>>1133809
You can see a lot of heads lean forwards, some nodding in solemn agreement to the lyrics you belt out with all the soul and sincerity of a forlorn love, but for some reason...damnit, that just seems to be all you get out of them. It’s a cool, collected atmosphere here, and you can see some people leaning back, ordering a few more drinks, and on the whole, it seems like things are the right amount of calm with just a bit of...confidence, perhaps you could say.

Izumi and Julius, at the very least, seem to be cuddling together; Izumi has a small smile on her face as she leans on Julius’ shoulder, his arm wrapped around her. He’s sitting there, eyes closed, enjoying the music, and you can see him squeeze her occasionally.

Miranda’s in the back, downing her...third? Glass of something, you’re not sure what. She generally had a decent tolerance, but you’re not sure if she’s just more affected by your musical prowess, or if she’d rather forget tonight so far. Not like it’s been that bad, honestly!

At any rate, you soon finish up, and earn a solid, rousing applause from the crowd. No standing ovation or anything, but that’s fine. You’re pretty sure you’re in the top echelon, at least! Maybe it’s just your song was too calming...yeah, that’s it. Everyone was just too exhausted. Izumi and Julius certainly seemed to enjoy it, at least.

>Sit with them for a bit, try to wring out details. It’ll be FUN trying to needle the guy here and there...
>Head back with Miranda, leave them to themselves for now. You can ask for more info later!
>Maybe get everyone together! If Julius was going to be around more often, then better sooner than later!
>Other

May not be too many updates. Still not feeling great. I slept a longass time, though, so my sleep schedule is shot, and I'll probably be up for a while regardless. Might as well try.

>>1133812
> sit with them and meddle more
Maybe we should have used some lighting effects.

>>1133906
Who knows? Since it's the first decision of the thread, I'm giving it an hour before I write. So like, 20 more minutes left.

>>1133812
>Maybe get everyone together! If Julius was going to be around more often, then better sooner than later!

>>1133812
>Head back with Miranda, leave them to themselves for now. You can ask for more info later!
We need to drown our lackluster performance in more drink!

>>1133812
>>Maybe get everyone together! If Julius was going to be around more often, then better sooner than later!

We have pre-established lore that drunk Miranda is like 1000% more fun. Get her in there, make it a party.

>>1133981
1000% of zero is still zero.

Group fun! Drinks! Funny stories!

Miranda doing things she'll probably regret tomorrow.

>>1133812
You step down, giving everyone a magnanimous wave and a friendly blown kiss. Thanks to your name you were one of the last ones to go up, so it shouldn’t be too long before you all find out the winner! Honestly, considering the reason you’re here tonight, you suppose you really shouldn’t be hoping that it’s you…

...But no, you hope it’s you. Either way! Miranda’s been all ‘I’m brooding leave me alone’ thing again, by the looks of it, so time to bring her out of that. To your surprise, she doesn’t put up that much of a fight when you grab her hand and drag her to the couch/table Izumi and Julius are sitting on. The latter two seem only slightly surprised when you and her plop down. “Hey guys! Figured since you two looked like you were gettin’ along real well-” you waggle your eyebrows for emphasis- “-it might be a good idea for all of us to really get to know each other!”

Fortunately, they don’t seem too put out. Izumi nods thoughtfully, a small smile on her face. “I suppose that’s true. I’d prefer us all to be friends, after all!”

You clap once in approval. “That’s the spirit!” That decided, you all quickly order a round of drinks. Miranda just gets what she’s been getting, and as the waiter leaves, you noticed she’s staring at her hand, steadily. It’s not shaking or anything, but she’s staring intently.

“So, then, if I may be so brash- how long have you two known Izumi?” Julius asks. “I haven’t been here for very long- about three years, and…”

“Seventy-two years.” Miranda rattles off without looking at him. You can see his eyes bulge out for a half-second. Wait, did Izumi not...

Right as you’re about to mention something, however, she looks up from her hand, and looks Julius straight in the eye.

“Are you a virgin?” Oh god. Oh no. What is she doing. The way Izumi looks at her is frozen in bafflement, and Julius is just blushing up a storm. He looks a bit confused, but not frightened at least...that’s good...right?

“Well, I mean, I...uhh…” He’s stammering.

“It’s no shame if you are, but I want to know if you’re up to the task to learn at least. I won’t have anyone substandard dating my friends.” The worst thing is that Miranda sounds dead serious, as if she DOESN’T have at least several hard drinks in her.

>Excuse your friend’s bluntness, and redirect the conversation.
>Lighten up the mood, needle her about her question and make it sound jokey.
>Get saucy with it and let Julius answer.
>Try to wordlessly get Izumi to deflect the question.
>Other

>>1134280
>>Lighten up the mood, needle her about her question and make it sound jokey.

>>1134280
>Get saucy with it and let Julius answer.

I like to have fun fun funfunfun

>>1134280
>Excuse your friend’s bluntness, and redirect the conversation.

>>1134280
> excuse your friends bluntness
And give her a noogey

>>1134280
10 MORE MINUTES.

>>1134280
And writing! Trying desperately to change the subject away from relative experience with intercourse.

>>1134280
Okay, okay, easy thing to dodge, just like talking undercover.

“Sorry about her,” you offer up as you reach out and squeeze Miranda close in a one-armed hug. “She’s always been the super direct sort, y’know how it is!” You put on your winningest smile towards the young man as Miranda tries to glare daggers into you. It’s honestly...sorta unsettling. “That, and, well...drinky drinks, after all. Alcohol is an impartial mistress.”

“Aha- yeah! Right, it’s okay…” his blush has barely receded any, but you can tell he’s grateful for the opportunity to ignore the question entirely- as is Izumi, who’s looking at Miranda like she doesn’t know whether to laugh or strangle her. Could she even DO that? Miranda’s pretty buff...eh, worries for later!

“Er, yes...don’t worry about it, Juilus,” Izumi does her best to comfort her date. “I’m sure Miranda-san here is just a bit too inebriated. She’ll be fine later.” ...Wait, Miranda-SAN? She broke out the honorifics? Yikes. Yikes yikes yikes yikes yikes. Okay, gotta make sure you’re on a job that’s not with them until- wait, FUCK. The joint thing! Ahhh, shit.

At the very least, Miranda seems to sense similar, as her eyes dart towards Izumi once she hears ‘-san’ as well. Unfortunately, Miranda doesn’t seem to be entirely repentant, just confused. “I...was just trying to look out for you a bit. Friends do that.”

“Ahaha, don’t worry about it, Miranda.” Okay, she must’ve caught herself. “We’ll talk about it later. For now, I’d love to tell you how me and Julius actually met- it’s actually kind of funny when you think about it…”

It’s not, really. But Izumi seems rather content with it, stretching the story out and wording it like it was some amazing, destined meeting under the stars. Miranda orders a fifth glass, and then she holds her hand out flat again- this time, she wavers slightly. “Nghh...I...think I can...can do about two more glasses. Just two. No more.”

cont.

>>1134776
“Oh, you’re sure?” Izumi had been nursing the one drink all night, and Julius was just on his second. You were on your third, but they’d been light drinks tonight. “Really, don’t force it if you need to leave. Wouldn’t want to say anything...silly.” ...wow. But the smile on her face...maybe she’s already forgiven her. Might not be too bad, especially if she knows her own limits.

Julius seems unsure. “I...well, generally I’d think it smart to stop sooner than later, but if you know when to call it quits…honestly, I was hoping to ask you more how you came to be friends with a librarian!” And there was, you’re pretty sure, the confirmation. You bite back a sigh, and honestly a slight bit of anger.

