Robotech - Southern Cross Adventure

[WlfSamurai]

“I’m 100%, here,” Alissa replies. “Ready and waiting. I figure I can help cover the base while repairs are being made. It would be best to keep visuals and thermals going on the surrounding area in case they attack again.“

 

[Purr]

Before...

Ryuko nodded, before looking towards the hangar. "We've become fast friends ever since we first signed up at the academy. When we were there, we shared alot about ourselves. In any battle we faced, You always had my back, I always had yours. Our bond has become a lot like a sisters. I don't think I can even live with myself if anything happened to you..... And that's why I fight in the front lines, to keep you safe."

Gabi was about to reply as gently as her passion would allow with, "Me safe? You go take a look at your Ajax and mine and tell me who needs protecting?" when the genius-side of her powerful intellect politely intervened.

Inside her mind, it said to Gabi, "Pardon me. Could I have a moment of your time?"

"Make it quick. I'm chastising mi chica ("my girl" or "my female buddy") here."

"Yes you are, and you are making at least three mistakes in the process and any one of them could wreck your relationship with Ryuko permanently."

Gabi's body became rigid with surprise. "Que?!" ("What?!" or if you preferred it said anime-style,"NANI?!?!?!")

Wide-eyed, she asked, "What three mistakes are those, please?"

Gabi stopped talking for a moment and listened closely to everything it said. Then with a great sigh of shame, she looked Ryuko in the eye and shook her head. "I owe you an apology, chica. I am treating you like you are Recon Patrol and that's not fair to you. You are Air Cav. Big violence and coming to the rescue is your thing.

"Moreso, even back in Tactical Corps boot camp, I knew we were different people. You are a guardian. You are in this war to save people. It's like you don't feel like you're doing your job unless you take a few hits for somebody else, you know? So if you're going to take hits, I still don't see why you don't do it in a tank.

"Still... I'm sorry for not respecting your way of doing things, Ryuko. Your way of fighting is not my way of fighting. They are night and day. And I need to remember that. I hope you will forgive me."

Gabi kept her third mistake to herself. Time would tell if it were really a mistake, but Gabi realized she was treating Ryuko as if she were blood-family. With 11 siblings, it was second nature. But she could not tell if Ryuko was really a guardian or a martyr-in-the-making. Gabi realized that Ryuko's style of battle could get her killed at any minute. And if Ryuko decided to go out that way, it was her choice, not Gabi's.

So something in Gabi's heart pulled back a little and gave Ryuko her needed space. Because a person did not have to like the decisions of another person, but they should do everything they could to respect it.

 

[Rykon]

He said as he drug out tools from his mecha, and added them to the pile he was had started bringing from the hangar. "As for the com tower... that's easier said than done Alan. A lot of key elements would have gotten fully slagged. And the electronics are likely completely worthless. It would take a couple days of scavenging to get to an idea of what it needs. And even should we, we aren't allowed to install hardware or software without higher ups permission. Security purproses... not that it seemed to help here."

"I'm well aware that the electronics were slagged into an unusable mess. That's why we're pulling as many parts as we can together to assemble new ones or directly replace what we can. As for higher-ups... it's probably best I keep my thoughts to myself." Alan said, looking at the blood on his hands from the pilot's leg. "I just think from one soldier to another, it's our duty to do our best to look after the unit. Not just the Third Heavy, but the ASC as a whole. We've counted on their support in the past, let's not let them down. If we can take reasonable security measures to protect the lives of men and women here, we should."

 

[Purr]

Presently...

She leads you out of the ruined Operations Center to a conference room and motions for you to take a seat. "Let me go over your paperwork while we are waiting for your squad leader to get here. It seems so . . . mundane . . . to go over this after an attack, but the day to day operations of Anton-17 must go on."

When Gabi saw the deadly scene, she froze for an instant and said a prayer for the fallen, but thereafter tried to remain as calm as possible. Staring down at the corpse of the CO ("Commanding Officer") she and Ryuko were supposed to have, two words blazed in her mind.

Inside job.

Ever the professional, Gabi saluted Lt. Hulsizer and sat when ordered, but her engineer's eyes and ears were everywhere subtly looking for clues. She called upon her demolitions education and her genius-level intellect to help her put the facts together while the scene was still fresh. How did this take place? Who was responsible?

For sabotage was not the only crime that had taken place here; as far as Gabi was concerned, the captain and the other personnel here were murdered.

 

[Gundam Watcher 27]

Psychie Purr

Ryuko was concerned. There was a spy amongst the base personnel? Being brought to the conference room, Ryuko felt jumpy. This wasn't a interrogation was it? No, it didn't feel that way, but still.....

