FalloutJack

NCQuest - A Mecha RP: The Defense of Darwin (BeeNCQuest)

This was not a battle you wanted to lose.

It was the ultimate hunt combined with the deadliest of weapons.

A redux of The Most Dangerous Game, the hunt for human lives.

Dread moved, Ursa Nova responded, and the enemy was already chunks in his mind.

Let us begin.

The bear-like NC had made the beeline for the multi-limbed mech, Hisn-ul-Ghayma, and naturally it had seen or detected his presence. He wasn't in it to be a sneaky bastard about things. He wanted you to know what horrors you would face, and despair in its presence. Sadly, you could not possibly hear whatever emotional reaction the other pilot could have unless you had communications open to them, but Dread could imagine, as things became worse for every victim, that all confidence would drain and the fear would be present instead. It was only a matter of how he handled things, once engaged.

For instance, when he launched himself at the drone-launching mech, it had thrust its heat axe out at Ursa's diving figure, opening to do grievous damage to it. But that would not happen so easily. No no no... The heated jaws of the beast, already open wide, came snapping down upon the heat axe, catching the business end of it in a clash of heat on heat action. In the long run, you would bet on Ursa's teeth winning out in a struggle between the two, as the axe was not as dedicated in the energy department as the bear's various heated implements. But...we're not going to have a mere struggle of axe-in-bear-mouth. Dread wasn't interested.

After the teeth of Ursa Nova grappled with Hisn-ul-Ghayma's axe, its forepaws - rather, its arms - palm-slapped the ground, since a tackle wasn't going to happen right now. The enemy NC was using the fullness of its strength to break his momentum. So be it. The hands struck the ground and high-pressure flames shot out to boost the beast back into an upright position and the legs came in to achieve two-legged balance. Dread had his NC pull on the axe, but only to test the strength of its wielder for a moment. He had a better move in mind. Ursa's chest-ports ignited and spewed plasma flames at the enemy NC while leaving his hands free to do whatever the hell he wanted, which was to wait and see how it would react to this sudden reversal of fortune.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Ah, but we're not done yet. Because, you see, there's more of a tale to tell in the life of some of our pilots. For instance...

A Tale of Two that Met in the Past

Terra and Hibiki

In the rec room of the genetics facility, sounds of an object echoed through the halls. Within, a young girl could be seen tracking the object with her eyes and ears as it wildly careened around the room. Despite common sense, she was seen clasping the ball from its trajectory just to send it flying again. She did this without flinch or failure, her control seemingly flawless. She couldn't be more than 12 years of age, but this seemed more than one of her age should be capable of... The sound of footsteps did not alter her actions. She continued on as if nothing e happening, though it sounded as though her 'creator' was speaking to someone.

"...and it truly is a marvel that nobody even considered this process from the start. I mean, it's so obvious. Get them from the start, accelerate the learning capacity. It's perfect. Ah, here we are."

Dr. Bastion was a middle-aged man with glasses who was balding and as educated in medical science and genetics as he was arrogant...which is to say quite a bit. The slow process of raising an augmented human from birth to adulthood to allow all adaptations to set in and beat out all previous attempts was his idea. He...made Terra Laedo, shortly after she was born.

In a very crass tone, the man Dr. Bastion was leading commented, " Exactly what I thought! Although my options were more limited than yours at the time. Thankfully my late wife left me a child to...love as best I can. What modifications were used in her augmentation if I may ask, and how did you deal with immune response?"

The group entered the room, and Terra now saw a clearly over weight man with her creator. However, she also noticed a boy, no taller than the man's waist, hidden behind the white man. The boy's body clearly covered in bandaging. The young man coward at the attention Terra payed to him.

Indeed, she began to grow curious of the young boy ever since the large blustery man spoke with insincerity regarding 'love'. Oh dear. She was giving him an inquisitive look, one of definite scrutiny, and she was still tossing the ball around, somehow managing not to hit anyone as the two scientists talked on.

"Immune responses... The possibility of rejection was lowered dramatically by starting early in the first place, reduced to practically zero by way of controlled conditions in a fluid suspension tank, everything taken in by IV, oxygen fed, mind stimulated with imagery to accelerate reception, retention, and general curiosity, thus gaining a headstart both physically and mentally. The physical ones were actually quite subtle. You don't need to push a newborn's system hard, just get the ball rolling, so to speak. The mitochondria was strengthened and the calcium bonding in the..."

He went on, at length. The doctor was an egotist, hailing his achievements over others and taking pride in every juicy detail. He would likely occupy the other man for a while. Terra's violet eyes narrowed at the boy, and then they looked aside as her head inclined slightly. She was indicating 'Leave them alone for now', and then began to walk in that direction.

I contrast to Terra's eyes, the boy's subdued Hazel ones were filled with a fright. No one has exuded an aura like that to him, but his father. His eyes then started to dart between the careening ball and Terra. The boy, in an attempt to avoid conflict, tried to reduce the size of himself by slouching and contracting his muscles. His head started to dart about in looking at Terra, the ball, and for away of escape from the situation.

