---

Ava was awakened by the sounds of someone pulling on her door's handle. Putting her off her sleeping mask, she looked at her device to check the time.

It did not seem as if she had slept that long. It was not the next day yet, as in it was not even past midnight yet. She also noticed unread emails from some of her squad members, presumably a reply to her review of the simulation.

She should probably read them and reply as necessary...after she saw to her current visitor, who was now knocking on her door.

"Coming! Just a minute," Ava shouted while running her fingers through her hair to make them slightly tidy up so as to look more presentable.

Ava then opened the door before greeting her visitor, "Ah, Griffith? Good evening, can I help you with something?"

@Dezuel

Serah should not have agreed to train with minerva. Her body was aching all over, and she knew it was only going to get worse the next day. Her limbs were putty, having opted to lay face-down on her bed for a bit to let them rest.

"Just five more minutes, mom..." she muttered, trying to talk herself into just giving up for the day and becoming one with the bedsheets. She rolled over onto her side, then her back, laying sprawled out and staring at the ceiling. She stared at it blankly for a bit, trying not to think too much of the pains, until suddenly her stomach started crawling. "...Oh, right, dinner!" she suddenly remembered, throwing herself off the bed. She looked at herself in the mirror, disheveled and messy and still wearing the track suit. "Oh you are not showing up like that, Serah! You look like a slug!"

About an hour of chaos followed for her. Between picking out (from admittedly scant few) clothes, a round trip to the showers and making sure to redo her makeup, Serah kept herself rather busy- to the point she figured she was going to be late. She double, no, triple-checked that her ribbon was on just right and that she didn't have any smudges anywhere before finally nodding to her mirror image affirmatively, content with how she looked. Serah didn't have much, but she did have a nice blouse, skirt, leggings and pumps combo, enough to at least show there was an attempt at being dressed nicely. For a brief moment she wondered if she was overdoing it, but...

Making her way through the ship and eventually finding her way to the cafeteria, the whole place had been remodeled. Arrish had been hard at work making the place look nice with nice drapery and having the excess tables squared away, not to mention the soothing tune echoing throughout. Dressing up nicely turned out the right call after all. In fact, Serah was getting self-conscious she may have undershot things. Especially as...

"No way... how am I still the first one to get here?!" she quietly whispered to herself. Maybe Serah should've went together with someone... she's going to look like a total dork sitting alone at a table. She swallowed her pride and quietly took one of the many vacant seats, nervously rubbing her legs together as she blushed in embarrassment from being the only one there.

Shortly after Serah sat down she would be able to make out the steady click clack of someone in fancy shoes making their way towards the cafeteria. And soon thereafter Aurora would stride into the room. At first glance one would be forgiven for assuming that Aurora wasn’t wearing her pilot’s suit, but the truth of the matter was that she was. She was just wearing a custom nylon body suit over it to hide its distinct color and appearance.

“Oh this is wonderful.” She say aloud as she surveyed the changes that had been wrought. And it was, how Arrish had gotten all of this done on such short notice was beyond her but it was to be commended. It might be quaint, they were repurposing the ships cafeteria after all, but it was never the less well crafted.

Eventually Aurora would notice that she wasn’t alone in the room, her eyes finding Serah. “Serah! A delight to see you.” She would say as she made her way over to the younger girl. “I’m glad to see I’m not the only one who dressed up. I wasn’t sure originally, as Arrish didn’t mention anything so far as I recall.” She would say taking a seat next to her friend.

“But he is noble born, so it felt safe enough.” Though she had to check her notes on that before she was able to remember such.

“But enough of that, how has the rest of the day treated you?” She would ask, her accent growing slightly more pronounced as she relaxed into the atmosphere that Arrish had cultivated.

Rhylaen had not gotten the impression that this steak dinner party was a fancy affair, so when she turned up, shortly after Aurora, she was wearing standard civilian clothes: a green halter top and jeans. Nor did she immediately realize that she was underdressed. Instead, she looked around the room, impressed by how it had been decorated. Tablecloths, fancy dishes, real candles -- even music. She took a seat by Aurora with a wide smile. "Hello!" she said, greeting the two people already present. "Look good." She paused, comprehension dawning. "I...." She frowned, looking briefly stymied. "Not...good?" The words she needed weren't in her Galactic Standard vocabulary. But the moment quickly passed. It was what it was. She had worn what she had worn, and there wasn't really time to change now.

---

Sparks took a hot shower after the debriefing was over. Yes it had been a fight in VR, but he'd exerted himself all the same. And besides, if Arrish was treating the group to dinner, he ought to dress up -- and that meant starting with being nice and clean. Once he'd washed, he also shaved, and then he put on a suit. It was a simple outfit, black slacks and a white collared shirt, with a black jacket. Simple, but classic.

It was also the nicest thing he had with him.

When he arrived at the cafeteria, the place had been utterly transformed. His jaw dropped briefly. Arrish really had gone all out -- but where was the man? Three of the other pilots were already seated, so Sparks joined them with a nod hello. "Good evening, ladies."

The day had certainly been an....eventful one, given the antics of the old fruit bat and the responses of the others, already. Busy for sure, and yet he'd had to make a decision after getting word of being able to swap out with some standard systems and thumbing through public records of his teammates' units (among other things) on his datapad. It had taken some thought, and he felt somewhat stuck in his choices while going about things before the meal. What to choose? He felt losing the MFCS was perhaps the best bet, given his failure to really pay it mind here and there even before the simulation battle and his short participation in it. But what to replace it with? There were plenty of good Secondary Systems for him to choose from, though, but this early on....it was rough to grasp just what would be needed later until he got a better understanding in the field in the practical sense. Training was one thing, but he'd always heard and gotten the idea that battle was a whole other 'ballgame' as he'd had one vet back home put it when talking to him.

Still....Phase Shift seemed to be the first thing that came to his mind, a more experimental system that frankly the Rex was built to be able to handle and be adapted to. In that sense he'd have enough to defend with on the fly and in more than one possible way. Barrier, phasing through things (which seemed absurd), and then Stargazer for the longer-ranged threats. At the same time, however, it did come to mind that he'd also neglected to use the Stargazer in battle. Perhaps it could have helped him redirect the enemy attack? Perhaps...or perhaps not. In that vein, he needed to go train a lot with it before his first field battle. Drill with it and the rest of the Rex's kit more actively, maybe taking some time each day for it? Sounded like a plan! It'd give him a nice training block in the simulation, where it'd be 1-to-1 with him actually operating things in his unit at least, so that made enough sense.

Though another thought that also hit his mind, then, was something the Professor had said. Noting that if he'd had the "support of a team" he'd have been better off. Well, that and not shooting at a speedy melee foe, but he'd not had much he could see at that time to act upon. In fact his response had been rather prompt and instinctual, to admit the truth, yet that was just the thing. He'd had 'not much he could see' at the time. The MFCS could have done some recon for him, but then it was limited how much of the battlefield he could see. If he saw more, he could better pick and attack targets. If he AND his team could see and learn more, then it helped them all better survive along with giving him some-...hmm. Air Recon Drones, perhaps? That'd mostly fit the bill, but even so it all felt so uncertain that he simply would try to brush the matter off for the time being-

*Ding*

Eh?

