Fashion Sense, What?: Cloud, Ryuu and his wife, Tesse, have a chat with Misha. (26/10/2401)

As the two Zeta Wings thrusted towards their destination, Ryuu opened a communications link with Cloud.  As the small monitor inside the cockpit flashed to life now, he caught a glimpse of Cloud finishing up with sending another one of his secure communiqués to his superiors.  Ryuu smirked now, not even bothering to ask what it was that Cloud was sending, knowing full well that with the Oyan’s secrecy it would be a lesson in futility.  So with this in mind, he skipped that part, simply informing Cloud that they would need to make a quick stop off in England to pick up his wife. Tesse would not be long, actually being ready when they arrived, allowing Ryuu to pick her up and be off again in just a few minutes.  Cloud was rather pleased by this, as the short stop meant that he didn’t have o leave the comfort of his ship, allowing them to complete their trip to Amsterdam late that night.  In light of their timing, they were lucky to actually be able to catch Misha Teragi, the target of their trip. As the two Zeta Wings touched down outside of the fashion house, which had grown in size since their last trip, Cloud, Ryuu and his wife disembarked the vehicle.  Tesse was rather started by Cloud’s appearance when she actually saw him in person, as her glance quickly shot to the man’s wild hair before her glance moved down to his facial structure and unkempt facial hair.  The half broken armour didn’t help the look at all, causing Tesse to turn to Ryuu with a questioning look. “You keep some very interesting company dear.”  She started, causing Ryuu to laugh loudly. “Yeah, you could say that.”  He started, before introducing them formally.  “Tesse, this is my boy Cloud.  Cloud, this is Tesse, my wife.” Cloud shrugged inwardly, taking Tesse’ out stretched hand and giving it a light shake, extending this courtesy only out of respect for Ryuu.  “We should really be moving, we don’t want to miss Misha.”  Ryuu continued now, causing the others to agree and move towards the entrance of the shop. Ryuu moved ahead of the group, reaching the door first and pulling it, only to be pushed back as someone exited.  Ryuu growled now, glaring as the man moved out of the building and came into his vision.  The man had long blonde hair, and was clean shaven, sporting a formal back suit, which he wore rather uncomfortably. “Ah, sorry about that.”  He smirked, resting his hand on Ryuu’s shoulder before continuing past the group to leave.  “If you’re looking to catch Misha, you better hurry, she’s packing up.”  He finally advised before disappearing into the night. Cloud raised an eyebrow, recognising the man from his research on international fighters, briefly questioning as to why he would be here before making the obvious connection. “Oy, Misha!”  Was what Cloud would here next as Ryuu moving into the fashion house and greeted Misha.  The designer smiled warmly, shaking her head slightly at the young Itami before shaking his hand and allowing him to introduce her to his wife.  As Cloud made his way into the room, the conversation slowed slightly as Misha attention switched to the rugged Oyan, before she inquired how the Mercenary Combat suits were coming.  Cloud aluded to the completion of testing, remarking how their application was also coming along well, before adding that he had actually found it necessary to make a few adjustments to his own. “I would imagine…”  Misha smirked, causing Tesse to laugh loudly, while Ryuu laught lightly next to her as the three took note of Cloud’s unusual fashion sense. “I take it that the aesthetics weren’t to your liking… I tend not to design pieces that incorporate the broken armour look.”  Misha continue, causing Cloud to actually smirk faintly. “The modification were practical, I have no interest in being fashionable.” Cloud explained. “We can see that.”  Tesse added now, looking to Misha who just nodded. “Maybe you ladies can fix that.”  Ryuu suggested now, drawing a glance and a raised eyebrow from Cloud, who was not even entertaining the idea of being groomed like some kind of pretty boy. “My fashion-sense…”  Cloud started, slightly put off by the entire conversation. “Or lack thereof.”  Misha interjected, causing him to pause, before ignoring her statement and continuing. “…suits me just fine.”  Cloud finished. “That’s because you don’t know any better, I’m sure we could find you a wardrobe that suits you equal fine… and is less of an affront to the eyes.” Misha retorted. “I think not… Cloud is no pretty boy.” Cloud replied. “My fashion does not only cater to pretty boys.”  Misha retorted now, pointing to Ryuu’s get up. “She’s got a point, I am pretty manly.”  Ryuu smirked. “I bet I could, design a piece that even you would be pleased with Mr. Stryfe.”  Misha challenged him. “Fashionable clothing fit for a warrior… this I have to see.”  He replied coldly, with no sign of faith in his voice. “Give me one week and then come back, and we’ll arrange my compensation.” Misha replied, causing Cloud to shrug. The rest of the conversation would go more smoothly, from this point on, though Cloud’s lack of fashion sense would not be ignored.  The conversation would go on for another hour before Misha insisted that she had to leave, forcing the three to leave as well.  Cloud would head back to the Rogue Fortress in Barbados to discuss plans with Tyler while Ryuu and Tesse made their way back to England.

