Phoenix Posted October 2, 2017 Share Posted October 2, 2017 "I don't want to get too comfy, here," Tonya smirked at Roxanna, "more importantly, Rex still needs my boot up his ass, and the sooner I track him down, the better." "Good luck," Sasha said, sounding none too confident in her for a change. It wasn't because Tonya didn't have the skills to beat Rex in a fight--Rex didn't have a chance in hell if the situation favored neither of them. No, Sasha was worried about Firmia, same as Brant. "Rex is with the EU," Brant noted, since no one else had, "How are you going to do anything without getting attacked by whatever EU pilots are with him?" "I'll figure something out," Tonya sidestepped the question. Why was there always so much yet so little to choose from? Why were water bottles always kept near frozen? Why were these pilots fighting over a mobile suit? There were so many options for snacks that Firmia couldn't make up her mind, which gave the chilled bottle she was holding time to sap all the warmth from her fingers, and all the while she had to listen to these idiot pilots bicker over an issue best left to their superiors. Christina's suggestion that they have a little competition to decide the issue made Firmia genuinely curious about how the ship was run. Wasn't it like in the Russian military where pilots were indefinitely assigned to vehicles or mobile suits based initially on their qualifications, and then given better options as they improved and gained experience and rank? Wasn't switching units typically a drawn out and tedious undertaking? Firmia was almost certain she was going to be spending a good deal of her time speaking with the Captain ... and not just about her own personal arrangements with the crew. Moving to another cabinet, the young Alkaev finally found something she not only liked, but could snack on to cope with ... well, life itself at this point. Bags of snacks, mainly potato chips were waiting for her to seize one of them. Now she just had to decide which. Firmia closed in on the sweet maui onion chips. The wonderful taste she envisioned quickly won her over. It wasn't much, but the goal hadn't been a meal to begin with, just a snack and some water to keep herself hydrated. With the bottle in one half frozen hand, and the bag under her opposite arm, along with the mink coat, Firmia turned to leave, and found herself listening to the unfolding argument, again. It was really bothering her, but she wasn't sure what to say just yet. She wound up scowling at the three women, instead. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Balcerzak Posted October 2, 2017 Share Posted October 2, 2017 (edited) Well, something Abigail had said had certainly touched a nerve, or maybe it was just her existence in general and not her words, given how the comeback rant laid things out. The bright flush to Elaine's face, drawing out a splendid contrast to her freckles, seemed to indicate something a little deeper however. "You want to talk abo--" ut the colonies Abby was cut off from saying by an unlikely source, as Christina jumped up, crying out and grabbing hold of Elaine as she was about to just up and leave after having said her piece. It was probably for the best that line of discussion was interrupted, though it was something that would need to be fully dealt with eventually. If Abigail could just make her, make anyone understand the reason something had needed to happen, and sure maybe she'd fucked it up in the execution, but the intentions were in the right place, maybe then the rift between her and the crew could really start to heal, rather than fester beneath the scab of her being a convenient and disposable spare pilot during a time when the ship was desperately short on hands. But now was not the time for that, and neither of them were in the right frame of mind to make any sort of positive progress, especially not with how the issue had been instigated. And the way Elaine had just ignored every explanation Abigail already tried to offer earlier, simply returning to an approach of just heaping more blame on her with the tired old 'but people died! Innocent people!' card wasn't really ideal either. It's not like Abby didn't full well know that, had been reminded first hand of that uncomfortable weight during her discussion with Makoto, she would have to live with her mistakes for the rest of her life. But as an inspirational figure once said, the tree of liberty must be watered by blood, and that was true now as much as ever. Just sitting around with their thumbs up their asses wasn't going to bring about any real change, why did nobody see that! No, the fact that that tangent had been swiftly shut down by the shrinking violet in the cute sweater really was for the best, as Abigail's focus was returned to the original object of discussion. The exhortation to 'Earn it' had been laughable, what had the girl thought she'd been doing out there when they were trying to retrieve the Russians? Had it looked like she'd been taking the Phalanx out for a picnic? But firing back at that obviously wasn't going to do any good, so thankfully Chrissy had furnished a much more attractive option. Abby quite regretted the glare she'd shot the girl when she'd criticized her--Me, seriously? I'm the one making things personal, not that redhead?--but in the moment even that level-headed distribution of blame felt unfair. Realizing the difficult and unasked for position she'd managed to place the younger girl in, she felt ashamed of how quickly she always flew off the handle. Eager to escape that, and just as excited at not only a shot to get her mech back, but a perfect chance to show this bitch just why she deserved to pilot it, Abigail quickly latched onto Christina's brilliant suggestion. "You're on! There couldn't be any better way of showing who'll make the best use of it than to put us in the sims, each piloting the Heracles and see who outperforms the other against a host of enemies," The blonde's face was practically beaming at this point, as she continued breathlessly explaining. "I've got faith in myself, and I'm not afraid to put everything on the line to back it up. What about you? If you don't think that set-up's fair, I'm willing to listen to any counter-proposals you might have. Tell me what you'd consider a proper way for me to 'Earn it', as you put it earlier." Edited October 2, 2017 by Balcerzak Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dandragon Posted October 2, 2017 Share Posted October 2, 2017 A competition? Really? She didn't get it. She didn't get what Elaine was trying to say to her. Maybe she should have been more forward with her words, but in her mind, Abigail had to figure it out for herself. Redemption. That is what she was looking for, and that is what she wanted her blonde counterpart to do as well. It didn't matter the number of bad guys you downed at the end of the day, because that was what everyone was doing. Then again, Elaine was still trying to find the people who attacked Colony 2 those two years ago, as if taking them out would make her anything better in the eyes of society. It was her own uncertainty, perhaps, that left her 'advice' so vague towards someone in a similar situation. She didn't know the answer. And Elaine's crime was attempting to steal military tech. That and...failing. Failing to protect. "...Fine." She said, regardless of how pointless she felt it was. If anything, it was a way to prove that she wasn't a useless pilot, and that she had some merit to her abilities. She could prove that to everyone...including herself. "The simulation room can be set up for it. We'll do it tomorrow. Now...If you could let go of my arm, Christina." