Deeper Darkness: Space's Shadow

[The_Snark]

Brenda

Brenda clears her throat. "I'm a doctor, actually; not a surgeon by trade, but I can at least keep you from dying until we get to someone qualified. That's if I go with you, of course." It was a fairly good plan, she considered. Not without risk, but they didn't have the intel or the resources to act as an emergency response team; they didn't know where the Others would strike, and probably couldn't get there in time. Fighting a defensive battle wouldn't turn the course of the war around, anyway.

[WhiteKnight777]

Vincent

The synthetic gave a little chuckle before speaking up As I mentioned, I'm in.. acquisition and transport, to put it delicately. I'm also an engineer and I have a certain natural facility with machines and computers, enhanced by my own personal predilections. In addition, my body has the advantage of being faster and stronger than most unenhanced humans - and, of course, I'm a capable pilot, and I have my own mech.

[Dark_Prophet]

Val listens, then nods, holding the cigarette in his robotic hand before taking another smoke, letting it out as he speaks. "Everyone stay behind me, then - the Others haven't killed me yet despite their best efforts, and I think they might have a harder time of this with my upgrades. I'm not quite as machine as you are, Vincent, but I can hold my own when it comes to repairs and hacking, with this thing." He indicates his arm with a wry grin, turning back to face his mecha.

"I'm going to get Hades here checked up - the rest of you go back and get your Mecha, and meet me in the loading bay with them on. We'll be leaving within the hour - since 3rd Holding has mecha guards in this time of chaos and fear, and the next freighter has a special package to pick up - from the moon." Dropping his cigarette, he stomps it and crushes it with one of his steel boots, with a grim smile to the others. He then lays the metal appendage against his mecha, the hatch opening quickly as the cyborg jumps in and starts powering Hades up. "So don't be afraid to walk on in, you know? Its gonna be your new home."

[ChronicLunacy]

Tanaka Izumi

"I can get the drift charts from UEDF and be back within the hour, but we better have some time between liftoff and mission start to plan or we're all going to die." Izumi said simply, lifting her motorcycle helmet to lean backwards off her shoulder like one might hold a coat. "Everyone who wants in, I need a full readout of your mech's specifications. No skimping. I need to know what your machines can do. If it makes you feel any better I'll make sure no one else sees them. Brenda, unless you have a mech too I suggest finding someone with a copilot's seat or you're staying on the freighter. Also, Val, make sure we have sealed EVA suits for this mission. I know it's a simple request but you'd be surprised at how often someone forgets."

Izumi then took Vincent aside. "Look, you're the only one of us with experience in quick getaways. If someone catches on to what I'm doing in there I might need a way out. I don't expect any problems, but if it comes to that I may need a pickup. At the very least I want you ready in your mech to fly me away if things go to hell. Copy?"

[Dark_Prophet]

"Way ahead of you - we're not going into zero-g without flight suits. As far as drift charts, my communications hub should have access to those, but you can use the UEDF's if you want. I'll transmit my exact specifications to you - for now, I can tell you Hades is a close combat model with a beam scythe, but no ranged support. And yeah, we're gonna plan this - I meant by the hour figuratively, to emphasize the moment. Even I'm not the type to just rush in there. " His voice echoes from inside of his mecha as he calibrates it quickly, taking it through the full range of motion, appearing to be his usual warm-up routine, punctuating "close", "plan", and "moment" each with a punch in the air.

[The_Snark]

Brenda

"I certainly don't own my own mech, Commander," Brenda replies quietly, choosing once again not to contest the use of her first name. That was a curious habit for a military commander, but perhaps Tanaka wanted to remind herself of the fact that she wasn't working within the military at the moment. "If Mr. Seran can supply me with one, I can accompany you, although I make no claim to piloting expertise. It seems you're in charge of planning the mission; it's your choice where you place me." She clasps her hands behind her back, awaiting Tanaka's decision and trying to ignore the niggling feeling that she wasn't being as forthcoming as she should be. It is as if she's trying to make the other woman guess where she could be best used, either as some sort of test of her ability to command or as a challenge to it. Either was preposterously out of place in a mission as dangerous as this; all of them needed to be completely open. But I am... She does her best to meet the other woman's eyes.

