CMO 4/2024 ー名前を呼んでくれー

[kajimatakeshi]

「The destination... I'll leave that up to you.」

Comments

New Jersey

[infinitejustice]

[It was supposed to just be a routine exercise. New Jersey had been entrusted with a small group of shipgirls to take out on maneuvers today, and no one had any reason to believe anything unusual would happen. There were no reports of Siren activity anywhere within at least a thousand nautical miles, and the sky was clear.

Until it wasn't.

Some new kind of threat had seemed to descend upon them from above. No one could track where they came from, except for one factor -- they appeared to have dropped down to the surface from orbit. The sky soon filled with hostiles, in greater numbers than the hapless group of shipgirls could manage themselves.

Fortunately, help soon arrived. A beam of energy lanced forth from the horizon, catching several enemy fliers in its line of fire. Tracing the beam back to its source reveals a red-violet mech flying at high speed toward the fight. At the same time, the girls' communications came to life, with Athrun's voice coming through crystal clear and issuing them orders. Once at closer range, the machine put away its rifle and pulled out a pair of beam sabers, which it quickly linked together, and began to tear through the new enemies as if they were made of tissue paper. Its strength was able to tip the scales in their favor.

Once the fighting ends, the machine lands on a nearby island, and Athrun tells the girls to meet him there. When it lands, the cockpit opens, and Athrun, wearing his flight suit for the first time since arriving at the Azur Lane HQ, rides the cable lift down to ground level and approaches New Jersey.]

Are you all right?

Throwing in a little bonus!

[dontchajustlovethis]

[One does not simply give New Jersey trouble, either. Massed numbers weren't something she'd have issue with ordinarily; being pushed back was a rarity, for her. Against unknowns that seemed hell-bent on swarming them until their reserves gave out, though, that was something that forced her to consider a full on retreat before any losses were taken.

It wasn't until the emerald light punched through the new opposition that she immediately reneged and rushed back, rallying the girls -- including a certain Miss Heroine -- into a tide turning counterattack. Calling it a sight to behold would have understated it some, given how many new marks they would have to their tally with the machine's support.

Once the fleet is ashore, New Jersey opts to take a skip and hop over to their commander with her usual aplomb, leaving Enterprise to assess their supplies and what would be needed for the trip back.]

Fitter than even the fittest fiddle~ Ahaha! Thanks for bailing us out back there. You'd think we'd stop running into these out of nowhere incidents by now...

[infinitejustice]

[Athrun casts a quick glance over in Enterprise's direction to see what she's doing and if she needs any help. When it looks like she's fine, he returns his full attention to New Jersey.]

It was nothing. Seeing everyone return to base alive is thanks enough for me.

[He can't help but offer a little smile as he says that, though.]

Anything you need my assistance with, or shall I just keep you company?

1/2

[dontchajustlovethis]

[New Jersey snorts at that.]

Still the same ol' workaholic, huh? I mean, I can't blame you for wanting to double check everything after that last scuffle, but still...

[dontchajustlovethis]

Other than helping out a few nervous fresh faces, nothing really worrisome's comin' to mind! [...]

Well, actually, that's a bit of a fib. What were those things from earlier? It's obvious they weren't Sirens, but they don't look like anythin' I might've seen elsewhere...

[At least Athrun's machine felt like something she could piece together without having to pry for details. Their riggings were technically running off similar principles...]

[infinitejustice]

[This time, Athrun is justifying it to himself by not being so much work as it is wanting to be there for the girls. He likes spending time with them, after all.]

I don't know, either. Even the CIC at the base marked them as bogeys, so I'm as in the dark about this as you.

[Another thing that was very typical of Athrun -- launching to meet an unidentified enemy because people he cares about were in danger. To be fair, he's very good at buying time in combat, so his typical strategy of "engage the strongest enemy and keep them busy while his allies take out other important targets" tends to work. But he definitely values the lives of his loved ones more than his own.]

apho mei! also starsand continuity, but let's say this is in mei's world?

[dereban]

[ Some days, you just wind up waking up somewhere unfamiliar and that's just fine.

Well, no. That's not entirely correct.

It isn't 'fine', no matter how much she'd like to play it up or pretend that it is. Obviously, she's terrified, right down to her very core. Instinctively, she reaches right at her chest--where her soul is.

She can still feel the darkness that's settled there, a murky goo that's almost wrapped around her heart even as she takes in the unfamiliar scenery. In any case, she's wary of where she is, checking to see if there is anything that she could possibly see; any places to go, any familiar faces, anything at all...

