It is the year 0075 of the Universal Century. A half century has passed since the earth began moving its burgeoning population into gigantic orbiting space colonies. A new home for mankind, where people are born and raised… and die.“We are the people of the universe. We have struggled to survive in a harsh environment, and new generations of colonists testify to our success. Now, when we gaze back at Earth, we see a sacred blue and green orb- the cradle of civilization and a sacred home that we must eternally preserve and protect . . .”-Zeon Zum Deikun, UC 0058—------------------------------------05:15, 6 January, UC 0075Zum, Side 3 (Republic of Zeon)The darkness of artificial night still lies over Zum city. Thousands of faint lights twinkle across the curving sky of the colony’s cylindrical interior, the urban landscape of Zeon’s capital stretching in every direction. Dark clouds pass over distant crisscrossing streets upon the opposite side of the great closed-type colony.Footsteps sound in the dark, Casval and Atresia keeping along your left as the three of you jog your way across the vast grounds of the Zabi estate. The spiked and imposing silhouette of the Zabi’s hideous mansion stares down at you, a pair of green windows near its top appearing almost as eyes set within a great spiked helmet. It’s watching. They’re watching. Your every move is being watched, and will continue to be, almost every second of every day for the foreseeable future.The carefully manicured grounds surrounding the mansion are expansive, and even in the dim light you can pick out the bright hues of red and white flowers - but there is something lifeless to them. A soulless sort of blandness which almost escaped your notice, everything in ordered rows and careful geometric displays - there’s nothing natural or flowing to any of it, no true life. Other than the guards keeping watch along the entrances to the estate, and the gardeners that tend the plots, you doubt anyone ever visits them. The grounds and gardens are meant to be observed from above, looked down upon from the mansion's highest levels, just one of countless details in a landscape controlled entirely by the Zabis. “I doubt we’ll be heard out this far.” Casval says, slowing slightly, his blue eyes scanning intently over the brightly lit guardhouses along the tall outer wrought iron fence, “The guards look distracted. We’re clear to talk for a few minutes.”Following his gaze toward the guardhouses you quickly come to the same conclusion. Your eyesight has always been a little better than his, but he’s not wrong - it’s difficult to tell much from this distance, but the green uniformed guards stationed along the distant fence don't seem to be watching the three of you right now.
>>5492260“I… I, uh,” Artesia starts to say, breathing heavily as she slows to match your reduced pace, barely getting the words out in a coherent sentence, “...I think things went well. Last night. Mostly.”“Yeah, mostly.” You agree with a nod before looking over at your sister worriedly, “Are you doing alright?”“...I can manage.” Artesia says in a determined voice, though you know she’s not used to keeping this kind of pace on a run, her heavy breathing and slowly worsening form communicating more than words ever could. She’s not unathletic, but you and Casval set a pretty brutal pace in comparison to what she’s used to. Might need to slow that down a little more in the future. Truth be told you’re not doing great yourself, the last two nights have been anything but restful. Getting kidnapped and then living with your sworn enemies doesn’t tend to be great for one’s sleep, and you’re still coming to terms with the fact that your mother is alive let along that you’ll be living with her again soon enough. Besides all of that, you can still feel the faint ache of bruises scattered up and down your body, a souvenir of your brief pod shattering run-in with a mobile suit.Really it’s a miracle you’re alive at all, all things considered, but you’re hardly out of danger. You’re at the very heart of the Zabi family’s power, the center of Zeon itself, and a single wrong move could dismantle your fragile plan to see their downfall…There’s a lot to discuss and precious little time to do so. These early morning runs are the closest thing to privacy you’re going to get for months, other than occasional and unreliable flashes of newtype connection. >”What did you both think of Degwin? He wasn’t quite what I expected.” >”Kycilia and Gihren both seemed to know a lot more about newtypes than I expected, we need to tread carefully around them…. Especially Kycilia.” >”So it sounded like we’re going to be stuck with Garma for a while. I don’t remember that much, but he didn’t strike me as being all that bad when we were kids.”>Write-in
>>5492261Voting:Feel free to vote for several options and list them numerically [1), 2), 3), etc.] in order of your preference. Numerical listing is very important to avoid confusion. If your first choice loses your vote will shift to your second choice, and so on. If you switch preferences before votes are counted, please link back to your original preference vote. If you do not pick multiple options it will be assumed that you only want one. If you list several options without numerical separation I will assume you want to combine them.Previous Threadhttps://suptg.thisisnotatrueending.com/qstarchive/2022/5414507/
Good to see this thread back.>>54922611)>”Kycilia and Gihren both seemed to know a lot more about newtypes than I expected, we need to tread carefully around them…. Especially Kycilia.” 2)>”Kycilia and Gihren both seemed to know a lot more about newtypes than I expected, we need to tread carefully around them…. Especially Kycilia.” >”So it sounded like we’re going to be stuck with Garma for a while. I don’t remember that much, but he didn’t strike me as being all that bad when we were kids.”We should at least talk about what happened with us and Kycilia, considering how things went last thread.
>>5492261>”Kycilia and Gihren both seemed to know a lot more about newtypes than I expected, we need to tread carefully around them…. Especially Kycilia.”It's back!
>>5492261>”Kycilia and Gihren both seemed to know a lot more about newtypes than I expected, we need to tread carefully around them…. Especially Kycilia.”
>>5492261>>”Kycilia and Gihren both seemed to know a lot more about newtypes than I expected, we need to tread carefully around them…. Especially Kycilia.”at long last
>>5492261>”Kycilia and Gihren both seemed to know a lot more about newtypes than I expected, we need to tread carefully around them…. Especially Kycilia.” >”So it sounded like we’re going to be stuck with Garma for a while. I don’t remember that much, but he didn’t strike me as being all that bad when we were kids.”>>5492263You actually came back, Hype as fuck
>>5492261>”So it sounded like we’re going to be stuck with Garma for a while. I don’t remember that much, but he didn’t strike me as being all that bad when we were kids.”WB Contolist. Glad to see it.
>>5492441+1HE IS BACK!!!!!HIS PROMISE DELIVERED!!!!!
It is good to be back.>>5492265 (second vote Kycilia+Garma)>>5492274>>5492302>>5492409Kycilia >>5492441>>5492466Kycilia+Garma>>5492444GarmaKycilia wins, starting writing. It'll probably be 5-6 hours before I get the post out, watching movies with my family for most of the evening.
Assuming we live long enough to what should we do about the Dawn Rebellion? There are pros and cons to letting it happen.If we let it play out, we might get on Degwin's and Dozle's bad sides since we're supposed to protect Garma from danger (in canon Dozle was able to figure out Char was behind advising Garma to lead the rebellion, he'll definitely find out if we were influencing him). Not only that, if it happens it's a safe way to make sure Dozle gets married to Zenna, and have Mineva as his daughter. It'll also kickstart the OYW, and that'll be fun. But at least we'll know what to expect. Vivima might be too distracted by using mobile suits to pay attention to family matters, and we can have it so either of our siblings push her further into her obsession (hopefully Artesia doesn't try to convince her to stop or something equally as stupid).On the other hand if we stop it the Federation will probably pour in troops to 'restore order' to Zeon (by shooting protesters, sending in the tanks and taking over the Military Academy). This could potentially be a good opportunity to get rid of some of the Zabis. Kycilia will probably slip away into safety, Vivima I don't know what she'll do, but we can get rid of Dozle and Garma if we want, while Degwin and Gihren are 'maybes.' This is assuming the Zabis don't have a contingency plan and go into bunkers or take a secret escape ship. But instead of that things could simmer down and the Federation might not be incompetent enough to stop this from spiraling out of control (pffft) or Degwin could just deescalate the situation. It might give the Zabis more time to consolidate, allow Vivima to keep bridging the gap between her family, but probably keep us and our siblings out of trouble.If we want to convince our siblings to go either way, I think we should do something like this:We convince Casval that starting this will make it harder to kill off the Zabis, that we should establish some more connections and that the chaos the Federation brings could be taken advantage of somehow.We convince Artesia that doing this is just a preventative measure to stop any massacre from the Federation. To further convince her we could just take her to one of the TVs and let her see the oppression the Federation is doing, and how it will just escalate if we sit idle.Take everything I say with a grain of salt, it's been a while since I've seen Origins or even the og Gundam series. We should also take note that all of canon can change at a moment's notice, since there's lots of differences in the timeline already.Thanks for reading my blog.
>>5492633>since there's lots of difference in the timeline already.The timeline has been so thoroughly pushed off the rails that I'm really not sure what will or even can happen next regarding canon events. Hell, the real Char is still alive and the Zabi are probably going to be hawking us to make sure we don't start shit.
>>5492643Yeah, that's pretty much on point.But the real Char being alive could give us some risky opportunities with Casval faking his death or just switching places for long enough to do something.
>>5492648>Cas impersonating CharThat's a good chance to fuck around, not sure how often it'd work though unless the real Char gets offed. The moment 'Char' is seen doing something funky is when we get thrown in the space gulag for being counter revolutionaries.
>>5492651Yep, that's why it's very risky and situational. I honestly don't know how we're going to do anything, since everything we do will be closely monitored by the all of the Zabi factions with the Kycilia Agency keeping the most tabs and doing most things to keep us in line.
>>5492656Yep. That's why I want to try a plan I remember from last thread. Become a cult of personality within Zeon and form our own loyal Neo Zeon faction early, to both turn it into the functional successor state to the Principality, and to prevent it from turning into Cas's suicide pact during the Second NZ war.
>>5492658Sounds good, except that we have to contend with the Zabis breathing down our necks.We have to do things in such a way that by the time the Zabis realize what's going on it'll be too late for them to do anything. I don't think I have to explain why there's so much danger. One wrong decision and it's pretty much over.
>>5492662>>5492658Your forgetting key things, We are already the chosen of the Sides by being a TRUE SON of the madlad himself.And once we get into a Zaku, We're gonna be rolling + our newtype and connection with the Jovin fleet.
>>5492662>except that we have to contend with the Zabis breathing down our necks.That's just the reality of the quest until we can kill of Gihren and Kycilia. They'll probably scrounge up any excuse to make us eat shit and then off us for it.>>5492664>And connection with the Jovian fleetLet's hope our friendly jupiter princess can pull a few strings for us. But yeah, if we ever go public we'll probably have some good civilian support on our side.
>>5492664Jovians aren't bad supporters, but we have to make sure the Zabis don't find out we're trying to get their help. We can't do anything too stupid or reckless with the Zabis watching us.And once we get into that Mobile Suit we have to make sure our skill are on point so that we can impress the soldiers.Also we need to learn how to control ourselves. Don't know if I should point it out, but having weaknesses (especially obvious ones like getting drunk or getting strung along by women) will be bad for us when dealing with basically any enemy.>>5492668>They'll probably scrounge up any excuse to make us eat shit and then off us for it.I agree. But there's also Vivima to consider, since what we know now about her implies that she's more on the Kycilia-Gihren side than the Garma-Dozle faction. I'm worried she might try something to protect them.The road to Neo-Zeon will be hard, but if we're careful enough we could do it.
>>5492672And all of this isn't mentioning having to balance the unity of our siblings with getting gud. I'm sure that Kycilia has something in store for us, Casval and Artesia if what she said has any value. Let me look for the quote, I think it was while she was boasting about it after she won against our charm.We also don't want to end up like Vivime and miss out on something as important as meeting our someone important just to practice using a Zaku.
>>5492676>“We’d hardly even begun, dear brother.” Kycilia responds, giving you one last look, “But you’re right, this is hardly the place to teach such a lesson.”Found it.
>>5492679Right, with stuff like that I think she might be actively antagonistic to us. Gihren on the other hand I can see being semi-antagonistic and trying to manipulate us as a potential face for the Principality. He knows the value of a national symbol.
>>5492688I don't think we should even go as far as to believe Gihren won't eventually try something eventually, but I strongly feel like Kycilia is the one we should take priority in getting out of the picture. She's the one that will try to break our family the most I bet, and that's just being optimistic about it.
>>5492696Absolutely, Kycilia is the top threat at least for now.
“Kycilia and Gihren both seemed to know a lot more about newtypes than I expected, we need to tread carefully around them…” You say, glancing up toward the imposing silhouette of the mansion once more, glass eyes still peering down upon you, “Especially Kycilia.” “It was… It was almost like she knew about us.” Artesia says between breaths, brushing a strand of blond hair from her face as she continues running alongside you and Casval.“About us?” Casval questions, eyes narrowing as he turns his head a bit to look more directly at your sister, “You think she knows we’re newtypes?”“The way Kycilia kept pressing me, it was like she could read me.” Artesia explains, slowing a little more and speaking more clearly.“When she was talking about mother I could feel your reactions, Artesia.” You say, thinking back to how your sister’s icy presence flooded the dining room, an almost uncharacteristic feeling you’ve been sensing from her more often in the last few weeks since your new plan was hatched, “...But maybe Kycilia is just good at that kind of thing? She must get lots of practice in her line of work. I couldn’t get much of a read on her.”“That much was obvious.” Casval says with a dry laugh, “I almost admire the boldness of the effort, but what were you thinking Felix?”You nearly come to a stop and shrug apologetically, struggling for a moment to find the words to explain your lapse of judgment, “I thought I… that I could throw her off balance, get her to slip up about something. I’ve had a lot of luck with it recently and…”“It was stupid. Her of all people?” Your sister scolds, her face wrinkling in frustration, “You’re so sharp usually, that wasn’t like you… And she really got to you, didn’t she?”“...Yeah, she did. Sorry about that. It’s not going to happen again.” You say, rubbing at the back of your head before picking up the pace again, “Kycilia, uh, I don’t quite know how to put it but she-”“She has the presence of a leader.” Casval replies, his eyes fixed forward on the clean stone path cutting through the grounds and between carefully arranged flowerbeds, “She’s a sly and deceitful witch, but she has charisma - And she’s more experienced than you are. You weren’t ready for that kind of personality, Felix.”“...Sure, let’s call it that.” You agree quickly, not wanting to linger on her odd magnetism any longer - Maybe your brother is right, but it hardly matters now and you change the subject, “She really seemed to be going after you, Artesia. All that stuff about mothers and being the youngest - Do you think she meant any of it?”
>>5492741“I don’t think she was lying about her past... But her offer to teach me things? I don’t trust a word she said, I just accepted to play nice for the moment.” Artesia answers, having caught her breath a little but still slow to get her sentences out as the run continues onward through the grounds, “It almost… it almost sounded like she won out in some kind of rivalry with Gihren over newtype research though, she was really gloating, rubbing it in. It was all so cruel, I can’t imagine being like that with either of you.” “That was the angriest I saw Gihren all night. He wasn’t faking it.” Casval says with absolute certainty, barely phased by the run so far, “It was about a person. A man. I’m unsure of who though.”“It must be something personal, Kycilia said something about him not being at the dinner because of Gihren.” You comment, the aching bruises running along your chest flaring up a little more, lingering pain from your fight against Blanche’s mobile suit.“Dinner is… it’s usually just a family thing for them, isn’t it?” Artesia questions slowly, lingering on the words as she considers the idea.“Mm. Good points.” Casval says to the both of you with an approving nod as he carries on, “Gihren didn’t strike me as the kind of person to bring guests to the table frequently either. It would have something to do with us, or be about family of some kind.”“Well, it’s a mystery for another time.” You say, thinking through possibilities but keeping the unfinished ideas to yourself for now, “If it can drive a wedge between Kycilia and Gihren it might be something to try and look into more.” “Agreed, we need every card we can get our hands on.” “Artesia, do you still plan to get close to Vivima?”“I do, but that really depends on her… and Kycilia.” Artesia “I’ll be careful about all of it. I’m still… still going to the academy, if these… these runs don’t kill me. Stay safe around Gihren, Casval, I heard how you were talking with him.”“It was just talk.” Casval reassures your sister, "We have to look like we've bought in."There’s still time to talk about a few more things, but doing anything for too long risks raising questions among the guards... or whoever Kycilia probably has tasked with watching you. Maybe that’s just your old paranoia screaming at you, but a life in hiding will do that to a person.>”I didn’t get much of a chance to talk with Gihren - Any insights, Casval?” He's the other big threat, and he has a tight leash over the mansion's staff from what Mink has said.>”...Do you think it was about that boy we saw yesterday? Glemy, I think? Mink mentioned Gihren brought him to the mansion.” Circle back to the previous topic.>”So it sounded like we’re going to be stuck with Garma for a while. I don’t remember that much, but he didn’t strike me as being all that bad when we were kids.”>Write-in.
>>5492702Kycillia is the biggest threat, but also the one we have the least ability to defeat. Garma and Vivima aren't threats at all (or are low enough to not matter). Degwin is also not much of a threat, honestly. Dozle is unironically someone we can count as an ally, so long as we don't get on his bad side. Gihren is a very major threat, but so long as we stay out of his way, he's likely to leave us be. Kycillia is the only one who we can see who really has it out for us, and has the means to fuck us over, while we have basically nothing other than using Dozle (and likely Garma and Vivi)as a shield. Any move we make against her that isn't meticulously planned out to the smallest detail will inevitably come back to bit us in the ass.>”I didn’t get much of a chance to talk with Gihren - Any insights, Casval?” He's the other big threat, and he has a tight leash over the mansion's staff from what Mink has said.>”So it sounded like we’re going to be stuck with Garma for a while. I don’t remember that much, but he didn’t strike me as being all that bad when we were kids.”We can abduct and groom Glemy later.
>>5492759>>5492753Forgot to link my vote.
>>5492753>”So it sounded like we’re going to be stuck with Garma for a while. I don’t remember that much, but he didn’t strike me as being all that bad when we were kids.”>>5492759The Zabi family are a difficult bunch, that's for sure.
>>5492753>”I didn’t get much of a chance to talk with Gihren - Any insights, Casval?” He's the other big threat, and he has a tight leash over the mansion's staff from what Mink has said.>”So it sounded like we’re going to be stuck with Garma for a while. I don’t remember that much, but he didn’t strike me as being all that bad when we were kids.”
>>5492753>”...Do you think it was about that boy we saw yesterday? Glemy, I think? Mink mentioned Gihren brought him to the mansion.” Circle back to the previous topic.If we get the other two to connect the dots, this could help us in the future (especially if we run into Glemy later on today while continuing our tour of the castle).But honestly all of these topics are important to talk about, though we can't stay here for long since we might get overheard (which is why I'm just picking one).>>5492759Agreed. As of now we can't really do anything about Kycilia, though I'd like to at least have some way to defend ourselves somehow from her plots (I know it's unlikely, unless we make it a point to hang around Garma). Though I wouldn't trust Vivima too much (for now at least), she did almost get assassinated by Jimba and probably had her mind poisoned by Gihren and Kycilia.
>>5492753>”So it sounded like we’re going to be stuck with Garma for a while. I don’t remember that much, but he didn’t strike me as being all that bad when we were kids.”
>>5492793Vivi's mind poisoning has probably run too deep for her to be saved at this point, yeah. Shame, too, considering how hard I was pushing her last thread.Least we've still got Blanche.
>>5492798>SpoilerContolist has spoiled us with good choices. Red headed tomboy childhood friend, green haired ayylmao we newtype pair-bonded with, white haired kuudere onisan. What could possibly be next?
>>5492811>OnisanOnesan ffs.
>>5492811Blanche isn't a kuudere. Her design and adherence to military decorum may show as such, but she's enough of a drunken loser to counteract that.
>>5492759>>5492793I'm going to commit to what I said about just choosing one and change my vote to1)>”...Do you think it was about that boy we saw yesterday? Glemy, I think? Mink mentioned Gihren brought him to the mansion.” Circle back to the previous topic.2)>”I didn’t get much of a chance to talk with Gihren - Any insights, Casval?” He's the other big threat, and he has a tight leash over the mansion's staff from what Mink has said.3)>”So it sounded like we’re going to be stuck with Garma for a while. I don’t remember that much, but he didn’t strike me as being all that bad when we were kids.”>>5492798I might not have cared much for waifus, but I feel your pain.>spoilerheh we sure do. I wonder what she'll think about us when/if she finds out about what we're doing?
>>5492816>She's enough of a drunken loser to counteract that.Fair enough. Seems like she only plays the aloof professional while in uniform unless I'm forgetting something.>>5492818>SpoilerI'm betting 50/50 chance she has an autistic fit of rage and tries to kill us or becomes the proverbial goku to our vegeta and just wants to obsessives fight us.
>>5492818>spoilerBlanche strikes me as a "loyal to the man, not the nation"-type. So long as we continue to leave Dozle out of our revenge plan, she'll be chill.Wishful thinking? Probably. But this is Gundam, anything is possible if we Newtype™ hard enough.
>>5492759>>5492792Gihren+Garma>>5492788>>5492797>>5492818 (Third choice)GarmaGarma wins. I'll start writing in the morning, it might be awhile before I get the post out though (probably no more than ~12 hours from now).
“So it sounded like we’re going to be stuck with Garma for a while.” You say, directing the conversation elsewhere as you continue along on your run, “...I don’t remember that much, but he didn’t strike me as being all that bad when we were kids.” “They… they can’t all be awful, right?” Artesia asks, “Dozle hasn’t been so bad.” “It sounded like Dozle and Degwin have doted on Garma too much,” Casval says before glancing to the perimeter fence once more, “And they know it, otherwise Degwin wouldn’t have made the request to help him.”“It’s a bit odd to ask us to help, don’t you think?” You comment, looking in the opposite direction across the dimly lit grounds and spotting a few gardeners already at work, “When I asked how I could repay him I wasn’t expecting something quite so personal.” “It’s clearly just a test of our intentions.” Casval states, “Everything is a plot of some kind with them.”“He might really be trying to make peace, Casval. He seemed so tired and-” Artesia begins to say before being cut off.“It doesn’t matter if he is. Degwin is responsible for what happened to father and mother, either by act or omission. All of this is on him.” Casval says sternly, a bit of venom filling his voice. “...I suppose. He did let things stay as they’ve been for years now… Mom’s been in that tower for so long…” Artesia says with a contemplative look, brow furrowed as she continues along beside you.“So we’re all in on following through with helping out Garma then?” You ask, steering the conversation back to where you intended.“We don’t have much of a choice.” Casval says, eyes focused forward once more, “It’s in our best interest. The more the other Zabis favor us the more likely we are to be able to make real moves in the future.” “Good, I was already thinking along those lines, it’s going to be a long game.” You say, glad that you’re still on the same page, “We’ll be fencing in what… a few hours at most? We’ll have a better idea about him soon.”Artesia lets out a tired little groan, “This… this isn’t going to let up for months, is it?”“Years.” You answer with a chuckle, though you don’t intend it cruelly, “...Do you need to take a break?”“We… We don’t have much left.” Artesia says, glancing up to the ever so slightly brightening center axis of the colony, the faintest hints of light beginning to return to it in a process that will ramp up over the next hour and a half, “…I barely got any sleep. I hope you both did better.”“...I managed to get a few hours.” You answer honestly, already wishing things had been more restful.“I slept fine.” Casval answers, and you find little reason to doubt his tone, “We’ll get some coffee after this, or tea. We can stop early if you need to.”
>>5493320“...Thanks, Casval.” Artesia says, gritting her teeth as she picks up her pace to something closer to what the three of you started at earlier, “But I can finish. I have to. This… this isn’t even that bad of a run, really.”Casval gives her a silent nod and follows along, easily keeping up, and you exchange a knowing glance with him. Artesia is pushing herself, but she’s going to have to if she wants to stand a chance at the military academy. Neither of you are going to let her go too far, but to keep up with the class, most of which will be two years older than her, she’s going to need to push things much further. Being smaller than everyone else during maneuvers isn’t going to be a kind experience, you’d be doing her a disservice to take things too easily. She wouldn’t stand a chance, however determined she might be. Determination does count for a lot though. Time will tell if she can keep it up.“...Do… Do you think Garma will be a brat?” Artesia asks, managing to get the question out even at her quickened pace.“Maybe. Dozle didn’t seem to think so, but he might not be the most reliable source.” You reply, thinking back over what you know, “Mink mentioned he was kind, didn’t she? He can’t be too bad then, even if he does turn out to be a brat.”“Between Degwin’s request and Mink laughing at the idea of him using the mansion’s gym, and Dozle’s comments about his fencing ability… Well, we’ll see.” Casval says, following Artesia around a small puddle on the stone path, the only blemish on the otherwise tightly managed grounds you’ve encountered all morning.“You think he’s a bit of a wimp then, Casval? Or just lacking focus?” You question, careful to avoid the small puddle.“More the latter than the former, but we’ll see.” Your brother answers, “He’s probably been pampered his whole life, but if he was too far gone I doubt Dozle would be as enamored with him as he is, little brother or not.”“Mm. Fair.” You say, letting the topic pass for now. You’ll all know much more in just a few hours.>”I didn’t get much of a chance to talk with Gihren last night - Any insights, Casval?”>”So how about Vivima then? She’s a pilot as well, it sounds like we all might get along, though skipping dinner for more simulator time makes me wonder if she might be a bit too focused on it…”>You’ve talked enough for now, just finish up the run and avoid raising any suspicions if it turns out there is someone watching you.>Write-in.
>>5493325>1.)”So how about Vivima then? She’s a pilot as well, it sounds like we all might get along, though skipping dinner for more simulator time makes me wonder if she might be a bit too focused on it…”>2.)”I didn’t get much of a chance to talk with Gihren last night - Any insights, Casval?”
>>5493325>”So how about Vivima then? She’s a pilot as well, it sounds like we all might get along, though skipping dinner for more simulator time makes me wonder if she might be a bit too focused on it…”
>>54933251)>You’ve talked enough for now, just finish up the run and avoid raising any suspicions if it turns out there is someone watching you.2)>”I didn’t get much of a chance to talk with Gihren last night - Any insights, Casval?”
>>54933251)>You’ve talked enough for now, just finish up the run and avoid raising any suspicions if it turns out there is someone watching you.Let's not push it.2)>”So how about Vivima then? She’s a pilot as well, it sounds like we all might get along, though skipping dinner for more simulator time makes me wonder if she might be a bit too focused on it…”This conversation seems innocent enough if overheard.
we're fucking back bros
>>5493325>You’ve talked enough for now, just finish up the run and avoid raising any suspicions if it turns out there is someone watching you.
>>5493325>>You’ve talked enough for now, just finish up the run and avoid raising any suspicions if it turns out there is someone watching you.
>>5493395>>5493381>>5493338>>5493336Writing.
>>54933251)>>5493325>>”So how about Vivima then? She’s a pilot as well, it sounds like we all might get along, though skipping dinner for more simulator time makes me wonder if she might be a bit too focused on it…”2)>>You’ve talked enough for now, just finish up the run and avoid raising any suspicions if it turns out there is someone watching you.
The rest of the run goes by in relative silence, you and your siblings navigating the dark grounds, the looming figure of the Zabi palace a constant reminder of your new place in the world. Soon enough you’re finished up, leaving behind the artificial night sky of the colony, the lights of the distant cityscape on the far side of the colony disappearing as you return to the imposing palace’s interior through the great doors of the main entrance.The lavish interior of the entrance hall still doesn’t seem right to you, a stark contrast to the cold concrete, glass, and steel of the exterior. You pass by the portraits lining the walls under the great vaulted ceiling, getting another good look at the oil paintings of the Zabi family. Garma and Vivima really do stand out from the others, their purple hair and eyes a constant reminder of their different mother. “...I expected someone to greet us.” Casval says, looking around the almost empty hallway. There are a pair of guards a ways off, near the doorway to the guard quarters, but otherwise there’s no one to be seen.“Maybe they’re all busy?” Artesia questions, wiping some of the sweat from her brow, “We can find our own way around.”“We could always ask one of the guards,” You offer with a shrug, and almost before the words are out of your mouth Casval is already marching off toward the two armed men stationed near the door to the guard quarters.The guards are young men, both of them wearing well fitted green uniforms, the standard for Zeon’s burgeoning military. Submachine guns hang from slings around their shoulders, and they peer at you from under their helmets.Just before Casval can speak up you hear the sound of rapid footsteps, a series of hurried clicks and clacks coming from down the hallways - You look over to see Mink hurrying across the wooden floor. Both of the guards stand a little straighter. As she finally reaches the three of you she stops for a moment to catch her breath, cheeks flushed in embarrassment as she curtsies in greeting. There’s a bruise on her lower arm, one of her frilly sleeves exposing it for just a moment.“My sincerest apologies, I was caught up in other household business.” Mink says after a moment, bowing her head slightly, her violet eyes flashing up to meet yours for a moment, “...I hope my absence has not been bothersome.”“Not at all.” Artesia says with a smile, “...We were just about to head back up to our rooms to clean up. What kind of work were you doing?”“Uhm,” Mink’s eyes flash over toward the pair of guards for just a moment, something darkening in her cheery expression, “Might we talk as we walk?”
>>5493438“Is it really necessary that we’re accompanied?” Casval questions, the question causing Mink to pause for a second or two.“...I can depart if you’d wish.” Mink offers politely, though Casval shakes his head in response.“No, that’s not necessary. The protocol for all of this is still new.” Casval says, relaxing as you begin to leave the two guards behind, “We still have a tour to finish, don’t we?”“We do indeed!” Mink answers, turning quickly to lead the three of you into the depths of the almost labyrinthian palace, “We can get right to that as soon as you’re all ready. You’ll be taking breakfast in your rooms? I’ll make sure it’s waiting for you before you’re finished freshening up.”You exchange glances with your siblings, no one objecting to the idea. Food and something to drink sounds almost heavenly right now.“That sounds lovely, Mink. Thank you.“ You answer, eliciting a proud little grin from her. However mixed her feeling about the Zabis might be, Mink does seem to enjoy some parts of her job. …Her personality is still something to get used to though, the staff at the villa never acted quite like this, but the Zabis are a fairly eccentric family in many ways.“...Do you know when our mother is supposed to arrive?” Artesia asks as you all walk along through the palace and past many, many closed doors.“I’m happy to report that she’ll be here later today.” Mink says, placing a finely manicured finger to her lips as she ponders the question a little further, “...Or at least that’s the plan I was told last night before retiring. I can fetch updated information along with your breakfast.”“Thank you. This afternoon then? Oh, that’s fantastic, I was afraid it might take longer than that!” Artesia says excitedly, though concern still tinges her voice, “I’ve been so worried since we saw her yesterday…”A few minutes laterBack at your connected rooms, you split up from your siblings to freshen up and change. A quick shower and a new set of clothes later and you’re ready to face the day. It’s nothing fancy, you’re going to work up a sweat again later when you’re fencing, but it’s nice nonetheless - The fact that everything fits perfectly is… slightly concerning, but really not all that unexpected. Any ideas of privacy you once held are long, long gone. If anything you’re likely more monitored in your rooms than anywhere else, though you haven’t done much to confirm that yet. Hunting for bugs with any real vigor would raise a lot of questions with the Zabis that you can’t easily answer.
>>5493442Casval is already waiting at the table in one of the living rooms when you arrive, chowing down on some jam covered bread, a mug of coffee sitting nearby. Artesia is nowhere to be seen yet, and Mink… Well, she’s sort of just standing off to the side, having procured a small wooden cart from somewhere, the rest of the meal and drinks sitting atop it. You sit alongside your brother, food practically just appearing in front of you as Mink gets to work. Even the smell of the coffee does a lot to wake you up.>Just eat and then get on with the tour. The sooner that’s done the sooner you’ll be fencing with Dozle and Garma.>Discuss something with your siblings or Mink? Artesia should be out soon. You’ll need to choose your words carefully here. (Write-in)
>>5493443>>Just eat and then get on with the tour. The sooner that’s done the sooner you’ll be fencing with Dozle and Garma.
