There's a lot Reid doesn't understand about "normal" human behavior, but he's not incapable of taking a hint. After appraising the headless Dyrnwyn a little more, he headed over to his own frame and climbed into the cockpit.
Condition Red. He sighed inwardly as he looked at the controls. They're just like in the simulations and by now he know them forwards and back, but he still thinks that with a few slight tweaks he could substantially improve efficiency. All they let him do was draw up the custom paint job (and, after some prodding, oversee the application thereof).
He droned "Malware ready, over." very clearly over the radio.
There is something wrong with that girl.
Riley found herself unable to react in any sensible manner to Maria's unusual method of communicating her readiness. While she was not as well traveled as others, Riley was near certain that the display was not normal no matter what planet you came from.
There were more important things to do right now though. Riley made a mental note to take another look at Maria's psych evaluation before putting the matter on the back burner. She was one of the last Knights to make it into her frame after suiting up, and began performing diagnostics tests at once. There was another frame in her company registry that had not been there before. She opened the file on the pilot at scanned the first page summery.
"Haddad... Atlantica. Huh." And here Riley thought she was the only one from the little rural world here. She flipped on the open radio. It only took a second for her to get irritated.
"Sir Reid, I apologize for the lack of a better greeting. I am 4th Knight Riley Lee, your company commander. Welcome to the Guns n' Roses. Everyone else, this is Sir Reid Haddad of Atlantica. He'll be - Okay, who the hell is singing!?"
"Should old battles be forgot, and we do no longer fiiiiiiiiight," Elaine continued, making her way to Verse 6 before hearing Riley over the radio, and stopping instantly.
"I think it was Dame Cascade, ma'am," she said quickly, "I don't think she realizes that her radio is on." She sighed, clenching her fists and closing her eyes as she scolded herself silently. Perhaps her spontaneous displays of love for the Commonwealth should be reserved only for certain occasions.
"Although the song was rather toetapping," she added. "I find it highly impressive that she knew all of the verses."
I am become Death, Destroyer of Miniputts.Victoria blinked in surprise at Elaine's accusation. She'd in fact been singing in tune with the 7th and she double checked to be sure her comm had been off while she'd done so. Turning on the open channel now, she briefly considered covering for her comrade anyway, Elaine must have been feeling embarrassed.
"Every good soldier of the Commonwealth knows the full eight," she commented ambiguously. "I apologize for the disruption Lady Lee, I promise it won't happen again."
"I appreciate the acknowledgement, Dame Lee.", he grumbled, annoyed. "Dame Cascade, I'm very much willing to pay you just to be sure it won't happen again."
Reid didn't often lose what one might call his "composure", but he found music very distracting in general, and what registers to others as a slightly raised voice is often deafening to his ears. At the same time, he didn't realize that what he saw as a frank expression of his irritation came across as hostile and rude. There's a reason he's not a popular man.
Gabriel sighed and rubbed his eyes in exasperation. "Are we going to launch or what"?" He asked pointedly. "If you want us to sit here and sing I'm going to need a great deal more alcohol." He commented wryly.
He ran his fingers lightly over the controls, flicking away a speck of dirt as he sighed. Almost a decade in the Frames and he was still flying somehow. Almost a decade of volunteering, of taking the positions no one else would take, or doing his duty and throwing himself in the firing line. And he was still here.
Asharah had been three times the pilot he ever would be. From the first time she sat in the cockpit she had been exceptional. The instructors had booted her into the Knights almost immediately. It had taken him a year.
And yet here he was, coming up on his tenth year of service, when she had only lasted two. Three times the pilot he was with one fifth of the lifespan.
He sighed again and twisted his ring. Well, he was a Knight now at least. She had always wanted him to be a Knight.
Your legacy shall drift away, blown into eternity, like the sands of the desert."You think I'm seriously picking Sunset's singing over another Drink?" Fergus replied, "In a better world, I'd have to make the decision between drinking wine out of a bucket until the singing is bareable or leaving it to Sunset so she could carry the tune."