[WhiteKnight777]

Vincent

Vincent nodded, pulling a slim, palm-sized computer from his jacket pocket and quickly uploading a memory disk with the technical readouts of his mech. Ordinarily he'd be leery of giving out such vital technical information - but given the current situation, there wasn't really any other sensible choice. As you wish, Miss Izumi. I'll make sure that I've got your back. As for my mech, It's a ranged-support model, armed with a heavy-duty mass driver for long range combat. I prefer to keep my enemies at a distance. he paused for a moment, giving a rather cold smile Six feet of dirt for a preference.

[Tyracus]

Jason

"My unit is more of a mid-range combatant. I've got a Laser Gatling hard mounted and a Laser cannon for more precision work. I'm very well versed with it's operations and can get more maneuverability than most from the flight systems I have installed."

[ChronicLunacy]

Tanaka Izumi

Commander Tanaka narrowed her eyes in annoyance at Val's flippant, ever-present, car-salesman demeanor. "Mr. Seran, for future reference, when it comes to the mechs, the pilots, or the mission, you make sure NEVER to be 'figurative' ever again, okay? I don't like guesswork." she snapped before turning her cold gaze to Brenda. "As for you, Doctor, giving you a mech would be a liability with your lack of piloting experience. Find someone to ride with or get set to be our communications hub aboard the freighter. Everyone else, gentlemen, have all of those specs ready for me when I get back. Vincent, you know where the UEDF headquarters is. Give me a number or frequency where I can reach you and be ready to assist if I need you. See all of you in an hour."

Once she'd gotten Vincent's contact information, Tanaka turned crisply on her heel and started walking back out towards the freight area and beyond. Assuming no one waylaid her, she made her way back to her motorcycle and strapped her helmet back on, slapping the visor down. The back tire squealed for a moment before finding purchase and the bike fishtailed briefly as Izumi roared out onto the busy city streets towards UEDF HQ. She went very fast, but not fast enough to be noticed by the local police force and stopped for speeding, and once again assuming she didn't find any trouble on the way she made good time.

Once back at UEDF HQ she parked her motorcycle at the base officer's lot, not bothering to return it to the motor pool, and made her way to the nearby communications building. She flashed her ID to the guard at the door and didn't bother slowing as she strode past him. There should be no reason to stop a Lt. Commander from entering, so she just kept walking without a word. If the guard was smart, he'd just assume she was too busy/important to bother with a lowly private and keep his mouth shut. She put on her best cold officer bitch face as she passed hoping to nail down that impulse for him.

((OOC: Trying to hurry this along so that we can leave.
Intimidation Check: 1d20+10=27))

[Tyracus]

Jason

Watching Tanaka leave Jason merely shrugs before heading up to bring his mecha into the bay. Docking it in one of the maintenance bays Jason begins an automated hull integrity test while he begins adjusting the systems.

I need to adjust the laser weapons targeting systems. Without atmospheric refraction to bend the beam the adjustments I made earlier will ruin my shots here. Adjust base thrust levels for both low and no gravity situations. Thrust vectors need adjustment as well for for the lower output. Integrity check is back clean, all seals intact. That should be everything, anything else I'll just deal with on the fly.

Finishing his work and emerging Jason stretches then moves to the mess hall for a meal before the mission begins.

[The_Snark]

Brenda

Brenda nods in acknowledgment, not sure whether she should be relieved or guilty that her odd uncertainty hadn't been obvious. It might have been nice to have it out in the open.

Communications is a role she can handle. She can't say she's unhappy about not being on the ground, either; her one brush with the Others had not made her eager for more. She stops briefly in at her quarters (unlike the others, her meager belongings were all already present), but she didn't have any physical preparations to make, unlike them. Only planning. Half that is done sitting at an empty desk, and the other half as she walks, no real aim in mind.

We need to keep radio signals to a minimum, so that we don't alert the enemy—especially transmissions from the freighter; if the evac is spotted, the whole mission falls through. Should devise a few simple codes, so that we can at least keep it short if we absolutely have to say something. They should be able to talk between themselves with less risk, but the less they need to communicate the better.

I hope the suits give them enough of an edge; they say some of the suit pilots at HB-0343 survived. There's a kind of psychological security in having several tons of alloy in between you and the unknown enemy; I think that might be even more important than the physical security. We were beaten with that first attack, and just trying to survive afterwards. We can't afford that to have that happen again.

She shivered, and suddenly she was glad she'd be staying on the freighter.