>>5493443>Discuss something with your siblings or Mink? Artesia should be out soon. You’ll need to choose your words carefully here.Ask Mink what the deal with Glemy is, and if there are other non-servants who live in the manor.
>>5493443>Just eat and then get on with the tour. The sooner that’s done the sooner you’ll be fencing with Dozle and Garma.
>>5493443>Discuss something with your siblings or Mink? Artesia should be out soon. You’ll need to choose your words carefully here. (Write-in)>Ask Mink about Glemy and other possible non-servants.And to our siblings if we have the time:>"I wonder how Lucifer is doing? I hope there isn't any trouble in getting him, you both know how he is with strangers." An innocent enough topic.
>>5493443>Discuss something with your siblings or Mink? Artesia should be out soon. You’ll need to choose your words carefully here. (Write-in)>"I wonder how Lucifer is doing? I hope there isn't any trouble in getting him, you both know how he is with strangers." An innocent enough topic.
>>5493443Changing my vote to just>Discuss something with your siblings or Mink? Artesia should be out soon. You’ll need to choose your words carefully here. (Write-in)>"I wonder how Lucifer is doing? I hope there isn't any trouble in getting him, you both know how he is with strangers." An innocent enough topic.Talking about Glemy and other non-servants could be risky, considering all the rooms here are bugged. Don't want Gihren to know we're talking too much about that kid.
>>5493461To give my reasoning of why actually talking about something instead of just getting this over with is that we might be able to gain more of Mink's trust for our siblings or at least make her slightly more sympathetic to us three. And a little bit of bonding with Artesia and Casval, despite where we are, won't hurt anyone.
>>5493461I very much doubt that Gihren is going to be able to use us being curious about the manor against us. If anything, it would be more suspicious if we weren't curious.
>>5493469I'm cool with getting on Mink's good side but I don't think we can trust her at all regardless if she's a willing set of ears and eyes or not. The Zabi will force her to keep tabs on us at best, and at worse use her as leverage against us.
>>5493471You think he wouldn't mind if we talked about Glemy? Other than the bugs, Mink might relay her thoughts about us to Gihren, willingly or not (she's 'Gihren's favorite' from what I remember). Though you have a point in that it might be suspicious if we weren't curious about the mansion and the people here.>>5493479That's true. Though I'm not saying we should trust her with anything, just that we should be on her good side and make her trust us and our siblings. But even going as far as being her friend might be risky, so I'm thinking just having her be sympathetic to us three will be enough.Either way I think there's a very slim chance the Zabis (or maybe just Gihren) already have her as an informant already through some sort of blackmail, though it seems like the sort of thing they might do if they think it's worth doing. My meme conspiracy is that she was listening in on us as we were running, and that's why she was out of breath lol Then again it might be bad if Artesia becomes her friend, so you might have a point. But Artesia might already has sympathy for Mink, so there's that.
>>5493501>You think he wouldn't mind if we talked about Glemy?You're acting like we're gonna be talking about how we want to corrupt him and use him as a weapon. While that might be true, just asking about him and what his deal is isn't going to arouse any suspicion. Remember, Kycillia's the paranoid one, not Gihren.
>>5493503>Remember, Kycillia's the paranoid one, not Gihren.I feel like Gihren is plenty paranoid himself, but my memory on the Gundam series isn't the best. Though it does sound right that Kycilia is the more paranoid of the two. Then there's the fact that we might not be able to talk about Glemy to anyone that knows about him in the near future.I really hate to take a risk here, as small as it is (especially since the Kycilia Agency will have bugs everywhere around here, and Kycilia herself might take interest in what we're talking about), what you're saying might be for the best. I still want to talk about Lucifer to maybe make us seem less suspicious and more sympathetic, though it's not much of a priority.>>5493501>might already has*might already have
>>5493444>>5493450>>5493467>>5493499Get on with the tour.>>5493445Glemy.>>5493461>>5493459Lucifer.Writing.
Artesia arrives soon enough, and before you know it breakfast is already over. The meal was pleasant; sweeter than you’re used to, but very good. It reminds you a lot of breakfast as a young child, back when your family was all together and this nightmare hadn’t yet begun.With foggy thoughts of half remembered childhood swirling through your mind you set back out on a tour of the palace, Mink leading the way for you and your siblings. It doesn’t take long to get to where you left off the day prior, and you try a little harder to pay attention to the layout this time instead of asking questions of Mink - There’s still plenty to learn from her, but the initial unease of entering the palace has past by now, and the idea of being monitored by bugs in various paintings and light fixtures is much less novel. It’s safe to assume you’re just always being listened to, even if that might not quite be the case. “...And over there is the gymnasium, it’s fully outfitted though it doesn’t see much use.” Mink explains.“You said as much yesterday,” You say, nodding as you peer through the open door at all sorts of equipment, “It’s really so disused?”“I believe Mistress Vivima was using it earlier this morning, but otherwise yes.” Mink replies.“Pilots have to stay fit.” Casval comments, “She’s quite dedicated then, isn’t she?”“She… takes to her efforts earnestly.” Mink says, struggling to find the right words for a few moments, “I admire her very much, she’s helped me before, but she can be… peculiar, I suppose.”“Oh?” Casval prods further, raising an eyebrow at the description.“It’s hard to ever know where she is, though that new simulator machine seems to have caught her interest recently… Normally she’s off with Kyc…” Mink purses her lips, glancing around the room briefly as she ceases speaking and touches with one hand near the bruise concealed by the frilly sleeve of her uniform, “...Mm, perhaps I’ve said too much… Stupid me, already doing it again…”“It… hasn’t been an issue for you, has it?” Artesia asks, clearly concerned as she reaches out to place a hand gently on Mink’s shoulder.The maid shakes her head, black hair moving about slightly from side to side, “...Thank you, but… I’m fine. Shall we continue?”Artesia meets Mink’s eyes for a long moment, and you can feel a tumultuous flash of anxiety and doubt from the maid, a confusing mixture interspersed with pride and curiosity, and all kinds of other conflicting feelings. It’s the same as yesterday, a tumultuous sea of emotions clashing together in a great storm…“Let’s keep going.” Artesia finally says, and Mink quickly leads the three of you onward. You pass by a few rooms, mostly for entertainment, a bowling alley, some pools… Interesting places but not of great note - You commit them to memory regardless, slowly trying to build a mental map of the palace.
>>5493751The tedium of the tour is eventually relieved as your arrive at a room which stands out somewhat from the others. The door is green painted steel, a sliding naval type similar to the ones you saw aboard the Zam, and it stands out like a sore thumb in the otherwise finely crafted baroque hallways. A small computer terminal and keypad jut from the wall next to the door, a security measure of some kind most likely. There are no markings on the door or nearby walls.“And this is the simulator room… I don’t think it’s in use currently,” Minks says, smiling as she motions to the heavy steel door, “They only finished installing everything a handful of days ago. Would you like to see the interior?”>”...Is that allowed? We weren’t given permission, but as long as it won’t cause any trouble…” Of course you’d like to see it!>”Later, I think I’d prefer to see it with Vivima. Seems like a good way to get to know one another, don’t you think so?” A maid wouldn’t know much about it anyways.>Write-in.
>>5493754>”...Is that allowed? We weren’t given permission, but as long as it won’t cause any trouble…” Of course you’d like to see it!
>>5493754>>”...Is that allowed? We weren’t given permission, but as long as it won’t cause any trouble…” Of course you’d like to see it!
>>5493751>Normally she’s off with Kyc…More confirmation about Vivma. I know I've said this before but I feel like we'll need to watch ourselves while around her.>>5493754>”Later, I think I’d prefer to see it with Vivima. Seems like a good way to get to know one another, don’t you think so?” A maid wouldn’t know much about it anyways.There's a very big chance this might be a bad idea, but I think it would be wise to get to know Vivima's personality firsthand.
>>5493754>”...Is that allowed? We weren’t given permission, but as long as it won’t cause any trouble…” Of course you’d like to see it!>>5493788>I feel like we'll need to watch ourselves while around her.Undoubtedly. She's probably going to be pretty hard to get a handle on.
>>5493754>”Later, I think I’d prefer to see it with Vivima. Seems like a good way to get to know one another, don’t you think so?” A maid wouldn’t know much about it anyways.
>>5493790She'll be an interesting character, that's for sure.
>>5493782>>5493785>>5493790Simulator now.>>5493788>>5493792>>5493846Later with Vivima.We have a tie. I'll give it another hour for a tie breaker.
>>5493869>>5493790>>5493785>>5493782Checking it out now wins. Writing, but I probably won't finish until sometime tomorrow morning.
“...Is that allowed?” You ask curiously, gaze fixed on the keypad leading to the simulator, “We weren’t given permission, but as long as it won’t cause any trouble…”“Trouble?” Mink questions, tilting her head ever so slightly as she stops to consider the idea more deeply, “No, no, I think it should be okay.”“Are you sure?” Artesia asks, “I don’t want anything to come back down on you.”Mink nods, stepping toward the keypad and quickly tapping her fingers across it, entering a fairly long code. You try to track her movements, but she’s actually quite quick at entering it all - 9504… something, you missed the last few numbers after that.“I’m surprised you have the codes to open it up.” Casval comments idly.The four of you enter the room, a slightly sloped semicircle with a central observation position and then several large pods attached to a gyroscopic frame. The terminals around the central observation area are covered in various readouts, all of which are empty and silent for the time being. None of the pods are active, and almost all of the screens are black and fully deactivated.“Oh, it’s more for the experience than actual security I think, they gave all the staff the code so we can clean and such,” Mink offers with a cute little shrug as she steps toward the observation position, “It’s just supposed to make you feel more like a pilot when you’re going in I think… It makes me feel like I’m wasting time, I just wish the door would open. They only just let me in a few days ago when installation finished, it was all such an awful mess. Cleaning things up took hours.”“You probably spent a lot of time with Vivima then - She didn’t mind the cleaning?” You ask, trying to get a better sense of what kind of person Vivima might be without pushing too deeply.“Mm, I wouldn’t say that, but she dealt with it. She even did some of it herself!” Mink answers happily, leaning idly against one of the deactivated terminals and letting out a surprised little noise as its screens flash on and it whirrs to life with a low electric hum. “That’s a little hard to imagine.” Casval comments mostly to himself, already busily looking over the control panels but touching nothing. Artesia is doing much the same, closer to Mink and trying not to laugh at her clumsy mistake. “So there’s six pods… They all work?” You question, looking down toward the little sunken bays in the sloped semicircle which contain the simulator pods.“...I think so?” Mink answers uncertainly, “I know those two over there do, Vivima used them, but I haven’t seen the others being used. …Sorry, I’m not much of a technician.”
>>5493936“I take it we probably shouldn’t touch anything?” Artesia hesitantly asks, looking at the screens Mink accidentally activated, “...Do we need to turn this off?”“Uhm… I’m not sure actually. I can do it, I think.” Mink says, her cheeks turning a bit red as she reads over the various buttons and switches, “Oh, shoot. What did I press? Ah, there you are! Thought you could hide could you?”With a quick flick of a little red switch the screens deactivate once more, and the room is again mostly inactive. Mink places her hands on her hips, looking quite proud of herself.>”Do you think they’d mind if we… tried it out for a bit?” Curiosity might be getting the better of you here, but it does sort of fit what the Zabis know about your ‘innocent’ identity. Getting the things running might be an issue, it’s not quite clear how this all works.>”Casval, do you think they’re all networked? That would be a lot of fun, wouldn’t it?” Take a closer look around, but don’t touch anything for now. >”...Well, I’d be lying if I said that sated my curiosity, but it’s probably best that we don’t linger for too long.” Leave and finish out the remainder of the tour, and get on your way to fencing.>Write-in.Decided to finish the post. Posting schedule is going to be all sorts of weird over the holidays, got to take the opportunities when they pop up.
>>5493938>”Casval, do you think they’re all networked? That would be a lot of fun, wouldn’t it?” Take a closer look around, but don’t touch anything for now.>Touching a machine we don't know how to operate >Which is extremely important to a significant character Felix hasn't yet metLmao, that's bait.
>>5493938>”Casval, do you think they’re all networked? That would be a lot of fun, wouldn’t it?” Take a closer look around, but don’t touch anything for now.
>>5493938>>”Casval, do you think they’re all networked? That would be a lot of fun, wouldn’t it?” Take a closer look around, but don’t touch anything for now.
>>5493938>>”Casval, do you think they’re all networked? That would be a lot of fun, wouldn’t it?” Take a closer look around, but don’t touch anything for now. >>”...Well, I’d be lying if I said that sated my curiosity, but it’s probably best that we don’t linger for too long.” Leave and finish out the remainder of the tour, and get on your way to fencing.Hell yeah, it's back.
>>5493938>>5493947Changing my vote to:>”Casval, do you think they’re all networked? That would be a lot of fun, wouldn’t it?” Take a closer look around, but don’t touch anything for now. >”...Well, I’d be lying if I said that sated my curiosity, but it’s probably best that we don’t linger for too long.” Leave and finish out the remainder of the tour, and get on your way to fencing.
>>54939381)>”...Well, I’d be lying if I said that sated my curiosity, but it’s probably best that we don’t linger for too long.” Leave and finish out the remainder of the tour, and get on your way to fencing.2)>”Casval, do you think they’re all networked? That would be a lot of fun, wouldn’t it?” Take a closer look around, but don’t touch anything for now.
>>5493941>>5493949>>5494163 (second option)Look.>>5494051>>5494101Look and then leave.Writing.
“Casval, do you think they’re all networked?” You ask while looking over the labeled buttons and switches of the central observation position, “That would be a lot of fun, wouldn’t it?”“They are.” Your brother answers, squinting as he traces a finger across one of the lines of switches, hovering just a hair above them as he examines them, “This controls which ones are connected to one another, and this… powers them on.”He looks at a small line of red switches for a long couple of seconds and then shakes his head, turning away from them with a small smirk.“I think this records everything.” Artesia says as she looks over the panel Mink shut off a few moments ago, “And these screens display it… probably?”“I think that’s right, Mistress Vivima re-watches things here sometimes.” Mink agrees, and you move closer to take a look. Sure enough the screens are labelled for each of the pods, they probably display what the pilot inside can see during simulations… or maybe their faces? Both? Without power on it isn’t really possible to know what it can and can’t do. Still, the general intention of the system is clear enough.“She re-watches the simulations?” You ask curiously, “...Are the recordings kept?”“I would think so,” Mink answers, almost laughing, “How else would she watch them?”“Oh come on, you know what I meant.” You respond, resisting the urge to roll your eyes, “I meant longer term storage.”“Uhm… Sorry, that’s about the limit of what I know about that. Maybe though? I don’t see why it wouldn’t keep things...” Mink replies, her tone growing a bit sly, “Why? Want to see what she’s like when she flies?”“...I was just curious about what the simulation looks like, no need to mess with anything again.” You reply, moving away from the observation area and down toward the pods themselves.
>>5494264“...This is medical monitoring equipment…” Artesia notes with a hint of surprise as she looks over another area of the observation area, but you’re not paying too much attention as you approach one of the pods.Calling it a ‘pod’ might be a bit of a misnomer, it’s more angular than rounded, one side vaguely resembling the exterior hatches you saw on the mobile suits back aboard the Zam a few days ago, all the way down to the concealed keypads and slightly recessed handles to open it. It seems like they’ve accounted for about as much as they can… acceleration and the lack of microgravity are still issues though, but not everything can be simulated so easily. It’s quality work though, much better than the static stations you had back on Texas colony… Not that you ever used them much, with real flight time being available fairly frequently. Casval joined you at some point as you’re looking over the pod, silently appreciating it alongside.>”...We should get on with the rest of the tour. We’ll definitely be back though.” >”...It wouldn’t hurt if we look inside, right?” Take a look inside the pod.>Review simulation footage. You can probably figure out how to call that up without too much issue.>Write-in.
>>54942651)>”...We should get on with the rest of the tour. We’ll definitely be back though.”2)>Review simulation footage. You can probably figure out how to call that up without too much issue.>”...We should get on with the rest of the tour. We’ll definitely be back though.”3)>Review simulation footage. You can probably figure out how to call that up without too much issue.
>>54942651)>”...We should get on with the rest of the tour. We’ll definitely be back though.” 2)>Review simulation footage. You can probably figure out how to call that up without too much issue.>”...We should get on with the rest of the tour. We’ll definitely be back though.”
>>5494265>”...We should get on with the rest of the tour. We’ll definitely be back though.”
>>5494265>>”...We should get on with the rest of the tour. We’ll definitely be back though.”
>>5494279>>5494280>>5494281>>5494378>>5494477Finish the tour. Writing.Longer delay than I expected.
“...We should get on with the rest of the tour.” You say to Casval as the two of you finish examining the exterior of the pod, “We’ll definitely be back though.”“I would’ve liked to see one of these spun up," Casval replies, tapping at the gyroscopic frame surrounding the pod, “But it can wait.”You nod and move back up the slight slope to the central observation position, rejoining Artesia and Mink.“They can spin you that fast? Wow. No wonder they have the monitors.” Artesia says in mild shock.“Mistress Vivima was a bit… frazzled after the end of her first run,” Mink says amusedly, moving one of her fingers in a little loop to emphasize the point, “They can really spin.”“I imagine the aftermath is…” Artesia trails off, wrinkling her nose a bit in disgust.Mink nods grimly, leaving the rest unsaid, and turns to face you and Casval, “All finished down there you two?”“For now. They’re excellent machines, I look forward to seeing more of them.” Your brother replies with a grin, “On to the rest of the palace then?”“Oh, of course!” Mink responds, looking to you and Artesia briefly for confirmation. You both give small nods of approval and the four of you are soon back out through the heavy steel door and into the baroque hallways of the palace.
>>5494590The rest of the tour goes by without much of note, aside from passing by the rooms of the various Zabis. Garma and Vivima’s are quite near one another, and from the exterior there’s not much to say about them; as usual the Zabi’s spared no expense in terms of decoration, lavish painting covering the walls alongside marble statues of famous spacenoids and great leaders from throughout history… It’s odd to see your father’s face among them, a mere decoration in the home of his murderers. You push aside your feelings for a while longer, refocusing your attention. There are more purple hues in use in this section of the palace, a lot more, which… Actually it reminds you a bit of how your mother used to match you and Casval’s clothes when you were both much younger. You smirk a little at the thought of Degwin insisting on something like this, it might not have been at his order but he seemed a sentimental enough sort to have done that years ago and never change it since.“This is… very royal looking, isn’t it?” Artesia says, struggling a bit to find a way to address the shift in coloration.“Royal?” Mink questions, “Mm, I suppose so, but that’s fitting isn’t it? Do you not like the look?”“It’s beautiful, I just… wasn’t expecting so much effort in matching things.” Artesia responds, “Does this mean everything near Dozle’s room is larger?”“Yes, indeed!” Mink responds cheerfully, and you let out a small chuckle at the mental image, “I’m afraid the trend doesn’t continue past that though, Mistress Kycilia especially is always having changes made…”
>>5494591A few more minutes laterDozle’s section of the palace was indeed larger, filled with suits of armor and paintings of old battle on earth, but otherwise there was little to see besides an area that you imagine must have been Sasro’s in the past… It’s rather untouched looking, not that it’s dirty or anything of the sort, but it feels undisturbed, like an unseen specter of the past hangs over the halls and rooms. You’re soon beyond both areas, heading higher up in the palace.A pair of armed guards stand at attention near a large set of double doors which intersect the grand hallway you find yourself in, and Mink stops you and your siblings before you can get too close. “That’s Mistress Kycilia’s section. I was told not to show it to you… and… those guards aren’t usually there…” Mink says in an apologetic tone but with just a hint of confusion, her violet eyes narrowing and remaining locked on the distant guards. “...Understandable,” Casval says wryly, “Respecting others privacy is very important.” You resist the urge to laugh, but Mink fails to do so - it’s infectious, and soon Artesia joins in with a little stifled giggle.“Master Degwin and Master Gihren’s sections are this way. Those are the last areas to show…” Mink says after she recovers from her little fit of laughter, leading you onward.Half an hour later. The tour is completely finished. You weren’t allowed too far into Gihren or Degwin’s areas either, and the Zabis themselves continue to go unseen. At this point you feel at least vaguely oriented in the vastness of the palace, though it’s likely to be another week at least before you can get anywhere with real speed.“...And that concludes the tour of the palace!” Minks says with a little flourishing spin and a smile, “I hope its lived up to expectations.” “In more ways than you might expect.” Casval says, crossing his arms.“It can be a bit much, can’t it?” Mink asks, picking up on at least part of your brother’s meaning, “Still, it’s… home, I suppose.”“I think it’s lovely. The interior is anyways…” Artesia says, “I can see why keeping it running is so much work, but the exterior…”“Oh, I love the exterior!” Mink says, holding her hands close to her chest, “It’s so spiky, other buildings are so boring, aren’t they? When I look at them from the windows I can’t help but notice how terribly dull they are, but… uhm… Oh. Do you not like it?” “...It’s an acquired taste, maybe we’ll get used to it.” You say, trying to let her down gently. “I hope so,” Mink responds, her violet eyes meeting yours for a long moment, “Is… is there anything else you’ll be needing?”
>>5494597“It’s getting close to time for fencing, isn’t it?” You ask, and Mink confirms your suspicion with a polite nod, “We’ll need equipment, do you know if everything will already be there?”“It should be, but I’ll double check.” She answers, “Will you be able to make your way there on your own?”“I know the way. You’ve been very helpful, Mink.” Casval answers politely, and that seems to relax the maid a bit and she closes her eyes for a moment. “I’m glad to have been of assistance then.” Mink says with a curtsy, and soon enough she’s off, disappearing into one of the partially hidden servant ways in a nearby wall.“...You do actually know the way, right?” Artesia asks your brother, to which he responds by starting to walk, “Oh, good. Sorry, I just got a little lost in all of that.”“It’s good that you were paying more attention to Mink.” Casval says as he leads you both onward and toward a nearby flight of stairs, “She’s odd, isn’t she?”“Poor girl has been doing this for years, anyone would get a bit strange under the circumstances.” Artesia says a touch defensively, “Why?”“I didn’t mean anything more by it, she’s just not what I’d expect of a head maid. A bit young, for one.” Casval explains.“Eh, maybe that’s just Gihren, she’s his ‘favorite’ right?” You say, not wanting to elaborate further.“Ew.” Artesia says quietly, voice filled with disgust, “You… might be right though. She has a lot of marks she tries to hide.”You nod grimly, “Not a polite conversation to be having here though…”
>>5494598A few more minutes laterYou’re at the palace’s fencing hall, a modest chamber with a pair of pistes and very old world decor, and little in the way of stands; You’re not used to anything quite so formal, and it’s nice to have proper facilities for once. The white fencing jacket and knickers you were provided with fit well, and you’ve just finished putting them on - You and your siblings arrived early, but the gear was waiting for you when you got there.“They shouldn’t be long now, right?” Artesia asks as she adjusts the collar of her white jacket, less used to the outfit than you and Casval are, “Dozle doesn’t seem like the type to be late.” “We have a few more minutes at least.” Casval says, eyeing an analog clock on one of the walls, “Felix, want to get in a bout before they’re here?”>”Absolutely! I almost thought you weren’t going to ask.” The gap in your skills has narrowed somewhat, but you’re unlikely to win. Still, you can really go at it with your brother, it would be quite the show if Garma and Dozle arrive mid round.>”We’ll have plenty of time once they’re here. Artesia, want to warm up a bit?” She’s the least experienced of the three of you, a bit of a warmup would help her the most.>Write-in.
>>5494600>”Absolutely! I almost thought you weren’t going to ask.” The gap in your skills has narrowed somewhat, but you’re unlikely to win. Still, you can really go at it with your brother, it would be quite the show if Garma and Dozle arrive mid round.
>>5494600>"How about you two go with each other for a bit?" Artesia might be far less experienced than Casval, but practicing together might be good for them in different ways.
>>5494600>>5494604Changing my vote to:1)>"How about you two go with each other for a bit?" Artesia might be far less experienced than Casval, but practicing together might be good for them in different ways.Good for them to bond a bit, also hoping that this could improve how good of a leader Casval can become, even if it's only by a little.2)>”We’ll have plenty of time once they’re here. Artesia, want to warm up a bit?” She’s the least experienced of the three of you, a bit of a warmup would help her the most.Eh, she needs the help catching up.
This whole thing with Mink really makes me think we should try to make some male friends. Literally every major character we've interacted with a lot that isn't either Char or Casval so far has been female. Maybe that's why I want to get buddy-buddy with Dozle and Garma so much. Put a bit of variety in this fuckin taco-party.
>>5494618>SpoilerI think we're already on Dozle's good side, shouldn't be too hard to get more friendly with him.
>>5494604+1
>>5494600Supporting >>5494613. If we don't get enough votes for a majority, I'm fine with leaving Artesia to Caval. We can handle Garma ourselves.
>>5494647>We can handle Garma ourselves.Garma's gonna fall in love with us this time, not Casval.
>>5494647>We can handle Garma ourselves.Not a bad idea to get to know Garma, since Degwin did tell us to take care of him.Also I like the idea of having Artesia and Casval actually working together for once unlike in canon.
>>5494606Changing to support>>5494604
>>5494613>>5494634>>5494647>>5494661Writing.
“How about you two go with each other for a bit?” You offer up, looking between Casval and Artesia.“Are you up for that?” Casval asks Artesia before reaching down to grab his saber from the wooden floor.“Are you?” Your sister answers playfully, fetching her own saber and standing, “This'll be fun, we don’t do enough things together.”Your brother’s stops for a moment as he slides his mask on, “We do things together all the time, Artesia.” “Flying occasionally and the last few weeks don’t count.” Artesia carries on, though you know she’s mostly joking. Mostly.“Pff. You’re making up the rules as you go along.” Casval says, chuckling as he moves to the piste, “We do a lot more than we used to.”“Mm, maybe we do. Ready?” Artesia says, taking up position a few paces opposite your brother.Casval nods, his mesh mask bobbing slightly, “Ready. Felix, call it?”“Allez!” You call out, leaning back to enjoy the show.Artesia is fairly athletic for how much of a bookworm she can be, and she’s been a quick learner at fencing, but compared to Casval she’s a couple of orders of magnitude out of her league. He’s taller, faster, fitter, more experienced… Everything weighs against Artesia as the two begin to exchange blows, a few probing strikes starting the round, steel clinking lightly on steel as their blades meet, a slow opening. There’s a sudden rush of movement, you brother a blur of white as he lunges forward, and Artesia just isn’t quick enough to mount much of a defense - She’s struck on the chest, your brother’s blade sneaking past hers with a couple of inches to spare. …And so it goes for the next few minutes, Casval handily trouncing Artesia again and again, but it does nothing to discourage her. She’s improving - some of it’s just warming up, and that goes ways - but by the time they’re starting the third round she’s really in the swing of things. Not that it’s going to help her win, but she’s lasting longer and reacting much more quickly.
>>5494903The door to the hall practically slams open, heavy footsteps pounding their way into the room as the colossal form of Dozle Zabi appears. The huge man is already dressed for the matches to come, and he throws out one of his white jacketed arms to the side in greeting as he calls out.“We have arrived!” Dozles thunders while taking one great step through the entrance, a sheathed sword in his other hand. Casval slows for just a moment, glancing to look toward Dozle, and promtly receives a saber to his mask as his just reward for getting distracted.“I did it!” Artesia calls out ecstatically, drawing your brother’s attention back to her… You leave them to it, waving to Dozle and standing to greet him. A purple haired and shorter young man, who could only be Garma, enters after Dozle, just as smartly dressed and looking eager for a match - He returns your wave, meeting you halfway as you walk toward them both. “Felix?” Garma asks, extending a hand toward you. You nod and accept the handshake; his grip isn’t all that firm, but it tightens quickly.“It’s been years, Garma.” You reply, meeting his purple eyes with your own steady gaze.“I hardly recognized you, Felix, it really has been years.” He says, letting go of your hand and brushing a bit of his purple hair back, a warm smile spreading across his face, “It’s good to see you again - the way everyone’s always talked I thought you were all gone for good.” You almost wince at his words but manage to keep a calm expression. Unless Garma somehow became an even better liar than Kycilia you doubt he meant the words cruelly; his demeanor is still quite friendly, but he could really choose his words better. Dozle watches over your meeting, but the huge man appears to be following the match between your siblings with greater interest.>”It’s been an interesting few years, but we’re back to stay. How about a bout or two?” Nothing quite like a good fight to get the measure of a person.>”For the first few years I wasn’t sure if we’d ever be back, it’s been rough - But that’s the past now. How’ve you been, Garma? Dozle painted quite the picture on the trip back to Zeon.” Not quite the full gory truth, but there’s nothing wrong with a bit of honesty. >”We got to live in Spain for a few years, it wasn’t all that bad really. I’m glad to be back though. How’ve you been, Garma?” Downplay the last few years. >Write-in.
>>5494914>”It’s been an interesting few years, but we’re back to stay. How about a bout or two?” Nothing quite like a good fight to get the measure of a person.
>>5494914>>”It’s been an interesting few years, but we’re back to stay. How about a bout or two?” Nothing quite like a good fight to get the measure of a person.
>>5494914>”It’s been an interesting few years, but we’re back to stay. How about a bout or two?” Nothing quite like a good fight to get the measure of a person.I wonder how he'll treat us and our siblings, considering we're all technically 'royalty' here in Zeon.
>>5494914>”For the first few years I wasn’t sure if we’d ever be back, it’s been rough - But that’s the past now. How’ve you been, Garma? Dozle painted quite the picture on the trip back to Zeon.” Not quite the full gory truth, but there’s nothing wrong with a bit of honesty.
>>5494914>>5494929I'll change my vote, we can always spar with him later.>”For the first few years I wasn’t sure if we’d ever be back, it’s been rough - But that’s the past now. How’ve you been, Garma? Dozle painted quite the picture on the trip back to Zeon.” Not quite the full gory truth, but there’s nothing wrong with a bit of honesty.I just hope neither Casval nor Artesia talk against what we're saying by accident.Now that I think about it, would it be best if we're buddy-friends with Garma while Casval is rival-friends with him? If that even makes any sense.
>>5495259>>5494918>>5494919Right into a match!>>5495141>>5494996>>5494939Bit of honest-ish talk to start.Got a tie, I'll give it an hour for a tiebreaker.
>>5495483Going to give it another hour and then roll off if there isn't a winner.Apologies for the much slower posting schedule, got lots of family stuff to do.
Rolled 2 (1d2)>>5495541Fight 1, Talk 2.
>>5495541>spoilerDon't apologize Contolist, memes about Felix being family-first aside it's good to help relatives.