"D-Did we do something wrong?"

 

[D. Rex]

Marlon rubbed the back if his neck in thought, "I say it will take a while because I dont know what is broken yet aside from everything. Not to mention building parts and mecha parts are not interchangeable, not without bypassing safeties and regulations. Which I'm perfectly capable of doing, I might add."


"Getting that com tower back in working order is a tall project. It will take a good handful of engineers and a lot of parts. But we can do something easier in the meantime. Making a radio is a pretty basic engineering feat. Even with scrapped parts. I can put together a long range radio, all I need is the frequencies you want me to reach, and an antenna or dish. Or both. It wont be pretty, it wont be optimized, but you can get it fast."

Marlon stopped what he was doing with a sigh and took off his helmet. Throwing it beside his tool bag and getting himself his own cigarette. "As for thoughts to yourself, it dont matter so long as no bosses hear us. Now if you ask me, about security that is, we are sitting ducks. We got no defenses, our mecha are in shit shape, and we got a forty foot hole in our base wall. Aye, a convoy came, but we are in worse shape still. We got lucky, cause we had artillery support. If the Zentraedi choose to attack again, and we are without defenses, it will be a very different story."

 

[Psychie]

Psychie Purr

Ryuko was concerned. There was a spy amongst the base personnel? Being brought to the conference room, Ryuko felt jumpy. This wasn't a interrogation was it? No, it didn't feel that way, but still.....

"D-Did we do something wrong?"

The Lieutenant offers up a slight smile. "No, not at all. Your arrival was quite timely. If it were not for the backup that you provided, we would have been in a very bad state. I just wish that our first meeting was under more favorable circumstances, so you could meet your new squadron without all of this," she waves her hand towards the damaged Operations Center and up to include the rest of the damage done. "Your squad leader, Staff Sergeant Deunan Conway, should be joining us momentarily."

 

[Sherwood]

Deunan can feel her head spinning as she heads down to the Operations Center, where it is made that much worse when she learns that the place has had a bomb go off inside the underground bunker, killing several people! After asking where the Lieutenant is, she makes her way to the conference room where she gets her first look at the two new faces that just arrived.

Snapping to attention, she says, "Ma'am, Sgt. Conway, reporting as ordered."

 

[Psychie]

Lt. Hulsizer nods at Deunan, and says, "Take a seat." Once Deunan has settled into a chair, she starts out, "We are still trying to identify the bodies, but at the moment, it is clear that Capt. Shumer is deceased from the bomb blast that damaged the Operations Center. I am now the acting commander of Anton-17." She pauses for a moment to let that sink in, then she continues. "The explosion in Operations was not an accident. It was timed perfectly to disable our ability to be able to call for assistance and to defend ourselves with our wall mounted turrets. Right now, Lt. Renner is working to try and identify if we have any missing personnel, but I have my own suspect in mind. I hope I'm wrong, but First Sergeant Antonia is missing right now, and until we can completely identify if her body is in Operations as a casualty, it makes a strong argument that she is the one responsible for the explosion."

"Sergeant Conway, as our resident GMP member, I want you to go through her room and computer with a fine toothed comb. I give you full freedom to investigate anything that she has touched, be it communication records or her personal files. To be blunt, you have a open hunting licence with no bag limit. One way or another, we need answers."

"Now, to a more positive matter. These two ladies are Sergeants De la Rosa and Narukami, and are the new additions to your squad. They have been close air support for a different team, and will hopefully work well with the rest of the Third Heavy Recon. Now, what is the status of your squad?"

 

[Rykon]

Marlon rubbed the back if his neck in thought, "I say it will take a while because I dont know what is broken yet aside from everything. Not to mention building parts and mecha parts are not interchangeable, not without bypassing safeties and regulations. Which I'm perfectly capable of doing, I might add."


"Getting that com tower back in working order is a tall project. It will take a good handful of engineers and a lot of parts. But we can do something easier in the meantime. Making a radio is a pretty basic engineering feat. Even with scrapped parts. I can put together a long range radio, all I need is the frequencies you want me to reach, and an antenna or dish. Or both. It wont be pretty, it wont be optimized, but you can get it fast."

Marlon stopped what he was doing with a sigh and took off his helmet. Throwing it beside his tool bag and getting himself his own cigarette. "As for thoughts to yourself, it dont matter so long as no bosses hear us. Now if you ask me, about security that is, we are sitting ducks. We got no defenses, our mecha are in shit shape, and we got a forty foot hole in our base wall. Aye, a convoy came, but we are in worse shape still. We got lucky, cause we had artillery support. If the Zentraedi choose to attack again, and we are without defenses, it will be a very different story."