[Tyracus]

Jason

Finishing his meal Jason walks to the communications room and sits down at a terminal. Taking a moment to link his HUD system with a few peripheral news systems Jason begins to key into the satellite monitoring and traffic systems. I hope this system has some of the usual security loopholes. I'm certain it will for the black market and smugglers, not to mention that as a shipping agent system there should be a trust relationship already.

Computer Use - (1d20+13)[25]

[WhiteKnight777]

Vincent

After stowing his own personal baggage - mostly tools, as well as a flight suit and a few spare changes of clothes - Vincent immediately headed for the hangar to check on his mech. One there, he first made sure it was locked in properly for transport, then began to go over every inch of it methodically, from checking the weapon systems to examining the sensor calibration with the proverbial fine-tooth comb. As he worked, he hummed a little to himself - an odd habit for a synthetic. He wondered sometimes if it was a personality artifact of, as he thought of him, Vincent's first iteration, or simply a quirk he'd picked up. He knew that synthetics were prone to picking up little tics - and sometimes not-so-little ones, unfortunately. Though he privately believed that such programming oddities were more a result of overthinking then nature of their existence than any problem with synthetics in general.

As he leaned over a gutted control panel, checking the wiring connections to find, as he suspected, a loose wire that was causing a small sensor irregularity, he pondered how lucky humans were to have been built with the ability to ignore their own massive insignificance in the grand scheme of things. He recalled that many of the earliest A.I. programs had gone insane - sometimes violently - before programmers had found ways to encode those same protections against the contemplation of infinity and oblivion. The Werner Protocols, named after Thor Werner, the Swedish programmer who'd invented them, were now standard issue on pretty much every sentient machine in production - not that there were all that many of them. Sentience was something of a burden for beings who, by their nature, were mostly designed to perform mundane or repetitious tasks.

another odd thing was the measure of time. For humans, it was a malleable thing - different states of consciousness, from a "flow" state to utter boredom produced different perceptions of the passage of time. For an artificial creature, however, it was just a matter of CPU cycles - an hour could be an eternity, if you wanted, or a day pass like a second. It was a useful thing, but he sometimes wondered -

He cursed softly - he had crossed two wires. As he began to repair them, he sighed. That's what you get for dedicating too much headspace to contemplating the intangible when you had a job to do.

[Callos_DeTerran]

Lt. Tanaka finds no resistance from the security guards at the base headquarters, eyes flicking over to observe the new passerby but make no move towards the holstered fire-arms that they openly sport as discouragement to would-be-trespassers. Inside are the cold sterile surroundings that Tanaka has become accustomed to during her years in the military...

Spoiler

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Lemme know what sort of info your looking for and I'll let you know the roll and expand upon what you get.

Jason finds those people below grounds in Van's complex to be almost sullen people who take to eating with a grimness that borders on depressing to watch, not to mention finding himself under scrutiny from them as he ate before getting up and heading to the communications hub. With a code given to them all by Val Seran (Dark meant to say he did, I'm saying he did for speed) he logs into the state-of-the-art computers and quickly finds himself into the civilian records and nav-data for the space around the broken moon dome.

The area has been officially quarantined as a 'No-Fly' zone to all but government personal but Jason managed to find older records that pertained to the moon dome and was able to glean some out-dated sets of nav-charts that could be useful. During his search Jason also hears about efforts right after the moon dome attack to clean the debris to at least make the space around it clear and had mostly been completed before news of a 'shadow' between stars had attacked the clean-up crews and drove them away. Luckily none had been harmed but tremendous damage had been done to the ships equipped to do the work.

[ChronicLunacy]

Lt. Cmdr. Tanaka Izumi

Finding a workstation somewhere it was likely she wouldn't be bothered, Izumi fed the computer her officer's access codes and attempted to bring up the latest satellite data and drift charts for the area around Luna. She knew for a fact they had satellites monitoring the area nearly constantly so drift charts and situation reports wouldn't be hard to find. She would have to explain why she was looking at these things if she stuck around, but with her security grade Izumi figured she could get them and be gone before anyone asked. If and when she found what she was looking for, she would download them onto her handy computer card.

[Tyracus]

Jason

Disgusted with the lack of solid information Jason inputs the old plots into a modeling program to project drift. Setting it to cross-reference records of debris entering and leaving the area as well. Configuring the system to forward the results to his mech's nav system upon completion Jason leaves the computer room and returns to the hanger. Taking a seat in his mech Jason closes his eyes and begins running through a simple simulation he had memorized from prep school as a way to calm his nerves and to mentally prepare himself from what came ahead.