Picking up his datapad as it lightly chimed in at him with a 'new message' alert, the brown haired man thumbed through to open the message and raised an eyebrow for a moment. Corporal Ava? She was one of the two new leaders of the group for field work, it seemed, but she was already thinking about such things as equipment replacements for them all? Rather studious of her, he had to admit, to give her thoughts and send them out. Luckily she wasn't trying to order them to take her reccomendations, though even then-....well, it wasn't coming to that at the very least. No use entertaining the alternative, as Ava seemed to be taking that sort of things into consideration already. Just another thing to brush off for the moment being, though he'd at least read what she wrote in his little section in the group-delivered message.

As someone who took you out, allow me to say that, in my opinion, your main mistake during the simulation was to take a shot at Argent Wings at that distance. Generally, a sniper should avoid shooting while there is a hostile unit close enough to get in close before you can reposition. A sniper is a very valuable part of a unit. Due to the high penetrative power of your weapon, one good shot is possibly enough to take out high-priority targets or pick off lone, unsuspecting targets. Therefore, the longer a sniper survives, the more they can rack up kills, and thus the more they will contribute to the victory of the team. For example, had you survived longer instead of taking the chance to take me out, by the endgame, your victory would have been possible, as you could easily snipe the rest of us whose frames are already damaged with reduced mobility. Thus, always prioritise repositioning over carelessly taking shots unless absolutely necessary.

As for my advice on Rex Artus' system, I recommend switching Multiple Fire Control System with Automated Targeting System. This Secondary System would allow you to fire your weapon in rapid succession, be it at the same target or at two different targets, maximising the time you have before having to reposition by being able to fire your weapons more.

Hmm. It was a good point on the system reccomendation in the sense that his weapon was on its own a slow reloader. But to rush two shots out of it? He wasn't sure if the tech could make that little miracle work out. It wasn't some Slag Cannon, after all, where he could slam two shots in rapid sucession. However, that mental image was enough for him to put a mental pin in some thoughts that it brought up inside his head all the same. Good. Or maybe he'd joot a note down on his datapad for himself to see later as well. Maybe just make a note with a list of ideas at that. Yeah, that'd be great!

Though her assessment of his performance in the simulation was also something that, for the most part, he felt matched up with his own thoughts on the matter. He'd willingly tossed aside his win condition, however, for reason he still was curious about the Professor not bringing up to him for some reason. Or perhaps it was a whole "I'll lexture others on it and you better pick up on it boy" type of situation. Now that? That'd also make sense, but he'd not try to overthink it too much more than that. Though thinking back on his problems of vision, certainly that'd help him be able to better navigate things? His Attack Drones were meant to help defend him by intercepting targets and assist in attacking alike. Hmm...ah! He'd add that to the new note he was already going to make along with the other thing that had already come to mind anyways.

But he did, however, want to send a response to the Corporal out of respect for her frankness and thoughts, or if nothing else to point one or two things out he didn't expect anyone to be a mind reader for anywho-

'Corporal Lane,

Good to hear your thoughts on things, as I've already been considering replacing my MFCS on the Rex by this point as well. I am considering a few options, though an Automated Targeting System might be useful if I get a more rapid-fire supporting armament for improved repositioning capabilities eventually. Or such is my own thoughts on the topic of your particular suggestion for a replacement system at this venture. Though one other thing stood out to me in hindsight of the battle, in that vein of systems to improve battlefield performance, which I feel needs to be considered before we get out there for real combat...and that is reconissance and gathering intel. Could be just my lack of experience after just arriving here and not having been in a proper battle yet out there, however, but I'll try to briefly explain my point.

I don't mean to put down the Logic Driver and its pilot in saying this, but flipping through some public files of everyone's Framewerks and seeing how things went down it seems most of our recon is grounded or is of a lighter (even if well armored by the standards of their weight class) units. Only two of us have stealth measures, and one of those isn't primarily a recon unit it would seem (the Guinevere) while still being a support.

We lack things such as Air Recon Drones and such that would be able to gather more intel in more ways in case of battlefield disruptions that might endanger vanguards and scouting units that move farther ahead, but be able do so without putting our own too far ahead into danger perhaps. Then again, perhaps too many 'eyes' on things would maybe muddy the lines of communication and data gathering as well I'd think. But making sure we have the best info out there that we reasonably can, and having some redundancy in case of problems that might inevitably arise out there, could perhaps raise survivability? Those are my thoughts on the topic at least.

This is also why I am considering such drones as one of the options for the Rex to replace the MFCS with, but more so I wanted to get your thoughts on this topic with regards to the team as a whole as a more seasoned pilot who's been out there before.

As for what I did in the simulation, my intention of shooting at you was priamrily to buy the Logic Driver and her allies some time admittedly. Leverage my imminent threat to draw attention, thus enabling a rescue and applying sudden pressure from elsewhere to potential threats. My drones, meanwhile, were used for trying to help pressure the Argo simultenously. After the meeting, though, I have considered the idea of maybe having used a suicide drone in case of getting charged by a melee foe, using it to intercept an attacker with a wider explosion of its plasma core.

I hope I'm not being too wordy, but all the same I appreciate hearing your thoughts on things and your perspective to boot. I wanted to send this message back with my own thoughts in turn.

-Lucius

After hitting 'send' on the message, however, the brown haired boy put his datapad to the side and felt a small whoosh of air come out from between his lips for a moment. Was this woman one of those super uptight sorts in other ways? Sure she was considerate in her message, but....eh, no use worrying about it now, right? Not when there were places on the ship to see, and when there was trying to acclimate himself more to this vessel's nooks and crannies he felt that was important as well. More familiar he was with the ship, more familiar he'd be if it was in an emergency perhaps.

Besides, facing the 'Cruxi Fister' wasn't on his bingo card. Maybe someone like Griffith back there would be the type to rush in, but as a ranged build like his? He hadn't the armor and sheer means of keeping an opponent at arm's length to go solo at this point in time.

@Randomguy

---

As Lucius walked into the room, he couldn't help but look about for a moment to take in the scenery. THIS is what he had turned the cafeteria itself into? Delicate silverware, paired with honest-to-Solaire candles, and lovely white tablecloth placed over it as as if it was a five star restaurant? All to the tune of gentle music, a well cleared-out-space for their tables, and yet their host had yet to be seen? Sheesh. It made what he was wearing feel a bit too unfitting for the occasion, even if he'd done his best to put on something 'nice' given Arrish seemed like a rich nobleman, and even more so after having seen an actual glimpse of the venue for later in his own way and feeling it was a 'hint' at what he needed to wear for the occasion. Was it 'cheating'? Perhaps, but being here in-person certainly did enhance the reality of the vision nontheless and made him take more of a pause.

Adorning his cleanly-washed body was nothing short of his full and rather oddly tidy dress uniform, something that had been neatly packed and brought along for the ride on the shuttle along with his other effects. A neatly-suited black coat with long sleeves adorned his exterior torso, being adorned with golden buttons and a formal yellow trim along a patch on his right shoulder designating his rank in the Federation Military proper. Underneath this, and invisible from sight for now, was formal lighter blue shirt underneath that was cleanly buttoned-up in full and even gently ironed out just before Lucius had left to join the meal. Meanwhile the collar of the underlying buttoned-up shirt had a neartly hand-tied simple black tie poking up visibly at the front-bottom of his collar in normal fashion, though it too was hidden from sight for now. Combined with a similarly-themed pair of white dress uniform pants, a white belt with golden buckler at its center that sat about his wait over the top of the dress coat, and the pair of short and formal yet almost gentlemanly white gloves adorning his hands, Lucius was decked out in the 'best' that he frankly had with him as far as he was aware. No fancy tuxedo or such things, nor the money of nobles to buy things on the fly, etc. Military didn't pay much despite the war, which was certianly something, but he digressed.

