Public Neo-Shogun Camp.

"Compared to the management of other factions, my empire maintains a high degree of transparency. That said, all effective leaders must keep certain secrets. Only one with absolute, undeniable power could afford to keep everything in the open,"[font=eras demi itc][/font] Neo-ShogunMan explained in his booming yet oddly directionless voice. "There are certain secrets that I cannot elaborate upon because of consequences they'd pose towards morale or security."[font=eras demi itc][/font]

"As for Hime, she's a patron of our organization, one of the integral benefactors that allows us to operate. I don't know how you met her, but I again stress the importance of certain secrets. You must not make her presence known to the majority of our soldiers,"[font=eras demi itc][/font] he further explained, still not turning his head to look at DragonierMan.
"As you command, My Lord." DragonierMan ended just before the sliding-door swept close behind the Shogun, leaving him alone to meditate. DragonierMan went back through the tunnel, hoping that he could get through the bath house without being noticed. If he managed to get outside undetected, he would head directly back to the tent he left Dee.
"Be well,"[font=eras demi itc][/font] the Shogun spoke as DragonierMan left, keeping his same sitting position as the door shut behind him. DragonierMan managed a clear walk back to the mouth of the tunnel. As he re-entered the bathhouse, however, he noticed his invisibility begin to fade. Thankfully, he managed to get back out without either girl intercepting him. Both were still speaking seriously, huddled at one side of the bath. Hime seemed to be looking in his direction, but even if she saw him, she made no reaction.

------

A soldier gave DragonierMan the stink-eye as the navi slowly reemerged into view. His body was fully visible by the time he was headed into the gate, so the soldier was probably justified in giving a scornful look towards DragonierMan, who did not seem at all well liked by the men in the first place and was now creeping around the camp mostly naked.

Dee was sitting down on a pile of folded yellow sitting clothes, leaning her head back against some large, wooden barricade they kept stored. She almost looked asleep, but she groggily turned her head and observed him enter. "Oh, you're back. What did you find? Did you see the Shogun?" she asked, trying to reclaim her former enthusiasm.
DragonierMan removed the glasses and looked at Dee, his eyes gray again, the haunting light was gone. "I have, and he told me to keep the white-patron a secret." He walked over to his equipment and began dressing again. "The tunnel was dark and narrow, these came in handy," he said as he tossed the glasses to Dee. "But it does connect the bath house to the Shogun's residence. So it would be easy enough to move between them undetected."

DragonierMan slung the straps around his shoulders and began buckling them. "I believe our mission was a success." Then something struck him as funny and he had to stop a moment to chuckle, before buckling a strap to his hip. He turned to Dee as he slid a third strap into place and buckled it, "Did I earn my reward?" he asked with a grin. There was a twinkling in his eye that suggested that he meant something other than the one promised in the BBS.
"Huh... So direct! What could the Shogun be thinking, having such a tunnel constructed? We learned a lot, but in the end, it just feels like there's new mysteries that are yet unsolved. I really want to know more about that oh-so-mysterious patron and why the Shogun's so dead set on his meditation," Dee huffed, crossing her arms across her breasts. She looked up again as DragonierMan mentioned his reward, then unfolded her fan, hiding the smile that curved along her lips. "Speaking of 'so direct,' you must still think you're entitled to a lot from your generals...?"

Moving through the darkness of the hut, the blue-clad general kept her fan held, hiding everything below the bridge of her nose to her chin. "I wonder what it is you're talking about? We agreed upon an SP base as your payment, didn't we?" she joked, moving closer to DragonierMan's body. Executing a small twirl, she allowed her backside to press against her subordinate's front while grasping one hand at his shoulder and hiding her smile with the other, which still held her fan. She turned her head back to glance playfully into his eyes. "What else can I possibly provide you with, considering my meager soldier's salary?"

The dark of the room made for a very cozy and intimate spot, although the dust was a little off-putting. All of that aside, it sounded like she intended to give him the base, but she might be willing to let him squeeze a little extra out of her.
DragonierMan felt the embers of passion beginning to ignite, slowly building into a blazing inferno inside the dragon's core. His arms reached around Dee to wrap her in his warm embrace. One hand moved to across her hip, the other to her neck. His smile narrowed into a smirk. "I can think of a few things," he said as he brought his face closer to hers. "But right now, your humble servant just asks for a lady's kiss. A memory to keep me warm," his breath tickled her nose as his lips came closer to hers, "On those cold... dark... nights."
Dee's breaths quickened as DragonierMan accepted her advance. Messily dropping her fan, she moved her other arm around his neck, drawing the two of them into a kiss. The embrace continued in silence for a while; DragonierMan found her much more responsive and intimate than when they'd locked lips during the armor tests. Finally drawing back, she turned in his arms to face him. "Well, let's hope that will hold you until our next encounter," she sighed, smiling lustily.

Suddenly, she grasped her chest; her face showed no pain, but did display alarm. Backing away from him, she tried to make sense of what was happening. "Something's happening! I can't explain what it is, but I feel a change in my navi core..." Pausing, she gulped. "DragonierMan, there's one other thing I'll give you for helping me out here..."

Slowly, a light mist enveloped Dee's body. As it cleared, a new figure emerged. The new woman had Dee's face, but without the sultry makeup she usually wore. Her hair was much shorter and pure black, framing her head in a small bob. Her dress was swapped out for a blue, hooded robe, although the hood was currently down. The most noticeable difference, perhaps, was that her formerly plump bosom had vanished, leaving her with only average proportions. Leaning on a newly appeared magician's rod, the figure standing there barely resembled Dee at all.