"Easy now. No need to complicate the project." Alan chuckled. "We're not fabricating pre-built circuit boards. Let's start with a radio that can reach command. I can handle machining the dish and armor plating. You and Neo make the electronics magic happen while I firm up the superstructure. After that we'll worry about other signal bands."

 

[Sherwood]

Deunan quickly gives the LT a rundown on the damage done to the tanks. "All in all, the Spartas' came through the fight in pretty good shape. Just need a few armor patches on mine and Neo's tanks, and we are good to go. We can be at full operational status in no time."

She then glances over at the two new members of the Third Heavy with curiosity, giving each woman a slight nod and smile.

 

[D. Rex]

Marlon scoffed, "Please. The project isnt going to get complicated until particle physics start getting involved." He said with cigarette between his lips. "Give me about thirty minutes or so to look around and see what I need. I also need to make sure it's getting power else we are gonna have settle for something home made."


"Alrighty, I'm gonna take a walk and see what I have to work with for the radio tower. If Staff Sargeant comes by, give her access to my Spartan until I can she gets hers sound. And Neo, you get yours in the hangar before you even start. A reload will also be nice too." He said as he left his tools and made his way over to the com tower to see all that was left. Maybe it was good news, maybe it was. But couldn't start until he knew what was what.

 

[Psychie]

Marlon's bit of looking about is fruitful: The base has a emergency radio tower located in the supply room. It can be pulled out and set up within a half hour with little difficulty. With several sets of helping hands working on getting the tower set up, it makes the work fast and easy.

Down in the conference room, Lt. Hulsizer listens to Deunan's report with a terse nod. "Excellent news. Get your mecha up and running as soon as possible. If I recall correctly, there should also be a pair of the new particle cannons designed for the Spartas in this supply run. Make sure that the new guns are installed ASAP. I have a feeling that they will get plenty of use in the very near future. Now, I will leave you three a moment to get to know one another as I have other duties to attend to. If there is nothing else you need from me, that is."

 

[Purr]

"Your squad leader, Staff Sergeant Deunan Conway, should be joining us momentarily."

Deunan? Gabi thought. What kind of name was "Doo-nan"?

"Sergeant Conway, as our resident GMP member, I want you to go through her room and computer with a fine toothed comb. I give you full freedom to investigate anything that she has touched, be it communication records or her personal files. To be blunt, you have a open hunting licence with no bag limit. One way or another, we need answers."

A Global Military Police name, she concluded.

Gabi had not expected her to be female, but was kind of glad she was. Sometimes it was tough climbing the ladder and when you were a woman in the military, that made the ladder all the more taller most times. S.Sgt. Conway was GMP, too. Gabi didn't have a problem with that, but it led to possible headaches in the future. Ryuko being a member of Air Cav was Tac Corp Infantry. They only seemed to tangle with GMP when they broke the law or did something a little too cocky on or off the field. Recon Patrol was another story. Recon Patrol were the Green Berets of the Army of the Southern Cross and there were elements of that position that could not be shared except with other Recon Patrol. Not with her squadron leader. Not with GMP. Not even with the UEG unless someone higher rank in Recon Patrol gave the green light.

Gabi hoped their respective highways would be free of such troublesome roadblocks.

She then glances over at the two new members of the Third Heavy with curiosity, giving each woman a slight nod and smile.

Gabi did not nod back nor did she smile. She just sat in her chair and looked S.Sgt. Conway in the eyes for one long moment before looking on straight ahead. The Professionals. That's what Recon Patrol was. This Conway was trying to make nice and that was fine, but after what Gabi and Ryuko just saw in the comm tower, everyone except Ryuko was under suspicion in Gabi's eyes. Some devil-hearted coward who had made the oath to protect humanity had betrayed that oath with the blood of their own. And if Gabi got ahold of them, toe-poppers and jail time would be the least of their worries. She would boil their balls in battery acid. Just for starters.

Still, Conway was now in charge of Ryuko and Gabi. The same questions she had when she first visited Brazil came to mind. Will this chick get me permanently maimed, killed, or worse - dishonorably discharged? Can I trust her? Is there anyone else from Recon Patrol in this Third Heavy Recon or am I it?

One thing remained the same through all this. In the Army, everyone regardless of post, position, or M.O.S. had one duty - obey your CO (Commanding Officer). Time would tell if following Conway would lead to success or ruin.

 

[D. Rex]

This find went beyond best case scenario. As often as this base had been hit, he was not expecting this much. He sent a call to Alan and Neo to let them know the find. With the helping hands, they had it set up on the roof on no time.