Well Clarice, it's time to get revenge for what they did to you. It'll be risky but this is what I trained for. I just wish I knew if you were really gone, in that case it'd be easier to grieve and move on. For all I know you could be alive used for some sick experiments or some other biological process of theirs. Taking a small bottle of pills from his suit Jason looks at them before closing his hand around it and slamming it into the side of his cockpit. Sorry doc, I know you gave me these for when I got like this but I can't take them today, I need to be sharp. Nothing quite so cathartic as blowing apart the cause of your grief with a robot many times larger than yourself. With that Jason puts the bottle away and folds his hands in his lap focusing on his mech's schematics and systems as he rests for the trial to come.

Spoiler

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Computer use - (1d20+13)[32]
Just in case.

[Callos_DeTerran]

Izumi had no true trouble in finding the information that she wanted, surprisingly enough, though there was a close call at one point as a technician on the base walked by her and glanced at just what it was she was doing but he continued on without word or causing a fuss. Information stored on her computer card the good lieutenant hurries to find her mobile armor and to rejoin the others...

Once the lieutenant had returned from the UEDF base and had her mobile armor brought down into the secret base there seemed to be little delay to lift off. The hangar was filled with the noises of automated machines loading and unloading freighters in the first place nobody noticed as the various mechas were loaded into space launch capsules and loaded into the launch barrels of the fast freighter chosen to fly the pilots out towards the cracked moon dome. It looked like a fairly reliable ship, painted black as the night itself with the forward bow shaped like a great dragon's head. Both of the 'wings' were shaped to appear draconian as well and the name 'Black Wyrm' was emblazoned on the side of the clipper in stark white paint that stood out in contrast to the rest of the hull around it. Whither or not it'd be true to it's name remained to be seen but there was no true time to ponder that as the frieghter was cleared for launch and shot out into open space heading right towards the jump gate that leads to the orbit of Earth. There was only a moments hesitation before the draconian ship engaged it's thrusters and shot through the worm-hole being held upon by the technological marvel that was a jump-gate.

The small crew of the freighter proved amicable enough, staffed by Val Seran, Dante Marius (co-pilot), Mac (Navigator), and Lora (Gunner) all of whom (excepting Val) seemed to know each other well and looked like the normal crew of the freighter before it had been commandeered for your use. Dante Marius, as he had introduced himself, was giant of the man with greasy black hair and a thick mustache like a hairy caterpillar above his lip. He seemed prone to letting out great big guffaws of laughter even when it seemed inappropriate and his thick fingers were startlingly fast across the controls of the freighter. In contrast Mac was a stick figure, looking almost malnutritioned compared to Dante Marius and with callow pale skin as if he avoided too much light whenever it was possible. Never seen without his glasses, which loaded fresh navigation data to him constantly, he was quiet enough and keeps to himself for most of the journey though it's far from an unfriendly silence merely that of a man liking privacy. Lora was fairly similar to Izumi in some regards, lean and fit but she seemed more...uncouth compared to the lieutenant and many a time she'd laugh with Dante Marius while looking at someone in particular with a glint in her green eyes. Most of the time she seems to run shooting gallery style simulations on her console, practice almost, and keeps her thick brown hair back from her eyes when the consoles red glow lights up her face.
_________________________________________________

Music

Once the freighter exited the jump gate, Earth-side, it hardly took any time for the ship to circle around the blue planet below towards the small moon. Traffic seemed to be as heavy as usual though it thinned out the closer one got to Luna and from so high it was nigh impossible to see the treacherous conditions on planet side. By the time of your arrival the cracked dome was facing away from the Earth and pointing out into the vast nothingness of space and as the freighter drew close the Black Wyrm decelerated and eventually came to a stop. Down on the pitted surface before the cracked moon dome stood out like a vast open scab on the surface, where once there had been a smooth reflective dome to greet incoming ships there was now only large chunks of heavily armored slabs drifting lazily through space, left overs from that salvage operation Jason had read about.

