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There was the Thrumm of internal mechanisms pounding inside the framewerk as Arrish darted towards the control console. Fingers flicked at switches and buttons in quick succession as he attempted to take control of the Horst and get her back up on her feet. No, there wasn’t any time to raise her up off of the ground and turn around. Argent Wing was at his back and ready to strike at him once more. He did the math in his head quickly.

That was the funny thing about sniping. It wasn’t an advanced perception, or quick reflexes most of the time. If you wanted to hit your target from a long distance away or hit them in just the right spot you needed to know your calculations. His eyes darted to his console and saw where the Argent Wing was retreating to. He considered the distance, the amount of power involved and accounted for trajectory. He didn’t really need to worry about wind but considered it anyways just in case.

It was unfortunate that Horst managed to survive her overcharged Marker Lights, but at the very least, she had managed to neutralise Logic Diver, Ava thought.

Given Guinevere a more support-oriented role, if Team Mango wished to win the match, then Argent Wings needed to neutralise Horst, as at the very least, Mema-Ka had lost his frame. That was, however, easier said than done, as with the current state of Argent Wings and its reduced mobility, striking at Horst would be difficult, especially now that enough time had passed for the Marker Lights’ effect to have dissipated.

At least that was Ava’s conclusion on seeing the current state of the battlefield.

Then Horst moved.

Energy ignited in a flash up and down the Horst’s multiform rod and instead of standing the Horst did this: In a quick spin of motion she gripped the weapon in her hands and tossed it like Zeus’ lightning bolt towards the argent wing. He would need to trust his [Eagle Eye] for the Strike to ring true. The framewerk then stumbled to its footing and planted its legs into the ground and raised its gun up towards Argent. Just because he might of hit… didn’t meant it was over yet.

To Ava, Horst’s decision to stand its ground instead of attempting to gain some distance and shoot at her from a distance was actually quite fortuitous.

This way, given the current distance between them, she would actually have a chance to close the distance and strike at Horst with Argent Wings’ Vibroblade.

The weapon system for the Marker Lights might have been compromised due to her earlier attack that pushed the system to its limit, but that was only on the Marker Lights, as she did not use Argent Wings' shining fingers, nor the vibroblade.

Argent Wings jumped down on the building, its Microburst Monopropellent Thrusters activating, pushing the framewerk. Though it had been damaged, with the added force of gravity pulling Argent Wings to the ground, it was just enough that it regained some semblance of speed to close the distance.

Throughout the history of mankind, thrown weapons have always been a staple in warfare. However, it was also true that because it was thrown, its trajectory was set. Thus, Ava manoeuvred Argent Wings to attempt jumping off from the building at a direction away from Horst’ thrown weapon.

Nevertheless, Ava activated the shining finger installed on Argent Wings, ready to use the overcharged energy generated [Flash in the Dark] to protect the Argent Wings from the thrown weapon or any shots, as it continued its advance toward Horst.

Finally, as it closed the distance, Argent Wings readied its vibroblade. Having already locked on Horst’s location using the automated targeting system, Ava focused only on attempting to inflict as much damage as she could to Horst.

The vibroblade was swung twice, as the blue hue surrounding the carbonox alloy blade grew brighter, as the particles went into overdrive, oscillating at an even higher frequency than normal [Flash in the Dark].

Arrish’s blood went cold when Ava dropped from the building and human instinct kicked in. He could leap away or give himself distance from Ava’s counter attack but running only meant prolonging the battle. He couldn’t just retreat now and give up. He couldn’t hesitate in making a decision. Everyone had made their own sacrifices up to this point and he couldn’t fail them now. Team Apple was counting on him. So, instead he cooled his thoughts and readied the energy running hot through Horst’s hands. “I can do this.”

Argent Wing had greater reach with a sword and the carbonax alloy alone would slice right through the Horst without a second thought. No matter whatever was going on with the weapon making it glow. If Arrish had time after the battle he wanted to ask her about that, but right here in the thick of the moment thoughts were nothing more than a blur and the knight couldn’t afford to take a direct hit, not even with the shining fingers alone, and so instead Arrish aimed to deflect the strikes away using his [Eagle Eye].

The burning gold of shining fingers slapped against the side of the blade in attempting to avoid strike after incoming strike. Arrish only had a moment. Only the briefest of moments before he would be hewn in two and cut down. He needed just an opening. Just a single sliver of time. It was like his perception was burning to find an opening between Argent Wing’s impossible defense. He thought he saw it; Just for a fraction of a moment and with Shining Fingers active he lunged towards her in a quick and decisive blow.

Mema-Ka zoomed through the air, and like a hermit crab sought after a new she'll. But instead of picking vacant ones that were available in his vicinity like Shiva or Argo, he instead decided to claim the Guinevere itself. An arrogant plan befitting the better composed but just as ambitious twin. With Maser in hand, he reached the area where he had seen the tell-tale shimmer of the cloaked mech...and was zapped into black ash by Arklight Thunder, as Sparks lamented taking things theis far. Mema-Ka grudgingly launched a Maser beam upon his demise: while it left a burn mark on the plating, the armor held against the sidearm.

[Mema-Ka disconnected]

The two red-headed pilots squared off, locked into mortal combat. Arrish strained his will to the very limit as he parried blow after blow of Argent Wings and the empowered blue-hued resonant blade, now capable of even splitting matter at a micro versal level. Thus, Horst’s every deflect needed to be perfect, as even the slightest bypass would find purchase.
So it was that Ava's Vibroblade would eventually destabilize from the strain and malfunction, allowing Arrish to perform one last deadly strike with the sharpened hand, piercing through and slaying Ava.