The ball stopped bouncing around, and then he would see it rolling gently towards his feet. By the time the boy would either think to pick it up or look for the owner, he would find that she was quietly exiting the room. Curious behavior or careless frivolity? You be the judge. It so happened, though, that she was giving him an out and a chance to be away.

The boy watched as the man and his father spoke, to him it was seemingly endless. So, he started for the open door, slowly peeked out, and eased himself out of the room I to the hall. The boy cautiously looked for the girl. At that time in full view, through parts of the light blue hospital gown, older scars can be seen.

She was actually not far away, but she was opposite the direction he thought she'd gone, having quickly slipped back to the other side of the door to {A} be in his blindspot and {B} observe closely for a few seconds. When he spotted her, he could see that she was surprisingly focused, and that her eyes were steady, unwavering, controlled. She spoke in even tones as soon as he saw her.

"Old scars, eyes full of fear, and a sickly yellow-green sound... What does he do to you, other than make it hurt?"

She'd seen more than his body language. She'd seen the sound of him...

The young boy is puzzled by the line of questions and attempted to answer, "He shows me his love. My farther loves me very much. Although I don't like the love, I don't feel good when he gives me love. Especially when changes my parts. The love is really strong when he does that. What is hurt?" The boy let a smile out at her.

Words were said, but they didn't make any sense, not at first. This was a new concept to her. The things the boy was telling her were in contradiction to the understanding she had built up of the world...and that was a problem. And it's not that she was obsessed with being right all the time, but there were fundamentals that you just don't question, such as the difference between love and pain. She shook her head at him.

"That isn't love. Love isn't painful- ...no, my father said it could be, but he meant emotionally. Not like cutting into your body. I almost swore it off, like sadness, but still... Love is not cutting pieces out of you and putting new ones in. Your father is performing surgery, not love."

There'd been a moment where she'd been a little confused there, but now she was insisting that the way he was had nothing to do with love, only pain.

Seeing the girl go off about something called pain, and sadness. The boy started to fidget, and rub the arm with the least bandaging. After he gained some courage to respond he replied, " Th...tha..that can't be right, my father told me so. And you say weird words. Maybe your dad is wrong." He had managed to challenge her.

Now, it was his turn for confusion, but as much as he wanted to prove she was wrong, there could be no mistake here. She began to scowl at him.

"I read alot of weird things. Many of them are true. I'm being trained to hurt people, to fight them. I have to know what pain means, or else I'm not going to do very well. Pain is when your body is begging for the feeling to stop, because it's being damaged and broken, like the things you cover with bandages. I know all about inflicting pain."

She suddenly approached him, raised her arms, and...held him gently, comfortingly. Terra spoke into his ear after a few seconds.

"My father isn't a doctor. He just tries to raise me with an understanding of things, and he is not wrong."

~ Valkyria Chronicles - Changing of the Guard ~

Of course he was thinking of Lucia. Of all the things that could be going wrong in this war, they were the ones who believed that Middleton - not any action of the enemy - was the one ruining her, as a person. It was one of those things that came upon their thoughts unbidden, but couldn't help but be there because of certain truths. Truths like 'Middleton is an ass' were irrefutable, therefore anyone near him was at risk of getting some of that behavior mixed in with their own. He just didn't act like a human being, too cold and discomforting... You couldn't let people like that ruin someone, certainly not a member of your squad and someone you cared about. That was Michael's dilemma, and frankly that was just about Isaac's, as well. The only difference was that they handled it differently. Michael seemed depressed about it. Isaac's mind was working on it. He couldn't think in terms of defeat. That defeated the purpose of thinking about it, at all. he'd shared this line of reasoning with Britta, and now it was time to expand on that.

Upon being offered a seat, he sat across from Michael and began to work on maintaining his own machine gun. After a moment, he began talking.

"I don't think she should be put out of mind, but rather we should all give her a helping hand. Maybe you're thinking the now-Captain is causing some mischief we don't want. Well, nothing says we can't undo all that. I consider her part of the squad, so it's our duty to look after her, like we do everyone else. I figure if we all agree to quietly thwart whatever she's having to go through somehow, it'll all work out. Pretty sure the whole squad'll be with me on that. Isn't even a rule-breaker. In fact, it's orders. Middleton's orders."

It really was. Lucia was a Private. That meant that she was an enlisted person, which made her the responsibility of NCOs. He just didn't need to know all that, and Isaac would smirk as he made sure his stuff was in good working order. This was when Jean appeared at the doorway and spoke about Lucia and their various acts, yesterday. Funny coincidence, that. Isaac nodded his head at an empty seat.

"By all means, join the club for men inspecting their guns. I dunno where Britta is right now, but I'll let her know. Incidentally, I'm figuring we should get the squad to support and keep an eye on Lucia so that she can get through the harshness of it all and keep her humanity. I was just talking about that with Michael. Much-appreciated about the recommendation, though I dunno if it's necessary. This war is, to me, what I can do for others. You did great with that charge yesterday. You really did, Jean. My only regret is that if I'd known it'd all hit you so hard, I would've asked to switch places, because I'm vicious at close-quarters and I can still handle a rifle. Even so, if this is you recovering, I'm all the better for hearing it."