Izumi hadn’t told him about her second job yet. You look at Miranda, but she’s found a pen and is scribbling something on a napkin. You’re not entirely sure what.

>Probably should excuse yourself and Miranda now.
>Keep it going- you suppose/hope she’ll say herself when the time is right.
>Maybe you can drop a hint without making it too obvious.
>Ask to excuse yourself and Izumi, if only to talk briefly.
>Other.

>>1134781
>Probably should excuse yourself and Miranda now.
Say miranda has her group meetings hosted there. And on that note...

>>1134781
>>Other.

Excuse both yourself and Miranda to go do a thing, inform her of how she's fucking up, then formulate a game plan.

>>1134781
>Probably should excuse yourself and Miranda now.
If Izumi's anger is enough to make even Lorelei concerned, then it's a pretty big deal and we gotta pull out.

>>1134781
10 more minutes.

The situation calls for an expeditious retreat. Writing!

>>1134781
Okaaay…as much as you hate to admit it, you might need to evacuate the situation now. Things are getting a bit too...frustrated here. Honestly, you’re kinda surprised Miranda’s acting like this. Then again...maybe not. She was likely going to regret it the next day, though, when she remembered everything she said. Or whenever you told her, whichever came first.

“I think you might be right, on the whole, Izumi.” You get up, and try to drag Miranda up with you. She’s still scribbling on that napkin, only more frantically now, and your quick tugging doesn’t budge her. She was always crazy strong…

There’s a few more moments of incessant tugging. “C’mon, Miranda, you DID say you had a thing we needed to get ready for, right?” You do your best to not say anything about your job at the moment; while you’re not exactly thrilled Lorelei hasn’t mentioned her job as a mercenary, you’ll let her keep it under her hat for now. Unless Miranda spilled the beans…

Fortunately, she doesn’t seem to have noticed, finally finishing her scribblings- from this angle you can see it looks like some kind of note- and quickly handing it off to Izumi. “You read it first, then him. Sorry about messing up your date.” she says, and then gets up easily. She looks at you, and seems to take a half-second to focus on you properly, before giving a slight shake of her head, as if clearing cobwebs- or trying to, anyway- and then nodding. “Let’s get going.”

With a quick wave, you both get the heck out of there. You’re not sure what’s on Izumi’s mind, but hopefully it wouldn’t mess with the joint operation you guys were gonna be embarking on soon...or worse- cause Izumi to stop talking to you guys for a while. THAT’D be horrible.

As you both walk home- it’s probably high time to call this night done- Miranda seems stoic as ever- although you can tell there’s a bit of confusion there, too. She’s not saying anything, though, instead looking at you with her eyebrow raised like she’s expecting you to say something.

There’s a bit you want to say, yeah, but, considering her state…

“If you want to bitch at me, now’s the time.” That’s all she says, letting her head hang somewhat. “You could probably pop me one good right now, too.” It’s a wry smile she has on.

>”Please. After last time we got drunk? Just apologize tomorrow and this’ll blow over.”
>”So...what was on that napkin?”
>”’Randa, you should know a biiit better than that, huh?
>Other

Stopping for now. May resume later, will keep you updated.

>>1135232
>”So...what was on that napkin?”

>>1135274
Kay, bye!

>>1135232
>”Please. After last time we got drunk? Just apologize tomorrow and this’ll blow over.”

>>1135232
>>”Please. After last time we got drunk? Just apologize tomorrow and this’ll blow over.”
>>”So...what was on that napkin?”

>>1135232
>”Please. After last time we got drunk? Just apologize tomorrow and this’ll blow over.”
>”So...what was on that napkin?”

>>1135232
>”Please. After last time we got drunk? Just apologize tomorrow and this’ll blow over.”
>”So...what was on that napkin?”

>>1135232
>>”Please. After last time we got drunk? Just apologize tomorrow and this’ll blow over.”
>>”So...what was on that napkin?”

>>1135232
>”Please. After last time we got drunk? Just apologize tomorrow and this’ll blow over.”
>”So...what was on that napkin?”

>>1135232
>”So...what was on that napkin?”

>>1135232
>>”Please. After last time we got drunk? Just apologize tomorrow and this’ll blow over.”
>>”So...what was on that napkin?”

Get well, Handler!

Writing! Gonna try and keep voting periods down to 20 minutes, and try to actually write fast today.

>>1140522
You just pat her on the back. “Ohhh, Miranda. Mimi. ‘Randa. Think about what happened LAST time we got drunk. So long as you apologize tomorrow, everything’ll be fiiiiine.” She doesn’t look convinced, but you give her a smile anyway. “Izumi knows good and well you didn’t mean it badly. She’s too smart to take offense that badly- I think maybe you weren’t the only one that had a bit of alcohol in their system.” You doubted she was, considering she’d hardly drank half of her own stuff, but you weren’t sure if Miranda noticed, and you weren’t going to point it out to her.

Fortunately, she doesn’t seem to. “I’m...pretty sure I...I told them important stuff.”

You just cock an eyebrow. “Yeah?”

“On the napkin,” she clarifies. “Advice. I’m not...I know I ain’t the friendliest face in the Intersection. I’m...I’m fine with that. It’s okay.” True enough, she’s smiling throughout it- a fairly rare sight, but you’re happy to see if, even if it’s an intoxicated one. “Keeps me sane, if I’m bein’ honest. You know how that goes.” You nod. Not gonna contest THAT... “But lately I been starting to wonder if it’s less a cure and more...more a...hold off. Thing. Damnit, I can’t think.” She shakes her head. “So I’m trying new stuff. Trying to try, anyway. Been near a damn century, pretty sure I still learn something new, though. I don’t FEEL old. I think I’m not old. I don’t want to be old. Hell, maybe I do. If I ever get back I don’t want to be daisy-fresh while everyone else needs a cane.”

Why is she talking about…? Does she really think…?

>“‘Randa, you’re rambling. We should get you in bed.”
>”...I thought you believed getting back wasn’t possible.”
>Ignore her, let her talk.
>Other

>>1140600
>”...I thought you believed getting back wasn’t possible.”

>>1140600
>>”...I thought you believed getting back wasn’t possible.”

>>1140600
> Other, change subject
You know, since we had to leave early I never got my prize for winning karaoke. You owe me now!

>>1140600
There is a contradiction here...

Writing!

>>1140600
Part of you thinks you should just redirect the conversation.

The other part of you is just too dang curious. “Hang on a sec...I though you super-believed that ‘getting back’ was impossible?” ‘Getting back’ of course meaning going back...back home. Where you came from. Miranda, as far as you knew her, was always the sort to be adamant that you needed to ‘deal with what you have’. You’d never heard her say anything positive to the matter of believing in a way back- and if what you’d heard from Izumi was right, she actively DIScouraged it.

And yet Miranda just sighs. “I guess...I dunno. There’s-there’s like this...this stupid, immature, va...vague hope one day I’ll get a job and then it’ll just...I guess-I guess just so HAPPEN to be...back there.” The stuttering and delays are the only ways you can tell she’s had more than a few drinks. Well, that and the bad breath. “I suspect most folks are like that. Keeping it in the back of their minds.”

Well...she’s not off target there. You’d LOVE it if you could...but it’s not something you like to think about that often. This place has some pretty sweet perks, you won’t lie, but…

“...Something about it just never quite feels like home, huh?” You didn’t actually mean to let that out of your mouth. That was just supposed to be a thought, an idle musing.

