Stern Algorithm

Conflict Breeds Innovation (A Gundam-Inspired Giant Mecha small-group RP)

Since I'm assuming Corina and Chie will be interacting some more, I'm not going to make anything happen in the hangar or otherwise interrupt their interaction, though I will describe for Arienne what the barracks are like.

Conflict Breeds Innovation (A Gundam-Inspired Giant Mecha small-group RP)

Leaving the hangar, Arienne had to travel through a short, air-lock-like hallway, a gravity reacclimation chamber, that was specially designed to allow those who passed through the opportunity to reorient themselves in accordance to the gravitational situation they would be entering; in this case, going from the zero-g hangar the the artificial gravity of the rest of the ship's interior.

The barracks were the living space for every single crew member, and was divided into quarters. The pilots' room was in the Officers' Quarter, and would be shared by all four cog pilots. Inside there were two bunk beds, one of the lower bunks having already been assigned to Pharazon, the other three being unassigned. Each of the new pilots' luggage stood in the middle of the room. At the foot of each bed was a steel basket just big enough to fit the regulation luggage cases each pilot was allowed to bring. This way, anyone could simply sit up in their bed and access all their belongings without needing a separate storage area. At the head of each bed was a pull down tray that operated more or less like a night stand for each pilot to place whatever bedside belongings they needed so long as they managed to secure such belongings to prevent them from flying around should the ship get hit, or artificial gravity be deactivated for whatever reason. The bathrooms however, were public and shared among the entire Officers' Quarter, with plenty of toilet stalls and shower stalls to accommodate a good percentage of people using it at the same time.

Within the Officers' Quarter were also office spaces, for various officers to attend to clerical duties. Next to the pilots' room was the Lance Leader's office, where Pharazon sat at their desk, busy with some minor work. The office was big enough to accommodate more desks if need be, as a typical carrier often had multiple lances of strikecraft and thus multiple lance leaders.

Evolution of Conflict: A Sci-Fi Mecha 1x1 FaithfulMuse and Stern Algorithm

The strike team advanced through the lane between the trees that the insurgents must have used to transport their vehicles through. The tire tracks on the dirt road were being replaced by the massive footprints as the cogs trudged forward. Periodic laser fire would come in from the direction of the Incubator, no doubt Orpheus' contribution to the attack. When they reached a crossroad, several enemy tanks attempted to cut them off, coming in from the left and right simultaneously. Obsidian was hit by cannonfire and rockets, managing to take the damage with little effect. "Nyx, Legion, take care of these guys, I'll prioritize keeping Asteria unharmed," Maya ordered.

Legion stepped forward. "Leave 'em to me, Lieutenant," Solomon said hoping to impress, as Legion pointed both arms forward. Though the bits would not be able to fly as easily under gravity, they could still fire their beams while attached. Legion proceeded to fire beams rapidly and haphazardly at the enemies on the right. It wasn't exactly efficient, as his lack of concentrated fire meant that he failed to exactly cripple or destroy the enemies quickly, but it did prove to be a good shock and awe tactic, as the mere volume of searing light raining down on the enemy formation and scorching the earth indiscriminately made the enemy well aware that Legion was a demon with destruction to spare.

The left flank was left to Nyx to take care of.

Evolution of Conflict: A Sci-Fi Mecha 1x1 FaithfulMuse and Stern Algorithm

I forgot to mention what the landing spot looked like. Think tropical beach, the Incubator Concert landed in the water, and floated to a beach, past the sand is a jungled area, where the insurgent base is hidden. Right now, Obsidian, Legion, Asteria, and Nyx are sort of taking a path that had been cut out through the trees by the insurgents.

Twisted Light - A Dystopic Magical Girl RP

Eponine's prior attack had caused her to kick off of Byrea, sending herself into the air as the witch fell backwards, crashing through ice pillars. To stop herself, Eponine reached out a hammer and used the spiked end to hook onto an approaching ice bridge. After she managed to get on top of the bridge and regain her footing, she looked at the area directly above the stunned witch, noticing several unbroken ice bridges. Eponine summoned another hammer and started spinning in place again. Once she had gained enough momentum, she threw one hammer at one end of one ice bridge, and the other hammer at the end of the other ice bridge, shattering the segments where they impacted in an explosion of ice and mist. Without both sides being supported, the bridges began to fall, their opposite ends snapping as they swung downwards. Eponine watched as the two massive ice structures cascaded down in a thundering flurry, hoping that they would crush the witch and end his fight. Would it be enough?

Steven Universe: Second Gem War

I'm kind of glad Pearl's not in the Burning Room right now. After what just happened, she'd probably be losing her shit.