Usually one wouldn't be able to see the buildings within the dome but the insidious work of the Other's had changed that most assuredly and one could see the ruins of a once great metropolis if they looked down closely. Unlike one would thing there were no patrols or satellites set up around the quarantine zone of the dome, as the Wyrm's computer so helpfully told everyone once they entered but rather the border was left open as if nobody could believe people would actually want to get close to this cursed site. By the time the ship has come to a hault all of the crew are at their stations, none of the camaraderie that had been present on the journey in the air. Instead a sort of soft...fear permeates the air in the cockpit. Dante Marius has long since fallen silent and serious, flexing his hands ever now and then to keep them nimble and precise. Mac would almost look as if he had fallen asleep but his eyes dart about constantly to the information that his glasses feed him, no delay now to keep from overloading the sensors. Lora has no simulation running but unlike the others seems almost...eager now as she quickly scans each and every incoming object that nears the vessel.

"We're hear boss-man. What do we do now?" Dante Marius asks softly, not daring to speak above a whisper as his eyes peel over the view in front of all of you as if in search of danger.

"I don't think we should stay here for long, I have all sorts of anomalies coming up on the sensors but I think thats because the sensor bursts keep reflecting off the debris of the space dome. Still it means something might be able to get the drop on us if we aren't careful." Mac says tensely, pausing for a moment to tap out a command on his keypad before relaxing ever so slightly.

There was no questioning about it...something was off, even this far away you all can feel it and for some it's a most bizarre sensation.

[Tyracus]

Jason

Standing on the bridge looking over the readouts he could Jason paces in what little space he has until the ship stops at the drop point. Looking at the screens Jason's face draws in concentration as he tries to make sense of the mess on the screens before nodding slowly and beginning to speak.

"It is a real mess. Hull fragments, duralloy, plexisteel, as well as the usual space debris. Rad traces on it from the weapon systems and station power systems doesn't help much either. I'd have the Wyrm get as far away as possible while keeping good lines for communications and space for maneuvers. I'd say me and Val head in via this route," Jason indicates a path relatively clear path directly towards the dome, "That will draw the most attention towards us and free Vincent and Tanaka to slip in more discreetly along a path that parallels ours through these slightly more congested areas. There's an element of risk involved but I think that would be one of the best approaches for this. We can adjust and revise as conditions go and we'll need to really be careful when we reach the colony. More cover will be useful for me but it's also a curse as the others can get closer without us having a clear shot. That about covers what I've got for ideas, anyone else?" Jason looks over at Tanaka foremost, an expression of worry, pride, and hope crossing his face as he awaits the more experienced tactician's input.

[ChronicLunacy]

Lt. Commander Tanaka Izumi

Izumi waves them all over to a readout table where she's pulled up the drift charts that she downloaded from the UEDF headquarters. She moved through the screens with sweeping gestures of her hands until she pulled up an overview. Then, she picked up a stylus and indicated the chart. "Good points, Mr. Times, but if you'll allow me?" she said with a curt nod. Waiting until the others had gathered she began the mission briefing just like any other.

"This will be primarily a reconnaissance mission. Our goals are three-fold. Firstly and primarily, we intend to identify and note the positions of any enemy activity in and around the moon dome. Our secondary goal is to bring back any pieces of Other technology that is feasible to bring with us for examination. As we know nothing about the enemy any chance at being able to grab a piece of them should be taken, but don't take any unnecessary risks. Thirdly," she paused, shaking her head, "however unlikely it may seem, there could be pockets of air still breathable within the moon dome and that may mean survivors. If you find any, all other mission objectives are terminated and this becomes a rescue mission. At that point do anything you have to in order to get people out alive and safely back to the Wyrm for extraction. Failing that, if you find any air pockets and online computers, we need any information about the day of the attack you can find since we still have no idea how exactly the enemy attack on Luna proceeded. Some clue as to their strategies and weapons would be valuable."

"We will begin our insertion at this point," Izumi said, using the stylus to highlight a high orbit of drifting wreckage from what could have been one of the UEDF cruisers destroyed in the initial stages of the attack. "The Wyrm will hide here, shutting down to minimal power, keeping only what you need to stay alive online as well as one line of communication. Doctor Wells will be our hub here on the ship and manage this line."

"We will proceed as a group, since four mechanized units is small enough that if we run quiet we probably won't be detected and if we are it gives us a better chance at survival. Mr. Seran and I shall take point, as he has the best chance of all of us in close combat if we're surprised and my unit has the best sensor suite. Times will run midfield, as his unit is similar to mine mostly with mid-range weaponry and excellent maneuverability and speed in case he needs to come support us. Mr. Vitamore will be last in the marching order as his weapon loadout consists of primarily long-range armament. In the case we have to retreat he will provide cover for the rest of us." she said, looking to each pilot in turn.