And yet the way she just grins lightly at you makes you think maybe it wasn’t such a bad slip of the tongue after all, and it kinda makes more sense why she’s so uptight now. Can’t help but wonder what she was like back when she was home…

Bah, nope. Thoughts like THAT, though, can come later. You need to get this girl back to her apartment so she can take a long nap.

Jobs waited for no one, here! And by the sounds of it, you and your girls got a big one soon.

cont.

>>1140751
>Switching back to Miranda

“Alright, ladies.” You had maybe a mild headache, but that was easily ignored. Today, you needed to finish up any shopping you needed to do for supplies, and hoof it to Dynamic Method’s HQ ASAP. You’d already collected yourselves in front of Kowalski’s. “We don’t have a lot of time, so let’s get in here, grab what we need, and get out. Izumi?” The look she gives you is thankfully neutrally curious- you can only hope that whatever you wrote last night in your drunken haze mollified her to not take too much umbrage at you. “You’re the gun nut out of all of us-” she cracks a smile at that, thank goodness. “-so we’re counting on you to keep us both well armed and still capable of doing our duty. Can’t be loaded down too much.”

“Right,” she nods. “You said Epsilon team was flight and aerial combat, correct?” You nod. “Then I can only presume we’re either insertion forces for a drop assault, we’re being sent in to clear areas for landing ground, or we’re infiltration units to clear out anti-aircraft weaponry. Maybe a combination of them.” She’s closed her eyes, thinking as you all walk into the store. “I’d say that as a group, we’d want…”

>Heavy, explosive ordnance. Grenades, Det-packs, RPGs, anything that makes a big boom.
>Easily concealable weaponry. Pistols, submachine guns, melee. Tactical stuff.
>Assault weaponry. Rifles, shotguns, a lot of bullets. You get the idea.

>Feel free to suggest specific weapons and loadouts! Vote/Input time for this particular one will be 45 minutes.

>>1140754
>>Heavy, explosive ordnance. Grenades, Det-packs, RPGs, anything that makes a big boom.

Anything else we might need can probably be procured on sight, but if we need these things, we NEED these things, and getting them will be more than a little rough.

>>1140754
>>Heavy, explosive ordnance. Grenades, Det-packs, RPGs, anything that makes a big boom.

>>1140754
>>Heavy, explosive ordnance. Grenades, Det-packs, RPGs, anything that makes a big boom.

Maybe a shotgun for Miranda too, she likes it up close and personal.

Welp. Booms it is! Writing.

Still writing, just finishing up a goods list.

>>1140754
“More explosive ordinance,” she suggests. “There’s a lot we’ll be able to get on the ground and in various ways, but those sorts of weapons tend to be rare, and troublesome to...procure.” She looks at you both. “We’ve all got some explosive potential- no pun intended.” Too late, Lorelei snorts and giggles a bit, and Izumi just smiles and rolls her eyes. “But! I’m glad we’re doing this, Miranda. Always good to not HAVE to rely on mana. And I don’t have a ton of explosive devices at home, either, so...”

You just shrug- you’re not surprised Izumi has her own armory. “If I’m being honest,” you admit, “I’m glad we’re going that direction. Rather a fan of explosions.” You quickly pass your Outgoer ID to the uniformed man at the welcome desk- not just anyone would be allowed in such a store, after all. A quick confirmation, and you’re already heading towards the rocket launchers. Never could go wrong with a good rocket launcher. You’re going to be picking one of those up for certain. Question is, what else…guns were never in short supply, thank goodness, so this stuff should be cheap. But first, rockets.

cont.

>>1141121

>You have 12.50 Motes remaining. (12 Large, 50 Small)

>Dumbfire Rocket Launcher (20 Small Motes) : There’s so many typical dumbfire rocket launchers out there, they kinda just sell them for cheap. Still, they do their job and they do it well- rocket launchers are rocket launchers! If nothing else, they’re easy to reload, and chances are ammo could be found.

>’Hawkeye Hunting’ Guided Rocket Launcher (45 Small Motes)- On the other hand, fire-and-forget rocket launchers that allow you guided control of the missile in flight weren’t as common as one might think. This one uses an infrared guided system, and is extremely agile- claiming to be able to fire indoors and turn a 90 degree corner. It’s also capable to shifting to a ‘manual’ guidance system, for the really precise stuff. The travel distance is impressive, and it’s quite fast. Its explosive yield is lacking compared to some others, however. Comes with 15 Rockets.

>’Highball’ Anti-Vehicle Rocket Launcher (50 Small Motes)- this puppy is similar to the Hawkeye, being a guided rocket launcher, but manual guidance only. Its explosive yield is rather impressive, however, and if anyone else has a Highball brand device, such as the Highball seeker mines, or another launcher, it’s standardized laser targeting system allows ‘double duty’ of sorts, allowing someone else to grab control of a launched rocket or other Highball device should an adjustment need to be made on the fly. Comes with 10 Rockets.

>’Gorgon’ Rocket Launcher (7 Large Motes)- For the enthusiast who firmly believes in quantity over quality. The Gorgon is a strange thing, a shoulder lifted device, and incredibly large, with NINE rocket barrels attached. Each fires a small warhead about the size of a cantelope that nonetheless has a rocket engine and limited tracking capabilities. Each warhead detonates with about the force of a standard yield rocket. Incredibly unwieldy, chews up ammo in about three seconds, and not at all useful for situations indoors, but basically, point this at something, and it’ll really rip them a new one.

>Choice?

>>1141124
>>’Highball’ Anti-Vehicle Rocket Launcher (50 Small Motes)- this puppy is similar to the Hawkeye, being a guided rocket launcher, but manual guidance only. Its explosive yield is rather impressive, however, and if anyone else has a Highball brand device, such as the Highball seeker mines, or another launcher, it’s standardized laser targeting system allows ‘double duty’ of sorts, allowing someone else to grab control of a launched rocket or other Highball device should an adjustment need to be made on the fly. Comes with 10 Rockets.

Also get 30 more rockets.

Whipe we're gearing up, mention getting our sword treated to Izumi, she should know somebody to take it to while we're out on this job.

>>1141148
Izumi's coming with you on this op. All three of you are going on this one.

>>1141124
This >>1141148
Tempted to go for the Gorgon for maximum bang but I doubt many clients would be happy with that amount of destruction.

>>1141152
I know. I meant that we would ask Izumi as part of our shopping trip.

5 minutes. Might extended it to an extra 5, give people time to think it over. Mines are coming next.

Alrighty, Highball it is. 30 extra rockets will cost 15 Small motes. Writing!

After some thought, you elect to get the Highball. It’s versatility and power should work well for you. The manual-only guidance system isn’t really a deal-breaker, either. Just need to make sure to pick up a few extra rockets for it...

>You now have 11.85 Motes remaining.

And now, the mines. Let’s see what surprises might be best for this op...

>Standard plastic explosives x4 (10 Small Motes )- These are standard yield plastic explosives; roughly equivalent to a brick of C4. Always good to have if you want to easily, quickly blow something up without leaving any unusual residue.

>’Highball’ Seeker Mines x10 (30 Small Motes)- these small, lumpy balls no bigger than golf balls are nonetheless packed with massive explosive potential. Once deployed, they can be controlled by a handheld device to roll wherever the user needs, and detonate on command. They thus can function as useful scouts as well as a nasty surprise.

>’Moleworm’ Proximity Mines (30 Small Motes)- These mines are small, and capable of attaching to floors, walls, and the ceiling. Once locked in place, they can be primed to only detonate once someone gets within a specific radius- up to 10 meters away. Obviously, there’s a bit of a grace period when priming them.