Outcome: N/A

 

Help Me, Please: Donovan repairs his Automa and does research. (26/10/2401)
With his automa having been obliterated, after only a few hours of uptime, Donovan was rather pleased to find that it could at least be fixed. With this in mind, he set out to find a repair shop, one that would be kind enough to allow him to do the repairs himself using their equipment. Donovan would have to go to over 5 repair centres before he actually found one that accommodated his needs, a small, slightly low tech shop run by an old man and his son. Being less corporate than the bigger repair stores, this repair centre was far more accommodating, assisting Donovan with the task while he got a feel for doing it himself. Unfortunately, even if he wanted to, Donovan still found that he could not reprogram the areas affected by the fracturing, as this required specialised equipment that he was simply not qualified to use. With a sigh, he allowed the professionals to finish the job, before he purchased and attempted to install the upgrades to his scanners. For 30k, he could only afford the level 2 upgrade to the environmental scanners, which either extended the range of the scanning devices or increased the intensity. Donovan shrugged, choosing the range upgrade, installing the capacitor and allowing the professional to modify the coding to compensate for the change. With this done, he then purchased and installed the upgrade to the Network Uplink, giving it access to the shared player database. Donovan would then continue his reading on ethereal encryption and decryption, before moving onto concepts of Matter and Ki coding, as well as the build of ethereal forms, in an attempt to define the basics for his next technique. He would complete his training and call it a day, late in the evening. Outcome: Donovan has upgraded his automa with level 2 scanners and a level 2 network uplink.
Donovan: 52 Exp
Awareness: 8 Exp	Technical: 20 Exp
Accuracy: 0 Exp	Tactics: 0 Exp
Precision: 16 Exp	Control: 8 Exp

 

Just Training: Yric does some training. (26/10/2401)
Yric wasn’t one to blindly attack other channelers and find himself painfully reverted. It was for this reason that he decided to actually test his abilities before going out and using them. With this in mind he started from the top, and tested all of his moves, down to his special, before calling it a day and heading back to where he was staying.
Yric: 30 Exp
Awareness: 6 Exp	Technical: 6 Exp
Accuracy: 0 Exp	Tactics: 0 Exp
Precision: 8 Exp	Control: 10 Exp

 

Advent of Demonseed: Xian upgrades his Demonseed. (26/10/2401)
Xian had yet another ambitious project which he wanted to get underway, but he would need the assistance of Rei Murasame as well as at least one of the scientists from the Mercenary Research and Development team. This involved a total overhaul of his current X-3, Demonseed, boosting the thrusting system, adding weapons and inputting a semblance of a combat A.I. into the board. The actual creation proved to be quite costly, given Xian’s extensive specifications, which also made for a rather lengthly creation attempt. Luckily with everything done, he was actually quite pleased with the outcome. Another add-on created for his new companion Rirka would bring Xian’s day to an end. Rei would also have to call it a day, having completed his training.
Xian: 48 Exp			Rei: 48 Exp
Awareness: 8 Exp	Technical: 16 Exp		Awareness: 12 Exp	Technical: 16 Exp
Accuracy: 0 Exp	Tactics: 0 Exp		Accuracy: 0 Exp	Tactics: 0 Exp
Precision: 12 Exp	Control: 12 Exp		Precision: 12 Exp	Control: 8 Exp