Steven Universe: Second Gem War

Amber opened her eyes for perhaps only the second time in her life. She remembered very little, the beginnings of self awareness, a group of other young gems around her, and suddenly, intense pain and darkness. Here she was surrounded by other gems, older. A gem was speaking, who seemed to really have it together, so Amber listened intently. Suddenly, one of the larger gems turned violent and hit another, causing the victim's body to dematerialize and retreat into its gem. When the larger gem kicked the retreated gem away, Amber ran to retrieve it, picking it up, and cupping it in her hands. She didn't know much, but she knew enough; either inherently, or as a result of repressed memories of her time as a monster, that Citrine was hurt. Amber looked over at Steven and Garnet in fear and confusion, turning her gaze also to Sard, who seemed to be standing up for Citrine. Amber didn't want to fight.

The Victus Chronicles

And it's not like I'm saying that one should be guaranteed a degree or certificate just because they paid for it, but the system needs to do more to ensure it's student are learning, rather than make the whole thing this competition for meaningless titles. If you fail, the attitude is basically, "please insert coin to try again." And that's sort of the whole point, I've always seen education as the great equalizer, as the system that grants social mobility and ensures distribution of wealth. But the cost of education has become prohibitive to those who cannot easily afford it, thus reserving education for the wealthy who do not need social mobility at all. It creates the illusion of 'qualification'; an employer would say they hired based on 'merit' and 'qualification', but they actually hired based on wealth, because the wealthier of two individuals had the economic opportunity to get a higher quality education and thus receive better 'qualifications', which ultimately just comes down to prestige anyways, since that's more or less how universities are ranked.

I'm glad we're on the same page, I've talked to people about this before who think I'm too worked up about nothing. I've heard/seen some good things about Australia, but I'm not so naive as to ignore the fact that you face your own share of problems. I hope the people of your country can hold back the monstrous tide. Increasing cost of education and limiting who has access to it is not progress, it is not 'inevitable', it is not financial adjustment, it is not 'keeping up with increased expenditures', it is plutocracy in it's newest and perhaps most insidious form. It is plutocracy in the form of 'education', something that was always meant to end plutocracy in the first place.

And take your time with posts, no rush.

Evolution of Conflict: A Sci-Fi Mecha 1x1 FaithfulMuse and Stern Algorithm

"Remember, we trained in space, but here, we'll be fighting under the influence of gravity, so things definitely won't be the same," Maya warned. "Flight in particular, will be much more difficult. Lear, your bits may not function as optimally as they would in space."

Legion, having followed Obsidian out of the carrier, released one of its bits to test. The bit immediately dropped to the ground, firing its thrusters just in time to not impact the ground. It wavered while hovering, unable to gain enough lift until its thrusters turned up a notch, causing the overcompensation to send it rocketing upwards uncontrollably. It flew in circles over Legion, trying to stabilize its flight, before managing to the return to Legion and reattach itself. "I see what you mean," Solomon said, a bit disappointed that he wouldn't be able to demonstrate his unique ability. He looked up at Fury, which was circling like a vulture above the group of cogs, noting that it too had to stay in constant motion in order to maintain lift.

"QAZ, scout out the area for us," Maya ordered.

Mayura took a few steps forward and opened the fan-like iridescent panels on its back and began scanning. Map data was transmitted to each cog, showing highlighted enemy structures and marking hostiles as red blips.

After assessing the situation, Maya said, "Eihon, head back into the hangar and take the service lift to the outer deck of the carrier to get a better vantage point. If you have line of sight on these encampments, take them out. QAZ, stay with the carrier, and keep an eye out for any signs that the enemy might be trying to disrupt our communications. If they are, let RHS know where they are. Rivers, Rivers, Lear, you're with me, diamond formation; I'll take point, Asteria will bring up the rear."

Legion settled into position behind and to the right of Obsidian, leaving the left side to Nyx. As the team marched forward, Orpheus reached the top of the hangar's outer deck. From his position, six brilliant streams of devestating, magenta light blasted forward, hitting some unseeable target in the distance. As if on cue, the artillery teams of the Cepheus Planetary Defense Force began shelling. Obsidian plowed forward as insurgent forces began to react to the sudden attack.

The Victus Chronicles

So resuming the topic of TAFEs, America has "Adult Schools", "Community Colleges", "Professional Schools", and probably too many different names, each slightly different than the others, where one can get certification for various skills, or "Associates degrees". However, certain professional certificates are actually very expensive to even take the class and/or test, with no guarantee that the certificate will be awarded despite the cost being paid. And in the end, companies still view traditional degrees as the only legitimate standard and refuse to 'settle' for 'less' than a college education. Education has become too much of a 'business' in America, a high school diploma means nothing, a bachelors degree means very little, and tuition even at public institutions is skyrocketing. Job seekers run into artificially constructed competition, and end up working for less because they should be 'grateful' to even have a job at all. Businesses demand unfair expectations from recent grads, they say 'you should have learned that in college', when it would be impossible for colleges to provide such specific and narrow training, while businesses shy away from providing on-the-job training as it is considered 'too expensive'. You said TAFEs are very common sense, and that you were sure America must have something like it. Unfortunately, the words 'common sense' and 'American education system' no longer belong in the same sentence anymore.

Sorry for the rant, but I just wanted to share my perspective on it.