“For the first few years I wasn’t sure if we’d ever be back, it’s been rough - But that’s the past now.” You reply, keeping close to the truth, “How’ve you been, Garma? Dozle painted quite the picture on the trip back to Zeon.”“You did, Dozle?” Garma asks, glancing towards Dozle, something in his voice betraying that this must be a common occurrence.“I only spoke the truth.” Dozle rumbles, ignoring the match between Artesia and Casval for a moment, “You’re shaping up to be a fine leader, Garma - A few years in the academy and Zeon will be stronger than ever.”“You’re too kind, brother.” Garma says, pride evident in his voice though he’s directing the question more towards you than Dozle, “It’s expected of us though, isn’t it?”“So it is.” You agree, finding the conversation easy enough to slip into, “Expectations have a way of following one wherever they go, for good or ill.”Garma laughs, “It sounds like you really must have been through something, you almost sound like my father. I suppose that’s why he arranged for this, isn’t it?” “Experience will do that to a man, young or otherwise.” Dozle rumbles, placing a huge hand on Garma’s shoulder, “There’s much you might learn from-”“Much?” Garma asks, with a hint of petulance, “I thought things were coming along well.”“Of course they are, you’re a man of the Zabi family.” Dozle replies, his huge hand squeezing Garma’s shoulder just slightly before being pulled away, “But you’re still young. You’ll have much to teach them as well.”“...Perhaps you’re right, Dozle.” Garma says, his tone softening quickly, whatever insecurity he was reacting to having eased somewhat as he directs his attention back to you, “How long have you been fencing for, Felix?”“Five years, give or take a few months. Started learning with my brother while we were in Spain.” You answer, keeping the conversation moving, “Yourself?”Garma smirks, that earlier prideful glint returning to his purple eyes, “Seven, Dozle drags me here every few weeks when he’s not away on duty. Is that your brother over there? The taller one?” “That’s Casval.” You confirm, watching as the third round comes to an end with a riposte to your sister’s left arm, “They should be finished now.”“And the other?” Garma questions curiously, “One of the servants? I know a few can fence but I wasn’t expecting a fifth person today.”
>>5495725Casval removes his mask and gives a wave to Dozle and Garma. Artesia follows suit a moment later, her blonde hair spilling out messily - She brushes it back with her free hand, setting down her saber and mask a moment later.“Oh. Wow.” Garma says, turning slightly red, “I… I didn’t realize.”“Did I not mention that?” Dozle ponders aloud, rubbing at his scarred chin, “Must have slipped my mind. Quite the fighter, isn’t she?”“Artesia’s a quick learner, she’ll be going to the academy with us in the next class.” You say, feeling a real surge of pride; she might have handily lost the bout, but she performed well for her level of experience. You can make a lot more of a competition of it, even win on occasion, but Casval is extremely good at the sport.“You’re all going to the academy too?” Garma questions slowly before looking at Dozle again with a mix of surprise and amusement, “You haven’t forgotten to mention a fourth Deikun as well, Dozle, have you?”The huge man lets out a deep laugh, shaking his head, “I thought it would be best if they told you.”“I’ve been looking forward to it for awhile now,” You say quickly, keeping the timescale vague but otherwise telling the truth, “Returning to serve the homeland is “That it is, Felix.” Casval says, joining in the conversation, “It’s good to see you again, Garma.”“Likewise.” Garma says, easing up a little more, though his attention is clearly isn’t focused on your brother.“It’s a pleasure to meet you,” Artesia says with a charming a smile, “Or see you again, I guess. …I don’t remember all that much from the parties when we used to live on Zum.”“It must be our first time properly meeting, I’m sure I would have remembered you otherwise.” Garma says, matching your sister’s smile, “But we were all much younger then, weren’t we?”“Ha! You were, that wasn’t so long ago though, you barely came up to my waist then. You were so small then, shorter then Vivima if I rem-”“Dozle.” Garma says in embarrassment, elbowing his older brother a bit but only managing to elicit a deep laugh from the giant of a man.“Hoho, come now Garma, let me reminisce a bit. We’re in good company here.” Dozle says jovially, but he lets the topic pass much to Garma’s relief.>”Come on then, enough talk - We’re here to fence aren’t we? How about a few rounds, Garma?”>”Dozle, how about a quick match?” Let Garma and your siblings figure things out on their own for a bit. >”...Alright Casval, enough warming up, let's have a go at it.” Leave Garma and Dozle with Artesia for a moment, she’s good with people and you’ve got a show to put on.>Write-in.
>>5495727>”...Alright Casval, enough warming up, let's have a go at it.” Leave Garma and Dozle with Artesia for a moment, she’s good with people and you’ve got a show to put on.
>>5495727>>”Dozle, how about a quick match?” Let Garma and your siblings figure things out on their own for a bit.
>>5495727>>”Come on then, enough talk - We’re here to fence aren’t we? How about a few rounds, Garma?”
>>54957271)>”Dozle, how about a quick match?” Let Garma and your siblings figure things out on their own for a bit.The smarter choice politically, since Artesia and Casval can check each other and figure out how to act with Garma, since we already made our introductions with him.2)>”Come on then, enough talk - We’re here to fence aren’t we? How about a few rounds, Garma?”This is just to cement our relations with him.3)>”...Alright Casval, enough warming up, let's have a go at it.” Leave Garma and Dozle with Artesia for a moment, she’s good with people and you’ve got a show to put on.Also not a bad option, but I don't fully trust Garma and Artesia talking together without Casval or ourselves around to make sure she doesn't trust him with too much information. Other than that I'm not sure what to make of Garma's reaction to our sister.
>>5495727>”Come on then, enough talk - We’re here to fence aren’t we? How about a few rounds, Garma?”
Also, Garma is getting a crush on Artesia isn't he? We can finally tease her back.
>>5495752I was thinking that might be the case, but it's possible Garma could've just been taken by surprise.Besides isn't he with Icelina already? I remember someone commented about why he wasn't there at the dinner yesterday.
>>5495758Garma doesn't meet Icelina till, like, halfway through the OYW.
>>5495772>“Hoho, that girl still?” Dozle asks loudly, flashing a huge smile, “Young love is a beautiful thing. Garma is quite the charmer, isn't he?”>“Indeed, Dozle. Indeed. I didn’t wish to take him from it, even for this.” Degwin agrees, a small smile stretching across his sagging and wrinkled face.You're right, it was probably someone else. It doesn't specifically say anything about Icelina.
>>5495737>>5495740 (second option)>>5495749>>5495751Writing.
“Come on then, enough talk - We’re here to fence aren’t we?” You ask, crossing your arms, “How about a few rounds, Garma?”“Right to sparring then?” Garma says, a little surprised, “Saber or?...”“Your choice,” You offer, “It’s just a warm up.”“Foil then,” Garma, “It’s what we’ll be using at the academy.” “We’ll switch things up as well.” Casval says, looking to Artesia for confirmation. She nods, moving over to the line of weapons on a nearby wall to retrieve a pair of foils. You and Garma follow along while Casval and Dozle talk on their own.“So you’ve just started fencing recently?” Garma asks your sister, “That was some impressive footwork earlier, very graceful.” “Thanks. Casval and Felix have been trying to drag me into lessons for ages now, but I’ve only really started to try recently.” Artesia says, handing one of the foils to Garma before grabbing two more, “It was after we started piloting.” “You’re pilots too then? I’ve just started lessons recently.” Garma asks with obvious interest.“Nothing quite like it.” You comment, grabbing your own foil before the three of you head back to the pistes, “How far along are you?”“I’ll be doing my first solo flights soon, it’s all still atmospheric work.” Garma replies, brushing back a bit of his purple hair once more.You nod, understanding immediately, “Ah, glider training then. We’ve mostly done vacuum, worker pods and a bit of racing here and there.”“Informally.” Artesia clarifies, “...Or illegally, I suppose, but nobody important minded.”“Illegal racing?” Garma teases, obviously intrigued but keeping things light, “That rule breaking doesn’t extend to fencing too, I hope.”“Depends on when you catch them, Casval and Felix can be very competitive.” Artesia answers with a sly grin, causing Garma’s eyes to glance between you and your brother as you return back to the center of the chamber, “And I’d never be caught doing it of course.”“You almost sound like Viv,” Garma says with a pleasant laugh, “But enough about that, lets fence.” Casval moves from Dozle’s side and accepts one of the foils from Artesia, the two of them heading off to one of the pistes, you and Garma mirroring it on the other as Dozle watches from off to the side.
>>5495915You slide on your mask, a snug fit, and look out through its mesh screen at Garma, just a few paces away. You take up your positions and ready for the bout - It’s clear that Garma’s been well taught, his stance is decent, but if Dozle’s comments were accurate then Garma's not actually all that skilled yet. Foil isn’t your preference, but you’ve still done a fair bit of work with it. Chances are you’re quite a bit better than Garma if he only trains every few weeks - You’ve been at it nearly every day recently. How do you proceed?>Test Garma for a while, get a feeling for where his skill level really is; he might think you’re just toying with him.>Fence normally, just as if you were up against Casval. You’re not here to play with kids gloves on, Degwin told you to help, not to pamper him. >Try to keep up the appearance of competition, no need to wound his pride immediately. You’ll probably need to go easy on him.>Write-in.
>>5495917>Fence normally, just as if you were up against Casval. You’re not here to play with kids gloves on, Degwin told you to help, not to pamper him.No reason to dick around, we'll only wound his pride like that.
>>5495917>Fence normally, just as if you were up against Casval. You’re not here to play with kids gloves on, Degwin told you to help, not to pamper him.
>>5495917>>Fence normally, just as if you were up against Casval. You’re not here to play with kids gloves on, Degwin told you to help, not to pamper him.
>>54959171)>Try to keep up the appearance of competition, no need to wound his pride immediately. You’ll probably need to go easy on him.Let's leave the rivalry for Casval.2)>Fence normally, just as if you were up against Casval. You’re not here to play with kids gloves on, Degwin told you to help, not to pamper him. Still we made a good first impression, this shouldn't make much of a difference. Besides a potential rivalry could always emerge either way with Casval.
>>5495921>>5495923>>5495924>>5495926 (second option)>>5495929>>5495941>>5495942>>5495946Writing.
You eye for Garma for a moment through the slight obscuration of your mask’s mesh, waiting for Dozle to call for the match to begin - There wasn’t a spoken agreement, but your salutes are more than enough for him to intuit his impromptu role.“Allez!” Dozle roars, and immediately you’re in motion.A quick pair of steps carrying you toward Garma. In a blur you thrust forward, the foil like lightning extending from you hand, a flash of wispy thin steel which Garma almost fails to notice in time, a sloppy parry batting it aside. He’s slower than you are, but more importantly his movements are relatively lacking in subtlety. He immediately presses, and you step backward just enough to void his strike, moving clear of his reach before returning with a sudden lunge to meet Garma’s next attack, flicking aside his blade and delivering a clean riposte. You smile inside your mask, the impact and flex of your foil against Garma’s chest unmistakable.Garma mutters something under his breath that you can’t quite hear and the two of you return to your starting positions. Dozle signals once again, and you’re at it……And once again it’s over quite quickly, Garma overcorrecting for his prior aggression and focusing too greatly on defense - Your third attack sneaks in and lands cleanly, the ending of a rapid series of exchanges. And so it goes, five points soon reached and the round coming to an end.“Hold on.” Garma says, removing his mask and exhaling deeply, frustration written across his fair features.You remove your own mask, glancing to Dozle for a moment; he looks disappointed, his huge arms crossed.“How often do you do this, Felix?” Garma asks, his brow furrowed as he tries to make sense of things.“Nearly every day, usually it’s saber. We do foil and epee a few times a week.” You explain, trying not to make too much of a show of things; there’s no reason to be an ass about spending more time at a sport.“...Right, that makes more sense then.” Garma says, nodding in a way that makes you think he’s doing it more to reassure himself than acknowledge any statements on your part, “...Back to it then?”You both don your masks once more, separate, salute, and begin again at Dozle’s call. The second round has a little more of something resembling sport to it, but it would be a lie to call it anything other than an easy win; he’s still overcorrecting, and there are a few issues of technique and speed that only significantly more practice are likely to solve. The third goes much the same, the bout nearly as clean of a win as you’ve ever managed - The first few when you stopped going easy on Artesia were even worse though, it's just a part of the process.
>>5496261“You were doing better at the end, Garma.” You try to encourage him, the two of you conversing after the conclusion of your first bout.“Small comfort,” He says, a hint of that earlier petulance returning, his lips pursing for a moment before something seems to clear within him, “...What was I doing wrong?”“Some of it’s just speed, there’s not much of a remedy for that besides more practice. Keep going and that should fix itself.” You say with a shrug, “But the bigger issue is that you’re overcorrecting, it was like you were fighting for the previous point.”He tilts his head slightly, “I’m overthinking things then?”“No, at least not entirely, you’re just thinking about the wrong things from what I can tell.” You try to explain, finding it a little difficult to come up with the right words, “In this sort of fight you need to be entirely focused on the moment. Nothing in the past, and only a fraction into the future.”“...Perhaps a different opponent, Garma.” Dozle suggests, looking over to Casval and Artesia who are still mid round. Dozle did say something about Garma needing someone closer to his skill level last night, Artesia would be a much, much closer fit.“Maybe you’re right, Dozle. Casval perhaps?” Garma says with a remarkable amount of confidence for a person who just got trounced so thoroughly; he has no idea what he’s signing up for with that choice.>”...Sure.” Garma has sealed his own fate, let him find out on his own.>”How about Artesia instead? You seemed to get along well earlier.” Dozle might have a point. >”You might want to be careful what you wish for, Garma. Dozle, how about a few rounds?” >Write-in.
>>5496265>”You might want to be careful what you wish for, Garma. Dozle, how about a few rounds?”
>>5496265>>”How about Artesia instead? You seemed to get along well earlier.” Dozle might have a point.
>>5496265>”How about Artesia instead? You seemed to get along well earlier.” Dozle might have a point.
>>54962651)>"Are you sure about that? He always beats me when we spar."2)>”...Sure.” Garma has sealed his own fate, let him find out on his own.
All of these options are hilarious. But I'd hate to stop that competitive friendship between Casval and Garma (not like that's going to happen since we just met him).
>>5496265>>5496283Support
>>5496265>>5496283Changing my vote to just:>”...Sure.” Garma has sealed his own fate, let him find out on his own.Felix already introduced himself, time to let Casval have his turn.
>>5496265Actually, changing my vote back to >>5496283It might be wiser to give him a heads up, since the situation is different from Char meeting Garma at the Academy.
>>5496270>>5496285Dozle pill.>>5496273>>5496277Suggest Artesia.>>5496318>>5496319Warn about Casval. (second option to let it happen)Three way tie for now, hopefully there will be a winner by the morning.
>>5496347Meant to have >>5496344 instead of >>5496319 for the third vote split.
>>5496347>Dozle pill.Tempting to vote for that just because you word it that way, but if we go with Dozle then Artesia (arguably the weakest) will be left by herself and that's just sad.
>>5496357I don't think Artesia is going to be that upset if she gets left out for a round or too. Especially if it means she can see us get our ass handed to us.
>>5496369You have a point, but I'd still rather have her train for a bit since she needs it the most out of all of us.That and I feel like the warning we give to Garma in that vote won't be enough to get through to him, and he might get his pride a bit hurt from it more than needed (while that might not be an issue if this was a situation with only Char in the Academy like in canon, the fact that he know who we really are and the fact that we're living with all the Zabi family complicates things).
>>5496265>”You might want to be careful what you wish for, Garma. Dozle, how about a few rounds?”Let Garma fuck around and find out
>>5496265I'll commit to what I said in >>5496392 about Artesia needing the training. Changing my vote to1)>”How about Artesia instead? You seemed to get along well earlier.” Dozle might have a point.2)>"Are you sure about that? He always beats me when we spar."3)>”...Sure.” Garma has sealed his own fate, let him find out on his own.
Wait a minute, if we fight Dozle we might get seriously hurt.As in, not being able to do our daily run tomorrow and miss out on any plotting with our siblings type of hurt.
>>5496401>>5496285>>5496270Anons please reconsider, I don't want this to end up like with Kycilia.We already overestimated Felix's charm with the most clever Zabi (Kycilia), let's not overestimate his strength against the the strongest member of their family.I'm sure he won't try to hurt us on purpose, but even Dozle checking himself (though I doubt he will, especially after we didn't hold back with Garma) will still get us beaten the shit out of, badly. Worst case scenario we're out of commission for the rest of the day and miss out on some relatively important things.If you guys want Garma to spar with Cas, you could always vote for the first choice since me and another anon have it as an alternative option.Casval will probably be fast enough to properly fight Dozle (he should be fast enough I think). So we can still keep our promise in getting Dozle to spar a bit, if that bothers anyone.
>>5496467Oh no, anon, you misunderstand. I want us to get our ass beat. It'll be a good learning experience for Felix, and a good way to endear ourselves to Garma by showing us as not being perfect and therefore more approachable.
>>5496506You want us to potentially spend an entire day out of commission? In what's probably a critical stage in introducing ourselves to the Zabis and finding out more about them? No offense but that's just dumb. We can make it up and be more approachable to Garma eventually, but if we end up unable to do our daily run tomorrow and miss out on something potentially important today I don't think it's worth it.
>>5496509Rereading this, it came out a bit too aggressive. I don't mean to be an asshole, but I just don't want to get Felix to miss something important.Besides, he already knows he's not the best fighter, I mean he's Casval's brother.Though you're right on getting us to be more approachable to Garma, though I feel like the situation could be made worse since he'll probably still spar with Casval and get more frustrated.
>>5496509>You want us to potentially spend an entire day out of commission?You are vastly overestimating Dozle's strength. We're not full-contact boxing him, we're whacking each other with swords. The only way we'd actually get put out of commission is if he full-strength clocks us across the head. The worst that would happen is we get a few new bruises and MAYBE (Big Fucking Maybe) a broken bone or two. Besides, Cas and Artesia are the ones with the intrigue focus, Felix has always been a martial boy.
>>5496515I have to disagree, Felix isn't as powerful as Casval in the martial strength and finesse, he's lost multiple times to him to prove that. I think he realizes that he isn't the best fighter around, and I'm almost certain he knows that he couldn't match up to Dozle in strength and martial knowledge.I feel it's more likely than you think that Dozle will clock us on the head full-power, though he definitely won't do it on purpose but more as a part of his fighting instinct. He is the strongest and most warlike Zabi, we should take note of that.I see Felix as more of a middle ground between Casval and Artesia, not really excelling in what his siblings are more focused in but able to adapt to either.
>>5496519Dozle being "the most warlike Zabi" is why I trust him to not fuck us up too much. He has doubtlessly trained or sparred with many of his underlings and friends, so he absolutely knows how to pace himself to not do any great harm while sparring. Also, lmao at "his fighting instinct". He's a soldier, not a dragonball character.
>>5496515>You are vastly overestimating Dozle's strength.This reminded me too much of my line of thought when voting to seduce Kycilia. Man I still want to punch myself over that one.>>5496524That may be true, but we also went all out with Garma so we shouldn't expect him to take it easy on us.>spoilerkek With the power of the seven Big Zams, Dozle will be unstoppable!
>>5496524The dragonball powers will come after psychoframe sorcery becomes a factor.
>>5496530As a fellow Kycillia compliment voter, I totally agree. I also misread the fuck out of that vote. I thought we were just gonna compliment her, be nice, try to ingratiate ourselves with the Zabis a bit more, but no, Felix couldn't keep his mostly proverbial dick in his pants.
>>5496534Yeah, looking back at it I should've at least tried to make a write-in that basically said "if she doesn't seem affected, pass it off as a joke" or "try to genuinely give an innocent compliment, without any innuendos or ulterior meanings."I trusted his charm way too much, and Felix is too damn horny. But I guess it makes sense since he's still a teenager.On the bright side that whole situation has made him realize that seducing every woman he meets probably won't end well (though I still don't think he needs a similar lesson from Dozle, I believe Felix knows better than to feel like he's strong enough to take on someone like him).
>>54962651)>”How about Artesia instead? You seemed to get along well earlier.” Dozle might have a point.2)>”...Sure.” Garma has sealed his own fate, let him find out on his own.
>>5496530>SpoilerExactly! Think about getting on his good side early and having his ear for cool shit like a wing of Big Zams.>>5496531>Psychoframe Big Zam
>>5496265>>5496347>”You might want to be careful what you wish for, Garma. Dozle, how about a few rounds?”
>>5496270>>5496285>>5496401>>5496679Dozle pill.>>5496273>>5496277>>5496418>>5496605Suggest Artesia.>>5496318Warn about Casval.Of course there's another tie! thank you for voting I'll give it an hour and then roll off between Dozle and Artesia if there isn't a winner.Fixed the previous error, results are still the same I had just messed up on the linking.
>>5496671We're already on his good side, though it looks like we'll be getting the hell beaten out of us by him. He might even be a bit disappointed that we aren't as strong as he thought.But a fleet of Big Zams is the dream.
>>5496706>He might even be a bit disappointed that we aren't as strong as he thought.Only another excuse for us to seek him out more often to train. And why do you think he's going to kick the shit out of us? This is a fencing bout with a foil in full training armor not bareskin blunt sabers.
>>5496708This is going to be a mistake. I mean is it worth taking that risk with a huge guy like Dozle going full strength against someone that probably isn't half as good like Felix? Both Dozle and Felix probably know this already too.>not bareskin blunt sabers.Hopefully he doesn't say he wants to use them lmao (though I could see him offering it at least)
>>5496713>This is going to be a mistake.Nah, it'll be fine. Fencing is an extremely safe sport.>Is it worth taking that risk with a huge guy like Dozle going full strengthWe're not beating on each other with metal sticks at full strength, foils are extremely light and flexible swords designed to bend so people don't get hurt and are predominately used for thrusts. Dozle could strike Felix full strength and the worst that would happen when in training gear is a nice thin bruise.>Hopefully he doesn't say he wants to use them lmaoIf he does I don't think I can stop myself from voting yes. It'd be stupid and dangerous but man do I want to see it.
>>5496722>If he does I don't think I can stop myself from voting yes. It'd be stupid and dangerous but man do I want to see it.I don't think you get it but we're in the Zabi mansion, we can't afford to have ourselves be hurt while shit is happening. We need to be there to at least witness things going on, and be physically prepared for anything that might come up.Not just that but I bet we're still not at full strength from getting kidnapped by that Zaku prototype. I feel like this will be less cool than you think.
>>5496722Also you're underestimating how strong Dozle is compared to us.
>>5496729>>5496731We won't break any bones fencing with a foil, and fencing sabers are still very light and safe. We won't be 'put out of commission' by sparring with Dozle, a far more experienced fencer who know precisely how not to do that, in full training gear.>Also you're underestimating how strong Dozle is compared to us.No I think you're overestimating Dozle's desire to outright harm us. He's not the smartest of his family but he's not retarded. He's also probably the most martially competent member of the Zabi's so I expect him to do more than just hit us at 100% with every strike like some sort of gorilla. You do know this is training right? Not a deathmatch?
>>5496736Dozle doesn't want to harm us, but he won't go easy on us either. He'll probably spar with us just like he'd spar with his best men. I don't believe we can handle that, at least not yet. Casval might be able to, but not us.I hope you're right about not being put out of commission, but I still think it's very likely we won't be able to do our daily run tomorrow (and plot with our siblings) if we spar with Dozle.
>>5496743I understand the concern, but I think it's a reasonable risk.>won't be able to do our daily run tomorrow.You're in luck! Silver lining, even if we do get our ass handed to us, is that foil strike zones are only center mass (no arm, head, or leg strikes.)
Rolled 1 (1d2)>>5496702Alright, rolling it off. Dozle 1, Artesia 2.
>>5496748That's good to hear at least. But I still think it's a mistake, especially since Garma will probably have his pride hurt again from sparring with Casval.
Don't tell me I didn't warn you.
>>5496750Pog, Lets get that big loveable Lug.
>>5496765>pog
>>5496770I'M BEHIND 300 ZAKU'S. Get fucked DOM fag
>>5496774based
I just realized something. Having Artesia spar with Garma could've been the start of fostering that crush on Garma's part. It has it's downsides, but man that could've been useful.Well, there'll probably be more chances for that stuff eventually if we plan to go down that route.
“You might want to be careful what you wish for, Garma.” You warn jokingly, already knowing how that particular bout is going to end, “Dozle, how about a few rounds?”“...He’s better than you, isn’t he?” Garma asks before Dozle can respond, “Well, I won’t go down without a fight.” “Hoho, that’s the spirit, Garma.” Dozle rumbles in encouragement, balling one his huge fists, “And a bout sounds excellent, Felix.”“Good luck.” You say to Garma as he moves over toward Casval and Artesia, the two of them just finishing their own match - You’d watch, but there are bigger matters to be dealt with for now, “Foil still, Dozle?”“Yes.” Dozle confirms, retrieving his own which looks almost comically small in his gigantic hand, “I prefer saber, but it’s not taught at the academy.” “Perhaps it could be?” You suggest, far more comfortable with it as a sport, but Dozle is already shaking his head. “I control the academy, not time. Preparations for next year have already been made.” Dozle says in disappointment, “Budgets and such are set, boring but important to keep things.” You sigh, disappointed but not all that surprised, though you suspect if he really wanted to the change could be made anyways, Zabis being as they are, “Mm, I guess that makes sense. …You don’t think I went too hard on Garma, do you?” Dozle glances towards his younger brother for a moment, confirming that he’s already distracted by conversation with Casval and Artesia before speaking, “No, not at all, it was still closer to his skill level. You realize I’ll have to win back the honor of our family now?”“...Of course, I should have seen that coming.” You say with a chuckle, “Alright, let’s get to it then.”Thankfully this is foil, if you were doing any sort of unarmed sparring the idea of going up against Dozle would be genuinely frightening; here he just has a big advantage in reach, and probably experience, but that’s offset by his chest being a rather large target.You and Dozle don your masks and move to your positions on the piste. “I’ll call both!” Artesia offers, and you look over to see Casval and Garma readying themselves for their own bout on the other piste.You give her a nod and turn back to Dozle, and the two of you exchange mutual salutes and then ready yourselves to fight. There’s a moment of stillness, a second or so of contemplating the match to come, and you look out through the mesh of your mask and try to take in the details of Dozle’s stance - He’s clearly well trained and practiced, and you’ve never been up against anyone nearly that tall. Reach is going to be a serious problem.“Allez!” Artesia shouts, and the two matches begin. >Press the attack! It’s risky, but getting within his reach is crucial.>Remain defensive for now, get a feel for his skill level, maybe an opportunity will present itself.>Write-in.
>>5496812>Press the attack! It’s risky, but getting within his reach is crucial.I think his skill level can be summed up as 'better than us.' Being overly aggressive might throw him off a bit and let us get in a point.
>>5496812>Remain defensive for now, get a feel for his skill level, maybe an opportunity will present itself.We'll lose either way, let's just try not to get hurt too badly.Dozle isn't pulling any punches by what he said.
>>5496812>>Remain defensive for now, get a feel for his skill level, maybe an opportunity will present itself.
>>5496815It won't. He's too good at this sort of thing, he'll be prepared for it.Trying to throw him off at his own game will go badly.
>>5496812>Press the attack! It’s risky, but getting within his reach is crucial.Defending gives us no particular advantage and lets him build up momentum.
>>5496820He'll get momentum either way. We need to know more first about how he spars, it's our only chance to actually put up a fight (or more likely just lose with some dignity).
>>5496812>Press the attack! It’s risky, but getting within his reach is crucial.
>>5496812>Press the attack! It’s risky, but getting within his reach is crucial.He has Reach, and size over us. We literally need to get in and under his guard to do anything. Be the speedy bee
>>5496850That would be Casval, not us. We aren't as fast as Casval to pull this off.
>>5496852That doesn't change a thing, You still need to get under and in his guard. Otherwise it won't even be an ATTEMPT at winning.
>>5496858Yes it does, Felix isn't as good as Casval in any form of physical fight, especially one that puts an emphasis on speed. Dozle will see any attack we immediately go for. He's sparred many times before, and will be able to counter it easily. We don't even have a read on what his attacking style is, like if he specializes in countering reckless students for example.We can always get under his guard later, but right now it's possible we might lose badly from just going all in.Besides we shouldn't try so hard we actually get hurt from it. This is a spar, and Dozle won't hold back in trying to beat us at after his whole 'for Zabi honor' line.
>>5496815>>5496820>>5496833>>5496850Writing.
You surge forward, a quick pair of steps moving you within distance of Dozle, the huge man easily moving backward to compensate. Dozle attacks, and you recognize the feint in time and parry, follow through with a riposte, straining to get close enough, a counter parry and riposte by Dozle forcing you to hastily abort. Dozle presses, meeting aggression with aggression, but you try to stay on the offensive - There’s a lightning fast exchange, years of practice lending an unexpected speed to the huge man, though not as quick as Casval, and your heart sinks as you feel the push of his foil’s point against your chest, your own striking his arm. A point for Dozle, nothing for you - Getting past he reach is still crucial though, there’s no way around that, but with those huge arms of his it’s more difficult that you expected to get an on target hit. You reset and continue at Artesia’s call.A touch of luck carries you through this time, an extremely aggressive lunge bringing you past Dozle’s guard and managing to land a hit to his… Actually you’re not sure if that was on target, it was very near the edge of his sleeve, a very close thing. “A hit.” Dozle rumbles from behind his mask, ever the sportsman, and you reset and continue with the round. A point for each of you, and a tight opening to the bout. The rest of the round isn’t nearly so much in your favor, Dozle landing hit after hit - He’s taken your measure as a fighter now, and between his reach and years of experience there’s only so much you can do. …Truth be told he’s not quite as good as Casval at many things, but that probably has more to do with a lack of time to practice than any lack of aptitude, and his reach makes him a menace - For such a mountain of a man he’s very light on his feet, and you almost shudder at the thought of facing him in a fight were her could meaningfully leverage his immense strength. As your first round concludes you stop briefly to observe Casval and Garma, already well into their second round - It’s going about as badly as you’d expected for Garma, but to his credit he’s sticking with it. Still, you can’t help but notice Artesia wincing every time your brother lands a hit, he’s really handing Garma his ass. You refrain from commenting mid round, and return to your own match with Dozle.…A match which you already suspect can’t be won, but there’s still some hope at least. “Allez!” Artesia calls once more, and you carry on your aggressive streak. The first two points are Dozle’s, wispy thin blades meeting in a string of attacks and parries, footwork carrying you both forward and back across the piste.