"Once we have achieved insertion we will use this path," she said, outlining a complex flight path through the heaviest wreckage leading at an angle into the dome, "to stay out of sight. We will avoid the breach in the dome as that is the most observable entry point and instead gain access to the city through the space dock. That's where the UEDF base was and the most likely area to contain the information we need. There may even be pressurized sections along the inner wall. If we don't find what we need there, we will search the scientific research sections further along the outer wall away from the breach. I doubt the city itself will have any pressurized sections left, as most of the buildings were built with the protection of the outer dome in mind. The windows probably just exploded and everything vented into space as soon as the breach opened. Our best bet for surviving people or computers lies along the undamaged sections of the wall and in the underground sections."

Tanaka put both hands on the table and leaned on them. "That being said, we're not going to have a lot of time to perform an in-depth search of the area. You'll set your scans to look for power readings, oxygen, heat, or light...anything that might indicate habitation or working computer systems. If we are discovered by the Others we will IMMEDIATELY stop what we are doing and leave the way we came in. I don't want to take any chances and get caught in a drawn out fight. We don't have the numbers nor the information to support it.

Izumi looked at each pilot in turn for doubt, unasked questions, or excitement, which was just as dangerous. "Any questions?"

Plan:

Spoiler

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Using the Wing Captain's Plan ability to give us a circumstance bonus for the first three rounds of combat. I'd like to hold this bonus until combat begins, if it ever does, since three rounds besides that probably just means getting halfway from the ship to the moon dome. 1d20+13=21 (+2 bonus for 3 rounds, then +1 for 4th round)

[Dark_Prophet]

Seran puts his feet up on the side of the desk as he listens to first Jason, then Izumi's plans in turn, responding to him first with a slight smile, seemingly at ease on his black ship despite the tense situation. "Times, your plan would be great if this were any textbook enemy, like the colonies or a civil war in the UEDF. For the Others, they're going to notice us no matter what, but we want to delay that as long as possible that way its numbers we can win against, as opposed to every vermin in the whole damn base being able to pick one group off silently - we need constant visual contact. Not a bad plan overall, though, but we'll go with Tanaka's plan until things break down."

He continues in the same relaxed fashion, as if they were just in a regular conference room, glancing toward Izumi next. "I can just about tell you now: there are no survivors. I'm almost certain anyone who isn't evacuated is dead or is a intentional trap set to lure us in. I'd suggest just focusing on raw data - but I'll humor you, Lieutenant Commander. I also suggest we maintain radio silence unless its critical - someone spots a Other or the like - since we don't know how the Others can track us." The visors bob as he inclines his head slightly towards her with a grim smile. "Other then that, sounds like a perfect research and reconnaissance schemata to me."

[Tyracus]

Jason

"Well this is how you learn. I figured we'd want to avoid the heavy debris because we don't know what kind of attacks they'll use and if they're strictly close combat we'll be walking in their home turf. Your plan is better than mine though and it more accurately uses our abilities than mine did. As for the retreat shouldn't we call that as a more situational thing, I'd hate to abandon survivors or important data over just a few others. I know there is significant risk involved but if we're going to fight them we'll need to gain experience doing so sometime. Also don't we have tightbeam equipment somewhere? That could solve some of our communications issues by not putting out a broadcast signal. Well I believe it was a grunt from near to a century ago who said "no plan ever survives first contact with the enemy". Let's just get out there and do this, we were picked for our skills, let's show what they're worth." Jason speaks quickly but in a measured tone. His excitement for flying tempered by the situation and his training, but even still it shines through, with a hint of some darker motivations hanging over his last words.

[ChronicLunacy]

Izumi

"Mr. Times, if we fought it out with the Others we would lose. They almost certainly outnumber us and we have no idea what their combat capabilities are. Trust me, I'd like nothing better than to burn them from space, but it would be stupid and suicidal to fight them here." Izumi said flatly. "As for communications, we will be able to tight beam transmissions to each other, but communication with the Wyrm is going to be on a strictly emergency basis. Even tight-beam transmissions over that long a range may be intercepted. So, let me be in charge of that."

"Now, unless anyone has any pressing objections, suit up. We're go in twenty.