Oh, and if anyone IS wondering where Britta was, she had found food for rationing like Isaac intended to before he got side-tracked. Someone's gotta be the responsible one, right?

~ Valkyria Chronicles - Changing of the Guard ~

At no point did Isaac think of the war in terms of casualties. He found himself thinking in terms of those who survived.

It isn't that he did not feel bad for the ones who died, that he was cutting off his supply of sympathy. It was just that he had to focus on those who were alive for all their sakes. The dead were dead, and they'd done what they could in life to ensure more time for all those who lived. That was how things were, and that was how Isaac chose to see it. This was all in the light of how poor Jean was being so affected by war. He was all heart, really. All heart and not much anger. Because if he truly was angry, he wouldn't be in so much despair. It's not as though you could use that feeling ON someone. You could be pissed off at Middleton for...oh, I don't know, pick a subject...and he'd still be in charge. You could be irritated with the Federation military for dragging you into this, like Isaac. It didn't mean that you could, or that he did, plan to get back at them. Maybe that one recruiter... Most people would, naturally, blame the Imperials. They did start this war, and like Isaac, nobody really knew what it was all for.

Nobody really knew, and the war would grind human life to dust for it. What a waste.

What you REALLY had to wonder was whether Middleton knew any better, himself. The first time he woke him, Isaac was - thanks to his training - appropriately startled into nearly drawing his trench knife. When he noticed that it was the Lieutenant, he put it back, not sure if he was relieved or disappointed. Any looks from the man about that would just be met with the word 'Training' by way of explanation, which - given the fact that he almost expected to be attacked by an Imperial soldier - would satisfy him. On the flipside of that, however, what Middleton wanted the first time - yes, only the first time - was to make sure he was doing his job. In a way, it was actually understandable, since Middleton hadn't really seen him that much. However, that he kept coming back and waking him again for some reason was annoying.

Probably shouldn't have led with "I'm currently in charge to give Jean a break. I ordered him to bed.". Oh well...

It's not like Isaac had much interrupted sleep on his own, at that point. He'd managed to fall asleep while next to Lucia before, but that was fatigue. Let's be clear about something here. Those guns and bullets weighed, and Isaac had charged with the rest, at least as far as the church was concerned. He could keep up with others at the cost of his stamina or he could take longer to get around, and Isaac preferred to get around. The issue was that this was the first real combat test, so all of his training hadn't hit the trial run before then. He would be better at managing it now, having been in the heat of battle. It was still the first time someone had really tried to kill him, and he had been very close to getting shot. Only that slip in the mud had saved him, really.

These were the thoughts that bothered him in the night, whereas during the next day...

Well, the next day renewed Isaac's concerns about Jean, since he still looked like death. He might have to be his relief alot, since he might've looked worse now than he did before. Sergeant Baker called them to attension next and...let's be honest, Isaac wasn't sure he liked this man, either. Somehow, he didn't seem like 'one of them'. Middleton arrived next, looking very pleased with himself. If patterns followed, that meant that they would not enjoy this. And you know what? He was right. Middleton was a captain now, and he was empowered to promote others, which he did. Jean got a promotion, which he probably deserved, but...would he handle the pressure that came with moving on up? Isaac was starting to wonder if moving up in rank actually helped anything. A Sergeant died yesterday. It wasn't a special Sergeant bullet that killed him. Isaac had killed a number of people, already. He sincerely doubted that their ranks mattered.

The thing is, Isaac thought of alot of things in terms of what he was good at, which was raising and understanding animals, particularly wolves. Wolves have a heirarchy in which there is a definite leader and those below him. However, and this was important, it was all just social. It has nothing to do with who had who had the best skill in biting and clawing while killing another animal. It mmight determine who was on top if there was a fight over that, and it might determine how much of the kill you got, but in a fight, it's not like a bear is going to care who is Alpha or Omega, and it's not like being Omega means you're unable to fight. Pack Omegas have risen to the top before. His father had seen it. The point is that Isaac wasn't sure that all of this really mattered in war.

When Middleton decided to 'address' the elephant in the room, Isaac was thinking 'You ARE the elephant in the room.' with a small smile. Never lose your sense of humor. It will serve you well. However, it felt a bit sour as Middleton announced that they would be apparently assaulting Amone very soon and that he was not proud of their work yesterday, though others were. What an ass. Isaac was making it his special duty to be sure and make the new people understand that Middleton was nothing but a pain. That was the important lesson to take from him. He was a cold-hearted ass who- He was already pulling Lucia into some other task. Just what was his deal with her? Well, Isaac had no time to actually focus on that. As Middleton left and people started talking again, he heard Jean talking. Hearing him, his eyes widened. Good god, his family just... What was it that made people so against the Darcsens, huh? He didn't get it. He just didn't understand what all the fuss was about! It wasn't important, whatever it was! Everything on this guy, and now this... Isaac approached now.

"Jean, I'm sorry. I can't really imagine how you feel right now, though I guess I'd feel pretty broken inside if my family were gone, as well. I know it doesn't mean much, but you can rely on us. Use your newfound power to delegate some responsibility. We can take some of the pressure off, if you need it."