 

The Pursuit of Knowledge III: Val signs up for some courses. (27/10/2401)

Rei Murasame, who now had more time on her hands than she knew what to do with, found herself wondering the facility until she came upon the newest member of the Mercenary Army, Val Kaden. As she approached Val, she caught a glimpse of his research, raising an eyebrow slightly at the class that he had just sighed up for, one on the architectural and building methods. Rei paused, not exactly sure how this would be of any help to her teammate, but didn’t bother to pry, simply continuing along her way. Val had managed to sign up for a university level course, which the Army would pay for, leaving him to just worry about assimilating the knowledge. Being a channeler, he opted for the correspondence course, which would allow him to learn about the topics while still on the move, but took note of the regular class times so that he could attend some of the regular classes in his free time as well. With this done, he shut down the terminal and made his way back to his quarters.

Outcome: Val has enrolled into the course.

 

Demai Training Initiative: Rueben, Rayne and Alyssa do some training. (27/10/2401)
The joint Demai training effort got underway early that morning, with Rueben, Rayne and Alyssa showing up to the training session. Each had their individual training goals in mind, and in addition, Rueben and Rayne had planned a small experiment with relation to their channelling abilities. For this reason, the three started with their own training sessions first, with Alyssa testing her techniques on her own, while Rueben attempted to simulate his Kaigen effect utilising the principles of Veranos. Rayne on the other hand would be working on his techniques along as well, trying to increase the speed at which he could think of a weapon and summon it. Rueben found that he could not produce the effect, forcing him to abandon that bit of training before he and Rayne moved onto their joint training. In terms of their combat abilities, the aided Alyssa by teaching her the basics of their individual martial arts styles, before she aided them in working on their combat coordination. Rayne and Rueben would utilise their natural bond to boost their coordination on the battle field, working out defensive an attacking strategies that would best suit them basted on their skills. Next that would develop the premise behind Veranos V2, before moving onto the creation of their Gaia Rift technique. For this, Alyssa moved off on her own, while the two attempted the technique. Having witnessed a disturbance before, the two at least had a feeling for the process, and based on reading, Rayne and Rude were able to deduce that two facilitate a Gaia effect; they would somehow need to create a patch of reality that intersected both Terra and Oya. Unfortunately, without being able to, sense Oya this would prove to be extremely difficult. From what they observed when they had sent the Itamis back to Oya, they would need to change the phase of all of the ether in that area, unfortunately, neither of them seemed to be able to guess what they would need to change the phase with regard to. Rueben, being a Ki user, suggested that they change it with regard to time, Rayne on the other hand suggested probability due to his background in quatum physics. Unfortunately, even with ethereal and dimensional mastery, neither of them had the ability to effect such a change, even in an extremely small space. The two would continue ponder this and carry out tests for sometime until they realised that it was impossible at this point, bringing their tests to a conclusion. They would warm down and call it a day, to finish the session.
Rueben: 84 Exp			Rayne: 86 Exp
Awareness: 16 Exp	Technical: 12 Exp		Awareness: 12 Exp	Technical: 16 Exp
Accuracy: 12 Exp	Tactics: 8 Exp		Accuracy: 12 Exp	Tactics: 10 Exp
Precision: 20 Exp	Control: 16 Exp		Precision: 20 Exp	Control: 16 Exp
Alyssa: 50 Exp
Awareness: 10 Exp	Technical: 8 Exp
Accuracy: 6 Exp	Tactics: 4 Exp
Precision: 12 Exp	Control: 10 Exp

 