"Let me explain... My real name is Myst. 'Dee' is just the persona I take on when I perform my duties for the NeoShogun. I haven't been Myst for many years now," she elaborated, watching him sheepishly with her familiar brown eyes. "I changed my identity for an important cause... Only my closest friends know about the real me."

Sighing, she took her earlier seat back on the pile of towels, seeming discouraged. "I figured I ought to tell you, because you might find it out sooner or later. I hope it doesn't feel like I've been betraying your trust or anything. In the end, I, just like the Shogun, have some secrets to hide," Myst apologized. "Anyways, thanks for helping me sate my curiosity. You can feel free to go collect your reward now, if you like."
DragonierMan swept forward as De-Myst finished and knelt beside her, taking her hand. "I have already collected my true reward," he stated before kissing the top of her hand. His eyes showed his chivalrous side for a moment, full of affection. Then without further words he was gone, sweeping away the tent flap and disappearing into the sunlight.

[DRAGONIERMAN LOGGED-OUT]
((DragonierMan gets +16 Dee (Myst) FXP, -6 Yasu FXP))
DragonierMan materialized at the outskirts of the public camp in a flash of light. His armor had been repaired and his wounds healed from his recent battle. He stretched for a few minutes, getting the kinks out of his back, before his cloak parted down the middle and mutated into two large, leathery wings. He flapped them a few times and lifted off the ground a foot, before moving towards the camp's main gate. The dust scattered around his hovering feet as he glided down the dirt road.

He gave a salute to the guards as he passed between through the gate and into the camp. Apparently there was a ton of hustle and bustle and talks of shoring up defenses do to a recent aerial attack. Drago cursed inwardly that he missed the action. Regardless he was here mainly to catch up and to tell one of the generals about the abandoned factory that he found in Hades NET. He stopped by a group of the soldiers, putting his feet on the ground and standing upright. "Greetings. Has anyone seen General Dee lately? If so, where can I find her?"
DragonierMan would find that the arrangement of soldiers inside the camp was quite different from its usual spread. Ordinarily, soldiers would be seen in large gatherings around each tent, busily talking to one another while preparing various things, exercising, sleeping, or just plain slacking off. Today, the front area of the camp was mostly barren of Neo-Shogun Empire's soldiers, with all of them being instead clumped towards the damaged area, busily undergoing repairs, or otherwise being hidden back in the general's area, where they had been invited earlier that day for safety reasons but were normally rarely allowed access (not that there was much to see, unless one of the generals had randomly decided to make use of the bath). Of the two options, the ones doing repairs were by far the closest, so DragonierMan would address them in order to get Dee's location from them.

One of the soldiers, an over-sized fellow wearing shades, in addition to the ordinary tunic, turned to DragonierMan with a frown (the way a lot of the soldiers were eyeing him, especially once he mentioned looking for Dee). "She was at the meeting earlier in the hall of our lord, Neo-ShogunMan. I think she left the meeting as soon as she got a chance, once most of the generals dispersed. From what I know, she's exhausted from projecting her magic all across the camp earlier, when we were repelling that bomber attack," the surprisingly well-informed soldier droned. "If you really have to speak to her, try checking around the supply sheds. She hangs out around there a lot." Once he was done speaking, rather than entertain any other questions, he turned his back to DragonierMan in a moody, dismissive way and got back to hoisting upright one of the logs being used to rebuild the fence.

The soldier's hunch would prove to be accurate. DragonierMan might initially be taken aback to see one of the sheds riddled with bullet-holes and full of torn tunics, busted spears, and ashes, but it didn't look like the damage was especially recent, seeing as much of the debris had been pushed away towards the walls to create a walk-way through the room. No soldiers were around there, so he could only assume they were going to work on fixing that part later. If he continued to the smaller, darker storage shed where he'd met Dee once before, he'd find her there again, doing what the soldier had implied she would be: resting. An empty sake bowl sat upon one of the boxes in the small, dark room, while she sat against a pile of boxes, gasping lightly in her sleep, or, to put it less politely, snoring. One leg lay out forward from her body, while the other was splayed lazily slightly to one side, bent a little so that the hem of her long skirt was pushed aside, showing her plump, pale thigh, down to her bare foot. DragonierMan might theorize she'd retired to this place rather than her own designated tent so that she could stay hidden from Yasu, if the First General came looking for her to assign her new work. She did look thoroughly zonked out, probably from the combination of weariness and drunkenness. He'd have to shake her awake or something if he wanted to talk.
No. DragonierMan understood the effects of fatigue on the body and mind of a person. He would let her sleep. In fact, he found himself with the perfect opportunity to get some rest as well. He slipped into the shed and closed the door, then propped himself against another wall. He also took off his helmet and placed it to his side. Then closed his own eyes for twenty winks.
Judging that Dee deserved her sleep and that he wouldn't mind having some himself, DragonierMan took the opposite wall and sat down to catch some Zs himself. Hopefully, this time around, he could dream his own dreams without worrying about fiddling with anybody else's. Presumably, once Dee woke back up, she'd see him there and wake him up, then they could ask any questions that he happened to have on his mind...