>’Hellzone’ Heavy Explosive Mines (45 Small Motes)- these ultra-short-proximity mines are, in most ways, basic mines, with the exception of being VERY heavily physically armored- disabling these mines would take a very competent computer hacker as opposed to raw force. Upon detonation, they have enough power to wipe out a floor of enemies. The proximity for one going off, however, is less than a meter.

>What will you be getting?

>>1141235
Oh god, math, uh, I'll just back whatever the next person says

...the math isn't THAT bad. I hate math and this is decent enough for me to figure out.

>>1141148
>’Moleworm’ Proximity Mines (30 Small Motes)

I think these are a good compromise between price and versatility, let's go with these.

Sold, then. Moleworm Prox Mines it is. Writing!

>>1141235
It takes you an inordinate amount of time to choose, but you eventually pick up the Moleworms. Solid versatility, yet again, and you wouldn’t need to focus too hard on them once they were deployed. They’d make excellent deterrents if you needed to escape an area quickly and didn’t want anyone getting in the way of that.

>You now have 11.55 Motes remaining.

Finally, you look around. Izumi’s musing over some old fashioned explosives, and she’s been looking at some sort of...It looks like some kind of modified rocket launcher, chrome and with no exhaust for backblast or anything. Lorelei’s musing over what seems to be grenades...a lot of grenades. Actually, you can see she’s bought what must be at least three different sets of JUST grenades.

Hm. Welp. Hope that comes in handy enough.

Soon enough, you’ve all gotten your purchases- Izumi got the strange launcher, which she said was some sort of ‘droid launcher’. When asked why, she simply responded ‘I don’t have this one yet.’ Lorelei on the other hand had gotten chaff grenades, fragmentation grenades, flashbang grenades, incendiary grenades, and something that apparently was called juicer grenades. You asked, but she just smiled and said ‘Eh, you’ll probably see eventually.’

But, that was that, and now you’re here. Dynamic Methods. The place seems...well, sterile. Kinda boring, really.

You walk in, however...and it’s surprisingly neat. The entire area has a blue and gold color scheme that permeates throughout the building as you step through the lobby, an there’s elevate in sight near the back. You can see various people walking to and fro- most dressed like soldiers, a couple more business-looking- and the lobby reception area is large and circular, with a tall, well-dressed woman manning the counter. She takes one look at you three, and immediately starts typing. “I’m to presume you three are the operatives for one Silver Eye Solutions?”

You nod. “We were told to ask for Captain G’nearth.” Lorelei makes a strange face at the name, but says nothing.

The receptionist doesn’t seem to notice, fortunately. “Please, elevator down to sub-level one, then down the corridor to your left until the end, take a right, then second door on your right.”

You nod again; very formal, this lady. “Thank you, miss.” With those instructions, it’s not much longer before you arrive in front of a door that says ‘Captain G’nearth, Epsilon.’ You can hear some rowdy laughing coming from within, as well. At least he seems to be in a good mood.

You just take a deep breath. “Welp. Here goes.” And you knock..

cont.

>>1141576
“C’mon, it’s open!” The voice is gruff, jovial, and completely nonchalant. You open the door, and G’nearth is right there- a mountainous humanoid, tanned bronze, with a mane of corse, blonde hair that rings around his head, and reminds you of a lion’s. His facial structure is stubbed and looks like it should be scowling, but you can’t see any actual whiskers or cat-like features…ah, though when he smiles, you can clearly see fangs. Maybe some type of ogre.

“Ahhh, you three must be the fancy gals we got on board!” He raises up, and you can see he easily reaches at least nine feet tall, and he’s practically chiseled from stone. You have to say, it cuts an imposing figure. “Name’s G’nearth, an’ I’m Captain of the Epsilon Division of Dynamic Methods! Codename…Air Devils! Ha! Get it?” His grin is almost gonna leap off his face. “AIR Devils! Like Dare Devils! HA!”

Lorelei actually laughs a bit, and you can see Izumi cracking a smile she tries to hide.

>...*snrk* Okay, this guy’s ridiculous, but...
>Uhh...I’m Miranda Styles. No unit, sir.
>Yeah, that was pretty funny, sir. Er, but about the job…
>Other

>>1141580
>Uhh...I’m Miranda Styles. No unit, sir.

Keeping it simple, then. Writing!

>>1141576
Nooot quite sure how to respond to that one. “I’m, uhh...Miranda Styles, sir. No unit.” You resist the urge to shrug as he just chuckles.

“Direct sorta, huh? Yeah, I read that aboucha in your dossier. Part of the reason I wanted you lot along, actually!” He plops down in his seat again with a massive thud- it actually ends up shaking the room a bit. “You three got yerselves a pretty decent setup there, and I’m thinkin’ you’d be better company ta have along than them jumped up strutters over at Flashpoint or them high n’ might sorts at Interdiction.” He snorts at the last name. Fact that there’s so few of ya? Makes me think you’ve got some real skill. N’that’s what we’re gonna need here.”

He gets up, and motions to the door, his features getting a bit more serious. “Follow me. Time fer briefin’.”

Soon, you’re in a meeting room that really seems more like a miniature auditorium. The stage is little more than a podium and what seems to be a large screen, with several rows of seats for an audience. Kinda reminds you of school, actually... “Sit yerselves down, n’ when the rest get here, we’ll get started.”

That doesn’t take too long- a varied assortment of peoples begin showing up a minute or two after you three arrive, some human, some humanoid, but all of them in some manner of blue/gold jumpsuit, but obviously customized to a point- although you can see more than a few unique outfits that just have the color scheme. Before very long, the whole of the auditorium is filled, with you three sitting in the front row off to the side. G’nearth takes a careful look around, his face pensive, and then nods his satisfaction.

“ALL RIGHT.” And suddenly, his voice is booming, demanding respect and attention, a far cry from the casual tone of earlier. “TROOPS, WE’VE GOT OURSELVES A JOB, AS YOU WELL KNOW. THIS IS THE OFFICIAL BRIEFING, SO SHUT UP AND LISTEN UP!” The entire room goes dead silent, and he nods to someone to hit the lights.

cont. 1/3

>>1142003
As the room goes dark, the screen lights up, showing what appears to be some sort of...sky world. There are a varying of floating islands in the image, and you can’t see any hint of land below the lower cloudline. “This is Mageria. Designation, Sky World. Martial Potency is rated six-point-five, Magical Potency, rated seven-point-eight.” Ah, G’nearth’s voice is back to mostly normal, and you can hear some murmurings amongst the others. “Yeah, this one’s might be a slobberknocker.” G’nearth grunts at them, but he continues.

“Currently, this land has been the site of a clashing of two nations: Alusia-” here the picture switches to an image of a city- kinda steampunk in nature yet again, but you can tell more advanced than what you just came from...Dieselpunk? Either way, it looks rather clean, and well kept. “-and Ferrosia.” And the picture changes again to what’s clearly a much more military-controlled town. The skies are a bit darker, but that seems to be due to the massive amounts of warships covering the skies, painted blacks and browns and darker colors. “Kinda typical, ain’t it?” G’nearth snarks, and he gets a few chuckles in return.

“But anyway, these two nations have been warring for centuries, thanks to Ferrosia’s desire to put the whole of Mageria under their control for whatever reason. Recently, however, there’s been a bit of a shakeup- the Ferrosian forces have uncovered a massive magical stone relay of some kind. Gave them one HELL of a power boost.” Image change- and this time it’s a short, repeating video.