After all, who's to say that where she is isn't some sort of illusion or trap? ]

oh BOY

[everpromisedthunder]

[Time marches on, as the fates would have it.

After the whirlwind that was getting stuck in another walled off city, Mei had gotten herself entangled in one of her messiest battles yet. It had ended in her being dragged to the brink, and she had to be brought back home for treatment. It wouldn't be until the remainder of her squad had linked up with Bronya's group and gotten significant work done that she'd come back -- and in that time, so much had changed. They now actually had a more proper foothold within St. Fountain, however temporary, something that would work in their favor for the operations to come.

It would also be needed to shelter someone -- not that they knew what was going on right away.

There was an "unusual Honkai reaction near the center of St. Fountain", Bronya had told her that morning. But from the look of it, there weren't any rifts like the one from the joint squad's report, ones that drew them into another space entirely. It could have meant anything, so she opted to detach from the rest of the group to assess the situation.

...she only hoped it wasn't anything major.

The first thing Inaba will find as her eyes open is that she's in the midst of an abandoned city. Strange sinkholes that look like they came out of an old sci-fi movie, equally unusual crystals that dot the roads, even overtaking the dry fountain at the center, scaffolding that looks like it was scattered about in the wake of an intense typhoon... whatever happened here, it has definitely seen better days.

There are also monsters dotting the area. Thankfully, some of them are far, but it's not safe to be out in the open, not with how some of them seem to be drawing closer...]

[dereban]

[ The worst thing about being Inaba Himeko: being someone who doesn't like dealing with monsters. Actually, she probably should check what's on her person... aha. Okay, yeah, she should consider herself lucky that she has her Foundation-regulated gun in the off chance that she needs to shoot something, but she'd rather not have to resort to that, because there's a nagging feeling at the back of her head that even dares to wonder if a normal gun would even work on these things.

But at the very least, this is most likely not Starsand, or something that the Facility built; monsters just didn't really seem to be their style, not entirely.

Not with what they were doing. And it'd be pointless, especially since she's...

She shakes it off. She just needs to play the stealth game and not get noticed by said monsters, which means it's time to get moving, and get moving quick. She's out of here, off to find the closest hint of civilization or at least other people. Lest she ends up dealing with the monsters first. ]

[everpromisedthunder]

[Unfortunately, it doesn't look like the buildings are an option for hiding until someone comes; the doors are locked. It's at least clear that people would have lived here at some point with how relatively intact everything is, but... if anything drove them out, they shouldn't have had time to lock everything down, right?

Past the buildings themselves, though, there's a few roads open to Inaba. One has a sizable pothole right at entry, along with a car stuck inside. It's also far enough from the monsters, but... getting out might be a problem if she falls in while making an escape. There's an odd glowing circle inside the pothole if she squints enough, but this place is already an unknown as it is.

She could also chance it and move along the sidewalk, but the closer she gets to the wider road further ahead, the more concentrated the monsters' presence is. At least it'll be easier to run away from them, any obstructions she finds aside...]

[dereban]

[ Well, that's fine and cool and all that.

The fact that the buildings are on lock down is not the greatest sign of things, and she doesn't want to call out in case the monsters hear her cries and then...

Nope, not risking that today. No thank you.

Looks like the best bet is just to continue moving along the sidewalk and pray. ]

[everpromisedthunder]

[The good news is the strange monsters seem to not have the best vision; they don't seem to notice Inaba right away. The smaller ones seem to lumber about, too -- only moving swiftly in bursts, at least for now.

The bad news: what she'll find as she draws closer to the wider road -- it's got two more of the creatures covering it. The one floating in the air with its hands raised appears to be calling down bolts of energy from the sky, and appears to be somewhat oblivious to its surroundings. The grounded one at least looks easy to sneak past, but the floating one... there doesn't seem to be a pattern to where its bolts land. Not unlike thunder, really...

If she sticks around to watch, though, she'll find there's gaps in when it calls down each bolt that she can slip through and into the alleyway.

...

Mei, on the other hand, hadn't counted on being delayed here and there as she made her way over. Tulip Alley, at least, wasn't too far off, but there were still more of the constructs that needed dealing with. It looks like she'll have to put her katana to work for a bit longer before she can get answers...]

[dereban]

[ That's not great!