------------

Over in the general's encampment, the final arrangements for a rescue mission had just concluded, unbeknownst to DragonierMan. Yasu emerged from the heavy gates to find MachMan and his company still outside, conversing with other soldiers while they awaited their new orders. This pleased her, for indeed, she had those new orders they'd been waiting for. "Very good... Follow me," she requested, motioning over her shoulder with one gauntlet. "Before we continue any further, there's another subordinate we must fetch. He's been spotted somewhere in the camp, but I don't know where... Fortunately, I have a good idea where to find him. That contemptible wench, Dee, is missing as well, and she does have a way of leading him astray despite my best efforts to keep him in line. Where she is, so too shall he be," she remarked. Although she was smirking, something looked remarkably stormy about her expression... It was safe to say that she did not plan to greet the two fondly, if she did indeed find them together. "The rest of your squadron will join us in the air later. Vee has gone on ahead, with the purpose of scouting out the enemy's location. I'll tell you more once we collect the aforementioned subordinate," Yasu finished, moving so quickly now that the group would probably need to fly alongside her to keep up.

Finding Dee turned out to be no easy task; after all, Dee had picked the storage cabinet after a lot of thinking, because she knew that Yasu wouldn't think to look for her there regularly. The only thing that finally gave her and DragonierMan's location away was the sake she'd been drinking earlier. The smell was strong enough to seep through the shack's walls and drift a short distance away, down towards the ruined supply room. "I think I've found her... Either that, or I've found where Subordinate Sake has chosen to take her nap this afternoon," Yasu murmured, approaching the tiny building slowly but with great malice and opening the door silently.

------------


... When DragonierMan woke up about an hour and a half later, he would discover that the situation had changed while he was sleeping. At some point, Dee had deactivated her .GMO and moved over to join him, looking remarkably cute as she nestled rosy cheek and black hair against his arm; while they weren't that different looking in age ordinarily, removing her GMO made her at least a few inches shorter and remarkably less busty. She still seemed to be sleeping soundly, but something like a sixth sense had awoken him regardless... the feeling of being watched by a familiar, sinister glare. Someone had opened the door and was currently casting a long shadow across the boarded floor of the shack. One look at the relative shape of the thighs and musculature on that shadow would reveal that it must be Yasu, if he wasn't already looking at the devil herself, clad in her familiar green uniform.

MachMan was now treated to the sight of the First General angrier than he'd seen her up to this point, even when Escort had dropped debilitating bombs on all of the Neo-Shogun's raiding party, the effects of which had been long lasting but had finally begun to ease off of the navis affected. Her fists shook with anger and a red glow began to sneak across her face, likely out of the embarrassment of seeing the subordinate she'd led MachMan to meet currently tangled up with another girl. "DragonierMan... I will not question your judgment in taking the time during base repairs to sneak away from the impact zone and reconstruction efforts, only to nap here in the shade with some unknown woman, amidst the crucial supplies that we intend to divvy upon all of our soldiers on a regular basis. But did it ever cross your mind that you ought to come report to me first, upon re-entering our damaged encampment?!" she growled, lunging forward to grab him off of the floor and causing Myst's head to shift onto the wall behind him, sliding slowly down until she lay horizontally. "Who is this woman, even?! Is she one of our ranks? Another of Sake's recruits, perhaps?"

The sorceress had slowly begun to wake and now stared at Yasu with one open eye, ironically mimicking Yasu's own expression. She gave a cocky smirk that seemed totally out of place on her cute, timid features. "Is that Yasu? If I'm only just hearing her, she must be hoarse from barking orders today! Losing your voice, dear?" she chuckled, leaning one elbow on the floor.

Yasu glowered back down with an utterly contemptuous frown, as if she was contemplating wiping out the stranger. "Who are you, that you would dare speak my name in such a tone?" she inquired, releasing DragonierMan now to crack her knuckles. "Distracting our subordinates from their duties is a serious offense against the Neo-Shogun Empire, in my estimation. Perhaps you'd like to become acquainted with my power?"

"I think we all become well acquainted with your power whenever your sweaty musk begins to fill a room," Myst laughed again, although she'd sat up now. She looked this way and that, then suddenly seemed to realize that she was not currently identifiable as Dee. "Uh... Um... Forget I said all that," she giggled, nervously shrinking back into herself.

Narrowing her one good eye, Yasu made a sweeping motion with one hand, now dismissing her from the room. She now seemed convinced that Myst was simply a floozy that DragonierMan had brought along, which brought her no joy, but was a sufficient answer to the question of why she was here with him. Myst took the time to escape the room, having no part or interest in the mission at hand. Clearing her throat, Yasu crossed her arms and stepped aside so that DragonierMan could lay eyes on MachMan and his group behind her. "DragonierMan, I would like you to meet MachMan, our new aerial specialist. If you're here looking for work, I have a mission that could use your support, as another flight-capable Neo-Shogun subordinate. Should you choose to accept, you'll be working with MachMan, his SPs, and the forces in his squadron, as well as Vee, who has already begun reconnaissance. I won't be participating in this mission actively myself," she finished, with a note almost like regret. "I have duties here at the base."

She gave the two men time to introduce themselves, as well as Aera and Vector, before continuing. "We have pledged to help Roc, one of our newest subordinates, locate her sister. Our efforts begin with the investigation of our bird-in-the-hand: using a Mafia defector who has agreed to ally with us against the Mafia's Head family. Once we've pushed down hard enough on them, we hope to pump them for any information on the whereabouts of the sister, Scavenger, a former mafioso herself. The defector, named Piper, claims that we will find an assembly of high-class Mafia airships, none designed for combat but all holding mafioso, stationed above NetVegas... It's a 'party in the skies,' as I understand it," Yasu continued, shivering slightly; she still didn't seem to have gotten over her air-sickness, or otherwise, her distaste for parties. "Vee is scouting now, but from what we understand, there are three ships. One of them should hold Kismet, a high-ranking member of the NetMafia's Head Family. She's the one we want to pump for information. The goal of this mission will be to isolate her ship and either take it over or otherwise infiltrate it, before making your way to where Kismet is and surrounding her. Piper says that she can ensure Kismet won't run, using technology she stole from Techari and the Bloodhounds. It sounds promising, but I don't exactly understand the whole nature of it," Yasu shrugged. "Vee should know more when you meet her. She'll be on the ship closest to the back of the group."