What looks to be Alusian forces and Ferrosian forces are meeting in aerial combat- you can see what appears to small, personal fighters stream out of massive airborne carriers of both like bees out of a hive, swarming and suddenly flashing lights as small energy blasts go off everywhere, turning the battle into a light show. After a few seconds of this, however, suddenly you start seeing some of the Ferrosian fighters turn what seems to be a bright red. They’re suddenly moving faster, and the energy they fire seems to be brighter, and before long they’re pushing the Alusians back, forcing a retreat as many of the smaller fighters back off- and then you see the Ferrosian carrier turn an angry, angry red, the entire ship lighting up like some sort of eerie glowbug. Suddenly it fires what seems to be two cannons on its side- the ruby red beams lance out instantly, and sweep across the bow of the Alusian fighter- cleanly cutting it in half before a massive explosion rips through the air.

The silence is deafening as it loops again and the general resumes speaking. “As you can see, this has caused a massive swing in the Ferrosian’s favor. Their greatest heroes are dead or turned traitor on ‘em. So the Alusians are gettin’ desperate. Extremely desperate. So desperate that they’re willing to sell anything and everything they have to keep themselves free from the Ferrosians.”

cont. 2/3

>>1142013
He gives a mercenary grin.

“And that’s where we come in. Our job is to engage the Ferrosian forces, find this power-up stone relay, destroy it, and assist the Alusians in driving the Ferrosians out of Alusian space.” He lets that sink in for a while. “I know all of us are pretty damn capable in aircraft. But we’re gonna need some ground-poundin’ done, too. N’ from what I’ve seen, the usual rank n’ file ain’t gonna cut the mustard. So I took the liberty of gettin’ some outside help.”

And here he motions to you. “This is Miranda Styles, Lorelei Vedder, and Izumi Yayoi, from Silver Eye Solutions. They’ll be acting as heavy ground support- I have it on good authority that two of ‘em are damn near one-person armies, and the third hasn’t found a location she can’t infiltrate yet. Aside from support, if any of you lot need to hit the dirt for whatever reason, you are to put yourselves under THEIR command unless ordered otherwise by a Lieutenant or higher.” Huh. Quite flattering. Hell, Lorelei’s actually blushing. “We’re gonna need this kind of compact, decisive force if we wanna pull this off, so I suggest you lot try an’ make friends with ‘em real quick in case they need to pull your asses outta the fryer. Not to mention! You’ll all get one hell of a payday if we pull this off, so DON’T SCREW IT UP! AM I CLEAR!?”

“SIR YES SIR!” Comes the chorus.

“GOOD! Get outta here and get kitted up! There’ll be time for questions before final deployment! DISMISSED!” And with that they all head out, to a one in single file and orderly. After the last of them leave, the general sighs with a smile on his face. “Ahh, good folks. I dunno how many'll make it back, but...good folks.”

>You have a couple of early questions, though… (what?)
>Leave, maybe get to know a couple of the rank and file.
>Get some last minute sparring/training in.
>Other

>>1142035
>>You have a couple of early questions, though… (what?)
The crystal seems like a pretty big What The Fuck and Where question to start.

>>1142035
>>You have a couple of early questions, though… (what?)
any particular quirks about the other group(s)?

>>1142085
to elaborate: i'm referring to the mercenary teams we're accompanying

>>1142035
>You have a couple of early questions, though…
RoE, as well as how much support are the Alusians paying for e.g. are there just to fight the Ferrosians and destroy their superweapon, or are also supposed to support Alusian forces?
What's the word on Alusian heroes?
Should we try to recover the stone relay, or just concentrate on destroying it?

>Other
Is the threat and magic scale that Dynamic Methods use a standard of the Intersection? Can we get examples of what those numbers actually represent in the context of the worlds we've been to?

Alright, couple of questions. Writing!

>>1142035
Lorelei pops up to wander off towards the rest of the soldiers- before you and Izumi grab her and bring her to the General, who’s about to leave as well. “If we could get a moment of your time, General?” He looks around, but says nothing. “I know you said we’d have time for questions later, but there’s a couple that are just burning that I feel are important to know.”

“Yeah? I guess ya can go ahead.” He turns around, giving you his full attention. “Most of that was to let them get their standard gear- dunno if you lot have that or not.”

“We don’t,” you confirm. “But anyway, we were wondering about a few things; namely the rules of engagement, and if you had more information about the target crystal.”

“Ahh. Yeah, I was going to go over that later anyway.” He sniffs. “Short version of it all, though, is that the Alusians don’t know where the crystal ACTUALLY is, just maybe have a vague idea. It’s one of those legendary artifacts of power that every civilization tends ta have. We’re gonna grill the Alusian Council about it when we deploy. They’re the leaders, apparently, and the ones signin’ our checks for this. All we know right now is Ferrosians found it, and they ain’t tellin’ where. Probably in their territory somewhere. Part of the whole op is to find out.”

“So we’re just there to mainly find the stone, destroy it, and get out, right?” you ask.

“Essentially,” he nods. “The Alusians don’t want this kinda thing happening again, even to themselves. They want the sucker in pieces. As for the rules of engagement?” He chuckles. “Their backs are to the wall. They’re game for anything short of intentional civilian casualties. As for anythin’ else, if we gotta resort to any unsavory antics-” here you notice Izumi frown a bit- “They’ll turn a blind eye.”

“Ideally, we won’t need such tactics,” Izumi states with resolve.

“Yeah, that’s the hope,” the General agrees. “Ideally, we come in, blindside ‘em, track this rock down, blow it six ways across the multiverse. Not an in-and-out by any means, but having to fight on two fronts all of a sudden is gonna put ANYONE on the backfoot for a second, I don’t care HOW strong they are.” You have to agree.

cont.

>>1142347
“Soooo, anything we should know about your guys?” Lorelei asks. She’s still looking off in the direction of the departed mercenaries. “Y’know, anythin’ cool? Juicy? Funny?”

“Ha! Well, I suspect you folk might get along with Team Three. You guys remind me o’ them a bit. Team Seven might be interested in ya, too.” Then he goes blank for a bit, as if remembering something. “Oh, uh...Team Ten might not like ya too much, but they’ll listen if need be. Really, Epsilon as a whole are all good folk, don’t you worry!” He quickly brightens back up. “Just don’t act untouchable and you’ll be fine!”

“Hmm. Thanks for letting us know.” Wonder what Team Ten’s problem was.

“They’re probably all gearing up right now in the barracks, picking out planes for squadrons in the UnderHang- that’s Underground Hangar, mind you- or readyin’ up in some other way. They’ve got a couple hours yet before deployment, so you got time if you wanna talk to anyone. We’ll put out an APB once it’s go time- trust me, you’ll hear it. Oh, by the by. You’ve got clearance to hit the Barracks, Mess Hall, Amory, UnderHang, or hell, ya could hang out in the Lobby if none o’ that interests ya. Don’t go to the second floor though- that’s where the higher-up suits tend to stay. Don’t want any o’ that.”

>Barracks
>Mess Hall
>Armory
>UnderHang
>Lobby (Timeskip to Deployment)

Done for tonight. Will deploy Thursday! Thanks for playing so far.

Be prepared. This one isn't gonna be as nice or easy as the first ones.

>>1142352
>>1142358
>Barracks

Thanks for running boss, sorry I was in-and-out at the end there!

>>1142352
>Barracks
Thanks for runnin'!

>>1142352
>Armory
If they're a primarily aerial unit, and we're going to a skyworld, let's see if we can snag some anti-grav belts or rocket packs.