However, Horst would not escape unscathed, as Arrish would hit his limit and be unable to use the Shining Fingers, panting from exhaustion. Ava, by muscle reflex, landed a last attack: the Carbonox-lined katana was swung down at the Horst’s waist. While it failed to cut through, it sliced enough for the mighty Frame’s top half to groan and collapse to the ground. Now, Horst was immobilized, unable to move their partially dismembered legs, and lying in the shattered concrete.

[Ava disconnected]

The horst collapsed to the ground again with a horrible thud, virtual dust collapsing all around her. She had done her duty. She had done her work and now it was time to rest. No, that wasn't quite right. Metal fingers gripped around her Heavy Assault rifle and the framewerk pushed itself off the ground with shakey movement. There was still one more enemy to be taken care of and she could still fight.

Inside, alarms were going off and alerting Arrish to the multiple failures going on around the framewerk. In the feedback he felt it too. like something had cut off the blood flow from his legs. Arrish could push away the pain and ignore it with his indomintable will; The pain wasn't his anyways, but there was a lingering thought in his subconcious: If Horst was telling him of this pain, then was this something she was feeling too? If he could feel what she was going through, could she feel what he did? Could she see his thoughts.

Arrish clacked some switches on his console and began to draw out power away from the legs; Not even trying to test if he could move of them against the virtual earth. Instead what he did was open up a line in communications to offer Sparks a deal.

"If you think you can, if you can beat me, Sparks, I'll personally serve everyone on team Mango a full steak dinner."

The Horst lifted herself up as far as she could go, and with her the Heavy Assault Rifle aimed where Guinevere was last spotted. One last fight. One last dance, and she didn't even have legs.

Sparks took a deep breath. Mema-Ka was dealt with, but it looked like Ava had left him Arrish and Horst. A transmission from Arrish confirmed his suspicions. And he was pretty sure Horst had spotted him while he was killing Mema-ka. He keyed open the comms channel. "Honestly, I'd offer you a cease fire, but...I doubt Lorenzo will accept that." Making sure his cloaking field was intact, Sparks then circled around, using buildings and fallen frames as cover, until he had a good angle on the Horst that didn't involve staring down the barrel of the Horst's gun. "Check my aim, Dancer," he muttered, as he unleashed the Arklight Thunder on his target.

Mema-Ka

Mema-Ka let out a soft exhale as the helmet was lifted from his head, it was over, temporarily at least. The Guinevere and it's pilot, Sparks had evaporated him in the simulation. But was that how it truly felt to die? There would be no waking up from a death outside of the simulation, just an endless sleep one would never wake up from. A peaceful silence in a world filled with sounds and images.

But not all sounds were unpleasant, some were soft, like an embrace, drawing you in and leading you to sleep. He felt inspired to make a new melody for the piano once there was time for such frivial things, composition would take abit of time, but having a sweet hymn or melody in ones head would make the grueling tasks ahead much easier to do. After all, were not all humans dreamers at the core? His brother might be one exception to that rule, as bothersome as the thought that Zel-Ghin were so willing to leave his life and everything in the hands of something like fate. Yet in his case, perhaps it were for the best.

Zel-Ghin's desires were simple, primal in their nature. He wanted to indulge himself in the present. Sweets. Games. Girls and whatever else came to mind. In that regard he felt a tinge of jealousy. The only things he could enjoy were those things out of reach, distant, just beyond the fingertips. The simulation had been a test of teamwork amongst the contestants, and a show of each person's talents and that of their framewerks. But also their weaknesses and flaws. Humankind was strickened with these things too. He knew it all too well. He had plenty of things to consider and talk with the other pilots about. Logic had gotten reckless and needed to be rescued, showing it's pilot the consequences of it's actions. She however had followed his orders without question. A commander always like a soldier which carry out the task without question.

He had been forced to abandon her out in the open, had he not they both would have been likely destroyed there and the Horst would have found itself facing three enemies. When it came to the Horst, and it's pilot, Arrish Duval. Mema-Ka had been forced to speak up, a thing he normally had to do when his younger brother would get himself into trouble or close to it. To Mema-Ka, Arrish had ignored a field commendation, at such a moment in time, to argue over command would lead to confusion on the battlefield and possibly heavier casualities. Of course he had spoken out against it in the simulation, but that was because it all were a moment for each one of them to learn something. The older twin felt compelled to speak with Arrish after the simulation and aftermath was done with.

His willingness to take leadership and what appeared to be pride could be a useful thing, he could be a good second in command of their combined force. There were people who would freeze in the heat of battle, he had not done such a thing, which meant he had qualities which couldn't be ignored.

Aurora had devised their initial plan and had directed the rescue attempt of Elora. That showed him that she understood the value of trying to fixing things that were broken, like a clock missing a spring. She also did pass leadership to him. That was something he would remember. The ability to discern who to put where was a sign of a good leader, while the opposite would be true for a bad leader.

The Electric Dragonfly and it's tevranian pilot had done everything according to plan and kept communications well. He had nothing negative to think in regards to the prowess displayed by that one, that Logic had been taken down had compromised their comms, but that was not the Dragonfly's fault. Overall it had been a good display of support on her end.