"That's a lot of players for this mission, as you can tell; still, I'd recommend that you attempt to stick together, if possible. Whether Piper's incapacitation method works or not, remember, you're dealing with high ranking Mafioso here, more than I imagine Vee will be able to count. It is going to be a very dangerous situation. The Mafia are in possession of jackout barrier technology, and if they perceive a threat, they may attempt to establish a parameter. Again, I cannot stress enough: avoid combat at all costs, for your own safety as well as the good of the mission. The chaos Piper creates will only last so long; if you don't act quickly enough, Kismet will withdraw and we'll lose knowledge of her location, along with our opportunity." She closed her eye for a moment, looking thoughtful, then continued. "Piper can be considered expendable in this as well, although I understand she must be fully conscious for her technology to work... Either that, or it's a safeguarding mechanism she built in. However, if things go south, don't hesitate to offer Piper to the Head Family as tribute for your clean escape. She's still a criminal with no intention of allying with us any further than in this case for vengeance, as far as we can tell, and we owe her nothing. Surrendering her will offer you the best means of repairing any damage should the mission fail. You may also consider offering her to Kismet once you find her, in exchange for information. I'll leave that call to you."

Having finally finished her briefing, Yasu opened her eye again and looked between MachMan's group and DragonierMan himself. "Vee has gone ahead, as I mentioned, and the squadron is going up next. You all will be the last to arrive. So far Vee has been radio silent, which I assume means she's wrapping up her investigations now and preparing to report. No sound of distress so far. Once you meet her, she'll let you know more about Piper and Kismet, both who are important names to know for this mission. If you have any questions now, I'll do my best to answer them," she concluded.
DragonierMan probably had a smile on his face when the warmth of Dee/Myst pressed up against his arm. Dreaming of past experiences with the Blue General. Although the whole thing quickly vanished after a ping of consciousness woke him from his slumber. He glanced about him and shifted his body as he came to. A few moments of blinking clarity told him a lot. First, Yasu was there in the doorway. The light from outside glared behind her, casting a long shadow that fell over Myst and himself. Drago had to squint due to the illumination framing the head general. She did not seem happy. And made herself known to be such when she seized him by the collar of his armor and pulled him to his feet.

Second, apparently Dee had reverted to her original self. Myst had slid off him, and ended up leaning against the wall as he was picked up. She slowly woke to the new development as well. Myst was a persona she hadn't revealed to many others, especially the lead general, Yasu. So the result was awkward when Myst tried to act like Dee. Although she quickly figured out that she was not currently in Dee's body, so she quickly excused herself. Thus leaving Drago to take all Yasu's verbal abuse. Which was given to him in spades.

Third, there were a few other individuals right outside the shack. Yasu moved aside so he could see them better. Drago patted himself down and straightened himself up. He combed his short, somewhat shaggy, gray hair with one hand and wiped some sweat from his brow. It got hot in the shack, especially with another warm body pressed against him. It also didn't help that he was wearing a full suit of plate armor, sans dragon-head helmet, which sat in the corner of the shed. His gray eyes slowly came out of the haze of sleep to stare blinkedly at, what he heard as, new recruits.

Yasu explained who they were and what mission was in store for Drago. Apparently he was being recruited into some sort of aerial stealth rescue mission. Drago frowned, he was hoping he would have been done with these sissy, non-combat missions by now. What he really wanted to do was a full-scale, bone-crunching, fire-breathing, explosion-having, slaughterfest. He looked down as he flexed his sharp taloned hands, concealed by steel taloned gauntlets. What he would have given, at that moment, to see them drenched in the data-blood of his enemies.

However, he still understood that he was uniquely suited for this mission. So he would swallow his wants for the greater good of his current employers. It was still necessary to stay on their good side after all, in order for his Operator to fulfill his wish. Besides, there would be more intense fighting in the future. Right now, he should focus on honing his hunting skills. For it would take a great hunter to infiltrate a bunch of airships belonging to the head family of the NET Mafia and take prey from their predatory claws.

Drago remained silent during the whole of Yasu's speeches until she was done explaining everything and stopped talking. Drago then marched right past Yasu, giving her a quick nod, and continued until he stopped as close as he could to MachMan. His eyes were now bright and awake, and as sharp as his claws. He got uncomfortably close and stared deep into Mach's own eyes. Drago's eyes felt like a hawk looking into the face of a small bird, sizing him up. Drago apparently saw something he liked because he cracked a fanged smile and chuckled, giving the whole of Mach's body a once over as he stepped back a few paces. He then broke into a deep laugh.

"Hahaha! You may be new around here. Hehe! And a little skinny... But you sure don't look weak." He stood up a little taller and flexed his chest, causing his broad shoulders to puff out a little. His two large, leathery wings unfurled from behind his back and extended outward to their full length to either side. Basically, he was trying to make himself look bigger and more intimidating, or so he hoped. He then attempted to slap Mach on the back of his shoulder in a good-natured, postulating way. "Good to meet you. My name is DragonierMan."

He folded his wings back down and turned a little to his right, extending his right arm in a sweeping arc towards an empty space besides him. "And these are my gir-," he stopped mid-sentence, noticing that there was no one there. "Errr... Suzume! Aya! Front and center," he growled. The shadow that had been cast behind him by the light suddenly split into three. The left and right shadow rose upward like someone rising from the mud, taking on the forms of two shorter figures in similar full plate armor. Curvier figures.