>>1142352
>>Barracks
Also
>>1142417
Jetpacks would be rad.

>>1142352
>UnderHang
I want to familiarize ourselves with the squad leaders or however they are organized.

I hope they don't engage over city and we will have to worry about dropping carriers onto civilians.

I know I'm late but I also have a question. What was on the napkin?!

>>1142352
>Armory

They probably have cool gear we can use now that we know what the mission is

>>1142352
>Armory
Let's check out how people are doing brush some elbows, as well as marking down how they are equipped.

>>1142554
>I want to familiarize ourselves with the squad leaders or however they are organized.
This would be hellful as well.

>>1142639
>hellful
Dammit keyboard, I meant to write 'helpful'.

Howdy, all. Seems like there's a tie. Can do both, though.

>>1142352
“Thanks for that,” you offer. “We’ll be around and about, then.” You can’t say you’re not interested in seeing some of the facilities. Not often you get to just waltz around another company’s HQ.

“Sounds good! Find me if ya need anything.” With a nod and a grin, G’nearth walks off.

With that decided, you start heading off, your allies and friends behind you. “So, I’m headed to the Barracks, see what’s around there. You guys coming or nah?”

When you look back, you can see them both pensively thinking about it. Lorelei answers first. “Yeah, sounds like a plan! I’m hoping to see if any of ‘em are as cute on the inside as they are OUTside.” The grin on her face leaves no mistaking as to her intentions.

Izumi is less...forward. “I think I’ll come along as well. Probably a good idea to stick together for now, if only to get them used to seeing all three of us.”

You nod in acceptance. That settled, you all head towards the barracks, the wall mounted signs giving you easy directions. It’s not very long before you reach the barracks, and Epsilon’s barracks in particular. You’re kind of impressed at how much space they seem to have underground and to themselves...but, considering their numbers, you suppose it’s warranted.

The barracks themselves are surprisingly well furnished- really, they’re more like dorm rooms, from what you can see, barring a large common area with a wide amount of lockers on either side- one of several, judging from the listing on the wall. This is where most of them are hanging out, talking, some getting into uniform, others already in uniform, and a few apparently catching some last minute napping. A couple of them seem to be huddled around a table near the center, playing some sort of small board game with dice. The cheers and jeers that are sounding...yeesh, is it really that important?

There’s a younger girl that almost immediately catches your eye, talking with two other fellows already in uniform. She’s got striking blue eyes, and matching hair- this with her ivory-white skin gives her an imperious look, and she seems to radiate confidence- she gives you a single look when you look her way, and nods once before turning back to her conversation. There’s a tall fellow hanging out in the back, eyes thin and constantly overlooking everyone with a serious air. His nose is long and hooked, and that plus his wild red hair sticking out everywhere reminds you of a hawk.

Some laughter erupts from your side, and a quartet of pilots are the cause, you can see- two of them, a man and a woman both wearing dark sunglasses, and each with almost identical grins on their faces. They both have short hair, you can tell, but little else beyond that. They’re talking to two others you can’t see, but the girl looks turns her head, enough to be clearly looking in your direction, and lifts her own head in greeting.

>Talk to the confident girl.
>Talk to the hook-nosed man.
>Talk to the laughing duo.
>Check out the strange dice game.

>>1146103
> talk to the laughing duo
I hope we don't make the dice gods angry if we skip the dice game.

>>1146103
>Talk to the confident girl.

5 minute warning.

Rolled 2 (1d2)

Righto. Coinflip, then!

1: Duo
2: Confident Girl

>>1146103
>>1146132
>Talk to the confident girl.
Sorry I'm late... Looks like it worked out though!

>>1146122
>>1146135
>>1146132


It’s the piercing eyes of the girl that causes you to approach her first. She stands and speaks like someone worthy of note- although you’ve come across more than a few in your day who could talk the talk while not being able to walk the walk any. Might as well see what side she falls on, although judging by how she sizes you up when you approach, you can get an idea.

“You’re the special ground forces, right?” She extends out a hand which you grasp easily- her grip is sure and strong of itself. “Irina. 5th Epsilon Unit, aka Showstoppers. Callsign Icey.” She gives her compatriots a look- well timed considering one of them was about to open his mouth. He quickly shuts it upon seeing her glare, though. “Haven’t heard much, but if G’nearth thinks just you three can handle it...I guess I’ll believe him.” Her voice sounds very upper-class, as though she wasn’t a soldier, but rather a prim and proper aristocrat.

“Let’s hope.” One of the others pipes up. He’s got a bit of a nasally voice, but his tone holds little contempt. “I’ve heard a lot about you magical girl types. Haven’t seen one in action yet, though, myself.”

“We’ll be fine,” you assure her. “We’re plenty capable of handling ourselves on the ground.”

She nods hesitantly. “As you say. I’d hate to have to deviate from the mission to mount a rescue.”

“Weee’re pretty good at rescuing ourselves,” Lorelei chimes in, a small grin on her face. “And if everything goes well, we’ll probably be rescuing everyone before they even need it!”

Icey just stares at her blankly, as if trying to figure out what exactly that meant. Izumi just sighs.

“So!” One of the others pipes up. “I take it you gals never sat in the pilot’s seat of a X-86 Wardog? Smoothest flight you’ll ever have! We even got virtual training modules set up a bit away near the Armory. Was thinkin’ about getting some last minute practice in if you care to try! Uh, that is, if…” He turns to Icey, an unstated question on his lips.

She just shrugs. “If they want to, I don’t see why not. MGs are supposed to be physically enhanced, right? They should be able to take a few G forces.”

>No thanks. You still want to look around a bit more.
>Sure, why not? Couldn’t hurt to try it out.
>Other

>>1146240
>>Sure, why not? Couldn’t hurt to try it out.

3 Minute notice, a bit late on the warning, sorry.

Alright, then, going on an early flight.

Writing!

>>1146240
You look at the others. They just shrug, and that’s enough of an answer for you. “Sure, I’ll take a shot at it.” You’re not the best when it comes to piloting classical planes, but you’ve got yourself some experience. Could be interesting to get behind the pilot’s stick again. “Lead the way.” Icey nods, a slight grin on her face as she moves, and you follow.

You’re led down a long hallway, and through the Armory doors- already you can see a lot of gadgets, guns, and other gear both lining the walls from corner to corner- and there’s a lot of corners, and a lot of shelves. You hear a small gasp behind you, and you look to see Izumi stopped in her tracks, her eyes wide and trying to take in the massive variety of ordnance present.

“Yes, it’s a pretty nice stockpile,” Icey says, an amused grin on her face. “But it’s not quite the reason we’re here. The VR Training area is just beyond, so do please wipe your drool and continue on.” Izumi just blushes at that, while Lorelei stifles a grin.

Sure enough, a bit more walking reveals a double-doorway exit with ‘VR Training Area’ in big letters above it. You both enter...to reveal another massive hallway, but this time with doors going all the way down on either side. “These are the VR facilities, for when we don’t want to waste ammo with live fire exercises. The aerial training rooms are right near the end.”

As you all enter via Icey swiping an ID card, you can see the room is stark white, save for a seat in the middle that’s reminiscent of a pilot’s chair, with all the accoutrements that a proper pilot should have, if blank and undescribed. There’s a door near the back leading to a smaller room, as well. “By all means, take a seat.” Icey offers. “We’ll set you up and get you going first. I’d be rather enjoyable to see how you fare.”

“Don’t worry too much,” the nasally guy from earlier pipes up once they’re all behind the doorway. Seems there’s a speaker system in place. “These things are made so that even a novice can pilot them with practically no trouble. Almost like playin’ a game! Only a few buttons ta worry about!”