Still, a white cap with a properly centered golden insignia of the Galactic Federation on it, and a smooth black brim, sat atop his head just as a pair of formal dress uniform shoes all shiny and new adorned on his feet as he moved forward from the entrance after his brief pause to look about. The first thing he'd note, however, was the presence of a certain blue-haired girl and Aurora. The former seemed as if she felt out of places....and the latter seemed to hold herself like a noblewoman who was used to such occasions as these, if he had to put some words to his thoughts on the matter. One seemed more simply but well dressed, a kind of semi-formal that almost felt like prom back home at his school (he'd never gotten to go but had seen pictures from his younger brother sneaking into it with his older date for the occasion), and yet the latter seemed to have a rather nice and fancy enough dress on that seemed to be 'simple yet elegant' if he had to put words to it.

Yet there was no one else here yet? Really? It was nothing against the two women, but rather a thought aimed at wondering who would turn down a nice steak dinner of all things. Well, not that everyone ate meat, he was aware of that, but...still.

"Good to see you two here," Lucius said as he approached the table where Serah and Aurora were at, giving a polite semi-bow after gently taking off his hat with his right hand and holding it to his chest in a formal fashion before then letting the cap-in-hand and his right arm overall sit properly at his side. Even then, his back and arms felt stiff despite how much he'd been drilled in formalities like this too back home (and to try to adjust him to them). In that sense, it left him feeling as if perhaps all the drilling and shouting had been worth it to get him into shape for occasions like this as well unless he bungled it up somehow of course.

"May I sit with you?"

His brown hair had even been brushed to a fine smoothness beyond his usual messier hairdo when in casual settings, that much was for sure, though the cap had ever so slightly begun to undo that when he'd worn it to come to the cafeteria in turn. Still, smooth chocolate brown eyes would look breifly, politely, and yet wholly without judgement at the same time at Serah and Aurora. This as a softly warm but smaller smile came to his face more naturally, feeling so despite his own attempt to maintain and match the energy of the venue and likewise more formal tone he had just adopted for the moment being. Even so, his left hand would breifly rise to somewhat adjust his dress coat collar for a moment all the same.

Albeit internally the younger man felt more of a twinge of nervousness in even asking the two, rather than him just sitting alone in a corner nearest to the door. Sure they were supposed to be a 'team', and he needed to get to know them, but he almost felt like an utter outside in all of this still. As if he hadn't the time or knowledge of anyone to justify asking such a thing, and in that sense he wasn't welcome, an isolating feeling he was at least keeping under wraps for the time being. Because really the promise of hot, fresh food made his 'second brain' act in ways to help counteract those bottled up less-than-welcome feelings of his a bit more if nothing else.

@Ammokkx@Shifter_Master

Elora arrived with a bit of red to her cheeks, feeling anxious for arriving at a social gathering like this. Yet, as socially awkward as she was, she had several reasons to attend. For one, she felt responsible for her failure in the practice mission, and so felt she owed it to the rest of the squad to make an appearance, lest she be forever marked as a hopeless outcast. Her second reason was that she wanted to distract herself from the grueling reality of life aboard Solaire, spent between training and learning about software, and more recently hardware with Bugatti's tutoring. She also felt like it was the only good opportunity to wear the dress she originally bought for her graduation after-party, but never ended up attending.

But most importantly, Elora was grateful for the kindness Serah had shown her by trading the gift from Bugatti to herself. So, to make up for it, she had arrived, holding something behind her back as she approached Serah and the others in the group. "Um, hi, Serah." She glanced at the others, and shook slightly from nervousness.
"So, um, I wanted to thank you for being so nice to me. And well, as I visited the Pit in the engineering section together with mister Bugatti, I...managed to get this." She brought out the surprise gift: a bottle of Strawberry Daiquiri.
"Uh, surprise~" she added with an anxious smile. "I, uh, thought you might like it."

[Hr]

Minerva would arrive as well in an admittedly late function, in her defense it is literally a last minute decision of hers to attend and getting clothing that felt appropriate took her a while...

Maybe she actually needed to expand her wardrobe. Task for later.

On her phone flashed Ava’s assessment towards her, which she mostly understood as consider her positioning don’t go lone wolf which is recognised as fair. So after typing a basic agreement before explaining that Argo's thrusters are unremovable due to the nature of it's construction, she would click send and looked at the assembled crowd.

"So I'm now here, what am I supposed to do now?" she asked to the group.

“Serah! A delight to see you.”

The familiar voice ringing through the cafeteria-turned-ballroom immediately got Serah to perk up, shifting her gaze towards the source with a beaming smile. "Aura!" she happily yelled in her friend's direction, waving at her to come over. Aurora was quick to start the conversation, talking about how it was nice to see Serah dressed up with how much effort Arrish had put in. The girl fidgeted and blushed a little. "Ehehe... I still feel a little underdressed," she sheepishly admitted, taking a look around. "My day's been okay... I spent some time with Minerva, but my muscles are all sore from the training still. I think I managed to convince her to come, but..."
@Shifter_Master

Her thoughts trailed off as more people joined the fray. First Lucius, who asked to join them. With a "Sure!" from Serah, and approval from Aurora, the boy took a seat opposite to the two of them. Not long after Rhylaen and Sparks also came to sit at the table, gathering around Aurora. The more the crowd grew, the less nervous Serah began to feel. It seems like nobody really knew what to expect dress code wise- everyone had shown up wearing different things. Rhylaen even seemed unsure of herself, so Serah poked her head out from behing Aurora.
@Crusader Lord

"You look great!" she told Rhylaen. Clumsy as the tevrainian was with galactic standard, Serah could tell from Rhylaen's body language that she was referring to her clothes. "I mean, just look at me... I just tried dolling myself up with what I had," she said, standing up to show off her outfit a bit better.
@shylarah

It wasn't long after that that Elora also joined the party, wearing a dress of her own. Serah spun around when she heard the other girl call her name, not having noticed when she'd entered. Surprise turned to concern as Elora mentioned something about Bug taking her to a place called "The Pit", blinking twice.

'Did... did I set Elora up with some kind of criminal?' Serah thought to herself, slightly worried about how casually she might have gotten her friend associated with somebody dangerous. Then came the reveal of Elora's present, which was...

"...Some kinda drink?" Serah replied puzzled, holding up the unlabeled bottle and inspecting it. "Looks fruity," she commented as she paid attention to the viscosity. Still, Serah grinned and suddenly leapt at Elora, pulling her into a hug. "C'mere!" she shouted as she squeezed Elora tight. "You're so sweet! You didn't need to get me a thing!"
@Ariamis

Eventually after enough of Elora's protesting Serah would let go, a goofy grin on her face. Then shortly after she got seated again, staff began pouring out of the kitchen with all manner of appetizers. Shellfish, little skewers, fancy constructs with fruit and mashed potatoes- a little bit of everything, to everyone's taste. Serah's head began to spin as she'd never seen food this fancy before in her life. She wondered if it was even okay to eat any of it. Arrish soon came out of the kitchen himself, dressed perhaps the most fancy out of anyone there, greeting his guests.