Just The Two of Me: ROM does some training. (27/10/2401)
Having just been shunted to the Earth realm from Oya, Spyda did what any self respecting Oyan would do, first he noted his surroundings, a small clearing with waist length grass, then he decided to assess what the trip had done to his abilities. Spyda decided the safest way to do this would be a simple training action, so utilising the uniqueness of his form, he powered up activated his S.P.L.I.C.E and began to duel himself. The first thing Spyda noted was that by splitting himself in two he had effectively split the energy available to his form in two as well as his forms base stats bar resilience and agility. However all things considered, it only meant Spyda was less effective than he was “designed” to be. Spyda battled on taking note of his strengths and weaknesses, duelling himself till near exhaustion, before dissipating one of the Spydas. However when he attempted to re-splice himself with full stamina, he discovered that the new Spyda was just as tired as the old one, forcing him to call an end to his training and assessment.
ROM: 31 Exp
Awareness: 4 Exp	Technical: 0 Exp
Accuracy: 8 Exp	Tactics: 4 Exp
Precision: 12 Exp	Control: 3 Exp

 

Training Day: Hyaku and all Rogue subs do some training. (27/10/2401)
With no pressing missions or actions for the Rogue Special forces, Hyaku dragged the Rogue subordinates out for a training day. While most of the subordinates grumbled. All agreed that it was imperative that they all stayed in tip top shape. Hyaku decided to issue the training in the shape of an assault mission, choosing to emulate the previous assault on the Don’s facilities. There were a few changes, such as much less numbers involved and no assault vehicles as well as the changes in the layout of the facility. Hyaku broke the subordinates into groups, taking Nicola, his sentinel and Paco’s Hi Nuun to be the defenders of the facility, with Hyaku using his ability to code and lock energy to dynamically create the traps and base defences for the facility. The remaining 18 subordinates were broken down into two strike teams. Hyaku coordinated with Roderick to create strategies for the teams, simulating reconnaissance and early detection aspects of the assault, before Hyaku fell back, starting the simulation and began creating traps while Roderick appointed a deputy and began his run through the facility with the two strike teams. The teams moved through the simulated facility, Roderick utilising his Overview to detect hidden traps and direct the teams accordingly by relaying the information, Hyaku standing at the frontline of the facility to maintain the traps with his control, before falling back to the inside when the perimeter was breached, The sentinel and Hi nuun lending their firepower to the traps and defences assault. By this time some of the greener recruits piloting frames had fallen to attrition from the traps, however the rest of the team forged through. Once within range, Roderick’s Undermine, forced Hyaku to drop his traps and A.I. resorting to his natural prowess in combat to direct Nicola and the frames in defending the great hall they had retreated to, Nicola and Hyaku moving forward to draw fire down the corridor where the Hi Nuun, and Sentinel waited to provide cover fire, however, when those two frames fell to overwhelming firepower leaving only Hyaku and Nicola on defense it was only a matter of time before their surrender however not before reducing the assault team to 20% of their original number. With Roderick and Aggy and four frames storming the Great Hall to end the simulation and “arrest” the troublesome Nicola and Hyaku.
Hyaku: 120 Exp (-324HP)			Roderick: 124 Exp (-128HP)
Awareness: 24 Exp	Technical: 20 Exp		Awareness: 20 Exp	Technical: 24 Exp
Accuracy: 12 Exp	Tactics: 28 Exp		Accuracy: 12 Exp	Tactics: 40 Exp
Precision: 12 Exp	Control: 24 Exp		Precision: 12 Exp	Control: 16 Exp
Nicola: 96 Exp (-312HP)			Aggy: 88 Exp  (-201HP)
Awareness: 12 Exp	Technical: 8 Exp		Awareness: 12 Exp	Technical: 12 Exp
Accuracy: 24 Exp	Tactics: 12 Exp		Accuracy: 20 Exp	Tactics: 12 Exp
Precision: 16 Exp	Control: 24 Exp		Precision: 12 Exp	Control: 20 Exp

