@inane.imp . . . When the squad finally assembled (lacking just the Samurai Woman staying on a "Cool Pose" on her victorious Heavy Exoframe and with a rather large T.A.G.-sized Polearm planted on an enemy Tank-Drone wrecked hull, and a weird "Pseudo-Ninja" sort of Attendant taking Photos as for a Mayacast Act; anyway the Nihonjin Onna-Bugeisha was easily reached by Encrypted Tactical Comms. . .) the Nomad Veteran noticed a couple of the Minotaur Bikers more flashy "Specimens" (such as the enormous, muscular "Bull-Man Chimera" and the quite spectacular Amazonian Woman with big breasts and Cow Horns) acting as a sort of "Decoy" to cover some Haqqislamite Kums discreetly, very discreetly approaching the "Special Crates" handled by the Bandersnatch Drone. . . Their leader, a very beautiful mature woman, quite tanned and with a long braid of Silvery-White hair, quickly checked the content with a "Sniffer" Chem-Scanner and nodded to Her accomplishes that quickly loaded the crates on a nearby truck; after checking the surroundings the Kum Matriarch then showed a "Thumbs-Up" sign directly in front of Tony's customized Tin-Bot Drone and presented a tiny greenish Data-Chip engraved with Haqqislamite Scripts in golden filigree. . . Tony immediatly recognized it as a very specialized form of Crypto-Money from Bourak, usually employed by Merchants Guild; called "Silken Scrips" it was quite employed in ANY of the Caravanserary of the Human Sphere and was linked NOT to the "Ebb & Flow" of O-12 Galactic Credit stock exchange, but rather to a precise-size "100% Pure Silk" manageable quantity; it was as good as (if not EVEN MORE) as a Ingot of Refined Teseum or a tiny Bar of Nessium, in the right circumstances. . . The Data-Chip was not very big or complex-encrypted so Tony inferred that it was NOT a payement for the Service (and anyway His Corregidoran Smuggler contacts preferred "Virtual Currency" housed by a trusted Tunguskan Banks) but rather a "Token of Appreciation" for Him personally, for the discretion and care taken to handle their package. . . While Tony had heard very, Very, VERY Bad things about the Kum Reaver Gangs, these seemed to be quite professional (and, given the fact that they seemed "Inter-Married" with Local Ariadnan Desperado Bikers. . .!!) it was a safe bet that a very good "Baseline Network" of Contacts was YET established in New Knossos Island. . . . . . . . . . As a side-note, His Geist, Betty, that was checking the surrounding "Data-Sphere" with the Gecko Advanced Sensor Suite, to see if there were interlopers observing Tony's machinations, noticed that the Reverend Custodier of the Trio of Nomads Observancers, actively scolding the two "Warcor Paparazzis", had erected a White-Noise Firewall of truly monumental proportions; not only ANY Virtual / Holo / Digital recording of the discussion would have been utterly impossible, but even an Analogic Perception (maybe with some Old-Fashioned "Vintage" Laser-Mike) would have been seriously scrambled by decoy infra-sounds emitted by ALL the Sonic Devices around the heated exchange. . . Suspicious, very suspicious. . . Usually, in Tony's recollection, this Level of Paranoia was justified when Moirae Custodiers were battling their Arch-Enemy, the Danavas Hackers of A.L.E.P.H. or other Netrunners of comparable "Alpha+" level of efficacy. . . . . . . . [O.O.C. No need to Roll; the Airport is the Biker Gang main turf, and now that the attack was repelled, they, the intended recipients of the Smuggled Goods, have No Problems to retrieve it, safely and discreetly. . . The "Halo Cloud" of the Kum Matriarch pinged Her as "Leyla Farhad, Wife of King Mynos of the Ariadnan Minotaur Bikers". . . The Data-Chip is a form of Haqqislamite Hypersecure Currency; as INSIDE New Knossos Island there is an Haqqislamite Caravanserary, it could be redeemed for Bourak Goods at a very high discount % or traded with other stuff, Generic Mercs, Ariadnan, Nomad or even Tohaa stuff, as any of them value quite the "Silk Scrips". . .]