"Please, enjoy a taste of Chateau Duval."

Serah very gingerly began to taste some of the dishes, her face washing over with bliss. She wasn't a particularly picky eater, but that didn't mean she couldn't appreciate when food was good. As things proceeded, eventually Minerva entered the dining hall- rather brusquely at that. She just stood there, middle of the room, bluntly asking what to do. Serah stood up from her seat and gave an apologetic wave to Aurora and Elora, rushing over to Minerva's side.

"Minerva! Come sit with us!" Serah asked of her as she grabbed onto the older girl's arm gently, tugging her to come over to the tables and guiding her to a seat next to Lucius. Only after Minerva was properly seated would Serah return to her own spot. She'd felt responsible for making sure Minerva was comfortable; after all, it was her who invited her fellow pilot to come over.
@Digmata

Aurora would greet everyone as they came to gather round the table that Serah had picked out. It made sense after all, they didn’t know each other all that well so far. It was amusing to see how everyone chose to arrive, some more common than others. Truly their host only had himself to blame.

“Salut” She would nod towards Lu… something, Luke? ‘No that’s not right…’ She kept the grimace from crossing her features, she had only met him today it made sense his name would slip so easily. He piloted the Rex Altus though.

“Ehrosh bem” She’d say in greeting towards her Tervrain friend. Rhylaen’s name was still fresh, and it helped that they had spent a fair bit of time together today, after the mission, what with Aurora trying to learn Rhylaen’s native language.

The other man, the one with the blue hair, Aurora nodded her greeting. Making sure to give a friendly smile as well She recalled that one’s Frame more then she did him. But she figured she had met them first, as Guinevere was the first of the frames she could recall learning about. But nothing else seemed to float up in her mind.

She noticed the exchange between Serah and Elora, and would smile at it. She was curious about the bottle, but it wasn’t really her business. Not to mention impolite to inject herself into a conversation that wasn’t involving her to start.

Regardless, before Aurora could think of doing more, the show had begun as it were.

She gave a polite round of applause to the servers at their well-choreographed performance. Accepting the food offered with a smile and a nod. And had much less reservations about tucking in. The food was wonderful, of course, held back only by the limited time and circumstances. And she couldn’t help but feel nostalgic and a bit melancholic over the food.

It was a dash of home she hadn’t experienced in years.

She raised a glass towards the host of the evening. “A splendid showing, Monsieur. My regards to the chef, it is magnifique.”

It was shortly after doing so that Argo’s pilot arrived. Looking stiff and uncomfortable with the atmosphere, not that Aurora could blame the other woman. She and Argo likely didn’t know how to live off the battle field, they were like Sleepy in that regard. “Yes, join us Minerva. Eat, and relax. It is a rare night we get such luxury no?”

"Yo! Ava! Uh! I mean Yo mama- ma'am I mean! I saw the message on my uh mini computer thingy. Why didn't you just come tell me to my face, my room isn't that far away! But yeah anyways! I just wanted to say I actually fire all my weapons with my Shiva baby! Not just two! It's five! But hey don't worry about it! Anyone can be wrong, just look at the universe letting Sparkles to win the simulation, now that is some serious screw up. Speaking of which I need a big drink, oh and make sure to not miss the steak Ava. " Griff gave a broad grin and gave Ava a thumb up. Then his eyes wandered over her and her attire, his eyes momentarily landing at Ava's chest.

"Whoa! Cool! Are those real? Were you trying to hide those? I didn't know you had such fancy ones. Did you show them to Arrish?" His eyes blinked momentarily, before keeping his stare. "Can I touch them?" He asked in a serious manner, his eyes meeting Ava's, there was no hint of hesitation in his eyes.

'Dogtags are so cool! I really gotta polish mine. Maybe I could tattoo them into my skin? '

Griff raised his both hands as if he was prepped to inspect them. He of course had dogtags himself, but those were not as shiny or fancy looking.

"HEY! Maybe we should compare? I show you mine and you show yours? Bet yours have not seen as much action as mine with how polished they are!" He beamed a smile as if he was accepting a challenge.

He had been in plenty of battles and his dogtags always stayed on, gave them a great patina he thought. He however didn't know if the dogtags would remain if a cruxi alien space machine would blow him up.

Then as he thought about it, he didn't know if Tevranians used dogtags too, what if they used some disgusting biological necklace made of beetles? Still it would be something which he would find interesting.

"Have you ever seen Rhylaen's? They must be pretty small right since shes pretty small overall! I am gonna see about asking about hers later at the party. I hope they aren't weird. Seen any weird ones yet?" He asked in a ponderous manner to Ava.

@Randomguy

Rhylaen appreciated Serah's kind words. It definitely made her feel a little better about being in jeans. As the food was placed on the table, she lit up. She hadn't had a good steak in quite some time. Everything looked absolutely delicious. Some of the words Arrish and Aurora used were unfamiliar to her, but she was able to get the general idea of what was going on. Minerva showed up, a little late, but that was alright. Rhylaen was in no position to critique someone else's manners when she'd botched her attire.

The food was all wonderful -- the steak, the mushrooms, the shellfish, the veggies. "Very good food," she told Arrish. "You made? Did good." She beamed.

Eventually her attention turned to Aurora. She knew the woman had a lot of knowledge about frames, so maybe.... "Aurora? For Dragonfly...blinding burst attack, is bad for allies. Is maybe way to...uh...aim it?"

---

"Oh? The message? Well, I wanted the specific messages to be private, so it would be less practical for me to come to each of you separately. But if there is something you wish to discuss further, I am not opposed to a face-to-face meeting. Of course, Shiva could use all of its arms, but with the Automated Targeting System, you could reduce the delay between—"

Ava started saying, answering Griff's concern regarding the message, before the blonde man suddenly changed the subject, his eyes landing on her chest.

"Touch!? You did not just—!" Ava said, before stopping as Griff's wording became more and more incomprehensible.

Fancy? Compare? Polished?

What was he talking about? Was she still half asleep and her brain not registering Griff correctly? Ava couldn't help but think.

Really, those words were not words typically used to describe...

Ava's eyes looked at her chest, finally having an epiphany of what Griff was talking about, as she saw her dog tag.

She sighed, "...I assume you meant, the dogtag?" Then, with an unimpressed look, she continued, "You ought to REALLY consider your phrasing. You are fortunate you said that to me, and not the more hotheaded female pilots on the squad; you might get reported for sexual harassment. Some, like Minerva, would probably punch you."

@Dezuel

Griff

"Of course I meant the dogtags! What did you think I was talking about? Whoa whoa... hold the spacephone... first of all, I do not phrase and it's called phasing I think? That's something Atty does, saw how that speedy boy got to Dragonfly? Hotheaded female pilots? Sexual harassment? I wouldn't do that. Besides who has time to think about women when there's spacebugs to whack over the head am I right? I mean you don't seem to be the type to be thinking about women either? That's more like Arrish's thing. I think he's into Tevar- Tevran- oh the thing that Rhylaen is. Oh but yeah, Minerva does seem the type to punch. And I imagine she punches pretty hard too! Oh shit. She is probably already at the party, if we don't hurry there, she will take all the steak! Are you able to run there ma'am? If not." Griff said and swallowed, taking a knee and holding his both hands slightly up.