The two mud bubbles burst in clouds of dark smoke, which quickly cleared to show two female figures with golden hair and gray eyes. They seemed identical if not for the designs of their armor and the fact that one had much longer hair than the other, spooling out of her helmet in two long braids. She brought out a small white fan and unfurled it, showing a stylized gray dragon emblazoned on it, and began to fan herself. The other, wearing dark armor while her identical sister wore light, was immediately sizing up the situation like Drago was with Mach. However, her view was focused entirely on Aera and Vector.

She sprang forward like a serpent, almost jumping on the two. But before she got within their arms' length, she skid and slipped to her left. Her feet never once touched the ground. She glided on an invisible cushion of air that made her extremely mobile, even though she should be weighted down by her heavy armor. She began to circle them. After one full pass, she switched directions. Then, half way through the second pass, she switched back. As she changed directions every few moments that passed, her eyes were glued to theirs. It soon became clear that she was testing their reaction speed.

Meanwhile, Drago was introducing the twins. Seemingly ignoring the quicker twin's antics. "This is Suzume," he said to Mach as he motioned towards the one who had the fan. Suzume walked forward and extended her non-occupied hand to Mach, closing her fan with a snap with the other. "Charmed."

"The other one is Aya," he said as the dark armored twin finished rounding about for the eighth time and came to a sudden stop behind Mach. She waited for Mach to turn around before offering a nod. "Your friends have some quick eyes. That bodes well for our mission." She turned towards Aera with a somewhat contemptuous look. "I was half expecting to lose her," she ended with curt nod of respect to Aera.

"And who are your friends?" Suzume asked as she walked past Mach and moved to Vector. "How... interesting," she said with a hint of wonderment as she moved around Vector. If Vector allowed it, he would find Suzume's hands all over him. Feeling his plates and attempting to find out which parts articulated, and whether they articulated like arms would. "Are these connected by some sort of magnetic field, or by some sort of magic?" she asked as she waved her hand between two floating plates.

Meanwhile, Aya had moved back to Aera, giving her a once-over with her eyes as well. Although her eyes were empty. Passive. As if looking at a piece of machinery and trying to glean how all the parts fitted together. Suddenly, a small dagger appeared in Aya's hand from her sleeve, pointing at Aera's eyes. Then vanished down Aya's sleeve again. She seemed to still be testing Aera's reactions. seeing if she would flinch. "How many times have you come under fire?" she asked. Her eyes were searching for something in Aera's eyes. Perhaps she was testing Aera's truthfulness now. The eyes were considered the windows into one's soul after all.
"Yes, General." Mach quickly responded upon hearing Yasu's summons. Before turning back to follow her, he looked back to one of the NS soldiers with whom he was originally conversing and gave a polite nod. "Duty calls, carry on." He was on the cusp of convincing the soldier it wasn't a punishable offense to have programs of superior rank helping out in duties normally delegated to the rank and file grunts, but Yasu's appearance likely meant a mission was at hand. He turned back to the general, and made a slight, lofty skip to catch up to his SPs, who had already begun to follow Yasu.

Mach touched down about a half pace behind Yasu and to her left, with Aera and Vector flanking him to his left and right, respectively. He got in step with the general as he listened to her explain the pre-mission task of locating an ally, a fellow subordinate at that. As she continued, it became apparent another familiar name, Dee, had a significant sway over the unknown subordinate, which caused visible frustration for the general. [[i]Well the NS seems to be in no short supply of 'interesting' characters, so not quite surprising...[/i]] Mach thought as he raised an eyebrow, indicating his interest and attention. As she mentioned the rest of the squadron and the reconnaissance-inclined Vee, her pace ramped up significantly. While the trio could've gone into a dead sprint to keep pace, it was much easier to simply glide; Mach rose mere inches above the ground mid-stride as his wings unfurled slightly, transitioning from a brisk walk to a calm glide in a very fluid, seemingly effortless motion. "Understood, General." Aera and Vector's transitions from ground to air locomotion were more noticeable, not surprising for programs who had only recently obtained flight upgrades. Both took a slight hop and 'bounced' upwards before their respective propulsion systems had them level off just above the dusty floor.

The group slowed to a stop in ahead of a building... well, more like a shack. All three noticed the familiar scent of sake wafting from the miniscule shack. Yasu mentioned it may have been Sake's nap spot, but that meant Pest somehow lost the aerial melee and was disrobed by the inebriated NS General, a mental picture that provided no lack of awkward comedy fuel in Mach's mind. Just after Yasu slowly opened the door, (was she actually being cautious??), the group's gaze fell upon the two sleeping Navis. Yasu quickly became furious to the point of trembling, then grabbed him while she gave him a veritable tongue-lashing. The trio simply watched, not entirely sure how to feel about the entire situation. Thanks to previous experiences with the NS, these kinds of inappropriate behavior weren't very surprising. Mach would've judged the slumbering navi purely for his apparent womanizing nature, but he'd met another womanizer in his induction mission who easily had the power to wipe out every Navi in the room. Some quote about covers and books went through his mind briefly. Vector's eyes followed the dark-haired female Navi as she slinked out of the room, a wise decision considering Yasu's fiery mood.

