Decide on a favourite food or favourite food type! Doesn't matter if you classify them by region, type or anything;
[X] Pancakes with maple syrup.
Which matches of the Squadron Vanguard tournament will you be going to see?
Accept Commentary request?
[X]Yes. You will watch all the matches involving your squadron. As the matches take place simultaneously, you will only be watching the matches from your own squadron.
So where's the 4chan comentary post for the latest episodes?
Wait, that's right... it's just the tourney setup/prefight blehs. With that one moment of everyone seeing colors shift twice in one scene and being confused as hell.
One of them will definitely cover the Yukari and Anna hug moment.
But yeah, having Anna(The top valk) and a Valkyrie Instructor commenting would be good and fun.
Since a lot of Anna response will possibly be around the lines of 'Git Gud, scrub' and keep forgetting that not everyone is around her level. So the instructor being the straight man would be good.
We know that. But bad/boring performance as a commentator could lead to our popularity dropping. In the eyes of the viewers, it would take us from "interesting" to "annoying".
That's why it's a better idea to vote for the variant with an assistant commentator. Someone more normal will ensure there's some normal commentary, and that it's not entirely weird - it should make for some interesting contrast in terms of perspectives.
FIRST, it's an open question as to whether Anna actually killed anyone. I believe she did not. The way Anna's thoughts are formatted indicates that those doing the killing were the rabble-rousers in the town, not herself. And that kill kill kill creed is by WoG not hers - it was indicated that in different setting tones it might have been hers, but here it is not.
I must point out the text on the front page, under her character bio. When she returned before her attack on the Breach the town was going up in flames and the people where fighting. She put a stop to the fighting this way: "You put an end to the fighting the only way you knew how." So yeah Anna killed the mad ones trying to kill the people she was protecting. It was the only way she knew after years and years of social isolation and fighting.
@Bludflag, minor nitpick. Anna didn't kill an entire town's worth of people, she killed ~half a town's worth of people. Your point is still valid, I just feel like it's a case where hyperbole is not good, since the distinction probably matters a great deal to Anna.
I must point out the text on the front page, under her character bio. When she returned before her attack on the Breach the town was going up in flames and the people where fighting. She put a stop to the fighting this way: "You put an end to the fighting the only way you knew how." So yeah Anna killed the mad ones trying to kill the people she was protecting. It was the only way she knew after years and years of social isolation and fighting.
@Bludflag, minor nitpick. Anna didn't kill an entire town's worth of people, she killed ~half a town's worth of people. Your point is still valid, I just feel like it's a case where hyperbole is not good, since the distinction probably matters a great deal to Anna.
One of them will definitely cover the Yukari and Anna hug moment.
But yeah, having Anna(The top valk) and a Valkyrie Instructor commenting would be good and fun.
Since a lot of Anna response will possibly be around the lines of 'Git Gud, scrub' and keep forgetting that not everyone is around her level. So the instructor being the straight man would be good.
Overall, I believe that this particular tournament, the Squadron Vanguard tournament (not the greater inter-academy tournament) represents a low-risk way to get Anna used to the idea of valkyrie on valkyrie sparring, and is extremely unlikely to result in threats to life and limb.
@Bludflag, minor nitpick. Anna didn't kill an entire town's worth of people, she killed ~half a town's worth of people. Your point is still valid, I just feel like it's a case where hyperbole is not good, since the distinction probably matters a great deal to Anna.
There's a fair bit of circumstantial evidence that she did do so. I'm fairly sure the Instructors mentioned it offhand in one of the posts (I'd have to go back and find it... in over 130k words. Fun times ahead).
[X] Pancakes with maple syrup.
[X] Yes. You will watch all the matches involving your squadron. As the matches take place simultaneously, you will only be watching the matches from your own squadron.
-[X] Preferably paired with another commentator. Perhaps an instructor like Meyer or Leonhart.
... Well if you cant accept the written word of the QM for the truth then there is no point in arguing about it. You are allowed to belive this delusion of yours but it wont change the truth of the matter.