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nanami Touko Posted October 2, 2017 Share Posted October 2, 2017 Phew! Christina could only sigh, shaking her head. She was glad this hadn't turned into a fight in the cafeteria, but couldn't she have come up with a better idea? This seemed fine... And she was pretty confident that Abby could beat Elaine, if it came down to her own robot, but... It still felt kinda silly. Why doesn't she just give it up? We have a few extra Legionary models, and the Phalanx ran well enough... If Elaine was in that, she'd have the crew's backup, too. Wouldn't have been a death sentence like with Abby... Chrissy realized then why she was stepping in on this. She felt bad for the ex-rebel. Lose her family, lose her life, get tossed into a crowd of people that hate your guts and have to fight on your own in a foreign machine just to show her worth. Even for what she did, Christina knew that the rebels weren't the ones that were going around killing civvies on the Colony... While that probably didn't matter to Elaine, or anyone else, it mattered to her. It was still terrible... But until Apotheosis started shooting, their plans were just a hostile takeover, not to harm any of the people there. They still did help them... So it probably doesn't matter. She sighed, again. This was a lot to think about. That's when she noticed Firmia scowling, double taking between the situation and the girl, before heading over to her. "S-Sorry about all of that... Some people, right? Er... I just wanted to ask, did you wanna do anything later? That was a pretty rough battle, and... Well, we could all use a break, right?" Training Regiment Tristan had come into the gym and started on one of the treadmills across the room from all the simulation fun, but he couldn't keep his eyes off of Kim's console. The display showed her fighting... Someone intimidating looking. It was enough to get him to pause his workout and step over, and by the time he'd gotten there, he was fairly worried. Even if these simulations didn't have direct effects to the body, getting killed in them was still a shock. One that would likely do nothing to someone of Kim's age and fitness, but... To call it pleasant was far and away. "Why is she setting herself up against her, of all people?" This was... Dangerous. He was tempted to cut the run, but, also tempted to watch and see how the lieutenant fared. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ether Posted October 2, 2017 Share Posted October 2, 2017 Well, it was now or never. Stepping out from behind her cover with the MA37 in firing position, Seung-Min unloaded the clip into her simulated opponent, sweeping across the torso and head... even if her limbs were impervious to bullets, it was unlikely she could cover the entirety of her torso quickly enough to escape damage. As she opened fire, the simulation began to defend, though as she had predicted, at this distance human reaction times weren't enough to escape damage from an automatic rifle... her chest, neck and head were protected, but several rounds shredded through the woman's stomach, causing her to stagger somewhat, though not enough, it would seem. Re-orienting her defense and using her katana as additional coverage, the half-machine woman began to charge through the hail of incoming fire with astounding speed despite her wounds... armoured beyond belief and well past human ability, what kind of monster was this woman? The distance closed too quickly to consider much. Discarding the MA37 as it's clip emptied, Kim hurled the empty rifle at Vera's incoming form. It was swiftly sliced in half whilst in mid-air, but reloading at this range wasn't feasible, and it gave enough of a distraction to draw her combat knife in time to meet Vera's first swing. It was heavy, deliberate... not exactly slow, but not as fast as one would expect coming from those monstrous robotic limbs. Perhaps it was simply a part of her style, but it was one Kim was appreciative of. Parrying the force to her side with her dagger, the Lieutenant managed to evade the incoming blow, her own reaction times more than sufficient to keep up, but the power behind the swing was enormous. Kim could feel her arms shake under the weight of the blow, and as the second strike came she was already put heavily on the defensive. There was no way to gain offensive presence with this knife, not against a weapon with that much length and striking power. The best she could do was deflect the incoming blows and look for an opening, but despite tinges of pain running across the face of the simulation, the stomach wound from her earlier volley wasn't sapping this woman's strength anywhere near enough. Space, she needed space, fighting in close quarters like this was getting her nowhere. Taking advantage of a small break away following a parried katana swing, Kim launched a hard kick at the simulation, abruptly blocked by a robotic arm rather than being taken to the throat, but allowing the Lieutenant enough time to create a small gap, and snatch another gun off of the armoury shelf. Immediately leveling the firearm at Vera, Seung-Min unloaded both barrels of the shotgun she had grabbed, peppering Vera with buckshot. Her long coat was torn to shreds from the blast, but the damage was superficial at best. Using the gun as another blunt throwing weapon, Kim reached backwards and grabbed the hilt of an officer's sword that had caught the corner of her eye, bringing the Hwando down on Vera's katana with a clash. Easily parried, as expected. But it was offensive momentum. Bringing the curved blade around for a second assault, rather than parry the swing, Vera stood firm, using her superior strength to easily stop the blade and hold it at a deadlock. One