"Well, you're right about that," Roc answered Aera, agreeing with her message out loud, an unfortunate habit of hers that seemed like it could be trouble down the road. She kept her face admirably straight as Aera tested out her bosom; the feathers were a bit coarser than they looked, but otherwise, the experience was just as advertised. "Well?" she asked, tilting her head slightly as if trying to catch Aera's eyes with her own. "Good wow or bad wow?" Aera further offered that Roc ought to play a part as well, partially so their act would be convincing but also so likely so that Aera wouldn't look like a one-sided aggressor in this. "Okay, uh... we can't both do boobs, so I guess your ass," she suggested shamelessly, though still with that confused hesitation.
Following Aera's lead, she stepped in a bit, allowing MachMan's SP to continue groping her chest if she wanted, and hooked both of her oversized claws around Aera's bottom. She squeezed carefully, understanding the issues that might come along with going in too hard using giant talons. To Aera, it would feel like someone was prodding around with some sort of gardening tool rather than hands; for the most part, Roc was being careful, but every now and then it would feel as though she snagged something. "Mrrrr..." Roc growled from her throat. She seemed to want to give Aera a compliment too, but wasn't able to think of a good one. Instead, she doubled her efforts to try to show some enthusiasm. Perhaps alarmingly, as the talons dug around, Aera would be able to hear fabric tearing away at the pants of her suit. It wasn't obvious if Roc was doing it intentionally or not, but it would begin taking on a ripped jeans look at this rate.
"Hehehe... Lucky birdy... I wanted to touch there too," Oni chuckled, enjoying himself enough to the point that he didn't seem as though he was going to make a move.
Roc tilted her chin up and continued showing her teeth, not really in a grin or a frown, but more in a curious stare, as she worked Aera's bottom with her hands. She blushed a bit more and adopted the crossed eyes a bit whenever Aera smiled. "Mrrrr... If you act like that, it makes my heart beat hard," she murmured. "I know we're teammates, but..." she trailed off, clasping a hand around each of Aera's cheeks and squeezing. "Whatever. I mean... if you want to do it... Tell me," her voice growled, guttering in her throat. It was starting to seem more like she was asking for permission than trying to feel out Aera's intentions.
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On the other side of the fence, soldiers continued to clean up under Vector's watch, entirely oblivious to what was happening near the ruined meditation hall. Had they known, they probably would have raced over to try to sneak a peek. As it was, they instead worked on erecting ruined watchtowers, setting up fence posts, and mending holes in walls. A few soldiers eyed MachMan's robot SP curiously, but not nearly as curiously as they might have if he fit the usual Subordinate rank demographic.
A few approached, carrying logs over their shoulders. The one at the front, a guy with slightly shaggy hair and a pipe sticking out from his lips even as he shouldered the lumber, shook his hair and addressed Vector. "We're going to get to work on the meditation hall in the back area, that place took some of the worst damage. I think Yasu's gonna kill us if she sees we repaired the whole camp and left the hall down. Now, I know there were some prisoners back there, but I gathered up some of us who ain't so squeamish, so we can go back there and fix it. You uh... Sorry, don't know your name. But you don't know mine either, so we're even," the soldier joked. "How bout it, you want to help us with this? Could use some robot muscle," he requested, with the others at the back nodding eagerly. He appeared to be the hardiest of the four.
Netfrica Camp Under Construction (and Siege)
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"Definitely good wow," Aera replied quietly, doing her best to not stammer from the awkwardness of the situation. She managed not to stare, and give Roc a healthy amount of eye contact as she made her suggestion as to what to next. Aera found herself pressed closer to Roc, causing the backs of her hands to brush against her own chest as they continued to touch Roc's. She gave an absent glance over Roc's shoulder, not exactly knowing what to expect, but uttered a light gasp as she felt Roc's talons over her derriere. To keep Roc from misinterpreting her reaction, Aera gave her a quick look and a grin, wordlessly encouraging her. The feeling of her claws wasn't painful, but it felt mildly foreboding... though the claws were being gentle now, they seemed to occasionally remind her they could tear into her in a heartbeat.
That said, the tearing felt like it was limited to the material of her pants. Considering she'd already put her pants under the proverbial knife and it would hopefully keep Boss Oni placated, she didn't protest the continued dicing of her clothing; if needed for sake of decency she'd simply revert to her default appearance or use a different .GMO. Roc's growls seemed to fit with with her gradually tearing with her claws, but she didn't seem agitated... well, not her normal "flavor" of agitated. As Roc moved her hands, Aera more or less did the same, spreading her fingers apart more to get a better "hand-full." The entirely new situation and slightly unnerving feeling of the claws had her so focused she didn't entirely catch Boss Oni's comment.
Thankfully Roc seemed to at least recognize it, hopefully keeping the mobster put in his throne. Aera couldn't help but focus on Roc's expressions, like she was witnessing a rare event. Truth be told, prior to this she'd only seen a handful of expressions from the Navi, namely anger, stubbornness, and fury. Aera's grin widened upon seeing Roc go cross-eyed again and blush even more. She briefly wondered if she was overly teasing the avian brawler, but her "warning" made it appear she wasn't entirely uncomfortable. "Hn," she inadvertently squeaked and closed her eyes as she felt the nearly painful squeeze of her talons, giving Roc's chest a soft squeeze as well. She opened her eyes and took a second to recompose herself before answering. "As long as it's a bit less... pointy... yes," she cooed with a smile and a slightly deeper shade of blush, only a moment later realizing she honestly had no idea what she just signed up for, she'd gotten too caught up in the moment...
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Vector was mostly pleased the Soldiers eventually got back to repairing the encampment, and though he got a few stares, none seemed to know (or care) who he was. This didn't bother him, he believed it better to have no reputation than a bad one. He was eventually approached by a few hauling logs about, and their supposed leader explained his plan for the lumber, and requested his help with said plan. "Fair enough," Vector commented in regards to the somewhat impersonal/casual introduction, this wasn't really the time nor the place for pleasantries, nor to get offended by a lack of courtesy.
That said, having a work crew march upon the meditation hall, unannounced or not, might throw an unneeded wrench into Roc and Aera's attempts to keep Boss Oni placated. Last he saw, Aera had to physically step in to stop Roc from gutting the brute, so he didn't want to fan the flames. "Lady Aera and Subordinate Roc are currently negotiating with a Mafia family head in the Meditation Hall, and tempers were still hot before I was sent to see to the camp repairs. The situation is likely too delicate for us to intrude right now, perhaps once the NetMafia guest departs?" Vector explained, gesturing to the building in question.
He suspected the potential wrath of Yasu held more weight than the precautionary words of an unknown; but he also suspected a interruption would bring about the equally fearsome wrath of Roc, and possibly Boss Oni. To hopefully placate the crew for at least a few minutes, he volunteered his skills. "But to not waste your time, I can assist in cutting the lumber while we wait for the negotiations to conclude," At the conclusion of his suggestion, his poleaxe shrank down, drawing the L-shaped blade into his hand, before re-configuring into a circular, jagged blade in place of his hand and forearm. To further push his point, he made the blade spin up to a significant speed.
That said, the tearing felt like it was limited to the material of her pants. Considering she'd already put her pants under the proverbial knife and it would hopefully keep Boss Oni placated, she didn't protest the continued dicing of her clothing; if needed for sake of decency she'd simply revert to her default appearance or use a different .GMO. Roc's growls seemed to fit with with her gradually tearing with her claws, but she didn't seem agitated... well, not her normal "flavor" of agitated. As Roc moved her hands, Aera more or less did the same, spreading her fingers apart more to get a better "hand-full." The entirely new situation and slightly unnerving feeling of the claws had her so focused she didn't entirely catch Boss Oni's comment.
Thankfully Roc seemed to at least recognize it, hopefully keeping the mobster put in his throne. Aera couldn't help but focus on Roc's expressions, like she was witnessing a rare event. Truth be told, prior to this she'd only seen a handful of expressions from the Navi, namely anger, stubbornness, and fury. Aera's grin widened upon seeing Roc go cross-eyed again and blush even more. She briefly wondered if she was overly teasing the avian brawler, but her "warning" made it appear she wasn't entirely uncomfortable. "Hn," she inadvertently squeaked and closed her eyes as she felt the nearly painful squeeze of her talons, giving Roc's chest a soft squeeze as well. She opened her eyes and took a second to recompose herself before answering. "As long as it's a bit less... pointy... yes," she cooed with a smile and a slightly deeper shade of blush, only a moment later realizing she honestly had no idea what she just signed up for, she'd gotten too caught up in the moment...
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Vector was mostly pleased the Soldiers eventually got back to repairing the encampment, and though he got a few stares, none seemed to know (or care) who he was. This didn't bother him, he believed it better to have no reputation than a bad one. He was eventually approached by a few hauling logs about, and their supposed leader explained his plan for the lumber, and requested his help with said plan. "Fair enough," Vector commented in regards to the somewhat impersonal/casual introduction, this wasn't really the time nor the place for pleasantries, nor to get offended by a lack of courtesy.
That said, having a work crew march upon the meditation hall, unannounced or not, might throw an unneeded wrench into Roc and Aera's attempts to keep Boss Oni placated. Last he saw, Aera had to physically step in to stop Roc from gutting the brute, so he didn't want to fan the flames. "Lady Aera and Subordinate Roc are currently negotiating with a Mafia family head in the Meditation Hall, and tempers were still hot before I was sent to see to the camp repairs. The situation is likely too delicate for us to intrude right now, perhaps once the NetMafia guest departs?" Vector explained, gesturing to the building in question.
He suspected the potential wrath of Yasu held more weight than the precautionary words of an unknown; but he also suspected a interruption would bring about the equally fearsome wrath of Roc, and possibly Boss Oni. To hopefully placate the crew for at least a few minutes, he volunteered his skills. "But to not waste your time, I can assist in cutting the lumber while we wait for the negotiations to conclude," At the conclusion of his suggestion, his poleaxe shrank down, drawing the L-shaped blade into his hand, before re-configuring into a circular, jagged blade in place of his hand and forearm. To further push his point, he made the blade spin up to a significant speed.
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"Oh, yeah? Well... most guys like 'em," Roc smirked, still a bit awkwardly, as Aera felt up her chest. "I guess it's okay for girls too." Thus encouraged, she continued playing with Aera's bottom, a bit more enthusiastic now. Boss Oni leaned forward in his chair, seeming interested in that particularly given it was the best show he had from his position (and it would be too much effort for him to move his body to adjust his angle). "Yes? Huh... Less pointy... Oh, the talons, right... Yeah some guys don't like that so much," she responded quietly. "And girls too, I guess. Gentle though... I don't normally really do gentle... But there's a first time for everything."
Squinting her eyes slightly, she moved one hand up to try to tilt Aera's chin up, though being the were a similar height, not by much. If she managed, she'd lean in a bit and attempt to lock lips; that part was tender enough, but soon after that would come tongue, which would search fairly aggressively. If Aera let that happen, and if she returned the gesture, she'd find that this approach wasn't exactly free of pointy parts; the shape of Roc's teeth could be felt out, along with their distinct, sharp tips. While doing that, Roc stopped trying to squeeze Aera's bottom and instead used her claws to tear a messy slit in the back of her Neo-Shogun gear near the waist. With a low, guttural growl, she slipped her gloved hand in to rub down her back and reach the bottom again, fumbling now inside of the pants. She was being more careful now to squeeze with just the smooth parts of her gloves, rather than using the hooks of her talons, which resulted in more focus and less exploration. Every now and then, though, Aera would feel cold nails drag across part of her flesh, not scratching, but tickling a bit like running the flat of a razor across one's skin.
Boss Oni was beyond distracted now, leaning forward in his chair. He was making a guttural grumbling as well now, suddenly at a loss for words, as though afraid he was going to cause the scene to evaporate if he spoke up. If Aera looked back, however, she'd see that he still had one hand on top of his bazooka, which was either an unconscious position of the hand or a continued threat, presumably. More likely, Aera was busy with what was in front of her and was either getting caught up in it or otherwise wondering when the cavalry would show up.
Also, for what it was worth, Trebuchet seemed to have fallen asleep and was now snoring erratically. The male ROT stooges were watching the show, just as entranced as Boss Oni and keeping quiet for similar reasons.
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"Huh, sounds heavy. Yeah, I'm not the negotiating type. I'll stay out of that," the man with the pipe in his mouth agreed. "If you wanna cut up some wood to get ready, that's not a bad idea. We'll set this down." At his words, the guys behind him eagerly dropped their load, leaving him shouldering the full weight of the rest of it. "Idjits!" he cursed, struggling to get out from underneath the part he'd been left with. He managed, dropping the log into the dirt with a heavy thud. "Dang! These guys don't have a brain between them," he spat, giving them all the stinkeye before looking back to Vector. "Say, don't it bother you none? Us doin' all this heavy liftin' and all that and there ain't a single one of the generals around to motivate us! Or maybe that ain't your thing regardless," he grumbled.
He perked up like he suddenly remembered something. "Say, you showed up with that Aera girl earlier! She's something, ain't she? You guys close?" he asked, while showing Vector to the lumber pile. The wood all seemed to be differently shaped, of different condition, and poorly organized... such uniformity seemed like it would make it hard to use any of it. Vector might be able to fix that by cutting down certain pieces to a specific size. "Hey, you seem like a dependable guy! Think she might like you?" he asked, chuckling and slapping the back of his hand against Vector's chest in a chummy way. "She's a real cutie! Little young for a guy like me, though. I'm kinda interested in that one in the main camp... wears the night-vision goggles all the time, you know her? She's got gray hair too so I figure maybe she's about my age. That makes me think I got a shot! What do you think? Now, she ain't never talked to the soldiers much, but I'm not so like these other shmucks. She might take a shine to me!"
The man seemed eager to ramble on now that he'd found someone he saw as a dependable ally. Whether Vector had a lot to say on these subjects was another matter... but the SP could probably continue to be dependable, at least.
Squinting her eyes slightly, she moved one hand up to try to tilt Aera's chin up, though being the were a similar height, not by much. If she managed, she'd lean in a bit and attempt to lock lips; that part was tender enough, but soon after that would come tongue, which would search fairly aggressively. If Aera let that happen, and if she returned the gesture, she'd find that this approach wasn't exactly free of pointy parts; the shape of Roc's teeth could be felt out, along with their distinct, sharp tips. While doing that, Roc stopped trying to squeeze Aera's bottom and instead used her claws to tear a messy slit in the back of her Neo-Shogun gear near the waist. With a low, guttural growl, she slipped her gloved hand in to rub down her back and reach the bottom again, fumbling now inside of the pants. She was being more careful now to squeeze with just the smooth parts of her gloves, rather than using the hooks of her talons, which resulted in more focus and less exploration. Every now and then, though, Aera would feel cold nails drag across part of her flesh, not scratching, but tickling a bit like running the flat of a razor across one's skin.
Boss Oni was beyond distracted now, leaning forward in his chair. He was making a guttural grumbling as well now, suddenly at a loss for words, as though afraid he was going to cause the scene to evaporate if he spoke up. If Aera looked back, however, she'd see that he still had one hand on top of his bazooka, which was either an unconscious position of the hand or a continued threat, presumably. More likely, Aera was busy with what was in front of her and was either getting caught up in it or otherwise wondering when the cavalry would show up.
Also, for what it was worth, Trebuchet seemed to have fallen asleep and was now snoring erratically. The male ROT stooges were watching the show, just as entranced as Boss Oni and keeping quiet for similar reasons.
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"Huh, sounds heavy. Yeah, I'm not the negotiating type. I'll stay out of that," the man with the pipe in his mouth agreed. "If you wanna cut up some wood to get ready, that's not a bad idea. We'll set this down." At his words, the guys behind him eagerly dropped their load, leaving him shouldering the full weight of the rest of it. "Idjits!" he cursed, struggling to get out from underneath the part he'd been left with. He managed, dropping the log into the dirt with a heavy thud. "Dang! These guys don't have a brain between them," he spat, giving them all the stinkeye before looking back to Vector. "Say, don't it bother you none? Us doin' all this heavy liftin' and all that and there ain't a single one of the generals around to motivate us! Or maybe that ain't your thing regardless," he grumbled.
He perked up like he suddenly remembered something. "Say, you showed up with that Aera girl earlier! She's something, ain't she? You guys close?" he asked, while showing Vector to the lumber pile. The wood all seemed to be differently shaped, of different condition, and poorly organized... such uniformity seemed like it would make it hard to use any of it. Vector might be able to fix that by cutting down certain pieces to a specific size. "Hey, you seem like a dependable guy! Think she might like you?" he asked, chuckling and slapping the back of his hand against Vector's chest in a chummy way. "She's a real cutie! Little young for a guy like me, though. I'm kinda interested in that one in the main camp... wears the night-vision goggles all the time, you know her? She's got gray hair too so I figure maybe she's about my age. That makes me think I got a shot! What do you think? Now, she ain't never talked to the soldiers much, but I'm not so like these other shmucks. She might take a shine to me!"
