ERode

Shock & A.W.E. [Redux]

Ah, so the sprinter had the ability to refuel as well, was it? Though Hu-Shi had her doubts about how well or consistent power generators were when the battlefield had already been well-overrun by the Saurid horde, she kept those thoughts to herself. Ideally, she'd like to have the Jiang Shi core at full charge in case she needed the extra shielding or power, but if they couldn't find the queen of this reptilian anthill in time, it would be better spent making sure that everyone could still move their AWEs. As Richard left, the Chinese girl decided, he brows furrowing almost unnoticeably, that, until the Matriarch was within firing range, she'll hold off using the Jiang Shi core for herself. Well, it would be a fun mission regardless.

A few minutes later, the communication channel went online again, establishing the fact that Richard had gotten in contact with an individual that was obviously very important to the ground forces that they would be soon joining. Named himself as Lieutenant Scikkor, ethnicity unrecognizable. Perhaps European? His last name sounded somewhat like Scipio, after all. An agitated individual, one that made Hu-Shi want to speak to, to calm down with her words, and perhaps serve some tea to. Well...a shame that he was only part of the simulation, to test the cadet's ability to deal with aggravating individuals. Tests that she could pass easily, considering her background. Still, it hailed some good information for the battle to come. The Saurids had mutated into melees who could rip through armor, and acid-spitters who could be annoying. Shield maintenance would be important, but with a good charge, she should be able to get to the Slimers easily, and then butcher them.

It would be what happened after the momentum of the cavalry was lost that things could get scary.

Well, it must have been scarier for a man with a family to fight without being encased in an AWE against those monsters. Even when none of this was real. Even when virtual deaths meant nothing. Even though this was training to make them think of 'real' deaths as nothing as well. Ah...Hu-Shi hoped that the Lieutenant would survive this simulation, if nothing else. She was pointlessly shallow like that.

The words of Thessalia brought her back out of her thoughts, as the strategy was confirmed once more. Jack Roman, the split-personality boy, would be working to find, and perhaps assassinate, the Queen. The rest would be dropping near the front lines, so they would have a few more moments to prepare, before engaging the enemy. Nothing as crazy as dropping into the thick of the hornet's nest then. With the first order of suiting up, and the reveal that Richard was also a man who knew his machines (or at least enjoyed calibrating all of them), she happily followed the lead of Thessalia into the drop bay. She breathed in the noticeably different air, marvelled once more at how realistic everything was, before entering into the metallic capsule, perhaps a coffin, that was marked as her own.

Within, the Chrome Ex-Road, shiny and red like a tank that was masquerading as a sports car, stood. It towered above her at three meters, and its smooth curves and angles simply looked fabulous. What a pretty machine. It'll be dusty soon, and then it'll be slick with blood, but that was fine. That was part of the deal. And it would be good stress relief, pounding down on what were obviously enemies of humanity. The Dragon Slayers, massive swords that cleaved evil, were held at the AWE's sides. Using one of them as a foothold, she gracefully climbed up onto the top of the colossal mass of gears and pistons, before placing her left hand firmly against the domed top of the Chrome Ex-Road. For a moment, a warm sensation enveloped the surface of her hand, before a translucent 'OK' showed up on the silvery surface, and the dome opened, up, revealing the dark interior. Sliding in and sitting down on the soft seating of her AWE, a seat that was just a bit above the gatling gun hidden inside the AWE, Hu-Shi groped around until the grooved gloves and boots of her interface suit locked into the positions that the limb-control and motion interfaces of the Chrome Ex-road were.

All that was left was for the dome overhead to seal and click once more, turning transparent in the process. As the whole machine hummed into life, a mechanical safety harness held her in place, and the transparent screen started to read out the current condition of the AWE.

All clear in all ways.

As a final test, Hu-Shi brought up her comm online, and with a cheery smile, said, “This is Chrome Ex-Road, ready to drop! Good luck and stay sharp, everybody!”

http://Reality - OOC

Doesn't really matter. Just trying to move this RP along. XD

http://Reality - OOC

Posted in the collab, if you plebs care.

http://Reality - OOC

Real men use the same docs over and over again.

That's the collab place, by the way. I'll have stuff done regarding it, soon.

Wingless: From the Cracked-Open Sky

There. Posting has happened. Should be fairly obvious what to do for this round.