“It’s just as Avery says,” Icey agrees. “One word of warning, however, the flight patterns and styles for bogeys are always random, even if their relative skill level may not be. Now, whenever you’re ready, I’ll set you up for the novice trials. Simple goal- eliminate all enemy bogeys. There should be four of them...”

As you settle down, you give her a nod, and with a sheen, the whole area changes to grassy flatlands, and you’re in the cockpit of a fighter high above the clouds…

>Roll 3d20. Best of 3!

Rolled 20, 15, 20 = 55 (3d20)

>>1146387
going to sleep soon, hoping theres stuff to catch up on tomorrow

>>1146405
Might be. I'm running the rest of my one-shot tomorrow.

also, very nice rolls.

Rolled 12, 4, 4 = 20 (3d20)

>>1146387

Hm. There'll be a delay in the next response. Several hours, due to work.

Rolled 3, 3, 18 = 24 (3d20)

>>1146387

And back. We're apparently an ace pilot.

...Okay not really, but we're better than the basics.

>>1146387

It’s been a while since you’ve been in the air like this, but as you quickly get the feel for the controls, you realize that Avery wasn’t exaggerating at all. The stick movement and general controls are easy to figure out- a grand total about about seven or eight buttons, all clearly labeled with names that make it obvious what they do. You take a minute or two just getting a feel for things; the speed, the g-forces in a turn... but as three bogeys suddenly show up on radar, you’re already confident you can handle it.

You turn to engage, and quickly fire off your main cannons- one of them is torn to pieces before they can break formation, and the second breaks off, but gets peppered on its way out- it’s already smoking and listing on one side, and it’s quickly finished off. The third attempts to circle around to to get a better aim, but you quickly cut off its angle via an Immelman turn, gaining altitude on it, and rip it to shreds with cannon fire as well.

“Whoa-ho!” Avery’s voice sounds from almost nowhere. “Lookit you tryin’ to show off!”

“Not too shabby for a ground-pounder.” that’s the first time you heard the other guy talk. His voice is far deeper, and it sounds a bit more smooth. “Looks like she’s got a bit of experience.”

You can hear Icey chuckling to herself. “Well, it’s not quite done yet, fellows…” And just like that, you see yet another bogey appear on your radar- this one’s coming in far faster than the others, however. Before you can do anything else, however, you hear warning klaxons start sounding as your comp screeches about a missile lock.

>Roll 1d20 for evasive maneuvers!

Rolled 8 (1d20)

>>1147450
Here we go!

Rolled 19 (1d20)

>>1147450
Barrel rolling.

Rolled 18 (1d20)

>>1147450
rollan

Y'know, part of me thought about aping Merc Command's roll under system. Deciding against it.

Writing.

>>1147511
Because you don't hate us enough yet?

>>1147513
Basically. I felt it'd be a touch complicated for what I'm going for.

>>1147450
You quickly slam the stick to the right and hit the countermeasures button, angling and rolling out of the way hard as the missile screams towards you. You can hear something deploy behind you, and an explosion further in the distance as you shake the missile cleanly, and you can hear his plane scream by yours like a banshee. As you right yourself, you can see your opponent circling around for another attempt, but you’re going to do your best to not let that happen.

You manage to circle around, faster than he does although still a distance away now. You quickly check your systems- aside from your cannons, you also have missiles- homing ones, as well. You’re not sure what type, but they seem to be energy based? At least judging by the meter that says ‘Missiles’ and is at 100%…

>Try to get closer, fire cannons and light them up!
>Let’s see what these missiles can do!

I think for dogfighting and whatnot, the entries are gonna be smaller than normal to account for moment to moment action.

>>1147614
>>Let’s see what these missiles can do!
HIDDEN MISSILES

>>1147614
>why not both?
Can we fire a missile then shoot with the cannon while he is trying to shake it off?

>>1147652
Yes, but you'd have to roll two dice.

>>1147614
>Try to get closer, fire cannons and light them up!>Let’s see what these missiles can do!
Dat's fine. But I won't be rolling because I am leaving now. Bye!

>>1147614
>>Let’s see what these missiles can do!

Give 'em the Circus!

>>1147614
>Let’s see what these missiles can do!
Time for a good old Itano Circus!

As you straighten out of your turn, you do your best to keep steady as the lock-on beeps its connection. Less than a second later, you see him begin his own evasive maneuvers as you thumb the missile launch and slam it down. A salvo of wicked bolts of green energy blast into sight and hurtle towards the plane at breakneck speeds.

>Roll 1d20 for missile lock!

Rolled 18 (1d20)

>>1147767

Rolled 17 (1d20)

>>1147767

Rolled 8 (1d20)

>>1147767

>>1147767
Boom-deyada, or however that song goes.

You quickly come to like these missiles- he rolls to the side and manages to dodge one, two- but the rest slam into him relentlessly and the plane goes up in a brilliant, technicolor fireball. You have to admit, being able to pull it off that flawlessly makes you feel good, even if it’s in easy mode right now.

“Woohoo! Way to go, ‘Randa!” You can hear Lorelei’s cheers all too well, and the clapping from Izumi as well.

“She’s only on the first stage, girl, calm down!” You can hear Avery say laughingly. “She’d probably be in a lot more trouble if we upped the difficulty! They’re not always gonna be all gentle like that when it comes to trying to evade! Heck, most of ‘em will actually fire back!”

“She’s right, but that’s nothing against your performance so far,” Icey says, with bit of amusement trickling through her tone. “That course was simple and quick, as you well saw, but if you want to up the difficulty, we’d be glad to.”

Hm. Well, you wouldn’t mind doing this a bit more...but you still wanted to see the Armory proper, not to mention probably meet with the other teams sooner or later.

>Call it quits for now, head back to the Armory.
>Keep going for a bit longer.
>Other

>>1147993
>Keep going for a bit longer.
Might be useful to get a feel for a more real combat experience.

>>1147993
>Keep going for a bit longer.

>>1147993
>Call it quits for now, head back to the Armory.
We shouldn't be spending that much time playing flyboy anyway, better to see if they will issue us some free stuff or see what their preparations are like

>>1147993
5 minute warning.

>>1147993
>>Keep going for a bit longer.
We can fly with the best of 'em.

Head in the clouds, then.

Writing!

>>1147993

It’s hard to keep the smirk out of your voice. “Pump it up if you want. I can keep going.” There’s some good-natured laughing at that declaration, and you soon hear Icey’s voice confirm it.

“Alright, then. We’ll skip the rest of the beginner scenarios and move you right up to the intermediate stuff. Just a moment…” It’s a few seconds, but then soon the scene glows softly, and fades in and out again. When the image is clear, you find yourself right outside of a canyon range, swiftly moving in.

“Now, for this objective, you’ll need to get to the other end of the canyon without dying.”

Kay. Sounds simple enough.

At the end of the canyon, eliminate the target that shows up on your radar. The enemy has a radar net, however, and should they be alerted to your position, you’ll have to deal with a vast amount of automated anti-air defenses. However, our system can detect gaps in the radar net that you could fly though, potentially avoiding conflict at all. Your choices are thus: you can fly above the canyon, avoiding the navigational threat the valley poses entirely, but risk triggering the radar net as you weave through, or fly through the canyon to avoid the radar net entirely, although you may have to deal with patrols, not to mention the challenge of weaving through the canyon itself.”

Hmm. Quite the concern.