The man seemed eager to ramble on now that he'd found someone he saw as a dependable ally. Whether Vector had a lot to say on these subjects was another matter... but the SP could probably continue to be dependable, at least.
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Though the idea of the talons against her still felt mildly dangerous, the feeling itself started to feel more like a massage than predatory curiosity. It also helped that Roc was able to branch out from her usually rough ways and kept a gentle touch. It did briefly cause Aera to wonder how one could be rougher than this without causing injury... The thought was brief because she quickly felt her chin slowly lifted to look directly towards Roc. A look of curiosity managed to appear from behind the blushing, her eyes looking over Roc's face as she tried to interpret what was going on. Once Roc leaned in, however, she made that realization. [[i]oh...[/i]] was all she could think of before her train of thought quickly derailed from the feeling of Roc's lips on her own. Though Mach was her first, this was the first time she'd actually kissed someone with uncovered lips. She was briefly lost in the feeling, as her eyes slowly began to shut...
Then she soon felt something else. "Mnh?" she uttered a muffled yelp as her eyes shot open, and her hands reactively squeezed slightly, but she didn't try to push away. [[i]Is that... her tongue? Is... is this normal?[/i]] she mentally questioned, still trying to comprehend the bizarre feeling as her hands quickly eased off the pressure. It took a few moments to get over the weirdness of the concept, it started to feel surprisingly nice. Roc was going on strong, but that wasn't really unexpected. With the aim to not discourage Roc, and with the help of some guilty curiosity, she let her own tongue join in, albeit apprehensively.
While she was testing unfamiliar waters, she felt one of Roc's hands move up to her lower back, then felt the tug of her tunic along with the tell-tale sound of ripped cloth. She initially feared Roc was beginning to disrobe her, but she soon felt the Navi's glove over her bare skin and returned to her posterior. To return the favor, Aera brought one hand slowly down Roc's front then slid around her waist to her own behind, and began to touch and squeeze there as well. "Mmngh..." she moaned as the combined feeling of the kiss along with the cold tickling of the talon points against her bare skin caused her to briefly shiver in Roc's grip, pressing her body against her well-endowed ally.
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Thankfully for all their sakes Vector seemed to convince the work crew to hold off on their work with the Mediation Hall. They dropped their materials in a somewhat uncoordinated fashion, but they more or less looked relieved to no longer lug around the lumber. After their apparent leader showed his frustration with said uncoordinated unload, he addressed Vector. "I'm sure the Generals had other engagements, but felt it important enough to send 4 subordinates, if that's of any consolation," he calmly surmised before stopping and folding down the circular blade, before a Yokan-esque gauntlet took its place.
Vector's attention was about to focus on the deposit of lumber before him, but the soldier perked up and asked more questions, namely about his relationship with Aera. It was pleasing to hear the Navi speak of her fondly, even after only a brief encounter, but it was obvious he didn't know much about her. "She certainly is, and I serve both her and Subordinate MachMan," he stated matter of factly, with a less than subtle hint of pride. The soldier became downright chummy with the SP, which was a surprise, but not unwanted. Vector himself didn't exactly fit the chummy role, nor was he fluent in friendly banter, but this looked to be a fairly safe environment to at least try. He even considered a laugh, but thought better of it, he'd never practiced and feared it would sound forced and/or sarcastic.
Though he didn't flinch at the friendly tap on his armor, he didn't look down in confusion or dismissively brush said armor from some seen or unseen dust. Instead he listened quietly as the Navi seemed to confide in him, which seemed odd because they didn't even know each other's names. Though he knew he likely couldn't return the same friendly demeanor without a high degree of awkwardness, he could; however, give some useful information. "Goggles and gray hair..." he contemplated, knowing he recognized those features before, then quickly got a name to a face. "I believe her name is "Survey." I've only seen her in passing, but she seems... professional. That is merely my opinion, of course..."
Then she soon felt something else. "Mnh?" she uttered a muffled yelp as her eyes shot open, and her hands reactively squeezed slightly, but she didn't try to push away. [[i]Is that... her tongue? Is... is this normal?[/i]] she mentally questioned, still trying to comprehend the bizarre feeling as her hands quickly eased off the pressure. It took a few moments to get over the weirdness of the concept, it started to feel surprisingly nice. Roc was going on strong, but that wasn't really unexpected. With the aim to not discourage Roc, and with the help of some guilty curiosity, she let her own tongue join in, albeit apprehensively.
While she was testing unfamiliar waters, she felt one of Roc's hands move up to her lower back, then felt the tug of her tunic along with the tell-tale sound of ripped cloth. She initially feared Roc was beginning to disrobe her, but she soon felt the Navi's glove over her bare skin and returned to her posterior. To return the favor, Aera brought one hand slowly down Roc's front then slid around her waist to her own behind, and began to touch and squeeze there as well. "Mmngh..." she moaned as the combined feeling of the kiss along with the cold tickling of the talon points against her bare skin caused her to briefly shiver in Roc's grip, pressing her body against her well-endowed ally.
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Thankfully for all their sakes Vector seemed to convince the work crew to hold off on their work with the Mediation Hall. They dropped their materials in a somewhat uncoordinated fashion, but they more or less looked relieved to no longer lug around the lumber. After their apparent leader showed his frustration with said uncoordinated unload, he addressed Vector. "I'm sure the Generals had other engagements, but felt it important enough to send 4 subordinates, if that's of any consolation," he calmly surmised before stopping and folding down the circular blade, before a Yokan-esque gauntlet took its place.
Vector's attention was about to focus on the deposit of lumber before him, but the soldier perked up and asked more questions, namely about his relationship with Aera. It was pleasing to hear the Navi speak of her fondly, even after only a brief encounter, but it was obvious he didn't know much about her. "She certainly is, and I serve both her and Subordinate MachMan," he stated matter of factly, with a less than subtle hint of pride. The soldier became downright chummy with the SP, which was a surprise, but not unwanted. Vector himself didn't exactly fit the chummy role, nor was he fluent in friendly banter, but this looked to be a fairly safe environment to at least try. He even considered a laugh, but thought better of it, he'd never practiced and feared it would sound forced and/or sarcastic.
Though he didn't flinch at the friendly tap on his armor, he didn't look down in confusion or dismissively brush said armor from some seen or unseen dust. Instead he listened quietly as the Navi seemed to confide in him, which seemed odd because they didn't even know each other's names. Though he knew he likely couldn't return the same friendly demeanor without a high degree of awkwardness, he could; however, give some useful information. "Goggles and gray hair..." he contemplated, knowing he recognized those features before, then quickly got a name to a face. "I believe her name is "Survey." I've only seen her in passing, but she seems... professional. That is merely my opinion, of course..."
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What had started as a reluctant show for Boss Oni had turned into... well, at the very least, a more spirited show for Boss Oni, which the ogre-like mafioso did not fail to appreciate. At this point, he seemed content to stop offering his own suggestions and not-so-subtly trying to jump in, as he seemed to have accepted that the result was far more pleasing to watch if he could also fool himself into thinking the girls wanted to do it. "Fantastic... hehehe... with my Oni Mark... they could be joined forever," he murmured to himself, stroking the cannon on the arm of his chair a bit obscenely as he daydreamed.
Once Aera pressed in further, Roc was happy to reciprocate, mashing her bosom up against Aera's while enthusiastically exploring the other navi's mouth with her tongue and buttocks with her glove. "This is," she began, slurping a bit obscenely as she talked with her mouth full, so to speak, "great, it's way better doing it with someone I actually give half a damn about." That was about all she could get out around her aggressive make-out session. "Rrrrgh," she returned; perhaps her growl was equivalent to Aera's moan? It was hard to tell, but the guttural noise continued sounding out her throat. Her posterior wasn't quite as soft as up top, perhaps owing to her muscular frame, but was impressive all the same.
Roc wasn't exactly stripping Aera, but her hand down Aera's pants wasn't letting up. She grabbed around Aera's right leg with her other hand and lifted it up to run perpendicular to her body. Perhaps that wasn't quite enough; she further grabbed around Aera's bottom and lifted her so that both legs were in the air, though the SP would have to support herself with her arms (or thrusters) in order to avoid falling backwards. The bird navi stumbled together with Aera for a moment until the two of them connected with one of the wooden posts that had formerly acted as part of the gate into the meditation hall, so that Aera was mostly out of sight of Boss Oni and the puppets now, although that didn't appear to be intentional.
What did appear to be intentional was Roc's attempt to finish what she'd started, by hooking talons into holes she'd made earlier in Aera's pants and dragging outward, opening a large hole. She drew one hand aside, but not the other, and shook off the cloth hanging on to her nails, before cradling Aera's buttocks again with her palm. "I'm gonna rrrrip it off... That green general's probably gonna bitch about it but... I wanna tear it off you so bad," she whispered between kisses, curling her lip up as she drew her face away and grinned, showing rows of sharp teeth. Aera may have gone out of the frying pan and into the fire, in terms of escaping embarrassing situations, when she chose to entertain Roc rather than Boss Oni.
"Bwaaah! Servants! Turn my throne!" the fat man roared, banging his fist on the arms of the chair. It seemed he couldn't actually lean over the throne far enough to see them where they'd relocated. "Turn it now!" The slave puppets moved to do so, though it would probably take them a while to get the throne up and spin it, if Aera needed to take the time to do anything out of his sight.
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Unaware of what they were missing (certainly, no one would be so chipper if they knew about it), the soldiers with Vector continued shooting the breeze without a care in the world. "Four subordinates huh? Well damn, if that ain't somethin'! I remember when we didn't have any subordinates and only had four generals, period!" the pipe-smoking soldier exclaimed in his loud rough voice, making the word 'period' a bit inappropriate. "Oh, you're with that guy who's leading the aerial squad now, huh? That's the life, I bet! Flyin' and zippin' around, I mean, who wouldn't wanna do that? If I can ever get it so General Yasu ain't watchin', I might ask if the purple-headed one wants to take me up in the air. Just to fly, I mean! Geez, she's young enough to be my daughter. Don't look like she'd tear me apart like the bird and the mask one's uh... well, she doesn't look like she'd carry a passenger too well."
He frowned as Vector revealed more info on his possible target; not an unfriendly frown, but a surprised one. "Survey! Right, right, that's the name. Lord almighty, gotta pay more attention when they run these new subordinate meetings," he laughed, grinning around his pipe. "Professional, is she? Well, she oughta appreciate me, then! Unlike the better part of these idjits, I know the way to get some work done!" he boasted, showing off by cutting wood (albeit a lot less efficiently than Vector was accomplishing the same task... one had to wonder if his leadership had something to do with all the uneven cuts). "You uh, you know what she does or where she came from? Downside of me bein' one of the only ones that's lookin' at 'er is that nobody's made a fan club for her. That's stupid, 'course, old bastard like me ain't gonna go to no fan club meetings, but they're a good source of information and er, other stuff, if you've sworn yourself over to one of the subordinates."
He rubbed his chin thoughtfully for a moment, putting his axe-head against the ground by relaxing his grip with the other. "Say, you know what? If you're servin' somebody just like we are, you oughta declare yourself a favorite general or subordinate, just like we do! Who you wanna declare for, huh? That cute girl you were talkin' about? If you declare for her now, I bet you could join the other guys in the camp and start rackin' up points! We have a system, you know? But it's all secret! Only way you learn about it all is joinin' a club and picking a girl. Whatcha say?" he asked, slapping Vector's armor again, which seemed to be a bad habit of his. One could question how little the man really knew about fan clubs, not to mention his work ethic, given how he was going off on a tangent like this. "Well, I'll let you in on one more of our rules, the golden rule: you don't have to 'go after' any of the girls, but only a real rat bastard goes after more than one of the girls. That's a given! Fastest way to make sure the whole army hates ya is to be seen double-dippin'. That dragon bastard, for instance, nerve'a that guy. He's got Dee around his finger, but you can tell he wants the rest too! You ain't friends with that guy, are ya?"
Once Aera pressed in further, Roc was happy to reciprocate, mashing her bosom up against Aera's while enthusiastically exploring the other navi's mouth with her tongue and buttocks with her glove. "This is," she began, slurping a bit obscenely as she talked with her mouth full, so to speak, "great, it's way better doing it with someone I actually give half a damn about." That was about all she could get out around her aggressive make-out session. "Rrrrgh," she returned; perhaps her growl was equivalent to Aera's moan? It was hard to tell, but the guttural noise continued sounding out her throat. Her posterior wasn't quite as soft as up top, perhaps owing to her muscular frame, but was impressive all the same.
Roc wasn't exactly stripping Aera, but her hand down Aera's pants wasn't letting up. She grabbed around Aera's right leg with her other hand and lifted it up to run perpendicular to her body. Perhaps that wasn't quite enough; she further grabbed around Aera's bottom and lifted her so that both legs were in the air, though the SP would have to support herself with her arms (or thrusters) in order to avoid falling backwards. The bird navi stumbled together with Aera for a moment until the two of them connected with one of the wooden posts that had formerly acted as part of the gate into the meditation hall, so that Aera was mostly out of sight of Boss Oni and the puppets now, although that didn't appear to be intentional.
What did appear to be intentional was Roc's attempt to finish what she'd started, by hooking talons into holes she'd made earlier in Aera's pants and dragging outward, opening a large hole. She drew one hand aside, but not the other, and shook off the cloth hanging on to her nails, before cradling Aera's buttocks again with her palm. "I'm gonna rrrrip it off... That green general's probably gonna bitch about it but... I wanna tear it off you so bad," she whispered between kisses, curling her lip up as she drew her face away and grinned, showing rows of sharp teeth. Aera may have gone out of the frying pan and into the fire, in terms of escaping embarrassing situations, when she chose to entertain Roc rather than Boss Oni.
"Bwaaah! Servants! Turn my throne!" the fat man roared, banging his fist on the arms of the chair. It seemed he couldn't actually lean over the throne far enough to see them where they'd relocated. "Turn it now!" The slave puppets moved to do so, though it would probably take them a while to get the throne up and spin it, if Aera needed to take the time to do anything out of his sight.
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Unaware of what they were missing (certainly, no one would be so chipper if they knew about it), the soldiers with Vector continued shooting the breeze without a care in the world. "Four subordinates huh? Well damn, if that ain't somethin'! I remember when we didn't have any subordinates and only had four generals, period!" the pipe-smoking soldier exclaimed in his loud rough voice, making the word 'period' a bit inappropriate. "Oh, you're with that guy who's leading the aerial squad now, huh? That's the life, I bet! Flyin' and zippin' around, I mean, who wouldn't wanna do that? If I can ever get it so General Yasu ain't watchin', I might ask if the purple-headed one wants to take me up in the air. Just to fly, I mean! Geez, she's young enough to be my daughter. Don't look like she'd tear me apart like the bird and the mask one's uh... well, she doesn't look like she'd carry a passenger too well."
He frowned as Vector revealed more info on his possible target; not an unfriendly frown, but a surprised one. "Survey! Right, right, that's the name. Lord almighty, gotta pay more attention when they run these new subordinate meetings," he laughed, grinning around his pipe. "Professional, is she? Well, she oughta appreciate me, then! Unlike the better part of these idjits, I know the way to get some work done!" he boasted, showing off by cutting wood (albeit a lot less efficiently than Vector was accomplishing the same task... one had to wonder if his leadership had something to do with all the uneven cuts). "You uh, you know what she does or where she came from? Downside of me bein' one of the only ones that's lookin' at 'er is that nobody's made a fan club for her. That's stupid, 'course, old bastard like me ain't gonna go to no fan club meetings, but they're a good source of information and er, other stuff, if you've sworn yourself over to one of the subordinates."
He rubbed his chin thoughtfully for a moment, putting his axe-head against the ground by relaxing his grip with the other. "Say, you know what? If you're servin' somebody just like we are, you oughta declare yourself a favorite general or subordinate, just like we do! Who you wanna declare for, huh? That cute girl you were talkin' about? If you declare for her now, I bet you could join the other guys in the camp and start rackin' up points! We have a system, you know? But it's all secret! Only way you learn about it all is joinin' a club and picking a girl. Whatcha say?" he asked, slapping Vector's armor again, which seemed to be a bad habit of his. One could question how little the man really knew about fan clubs, not to mention his work ethic, given how he was going off on a tangent like this. "Well, I'll let you in on one more of our rules, the golden rule: you don't have to 'go after' any of the girls, but only a real rat bastard goes after more than one of the girls. That's a given! Fastest way to make sure the whole army hates ya is to be seen double-dippin'. That dragon bastard, for instance, nerve'a that guy. He's got Dee around his finger, but you can tell he wants the rest too! You ain't friends with that guy, are ya?"