@Beodren . . . While reviewing His new "Motley Crew" of weirdos from ALL the Human Sphere (and even beyond, for the Morat Krakot !!) then Alistair received an Hypersecure "Ping" on the Com-Log encrypted channel, bearing the Quantronic Signature of His liege and lord, Commander Graywulf. . . [Congratulations, lad. . .!! You have made Today any Minotaur of Caledonian blood very proud ! Not only You checked the excellent functioning of that Teseum Cyberarm to peak efficiency, but You managed to properly balance the Native Fury of a Dogwarrior with the good, cool Tactical Behaviour expected from a Veteran Highlander Officer. . . Your Grandfather was very right ! You are, indeed, High Officer Cadre material !! Now the noisy Artificial Intelligence that is SUPPOSEDLY shielding Us all from Svengali's shehanigans said You secured a very big prize; as Comms could be somehow compromised, until properly checked everywhere, it passed to Me a request, as our Geist are Twinned and could not be so easily cracked. . . . .even by a Criminal Mastermind A.I. !!! You see these three "Mannequin Humandroid" Drones in the linked Video-Feed, lad ?? These Three, AND ONLY THESE THREE, are deemed secure enough by H.I.V.E.M.I.N.D. to properly take care of the "Precious Cargo" that You managed to secure. . . They all sport Relay Antennas that allow them as acting effectively as OUR Ally's "Field Aspects" and so could be ONLY THEM able to crack immediatly open that "Treasure Trove" of Passwords, Locations and Battle-Plans of our erstwhile Enemy. . . They are brought there by a Tohaa Liaison, one of those that have that weird "Pheroware Multispectral Network" that our Artichoke-Headed friends employ in lieu of Mayasphere / Arachne; as NOT EVEN the Evolved Intelligence managed to decrypt it, will be another FURTHER level of protection to evade Svengali's tricks. . . What troubles Me is that attack was totally wasted, and clearly improvised; usually Hyperintelligent Virtual Consciousness does not act in that manner, unless they are somehow forced to do it, and I want to know WHY A.S.A.P. as clearly that devious Rogue Computer has ALWAYS something NOT GOOD in mind for us, humble Mercenaries. . .!! You have YET installed a Pheromone Emitter-Controller on Your Battle-Comlog, to better manage Your new pup, that sad excuse of a "Frankenstein Antipode" ! Will be relatively easy also check the "Phero-Signature" (whadda absurd stuff !!) of the Tohaa Bodyguards, to ensure that We are NOT downloading Svengali's Source Code directly INSIDE the Island Mainframe !!! Graywulf closing now ! CALEDONIA BYDAND ETERNAL !!!] The last exclamation was JUST another level of well justified Paranoia ! Being a Paradiso Veteran the Young Dogwarrior Officer knew intimately how much could be lethal to have an A.I. wrecking Chaos with Security Clearances (such as when Com-Log Dependant hyperpower soldiers had their VERY GEISTS revolting against them !!). . . That exclamation was not the usual "Victory Cry" of the Graywulf Clan (and of their Liege-Lessers, such as the Mc Elliotts of Alistair) uttered to rally troops after a resounding defeat of foes; the Motto "Caledonia Eternally Steadfast" meant a "Siege Mentality" with Clansmen, Shieldmaidens and Bonded Troops STILL considering themeselves in Enemy Presence and recalling to be ALWAYS VIGILANT. . . In the Hyperlinked Video Feed there was shown one of the Underground Hangars that dotted the island with a triplet of identically-attired Drone Androids (clad in loose Graywulf Troopers Uniform) that marched, with eerie PERFECT Synchronization, toward a reinforced Hum-Vee. . . Two were toting Automatic Boarding Shotguns, with attached an Underslung Grenade Launcher; the third, with a more prominent Relay Antenna hastily welded on its robotic back, carried a typical "Metros Combimachinepistol", a Suppressed Light Submachinegun with an attached "Masterkey" Sawed-Off Light Shotgun underneath the main silencer barrell. . . That "Team Leader" was also carrying one-handedly, with some inhuman unease, a big armoured box that Alistair's Comlog pinged as "Lined with Inert-isothopes Lead", a Material By-Product of Teseum Refining that scrambled seriously Quantronic Comms. . . Clearly these were far more "Serious" Humandroids than the half-junked chassis that the Caledonian Noble wasted in sparring not so many time before. . . . . Awaiting for them were a couple of Tohaas, one was Aaarasshh Kathurr, a Kaeltar Specialist that Alistair had yet seen the same morning, traipsing around the Minotaurs Hitech Med-Labs (was supposedly a "Pheromone Warfare Specialist" that would have further secured Quantronic Transmissions away from Svengali's interferences); was armed with a weird Assault Pistol comboed with a Riot Grenade Launcher that, while of "Antiquated Ariadnan Design" was SURELY filled with the bizarre Xeno-Payloads of Chem Warheads. . . The other was an unknown Makaul with a very large customized Symbioarmour and a couple of weird twin Pole-Swords strapped on the back, that Alistair Caledonian keen eye recognized istantly as marrying Ariadnan Teseum Edges with the strange Bio-Materials Shafts employd by their strange Alien Allies; just a Heavy Pistol complemented the weaponry of this Alien Melee Specialist, trying with some difficulty to cope with the Human-Made vehicle steerings. . . Their progression towards the Airport Tarmac Battlezone and Alistair's own Relayed Position was feed in direct time on His Comlog, to assure that they were NOT somehow delayed or intercepted. . .
@Danger Rose . . . Weird "Morat Sexual Innuendo Joke-Tests" aside, that was not a very bad start ofr Her Mercenary Career: A resounding victory (with so many, So Many, SO MANY !!! beautiful fires still cracking on the Battlefield !!) obtained with proper weaponry (even if was NOT Her "Dream Project" . . .to deploy Her "Balrog Frame", the "Dream TAG" of Her design, on a Battlezone, but one day, One Day, ONE DAY !!!). . . A competent and pleasant Squad Commander. . . seriously a fully transformed Lycanthrope Werewolf from Ariadna was not so horrible as some Sick Stuff that She has seen when checking one of Her preferred Bakunin Arachne-Casts, "T.A.P.A.S. 1" (as in "Taskmaster Alpha Purge Assault Squad-1"), with a Moderator Crack Elite Team tasked to "Clean" the most hideous Praxis Black Labs byproducts and downloading their Video-Feed Live (the fact that the Shotguns of the Teams were ALL loaded with White Phosphorous "Dragonsbreath Slugs" was NOT the only motive for Dreanna to like the Show. . . A team of experienced Moirae Nuns to help Her cope with "Religious Issues" even if on this "Backwater Island". . . . . . . . Wait a Minute. . . "Island". . .?? As in "New Knossos Island", as "Landmass Surrounded by Water-Bodies". . . . .??? She was ON A FRIGGIN ISLAND !! An Island with Beaches (that, at least, judging from the hasty Orbital Re-Entry) seemed to be Sandy, Clean and Warm, inviting and so perfect to Sunbathe. . .!! . . . . . She was so flabbergasted by the sudden revelation to somehow miss that the Trio of Observancers had finally finished to scold utterly the two Hyperpowers Paparazzi Journalists (that seemed NOT to be properly ashamed. . .! Damned Pan-Os Papalines and Yujing Confucing-Confuciongs !! FILTHY UNBELIEVERS !!!). . . The Mother Superior issued a free "Hail Mary Of The Knife !" utterance on the Open Channels of the Local Datasphere; this was tipically released when Observancers had now the possibility to Confess and Succor the Bakunite "True Believers" and soothe their troubled souls. . . . .
