[center][h1][color=silver]Lucius[/color][/h1][/center]

His probing attempt to see if the others could hear him was certianly panning out well enough in terms of giving him an understanding of his situation. Sure it was revealing himself as the neutral party in all of this, and his location was already on the map, but it was certainly a better situation than nothing....he hoped. Because hindsight after he'd already chimed in over the general comms was certainly one thing, but another was deciding what to do from here. How to juggle these responses as they came in and he was put in a more tenuous, but perhaps more salageable, position than he'd already been in at the start of this. 

Well, first thing was first and he'd have to start first with the first response he heard over the comms:

[quote=Curse of Ra]"This is Mema-Ka, pilot of the Raptor. Identify yourself. We may provide you with with aid if you align yourself with strike force Apple. Make your way to designation U-15 to make your intentions clear, failure to do so we shall regard you as an adversary. Over and out." He said in a firm but polite manner, he wasn't trying to sound intimidating or aggressive, just speaking in a matter of fact manner.[/quote]

And that was coming from Team Apple, from one Mema-Ka in particular, so that'd be the team to his south if he went on the displayed map. Seemed to be confident in his tone and manner, talking rather matter-of-factly, and firm but not oppressive. A sort of team leader type perhaps? Depended on his spot in the formation, but it was some kind of assumption to make based on what info he had thus far. Channel he was calling from was also that of Team Apple, so it matched with what he'd said at least. 

[quote=Some Cheerful Positivity]Figuring the pilot was inexperienced, she chimed in to the general chat: "Oh, are you the new guy I saw earlier? I thought maybe Lorenzo had sent someone new into the other team last minute. Everyone can hear you on this channel, so if you wanna talk to your team you gotta use a different frequency!"[/quote]

The voice made a few things clear at least. The pilot was younger, closer in age to himself perhaps. Female for sure. Cheerful enough in tone, at least from his perspective, and yet he couldn't recall having been able to see much of anyone on the way in either. She had seen him earlier? He was a touch confused on that one, but overall it seemed to be chatter coming from Team Mango's channel all the same. So she could be pinned down as being from that team if nothing else. 

[quote=King Of The Legendary Basement]"Dame Gene, I do think we're not facing with one, but two surprise additions. An entirely new team, Banana, is...a different set of parameters. Allow me to make a little guess. It seems you've gotten a rough landing, friend. Smack in the middle of a crossfire between two teams of Framewerk pilots. I do dread of what you have done...to unsettle our Executive Officer for such fate. But alas, we're not the enemy. Yet. Could I perhaps ask of you to move aside in this battle?, or even better, if you are eager to test yourself, perhaps we can reach some sort of settlement to peruse your skills and your framework. Quid pro Quo, hm? What do you say?" Astolfo said in his most honeyed and corteous voice. This wasn't a battle where lives would be wagered, so a little nicety could be spared. The new addition did look a bit like a deer in the headlight.[/quote]

A voice sickly sweet with a honeyed voice and courteous tone, feeding lines of sympathy in his direction whilst laying it on just well enough to tickle the ears and tickle the potential of allying with...the side of the battlefield wherein lied Team Mango. Yes, that was where this chatter originated from it seemed. It was the kind of voice he felt like he'd associated with the sort he'd met enough times as part of the pilot prep program back home: A [i]politician[/i], trying to sway him and use him and the other program participants as publicity for their running politican campaign or otherwise. 

After that? A data packet from Team Mango, which was itself a touch peculiar, and a response from Team Apple's side of things alongside a voice he hadn't heard before coming from that side of things. Beyond that, he hadn't seen or heard any other sort of chatter headed his way...no one else talking to him...hmm. So it was time to make a decision, and a snap one at that when the battle would start. 

One side, promising cooperation but silently and overtly threatening for his cooperation lest they hold him accountable as an enemy. The other, bearing a kinder voice and yet another one that had the bearing of a politicians trying to win him over with the carrot rather than the stick. That plus a bit of trackable banter and image sharing, it seemed, sealed enough of the situation in an apparent manner. It would be obvious and far more instinctive to pick the side that offered him the carrot rather than the stick, to take up as an ally rather than bending a knee to danger and threats. It made enough sense as it was, but even so...hmm...

There was no perfect way to handle the situation. So he'd have to work with what he knew, and what he had, in the heat of the moment. And it seemed that Team Apple had a giant and loaded weapons platform while the other had a giant robot with an equally as giant hammer to boot. 

Lucius would flip his comms channel over, selecting [s]Meme-kun, wait I mean-[/s] Mema-ka and the Team Apple channel to send a text-based message to while ensuring that Team Mango could not hear him. 

[color=silver][i]This is pilot Lucius Sterling. It is good to make your acquaintance, Mema-ka, though regarding me like an adversary might come in handy if you're open to a little gamble here. My goal is to survive to win, and the other side seems to be friendly so far to boot. Naturally it'd make sense for a new pilot to panic and run to open arms like theirs. 

So I suggest that is what I do, and that you treat me like an adversary from the start until I've run well into their back lines to 'join them'. From there, you get a double agent once you give me a signal to me privately over comms, to start shooting and the main lines get tied up in combat. We'd still have to sell the idea I'm your enemy well enough, but not so much I can't take action back there.

What do ya' say?

I'll even call Team Mango back right now as if I'm joining them as I send this, but I'll need your answer ASAP before we start or not.'[/i][/color]

[@Dezuel]

Was it a bad idea? Yes. The worst possible choice to gamble on if this team wanted to win, but they seemed....focused. Directed. Less chatter, more sighting in guns. And in any case he was goiung to simultaneously enter Team Mango comms to talk again while he sent his message to Mema-ka all the same. A little multi-tasking, if one will, to try to make sure his tracks were somewhat covered. Though in any case, his survival wasn't a guarantee and it seemed that Lorenzo wanted him to scramble in this scenario as compensation for his very arrival. 

However, he'd go down at least trying to do something. One simulation battle be damned, he would at least try to do something on his feet in the heat of all of this mess. So he'd enter Team Mango comms to address one Buggy Bugatti of a prince in good time. 

[color=silver]"A 'rough landing' would be putting it lightly...the old fruit bat seems to be grumpy enough today as it is just from my arriving here. Even so, I'm listening if you have an offer or a spot for me. The other guys threatened me to move to U-15 if I want to not get shot by them already, and I don't think I'm going to get much of a warm welcome over there as it is.

Er...just let me know your terms before we start."[/color]

[@AtomicNut]

Wasn't hard to channel some real uncertainty in his own voice, and to let out his frustrations from the Professor, so it all came out as naturally as breathing air. Smooth. Maybe. In any case, he was trying to let the bit come out naturally, rather than sell it too hard, and he had anonymity and such on his side as much as he had it against him in this situation. Albeit it all made him wish he had the chance to eat his new chocolate bar before this as a snack at this point in time, however it all went down in the end.