Then, Kalisa told them how her family had died and...god damn, but it was easy to forget that she was a Darcsen, as well. Maybe it was because of her appearance in contrast to Jean's. She didn't look like one, exactly. Kalisa apologized for sharing and Isaac shook his head.

"No no, it's completely alright, talking about it. Sometimes, you just have to get it out. I'll never understand why 'race' is an issue around here."

And they would only have so much time to do that on the train to Amone. They would all need their rest, and they had to get new people, and somehow psyche themselves into being able to step back into battle again. The battle would be in a city this time, and alot different from a hill-climb, that was for sure. The only real question now was...would they all come out of it alive? No, actually, there was something else: How was he gonna get this letter delivered? They weren't able to get any moved out at all. Maybe at one of the stops... Wait, what? He'd left the cabin and started walking back down the hall - informing the others before he went that he was gonna see about getting some food, maybe something to take with them in case nothing was waiting for them - when he stopped and he heard someone talking. It was Michael. He said 'I hope she can retain herself'. Isaac stepped into the doorway of the cabin.

"Lucia, I take it?"

NCQuest - A Mecha RP: The Defense of Darwin (BeeNCQuest)

Hisako L. Kobayashi

&

Terra Laedo

---

Hisako got a shock of her life, which was when ace pilot of Red-Star flew over her NC. She moved her NC in time before it got hit by Plasma Shots and Grenade. Her entire being is the GSS, which she wouldn’t be happy if her NC got damaged by anyone. In her mind, which was a bit happy to see Id and in question Terra that is its pilot. However, why was it on the enemy’s side none of her superiors told her of Terra’s defection. She was pretty much in the dark most of the time, which was a terrible thing in her mind. The conflicted nature of her mostly because of what Terra said confused her to no end, however, Red-Star was definitely strict on policies. She did imagine Terra and her doing things together.

”T-Terra.. I missed you. W-Why are you fighting for the Havenities? I couldn’t imagine being without you…”

She did have a pounding headache mostly because of the conflict in her to serve Red-Star Corporation to the best of her abilities or to make Terra happy. One of her hands got off of the controls and put it on her head because of the headache. However, the PSA system activated and recalculated her chances of survival, which was much higher than it was. Hisako was in utter shock, which what was the GSS showing her. She loved this machine and didn’t want it to get damaged at all and has a bit of a temperance issue with people messing with it.

This was working out rather well, maybe more-so than expected. Terra had correctly guessed at Hisako’s feelings, that she wanted to be with her This was fortunate, but she wasn’t going to get cocky. Her goal was to defeat Grand Sword Star by any means possible. And while Narra might’ve wanted the NC pilots alive, there was more advantage in eliminating a liability than there was in keeping one. However, it did seem like this one in particular might be swayed, if she got her to see things differently. Hisako was a slave, fanatical and supremely-attached to what little she had. She saw GSS as a gift from Red-Star, when it was just a tool, like she was. Perhaps if this was used to their advantage, she would become less of a tool, though. Terra pressed forwards in her endeavour.

"I had to… They never would have let us even try to be together. You know how it is. Red-Star tells you how to live and where to go and what to do. But what happens when you want something...or someone...and you can’t have it, no matter what you do to please them? They’ve treated me well at Haven… I know you don’t approve, but I also know that some part of you wants and begs for more than what you have."

She waited to see what Hisako would say, giving her an idea of how things were, but not pushing and prodding her too far. Terra knew better. If you made offers too quickly to someone so-pledged to Red-Star, they might balk at it without a second thought. That was why this was all in effort to try and make her think.

Hisako moved her hand back on the controls and moved the GSS in a different stance from a straight up hostile one. The only reason for this because she felt safe around Terra, even though she was on the opposite side. She had a massive headache from the confusion in her mind, however, she listened to Terra’s voice. The constant reinforcement of punishment in terms of the shock collar around her arm definitely didn’t help and she deeply sighed. She couldn’t help but feel the words coming out of Terra’s mouth was correct but something deep down inside of her was still highly loyal towards Red-Star Corporation.

”T-That’s true, Red-Star only want us to mate with males anyway. I-I get shocked constantly by a collar around my left arm. It hurts… The Havenities treat people good? W-What… I heard they horribly butcher their own civilians like cattle? I do not approve b-but w-what should I do Terra?”

The collar around her arm activates and shocks her at a bit higher voltage than normal, which makes cry out in pain by the collar in question. She cries in tears over the comms, because her entire body hates being shocked like this. Hisako couldn’t stop crying over what was happening to her, which was her mind slowly breaking at the pain of being punished and talking to Terra. It was like someone turned up the voltage on Hisako’s shock collar, just in case an event of her trying to turn on Red-Star happened.

She seemed confused, to Terra, which was both good and bad. It was good because she didn’t know what to think, but bad because confusion can lead to random and unhelpful reactions. The real issue, however, was that shock-collar. Or bracelet. Whatever you wanted to call it. The point is that that was a device they put on her to ensure compliance, even if she wanted to do otherwise. Terra wanted to clear up the confusion, but that very thing now decided to interfere. Someone was either monitoring them or was just suspicious by the lack of activity between them. How ironic that Red-Star was actually helping her with her case. At this rate, she would have Hisako as a member of the Red-Star Defector Club by sundown. So, Terra dropped the imploring voice and spoke clearly to the other pilot, getting her to pay attention.