With update from command soldier answer simply. "Aye, it will be done Sire" Then he made sure to be very careful both about the drones and Tohaa meant to secure the box. Of course Dog-Face would prefer to deliver the processor straight to the Duke, avoiding risk of exposing any machine to vile AI, but he would never dishonor his family with disobeying his liege. So as soon as he had marked the location of convoy and estimated the time to their arrival, he turned to the squad. "We have update, secure convoy will arrive here to pick up components of destroyed drones for analysis. As for our transport once we are done..." Wolfman nodded at the truck meant for carrying TAGs. "We will take this one, it was already dedicated to suits of our squad. Until then eyes peeled and stick to cover." If needed Alistair would simply pull rank on one of the gangsters roaming around here. Of course the war cry meant for siege didn't escape his attention and Caledonian remained far from relaxed, still looking around and sometimes sniffing the air, trying to pick up odd scents as he moved slightly closer to the doorway of the tower. "Since we are stuck here until convoy arrives, I will answer questions you may have about island or company."
@Golem2God . . . The embarassement of the Open Comms Channel and the interjection of His wife aside, that was not a so bad "First Battle" for the Team that He was tasked to Vice-Command. . . Obvioulsy the Squad Leader, the Dogwarrior Lieutenant Alistair, was fearsome as its fame said ! While stationed in Paradiso with the Daturazi Assault Teams then Uja had not fought with many Ariadnans (and surely, NOT of Metamorphing Ones) but other Morat Veteran Troopers that He knew spoke of them with the grudging respect that is due for a worthy foe. . . But this was totally different to see one of them in action; it was as observing a fearsome Demarok Apex Predator (that ONLY Raizots Journeyman Pilots were allowed to hunt, despite many unfortunate attempt by foolish Daturazi Novices !!) with the keen, tactical analytic mind of a Veteran Officer like Kornak Gazarot or a Sogarat Raktorak. . . The "Coup De Grace" with whom finished the downed Flyer Drone, by ripping its "Robotic Entrail" with a lethal Combat Cyberlimb, would have been PURE "Sotarak-Level" material of legends if performed by a Morat Superior Officer. . . Surely was a worthy Officer to serve under; while NOT ANYMORE part of the Combined Army, the "Primal Urge Need" to follow an Alpha Apex Packleader was deeply ingrained in the Morat Psyche. . . . .!!! . . . . . The Cat Woman was a pyromianiac for sure, but seemed to JUST enjoy flaming opponents and not be TOTALLY dominated by the "Will To Roast EVERYTHING" !! Was good enough with a Support Heavy Weapon, but the Armour that She wore was a little too thing; compared to the one that the Mechanic Sergeant was sporting that identified Her also as a Exoframe Pilot. . . But where was Her human-made "Tactical Armoured Gear". . .?? It was unusual for Pilots to deploy without their "Best Assett". . . . . . . . . . Nothing to say on the "Human Raicho Pilot"; an excellent example of Melee Exoframe Specialist that would have been an excellent Zerat Gladiatrix for sure. . . . .maybe a little TOO Show-Womanship, but Fame & Fortune on the Battlefield were one of the MOST comprehensible Human Behaviours for a Morat Mindset. . . . . . . . The Mechanic with the Custom Exoframe was one of the most easy to understand for Uja. . . He too hailed from a Engineer's Guild Family, but choose to fight rather than toil in the workshop. . . Even if a little too curmudgeon, could have been quite relatable for the Krakot Ex-Daturazi. . . . .
Betty flags the White Noise Zone in Tony's AR overlay. Tony silently whistles. @Betty that shit looks way over our paygrade. But I'm sure it'll bite us in the arse. Speaking loudly enough to be heard by everyone in the crew. "Are things usually this, well..." He gestures to the airfield, encompassing the emergency landed shuttle, the smoking remnants of destroyed REMS and the Observance activity "... Fucked up?" Someone had to be 'that guy' and Tony strongly suspected it was him. Wouldn't be the first time either.