"Mount up on my shoulders, The Griff-express has never skipped a leg day in it's life, I can get us there in no time! It would be just like kattai-ing on a jet thruster!" The blond nodded his head quickly and reassuringly to Ava, that there would likely be no chance in hell this could go wrong in any way.

'This is so cool. It would be just like episode 126 of the Galactic Rangers where the red ranger carries the purple ranger to safety.' His mind wandered and he got a cheeky grin on his face.

Zel-Ghin and Mema-Ka

Zel-Ghin had grinned on having seen Serah's rejection of a kiss, though he had suspected that would have been the answer. "Let me know when you change your mind~" He had said back to Serah before having left her.

'No kiss? Too bad. Be less of a jerk? Be nice to people?' He gave out a grunt and crossed his arms as he softly shook his head. While he was on his way to the gaming room he got the notification on his device sent by Ava, he quickly picked it up and read through. His eyebrows furrowed as did his eyes the more he read, a look of disgust forming on his face, his fingers pressing at the device.

Support.

Support?

She had called his framewerk a support. Easy target. Armored ranged supporter? His teeth clenched and grinded against each other, raising the device as if ready to throw it into the nearest wall at full force.

"You insolent background bitch!" Zel-Ghin's hands were shaking and clenching. Ava had labeled his framewerk as a support unit. Supports were useless in his own mind. Worthless NPC's whose sole existence was to empower and heal the hero of the game. Him. Heal-bots and buffers who were for people who lacked his skills. He had never been so insulted in his entire life, even being the first to be beaten in that good for nothing simulation had not been this insulting. He was made to excel. That these REGULARS... these NORMALS had the audacity to not just put him on their level, but even below it.

Then Serah's words sprung into mind again.

'Try be less of a jerk. Be nicer. Hmph.' Zel-Ghin grunted and repeated some of her words in his own head and shoved his hands into the jacket pockets. He had offered to kiss her, wasn't that being nice enough?

He scoffed and stopped as he walked closer to the gaming room, spotting his brother exiting the adjacent room.

"Zel-Ghin. Do not let the results of the simulation unroot you from the overall tasks at hand. It was simply a test. It did yield plenty of valuable information however about those in charge of this operation. I have asked the executive director to make a minor alteration to the Squid to better appeal to your liking. This all comes as a great boon to us Zel-Ghin. The strength of the framework is almost as important as what happens off the battlefields." Mema-Ka said softly and placed one hand on his brother's shoulder, knowing fully well that Zel-Ghin hated when others touched him, but his older twin being perhaps the sole exception.

"If you say so brother. That bluehaired and hard-to-catch woman saw it necessary to chase me down for that stupid party. So I guess I will attend. I suspect you were planning on going there anyways weren't you?" Zel-Ghin asked.

"Indeed. It would be a shame to miss such an opportunity to getting to know all these people which we would be working so closely together with for this brief moment in time. After all... in order to master the game, one must know all the pieces and what they are good at. Even if life is a game you truly cannot win..." Mema-Ka said in a matter of fact, calm and collected way.

"Haah? Pleasure is winning. Nothing like winning bigtime or fighting on the edge to feel alive. I want to enjoy it all brother. Every bit of it." Zel-Ghin replied, his hand raised up and palm facing upwards as he felt carefree enough about it.

"Even if in the end it is pointless? Nothing is permanent in life. Only death is. It comes for all. " Mema-Ka softly responded, adjusting his long hair slightly.

"It's not pointless in the moment. As long as I get to kiss every woman on this ship at least once that's good enough for me and show these regular men who is the top dog. Who cares if it's not forever? I just wanna have fun~ That stupid new squad leader had the gall to call my frame a support. SUPPORT." Zel-Ghin flung both his arms up and made sure to show his annoyance.

"Well, aren't you supporting me, Zel-Ghin?" Mema-Ka asked calmly and placed his one hand at his waist.

"But that's different... this insolent woman think of me as the local NPC Cleric. How in the world could they have picked that woman to lead the squad and that thief? It doesn't make any sense whatsoever. It should have been you brother. Why are you not upset about this? Why don't you go over there and take what should be yours?" Zel-Ghin asked and crossed his arms in front of him, looking to his older twin.

"Zel-Ghin. You know me best of all. Must I explain this to you? Is an emperor on his throne truly the one in command of his people, or is it his advisors, his generals or his spouse? The squad is put under the command of Lieutenant Kaname, who in turn answers to those further up the chain. If necessary, she may override Lane and Bugatti if it is required. If either of them prove unable to lead they will simply be replaced. Everything is expendable in this world Zel-Ghin. To those with their fingers on the trigger, we are all pawns. Some play the game in an attempt to win it, defeat the other side and you win. A false thing. You defeat one enemy, another appear. However... what would happen if someone completely shatters the board? Then no more games would ever be played..." Mema-Ka smiled softly, his hair casting shade over his eyes. "Come now, Zel-Ghin, we should freshen up for the party. I am dying to know what lies ahead." He said in a slightly jovial tone of voice, blowing some air through his mouth.

"Hmph. No one will ever make a pawn out of wargod Zel-Ghin. I'll show these guys. Just you watch brother. The next time it will be flawless victory. Mark my words." Zel-Ghin said in a determined manner to his taller brother as they walked to freshen up.

Mema-Ka went in to shower and then changed into a fully white formal suit and pants, while Zel-Ghin just went in and splashed some water on his face and drank some of it. Zel-Ghin stood in the hallway, waiting for his brother for what felt like an eternity for him, thankfully his gaming device kept him busy. Once Mema-Ka showed up, they both strode off to the cafeteria, entering it.

"Haah? Well… I better find that cheeky little kittycat since she was so intent on having me come here." He pocketed his gaming device and strolled over to inspect the food. Where were the candy?

Meanwhile Mema-Ka remained in place, close to the doorway, taking in the scene in front of him.

'Eat, drink and get married... for tomorrow you'll die? I think that was what the old saying were...'

---

...This man was a walking HR complaint just waiting to happen, Ava could not help but think.

She wondered how Griff ended up this oblivious. From what she remembered from his files, he grew up in a fortress city. Perhaps the circumstances of his upbringing were what led to this? Or perhaps it was simply an inherent psychological trait of Griff.

Either way, though it might appear more comedic at a blush, and undoubtedly after a while, the squad would understand this peculiarity of Griff. It could potentially lead to hazardous misunderstandings should they interact with civilians or soldiers from other squads that do not understand Griff's eccentricities.

Of course...being a woman, it would be rather awkward if Ava were to be the one who discussed such things with Griff...

Well, she supposed it was for circumstances such as these that it was good for her to have a male counterpart also in the leadership position. She should probably brought it up with Astolfo and have him talk with Griff.

Then, as Griff said something about the dinner party while suggesting that he gave her a 'ride' to the venue, Ava sighed.

Of course. The party.

She had originally intended to skip it. But...rethinking it, she should probably show up as the squad leader. Especially now that Griff had specifically come to her room and asked her to come.

