria.

Well, not exactly unlikely. Astin and Juria seemed rather tight knit, though Thorvald's inclusion wasn't normally expected... she supposed he was amiable enough with just about everyone that it wasn't so strange. What also wasn't that strange after a moment of thought was that Juria appeared to be in distress... if Seung-Min recalled correctly, she was a resident of Colony 1, and given Astin's... unfavourable opinion on the Captain's latest addition, there was little doubt that the engineer had been informed as such. The main question was whether she should interject, or simply allow them to continue on their own unfettered. Well, may as well try to get a feel for the air...

"Feel any better, Sergeant Doyle?"

Edited by Ether
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Juria sniffled even as Thorvald and Astin explained what was probably going on in the Captain's mind, rubbing her head against their shoulder. "M-ma... Maybe. J-just wish all could be more h-happy, not have accept m-mean people like Abby, not have deal w-with Atpo, Apthos... you know what Juria am saying. Sorry..." Reo mewled and jumped up onto her shoulder again, quieting her somewhat as the three of them walked across someone new. "Hello Kim," she spoke rather nervously. "How am?"

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(Makoto is a sad boy but I'm legit too behind to post for him right now big gomen)

Capture in Sight, Colony 5, July 29th, ???? hours

Spoiler

Despite the ANF's best efforts to defend Colony 1, Apotheosis had made progress much larger than any of them would expect, able to cut off many of their signals. ANF was too little prepared for the data blackout that Apotheosis had managed, leaving their farther Colony, Colony 5, incredibly vulnerable and easy to overtake. In a fell swoop, the colony's defenses were taken down, and from that point on, what forces tried to resist were faced against a very one-sided battle.

But those were only the details to Helena, who had her sights in a different mission. Kicking a residential door, she'd broken into a residential apartment, loaded gun in hand, and two men as backup. Not that she thought she needed them. It was quick enough to find her target, a woman that had herself locked into the bedroom she just barged in. "I finally found you, again." Helena had her aim trained at the lady, staring coldly. "Things didn't turn out quite as expected... thanks to you. I'm afraid I can't let you off the hook after that."

 

All this destruction could mean only one thing-- though Tabitha knew that even had she not been present, things likely would've remained the same. Still, the voice behind the gun was awfully familiar, and it made her sigh. Still, she smiled a bit. Having the head of Apotheosis mad at her... Managing to screw them over. It gave her a deadly feeling of superiority. She had to calm it before speaking, else she get shot without question.

"Maybe your programming was inefficient. She should have turned by now. You ran the scans, you checked her yourself... If something's gone wrong, how can it be my fault?" She'd managed to hide the smug feeling inside, hoping this was more than just a body pickup. The doctor would enjoy living a bit longer, just long enough to see the end of this.

 

"Hmph." Why, this lying wench... She had the audacity to play with Helena at gunpoint, after all this? This was pushing a bit far, but Helena knew that having her shot before she could extract the information was sub-optimal. If she wanted something, Apotheosis could likely provide... but if Tabitha just wanted to fuck with her over some petty vengeance or heroic calling, Helena would be happier to just pull that trigger and do something better with her time. "Who knows, it's not like you built the damned thing." She spoke back, "Not like you could have set something, or sneaked past to one of your friends so they could give it to the ANF? Wouldn't it just be wonderful if they knew how to handle her..." She held back her tone, but it wasn't hard to see her anger. Especially to Tabitha. "Do you know how she acted in Colony 1? Like a plug stopping the leak, holding our forces outside... even if it failed to work for whatever reason, it's ridiculous that she was so proactive, something would have glitched. It's not my field, but I'm not that dense, Tabitha." Her gun was still trained at the woman, eyes never laying off of her.

 

Now, she couldn't stop smiling. Her work, doing that well at holding Apotheosis back. I wonder how many she killed... Slowly spinning around, and cutting off her smile as she did, she looked Helena in the eyes, ignoring the gun between her own. "And what do you want me to do about it? It's not like you can send me inside the ship to make repairs. Unless you've somehow rigged up a remote signal for code. But not even your lot could manage that..."

 

Helena held a glare against Tabitha, fearing full well how she wished to stall this. "We can't." She admitted, for a moment lowering her gun, "But it doesn't mean it's out of our hands. That ship is very easy to track, for starters." That quip felt better after all the pointless fluff Tabitha tried to throw at her. "And we can definitely reach out to her, we have our means... I'm sure you can guess where I'm going, Doctor."