The Shiva. Griff. The loud blond man had ultimately left Sleeping Thunder open to be taken out by the Goose Mother. But it had managed to take down the Atty which had seemingly done a deep dive into their line and taken out the Dragonfly. And much later the Shiva had taken itself out alongside the Argo. The man's choice of actions had been disruptive to the original plan, but at least it appeared like the man was adapting to a changing battlefield and had dealt with two opponents. A fair trade. To Mema-Ka however, the man needs to be reigned in and be defeated by other means than raw force to show him that everything could not be solved by blunt force. He suspected there were a high probability that sooner or later that blond would find himself picking a fight with Zel-Ghin, and that could possibly change his mind. But would such a clash be worth it? Zel-Ghin would have to be restrained from going too far, and he didn't have enough strength of his own to hold back his boosted twin. Preferably he would try to speak with Griff first, see if words would have any affect on him at all. He had to admit that Griff appeared to be passionate and caring for his fellow pilots such as Elora. So perhaps Griff would not like how he had left Elora out in the open.

The Angel Zero and it's helmeted pilot had performed well all things considered, it was not a frontliner but had remained with Sleeping Thunder. Like the case with Rhylaen and her frame, he had nothing negative in mind in regards to that man's performance. Then there were the 'Obscure' and it's pilot, which had followed through on his part, despite having been blown up before he could be supported. To be able to seize the opportunity and act, and choose the 'right' side had put him into Mema-Ka's good book already. He would have to talk with that pilot later aswell, they would likely have plenty of good subjects to discuss.

On the opposing side, he found it impressive that the Atty had managed to take out the Dragonfly amidst their frontline. It showed that she was willing to do what had to be done. That would bode well for the near future when the destiny of the world, all worlds would likely be determined by their abilities or lack thereof. Nothing like letting loose a berserker or a hound in the initial clash to inspire the rest into moving forwards, like a king leading from the front.

The Squid and Zel-Ghin had seemingly encountered some problem and were taken out early in the simulation, this was troubling Mema-Ka alot. Zel-Ghin was not someone used to losing, and were vindictive by nature. He recall the amount of times his brother would go to great lengths to try humiliate bosses in various videogames, while they truly could not feel such a thing even. He had to find Zel-Ghin and try to calm him down before he'd do something vindictive to sate his lack of achievement in the simulation. His brother was like a loyal dog, but even a loyal dog can bite when provoked enough. Feelings were the masters of Zel-Ghin's mind, he had known this since they were young, that his younger brother took in more of his surroundings, taste, hearing and sights and finding enjoyment in plenty of things. He was very different from him for certain. What enjoyment did he feel? Perhaps only when he sat by the piano and closed his eyes and listened to how those keys harmonized with one another to create a theme of harmony before coming to a swift and quiet end.

The Argo and it's pilot had done admirably, damaging his Raptor, being an overall harasser of their team and ultimately taking out Griff in his Shiva. That was a well done performance and worthy of recognition. She also does look awfully… familiar to him.

The Mother Goose. The large framewerk had waltzed into their zone of control and taken out the Angel Zero and the Sleeping Thunder by the looks of it. That was an effective trade. He did efficiency. The more effective something is, the quicker they could get to where they needed to be. The Argent Wings had much like the Argo been performing well in dispatching the 'Obscure', at least he assumed it had been the one. He had no complaints about her choice of approach or performance. Then there were that pink framewerk, the Cockroach, which he could have sworn had another colour in the hangar. It had managed to seemingly survive artillery shelling from Aurora's frame and managed to kattai itself with the remnants of his brother's frame, and had forced him to take action to deal with him directly as a result. That he had managed to scurry away from artillery fire and the soon to follow explosion caused by his Raptor detonating the drones showed that it's pilot was hard to get rid of, forcing Mema-Ka to ultimately shoot him down with the Maser. Perhaps he were the composer of that song after all? Time would tell.

That pilot represented the persistance of humankind, how they always tried to get away from the hot needle, to strive to survive no matter the price to the world they lived in. The frame had been aptly named Cockroach. A fitting name for something that simply refused to enter elyseum, despite the promise of peace and no more pain. That pilot both represented something he admired, that one wouldn't submit without a fight. A sign of destiny, the choice and struggle against the stream that is trying to guide you along. But he also reminded him of why he had chosen the path he was now on, because the universe or it's gods if they truly ever existed at all, want the wheel to keep on spinning, the endless wheel of life and death, wars and other horrors to keep existing. When all he wanted. Was to make that final melody which would make it all come to a swift final note.

Like facing a storm of lightning head on and accepting that this…. is it.

That's the final step, the final moment and climax of the song.

The Guinevere and it's pilot Sparks had been the perfect support for team Mango, he had ultimately granted him a temporary reprieve, a premonition of what would eventually come to all things which live.

The end.

Mema-Ka stood up from the simulation chair and turned to face Ritsu and Lorenzo, saluting them, then giving a slight nod and then moved over towards Elora, Bug and Lucius. He assumed Lucius had to be the pilot of the Obscure, as that was the only one he had not seen prior to the simulation.

"You must be the pilot of the 'Obscure'. Good to see you made up your mind quick regardless of what followed. Well done. Good to have you aboard. I shall look forwards to getting to know more about you." Mema-Ka said in a soft manner, holding out his hand towards Lucius in a polite manner, offering a handshake then turning to Elora.

"Do forgive me for leaving you in such a difficult situation Elora. You performed admirably and bravely fought to your last. Keep your head high. We wouldn't have gotten this far without you." Mema-Ka gave a graceful bow to Elora, his right hand placed diagonally over his chest before finally turning towards Bug.

"The pilot of the pink one if I am not mistaken? We arrived to the ship together. Kattai with my brother's framewerk. An excellent manuever. No hard feelings I hope?" He gave a soft smile and then stretched out his arm and hand towards Bug to offer a handshake.

