[center][img]https://i.imgur.com/q4au2SQ.png[/img][/center]
[center][hider=Connie and Mia Stats]
[center][color=DarkOrchid][h2]Connie[/h2][/color]
3 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 3
5 | 4 | 6 | 22 | 5

Oddball: Nightmares | Tentacles 

Enhanced Weapon | Power Artifact | Mystic Artifact | Ally | Interdimensional Home

Focused |  Mental Link | Hidden Death | Mana Font | Mystic Might

Alien Mind | Formless | Rival Force | Clueless

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[center][color=SpringGreen][h2]Mia[/h2][/color]
3 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 3
5 | 8 | 7 | 22 | 5

Wood | Barrage 

Enhanced Weapon | Dual Weapon | Purification Artifact | Big Red Button

Blessing | Divine Competence | Gifted Item | Mana Font | Mystic Might

Rites| Arrogance | Big Brother | Clueless
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[center][img]https://img.roleplayerguild.com/prod/users/11844121-70b4-40d4-8d27-6274ede736b1.png[/img][/center]

Connie, Gaia, and Violet followed Penny as she led them to the Pennybot command room. Upon reaching a T-intersection, the Mechanical Monarch informed them that she had a separate room prepared for Violet, so as to conceal her presence from prying eyes.

[color=BlueViolet]“Thank you for the accommodation, Penny,”[/color] the heiress said with an appreciative smile. [color=BlueViolet]“I believe a private room shall prove most conducive to maintaining my anonymity.”[/color] Turning to Connie and Gaia, she added, [color=BlueViolet]“Until next we meet, I wish you both the best of luck.”[/color]

[color=DarkOrchid]“G-Good luck t-to y-you, t-too!”[/color] Connie stammered as she waved a trembling hand at the departing heiress.

With that, the trio split up to their respective chambers and workstations. However, while Gaia seemed right at home in the ultra-tech command chair, despite her botanical, nymph-like appearance, Connie felt no small amount of trepidation at being placed in such a seemingly important role. Even after a short tutorial helped her to grasp the basics of the chair’s user interface, the masked maiden still felt very much out of her element. After all, she had never played many video games, and what she would be doing here would have major, real life repercussions. Sensing this, Gaia set up a private communications link with her timid friend in order to provide some encouragement.

[color=SpringGreen]“Worry not, little sister,”[/color] the verdant maiden’s soothing voice spoke over the headset. [color=SpringGreen]“I know this all seems quite overwhelming, but you needn’t take full command right away. In fact, if you would like, I can oversee our assigned units’ combat functionality myself, while you simply watch over the combat zone and alert me to any impending threats or new developments. How does that sound?”[/color]

[color=DarkOrchid]“O-Okay,”[/color] Connie replied, mustering up her resolve. [color=DarkOrchid]“I-I’ll do my b-best!”[/color]

Gaia smiled. [color=SpringGreen]“Then let us begin.”[/color] 

While the Pennybots were perfectly capable of autonomous action, they clearly benefited from the oversight and direction provided by a competent commander, in a smilier way to units in a real-time strategy game. Similarly, those units also occasionally benefitted from more direct micromanagement, and it was here that Gaia truly excelled, with her natural high skill and APM now further augmented by the superhuman reflexes of her magical girl form. At the same time, Connie, while initially hesitant, was growing increasingly proficient with looking over the “big picture” and calling attention to any places where the Wonderlanders were attempting to launch a sneak attack or breakthrough, as well as any civilians that might potentially be caught in the crossfire and needed to be protected.

Meanwhile, Violet had acclimated herself to her own command chair even more rapidly than Gaia had. The Daughter of Mother Earth might have been an avid gamer, but the daughter of Thane Covington had designed similar command and control systems for Covington Industries’ own line of combat drones, drones she had a direct hand in creating. Of course, as Violet well-knew, the Pennybots were far more advanced than anything CI had built up until that point, and so, she did not need to employ quite as firm a hand in their guidance as they set about vanquishing the Wonderland invasion force. Instead, her efforts were most firmly focused on providing encouragement and positive affirmation to the units under her care. Indeed, this was no different than the cheerful optimism she displayed towards her various whimsical creations as Magical Dream Princess, and she found that such a role came naturally to her, even in this more refined and mature state.