She addressed the Navi, known as DragonierMan, and elaborated the need for he and the group to work together for this upcoming mission. While Yasu wasn't going to participate due to other duties, she explained the details of the mission to both parties; the NM head family was reportedly situated in several airships above NetVegas in a 'party in the sky,' information provided by a defector in their ranks by the name of Piper. Her info and status as defector were apparently equally useful to obtain information of Scavenger's whereabouts. "Multiple unarmed airships carrying plenty of hostiles? Sounds like my kind of party." Mach commented as Yasu shivered, seems her previous 'incentive ride' still had her fairly shaken up. She soldiered on and continued, providing a plethora of critical details of the mission, which Mach mentally logged for later reference.

The overall situation appeared to be Mach and his crew along with DragonierMan would be the last to arrive in an attempt to infiltrate the NM airship fleet and secure Kismet and squeeze her for info with the assistance of Piper's jackout barriers; a tech previously mentioned in the events leading to Scavenger's disappearance. Piper immediately became suspicious in Mach's mind. For someone that well-informed and well-equipped, she had to have at least some knowledge of an event that led to a mafia member's arrest and two others going MIA and completely off the grid. Mach planned to keep this narc at arm's length at best.

DragonierMan took the verbal beating in stride, then approached Mach as he sized him up while standing mere inches away. Though the Navi was significantly taller, Mach stood his ground and returned DragonierMan's gray-eyed stare with his own. Mach's calm expression didn't change much as his orange-trimmed sapphire eyes flashed back at his presumed ally. Aera and Vector looked upon the silent exchange with some degree of apprehension. They knew their Navi and leader wasn't in distress, but he was nearly enveloped by the other Navi's presence... Mach saw an unsurprising intenseness in DragonierMan's eyes; his appearance and demeanor painted a clear picture of a hot-blooded brawler, not unlike Roc, come to think of it.

The Navi's evaluation presumably proved favorable, since his sour expression changed to that of amusement. Mach grinned under his mask as DragonierMan commented on his stature, but wisely deduced Mach wasn't some pushover. After slightly unfurling his own wings, DragonierMan slapped Mach on the back of the shoulder in a machismo-inspired greeting. To Mach's own surprise, he barely felt the impact, in fact his body didn't even flinch from good-natured, gauntlet-covered smack. The SuperArmor trait of the newly installed BodyPack seemed to work perfectly, even out of direct combat. "Same to you, I'm MachMan."

Before he had the chance to introduce his SPs, DragonierMan introduced some of his own. After a quick, smoke-lined summon, two similarly armored female figures appeared. One stood in place and fanned herself, while her 'sister' inspected the group in earnest, literally flying circles around them. She kept her distance, so Mach didn't focus much on her after the first two passes, but Vector and Aera continued to track her with their eyes as she skated around them just above the ground. DragonierMan introduced the fan-wielding Suzume, who extended her free hand in greeting. Mach grasped her hand gently, and nodded in acknowledgement and greeting. Her sister had stopped somewhere behind him, prompting him to look over his shoulder. He returned the nod as she made her underhanded complement, focusing on Aera in particular.

Aera raised an eyebrow as she put her left hand on her hip. Though there seemed to already be tension between the two SPs, Aera returned the courtesy to Aya with a slow nod, but quipped "Glad to exceed your expectations, Aya." While Aera continued to stare at the flighty SP, Suzume inquired about Mach's SPs as she moved to inspect Vector. His eyes followed her as she passed, then snapped back to DragonierMan before he responded. "My partners, Aera, and Vector." he said while tilting his head in the direction respective to the SP he introduced. The glow behind the two eye holes in Vector's humanoid mask burned brightly as Suzume approached. He placed his right arm horizontally across his chestplate in a salute-like gesture as he was introduced, but was taken off guard as Suzume became rather hands-on in her inspection of the SP. He watched her curiously as she scoured over his body with an apparent focus on his articulation. "A mixture of both, Miss Suzume." he responded. As she passed her hand between the vambrace of his forearm and the slatted shoulder armor covering his upper arm, his forearm seemed to detach before it twisted/moved to grasp her hand in his own before giving a somewhat gentle handshake.

DragonierMan's second SP continued to focus on Aera, and attempted to evaluate her with a gaze. Aera met her stare like Mach met DragonierMan's, her expression unchanging as she waited for Aya's reaction. With a subdued metallic click, a dagger was produced from the SPs sleeve and pointed threateningly towards Aera's face. She noted the blade's shape/orientation/proximity in her peripheral vision, but her gaze remained set to the SP's eyes before the slid back out of sight. Her previous experiences combined with a full complement of refreshed defensive programs left her feeling comfortably secure in her own position. She started to fold her arms as the SP made her inquiry. She could give the specific data; number of battles, number of viruses deleted, Navis defeated/EJO'd, flying battleships encountered/sunk, but she felt it was appropriate to match Aya's abrupt confidence with her own. "Enough," she responded, punctuated by the snap of white-hot electrical discharges that arced between her brushed-metal vambraces as they crossed against her chest. The bombs' nullifying effects seemed to be wearing off, because her 'spark' was obviously returning.