 

Completion of the Circle: Roun and Zadavia make a trip to the Demai base. (27/10/2401)

As Jayce sat on the edge of the balcony of his quarters, one of the few quarters at Tel Aviv with an actual balcony, he watched as two odd figures made their way towards the base.  He had been keeping an eye on them for some time now, watching as the made their way through the extensive scanning and red tape that non-Demai were subjected to, waiting until they got a bit closer so he could make out their faces.  As they approached him, he scoffed lightly, not being able to make out their faces from that altitude, but still noted their style of dress.  Both channelers wore dark grey clothing, just a step up from black, trimmed with gold accessories and green trimmings. “Rogues…”  He growled lightly, quickly losing interest in the group as he turned his view back towards the horizons. Just minutes later, he would hear a knock on his door, and he instantly knew who it was.  Once again he growled, he didn’t even know why she bothered, as she could simply override that lock… as she usually did.  As expected, the door slid open and his Field Sergeant stepped over the threshold of the room. “Jayce, get downstairs, Master Demar wants to see you.” “What were these Rogues up to now”  He thought to himself, as he hopped off the balcony and made his way downstairs, making sure to do so at a rather leisurely pace. When he eventually made his way downstairs, he looked up to see Roun taking off a pair of scanners, which were simply serving as sunglasses at the moment. “Rayad?” Jayce inquired now, not even bothering to address the Itami, as he prepared to inquire as to why he was summoned. “Hang on Jayce, all in time.”  Would come the reply before he could utter a word.  Oddly enough the voice didn’t come from his Master General, but instead from a voice coming from a wall being Rayad Demar.  As the oddly dressed man materialised, Jayce actually smirked slightly, greeting the man unusually warmly. “Puck…”  The smirk lingered briefly, before Jayce realised that everyone was watching him, and that no one was telling him what was going on.  “…why am I here?” Now, all of the attentions in the room turned towards Roun, who had just slipped his scanners into his Rogue Jacket’s pocket and was now removing the garment. “I guess I’ll explain it.” Roun replied now, powering up his form.  Jayce powered up as well, finding it odd that Roun would be allowed to power up in a place like this.  “Jayce, you and I are linked…”  Roun started in an uncharacteristic tone, his eyes now beginning to glow as white energy spewed from his form.  “…today, that bond will be honoured…”  His voice now changed as well, alerting Jayce to the fact that this was no long the harmless Itami that was speaking, but something else.  “Jayce wasted no time, powering up fully, preparing to defend himself before Rayad dissipated his defence and allowed Roun to rest his hand on his shoulder. As the white energy rushed through his form, it coalesced around his core causing Jayce a great deal of discomfort before the energy exploded outwards, knocking Roun away.  Rayad wasted no time shielding his people from the blast, forcing Zadavia to summon her Mystic Barrier to shield her from the Itami’s body, should her summon Ayane have been unsuccessful in stopping him from flying her way.  Luckily this was not the case.  As Jayce’s body floated upwards now, the white energy vanished, and a new energy began to flow forth.  As the golden energy now overran Jayce’s form, the energy fluctuations in the room caused reality itself to warp. “Calm down Jayce, don’t fight it.”  Puck now counselled him mentally, attempting to guide him through the process and make it as painless as possible. Luckily for the Demai agent, Puck was one of the few persons who he actually listened to… willingly at least, allowing him to actually get through the process with far less problems than Xavier. As Roun made his way back to his feet, he deactivated his Omega Drive, which had somehow been turned on in the process, allowing him to see the end of Jayce’s unlocking.  The process would soon come to a close as Puck talked Jayce down, allowing him to accept the process.  As he slowly lowered to his feet, then collapsed to his knees, the golden energy finally synchronised with his own, bringing him to the end of the uncomfortable process.  Rayad nodded to Tiana as he made his way to his feet now, causing her to send a Prism Shot sailing towards Jayce.  As the blast homed in, his eyes shone brightly with a golden energy, before he made a separating hand gesture and the blast split, sailing harmlessly into the walls. “Excellent…”  Rayad smirked now, looking towards the two Rogues that still stood in his base.  “It has been a pleasure doing business with you.”  He grinned, causing Roun to raise an eyebrow. “Riiight… my job here looks done… so I’ll be leaving.”  Roun replied, moving towards the door which oddly enough didn’t activate on its own.  Demar would give the signal some seconds later, activating the door before smirking to Roun and allowing him to leave.  “…fucker…”  Was all Roun would say as he made his way out of the base, once again breathing easily out of the range of the Demai facility.