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Though Boss Oni's comment regarding the "Oni Mark" was as foreboding as it was lecherous, Aera's attention was briefly so channelized her reaction to it was significantly delayed. Even as the vaguely threatening notion processed, Roc's comments shoved the thought to the side. It appeared she processed that one much more quickly, because she paused and nearly cooed as she smiled mid-kiss. [[i]Awww~ Only "half a damn," but I'll take it,[/i]] she thought to herself, pleased to see the normally-abrasive Navi open up. Seemed like she'd started to get through the hard, sharpened crust of her personality.
That said, Roc still kept an aggressive pace; she quickly found herself being swept off her feet. Finding herself slowly falling backwards, and with one hand down at too low an angle for suitable leverage with the other... let's just say she didn't evaluate it as a very suitable handhold, her floating, birdlike wings came to life with an electronic hum and quickly stopped her fall. This gave her the opportunity to slide her hand up Roc's back to give her better leverage, and hopefully keep her other hand from pulling too much on Roc's bra. She'd briefly fallen away from Roc's kiss, which gave her a moment to catch her breath, and realize just how quickly her "heart" was beating before she felt her back pressed up against the solid post of the building's entrance. Roc descended upon her again with renewed fervor, essentially pinning her to the post.
Her wings powered down, but the built up static caused a few tiny, weak electrical discharges to spark from her hands as she moved them over Roc's back and chest, gently squeezing some of the softer areas. She then heard and felt Roc's claws rip at the back of her clothing, and briefly saw one of said claws shake off the tattered shreds of material. Coincidentally she also got a better idea of where they relocated, since she saw the throne was now mostly facing away from them. Her eyes again looked up at Roc as the avian Navi pulled back and grinned like a hungry predator. Aera was looking a lot like prey right about now. [[i]...oh.[/i]] Aera thought as she finally pieced together her situation. Roc had her literally with her back against the wall, and showed no signs of stopping. In fact, she'd already stated her desire to "rip it off," whatever that was, and press on regardless of consequences.
Aera sharply inhaled, entering a mild panic as she wondered if this was the right thing to do. She didn't fear for her safety, but she didn't know what would happen next, nor what she'd do after this was said and done. [[i]What if Mach shows up? But he did agree to let me know ahead of time... to prevent an embarrassing situation. Boss Oni's obviously quite interested in what's going on, and isn't likely thinking at all about his meeting with the Shogun... And... this feels... really, really good. I want to know what happens next...[/i]] her mind raced, before finally coming to a conclusion. Her guilty curiosity was getting the better of her, and that combined with her submissive body position caused her to face to be nearly beet red. She couldn't help but occasionally avert her eyes as she whispered "G-go ahead... I... I want to know."
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Vector continued to stand with the group of soldiers as they continued to smoke and joke. He was tasked to see to the refortification of the camp, but work was still getting done, and it was actually kind of nice to have a casual conversation with new people. The smoking soldier knew of Mach's position and flight abilities, before musing his desires to fly himself, wondering if Skywriter would give him a lift sometime. Unlike some of the other soldiers he's met, this one seemed to be the least lecherous of the bunch. Vector just nodded along as the soldier continued to the subject of Survey, and also started to evaluate the lumber on the ground, using his visual records to determine where the lengths of wood could be used, and how much would need to be cut to make them properly fit.
After making his measurements, his right hand reconfigured to the circular saw blade from before, and politely waited for a pause in the conversation before making a precise, quick cut. The blade spun up and spooled down very quickly, even though it wasn't mechanically attached to the rest of the SP's arm, but that also meant it was almost entirely silent. Since the soldier was keen on talking and working at the same time, Vector continued to evaluate additional cuts while listening to him. "Unfortunately I don't know Miss Survey hails from, but it sounds like she's tasked with monitoring the functions of the camp. She may have sensors scattered throughout the main encampment, but I know little more about her day-to-day activities," Vector explained, using mostly overheard conversations from Yasu and other generals/subordinates regarding the illusive Navi.
The soldier then suggested Vector join a "fan club," which piqued his interest, as he'd never heard of such things before. He looked towards the soldier as opposed to focusing on the lumber as said Navi explained some of the rules, though apparently you would only get the fine details of this "point system" once you join. "Hm... color me intrigued," Vector admitted, again not at all reacting to the playful slap against his armor. Aera was the obvious choice, but joining a different program's fan club seemed to be a source of information. Said information might just be rumors, but it would be a source of information nonetheless. "I guess joining one isn't a bad idea, as long as they aren't being disrespectful," he mused, then paused as the soldier described whom he assumed to be DragonierMan and his "rat bastardly" antics. "We are allies, but we haven't really interacted outside of empire-directed missions." Vector felt it rude to hop on the soldier's bandwagon, but his own personal opinion of DragonierMan wasn't entirely positive, although he'd still unquestionably fight alongside Drago for the sake of the empire.
That said, Roc still kept an aggressive pace; she quickly found herself being swept off her feet. Finding herself slowly falling backwards, and with one hand down at too low an angle for suitable leverage with the other... let's just say she didn't evaluate it as a very suitable handhold, her floating, birdlike wings came to life with an electronic hum and quickly stopped her fall. This gave her the opportunity to slide her hand up Roc's back to give her better leverage, and hopefully keep her other hand from pulling too much on Roc's bra. She'd briefly fallen away from Roc's kiss, which gave her a moment to catch her breath, and realize just how quickly her "heart" was beating before she felt her back pressed up against the solid post of the building's entrance. Roc descended upon her again with renewed fervor, essentially pinning her to the post.
Her wings powered down, but the built up static caused a few tiny, weak electrical discharges to spark from her hands as she moved them over Roc's back and chest, gently squeezing some of the softer areas. She then heard and felt Roc's claws rip at the back of her clothing, and briefly saw one of said claws shake off the tattered shreds of material. Coincidentally she also got a better idea of where they relocated, since she saw the throne was now mostly facing away from them. Her eyes again looked up at Roc as the avian Navi pulled back and grinned like a hungry predator. Aera was looking a lot like prey right about now. [[i]...oh.[/i]] Aera thought as she finally pieced together her situation. Roc had her literally with her back against the wall, and showed no signs of stopping. In fact, she'd already stated her desire to "rip it off," whatever that was, and press on regardless of consequences.
Aera sharply inhaled, entering a mild panic as she wondered if this was the right thing to do. She didn't fear for her safety, but she didn't know what would happen next, nor what she'd do after this was said and done. [[i]What if Mach shows up? But he did agree to let me know ahead of time... to prevent an embarrassing situation. Boss Oni's obviously quite interested in what's going on, and isn't likely thinking at all about his meeting with the Shogun... And... this feels... really, really good. I want to know what happens next...[/i]] her mind raced, before finally coming to a conclusion. Her guilty curiosity was getting the better of her, and that combined with her submissive body position caused her to face to be nearly beet red. She couldn't help but occasionally avert her eyes as she whispered "G-go ahead... I... I want to know."
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Vector continued to stand with the group of soldiers as they continued to smoke and joke. He was tasked to see to the refortification of the camp, but work was still getting done, and it was actually kind of nice to have a casual conversation with new people. The smoking soldier knew of Mach's position and flight abilities, before musing his desires to fly himself, wondering if Skywriter would give him a lift sometime. Unlike some of the other soldiers he's met, this one seemed to be the least lecherous of the bunch. Vector just nodded along as the soldier continued to the subject of Survey, and also started to evaluate the lumber on the ground, using his visual records to determine where the lengths of wood could be used, and how much would need to be cut to make them properly fit.
After making his measurements, his right hand reconfigured to the circular saw blade from before, and politely waited for a pause in the conversation before making a precise, quick cut. The blade spun up and spooled down very quickly, even though it wasn't mechanically attached to the rest of the SP's arm, but that also meant it was almost entirely silent. Since the soldier was keen on talking and working at the same time, Vector continued to evaluate additional cuts while listening to him. "Unfortunately I don't know Miss Survey hails from, but it sounds like she's tasked with monitoring the functions of the camp. She may have sensors scattered throughout the main encampment, but I know little more about her day-to-day activities," Vector explained, using mostly overheard conversations from Yasu and other generals/subordinates regarding the illusive Navi.
The soldier then suggested Vector join a "fan club," which piqued his interest, as he'd never heard of such things before. He looked towards the soldier as opposed to focusing on the lumber as said Navi explained some of the rules, though apparently you would only get the fine details of this "point system" once you join. "Hm... color me intrigued," Vector admitted, again not at all reacting to the playful slap against his armor. Aera was the obvious choice, but joining a different program's fan club seemed to be a source of information. Said information might just be rumors, but it would be a source of information nonetheless. "I guess joining one isn't a bad idea, as long as they aren't being disrespectful," he mused, then paused as the soldier described whom he assumed to be DragonierMan and his "rat bastardly" antics. "We are allies, but we haven't really interacted outside of empire-directed missions." Vector felt it rude to hop on the soldier's bandwagon, but his own personal opinion of DragonierMan wasn't entirely positive, although he'd still unquestionably fight alongside Drago for the sake of the empire.
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Roc seemed used to, or otherwise comfortable with, Aera's reaction to her advance. The SP showed a mixture of willingness and panic, with Roc eager to seize upon the former impulse. "Rrrrgh... don't worry, I think I can tone it back a little for your sake," Roc murmured quietly to Aera, pulling back for only a moment before going greedily back to her mouth. Despite her attempts to be gentle, Aera could occasionally feel the threat of Roc's jagged teeth, one of them grabbed onto Aera's lip in the course of her tongue exploring. Aera's bashful reaction caused her partner to breathe harder as well, looking especially excited now. "Hmhmhm... I don't know if I'll ever be able to leave you alone again," she chuckled quietly, speaking again with a rumble in her throat.
Being cleared for phase two, Roc tightened her squeeze on Aera's legs and took into the air. "Benefits of being a flying navi," she joked, while simultaneously tipping more of the cloth away from Aera's legs. That was apparently close to the last straw, as Roc was able to rend the rest of it away, leaving Aera a set of black, close-fitting trunks in briefs style, though with high legs, on the lower body, besides the tabi and the remnants of the pants hanging around her legs. A few scratches had already been torn out of the briefs, and by the looks of it, beneath that might be the danger zone. The bird navi didn't stop, using the under-hook of one talon to rip up the center of Aera's uniform and the over-hook of the other to finish stripping off more of the gold-colored skinsuit from around her legs. This would leave Roc in her painfully immodest feather bikini, a bit fuller on the front than the back, and Aera in a much plainer black tank-top that Yasu had presumably designed for utilitarian purposes. The sleeves hung on, much like bits of the pants.
With the skin contact increased, Roc wrapped one leg around Aera's and re-established a firm grab of the bottom; the SP would feel four oversized fingers squeeze beneath her cheeks while the upper nails dug into the hem of her briefs, threatening to drag them down in the back. Smirking a toothy grin, she moved her leg off of Aera's and slid down a bit mid-air, bringing her face about to Aera's navel. She licked her tongue along the small area where the midriff was exposed , then made her way up, grabbing hold of the hem of the undershirt. She raised her eyebrows as her eyes looked back up to Aera's, then gave another snicker. "Hmhmhm!" she chuckled with her mouth full of cloth, then began dragging her way upward...
The two had thankfully shot backward as well as up, which would allow the tall gate to hide them from view of the camp at large for a bit longer, but if Roc kept gaining altitude, it wouldn't be long until the camp was getting a show. On the other hand, Boss Oni was already cursing loudly, as even once his throne was turned, his limited peripheral vision made it hard to see the two. "Tilt! Tilt the throne backwards, you idiots!" he roared, beating his fists hard against the arms of his throne. The picture on the ground would be pretty ridiculous, if the girls were in a position to be distracted by something like that.
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"Sensors, huh? Lucky she hasn't bugged this place yet... er... I think," the pipe-smoking soldier murmured, shifting his most distinct accessory in his mouth uncertainly. "I mean, she might think it's a little creepy, me asking around like this. Ah well. Anyway, more importantly, you're intrigued! That's good. We ain't disrespectful at all, quite the contrary! We got nothing but respect for the girls, every one've em. Course, sometimes, it gets to be a little too much and gets kinda stalkery, but it's all about knowin' you're limits and what's right and wrong. And that dragon fella', he ain't got wits about it no way," he grumbled, shaking his head disapprovingly.
"Anyway, let's get you set up! It's obvious you'd be a great catch for the new fan club that's formin' right as we speak, for your cute friend. Let's see if we can get you in on the ground floor! I bet you can rack up points faster than you think," he offered, leading the way over to some of the other men. The three from earlier followed behind, still mostly chattering between themselves. The pipe-carrying soldier sought out a familiar fellow: the one wearing the head bandage, who was redressed and currently involved erecting a heavy log. The big man helped out, bracing the log and helping his fellow out. "The blue one with me's got an interest in learning more about the new Aera fan club! There is one, ain't there?"
"Oh, you bet," the other navi spoke, speaking in his same solemn voice, which sounded unfitting given his words and supposed enthusiasm. "Of course we want you to join. But if you'd like to be one of us, you need to be able to speak openly and unabashedly of your admiration. So tell me, what do you admire most about Aera? Oh, and also, what's your name," he added as an afterthought, already bringing up a data pad to make a note. "I should warn you, we don't have Aera merchandise yet. The club just formed. Unless there already was an Aera club and mine's redundant in which case... well, still no loot for now."
Being cleared for phase two, Roc tightened her squeeze on Aera's legs and took into the air. "Benefits of being a flying navi," she joked, while simultaneously tipping more of the cloth away from Aera's legs. That was apparently close to the last straw, as Roc was able to rend the rest of it away, leaving Aera a set of black, close-fitting trunks in briefs style, though with high legs, on the lower body, besides the tabi and the remnants of the pants hanging around her legs. A few scratches had already been torn out of the briefs, and by the looks of it, beneath that might be the danger zone. The bird navi didn't stop, using the under-hook of one talon to rip up the center of Aera's uniform and the over-hook of the other to finish stripping off more of the gold-colored skinsuit from around her legs. This would leave Roc in her painfully immodest feather bikini, a bit fuller on the front than the back, and Aera in a much plainer black tank-top that Yasu had presumably designed for utilitarian purposes. The sleeves hung on, much like bits of the pants.
With the skin contact increased, Roc wrapped one leg around Aera's and re-established a firm grab of the bottom; the SP would feel four oversized fingers squeeze beneath her cheeks while the upper nails dug into the hem of her briefs, threatening to drag them down in the back. Smirking a toothy grin, she moved her leg off of Aera's and slid down a bit mid-air, bringing her face about to Aera's navel. She licked her tongue along the small area where the midriff was exposed , then made her way up, grabbing hold of the hem of the undershirt. She raised her eyebrows as her eyes looked back up to Aera's, then gave another snicker. "Hmhmhm!" she chuckled with her mouth full of cloth, then began dragging her way upward...
The two had thankfully shot backward as well as up, which would allow the tall gate to hide them from view of the camp at large for a bit longer, but if Roc kept gaining altitude, it wouldn't be long until the camp was getting a show. On the other hand, Boss Oni was already cursing loudly, as even once his throne was turned, his limited peripheral vision made it hard to see the two. "Tilt! Tilt the throne backwards, you idiots!" he roared, beating his fists hard against the arms of his throne. The picture on the ground would be pretty ridiculous, if the girls were in a position to be distracted by something like that.
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"Sensors, huh? Lucky she hasn't bugged this place yet... er... I think," the pipe-smoking soldier murmured, shifting his most distinct accessory in his mouth uncertainly. "I mean, she might think it's a little creepy, me asking around like this. Ah well. Anyway, more importantly, you're intrigued! That's good. We ain't disrespectful at all, quite the contrary! We got nothing but respect for the girls, every one've em. Course, sometimes, it gets to be a little too much and gets kinda stalkery, but it's all about knowin' you're limits and what's right and wrong. And that dragon fella', he ain't got wits about it no way," he grumbled, shaking his head disapprovingly.
"Anyway, let's get you set up! It's obvious you'd be a great catch for the new fan club that's formin' right as we speak, for your cute friend. Let's see if we can get you in on the ground floor! I bet you can rack up points faster than you think," he offered, leading the way over to some of the other men. The three from earlier followed behind, still mostly chattering between themselves. The pipe-carrying soldier sought out a familiar fellow: the one wearing the head bandage, who was redressed and currently involved erecting a heavy log. The big man helped out, bracing the log and helping his fellow out. "The blue one with me's got an interest in learning more about the new Aera fan club! There is one, ain't there?"
"Oh, you bet," the other navi spoke, speaking in his same solemn voice, which sounded unfitting given his words and supposed enthusiasm. "Of course we want you to join. But if you'd like to be one of us, you need to be able to speak openly and unabashedly of your admiration. So tell me, what do you admire most about Aera? Oh, and also, what's your name," he added as an afterthought, already bringing up a data pad to make a note. "I should warn you, we don't have Aera merchandise yet. The club just formed. Unless there already was an Aera club and mine's redundant in which case... well, still no loot for now."