@inane.imp . . . [Waaaahahahah! Ehy, Maan !! Tony Rodriguez, Man, glad that You landed in One Whole Piece, Maaan !!! . . .Actually this is "Sporadic Light Enemy Activity" as far as Minotaurs Operational Theatre usually go, Man ! But, usually, We bring the Heat on the Foes, rather than the Foes being so kind to come deliver us their Arses on a Platter, Maan !! Well, anyway, Man ! As the Other "Big Brass" are occupied otherwise, Let Me WELCOME YOU TO ARIADNA, MAN !!!] . . . . . That noxiously loud, booming voice, with an atrocious Afro-Caribbean Accent, come from a small display that opened in Tony Holo H.U.D.; it showed a bald, clean-shaved mature African Male of 40-50 Years, with some small scarring, on chin and pate, just slightly covered by cheap Nomads Field Surgery (even worse than the Emergency "Snakeskin" Transplant that was done on Tony to save his blistering, charred hide on Paradiso, after that thrice-damned Apophys had generously doused Him in Xeno Plasma-Flames !!). . . The big black man, was helmetless (with a customized Mobile Brigada "Command Suite" Helm at his side) and wearing an unusually large Corregidor Heavy Infantry suit (so bulky and over-ripe with extra Armourplates and Myomar Muscles to start to resemble a Bakunite Taskmaster or a Kriza Borac of the Tunguskan Securitate !!) and behind Him it was seen a carnage scene, where apparently a couple of the Heavy "Mad-Krabs" Tank Drones, escorted by 4-6 "Angry Hornet" Flyers had attacked the Main Harbour of the Mercenary Fleet on the opposite side of New Knossos Island. . . Other Mobile Brigadas (quite customized with Ariadnan Armourplates to ALMOST the point of being unrecognizable to an Eye less expertly trained than Tony's) were surveying the wreckage, totoing what seemed to be very antiquated combinations between a Cased Spitfire L.M.G. with a rather crude "Napalm Fuel Flamer" affixed underneath the main barrell. . . Not only Tony keen eye understood that many of the Myomar Artificial Fibermuscles on the exposed neck of the big, burly African were DIRECTLY AFFIXED to the scarred meaty tissue, rather than a Kevlar Undersuit, but also the presence of its usual underlings (a Tunguskan Ex-Interventor Hacker Babe ALWAYS wearing Darkened Mirrorshades and a psychotic Bakunite Explosive Tech with a Green Mane as hair) rummaging and sifting trough the junked Mecha-Drones of Svengali clearly showed the identity. . . . . . . . The infamous "Space Pirate", "Mercenary War Criminal" and "Terrorist Wanted By O12" known as "Moonriser" (and sometimes nicknamed "Moonsweeper" to rile up Him, speaking of a very old, antiquated Vintage Spy Movie) was greeting Him. . . . . . . . @Danger Rose . . . . . Meanwhile. . . "Something" landed in front of Dreanna, with a loud thumping sound, that otherwise betrayed a cat-like grace TOTALLY Impossible for unaugmented Humans. . . It was a statuary, amazonian Feline Chimera at least a head taller than the Bakunin Pilot; also was a little too muscular to show the supple, lithe beauty that Dreanna had so, costly and fatiguing, programmed on Her exterior appearance with Years of not-cheap Genetic Treatments and Cosmetic Upgrades. . . Too wild, a mane of hair of an Auburn-Burnished Gold colour too rough and unkempt, just tied barely in place by a dirty bandanna that seemed a torn piece of Army Fatigue, and a tad too evident Body Fur that presented Jaguar-Styled spotty maculations. . . Dreanna was a graceful "Urban Predator Cat", civilized and smart, even if quite lethal and stealthy even WITHOUT Her dreamed Mecha-Suit; that one instead PRACTICALLY SCREAMED with "Half-Savage Jungle Big-Cat", loud and boisterous, with an intensity bordering on the offensive. . . Some kind of torn Army Jog-Pants and Kaki Top was what remained of Her "Dress", ruined in many places by Shrapnel Wounds and Small Cuts (that Dreanna expert eye, in recognizing Biotech, saw closing and healing IN LIVE TIME, signaling a "Regeneration Bioware Package" of the TOPMOST Level !!) and a couple of Light Shotguns (sawed-off and with pistol grips, far LESS advanced than the excellent "Signature GONG Shotpistol" employed by the Bakunite) were strapped, barely, on Her persona. . . While advancing on Dreanna, the "Jaguar Amazon" discarded a runied, battered Chainrifle (under which someone affixed, crudely, a very vintage M203 40mm. Grenade Launcher Tube) that seemed to have been used to batter, hammer-like, the sensors of an Enemy Drone. . . But what was very, Very, VERY worrysome was the attitude of that Nomad Feline Chimera (that strangely the "Halo Cloud" of the Open Geist signaled as "Corregidoran" rather than "Bakunite". . .!!) that had NOT an Aggressive "Pack Alpha" Posture. . .!! Not at all, it seemed that She was totally AROUSED, and Dreanna's keen sense of smell felt some whiff of Uncontrolled Sexual Pheromones on the sweaty brow of the Catwoman (signaled also as "High Command Officer" but WITHOUT an openly stated Rank; Dreanna could think something between Veteran Lieutenant and Junior Captain). . . . .Her Tail (clearly a very powerful Bio-Implant, far better than the Mecha Pilot one, probably capable of limited manipulation and prehensibility) was TOTALLY RAISED. . . . .Her feline, slitted Eyes were totally dilated with unbridled passion. . . Also the powerful, hyperadvanced Biochip-Enhanced Sight of Dreanna caught, with Thermographic Scans, that blood pressure was flushing from exertion muscles (such as those used when Running and Fighting) to the more "Sexually Active" Areas, such as the crotch and the bosom. . . [HEEEEELLLLOOOOO, GORGEOUS ! Buenas Dias, My Hermosa Chica-Gata!! What We have there ? A "Fresh Fish" directly from the Orbit. . . .?? Oh, I LOOOOOVE "Fresh Fish" as any Big Cat !!! . . . . . HRRRNNNMM!! *whisper*. . .*pant !*. . .*pant !*. . .Remember, NOT scare new pretties !!! . . . . . Good Day ! Sergeant Pilot Farabella Dreanna !! Glad to met You safe and unscathed ! I'm . . . . .Officer "LaTigre Balam" here, and I'm. . . . . .Unofficially. . ."In Charge" of all matters pertaining Chimeras and Bioenhanced Troopers. . .especially ones so well endowed !! . . . . . Aaaaaaanywayyy, WELCOME TO NEW KNOSSOS ISLAND and between the Minotaurs Mercenary Company !!] . . . . . @Golem2God , @Beodren Uja and Alistair needed SORELY to employ their considerable Willpower and "Strenght Of Character" to NOT audibly, visibly, LOUDLY ""Facepalm" themselves (in the case of the Highlander Dogwarrior, facepalming with the clanging Cyberhand, to better underscore the embarassment !!!). . . . . . . . OF COURSE the psychotic, sex-addicted LaTigre Balam arrived there at fight ended, but ALSO "Zeroed" on the other Nomads Chimera, that being ANOTHER Cat-Like Female, was TOTALLY Her kind of Fetish. . . . . . . . From the sight of it, and the BARELY controlled Arousal of the Psycho-Bitch-In-Heat, if the Corregidoran Jaguar miscalculated the attitude of the Bakunite Pilot, would PROBABLY try to rip Her Undersuit and "69" Her directly THERE, NOW on the flaming tarmac of the Airport Battlefield. . . . .!!!