Wingless: From the Cracked-Open Sky

The largest seat in the room, a well-sanded wing chair with a high back, was the one that Kairn sat himself in, behind the only desk in the room. Shifting through the many cabinets to each side of himself, the commander brought out a few sheets of paper and a pen, just in time so that he could shuffle them in a mature and professional manner when the first person to arrive, Kathrine Overture, stepped in, looking not-so pleased with the humid weather. He almost thought that he should warn her about the conditions inside the washroom that she would no doubt be wishing to go to, but her glare told him not to. She was someone who worked hard to be liked by others, after all, and probably wanted him to just ignore that melted-makeup face she had just shown him moments earlier.

Well, he liked to think that he was a kind and considerate commander, the good cop that balanced out the bad cop that was Clark Dumont, so he wouldn't say anything about it. Though she should work on maintaining her image on a constant basis, Kairn decided that he shouldn't complain. Masks were important, but they were also uncomfortable to wear. Especially in weather like this.

Of course, then there was Southey Doe, the second arrival who had the unfortunate lodging of having to sleep on the second floor of the building. In other words, the part of the building that didn't have quite as many options for ventilation, no plumbing, and generally was an intensely stupid place to sleep. He wasn't exactly sure why the girl didn't read the altitude forecast yesterday and realize that today would be a scorcher, but she was empty-headed enough for that, if nothing else. Smiling slightly as she flailed around like a dying fish, the commander stood up, retrieved a mug, before opening the top of the tank of water and dipping in the mug. It was as lukewarm as he expected, but unlike himself, Kairn doubted that the brunette cared. He placed the mug a few inches away from Southey's nose, before saying, “It's not exactly ice-water, but there's more in the tank, if you want.”

Then, the infamous, impeccable Clark Dumont arrived, as confident and daring and dashing and unbothered as ever, with the dark and despairing Carbon tagging closely behind him. Really, those two were probably the only ones who could go through such weather without batting an eye. Of course, it might be because Carbon was in a constant state of self-suffering that no one noticed a change in his mood, but whatever. If nothing else, the swordsman was proving himself to be a monstrous paragon. Or an inhuman monster.

“Morning to you too, Dumont. And Carbon, no death threats please. Some might actually want to die.” He was fairly certain that Carbon wasn't a psychopath, and was just joking in his morbid fashion...but it was best to be cautious. Wouldn't it look bad on his records if one of the people he recommended to be hired was arrested after strangling another Fae to death with his infinity scarf?

Isis, probably the only smart one of all who arrived, brought a water canteen that had drops of water vapor condense on its surface. In other words? Cold water. It would be really nice if people with refrigerators could move them into this underfunded Daedalus outpost. It would be really, really nice. He almost felt like abusing his power as the manipulator of pay checks in order to get it done, but alas, he had his image to uphold. Maybe one day, he'll catch Clark smuggling muscle-growth powders or whatever, and then use that leverage to make him threaten the refrigerator-owners to all 'kindly donate' their water-cooling assets to the outpost.

What a scheming king he was.

Second last to arrive was the functionally-useless, yet cute-as-a-button Rinshan, and Kairn waved cheerily at her, even though her smile was warm enough that he felt like he was going to die soon. Not of a heart attack incited by overt cuteness, but because rising blood pressure during hot weather was definitely going to give him a heat stroke. Settling back into his chair, he was about to wave off her concerns about being late, before the final Fae arrived.

Felix, the Fae of The Shadow. The one with the most cliche and grimdark name, but held by the most hyperactive person around. The Commander wondered if Clark and Felix would still reach double-digits in terms of butting heads when it was this hot, but considering how Felix was the third that didn't seem worn down by this weather, that was likely.

Maybe some running around would silence them.

Yeah, that'd be great.

“No worries, Rinshan. People are only late until they arrive after you, so it's a-okay!” Giving her a thumbs-up and a smile, he pointlessly shuffled through the documents that he didn't read, before scratching the stubble that he'd been growing the past year.

“Anyways, let's get to the matter at hand. Today's mission is that of search-and-rescue. Or perhaps, just searching in general. As most of you should be aware, tomorrow, visibility will be zero, and temperatures will plummet, so it will be instrumental that we complete this job today. Prepare to work until sunset if you must, but don't push yourselves if you start getting heat-sick.”