Elora felt like a mess. She wanted to be useful to her team, to collect vital intelligence on the enemy as soon as she could, and that way aid her allies in the fight. Instead, she made a complete fool of herself, letting herself be caught, and leading to team Apple’s strategy falling apart. But then, something surprising happened that caused her to blink: Bug, the pilot who caught and hobbled Logic Diver, was the one to approach her first.

"Wipe off your tears. You need to keep seeing. You're an intel officer aren't you? I guess there will be a chewing of this after all. So learn. Take the torch of those before you." Bug said to Elora. "Lorenzo thinks you can do it, and I think i know what he has seen in you. And look..." He added, his shaky finger pointing at the screen.

"That stupid horse maniac is still on the fight, and he's not going down easily." He added, pointing at the screen and the comms.

She raised her head up from her slump, baffled by his kind words. “The torch?” She asked while taking the offered handkerchief, understanding the word and the meaning, but not the purpose behind the mention. She then glanced over at the screen, and saw as Horst and Ava were in a fierce duel: just as he said, Arrish was still in battle, despite everything. “Th-Thank you, mister Bugatti. I-I won’t make the same mistakes again.”

Elora wiped her tears with the handkerchief when Lucius was the next to speak to her.

"There's a reason VR is used for practice and training, really, so...hey, this guy's right. You didn't fail, heck you made your opponent pay for coming after you a little AND glitched the sim a bit it seems. And you helped push one Banana-split-in-two idiot to think about his actions a bit more at that, heh, so you've my thanks as well.

Never know what our actions might lead to sometimes either, but...Mr. Pink here said you're a comms officer? Right? Information is your forte then. With that in mind, perhaps we really oughta' see this through to the end yeah? Even if its hurts, it's part of how we learn. Its how we move forward and try to make ourselves better."

“R-Really?” Elora reminisced on the battle, and remembered the frightening sight that befell her once she was down on the ground, crawling with her Framewerk.
“That drone then…It was yours, um, Lucius?” She asked, starting to gradually regain her composure, as she was distracted by the technical topic. “I didn’t see any drones like that when I read through the profiles…Thank you,” she spoke, and a slight blush emerged on her cheeks.
“For helping me there…I appreciate it.”

The third person to speak had fewer words than them all.

"...take it from an information pilot ma'am. You did well", Jake then said to Elora.

However, they still mattered, as Elora now stopped slouching, and sat up straight in her simulator pod, having found new courage from the praise.

“Th-Thank you. You’re Jake, correct?” She asked, just to ensure she didn’t confuse him for someone else. “From what I saw of your Framewerk, it’s really cool. I’d like to see your and Lucius’ Frames sometime later, if that’s okay.”

The final person to approach the Elora at that moment was Mema-Ka, who was the latest to be disconnected from the virtual reality program. She blinked as he gave a cordial mention of Lucius’ accomplishments in the mission, before turning to her.

"Do forgive me for leaving you in such a difficult situation Elora. You performed admirably and bravely fought to your last. Keep your head high. We wouldn't have gotten this far without you."

Elora nodded with closed eyes, and an awkward smile managed to reach her expression.
“Thank you for carrying Logic Diver around. It must have been a burden in all the fighting. I’m glad you believed in me despite fumbling very badly in there.”

[Arrish disconnected]

Suddenly, Arrish had woken up, having met his end after a particularly lethal dosage of electricity. Now it was Elora’s turn to approach him, as she stood up and approached him.

“Hey, Arrish…Thank you for saving me from Minerva. It probably would have been better for Apple if you left me to die, but you didn’t.” She placed her hands behind her back, and scratched the floor with the front of her boot, looking awkward as once again she blushed a bit.
“So, um, sorry,” she mumbled.

[Sparks disconnected]

Finally, the last pilot woke up: Sparks, who ended up as the survivor, not only of team Mango, but the entire mission.

Lorenzo was still reading his personal device at the time, and then realized how most of the pilots were looking at him.

“...Oh. I suppose the mission is over.”

Then, without further fanfare, he walked out of the virtual training room, followed by Liisa.

Ritsu then addressed the pilots with a salute.

“The practice mission is now officially over. Report to the briefing room in ten minutes. The Executive Officer will be handing out evaluations for your performance as well as handing out the position of team leader. That is all, dismissed.”

Elora sighed, and placed her hands on her cheeks.

“Geez, I hope hope he won’t be yelling too badly…Ah, who am I kidding,” she mumbled, and went over to greet Serah. “Hi. So, um, how do you think the mission went? I don’t think we saw each other at all in there.”

Griff

From out of nowhere he had been given a bottle of water and then wrapped into a blanket. Coming to think of it, he was slightly thirsty, but a blanket? He couldn't sleep until he had taken a show- The hand of Stella had grabbed his head while he was pondering on what held priority, showering or eating food.

"H-hey! Let go of me you oversized rustbuck-" Griff blinked. 'Wait what? No headpat for her? Why not? Is she sick?' his anger momentarily travelling to confusion, then even more so seeing Rhylaen approaching. Oh so she wanted a piece of him aswell! Well he'd show her- wait what? She was thanking him. The winged little alien. Rhylaen was thanking him. She looked like she was serious. Griff got a flustered face and crossed his arms quickly and raised his nose slightly upwards.