that didn't last long, Kim's momentum only lasting for so long before Vera's overwhelming force began to overpower the delicate balance of their blades, forcing Seung-Min to take a step backwards. And then another, and another. Scowling at her opponent, Kim feinted backwards, allowing Vera's blade to fall forward, taking a swing at the woman's neck... which was easily stopped by her robotic arm and shoved aside, Kim losing the grip on her sword in the process, ripped away by Vera's superhuman strength. Before she could even draw her knife, the punch came from Vera as she rose, Seung-Min barely evading the blow as she backed away, grabbing the last gun on this shelf. A pistol, much like her own in reality. How fitting. Ducking beneath the katana as it aimed for her throat, Kim threw herself backwards and leveled the gun at Vera, flicking the firing more to stun. It was worth a shot, after all. Taking the shot, the electrified round crashed into Vera's metallic leg... and did nothing to stop her. Well, not nothing, exactly. The display was enough to elicit a chuckle from the simulation. It wasn't a lot of time, but it was enough to change the firing mode back to normal. So the only hope was to land a decisive blow before she was closed on and taken down... a daunting prospect to be certain. Not impossible, but in a situation like this... unlikely. Taking her first shot... it was easily blocked by the blade. Vera took a step forward, into the second shot. Blocked with her left arm. Third, fourth, fifth... nothing. Vera's katana came down like lightning, and Seung-min's face contorted in anguish as her left arm was severed from her body just above the elbow. "Ghak...!" The lieutenant cried out momentarily, leveling her gun and taking her sixth shot. A hit. By gods it was a hit, but it wasn't enough, Biting into Vera's shoulder, the half-machine woman staggered back with a grimace, before committing to her final charge. This was over, there was no way to survive now. But maybe... Reaching down to her belt, Kim pulled the pin on her one remaining grenade, and rushed towards Vera, towards her weaker, wounded side. The charge was cut short, Vera re-angling her sword to sink into Kim's chest, the Lieutenant hocking a mouthful of blood onto Vera's face as she was impaled, shoving her one remaining hand at Vera's own chest, pressing the cooking grenade into the apotheosis agent. As it detonated, everything went black... Kim awoke from the simulation with a start, jumping up to a sitting posture from the bed panting, her heart racing. Gods, what was that woman? Could those projections be accurate? Surely they were overestimating her... right? No... she couldn't just convince herself of that without any evidence... 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Shin Posted October 2, 2017 Share Posted October 2, 2017 "My first live exercise was four days ago. Before then I had practiced with simulations for approximately two years. The transition was smoother than I had expected." Tarquin replied, deciding that it would be best to conceal his reaction to his first major injury. His actual field experience had been relatively limited, it was perhaps a testament to both his genetics and motivation that he'd performed as well as he had. "I'm certain that your prior experience should be beneficial to your ability..." He paused at the mention of another person, turning around slowly to see Nikolai. He was less cautious than Makoto, Tarquin didn't share the same uneasiness that the rest of the crew did. Admittedly, Nikolai had a whole host of reasons to scare people away, namely his behaviour and odour, but Tarquin at least didn't take too much issue with the former. "That's Nikolai, he's one of my friends." Tarquin replied, beckoning Nikolai to join them. Technically he was half of Nikolai's friendship circle, but at this rate he could even be down to a quarter by the time Tarquin reached 15. "He's another one of the pilots, he was a crucial part of our tactic to draw out the enemy during our last mission." - "No questions from me, I'm as content as a giraffe on stilts." Bill laughed, watching as Valerie prepared her cleaning solution. That was the part of medical work he could get behind - cleaning a wound wasn't that different from cleaning a floor. His accident had been a little unfortunate, but there hadn't been too much harm done. "Good to hear I'm not making you lot run around too much. "I'd have expected you'd have seen more action on such a busy ship, but it's good nobody else got too busted up. I do wonder about how some of the folk are faring. Must be tough battle after battle, none of them seem like bludgers, hope none of them get burned out." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
scorri Posted October 2, 2017 Share Posted October 2, 2017 Astin chuckled and gave Juria a gentle pat on the shoulder. "You're doing great, with English and with the simulators. English isn't exactly an easy language so..." They trailed off, glancing over at Kim's simulator, having been distracted by the Ensign heading over. Catching sight of who she was fighting right before she died, Astin blanched. Why is she in that... How did they get so much information on her already? We've seen her once... Maybe Hannah? Shaking themself, they turned back to Juria, and tried to smile. "You have plenty of time to practice, yeah. Do you still need me to help you? I was planning on going and talking to someone," Someones really but one at a time... "but if you need me to stay, I can stay a bit longer." ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Val quietly chuckled as she listened to the man while cleaning off his head. He certainly had an interesting way of talking, but also just generally seemed to be a nice person. She numbed the area around the cut after she was sufficiently pleased with the cleanliness of the site, and waited for him to be done before commenting, "Ok, I've numbed the area. You should feel some tugging on your skin, it's an odd sensation, but hopefully you shouldn't feel much pain. If it does hurt, let me know and we can try and numb the area more." She didn't really need any comments from him about the situation, so without waiting for a response, she started to carefully stitch up the wound. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sandalphon Posted October 3, 2017 Share Posted October 3, 2017 Nikolai's head perked up at the mention of his name, the confirmation that well... he had to do something. The other boy didn't seem to take the person before them as a threat, so he figured that playing nice would probably be alright. Besides, if anything were to go wrong he figured he knew more than enough ways to incapacitate a person and that was before even getting to the squishy bits. He slunk forward, his gait and demeanour very similar to an oversized opossum that had been coaxed out of a dumpster and taught to walk on its hind legs as he slouched uncomfortably. How the fuck were introductions supposed to work again? He tried to twist his face into a facsimile of a smile, although he was pretty sure the effect was less non-threatening supplicant behaviour and more akin to a mangy stray baring its teeth and raising its hackles. This is the face you pull when making friends, right? This is friendship face? This is socially acceptible greeting face. He tended a hesitant hand forward, simultaneously limp and somehow incredibly stiff in its movements. He hoped that maybe the other person would not notice the slightly dingy, grimy yellow of his overgrown nails, though this was less out of shame and more out of precaution at having another potential weapon discovered before he had the chance to use it. "Name is Nikolai..." He muttered, his eyes focusing uncomfortably on the other's, "is good to meet... und du, wer bist du?" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Balcerzak Posted October 3, 2017 Share Posted October 3, 2017 Well, that was a good deed done. Thorvald smiled, as both Buck and Hannah seemed to have regained a bit of cheer. The smile thinned and vanished though at the not-so veiled references to Avery's leg. There hadn't been a bomb this time, thankfully, but, a quick glance at Hannah's condition would have been more than enough to remind someone, especially a victim, of things they didn't want to remember. He hadn't picked up on her earlier exit, what had he been occupied with? It didn't matter really... The question was if there was anything to be done going forward, or to just let her work on recovering by herself. Settling the android down on the bench, Thorvald watched Buck begin to get to work. There was really nothing further he could do here, the finer bits of mechanical tomfoolery were quite beyond him. He gave a salute to the pair, mostly in cheery jest, and said, "Looks like my role here is finished. You need some more heavy lifting, just give me a buzz, alright? And try not to give each other too much of a hard time now." Finishing with a cheery grin, he turned and headed back to his room, a kernel of an idea forming as he walked the halls. Back in his room, he fished through a few of his things. After a minute or two, having located everything he'd been looking for, Thorvald scrawled a short hand-written note, affixed it with tape, and was off to make a delivery. Luckily, the mechanics' rooms were in the other corridor, so he was less likely to bump into anyone he recognized and have to answer any questions, but then again, it's not like there was even anything to hide. Arriving at his destination, it was obvious straight away the owner was present, from the light leaking out from under the door, which was tightly closed. Avery probably didn't want company, and he could respect that, so he just set his delivery down to the side, knocked lightly twice, and then rounded the corner back the way he came. What exactly was the package, one might ask? Simple enough, nothing too elaborate. An unopened bottled of whiskey, a shot glass placed upside down over the cap, and a note reading, "Take two of these and call me in the morning. Stay well, Thorvald." It worked. It fucking worked! Her bot was as good as hers again, she was thrilled. Abigail no longer cared that Elaine still seemed a bit huffy, and the thought that she'd misunderstood anything was so far from her mind it was probably on vacation in the next galaxy over. "Tomorrow it is, I'll be there," she confirmed, before furiously finishing up her cheesy noodle concoction. The party had pretty much split at this point, with Christina heading off to go bother that new Russian girl. With Jess having asked her to keep a relatively low profile, though, Abby certainly wasn't going to go over and try to make friends or introductions even. Too much to risk. So even though she couldn't give Chrissy the thanks she certainly deserved, there was nothing left for her to do in the cafeteria, so she decided to head back to the quarters. On her way to the lift, she tried to remember where Jess had told her to meet up so they could go for a soak together, the captain being there to take any unwanted heat off her if anyone else showed up. She'd be relaxing in her room, right, after dealing with the new arrivals? That sounded like what she'd remembered, so she headed for the room at the head of the hall, only to find it empty? Small frown. She must have forgot. Nothing a quick text message wouldn't solve. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nanami Touko Posted October 3, 2017 Share Posted October 3, 2017 (edited) Hard Times in Simuland Tristan jumped, but was ready to brace Kim if she needed it. The shock of dying in the simulation had likely done her heart no good... At least, for his viewing, the simulation digitized anything you lost into code immediately upon losing it. Even if that loss was your life... So he didn't have to see Kim sized gore splattering the room. Unfortunately for the pilot... "She survived," he commented, watching the screen, which promptly displayed a 'Game Over', and... The Apotheosis Lieutenant, burned, and damaged, but clearly still alive. "I didn't catch how, but we should be able to see in replay... If you were curious enough to find out. Still... Was this a quirk of the machine loading information, or did you set this up yourself? Lieutenant, while it is useful to get some of this in practice, I cannot stress how dangerous dying in these machines can be for your body... You're young, you're healthy, but... Still." He sighed, hands at his waist, trying not to seem too judgemental. For someone equipped with the bare minimum, managing to damage even the simulation of such a creature was impressive... But she wouldn't get second chances in real life. Message in a Bottle Avery didn't want to see anyone... Maybe it was Astin, though. She slowly opened her door somewhat, seeing no one... A quick peak around told her there was no one waiting to surprise her, either. Looking down... She saw the bottle, read the note, and smirked. She took it, and left the shot glass. She wouldn't be needing it. Text Received, Plans Stalled Jess was smiling in her chair, pleasantly tapping her fingers, and thinking she was forgetting something... When she received a message from the hangar. Now that Buck wasn't stuck helping limbless downstairs with Thorvald, he had one thing left to address. "Jess! Halt the damn boat!" "Wha... Why?" That was odd. Why didn't he want them moving...? "Sorry