He paused slightly more on the ready to launch,
"There's a signal that we're waiting on, so we can launch in formation. Until then, there's not a lot we can do."
edited 23rd May '14 7:58:13 PM by Fauxlosophe
"Cut the girl some slack, boss" Rick radioed over to the group with a light laugh. "As far as waiting goes, listening to Scrap Aegis singing isn't a bad way to pass the time. Hell, next time we're out on the town, if she picks up the mic at the bar, I'll pay for a round of drinks. Three, if our resident Red Rose makes it a duet."
The next few seconds from Rick's radio was him chuckling heartily.
"I didn't think it was that bad," Elaine said, after a moment. "I thought Dame Cascade had a wonderful voice." She fidgeted with the controls, making sure her radio was off before humming the rest of the lyrics.
Victoria had somewhat-covered for her, even when thrown under the frame. She'd have to remember that, and thank her for it later. Maybe.
After a few moments, she began drumming on the controls, wondering when they could finally get this show on the space-road.
I am become Death, Destroyer of Miniputts.Valentine made a small, discontented noise. To him, at least, the deception had been obvious. Then again, that might have been because he spent his more busy days practically living and breathing lies and half-truths as the head of a major media distributor. In any case, the notion of hearing his new acquaintance and Riley sing a duet was very appealing... and yet, there was also the question of just who this mysterious new comrade of his was. Getting answers on the latter front would mean the window of opportunity for the former would be over, possibly forever, but not knowing anything about the newbie while trying to fly with him for a demonstration also promised to be an enormous pain and recipe for more annoying problems.
O woe! O wretched day! Why must my life be so incredibly difficult? Can a Duke not have his tea and drink it too?
"As much as I'd love to have three free drinks and the angelic voices of our commander and Dame Cascade serenading me with a hymn to our great emperor, I'd also like the rest of Sir Haddad's introduction," the redhead voiced begrudgingly, his compliment sincere but unenthused as he decided just this one time to err on the side of caution, "He'll be what, now? And not that I'm unhappy to have him, but why do we suddenly have a fresh addition to the company, anyway? I thought we'd finished picking up new members before we got here."
edited 23rd May '14 11:37:49 PM by darksidevoid
GM: AGOG S4 & F/WC RP; Co-GM: TABA, SOTR, UUA RP; Sub-GM: TTS RP. I have brought peace, freedom, justice, and security to my new Empire."People always did say I had the voice of an angel." Riley said, feeling that her talents were being judged now. Actually, people in this case was just her brother. And angel was not the word he'd used, but she did not know what 'banshee' meant so she would use what she assumed was the closest recognizable alternative.
"As I was saying," she said after the prompting from Lord Valentine, "Sir Haddad will be joining our company from here on. As to why we have such a late addition, I can only speculate. Malware, do you know anything we don't on this matter?
"I was probably sent here simply to cover a perceived shortage in manpower," he said in a low, flat tone. Talking wasn't Reid's "game" — he spent most of his time trying to avoid talking to people as much as he could, and if anything it felt like a chore to him.
A few moments pass, and he manages to force out another sentence. The whole military environment was one of the only things he truly understood or respected, and he wasn't going to let himself give an incomplete answer to a superior. "Although if you're asking my opinion, I'm sure there were some concerns about the lack of support frames in Dame Lee's company."
"Couldn't complain about that." Robert replied to Reid's opinion. "A Dyrnwyn can only benefit our squad. It'll definitely make me and Orchid's job a lot easier at the least. Welcome to the squad by the way."
"And then the dead man of the dead did dead things to all the dead people."-Two Best Friends Play Dark SoulsRozaliya took her seat in her Frame, the black armour of the Bona Dea slowing coming to life around her. Thankfully, today was mainly a piloting exercise and she could let the others take care of the targets. She was supposed to be support, after all.
"Princess, all systems operational. Ready for duty."
...the callsign still embarrassed her. They had warned her, back when she joined, that if she didn't pick one, she'd been given one. And after dallying for too long, she had indeed been given one. Changing it now wasn't impossible, but it would take time and, honestly, she hadn't come up with a good enough replacement.
Join us in our quest to play all RPG video games! Moving on to disc 2 of Grandia!"Good luck, everyone!" Elaine offered over the radio, "and remember, the good name of the Centauri rests in our hands! We must strive to uphold this proud tradition!"