"Whatever. It's not like I wanted to save you or anything. I just were close… allright?" He said in a stuttering manner, his words leaving his mouth before they could be checked and properly arranged. "You are a comerade after all..." He said in an almost mumbling hushed manner, his arms unfolding and his index fingers pressing against one another while his mouth took on a pouty appearance. "Now get off my back. I gotta watch Arrish avenge me-" He had then watched how Mema-Ka had left Elora in the open field to be destroyed. Bug and Mema-Ka's frames and that silly squid got all blown up and Bug got shot. He had closed his eyes momentarily and lamented on failing to get in time to save Elora. His failure was complete. And that Mema-Ka person would have to explain his reasonings to him later or it would be punching time. Then Griff had watched how the remainder of the battle were going, for a moment he forgot his dislike of the greenhaired man who had left his disciple Elora behind, and instead began to cheer for him when he saw him try to make a move on the Guinevere. Then that hope vanished. Crap. But Ava got taken down aswell. Arrish! Arrish would do it, he would save the day. He had to. Otherwise.

Griff had swallowed and felt the sweat sliding down his neck. Otherwise Sparks would end up the victor. Griff stood up and blinked and followed the ongoing battle. "Get up Arrish.. come on... don't do this." Griff muttered and tried his best at sending telepathic messages towards Arrish, or part what remained of his fighting spirit. He had seen it happen in the galactic ranger episodes versus the final boss. And this was definitely it. The noble knight facing the underhanded nerd!

'Get up Arrish! Oh you've gotta be shitting me! Duvey! Get him! Come oooooon! Noooooooooo!' He screamed within himself watching how Sparks in his Guinevere dispatched the Horst.

It had to be a bad dream. A nightmare. "Uso... you gotta be shitting me." He made a galactic ranger word without even thinking about it, his eyes widened, blinking and trying to comprehend what had just happened. 'Oh by the gods of biceps... this can't be true. Someone has to pinch me. I need to wake up right about now. There's no way I live in this reality!' Griff sunk down on his knees, his arms falling to the sides and his jaw dropping.

Sparks had won the simulation battle. Had he even gotten a scratch beside from that little Maser gun? Griff's own Shiva had been torn to pieces and he had failed. And here was this guy. This guy! He was just like his rival back at the academy, always being ahead of him, no matter how hard he trained. 'Shiiiiiiiiit! How could this happen?! Arrish! You had one job! How will I be able to forgive you for this? Martial arts masters of old, give me the wisdom to-' That's right. Whenever the students would suffer a defeat they would drink sake. He needed a ton of that right now. How could he face anyone of them now? He had nothing on Minerva to celebrate... he had failed Aurora and Elora… and Jackie. While Arrish had obviously failed him as far as he was concerned.

Griff slammed his now tightened fist into the palm of his other hand as he connected the dots. 'It has to be Arrish fault. Somehow. No... that's not fair. It's mine too. We must both repent and cleanse our bodies of this very bitter defeat. I will get you next time Sparks! Just you wait! This had to be a moment of sheer luck! Wait… maybe it was his hacking bot that did all of that? He was probably cheating and Lorenzo being an old nerd wouldn't know the new nerd stuff.' Griff's eyes sparkled momentarily as if he had been given a godsend revelation. But even then. He needed to grab Arrish and drink until he could wipe out the memory of the day completely. He was not a drinker, but in this case he would make an exception.

The celebration steak… how could he enjoy a steak now? He was not worthy to bite into it.

“I would rather be buried in Sleepy’s wreck then ever dare to abandon them. They have done so much for me, staying with them at the end of the line is the least I could do.” Aurora would answer Serah’s question absently as she watched the final dance between Horst and Argent. It was a beautiful display. And she couldn’t help but felt a jolt of envy and loss; she might have been able to dance like that, years ago. Though it might just be rose tinted youthful bragging.

But now, she’d never be able to keep pace. Her recovery was enough of a miracle as it was, but she would never gain back all she lost. And sadly, her sync rating with Frames that could move like that always left something to be desired.

But shortly after the mission was over. Apple had lost. By the thinnest of margins perhaps, but a loss it was. Yet it was clear that the Professor was engrossed in his data. She narrowed her eyes at the man. Wondering again, just what it was he was hiding from them.

Regardless of her internal musings Elora had broken away from her gathering of well-wishers. And while her question hadn’t been aimed at Aurora, she still spoke up in response. “It was informative. And strange. I’ve never had much luck with VR before now, it usually feels like I’m dreaming, but this time was different. Still unsure if that is a good thing or not.” She would state turning partially to look at the smoking station that had housed Elora herself not long ago. Clearly curious about it.

Something about the sim they had gone through was different. But Aurora had no idea what might be the cause of that fact.

She shook it off. She would have time to go and try digging into it later. For the moment, she had something else she felt she needed to do.

“If you two will excuse me. I am off to talk to Arrish. But I’ll see you at debrief if not before.” She would give the two younger girls a smile and a nod of her head as she excused herself and made her way to Arrish.

“Arrish, If you’ve a moment.” She would say as she got close to the noble born pilot. “I wanted to extend to you an apology. Your duel with Argent at the end was exceptional. But if I had not got too caught up in the moment, and sought to strip you of your command, you might not have needed to do so alone. Possibly even been able to secure victory for Apple.” She was speaking with a formal tone. But one that was much more military than nobility. But it was clear that, despite the rasp still evident in her voice, she was sincere in her words.

“It was... unbecoming of me. And unfair to you. And for that you have my apology.” She gave him a light bow. “It is rare that we live past our mistakes in this war. I am grateful that this one did not cost more than stung pride.”