”Listen carefully to me, Hisako. Set your radio transmitter to a heavy white noise feedback, all broadcasting channels. Then, open a direct communication line between us by wire. Then, they won’t be able to shock you and we can talk.”

Direct communication wires were a simple private communication wire to be used during radio silence to coordinate actions or if there was jamming. It was simple, effective, and came standard. Terra had thought about this one in case Red-Star tried any of that with her.

Hisako was crying in pain, which didn’t help her at all. The instructions, which Terra told her did get through even though she was teary eyed as she moved her hand and turned the radio transmitter to a heavy white noise feedback on all broadcast channels. When she did do that, the shock collar around her arm shut off and allowed her to concentrate a bit more easier. She opened a direct communication line between Terra and her via wire. The tears in her eyes couldn’t stop from the outright shock of not feeling the shock collar activate, it had always had before. She sighed in relief for finally being free of that tool of abject terror and obedience.

”T-Thank you Terra… This feeling I haven’t felt in a long time. The entirety of it always being afraid of being shocked into obedience and allowing all the things done to me terrifies me every single time. I have constant nightmares of what they’ve done to me.”

Hisako was speaking truthfully for the first time in ages, which is a shocker for her. She always lied but she could feel like she should be truthful towards Terra. The entire thing act, which she had to keep up so her masters wouldn’t shock her that would fry her brain or worse. In terms of when the other corporations tried to get her to join them, which ended up a disaster for the enemies of Red-Star. She captured at least about three NCs, which had female pilots in them, however she was forced on the battlefield to Haven afterwards. The only thing she could think, the Red-Star Corporation was great at one single thing the torture of their pilots. She cried at the fact she had to do awful things to those three pilots to show her undying loyalty to Red-Star. The Sadistic nature of hers is more of a mask, which is hiding a scared child who didn’t love her own parents.

Though it sounded hard-going, at first, Hisako managed to put up the white noise broadcast and connect via wire to communicate. She sounded greatly relieved, rather than on-edge from the forced compliance that they inflicted upon her. This was good, though...consequently Terra was unaware of Kxeyun’s situation in Sahaquiel during the two-on-one conflict. That would be for later, unfortunately. For now, she would be working on getting Hisako’s cooperation. She wasn’t sure how this would turn out, but this was the sort of thing Narra wanted of her. With the immediate threat handled, Terra began to speak frankly with her now.

”You won’t have to feel that pain anymore if you side with Haven. Do you want to know what my day has been, so far? Right after briefing, the commander wanted us to simply get to know each other. Breakfast, normal conversation, no threats or consequences… You get to be an equal among others, treated well. They’re not butchering people, Hisako. That might be happening at the Denver-Vegas Reality Games, but not here. I met someone from there and she’s relieved to know end to be accepted as a person, not just a pilot.”

Terra glanced at the time, noting that she’d been fairly inactive for a few minutes while events were going on. Had to get this finished quick, so she could make sure the others weren’t getting overwhelmed. There’d been something on fire that she’d noticed, coming out here.

”I don’t have much time, so listen… Is there any way short of breaking off that collar with force to get you out of that permanently? I’d like you to help me, though if it won’t come off, the transmission block has to stay up until it can, and that will make things difficult. Whatever the case, I need to know: Will you come with me?”

Hisako had a mental shock in her system, which was pretty much at the touching moments Terra had in Darwin. In terms of mixing up Denver-Vegas with Haven was bad idea. She sighed about that, which was mostly because she never really knew what was going on with the other corporations. Her mind was racked with guilt in trying to freak out the Havenite pilot, which she targeted in terms of the repair & salvage NC. These people are nice much nicer than her superiors, which is another thing.

”T-That sounds like a day, I would love to have… No threat of death, or breeding sounds like an insanely fun time. I have to say I am sorry for trying to freak out the pilot of the yellow NC. Denver-Vegas Reality Games are definitely dangerous… I watch them when I am allowed time off but I usually get shocked every now and then to not enjoy it. Because Red-Star is no fun allowed.”

Hisako looked directly at the shock collar on her arm and couldn’t help but cry a bit. They reinforced the Shock Collar to not be taken off by her at the very least. It has to be done by someone else. She cries dreadfully much at that.

”I-I can’t take off the collar, it’s designed in a way if I try I will be shocked and it’ll signal the people who put it on me. And they will order for the destruction of my NC and me inside of it by the Overlord Tank battalions or really anything really. Who’s primarily wholly for the Red-Star Corporation in terms of the Comrade grade citizens. B-But I will come with you and free myself from the horribleness that is Red-Star Corporation, I hope one of the Havenities can take this off of me before it reactivates. Red-Star Corporation killed my awful parents b-but I didn’t truly want that...”