Now that question was asked and com interference started he simply grunted at Tony. "Moment, and I will answer" Dog Warrior moved surprisingly silently for his stature, and when he got behind the Tiger woman, for the second time this day tried to grab chimera by the scruff, pulling her away from likely terrified and overly innuendoed TAG pilot. "Captain Balam, I am under direct orders from Duke Greywolf and would not like to deal with distractions right now. My team is also in middle of debriefing. I strongly suggest leaving any contact for later." Alistair might have been outranked here, but he knew he could hide behind the shield of man paying them all. "Especially with potential risk of stragglers ma'am." If possible he would set Tigra away from his squad member, careful to not infer any potential offense as he turned back to the rest. "Answer is no. Most of our action revolves handling smugglers, rarely we have to receive dropships under fire." His throat was by now sore, due to limited ability to speak. Still Alistair made sure to put himself in front of the Tigra, after all, he was next in the chain of command and should be the one reporting, and continued answering Tony's question after moment of break, while staring down woman that he sadly had to consider his superior. "But we do see a lot of enemy fire. Most of our actions involve boarding of ships and busting illegal mines and airports. This defense was unusual, Captain's behavior, sadly is not." Dogface turned his gaze back to the tiger chimera. "So, please, excuse us Captain." His tired throat caused his voice to practically turned into chilling bestial growl, or maybe it was simply fact he was tired of the antics of the mercenary? Still it was obvious McElliot expected some peace for his unit at least for now, despite trying to be polite.
"Gracias, that's what I thought. But we got paid and all our cubes are still in our heads: so it's not all that bad, right?" Tony's warming to the Dog Warrior. That was well handled. Tony@Moondriver. Hola rafiki. Who did all that work? 'cos it certainly wasn't you: not in that paper thin dress. Tony immediately insults his old colleague, it's all in good fun. His impression of Moondriver is that he's great in a fight but talks a big game, and you need to take what he says with a grain of salt. OOC: Rafiki is Swahili for 'friend'. It's not a Lion King reference, but rather my attempt to make add Corregidorian creole to Tony's speech patterns.
@Beodren . . . [OOOOOOHHH! Pack-Leader Alistair stacking its Dominance Claims on the pretty Space Kitty!! I could dig it quite. . .!! *Snickers*. . .!*Snickers*. . .!*Snickers*. . .! Well, Lieutenant Alistair, as You are under direct orders of Your "Liege & Lord" far from Me to interfere. . .! I leave this beautiful Chica-Gata on Your expert, clawed paws. . . *Snickers*. . .!*Snickers*. . .!] And with quite a faked respectful, wary attitude of "Beaten Beta Admitting Alpha's Power" then LaTigre Balam went away, swaying quite EXAGGERATELY Her ample hips, along with a sinuous, seductive movement of Her spotted tail. . . The Young Lord McElliott knew that the Sex-Crazed Antics of the Corregidoran Jaguar were tolerated because Years ago, even before the creation of the Minotaurs Mercenary Charter, the psycho-bitch had saved Lord Greywulf and Family from a fate worse than True Death (something about "Praxis Slave Rings" regarding Gladiatorial Pits that DOUBLED as Bestial Brothels. . .!!). . . But sometimes it was very, Very, VERY difficult to try to suffer Her ENDLESS Harassment of anything Sexy that barely moved (and even worse specimens, Alistair had seen LaTigre Balam actively courting some horrible humanoid-fart that NOT EVEN THE WORST Cameronian Flea-Ridden Mangy Mutt would have touched with the butt of its Low % Teseum Waraxe !!). . . Not even actively restraining the Corregidoran Ex-Whore-Turned-Warrior was useful, because She claimed to LOVE B.D.S.M. and Sedative Chemicals were of little use, as Her hyperenhanced Gene-Modded Physique and a "Lifetime of Abuse" had inured Her even to Haqqislamite Viral Ammunition (or so a desperate Hashashin Lasiq Woman, very attractive under Her sniper mask, claimed !!) Calming a little Himself, the Duke Scion re-centered Himself, thinking that in that evening He had planned a Date with a RADICALLY different kind of woman. . . . .The Aristocratic, composed and very attractive Gene-Doctor of Bourak that was the responsible for the creation of His wonderful Teseum Cybernetic Arm. . . . . . . . Trying to calm had the effect of making Alistair acutely aware that the "Bestial Side" of His Being was becoming groggy and narcoleptic; this was a sign that a prolonged state of "Dogwarrior Battleform" was reaching the limit of even the prodigious Stamina of the Highlander Noble. . . Maybe relocating to His fortified Villa-Bungalow would have been wise, to leave all its new squad acclimatized themselves; its Squires would have taken care of the Host while He would have done a NECESSARY Long Shower. . . The weird characteristics of the Hybrid Human-Antipode Genome of Ariadnan "Werewolves" meant that when the Dogwarrior Form was "Dismissed" and was time to return to Human-Like Dogface, there was a VERY messy outcome. . . The Extra Tissues, Muscle Mass, Furred Skin, Lupine Fangs & Claws and elongated Bones would somehow "Melt Away" from sweat pores in a sticky, disgusting "Protoplasmatic Goo" that would soon evaporate in thin air, but leave quite a dirty puddle around. . . The real "Physic Laws Defying" matter escaped Alistair. . . . .there was a Gene-Doctor in Caledonia that was trying to prove that Extra Mass of Dogwarriors arrived, through Quantum Dimensional Entanglement, from ANOTHER STATE OF REALITY, but