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Aera found herself being tugged and squeezed even more now, even Roc's teeth came into play and pulled lightly on her lip, causing the SP to exhale sporadically. While she was teetering on getting completely lost in the moment, Roc's comment brought Aera back to a semblance of mental clarity. [[i]Oh no, how will this end? I don't think she'll stop, even after Mach shows up... Can I talk her down? No... maybe distraction? Ngh, what do I d-[/i]]
"Ngya!" Aera squeaked as her train of thought was derailed by the sudden squeeze on her butt and legs, as well as the tell-tale feeling of the two taking to the air. Aera's outerwear finally lost the fight against Roc's claws and were clawed away, but thankfully for her, the .GMO in fact had underwear included, and they were tastefully conservative. Roc's however, made Aera wonder if she was somehow missing the memo on undergarments; 2 of the 3 aerial squadron girls were then confirmed to have an affinity for skimpy underwear. That thought would have to wait, as Aera again found herself firmly under the grip of Roc, and now with a lot more contact in "dangerous" places. Though her own undergarments weren't very revealing, she still felt vulnerable and could tell they were slowly climbing, it wouldn't be long until they floated up and out of the meditation hall in plain sight of the entire encampment.
She reactivated her wings, which were thankfully intact unlike the rest of her uniform, partially to keep herself from accidentally falling away from Roc's grip and partially to provide some resistance and attempt to retain their concealment inside the building. She tried to watch their altitude and see if they were still out of sight, but she also couldn't help but watch Roc as she moved away and moved to her midriff. "Ah," she murmured and her abdomen flinched as she felt Roc's tongue on her skin, and she reflexively put on hand on the side of Roc's head, the Navi's hair running through Aera's fingers. Feeling her briefs under threat of removal, she moved her other hand over Roc's claw, careful to not cut herself on the talons. She didn't attempt to assist nor prevent Roc from slowly pulling down her briefs, at least not yet.
She looked down at Roc smiling up at her with the lower band of the SP's tanktop in Roc's mouth. Aera's own expression looked more flustered than anything, and she tried to protest quietly as she put more downward pressure with her softly humming EM Lev drives to halt their climb. "Not so high... they'll all see us..." she pleaded, but didn't try to move Roc's hands/head or try to pull away from her grasp. She also tried to send a coherent message to her, in an attempt to further explain, without tipping off the scrambling Boss Oni.
She knowingly gave Roc an avenue to keep this up with her, but knowing both were capable of flight, and fast flight at that, they could rapidly climb to avoid the prying eyes of the rest of the camp while Boss Oni struggled to get eyes on them. Another plus would be once Mach returned, with or without Skywriter and Pest, they too would be able to avoid their sight. Either way, it gave her time to let this play out, or be able to cool the passion coming from Roc without essentially dropping her cold. She guessed that wouldn't go over well, and they were too far to take it all back. That said, if Roc refused both the option to stay in the meditation hall or go high altitude, especially if she made it a point to put on a show for the entire camp to see, Aera would have a backup plan for a distraction.
She'd continue to keep one hand on Roc's head, while the other would start to curl around Roc's own hand, and seemingly start to assist in pulling down her own briefs. However, her goal was to "accidentally" get her fingers up against Roc's claws. She'd take a second to mentally prepare herself, then press and partially slide her fingers against the sharpened edges of the claws, hoping the act wouldn't be too painful and/or damaging. She'd likely wince and exclaim an "ow" regardless, and recoil her hand to assess the damage. Hopefully her bleeding hand would prove to be enough to at least distract Roc from the act, or cool down the passion a bit so she could apply first-aid.
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Vector was pleased to hear these clubs aimed to be respectful, but the idea of them occasionally getting "kinda stalkery" prevented the SP from being completely sold on the concept. Regardless, he was soon introduced to another soldier, who was apparently a spokesperson for the Aera fan club. Vector nodded politely to the soldier as the other introduced him and his interest in the aforementioned club. The SP continued to stand quietly as the soldier detailed the information required, and some of the stipulations of the club. It didn't take long for him to pick his favorite things about Aera, but responded with a coincidentally similar tone as the inquiring soldier. "I am Vector.SP. I find Lady Aera's kind heart and soothing demeanor to be my favorite qualities... and apologies, "Aera merchandise?" I don't follow."
The way he phrased the question and his tone wasn't entirely indicative of his purely curious intention, but his head tilted slightly at the question and he stood in a fairly relaxed stance. He didn't intend to give off the appearance he was questioning out of offense or suggesting disrespect. However, if the soldier did react defensively, he would explain along the lines of simply not knowing fan clubs even had merchandise, nor what said merchandise would consist of.
"Ngya!" Aera squeaked as her train of thought was derailed by the sudden squeeze on her butt and legs, as well as the tell-tale feeling of the two taking to the air. Aera's outerwear finally lost the fight against Roc's claws and were clawed away, but thankfully for her, the .GMO in fact had underwear included, and they were tastefully conservative. Roc's however, made Aera wonder if she was somehow missing the memo on undergarments; 2 of the 3 aerial squadron girls were then confirmed to have an affinity for skimpy underwear. That thought would have to wait, as Aera again found herself firmly under the grip of Roc, and now with a lot more contact in "dangerous" places. Though her own undergarments weren't very revealing, she still felt vulnerable and could tell they were slowly climbing, it wouldn't be long until they floated up and out of the meditation hall in plain sight of the entire encampment.
She reactivated her wings, which were thankfully intact unlike the rest of her uniform, partially to keep herself from accidentally falling away from Roc's grip and partially to provide some resistance and attempt to retain their concealment inside the building. She tried to watch their altitude and see if they were still out of sight, but she also couldn't help but watch Roc as she moved away and moved to her midriff. "Ah," she murmured and her abdomen flinched as she felt Roc's tongue on her skin, and she reflexively put on hand on the side of Roc's head, the Navi's hair running through Aera's fingers. Feeling her briefs under threat of removal, she moved her other hand over Roc's claw, careful to not cut herself on the talons. She didn't attempt to assist nor prevent Roc from slowly pulling down her briefs, at least not yet.
She looked down at Roc smiling up at her with the lower band of the SP's tanktop in Roc's mouth. Aera's own expression looked more flustered than anything, and she tried to protest quietly as she put more downward pressure with her softly humming EM Lev drives to halt their climb. "Not so high... they'll all see us..." she pleaded, but didn't try to move Roc's hands/head or try to pull away from her grasp. She also tried to send a coherent message to her, in an attempt to further explain, without tipping off the scrambling Boss Oni.
Quote (Aera)
We can stay out of Oni's sight... but unless we dart up really high, everyone else would see us too.
She knowingly gave Roc an avenue to keep this up with her, but knowing both were capable of flight, and fast flight at that, they could rapidly climb to avoid the prying eyes of the rest of the camp while Boss Oni struggled to get eyes on them. Another plus would be once Mach returned, with or without Skywriter and Pest, they too would be able to avoid their sight. Either way, it gave her time to let this play out, or be able to cool the passion coming from Roc without essentially dropping her cold. She guessed that wouldn't go over well, and they were too far to take it all back. That said, if Roc refused both the option to stay in the meditation hall or go high altitude, especially if she made it a point to put on a show for the entire camp to see, Aera would have a backup plan for a distraction.
She'd continue to keep one hand on Roc's head, while the other would start to curl around Roc's own hand, and seemingly start to assist in pulling down her own briefs. However, her goal was to "accidentally" get her fingers up against Roc's claws. She'd take a second to mentally prepare herself, then press and partially slide her fingers against the sharpened edges of the claws, hoping the act wouldn't be too painful and/or damaging. She'd likely wince and exclaim an "ow" regardless, and recoil her hand to assess the damage. Hopefully her bleeding hand would prove to be enough to at least distract Roc from the act, or cool down the passion a bit so she could apply first-aid.
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Vector was pleased to hear these clubs aimed to be respectful, but the idea of them occasionally getting "kinda stalkery" prevented the SP from being completely sold on the concept. Regardless, he was soon introduced to another soldier, who was apparently a spokesperson for the Aera fan club. Vector nodded politely to the soldier as the other introduced him and his interest in the aforementioned club. The SP continued to stand quietly as the soldier detailed the information required, and some of the stipulations of the club. It didn't take long for him to pick his favorite things about Aera, but responded with a coincidentally similar tone as the inquiring soldier. "I am Vector.SP. I find Lady Aera's kind heart and soothing demeanor to be my favorite qualities... and apologies, "Aera merchandise?" I don't follow."
The way he phrased the question and his tone wasn't entirely indicative of his purely curious intention, but his head tilted slightly at the question and he stood in a fairly relaxed stance. He didn't intend to give off the appearance he was questioning out of offense or suggesting disrespect. However, if the soldier did react defensively, he would explain along the lines of simply not knowing fan clubs even had merchandise, nor what said merchandise would consist of.
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"Hmhmhm... let 'em look if they want. The two of us have nothing to be ashamed of," Roc purred, resting her cheek against Aera's abdomen for a bit to talk, before grasping the shirt again in her sharp teeth. Thankfully, the two had stopped gaining altitude anyways. Roc wasn't exactly able to fly with her arms occupied; rather, she'd gotten a strong initial jump and Aera's thrusters were now the only things keeping the two of them in the air. Mostly uninhibited, Roc half yanked, half tore the shirt upward; it wasn't possible to actually get it off without Aera assisting by lifting the arms, so instead, she let it rest slightly up from the breasts, pulled just high enough to keep the chest covered but showing all of the rib-cage beneath and a little underboob. The bottom she squeezed in on, such that Aera could feel it riding provocatively low and tearing slightly beneath the talons. Enough squeezing like that and she'd probably be left with only front covering... and only if she crossed her legs a bit. "I want you to be my SP from now on..." the bird navi laughed, sounding very pleased.
"Aaaargh! I can't see them any more!" Boss Oni complained as the two disappeared behind the ruins of the meditation hall. It was no longer possible that his throne was going to be maneuvered to look at them, unless it was able to fly. "This is thoroughly frustrating! The two of you will get back down here, immediately!" he roared, waving one fist in the air. Roc was clearly not in any hurry to obey that command; it was doubtful if she was even hearing it.
Aera halted the action a bit by drawing an 'accidental injury' on Roc's claws; it wasn't hard to cut oneself on them if one was trying. The bird navi looked surprised, then irritated, then confused. "I guess I didn't tone it down enough... sorry, I'm used to doing this with guys who are trying to act tough. Though... I guess you were tough, in your own way," she smirked. Probably not the right reaction to injuring one's friend, but it was as warm as Roc got. "But uh, I'm not exactly the healing type. Hopefully your guy can do something about it when he gets here. Or maybe you can do it yourself."
Skywriter and Pest made it into the net first, appearing nearby Boss Oni on either side of the throne. Pest was back in her uniform, but Skywriter was still in her painfully attention-grabbing bikini. She suddenly realized this, then refreshed her clothing with a strong blush. Thankfully, Oni was a little slow on the uptake and found them out too late. "You two! Get over there and tell your fellow subordinates to come rejoin all of us. This is ridiculous!" he growled at them, but the two simply looked between one another. Presumably, if they waited a little longer, MachMan and the Shogun would show him to set Oni straight.
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In the mean time, the fan club seemed pleased with Vector's response. "Yes, that struck me about her as well. Hopefully I'll get to spend more time with her, like you do, though that would be quite a rarity for a soldier such as myself," the head-wrapped one suggested. He frowned at the question (well, a bit more than he always seemed to be vacantly frowning), then put a hand to his chin. "Merchandise? Well, it would be a little of everything, of course. It starts out easy with things like shirts, flags, toys, that sort of thing. Over time, we'll move on to specialty goods like video games and comic books. Given long enough, you'll be able to get all kinds of things, even dakimakura-"
"W-Well, let's not bore Vector with everything! Suffice to say that where there is demand, there will be supply. What kind of Aera goods would you want? I'm sure you'll be able to get your hands on them," the older man interjected, trying to change the subject as it veered into some not quite so respectful territory.
"Aaaargh! I can't see them any more!" Boss Oni complained as the two disappeared behind the ruins of the meditation hall. It was no longer possible that his throne was going to be maneuvered to look at them, unless it was able to fly. "This is thoroughly frustrating! The two of you will get back down here, immediately!" he roared, waving one fist in the air. Roc was clearly not in any hurry to obey that command; it was doubtful if she was even hearing it.
Aera halted the action a bit by drawing an 'accidental injury' on Roc's claws; it wasn't hard to cut oneself on them if one was trying. The bird navi looked surprised, then irritated, then confused. "I guess I didn't tone it down enough... sorry, I'm used to doing this with guys who are trying to act tough. Though... I guess you were tough, in your own way," she smirked. Probably not the right reaction to injuring one's friend, but it was as warm as Roc got. "But uh, I'm not exactly the healing type. Hopefully your guy can do something about it when he gets here. Or maybe you can do it yourself."
Skywriter and Pest made it into the net first, appearing nearby Boss Oni on either side of the throne. Pest was back in her uniform, but Skywriter was still in her painfully attention-grabbing bikini. She suddenly realized this, then refreshed her clothing with a strong blush. Thankfully, Oni was a little slow on the uptake and found them out too late. "You two! Get over there and tell your fellow subordinates to come rejoin all of us. This is ridiculous!" he growled at them, but the two simply looked between one another. Presumably, if they waited a little longer, MachMan and the Shogun would show him to set Oni straight.
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In the mean time, the fan club seemed pleased with Vector's response. "Yes, that struck me about her as well. Hopefully I'll get to spend more time with her, like you do, though that would be quite a rarity for a soldier such as myself," the head-wrapped one suggested. He frowned at the question (well, a bit more than he always seemed to be vacantly frowning), then put a hand to his chin. "Merchandise? Well, it would be a little of everything, of course. It starts out easy with things like shirts, flags, toys, that sort of thing. Over time, we'll move on to specialty goods like video games and comic books. Given long enough, you'll be able to get all kinds of things, even dakimakura-"
"W-Well, let's not bore Vector with everything! Suffice to say that where there is demand, there will be supply. What kind of Aera goods would you want? I'm sure you'll be able to get your hands on them," the older man interjected, trying to change the subject as it veered into some not quite so respectful territory.
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As Aera feared, Roc didn't care if their show became a public display, but as she adjusted the output of her EM Lev drives Aera realized she was in fact the one controlling their position. They eased past the ruins of one of the taller walls, putting the pile of rubble between them and Boss Oni, to which he loudly protested. With her top pulled up nearly to the point of fully exposing her chest, and her briefs under duress, Aera was feeling even more exposed even while having the relative privacy provided by the rubble. She attempted to press together/cross her thighs to keep her briefs from being pulled all the way down; though she admittedly enjoyed this feeling of closeness, stripping all the way down was a step too far. "Oh? And I thought you didn't like me much..." Aera teased, trying to downplay how possessive Roc was becoming of her.
Unfortunately the action came to a boiling point, with the near disrobing and Roc attempting to "claim" her, so Aera put a dampener on things with her "unintentional" injury. Data trickled down her fingers, and she tried to keep her hand away, so it wouldn't drip on herself or Roc. Thankfully it caused Roc to disengage without immediately turning hostile, instead she seemed slightly apologetic. As her recovery programs primed, she received word from Mach that they were on their way back. Finally! "It's okay, it was clumsy of me... You think I'm tough?" she asked with a bashful smile, and looked up from her fingers as tiny green sparks started to crackle over the gashes in her fingers. After giving Roc a moment to respond, she examined her fingers as the recovery programs did their work and hopefully closed up her fingers without so much as a seam. "I think I have this handled, and it sounds like Mach is on his way back, so I think we should get dressed and clean up..." she suggested, before looking at the now stagnant streams of data on her hand, then down to what remained of her clothing. She quickly realized there wasn't any appropriate place to wipe away the "blood," so she decided it best to lick the tips of her fingers, to at least get rid of the majority of the data. She was almost expecting the sight of "blood" to draw Roc's interest due to her predatory tendencies, but it seemed it was a common sight, therefore not worth attention.
((From Blesser's Court))
Mach beamed down a short distance on the same side of the rubble as Boss Oni, and as the cyan light died down it was revealed he'd changed his .GMO back to his Yasu-issued uniform. He saw both Pest and Skywriter there with Boss Oni, and he gave the first two a polite nod, while not really giving much more than a glance to the last. However, he did notice Oni was sitting alone on this throne, and seemingly upset about that arrangement. A quick glance around the room also showed Roc, Aera, and Vector as MIA, but a quick check of their locations showed Aera just behind the rubble pile... for some reason... and Vector out in the camp.