if you missed it, but, Roxanna's got us on orders to collect scrap from the fight. Good to restock our remaining metal, check out the base, and see if we can salvage any cool tech from these Apoth machines." "...Oh. Oh, right... I'm so sorry! It totally slipped my mind... Hahaha." Ahhh, what a silly mistake. Well, it wasn't like she was entirely fixed. She was still going to make mistakes. "Captain to the bridge, halt the ship's moving. The hangar crew has to collect from the battle, and that'll likely take some time." "Aye, ma'am." "Thanks, Jess! Have a good one!" Buck promptly hung up, and Jess sighed-- as her pad went off. "Who is it now...? Wha... From Abby... R-Right! Shoot." Jess quickly sent a text back with,'yes, one moment', and turned on the ship's speakers. "To all pilots and crew, I'm going to be visiting the pool with some others. If anyone else is feeling like relaxing after a hard battle, while the ship collects scrap, please, feel free to come along. Captain Gefalscht, over." Jess smiled to herself, and closed the system. "For the bridge, if Ensign Calvin or XO Martinson return, they're in charge until I get back. Otherwise, park the ship above the base, and let the maintenance crew get to work on gathering whatever's available. "Aye... Aye, ma'am." Some of the bridge was very clearly stunned by the captain, and her... Her everything, but her orders were clear, and still on point. No one objected. "Right..." With one more message to Abby, of 'I'm coming down, now', she stepped out of her chair and headed off. She'd need to grab something proper to wear... Probably less risque than with Brant. Edited October 3, 2017 by SnakeMomMelissa Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phoenix Posted October 3, 2017 Share Posted October 3, 2017 (edited) Some people. Firmia could certainly agree with that, even if she herself was too cranky to avoid pointless confrontations at the moment. Maybe once she got some rest. "You're not their boss," Firmia closed her eyes in frustration, "at least I don't think you are, so there's no reason to apologize for them." Firmia could have said more, but Christina's invitation to essentially hang out caught the young Alkaev off guard. Did she not have friends? Or did she think Firmia was the one short on friends? Or maybe it was thanks for loaning her the coat. That made the most sense to her at the moment. "Erm," Firmia spoke before she'd actually thought of what to say. She'd decided that, provided she got some sleep first, she wouldn't mind, but now she was too drowsy to think quickly, and it was starting to show. Firmia nodded, "Sure. Just later, like you said." She had to keep her teeth clinched to avoid yawning. She'd never been around anyone besides her family members or helpers while being so close to toppling over. It was a little embarrassing. "Right now I really need--" she stopped as a message came over the intercom, from the captain, herself. It was an invitation to the pilots. "What?!" Firmia was beside herself as she imagined pilots splashing around while the ship's salvage teams picked through the ruins. "She's having a pool party? Now?!" She looked to Christina, desperate confusion on her face, "She's not actually inviting all the pilots to the pool, right?! There are some still on standby, right?!" There had to be some pilots on standby. A ship didn't need its captain present for every little incident, but with no pilots ready to sortie in a reasonable time frame, they were vulnerable. Were they severely short on pilots or something? She could almost overlook the issue ... if not for Apotheosis' teleportation devices. It was too good a setup not to abuse at some point, especially given how ineffective their normal attacks seemed to be. Firmia didn't realize it until well after the fact, but she'd half grabbed, half draped her hand and water bottle over Christina's left shoulder sometime after she began pleading for answers. Once she did notice, she carefully but quickly pulled her hand back. "You have a pool, here?" Tonya asked, eyeing Brant, "Damn, I should have packed like Firmia did." Brant nodded. "Yeah, it's a good size, too." He ought to know, having been there oh so recently. "I thought you were just 'passing through,'" Sasha smirked at Tonya. "And now you see why," Tonya made a gesture with her hand, "This isn't a battleship, it's a vacation from Siberia, beckoning like a bunch of chippendales." Edited October 3, 2017 by Phoenix Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dandragon Posted October 3, 2017 Share Posted October 3, 2017 She had barely just finished her food when the loud speakers came on. She had just placed her tray on top of the others when the announcement ended. Relaxing, huh? It had been a while since she was able to swim, and she definitely needed time to relax after everything. And it would give her more time to reflect. Elaine smiled, thinking about how much she enjoyed being underwater, and how safe she felt when she was. How comfortable she was. It didn’t take much to convince her. Elaine was soon off towards the pool. The last time she had been there it was only with Kim, and at that point she had nearly bawled her eyes out at her. Now, it was gonna be with a lot more, and it certainly wouldn’t feel as awkward as last time. No, this time, she was gonna enjoy yourself. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ether Posted October 3, 2017 Share Posted October 3, 2017 "Err... Ensign Calvin?" Kim confirmed, as the man started to speak with her. So he had been watching, but for how long? She supposed it didn't really matter, he had seen the important bit at the very least. Giving herself a light slap on the cheek as she removed the simulation helmet, the Lieutenant shook her head, though her visage grew into a scowl as Tristan affirmed that the simulated cyborg had survived the grenade blast. "Am okay. Didn't set up specific, just use max setting... didn't think about her maybe be in simulation already." She replied, looking up at Vera's smoking form on the screen. An announcement came over the PA from the Captain... going for a swim didn't seem like too bad an idea, the shock dissuading any further simulation attempts, at least for the moment. But there was something more important to take care of first. "Yeah, important try figure out how." Kim added, before flipping on the replay of the final battle. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nanami Touko Posted October 3, 2017 Share Posted October 3, 2017 Definitely Not The Boss "Oh, no... I'm probably the lowest ranking person on this ship. Likely because I wasn't a part of it when it took off..." She twirled a strand of hair idly, but smiled as Firmia said she'd be up for hanging out. "That's great! Yeah, later, you seem like you're--" Oh, Jess was making an announcement... Swimming, huh. Christina didn't know how into the idea of swimming she was, whyyyy was Firmia suddenly grappling with her shoulder? Oh... She was worried about that. "Uhh... I don't think Hannah is able to swim. And probably some of the guys won't come... I know she was all damaged, but, the repair staff here is... Frighteningly fast when it comes to fixing damage. I'd be surprised if Buck and Avery didn't have her up and walking within the hour." However the two managed their marvels, whether it was their own knowledge of the trade or the Riese's built in repair stations, it was impressive that all the damage their machines took simply... Disappeared. If they couldn't figured out replacement parts for Hannah, Christina would be shocked. Back on the issue at hand, mainly Firmia's, it seemed the girl had noticed her motion, swiftly retrieving her arm. Christina smiled sheepishly, gently putting a fist into her palm. "Right. Why don't we go too?" Elaine walked out right about then, probably going, herself. "You seem kinda tired, so you don't have to swim, but it'd be a good place to talk to some of the crew and relax, right? I think we have hot tubs... If anything, I'll go hide myself in one of those." She nodded, deciding on her course of action. "That's relaxing, right?" Christina looked back over at Abby, who-- Oh, she was gone too. When did she walk out? I gotta keep better track of people... Replay Material Tristan sighed at the mention of max settings, but it wasn't Kim's fault. The system must have taken the camera footage from her Velite at the time... And perhaps Hannah added her own personal data to the archive. When the replay went back through, Tristan pressing for slow motion, the Apotheosis Lieutenant's limbs all began to glow blue, dropping her weapon and curling them up in front of the grenade right as it went off... She was moving as though it was real time, while Kim's projection had been in time with the slow down. Tristan wondered it there was some glitch in the system, but perhaps there had been something in Hannah's data that indicated the woman's enhancements could function like this. In any case, they shielded her from the blast-- mostly. Enough that it wasn't close to fatal, while Kim... "That's a terrifying creature they have there," he remarked. "I'm not sure if her, or their machines, are more intimidating. I pale to think of what would happen were she able to get inside the Riese..." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ether Posted October 3, 2017 Share Posted October 3, 2017 Kim's scowl deepened at the replay... so these robotic limbs just started to glow, and then move at superhuman speeds to prevent the grenade blast from inflicting lethal damage? There had to be some basis to give her that ability in the sim, but it looked absurd, especially to see her move at full speed despite the rest of the clip being in slow motion. But then again, her arms felt like they had been hit by a semi truck from trying to weather those sword blows... if any of this was accurate then this woman would be a nightmare to deal with. Though when Tristan mentioned how scary it might have been were this woman to get on the Riese, Kim shook her head and rewound the replay to the initial burst of fire from the MA37, several bullets clearly impacting the cyborg's stomach. "Bad idea is what happen. Manage to wound on Colony... in all likely, just limbs replaced. Stomach at least still flesh. Cybernetic fast and durable, but human reaction time only so good, impossible cover all vitals at same time. Surround with assault weaponry, open fire. Force focus full defense every angle, impossible close distance without leaving self open. Didn't get enough shot in to disable instant, or last long enough bleed out, but only one soldier. Firing squad different story." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nanami Touko Posted October 3, 2017 Share Posted October 3, 2017 Firing Squad A firing squad would be a different story, would it? If Kim had managed to wound the Lieutenant on the colony, and even in the simulation, it could be plausible. Still... "That feels like a very obvious oversight to the design of her enhancements, especially if she's meant to be a one man army sort of killing machine... I'm sure she has a fail-safe for a situation like that, or... Or perhaps the simulation isn't as strong as she truly is. We only have one camera's footage and one android's experience, after all." He sighed, smiling a bit. "My apologies. I'm playing devil's advocate. I hope your assumptions are correct about her, and if we have to face her down, we do it behind several big guns... Go ahead and have fun with the rest, Lieutenant. I'm going to stay here and run myself through a few simulations." Let's see if the captain's the only one that can shoot like that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ether Posted October 3, 2017 Share Posted October 3, 2017 "Can't make infallible one man army if want remain human, Ensign. Long as flesh and blood somewhere, will be weak points. No doubt almost impossible beat monster like that alone, but one person only go so far. And if truly unbeatable, doesn't really matter what plan or prepare, may as well assume have chance to win." Kim replied, giving the Ensign a nod as he said he was going to run through a few sims as well, after suggesting she go and join the others at the pool. May as well, really. "Best luck, Ensign Calvin." She noted, before turning towards the exit of the gym. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xinnidy Posted October 4, 2017 Author Share Posted October 4, 2017 Hardly the Time for Levity So her not wanting to stay had to do with this Rex. Of course, the way it looks like from the report, he completely turned on them. "I have to agree that going out alone after somebody that might have the EU backing them is unwise, but you're not legally tied to us, I won't stop you." Roxanna shrugged, taking a good look at Brant right after. Now that was somebody that was tied to them, and with what Jessica had said... "You know, Brant, now that your situation has changed, it's best to come out with anything else you were told to keep quiet on." She had no idea how much he shared to Jessica personally, and had a small beef with that sudden relationship they seemed to be having, but that was neither here nor there. If he were to side with Jessica, it'd make sense for them to know how deep the baggage was... wait. "No need to go into detail if it is... sensitive information, of course." And there was the call for... what the-- "W-we do have a pool, but, uh..." Was