was dismissed as a Crackpot Mad Scientist, that claimed Antipodes were in reality Gene-Engineered "Bioweapons" created JUST before the arrival of the Ariadna Colony Ship, and that Teseum reacted AT A SUBATOMIC Level with Haqqislamite Silk and other weird "Neomaterials" (such as the even rare Nessium) to force "Unknown Evolutionary Effect" in Organic Beings. . . Blah!. . .Blah!. . .Blah!. . .Blah!. . .Blah!. . .All useless "Balderdash" for Alistair. . . He needed JUST to know HOW the Dogwarrior Form functioned, and HOW to properly employ it in Defence of the Beloved Homeland of Caledonia !!! What was sure was that Second Generation Dogfaces (like Alistair) and the even rare Third Generation (many of whom Pre-Teens who had not even had their FIRST Dogwarriors Morphing) seemed to show an innate, intuitive better control on their "Dual Nature". . . While First Generations, results of a Pregnant Ariadnan Woman bitten by an Antipode were seen as shameful, dangerous and somehow a Liability, "2° Gens" like Alistair, raised by a loving COUPLE of Dogfaces, had a FAR BETTER raising and mastered their "Wild Side" far quicker. . . He knew that Heavily Injured Dogwarriors, who lost a limb in the past, tried all manner of Cybernetic Reconstruction, but to NO AVAIL, except for some VERY LIMITED success by transplanting Haqqislamite Renegenerative Biotech of ASTRONOMICAL Cost. . . . . . . . Alistair instead had seen that the ALMOST 100% Pure Teseum Cyberlimb (with important small parts of Alloys with Orbital-Smelt Titanium and Hitech Nano-Aluminium) worked at perfection. . . Maybe He was the FIRST of a Kind in the WHOLE of Ariadna. . . And judging from what His Grandfather, High Lord McElliott, was plotting even with the possibility of becoming the FIRST Dogwarrior to become one of the "Archons", the trusted Retainers of the Justicar of Caledonia (the "Justicar" essentially "Regent-King of the Highlanders, High Lord of ALL Clansmen, Best Amongst Peers" !!). . . And considering that the Justicar was ALWAYS elected from Former Archons. . . . . . . . . . It was an heady idea, too distant in the future, better to concentrate on the present. . . ..!!!
@inane.imp . . . [BWAH-HA!-HA!-HA!-HA!-HA!. . . Indeed, Maan, You know Old Moondiver too Well ! Me an' My "Brigandiers", My Brigands-Brigadas are good JUST to soak up enemy fire (and Let Me say MAAAN, THOSE TESEUM PLATES ARE SICK STUFF, NOT A DENT !!!) and be "Heavy Stomping Distraction". . . All the Heavy Works is done by My Pals. . . Mirrorshades Tessa (and the Tunguskan Woman bowed in the direction of the Holo-Camera Screenshot. . .) used Her "Interventor Mojo" and blinded that sickos Crabba Mechas. . . And then, My Boy. . . . .Chemmo-Joe there (and the green-haired Bakunite Man made a "Peace & Love" sign) used these Super-Sicko"Nanoswarm Warheads" that His Artichoke-Headed Pals are developing inside the Vulcan Innards and "Count Svangula Spawn" flooped worse than My Gramma's Jambalaya when the Oven is too hotta !!! I have seen that Your arrival was ALSO greeted by a Mutual Aquaintance. . . . .Layla Bey the Bossah-Lady of the Kum Bikers seemed to have taken a. . . . .Shine. . .to You ! Too well, Man, too well !!! She is VERY IMPORTANT to our distant "Good Fellas" in the Innards of Lazareto, and so being on Her good graces is important. . . In fact I like My women quite experts. . .As My Poppa said "Old Chicken Do Very Good Broth !!". . .But, alas Maaan, She is YET taken; Bull-Horned King Mynos, the Ariadnan Biker Bossah, claimed Her lotsa time ago. . . But Let Me say a thing, Maaan, I KNOW You are a Smart Fella !! This Island is LITERALLY OVERFLOWING with Good Opportunities for one like You !! When You settled in Your bunk, and parked Your Wall-Lizard Mech-Toy somewhere, come to see me at My #ATTACHED LINK# Barracks. . . . .I have a Sicko Bottle of "Kwah-Heri Tende", the sour-cornmash liquor of My People, that is MORE FIERY than the Temper of My Uncle, Kmuzu, and You knew He fought with TWIN Heavy Flamethrowers. . . Moondiver Here, closing....Jaaambo Maan !!] . . . . . Usual witty banter by the Space Pirate Mobile Brigada Veteran, but tinged with some further infos, to speak about their shared Smuggling Ring Contacts. . . . . . . . But there was a sinister undertone to its all, that soon was evident to Tony's recollection of their shared past, as ALSO Moondiver was a fellow "Paradiso Frontline Veteran" and in fact the one that extracted the char-broiled body of the Corregidoran Mechanic from the still-flaming wreckage of the Gecko that was burned by the Elite Shaasvastii Sphinx. . . While the "Tende" was REALLY an African Liquor developed by the Cultural Ancestors of Moondiver, it was ALSO a slang of Veteran Soldiers of the Nomads Nations to refer to "Napalm-Fueled Flamethrowers". . . But Tony was ABSOLUTELY sure that there was NONE Uncle of the boisterous Heavy Infantry Cyborg that was called "Kmuzu". . . . . . . . The Swahili-Zulu-Matabele-Masai "African Corregidoran Pigdin" of Tony was a little rustym but recalled an Obscure Dialect saying that "Kmuzu" was a meaning "Black Serpent", usually by implicit innuendos to. . .well endowed. . .African Males (in fact there was a Corregidoran Arachne Live Pornstar that was nicknamed "Kmuzu, The Black Anaconda". . .) And the oblique referral to TWIN Flamers. . . Kmuzu. . .Black Serpent. . .Dark Dragon. . . . . MADRE DE DIOS, it was an indirect hint to "Apophys", that bastard Sphynx Pilot that almost grilled alive HIM !! A "Connected Maaan" like Moondiver could have useful prime time Intel about that shit-headed, slime-assed Shaaasvastii. . .!! And the fact that obliquely hinted at a LIVE relay, rather than a Dataspere Comm, signaled it was IMPORTANT INFO to not be eavesdropped. . . . .!!!