To head that off, Mach turned to Boss Oni. "I've resolved the issue, the honorable Shogun will be here shortly. Apologies for the wait," Mach declared and ended in a polite apology, but purposefully left out the details. He suspected any interaction with the Blessers, even one as zero-sum as that "trial," could rouse suspicion from the Mafia. He hoped the Shogun would make his appearance as well, as Mach didn't exactly in the mood to "chit chat" with Boss Oni. That said, he was a bit curious how Roc and Aera managed to keep him from storming off or going ballistic; it didn't appear the ruined meditation hall was more damaged now compared to how he left it, and the ambient noise suggested the camp wasn't under attack.
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Vector listened quietly as usual, but was slightly taken aback with the selection of merchandise. [[b]I had no idea such clubs existed, especially within the Shogunate itself... Why have we not seen this earlier? Maybe this is something the soldiers actively keep hidden from their superiors? Seems benign enough...[/b]] Vector pondered to himself, and started to think of how much dedication and energy would go into going so far as to creating comics and videogames based around the subject of their adoration. He was also about to ask what a "dakimakura" was, but the pipe-smoking soldier interjected and asked what goods Vector would like.
"Hm..." Vector murmured as he put an armored finger to the chin of his masked helmet, mulling it over. "I think an Aera banner or flag would be appropriate..." He explained, trailing off before his head tilted up slightly in realization. "Oh, there was talk of a "Point System," what are the particulars, and the use for said points?" Vector asked curiously, his voice almost sounding excited at the prospect.
Unfortunately the action came to a boiling point, with the near disrobing and Roc attempting to "claim" her, so Aera put a dampener on things with her "unintentional" injury. Data trickled down her fingers, and she tried to keep her hand away, so it wouldn't drip on herself or Roc. Thankfully it caused Roc to disengage without immediately turning hostile, instead she seemed slightly apologetic. As her recovery programs primed, she received word from Mach that they were on their way back. Finally! "It's okay, it was clumsy of me... You think I'm tough?" she asked with a bashful smile, and looked up from her fingers as tiny green sparks started to crackle over the gashes in her fingers. After giving Roc a moment to respond, she examined her fingers as the recovery programs did their work and hopefully closed up her fingers without so much as a seam. "I think I have this handled, and it sounds like Mach is on his way back, so I think we should get dressed and clean up..." she suggested, before looking at the now stagnant streams of data on her hand, then down to what remained of her clothing. She quickly realized there wasn't any appropriate place to wipe away the "blood," so she decided it best to lick the tips of her fingers, to at least get rid of the majority of the data. She was almost expecting the sight of "blood" to draw Roc's interest due to her predatory tendencies, but it seemed it was a common sight, therefore not worth attention.
((From Blesser's Court))
Mach beamed down a short distance on the same side of the rubble as Boss Oni, and as the cyan light died down it was revealed he'd changed his .GMO back to his Yasu-issued uniform. He saw both Pest and Skywriter there with Boss Oni, and he gave the first two a polite nod, while not really giving much more than a glance to the last. However, he did notice Oni was sitting alone on this throne, and seemingly upset about that arrangement. A quick glance around the room also showed Roc, Aera, and Vector as MIA, but a quick check of their locations showed Aera just behind the rubble pile... for some reason... and Vector out in the camp.
Quote (Mach)
Everything alright, Aera?
Quote (Aera)
Yep, just a "girl talk" with Roc, be with you in a second!Mach was surprised by the speed of the response, and wondered why Aera would be with Roc behind a rubble pile, but she seemed alright and Mach assumed Boss Oni would now direct his anger on him.
To head that off, Mach turned to Boss Oni. "I've resolved the issue, the honorable Shogun will be here shortly. Apologies for the wait," Mach declared and ended in a polite apology, but purposefully left out the details. He suspected any interaction with the Blessers, even one as zero-sum as that "trial," could rouse suspicion from the Mafia. He hoped the Shogun would make his appearance as well, as Mach didn't exactly in the mood to "chit chat" with Boss Oni. That said, he was a bit curious how Roc and Aera managed to keep him from storming off or going ballistic; it didn't appear the ruined meditation hall was more damaged now compared to how he left it, and the ambient noise suggested the camp wasn't under attack.
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Vector listened quietly as usual, but was slightly taken aback with the selection of merchandise. [[b]I had no idea such clubs existed, especially within the Shogunate itself... Why have we not seen this earlier? Maybe this is something the soldiers actively keep hidden from their superiors? Seems benign enough...[/b]] Vector pondered to himself, and started to think of how much dedication and energy would go into going so far as to creating comics and videogames based around the subject of their adoration. He was also about to ask what a "dakimakura" was, but the pipe-smoking soldier interjected and asked what goods Vector would like.
"Hm..." Vector murmured as he put an armored finger to the chin of his masked helmet, mulling it over. "I think an Aera banner or flag would be appropriate..." He explained, trailing off before his head tilted up slightly in realization. "Oh, there was talk of a "Point System," what are the particulars, and the use for said points?" Vector asked curiously, his voice almost sounding excited at the prospect.
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"If you're not scared of me, you're either stupid or you're tough. And you don't seem real scared of me. So maybe you're a little bit of both," Roc joked, going from sentimental to rude on the turn of a dime. She seemed less pleased when Aera mentioned MachMan coming and also calling their fling off. "Rrrrgh... I don't mind if he wants to watch or join in or whatever," she added. "C'mon, it's just a scratch, we can get back to it!" Her complaining was getting louder and her old temper flaring up. That said, Aera had seen Roc's anger get a lot worse than this...
She narrowed her eyes and turned her head as she heard other girls arrive first, then MachMan soon after. "Rrr, the whole gang's getting back together. Screw it... But if you ever get tired of you and fly-boy passing notes back and forth like a couple of kids, you know where to find me," she finished, heading back out despite her state of dress. Given the speed of her jump, there wasn't much chance to stop her.
---------------------------------
MachMan's hunch was proven correct, as Oni's snarling mask seemed to reflect his mood. His puppets had slowly turned his chair around to face the group again. "This whole ridiculous farce is very unbecoming of navis who I only wish to treat as respected allies! First I was deprived of my meeting with the Shogun, then I was deprived of any entertainment or companionship, left to wait with these ROT scum! I won't-!" he roared in a long string of indignation, before MachMan finally explained that the leader was on his way. Slowly, the mafioso managed to correct his sagging frown into a grim. "Well... excellent then. It befits us both not to have to reschedule. It's a shame that he can't meet me at the bathhouse, where I'd originally prepared a fine feast and many beautiful women, but so long as he's coming..."
Unfortunately, the next person to show up was Roc, not Neo-ShogunMan, and she'd come back without redressing at all. Sensing the others staring, she seemed to realize that for the first time, but just bared her teeth and shrugged. "What? You've all seen it before. Damn, I swear, we all know you all have looked at a lot of tits," she greeted them all.
Boss Oni glared at her without amusement, then focused his eyes back on MachMan. "This is not the Shogun. Where is he?" he boomed again. Thankfully, the Shogun made his appearance shortly after, beaming down in a red laser.
There was no sign of Hime; presumably she'd had something else to take care of, or perhaps just didn't want to get caught having to deal with Boss Oni. "It's good to finally meet you. I'm Neo-ShogunMan..." the armored navi began, before casting his eyes over to Roc. "Is this your work?" he asked, disapprovingly. "We are under no obligation to allow you to do whatever you-"
"Bah! Not my work," Oni complained, waving the knuckles of one hand dismissively, before resting his fat chin on his fist. "The girl tore her own clothes off to amuse me, am I at fault for that? For one so lacking in culture, that's all she can hope to provide me," he chuckled, turning the situation around with a quick lie. If anyone wanted to debate that point (and Roc didn't seem to care, further than just snarling), he'd cut in quick, so as not to let them. "Let's get back to what's important: our terms. You want our resources and cooperation... we have wants as well. Certainly there's somewhere more fitting to speak than this? In front of these ROT scum, small fry, and that plucked chicken," he grumbled, returning Roc's distasteful sneer.
"While I agree these accommodations are not suited," Neo-ShogunMan nodded. "Our main camp is not currently fitting either. We have another Sharo base, but... it's little better."
"Then to my bathhouse, where we should have been all along!" Oni laughed, slapping one hand down onto the arm of his chair. "Trust me, we'll both operate better in a place free of care or conflict, with my wonderful ladies to server our every need... Hahaha... MachMan there," he murmured, tilting his head to point towards MachMan with one large finger around Neo-ShogunMan. "He said he never samples the girls. I'll bet you're the same. Don't worry... in private, with me, you'll find my girls are not so stingy as these. Carrying around all this heavy armor is bad for men like us! We need someone to relax us and... get the knots out! Hm hm hm..."
Neo-ShogunMan seemed neither appreciative or amused, but didn't seem like he was unwilling to relocate either. "Very well, then. We'll meet there. You'll forgive me if I don't soak... I don't go anywhere without my armor," the Shogun responded.
"... Is that so? You sure turn away a lot of gifts. I'm living proof that a little self-indulgence leads to greatness," Oni cackled, seeming somehow as though he believed what he said. If he was joking right now, he might have patted the belly of his armor. "But let's be off. You still have the coordinates, I take it?"
"I do," the Shogun concurred, then allowed Oni to leave the net first. He looked to the others, understanding they might be worried, but addressed them quietly. "I will have to go alone. I believe Oni will only act out against those he believes to be beneath him, but acts subservient in the face of authority. For that reason, I'm not fearing that I'll be attacked. For now... Roc and Pest, I'm leaving transport of the prisoners to you. Take them back to the main camp and don't get involved with the Watchtower business for now. Skywriter, you find Yasu and verify her situation... I've not been able to contact her. She should be at these coordinates... And MachMan, we have you to thank for pulling us out of another situation. I'll pay you now, lest I forget," he finished. "Hopefully this will suffice." He handed over the data packet first, understanding he couldn't afford to be too late to the meeting.
**MachMan received...
1) Captives interrogated- 1000z
2) BlessMan pacified- 6000z + 100 bugfrags + ShootingStar3 + 10 faction points
BONUS) Boss Oni pacified- 4000z + 50 bugfrags + 5 faction points
Total: 11000z + 150 bugfrags + ShootingStar3 + 15 faction points**
The Shogun gave a quick nod, then vanished. This left MachMan with Roc, Pest, and Skywriter. The former two were already moving to deal with the three captives (Roc apparently not caring that she'd exposed the back of her thong to MachMan), while Skywriter stood by MachMan a bit longer. "I hope Aera didn't have to do anything too degrading for Boss Oni... o-or maybe Roc handled that all herself? I don't see Aera around anyway. Well, at least I wasn't the only one who had to strip down today," she chuckled, then gradually became very red, perhaps wishing she'd kept her mouth shut. "Look, I... I don't want you to get the wrong idea... maybe I should tell you this while Aera's not around," she murmured, looking back and forth and keeping her voice quiet.
Of course, MachMan knew that Aera was really present, behind the wall MachMan had his back to. He'd have to decide if it was less awkward to hear her out and then let Aera play dumb or to tell her Aera was right there, which might let Skywriter know she'd already let the cat out of the bag by trying to exclude her.
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"A banner, eh? Good answer! We soldiers appreciate banners! Wanting to wave a banner showin' your favorite girl shows you are one of us!" the pipe-smoking soldier beamed. He kept his smile for the next question, then grinned around his pipe. "The points? Well, sure! You get points for doing two things: making merchandise or providing information. Things everyone will want to know, like what her favorite food is."
"Or especially valuable information," the head-wrapped one added. "Things like what type of guy she likes... or maybe her measurements or what color-"
"Needless to say any type information is good! You can get points if others agree it's useful," the other butted back in, talking over his ally. "Every now and then we hold a market! We always do it out of the sight of the girls, but that's not hard... most of them just ignore us, so it's easy to get away. Basically, if you ever want to try to gain some extra points or cash in what you've got, just sneak off where you see us soldiers. A few of us play lookout while the others sell and buy! It sounds kinda shady, I know, but you gotta understand... Yasu particularly, she'd kick all of our asses if she found out we were doing this for fun. I doubt she'd be flattered to see her face on t-shirts..."
"Unfortunately, that includes Aera too. None of the girls can know, that's another of our rules," the head-wrap soldier added, frowning seriously. "Aera seems fun-loving and caring... She might be happy to let us go on operating. But if Yasu ever got a whiff of it, we'd be shut down for sure."
She narrowed her eyes and turned her head as she heard other girls arrive first, then MachMan soon after. "Rrr, the whole gang's getting back together. Screw it... But if you ever get tired of you and fly-boy passing notes back and forth like a couple of kids, you know where to find me," she finished, heading back out despite her state of dress. Given the speed of her jump, there wasn't much chance to stop her.
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MachMan's hunch was proven correct, as Oni's snarling mask seemed to reflect his mood. His puppets had slowly turned his chair around to face the group again. "This whole ridiculous farce is very unbecoming of navis who I only wish to treat as respected allies! First I was deprived of my meeting with the Shogun, then I was deprived of any entertainment or companionship, left to wait with these ROT scum! I won't-!" he roared in a long string of indignation, before MachMan finally explained that the leader was on his way. Slowly, the mafioso managed to correct his sagging frown into a grim. "Well... excellent then. It befits us both not to have to reschedule. It's a shame that he can't meet me at the bathhouse, where I'd originally prepared a fine feast and many beautiful women, but so long as he's coming..."
Unfortunately, the next person to show up was Roc, not Neo-ShogunMan, and she'd come back without redressing at all. Sensing the others staring, she seemed to realize that for the first time, but just bared her teeth and shrugged. "What? You've all seen it before. Damn, I swear, we all know you all have looked at a lot of tits," she greeted them all.
Boss Oni glared at her without amusement, then focused his eyes back on MachMan. "This is not the Shogun. Where is he?" he boomed again. Thankfully, the Shogun made his appearance shortly after, beaming down in a red laser.
There was no sign of Hime; presumably she'd had something else to take care of, or perhaps just didn't want to get caught having to deal with Boss Oni. "It's good to finally meet you. I'm Neo-ShogunMan..." the armored navi began, before casting his eyes over to Roc. "Is this your work?" he asked, disapprovingly. "We are under no obligation to allow you to do whatever you-"
"Bah! Not my work," Oni complained, waving the knuckles of one hand dismissively, before resting his fat chin on his fist. "The girl tore her own clothes off to amuse me, am I at fault for that? For one so lacking in culture, that's all she can hope to provide me," he chuckled, turning the situation around with a quick lie. If anyone wanted to debate that point (and Roc didn't seem to care, further than just snarling), he'd cut in quick, so as not to let them. "Let's get back to what's important: our terms. You want our resources and cooperation... we have wants as well. Certainly there's somewhere more fitting to speak than this? In front of these ROT scum, small fry, and that plucked chicken," he grumbled, returning Roc's distasteful sneer.
"While I agree these accommodations are not suited," Neo-ShogunMan nodded. "Our main camp is not currently fitting either. We have another Sharo base, but... it's little better."
"Then to my bathhouse, where we should have been all along!" Oni laughed, slapping one hand down onto the arm of his chair. "Trust me, we'll both operate better in a place free of care or conflict, with my wonderful ladies to server our every need... Hahaha... MachMan there," he murmured, tilting his head to point towards MachMan with one large finger around Neo-ShogunMan. "He said he never samples the girls. I'll bet you're the same. Don't worry... in private, with me, you'll find my girls are not so stingy as these. Carrying around all this heavy armor is bad for men like us! We need someone to relax us and... get the knots out! Hm hm hm..."
Neo-ShogunMan seemed neither appreciative or amused, but didn't seem like he was unwilling to relocate either. "Very well, then. We'll meet there. You'll forgive me if I don't soak... I don't go anywhere without my armor," the Shogun responded.
"... Is that so? You sure turn away a lot of gifts. I'm living proof that a little self-indulgence leads to greatness," Oni cackled, seeming somehow as though he believed what he said. If he was joking right now, he might have patted the belly of his armor. "But let's be off. You still have the coordinates, I take it?"
"I do," the Shogun concurred, then allowed Oni to leave the net first. He looked to the others, understanding they might be worried, but addressed them quietly. "I will have to go alone. I believe Oni will only act out against those he believes to be beneath him, but acts subservient in the face of authority. For that reason, I'm not fearing that I'll be attacked. For now... Roc and Pest, I'm leaving transport of the prisoners to you. Take them back to the main camp and don't get involved with the Watchtower business for now. Skywriter, you find Yasu and verify her situation... I've not been able to contact her. She should be at these coordinates... And MachMan, we have you to thank for pulling us out of another situation. I'll pay you now, lest I forget," he finished. "Hopefully this will suffice." He handed over the data packet first, understanding he couldn't afford to be too late to the meeting.