Serah perked up when Aurora answered her question. She didn't respond out loud, but the sparkle in her eyes signaled that she was, once again, awestruck at the bond Aurora and Sleepy had. Just like her friend, though, Serah's attention was soon shifted to the final moments in the simulation. Arrish and Horst parried blow after blow from Ava and Argent Wings, with the latter pair going all-out despite the damaged state they were in. Both of them were incredibly impressive, but Arrish came out the victor in the end, though not without Horst being unable to keep itself upright any longer. Still, Arrish hadn't given up- though immobilized, he took aim from the one spot he could and watched- maybe prayed- to see if Sparks and Guinevere would come in range. Though, as everyone could see, the man himself took the necessary precaution, circling around and using Guinevere's arclight system to take out Horst from behind.

Seems like her team... won.

Hell yeah. Mango rules.

Didn't take long for Elora to come over after that, having taken a moment to talk to Arrish. Though Elora asked Serah how the mission went, Aurora was actually the first to answer the question. Her comment about VR struck a relatable note for Serah. "Yeah... its like me and Atty were really there. It actually put me a little more at ease, if you can believe it.”

She waved Aurora goodbye as the woman excused herself, then turned her attention back to Elora. "Right, I never answered myself, did I? Honestly I think I'm about to get yelled at pretty bad, ehehe...” she sheepishly admitted while rubbing the back of her head. "I was one of the first to go out. The professor told us to learn from you guys, so...” her voice trailed off, her eyes briefly darting to the side as she remembered how upset Elora was earlier. She seemed perked up now, but Serah still felt bad about it. "Well, doesn't matter! You did great out there. You really hung in there, despite all the damage. You and Rhylaen formed a pretty deadly duo for me...”

Serah spun around and looked at the entrance of the room. It probably wasn't a good idea to keep Lorenzo waiting. "Well... I think I'll go march to my doom now. I just hope he won't be too hard on me.”

After Serah took a few steps towards the exit, something popped into her mind last-minute. She spun around and faced Elora again. "Oh, right! Bug promised to treat me to something after the battle, but I don't really want it. Why don't you take him up on it? Tell him I'll forgive him for making fun of me if he does!”

Serah playfully stuck out her tongue a little and gave Elora a wink, then waved goodbye as she dashed out of the room to go get debriefed.

The emotion had been drawn out of the noble's face, and even as the visor was lifted away from his head, he found himself reliving the past few moments of the battlefield. The sheer energy coming off the vibroblade as it sung through the air, and how every inch was the difference between life and death. He swore in those moments that he could feel the blade enter his own chest, and how the raw feeling of adrenaline through his veins made everything feel electric. He had survived even that, only to be made broken and shattered, left to do nothing but point his rifle at the enemy. He had made a cocky statement, but it was a hollow one, empty of emotion. He was helpless to fight an enemy that he couldn't even see, and the way it felt—God, the way it felt in those last few seconds of consciousness—to have your body light up in response. There hadn't even been time to process pain—just pure energy across his entire body, heating up and heating up, and then, nothing.

He hadn't even been aware of the brief moment Elora had stood before him. The words had not gone unheard but unnoticed in Arrish's stupor. Perhaps it was later in the dead of night that he would remember the haunting words she said about how it was better to leave her for dead.

There was something in his thoughts that was nagging him as he relived his death over and over—a sudden perception that he had been unable to see. That was when Arrish became aware that someone was speaking to him, and his empty eyes raised to see the most beautiful angel in front of him saying something that sounded like gibberish. No, his brain reminded him, that wasn't quite right. "Aurora." The words came off his lips almost like a reminder to himself, rather than addressing the woman in front of him. What had she said? What was she babbling about? He struggled for a moment to understand, as the words came to him in little bubbles in his mind.

"Arrish ... A moment ... Apology ... Duel ... Argent ... Command ... Victory ..."

The words then flicked into the now, the present tense, and he found himself listening to the rest of her apology in silence. She had been apologizing to him?! Surely, he and the rest of Team Apple had failed her command on the battlefield. The line of scrimmage was broken by his rallying call to save Elora. Everyone—nay, everyone—save Aurora and Jake had gone on to surround themselves around the fallen member of their team; well, also save Rhylaen, but she had already been well and out of the fight by that point. Had Arrish really been worth the apology for failing?

"Aurora" he said again, the name feeling more familiar with every passing second."Chaos colors every battlefield; if we apologize for every mistake in the heat of battle, then I daresay that we would never stop." He looked up at her and remembered how to smile. "Your apology is as sweet as you are, yet as far as I'm concerned, there is no animosity between us." He cleared his throat and began to stand up, finding himself wobbling a little bit. There was an ache around his waist, but none so strange as to be unfamiliar. He had spent a lot of time in VR replaying battle after battle. He told himself it was no different from his time reliving the Duvallian Folly. Though, perhaps, given the intensity, it was not undue of him to ask for a bit of help.

"I uhm, don't suppose it would be uncouth of me to ask for your arm? I'm finding it a little difficult to walk straight at the moment."

Griff was very awkward about accepting Rhylaen's thanks, but she supposed that was in keeping with his general attitude towards her. She then turned her attention back to the fight. She couldn't understand why Mema-Ka had abandoned his frame. He hadn't been in a desperate situation, and leaving the cockpit was almost a certain death sentence when fighting other Framewerks. To her immense disappointment, the fight between Ava and Arrish resulted in a crippled Horst, and then the sneaky Sparks was able to finish Arrish off. Curses! That meant a win for Team Mango. Still, it had been close, at least. Sparks was the only survivor of his team. That had to count for something, Rhylaen thought. It was a shame that Elora had run into trouble so early on. That had spread Team Apple out, and the situation had only gotten worse from there. But that was the point of training -- to learn.