The Navis and their SPs duos paired up almost perfectly with an unpredictable tension that seemed to fill the dimly lit room. This new trio presented a new twist to the mission; Mach wasn't at all certain what would unfold with them in the mix. If their bark was as strong as their bite, Mach and company had been paired up with a powerful set of allies. Mach shifted his focus back to the general, to address one of his concerns. "General... do we know when 'Piper' stole this jackout area denial tech? It sounds very similar to the same method used in Scavenger's disappearance. It seems odd for such a well-informed and well-equipped narc to not know a significant deal about the MIA Scavenger and Stalker."
Yasu watched the two men (and their SPs) exchange greetings, DragonierMan posturing and flexing his muscle as she suspected; she looked extremely unhappy as the proceedings unfolded, glaring at her sometimes-dragon subordinate with obvious distaste in her eyes. For MachMan's part, he was getting a few unfavorable looks as well. Something about both men sizing each other up, showing their bravado, comparing their features, was just not sitting with her the right way. It had probably been a long, long time since she dealt with commanding any two males in one place, other than simple Neo-Shogun soldiers. "Yes, I hope all of you are well acquainted now. Of course, I shouldn't have to say this, but I understand that 'stealth' infiltration as a giant, bumbling dragon will be a bit difficult, so I would recommend you move in to the rear of the back-most ship in your dragon form to meet Vee and then allow yourself to fly with MachMan for any other moves... or otherwise, fly in some other, smaller form. The ships should all be disoriented and unaware, but that's no reason to give them a large target to shoot at later," she instructed, coming down hard on her pet project as she always did.

MachMan had a question of his own before they started moving; Yasu crossed her arms and raised one eye to the sky, thinking to herself, before returning it downward to stare towards him. "Let me clarify: the technology Piper has in her possession is not jack-out prevention technology. That sort of tech is only issued to members of the Bloodhounds family, the fiercest fighters of the Mafia, from what I understand. It's a necessity of their field, given that they fight to kill. All the same, you are likely to encounter such technology, as I'm sure there are some Bloodhounds aboard and I'm told they use the tech quite freely. Therefore, be cautious, and avoid engaging in any sort of fight if you can help it." She closed her eyes, again contemplating; both DragonierMan and he had learned that technology was not her strong suit, and it was probably for that reason that she was taking a lot of time organizing her thoughts, so as not to make a fool of herself. "As for Piper, her technology is different... it is a prototype that has yet to be mass produced and now may never be, since she took all of her research along with her. From what I understand, it works in this way: a navi's internal systems are exposed to a bug, which causes a critical vulnerability in their defenses. A separate piece of technology is then used... she wouldn't specify how it's administered, but we know it requires her constant focus to use it... that 'trigger' causes the affected navi to, essentially, lose their mind. It's messy; the navi will retain some elements of their personality, but not many, and will respond erratically, disobeying most commands that should be given by either their logic or their operator. Worse, the sick do not realize they're affected and... there's some degree of obedience to the master, Piper, involved, so they may try to hide their being infected... so, be on the lookout for any irrational behavior. If you or one of your allies starts to come down with anything, it will be a sign that Piper's betrayed us; simply jack out, then return and confront her. I don't want that to stop the mission, nor should it. Simply try to limit exposure to anything that you thing might inject that first 'bug' into you, and your defenses should be strong against whatever stimulator she is using."

Having finished, she produced each of the two men with small data packets. "These packets contain coordinates, telling you the location of the ships over NetVegas. I'd recommend you jack in as close-by as you're able. I'm assuming the situation will not have changed much; from what I know, Vee and the others should be waiting in the back of the rear ship, which is secure. Piper is acting mostly on her own, but I'd be surprised if she wasn't there as well," Yasu finished. "Please head out there as soon as possible. I won't be able to assist you much on this mission, as I mentioned, but if there's anything you think we at the base should know, feel free to contact me over private communications."

((Topic opening in NetVegas Net))
Aya stepped back from Aera with a look of acceptance of Aera's answer of 'enough'. Apparently this Aera wouldn't be so easily startled. That was a good thing. Satisfied, Aya turned to listen to MachMan and Yasu.

Suzume moved a hand in front of her smiling face and chuckled. "Miss Suzume huh? Fufufu. My are we the proper one.~" She tapped her fan on one of Vector's plates once more and then pointed the folded fan towards Aera. "So, what is her story? Is she your elder sister? Did she teach you how to talk to a lady like a proper gentleman?"

Meanwhile, DragonierMan looked a little taken aback after Yasu's revelation. "A technology that makes you crazy and makes you susceptible to mind control?" Aya tapped her finger on her chin, "So that is how she intends to keep Kismet from fleeing. I wonder if you have to be in line-of-sight to activate it?" Drago shivered, "I don't like it." Aya nodded, "It would also make it problematic to get any information from her about Roc's sister if this Kismet girl becomes a gibbering mess that will need to be restrained." Drago snapped out of his shivering and nodded along with Aya's logic, not seeming to have thought of that himself but acting as though it was on his mind, "Problematic indeed."

Drago then recieved the packet from Yasu and took a moment to look over its contents. As he stored it in his belt, two sheathes appeared on either side of his hips, built for something small like a dagger. "You heard the General, into your sheathes," Drago said as he spread his draconic wings. Aya sighed and then bent down into a crouch. She jumped into the air and then vanished in a cloud of smoke. A blade hurtled down from the cloud, a similar dark sheen as Aya's armor had been, and landed perfectly into the right sheath like it was drawn there by some unseen force. Suzume patted Vector once more before skipping away from him. "We'll have to talk later love, duty calls,~" she said over her shoulder before crouching down as well. A leap, a puff of smoke, and a gray blade falling from the sky later, and the left sheath was filled with its own blade.

Drago patted the twin blades hanging from his belt. "This way it is only lil' old handsome me. Should make the approach harder to detect if I'm on my lonesome." He pointed at Aera and Vector as he looked at Mach, "I'd suggest sheathing them, it would be easier on the approach if it was just our two bodies."

"And since you seem so inquisitive, before we head off would you like to say or ask anything of me?"