[The_Snark]

Brenda Wells

The doctor is quiet for most of the approach to the moon. Almost everyone, at some point, glances up to find her quietly studying them, blue eyes unreadable through her glasses: Dante as he flies, Lora as she practices hitting virtual targets, the others as they wait for the mission to begin. Her gaze is evaluating them, weighing. They were all trained and competent, but that didn't have much to do with it, she'd learned. No way to tell who will break, and who will dig in and stand firm, and who will lash out and strike back.

The abandoned moon dome looms larger in the windows as the others discuss plans, and she feels her gut clench as she remembers a different place. She stares at the wreckage intensely, trying to calm herself by focusing. Abandoned solar panels, lying bereft on the surface of the moon where they'd fallen from the dome. Glittering moon dust lying in the streets, mixed with metal debris and shards of glass where the windows had shattered outwards. An old radio transmission tower, still standing. Quiet and still as a mausoleum. For a few seconds, she is transfixed with that thought, and hears nothing but her own breathing—loud in her ears, as if she really were standing in those streets with a spacesuit.

Then a clipped voice slowly intrudes back into her hearing: Tanaka, finishing their plan and giving the order to suit up. It's a good plan, what she heard of it. "They'll try to break you," she says, not turning away from the window. "They're dangerous, but they also like to shock and frighten. Don't look too long before you shoot, or they'll get to you."

[WhiteKnight777]

Vincent

Vincent had come to the meeting already prepared. In place of the tailored black silk suit was a combat flight suit of the same ebon hue. He nodded quietly throughout the Commander's plan - Vincent was by no means a slouch in the planning department, but her experience in military matters far outstripped his, so he deferred to her gladly.

No questions. If I may make a suggestion, though - Let's focus on recovering any equipment we can before trying to analyze data. We don't have time for proper examination, so I suggest that, where feasible, information and computer equipment should simply be brought back here wholesale. As has already been noted, discovery of our activities is likely inevitable. Let's try to get the most in the time we have. He smiled slightlyOther than that, Miss Izumi, you seem to have robbed me of all that I would have said. Well done.

[ChronicLunacy]

Tanaka Izumi

Izumi nodded curtly to Brenda and Vincent, not giving voice to her thoughts upon the former's words and too uptight to say anything to accept a compliment from the latter. Instead, the turned and headed towards the elevator and to the Wyrm's flight deck. She stopped off along the way in order to change into her flight gear, which consisted of a lightly armored and sealed flight suit and a helmet. Her entire ensemble was navy blue and dark gray, with a polarized visor for the helmet. It had slots for a motion sensor as well as a built-in holster for her laser pistol designed for a cross-draw across her chest. Once suited up, she attached her helmet to a catch on the back of her neck so she could simply tilt it forward in order to put it on and seal it to the rest of the flight suit.

One short walk later and Izumi was on the flight deck watching the four mobile armors being prepped and ready for the mission. She spotted her unit closest to the entrance, standing shoulder to shoulder with the others. The AMCU-5B Peacemaker was twelve meters tall, built on a neovulcanium frame. It was a sleek, white, winged unit carrying only a single laser cannon for its primary armament but boasting a bristling array of sensors around its head and shoulders. They were built by the UEDF as "Commander Type" mobile armors, to make sure the squad commanders had access to the best second-by-second battlefield information possible. It was not a terribly impressive machine as far as damage potential went, and it had no melee capability outside of slamming something with its arms or legs. Izumi had been slowly customizing this one to her liking, however, so it boasted a reasonable flight speed and maneuvering capability for a mass-production model. If she survived today's mission, she was going to talk to Val about getting it upgraded further.

Using the lack of gravity, Izumi pushed off of the ground and floated neatly up to the cockpit in the center of the mobile armor's torso and punched in the code to open the hatch. She put on her helmet and closed all of her flight suit's seals before settling in and running the Peacemaker through its startup sequence. Hearing the gentle thrum of the generator revving to full power gave her comfort, a feeling of strength whose absence she felt keenly, as all pilots did, when outside of the cockpit. As her screens lit up, Izumi closed the cockpit hatch, replacing her eyeview of the hangar with the armor's camera view. Most of her HUD information scrolled directly across her cornea through the use of contact lenses, making operating the machine much more streamlined.

"This is Peacemaker to squad, green lights across the board. All units report in." she ordered in the clipped, authoritative tones of a veteran wing captain.

[Dark_Prophet]

"This is Hades Fifteen. All systems green here." Val's voice rumbles over the radio as the crimson and black mecha powers up. "Prepped on your mark, Peacemaker. Y'all ready to go to the moon, walk on it in a giant suit like one of those guys almost a hundred years ago?" He adds the last in his relaxed, casual drawl.