She doesn't want to risk getting hit by those bolts, even if there's a possibility that her nullification - she can still feel it active - could potentially work on those creatures. But that's not a risk that she's willing to take, right now. Better safe, than sorry.

Inaba's definitely going to watch for a pattern and thankfully time things correctly, running when there's a good gap, keeping as quiet as possible as to not draw too much attention to herself, although she does have her hands on her gun holster. ]

Ruan Mei

[lakan]

[ Midgard had become part of the galactic neighborhood. Although they are quite stubborn in the eyes of the opportunistic IPC and seem to worship no Aeon, Midgard has a uniqueness they bring to the table. They're an advanced civilization but only occupying a fraction of the entire planet - a small continent called Silvis tucked away on the southern hemisphere of the globe. What makes Midgard unique is that it's already occupied by locals of the planet who are still technologically primitive, long before people from space arrived and settled on their little corner of the world.

Silvis is even stranger. It was largely uninhabited by any civilization and was seen as a dark continent full of monsters and evil spirits. The arrival of the Terrans was an eye-opening experience for them in more ways than one, for not only do people come from the stars, they are also powerful enough to make the monsters they feared into mere fodder. Relationships are tense, but that doesn't stop the Terrans from bringing in more people from other planets. Researchers, tourists, traders... They all want to see the mysterious island continent of Silvis and it's legendary access to an underground world, easily accessible now with Terran technology.

Deep beneath the earth is where Ruan Mei of the Genius Society is brought. Expansive nature with inverted plains and mountains in the roof of this world. A big-shot according to the Terrans who advised Troy after he was assigned the mission to be her guard. Given his rank and status among the Terran military, he can only imagine how important this genius must be for interplanetary public relations. Someone in the higher rungs of Midgardian politics must want to cozy up with more galactic factions, like the Genius Society. There's a basecamp of elevated shelters and equipment set up for her, giving Ruan Mei whatever she specified.

Even snacks of sweets and pastries which Troy found a little odd at first. But he had some delivered earlier before his arrival. A spread of familiar sweets and pastries of his youth from yema, pandecocos, leche flan. He's not really sure what to give her, so he just went with what he knows. The basecamp is quiet with only robots keeping Ruan Mei company, so Troy knocks at the shelter's door: ]

Doctor. Can I come in?

[ He asks, standing outside of the door in his power armor covering him from the neck down. Troy glances around, as a vague memory of his past tries to creep up at his mind's eye. A secret that he keeps closely guarded. A secret he brought to this world. He may look like a regular augmented soldier to everyone, and carries himself like a man. But Troy is actually a god. Not that Ruan Mei here will ever find out. ]

[cakeshapedfriend]

[Ah. People.

She hadn't really accounted for the idea that she would be needed elsewhere, much less that she would be put in the care of an escort. It meant having novel things to study, new life to understand, new ways to test if she had finally understood what life was, that much couldn't be understated. But... people were always what complicated things for her. People were difficult. Hard to understand. She preferred that any discussions were kept brief.

...why, then, did the escort that was chosen for her fascinate her that much? What was it about him that made her so curious, so... intrigued? She couldn't tell at a glance, but that was at least part of why she'd accepted his company, however she felt about dealing with people aside.

It's also why Troy will find her opening the door, for a change; there's cup of tea sitting on its own little dish and a plate of his delivery of leche flan sitting in front of her chair at the table behind her. The flan itself already has a few small bites taken out of it; that has to be a good sign, right?]

You actually caught me at a good time. I just finished my research for the morning.

[lakan]

[ Troy is yet to meet Ruan Mei face to face, so he reserves his opinions until she opens that door and the sight of her reaches his eyes. He didn't expect that based on what he's heard of her so stayed by the door, letting his gaze linger until he snaps himself out of it, and carries himself like usual. Only then did he notice the other details - the smell of tea, the partially eaten flan - then her words register in his distracted mind when his focus eventually returns to him. ]

Excellent. I hope you were pleased with everything.

[ Troy nods, feeling himself smile and pointing towards the interior of the shelter. ]

Especially those sweets.

Pyra

[asaviorshand]

[Being a king isn't all fun and games. Even for someone like Dimitri, who would like to spend time training to get stronger, oftentimes he just doesn't have the time to do what he wants. After one such long day of governing, he walks, clearly looking quite tired, into the dining room, and slumps in his chair.

It's much to his surprise when it's not the castle chef that brings his dinner out to him, but Pyra. He's been giving her free rein of the castle while he works, as long as she doesn't get herself into trouble. But to see her carrying a meal out to him?]