Outcome: Dias has been awakened in Jayce.

 

Drive Against Corruption: Jubei starts Anti-corruption Drive in France. (03/11/2401)

After the fiasco that was their last mission, Deacon was coming down hard on his Junior Knights to ensure that that would be the last time that something like that happened.  In light of this, he was somewhat pleased and somewhat worried by Jubei’s proposal.  As Jubei outlined the plan, Deacon listened intently. “All this publicity could have it both positive and negative effects… are you willing to accept the consequences of your actions?”  Deacon inquired, causing Jubei to pause before nodding. “What kind of consequences are you expecting?” Jubei inquired now. “I would imagine that these corrupt elements do not want to be exposed, and the vocal nature of your campaign would make this near impossible.  Therefore it is only logical that they would attempt to silence you, by any means necessary.”  Deacon explained casually, causing Jubei to look somewhat worry.  “Regardless of their actions, the Council will lend their support… we can only hope that your teammates would see fit to assist you should deem it necessary.” “I will do my best to not need the assistance.”  Jubei replied now, causing Deacon to nod. “Then we will go to see the President now… and put your plans into action.” Deacon replied, before whipping out his comm. link. Oddly enough, Deacon didn’t place a call to the Presidential office, but instead to the Xelot Council, requesting that they set up the meeting for the two.  After making the request, the two would only have to wait a few minutes, before they received a call informing them that they could meet with the President and his representatives later that evening.  The meeting went relatively well, as the President whole heartedly agreed to the Xelots leading the anti-corruption drive, as they were more equipped to deal with the potential resistance that would come from the effort.  In addition to this, the Xelots were probably the only faction that could be trusted with such a drive, as they were the only faction whose moral integrity seemed to be uncompromisable.  The President would point Jubei in the direction of the Chief Financial Officer and his board first, as he suspected that they provided the funding behind a number of the projects which these corrupt elements seemed to rely heavy on.  Jubei would be cautioned one last time about his methods, but to no avail. Later that day, Jubei and Deacon would be seen nationwide on the holoviewers, decked out in the most formal of Xelot attire, publicly announcing the commencement of their Drive Against Corruption.

Outcome: Jubei has started his anti-corruption Drive.

 

Damage Assessment: Crydus does the damage assessment for the facilities in Korea. (03/11/2401)

Knowing the Deacon was upset, Crydus took it upon himself to take full responsibility for his part in the disorganisation of the previous mission, before offering a suggestion as to how to fix the current problem.  Unfortunately for him, Deacon had no intension of baby-sitting his Junior Knights, as he preferred that they matured on their own rather than being shepherded.  He did however reassure Crydus that with the Mission Coordinator post set up, this business of disorganisation should have been solved.  With that out of the way, Crydus moved onto the more important part of his action.  Having already sent in the specs for his new ship to the Xelot Research and Development team, Crydus learned that using the salvaged weapons and parts, he could be able to get a 140,000$ discount on the final price.  Finally, Crydus would spend the rest of the day doing the damage assessment for the facilities in Korea, gaining estimates on the funds that would be necessary for restoring the facilities to military facility class.  Once the damage assessment was completed, he would send in the results to the Xelots Administrative Department, for them to make the final assessment and share the data with his team.

Outcome: Damage assessment has been completed.