 

"Have your means... And I suppose you expect me to do it." Tabitha's glare thinned, trying to pierce into Helena's mind and get into what she was thinking. "You'd better shoot me now, then. She's my pride and joy." The facade was starting to falter, Tabitha knowing there was no getting out of this. "Ruining your plans as payback for what you did to my family makes me happier than you can even imagine, Helena Wayne. Pull the trigger, you fool!"

 

"Are you really so willing to give your life to get back at me?" Helena snarled. This woman was one to test her patience quickly, and she knew it was none the wiser. Still, she was committed to talk this woman down, for what personal reason she had. "What is going to change if we do it ourselves and your body is left to rot here? Or you think that's what going to stop us?" Helena started to look down on Tabitha, trying full well to show how her decision was meaningless. "All this drama for a machine... just think about it. Once Apotheosis is done, you can have her back, and do what you wish with her."

 

"You killed my family. If you think for one second that I'd help you, you're beyond insane." Helena hadn't fired, which means they were trying to use her to fix things. Tabitha bit her lip. At worst, she'd be taken and reconditioned. Helena's soft side was likely trying to give her the easy way out of things. "There's no way any of you would be able to do it yourselves. What I programmed in her is beyond whatever scientist you have, and even if you could manage, she'd fly out of that ship to stop you herself if it came to things... And it's just like you said. She's just a machine... What good would getting her back do for me?" You clever bitch... That's painful, even for you.

 

Helena had a smirk on her face when Tabitha barked back, she knew that tone well. Much like a soldier under interrogated, cornered like a wild dog, Tabitha wanted to go down with her pride and morals. In the end, she had just given Helena more cards to play. "Hmm, maybe so. What would getting her back do? I guess if it means nothing, I could just end you." Helena lifted the gun once more, barrel lined with the woman's forehead. "--and then break your toy. No need for a defective model. Everything you're worked towards, just gone down the drain with your life, almost poetic." She'd lowered her gun again, testing the doctor one more time.

 

Helena probably thought she was pressing the right button, but Tabitha stared back with determination. "She's beating you, isn't she? She's probably taking a beating, but you can't win... Haha. Hahaha! That's what you need me for! Why you're trying so hard~! Ahahaha~!" Tabitha couldn't stop laughing, leaning back in her chair with a satisfied smile. "Ahhh... Do whatever you want, Helena. If you think you can, then do it. Probably already figuring out her feelings and how things work. She only gets smarter, we both know that. Oh well... I would've loved to see her grow, but knowing you're going to lose to her is all I need." She closed her eyes and waited. The only thing she was expecting next was a bullet.

 

This woman's gall... Helena had really misjudged how far she had given up, consumed by vengeance and set on seeing Helena herself fall. "I didn't expect you to have become a blind idiot so quick." Helena had nothing other than venom left to say, patience done with.  "We have more power than your pretty toy. If you want her wrecked, I can oblige." Finally, she pulled the trigger.

 

The hit landed on Tabitha's shoulder, close to her collarbone, enough to bring her down. Helena already had a pile of sacrifices to her name... it'd be easy to have taken down Tabitha, but something about it was too tiring to bear. I'm sure Goodwill will be happier this way.Killing off one of the brightest minds in robotics of her generation would be a waste. "It's too bad. I'll have things my way, whether you like it or not." Helena walked towards the doctor, more than ready to pick her up and wrap the mission in this Colony at that point.

 

This was the right thing, right, darling? That I don't help them, that I do everything I can to stop them in their conquest. Even if it kills me... Even if I never see-- "Agh!" Tabitha's thoughts were disturbed by the bullet to her shoulder, grasping a hand over it as the steady stream of blood started to spill onto her lab coat. "F-Fucking cunt... K-Kill me!" There was no way she was going to be able to stop Helena now. She figured the reconditioning was the next step. Fuck... Fuck!

 

"I still have use for you, no can do." And that was where she set her gun to stun, firing at a weak setting. "Don't want your heart to fail on me, but this won't be any pleasant if you resist. Now, be a smart doctor..." She moved to pick up the doctor, unceremoniously shifting so she could carry the doctor's body over her shoulder. "Once our goal is complete, you can have her back, all for yourself, no ANF to keep their paws on her. That's all you need to focus on. If you still want death once we're done with you, it won't be by my hands, Tabitha..."