>>5496923Dozle’s the better fencer, but slowly you begin to get a sense of him and find it easier to slip past his guard, snagging another point, and then another. It’s almost as if Dozle is moving more slowly, submerged in unseen water and struggling to push through, a great shadow spreading out behind him and revealing his moves even before he makes them. The peculiar flashes of awareness clue you into Dozle’s intentions the tiniest fraction of a second before he acts, his emotions almost palpable in the air, nearly oppressive in their intensity, and this gives you just enough of an edge to bring you back into something resembling competition. You’re not going to win, but it won’t be an embarrassment. …It’s still going to be a handy win for Dozle though. The second round comes and goes, as does the third, Dozle comfortably in the lead as he lands the final touch of the match. You separate and salute, and then remove your masks; Dozle has a big dumb grin spread across his scarred face, and he lets out a tremendously deep laugh. “That was a great match, Felix!” Dozle thunders, stomping over toward you, “What a third round!”“Nearly turned it around on you,” You say, stopping to catch your breath, “Very well fought, Dozle.”“I haven’t had a match like that in ages.” Dozle declares happily, though his attention is soon directed elsewhere, “Casval, how about one?”“Of course.” You brother agrees, stepping away from Garma, the two of them having been observing the end of your match with Dozle. You more or less trade places with him, standing near Artesia and Garma as the two best fencers in the hall get ready to face off.“Great work there, Felix.” Garma says, though you can already tell he’s a bit mopey, arms crossed and brow furrowed slightly, “It’s nice to see a match that isn’t a lockout.”“You did really well, Garma.” Artesia says quietly, giving the young Zabi a sympathetic look, “Casval beats everyone, I think I’ve only ever seen Felix win against him once.”Artesia’s words seem to buoy Garma a bit, “...Thanks. So you put up with them like this all the time?”“Mhm.” Artesia confirms, “Isn’t that right, Felix?”“If you mean we don’t hold back, then yes.” You say with a shrug, a strange noise of squeaking metal drawing your attention to the hall’s door briefly, “...After she got a handle on the basics we stopped with any of that.” “How about a match, Garma?” Artesia asks, flicking him playfully with her foil and turning his cheeks a bit red again, “Felix, you don’t mind taking a break, do you?”>”A match? And miss Casval and Dozle? Come on, wait a few minutes. This is going to be a show.” >”Not at all, I’ll call the match. I could use a break anyways.”>”...Was somebody just at the door?”>Write-in.
>>5496927>1)”...Was somebody just at the door?”>2)”Not at all, I’ll call the match. I could use a break anyways.”As long as that door option isn't Felix looking for a way out.
I'm glad to see that I was wrong on most of the things I said.>>54969271)>”Not at all, I’ll call the match. I could use a break anyways.”2)>”Not at all, I’ll call the match. I could use a break anyways.”>”...Was somebody just at the door?”This should be fun. Besides, we're already exhausted from going with the big guy himself. It's probably Vivima at the door, isn't it?
>>5496933>SpoilerThat's what I'm thinking. I'd be interested if we can get her in on this.
>>5496935Yeah, it sounds like fun.>>5496931>As long as that door option isn't Felix looking for a way out.I was worried it might be that, which is why I combined the two votes for the second option.
>>5496938>the second option.*my second option
>>5496927>”...Was somebody just at the door?”>”Not at all, I’ll call the match. I could use a break anyways.”
Obviously we'd need to watch ourselves around Vivima, since she's likely to report anything we do to Kycilia, but getting a good read on her character is important (and it's unlikely she'll try to do anything bad since Garma and Dozle are around).
>>5496947And there's a chance she'll talk to Gihren about us too sometime, so there's that to worry about.This is all implying it's her to begin with. For all we know it might be Glemy or Mink (though I still think it's more likely to be Vivi).
>>5496927>1)”...Was somebody just at the door?”>2)”Not at all, I’ll call the match. I could use a break anyways.”[Perception] engaged
>>5496955>>5496943>>5496933Writing.
“Not at all, I’ll call the match. I could use a break anyways.” You say, glad to have some time to breathe but already finding your attention drawn back to the door, “...Was somebody just at the door?”“I didn’t hear anything.” Garma says dismissively, “It was probably just one of the servants cleaning.” “I didn’t hear anything either.” Artesia says, idly brushing back her hair, her focus almost entirely on Garma.“...I’m going to check.” You say, unsatisfied. It’s more your vision rather than your hearing, but you’ve always been more perceptive than most people, and you know someone was just there. Garma and Artesia busy themselves getting their masks back on and moving into position as you stride across the wooden floor of the chamber, quickly reaching the hand carved door and opening it. Other than the lavish decorations there’s nothing to be seen, the hallways outside is empty. You stick your head out a bit further to get a better look around, a few of the half recessed pillars blocking your sight...“Heya!” A young sounding voice calls out to your right, and you look down to see a blond haired boy of perhaps five years old staring up at you. His bright blue eyes meet your own, an innocent grin spread across his face, “...May we come in?”Huh, polite kid, though you’re not sure what he means by ‘we’. You start to say something before a finger taps you on the shoulder, startling you just slightly. You turn around to find yourself face to face with a girl of nearly your own height, her violet eyes searching over your from head to toe, taking your measure, a mischievous smirk spread across her face; Vivima Zabi.“Hello, Felix.” She almost coos, leaning against the wall pillar she must’ve been hiding behind a moment ago, her voice clear and pretty, “I’ve been looking forward to meeting you for years.”She’s wearing a dark leather pilot’s jacket and a black blouse, tight pants and black boots completing the almost classic look of a teenage delinquent. Though her features are familiar from portraits around the palace, her shoulder length feathered hair is darker than you expected, but still unmistakably similar Garma’s, and she wears little to no makeup. She smells faintly of flowers… but you’re not quite sure what kind.You blink, unsure of how to respond for a moment, and Glemy slips past your legs and into the fencing hall, shouting a greeting to Garma - But you’re hardly focused on that right now. You’re not abandoning calling their match, but it can wait for a few seconds at least, you didn't expect this.>”I’m sure you have, Vivima. The others are inside... Do you fence?” Don’t let her rattle you. >”...Hello, Vivima.” Let her play her game for a bit.>”Cute, but you’ll have to try harder than that, Vivima. Half expected we’d need to hunt you down to the simulator to finally meet.” Return fire! >Write-in.
>>5497033>”I’m sure you have, Vivima. The others are inside... Do you fence?” Don’t let her rattle you. Nope, let's not engage. Especially not with Garma and Dozle just around the corner.Besides, didn't we literally say we wouldn't try risky seduction earlier?
>>5497033>>”I’m sure you have, Vivima. The others are inside... Do you fence?” Don’t let her rattle you.The others are still waiting for us to call the matches
>>5497033>”Cute, but you’ll have to try harder than that, Vivima. Half expected we’d need to hunt you down to the simulator to finally meet.” Return fire!
>>5497033>"It's great to finally meet you as well Vivima.">"Come in, I'm about to call a fencing match between Artesia and Garma, and Dozle and Casval are about to have one as well. I'm sure your brothers would love if you watched."
>>5497033>”I’m sure you have, Vivima. The others are inside... Do you fence?” Don’t let her rattle you.
>>5497046And this is to be polite, not flirt.I feel I have to specify, given how previous votes ended up.
>>5497048You don't understand we MUST flirt with every woman we come across.
>>5497050I have a strong desire too but the line 'I've been looking forward to meeting you for years.' Is an even bigger red flag than the conversation with Kycilia. I think we should be polite and partially ignore her attempts at us. She seems super competitive so it might drive her up the wall better than just outright flirting.
>>5497033>"I'm sure you have, Vivima. The others are inside... Do you fence?" Don't let her rattle you.Fool me once...
>>5497052Damn you, you make a valid point But I must stay the course.
>>5497052I think Kycilia told her to flirt with us, because of what happened at dinner.
>>5497033>>”I’m sure you have, Vivima. The others are inside... Do you fence?” Don’t let her rattle you.
>>5497063Absolutely, and that's dangerous. Kycilia will absolutely use Viv against us if she thinks she can. If we make Vivima come to us on her own volition then that's a different story.>>5497062I understand, anon, do what you must.
>>5497033"You were looking forward to meeting me for years? Forgive me if I find that hard to believe, especially when your brother told me he thought us Deikuns were gone for good from what talks he heard. Anyway, I have a match to call. Perhaps you'd like to join us?"No flirting, play it cool but keep it friendly. That line left me curious as to whether she's been keeping tabs on us with Kycillia, they were keeping Garma pretty out of the loop until recently or if this is just bait for teasing. Hopefully she'll bite.
>>5497074>Vivima come to us on her own volition then that's a different story.That's pretty hopeful, especially considering that she was almost assassinated by a terrorist group funded by Jimba. Getting us and our siblings out of the picture is probably very important to her. Unless you're talking about us following her somewhere physically, in which case I agree. >>5497084This looks like a fun write-in. I'd put my vote on it if it gets more support.
>>5497035>>5497037>>5497047>>5497060>>5497064>>5497070Don't play along, invite her in.>>5497044Engage!>>5497046Polite greeting+invitation.>>5497084Call her out and then invite her in.Clear winner here, I'll get to writing in a couple of hours probably.
“I’m sure you have, Vivima.” You say in an even tone while meeting her gaze, spotting that some sort of game is clearly afoot, not that she took much effort to conceal it, “The other’s are inside… Do you fence?”Her smirk shrinks somewhat, violet eyes narrowing, “Of course, but I’m not here to play with swords today.”“You’re welcome to join us anyways,” You reply, motioning lightly with one hand into the fencing chamber, “I was just about to call a match for Artesia and Garma.” Vivima laughs at your offer, the sound sweet and clear as she strides past you confidently, turning slightly to look back to you as she moves to the small set of stands on the far side, “Of course I’m welcome, it’s our home - You’re welcome to stay.”“...Your family has been very hospitable.” You say politely, keeping an even tone and shutting the door behind you as you follow Vivima in; she has a pilot’s walk, light and easy, and she surveys the room quickly.Garma and Artesia are still standing on their piste, but they’re removed their masks once more. Artesia is crouching down near Glemy, speaking to the obviously excited young boy. “Viv, these are the Deikuns,” Garma explains, a flash of surprise crossing his face, “Artesia and Felix, and over there-”“Is Casval, yes.” Vivima cuts her brother off, addressing the room as a whole, “It’s a pleasure to meet all of you of course.”“The pleasure is ours.” Casval replies with his usual charm, “Will you be joining us, Vivima?”“Only to watch.” She answers, taking a seat at the stands and crossing her legs, hands resting to either side, one of them lightly patting a spot next to her, “But do carry on, these matches look thrilling. Glemy, come over here, I’ll explain anything you don’t understand.”“Are you sure, little sister?” Dozle rumbles from within his mask, “The academy isn’t far off for you, practicing would be wise.” “Glemy has never seen a match before,” Vivima says, her voice softening a touch, “Please, Dozle, he doesn’t get these chances often enough.”“...Of course.” Dozle replies gently, his mask bobbing slightly as he nods, though you still pick up a hint of… reluctance? Artesia ruffles Glemy’s hair just a little and says something quietly to him, and the boy smiles as he runs off to sit next to Vivima, climbing up onto the stand and leaving his shoes dangling in the air a little ways up from the ground.
>>5497385“...Everyone ready?” You question, having stopped between the two pistes for a moment. Garma and Artesia quickly don their masks once again and separate, and a few moments later both sets of fencers deliver their salutes.“Allez!” You call out, and in a jolt both matches begin, steel meeting steel \mere moments later.“No need to stand there alone, Felix.” Vivima teases, motioning to the empty spot on her side opposite of Glemy, “I’m sure you can muster the voice needed to call out my brother’s wins from here. I’d like to talk.” >”Talk can wait for a few more minutes.” Focus on your informal duties. Vivima isn’t actually wrong, you’re already far from following a strict ruleset, but you can do your job a bit better here.>”Sure, we can talk.” Join her, stay on guard.>”You shouldn’t place bets blindly, I think you’ll be surprised.” Join her. She’s baiting you, but a bit of friendly competition is hardly a bad thing.>Write-in.
>>5497386>”Sure, we can talk.” Join her, stay on guard.Her coming here with Glemy is pretty good proof that she's Gihren's spy, not Kycillia's. Its more likely that Kycillia is going to try to use Garma (or even Dozle) against us.
>>5497386 >”Talk can wait for a few more minutes.” Focus on your informal duties. Vivima isn’t actually wrong, you’re already far from following a strict ruleset, but you can do your job a bit better here.We said we'd call their match, getting too distracted might be frustrating to Garma.>>5497390You make a good point, but I'm still convinced that she's with Kycilia more than Gihren.Though I suppose the correct answer is that she wants Gihren and Kycilia to get along better and is willing to go do what it takes for it.
>>5497392Another point to put Vivi into Gihren's camp is the terrorist attach Jimba funded. QM did say something along the lines of "the attack caused Gihren and Vivima to grow closer". You gotta remember, Kycillia may run the Official Zeon intelligence agency, but Gihren is craftier.
>>5497397We should look out for both of them. Dozle and Mink did say that she liked to hang around Kycilia, and it's pretty obvious that she got the idea to seduce us from her as well. Dozle spoke about how she listened to Gihren more than him.So that's why I feel like she's on both the side of Kycilia and Gihren, probably trying to act more like Kycilia while simultaneously listening to Gihrens wishes.Most of this is just speculation, but either way Vivi is bad news.
>>5497386>”Talk can wait for a few more minutes.” Focus on your informal duties. Vivima isn’t actually wrong, you’re already far from following a strict ruleset, but you can do your job a bit better here.>>5497405Ultimately I don't think it really matters which sibling she's working with. She's going to be dangerous, or at least try to be.
>>5497406>Ultimately I don't think it really matters which sibling she's working with. She's going to be dangerous, or at least try to be.Agreed. She'll probably do anything she thinks might hinder us, or at least try to trip us up if she finds the chance.Though maybe she'll try to do something subtler, taking after the more conniving members of her family.I guess we'll find out eventually one way or another.
>>5497417>I guess we'll find out eventually one way or another.And that's when we hit her with the uno reverse card and mind break her with our newtype powers.
>>5497386>”You shouldn’t place bets blindly, I think you’ll be surprised.” Join her. She’s baiting you, but a bit of friendly competition is hardly a bad thing
>>5497426lmao, we'll get the whole family to mass brainwash her.
>>5497437*we'll mass brainwash her whole familyFuck I meant to say that. This is what I get for sleeping less than 5 hours today.
>>5497442naw I'm liking your first suggestion better. No better way to bond with your family than a group mindbreak session.
>>5497455Fair enough, hope mom gets some cool newtype ability to join in on the fun.
While it's tempting to see what she has to say, and I almost want to change my vote for that reason, I hope that by ignoring her for a bit we'll make her angry enough to want to spar with us. After which we can start a sort of early Garma-Char relationship with her, and maybe we can break through to her that way. Probably just me being optimistic.That and I still hold to my reasoning that it might frustrate Garma if Felix is distracted.
>>5497386>"That's quite greedy, Miss Vivima, didn't you say you'd explain the sport to a first time viewer? Your family speaks of your many talents, and while I'm sure you can keep track of both young Glimy and I's conversations, I'd say you'd need to sprout another mouth as to make that balancing act not diminish the whole interaction. Glimy's education on fencing wouldn't benefit from a tutor splitting their attention, at the very least.">>”Talk can wait for a few more minutes.” Focus on your informal duties.
>>5497386>”Talk can wait for a few more minutes.” Focus on your informal duties. Vivima isn’t actually wrong, you’re already far from following a strict ruleset, but you can do your job a bit better here.Focus.
>>5497386>”Talk can wait for a few more minutes.” Focus on your informal duties. Vivima isn’t actually wrong, you’re already far from following a strict ruleset, but you can do your job a bit better here.
>>5497386>”Sure, we can talk.” Join her, stay on guard.
>>5497392>>5497406>>5497741>>5497804Finally back and writing.
“Talk can wait for a few more minutes.” You reply, keeping your attention focused on the match, looking back just in time to catch Garma landing a touch on Artesia - They really do seem to be much closer in skill level. You call out for them to begin again once they’ve repositioned.“Suit yourself.” Vivima says with a relaxed shrug, leaning over to Glemy and speaking in a lower voice as she points to the match between Dozle and Casval. Vivima and Glemy look close, and honestly it's rather wholesome; the young boy's face lights up as he watches the fights.Dozle and Casval of them are almost flowing back and forth across the piste, the slender blades of their foils difficult to track as they meet again and again, each searching for an opening in the others defenses with every attack and counter. Casval is on the offensive, pressing his advantage in speed but clearly coming up against the same issue of reach that you did earlier - These days you’re just about the same height and Dozle absolutely dwarfs either of you. Eventually there’s a slip, the slightest mistake, and…Dozle scores a touch on Casval. You furrow your brow at the result, some part of you hoping your brother will best the huge man in their match. After a moment to reset you call for them to begin again, and look back to the other match.And so it goes, point by point, round by round, both of the matches surprisingly tight; Garma is slightly in the lead over Artesia, and Casval is tied with Dozle - Both matches could go either way. In a final round of furious exchanges Casval manages to barely scrape out a win by a single point, and Artesia loses by two to Garma. Very close all things considered, and if they had rematches it could easily go the other way. “That was a match!” Dozle roars as soon as he and Casval have saluted, removing his mask in one huge hand and stomping over toward your brother to congratulate him on his performance, “We’ll have to go again!”“A few more at least,” Casval agrees with a bit of genuine enthusiasm, his competitive spirit clearly shining through, “I’ll have you by two next time.” “Hoho, you’ll be crushed!” Dozles rumbles, “I have not yet begun to fight!”
>>5498443You leave the two of them to their boasting, glad to see the plan coming along well on that front at least. Garma and Artesia on the other hand are… Doing even better? “You fence excellently,” Garma compliments, brushing aside a bit of his purple hair, “You must dance as well, don’t you?”“I’ve never had much time for it... But I’ve done a little here and there.” Artesia replies, tilting her head a touch, “Why?” “It’s how you moved, you have a natural grace.” Garma says, really laying it on, “Would you like to practice together sometime?”“Another match would…” Artesia trails off, her blue eyes widening slightly, “Oh, I… You mean dancing, don’t you?”“We’re not wanting for rooms for it. What do you say?” Garma says charmingly, flashing a smile; he’s not wrong of course, you’ve seen… three ballrooms in the palace? It’s rather excessive.“So I’ve seen.” Artesia says with a little laugh, “...I think I’d like that, Garma. How about another match for now though?” A confusing mix of feelings swells up within you as you see the two of them getting along so… naturally. Garma doesn’t quite seem to be Artesia’s type, but it’s difficult to deny that he has a certain charisma to him, his occasionally somewhat petty comments aside, and he’s fairly handsome… It’s something to discuss with Artesia later at least. You push aside your protective instincts for now, trusting your sister to be able to handle the situation without causing any problems…And speaking of problems, Vivima is eyeing you from the stands, a mischievous little smirk spread across her face once again as she calls out to her brother, “Garma, can you spar without calls for awhile?”“What?” Garma asks, taking a moment to get his wits about him and look away from Artesia, “Oh, of course we can, Viv. No problem!”“We’ll be fine as well.” Casval calls out, shooting you a look and nodding slightly toward Vivima, signaling his support.…Perhaps keeping all of the present Zabis engaged is for the best. Maybe she’ll change her mind about fencing? Regardless, it’s best to be careful. She’s supposedly close to the truly dangerous Zabis, even if she is the youngest.>”What was that you were saying about both brothers winning? Looks like we’re one for one.” Join Vivima for a while but try to keep the conversation on fencing, maybe you can coax her into a match.>”...Nice jacket. You’re a pilot too, right?” Screw fencing, you know what she’s actually interested in.>”So you’ve been looking forward to this for years, was it?” See just how much she’ll reveal on her own.>Write-in.
>>5498444>>”...Nice jacket. You’re a pilot too, right?” Screw fencing, you know what she’s actually interested in.
>>5498444>”...Nice jacket. You’re a pilot too, right?” Screw fencing, you know what she’s actually interested in.>Dozle impressed by Casval>Garma has the hots for ArtesiaLooks like it's up to Felix to deal with the last real Zabi in the room
>>5498444>>”...Nice jacket. You’re a pilot too, right?” Screw fencing, you know what she’s actually interested in.And what Felix is interested as well.
>>54984441)>”What was that you were saying about both brothers winning? Looks like we’re one for one.” Join Vivima for a while but try to keep the conversation on fencing, maybe you can coax her into a match.2)>”What was that you were saying about both brothers winning? Looks like we’re one for one.” Join Vivima for a while but try to keep the conversation on fencing, maybe you can coax her into a match.>”...Nice jacket. You’re a pilot too, right?” Screw fencing, you know what she’s actually interested in.
>>5498444>”What was that you were saying about both brothers winning? Looks like we’re one for one.” Join Vivima for a while but try to keep the conversation on fencing, maybe you can coax her into a match.>”...Nice jacket. You’re a pilot too, right?” Screw fencing, you know what she’s actually interested in.
>>5498444>”...Nice jacket. You’re a pilot too, right?” Screw fencing, you know what she’s actually interested in.
>>5498444>>5498451Wait, changing my vote to1)>”...Nice jacket. You’re a pilot too, right?” Screw fencing, you know what she’s actually interested in.>”So you’ve been looking forward to this for years, was it?” See just how much she’ll reveal on her own.2)>”What was that you were saying about both brothers winning? Looks like we’re one for one.” Join Vivima for a while but try to keep the conversation on fencing, maybe you can coax her into a match.>”So you’ve been looking forward to this for years, was it?” See just how much she’ll reveal on her own.3)>”What was that you were saying about both brothers winning? Looks like we’re one for one.” Join Vivima for a while but try to keep the conversation on fencing, maybe you can coax her into a match.>”...Nice jacket. You’re a pilot too, right?” Screw fencing, you know what she’s actually interested in.4)>”What was that you were saying about both brothers winning? Looks like we’re one for one.” Join Vivima for a while but try to keep the conversation on fencing, maybe you can coax her into a match.It might be smarter to get Vivima to talk about something she likes and then see what she might reveal after she feels comfortable.
>>5498446>>5498448>>5498449>>5498455>>5498466Writing.
You walk on over to the stands and sit next to Vivima, striking up conversation quickly, “...Nice jacket. You’re a pilot too, right?”“Oh, right to the good stuff then?” Vivima says, arching an eyebrow, “And here I was hoping for a bit of foreplay. I’m not a pilot, I’m a great pilot.”Classic Zabi arrogance, great.“She’s really good!” Glemy confirms happily, tugging at her arm, “We went in a pod and spun and spun, and the robot went bang and-”“We did have fun, didn’t we? I got the other suit, just like this!” Vivima says, tousling the boy’s blond hair just as Artesia did just a few minutes ago - Glemy squirms a bit under Vivima’s hand, closing his eyes and trying to pull away as she messes with him.“Stop it!” He protests weakly, already laughing before she pulls her slender hand back, “I’m not a robot!” “Took a spin in the simulator together? Sounds like fun.” You question, taken a bit off guard by the… cuteness of their interaction. They get along well. Vivima’s more suggestive language toward you is obviously flying right over the boy’s head, he’s way too young to understand any of this really.“Mhm!” Glemy says, nodding his head a bit too much and making a little mock punch, “She hit the green one’s head off! Pow!” The sound of quick footsteps and clinking steel signals the start of at least one of the matches, and you look over to see Dozle and Casval already going at it again.“You haven’t truly flown until you’ve been behind the controls of a mobile suit.” Vivima states matter-of-factly, “But you must already know that, don’t you? Fighting a mobile suit in worker ball, I wish was there for that."“...Heard about that, huh?” You ask, feeling a little surge of pride, “The cockpits are a bit cramped for two, but they really are works of art.”Vivima nods, smirking again, “They are. Did you know they have internal cameras?”“No, I didn’t.” You answer, unsure of where exactly she’s going with this but not liking that mischievous glint in her eye.“Alright, then how about this - The Zam already sent all of its footage off for my sister’s little underlings to pick over.” Vivima says, working you through the facts until a terrible realization begins to take hold of you, “Including the cockpit recordings. That was quite the tight fit in there with the lieutenant, wasn’t it?”“Well, it was either that or suffoc-” You start to say, cheeks heating slightly at the memory of the flight with Blanche. It was just a few days ago, and your recollection is quite sharp.Vivima rolls her eyes, clearly amused, “Pfff, please. You passed on riding in the hand, you had options.” “My helmet was cracked.” You defend, which is true enough but even to your ears doesn’t sound all that convincing, and so you quickly try to push the conversation elsewhere, “...So what got you into flying?”
>>5498755“Subtle transition.” She chides, but mercifully doesn’t linger on the topic any longer, “I’ve just always loved space, it’s as simple as that. First trip to Luna and I got hooked by the view, and when Dozle was showing off mobile suits for the first time I knew I needed more.” …Not an entirely unfamiliar story. In fact it’s a very familiar story.“Get to see secret prototypes often?” You joke, only to be surprised by an immediate nod in the affirmative - Of course she does. Zabis.“I get to see all sorts of secrets, and make more,” She teases in a way that reminds you concerningly of Kycilia, “Sometimes I even share them.” “She likes to dress-” Glemy starts to share some morsel of information before immediately getting cut off, Vivima’s eyes widening as she spins to stop him.“And that’s enough of that, Glemy.” Vivima scolds softly, “Remember our promise?”“...Sorry, Vivi.” Glemy answers with a dejected little nod, but she pulls him into a quick little hug and that seems to get him over the worst of it.“It’s okay, Glemy. No harm done.” She reassures him, directing her attention back to you a moment later, “Sorry about that, little brother comes first, even if he’s got a bit of a mouth on him. ...Where were we?”>“Loving space, I think. I had a similar realization when we left years ago, we had to sneak out in a cargo ship and there were these little portholes in the bay…” How about giving genuine conversation a chance?>”...He’s your brother?” Wow, she’s just dropping information like crazy. That can’t go unaddressed.>”Prototypes, I think. I’ll bite. What can you talk about?” It’s such obvious bait, but… but you must know! >Write-in.
>>5498757>“Loving space, I think. I had a similar realization when we left years ago, we had to sneak out in a cargo ship and there were these little portholes in the bay…” How about giving genuine conversation a chance?I can't think of anything this line of conversation might divulge that we wouldn't want her to know, and being genuinely friendly with people is a pretty easy way to catch them off guard.
>>5498757>“Loving space, I think. I had a similar realization when we left years ago, we had to sneak out in a cargo ship and there were these little portholes in the bay…” How about giving genuine conversation a chance?Glemy is legitimate?!? Good to know.
>>5498757>“Loving space, I think. I had a similar realization when we left years ago, we had to sneak out in a cargo ship and there were these little portholes in the bay…” How about giving genuine conversation a chance?Felix should be smart enough (especially after many years of paranoia and watching out for spies) to not say anything that'll raise suspicion or put us and our family at a disadvantage somehow.Probably best if we don't tell her that she slipped up a bit about Glemy. Give her the illusion that she's doing a good job.We should definitely tell Cas and Artesia about all the stuff we've learned from her tomorrow while running, and how she's trying so hard to seduce us lmao>“She likes to dress-”I'm genuinely curious about that one.
>>5498770>our family at a disadvantage somehow.Also Ramba and Hamon too. I'm really hope Felix won't say anything that'll incriminate them further. Though if things went like they did in Origins then at least Kycilia knows about what they both did to smuggle us to earth.
>>5498757>“Loving space, I think. I had a similar realization when we left years ago, we had to sneak out in a cargo ship and there were these little portholes in the bay…” How about giving genuine conversation a chance?We should make a dig at her over Glemy's "dress" comment. Whatever he was going to say was probably something to do with Gihren's plans, but we should try and play dumb about it like poking at her for "walking around the manor in her pilot suit", or something like that.
>>5498782>We should make a dig at her over Glemy's "dress" comment. Whatever he was going to say was probably something to do with Gihren's plans, but we should try and play dumb about it like poking at her for "walking around the manor in her pilot suit", or something like that.Hah, I'd support that.As long as Felix doesn't get all flirty about it, just to be clear.
>>5498784>As long as Felix doesn't get all flirty about it, just to be clear.Support this addendum. Felix should tease her in a siblingly way, not in a flirty way.
>>5498757>“Loving space, I think. I had a similar realization when we left years ago, we had to sneak out in a cargo ship and there were these little portholes in the bay…” How about giving genuine conversation a chance?Wait is Glemy one of her older sister/brothers spawn? Passed off as a 'new kid'?
>>5498796There's a common headcanon/fan theory that Glemy is either Gihren's son or a clone.
>>5498802Dude, Glemy isn't made up like Vivim?
>>5498807??? Glemy is one of the main antagonists of Double Zeta.
If Gihren is the father, could Mink be the mother? Though just saying that feels like a bit of a stretch. >>5498807I'm pretty sure he's a canon character.
>>5498757>>“Loving space, I think. I had a similar realization when we left years ago, we had to sneak out in a cargo ship and there were these little portholes in the bay…” How about giving genuine conversation a chance?
>>5498757>“Loving space, I think. I had a similar realization when we left years ago, we had to sneak out in a cargo ship and there were these little portholes in the bay…” How about giving genuine conversation a chance?Space!
>>5498812>>5498811>>5498802Look man, I'm on so much shit right now. I keep forgetting we're an OC donut.
>>5498759>>5498760>>5498770>>5498782>>5498796>>5498830>>5499051I'll get to writing in a bit.>>5498782>>5498784>>5498785Consider it done!
“Loving space, I think.” You say, easing up some, “I had a similar realization when we left years ago, we had to sneak out in a cargo ship and there were these little portholes in the bay… All of the stars and the engines of ships leaving the dock, thousands of lights out in the dark… and the weightlessness… It was the first time I’d ever been outside of the colony, I’d never experienced anything like it before.”Something about her gaze softens slightly, and Vivima closes her eyes for a moment, “I can still picture Luna like it was yesterday. It stays with you… You meant when you left Zeon, didn’t you?”“Yeah. But we’re back though.” You say, not wanting to linger too much on the details of your escape, “I do wish Zum was an open type colony though, I’ll miss seeing the stars.” “We…” Vivima starts to speak, seems to reconsider her choice of words, and starts again more carefully, “I could talk with Kycilia about going outside sometimes. You’re not here to just run off again, right?”You shake your head, ignoring the offer for the moment, “No, we’re here to serve our homela-”“Oh, shut it.” Vivima says amusedly, pushing against your arm with one hand, “It’s a philosophy thing, isn’t it?”“What?” You ask, not following immediately.“Why you’re back - It’s about your father’s philosophy, right?” Vivima presses with something more like real curiosity, her more overt attempts at rattling you abandoned for now, “You don’t strike me as the blood and soil type.”Your heart skips a beat, she’s cutting dangerously close to the truth but the question itself is innocent enough so long as it doesn’t go too much deeper. Discussing newtypes or your father’s death directly is just asking for trouble.“...It’s about philosophy as well, yeah.” You answer, scratching at the back of your head with one hand and looking down a bit, “It was wrong to stay away any longer, things are changing and not having our family be a part of it just felt wrong. Father was right about a lot of things, I wasn’t old enough to understand his ideas before we… before we had to leave…” You stop, trying to center yourself, the topic still an uneasy one to discuss - especially with a Zabi. Dozle wasn’t so bad back on the Zam, but that really just wasn’t the same. Repeating the same reasoning again shouldn’t cause any“It’s alright, I know how things were.” Vivima says reassuringly, almost gently, and… actually she might be telling the truth? She did get shot supposedly, and a near death experience is bound to leave an impression. It certainly did on you after the villa attack. All the more reason to be careful though, grudges are easy to hold onto and hard to let go of.