“Now, onto the contents. Yesterday evening, Ms. Herrmann, a widow from a small farm five miles west of here was found searching for her son, and has since then requested our help. Well, not like we could just turn a blind eye to this regardless, considering how small this place is...but anyways. The farmers nearby have already searched a three-mile radius around town, but due to terrain, can not search effectively over any area larger than that. The rest of the population has been accounted for, so this is an isolated case. There's been no sign of a struggle, so this won't be a kidnapping...but who would do something as stupid as that...or an attack by a wild animal. A flight level below the tree line will be optimal, and pay special attention to water sources. It's a hot day, so there may be chances that the child would be there.”

“Which brings me to two questions. Why didn't anyone other than Isis bring a water canteen? And are there any questions?”

Aurora - Int. Check

Goddammit Asuras. Why do your TL;DRs get new people, and my TL;DRs only get old people? Fucking unfair world. e.e

But yeah. I'll plop my interest.

Wingless: From the Cracked-Open Sky

Now only Sky's left...

Typical Sky speed.

Wingless: From the Cracked-Open Sky

Getcho character's ass into the outpost HQ and interact or whatnot. This round shall last one week, so you have until Sunday before I bust your ass.

Wingless: From the Cracked-Open Sky

First Wing | Last Dream
A hot day.

A day to waste, basking in the bright, white sun.

A day to praise, for the sunlight would serve to nourish that season's harvest.

A day to remember, for tomorrow, the Regana'Hier pod were planning to enter a raincloud, to replenish water supplies.

Tomorrow will be damp and dreary, so today, they were flying at higher altitudes, warmer altitudes.

Those who lived in Era'Thet wore summer clothing, even though it was, following the calendar, supposed to be autumn, a season of dying. In the gaze of the sun, the flame-colored leaves that slowly withered seemed to burn. There was a nice breeze passing over the hills that day, but still warm enough that it could not be considered a cold wind, but a refreshing breeze. Farmers were toiling the fields, getting as much done as possible so tomorrow won't have to be spent outside, in the blanket of clouds. Hunters took advantage of the sunlight to get some hunting done, sharpening their arrows, hoping to take down one of the canines that roamed the wilderness. All others...just didn't really care about the weather. They would find it a relief, after suffering through such a warm, sunny day.

Kairn Lightpost, specifically, would love to have tomorrow come faster. The Commander of the Daedalus Outpost stationed in Era'Thet was slowly roasting in his 'work' clothes, clothing who's only function was to make himself look older and more experienced than he actually was. With a heavy fisherman's cap over his dark brown hair, and a longcoat over his shirt and trousers, the twenty-ish man was slowly roasting away under the oppressive heat. He really didn't understand how that Dumont could wear black clothes all year, all season long. Does he not burn? Is he as soulless as his teaching style is? The man sighed, unbuttoned the top of his shirt, and pressed on, towards the only building that looked out-of-place in the pioneer town of Era'Thet.

The Daedalus HQ, a two-story tall building, made out of concrete and steel, the sturdiest building in Era'Thet, and thus, the safest. Not that there would ever be anything that would actually THREATEN the humans living there. Though they had yet to secure a direct line of communications with the whale himself, Kairn was fairly confident that the whale would protect them with his magic in moments of dire need.

Or just purge everything.

He grimaced, before pushing open the steel doors leading to the interior of the simple, rectangular building...and immediately, utterly regretted it.

It was, after all, a building without any form of the modern air-conditioning that one may experience in At'Pol. A humid gale seemed to push against him the moment the door to the furnace was opened, and Kairn's eyeballs sweated, his glasses misting over. It seemed like the tank of water that had been drawn yesterday was now boiled, and it appeared that whomever was in the building last had thought that it would be a good idea to close all the windows. As if there would be anyone stupid enough to steal from an outpost like this.

The interior of the first floor, luckily, was filled with windows. Keeping the door open with his two loafers, since he doubted any of the kiddies would be out of their homes or dorms or whatever yet, the commander hung his hat on a brass rack that seemed to hiss in the heat, before going about and cracking open every window in the building. Soon, it was bearable enough that he felt like he could put on his shoes and hat once more. A nice draft was filling up the rather spartan building, which was only occupied by wooden chairs, a few tables, one desk, and a radio set.

There was also a cabinet filled with mugs, to pour water in, but at the moment, even though he was thirsty, Kairn didn't want to take a sip of that lukewarm water. It would probably just evaporate in his mouth.

Today was a work day, and there was an annoying incident to be resolved as well.

At least he didn't have to go running around in this kind of weather.