**MachMan received...
1) Captives interrogated- 1000z
2) BlessMan pacified- 6000z + 100 bugfrags + ShootingStar3 + 10 faction points
BONUS) Boss Oni pacified- 4000z + 50 bugfrags + 5 faction points
Total: 11000z + 150 bugfrags + ShootingStar3 + 15 faction points**
The Shogun gave a quick nod, then vanished. This left MachMan with Roc, Pest, and Skywriter. The former two were already moving to deal with the three captives (Roc apparently not caring that she'd exposed the back of her thong to MachMan), while Skywriter stood by MachMan a bit longer. "I hope Aera didn't have to do anything too degrading for Boss Oni... o-or maybe Roc handled that all herself? I don't see Aera around anyway. Well, at least I wasn't the only one who had to strip down today," she chuckled, then gradually became very red, perhaps wishing she'd kept her mouth shut. "Look, I... I don't want you to get the wrong idea... maybe I should tell you this while Aera's not around," she murmured, looking back and forth and keeping her voice quiet.
Of course, MachMan knew that Aera was really present, behind the wall MachMan had his back to. He'd have to decide if it was less awkward to hear her out and then let Aera play dumb or to tell her Aera was right there, which might let Skywriter know she'd already let the cat out of the bag by trying to exclude her.
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"A banner, eh? Good answer! We soldiers appreciate banners! Wanting to wave a banner showin' your favorite girl shows you are one of us!" the pipe-smoking soldier beamed. He kept his smile for the next question, then grinned around his pipe. "The points? Well, sure! You get points for doing two things: making merchandise or providing information. Things everyone will want to know, like what her favorite food is."
"Or especially valuable information," the head-wrapped one added. "Things like what type of guy she likes... or maybe her measurements or what color-"
"Needless to say any type information is good! You can get points if others agree it's useful," the other butted back in, talking over his ally. "Every now and then we hold a market! We always do it out of the sight of the girls, but that's not hard... most of them just ignore us, so it's easy to get away. Basically, if you ever want to try to gain some extra points or cash in what you've got, just sneak off where you see us soldiers. A few of us play lookout while the others sell and buy! It sounds kinda shady, I know, but you gotta understand... Yasu particularly, she'd kick all of our asses if she found out we were doing this for fun. I doubt she'd be flattered to see her face on t-shirts..."
"Unfortunately, that includes Aera too. None of the girls can know, that's another of our rules," the head-wrap soldier added, frowning seriously. "Aera seems fun-loving and caring... She might be happy to let us go on operating. But if Yasu ever got a whiff of it, we'd be shut down for sure."
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Aera quickly felt Roc's mood become more abrasive from the pause in the action due to her injury, and even more so when the suggestion was made to put the fling on hold. It wasn't unexpected, but Aera wasn't happy with this either; she didn't want her foolish actions to drive a wedge between Roc and her (and Mach as a result). "W-wait," she objected and tried to stop her from jumping away, but Roc got the jump on her, leaving her by herself behind the rubble pile. Aera opened a private channel with Roc, but the avian Navi's last remark caused her to pause, then eventually close the channel. She felt confused, frustrated, and helpless, which didn't combine well with her arousal, even when said arousal was waning quickly. She wanted to run out after her, to explain herself, but she couldn't immediately think of what she would say...
She had a flustered expression as she adjusted her top and briefs, then refreshed her NS uniform over them. She then looked down to the rubble pile, searching for a plank, flat bit of stone, or something else suitable. Once she found one, she turned around and sat down (otherwise she'd just sit on the floor). A few moments after sitting down, she put her head in her hands, and let out a frustrated sigh. However, this quiet moment of solitude seemed to help her put her mind and emotions back together. She kept her head in her hands, but her expression eased to one of contemplation as she gathered her thoughts.
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Mach was pleased to see Boss Oni placated by the news of the Shogun's imminent arrival; from the mobster's previous comments, Mach feared he'd call the whole thing off out of principle. Mach noticed Boss Oni again described the feast and the group of beautiful women he had prepared, and this time it felt more obvious he was giving those details just to gloat, instead of explaining the importance by detailing the "effort" he put into preparing the meeting.
Speaking of beautiful women, Roc made her re-appearance, while wearing next to nothing. Her ensuing comments weren't exactly wrong, Mach had recently seen her stark naked during the Mafia airship fiasco. She was unconscious at the time, so she probably didn't know Mach saw, a fact Mach continued to keep close hold. Like with Guillotine, Mach preferred having his limbs remain attached to his torso, so he simply shrugged. Thankfully the exchange was cut short by the Shogun's arrival, so Mach took a few steps back towards the rest of his squad to let the two armored Navis discuss their meeting. His reaction was similar to the Shogun's at the jab from Boss Oni, as well as the situation having no other option but to have the Shogun relocate to Boss Oni's bath house.
However, the mobster seemed fine with the Shogun not partaking in removing his armor, and left. Mach's attention focused on the Shogun, and he stood more formally as the Shogun addressed him and the rest of the group. He took the data packet presented by the Shogun without protest, sensing the Shogun's haste in not leaving Boss Oni waiting again. "Thank you, sir. Happy to be of service. Best of luck with your meeting," he said with a bow before the Shogun departed. Still holding the data packet, Mach looked over to Skywriter spoke, and raised an eyebrow at her cryptic, flushed speech. He kept his voice down as well, to not purposefully embarrass the Navi further. "If you think it's important, spit it out then, or send it in a private channel if you prefer."
He then saw a familiar figure walk out from the behind the rubble pile, and noticed her uniform was back to its default form. Aera had a determined look on her face, but she shot Mach a glance and a reassuring smile before angling over to Roc, who was over by the prisoners. "Roc, can I talk to you in private, please? The prisoners aren't going anywhere," Aera asked, hoping to get her attention. If she got it, she'd gesture to one of the holes leading outside. She knew Mach wouldn't intentionally snoop, so all she wanted was a space where a quiet conversation could be had without anyone eavesdropping. If Roc humored her and followed her outside, she'd find an appropriate spot and stop with her back still facing Roc. Her shoulders rose slowly then dropped as she sighed. "I guess I am stupid..." she quietly admitted. She crossed her arms and hugged herself, so Roc could see her hands wrapped over her ribs. She looked back and over her shoulder, and looked to speak, but she couldn't find her voice. She shook her head and let her arms hang at her sides before turning back to Roc.
"You're ... the first person I've ever gotten so... close with, and I'm still trying to wrap my head around it..." she trailed off as a familiar blush grew on her face, but her expression looked more frustrated at herself than meek, which she would partially explain as she continued. "But I should've made it clear what we should or shouldn't have done, and not let my curiosity take over. I'm sorry, I was foolish and feel like I strung you along, which isn't fair to you. Take it as you will, I just wanted to try to set the record straight," she concluded with an apologetic tone, she didn't feel any ill will towards Roc, and didn't want the Navi to misinterpret this as contempt, or patronizing. Though she was apologizing, she tried to stand confidently in front of Roc, and waited for her response. She didn't expect to be forgiven nor reassured by Roc, she would probably either shrug it off as "no big deal," or continue to prod her for bringing too much drama into it.
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Vector listened quietly as the two explained the point system, while thinking of what an "Aera banner" would look like in the back of his mind. The point system seemed quite simple, and it made sense that some of the "fans" would produce merchandise themselves, since there didn't seem to be much infrastructure. Having such a fluid system made an equal amount of sense, since their operations needed to be clandestine, or else they'd be violently stricken down (by Yasu in particular). He didn't like keeping secrets from Aera, and trusted she too wouldn't made it apparent to the rest of the subordinates/generals, but he didn't want to spoil the soldier's benign fun.
"I understand, my lips are sealed... figuratively speaking," Vector said with a nod, before continuing in an attempt to get some quick points. "As for information, I believe her favorite color is Blue. I don't know her favorite food, but she's apparently a fan of the "Freckled Lemonade" from the NetCafe," he explained contemplatively, reaching back to his rapidly increasing library of memories with her. "I don't know what you mean by "measurements," but since she seems very attached to MachMan, I believe his qualities would exemplify her "type," if that helps narrow things down."
She had a flustered expression as she adjusted her top and briefs, then refreshed her NS uniform over them. She then looked down to the rubble pile, searching for a plank, flat bit of stone, or something else suitable. Once she found one, she turned around and sat down (otherwise she'd just sit on the floor). A few moments after sitting down, she put her head in her hands, and let out a frustrated sigh. However, this quiet moment of solitude seemed to help her put her mind and emotions back together. She kept her head in her hands, but her expression eased to one of contemplation as she gathered her thoughts.
---------------------------------
Mach was pleased to see Boss Oni placated by the news of the Shogun's imminent arrival; from the mobster's previous comments, Mach feared he'd call the whole thing off out of principle. Mach noticed Boss Oni again described the feast and the group of beautiful women he had prepared, and this time it felt more obvious he was giving those details just to gloat, instead of explaining the importance by detailing the "effort" he put into preparing the meeting.
Speaking of beautiful women, Roc made her re-appearance, while wearing next to nothing. Her ensuing comments weren't exactly wrong, Mach had recently seen her stark naked during the Mafia airship fiasco. She was unconscious at the time, so she probably didn't know Mach saw, a fact Mach continued to keep close hold. Like with Guillotine, Mach preferred having his limbs remain attached to his torso, so he simply shrugged. Thankfully the exchange was cut short by the Shogun's arrival, so Mach took a few steps back towards the rest of his squad to let the two armored Navis discuss their meeting. His reaction was similar to the Shogun's at the jab from Boss Oni, as well as the situation having no other option but to have the Shogun relocate to Boss Oni's bath house.
However, the mobster seemed fine with the Shogun not partaking in removing his armor, and left. Mach's attention focused on the Shogun, and he stood more formally as the Shogun addressed him and the rest of the group. He took the data packet presented by the Shogun without protest, sensing the Shogun's haste in not leaving Boss Oni waiting again. "Thank you, sir. Happy to be of service. Best of luck with your meeting," he said with a bow before the Shogun departed. Still holding the data packet, Mach looked over to Skywriter spoke, and raised an eyebrow at her cryptic, flushed speech. He kept his voice down as well, to not purposefully embarrass the Navi further. "If you think it's important, spit it out then, or send it in a private channel if you prefer."
He then saw a familiar figure walk out from the behind the rubble pile, and noticed her uniform was back to its default form. Aera had a determined look on her face, but she shot Mach a glance and a reassuring smile before angling over to Roc, who was over by the prisoners. "Roc, can I talk to you in private, please? The prisoners aren't going anywhere," Aera asked, hoping to get her attention. If she got it, she'd gesture to one of the holes leading outside. She knew Mach wouldn't intentionally snoop, so all she wanted was a space where a quiet conversation could be had without anyone eavesdropping. If Roc humored her and followed her outside, she'd find an appropriate spot and stop with her back still facing Roc. Her shoulders rose slowly then dropped as she sighed. "I guess I am stupid..." she quietly admitted. She crossed her arms and hugged herself, so Roc could see her hands wrapped over her ribs. She looked back and over her shoulder, and looked to speak, but she couldn't find her voice. She shook her head and let her arms hang at her sides before turning back to Roc.
"You're ... the first person I've ever gotten so... close with, and I'm still trying to wrap my head around it..." she trailed off as a familiar blush grew on her face, but her expression looked more frustrated at herself than meek, which she would partially explain as she continued. "But I should've made it clear what we should or shouldn't have done, and not let my curiosity take over. I'm sorry, I was foolish and feel like I strung you along, which isn't fair to you. Take it as you will, I just wanted to try to set the record straight," she concluded with an apologetic tone, she didn't feel any ill will towards Roc, and didn't want the Navi to misinterpret this as contempt, or patronizing. Though she was apologizing, she tried to stand confidently in front of Roc, and waited for her response. She didn't expect to be forgiven nor reassured by Roc, she would probably either shrug it off as "no big deal," or continue to prod her for bringing too much drama into it.
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Vector listened quietly as the two explained the point system, while thinking of what an "Aera banner" would look like in the back of his mind. The point system seemed quite simple, and it made sense that some of the "fans" would produce merchandise themselves, since there didn't seem to be much infrastructure. Having such a fluid system made an equal amount of sense, since their operations needed to be clandestine, or else they'd be violently stricken down (by Yasu in particular). He didn't like keeping secrets from Aera, and trusted she too wouldn't made it apparent to the rest of the subordinates/generals, but he didn't want to spoil the soldier's benign fun.
"I understand, my lips are sealed... figuratively speaking," Vector said with a nod, before continuing in an attempt to get some quick points. "As for information, I believe her favorite color is Blue. I don't know her favorite food, but she's apparently a fan of the "Freckled Lemonade" from the NetCafe," he explained contemplatively, reaching back to his rapidly increasing library of memories with her. "I don't know what you mean by "measurements," but since she seems very attached to MachMan, I believe his qualities would exemplify her "type," if that helps narrow things down."
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"Oh, uh, I wouldn't say 'important,' but um, a little private," Skywriter responded, pushing two fingers together in a gesture of indecisiveness. Rather than coming right out with it, she jumped with a sudden gasp, upon seeing Aera emerge from behind the building. She clasped both hands over her mouth and watched nervously as Aera... walked around her, seemingly going to talk to Roc instead.
The half-naked bird woman raised an eyebrow and stepped away from the prisoners, while Pest watched with a low buzzing... she seemed a bit out of place, with nobody to converse with. Not counting the prisoners, who wanted no part of her after watching her drain the life out of the heavy-set woman in the middle of them earlier.
After seeing that Aera and Roc had stepped away, Skywriter seemed to take the sudden silence as an omen that this was the best chance she was going to get. "Okay, so, you're probably wondering why I act kind of weird sometimes and... dress the way I... sometimes do," she gulped, staring from her feet back to his face in alternation, curious to see how he'd react. "I just wanted you to know... it's not like I'm trying to get you to, you know, do anything crazy or serious! The only way I dress that way is, well, when I started out with the Neo-Shogun Army, I meant to be here for a long time. Kind of branching out, learning something new... some excitement to balance out the skywriting job, which gets a lot more tedious than you'd think. Anyways, I just thought I might... you know, meet a guy here," she continued, her eyes shooting upward again before promptly drifting to the side. She adjusted the hem of her tunic before continuing. "And I knew the reputation of the Neo-Shogun Empire. Full of women... a lot of guys were interested in joining just to meet women, or so I hear, but Yasu usually puts an end to that, or them, whichever. But the point is this! I got some outfits like those ready just in case... I don't think I can stand out just dressing the same way everyone else here does. So I dress in a way that... you know... shows off. But it's not going to affect my work or anything! So don't let it bother you..."
Clasping her hands together at her chest, she took a quick look from side to side, then asked another question. "So! That said... does it bother you when I dress like that? Or d-do you l... er, is it okay? Do you have a way you want me o-or other people in the squadron to dress?" she asked, seeming increasingly jittery, but also smiling expectantly.
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Once again hidden behind the rubble pile, Roc, crossed her arms and smirked. "Ready for another round, huh? I was feelin' the same-" she started, before Aera got a word in. She remained quiet while Aera talked, save for the guttural throat-growl Aera recognized sometimes seemed to come unconsciously from her. "You don't have to cry about it, I just got angry cause I wanted to have sex," she spoke very straight-forwardly, narrowing her eyes as if she was struggling to understand Aera's feelings. "We can just do it whenever you feel like it. If now's not good, we'll do it later." If Aera was trying to get the message across that she didn't want to do it at all, that didn't seem to be registering. "Or... ask fly-boy and see what he says, if you need permission or something. This is my first time doing it with an SP, so I don't know if there are rules or something."
Figuring the matter was closed, she turned and walked back out from behind the rubble pile. "Anyway, I gotta move these prisoners, so I'll talk to you later. Not like Bug-Eyes can move them by herself, heh..." she chuckled, although there was a chance Pest might could do just that, given how much strength she'd drained earlier. The little girl's wings flapped too fast for the eye to see as she turned her head to an unnatural angle, watching Aera and Roc with bug-like motions. She didn't seem interested in MachMan and Skywriter right now... or maybe they were just too awkward to watch.
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"Woah, you've got some good stuff, buddy!" the older of the two soldiers applauded, taking his pipe out of his mouth for a moment to empty out the ashes. "Good, good!"
"I'll write it down," the head-wrapped one commented, grabbing what appeared to be a bandage and also a brush out of his tunic. "Blue... Freckled lemonade... likes guys like MachMan," he murmured. His eyebrows seemed to set into an annoyed furrow at the last part, which might make sense, given there was a pretty night-and-day difference between himself and MachMan, at least visually.
"Great! That's gotta be worth like... what..."
"I'd say 40 points," the ringleader concluded, placing the bandage back inside his tunic. "Easily 40. With that, you'll be able to buy an Aera drink coozie for sure, once we produce some," he recommended, before taking another look at Vector and remembering the lips joke. "Or something else, like perhaps a headband or armband. But perhaps you'll save up for the banner instead. If you know any other good Aera factoids, be sure to share. Now's the best time, since the club's just starting..."