>>5499226“So what was that about dressing up Glemy said just a minute ago?” You tease lightly, steering back to piloting, “I bet you walk around the palace in a normal suit, don’t you?” Vivima freezes for a moment before shrugging, trying to hide what must be embarrassment, “...You’ve got me on that one. You’ve done the same though, don’t deny it.” “I’d nev…” You stop yourself, chuckling as you own up to the habit, ”Okay, a few times at least.”Dammit, she has a cute smirk. Glemy leans forward, moving more into view and looks like he’s about to say something before thinking better of it and returning to watching the fencing matches; it looks like Artesia is doing better this time, and… Dozle and Casval are still fairly evenly matched, it’s hard to get a feeling for who has the advantage.Vivima crosses her arms and leans back slightly, keeping her gaze locked on the matches but still speaking just to you, “I heard you three were looking around the simulator earlier, Felix.”“...Mink told you about that?” You question, a sudden worry flashing through you. You’ve had doubts about her, staff of the Zabis can’t be trusted, but getting information out that fast is almost depressing.She lets out that sweet, almost mocking laugh of hers again, something about it vaguely familiar, “No, but I’ve got my own ears and eyes in all sorts of places. What kind of sister would I be to Kycilia if I didn’t? She’d never speak to me again, it would be a scandal.”“That bad?” You ask, fairly certain its just a joke at her sister’s expense but just unsure enough for it to make you a bit nervous - Something that petty does sound like it could be Kycilia.“No, I’m sure she’d get over it.” Vivima says dismissively, settling your doubts.“She’s mean!” Glemy mumbles grumpily, “I don’t like Kycilia.”“No she’s not, Glemy, she’s just busy a lot.” Vivima says, redirecting her attention to the boy, “You said you liked her yesterday, what’s wrong?”“Gihren said she thinks I’m not family.” Glemy explains quietly, just barely loud enough to hear.“...I’m sure he was just confused, or maybe she was.” Vivima says softly, pulling the boy closer again, “It was a busy day. I’ll talk to her about it, okay? She loves you, don’t worry. I do too, always.”“...Okay.” Glemy replies, sniffling a little.“...Sorry about that.” Vivima apologizes to you, speaking in a hushed tone probably to not upset Glemy further.“It’s okay.” You assure her, “Nothing to apologize for.”
>>5499227“...So, the simulator.” Vivima starts once more, obviously knocked a bit off her game by what Glemy said, “Want to see it later? I can show you the basics, you’re all pilots already so it shouldn’t take long - Then we can get to the real fun. Fair warning though, it takes a while. There’s no time acceleration.”>”Absolutely I do, I thought you were never going to ask.” Happily accept the offer.>”...My mother’s meant to be arriving sometime later, I don’t want to miss it. She wasn’t doing well when I saw her yesterday, and it's been years… Another time though, for sure. Tomorrow? I know I’m not going to stop once it gets going.” Keep things genuine.>”Looking for competition, huh? How about a fencing match first, and then we’ll see where things go.”>Write-in.
>>5499228>”...My mother’s meant to be arriving sometime later, I don’t want to miss it. She wasn’t doing well when I saw her yesterday, and it's been years… Another time though, for sure. Tomorrow? I know I’m not going to stop once it gets going.” Keep things genuine.>"I have been waiting to try out this simulator since seeing the mobile suit in action, but I've been waiting to have my family reunited for even longer then that.">"I've been told I'm a natural at piloting tough, so don't worry too much about how long it is going to take."
>>5499228>>”...My mother’s meant to be arriving sometime later, I don’t want to miss it. She wasn’t doing well when I saw her yesterday, and it's been years… Another time though, for sure. Tomorrow? I know I’m not going to stop once it gets going.” Keep things genuine.
>>5499228>”...My mother’s meant to be arriving sometime later, I don’t want to miss it. She wasn’t doing well when I saw her yesterday, and it's been years… Another time though, for sure. Tomorrow? I know I’m not going to stop once it gets going.” Keep things genuine.Baaaah as much as I want to jump oon the sim, family comes first.
>>54992281)>”...My mother’s meant to be arriving sometime later, I don’t want to miss it. She wasn’t doing well when I saw her yesterday, and it's been years… Another time though, for sure. Tomorrow? I know I’m not going to stop once it gets going.” Keep things genuine.>”Looking for competition, huh? How about a fencing match first, and then we’ll see where things go.”2)>”...My mother’s meant to be arriving sometime later, I don’t want to miss it. She wasn’t doing well when I saw her yesterday, and it's been years… Another time though, for sure. Tomorrow? I know I’m not going to stop once it gets going.” Keep things genuine.I still want to go for at least one match, see were her skill level is at.But family should take priority for us.
Also Vivima feels like some sort of Felix's mirror, with the whole space/piloting love, trying to keep the family together, surviving attempts on their life, helping their sibling with plans, etc.I wonder if it was intentional and she would change to match us, or it was planned for her to be somewhat like that and we accidentally did it.Maybe it was the attack that was what changed things, since she was some sort of singer before.
>Dammit, she has a cute smirk.>She lets out that sweet, almost mocking laugh of hers again, something about it vaguely familiar,Okay, let's not let her get to us. She might be one of the bigger obstacles to our family, behind Gihren, Kycilia and Degwin.Also we should make sure we don't go alone with her tomorrow, that's just asking for something bad to happen.And if we really want to turn Glemy to our side we need to get him to trust us and keep him away from Vivima, since she'll want to endear him to Kycilia and Gihren.>Glemy leans forward, moving more into view and looks like he’s about to say something before thinking better of it and returning to watching the fencing matchesNormal suits weren't what she was wearing, was it?>>5499246The assassination attempt was definitely a major event her life. What you're saying about her being a mirror of Felix is pretty much on point, thought there are some key differences. Honestly it's pretty poetic how it turned out. It's a shame the fact that she wants her family (the fucking Zabis) to get closer and work together is bad not just for us but pretty much all of humanity.
>>5499228>”...My mother’s meant to be arriving sometime later, I don’t want to miss it. She wasn’t doing well when I saw her yesterday, and it's been years… Another time though, for sure. Tomorrow? I know I’m not going to stop once it gets going.” Keep things genuine
>>5499228>”...My mother’s meant to be arriving sometime later, I don’t want to miss it. She wasn’t doing well when I saw her yesterday, and it's been years… Another time though, for sure. Tomorrow? I know I’m not going to stop once it gets going.” Keep things genuine.VIVIMA YOU FOOL, YOU'VE GIVEN US YOUR WEAKNESS.This small bastard son and your care for approval from your eldest sister!
>>5499228>”...My mother’s meant to be arriving sometime later, I don’t want to miss it. She wasn’t doing well when I saw her yesterday, and it's been years… Another time though, for sure. Tomorrow? I know I’m not going to stop once it gets going.” Keep things genuine.
>>5499230>>5499231>>5499236>>5499288>>5499296>>5499299Writing.
“...My mother’s meant to be arriving sometime later, I don’t want to miss it. She wasn’t doing well when I saw her yesterday, and it’s been years…” You reply, disappointed as you realize that the timing likely just won’t work out, “Another time though, for sure. How about tomorrow? I just know I’m not going to stop once it gets going.” Vivima violet eyes look pained as she listens intently, waiting for you to finish, “Of course it can wait. I should have thought of that... sorry. Tomorrow works just as well.”“Is she nice?” Glemy asks curiously leaning forward again, eyes wide as he looks up to you.“She is… Actually I think she’ll really like you.” You say, smiling as you meet the boy’s eyes, a little caught up in thoughts of just how much he looks like you and your brother did in old photos, “She’s been very sick though, so you might not be able to see her for a while. She'll need to rest.”“What was wrong?” Glemy asks. You can’t help but wince a little at the question; how do you even explain that?Vivima purses her lips, a concerned look flashing across her face, “That’s… complicated, Glemy. She had to stay in one place for a very long time, and it made her feel bad. After a long time it made her sick, but she’ll be better soon. That’s good, isn’t it?”“Oh. Yeah, that is good! But…” Glemy says, and you can tell he’s about to ask a barrage of additional questions but stops as Vivima shakes her head, falling silent before he can get the next one out. Vivima stays quiet for a few moments afterward, brow furrowed slightly and deep in contemplation, weighing some decision you can’t even begin to guess at. She bites at her lower lip a little, a nervous habit probably, and returns to her previous focus shortly afterward, flashing those confident violet eyes of hers again.“Dozle’s winning, I knew he would.” She says proudly, looking toward the match between your brother and the largest of hers.“No way, Casval was in the lead a second…” You begin, but upon paying more attention to their match you realize that Vivima might be right, your brother is looking rather hard pressed and starting to slow. They’re at the tail end of their third round, and though you’re not sure what the score actually is, it looks like both have worn themselves down, which is definitely worse for your brother. When Casval is tired he gets slow, but when Dozle gets tired he’s slow and still huge.
>>5499567There’s really no contesting that Dozle will probably win now, and so you watch the other match for a bit, “Looks like Artesia has Garma though.”“...He’s probably just letting her win.” Vivima says with a shrug, moments before Artesia lands a touch, “Or maybe not.”You laugh, Artesia’s timing there was impeccable if entirely coincidental, “She’s good.” Vivima arches an eyebrow, “Good enough to cut it at the academy?”“Yes.” You answer confidently, though in truth you do have some doubts. She’s capable, the academics and discipline won’t be an issue at all, but physically… Well, you’re working on that together.“If you say so. She’s going to be in our class, right?” Vivima replies, that mischievous look from earlier settling naturally back on her.“She is.” You confirm, though you’re fairly confident you’d never mentioned it to her - It’s likely more information from Kycilia… or maybe just Dozle, not everything has to be from spying, “She wants to go through the medical training program… Why are you going, exactly? Just for piloting?”“I believe in the cause.” She says without hesitation, “Space belongs to spacenoids, it’s our destiny to rule over the stars. The federation is the last gasp of a dead period of history, it’s inevitable that it has to be brushed aside.”Well, that’s certainly one way to state the ideals of Zeon, if more than a little ominous. Very Gihren.“...But also because I want to make Dozle proud, and leading the cadet choir sounded like fun…”“And the piloting?” You question again, eliciting a sweet and clear laugh from her.“Yes, and the piloting. A lot of it is piloting. It’s what pushed me over the edge instead of running the political circuit permanently with Gihren. What made you pull the trigger?”The fencing matches are both almost at an end. We’ll be moving on from this soon.>”I believe in the cause too, the sooner everyone moves into space the better… even if that takes a bit of a push.”>”Casval was set on the idea, and I wasn’t going to leave him on his own. Artesia’s going for basically the same reason I think.”>”I had a hard time imagining myself doing anything else. What else is there, flying commercial? Bleh, just shoot me at that point.” >Write-in.
>>5499571>”I believe in the cause too, the sooner everyone moves into space the better… even if that takes a bit of a push.”>”I had a hard time imagining myself doing anything else. What else is there, flying commercial? Bleh, just shoot me at that point.”
>>5499571>I don't think it really matters where you live. On a planet, on a station... it's all in space in the end. What really matters is they think they're somehow better than us somehow, because they live on a speck of dirt.>What i want... what i really want, is for spacenoids to get the respect they deserve. Hell, it's harder living up here than it is planetside. It takes skill, bravery and ingenuity just to keep things running.>But we'll get there someday. As long as we don't let anyone trample all over us. That's why i'm a pilot... because i'm proud to be who i am, and i won't let anyone tell me i'm worth less for it.
>>5499571>It started with Casval being hardset on the idea, But I slowly fell into caring about the cause and the sooner that it will be for all involved.
>>5499571>”I believe in the cause too, the sooner everyone moves into space the better… even if that takes a bit of a push.”>”Casval was set on the idea, and I wasn’t going to leave him on his own. Artesia’s going for basically the same reason I think.”
>>5499571>”I believe it's the destiny of humanity to go into space. The Earth should be kept as our sacred cradle, not as something that will bind us with its gravity."My write in is more of a suggestion than an actual vote, it seems appropriate to say if we're going to go with the first option or some combination that has it.While the first option isn't a lie, we definitely aren't as extreme as Gihren or Char when it comes to making humans go into space.
>>5499571>”I believe in the cause too, the sooner everyone moves into space the better… even if that takes a bit of a push.”Preferably a bit more philosophically stated, what with Felix's genuine belief in contolism >”I had a hard time imagining myself doing anything else. What else is there, flying commercial? Bleh, just shoot me at that point.”
>>5499571this >>5499601
>>5499575>>5499584>>5499638Writing.>>5499601>>5499645Mixing in a bit of this.
“I believe in the cause too. It’s the destiny of mankind to move entirely into space. The earth should be kept as our sacred cradle, we can’t afford to be shackled to our past anymore. Once they’re free of gravity I’m sure people will begin to understand.” You speak from the heart, the words coming easily to you, “...It just might take a bit of a push for some of them.” Vivima’s violet eyes narrow, examining you carefully as you give your little speech - Searching for something, deceit perhaps, until she’s eventually satisfied, “That’s very idealistic... but you really believe that, don’t you?”“I do.” You confirm resolutely, “Don’t you?”“It’s going to take more than just a push, Felix, but… It’s a beautiful dream.” Vivima replies, a chill running down your spine as she unwittingly echoes your brother’s words, “So that’s why you want to go to the academy, you think you need to be the person to give that push?”“Just a person to help things along if I’m needed.” You clarify, trying to move past that brief feeling of unease her words caused you and steer away from philosophy, “...And I had a hard time imagining myself doing anything else, flying is my passion. What else is there besides the military, flying commercial? Bleh, just shoot me at that point.”Vivima scoffs, “Commercial? Don’t worry, I’d make sure it was painless.”“What’s this about painless deaths?” Casval asks, walking over from pistes, his mask and foil in either hand. Dozle is close behind him, absolutely dwarfing your brother.“Just a bit of good humor, I hope.” Dozle says suspiciously, his brow furrowing as he looks between you and Vivima. Glemy holds onto Vivima’s sleeve as the huge man surveys you, keeping close to her.“He said he’d rather die than fail in service to Zeon.” Vivima explains, taking a very liberal interpretation of your joke. Is she covering for you or is that some sort of poorly veiled threat? “...Kids really talk like that these days?” Dozle wonders aloud, mostly to himself, before shrugging, “Well, that’s commendable, Felix, keep up the patriotic spirit! I’ll make a soldier out of you soon enough.”“Yes, sir.” You reply immediately, which seems to please him, but a question is still nagging at your mind, “...Who won the match?”“He did, three points up.” Casval says, obviously a bit winded by the ordeal, “Hardest match I’ve ever had. I want to go again.”“That was the agreement; I never break my promises, Casval.” Dozle rumbles, raising a clenched fist, “I do break my opponents though! Hohoho!"
>>5499980“Glad to hear it’s going well for someone,” Garma shouts from a ways off, he and Artesia having just finished their own match.“I won!” Artesia says excitedly, hurrying over toward you and your brother; you stand to meet her, and she wraps you in a hug. It’s the first time she’s actually won a match… Ever, now that you think about it. She’s done ‘well’ in training matches before, but never outright beat either you or Casval.“Great work, Artesia.” Casval says, and you echo his congratulations, “Think you’ve got a few more in you?”Filled with a fire you rarely see, Artesia ecstatically agrees, “Absolutely! Who wants to go? …Vivima?”“Just here to watch.” Vivima states once more, “Next time though.”“Sure.” Artesia agrees, not lingering on the issue and instead looking to everyone else, “Felix? You’ve been out for a few.” You nod and get up from the stands, retrieving your mask and foil…An hour later.You’re tired. The coffee and energy from breakfast is starting to wear off, and fencing like this is exhausting; you’ve had matches with everyone again, wins and losses coming up about as you’d expect - Garma and Artesia just aren’t strong opponents relative to you, and while in theory Casval and Dozle are within your ability it's a terrible uphill battle against either of them. Still, it was fun. Toward the end of it Vivima and Artesia had some time to talk, your sister taking a break from the matches to get to know her - Unfortunately you missed most of their conversation, but you didn’t need to know the exact words to see that Glemy enjoyed quite a bit more attention from the two of them. The Zabis, including whatever Glemy counts as, then said their farewells and parted ways with you and your siblings. A few minutes later.Walking back toward your rooms through the baroque hallways of the Zabi palace, you’re discussing the events of the morning with your siblings - To the extent you even can, some of it will have to wait for the morning.“I like Garma.” Artesia starts the conversation, somehow managing to sound bashful despite initiating the topic. Maybe it’s just a performance for the bugs?“You like Glemy.” You tease, and she does nothing to deny it. Little kids have been a soft spot for her since the refugee camp, one that she seemed to share with Vivima.“He’s adorable, how could I not?” Your sister admits easily, “I think he’s one of them, just… not legitimate. I didn’t ask, it seemed way too rude.” “Vivima said Glemy was her little brother, but I don’t think she meant it literally.” You say, nearly gagging at the thought, “...I really don’t want to imagine what that would take.”Casval looks disgusted but laughs anyways, “Degwin? At that age? I didn’t need that image in my head.”“Lets not talk about that, agreed?” Artesia practically begs, shuddering a little.
>>5499982Ahead of you lies a beautiful flight of wooden stairs, masterfully crafted to standards that make even the finest work at the villa pale in comparison. On the way down you continue speaking.“You seemed to get along well with Vivima.” Artesia prompts, the three of you passing by a huge painting of the Gihren - Its smug aura mocks you.“...We had a lot to talk about.” You answer somewhat cryptically, “And we had more in common than I expected. She invited us to try the simulator tomorrow.”“That’s great,” Casval says, wrapping an arm around you and squeezing your shoulder a little, “How’d I end up with Dozle again? This doesn't seem fair.”“Life is cruel, brother.” You joke, though part of you would have preferred the huge man, he’s a known quantity and you got along very well on the ship. A potentially life threatening vixen will have to do - In truth you’re still a bit confused over Kycilia from last night, and Vivima’s similar mannerisms just… god, you really wish they didn’t get to you as easily as they do.>Continue discussion (Suggest topics, mind the bugs)>Skip to your mother's arrival.
>>5499984>Continue discussion (Suggest topics, mind the bugs)>"I wonder how Lucifer is doing? I hope there isn't any trouble in getting him, you both know how he is with strangers." An innocent enough topic.>"Speaking of which, I hope Teabolo is doing alright..."
Felix really needs to get his shit together when it comes to women. Having a weakness to a certain type of woman is the classic downfall of any guy.Casval was probably right about what Kycilia did, and I bet she knows how to get in the heads of hormonal teenagers best considering her line of work.
>>5499984>Skip to your mother's arrival.There really isn't much to chat about that wouldn't just be filler.
>>5499984>Skip to your mother's arrival
>>5499987I'll support this
>>5499987>>5500165Bit of talk.>>5500036>>5500062Skip.Tied for now. It's going to be awhile until I can get the next update out, so I'll let things keeping going. Depending on topics for talking it might get thrown in with a skip, some are probably really short to discuss.Never trust a Zabi!
>>5499984>Skip to your mother's arrival.
>>5499984>Skip to your mother's arrivalBEWARE YONDER SPACE-WENCHES YOUNG FELIX
>>5500036>>5500062>>5500219>>5500536>>5500550Writing.I've been writing for a bit now and I just forgot to lock in the vote, oops.
A few hours laterThere are days that feel like hours, and hours that feel like days. Human perception is a strange thing, time as fluid as the emotions of the people experiencing it, and it has been moving achingly slowly since this morning, crawling along like tar on a cold day, almost frozen. The grandfather clock in your living room is mocking you. Its arms seem to refuse to move, no matter how long you stare. Casval taps lightly at the table, a slow, steady rhythm that only emphasizes the monotony, only interrupted by the sound of Artesia turning the pages of a little green book she found on one of the shelves of her room. Lunch was served a little while ago by Mink, but even that distraction was short lived, and without an exact time for your mother’s arrival the three of you have just been left waiting… and waiting…The Zabis have been nowhere to be seen, off to attend their own plots or prior plans, and the staff go mostly unseen with their work, other than Mink at least but even she’s not here anymore. She was gone as soon as lunch finished and got cleaned up, though she was rather slow about it.You talked for a little while with your siblings, about Teabolo and Lucifer, and a few other things, but it didn’t amount to much. Mostly just more wishing and hope, almost everything out of your control now. It’s those damned bugs making everything so dreary, you can hardly talk about anything. Every conversation is a performance put on for Kycilia, like she’s some specter haunting your every word and move. It’s exhausting.There’s a knock on the door.Casval ceases his tapping and stands at once, moving to answer it. Turning the handle and stepping back, the door opens to reveal a blond haired woman in a wheelchair, her face sunken and hollow, but a warm smile spread across it nonetheless. Your mother. Immediately you stand, rushing over to greet her along with Artesia, but you stop for a moment to allow the soldier assisting her to push her chair fully into the room.“I can take it from here.” Casval says, nodding to the guard and accepting a small bag from him. “There will be doctors checking in on a regular schedule; the first will be arriving in two hours. The spare room is being prepared for her stay, and her medications are in that bag, make sure-” The soldier begins to explain before being cut off by your mother’s quiet voice.“I remember the instructions, Loro.” Your mother says kindly, “Thank you for taking me this far, and send Ramba my thanks as well.”
>>5500590“...Ma’am.” Loro replies, adjusting his well-fitted green uniform slightly, “It was a pleasure.” He departs after, closing the door on his way out, and Artesia immediately moves to your mother, leaning down a little to wrap her in a hug. “Mom! I’m so glad you’re here!” Artesia says in a quavering voice, blond hair pressing up against the identical hue of your mother’s as they embrace, “I… I didn’t think they’d really do it.” “It’s so good to see all of you, I love you so much…” Your mother replies teary eyed, Artesia pulling away a moment later and speaking quiet words of comfort. They look so alike in so many ways, but years of isolation have left your mother almost skeletal, half-remembered impressions of what she used to look like filling in the blanks of their resemblance.“We made a deal with Degwin, we’re to help Garma prepare for the academy.” Casval explains as he pushes the wheelchair further into the room and over to the table, stopping kiss your mother on the forehead, almost the way a father would with a child - It’s a sweet gesture, but it still feels strange that the role of caretaker really has been reversed entirely. You settle for a hug, but don’t linger for too long, knowing you’ll have a hard time keeping yourself together if you do.“He agreed to bring you here before asking anything from us other than to make peace,” You add, “I asked how we could repay him and… that’s all he wanted.” A wave of relief washes over your mother’s face, “Oh, if only things could have been so simple years ago. Do you think he meant it? Time can change a person a great deal.”“I hope so. We fenced with Garma and Dozle earlier and got along so well, and…” Artesia relays your morning activities excitedly, unseen warmth and joy radiating from her very presence, a flash of insight into her feelings that causes your own heart to soar, and you can’t help but smile. The next few minutes are spent with the three of you recounting your meeting to her, the burden of speaking around sensitive topics hardly dragging down your spirits.>”...I think you’ll like Glemy, mom. Don’t you think so too, Artesia? He really took to you right away.” Giving her something to focus on other than worrying about the Zabis might be good for her.>”...That soldier who brought you in was one of Ramba’s men?” You’ll probably see more of Ramba and Hamon in time, at least from how Dozle talked, but you’re curious - You would’ve expected one of Kycilia or Gihren’s goons.>”There’s something I think I could use some advice about, mom. I’ve been having some… girl troubles, I guess you could call them.”>Write-in.
>>55005931)>”...I think you’ll like Glemy, mom. Don’t you think so too, Artesia? He really took to you right away.” Giving her something to focus on other than worrying about the Zabis might be good for her.>”There’s something I think I could use some advice about, mom. I’ve been having some… girl troubles, I guess you could call them.”2)>”...I think you’ll like Glemy, mom. Don’t you think so too, Artesia? He really took to you right away.” Giving her something to focus on other than worrying about the Zabis might be good for her.
>>5500593>”...I think you’ll like Glemy, mom. Don’t you think so too, Artesia? He really took to you right away.” Giving her something to focus on other than worrying about the Zabis might be good for her.>”There’s something I think I could use some advice about, mom. I’ve been having some… girl troubles, I guess you could call them.”
>>5500593>”...I think you’ll like Glemy, mom. Don’t you think so too, Artesia? He really took to you right away.” Giving her something to focus on other than worrying about the Zabis might be good for her.>”...That soldier who brought you in was one of Ramba’s men?” You’ll probably see more of Ramba and Hamon in time, at least from how Dozle talked, but you’re curious - You would’ve expected one of Kycilia or Gihren’s goons.
>>55005931)>”...I think you’ll like Glemy, mom. Don’t you think so too, Artesia? He really took to you right away.” Giving her something to focus on other than worrying about the Zabis might be good for her.>”There’s something I think I could use some advice about, mom. I’ve been having some… girl troubles, I guess you could call them.”Getting Glemy on our side is important, and while it's risky to talk to mom about Vivima (hopefully she doesn't say something like 'give her a chance', that would really mess with Felix's mind and our plans) still it's good to know what she might say.2)>”...I think you’ll like Glemy, mom. Don’t you think so too, Artesia? He really took to you right away.” Giving her something to focus on other than worrying about the Zabis might be good for her.>”...That soldier who brought you in was one of Ramba’s men?” You’ll probably see more of Ramba and Hamon in time, at least from how Dozle talked, but you’re curious - You would’ve expected one of Kycilia or Gihren’s goons.>”There’s something I think I could use some advice about, mom. I’ve been having some… girl troubles, I guess you could call them.”All of these things are important to talk about, but I don't want Felix to monopolize speaking with her.I just hope we can talk about Ramba later, since he might just be an important piece for getting power here.3)>”...I think you’ll like Glemy, mom. Don’t you think so too, Artesia? He really took to you right away.” Giving her something to focus on other than worrying about the Zabis might be good for her.>”...That soldier who brought you in was one of Ramba’s men?” You’ll probably see more of Ramba and Hamon in time, at least from how Dozle talked, but you’re curious - You would’ve expected one of Kycilia or Gihren’s goons.
>>5500605>that would really mess with Felix's mind and our plansI take that back, Felix should be smart enough to know that Vivima would do nearly anything for Gihren and Kycilia to get along and be happy. If it's a choice between Vi and Felix's family the decision should easily be our family, even if mom tells us otherwise. We could always tell mom later about where Vivi stands (if mom doesn't know already), and what our plans regarding the Zabis are (maybe we could write it to her using some paper around the place?)Besides, part of me doubts mom would want us to be with a smaller and more incompetent version of Kycilia that has Gihren's beliefs.
>>5500596>>5500598>>5500605Glemy+AdviceBack and writing. Had a family health scare that took up most of a couple of hours, looks like things are fine though thankfully.
>>5500796>spoilerHope everything really is alright. Don't worry about not updating if things are serious like that, Contolist.
“...I think you’ll like Glemy, mom.” You say, adjusting your posture a bit to sit more comfortable in your chair, the four of you having been talking for some time now, “Don’t you think so too, Artesia? He really took to you right away.” “He ran right over to me, he was so happy to see me,” Artesia says with a sigh, “I think he thought I was someone else. He looks so much like Casval and Felix, he could be our younger brother if I didn’t know better.” Your mother takes a small sip of water that you fetched for her earlier, moving the mostly empty glass with great care and focus, “...He’s one of the Zabis? I believe you said that earlier.”“Vivima called him her brother.” You say, wishing you knew more than that; the ages don’t really line up well for it to be true unless Degwin is off doing unspeakable things.“He’s likely just an illegitimate child.” Casval says, floating a theory you’d been pondering already, “Probably Gihren’s.”“And he thought you were someone else, dear?” Your mother questions, looking at Artesia; your sister nods, and your mother stops to consider things quietly for a few moments before speaking again, “He might have thought you were related, maybe his mother or sister? He must be so lonely, I remember how you used to get lost in Roselucia’s manor… but it sounds like Vivima was taking good care of him.”“They did seem to be close,” You agree, the thought of their wholesome little interactions bringing a smile to your face, “...but some of the things we’ve heard make me think she might be one of the only ones to treat him that well. Even Dozle didn’t seen keen, and he’s… Well, he’s a family man. It’s almost all he’s about, other than the military.”“That’s what I thought.” She says, taking another small sip with focused effort and care, “I would like to meet Glemy. You were both so cute at that age, and it… it doesn’t feel like it was that long ago. I’ve missed it.”“We’re not cute anymore?” Casval teases, a genuine happiness about him you've only seen glimpses of these last few years, and your mother has to suppress a small laugh, shaking her head. “You’ve both grown into handsome young men,” Your mother says, a twinkle of pride in her blue eyes, “I hope you haven’t been going around breaking any hearts though.”
>>5500989“They can both be idiots,” Artesia says jokingly, “But not like that, mom. …Mostly.”“Mostly?” “I’ve been fine.” Casval says quickly, holding up his hands, “No problems over here at all.” Her gaze drifts to you, and your cheeks flush in embarrassment as her blue eyes narrow.“...Yeah, there’s something I think I could use some advice about, mom.” You admit sheepishly, “I’ve been having some… girl troubles, I guess you could call them.”“He flirts with everyone.” Artesia says with an exasperated sigh, “Everyone.”“Oh my, dear. I see how that could make trouble.” Your mother tuts, reaching over to you with one of her skinny hands, placing it atop your own on the wooden table, “It’s terrible to lead girls on like that, Felix.”“I’ve been trying to stop it, but it just sort of happens. I uhm, I like them, and it just slips out.” You explain, “And they come after me first a lot of the time, apparently I was ‘making looks’ at them…”Your mother laughs, shaking her head, “I was a lounge singer before I met your father, dear, I understand how it is. You haven’t… done anything foolish though, have you?”“Foolish? I… no, I haven’t.” You reply, further embarrassed as you get her meaning, the fact that you haven’t even kissed a girl rising up in your mind; it’s not as if the opportunity hasn’t presented itself, you’ve just been busy and always decided against it. “Oh thank god, that makes this much easier.” She replies with a sigh of relief, “I was worried I might be a grandmother soon.”“Mom!” You protest, turning bright red, Casval and Artesia nearly going into hysterics at your reaction; eventually their fits of laughter pass, your mother furrowing her brow and giving them both quite a look.“...So it’s just trouble from flirting? Oh, that’s mostly harmless.” Your mother says with a dismissive wave.“He’s nearly gotten us into trouble before though, he got drunk with one and….” Artesia complains, apparently not liking the change in tone but shutting up anyways before she reveals too much about Blanche within earshot of the room’s many bugs.“Drunk?” Your mother asks, “And still… nothing?”“Nothing, mom.” You confirm, incredibly embarrassed, this whole thing feeling a bit like an interrogation by this point.“I think you have things under control just fine then.” She says, squeezing your hand a little, “That’s more restraint than most men twice your age… but just how did you get drunk? You’re too young for that sort of thing.”“I, uh, it sort of just happened,” You say, fear jolting through you as something far worse than a mobile suit prepares an attack run, and you begin to blabber out an explanation, “She was older and so lonely, and she had Munzo Comet, and I-”
>>5500993“Oh.” Your mother stops you at the mention of the drink, covering her mouth with one hand as her cheeks turn red, “I… Oh dear. That’s almost exactly how I met your father. It’s a good drink, isn’t it?”You nod. It’s very good, dangerously so.“Mom, you’re not supposed to be encouraging him!” Artesia protests again, a look of horror on her face.“It was the best decision I ever made, Artesia, even if it might have been foolish at the time.” Your mother answers with a reminiscing sigh, clearly feeling no need to defend her own actions, “...But maybe you do have a point, dear. Felix, do as I say, not as I do.”“Yes, ma’am.” You say with barely suppressed laughter. It’s difficult to imagine her as being anything other than a mild mannered caretaker, but apparently she had a more exciting past than you’d considered. She was a long time friend of Hamon, and she was wild enough to steal a guntank… Perhaps you’ve inherited your weakness for dangerous women from your father.“I should have brought popcorn for this.” Casval says, mostly to himself, largely staying out of the mess and just enjoying the show.“...Felix, dear, do be careful though.” You mother insists, the veil of responsibility raising over her once again, “Is there any one girl in particular you’ve been having… trouble with? Someone special maybe?”“Elena.” You say immediately, “She’s a good friend, but I…”“The girl from Spain?” Your mother asks with a knowing smile, “I saw how you talked about her yesterday, even in just that little story about… Oh, never mind that. What’s wrong between you?”“Well, it's the distance, mostly. She’s on Luna. We’ve been writing for a few years now, every week. I’m not sure what we are, really, we haven’t called it anything…” You say, struggling to find the words to describe your history with Elena, “...And honestly when we were in Spain it was mostly her going after me, I didn’t know what to think about it then either.”