I am not him you are asking but: The town was divided into two camps at the end. Refuges and some of the towns folk that where under Anna's protection and a large group of the rest that hated and blamed Anna and the refuges for luring the AG's to the town. During the last day they fought and Anna stopped the mad ones "the only way she knew how". She did not kill everyone.
...should be aware that it appears the "Yes" or "No" portion of the vote isn't being counted correctly - the ">" at the start of the line is stopping the tally program from seeing your vote. It's making an utter mess of the tally. So make your votes look like this, or whatever variant you prefer.
[X] Pancakes with maple syrup.
[X] Yes. You will watch all the matches involving your squadron. As the matches take place simultaneously, you will only be watching the matches from your own squadron.
-[X] Preferably paired with another commentator. Perhaps an instructor like Meyer or Leonhart.
@Avalanche - The latest update still needs to be threadmarked. Thanks!
[X] Pancakes with maple syrup.
[X]No. Watch specific matches. You may choose multiple people. In case of clash, Anna will prioritise watching matches by number of votes received.
-[X]Watch Koujirou and Setsuna. How have they improved?
-[X]Watch Sandra.
-[X]Go watch Zoe Hermann, Ace of Squadron Ten. How is she as a Valkyrie?
-[X]Just look around for interesting matches.
"So, do you have any questions about the curriculum then? They're planning to hold an inter-academy grading tournament this year. It sounds like it will be a big event, Perth, Santiago and Beijing will all be sending students. It is likely the winners will be put on the Three Hundred list."
[X] No. You will watch all the matches involving your squadron. As the matches take place simultaneously, you will only be watching the matches from your own squadron.
That's why it's a better idea to vote for the variant with an assistant commentator. Someone more normal will ensure there's some normal commentary, and that it's not entirely weird - it should make for some interesting contrast in terms of perspectives.
[X] Maple Syrup Pancakes.
[X]No. Watch specific matches. You may choose multiple people. In case of clash, Anna will prioritise watching matches by number of votes received.
-[X]Watch Koujirou and Setsuna. How have they improved?
-[X]Watch Sandra.
-[X]Go watch Zoe Hermann, Ace of Squadron Ten. How is she as a Valkyrie?
-[X]Just look around for interesting matches.
[X] Pancakes with maple syrup.
[X] No. You will watch all the matches involving your squadron. As the matches take place simultaneously, you will only be watching the matches from your own squadron.
Someone tossed the idea before the OP is Anna doing and joining multiple clubs in the random shots.
The anime shows this also with occasionally Anna walking around and doing her own stuff with random things, maybe sometimes she's walking around talking with instructors, at times moving really fast as a whole crowd chase her and almost worship the very ground she walks, then you get those weird ones where's she giving another instructor a piggy back, flying past the background as a small dot in those blink and miss moments.
Crazy massive comments post incoming. Seriously I've got over 4.2k of my own words to 8.2k of Avalanche's words for a post count of ~12.4k. Seriously I started this post seven and half hours ago. Time really flies when your having fun.
Yeah, when you have a ~12.4k spaghetti quotes post, feel free to make use of the spoiler tags, because seriously. In fact it might make sense to use multiple spoilers so people can actually find individual sections of your post. Just saying.
Despite the united military front that was quickly assembled, large parts of the Earth soon fell under Antagonist control. At their peak, North America, Europe, most of Northern Africa, the Middle East as far west as Afghanistan, and all of Russia east to the Ural mountains, were under Antagonist control.
Huh. If I've got my geography right, which I probably don't, that isn't much more then they already control. Here is my best guess at what they controlled.
That was a nice way to introduce a bunch of important, and nonsensical, terms without feeling too much like raw exposition. It really felt like a Future!Reddit post.
First at the bottom you have the Aces with ranks lower than 315. Basically, can't just ask for a Three Hundred Frame and get it. And well, you all should know what that means right? Blah blah you're not actually part of the 300, 'Ace in name only' and all that bullshit.
Huh. Given that a number of the "True Aces" are likely on light duty at any given time I suspect that in reality a number after the 315 can actually get 300s on demand. It's just that the top 315 are guaranteed a 300 frame if they ask since even if all the frames are in use there will always be, by definition, at least one frame being piloted by a lower ranked Ace, who would get booted back to their regular frame.