---

Sparks took a moment to just sit in the VR pod before trying to get up. He'd succeeded in defeating the Horst and Arrish, he was pretty sure, and had taken only a grazing Maser shot himself, but that didn't mean it was easy to switch modes. "Dancer, you still good?" A chime from his suit's comm system confirmed that the AI was still with him. "Excellent." Sparks climbed out of the pod and got to his feet, surveying the room. "What I really want to know," he said to himself, "is who turned the Cockroach pink. It had to be one of Team Apple." His gaze flicked over the Tevranian, Rhylaen. A possibility, but unlikely. The same went for Elora. Griff? Definitely not. Aurora...had the skill, but would she have the desire? He didn't think so. Mema-Ka was a bit of a mystery. Sparks hadn't gotten a good feel for the young man yet. Arrish, though. Sparks recalled the response image the man had sent of himself and Bug with a smirk. He definitely had the personality for it. But did he have the skill? Only one way to find out.

Sparks made his way over to where Arrish and Aurora were talking. He waited for a pause, then offered a handshake to each. "Well fought," he said. Then his attention focused on Arrish. "I have to know, though. Are you the one responsible for turning Bug's frame pink?"

“Not uncouth at all.” Aurora would reply offering up the support freely. “This VR mission has been effecting us all strongly it seems.” She would add a moment later as she helped Arrish steady themselves.

It was shortly after such that Guinevere’s Pilot would made their way over. “You as well. Guinevere’s cloak saved you from my parting volley.” She would reply as she shook their hand. “I have to wonder how things would have played out had I been able to find a lock.”

The younger pilot’s question to Arrish had her rising her eyebrows in astonishment. “I only had a visual on Cockroach after I exited the Sim. Are you saying it wasn’t Pink to start?” She would then turn to regard the man in question herself. “How did you manage that?”

Astolfo stood for a second silent, seeing the cavalcade of would be knights rushing to Elora once more. This was...well, a reflection of what happened in the simulation, really. He did not need to be caught in this game, so he decided to make himself scarce.

Too late, there was, the pilot of the Raptor, dripping peasantries like a sweet flytrap. Nevertheless, he had to begrudgingly admit he was not half bad at striking a conversation...it was just that despite being polite it felt way too off and soulless. He took the hand of his fellow pilot, though.

"No feelings at all." He said, as he then excused himself,limping away noticeably, from the gathering crowd. It would disperse soon anyway. The Lilim who had been difficult to pry from Elora would soon be upon her.

He advanced towards the freshest batch of "fallen pilots" as it were, sparing only a curt salute when Ritsu left the premises. A salute he repeated upon seeing Ava.

"Thank you for your hard work, team leader." He said. "Truly you did deliver." He added.

It was then when a particular conversation struck a chord within him. There it was. Aurora, alongside Sparks, questioning Arrish about the pink decal. Bug's gears turner once again.

"That is because he did not. He merely requested an inside job. Engineers are also...people with whims and wants. I thought it was a poor choice of a revenge for crashing the Duvallian Folly but it is curious how the gears align isn't it." Bug would then smirk ever so slightly. "A color decal is naught but a trifle. Artillery on the other hand... a different beast."

Bug would then pause. "Congratulations on your performance by the way, and you too Sparks, for being the last one standing. At least something was worth enduring the feedback."
@Shifter_Master@shylarah@Ravion the Red@Dezuel@Randomguy

-Double post ignore-

Zel-Ghin

He have backhanded the water bottle the moment it had gotten pushed unto him, letting it and the blanket fall to the floor.

'Keep your paws to yourself dog or I'll put you down where you belong...' The teal-haired twin gave Stella a snarl, his eyes narrowed. He wasn't in the mood for any further disrespect to his person. The simulation had ended, his brother had lost as well and the seemingly last person standing were that blue haired man his brother had spoken to when they had first arrived.

Stella had then proceeded to grab and put that witless blond man next to him for seemingly being overly social and disruptive, earning the attention from Ritsu in the process. Had the day turned out differently, he would have likely snickered. But this wasn't a good day at all. Nothing had gone the way he wanted. He had planned to rip the other team to shreds and be showered in praise, but instead he had ended up like this? He felt cheated.

The sooner his brother would finish talking with the others, the sooner he could get back to playing a videogame or the like. He still felt a strong urge to beat someone up, at the moment Griff, Stella and Arrish seemed like fitting targets to pick a fight with, anything to have him reclaim his status as the strongest. If he wouldn't be loved, he would be feared. He just couldn't be seen throwing the first punch, that would get him and his brother most likely into trouble. Someone had to be provoked into throwing the first punch. Of all the various historical individuals that his brother had been reading about, only two had stood out to him.

Charles Darwin and Athena Rivera. Survival of the fittest, was it so wrong of him to embrace the nature which he had been created for, to follow the design laid out before him, following what fate had chosen for him? He was a weapon. A Biological weapon. And weapons were made to be used, killing people were what weapons always did. He would not be evil simply doing what he was made to do right? He had no love for the Galactic Federation, neither did he harbor the hate that those researchers had so eagerly tried to put into his mind. To Zel-Ghin they were all hypocrites. Had fate not dictated for him to follow his brother, he would likely never have joined the army to begin with. While the thrill of battle was something he found enjoyment in, the same thrill could be found in playing games or kissing. He didn't fully know what they had injected him with, but it was something for efficiency, not likely something which would allow him to live a normal life. How could he? Nothing in his life had been normal. He wouldn't be surprised if whatever they had injected into his body would ultimately be what kills him, he just hoped he would have plenty of fun before then.