Her voice was strained by the realization of the entire futility of trying to forcing it off. She couldn’t help but cry, the monitoring behavior of her superiors did drive her a bit nuts. No privacy, no safety, no nothing and she wanted something like that she believed in her heart she could atone but as long as she wore the collar she could never atone. She moved her GSS in a way to not show anything is wrong with the pilot for the Red-Star observers, if they were watching that is.

Yes, of course they put a security device on it. This blanket transmission-block was saving her from the shocks and saving her life, but without some experienced help on this matter - tantamount to defusing a bomb - they weren’t getting Hisako free, just yet. That fact really distressed her. You could hear it over comms. Terra didn’t want to hear this, but she had to. It meant that once the collar was off, Hisako would probably be grateful and willingly side with them of her own volition. That essentially meant a success. Now, they had to get through this battle.

”Everything is going to be alright. I’ll need to disconnect here for maneuvers and such because I need to get back to combat and check up a friend, the one forced into the bloodsport. Keep the jamming up and stick with me. We’ll be in an effective black-out, but they won’t attack you if you’re with me. Just watch my back and return with me to the base, and then we’ll get the collar off. It’ll be good to get to know you properly.”

This was slightly a test to make certain that Hisako wasn’t just really good at acting, but Terra felt that this was her being honest, with the way she was talking. She would disconnect the line soon after getting the other pilot’s confirmation and get moving to go find Sahaquiel. Terra didn't like the idea of having to do the rest of this fight without long-range communication, but needs must and all that. At least, now, they had another potential collaborator.

Metroid: Final Protocol

We're open for more players now. Take note: We would definitely prefer frequent/regular posting. Please refer to the front page for information and ask whatever questions you have after doing so.

Metroid: Final Protocol

@Kazemitsu No, I haven't done that yet.

@UltimoScorp I see no reason for you to wait. Please do not.

NCQuest - A Mecha RP: The Defense of Darwin (BeeNCQuest)

Terra Launching

Joey warned them maybe thirty seconds before the actual call came that a call was going to come. With a nod, Terra gave a nod to Kxeyun to indicate that now was the time, and then headed off towards the NC Hangar. She would have enough time to suit up at the locker room nearby. They really needed to make her a spare suit, in future... Anyway, the battle was upon them, and they had to get moving right away!

Soon, she was in her flight suit, stepping into the hangar where she left Id originally. Good, they had maintained it. She would've said that if it wasn't at full when she herself left it, then it hadn't been properly dealt with. Terra had made sure that Id was in good shape when she arrived here in Haven, and wouldn't hear a word against it. Proceeding directly to the red mecha, it opened itself up as it scanned her presence and she stepped inside. Her presence in the cockpit automatically started up the machine, even as she was connecting herself to the system. It was a simple program. You could do similar with your own car.

SYSTEM ID STARTUP

Pilot Interface - 90%
Cockpit Status - GREEN
Weapon Status - GREEN
Engine Status - GREEN
Sensory Input - GREEN
Gyro-Stabilizers - GREEN
Power Source - 100%
Energy Shield - 100%
Overclock Engine - GREEN

Check Status Complete.
Begin Combat Procedure.

She launched, not long after somebody else in the group did, and soon they were facing the Kinetic Shield, not exactly out of town... They watched as at least a couple waves of attackers never made it through without being pummeled by Darwin's perimeter defenses. Then, some of them made it through. It hadn't been easy for Red-Star, since they had to phase slow-moving targets through and such. To think, this was the sort of thing that they expected her to live with in attacking this place, just shoveling meat bodies through to waste their lives for the next group. Pointless, tactless, idiotic actions... This alone would've been enough to make her leave, but Red-Star was Red-Star, so they were a conglomerate of bad habits.

Non-NC weapons had come out to battle among the mecha. True, they could still do some harm, but not as much. Doubtless, they had even been given orders to locate Id among the enemy, but where WAS their wayward NC, just now? The answer was that Terra was stealthed, and by that we mean she had crouched. What? There were buildings enough to conceal one's presence. It allowed her to sight the enemy before she was sighted. Advantage, Haven people. Well, for a moment, anyway, because those gunships would most certainly have an aerial view and- Oh, she was shooting them down just as they found her. So much for the element of surprise. Now, the combatants would see her get up and start firing at the Red-Star support as the larger enemies were making their way onto the scene.

They were a problem, for sure. For instance, Terra was at least vaguely aware of some of them and their capabilities, while she actually knew the pilots of others. Defection has its advantages too. Some of the information might change on you because of it, but this wouldn't. This was NC piloting. You couldn't go on a random shuffle without things suffering, yes? Oh, definitely yes. And that was when she heard someone shouting at them from the other side, on an open channel, easily tracked AND well recognized by her. Terra got on Haven's closed channel first to talk to the team.

"I've identified Grand Sword Star and I know the pilot personally. I'm going to use some psychological warfare now. If anyone overhears this, DO NOT take it seriously."