“Choose quickly, as you’re on final approach. Good luck, and fair skies to you!” And the com goes dead as you approach the entry point.

>Go above the canyon, attempt to weave through the radar net.
>Go through the canyon, fly as cleanly as you can.

Wrapping up for tonight, will resume Saturday. Tomorrow, continuing the one-shot 'Of Bloodied Claw and Steel'- >>1143428

>>1148161
>Go through the canyon, fly as cleanly as you can

>>1148200
Cheers boss

>>1148161
>Go above the canyon, attempt to weave through the radar net.

>>1148161
>>Go through the canyon, fly as cleanly as you can.

>>1148161
>Go through the canyon, fly as cleanly as you can.
Like a leaf on the wind.

>>1148161
>Go through the canyon, fly as cleanly as you can.

Resuming soon. Probably in the next 30 minutes. May make a new thread after a couple more posts.

>>1148281
>>1148319
>>1148377
>>1150524
As you approach, you give each option a quick once-over. You don’t have a lot of time to think, however, and just going on instinct, you hold steady on course and race into the canyon proper- before you know it you’re surrounded by craggy, dangerous cliffside, and you’re holding steady to try and make sure that you don’t accidentally clip anything that shouldn’t be clipped. Initially it seems alright- just some gentle weaving here and there...but then you notice the natural formations of the cliffs giving way to cliffside installations, and you get the strong feeling…

“It’s only gonna get harder from here!” Yeah, that. Thanks, Icey.

You keep a strong grip on the controls, and ready yourself for anything coming as you try your best to focus.

>2d20. One for patrol size, one for patrol AI.

I'm not sure how often I'm gonna use dice in actual missions, but I think for this sorta stuff, it should be okay.

Rolled 7, 20 = 27 (2d20)

>>1159346
Dice for the dice god.

>>1159354
Interesting first roll.

Rolled 2, 10 = 12 (2d20)

>>1159346

I'll give it 15 more minutes.

Mkay. Writing! (Might just do another thread after this entry, yeah.)

Rolled 7, 9 = 16 (2d20)

>>1159346
Sorry for the late post.
I got held up.

>>1159346
>>1159354
>>1159360
>>1159385

As you soar between the ridges, you quickly hear two sets of beeps as bogeys fly in. Alright, you expected this, and frankly you’re glad it’s just two of them.

That feeling of fortune immediately dissipates as you hear cannonfire go off, and you’re forced to quickly swerve as you get peppered from their shots. A quick check on a damage indicator tells you that although you’re hurt, it wasn’t in a vital, explosion causing area, at least. You’re pretty sure pushing it too hard won’t end well, though. If they’d gotten a bit higher, mind, they’d have hit the fuselage.

That would’ve sucked.

The second plane comes in and you barely avoid its volley as it lets loose, and already you can tell this is going to be a race to the end- if your pursuers actually let you reach it. It’s taking a lot of your (not entirely professional) skill just to keep ahead of them to a point where they’re not able to just outright gun you down- your jerking of the plane in this small space is definitely putting strain on the hull, however. You need to find a way to either take them out or get them off you…

>See if you can outspeed them. It’s incredibly risky, but you might be able to make it out well ahead of them.
>This is too much. Hit the open air and engage in combat. You’ll probably have to deal with them plus some once you’re over the target.
>Get lower and hope they won’t want to cause collateral damage- there’s a lot of installations you keep passing…
>Other

>>1159417
>Go as low as we dare then try to loop behind them

>>1159417
>>See if you can outspeed them. It’s incredibly risky, but you might be able to make it out well ahead of them.

>>1159417
>See if you can outspeed them. It’s incredibly risky, but you might be able to make it out well ahead of them.

>>1159417
>>This is too much. Hit the open air and engage in combat. You’ll probably have to deal with them plus some once you’re over the target.

Gonna try and push the limit! Writing!

>>1159417
>>1159423
>>1159426

Alright, you’ve got to try and get out of here. Slamming the throttle forward, you let rip and the afterburners kick in, punching your craft to higher and higher speeds. You can see warnings start to come to life and small alerts start kicking in as the combined fire, your speed, and the aerial maneuvers you’re attempting to pull off start seriously taking its toll on the plane you’re in. You try and dip, dive, and duck to avoid the pursuant patrols, but it’s not proving too good so far, considering they’re still on your tail, tracking you effortlessly even if their shots don’t hit the mark.. Makes sense you suppose, home turf and all that.

Soon you hear a warning beep as someone locks onto you with a missile, and you’re forced to desperately hope that your speed is enough.

It is, but only by a hair, the missile exploding too close for comfort and causing you yet more damage to the hull...you don’t like this a all. According to the sensors you’re barely airworthy right now. Another would cause you to have to...well...

“Hey, if you need to bail out, bail out!” you hear a voice call. “This isn’t official or anything, you can get of out it whenever you want!”

You faintly remind yourself that yeah, actually. You could just all it quits now.

But you could SEE the outline of the facility beyond the rocks! You’re so close!

>Concede. Sometimes you need to know when to let go. You’d technically not even get back.
>Continue: You can’t just let this scare you off! You’ve been through worse and you know it!
>Other

>>1159528
>Continue: You can’t just let this scare you off! You’ve been through worse and you know it!

>>1159528
>Continue: You can’t just let this scare you off! You’ve been through worse and you know it!

>>1159528
>>Continue: You can’t just let this scare you off! You’ve been through worse and you know it!

Kinda figured, but I felt Icey to be the sort to want to give you the option. Writing!

You don’t even answer. This isn’t the first time you’ve had to take a risk to complete a mission, and you know full well it won’t be the last. You continue fighting the planes, the canyons, and your own jet as you swerve and twist as best as you can while screaming for the exit. You can hear the metal groaning under the pressure you’re putting it under, and you refuse to consider the concept of it failing on you.

With a smoking, busted up plane you shoot out of the end of the canyon and you can see the target- a radar installation- dead ahead. It doesn’t take you much of any time to immediately lock bombs, and fire, the large, conical projectiles shooting away instantly. You’re already verring away from the impact zone by the time the explosions sound, and quickly make to turn around to face your assailants- you hear the fram groan, buckle, and there’s a massive juddering…

Right before the world vanishes, and you find yourself back in the VR area. Icey and her crew step out, and you have to focus for a bit to get your bearings as Lorelei tacklehugs you.

“WOOOO! You did it!” Lorelei cheers, and you can see Izumi’s quite happy as well.

“I’m actually impressed you decided to complete the mission, even at sacrifice to yourself.” She nods in respect. “Considering the state of your aircraft, I wouldn’t have seen it unreasonable to evacuate the area.”

It’s that first bit that makes you cock an eyebrow. “What do you mean ‘at sacrifice to mysel- oh’. The meaning hits you right as you say it, as Icey looks vaguely amused.

“Correct. You attempted a high-velocity turn, and the plane couldn’t take it anymore. By the metrics, you basically split your plane in half at the end there. It was already rather busted up, and those g’s you were pulling didn’t do it any favors.” She lists off the matter as if it were a critique, but she’s got a bit of a smile in her eyes as she says it. “Still, you accomplished the mission, which, really? Impressive stuff.” The smile only gets bigger.

“Thanks.” Is all you can really say. You don’t know how you’d feel about doing that in a real situation, but at that particular moment…? “Think we have enough time for us to drop by the armory proper? I was hoping to take a look at any cool things you guys might have…”

>I’m gonna end the thread here and make a new one. Stay tuned!

Purple prose and strange dance sometimes means one can see stars.

New thread here:

>>1159652
>>1159652
>>1159652