now the best time for that? Honestly, Jessica... Roxanna sighed, bringing digits to massage her temples. "What a time to choose..." If it wasn't for the fact that she was pretty tired, Roxanna would not hesitate to criticize Jess right there and then, but she was pretty drained ever since the meeting... and Jessica was acting weird, not fun. "I... I'll be making sure they don't waste too much time there. After I make sure of your rooms... I'll get you one even if you decide to hit the road soon, too." Whatever, she was just going to oversee them, totally... no time for this silliness... Introduction to Human Bean "Four days ago?!" That was honestly... incredible. Were simulations getting this real and efficient? Sign Makoto right up! "S-so I guess I should get started too... man, I wish we had those at the Colony, if it helps this much." If only. Perhaps that was more his calling... well, no, he'd probably never think of it unless the attack happened. In times of peace, building the mechs always seemed more enticing. Weird how these things turned out. Guess I was going to pick up after Dad... I wonder how he's doing. Hopefully he was too important for Apotheosis to do mean things to. Hopefully... "Nikolai?" So that was the other boy's name... he was a friend of Tarquin's, despite his everything looking like the creepier rocker kid in the spaceship. W-well, if Tarquin trusted him, he couldn't be bad news, right? "H-hello!" He extended his hand in return, shaking Nikolai's hand with a much firmer grasp than intended. "I'm Makoto! Makoto Watanabe, from Colony 1! I'm, uh, staying on the ship kind of by accident, but I wanted to know if I could use the simulation machines!" He was still pretty intimidated by the boy. Why was he looking at him like that? Eep! A-and what had he just said? Wait, that was for Tarquin, wasn't it? "Huh... what languages do you guys know? At the colonies, we mostly just use english, but I learned japanese from my parents." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Balcerzak Posted October 4, 2017 Share Posted October 4, 2017 Oh no. She didn't. She did. It was supposed to have been a low profile, private soaking, but now what? Abigail sighed a little, as she made her way to her room to get changed. So much for a no worries, relaxing evening. With, maybe a bit of teasing. The captain seemed an easy mark, based on earlier. It would have been harmless fun, for both of them. Now though? Oh. Now there was another problem Abby hadn't considered. The ANF rooms didn't come equipped standard with any swimwear, just a few generic solid print shirts, slacks, and assorted other basic attire. Coupled with the fact that as far as luggage went, Abigail didn't even have the clothes she'd been brought in with left to her name... well this was going to be interesting. And another thing that would have been easier to laugh off alone with Jess. Now the red Tee she picked out to wear over a tight black tank, and the short jean shorts, would be yet another scarlet letter pointing out she was different from the rest of the crew. She'd probably look like a drowned rat, but Abigail would be damned if she wasn't still planning on having a good time tonight. She just hoped Elaine and Doyle wouldn't be there to laugh at her too loudly. That could get real old, real fast, and be incredibly hard to work past. Thorvald did enjoy a good swim, and some R&R certainly seemed to be in order. Maybe he could convince some of the others to join in a light game of water polo. They wouldn't be able to do full team matches, not by any means, but maybe a 2 vs 2? No point in ruling that out just yet. He stuffed his grey shirt, gym shorts, and towel into a bag along with his swim briefs and was quickly on his way to the pool. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nanami Touko Posted October 4, 2017 Share Posted October 4, 2017 Swim Swim Swim Swim Jessica had relented and settled on that frilly number she wore with Brant, not feeling like trying stuff on and keeping Abby waiting. She probably wasn't the first person there, but she didn't want to be, anyway. She had to offer something to Abigail. She didn't exactly come aboard with any extra clothes... So Jess stood herself outside of the pool and waited for the ex-rebel to come along by, not stopping anyone else that went in ahead of her. She hoped that one of these fit her... She's brought a few, just to make sure, and while Abby was taller and a bit more built, she wasn't that much bigger than Jess was. Hopefully it wasn't an issue just for the one time. Aiming Not on Point Tristan gave Kim a salute as she left, making his way over to the other simulation machines, and calibrating it to battleship settings. The Riese ironically didn't have a simulation of itself, but a Kraken would serve his purposes. He wanted to try and replicate Jessica's amazing aiming while the ship was in motion. The large cannons were already hard enough to lock down onto smaller targets while a ship was still... Sitting into the simulation chair, the surrounding screen changed into that of a typical ANF Kraken class bridge. Targets appeared at long ranged, and Tristan began calculating trajectories... Becoming rather shocked at the numbers he was getting. "Sh-She's really hitting things like this? While in motion? That's... That's mad..." The estimations for direct hits were below fifty percent, no matter how he sliced if. If he attempted to factor in the movement of a ship and the pilot correction that would take to account for, the chances lowered themselves to less than thirty-- and this was against ANF standard machinery! The test enemies were Velites, not anything enhanced like Apotheosis used. "Ugh... This is crazy. Now her being captain makes even less sense. She'd have been able to hold off an entire battalion with a proper turret if her shooting is this good." He grimaced, slowly taking the controls, and hitting start on the simulation. "But... No time like the present. If the captain can manage it, I can at least try!" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ether Posted October 4, 2017 Share Posted October 4, 2017 (edited) Exiting the gym and making a quick detour to her room, if they were to be swimming, well... there would be decisions to make. If she took too long making them though, that would ruin the whole point of trying to relax... deciding to grab the swimsuit from her last shoot, it would certainly do her well enough, as she headed to the change room at the pool. Once inside, Seung-Min donned the swimsuit she had selected, looking herself over as she finished to make sure she had recalled all of the pieces correctly. A slightly more frilled affair than a typical bikini, it was comprised of a solid black bottom beneath a loose skirt-wrap, comprised of a pastel blue-purple plaid, trimmed within an outline of more black cloth. It was short, and more an addition for fashion than additional modesty. The top was of similar look, the same checkered pattern cupping from beneath the bust and wrapping around back, supported not only by a halter tied behind her neck, but also by additional cloth wrapping around her back, the whole ensemble again trimmed in black to match the bottom, and topped with a fanciful bow on the front. The only thing remaining piece of note was purely cosmetic, a set of soft silken ribbon to accompany the swimsuit, in the same checkered plaid. It was rather comfortable, so Kim didn't mind it's addition, a small piece used to tie up her hair into a loose ponytail, and the rest tied up and around each of her legs in a helix, gently squeezing the skin as it criss-crossed across her calves and thighs, the ribbon tied into a small, tidy bow as it culminated near the bottom reaches of the loose skirt. And with that, everything seemed in order. Slipping into a pair of matching sandals that she likely wouldn't remain wearing for long, Kim stepped out of the change room and into the pool proper, wondering if anyone would actually show up or if the Captain would be hosting a mostly private pool party... speaking of the Captain, she had been silently waiting outside when Kim had arrived, and even after she had gotten her rather time intensive suit on, she was still waiting. For someone in particular? "Wait someone, Captain? You know, not good form invite everyone along if supposed be have secret pool date." The Lieutenant gently teased her Captain, gently spinning in place before leaning in towards Jessica with a light grin. Edited October 4, 2017 by Ether Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Juliette Posted October 4, 2017 Share Posted October 4, 2017 "Oh! Thank you, Astin friend." Juria hugged Astin's arm briefly, and was about to start back at the simulators before she heard the Captain call for a possible break. Although she considered it briefly, she shook her head. "No, Juria am fine. Will keep practice! Astin can go do anything. Have had enough time for being silly... oh, only one thing. If seeing Reo, send to me! Reo's company always appreciated, and will come to here if you say where am. Has programs to know boat. Thanking for all help, Astin. Good luck at swim if visit... or if not, still anyway good luck!" Jruai focused her eyes on the machine once again. "Three easy... Juria good at machines when in good set of mind and with practice! Now try... three... but with sword like Astin." Gripping the controls, she moved herself closer, the slightest smirk visible. [Astin, the Captain... when I'm done, everyone will know that I'm not just being an idealist trying to help!] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nanami Touko Posted October 4, 2017 Share Posted October 4, 2017 Secret Date "Huh? Hi, Kim... That's certainly an outfit. What's the occasion...?" This was just a casual pool thing, right? Kim was dressed like she was ready for a magazine cover... And of course, she was prepared to tease. "Yeah, Yeah... I'm just waiting for Abigail to give her some swimsuits to try on. The standard clothing provided in an ANF room doesnt cover swimwear. It'd be awkward for her to have to swim in regular clothing, wouldn't it? Oh, right. Sorry if I sound weird. Some stuff happened at the meeting, and... Well, no more stutter. For some reason." Even if this only lasted for one day, Jess was going to appreciate it. "I hope you enjoy swimming, lieutenant. The water was nice last time I tried it, and it's a good way for us all to wind down after that. We're stuck around here for a bit, anyway." Hopefully their salvage being finished would coincide with the swim ending. That'd be very convenient. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ether Posted October 4, 2017 Share Posted October 4, 2017 "Occasion? Just swim... well, suppose is bit fancy. Do model for magazine, ad, get keep suit after shoot. Not much reason buy more when give so many for work, but kind... high fashion? Think right phrase, for most people?" Seung-Min replied, pulling back up a bit and resting her finger on her chin as she considered the situation for a moment, eventually turning her head a bit and looking down at herself a few more times. "Not too much, is? Well, suppose not knock stutter back into Jessica, probably okay." Kim eventually noted with a nod, straightening back up as she did so. The Captain speaking so crisply was... certainly different. She had just lost her stutter like that in an instant, huh... a small twang of jealousy crossed Seung-Min for the briefest of moments, her own issues with English still readily apparent. "Seem really trust Abigail, Captain. Not exactly stranger idea, can read feeling, tend figure people very quick, but even I not usual quite quick as you. Make decide most call crazy, but always work out so far. Trust you, not doubt, but... curious. Must be some reason can come conclude so fast." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nanami Touko Posted October 4, 2017 Share Posted October 4, 2017 (edited) Trust Her as Far as She Can Throw Her So that's where this thing came from... Jess remembered that Kim had previously been an idol, before becoming a part of the ANF. This was just something left over from a photo shoot, then. It was certainly high class for a photo shoot. Almost a but much, but the top and bottom weren't exactly risque. Jess was mostly worried about that cross pattern on her legs... Was it too tight? Uncomfortable? She couldn't imagine wearing something like that for herself. She'd be picking at it trying to make sure it stayed on properly the whole time. "Oh. Abigail? Well, yeah... We shot down her men, but she's still willing to stick her neck out to help us. Even after the crew... Not all of you, but some of you, were pretty clear on not wanting to back her up if something bad happened." Jess didn't want to think about that sort of situation. She was just glad that Abby had gotten back unharmed. "And... Well this'll sound stupid, but when I first spoke to her, she... Didn't really come across as a bad person. Just someone that made the wrong choice and got caught up in something beyond her. I can't hold that against her if she's going to try and help us, now. It's... It's admirable, really. I'm really happy with her on board the ship." Jess smiled to accentuate her point, hoping it came across well enough to Kim. Edited October 4, 2017 by SnakeMomMelissa Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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