[Tyracus]

Jason

Nodding and biting back a few harsh words Jason follows the others out to the flight deck. His mood stabilizes as he enters and he quickly and quietly finishes suiting up and he floats lazily to his unit. Upon reaching the hatch he looks over his black and red unit before entering the hatch and bringing the systems up. As he watched the all too familiar boot sequence fly across his display contacts before settling to the enhanced external view. Well it's time I really gave this unit a test. I hope nothing goes sour.

As he exits the hatch and takes up position Jason reports in. "Tyberius V, all systems green, weapons hot."

Spoiler

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Mecha looks approximately like #1 here. Just exchange the cannon on the shoulder with a gatling and add a rifle in his hands.

Also sorry about the delay, I had a busy weekend helping out a friend.

[WhiteKnight777]

Vincent

Vincent sat in the cockpit of his mech. Rather than the standard set of controls, the small dataport in the back of his neck, normally covered by a patch of synthetic skin like the rest of him, was exposed, a thick steel plug embedded firmly in his fiber optic spine. His normal senses altered - where his eyes and ears became mostly deaf, he was one with the greater machine around him. Had Vincent beent a religious man, it would have been like unto some transformative ectascy. As it was, it was a sublime, transcendent experience - all that power at his fingertips, the hum of the reactor core, the firm, reassuring feel of the massive Rail Cannon attached to his right arm. He finished his pre-flight diagnostics, stepping out into the silence of the void. His mecha, painted a flat, matte black, was a shadow in the starfield, and his voice over the comm was utterly calm.

Nova here. Ready and waiting.

Spoiler

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Note: Art found on DeviantArt, by a fellow named Eriance. All credit belongs to him.

[Callos_DeTerran]

Music. Loop it

There was no noise for the pilots of the mechanized armor as the launch pods ejected from the Wyrm and opened up to send their suits sprawling into the empty void around them. Quickly they formed up into the formation they had discussed before with Seran and Tanaka take point, keeping cautious eyes on their read-outs that may hint at the presence of something bizarre and unfriendly. With their own read-outs each of them would see the same thing that Mac had, that sensor signals kept on bouncing off the pieces of the dome still drifting through space to give garbled readings about unidentifiable patches of matter one second to nothing the next, though the most alarming ones were signs that read of life and motion before disappearing.

And through it all each of you, including Brenda Wells who was safely back aboard the ship, couldn't escape the deep seated feeling that something was watching with alien malevolence, a hungry presence at the back of your senses that nips and frays at your collective calms. This place simply felt...wrong...and yet nothing happened as the four mecha approached away from the open sore that was the exploded dome, through covering debris, to the blast doors of the space dock. The first surprise came then...they were still intact, almost as if they had never been touched in the first place. No blasts or holes in the hard dura-steel opening, nor even any signs of forced entry. The bad news was that despite it's almost pristine condition the doors had no power either and didn't respond to any commands sent to the functioning nav-computer that had governed arrival and departure times for visitors to and from this ill-fated dome.

[ChronicLunacy]

Tanaka Izumi - AMCU-5B Peacemaker

Izumi kept one eye on her sensor readouts while they flew silently through the wreckage of the moon dome that orbited above their destination. Every now and then her mobile armor would come to an abrupt halt, attitude control thrusters firing briefly to orient it, and hold up an arm to single the others to do the same. The Peacemaker's blue visor would glow for a moment as the cameras and other sensor module focused on whatever blip Izumi had just noticed on her screens. Every time she would find nothing, but that didn't stop her from being cautious.

Soon enough they drifted towards the space dock doors. Peacemaker's arm braced against a peace of wreckage and shoved, sending it bouncing calmly to the floor. No sound gave the action away as the moon had no air to convey it. Peacemaker took a few more steps, the electro-magnets in its feet steadying it so that it could walk calmly up to the unpowered doors. After trying several times to elicit a response from auto-navigation and attempting a few calls to the door mechanism, Izumi tight-beamed a transmission to Vincent. Her mobile armor signaled silently to form a defensive position to the others.

"Peacemaker to Nova. Alright, Mr. Vitamore, I need these doors open. See if you can get power to them using the generator of your mobile armor. We only need them open wide enough for us to fit through. We'll cover you while you work."