"That won't be necessary," Ava replied with a shake of her head. She then continued, "I will attend the party, I just need some time to freshen up. Please go on ahead and extend my apologies to the rest of our team for being late. I'm afraid that the simulation earlier tired me and I ended up oversleeping."

Her ending up oversleeping instead of never intending to come was a 'white lie', she supposed. But straightforwardly saying 'I wasn't intending to come' would not do either for the spirit camaraderie she hoped to foster among the squad.

@Dezuel

Elora's smile gradually turned more natural as as she realized Serah accepted the gift, only to gasp in shock as she was embraced by her.
"Oh, um, please…” She tried to protest, but couldn’t fully commit to it. In the end, she awkwardly reciprocated the hug before finally pushing softly away. The wide smile on the blunette was a bit more than the shy pilot had bargained for, though she did let herself feel content with how happy she ended up.

Afterwards, as the table was prepared with the dishes, Elora sat down, her hands on her knees and eyes lowered, though she did give a small friendly wave of the hand to the other guests. Aurora was quite beautiful, yet she also carried herself with poise and grace, almost like a fairytale princess. However, she also seemed a bit distant, which was understandable: Elora also liked to sit at the far side of the table from her if possible. She also greeted Minerva, finding her style incredibly cool and empowering, like a rock star. Sparks, while less glamorous, dressed quite nicely. “H-Hello, mister Quinn,” she greeted him.

Arrish himself outshone the former guests as the host for the occasion, seemingly in his element as he organized the fancy affair. However, it was Lucius who most caught her attention, finding herself stealing glances at his uniform, and blushing at seeing his dashing smile. At that moment she felt a bit self-conscious at her own dress and lack of fashion sense, with a dress that she felt must have looked like a tailored tablecloth: she must have seemed very plain and boorish with nothing really going on, like a mere commoner among the upper crust. Even Rhylaen, who was in a more casual style, seemed to fit in more than her.

Still, she quietly enjoyed her dinner, her eyes wide in awe at the performing servers. The food was nothing like she had tasted before, and her eyes sparkled at the deliciousness of it all. “Ahh! So good!” She found herself giddily exclaiming, soon to be followed up with a grimace of anxiety at having been accidentally so loud. “Uh, sorry…” Fortunately, it seemed neither Corporal was present to chide her about uncouth table manners. However, she found it strange that Ava Lane, a very diligent and responsible person and the squad leader of their unit, was absent. She was probably very busy, she thought to herself.

---

Sometimes, meeting people at the right moment was like fishing in that regard. Just the right amount of wiggle, the right bait, and they would show themselves before you. Sometimes it was easy, sometimes it was not. There was a certain…method of mystery regarding Aurora that Astolfo found curious. The woman was a blank in the usual suspect places, but he doubted she would leave her beloved Sleeping Thunder to just chat with him. Like a cave fish, she had to be enticed to come forth.

Astolfo suspected how, as some small chatter around the medbay made him realize he and the other redheaded woman were usual clients of the medical facilities. A commonality. Although he did not know why, her health was also fragile, unlike some of the other pilots like Minerva, Griff or the Bunny who never seem to run out of batteries. There was a fair curiosity on the team Apple’s leader, who had been discarded from the leadership by Lorenzo on the grounds of being “hysterical”. Hardly something worrisome to pin, but he guessed that in the doctor’s eyes, Ava and himself had done better.

Still, Astolfo was not one to leave any stone unturned, and even though Ava had accepted to meet up with him regularly, and that he would be building the senior pilot’s shattered confidence once more, only a fool would play a few cards. If by some catastrophic event, both were wiped out, Aurora seemed serviceable enough to lead. Plus, there was a certain grace of the victors before the losers, a further step to help reconnect after the divisive exercise. Plus she was his type too.

So, he left a very particular breadcrumb, on a chosen day that Aurora had checkups too, a misplaced…medical file. Detailing how much…his body had been healed and how he was still catching up in that regard. The rest was, like the patient fisherman, waiting to see if there was a bite. So he positioned himself drinking some of the awful purified water, hoping to see some kind of reaction.

Aurora strode out of her appointment with her Doctor with a sense of easy relief. This doctor at least seemed willing to work with her in regards to her complications. Something that wasn’t as common as it should have been, she felt.

All in all her visit was proceeding accordingly, and it wasn’t until she was handling some clerical work with one of the assistants that she noted the bait that had been left out for her.

Her natural curiosity had her opening the files without a thought towards asking about them. And once she recognized what she had her hands on, she paused. She had skimmed enough to recognize the nature of the ploy, it was one to garner sympathy, and establish a sense of comradery. ‘And a good ploy at that.’ She mused to herself, as she set about reading over the file before her a bit with a bit more focus and intent.

She had already read enough to be at risk, reading all the details wouldn’t cause any further harm. And she was a curious sort in the end. It was only once she had finished the file that she clearly looked around searching for who it was that might have left this out for her.

Bug nearly heaved at drinking the awful water, but he did not need to wait for long. She had taken the bait and proceeded to read it without any care for privacy.

“My medical record is fascinating isn’t it.” He said. “Care for a walk and chat, Briars?” Bug would then reply.

“It is surely an unexpected find I will admit.” She says as she steps in line with him letting him set the pace, seeing as she had no idea where it was he was aiming to take them.

“I will admit to some curiosity as to why you felt the need to share Monsieur Bugatti, if you don’t mind that being the starting topic.”

“Well, I suppose we could chat about framewerk specifications, but I am not as good as some in that regard.” Bugatti replied. “You seem to have trouble focusing on people so I needed to maximize the commonality as we say.” The corporal sighed. “After all I do have something to say that needs your undivided attention.”

“Ah. You are more forward thinking about it then most.” Aurora would murmur. It was on the one hand it was surprising to have such an honest reply, many people tried to dance around her disabilities when they learned of them. On the other hand, it was strange to meet someone who was so… mercenary in regards to them as well. She would have to check her notes, but she doubted this had come up before now.

“Well, I can assure you that you’ve my attention for the moment. As well as my curiosity.” She would say louder a moment later. “What can I be of assistance with?”

“Mmm” Bug would say, a hand to his chin. “Engineering redundancies. Were I or senior Ava to kick the bucket, you would probably need to step up. You felt being left behind did you? Well, I do agree it was a razor thin difference. Better than handing command to someone…completely diseagreeable…” Bug would then smile. “It would not hurt to keep someone like you in good graces, either. I do admire your outlook, Briars.”

“Hmm, I have no problems stepping up in emergency situations.” Aurora would reply, getting an idea for why Bugatti had approached her. It wasn’t a bad idea, after all knowing the redundancies helps in times when they are needed. “But outside of such.” She would shrug. “I can gather you’ve ready my file, since you have set about working around my issues so clearly, and it is those very issues that make me unfit for long term leadership positions.” Not that such a truth doesn’t and didn’t sting. But there was little that she could do about such.

“And flattery will get you nowhere, Bugatti.” She would add with a relaxed smile of her own. “I am curious as to what of my outlook you’ve been able to put together. We have not spoken at length I would be willing to say, so either my file has quite a bit more than I’d have assumed or you’ve gained something of an opinion of me from our training sim.”