The half-naked bird woman raised an eyebrow and stepped away from the prisoners, while Pest watched with a low buzzing... she seemed a bit out of place, with nobody to converse with. Not counting the prisoners, who wanted no part of her after watching her drain the life out of the heavy-set woman in the middle of them earlier.
After seeing that Aera and Roc had stepped away, Skywriter seemed to take the sudden silence as an omen that this was the best chance she was going to get. "Okay, so, you're probably wondering why I act kind of weird sometimes and... dress the way I... sometimes do," she gulped, staring from her feet back to his face in alternation, curious to see how he'd react. "I just wanted you to know... it's not like I'm trying to get you to, you know, do anything crazy or serious! The only way I dress that way is, well, when I started out with the Neo-Shogun Army, I meant to be here for a long time. Kind of branching out, learning something new... some excitement to balance out the skywriting job, which gets a lot more tedious than you'd think. Anyways, I just thought I might... you know, meet a guy here," she continued, her eyes shooting upward again before promptly drifting to the side. She adjusted the hem of her tunic before continuing. "And I knew the reputation of the Neo-Shogun Empire. Full of women... a lot of guys were interested in joining just to meet women, or so I hear, but Yasu usually puts an end to that, or them, whichever. But the point is this! I got some outfits like those ready just in case... I don't think I can stand out just dressing the same way everyone else here does. So I dress in a way that... you know... shows off. But it's not going to affect my work or anything! So don't let it bother you..."
Clasping her hands together at her chest, she took a quick look from side to side, then asked another question. "So! That said... does it bother you when I dress like that? Or d-do you l... er, is it okay? Do you have a way you want me o-or other people in the squadron to dress?" she asked, seeming increasingly jittery, but also smiling expectantly.
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Once again hidden behind the rubble pile, Roc, crossed her arms and smirked. "Ready for another round, huh? I was feelin' the same-" she started, before Aera got a word in. She remained quiet while Aera talked, save for the guttural throat-growl Aera recognized sometimes seemed to come unconsciously from her. "You don't have to cry about it, I just got angry cause I wanted to have sex," she spoke very straight-forwardly, narrowing her eyes as if she was struggling to understand Aera's feelings. "We can just do it whenever you feel like it. If now's not good, we'll do it later." If Aera was trying to get the message across that she didn't want to do it at all, that didn't seem to be registering. "Or... ask fly-boy and see what he says, if you need permission or something. This is my first time doing it with an SP, so I don't know if there are rules or something."
Figuring the matter was closed, she turned and walked back out from behind the rubble pile. "Anyway, I gotta move these prisoners, so I'll talk to you later. Not like Bug-Eyes can move them by herself, heh..." she chuckled, although there was a chance Pest might could do just that, given how much strength she'd drained earlier. The little girl's wings flapped too fast for the eye to see as she turned her head to an unnatural angle, watching Aera and Roc with bug-like motions. She didn't seem interested in MachMan and Skywriter right now... or maybe they were just too awkward to watch.
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"Woah, you've got some good stuff, buddy!" the older of the two soldiers applauded, taking his pipe out of his mouth for a moment to empty out the ashes. "Good, good!"
"I'll write it down," the head-wrapped one commented, grabbing what appeared to be a bandage and also a brush out of his tunic. "Blue... Freckled lemonade... likes guys like MachMan," he murmured. His eyebrows seemed to set into an annoyed furrow at the last part, which might make sense, given there was a pretty night-and-day difference between himself and MachMan, at least visually.
"Great! That's gotta be worth like... what..."
"I'd say 40 points," the ringleader concluded, placing the bandage back inside his tunic. "Easily 40. With that, you'll be able to buy an Aera drink coozie for sure, once we produce some," he recommended, before taking another look at Vector and remembering the lips joke. "Or something else, like perhaps a headband or armband. But perhaps you'll save up for the banner instead. If you know any other good Aera factoids, be sure to share. Now's the best time, since the club's just starting..."
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Mach's eyes narrowed in response to Skywriter's reaction to Aera's appearance. [[i]Hm. I think I know where this is going... this could be... problematic.[/i]] Mach pondered, taking a guess as to what Skywriter would say next. His expression became less leering once Aera and Roc made their way out, noting Pest sitting more or less by herself. He looked to Skywriter as she continued, guess she thought the coast was clear. He briefly raised his eyebrows and tilted his head to the side at Skywriter's remark, non-verbally telling her he was aware and wondered what method she had to her madness.
As she continued, it became clear wanted to find a male counterpart in the NS, but because she also planned to remain loyal to the Shogunate for a "long time." It could explain her somewhat sudden shift to more overt "showing off," but not to the point of intentionally compromising the mission, etc. Mach had crossed his arms across his chest, but didn't show any other signs of potential disinterest; his eyes were mostly tracing Skywriter's own, but overall focused on her. "I see," Mach commented in a plain, non-judgemental tone. In his mind, he felt a bit of relief. [[i]Whew, was afraid she was going to confess something... with a specific target. That said, she might be dancing around the issue,[/i]] he pondered, hence only the "bit" of relief.
She concluded by asking his input on whether or not her dress was appropriate for the squadron. It wasn't entirely known if she was asking her commanding officer, or her potential target of affection, but it warranted a response regardless. "It doesn't bother me, personally. It hasn't prevented you from doing good work, which I appreciate, by the way," he started, punctuating his comment with a smile and a nod. He then pinched his chin between the side of his index finger and thumb in a contemplative posture. "I think the only one who's shown disapproval was Yasu, but our mission successes have eclipsed any "deviations" to the uniform," he said with a smirk, and a wink for good measure (and to gauge her reaction). "So, as long as it doesn't keep you from doing your job, I honestly don't care what you wear... within reason, of course."
Mach looked from side to side, then leaned in slightly. He aimed to give her some useful (but possibly obvious) information, and also to further see if her "hunt" was more specific than just "a guy." The hand that was previously pinching his chin cupped to the side of his mouth like he was whispering. "As for guys, I'd be wary of Drago, he's got a bit of a temper. And "Sideburns" heart seems dead-set on Yasu."
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As Aera suspected, Roc's reaction was casual yet upfront. Aera's face went beet red at Roc's boldfaced intention to have sex with her; though she knew relatively little about the act itself, it still seemed so personal that it wouldn't normally be so casually declared. While she struggled to find a coherent response, Roc dished out another bluntly open invitation to do it at any time. It quickly proved both parties were equally clueless of eachother, but only one party was nearly to the point of having steam shoot out from her ears. "Okay, have fun," Aera absentmindedly responded as Roc departed, then clasped her hands over her face as she finally realized what she said. [[i]Wow, way to not be stupidly embarrassing or awkward, Aera.[/i]]
She stood there a moment to deal with her own self-inflicted embarrassment, then could finally appreciate Roc's casual response. It didn't appear she was going to hold a grudge; in fact, this might be a net gain in relations with Roc. The way said gains were obtained would remain unknown to Mach, of course... Aera took a deep breath, then exhaled before she tried to shake off the blush and started to head back into the meditation hall.
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Vector was pleased to see his information was deemed as "good stuff" by his new compatriots/conspirators, though his external expression was obviously muted. He initially didn't have a scale with which to compare the value of his information, until they mentioned it was approximately worth a "coozie" (which Vector soon figured out with a quick info search) or a headband/armband, which would be marginally useful at best with his frame.
The two opened the door for additional information, suggesting this was an opportune time since the club was just starting. Vector pondered what appropriate/respectful information would be useful to the group. After a few moments, he gave additional suggestions. "If this is at all valuable or not already known, she specializes in recovery and electrical programs for both offense and defense, and is no stranger to high speed flight. In addition, she's good friends with Miss Sylk, as am I, and thinks highly of the other generals and subordinates, especially Miss Escort. During our introductory recruitment mission with the Shogunate, Lady Aera wore a stunning teal cocktail dress, which she kept from the mission, if I remember correctly."
As she continued, it became clear wanted to find a male counterpart in the NS, but because she also planned to remain loyal to the Shogunate for a "long time." It could explain her somewhat sudden shift to more overt "showing off," but not to the point of intentionally compromising the mission, etc. Mach had crossed his arms across his chest, but didn't show any other signs of potential disinterest; his eyes were mostly tracing Skywriter's own, but overall focused on her. "I see," Mach commented in a plain, non-judgemental tone. In his mind, he felt a bit of relief. [[i]Whew, was afraid she was going to confess something... with a specific target. That said, she might be dancing around the issue,[/i]] he pondered, hence only the "bit" of relief.
She concluded by asking his input on whether or not her dress was appropriate for the squadron. It wasn't entirely known if she was asking her commanding officer, or her potential target of affection, but it warranted a response regardless. "It doesn't bother me, personally. It hasn't prevented you from doing good work, which I appreciate, by the way," he started, punctuating his comment with a smile and a nod. He then pinched his chin between the side of his index finger and thumb in a contemplative posture. "I think the only one who's shown disapproval was Yasu, but our mission successes have eclipsed any "deviations" to the uniform," he said with a smirk, and a wink for good measure (and to gauge her reaction). "So, as long as it doesn't keep you from doing your job, I honestly don't care what you wear... within reason, of course."
Mach looked from side to side, then leaned in slightly. He aimed to give her some useful (but possibly obvious) information, and also to further see if her "hunt" was more specific than just "a guy." The hand that was previously pinching his chin cupped to the side of his mouth like he was whispering. "As for guys, I'd be wary of Drago, he's got a bit of a temper. And "Sideburns" heart seems dead-set on Yasu."
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As Aera suspected, Roc's reaction was casual yet upfront. Aera's face went beet red at Roc's boldfaced intention to have sex with her; though she knew relatively little about the act itself, it still seemed so personal that it wouldn't normally be so casually declared. While she struggled to find a coherent response, Roc dished out another bluntly open invitation to do it at any time. It quickly proved both parties were equally clueless of eachother, but only one party was nearly to the point of having steam shoot out from her ears. "Okay, have fun," Aera absentmindedly responded as Roc departed, then clasped her hands over her face as she finally realized what she said. [[i]Wow, way to not be stupidly embarrassing or awkward, Aera.[/i]]
She stood there a moment to deal with her own self-inflicted embarrassment, then could finally appreciate Roc's casual response. It didn't appear she was going to hold a grudge; in fact, this might be a net gain in relations with Roc. The way said gains were obtained would remain unknown to Mach, of course... Aera took a deep breath, then exhaled before she tried to shake off the blush and started to head back into the meditation hall.
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Vector was pleased to see his information was deemed as "good stuff" by his new compatriots/conspirators, though his external expression was obviously muted. He initially didn't have a scale with which to compare the value of his information, until they mentioned it was approximately worth a "coozie" (which Vector soon figured out with a quick info search) or a headband/armband, which would be marginally useful at best with his frame.
The two opened the door for additional information, suggesting this was an opportune time since the club was just starting. Vector pondered what appropriate/respectful information would be useful to the group. After a few moments, he gave additional suggestions. "If this is at all valuable or not already known, she specializes in recovery and electrical programs for both offense and defense, and is no stranger to high speed flight. In addition, she's good friends with Miss Sylk, as am I, and thinks highly of the other generals and subordinates, especially Miss Escort. During our introductory recruitment mission with the Shogunate, Lady Aera wore a stunning teal cocktail dress, which she kept from the mission, if I remember correctly."
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Skywriter seemed heartily encouraged by MachMan's response, perhaps a bit too much so at first, but the "I honestly don't care" and "within reason" seemed to take some of the wind out of those sails. "S-So... I'll continue to wear what I think is best. Roger that," she laughed awkwardly. She couldn't help a look of stupid surprise when MachMan mentioned DragonierMan or the soldier known for his sideburns as potential guys she might go after. "Um... Sure, I know about DragonierMan. And if either of them wants to go after Yasu, then more power to them... that seems like an uphill fight. I'm not really interested in either of them, though," she laughed, then began pressing her fingers together awkwardly and watching his face again, perhaps wondering if she'd given away too much by process of elimination just now.
Going any further down that road was soon closed to her, however, as Roc returned. The bird lady looked much the same as she had before she left: still mildly miffed about some opportunity she'd lost or perhaps the task assigned, still bikini-clad. "I'm taking these prisoners. Doesn't look like anybody else is using them," she grunted to MachMan.
"Bzzz," Pest nodded, helping her with the other side of the roped group. "We'll have to get them to the warp-pad. It's near the front of the camp, bzz... Aren't you going to put some clothes on? Or maybe you ought to ask MachMan his opinion on your underwear before you do, bzzzz..."
Roc returned a cross-eyed glare that showed the joke was lost on her. "Rrrrgh... No thanks," she grumbled. "I'll refresh my armor later when I'm good and ready. My op doesn't know crap about crap and probably isn't paying any attention. I can't refresh it without him... I think." Perhaps she just didn't know how. At any rate, the two took off with their bundle, lifting the random henchmen and Trebuchet into air with ease.
This left just Skywriter, who had either forgotten her mission or thought clearing the air with MachMan was more important. "Oh, and about what you said... I think that Roc, Pest, and I all owe the success on our missions to you, Aera, and Vector. It's no secret we all came in pretty ragtag... Roc not listening to orders, Pest being a little wimpy, and me being... well... really wimpy. In fact, I don't think I'd have a place at all in the Neo-Shogun Empire if it wasn't for you..." she spoke quietly, keeping a grateful smile. "So... thanks for that."
MachMan would probably have to leave if he wanted to get anything else accomplished, or perhaps recommend that Skywriter attend to finding Yasu... or possibly even go with her to find Yasu. Whatever the case, she clearly wasn't going to leave as long as MachMan was standing here and willing to shoot the breeze.
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"The fact that she can fly fast is well documented and we just learned her recovery abilities firsthand, true. You say she's good friends with Sylk and Escort, though? That sort of information could come in useful," the head-wrapped soldier responded, before receiving a piece of info that seemed far more important to him. "A dress? That's vital intel. And she still has it?! It's crucial that we see that dress, Vector." He approached Vector and placed a hand upon the robotic SP's shoulder, looking into his face seriously. "It's a considerably rare opportunity, highly sought after by any of us fan club members, to see our chosen girl in anything other than her uniform. We're all thankful for everything General Yasu does, of course, but... the uniforms are a curse. As a fellow Aera Fan Club member, you must understand our desire to see Aera wear all kinds of things."
"This is key, friend. This is a golden ticket! If you wanna make big time points, the kind that can get you treasures like limited edition, single print Aera wall-scrolls or one-of-a-kind statuettes, maybe even special commissions! This is the big time!" the pipe-smoking one murmured, having removed the implement from his mouth to speak more clearly. He sat forgotten in a clenched fist while he spoke. "Wait, we're missing the forest for the trees..."
"What? What are you talking about..?!" the head-wrapped one snapped.
"Think about it, man! If she held onto that dress, think about it... she must have other clothes too! Things like, who knows...!" the formerly pipe-smoking one surmised. The two had huddled close together, but both turned their heads now to look at Vector.
"Pajamas... no... beachwear...!" his ally gasped, his eyes flashing with excitement. "Vector, you're our key in all of this. If you're a true brother of our fanclub, we need to see those extra outfits! However you do it... preserving the sanctity of our Fan Club's clause, 'do-no-harm,' of course... you've got to get us a look at those clothes!" This was all a bit ironic consider Aera had almost been stripped naked moments ago, but no one was wise to that fact. "Heck, I'm not picky! Even winter clothes are good!"
"A white t-shirt and jean shorts?!" the pipe-smoker gasped, his eyes spinning. The other one slapped him back into his senses, then shook him by the shoulders. "You're right... I lost my head for a moment there! Got a little crazy! Forgive me, Vector, we'll take whatever you got!"
Going any further down that road was soon closed to her, however, as Roc returned. The bird lady looked much the same as she had before she left: still mildly miffed about some opportunity she'd lost or perhaps the task assigned, still bikini-clad. "I'm taking these prisoners. Doesn't look like anybody else is using them," she grunted to MachMan.
"Bzzz," Pest nodded, helping her with the other side of the roped group. "We'll have to get them to the warp-pad. It's near the front of the camp, bzz... Aren't you going to put some clothes on? Or maybe you ought to ask MachMan his opinion on your underwear before you do, bzzzz..."
Roc returned a cross-eyed glare that showed the joke was lost on her. "Rrrrgh... No thanks," she grumbled. "I'll refresh my armor later when I'm good and ready. My op doesn't know crap about crap and probably isn't paying any attention. I can't refresh it without him... I think." Perhaps she just didn't know how. At any rate, the two took off with their bundle, lifting the random henchmen and Trebuchet into air with ease.
This left just Skywriter, who had either forgotten her mission or thought clearing the air with MachMan was more important. "Oh, and about what you said... I think that Roc, Pest, and I all owe the success on our missions to you, Aera, and Vector. It's no secret we all came in pretty ragtag... Roc not listening to orders, Pest being a little wimpy, and me being... well... really wimpy. In fact, I don't think I'd have a place at all in the Neo-Shogun Empire if it wasn't for you..." she spoke quietly, keeping a grateful smile. "So... thanks for that."