So, the FIRST thing that Terra did was use her Overclock Engine with her thrusters while readying her plasma rifle. Then, as it went off, she flew - very fast - to basically strafe over Grand Sword Star with a barrage of plasma shots and a grenade launch. That was just to get her attention. Hisako loved GSS, maybe a little too much. She was a slave, and her mentality was to serve with fanaticism, so everything she had, she treasured deeply. Because Terra's own defection would have been a surprise to all - She let on NOTHING before her escape - she could imagine that it would be pretty galling if GSS was damaged by Id now. Even more so, was what Terra now did with a direct line of communication to Hisako's NC as she landed nearby. Her voice took on a sultry flavor and she sounded umm...horny. Terra could do this at will, and even slaves have imaginations. The only question was...did the other pilot ever fantasize about the white-suited ace?

"Hisako, I found you... I knew you would be here. I need you... I want you, in battle and in body. I remember that long flowing hair and that perfect shape... I've wanted that in my quarters for a long time. They just wouldn't allow it in Red-Star. But we could do it, now that we're here. We could fight and be free, and come together as one when we're done. I missed you so much..."

If anyone wants to know what this sounds like, just imagine Terra's steady voice suddenly going to Lust from Fullmetal Alchemist.

>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>

Dread Arriving

So, at last, the day had arrived. They'd been trying to hype him for this, but it was just irritating. If you're going to deploy, then deploy already. There's no sense waiting, when you can taste the viceral carnage in the air. Just let open the gates, let chaos reign, and most importantly...get out of his way. Now, there had been some preliminary trash to be flung at the Havenites - Havenites? Who cares what they're called? They're nothing. - and then some of the other pilots went in. Some were sneaky about it, while others were loud and stupid. Dread merely waited a moment to allow them to be targeted like the meat they were...and then entered himself.

Into the battle walked a bear on two legs. More than a bear, Ursa Nova was a semi-humanoid murder machine. It was built like a bear, but highly functional on two or four limbs, and about to leap about quite easily, though it was heavy. The trick lay in an advanced thruster system and a pilot who doesn't care about the forces involved. For now, Ursa stepped into view and did a quick look around, trying to determine just who was it that needed to be assaulted. There was mention that the artificial human, Terra Laedo, was to be taken in...but Dread was going to ignore those orders, unless he found himself assaulting her...and by then he would kill her. No, he didn't care about their human-plus project. It was a foolish waste of time and resources, and she was garbage, anyway. You want something dead, you hire a killer. End of story.

Now...which one of you can be torn apart the easiest, which one of you is a challenge, and which one of you...is a vital backbone to be SNAPPED?

These thoughts had him quickly focusing his attention...on Hisn-ul-Ghayma. And he did so because, believe it or not, Neural Combatants showed up rather highly on infrared, as opposed to a currently-empty city. NCs were packing fusion generators. You don't conceal the heat from that so easily. Maybe with a factory or a nuclear powerplant nearby, but really what you needed was Nova's own dispersion vents on a subtler setting than 'purge'. As it stood, Hisn-ul-Ghayma was easy to find by heat-traces AND because Dread had seen the drones fly out. It was offering support fire, it did not seem like it was meant to take as many hits as some of the others, especially not his own machine. It was open and waiting for attack. Time to take a bite...

Ursa lowered onto all-fours, the rear thrusters activated, and it began rapid-leaping towards its prey! Though it was a big and heavy-looking target, it was made for stable leaps and outright slamming and wrestle attacks, so pounding through fire and pieces of city were nothing to it. Indeed, what was coming at Zahra was pretty damn dangerous! The fiery beast was going directly for the heavy slam with all of Newton's Laws and plasma flames behind it as the forward claws were coming in for a burning grip! It was gonna be the tackle from hell!

~ Valkyria Chronicles - Changing of the Guard ~

Command was just hell on a guy, and Isaac had just taken the reins.

He didn't think he was gonna be really any better here. True, he knew something of getting a pack to move, so he could be direct and decisive and strong, but let's just face it: He was just the replacement widget for what was considered the better man. Jean-Robin Charpentier was both the hero of the hour and the hardest one among the living that was hit, with Franz as the runner-up on that account. It's not that the farmer and wolf-trainer felt he was being overshadowed. It was more like he saw that Jean had something in him that worked in a crisis, and that despite all things he had come out of it all whole. He deserved better. Perhaps, if he weren't so broken up, he even deserved proper command and respect, but Middleton wasn't going to give it to him. He doubted that the Lieutenant would treat him any better, and that's before he realizes that Isaac hated him.

And yes, of course he did. He was the same as that recruiter, blinding shoving people into the line of fire. Oh, he and Middleton were going to be the best of enemies, he was sure. Well, that particular event had yet to go forth, as he hadn't really talked to the man yet. Right now, though, the only other NCO had effectively taken command, lacking anybody else of a higher rank and Jean needing a break from the pressures of it. It did not feel heavy so much as...like he really was holding onto it for someone else, shielding them from further harm. Well...that's the life of a Gunner, after all. He was the support man, making sure people come back alive. Machine gun support kept him honest. Everyone else before him, getting out of a pinch, and everyone guarded by him as he drops the enemy ahead of them.

Now, largely unchanged, just because he was in charge, he was addressed by Diana.

"Yeah, I'm getting tired of the squelch beneath my feet, and I live on a farm."