Bug would then chuckle. “Well, you flattened me with that one attack where you cursed at the heavens for being left alone for no reason. That is the fire we need to eliminate the plague that has been beset upon us. That was…certainly stimulating, Dame Aurora.” The younger pilot would say, as he indicated. “It also belies will and grudges beneath the prison of flesh that are our bodies. Ever read Moby Dick, Dame Aurora?” Bug would indicate to follow him to a secure auxiliary room to sit down and chat at leisure.

Aurora would simply nod in agreement as Bug led them away from the medical wing of the ship. “Your own survival of such was rather unexpected, there are not many targets that Sleepy has fired at that needed a second salvo.” She would say in turn. “Though I will admit that Sleepy wasn’t the most involved in our training exercise. For all their bad manners they don’t really care about fighting those that aren’t Cruxi I learned.” Which was both an interesting and heartening thing to learn, not that Aurora had reason to think otherwise. But neither of them have had much experience in fighting humans before the XJ9 Project. So knowing that once again her and Sleepy agreed on who the targets should be was lovely to learn.

“To your question; Yes. Though it has been, hmm, quite some time since I read it last. But I was raised on many of the classics, why do you ask?”

Bug stopped to think for a second. At the implications of what Aurora just said. He had heard of such extreme personifications of equipment and devices. It was beyond weird but it seemed to play a part in Aurora’s coping mechanism.

“Not many people survive orbital strikes either.” Bug would clarify as he rubbed his own shoulder, some unspecified phantom pain flaring up.

“The thing is…” He would pause and look at the redhead. “Don’t the Cruxi look like a white whale to you? The odious thing that crippled you, the sum of all that is evil, mmm?”

The smile she wore when she turned towards Bug was polite, benign, and utterly fake. “There is some passing resemblance to the late Captain’s goal, I will grant you that. But you might miss the distinction that if I were to lay down my arms and forsake my crusade, that there would still be countless others to take them up in my absence.”

“Or the singular fact that we are not hunting them out of misplaced pride, but survival.” She would continue, hate burning in her eyes. Even as her tone remained polite. “I do not know if you have faced them yet, but I assure you. The Cruxi are evil. Not the root of it, no, that would be too simple. But a sick and twisted malevolent force none the less. And the galaxy can only become a better place with their removal.”

Bug smiled back, a polite smarmy smile too. Even as much as she denied it, the hatred was real. “Well, not that many are capable of such burning hatred. Take Arrish for example. The idiot asked if one could make peace with them, and I bet that Meme-kun or whatever his name is, all he sees is a misunderstanding about the tragedy of war.” He let out a slight chuckle.

“I have never met them though. But Mother always spoke about her service with Earth’s Forces.” Bug would say. “Regardless of morality, they are a hazard to our survival and they must be removed. And I intend to profit from it.”

“Hmm. I can’t speak to the naivete of my fellow pilots. But if you speak true, our first colony mission will be sadly educational for many of them.” Aurora would state. Mulling over who Bugatti was talking about, Meme-kun sounded utterly unfamiliar to her, but Arrish did seem to stir something. Perhaps they were the pilot of one of the Frames she had had a chance to inspect so far?

“I would advise caution about seeking too much profit in the face of them. I have no doubt such a crass choice will be lucrative, but there needs to be a limit. Otherwise you risk growing to prioritize your wallet over their death.” She would go on to say. “And I hope I do not need to explain the outcome of that train of thought to you.”

Bug let out a slight chuckle, a small sinister bend on his mind. “I am not talking about monetary profit, Dame Aurora. Winning a war will earn me a Death Row pardon. Death by hanging. Death by Cruxi. I will risk dying regardless, but only in one such case will I stand to gain something.” The prince said. “If killing all the Cruxi will make me free the yoke of my brother and the bloody aftermath of that civil war I will gladly do it.”

“Hmm.” Aurora looked over her companion with a closer eye. His medical file, while full of information, didn’t tell her much about the young man outside of what he had lived through. And that at least one person had been willing to pour a not insubstantial amount of effort into making sure he lived.

“Politics?” She would ask ,it was what made the most sense after all.

“Royal siblings are as much family as a liability. It was dog eat dog when our parents disappeared. Same old succession crisis story. I lost the game of thrones so to speak.” Bug would say. “Barely made out alive of all of it.”

He shrugged. “But I guess Solaire needed someone from Yatalia, and my brother decided to ship me. After all, someone whose framewerk rampage has to be put down via orbital laser might be useful against the Cruxi.”

“Fraticide does tend to make the Lords wary as well.” She would add with an understanding nod. “Still, nothing in the contracts that I have seen that force a renouncement of titles and lands. So while you’ve for sure been dealt a poor position. The Game is not done until you are dead.”

“In fact, I’d say your brother has put you in a place to gain a fair amount of support. Though your reputation might as well be in tatters if you are here under a real Death Row agreement.” Aurora would muse aloud, her gaze drifting off as she considered things. “Still, political promises to the Federation Military are more likely to be heard, and support granted, when you have closer access to those that are in charge.”

“Well, I guess nobody expects me to survive in the end. So they are not stingy in the rewards. Brother listened to his fear when he sent me away. I shall devour Cruxi and become stronger.” The young man said. “...even with this feeble body. Don’t you think?”
“So what’s your spin, Dame Aurora? Fellow cripple to fellow cripple. Is it avenging loved ones? Is it just carving the world apart to get your life back?” Bug would then inquire.

“It’s really quite simple for me.” Aurora would answer after a moment of contemplation. “They took everything from me.” Her gaze turned distant as she reflected on her loss. The pain, the damage, all that could never and would never be again. “Even my life, if not for Sleepy.”

Her polite smile never wavered, same with her stance. Both remaining as prim and proper as one would see from a member of nobility. But the hell fire in her eyes seemed to glint and flare as she refocused onto the man before her. “I intend to return the favor unto them. Only I won’t make the mistake of not ensuring it is done.”

“Not everything it would seem.” Bug would tilt his head and recite.

”It matters not how strait the gate,
How charged with punishments the scroll,
I am the master of my fate,
I am the captain of my soul.”

He let the words go on. “So alike and yet so different from Senior Ava.” Bug would answer with mirth. “Truly a pity we did not meet before. We would have been good dance partners, stomping upon the graves of the fallen Cruxi things that dared to cross the lines.”

Aurora lets out a melodious laugh “Invictus.” She would acknowledge with a nod and a smile. “True, Monsieur Bugatti, not everything. Seems that this project will rectify that no? And with so many of the frames gathered here, there are plenty of others to assist us in giving the Cruxi their due.”

“Indeed.” Bug would then say. “Just…let me know should your strength falter. I have plenty to spare…and wouldn’t mind a beauty like you getting indebted to me, you know.” The prince would say. “If you ever feel like gathering additional funds for killing tools, drop me a call. Two people are better than one, isn't it?”

“Two are better than one.” Aurora would agree before sending Bugatti a look. “But talking of debt so brazenly…” She would shrug. “That sounds less like working together, and more an excuse for something I would much rather avoid.” She didn’t think the young man was intending to come off as unseemly as he was, but that wasn’t really the point either.

Aurora knew that debt to royalty wasn’t something that was so simply cleared away. “Regardless,” she continued. “While I shall endeavor to keep your offers in mind, I am not without my own resources.” A fact that held true both materially and spiritually. She would not be found wanting for strength anytime soon, not so far as she considered things at least.

“I am willing to extend to you the same offer. We are ostensibly allies after all.” She would add with a momentary widening of her smile.