 

Edited by Balcerzak
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Astin couldn't really say that the addition of Lt. Kim was a welcome right now. Not because of her personally, but just because the situation was already awkward enough without more people coming up and trying to talk to them about the meeting. Thorvald had clearly been planning a lecture, but Kim seemed more just interested in how they were doing. Still, they couldn't help but feel wary around the telekentic. Around everyone else, they could do a decent job at hiding their emotions at least usually. Around KIm and Brant though... Their frustration was still sure to be felt, so no matter how much they might try and lie to Thorvald, there was no point in continuing that here.

"I'm more worried about Juria than myself right now." There, that was true. Juria was clearly distressed and they were worried about here, something that Kim was sure to sense. "She's not exactly taking this whole situation well. It wasn't exactly my goal to bring it up, but she is my co-pilot and so she had a right to know. But if you're asking if my feelings have changed at all, no, they haven't. Given how Abigail acted in the hallways after the meeting, she's done nothing to gain my confidence and has only hurt herself in my mind. I'll work with her because I have to. But she's not going to be my friend." There. That was all true, even if it wasn't completely the whole truth. Hopefully, that would satisfy Kim and she wouldn't try to dig further. Past the frustration and anger and worry and into the fear and sadness and stress that were hiding as far down as Astin could shove them right now. She didn't need to know about those. It was bad enough with her feeling everything else. Hopefully she could leave them at least one bit of privacy.

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"Fair enough, Captain Gefalscht. So long as..." Dwight's comments were cut short by the arrival of Brant, who provided dire news. "An attack right now? That's among the more inconvenient timings, but... nothing that can be helped. Russia is not in the EU, nor ANF. What is Apotheosis thinking?" Well, if they were cooperating with the ANF, and the dealings went as far as the Kremlin, perhaps that was enough to Apotheosis to consider them as close enough, but it was certainly strange. "Is there anything I can do for this, Captain? It would likely be best to alert the crew that they will have to put aside their differences for the time being, in case difficulties arise with this transportation- and given the short notice, I can see many ways this may go wrong."

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"Here," Brant presented his wrist for the captain. The holo keyboard that appeared inverted itself automatically, allowing Jessica to jot in the codes comfortably, assuming she was comfortable with holo keyboards with no touch feedback. "There's a map in here if you'd rather use that for the base coordinates." Unless she had them memorized, that would probably beat typing them, Brant figured.

"Things could be much worse," Rosa noted, "Everyone was anticipating the attack, just not quite so soon. The army had a team stationed here in advance and they're trying to contain the fighting to the outer perimeter. I'm not sure how long they'll be able to manage that, but their losses have been considerable. It's going to be close ... and there's no question, the army's team isn't going to survive this."

Brant winced. Being sacrificed just to buy time for the Alkaevs to load up and fly off with their assets. At least some those 'assets' were actual people: pilots, mechanics, engineers, scientists, regular workers, and some of their family members that stayed with them at the facility. This wasn't just about protecting the prototype mobile suits and their data.

"Your cooperation is much appreciated, Captain Gefalscht."

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The longer he was spending with Astin, the better Thorvald was feeling that the childish behaviour in the meeting room was surely a one-time thing brought on from the sudden shock of the announcement. After all, here they were, basically agreeing with most of what he'd been trying to tell Juria to get her back to a normal frame of mind and process the situation better. Yes, the sergeant had had an extremely unflattering moment, but maybe that was something already realized, with no further need to beat the dead horse. As for the engineer herself, she seemed to have calmed down to a less indignant and angry demeanor, exchanging it for one that was more discouraged and weepy. A decent start, at least.

As they were about to enter the cafeteria, they bumped into Lieutenant Kim, who had taken care of her business elsewhere and caught up with them, presumably also in the mood for food. Not having anything further to currently interject in an attempt to cheer Juria up, he gave Seung-Min a slight wave, then waited for Astin to respond first, as he'd been specifically addressed. Following their thankfully level-headed recap and summary, filling in the other officer on the current state of affairs, he confirmed the situation before tossing in his own inquiry. "I don't think anybody's expecting her to be your friend, but yeah. That's about the long and short of things here. How did things end up going with Elaine? Did the captain send her to the brig, or...?"