>>5501005Your mother nods in understanding, “I see. She’s pretty?”“...Very.” You reply. “And you clearly like her.”“We’re really good friends.” You agree, “I saved her life, but it’s not just that, we tell each other so much… I trust her.”“Have you dated anyone else?”“...No.” You say, shaking your head and furrowing your brow a bit but deciding not to risk alluding to Tryphosa at all. It certainly wasn’t dating, but your bond is… very deep, but not quite romantic. She’s out there somewhere, thinking of you. You can feel it sometimes, but the feeling always passes…“Hmm. If you say so, dear.” Your mother finally says after studying your face carefully, tilting her head a bit to the side just as Artesia often does, “Has Elena?”“Not that she’s mentioned.” You say, but there’s no way to be completely certain. The photos she sends you are… Well, she knows what she’s sending, and it's hard to imagine that going over well with any guy if they found out.“It sounds as if you have a choice to make then, and that’s not something I can do for you, dear.”“...I’ll think about it. Thanks, mom.”Vote one:>Elena.>Figure it out later, kick that can right down the fucking road.“No other issues?”“Not any that advice will help. …I like troublemakers a little too much, I suppose.” You say, well past the point of embarrassment by now, but still wary of who might be listening in.Your mother purses her lips at the mention of ‘troublemakers’, intuiting the rest, “Bad girls? Well, you’re right, I’m not sure there’s any helping that, dear. It fades some with age and experience, and being aware of it as a problem is a very good sign, I’m proud of you. Having someone else already helps too, it’s harder to get caught in a game if you have your mind on a completely different one.”Of course there isn’t an easy fix, but you’re still happy for the advice, “...I guess that makes sense.”“Hamon and I used to be little troublemakers ourselves, we’d show up at parties pretending to be socialites, always in these awful disguises, and… And I don’t think you want to hear those stories.”“...I wouldn’t mind hearing about it… but maybe not with them?” Artesia says sheepishly, seemingly having come to terms with the fact that your mother might not have always been a demure caretaker.Vote two:>Skip to the next day. Your morning run and the simulator await!>Other topics? (Write-in.)
>>5501010You can't do this to us Contolist, we're not ready!>Figure it out later, kick that can right down the fucking road.>Skip to the next day. Your morning run and the simulator await!
>>5501010>Figure it out later, kick that can right down the fucking road.>Skip to the next day. Your morning run and the simulator await!I got nothing else. And... yeah, this is thread 2, this is a choice to kick into the future, we do not know enough about anyone yet.
>>5501010Vote one:>Elena.Ahh, I really don't want to vote for her (or any of the waifus really), but having a girl we care about MIGHT be the best way to steer us away from doing something stupid and/or get played around with Kycilia or Vivima.I'm more looking at the fact that we can break up with Elena eventually, but that in itself might be messy.>Vote two:>Other topics? (Write-in.)>”...That soldier who brought you in was one of Ramba’s men?” You’ll probably see more of Ramba and Hamon in time, at least from how Dozle talked, but you’re curious - You would’ve expected one of Kycilia or Gihren’s goons.I'm glad we have a chance to talk about this.
>>5501010>>5501022And just because I really want to speak with her about Ramba, I'll change my vote to:1)>Vote one:>Elena.>Vote two:>”...That soldier who brought you in was one of Ramba’s men?” You’ll probably see more of Ramba and Hamon in time, at least from how Dozle talked, but you’re curious - You would’ve expected one of Kycilia or Gihren’s goons.2)>Vote one:>Figure it out later, kick that can right down the fucking road.>Vote two:>”...That soldier who brought you in was one of Ramba’s men?” You’ll probably see more of Ramba and Hamon in time, at least from how Dozle talked, but you’re curious - You would’ve expected one of Kycilia or Gihren’s goons.
>>5501010>Figure it out later, kick that can right down the fucking road.I fucking refuse to let First Girl win AGAIN. Blanche hits all my buttons is just the right way, and mom seems to be okay with it. Also Felix being a (pseudo-)milf hunter would be great.Also, support: >Other topics? (Write-in.)>”...That soldier who brought you in was one of Ramba’s men?” You’ll probably see more of Ramba and Hamon in time, at least from how Dozle talked, but you’re curious - You would’ve expected one of Kycilia or Gihren’s goons.
>>5501010>>Elena>”...That soldier who brought you in was one of Ramba’s men?” You’ll probably see more of Ramba and Hamon in time, at least from how Dozle talked, but you’re curious - You would’ve expected one of Kycilia or Gihren’s goons.
>>5501010Contolist I have a question, what exactly does it mean in picking Elena? Will this be a permanent lock-in and make Felix be deeply in love with her, or is this just entertaining thoughts about her that could be pushed against when we meet her?
>>5501010>Figure it out later, kick that can right down the fucking road.Sorry Elena, you're just too BORING. Felix simply deserves better. >Other topics? (Write-in.)>”...That soldier who brought you in was one of Ramba’s men?” You’ll probably see more of Ramba and Hamon in time, at least from how Dozle talked, but you’re curious - You would’ve expected one of Kycilia or Gihren’s goons.
>>5501064Same as with anyone else, it means Felix would make an effort to try things out romantically. There's no innate permanence to the choice (especially as a teenager), and lots of things could lead to a breakup (or death, its Gundam), for fault or otherwise. How strong a relationship becomes really depends on who it's with and how things develop, not a single vote that will brainwash Felix.>>5501039Blanche was an absolute joy to write.
>>5501104In that case I feel better with my vote to have him think about Elena as a way counter that slip up we made with Kycilia.Thanks for clarifying Contolist.
>>5501104>SpoilerGlad to hear. I've always been a big fan of "cool person who's secretly a pathetic loser", both male and female.
>>5501104>wasF
>>55010101,>>Elena.>>Skip to the next day. Your morning run and the simulator await!>”...That soldier who brought you in was one of Ramba’s men?” You’ll probably see more of Ramba and Hamon in time, at least from how Dozle talked, but you’re curious - You would’ve expected one of Kycilia or Gihren’s goons.I shall invest in Elenacoin.2,>Figure it out later, kick that can right down the fucking road.>Skip to the next day. Your morning run and the simulator await!>”...That soldier who brought you in was one of Ramba’s men?” You’ll probably see more of Ramba and Hamon in time, at least from how Dozle talked, but you’re curious - You would’ve expected one of Kycilia or Gihren’s goons.
>>5501010>Figure it out later, kick that can right down the fucking road.>Skip to the next day. Your morning run and the simulator await!
>>5501010>Figure it out later, kick that can right down the fucking road>Skip to the next day. Your morning run and the simulator await!I am a simp for the Jupiter fleet girl, newtype redflags are my go flags
>>5501308>>5501010Voting for this too>”...That soldier who brought you in was one of Ramba’s men?” You’ll probably see more of Ramba and Hamon in time, at least from how Dozle talked, but you’re curious - You would’ve expected one of Kycilia or Gihren’s goons.
Vote One:The can will be kicked for a while longer.Vote Two:I'm just going to synthesize this one since some people voted for that and no one has suggested other topics. A little bit of Ramba stuff and then skipping to the next day.After this next part we'll be returning to larger time skips (weeks to month) like in last thread. Writing. >>5501115She'll be back.
A few minutes later“...That soldier who brought you in was one of Ramba’s men, wasn’t he?” You ask curiously, the question having nagged at your thoughts for awhile now.“Yes, Hamon was with him when he came to move me, they ran off the other guards who were moving me.” You mother answers with a mischievous grin, “She had to leave before we arrived.”That seems to really get Casval’s attention, and he sits up straighter in his chair, “Ran them off?”“They had written orders, the other guards didn’t.” Your mother clarifies, “I’m not sure of the details, I wasn’t in the room for most of it. Hamon was the happiest I’ve seen her in years.”“Dozle maybe?” You question, looking to your brother for his assessment.Casval thinks your question over for a moment, weighing the options in his mind before speaking, “...He’s the easiest fit. Hamon is still doing well then?”Your mother takes another careful sip of her water before answering, “She is. She visited me in the tower sometimes. It couldn’t happen often, but after Ramba rejoined the military Hamon was given permission occasionally.”“Mhm, I remember you mentioning that.” Artesia says, “I’m glad she’s okay.”“Did I? Oh, dear, it’s all such a blur.” Your mother says, a confused look crossing her sunken features for just a moment, “She said they were both doing well, her and Ramba. I know how close you were with Ramba, Artesia.” “I mostly remember him being really nice, and when he went and got Lucifer when everything was going crazy. I’m glad he’s okay.” You sister says happily, but her brow furrows as she finishes speaking; she probably just misses her cat. Hopefully he’ll be delivered soon as well.“So am I. He was always a good man,” Your mother replies quietly before stopping and taking a moment to clear her throat, having some brief trouble speaking, “They’ve both been good for eachother, I still can’t believe they haven’t married… Hamon’s still off living that life, at least they’ve been steady though.”“That life?” Artesia questions, tilting her head slightly.“She’s still a singer, at the same little bar we both used to work… It’s hard to believe it’s still there, it’s nearly been twenty years, we were both so young…” Your mother reminisces, a bit more life filling her features for a moment as she thinks back on what must be happy memories, “Time has been kind to her, she hardly looks any older. I do hope she doesn’t burn that candle out to the end though, but maybe that’s just how she is… Ramba’s not one to just settle down quietly either, they really are perfect for each other…”
>>5501381Very early the next morning.You slept better last night. Dinner was pleasant, not a single Zabi in sight; Mink relayed Degwin’s insistence that you spend the time with your mother. She wasn’t able to eat all that much, following a careful recovering plan set out by her new doctors to the letter. It was good to have dinner as a family again. Really good. Maybe this was all a good plan after all.Darkness surrounds you and your siblings as you set a faster pace through the palace grounds, daytime still well over an hour away, flowers and topiaries flanking you to either side along the narrow paths. It’s only been a single day but lack of open sections to the colony is beginning to fade from your mind, twinkling electric lights of the urban landscape high overhead filling in for the night sky - it doesn’t come close to the beauty of the real thing, but you have other things on your mind currently.“...Vivima came at me pretty aggressively.” You say, keeping close alongside Casval, “It wasn’t really all that subtle.” “I saw how you handled it, pushing her off at first was good. You’re figuring things out.” Casval says approvingly, “Kycilia probably sent her to do it. A witch and her apprentice.”“When I talked with her she didn’t seem so bad.” Artesia comments, still a bit out of breath but doing better than yesterday.You almost laugh, but your sister doesn’t sound like she’s joking, “Seriously?”“I… could feel her, briefly.” She explains, “She loves Glemy. A lot. The rest of her family too from what I could tell. The rest was confusing though, all mixed together, I couldn’t make sense of it, but that part was as clear as anything I’ve ever felt.” “Love for that family isn’t a good thing, Artesia.” Your brother says, restrained anger coloring his words.“...You’re right, I guess. It’s just hard to condemn someone for that. She reminded me a lot of you, Felix.” You shoot your sister a look, “...I don’t think I like that comparison.” “I meant the good parts, Felix, and she’s a pilot too.” Artesia explains, blond hair bobbing with every step as you run along, “She wasn’t trying anything with me at least, we mostly just talked about Glemy and music. I know she’s dangerous though, don’t worry.”>”Music? She told me that she’d be leading the cadet choir at the academy. She has a great voice, it’s not much of a surprise.”>”...How about Garma? Was that just an act you were putting on with him, or…?”>”Casval, how do you think we should handle things going forward? You seemed to be doing the best.” He’s better at lying than you would’ve expected, Dozle and Garma really seemed to like him.>Write-in.
>>5501382>”...How about Garma? Was that just an act you were putting on with him, or…?”
>>55013821)>”Music? She told me that she’d be leading the cadet choir at the academy. She has a great voice, it’s not much of a surprise.”>"Dozle also talked about her going undercover at a singing competition">”...How about Garma? Was that just an act you were putting on with him, or…?”
>>55013821)>"...I know it might sound cruel, but we should try and alienate Glemy from his family.">"Dozle and Garma might not be such bad influences, yet Vivima is trying to endear him to Gihren and Kycilia. Can you imagine how he'll turn out if he sees them positively?"It's sad, but we need to at least make Glemy distance himself from Vivima if we really want to take him to our side. Then when he feels alone the three of us become his friends.2)>”...How about Garma? Was that just an act you were putting on with him, or…?”>"...I know it might sound cruel, but we should try and alienate Glemy from his family.">"Dozle and Garma might not be such bad influences, yet Vivima is trying to endear him to Gihren and Kycilia. Can you imagine how he'll turn out if he sees them positively?"
>>5501389>>5501382I'll change my vote to1)>"...I know it might sound cruel, but we should try and alienate Glemy from his family.">"Dozle and Garma might not be such bad influences, yet Vivima is trying to endear him to Gihren and Kycilia. Can you imagine how he'll turn out if he sees them positively?"2)>”Music? She told me that she’d be leading the cadet choir at the academy. She has a great voice, it’s not much of a surprise.”>"...I know it might sound cruel, but we should try and alienate Glemy from his family.">"Dozle and Garma might not be such bad influences, yet Vivima is trying to endear him to Gihren and Kycilia. Can you imagine how he'll turn out if he sees them positively?">”...How about Garma? Was that just an act you were putting on with him, or…?”3)>”...How about Garma? Was that just an act you were putting on with him, or…?”>"...I know it might sound cruel, but we should try and alienate Glemy from his family.">"Dozle and Garma might not be such bad influences, yet Vivima is trying to endear him to Gihren and Kycilia. Can you imagine how he'll turn out if he sees them positively?"
>>5501392>>5501389Maybe 'alienate' is too strong of a word for Felix to use here, and there are a few more things that are worded weirdly or too coldly.I'm sure Contolist will figure out how to write my write-in better if by some chance it wins.
>>5501382Changing my vote once again, mostly because now I'm curious if Artesia really does feel anything for Garma.1)>”...How about Garma? Was that just an act you were putting on with him, or…?”>"...I know it might sound cruel, but we should try and alienate Glemy from his family.">"Dozle and Garma might not be such bad influences, yet Vivima is trying to endear him to Gihren and Kycilia. Can you imagine how he'll turn out if he sees them positively?"2)>”Music? She told me that she’d be leading the cadet choir at the academy. She has a great voice, it’s not much of a surprise.”>”...How about Garma? Was that just an act you were putting on with him, or…?”>"...I know it might sound cruel, but we should try and alienate Glemy from his family.">"Dozle and Garma might not be such bad influences, yet Vivima is trying to endear him to Gihren and Kycilia. Can you imagine how he'll turn out if he sees them positively?"3)>”...How about Garma? Was that just an act you were putting on with him, or…?”>”Casval, how do you think we should handle things going forward? You seemed to be doing the best.” He’s better at lying than you would’ve expected, Dozle and Garma really seemed to like him.Sorry for doing so many vote changes.
>>5501453My man we really shouldn't be openly talking about alienating any member of the Zabi family from the rest when the room is bugged.
>>5501462While I don't want to vote for that, we are on our daily morning run, so the only bugs around are the animal kind.Unless Kycilla put listening devices on the bushes, of course.
>>5501462They're currently running along the outer perimeter of the Zabi estate, they're no obvious bugs or Guards around.That said, I wouldn't put it past them to have microphones and cameras in the shrubbery.
>>5501388I'll support this.
>>5501468Lmao, we thought of the same thing
>>5501467>>5501468You're right, we're not in a room and I'm retarded. Ignore my post. I still don't think it's a good idea though.
>>5501473Quick, what am I thinking about right now?Pic related
>>5501476I'm thinking on making the Zabi Spy camera memeSeems we are not newtypes
>>5501477Damn, all I accomplished was making myself hungry.
>>5501477I meant Zabi spy bush, something like this>>5501479Well, I just finished brushing my teeth after lunch, so I wouldn't be thinking of breakfast.
>>5501474I don't mean this in a bad way, but why isn't it a good idea? If I missed something please tell me, but I think gradually distancing him from the Zabis and putting him on our side can be good.Though I understand if you think it's too risky, since Vivima really loves Glemy.
>>5501495No, I don't disagree with the goal I just don't think it's smart to discuss it while within earshot of the Zabi estate.
>>5501496While I personally don't think there are bugs or cameras outside, it's completely understandable to believe there are. Especially since this is the heart of their power.
>>5501499Even if they didn't have traditional bugs, long range audio capture devices have been around for decades at this point, so it wouldn't surprise me if Kycilla had a team dedicated to monitoring us from a concealed position within the palace itself.
>>5501506I hope Kycilia hasn't got that sort of thing running (or at the very least hasn't set it up yet). Because if that's the case then we're already screwed, considering Casval just said “Love for that family isn’t a good thing, Artesia.” followed by Artesia agreeing.
>>5501387Garma.>>5501388>>5501469Music/Vivima stuff and then Garma.>>5501453Garma and Glemy stuff.Lots of discussion. I guess it's Music/Vivima and Garma. Writing.>>5501493"Lieutenant, why are the trees speaking spacenoid?"
“Music?" You question, "She told me that she’d be leading the cadet choir at the academy. She has a great voice, it’s not much of a surprise.”“A great voice? What is this, Zabi appreciation hour now?” Casval taunts, but it’s clear he’s mostly joking, “You aren’t wrong though. And is there something about it that sounds familiar or was I just imagining things yesterday?”“Familiar? Hm. I guess she sounds like that one colony pop singer, Meiko something… Agh, I can’t remember her name. She’s been all over the radio, that’s probably it.”“You know I don’t listen to that, Artesia.” Casval says, shaking his head, “Whatever, it doesn’t matter.” “Colony pop?” You question, flashes of your conversation with Dozle aboard the Zam playing through your head, “Dozle said something about Vivima going undercover at a singing competition recently, didn’t he? I think it was in the news too.”“Ah, I do remember that!” Casval says, his posture easing a little as he continues running alongside, “Thanks, Felix, it was really driving me crazy trying to place where I'd heard her before. They had an interview with her on the news, I caught the tail end of it before one of Gihren’s speeches. That’s got to be it.”“Oh, yeah, I guess I’d forgotten about that with all of this going on, we’ve been so busy.” Artesia almost groans, “I still can’t believe they let her do that, it sounds like a scandal for a family with an image like theirs.”You shrug, and then take a short hop over some gardening equipment that was left out near one of the flowerbeds, careful to not speak until you’re clear of it again, “It was an issue of honor from what I gathered. Didn’t Dozle say something about one of the other contestants slandering the Zabis? The daughter of a feddie politician or something?”Your sister looks deep in thought, just as Casval was earlier, “I know, but even still… I guess Kycilia thought it was worth it; maybe they’re both just that petty. I wonder if it went over well with the public, I haven’t really been looking.”“No clue.” “I didn’t really think of it like that, it just sounded like they were having a bit of fun abusing their power. Vivima dyeing her hair and sneaking into a competition just to humiliate someone else does sound like them. …At least I think it does, I guess we don’t actually know Vivima much at all yet, it’s just what Dozle said.”“There’s nothing wrong with showing up the federation occasionally, but that’s not how to do it. Poor girl.” Casval comments with a look of disgust, “It’s just like them to be needlessly cruel in achieving their goals.”
>>5501575“...That’s enough about her, I think.” You say, not seeing that topic going anywhere productive for now, “How about Garma then, Artesia? Was that just an act you were putting on with him, or…?”“An act? I… Maybe a bit?” Your sister says, sounding unsure of her own words, “I’m trying to be nice on purpose, we have to be, but that’s not all it was… And dancing sounded more fun than fencing, if I’m being honest.”“It’s great, I took a few lessons in town back on Texas colony.” Casval says, “It sounds like you have Garma handled almost on your own, Artesia.”“You took dance lessons?!” You and Artesia both ask simultaneously, having never heard anything of the sort before.“Of course I did.” He replies cryptically, “ Felix, you should learn as well at some point. And don’t worry, I’m not going to crowd your date, Artesia.”“It’s not a date!” Artesia protests, her cheeks turning red as she looks away from your brother, suddenly finding the nearby flowers far more interesting, “He has that other girl he was seeing anyways, Degwin and Dozle talked about her at dinner.” “Think he’s a two timer?” You tease, “You’ll need to watch it with him.”“...I know. I’m just curious where things might go.” Artesia replies, pushing you with a light little shove of one hand, not enough to do much besides vent her embarrassment discussing the topic, “Maybe I’ll need to make them break up if he really is seeing someone… Ugh, I hate it. I know we need to do things like that, but it feels awful even thinking about it.”“It will all come together eventually, you’re doing very well so far.” Casval reassures her, slowing down slightly as he spots a small electric cart making its way across the path up ahead, a few of the gardeners riding in it to some destination back down the path you’ve been running along for the last few minutes. You stop to let them pass, the cart whirring by with a faint electric hum and the sound of rubber on stone.>Other topics or plans? (Suggest them)>Skip forward to the simulator.
>>5501578>Skip forward to the simulator.
>>5501578Now I'm starting to get more paranoid about Zabi bugs, but I still want to talk about Glemy at least for a little bit.>Other topics or plans? (Suggest them)>"I was thinking about trying to befriend Glemy, I feel like he needs better influences than those he's getting right now." Try to keep your voice down, and make sure to not say anything too implicit.>Discuss newtypes, and possible ways to practice using them.
>>5501578>Skip forward to the simulator.Homewrecker Artesia
>>5501589Oh yeah, there is a chance that Vivi might have latent newtype powers, like Casval before we started training, given her thing with space and piloting.
>>5501593I didn't even think about that. Now there's something important to eventually talk about.
>>5501578>>Skip forward to the simulator.
>>5501589The second part should have said>Discuss newtype abilities, and possible ways for us three to practice using them.I didn't mean for it to seem like we were discussing control other people, especially when we're so close to ending the run. And since Kycilia (and likely the rest of the Zabis) already knows, there shouldn't be any harm in talking about it.
>>5501580>>5501591>>5501610>>5501611Writing.
>>5501673ARTESIA NO!
>>5501677Mom's stories are being a bad influence
>>5501678You know, I'm a bit curious about how Astraia lived her life back then. I know Artesia wanted to have those talks privately with mom, but I feel like Felix would want to hear about her past.
Later that day.The reinforced collar of your normal suit zips closed firmly, and then manually check over it for a proper seal. It's unnecessary, you’re not going into vacuum, but at this point it's just a habit to double check everything when you’re getting ready to fly. Glancing toward the tall mirror on the wall of your bathroom you examine yourself, stretching a bit and getting comfortable in the tiger fitting green suit. It’s Zeon armed forces standard, delivered to you a few minutes ago by one of the palace’s staff; not Mink, you haven’t seen any of her today after breakfast… Hopefully she isn’t in trouble again, she’s very warm with your family, including your mother now, maybe a little too easy going for her own good.You shake the thoughts from your mind, returning to looking at your suit. The lighter colored reinforced collar and shoulders are going to take some getting used to, it’s not quite bulky or in the way, but it definitely isn’t as free as your old civilian suit. You stretch and then throw a few punches at the air, settling into this strange new normal suit quickly.It makes you look like a proper pilot. You look good, and snap a couple of pictures with a small camera the staff brought this morning at your request. It probably sends the pictures directly to Kycilia as well as storing them, but you don’t plan to use it for anything sensitive like spy work. You owe Elena at least a few new pictures whenever you get to write her again; Dozle agreed that you could, so hopefully it won’t be an issue.Satisfied, you grab your helmet off the marble countertop and exit the gold trimmed bathroom, leaving behind its baroque opulence for… more of the same, the entire palace practically a shrine to some of the most extravagant architecture of old earth. Artesia and Casval are already ready to go, each wearing Zeon normal suits of their own, helmets tucked under their arms as they stand around talking. Casval cross his arms as you approach, his blue eyes watching your carefully.“Done posing in front of the mirror?” Artesia asks, hands on her hips.“Never.” You chuckle, “Come on, let’s go.”
>>5501723A few minutes later, at the simulator room.“...They never told us the code to enter.” Casval says, looking at the keypad on the wall, “Did either of you see what it was?”You and Artesia both shake your heads. Casval shrugs and knocks lightly on the metal door. A few moments later it hisses open, revealing Vivima’s smug face. She’s leaning against the door frame, violet eyes sweeping over the three of you with contemptuous mirth. Her normal suit is purple and has a patch on the shoulder you don’t recognize, but it’s otherwise identical to Artesia’s - standard issue for female Zeon pilots.Her voice is clear and pleasant as she speaks, her eyes finally settling on you alone, “Glad you decided to finally show up. Ready for some fun?”“What are we flying?” Casval asks, getting right to business as he enters the room. Vivima moves out of the way and brushes back a lock of her feathered purple hair with a gloves hand. Her hair really is darker than Garma’s, almost black in places under this light. It’s fitting that she’s likely the more dangerous of the two.“It’s set up for the new Bugu, I don’t fly old junk if I can avoid it.” Vivima explains, strutting on over to the observation position in the center of the room, the gyroscopic framed simulator pods resting in a semicircle in their bays down below it.“We got a look at one of those on the Zam, it was awesome.” You say, finding it difficult to contain your excitement… and wow, Vivima can walk, that’s not a bad view at all-Your purely scientific curiosity is interrupted by Artesia pulling you along by your arm, just hard enough to shake you a bit, and you quickly move along over to the observation area.“The controls are similar to worker pods, I know you’re all familiar with those.” Vivima says, settling into a tone that is mostly lacking in mischief, “But we’re not playing around with balls here, as fun as that might be - You’ll have a few minutes of free flight before we begin properly, that should be enough time to familiarize yourselves with the arm and leg controls and the weapon targeting. It’s critical that you use them actively for maneuvering, and not just for redirecting thrusters either; you aren’t going to be able to dodge anything for long if you ignore that.”Your sister looks confused by Vivima’s explanation, and she speaks up hesitantly, “...Dodge? Weapon targeting?”“This is a combat simulator, Artesia, you’re going to be dodging enemy fire or wishing you had. It’s just like dancing once you get into it, circles within circles - but if your suit loses a limb there’s a good chance you’ll spin out before exploding, and the pods won’t hold back.” Vivima explains, spinning a her index finger around in a few little loops as she speaks, “Its usually lights out if that happens."
>>5501803“Who are we fighting?” You ask, having hoped for something more exciting than just a simulated jaunt around a colony, “Other mobile suits?”“Yes.” Vivima replies, obviously growing more excited as she speaks, a hint of something you haven’t heard from her before bleeding in - bloodlust - “The federation isn’t developing any right now, but only a fool would assume they never will. We’ll be fighting simulated Waffs in federation colors, they’ll be a stand-in for whatever garbage they eventually scrape together. They’re fun to slice up, the fluid pulse system sprays just like… Well, you’ll see if you catch one with a heat hawk.”“Where are we fighting?” Casval questions intently, already fully invested in the game, “Enemy numbers?”“We’ll be outnumbered, and on the attack. We’re going to be split up into pairs once the actual simulation starts.” Vivima answers, already eyeing you again, “Since it’s your first time, and you’re guests, I thought I’d let you choose the location; we have a convoy ambush in a debris field or an attack on an enemy carrier in a larger battle.”Vote one:>Convoy ambush!>Carrier attack!>”Maybe something less advanced to start with?” Vote two:>Pair up with Casval. Let the girls fly together, bros come first. >Pair up with Artesia. You make a good team, and shared newtype senses might help.>Pair up with Vivima. Getting to know her as a pilot might be insightful.
>>5501805>Carrier attack!>Pair up with Casval. Let the girls fly together, bros come first.
>>55018051)>Carrier attack!>Pair up with Artesia. You make a good team, and shared newtype senses might help.Practicing newtype skills is always good, if Felix can practice managing to start up mental communications while in battle it would be useful.2)>Carrier attack!>Pair up with Vivima. Getting to know her as a pilot might be insightful.Still curious about her style for when we inevitably have to fight her.
>>5501805>Vote one:>>Convoy ambush!>Vote two:>>Pair up with Vivima. Getting to know her as a pilot might be insightful.
>>5501805>>Carrier attack!>>Pair up with Casval. Let the girls fly together, bros come first.
>>5501805>Convoy ambush!>Pair up with Casval. Let the girls fly together, bros come first.
>>5501805>>Carrier attack!>Pair up with Casval. Let the girls fly together, bros come first.
>>5501805>Convoy ambush>Pair up with Casval. Let the girls fly together, bros come first.
>>5501806>>5501810>>5501819>>5501831Carrier.>>5501815>>5501821>>5501871Convoy.>>5501806>>5501819>>5501821>>5501831>>5501871Casval>>5501810 (second option)>>5501815Vivima.Looks like it's the carrier attack and Casval. Writing.
I wonder how Artesia will react to Vivima's true colors being shown in the simulation. From what we know I doubt Vivima will be able to keep herself from going all out even in a game.Artesia doesn't strike me as the bloodthirsty sort, so I imagine this will be a nice counter to her belief that Vivima isn't that bad.While these are mostly assumptions, I think there's a very real chance of this putting a damper on Artesia's view of Vivima.
“The carrier attack sounds exciting, I’ve always wondered what a fleet battle looks like.” You reply, looking to your older brother for approval. “There are more enemies in the carrier attack?” He asks Vivima, a dark shadow settling about his features.Vivima’s violet eyes widen in excitement, that desire for battle you heard so clearly a moment ago still filling her voice, “Oh yes, many, many more. More and more the longer you take, like a drum roll that just keeps speeding up.”Her crossed arms pull a little tighter against her, and she seems to nearly shudder in excitement, biting a bit at her lower lip and suppressing a laugh. The display… stirs things in you, feelings that you really wish would stay out of your thoughts for now.“Then that has my vote as well, better hunting.” Casval says confidently, “Artesia?”“...I’m not sure I’m ready for… what you were describing, Vivima.” Artesia says uncertainly, a bead of sweat visible on her forehead. She must have been able to feel Vivima’s little display, Artesia has always been more in tune with others than you.Vivima cocks her head to the side, pursing her lips as she looks your sister over from bottom to top, a predatory glint in her eyes, “You’re not excited?”Artesia freezes for a moment before speaking, and you feel that icy determination spider webbing through her again, “...I’ll do what I must. It’s just like a dance, right?”That seems to satisfy Vivima, and she turns and extracts a data card from one of the nearby consoles and moves it into another slot before typing on a keyboard, entering commands too quickly for you to track. Green lines of text flicker into existence across the screen and then begin scrolling up as a program is executed, and she checks a few small screens before smiling.
