[b][i]Ashton and Flame[/i][/b] Ashton and Flame introduced themselves as well, with Ashton saying he's a close combat specialist and Flame saying he was a marksman... [b][i]Natasha Zhang[/i][/b] A few eye-blinks as Natasha saw that the 'Star Marine' named Avelyn was a mind-reader. That ought to be useful, as well as a source of anxiety for her as, well, she valued her privacy. Either way, it seemed as though some members of the group were disappointed by how there [i]wasn’t[/i] a fight today, so it was best to drop the bombshell. She cleared her throat further and spoke, “Either way, now that we’ve all gathered here, it is time to get in contact with Moonstrike One and ask her for our mission briefing. Any objections?” A few seconds of waiting, and then Natasha pressed a button on the table’s edge, a button which turned on the holographic projector at the center of the meeting room table. As it lit up with soft blue-white light, the projector displayed a symbol of a moon and two crossed longswords shaped like an ‘X’ underneath. "This is Moonstrike's symbol," Natasha said. "Kinda fancy, isn't it?" A voice, clearly female, but modulated to be more artificial, then sounded from the holographic symbol - Natasha still found that eerie and suspected that 'Moonstrike One' had seen too many old-style (and thus censored) Space Opera films. Either way, it was time to suppress her skeptical sense of humor (as she saw it) so that she and her crew can finally receive their first mission. "Ahem," 'Moonstrike One' said, "[i]As I was saying[/i], greetings to all of you, Star Marine and Freedom Fighter both. I am glad you have chosen to join us to fight for the freedom and liberty of all Humanity against the stifling hand of the Ascendancy and its tyranny. Now, as many of you are eager for your first mission, let me jump straight to it so that we can finally start your part in the struggle for freedom." The display changed to a planet with two vast supercontinents, very few mountains, and vast green plains. "This is the world of Agri-World of Plenty, a planet once dedicated to producing foodstuffs for the Ascendancy of Man, but which has now rebelled due to the higher taxes imposed by the President-for-Life. We have been providing the rebels with salvaged weaponry from 'lost' Ascendancy arsenals from the recently-concluded War, including crude surface-to-orbit cannons, as well as more sophisticated prototype vehicles like the Kirin - The Xuanzang's ground vehicle. This has been having an effect in cutting off the flow of food to the Ascendancy military -" [b][i]Ashton and Flame[/i][/b] Ashton raised his hand and said, "Moonstrike One, forgive me for interrupting, but I notice you didn't mention the civilian impact - Is there any?" Flame said, "If there is any, you don't have to sugarcoat it - We're soldiers, after all." Moonstrike One continued, simply nonplussed, "There are many Agri-Worlds dedicated to civilian production. Food is being diverted from there to the Core while the Frontier Worlds are largely self-sufficient, including Natasha's own Qingdao." Flame nodded and said coldly, "We'll take your word for it." Ashton, meanwhile, looked at Nero, knowing full well the other boy would be exasperated at this interruption. So he said in turn, "We have no more questions, yes." "Thank you," Moonstrike One continued. "Either way, there is a Prison Ship called the [i]Circle of Hell[/i] which has been brought down over the planet of Plenty. In that Prison ship lies one of our members, a Renegade AI called Realist, and we must retrieve him from the Prison Ship's crash site - In Peanuthaven, one of the few hilly regions of the planet - Before the Ascendancy sends a team to retrieve him. And so, that is your first mission - The reward for retrieving Realist is [i]another[/i] hundred million dollars in addition to your regular salaries of 20,000 galactic credits every week, and yes, we do know about your recent financial transactions." [b][i]Natasha Zhang[/i][/b] "We have free choice as to what route to take, then?" Natasha asked Moonstrike One. She then faced the 'Star Marines' and her fellow crewfolk, and said, "Because if so, I'd like to pick the shortest route to Plenty possible - The Garden Route." The Garden Route led to the planet of Maiden's Reach, a planet whose flora and fauna was so beautiful that 'collectors' from all over Ascendancy Space would come over to pick flowering trees and shrubs and exotic pets. While Maiden's Reach didn't have Wyverns, it did have Psuedo-wolves, noble canine creatures that oozed an intoxicating perfume from their pores and whose teeth can tear through meta-material plastics and metals. "Maybe we can 'poach' a few 'Big Dogs' on the way..." she muttered. [b][i]Ashton and Flame[/i][/b] Ashton noted, "What's the long route, then? And why is it so inconvenient?" "Yes," Flame said, "We need to know all our options - And in my understanding, the short route is also the most dangerous one precisely because it's so short. I mean, poachers could be waiting for us near Maiden's Reach, right?" [b][i]Natasha Zhang[/i][/b] Natasha gave it some thought and said, "There's a longer route to Plenty, but I heard there are more ships - Traders and a few military folk, mostly - Passing through it for some reason. I don't know why, which in turn is a mystery." She sighed and said, "So, which way do you all want to go? And would you like to ignore the 'safe route' as I do?" [@Letter Bee][@Th3King0fChaos][@The Man Emperor][@Landaus Five-One][@FalloutJack][@Conscripts][@dragonpiece][@Starlance][@supertinyking][@samakama]