MachMan would probably have to leave if he wanted to get anything else accomplished, or perhaps recommend that Skywriter attend to finding Yasu... or possibly even go with her to find Yasu. Whatever the case, she clearly wasn't going to leave as long as MachMan was standing here and willing to shoot the breeze.
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"The fact that she can fly fast is well documented and we just learned her recovery abilities firsthand, true. You say she's good friends with Sylk and Escort, though? That sort of information could come in useful," the head-wrapped soldier responded, before receiving a piece of info that seemed far more important to him. "A dress? That's vital intel. And she still has it?! It's crucial that we see that dress, Vector." He approached Vector and placed a hand upon the robotic SP's shoulder, looking into his face seriously. "It's a considerably rare opportunity, highly sought after by any of us fan club members, to see our chosen girl in anything other than her uniform. We're all thankful for everything General Yasu does, of course, but... the uniforms are a curse. As a fellow Aera Fan Club member, you must understand our desire to see Aera wear all kinds of things."
"This is key, friend. This is a golden ticket! If you wanna make big time points, the kind that can get you treasures like limited edition, single print Aera wall-scrolls or one-of-a-kind statuettes, maybe even special commissions! This is the big time!" the pipe-smoking one murmured, having removed the implement from his mouth to speak more clearly. He sat forgotten in a clenched fist while he spoke. "Wait, we're missing the forest for the trees..."
"What? What are you talking about..?!" the head-wrapped one snapped.
"Think about it, man! If she held onto that dress, think about it... she must have other clothes too! Things like, who knows...!" the formerly pipe-smoking one surmised. The two had huddled close together, but both turned their heads now to look at Vector.
"Pajamas... no... beachwear...!" his ally gasped, his eyes flashing with excitement. "Vector, you're our key in all of this. If you're a true brother of our fanclub, we need to see those extra outfits! However you do it... preserving the sanctity of our Fan Club's clause, 'do-no-harm,' of course... you've got to get us a look at those clothes!" This was all a bit ironic consider Aera had almost been stripped naked moments ago, but no one was wise to that fact. "Heck, I'm not picky! Even winter clothes are good!"
"A white t-shirt and jean shorts?!" the pipe-smoker gasped, his eyes spinning. The other one slapped him back into his senses, then shook him by the shoulders. "You're right... I lost my head for a moment there! Got a little crazy! Forgive me, Vector, we'll take whatever you got!"
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As Mach feared, Skywriter's comments and expression seemed to further hint she had her cross-hairs specifically on Mach himself. "Hm," he replied, his eyebrows raised as his gaze remained fixed on Skywriter. If he could safely assume she was after him specifically, that would bring up a dilemma: let her continue her "pursuit" under false pretenses, or shut her down then and there. She hadn't said it outright, Mach pondered, and so far his assumptions have a poor "batting average." "Well then, happy hunting," he said with a wink and a smile, before his expression became more stone-faced and he leaned in closer. "But I caution you, some of your targets might already be claimed..." he trailed off, matching Skywriter's vagueness with some of his own.
His focus shifted to Roc as she and Pest gathered up the prisoners before carting them off to the main camp. He chose to not add any comments regarding Roc's choice of outfit, but her comment did bring a bit of self-awareness to the situation; they, like him, are operated Navis. It seemed to add a whole other layer of weird when one considered the odd and compromising situations he'd seen: there was a human behind the scenes, whether they were aware of it or not. In fact, he hadn't heard a peep from Mazer in a while. A quick check from the PET's external camera showed his NetOp was still there, but ungracefully slumped back in his chair, with his head at an uncomfortable-looking angle over the back said chair, fast asleep. Probably for the best.
Whith Roc and Pest were gradually going out of sight, this left Mach and Skywriter alone in the meditation hall. "It's been my pleasure," Mach said with a grin before placing a hand gently on Skywriter's shoulder. "We've had our challenges, but y'all are a great crew, and look forward to the next adventure. Keep up the good work, I have high hopes for you." Mach concluded with a nod and a smirk, his eyes still locked with Skywriter's and his hand still on her shoulder.
A minute or two later, Aera finally made her way back into the meditation hall, looking much more composed than a few minutes prior. It was only then she realized Boss Oni had departed, and it was just Skywriter and Mach left in the meditation hall. "Sorry about that, had to tie up some loose ends," she commented. Mach turned back to Aera as she made her way to his side. "No worries, thanks for holding the fort while we were away. Learned some interesting things about the Blessers, I'll fill you in when we get some downtime," Mach exclaimed with a smile. Aera smiled in kind, appreciative of Mach's praise (as well as the apparent lack of suspicion of what she was doing). However, as Mach alluded to the absence of downtime, he turned back to Skywriter. "The Shogun requested you to report back to the main camp to restore comms with General Yasu, we can accompany you if you'd like."
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Vector had assumed the first few nuggets of information would be relatively well known, but he didn't expect the last detail to generate such a fervor from his two compatriots. He canted his head to the side as they mentioned terms like "golden ticket," "limited edition," and "special commissions," as these terms were entirely new to him. Regardless of the points gained, this was quite the enlightening experience for him. What he did understand; however, was their need to see the teal dress he previously described. While they continued to babble on about the other wardrobe possibilities, Vector dove into his visual memory files, and found one memorable one that he believed would be quite appropriate.
As he tried to format the visual data into a format capable of display, the two soldiers appeared to confide in him as their sole source of Aera's extra outfits. He didn't realize this until a few moments after he opened a small data file for the group to see. Said data file contained a still image of Aera first donning the cocktail dress.
His focus shifted to Roc as she and Pest gathered up the prisoners before carting them off to the main camp. He chose to not add any comments regarding Roc's choice of outfit, but her comment did bring a bit of self-awareness to the situation; they, like him, are operated Navis. It seemed to add a whole other layer of weird when one considered the odd and compromising situations he'd seen: there was a human behind the scenes, whether they were aware of it or not. In fact, he hadn't heard a peep from Mazer in a while. A quick check from the PET's external camera showed his NetOp was still there, but ungracefully slumped back in his chair, with his head at an uncomfortable-looking angle over the back said chair, fast asleep. Probably for the best.
Whith Roc and Pest were gradually going out of sight, this left Mach and Skywriter alone in the meditation hall. "It's been my pleasure," Mach said with a grin before placing a hand gently on Skywriter's shoulder. "We've had our challenges, but y'all are a great crew, and look forward to the next adventure. Keep up the good work, I have high hopes for you." Mach concluded with a nod and a smirk, his eyes still locked with Skywriter's and his hand still on her shoulder.
A minute or two later, Aera finally made her way back into the meditation hall, looking much more composed than a few minutes prior. It was only then she realized Boss Oni had departed, and it was just Skywriter and Mach left in the meditation hall. "Sorry about that, had to tie up some loose ends," she commented. Mach turned back to Aera as she made her way to his side. "No worries, thanks for holding the fort while we were away. Learned some interesting things about the Blessers, I'll fill you in when we get some downtime," Mach exclaimed with a smile. Aera smiled in kind, appreciative of Mach's praise (as well as the apparent lack of suspicion of what she was doing). However, as Mach alluded to the absence of downtime, he turned back to Skywriter. "The Shogun requested you to report back to the main camp to restore comms with General Yasu, we can accompany you if you'd like."
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Vector had assumed the first few nuggets of information would be relatively well known, but he didn't expect the last detail to generate such a fervor from his two compatriots. He canted his head to the side as they mentioned terms like "golden ticket," "limited edition," and "special commissions," as these terms were entirely new to him. Regardless of the points gained, this was quite the enlightening experience for him. What he did understand; however, was their need to see the teal dress he previously described. While they continued to babble on about the other wardrobe possibilities, Vector dove into his visual memory files, and found one memorable one that he believed would be quite appropriate.
As he tried to format the visual data into a format capable of display, the two soldiers appeared to confide in him as their sole source of Aera's extra outfits. He didn't realize this until a few moments after he opened a small data file for the group to see. Said data file contained a still image of Aera first donning the cocktail dress.
Quote (Image File)
She decided to lose the short ponytail and had somehow accessed and edited her appearance program; she had one large bang hang diagonally down the left side of her face, while the rest of her short hair hung just above her shoulders, and splayed slightly outwards. Her left eye was almost completely covered by her bangs, but her sapphire eyes still seemed to shine through. She had just a little hint of blue eye shadow, and a light application of crimson red lipstick. Her neck and shoulders were bare, the straps of her dress hung just below her shoulders, and crossed in front of her chest in a rather low cut, showing a modest, but eye-catching amount of cleavage.
The dress hugged Aera's smooth, toned abdomen, waist, and even down to the top of her thighs, showing some of the contours of her butt. The dress had a split running up the right side all the way up to her mid thigh, allowing excellent freedom of movement in her legs. She was wearing a pair of teal stiletto heels, with little gold straps which wrapped around her ankles and partially up her lower legs. She also wore a pair of very long teal silk gloves that stretched just a few inches below the straps of her dress. The gloves were altered slightly to allow the ruby crystals on the backs of her hands to be seen, and she had a thin gold bracelet around each of her wrists.
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Skywriter's eyes lit up at "happy hunting" then promptly faded at "already be claimed." If he was hoping that would cut her off cold turkey, however, he'd be disappointed... the fire seemed to come back into her eyes just as quick as it had died. "Maybe... maybe if they're already claimed... then I'll just have to win them over!" she resolved, smiling with affected confidence. It seemed that the hunt would continue.
Despite possible awkwardness from that, MachMan gave her some more encouragement; her skin was warm underneath his palm, probably her whole body was at this point. She kept a friendly smile on, though her eyes seemed to be regarding Aera in a peculiar way... she had a tendency to get a little skittish and not make a lot of eye contact, but she seemed determined to keep her eyes locked with her ally. The battle between the two of them fell to the wayside as MachMan proposed that he accompany her on the report. "Oh, um... yeah, you two can come along if you want. Hopefully Yasu's back at the main camp. If she's not, I'll ask Survey or someone where she is. I hope Yasu didn't run into those enemy combatants who were after her... assuming those ROT guys weren't just lying. We'll know soon enough, I figure. Yeah, let's go back to the main camp, if that's alright with you," she finished up.
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The guys were easily excited and gathered around to view Vector's data, which contained video evidence of Aera's sexy dress. The two gasped loudly and looked between one another; the pipe fell from one soldier's mouth, forgotten in the dirt. "This is good! It makes her look more mature, which I appreciate, bein' an old fart," the older man testified, nodding sagely.
The other one rubbed his chin thoughtfully, then shook his head. "It's good... 100 points by itself good. But it's not what quite what I had in mind. Vector, you're our only hope here. We have to see her actually wear the outfit, if she still has it available," he stressed.
The pipe-smoking one dusted off his pipe, sighed, then nodded agreement. "He's got a point, I think. I imagine this is a little how operators feel about their navis, not to put anybody in an existential crisis or anything. Kinda like... 'this is nice to look out, but damn, I wish it was right here next to me.' At least, I assume that's what most operators think about their navis, since so many navis are admirable ladies," he mused. "I guess what we're sayin' is, this is great, but it's no substitute for the real deal. Can you get Aera to show us some of her other costumes? Forget points, we soldiers would be in your debt for real!"
"I'd let you use me as a footstool like the original soldiers were used back when Dee toyed around with them all the time," the head-wrapped one added in deadpan more monotone than seemed possible for such a statement.
"I'd give up smokin'!" the other added, which seemed as though it could be a positive outcome.
((Topic opening soon in Neo-Shogun Headquarters))
Despite possible awkwardness from that, MachMan gave her some more encouragement; her skin was warm underneath his palm, probably her whole body was at this point. She kept a friendly smile on, though her eyes seemed to be regarding Aera in a peculiar way... she had a tendency to get a little skittish and not make a lot of eye contact, but she seemed determined to keep her eyes locked with her ally. The battle between the two of them fell to the wayside as MachMan proposed that he accompany her on the report. "Oh, um... yeah, you two can come along if you want. Hopefully Yasu's back at the main camp. If she's not, I'll ask Survey or someone where she is. I hope Yasu didn't run into those enemy combatants who were after her... assuming those ROT guys weren't just lying. We'll know soon enough, I figure. Yeah, let's go back to the main camp, if that's alright with you," she finished up.
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The guys were easily excited and gathered around to view Vector's data, which contained video evidence of Aera's sexy dress. The two gasped loudly and looked between one another; the pipe fell from one soldier's mouth, forgotten in the dirt. "This is good! It makes her look more mature, which I appreciate, bein' an old fart," the older man testified, nodding sagely.
The other one rubbed his chin thoughtfully, then shook his head. "It's good... 100 points by itself good. But it's not what quite what I had in mind. Vector, you're our only hope here. We have to see her actually wear the outfit, if she still has it available," he stressed.
The pipe-smoking one dusted off his pipe, sighed, then nodded agreement. "He's got a point, I think. I imagine this is a little how operators feel about their navis, not to put anybody in an existential crisis or anything. Kinda like... 'this is nice to look out, but damn, I wish it was right here next to me.' At least, I assume that's what most operators think about their navis, since so many navis are admirable ladies," he mused. "I guess what we're sayin' is, this is great, but it's no substitute for the real deal. Can you get Aera to show us some of her other costumes? Forget points, we soldiers would be in your debt for real!"
"I'd let you use me as a footstool like the original soldiers were used back when Dee toyed around with them all the time," the head-wrapped one added in deadpan more monotone than seemed possible for such a statement.
"I'd give up smokin'!" the other added, which seemed as though it could be a positive outcome.
((Topic opening soon in Neo-Shogun Headquarters))
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Though Skywriter didn't seem deterred by the vague warning, at least in the future she couldn't say he didn't warn her. That would have to be addressed later, as she accepted their offer to accompany her in locating Yasu back at the main camp. "Alright then, we'll fill Vector in and head over. Keep your eyes peeled, in case the encampment is under ROT attack," Mach replied with a nod. Aera watched Mach and appeared ready as well, the only one left to address was Vector.
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Vector's posture stiffened in attention after receiving notification from Mach, then immediately shot a reply back.
"Though Lady Aera has shown a liking for this dress, she dresses for the mission. She may be willing to exhibit her assorted outfits on request, but a better chance to see them would be to accompany her on missions, as I do," Vector honestly explained; if Aera would show off to anyone, it would be to Mach and to him alone, unless it was required for a mission. He closed the image file, causing it to flicker and retreat into his hand. He expected an unfavorable reaction from the soldiers, but he had higher priorities.
"Speaking of which, I must depart; Sir MachMan has another mission for us. I appreciate the conversation and the inclusion to the "Aera Fan Club," which I will keep secret as agreed. On that subject, unless I've assumed incorrectly, I now stand with 140 points. Best of luck to you all, I look forward to our next meeting," Vector concluded and punctuated with a polite bow before his eerily quiet propulsion systems made him rise in the air. He turned away and accelerated as he vectored towards the meditation hall.
Upon meeting up with the rest of his group, the trio would then transfer to the main encampment, with their goal to locate General Yasu and figure out why she's been out of contact.
((To NS Main Camp))
Quote (MachMan)
Vector, we're heading to the main camp to assist Skywriter in locating General Yasu. Wrap things up out there and meet in the meditation hall when ready.
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Vector's posture stiffened in attention after receiving notification from Mach, then immediately shot a reply back.
Quote (Vector)
Of course, sir. I'm on my way.His image file unsurprisingly prompted a significant reaction from the pair of soldiers, but it seemed the real prize was to see Aera and her outfits "in the flesh," as it were. Said prize appeared so highly treasured, the soldiers would be severely indebted to him. The description of Dee's treatment of the soldiers didn't sit well with him, it seemed inappropriately pompous and manipulative. He'd rather have a cadre of loyal soldiers to lead into battle, to further aid Mach's duty to the shogunate.
"Though Lady Aera has shown a liking for this dress, she dresses for the mission. She may be willing to exhibit her assorted outfits on request, but a better chance to see them would be to accompany her on missions, as I do," Vector honestly explained; if Aera would show off to anyone, it would be to Mach and to him alone, unless it was required for a mission. He closed the image file, causing it to flicker and retreat into his hand. He expected an unfavorable reaction from the soldiers, but he had higher priorities.
"Speaking of which, I must depart; Sir MachMan has another mission for us. I appreciate the conversation and the inclusion to the "Aera Fan Club," which I will keep secret as agreed. On that subject, unless I've assumed incorrectly, I now stand with 140 points. Best of luck to you all, I look forward to our next meeting," Vector concluded and punctuated with a polite bow before his eerily quiet propulsion systems made him rise in the air. He turned away and accelerated as he vectored towards the meditation hall.
Upon meeting up with the rest of his group, the trio would then transfer to the main encampment, with their goal to locate General Yasu and figure out why she's been out of contact.
((To NS Main Camp))