 

~~

 

What a little shit. This kid wasn't cute at all, she'd clearly been mistaken. Abigail's hands twitched idly, perhaps longing to throttle the cheeky bastard, and a vein at her temple throbbed uncomfortably as he had the gall to imply she should be thanking him for the giant shit he took all over her years of hard work and loving care. For a few long moments, words failed her, her mind was entirely blank white.

"Time to go see Elaine then," she finally managed to get out in a thin, strained voice. "Oh!" Then she stopped, midway through turning to leave the way she came. The other pilot could be god-knows where at this point, her rooms, the brig, still at the meeting room getting lectured about her altercation with Nikolai. As long as she was here in the hangar, she should at least set up a backup plan, in case her attempts at persuasion... maybe even pleading if it came to it, ended up striking out.

Heaving a loud and heavy sigh, Abigail turned back. "Show me everything you have then, anything without a pilot assigned to it, planes excluded. I need to see them up close and personal. The individual mech matters, obviously, I can't just judge a decision like this on base model or production line alone." Her tone remained chilly and businesslike throughout, the earlier playfulness having completely vanished.

Edited by Balcerzak
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Coordinates Set

"Thanks, Brant," Jess hurried out, taking no time to wait to use the holoboard. It was more uncomfortable than a real keyboard, but she'd used them before, so she could issue out the coordinates and the permissions quickly enough. "Th-There! Sent. Uh. That should leave you u-unimpeded through ANF skies. I'm going to g-get the ship moving right now, a-as well! Dwight, yes, you can. G-Go to the bridge and tell the ship that we're m-moving, all pilots on standby. We need to get th-there before this plane does. Even if take o-off is going to take us a bit, having to d-disconnect everything..." It would probably take them a good half hour to get the ship up. A lot could happen in that time...

Hearing that Russia's planted forces were already losing was a pretty big hit to her morale. "Of course... No r-reason to be troublesome when things are like this. Just g-get them out of there and m-moving as fast as you can." Jess could only hope too many people weren't dying for robots...

Getting Setup

Great... Another rage pot. Elaine was already enough to worry about getting the robots trashed, ugh, please don't have two people ready to go whole hog and break stuff. Buck uncomfortable fiddled with his hat as Abigail clearly had a mini fit. Buck did feel a bit bad about things... He sighed. "Look, I, uh... I can tell you really care about the robot, so... Like, I can put word in with the Captain too, if you need it. I don't appreciate your methods, but... I can tell an enthusiast enough, when i see one, so. Don't think I'm not on your side. Just don't tell anyone I'm playing favorites-- Elaine's already enough of an angry handful!"

"Shall I report to her that she is an angry handfu--"

"Hannah, you keep your trap shut just the same! Keep being so open with everything and we're all gonna be at each others' throats. Secrets are good, sometimes.

Hannah nodded. "Secrets are good, sometimes. I will store this information."

Buck could only shake his head and stare incredulously at her. She'd gone from stone cold kill bot to confusing and airheaded teenager in the span of a day. Whatever had happened to her, or whatever Avery did, it has changed the android entirely. "Spooky... Alright, Abby, what do you wanna see first? Velites are your standard mid speed mech, decently armored, a lot of space for extra weaponry. Legionaries are the heavily armored ones, built in shoulder cannon and some gatling guns. And... Well, we have a real fast type mech. There was a prototype Phalanx given to us by the colony. I've looked it over, it's a legit robot. Has the armor plating to withstand a lot of brute force and enough weaponry to deal damage back. Has frames too, for different climates. Probably the most unique robot we have... Not sure if it's the one you want, though. And, just clarifying, I'll show you them all, just... Start somewhere."

Edited by SnakeMomMelissa
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Well, there certainly seemed to be a mixed bag of reactions from those present. First came Juria, who seemed to be edging towards nervousness, tepidly asking of her own condition without adding much else. If nothing else, her emotions seemed to be winding down, which was likely for the better. As for Astin, they were clearly trying to suppress their thoughts... not particularly effectively, but the overwhelming sentiment that the Sergeant's mind gave off was that prying of any sort wouldn't be appreciated. That much was simple enough to acquiesce to, but something that Astin said did catch her attention, and seemed worth asking on whilst replying to Juria's greeting.