@Golem2God . . . Everything happening quite ready and quick on the battlefield. . . There was a PINGED Message from His wife Sniper's Squadmates that complimented the Morat prowess with the cumbersome, lumbering Heavy Antimaterial Rifle and some more infos, done in Krakot Battle-Cant, by his few fellows (the Teseum Swordsmith and the Oznat Packmistress, mainly. . .) inquiring on some weird Tactical Infos related to the Battlefield, but He filed it for later. . . What was important was a sort of "Priority Assignement Switch" that appeared to the Tactical Datasphere of the Mercenary Rooster; apparently there was a Direct Request by King Mynos and Layla Bey to have the Japanese Exoframe Pilot dispatched to THEIR direct command. . . It blathered as some nonsense about "Amazed By an Uncanny Battle Prowess" but Uja had some further suspects. . . There was an heavily modified Guijia T.A.G. with Bull Horns and Nose-Ring Skull affixed on the Faceplate, along with Hooved Footplates and further "Minotauristic" visual accents, done in tasteless Golden Plating (even more pronounced on the ENORMOUS Teseum "Labrys" Battleaxe that the Mecha wielded) approaching the Nihonjin Powersuit. . . When it opened it clearly showed that the Pilot was a Pre-Teen Boy (Uja was NOT very good with Human Child Phisiology, but interacting with His adopted Sons, heavily Cosmetically Enhanced as they were did Him some good ideas !!) of no more than 13-14 Years of Age. . . That was the so-called "Atticus, Warrior Prince" the youngest progeny of King Mynos and Layla Bey (the other Uja recalled were Cow-Woman, Pasyfae, and the monstruous Bull-Chimera, Karanos, but was sure they sired further offsprings). . . The Boy, while rather a competent T.A.G. Pilot, was a little too naive and wasted A LOT OF MONEY of His parents by trying to become an Exoframe Gladiator "Top Ten"; probably by asking the VETERAN "Onna Bugeisha" to somehow tutor Him, the Warrior-Prince Atticus could survive its first TRUE Battles. . .
@Danger Rose . . . As soon as "Chica-Loca-Tigre" arrived then IMMEDIATLY the Squad Leader interposed His wast Lupine Bulk (and from nearby Dreanna could not help to admire the "Genetic Perfection" of a so well-balanced Hybrid Form; on Bakunin a similar EXCELLENT proportion would have needed the BEST Praxis Doctors and LITERALLY thousands of thousands of Skender Credits !!) to avoid further unwanted embarassement. . . Apparently the Simian Alien wanted to Test-Jest, but the Psycho-Catbitch seemed ready, an wanting, to FUCK DREANNA RIGHT THERE. . .!! . . . . . It was AS RETURNING BACK to Her High School Days in Vaudeville !! . . . . . [Our Mother, Mary Of The Knife, Protect You, My Childe. . .!! Tell Me, are You distressed by the Jaguar Chimera ? She is a VERY Wayward Sould, but I still hope Our Lady will show Her the Error of those Unclean Ways. . .!! If You need, My Childe, I could GLADLY help You !!] . . . . . Oh great !! Now the Reverend Superior of the Moirae was addressing Dreanna, on a Bakunin-Encrypted Channel, used by the Observances for "Field Confessions". . . She could not see the expression of "Mother Kitsune" under that Fox-Shaped Helmet, but Dreanna could be sure that the Moirae was indulgently smiling underneath. . . Also posture and mannerism, along with inflections of speaking through Comlogs reminded the Pilot of quite the Yujingese Culture, rather than Her native Mothership of Bakunin. . . The Caprine-Horned Sin-Eater instead was CLEARLY swaggering with the poise of a "Former Praxis Gangers" that reminisced quite of Morlocks Subculture; especially the manner with which blared a "BEEEEEH!!" disgusted goat-belch at the two Paparazzi Warcors, that they finished to scold just now. . .!! The Observance Custodier-Hacker instead just mechanically moved Her weird "Holographic Bloody Tears-Crying" faceplate from right to left, as if to saddendly be complaining for the idiocy of Malekind (even if for a clearly Gay Married Couple, THE LEAST OFFENSIVE kind of Male-Dominated Pairings in the eyes of many Moirae Fanatics). . . A similar almost-artificial behaviour was not rare amongst the Custodiers; their ceaseless, endless battle against Enemy Artificial Intelligences (such as the Humansphere Tyrant, A.L.E.P.H. ! . . .Or the Unfathomable Alien E.I. !! . . . Or, as in that immediate case, Svengali, birthed by the Nomads Culture and an "Ungrateful Child" that rebelled against too lenient Parents !!!) tended to leave Psychological, Mental and Physical Scarring that was often remedied with Biotech Implants of the MOST Radical nature. . .!! To reach the Expert Veteran Level of THAT Custodier (that seemed at least 30's of Age, when the 90% of Novices did NOT survive to 20's) would have been to become "More Machine Than Humanoid". . .!!