Holding link to thread until done here.
Aera's reaction and answer seemed to sate fleet-footed SP, as she withdrew without much of a response. Suzume's reaction was more outwardly positive than her "sister;" she seemed amused by Vector's answer, though she didn't return the handshake offered by the fractal SP. Vector's hand went back to his side to further avoid any additional awkwardness as Suzume gestured to Aera, inquiring about her relationship to him. Vector responded calmly, not sensing any disrespect in her seemingly benign, indirectly complementing question. "She is my purpose, I am her shield; and you are my ally." He chose to keep his response short, but answering all three of her questions, though somewhat indirectly.

Though Yasu appeared visibly disappointed with the groups' posturing-filled introductions, but she remained on task to further address the details of the mission. Apparently DragonierMan had some sort of dragon form, which wasn't entirely surprising, one Yasu discouraged whilst in the midst of the mission area. Stealth sounded to be the goal in the mission execution; something that hasn't been exercised by Mach and the group in a while, beyond adopting disguises. She also responded to Mach's question. He was mistaken to think Piper was possessing jack-out denial tech, instead she wielded a different, yet equally concerning set of programs. DragonierMan succinctly summarized its effects, and displayed an appropriate reaction, Mach felt the same. It sounded potent and pivotal to the mission, but could just as easily be used against them to great effect. Thankfully Yasu had already considered that possibility, and provided warning to the group, with a potential contingency plan. She then produced datapackets with the mission coordinates, followed by providing final details for the rendezvous. "Understood, General." Mach responded with a nod as he received the data packet. He glanced down momentarily at it before it quickly fragmented into his hand, uploaded to his internal memory.

DragonierMan began to prepare for the mission, namely by having his SPs changed their forms to a pair of daggers to be worn from his belt. The Navi brought up a good point, fewer numbers meant lower chance of detection. Mach wholeheartedly agreed, especially since Yasu strongly advised against combat in favor of stealth. "I agree. Aera, Vector..." Both SPs responded by stepping towards him from both flanks. Both SPs were on the verge of colliding with the Navi, but something much more interesting transpired. Aera seemed to phase into Mach's form with ease, her relatively smaller frame was quickly encompassed by Mach's own. Vector; on the other hand, seemed to flow over Mach's body like a loosely-fitting cloak. The SP's armored cuirass wrapped around Mach's chest then refused into a solid piece in the front while the slatted, rectangular shoulder plates secured themselves in the appropriate places. Similarly slatted thigh guards and skirt armor wrapped around his waist, and armored greaves encased his lower legs while vambraces covered his upper arms. Mach's orange hair and sapphire eyes were quickly obscured as a kabuto-style helmet formed over his head. The grimacing face mask gave way to a more angular form, creating a simplistic mask over Mach's face. The horn-like spine protruding from the helmet snapped backwards at a nearly 45-degree angle, then split in half down the middle to form an angular v-shaped crest. Once the polished-silver crest snapped into position, two glowing red eyes materialized on the surface of the mask over Mach's face, which stretched laterally outwards nearly to form into a single chevron-shaped 'eye'.

With the transformation complete, Mach gave DragonierMan a glowing, crimson glance before he responded. "Seems time is of the essence. We'll stay flexible and stay in contact. I'll have your back, as I expect you to have mine. Other than that, I have nothing else. Anything for me?" While Mach would've liked to spend at least a few minutes to get to know his ally, Yasu explained the rest of the team were waiting, and they were requested to start as soon as possible. If DragonierMan didn't have anything to ask or add, Mach would've downloaded the coordinates to the PET for Mazer to use. "Here are the mission coords, Mazer. We're ready when you are." ["Got 'em, stand by... sending. Good luck,"] Mach responded as he input the new location in the PET's nav screen, then executed his Navi/SPs transfer to the new mission area.

((Beginning Mission))
A portal appeared over the Public Neo-Shogun Camp from the NetVegas Strip and out emerged a large dragon. The large dragon was being ridden by three young and lovely ladies. After emerging from the portal, the dragon dove on the camp and touched down near the storage sheds. The three ladies dismounted and the dragon shrunk into the form of an armored man.
((From NetVegas))

Cyan flashes appeared in the sky overhead, heralding multiple beams of similar color to crash down to the floor below. The veils of light quickly faded into the occasional flicker of data before disappearing completely, revealing the newly-arrived programs. Mach stood a few paces behind Aera and Vector, who were hopefully still holding the hastily clothed Roc. Aera and Vector looked her over, while Mach saw his comrade's dragon form swoop down overhead, deeper into the encampment.

He moved up to his SPs, and gestured them towards the direction of DragonierMan's landing site. "Let's meet back up with them, I'll contact Yasu to get some attention for Roc. In the meantime Aera, try to patch her up as best you can." Aera nodded, as green sparks started to jump around the arm around Roc's body. "Will do; ready when you are, Vector." she initially replied to Mach, then coordinated with Vector to take off and smoothly glide over the ground and follow as Mach took point. It made sense at the time to float rather than walk, less jostling.

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General Yasu,
We're back in the encampment, do you have any medics... and an uniform... for Roc? We're headed to DragonierMan's positions, looks like he's over at the storage sheds.
He included both Skywriter and Pest in the message, so they would know where to meet up if they so desired.

Upon approaching DragonierMan, he slowed and touched down with light foot falls, then stopped to look over the group, taking in a quick accountability. Save for possibly Skywriter and Pest, it looked like everyone had returned safely. "I sent a message to General Yasu, hopefully she'll send some folks for Roc, and we can report our findings," he reported to his armored ally, before realizing he hadn't really said anything regarding the performance of the mission, which was for all intents and purposes complete. "That mission certainly wasn't what I expected, but I'm surprised by you and your SP's flexibility in such a chaotic mission field. A very impressive quality."