“True. Nothing like a heinous threat to mankind to make everyone row together, hmm?” Bug would then reply with no small amount of irony. “If only everyone did get the memo…not to say most do get it…but I digress.”

“Plights are easy to ignore when one is removed from them far enough. And the Cruxi have made it so very easy to ignore. We do not have a stream of wounded to send back, or wide spread damage to truly show off. Not on the scale we would need to make people sit up and recognize that if they don’t act they will die.” Aurora would off with a lazy, ‘what can you do’ sort of shrug.

“The Federation has kept much of the front lines quiet and classified. To avoid panic I understand. But I fear that will simply mean that when there is enough proof to wake everyone from their illusions it will be far too late.”

“Well. At least Sleeping Thunder is a good alarm clock as any.” Bug would then add. “I guess we will keep in touch from now on. Look forward to it.” Bug would say, offering his hand. “Just don’t be an stranger.”

“Would that me and Sleepy be able to wake them all up.” Aurora would shake her head good naturedly at the idea, but she smiled genuinely nonetheless. “I will do my best, in both regards, Monsieur Bugatti” Taking his hand she would give him a short nod as well. It had been an interesting conversation. She would need to make sure to note it down soon.

Feeling confident, the prince would then raise Aurora’s hand to kiss the back of her hand. “Let us look forward to the future, mademoiselle Briars.”

---

After managing to convince Griff that she would be heading to the party herself, Ava went to the shower room, before changing into her military fatigue before heading back to her room so she could change into something more appropriate.

She...wasn't quite paying attention on account of still being shocked at her appointment to squad leader when the whole idea of the party was being thrown around, but she was quite certain that it was intended to be more of a 'fancy' dinner setting.

Given her family's status, a fancy dinner party such as a gala was not something unfamiliar to Ava. Of course, unlike back home, she did not have her menagerie of dresses and other apparel one would normally wear to such an event. She never really bothered to pack one, as it was a military deployment. They hardly would have time for such things, at least that was what she thought.

She supposed she should just look at what she had available in her room later.

For now...Ava activated her personal computer, checking on some of the replies she had received, taking the time to compose a reply of her own as she walked toward her room.





Ava then sent her replies, just as she arrived at her room. She then proceeded to look through the clothing she brought, ultimately deciding to simply wear her military dress.

It was, after all, the outfit specifically designed for soldiers to wear in official functions that require more pomp and ostentatiousness than normal.

Satisfied with her choice, Ava changed out of her military fatigue into her military dress uniform.

"Good evening. Apologies for my late arrival, everyone," she greeted the group as she arrived to the venue.

Griff had stood up the moment that Ava had rejected his offer to be her onboard taxi. She wanted to freshen up.  Griff felt how an idea began to form in his head, he should go and freshen up too. He couldn't show up to the party in a sweaty pilot outfit.

He had given Ava a salute and nodded his head to her request as he went to the showers. He did pick the right one this time. Right?

The blond man returned to his room after showering, clad in a fully black bodysuit, then having put his pilot suit into the washing machine, he went to the wardrobe and pulled out his second pilot outfit which was identical to the first one.

Griff gave a broad grin. He was a man prepared for anything. He took it on and hooked his pilot helmet to his belt harness.

If he was a sneaky alien, thwn what better opportunity to attack than when they were eating steak and drinking? Griff nodded to himself. He wanted to be ready for that possibility, that said he was still planning to get drunk. He still wanted to forget about Sparks winning.

The blond man made his way to the party, he was reqdy to fight, eqt and drink. Perhsps he could drink more than Sparks? Or eat more steaks? Providing Minerva had not eaten up everything.

He also had to make sure Serah and Elora got to eat at least two steaks each, they needed to grow bigger! More protein! Then his mind fell on Lucius. That guy also was in severe need of getting a steak and needed to be dragged to the gym as far as Griff was concerned.

'Don't worry broster, we'll make a man out of you yet! Hoooaaaah!' He mentally chanted in his own head before stepping into the cafeteria, he wanted to make a good impression and letting the others know that he had arrived.

"Yo everybody! The Griffman have arrived! Hooo yeah! Sorry to be the bearer of bad news but our boss lady Ava will be late! She had to freshen up after all the fun we had together!" Griff held out his arm, made a thumbs up, smiled broadly with his eyes closed. He felt a surge of confidence, he definitely felt like this was something the red ranger would do.

Then the confident blond opened his eyes and spotted Ava.

"Oh." Griff said in a surprised and awkward manner, he reached up to scratch his head and neck. "You are already here. Whoops. Well! One cannot be too safe! Hey wait a second... what if you are a spy alien in disguise? How would I know it's really you?" Griff tone changed to a suspicious tone, as if doubt was beginning to take root.

Could Ava have freshened up and gotten here before he did? The blond man thought, his head starting to hurt slightly. He really needed to find a drink and steak.

"Oh! Right. Last one to get a steak is a lame mother goose." He said and raised a finger up as he moved to find the currently two most important things in the world, steak and a drink. Spotting Elora sitting by one of the tables with many of the others. Perfect. He was going to go and sit down next to Elora as soon as he would get the biggest baddest steak

Aurora felt rather comfortable in the gentle atmosphere that drifted across the table. It was quaint, and personable, filled with the mish mash that was always found at the front. She had longed to be invited to such gathering before, but she had been something of a vagabond since she joined the Federation. Not to mention her other complications in regards to making strong connections.

Still, there was always one thing that would dominate her mind if given the opportunity, and here with comrades and relaxation, Rhylaen’s question was the one to bring it to the fore. Her love of Framewerk.

“That should be rather simple.” She would say thinking over the conundrum. She carved free a small morsel of her steak as let ideas percolate. “Though it will depend on how the jamming signal is deployed for Dragonfly, but first thought is a signal dish. That way there is some direction for you to aim the signal.”[/color]

“Two ideas for that are a custom attachment to the Marker light. Though you might have to give up one of its firing modes to fit the dish.” She would go on, absently sketching out a crude blueprint in the sauce on her plate. “The other option is altering their wings. The generators that produce and maintain the energy fields should be able to be modified so that they can produce a tight frequency emission.”

She would mull over the rough designs on her plate for a moment before shrugging herself back to the moment. “That might interfere with the stability of the barrier field though. And I doubt you’d be able to have both applications running in tandem.”
@shylarah

Just then Rhylaen would hear a rather familiar sound. Auroa’s PAD would let out a soft chiming alert. Aurora would be sure to wipe her hands off before retrieving her communications device. She had muted it for the next few hours, but there were a few things set to override that setting.

Aurora would notice the message in her email, and despite her curiosity she would ignore it for now. It wasn’t what had bypassed the mute.

It was a warning, a self-set one.

‘Ava Lane, Corporal and Squad leader, Argent Wings’

Attached was a ID photo of a redheaded woman.

Aurora wouldn’t comment. But would look up in time to see the very same woman walk into the cafeteria. She would nod to herself as she tucked her PAD away once more. “No need for apologies Corporal Lane, you have not missed much.” Aurora would say in response and greeting. Her gaze only dipped to the side for a moment when Shiva’s Pilot arrived as well, but bounced back to Ava swiftly.

“Please, have a seat. Monsieur Duval’s cooking is very good.”
@Randomguy