There was only one way to find out. Following the river and see where it would lead.

"Ugh. Let's get this overwith. I am so bored."

Zel-Ghin began to walk towards the debriefing room, his hands into his jacket pockets. He had no desire to mingle with anyone right now. The Squid had failed him as far as he was concerned, it had all the right to be destroyed for what it had put him through. Perhaps that old man would provide him with a stronger one? Something capable to destroy everything in it's path. Something that was on par with his power?

Perhaps Lorenzo was worth his time, but it all depended on what would be said at the debriefing.

Stella stood still, immediatedly deferring to Ritsu upon hearing her authority. She even refrained from putting a second naughty sticker on Zel, but noted that this child was a bit of a troublesome and needed some special care. Children who came from tough environments were like that, and Stella flagged potential.abuse as the root cause. Mema-ka as the potential abuser. Nevertheless there were more children to tend and more blankets and water to give. Her processed stopped when she saw Elora struggling once more, and in fast strides she reached her once more, wordlessly. She simply hovered above the pilot, ignoring all others and covered her in a hug very much like a mother swan would do to a cygnet.

"You did well, child. Want to go on this Unit's back? We will have an strawberry cake later."

@Ariamis

There were so many things happening all at once it was almost dizzying, or maybe it was just from coming out of the simulation after such an intense battle. Arrish quietly noted to himself that unless it was required of him, he would step away from VR for the next few days. He wondered if it was something about this specific iteration of it or if the impression his squad mates had left on the program had done something to his mind.

Nonetheless, he comforted himself by the attractive woman on his arm and did his best not lean any of his weight into her. He didn't want to bowl her over and knock the poor woman into the ground. Something about that thought brought a smile to his face just as Sparks had walked over to question about the mysterious transformation of Bug's dear cockroach. Perhaps it was lucky that the mind fog he was experiencing just made him confused about the question. "Well, I-" But before he could even start, Astolfo would wander into the conversation and answer for him; Arrish wasn't sure if he liked that too much, but if there was anyone that knew just how he had gotten away with it, then it was Bug. Of course it was bug. "Pink, was it? That's not too flamboyant for you, is it bug? Well then, I suppose I could of been the one to do it but then again, why not? I know they didn't say it out loud, but if we were only fighting to win then I daresay I made a terrible misplay in jumping to Elora's aid. Could be it was a mistake in any case."

"But, my esteemed colleagues, we were fighting to showcase our strengths and expose our weaknesses. If we can do anything to quash the Cruxi Menace than I see little reason not to show my willness to commit. Whoever turned my dear Bug pink, must of thought the same." He paused for a beat and looked between the faces of those that were around him before asking."The question I pose to you is this: If you could have done anything before the battle to change the tide, what would you have done?" Arrish knew that turning the Cockroach pink didn't bring any real tactical advantage, but it was a statement to those watching the ongoing battle and to anyone else that might have picked up on it.

"Regardless of that, and of the outcome, I have a new found respect for many of our peers." Arrish turned his head over to where Mema-ka had last been at and then added."While others remain in suspect for their decisions. I digress, please, tell me your own thoughts." Arrish would raise his free arm up to his throat and lightly rub at it; He really hated this manner of speaking, but he was around those he held in high regard and treated him of the noble status he was born with. Arrish supposed it couldn't be helped.

Bug pinched his nosebridge, as he shook his head negatively. "What you did cannot be translated as something remotely useful in a battlefield, Arrish. We don't have reality engineers who control the Cruxi Unit generation or the colour palette. Why do you think none of use tried to hack the simulation? Some of us are not afraid of getting into trouble." He sighed. "While lateral thinking is the idea, your cute little flex could have potentially rendered the simulation data and experience unsalvageable, and worst case scenario we would need to do it all over again."

"I'll give credit for the pictures though. Was it the same guy?" Bug would then reply, still a slight frown on his face.
@Ravion the Red

Arrish found himself disappointed by Astolfo's reaction; Out of anyone within the squad, he did not think Bug was to be the one lacking in vision. Maybe the results of Arrish's little act proved more revealing than he expected. "That's very interesting you should say that. Hmm." Arrish began. "Should I be a backwater caveman I would concede to your second point, but we all live around technology, Bug. You don't have to be tech savvy to know, that if someone turning a framewerk pink is enough to sabotage the simulation's end results than I daresay we've got greater things to fear than the Cruxi. As for your first point, it can be translated into paying mercenaries or sappers to sabotage an enemy before hand, a bit obvious, wouldn't you think?" Arrish then found himself frowning at Bug, but rather than pursue his feeling further he would answer the second question.

"I wish I could take the credit, but one of the girls who patrol the ship had it made for me. I could introduce you to her, if you like."

@AtomicNut

"I have that cloaking field precisely because I wouldn't survive such a volley," Sparks told Aurora with a smile. "It was a close fight. I was out of drones at the end." As for the pink frame, Bug suggested that Arrish was responsible, but not the one who'd done the actual programming, which Arrish didn't deny. Hm. A little disappointing. And it sounded like there was more to it that a prank. Interesting. The mention of the pictures had Sparks grinning all over again. Bug and Arrish seemed to be good sports -- unlike Zel-Ghin, who appeared to be sulking. Sparks could hardly miss the sound of a full water bottle hitting the floor after he'd batted it away. Unfortunate. Well, it took all types. "That was some creative use of fallen frames, Bug," he added. "Not to mention the idea of using other frames as relays for my drones. I wonder if anyone else would be willing to allow that...I'll have to ask around later. For now, we should probably head to the briefing room."