"Hey Neo, if you aren't busy. Do a test and see if you can hail somebody. I'll leave this to you. I need to get back to the Spartans." He said.

That is where he would head next. The hangar. Deunan's Spartan was priority, as it seemed the most damaged. Then Neo's. Then came the two Ajaxs that were signed to the new members. One looked a bit more worse for wear than the other. Fixing the squads mecha back to par was what he was going to focus on until they were done. And save for the odd smoke break, he would stay on task until ordered to eat or sleep. Getting them ready to be sent out was now top priority for him. Once he shed his armor and got in a proper jumpsuit, hed get to work.

(Let me know if and how many rolls you need me to make if any)

 

[Rykon]

Once the new tower was setup and testing appropriately, Alan headed to surgery to check on the pilots he had helped back during the skirmish, assuming nothing more pressing interrupted him. With any luck, none of the injuries would prove to be fatal.

 

[WlfSamurai]

Alissa rolls out of her tank with the patrolling done and heads down to the medical wing after stripping off her pilot gear.

On the way down, she sees Alan heading the same way.

“Alan,” she calls to him catching up. “Heading down to medical?”

 

[Rykon]

Alan nods to Alissa, "Yep. I wanna see how those pilots held up after gettin plucked out of the sky. One of 'em had a leg nearly broken in half. I'm just a paramedic, so if you could take a look at him I'd be obliged."

 

[WlfSamurai]

“Yes, for sure,” Alissa says. “That was the plan anyway. Have to get down there and do what I can.” She rolls up her sleeves and puts her hair up as they walk.

“Hey,” she says looking at him. “Are you okay? It got real out there. And shit was flying everywhere. I know my adrenaline was skyrocketing.”

 

[Rykon]

"No. I'm not okay." Alan said bluntly. "I was lazy and trusted the chain of command to take care of this mess that we reported that was 'above our paygrade'. I let it go, and it probably cost people their lives because of it. I reckon I'll get over it soon enough, but I don't plan on warming the bench like I have been before. How bout you? Certainly a lot happened at once, and I don't reckon my griping's done much to help things." Alan looked relaxed as he tossed a cigarette aside into a nearby ashtray. Though, it was clear the stress had left him looking a bit fatigued.

 

[Psychie]

(Let me know if and how many rolls you need me to make if any)

Please give me a Vehicle Armorer and Weapon Systems roll to do the repairs and swap out the main gun.


Once the secondary communications tower is up, Neo immediately begins to make some radio calls to test the system. She quickly gets in touch with several different bases around them, and gives a thumbs up to the technicians working on it. "We're good! I have contact with multiple stations all around us. We seem to be the only ones that were attacked. No other outposts in the region were hit. I'm still sending out the heads-up about this."


Down in medical, Alissa and Alan find that there are more casualties than you had expected. Alissa is immediately wrangled into scrubbing up to aid the doctor in operating. It seems that there was a nasty explosion in the Operations Center, and there were several casualties.

 

[D. Rex]

Vehicle Armorer 71%

Weapon Systems 91%

 

[WlfSamurai]

Alissa jumps in right away. Even with things so grim, she feels a sense of purpose and use. A calm settles over her as she works and time seems to slip away. There is little in her mind but the issues and work at hand. As she's a trained surgeon, she takes on as many surgeries as she can muster. Elbow deep in blood and sinew, she fights to keep the men and women from dying as best she can.

(Shall I do any rolls for her work?)

 

[Sherwood]

Now, I will leave you three a moment to get to know one another as I have other duties to attend to. If there is nothing else you need from me, that is."

Deunan pauses for a moment, thinking about her orders. "No, ma'am. I believe that everything is clear. Thank you." She stands as Lt. Hulsizer rises and heads for the door, then once the three are alone, she turns to look once more at the two pilots. Settling back down into her seat, she says, "Welcome to Anton-17 and the Third Heavy Recon. As you heard, I'm Staff Sergeant Deunan Conway of the GMP, and I am looking forward to getting to know the two of you. First off, why don't you tell me a bit about yourselves?"

Purr Gundam Watcher 27

 

[Gundam Watcher 27]

Sherwood

Ryuko nodded, before replying. "I'm Ryuko Narukami, Pilot of the Crimson Ajax! Perhaps you heard of me?"

Of course rumors of a beautiful pilot who fights in a red colored Ajax was not unheard of. She got the nickname 'Bloody Mary' for how many corpses she made of Zentraedi she made whenever there was a battle she was deployed in. Her way of fighting is questionable however.