>>5502008“It’s ready, let's go!” Vivima says, grabbing your sister’s hand and pulling her along excitedly. You and Casval hurry down to the pods right behind them, sliding on your helmets and checking their mics; everything works.“Three and four!” Vivima calls out even as she’s climbing into her own pod, the hatch wide open to reveal the replica cockpit. You and Casval move to pods three and four, opening them quickly and climbing inside. Looking out to pod two, just barely visible if you lean all the way forward, you see Artesia clambering inside. Good, that’s everyone.Searching around you locate the switch that controls the hatch, flicking it with a gloved finger. The hatch lowers down, sealing you inside with a hiss, screen and button back lights illuminating the tight interior dimly.The interior is dominated by three primary screens, left, center, and right, and two control sticks, one to either side of you. The seat is firm, not particularly comfortable but not awful, and you fasten yourself in before looking over the controls further. It’s very similar to what you saw on the Zam, though portions of it look like they might be reconfigurable, probably to simulate different mobile suits. After a minute or so you’re comfortable with the locations of most major systems, and you flick the master switch and begin primary reactor startup.A low whirring fills the interior of the cockpit, little vibrations running through everything and the screens filling with data that you can’t yet make sense of, diagnostics running automatically, line after line of data until suddenly…You’re surrounded by stars. The primary views screens are filled with them, thousands of twinkling lights in the inky black, indistinguishable from the real article. As you move your head the primary sensor of your Bugu follows along, the view on the screens shifting slightly from side to side, a faint vibration corresponding to each movement - Just as if there was really a head rotating. Pushing your foot forward you bring the suit into a mild acceleration, a the pod shifting forward slightly to mimic the initial acceleration but unable to sustain the illusion - Unfortunate but expected. Turning however is very real, and so responsive that you almost throw yourself into one of the instrument panels - You ease up and take a look around. There are three other mobile suits near you, all of them orange Bugus, and the monitor automatically tracks them as friendlies, displaying IFF and unit information next to them in tiny text.
>>5502009“Up yet, sleeping beauty?” Vivima’s voice taunts you over the radio, one of the suits flying over with grace and ease, limbs moving about to reorient it as it comes to a halt in front of your own, thrusters dying down to almost nothing.“Wide awake.” You reply, checking over a few of the readouts in front of you and confirming that you’re full on fuel, “Controls aren’t that hard, it really is just like a ball.” Casval and Artesia’s suits fly closer after a few more seconds, the four machines close enough to touch as they float through the void of space, Earth and Luna faintly visible in the distance as tiny blue and gray circles.“Come on, take them for a spin!” Vivima encourages, her suit blasting away backwards, spinning and reorienting as it does so, arms and legs moving in harmony with the thrusters. She’s an orange blur across the night sky, trailed by streaking white flame and exhaust, a faint afterimage stretching across your view screens. The three of you do as you’re told, and your eyes widen as you see push the acceleration up and up, your suits rocketing after Vivima - Admittedly with less grace than her display, but still following along well enough. These things are fast, and turning-You feel your stomach lurch with every turn, but that’s overshadowed by the pure thrill of the response; it does exactly what it’s told. They turn on a dime in comparison to the worker pods you’re used to. After a few minutes of joyriding, and a bit of throwing punches and kicks to get used to the limb controls, you feel confident enough to move onto something more serious.With a disorienting snap your viewscreen changes to show the interior of a makeshift mobile suit carrier’s hangar bay, crew in Zeon normal suits scurrying about the deck pushing carts of ammunition crates and carrying hoses and tools all about the place. Your suit is hooked up to a fuel pump, hoses dangling from overhead, and as you tap the controls a safety warning flashes across your screens and the suit refuses to move. You locate the override but don’t touch it, not wanting to make a mess of the simulation before it even starts.
>>5502019“Purple team,” a deep male voice speaks over the radio, clearly prerecorded, “Our fleet has engaged federation naval forces near Side Two, and battle has already commenced. Your objective is the destruction of the mobile suit carrier Geneva, deep behind the enemy defense pickets. Its mobile suits are playing merry hell with our cruisers and we need it gone fifteen minutes ago, do you understand? Flight information is being uploaded to your suits now. You have the pick of the litter for weaponry, but you won’t be receiving any aid once you launch. Our big guns are already busy engaging the feddie battle line, and its a real god awful soup out there, minovsky interference is extremely high. Use your discretion in eliminating the target, I don’t care how you get it done, I just want that thing off my battle map. You’re clear for launch in two minutes. Good hunting, and Sieg Zeon!”“...General Rugens really got into character, didn’t he?” Vivima says over the radio, laughing sweetly, “There are weapon racks to your left, all sorts of toys.”Heat hawk? Crackers? You’re not sure what she’s talking about but, looking to the right of your suit’s little personal bay you do in fact see a weapon rack within reach.“I’m taking an anti-ship rifle, Felix.” Casval informs you, “...And one of those axes. The goal is the carrier, we just need to punch through, in and out.”Hmm… Choices, choices. You grab one of the axes as well, presumably the ‘heat hawk’ Vivima just talked about, and a few of those giant stick grenades that look like they have rockets built into their handles. Those both look useful no matter what else you take, though you only have the vaguest idea what these things do. What do you take?Choose one:>Machine Gun and a shield. Simple and keep things balanced.>Anti-ship rifle. Long range, very powerful, shot placement is crucial. >Bazooka. It’s a magazine fed bazooka that can blow up ships, is there anything else to say?>Shotgun. Pure unfettered aggression, rip and tear the (simulated) feddies until it is done.
>>5502024>Anti-ship rifle. Long range, very powerful, shot placement is crucial.Sniper and Recon are the best roles for Felix and his special eyes
Alright we should think about this. While I doubt this will be a lock-on for what weapon we use, it's still important to know what we'll be familiar while starting.Let's pick something that is good with Felix's strong points. I'm willing to change my vote if other anons have better ideas.>>5502024>Anti-ship rifle. Long range, very powerful, shot placement is crucial. I'll go with this one, partially because Felix is more perceptive of things and could be good with finding weak points of the enemy.Also because it might be the best thing that can simulate a laser, if I remember correctly.
>>5502024>Anti-ship rifle. Long range, very powerful, shot placement is crucial.I think MG and Shield is another good choice, and I'm sure Felix would have fun with the shotgun but precision is his wheelhouse.
>>5502024>>Machine Gun and a shield. Simple and keep things balanced.If Casval is focusing on the ship we should focus on keeping mobile suits off him while he does his job.
>>5502024>>Bazooka. It’s a magazine fed bazooka that can blow up ships, is there anything else to say?
>>5502024>>Shotgun. Pure unfettered aggression, rip and tear the (simulated) feddies until it is done.SHOTTY
>>5502035>>5502037>>5502040Anti-ship rifle wins. I'll start writing in the morning.Until then, I have a question: How do you feel about using dice? Narrative only seems to have worked out well so far and currently I plan to keep it that way, but I'd like to hear opinions.
>>5502111I like dice, but so far in the one full combat sequence we've had (the Mansion raid) you did a great job of making an interactive fight. I won't mind continuing on without them if our sorties have choices like that.
>>5502111I'm with this Anon>>5502115Dice can be useful, but you're really good at writing choice based combat. Just try and make sure you don't make any option the "correct" one and you should be fine.
>>5502111Honestly? I would prefer narrative only. I know dice are something of a tradition but i've seen quests do without them in combat to great success. Leave things as they are imo, decision based like it has been. You've done well with combat so far i think.
>>5502111I'd rather not use dice unless the situation can be left to chance. Still, if used in the right place they could be great.
>>5502111I'll join the narrative bandwagon.
>>5502111Narrative only has been great so far, I don't see any problem continuing with it.
>>5502115>>5502121>>5502122>>5502129>>5502233>>5502303Thank you for the feedback anons, its good to hear narrative has gone well so far. We'll stick with it.
The arm of your mobile suit reaches toward the enormous weapon rack, grabbing the heavy barrel of the anti-ship rifle and lifting it from its restraints with a series of metallic clacks. Careful not to snag any of the hoses or scaffolding surrounding your Bugu, you bring the black rifle closer to inspect it. Five round box magazines, external optical tracking systems, bulky. Targeting data scrawls along the main screen in front of you, though it’s fairly limited - Looking to either side you spot a fold out gunnery monocle. Testing it, you find that it rests comfortably in front of your helmet visor, tracking along with your movement - It seems to be linked to the rifle’s targeting systems already. Alright, that’s simple enough. The main screens can do basic targeting, the monocle does the real precision work. You secure four spare magazines to magnetic attachment points on your mobile suits hips, each of the huge black boxes snapping firmly into place. That’s all you have room for unfortunately - there’s just nowhere else to carry anything. Twenty five rounds, two of those cracker grenades, and a heat hawk. You smile, and laugh to yourself, calling Casval up on the radio.“I’m taking one of the anti-ship rifles as well, we can share ammo if it comes to that.” You inform him.“We're taking the same weapons? Fair competition then, see if you can keep up."“It’ll be just like back at the quarry.” You laugh, glad to have your brother with you for this first run, “Are we going to push or just cover Artesia and Vivima?”“Do you really need to ask? We have the speed.” Casval laughs, and you know exactly what he intends to do. You’re in mobile suits, why squander being mobile? This isn’t going to be a passive fight playing over watch.“Right, of course you can’t resist it.” You answer, checking over the last few of the readouts surrounding you and confirming fuel load and pressure; everything is in the green.“Purple team, prepare for launch.” An unfamiliar woman’s voice calls out over comms, and lights flash on to your side as a screen shows the foot clamps on your Bugu deactivating. Careful of the simulated crew who are rapidly clearing the area, you take one great step forward, and then another, the huge feet of your suit vibrating the entire deck. There are catapult tracks on the floor and sleds just large enough for your suit’s feet - It isn’t hard to figure out where you’re meant to go.
>>5502354Vivima’s mobile suit takes the front, somehow having changed its colors from orange to purple, followed by Artesia, and then Casval. You’re last, but that’s fine - more time to observe the battlefield.“Purple team ready, sortie preparations are complete. Vivima Zabi, launching!”Vivima's purple Bugu, obscured by the two mobile suits line up in front of you, zooms off into space with an abrupt acceleration, the deck rattling a little as the catapult completes the launch.“Artesia Deikun, launching!” Your sister echos, her own suits pushed violently forward along the track and thrown from the hangar just as Vivima’s was.“Casval Deikun, launching!” Your brother shouts, following close behind, engines already flaring as soon as his suit leaves the bay.“Felix Deikun, launching!”The pod jolts as is mimics the extreme acceleration, and you watch the relative velocity tracker rocket upward, the hangar bay disappearing from the periphery of your screens to be replaced entirely by a sea of stars and sleek green cruisers, very similar to the Zam but sporting several turrets along their angled hulls.You burn hard, catching up to Casval and the others and joining in the formation, a loose finger four. Volleys of streaking green mega-particle cannon fire blaze past all around you, launched at targets barely visible with the aid of your rifle’s enhanced targeting - This really is a larger battle, your fleet is exchanging fire with a line of federation Salamis-class. Pink flashes from the feddie battle line flare up in intensity, their own volley answering in kind, distant explosions filling the space around you as debris is hit or containment purposefully fails to create a brightly colored flak screen. None of it is aimed at you.“Enjoy the light show while it lasts.” Vivima calls out, voice barely crackling though over the radio, “We’ll use that ship debris up ahead to cover our approach, it’s a long way to our prey.” “Where? I don’t see any debris.” Artesia asks, though you’ve already spotted it; the scattered remnants of a Magellan-class battleship are just barely visible up ahead along your current vector, a handful of kilometers out.A small green arrow indicating their position pops onto your center view screen, marking the wreckage more clearly. You raise your anti-ship rifle and slide down your targeting monocle, zooming in on the ruined vessel. It’s far too distant to take anything like an accurate shot, minovsky interference even messing with visible light and causing the image to distort slightly, but you can tell the vessel was split into three large pieces by catastrophic explosions of some kind. Torpedoes perhaps.
>>5502355For a split second you swear there’s the white flare of a thruster among the twisted, carbon scored metal plating, contrasting against the dark blue paint of the destroyed hulk. There’s no guarantee that it’s an enemy suit, but you can’t shake the feeling that something is wrong.>”There’s movement in the wreckage, we should avoid that approach. Vivima, is there another route with cover?” Try to avoid a fight for now, the carrier is still a long ways off.>”We’ve got movement in that wreckage. Casval, let’s swing around the side and check it out.” Try a more nuanced approach, pair off as planned and flank any ambush there might be.>”Eyes on a possible threat in that wreckage. Just one, we can take them.” Rush them down, the clock is ticking.>Write-in.
>>5502358>”We’ve got movement in that wreckage. Casval, let’s swing around the side and check it out.” Try a more nuanced approach, pair off as planned and flank any ambush there might be.
>>5502358>Write-in>”Eyes on a possible threat in that wreckage. It could be an ambush, prepare yourselves.” Rush them down, the clock is ticking.Even if it's an ambush we should be able to take it if we go aggressively with knowledge of where the enemy is.Let's not forget what Jones said to us about seconds being precious in the battlefield.
>>5502401I miss Jones.
>>5502416Same here. Wonder if we'll ever see him again.
>>5502360>>5502365>>5502399Writing.>>5502418Possibly, I'm keeping a lot of characters that appeared briefly in mind for future stuff.
“We’ve got movement in that wreckage.” You broadcast to the others, “Casval, lets swing around the side and check it out.”“Think it’s an ambush?” Casval asks, light flaring from his mobile suit’s thruster backpack as he pulls off and away to flank, “I’ll take point, lets go!”You’re right behind him, gyros spinning your pod as the simulator adjusts for your new course off to the side of the destroyed battleship, the wreckage growing rapidly in size as you really open up on the throttle - You aren’t swinging too far out, that would bring you into the wider battle, but it’s still going to delay your arrival compared to a head on attack.Vivima laughs over comms, the connection crackling and weak but her voice filled with predatory glee. Her purple Bugu blasts forward directly toward the wreckage, shotgun in hand, “This is where the fun begins!”“Vivima, wait up!” Your sister cries out, lagging a ways behind the bloodthirsty Zabi girl, machine gun gripped in both hands of her mobile suit as it rockets along across the void.Half a minute of hard burn, which the simulator really just can’t mimic, and you’re in position, verniers straining to slow you as you sweep the rifle across the debris field formed by the destroyed feddie battleship. Zooming in with your monocle you get a great view of a trio of Waffs in federation colors clinging to the dark side of the burnt out bridge, and a few… worker balls? They have cannons mounted on their tops, and it's a little comical looking but those guns are probably very nasty if they land a hit.Vivima and Artesia’s Bugus are already among the wreckage, blazing ahead directly toward the ambush. They’ll be right in the thick of them in a few seconds.You open a line to Casval, “I see them. Three Waffs and a couple of balls. Machine guns and cannons only.”“We’ve got them,” Casval replies a moment later, his own anti-ship rifle leveled toward the cluster of hidden enemies, both hands of his Bugu steadying the giant gun, “Let's take them all!” The mono-eye sensor of his suit looks toward you, flashing red, and then back toward the wreckage, and he’s off like a comet hurtling toward the wreckage, rifle extended before him like a lance of the knights of old.>Your brother is right, they’re exposed from this angle. Close for easier hits and open fire, try to take as many as you can even if it risks moving into close combat. Attack, attack, attack!>”Go on ahead, I’ve got a present for them right now.” Try to tag their leader. They’ll scatter as soon as you fire, but if you land the hit it should sow chaos for the others to exploit.>”Wait, they’ve got ships moving, there might be more to this!” It looks like a pair of Salamis-class have broken from the enemy battle line; they look like they might be vectoring to intercept your path to the distant carrier, but it isn’t clear. Slow down and figure it out.>Write-in.
>>5502441>”Wait, they’ve got ships moving, there might be more to this!” It looks like a pair of Salamis-class have broken from the enemy battle line; they look like they might be vectoring to intercept your path to the distant carrier, but it isn’t clear. Slow down and figure it out.>”Go on ahead, I’ve got a present for them right now.” Try to tag their leader. They’ll scatter as soon as you fire, but if you land the hit it should sow chaos for the others to exploit.Got to make sure the shoot not only will hit, but that will matter
>>5502441>”Go on ahead, I’ve got a present for them right now.” Try to tag their leader. They’ll scatter as soon as you fire, but if you land the hit it should sow chaos for the others to exploit.Let Casval gain momentum while we sow some chaos.
>>5502441>”Go on ahead, I’ve got a present for them right now.” Try to tag their leader. They’ll scatter as soon as you fire, but if you land the hit it should sow chaos for the others to exploit.Let's give him some support at range, that way we won't be bunched up and made easy targets if we get intercepted.
>>5502441>”Go on ahead, I’ve got a present for them right now.” Try to tag their leader. They’ll scatter as soon as you fire, but if you land the hit it should sow chaos for the others to exploit.
>>5502446>>5502461>>5502472>>5502474Writing.
“Go on ahead, I’ve got a present for them right now.” You call out to Casval, tapping the the thrusters of your mobile suit in little puffs of propellant, stabilizing for a single accurate shot with your anti-ship rifle.There won’t be a second chance, they’ll scatter like a flock of birds as soon as the round passes - The trick is to have it pass through one of them on its way past. The leader will do. It's a Waff sporting a different antenna on its head than the others, yellow accents give off an unmistakable air of authority.Lining up the crosshair of your targeting monocle doesn’t take long, only a couple of seconds, flashing red target lock indicators turning solid as a you focus in on the command suit, the tiniest movements of your targeting joystick lining up a perfect cockpit shot. If this thing can kill a ship the light armor of a Waff should be no issue, even at its thickest.You squeeze the red trigger mid exhale, just as if you were shooting a rifle, and your target bucks out of view as the gigantic rifle recoils; thrusters fire to adjust for the recoil, and the great mass of the Bugu does the rest, the target quickly coming back into sight… Its trailing fire from an enormous crater in its upper torso, white and blue armor plates warped inward around ragged hole, smashed clean through. Panicked adjustments of its thrusts fail to bring it under control as it spins wildly, careening into a nearby chunk of wreckage and scraping along it, leaving a trail of sparks and burning fuel before it lodges into a jagged torn bulkhead and impales itself, exploding a split second later.Holy shit. At least shooting is fairly intuitive, but you did miss slightly - not that it mattered.Vivima’s on them before they can scatter, a purple blur whipping around the destroyed bridge, shogun firing; one of the balls takes a spread of fist sized buckshot, holes appearing across its surface in flash before its sheared into titanium confetti. The remaining two Waffs and the last ball scatter, thrusters flaring and machine guns coughing out rounds as Vivima roars pasts them, circling back with heat hawk in hand. You brother opens up, the shrapnel shell of his anti-ship rifle popping the remaining ball like a balloon - It just seems to stop existing, only faint impression of metal scrap sent careening off into space. His second and third shots narrowly miss one of the dodging Waffs, and his fourth shot hits its shield arm at a bad angle. The round furrows a deep gash, wrecking the shield and arm before deflecting and detonating behind it, silhouetting the federation mobile suit as it strains to track Vivima, completely oblivious to all else.It's glorious chaos.
>>5502508…And then Artesia shows up, seeming to just putter along in comparison to blazing fast maneuvers of Casval and Vivima. She calmly puts a burst into the damaged Waff, thrusters carefully adjusting for the recoil of her machinegun, the armor of her target sparking and cratering with every rapid impact, sending it out of control directly into Vivima’s heat hawk. There’s a faint orange flash, the edge of the weapon’s blade alight with energy, a crunching impact as it tears into the damaged Waff, and then a sudden violent burst of speed as Vivima fires her mobile suits thrusters at full burn, leaving behind a bisected mess of flailing robotic limbs and burning fuel. Its reactor detonates, and you’re forced to turn your targeting sensors away to not be blinded. The final Waff, badly outnumbered, rushes away from Vivima and Artesia’s Bugus and toward Casval, firing bursts of its machinegun, tracers crossing the distance quickly. Casval jinks here and there, firing his last shot and taking the Waff’s head clean off - It pushes on, partially blinded, firing wildly. You brother’s Bugu dives evasively, engines blossoming into torrents of white flame, and then dashes back up as the distance shrinks to nothing, delivering a devastating kick to the Waff’s cockpit. It ceases moving, the last commands to its thrusters dying out, the cockpit caved completely in. They really do have thin armor.You burn a bit closer and line up a laser signal, cutting through the minovksy interference, “You’re just showing off now.”“How’s it look from up there?” You brother replies, ignoring your banter but a hint of pride in his voice, “Are we clear?”“Nothing left. It looks like a few cruisers might be moving to protect the carrier though, I’m not sure.”“Regroup and keep pushing!” Vivima commands, cutting in with perfect clarity, apparently having spotted you and already lined up her own comms, “We don’t have time to revel, just burn hard and we’ll make it before anyone gets in our way.”“She’s got the right idea, come on.” Casval says, Vivima’s message automatically shared by your own laser system; the automatic networking is handy, this minovsky interference really makes the normal radios a huge pain. >Do as Vivima said, group back up with Casval and push for the carrier. It’s going to have mobile suits guarding it, but if you all push together you might be fast enough to slip in and out.>”I’m going to make sure those cruisers don’t box us in with flak. Casval, follow me!” Getting cornered between a flight of Waffs and the point defenses of three cruisers would be a disaster.>As above, but signal Casval to push on ahead. You can handle the ships, a distraction might be enough to buy the others the time they need.>Write-in.
>>55025101)>Do as Vivima said, group back up with Casval and push for the carrier. It’s going to have mobile suits guarding it, but if you all push together you might be fast enough to slip in and out.A combined aggressive push should work in this situation.2)>As above, but signal Casval to push on ahead. You can handle the ships, a distraction might be enough to buy the others the time they need.A bit sacrificial, but I think we can manage if our piloting abilities are anything to go by.
>>5502510>As above, but signal Casval to push on ahead. You can handle the ships, a distraction might be enough to buy the others the time they need.If there's anybody I trust to juke those cruisers out, it's Felix.
>>5502510>As above, but signal Casval to push on ahead. You can handle the ships, a distraction might be enough to buy the others the time they need.
>>5502510>>Do as Vivima said, group back up with Casval and push for the carrier. It’s going to have mobile suits guarding it, but if you all push together you might be fast enough to slip in and out.
>>5502510>As above, but signal Casval to push on ahead. You can handle the ships, a distraction might be enough to buy the others the time they need.Time to use Felix's gunpla autism to the fullest
>>5502510>>As above, but signal Casval to push on ahead. You can handle the ships, a distraction might be enough to buy the others the time they need.Felix knows the designs of spaceships by heart.
>>5502510>>As above, but signal Casval to push on ahead. You can handle the ships, a distraction might be enough to buy the others the time they need.let's go get some simulated salamis kills
>>5502616Mmmmm...Salami.
>>5502511 (second option)>>5502513>>5502516>>5502608>>5502613>>5502616Writing.
“I’m going to make sure those cruisers don’t box us in with flak. Casval, push on with the others!” You call out to your brother, pulling hard on your suit’s controls and flipping about to begin a rough interception burn; you’ll have time to refine it as you go, you need to move!“Good hunting, Felix!” Casval wishes you well as he pushes his suit to what must be its limit, blasting nearly out of sight of your normal visual sensors, a blossom of pale exhaust all that marks his position as the two of you separate further and further. He’ll catch up with the others, you have no doubt. Hopefully they can handle the carrier’s escort suits, it won’t be a clean counter ambush like that first group, no element of surprise to carry them through… You clench more tightly to your controls, clearing your thoughts as you press on to the three blue federation cruisers, adjusting your angle to a more efficient point of interception. Their main guns are already turning about to face toward you, but you know they’re awful at tracking small targets - The handful of saberfish splitting off to attack is another matter entirely though. They were concealed on the far side of the cruisers impossible to detect, but it's too late to turn away now.What are they armed with again? Small autocannons and guided missiles, if memory serves and you weren’t lied to by that kit… The autocannons might be an issue, dodging fire from six fighters on your own probably isn’t going to happen unless the simulated federation pilots are garbage, and you don’t know what kind of punishment your Bugu can handle. You know the missiles are catastrophic if they hit directly, but with minovsky interference they’re probably little better than dumb fire rockets - Still dangerous, but hardly the threat they were designed to be. You exhale and gun it, red warning lights appearing all about you as the engines are pushed to their limits, heat building up fast than it can dissipate - The saberfish grow larger and larger on your central viewscreen, and you raise your anti-ship rifle, setting almost like a lance ahead of you, and take aim at their flight leader. Thunder claps, vibrations shaking your mobile suit as you fire at these nearly unstable speeds, a single shell soaring out toward the saberfish. It strikes the lead craft in the cockpit, almost appearing to implode the lightly built fighter before it disappears in a blossoming fireball. The other fighters open up, a hail of missiles streaking toward you, smoky exhaust trailing through the dark of space as they spin and circle, tracking systems struggling to make sense of anything.You fire again, clipping one of the top engines of another of the conventional fighters, a flaming gash opening up in it before it begins to disassemble rapidly under its own stresses, one of the winglets shearing off and the pilot barely managing to eject before the entire fighter explodes.
>>5502784The missiles reach you, and there’s nothing to do but dodge. Flipping about, your Bugu’s limbs contort as the AMBAC system reorients you at frightening speeds, rattling you around inside the simulator pod as the gyroframe mimics the violent motion, and you blast off at a new angle. Most of the missiles soar past harmlessly, blind and unaware, but a trio manage to turn about and lazily track you. Another jink and you lose one more, spinning and zipping from side to side, and finally the last two slam into one another as they try to make a final approach, detonating in a harmless shower of shrapnel and grey smoke puffs.There’s no time to celebrate though, yellow tracers streaming past as the saberfish press the attack, muzzle flashes of their rapid fire autocannons a single steady light as they spew shells toward you. You try to evade, but the missiles forced you into a bad position and it’s impossible to get away from it all. Warning lights flash on and you can feel staccato vibrations through the pod, hits chewing away at your mobile suit. More and more fire pours in, and you lose one of your torso mounted sensors, static filling some portions of your view screens, backups turning on a moment later to reveal… …that the saberfish are past you. You’re still in the game, there were no serious hits - A few sensors are out here and there, and a small screen displaying various sections of your Bugu has its left arm lit up in yellow, but overall they just scratched you. You whip about and fire the remaining two shots, emptying your rifle and tagging another of the saberfish as the squad struggles to turn about and make another attack run. Three saberfish remain. The cruisers are pressing onward to the carrier. Their point defenses haven’t opened up on you yet, probably fearful of hitting their own fighters.>Reload, clean up the remaining saberfish with a few more shots and press on to the cruisers. >Launch your crackers at the remaining saberfish, you might be able to catch them all in the cluster explosion and push on to the cruisers even faster.>Ignore the saberfish entirely, they already launched their missiles - Full burn to the cruisers and start working on them NOW. >Write-in.
>>55027911)>Write-in>Reload, then go for the cruisers while mostly ignoring the saberfish. Keep your eyes open for anything that might come your way, try to use your newtype skills to enhance your perception if possible.2)>Ignore the saberfish entirely, they already launched their missiles - Full burn to the cruisers and start working on them NOW.
>>5502791>Reload, clean up the remaining saberfish with a few more shots and press on to the cruisers. >Ignore the saberfish entirely, they already launched their missiles - Full burn to the cruisers and start working on them NOW.
>>5502791>>Ignore the saberfish entirely, they already launched their missiles - Full burn to the cruisers and start working on them NOW.If we take out the rest of the saberfish they'll open up with flak, we should hit the cruisers hard while they're giving us a chance.
>>5502791>>Ignore the saberfish entirely, they already launched their missiles - Full burn to the cruisers and start working on them NOW.
>>5502791>Ignore the saberfish entirely, they already launched their missiles - Full burn to the cruisers and start working on them NOW.
>>5502805 (second option)>>5502806>>5502816>>5502824>>5502826>>5502836>>5502857Writing.>>5502805Felix being a newtype is already helping out some, it sort of smooths over the rough edges of learning to pilot something new; the fact that the simulator isn't actually real makes anything other than enhanced reflexes or communicating with the others in their pods sort of useless though. There's no space to expand his mind into or sense things though. Along with not simulating acceleration properly this is one of the biggest flaws of the simulator, at least from a newtype perspective.
So as far as our hypothetical MS Squad composition goes, Felix would make a fine designated marksman/sharpshooter, right?
>>5502889Thanks for explaining Contolist, but with my first vote I was hoping to have Felix focus on himself and his abilities rather than his surrounding. But now that I think about it what I was going for doesn't sound like how newtype powers work, since there isn't anywhere for his mind to expand in like you said.Man I should really brush up on newtypes and on Gundam in general.
>>5502905Maybe, he definitely has the perception for it.
>>5502905My personal "Ideal Squad Comp" would be Felix (Marksman/commander), Blanche (Close Range), Garma (All-rounder), and Artesia (Communications).Even if I wanted Casval as part of the squad, I think we'd end up butting heads with him over tactics, and his grades in the academy'll probably get him put in charge of his own squad anyway.Blanche could be easily swapped out for Ramba or any other melee specialists, I just put her their because Best Girl.
>>5502905Felix could probably fill any role that he trains in. Besides reaction, he's likely to have a small degree of foresight and if need be psychically feel out targets. Amuro wasn't a dedicated sniper but he's capable of doing inhuman shots and feats thanks to Newtype powers.>>5502922If we fail to prevent the creation of the Titans, Casval'll be right with us in the AEUG as Quattro Bajeena and Felix will be Cinco Qlitoris.
>>5502937>Felix will be Cinco Qlitoris
>>5502937>Cinco Qlitoris fucking lmaoAlmost done writing.
>>5502937>Cinco Qlitoris.It's pronounced "Chitterous"
There’s no time to waste on fighters that have already blown their one shot at downing you; at worst they’re a nuisance now, their autocannons too light to do any real damage without a lot of sustained fire and lucky hits. You keep pushing your mobile suit, fuel dropping rapidly as you put it into another full burn and tear off toward the trio of cruisers. Vibrations shake the pod, the closest it can manage to simulating the stress of such violent acceleration, but you still manage to coax the arm controls of your suit into reloading your anti-ship rifle, the magazine insertion confirmed visually and by an indicator that flashes briefly across your viewscreen.The first Salamis is coming in range now, and even with saberfish trailing behind you it opens up - Close range fire pours from its point defense cannons, twin barreled turrets set around it and out across the bow on raised stalks. Heavy shells, little more than vague yellow flashes, fill the space before you as the guns struggle to track quickly enough - You jink and maneuver here and there as you close, dodging the torrent of fire with concentrated effort, getting closer, and closer, and closer...You’re near enough now to make out individual portholes and the painted stripes and numbers along the cruiser’s hull, the sensors of your Bugu easily picking up such detail, and grin as you confirm that the ship is exactly as you expected - It has no weapons covering its bottom if you get in close. You pull your suit into a dive, spinning about to face the ship’s belly as you pass under it, turning and flying along its full length at reduced speed.Where is it? Where the hell is it? You search frantically over your screens, eyes taking in every detail of the ship’s underside until finally you spot your target; there’s a concealed fuel port almost melded into the rest of the armored hull, barely distinguishable from the surrounding plating.A pair of shuddering blasts from your anti-ship rifle strike around it, punching through armor and detonating with flashy fireballs and ruptured plating, but the primary tanks must not have been hit as there’s no greater detonation afterward. You’re forced to circle back around, looping over the top of the cruiser too close for its guns to fire, catching a brief glimpse of the returning saberfish as you do so, before returning below for another shot.