She leaned back and grinned like a fool, proud of herself for saying something so undeniably cool.
I am become Death, Destroyer of Miniputts.An orbital elevator's satellite was never quiet, per say. Far besides the constant up and down flow of traffic and cargo that was necessary to ensure the healthy movement of a multi-planet economy, there were always those traveling between Nirvana and its various mining colonies, stations, and installations scattered throughout the system.
But today things were especially crowded. The station's halls were filled with visiting dignitaries and local leaders of business and politics, their retainers keeping close and guards standing about with a watchful and somewhat awkward eye.
Many of them had packed their way into the primary viewing chambers of the geosynchronous station, a multi-tiered space filled with tables and artwork from across the galaxy... Or convincing replicas, at the very least. The floors - and indeed much of the furniture - was of glass, giving the room a kaleidoscopic, shimmering appearance, lit from above by dim chandeliers and from below by Nirvana's reflected orange light. At the planet spun the lighting would change, the windows sometimes dimming to protect its interior from the light of the sun; at the moment, the planet below was dark, the station dark in its shadow; all the better for viewing with.
It was somewhat unusual to first-timers to see - instead of the viewing deck looking out or across, it looked, technically, down.
To the Maharani, who had seen this view a number of times, it still retained an element of awe to it. She wondered how her family's dynasty could ever have functioned before space travel had become easy again; ruling a planet they could never, personally, see the entirety of. Looking down on what was yours to protect gave you a certain sense of... Well, perspective. And a fierce desire to guard it.
Looking at the Centauri nobles, she had an uncomfortable feeling that this was what her ancestors had been like - and what her people's future held.
"You'll be impressed," the man opposite to her assured - a different man now whose name she had not caught. "Centauri frames are the greatest ever built - graceful, beautiful, and above all, cutting-edge."
She noted that he hadn't said a word about their combat capabilities. Not that she could ask, of course - that was, she had learned, Improper. A great many things were in fact Improper - asking where a noble was from could be, for example, or what they owned, or if their family had a vote in whatever it was the Centauri had as their government. It seemed that anything could be Improper as long as someone decided it should be - that is to say, answering it would make them less impressive.
And the war, of course. That was Improper as well. She wasn't sure why, but none of them ever referred to the Federation - Not as any more than mocking, biting insults and comparisons, of course. No one, for example, would answer her when she asked about the Federation's Frames. Nor what had happened at the end of the two factions' last war... Or what would happen if the Federation intervened in this one.
Generally, in fact, they seemed to pretend that nothing outside of their own personal bubbles existed at all.
"I'm sure I'll be impressed with your frames," she said, carefully. "Should I take this as an attempt to sell the idea of building manufactories for them in this system?"
"Hm?" The nobleman seemed surprised, and he let out a short, haughty laugh. "Oh, no, I'm afraid we can't do that quite yet. You see, Frames must be commissioned in a system of the Commonwealth! And, well, this place... Isn't." There was an unspoken yet that he seemed to notice, and he coughed. "Nor does it need to be, of course, as long as we can continue trading."
Shyama forced a smile onto her face. "Ah, I see. I understand, then, Duke..." She hesitated, as if forgetting.
He smiled as one did to a foolish child (which was, she thought, essentially how the Commonwealth in general treated this place) and corrected, gently, "Trio Knight Ducal-Admiral Brabazon Julein Moria Gladstone III of New Jerusalem, Master of the 8th fleet and lord of Pal'hyzma, Count of the Maderhorr Isles, Ally to the Realm and bearer of the Silken Cross, Devout of the Reformed Church, Liberator of Himmel Rand and Savior of the good people of Nevskiy, Benefactor of the Huron Conglomerate and personal founder of the Order of the Eternal Crusaders." He paused, as if letting it sink in.
She waited until she was sure he was finished - you never could tell. Someone had gotten up nearby with a stiff suddenness that implied fury, but if she'd hoped for something to happen it was for naught - whoever it was simply stormed away, and all she caught was the swish of red silk - a cloak of some kind, she presumed. Not like she could look away and risk being Improper, after all. Shyama nodded, a vein twitching in her forehead. "Yes, I... That."