"Am fine, Juria. You doing alright... must difficult... Astin, you say hallway? What happen?" Kim inquired, at least hoping to clear that up. If tensions were growing even more heightened than expected, that was certainly something to keep aware of, and hopefully Astin wouldn't take it as delving further into their own personal matters too much. Finally, Thorvald chimed in, seeming mostly to confirm the goings-on noted by the others, before throwing in an inquiry of his own as to what had happened with Elaine after the others had departed.

"Brig? No, not brig. Captain lecture Elaine, tell her see ship psychi-psychia... Dr. Cheryl, seem like last warn. After that, Captain say let go, and she-" Kim began to explain what had transpired, until a sudden, rather unwelcome flood of emotion came to her from the floor above. Her head instinctively snapping in the direction of the mech hangar behind and above them, the sudden rage, mixed with a moment of almost murderous intent, dissipated in an instant, rather fleeting but still troubling... who was in the hangar, and just what was causing such an outburst? Kim caught herself after a few moments, her knuckles white from the fists she had balled her hands into, the surge of emotion putting her naturally on edge.

"Err... am sorry. Elaine leave meeting room after that."

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Thorvald nodded in response to Kim's update. Despite the abundance of issues with Elaine's conduct, he wasn't sure he'd have sent her to the brig for that alone, if he'd been in charge of the decision, and he was glad the duty of making that choice wasn't his. Hopefully a good talk with the ship's shrink would help, and maybe she just needed more opportunities to blow some steam. Taking her out for drills like he'd mentioned awhile ago might not be the worst thing to try, at any rate.