Wait, did you make this?

[His curiosity gets the best of him, but at least he doesn't look exhausted any more.]

[purifyingflames]

[While the ingredients she saw in the kitchen pantry were still fairly novel to her, they didn't stop Pyra from trying to make something close to recipes from her home. The feeling of wonder that accompanied her sense of taste picking up on subtle differences, too, was something else. It was enough that she felt Dimitri needed to taste these for himself -- what better way to show her appreciation for the freedom she's had than to give him a warm meal to come back to?

Especially when the meal that sat on the plate she brought to him was a Meatball Pot au Feu, give or take a few ingredients.]

Mm. I had to play around with how I made this a little, but I'm happy with how everything blended together...!

[She sets it down in front of him and lifts the lid. The dish's presentation, she'd found, was what jumped out at her when she looked over the finished product; she couldn't help but weave a few lettuce leaves in to support the meat, especially the centerpiece that held the whole platter together. And as far as she was concerned, looking at it again on a dining table, it felt right.

She only hoped Dimitri would feel something similar when he looks upon it.]

[asaviorshand]

[Dimitri watches curiously as Pyra lifts the lid, and then at the dish. His eyebrows rise, and his gaze fixes squarely on it. He's certainly very impressed by the presentation, that much is to be sure. It's enough to make him wish that he could taste the dish. He's sure it's as delicious as it looks.

So, it's a meat dish, as far as he can tell. Perhaps he could ask Pyra to make this again the next time he has a meeting with Felix, given his friend's love of meat dishes.]

This looks quite appetizing. I'm impressed.

[Dimitri then picks up his utensils, cuts off a piece, and slides it into his mouth.]

Hmm!

[Unfortunately, it's as Dimitri expected; he can't taste it. But the texture is great, so at least there's that. He chews and swallows that mouthful, then takes another. After swallowing that one, he turns to Pyra.]

Please, have a seat with me. Would you like some, too?

Welt Yang

[impulsives]

[ With all the Nameless has seen in their journeys, a giant robot seems like a mundane sight to see while traveling through space.

But this feels a little bit out of place even considering the technological advancement seen in several planets. ]

He-... Any- -here

[ The machine is also broadcasting on open comms, but it seems the communicator has been damaged, so most transmission has been coupled with static here and there. At the very least, the pilot is alive. ]

[witnessthestars]

[--well, this takes him back...

While it wouldn't be the first time the Express has needed to bring aboard people in need of assistance -- he and a certain troublemaker counted as two such rescued -- it was probably the first time they'd need to figure out the logistics for this. It was obvious at a glance, even if one wasn't Welt Yang -- the machine was built for war. And not only that, it was the size of Arahato. It might not be able to able to maintain its reactor's output due to differences in technology, either... and the odds were good that whoever the pilot was, they wouldn't want to leave this lying around for unsavory groups to steal.

It's a good thing he still had something of his true powers to work with, even if he wasn't in a position to use them.

Welt hails the pilot while the rest of the present crew get to work on rescue efforts.]

This is the Astral Express. We can hear you -- are you injured in any way?

[First things first.]

[impulsives]

No inj-

[ -uries. But it's clear from the short transmission that the pilot is slightly perplexed at the fact that a train is the one coming to their rescue. But either ways. ]

-Need trans- repair.

[ Well, it's a simple enough request at least. ]

[witnessthestars]

Okay, good... that's one less dire thing to worry about.

[Now to check on the machine's condition. It's a bit hard to get a proper grasp from a distance, so--]

Is your machine still able to move? If it is, use whatever you can as a signal.

[The lack of one within 5 seconds would at least be enough to assess the damage.]

[impulsives]

[ Within a few seconds, the machine whirs to life, it's right hand, slowly raised to point 'up', or whatever is considered up relative to the Astral Express, and then fired a small pulse of blue-white beam in that direction; fizzling in a short distance.

It's able to move, there is enough power, but whatever damage it has seems to be internal. ]

[witnessthestars]

[Hm. Not how he imagined this going, but... the Star of Eden's milder applications should be able to keep his machine tethered to the Express for the time being. Until then, retrieving him should take priority.

Welt fixes his glasses.]

Seems we won't be able to fix it right away. We'll try to bring you back to Herta Space Station so we can have it looked at properly.

For now, get ready to board. We're bringing the Express in closer.