She wondered if it would be Improper to shoot him, or if she had to wait for him to insult her first for that. At the very least, though, she would try to hang on until the Frames. They had always fascinated her - as they did many who were to see them in action for the first time.
As the Trio Knight Ducal blah blah blah began to go on with an explanation about how vital his family's work was again, she knew it was going to be a long, long night.
A checkpoint of sorts had been set up outside the viewing chambers, but like all such attempts at events of the rich and famous it was harried, exhausted, and trodden upon by the boots and sneers of those who took it as a personal insult to not be recognized on sight.
"Um, excuse- excuse me!" A young woman with her black hair tucked back in a respectable bun was standing in front of the door, trying not to look like she wanted to curl up into a ball and hide somewhere - which she did. A pair of Centauri marines were waiting nearby, just in case an unauthorized guest did try to enter, but how would they? This was a space station. In space. It wasn't as if you could just waltz on in with an EVA suit on. Besides, many nobles were of the opinion that an attempted assassination did the soul good - certainly it cleared out the constant numbers of landless nobility and gentry that the constantly shifting politics of the commonwealth created.
"Um, are you on the list?" she asked, her voice quailing as the latest individual to pass without offering identification turned to face her - a huge man, built like an elephant with his face covered by a bizarre black cloth mask that only left his eyes visible - the black, empty camera-eyes that marked him as a bionically augmented human.
"I must be at my lady's side." The voice was just as odd, stilted and mechanical without even the slightest hint of inflection or accent. "I must."
"W-well, who's your lady?" She glanced over at the marines - one of them covered a laugh while the other rolled her eyes. Jerks. "Um, only those listed are allowed into the main decks, and th-their assistants..."
"I must go in," he repeated, taking a sudden step towards her. "I m-"
A hand caught his arm, and the huge bionic turned to face its owner - a slight, odd-looking young woman in a red dress and mask of her own. "There you are, Vasyl," she said, in a quiet, bored voice. "Did I not tell you to wait with the ship?" Not waiting for his reply, she began to pull him back into the crowded hallway, shaking her head in annoyance - and not even stopping to apologize to the terrified clerk!
"I wished to watch the frames with you," he said, a note of protest entering his mechanical voice. "I wished."
"Vell, so did I," she snapped, her voice fading as they vanished into the crowds.
The clerk groaned, hugging her clipboard to her chest. This job sucked. But there were more waiting to enter, of course, and so she had to continue...
Neither she nor the marines, of course, noticed that several individuals, seeing a chance to get into the viewing decks unimpeded, had taken that instant of distraction to slip by. They had been reporters and various nobles spies, who would normally never get a chance like this.
Mostly.
And one by one the Frames would launch, the catapults of the station tossing them into a leisurely, safe trajectory around the outside of the station - carrying them, by both their direction and their engines, towards the viewing decks of the nobles.
The geosynchronous station
◊ stretched before them, a huge ring of gold and silver metal tipped with arches and spikes that protruded into the void. There were turrets hidden here and there, disguised as artistic sculptures and lurking in crevasses of engravings. A few were less hidden but not at all less extravagant, large golden beam cannons that resembled an Eastern sword, the projectors built into the 'blade'.
A sphere of shield generators surrounded the station on all sides, following on as close an orbit as they could manage; now and then an ion engine would flare to life, making the minute adjustments necessary to keep the formation together.
Other frames looped and darted through the voice, passing close to the windows at a slow speed to allow the nobles a view of them. It seemed almost a casual affair, compared to some of the more regimented, strict displays of skill and grace that some demonstrations tended to be; perhaps it could be taken to be indicative of the relaxed, peaceful attitude of the situation as it stood. That could be hesitantly called the charitable view.
Presumably, soon, targets would be launched for the frames to demonstrate their marksmanship and weapons upon.
edited 27th May '14 10:03:01 PM by Hydrall
The exhilaration of being launched by the catapult was something that never got old. Riley loved the sensation, the speed and casual power which tossed her frame into space. It was over in just a few second, inertia replacing machinery as her source of movement in the black void. For a moment she enjoyed the view, gazing through projections surrounding her cockpit at the world below, the bright blue-green planet of life.