While those thoughts were going through his mind, Seung-Min froze up mid-sentence, and took maybe a half dozen seconds before she recovered herself, though Thorvald noted she'd clenched her hands tightly into fists. "You okay, Minnie? As for the hallway issue, well... The new girl ended throwing out some taunts when she passed by, but Astin was cool enough not to let her get too much of a rise out. Juria... didn't take things quite so well though..." He figured that would give the Korean enough of an idea, and if the others wanted to fill in more of the details they were certainly welcome to do so as well. "We were just gonna grab some coffee and snacks to unwind, probably bullshit around a bit too, try take the edge off, you know?"


~~~


When the 'head mechanic' revised his attitude a little, offering a few conciliatory words, Abigail raise her eyebrows a bit. She didn't quite believe he was genuine, but maybe she had actually scared him? Whatever the case, good. She nodded to his request to pass along the suggestion to the captain, but didn't trust herself to go much further than that. Likewise while she wished she could find the comedy duo exchange between the runt and the robot entertaining, to her it just came across flat somehow. Was she forcing it, to break up the tension? There was definitely something going on under her hood, but just what it was, Abby had no idea.

As for the options, well, she certainly had her own preferences, but she didn't want to let herself get disappointed by starting out with high expectations and finding it fail to meet her standards. Then there was the word 'prototype', which certainly caught her attention, but when it was quickly followed by 'Phalanx' her interest dimmed. She'd teased Terry about being given the run around by a police bot, and for good reason. Still it couldn't hurt to at least take a look at it, probably slap it in the middle of the order. Yeah.

"Show me around the Legion first, then we'll see whether that small bot of yours is all talk or not, then let's wrap up with a looksee of the Velite. I'll have a decision for you by the end of that, as for what to deploy in if a nice chat with Elaine doesn't pan out."

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Grand Tour

"Alright, Legionary first. Come on." Hannah quietly followed after Buck and Abigail, looking around the hangar as if things were all new and exciting, a smile on her face. Buck caught that a few times, and, still seriously confused, was making a list of questions to toss at her once Abigail was inside a robot to look it over. It was only a short walk to the final row of machines, the Legionary and the Velite facing across from each other. The Phalanx, small as it was, was tucked alongside the Velite, to conserve space.

"Sec," Buck called out, taking a remote out of his pocket. A few button presses later and it was in tune with this model, the cockpit opening and the small foothold to get inside coming down. "Cool. Go ahead an' take a look through it, as much as you want. It's all state of the art ANF tech. Like, I'm not gonna get on you for what you enjoyed piloting, but anything in here's way more user friendly than your Heracles setup... Though, I guess you all didn't have a lot to work with. Still, you should be pleased with the setup." Buck managed to smile, Hannah still looking around the hangar in delight. Is she broken? Seriously, what the hell...?

Edited by SnakeMomMelissa
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Nikolai flinched at the contact of latex against his skin. Theoretically, the layer of second skin over her own would offer a safe, sanitary blockade shielding the pair from any inadvertent conflict from each other, but something about the unnatural feeling of an artificial dermis reminded him of something inhuman, something dangerous and callously devoid of any warmth or sympathy.

Almost vaguely reminiscent of a half remembered dream induced by the chemical kiss of anesthetics before being taken apart and put back together all wrong.

His lips pulled into a strange facsimile of a smile as he tried to stave off panic responses. His breath was quick and shallow in his lungs as he tilted his head, listening to Tarquin's assessment of their little friend.

"I say whatever hurts most and it work. Is a shitty habit, da?" he said grimly, "no worries, I am doubtful that she want to talk to me any time soon. Is not that what is concerning, is strange complex that concerns me. It leads to nothing good, only death. Then again, maybe seeing girl explode in fireball of despair might be funny."

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"We'll do our best, Captain," Rosa replied, sounding a tad somber. "I have a dozen other calls to make, but if we need anything else, I'll contact you again. Don't keep me waiting, Brant."

"Sorry," Brant murmured, feeling more guilty now that the situation had gone as far south as it could manage without screwing everyone over completely. With that, the transmission ended. "How long will it take us to get to Great Lake Base?" The TK had a couple of other questions, but what came out first came out first, and he wouldn't overload Jessica when she was likely already strained.

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Astin barely managed to hold back a derisive laugh at Thorvald's comments about the whole hallway situation. A cool head, huh. Seemed like the older pilot was downplaying things for some reason, maybe to keep Kim from worrying more. He'd been quick to ask about her sudden inattentiveness, which Astin was curious about as well. It was if something had suddenly become more important only to disappear in a second. But given it had already been asked about, they saw no reason to push further. Either Kim would answer Thorvald or she wouldn't. Either way it wasn't Astin's job to delve deeper. Still, it wouldn't do to just stand here quietly.

"As Thorvald said, she had some choice words for me that I answered a bit sharper than I should have, but Juria was also understandably upset and responded more strongly. Which I honestly can't blame her for. But either way, the two of them were heading to go get food, but I was planning on going back to my room. I think it would be better if I just had a bit of alone time and given I'm not overly hungry, now seems like the best time to do that."

Hearing that Elaine hadn't been punished for punching Niko was a bit of a relief. While Astin couldn't agree with that being a smart choice, they also couldn't deny that it would have been nice to get some of the frustration they were feeling out. Back home they would have gone to the fencing strips and found someone to spar with to help with that, but here they didn't have anyone to face. Although... "I think I'm going to head that way now. Juria, I hope you feel better. Maybe it wouldn't be the worst thing for you to talk to Dr. Cheryl either. About Abigail and also about some of the other stuff you were talking about. It might help. And if Abigail is going to be too much of an issue, you shouldn't feel the obligation to be my co-pilot again right away, alright? Do whatever you need to do to make yourself comfortable."

They smiled and gave her a quick squeeze around the shoulders, before nodding to Thorvald and Kim and heading down the hallways. Stopping outside Elaine's door, they hesitated for a second before knocking twice. "Elaine? You in there?" It occurred to them that they might be knocking on a door leading into an empty room but the idea they had was too good of one to not try and see if it could play out right away.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Colt looked up from the display screen of the Ceres to notice Buck, the android from the Colony and someone he didn't recognize walking around the mechs. Since the systems check had just come back all clear, he headed down the lift and strolled over to the group. "Hey there Buck. What's going on? I just did a final check on the Ceres over there. Looks like everything should be in tip top shape. Got any other projects you need tinkering on? And nice to meet you, Miss. I'm afraid we haven't had the chance to meet yet. I'm Colt, new mechanic recruit. Who might you be?" He stuck out a hand for a shake before realizing it was covered in dirt, so he quickly pulled it back, wiped it off on a rag stuck in his pocket and re-extended it.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Val watched for a few seconds as Olivia started to clean up the boy's face before yawning slightly and popping her earbud back into her ear and wandering back over to the seat she'd been claiming before. She clearly had everything under control which meant Val wasn't needed. Glancing over at the doctor, Val raised an eyebrow. The woman was clearly engrossed in something on the screen in front of her. Val started to ask her something, but hesitated for a second before mumbling quietly to herself and returning to staring down at her feet. Better to not bother her. If she needed Val to do something, she would let her know. She clearly wasn't shy about telling people what to do, so best to just leave it for now. Better to not pry.

 

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