Uja'rak: "I wouldn't know. Only been here for a few days myself. But..." In Comes Sex Crazy Cat Lady: Uja'rak: "Balam! I suggest you reframe yourself from violating anyone or anything. Dreanna here has had enough of sexualized talk for today. Best to leave her be. May I remind you that I'l more than capable to prohibit & halt any ill conceived charge you impulses bring to bear." However, it seemed that Uja's rebuke didn't take precedence or at least it fell on deaf ears. The Jaguar was more keen to listen and obey Alistar than him. Was this because she fancied the Dogface are just respected him more? Uja decided to not dwell on the subject. Alistar was the chief of the group and while the Morat didn't care for being second, he would at least be respectful enough to follow the Caledonian's orders for now. If Balam the with her sexual urges could respect the wolfman enough to obey his wishes then at least he could try to do the same. After Balam's Exit: Uja turned back to get a better look at Tony. Something about the Pilot stood out to him..this required careful prodding. However, Uja had to wait a while since the Gecko Pilot he wished to question was interacting with what the Morat deemed as an old friend. For some reason, Uja didn't like the Brigada much. He didn't know why but alot of the populous of this island sent up red flags. While others would gawk and be amazed at T.A.G.s & their pilots skill in combat it was just familiar territory for the Morat. He had been with like mind and skilled units in his time on Paradiso on both sides.The Japanese O'Yoroi was trained well but she hadn't done anything a Raicho pilot couldn't accomplish. Maybe he was just being biased or hadn't seen enough of her in action. Then the teenager with the customized T.A.G. could be described as wasteful. The only redeeming quality about the boy was the work that went into his customization but that could easily be chalked off to someone else being paid to build it. Yep, these two had some ways to go before they reached the level that Paradiso veterans ache...wait. Could that be where he remembered the Gecko pilot's face? Somewhere on the green hell of a planet? Come to think of it the way the Gecko fought did spark some memories of a battle that Uja fought with some Shasvastii he was sent to support. Prodding into past events could turn out to be negative for Morat's relationship with not one but two of his future squadmate. Oh well, he was in hot water already (at least in his mind). @inane.imp Uja'rak: "Excuse me Gecko pilot. You wouldn't happen to be a veteran of Paradiso?"
Tony let's Moondriver jabber in his ear, basically letting the words wash over him. Tony thinks: It's just not possible that he was talking about a Sphinx, he must be on about something else... I'll chat to him about it later, over a drink. Denial comes well before acceptance. @Moondriver. KK, drink later? Kinda in the middle of something. Tony frowns at the arrival of the Guija and its young pilot. Too much money, not enough sense. Either that kid would get smart quickly, or he'd be gone before Tony really gets a chance to know him. Uja "Excuse me Gecko pilot. You wouldn't happen to be a veteran of Paradiso?" Tony freezes. Why'd he want to know that? Tony "Why you'd want to know?" He reconsiders, most of the info about his Paradiso tour is on his Merc Market jacket, so it's not like the Morat couldn't get it if he was interested. Tony: "Acheron Blockade... mostly. That's where I picked up this." He points at his face. "Damned Shas are nasty to dig out of a cargo hold." He shrugs, as if to say 'but what can you do?'
Today was turning out to be a bad day for the Morat. It as if God decided that Uja's past come back to smack him right in the face. Now the ball was in his court and he could cunningly back out of his question or plow on through the inevitable muck. Being a Morat he was naturally inclined to do the later. Uja'rak: "You may not like to hear this but I was there during the incident that gave you that scar. The fighting style you showed during the Tarmac conflict helped spark my memory of that day. I helped the Shas break into the cargo holds that you battled in and while the firefight was raging I remember throwing a smoke bomb on a Gecko that looked & fought eerily familiar to yours. That makes me just as responsible for your facial condition as the Sphinx pilot." Now came the moment of truth or at least the wait to see how the Nomad Vet would react to this information.
Tony flashed. His cheek muscle underneath his scarred skin starts ticcing, noticeable to augmented vision. "How the fuck did you get to this shithole from a ship in Paradiso that was boarded and cleared!?!" Spit flies from his mouth at the question. @Betty:.... Tony@Betty: On it... Timelines make sense. But there's nothing detailed I can access on his time in the CA.
Uja'rak: "When you become a Krakot, an outcast, it doesn't matter who you are with, just the fact that they can help you get past the blockade is all that matters." It didn't sit right with Uja to take the renegade Shas up on their offer. Despite a certain PanO human contact promising him safe passage across he decided to throw his lot with "They who are not to be trusted." He imagined that it might come back to bite him but not like this. Still he was grateful that only one person was seemly upset at this reveal. Though being a future squadmate didn't make it any better. Uja'rak: "How did you come to this shithole? Seems to me that you would rather be off somewhere else in the galaxy than on a backwater planet."
"Life." Ending that line of questioning, Tony wasn't ready to discuss the sorry story of how he came to Ariadna. Something didn't add up. Tony had been under the impression that the boarding had been a success and the ship hadn't breached the blockade. He'd been out of it in recovery so had never seen the post mission data. @Betty: Betty? Betty@Tony: Yes, yes, yes. This might take some time. Mission reports from Paradiso aren't exactly open source. Betty is frustrated: it seems someone had kept her in the dark. That was intolerable. She disappears from the AR overlay as she concentrates on trying to track down what precisely happened to that ship. When coupled with what Moondriver had been jabbering on about, this was extremely concerning. Fuck, fuck, FARK! It is apparent to the other's that something has upset Tony, but his clenched teeth and reddening scar tissue should give the impression that it's unwise to push further. OOC: Betty probably needs to do some sort of research test. But I'm not expecting to get much to go on given all the key information will be held on Nomad or O-12 systems. I'm more than happy to play out this research effort over a couple of scenes, including possibly getting Moondrivers hacker friend to help out. Ultimately I (the player) don't need to know right now (indeed I already know the key information), Tony will want to know for his peace of mind (not that the it'll actually help that).
Uja'rak: "You must be running from something. That or the past haunts you, judging by how that scar of yours is flaring up." After waiting a couple of seconds with no answer, "I expect some sort of answer Nomad. Not defining silence." O.O.C.: I think that going with playing it out in scenes is a good idea. It will be interesting to see Tony's friends as well. Mind if a curious Morat tagged along? Tony isn't the only one who wishes to know what is the "official" report concerning the carrier he traveled on.