>>5502966You settle your crosshair on the damaged section of the ship as you fly past, squeeze the trigger again, and the vacuum around you transforms into hell. Every sensor on your Bugu threatens to overload as orange and red flames blossom outward, completely consuming you even as you accelerate away, secondary explosions buffeting your mobile suit with shrapnel as the internal bulkheads of the cruiser rapidly fail, something far more dangerous than fuel detonating seconds later. The cruiser becomes the solar system’s largest fragmentation grenade, chunks of debris the size of your mobile suit’s limbs ripping away in every direction - You barely avoid getting bisected a piece of plating, AMBAC system and verniers straining to move and twist your suit just out of the way, the chunk of metal passing over you by less than a meter.It takes a moment to reorient yourself, searching over screens and sensor readouts to get your bearings once more, but soon you’ve sighted in on another of the federation warships. You laugh as you rush toward it, backpack thrusters flaring to life once more, the thrill of the fight starting to really get to you. It’s bloodless, there’s no guilt or fear to the simulation - it’s just pure excitement and spectacle, a test of your skills. …Being that close to an exploding cruiser again might not be a great plan though, so you nix the fuel tank approach for now.The main guns of the next cruiser open up, pink mega particle beams burning by you to either side, and its point defenses fill the void with shells just as the last did, lines of tracers crossing here and there. You approach at an angle that minimizes your exposure to fire, and put the last two rounds of your magazine into the defense turrets held out on stalks, blasting them into pieces. You reload and land feet first on the side of the ship’s hull, using its own superstructure as cover against its guns, magnetic plates on the bottom of your mobile suit’s feet locking on tightly. Running, not flying, you thud your way over to one of the main guns, smashing its barrel out of the way with your suit’s offhand before using the same to snatch a cracker off its magnetic mount on your Bugu’s waist armor. You activate the grenade, rocket motor flaring even as you hold onto it, and wedge it tightly between the bottom of the turret and the barbette that holds it up from the hull. You detach from the hull, engines flaring, and the mobile suit scaled grenade goes off a moment later, ripping the turret to pieces in a series of rippling detonations.
>>5502967The remaining saberfish make a pass at you as you prepare to shoot into the torn open gash of the maimed cruiser, shells sparking and deflecting off your armor, and you barely attempt to dodge, almost ignoring them as you line up your shot, so close that the targeting monocle serves no purp-Something big detonates against you, and you’re spinning. You slam forward inside of the safety restraints of your seat, bounce back, and then lurch violently forward again before straining to push yourself back, your pod spinning and spinning and spinning. Red warning lights flash on, alarms blaring throughout your cockpit as damage diagnostics come in, and slowly you regain control and make sense of what happened. One of your anti-ship rifles' spare magazines detonated, and its shrapnel shells pulverized a great deal of the left side of your Bugu… No limbs are missing, but there are fuel and fluid pulse system leaks, and the armor is severely compromised in several places. You thrust back down, taking cover on the surface of the cruiser once more, and keep your eyes peeled for the return of the saberfish as you assess the situation more thoroughly. This cruiser is badly damaged, the bow a flaming mess, but it still has its rear armament. The third cruiser is unharmed and maintaining formation, flak already firing out into the void to cut off some angles of approach. The saberfish are… ah, there they are! They’re swooping back in for another gun run. Their autocannons are nearly harmless to the cruiser, and in theory nearly harmless to you if they don’t get lucky again.You only have one magazine left, the others damaged to the point of uselessness by the detonation. The targeting system of your anti-ship rifle was mangled, so you’ll be firing purely with your mobile suit’s basic systems and instinct - Not great, but workable. A single cracker and your heat hawk are still fully functional, safely secured on the opposite side of your mobile suit from the ammo explosion. >Swat those fighters out of the sky, they’ve gotten lucky once already. A few shots with your rifle should do the trick… if you can hit.>Finish what you started, shoot into the hull breach on the cruiser and reload as you move onto the next. The strategy was working, they just got lucky.>Cracker the fighters when they pass close by again, and draw your heat hawk and get to work on the cruisers. Save your limited ammunition for more serious threats.>Write-in.
>>5502968>Cracker the fighters when they pass close by again, and draw your heat hawk and get to work on the cruisers. Save your limited ammunition for more serious threats.H E A T H A W K>>5502937>Cinco Qlitoriskek
>>5502968>Cracker the fighters when they pass close by again, and draw your heat hawk and get to work on the cruisers. Save your limited ammunition for more serious threats.Do as Char did during the Battle of Loum. Use the Heat Hawk on the bridge and then use the explosion to leap-frog to the next ship.
>>5502968>>Cracker the fighters when they pass close by again, and draw your heat hawk and get to work on the cruisers. Save your limited ammunition for more serious threats.
>>5502968>Cracker the fighters when they pass close by again, and draw your heat hawk and get to work on the cruisers. Save your limited ammunition for more serious threats.I feel like we're overestimating both Felix's abilities (I mean this is his first time in a battle simulation) and the capabilities of the simulation itself.
>>5502977>>5502980>>5502981>>5502987>>5502990Writing.
The controls are sluggish as you stow your anti-ship rifle, securing it on its magnetic clamp between your mobile suit’s right pauldron and thruster backpack. The damage to the left side of your Bugu is slowing everything down, automatic damage control systems struggling to makeup for the damage to the fluid pulse system. You still manage to get your last cracker grenade in hand before the saberfish swoop in, couching down and watching the trio of fighters approach. Tracer fire spatters across your armor as they open up, and you turn to face your uncompromised right side to face them, covering your last magazine with your suit’s free hand. Just as the saberfish pull up to cross overhead, you twist the handle of the cracker and activate its rocket motor, letting go and sending it launching upward into the tightly spaced fighters. The cluster explosion fills the void overhead, reducing one of the fighters to a pile of twisted and burning metal, and damaging the other two with a spray of deadly shrapnel, sending them fleeing and trailing smoke - Hopefully they won’t be back. You grab your heat hawk, steel fingers wrapping around the enormous axe, and swing it outward; it flashes to life a moment later, the edge of the blade burning bright orange, and you stomp toward the bridge with violent intent. The armored glass reflects your image as you approach, the damage to your mobile suit looking absolutely awful - The armor on your left side is crumpled, external cables severed, fuel spraying free from a number of breaches in little pulses - That ammunition explosion almost did you in. If you hadn’t used your left side cracker just prior you’d be out of the simulation entirely. There’s no time to ponder that for now though, and you raise your heat hawk high in the air and bring in crashing through the bridge.Armored glass shatters into thousands of pieces, and there’s a reverberating thud of impact as the hawk’s blade bites deep in the surrounding plating, slows, and then tears through as the reinforced structure buckles under the immense heat. You rip a jagged line all the way down to the main hull, explosions tearing apart the center of the ship. It’s commander center is out, but it’s still not dead. A quick thruster hop to the rear of the ship and a hacking blow to the main gun on that side wreaks further destruction to the crippled vessel. A few more blows near the engines finally gets the results you’re looking for, flames bursting forth from the deep glowing gashes you’ve torn into the ship with your heat hawk. Internal explosions shake through the dying vessel, vibrations transmitted up your suit’s legs, feet magnetically clamped to its ruined hull - You don’t wait around for what comes next, rocketing off toward the final federation cruiser, dodging a neon pink blast from one of its beam cannons with a tap of your thrusters.
>>5503084Your fuel reserves are running low, this constant high speed burning and the leaks are eating right into-The cruiser explodes behind you, buffeting your Bugu forward suddenly at tremendous speeds toward the next one - Convenient, if unintended. More warning lights flash on, and your left foot thruster fails with a jolt. After a few seconds fighting with the controls you compensate, bringing your suit back under control on its approach, point defense guns already blazing away. Thankfully the left leg itself is still partially functional, your Bugu’s AMBAC system allowing you to narrowly evade much of the incoming fire, rotating around and about the stream of shells as you close the distance… But you’re slower than before, and you do take hits. You’re slammed around in your seat’s restraints once more, the damage status indicator below your main screens flashing bright red as your suit loses its left leg from the knee joint downward, and then there’s another hit and your left hand is obliterated. Shit! You wrestle with the controls, compensating for the reduction impacts and loss of mass, narrowly avoiding taking even more hits as you crash heat hawk first into the hull of the cruiser, ripping a deep furrow in its hull to slow yourself down, remaining thrusters firing to steady you. There won’t be any more running about on the outer hull now, but flying close alongside should serve almost as well.You pull your heat hawk free from where it bit into the hull, and fly toward the nearby point defense guns in a blind rush, reaching them before they can finish rotating to face you. A pair chops sends them free of their armored stalks, and you turn back to take out the top gun turret on the bow - You banana peel its barrel with a single blow, ripping all the way down to the turret itself and then carrying on deeper. Capacitors for the turret blow out in a flash of electric flame, scorching and destroying the rest of the turret. The next half minute is a blur of violence, heat hawk striking anything exposed and vulnerable on the outer hull. Turrets, the bridge, fuel ports - Absolutely everything. There are no catastrophic explosions this time, but when you’re finished with the vessel it is trailing smoke from a dozen locations and stripped of all of its weapon systems. This simulation is surprisingly detailed, even including crew evacuation attempts. You slap one of the slender escape pods as it launches, crushing it before its rocket motors can accelerate it to any significant speed. Something horrifying that you'd never do in a real battle, but almost comedic in a game like this, however detailed it may be.
>>5503088You exhale, taking in the sights around you, eyes trained on your remaining sensors and the scanning across the surrounding space on your view screens. The fleet battle is still raging in the distance, but you don’t spot any more fighters or mobile suits launching toward you. The cruisers weren’t quite heading directly to the enemy carrier, their course was meant to block the approach rather than hug around the vessel, but you’re close enough to see engine lights and little circular orange explosions as your siblings and Vivima engage it.Fuel is dangerously low. You run the numbers in your head quickly, making some assumptions but confident you’re not too far off, and come to a single conclusion: if you join in the attack on the carrier you’re not going to be flying back to base in your own mobile suit. It’s just a simulation, but the choice still weighs on you. You barely got to fight other mobile suits, and the others might need the help, but in your Bugu’s current state you’re very likely to just get shot down - Ending your first run with a ‘death’ is a bit embarrassing, and goesagainst the spirit of a simulation anyways. You’re supposed to treat it like it’s real, even if it does seem a bit… easy? All of this has seemed easier than you expected actually - maybe the difficulty just isn’t set very high? Questions for later. You really only have two options.>Join the attack on the federation carrier. You won’t have the fuel to return back on your own even if you survive. Best case scenario you’ll need to be towed back.>Return to your own carrier. That would be the smart thing in real life, you’ve already done well and your Bugu just can’t take any more hits.
>>5503091>Return to your own carrier. That would be the smart thing in real life, you’ve already done well and your Bugu just can’t take any more hits.Man that sucks. Oh well, let's not make a fool of ourselves on our first simulation.
>>5503091>Return to your own carrier. That would be the smart thing in real life, you’ve already done well and your Bugu just can’t take any more hits.
>>5503091>Return to your own carrier. That would be the smart thing in real life, you’ve already done well and your Bugu just can’t take any more hits.we should also try to check in with everyone else to let them know we're heading back.
>>5503091>>Return to your own carrier. That would be the smart thing in real life, you’ve already done well and your Bugu just can’t take any more hits.Discretion is the better part of valor
>>5503091>Return to your own carrier. That would be the smart thing in real life, you’ve already done well and your Bugu just can’t take any more hits.The wisest warrior knows when to cut his losses and retreat.
>>5503101>we should also try to check in with everyone else to let them know we're heading back.Agreed.
>>5503091>>Return to your own carrier. That would be the smart thing in real life, you’ve already done well and your Bugu just can’t take any more hits.
I can see a fun potential scenario coming up.Vivima said that all simulation runs are recorded, right? Well if we make a 'realistic' decision like going back to our carrier, right after destroying one of the escape pods, the question of why we did that might come up. If we were doing realistic choices, then would destroying that pod be something we'd actually do?The simple and honest answer is that we just didn't want to die in our first time playing.
>>5503095>>5503098>>5503101>>5503106>>5503109>>5503131Writing.
>>5503143I doubt us smashing the pod would come up. If it does, we'll tell the truth and say that we smashed it for catharsis's sake and that we'd never do something like that in real battle.Felix isn't CCA Char or Haman or Gihren or M'qube or Ryer or Scirocco or Delaz, he's not gonna kill non-combatants.
>>5503154>Felix isn't CCA Char or Haman or Gihren or M'qube or Ryer or Scirocco or Delaz, he's not gonna kill non-combatants.I get that feeling from Felix too. He's even convinced Casval to be less bloody, and is generally a good kid (other than the whole getting distracted by women, but he's growing out of that).
>>5503154>he's not gonna kill non-combatantsYet.
Sighing, you shake your head and reach over to the comms controls, checking if your laser system is still working. It isn’t, destroyed alongside many of the other sensitive systems that can’t be properly armored. “Well, so much for that.” You mutter to yourself, zooming in on the distant mobile suit battle with your suit limited visual sensors. Even with your eyes it's difficult to make much of anything out, the distortion of simulated minovsky interference masking the identities of the individual suits. You’d like to at least let them know you’re pulling back, but as torn up as you are even that isn’t possible A light movement of your foot and you spin your Bugu about and begin the journey back to your carrier, working out the most efficient burn rate and flight path on the secondary navigation screen, tapping away at it with your gloves hands. Not a thrilling end to your first run in the simulator, but you did well. There will be time to tally the kills later, but three ships, some fighters, and a command mobile suit is hardly a bad record. It takes a few minutes to limp home, and you have time to enjoy the lights of the simulated fleet battle. Neon pink and green crossing back and forth across the deep black of space, flashing spheres of energy erupting here and there, flights of fighters and mobile suits skirmish about the center and in little pockets across each battle line… it’s all too clean though, sort of fake looking now that you’re staring at it for longer. The exact issue is hard to pin down, but it just doesn’t seem chaotic enough. You cease your musing as the carrier and hangar bay come into sight, slowing your suit with a reverse burn just before arrival. You pass into the open bay, touching down carefully… and proceed to immediately plant your Bugu’s face in the ground, scraping along the deck for a dozen meters before arresting nets stop your grinding advance. Landing with only one leg isn’t a pretty process. The gyroscopic frame of your pod reorients you one last time and the outer hatch hisses open, revealing the simulator room. You clamber out, swinging your legs down and dropping the short distance to the steel floor. Walking over to the observation position you can see the faces of the others inside their pods, visored helmets obscuring them slightly, lights flashing all about and illuminating them. Artesia is a mask of pure focus, straining to keep up, while Casval looks like he’s having the most fun he’s had in ages - Even more so than fencing yesterday. Vivima is shouting something in a rage, brow furrowed and… Damn, she looks good when she’s mad, there’s just something about it that really draws your attention and… You try to push the thoughts from your mind.
>>5503245Other screens show what each pilot can see, labeled for the pod it corresponds to. The battle is a mess. Artesia is circling around a pair of Waffs, exchanging torrents of machine gun fire, while Casval continues to slip in and out of the furball around the carrier, taking shots at targets as they present themselves - A Waff with a bazooka loses both of its legs to one of his shots, just moments before a purple blur crashes into it. Vivima’s screen reveals the action from her end, and you get a clear view of her shotgun crushing into and through the cockpit hatch of the damaged Waff, a single shell gutting it completely. A wash of flame fills the screen, and when it clears she’s already onto another target, heat hawks clashing as both engage in a proper melee battle……And so it goes for a couple of minutes, until eventually Casval grabs a discarded enemy bazooka and dumps the entire magazine into the opening hangar bay of the carrier, a fresh squad of Waffs just readying to launch to join the fight. The carrier does not survive. Aresia’s screen flashes wildly and cuts to black, her pod spins about violently for ten seconds or so, and then the hatch to it hisses open. She stumbles out, nearly falling to the ground, ripping her helmet free and making a few awful retching noises. You rush to her side, helping her stand and walk to the observation position.“What happened? I… I didn’t see what got me.” She asks, closing her eyes as she fights off another wave of nausea.“I think it was Casval blowing up the carrier, probably just shrapnel.” You reply, unable to discern anything more from the footage you saw, “I nearly blew myself up doing something similar.”“Where were you? Did you die too? You better have.” Artesia asks, slightly annoyed, “I could see explosions around the cruisers but you never came back.”“I survived, but I got torn up so badly I couldn’t really fight, and comms were out too. If I had joined in I would have just died, so I returned to our carrier. I didn’t want my first run to end in a dea… oh, sorry Artesia.” You explain, stopping yourself as you see your sister’s face, and you don’t need newtype powers to understand just how pissed off she is. Her death was pretty bullshit to be fair, getting tagged randomly by giant shrapnel just feels so pointless and abrupt, and she wasn’t keen on the battle simulation to begin with anyways. “Well, I’m glad someone had fun.” Artesia complains, puffing out her cheeks in frustration, “Casval and Vivima are crazy, they wouldn’t slow down at all to work as a team once we got to the carrier, and you ran off!”“I was trying to cover you.” You explain, trying to keep your voice calm to not antagonize her further, “Those cruisers had a squad of fighters with them and were nearly in range, you all would have been boxed in.”
>>5503247“Fine, whatever…” She says with a sigh, crossing her arms, “...Next time can you fly with me instead?” “Absolutely, Artesia.” You promise, “I have a feeling we’re going to be in here a lot more, but I can do the next few with you.”“Thanks, Felix.”A few minutes later.“Now let's see what the final kill count came out to, I know my own but…” Vivima says, tapping away at one of the terminals in the observation position and pulling up a mission results screen. She immediately laughs, some oddity catching her eye, “An escape pod, Felix? With your fists. Someone was off being naughty.” “I, uh, just sort of did it to see if I could, it was cathartic. I didn’t expect the cruisers to simulate evacuations.” You explain with a shrug, not wanting to play into her games.“Mm, sure, sure. Three Salamis-class, six saberfish, a Waff command type, and one escape pod. Those ship kills are nasty - two of them with a heat hawk? Felix, you lovely maniac, that’s not what those are for.” She continues, something about her praise causing your heart to beat a bit faster.You try to keep your focus on the results, not her, and push on, “Improvise and adapt, right? Six saberfish is news to me though, I thought I only got four. The last two ran off.”“It probably counted them as having to ditch, once they cleared the area, the sim still credits the kills.”“What were my results?” Artesia asks grumpily. “...Lets see,” Viivma mutters while clicking over to a different results page, “Two waffs, and half a dozen assists on the same. That’s good for a first run.” “...Thanks.”“Casval got… seven Waffs, congratulations there Mr. Ace,” Vivima continues, laughing hard as she reads the rest of his results, “And the carrier …And Artesia.”“It doesn't actually say tha- Oh come on!” Artesia shouts as she leans over Vivima’s shoulder to read the screen herself, whipping about to angrily point a finger at your brother, “You don’t get to be an ace, aces don’t vaporize their sisters.”“You’re right about that, friendly fire negates his entire score, accidental or not.” Vivima says smugly, “If this were the real thing you’d get cashiered for that. That leaves me in the lead with seven of my own. Thanks for the assists, Artesia.”“You’re welcome, I guess.” Your sister grumbles, kicking at the ground a little.“Time for the next sim then… Oh, there it is, can't believe I missed that earlier - Granada surprise assault! This is bound to be a classic someday.”
>>5503250Later that day, after hours of simulation runs and another dinner with the Zabis.You’re lying in bed, staring at the canopy above you, another day having passed by. The simulator runs got tiring toward the end, and you were glad to be done with them by the time you stopped. Dinner was easier than before - Gihren wasn’t there, away on some political tour, and Dozle was off at the academy. Vivima kept Kycilia mostly distracted, much to your relief, but seeing the two of them actually interact like normal people was… jarring. It’s confusing to see Kycilia be warm with someone, the two of them hardly making any mischievous comments at all.Garma and Artesia talked most of the dinner with each other, and that left you and Casval with Degwin. He told stories about his children, avoiding politics, and it was actually rather pleasant - You were allowed to leave early to spend more time with your mother, and that was a welcome reprieve. She’s doing just a little bit better, and hopefully that will continue.You sigh and roll over, looking at the paintings on the wall of your room. It’s just landscapes, beautiful depictions of countrysides back on earth. It reminds you a bit of Spain, actually, and your thoughts drift to Elena. She’s a good… friend? You’ve been meaning to write to her, you even took those pictures earlier for it.Sighing, you get back out of bed and wander over to the nearby desk, getting out a pen and paper and setting about the task. Her letters are always something you look forward to, even if they’ve been getting darker and darker. It’s worrying, very worrying, but there’s little to be done about it. Hopefully Dozle was telling the truth about letting you still send letters, but there's no way to found out other than to try.>Let her know that things have changed a lot and that you should be able to finally see Von Braun together in a few months. Nothing specific about the Zabis, but mention being back in Side Three.>Tell her the truth about where you’re living now, but also that it means you’ll be able to visit her sooner. Don’t speak ill of the Zabis, tell the truth mostly but dress it up in a way that should be palatable if the letter gets read by Kycilia.>...On second thought, maybe it’s best to wait a little longer. Go back to bed.
>>5503252>Let her know that things have changed a lot and that you should be able to finally see Von Braun together in a few months. Nothing specific about the Zabis, but mention being back in Side Three.She's not allowed to know shit. It'll make her inevitable death during the moon invasion part of the war hurt more.
>>55032521)>Let her know that things have changed a lot and that you should be able to finally see Von Braun together in a few months. Nothing specific about the Zabis, but mention being back in Side Three.2)>Tell her the truth about where you’re living now, but also that it means you’ll be able to visit her sooner. Don’t speak ill of the Zabis, tell the truth mostly but dress it up in a way that should be palatable if the letter gets read by Kycilia.If we don't write to her now, we probably never will. And that'll make for a bad time for us all, since we're scheduled to meet with her in a few weeks if I remember Dozle's promise correctly.
>>5503252>>5503258Changing my vote to1)>Tell her the truth about where you’re living now, but also that it means you’ll be able to visit her sooner. Don’t speak ill of the Zabis, tell the truth mostly but dress it up in a way that should be palatable if the letter gets read by Kycilia.2)>Let her know that things have changed a lot and that you should be able to finally see Von Braun together in a few months. Nothing specific about the Zabis, but mention being back in Side Three.I remember Dozle said that Kycilia's guards would be there, and I'm going to commit to there being no potentially bad surprises when we meet her.
>>5503252>>Let her know that things have changed a lot and that you should be able to finally see Von Braun together in a few months. Nothing specific about the Zabis, but mention being back in Side Three.Going with keeping things vague. Pretty sure this letter's gonna get looked over before it gets sent out.
>>5503266Also, Kycilia is definitely going to read whatever we write to Elena. It might be suspicious if we aren't specific, since the Kycilia Agency has definitely read all our mail. And there's a chance Kycilia or someone working for her might try to blackmail us by threatening to tell Elena about what's going on. But it might be good to be vague for the tragedy of it, like the other anon said. Make Felix really start to hate the Zabis and all that fun stuff.
>>5503252>Let her know that things have changed a lot and that you should be able to finally see Von Braun together in a few months. Nothing specific about the Zabis, but mention being back in Side Three.
>>5503255>>5503266 (second option)>>5503281>>5503374>>5503407Writing.
It’s probably best to keep things vague for now, mentioning the Zabis is just asking for trouble - It seems almost inevitable that Kycilia or one of her goons will read it, they’ve probably been reading all of your letters to Elena, but pushing her deeper into this mess just feels wrong. It already nearly got her killed once. Elena can probably read between the lines anyways, she knows enough to piece together a general picture. No, no Zabis. Instead it’ll be better to focus on the good news, you’ll finally be able to meet her in Von Braun like you promised years ago - Getting something to fly around in might be a little tricky, but at this point you’re fairly resourceful. Rafferty ended up teaching you a lot about low level corruption and bribery, even if he probably didn’t quite intend to do so… You set pen to paper, thinking of the happier days ahead of you. Just a few more months at most, maybe even sooner… Of course you’ll have to talk with Kycilia about it. Sighing, you get back to it.Dear Elena…Two weeks later.Acclimating to life with the Zabis has been difficult, but constantly living a lie is something you’ve grown up doing; pretending to forgive and forget is almost second nature, a mask that slipped on easily after a few days. Lucifer was delivered a while back, the black cat quickly making himself at home, but unfortunately Teabolo is not going to be able to visit, probably ever, which absolutely crushed your sister for a few days. Garma, to his credit, did a great deal to try to cheer her up, but it was mostly your mother that helped her through it. Elena’s first letter to you while you’ve been with the Zabis arrived recently, and she seems to be doing a little better than before. She has a new friend, Nina, who entered university early just like Elena did - they’re younger than their classmates and have been struggling to adapt, so they’ve decided to stick together. Elena was ecstatic about the news that you’ll be able to visit sooner than expected, and claimed to already be getting ready.
>>5503564Your mother is doing much better, already looking more filled with life and no longer needing her wheelchair. Depression and near starvation almost killed her, turned her into a shadow of herself, and other than still being skinny as a rail she’s quickly returning to something like her old self. The doctors told you that it's good that she’s as young as she is, only in her late thirties, or the recovery could have been a much rockier ordeal.She’s been spending time with Glemy recently while you and your siblings are off with Garma or Vivima, forming a quick bond with the young boy. He’s Gihren’s son - Not a huge surprise, but the details are still unclear. They went to Laplace park yesterday, in disguise and with guards, Vivima joining them - It was just a simple thing, letting Glemy play with some kids around his age, but your mother was insistent that it happen. Vivima got Kycilia to come around to the idea, and off they went. You tried to go but got stuck horse riding with Garma instead - You did get to meet some of his ‘friends’ though, a gang of fawning sycophants from other less influential families that compliment him on nearly everything he does, trying to curry favor with the Zabis. Hardly friends at all, truth be told. His current girlfriend, Siya, the one he missed dinner to see, didn’t seem all that bad though. He told them all that you and your siblings are the children of a politician from Side Six, and you just used your old fake first names - They didn’t press the issue. It would have been nicer to spend some time with your mother outside of the gilded cage of the palace, but getting to leave at all was a welcome change.Your mother knows what you’re up to. There’s been no need to speak about it directly, there’s been no chance to speak about it with all the bugs across the palace, but she knows - And it seems that she’s decided to help. The park visit wasn’t her first move either, she’s been speaking with Degwin, taking tea with him a few times nearly as soon as she could manage it - What exactly they speak about you have no idea, but it seems to put that wrinkled old prune of a man in a good mood.
>>5503567Where are you now?>With Garma and his ass kissing ‘friends’ again. You and your siblings are in disguise once more and off to see a basketball game - You don’t really know anything about the sport, it's always been more of an interest to Casval, but that’s not the point. Vivima has tagged along, mischievous as ever.>Learning to dance in one of the palace’s empty ballrooms. It’s important to know how, it would be embarrassing if you can’t when the need finally arises. Appearances are everything, and you’ll struggle to make allies in high society if you’re tripping all over your feet. Mink is teaching you. Artesia is off with Garma somewhere, and Casval is meeting with Gihren again.>Meeting with Gihren in his study. It’s about time you spoke with the man, only Casval has had much of a chance so far but he's been handling it well from what he reports on your morning runs. Gihren is not a pleasant person by any stretch, and arrogant in the extreme, but he’s the most influential of the Zabis and the main force pushing them on politically. Artesia got pulled away by Kycilia to talk, which worries you a great deal, and Casval is with Garma practicing shooting.
>>5503571>Learning to dance in one of the palace’s empty ballrooms. It’s important to know how, it would be embarrassing if you can’t when the need finally arises. Appearances are everything, and you’ll struggle to make allies in high society if you’re tripping all over your feet. Mink is teaching you. Artesia is off with Garma somewhere, and Casval is meeting with Gihren again.
>>55035711)>Learning to dance in one of the palace’s empty ballrooms. It’s important to know how, it would be embarrassing if you can’t when the need finally arises. Appearances are everything, and you’ll struggle to make allies in high society if you’re tripping all over your feet. Mink is teaching you. Artesia is off with Garma somewhere, and Casval is meeting with Gihren again.2)>Meeting with Gihren in his study. It’s about time you spoke with the man, only Casval has had much of a chance so far but he's been handling it well from what he reports on your morning runs. Gihren is not a pleasant person by any stretch, and arrogant in the extreme, but he’s the most influential of the Zabis and the main force pushing them on politically. Artesia got pulled away by Kycilia to talk, which worries you a great deal, and Casval is with Garma practicing shooting.
>>55035711)>With Garma and his ass kissing ‘friends’ again. You and your siblings are in disguise once more and off to see a basketball game - You don’t really know anything about the sport, it's always been more of an interest to Casval, but that’s not the point. Vivima has tagged along, mischievous as ever.The only reason this is priority for me is because this one keeps us together, with us and our siblings having the possibility of breaking away to discuss more private things (if this basketball game is outside the Zabi estate).2)>Learning to dance in one of the palace’s empty ballrooms. It’s important to know how, it would be embarrassing if you can’t when the need finally arises. Appearances are everything, and you’ll struggle to make allies in high society if you’re tripping all over your feet. Mink is teaching you. Artesia is off with Garma somewhere, and Casval is meeting with Gihren again.Honestly this is pretty good for us, and gives our siblings more time to focus on their strong suits.
>>5503586>if this basketball game is outside the Zabi estateI just reread it and it definitely isn't in their estate.
>>5503571>1) Learning to dance in one of the palace’s empty ballrooms. It’s important to know how, it would be embarrassing if you can’t when the need finally arises. Appearances are everything, and you’ll struggle to make allies in high society if you’re tripping all over your feet. Mink is teaching you. Artesia is off with Garma somewhere, and Casval is meeting with Gihren again.>2) Meeting with Gihren in his study. It’s about time you spoke with the man, only Casval has had much of a chance so far but he's been handling it well from what he reports on your morning runs. Gihren is not a pleasant person by any stretch, and arrogant in the extreme, but he’s the most influential of the Zabis and the main force pushing them on politically. Artesia got pulled away by Kycilia to talk, which worries you a great deal, and Casval is with Garma practicing shooting.
>>5503564>She has a new friend, Nina>Younger than their classmatesOh no.>>5503571>Learning to dance in one of the palace’s empty ballrooms. It’s important to know how, it would be embarrassing if you can’t when the need finally arises. Appearances are everything, and you’ll struggle to make allies in high society if you’re tripping all over your feet. Mink is teaching you. Artesia is off with Garma somewhere, and Casval is meeting with Gihren again.
>>55035711)>>Meeting with Gihren in his study. It’s about time you spoke with the man, only Casval has had much of a chance so far but he's been handling it well from what he reports on your morning runs. Gihren is not a pleasant person by any stretch, and arrogant in the extreme, but he’s the most influential of the Zabis and the main force pushing them on politically. Artesia got pulled away by Kycilia to talk, which worries you a great deal, and Casval is with Garma practicing shooting.2)>Learning to dance in one of the palace’s empty ballrooms. It’s important to know how, it would be embarrassing if you can’t when the need finally arises. Appearances are everything, and you’ll struggle to make allies in high society if you’re tripping all over your feet. Mink is teaching you. Artesia is off with Garma somewhere, and Casval is meeting with Gihren again.