Then other frames began passing by. Her computers alerted her of the active presence of her own company. Chatter filled the radio, or perhaps chatter had been their all along and she had been too caught up in the moment to notice.
Enough sightseeing. Focus. You have a job to do! She chastised herself internally. "Guns n' Roses, form up! We've practiced this before. Malware, your computer should have the formation patterns uploaded already, just follow our lead. Lets do this!"
Thrusters blazed to life and Riley was off to take the lead.
Rick let out a relaxed sigh as his overweight frame was launched into space. He always felt a sense of calm, a feeling of peace, when he was in his AMF. Compared to the life he had once lead, things just seemed so serene here - and unlike his motorcycle, this thing had inertial dampeners and even a windshield!
One man, out in space, a strange - yet welcome - sense of quiet, almost unnaturally so. He couldn't quite say why he felt so tranquil at this moment, so accepting of his place in the universe. Perhaps it was the fact that millions of years of evolution and thousands of years of human development all seemed to be culminating, right now, at this point, to have a giant robot metal man piloted by a large man with a shaved head. Another possibility was that it was the pride in knowing that someone, somewhere, had entrusted him with said giant robot metal man, which was powered by a seemingly-magical source that made even fusion and fission look primitive, and was equipped with enough firepower to wreak havoc on a city. Or perhaps it was that he had friends and comrades, all in the same position as him right now, and they all trusted each other strongly enough to get things done. All humbling thoughts.
He could simply close his eyes and meditate on the scene for all of etern- okay yeah, there was Riley ordering something. Thank Christ. Lord only knows what would happen if he was alone with just his thoughts for too long. Time to get to work.
"Affirmative," he buzzed over to Riley on his radio. He turned on his thrusters, and followed the Marienkind in formation.
edited 27th May '14 11:23:16 PM by nman
"Alright, we have some late additions to the Company so planned formations are out the window. I want the same orbital flight; I'm moving two down, I want the Niot models to form an inner ring, that means you Sunset and Princess. Princess, make sure you get to the same distance from the spectators as Sunset. Sunset, reign it in so you're parallel to Gold's current position for the spectators and see if you can't get some maneuvres in there. Light models; Gold, Phoenix and Aegis rally at the farthest point; approximately, Sunset's current position. Again, if you have the time, try to work in some fancy maneuvres."
Fergus grunted, it was one thing to ask Knights to fly fancy to amuse a crowd. It was another to throw two completely new pilots at them in the last second and expect the formation to go off without a hitch. He was used to it, but he really couldn't afford to drink right now. He grumbled and looked up at the Cross before doing his own part of the maneuvre;
- AP 1: 2 Squares Down.
- AP 2: 2 Squads Left.
edited 28th May '14 10:42:31 AM by Fauxlosophe
Elaine tried to remain calm as she was launched into the cold, unfeeling darkness of space. Her hands were white-knuckled on the controls, carefully guiding her frame along the pre-determined path. She checked to make sure her radio wasn't transmitting, not wanting her comrades to hear her near-hyperventilating. She'd flown before, of course. But it was still all very new and very scary, and having to run neat formations in front of her peers and the peerage wasn't helping matters.
"Okay, inner ring, inner ring," she muttered, carefully moving forward, eyes constantly darting over to the screen to make sure she wasn't about to kill anyone. She flicked the switch for the radio, "Strawberry Sunset moving forward," and held her breath as she propelled herself to be even with Veiyhl.
A few moments later, she began to relax. She was the Gladius Centauri, the divine protector of all that was good and patriotic in the Commonwealth. After several months of training, she could do this! Once she was in position, she decided to start showing off for the crowd.
- AP 1: Up 1 and stabilize.
- AP 2: Rotate forward 180 degrees
- AP 3: Continue rotating another 180 degrees, then stabilize.
edited 28th May '14 11:44:01 AM by RenaTheArchmage
I am become Death, Destroyer of Miniputts.After listening to Fergus' orders, Victoria let out a slow breath. She'd never been one for displays even back in basic training. Marching in formation looked nice and all, but it hardly compared to doing something which actually helped the Commonwealth. Her time as a frame pilot had been about getting results one way or the other. But now she was a Knight, and in its own way this exercise was meant to help the Centauri cause in the system.