There might've been boards in the trenches, but not enough and you still heard the sounds of the mud underneath those. Reyna and Diana were now trying to get Jean to respond, to go with them to the rear in order to get some rest. Again, it seemed like Diana was really attached to Jean. It wasn't that surprising. The machine gun fire and the charge was well-executed, he was a proper gentleman, and he cared a whole lot. Hopefully, there wasn't going to be alot of friction going on here. Just then, though, Jean seemed to pull out of his stupor long enough to address those in front of him. He wanted Isaac to make sure everyone got some sleep before they got pulled to A-

"Another battlefield. Right, I gotcha. Don't worry, I'll take care of things, I promise."

He assumed that Jean stopped because he didn't want to say something he most certainly dreaded, which was thinking of them being thrust into conflict once more. Couldn't blame him. Isaac hadn't realized what he HAD almost said, but it was of no consequence. He nodded as Diana wished him a good night's sleep just as Britta was coming back.

"I will, once I'm done here."

"Oh, aren't you going to take another nap?"

She was just teasing him, because he fell asleep beside Lucia. Issac first answered by taking out a folded sheet of paper and a pencil. The pencil had been snapped in half, but it was still useable.

"My Sergeant told me that the first day can make or break you. I hope Jean doesn't stay broken, but for me, I need to let the folks know I'm still alive."

"I see. Well, don't take too long. The Lieutenant's liable to be weighing down on you now, if Jeans's in a bad way. You'll need every ounce of strength."

"Don't I know it."

So, once she was heading off to get some rest herself, Isaac took a seat to compose a letter. It wasn't anything fancy, really. He just wrote down the address clearly on the back of the paper, then started composing on the front.

Mom, Dad, Alex, Emeri,

First of all, hello. I'm still alive. It was rough and alot's happened, but I made it, and I hope most - if not all - of us make it to the end of this war. I dunno how that'll work out, but I'll work AT it, so we'll see. I'm not going to bother you with the details, since it's mostly my still being around that matters.

One thing, though. Does the name 'Mila Wagner' sound familiar to any of you? I feel like I know that name and it's the name of one of the soldiers out here. Maybe their family is in town. Check on that, would you? I have my own work cut out for me.

yours,
Isaac

He folded that up and put it back in his pocket. He'd get someone to send it off home later on. For now, he was getting some rest, and he was doing so with the impression that he would be getting a rude awakening from Middleton anyway, so the Gunner positioned himself in a manner that would basically force the Lieutenant to address him first. That way, he could keep the pressure off of Jean.

NCQuest - A Mecha RP: The Defense of Darwin (BeeNCQuest)

For someone of her age and experiences to so-badly need the help of another, for something solid to cling onto, was unthinkable to Terra. Everything about Kxeyun's emotional outbursts and situations told her that...as much as Red-Star wanted her own personality to develop quicker...someone had basically taken an axe to the other woman and sent her back hard. The lack of parenting and her rising up as a fighter in what was essentially a blood-sport had made terrible things - not just low standards of human lifestyle - the commonplace, and her mind suffered trauma after trauma, with no one to show her the way out, so she would willingly put herself out here for the acceptance of just about anyone sane and decent. It was a tragedy, and it showed in Kxeyun's face and words and actions.

For one, she got up and hugged an NC Pilot who was born to kill. This...was so surprising that Terra could not conceal the surprise on her face. It was too sudden to internalize, and the words that followed.... Terra was shocked to realize that this was what her relief sounded like. She was eager, maybe even desperate, to please anyone who would give her the time of day, so for someone who offered to help her deal with her problems...immediate affection. Kxeyun was right, though. They'd never be normal. Terra was forever altered to be ahead of the curve and Kxeyun needed to catch up to it. The defector pilot placed her arms around her to reassure her that things would be fine now.

I can't believe Narra's idea actually worked. Maybe he's good at his job, after all.

She was letting Kxeyun get things out of her system, not saying anything because it was a little hard to get a word in, anyway. Dealing with her problems was going to be like when Terra fellt overwhelmed by her hormones when she became a teenager. They didn't obey, or they were slow to obey because it was a new part of her biology opening up for the first time. They had to be managed by being let out and sorted through, from time to time, until she got a hold of herself. She still got urges, of course, but it wasn't as out of control. Kxeyun needed control, and the first step was probably letting the floodgates unload for a while. When the Denver-Vegasian - or whatever you call them - had finally run out of words, it was her turn. She pulled Kxeeyun back enough to talk to her, face to face.

"I'm sure we'll get through this, but don't worry for me. They may want us to capture pilots, but I will kill if my life is at risk. That is why I understand you, even though you're very different from me. The most important thing is not how we win, it's in frustrating them by refusing to die. These battles are going to test you, but it doesn't matter because you are going to be whole again."

She was doing it because she was certain that she could. But more importantly...it was because she couldn't stand NOT doing it.

NCQuest - A Mecha RP: The Defense of Darwin (BeeNCQuest)

@Sgt Vandingo Okay, now I think I know why the secrecy in your profile. Is your duo pretty much Knight Rider with mechs now? Is Cassius basically David Hasselhoff?