She moved the Dyrnwyn in a short arc toward the spot Elaine's frame was vacating, spinning the frame in a sort of barrel roll as it moved in the hopes that was fancy enough for those watching.
Accelerate 2 Right/Down, from that position Accelerate 4 Left, and from there Accelerate 2 Up/Right to stabalize!
As Aerides was launched Maria allowed it to float for few seconds, reveling in the feeling of weightlessness. It was a bit like coming home, but soon her thoughts went to the Nobles that would be watching today, and quickly turned on her boosters falling into formation.
"Like back then..." she remembered the facility she was in during her childhood. She was often locked in Zero-G chambers and asked to perform various tasks. But this time she had a giant metal suit on. Her feelings were utterly ploarized, but she wouldn't allow that to cause a mistake. Mistakes meant trouble, and she didn't want trouble.
PM box is Closed, Indefinitely Friend Code: 3368-4181-6850The catapult was quick and forceful, sending him speeding out into the void. Gabriel slowed his Spitfire to a crawl as he took in the impressive sight of the jewel below them, before moving reluctantly towards the Hounds' formation as Ser Mac Morna barked out some orders.
Gabriel grunted out a "Yes, sir." in response and the Asharah leapt into action, zigzagging towards the outside of the formation quickly, his Frame gripping the naginata firmly. He bit his tongue lightly as the force of his speed pressed him tightly against his seat, before nearly throwing himself against the side as he twisted into a tight turn.
He watched Sunset's elaborate spin move with a sigh. He didn't like flying for show. It was tacky and pointless, especially spins which looked very impressive while simultaneously being a great way to avoid hitting anything. Which mean nobles absolutely adored them.
He eyed the Guns'N'Roses formation idly but it didn't seem very interesting so he turned his attention back to his squad as they scrambled into place. He eyed one of the later additions whom he hadn't actually met in person yet, another Spitfire with the callsign Gold, with some interest. It was the only other melee Frame in the company it seemed, wielding a pair of sabres. He smiled a little bit as an idea came to him and he flicked on his comms.
"Gold, you wanna give the blue bloods a real show?" He called out, grinning a bit. "How about a bit of a joust?"
3 AP: Accelerate down 6
1 AP: Accelerate left 2
edited 28th May '14 8:11:57 PM by rabbitRider
Your legacy shall drift away, blown into eternity, like the sands of the desert.Veiyhl grunted in an undignified and unsophisticated fashion, ill-fitting for a woman of her birth. Not that she cared. No one could see her. The damned politicians had set her up with another new company. Not only that, but now she had to fly with them in front of an audience while she had no experience with them at all. What a way to treat war heroes.
"Roger that Red. This is Veiyhl Carlisle, callsign Gold. Pleasure to be working with this Company." Not that it actually was. For all Veiyhl knew, this bunch could be made-up of arrogant pricks. Still, appearances were everything in politics, and often times, she felt as though Knights were just another system of political power-grabbing. That would explain why her father was so supportive of her joining up.
She gave a thoght to Steel's challenge. Perhaps it was dangerous, but hey, why not have some fun while they were at it. "Sounds fine and dandy. Let's get in position and then show me what you've got."
In the spirit of showing off, Veiyhl performed a couple of nifty frame tricks for the audience while getting into place.
edited 28th May '14 6:30:08 PM by Azuare

Following the others' lead after being slightly impressed by her comrade's commitment to readiness and duty, Elaine made her way over to her giant robot and climbed in, resisting the urge to scream with childish glee once her hands were on the controls. She mentally went through the Fourty-Seven Essentials, ensuring that nothing was wrong with her frame, before firing it up.
"Strawberry Sunset ready to serve the Centauri!" she said loudly to herself, enjoying the sound of her words. "This is so cool!" she trilled, the excitement of being in a cockpit not having worn off yet. "Elaine Gottwald, Sword of the Centauri! I can't believe it!"
She then began singing the Centauri anthem, even the later verses, before she suddenly realized she forgot to check her radio.
edited 23rd May '14 2:54:05 PM by RenaTheArchmage
I am become Death, Destroyer of Miniputts.