Next rung up, ranks 100 to 315. Yeah, there's another internal division around there. Somehow, some of the Valks got it into their heads that the 'triple digits' aren't as hot as the 'double digits'.
Ah. The good ol' human obsession with magnitudes over absolute value. Sure #99 and #100 are probably almost identical in skill in practice but being #99 is just so much better then #100 because it's a double digit.
The lower ranks from about 70 down are fairly static and everyone knows each other and are well and sick of the honestly kinda pointless competitive environment that UN promotes. Like sure, a competitive or any form of high stress environment promotes Valk skill growth, but you're all Ace rank fliers now. The UN expects you to be able to hold back low rank Zeros solo and you're all busy hissing and spitting at each other like cats.
Huh. Now that's interesting. So I'm guessing someone up high tries to promote a certain level of competition between Aces, especially in the upper levels, to increase growth. Makes perfect sense if you think about it.
Okay, back on track. Next grouping up from the so called 'double digit ranks' are The Twenty. Ranks 4 to 24, well, now it's 5 to 25. Maybe they'll start calling it The Thirty now, since you know, rounding up and all. I could have an entire second rant about the UN's magical world of numbers where both ~640 and 315 = Three Hundred and 24 = Twenty, but I won't.
Well The Twenty actually makes perfect sense. It's all the Aces from Rank 4 to Rank 24, and now Rank 5 to Rank 25, which is a collection of twenty Valkyries. Incidentally I suspect The Twenty are these twenty:
Without the 300 frames, there are perhaps 20 or so people in the world who stand a chance against a Class E Type Zero. With the 300, then the previously mentioned 20 people can now dust up against a fresh and ready Class D Type Zero.
Now at the summit of the UN Valkyries you have The Trinity and The Valkyrie above them. Like how the twenty are on a different level to the other aces, these four are undeniably just on a different level above even them. The 'Queens of Silver' and the 'Zero Breaker'.
I didn't figure it out when I first read this, too engulfed in the awesome, but I'm guessing by "Zero Breaker" it means "Type-Zero Breaker". I bet she holds the record for the most Type-Zero kills.
I can absolutely guarantee you that her ability deserves the rank. Also, need to talk to you, stop pretending to be offnet. I know you monitor these comment thread replies IRT. -Comment by user "Jatayu Sen" (Verified WAN Account, United Nations Armed Forces, Air Force Air Marshal, Valkyrie Ace Rank 2), highest rated response to above comment
Pretty accurate description of what would happen if the strongest Valkyrie in the world came in and said "Yep, new girl is stronger. No doubt about it."
Shift.
Water surrounds you; slow but heavy currents push past your Impeller-
Shift.
Igneous rocks, cold and still. Little light reaches here-
Shift.
Rocks, molten and faintly glowing red, press down heavily on your Impeller. You concentrate for a moment and-
Shift.
You are once again surrounded by air. A thin film of magma that you carelessly teleported with you cakes your Impeller like a shell.
What. Anna can teleport into water, solid rock, and magma! That. That's crazy.
As far as you can tell, the amount of matter is equal to what you collected for this experiment. You may have just managed a one hundred percent conversion efficiency. Well, subject to measurement error anyway. Seeing as your Impeller was your most precise instrument, even if you were able to improve your energy conversion ability, you wouldn't be able to notice. There was no meaningful way to further improve the efficiency of your Impeller's ability to change mass and energy from one form to another.
With that quick review of your Impeller exercises done, you turn your attention to Durga. A deep well of energy lurks at the edge of your awareness; your repaired Onium batteries idle, brimming with power. Compared to the dim but constant glow of your fusion reactor as it slowly sips hydrogen from your storage, your Onium batteries are flashbulbs, ready to output immense power. However, they can only do so for a short period of time before they need to recharge. Still, now that you have an energy generator integrated into Durga, you can afford to release that entire well in a single burst at a target that presents enough of a threat to warrant it, and still remain combat capable.
@Avalanche - Can we use Energy Equivalency to recharge our Onium batteries? Every kilogram of mass converts to 90PJ, over a hundred times what you get from even the most mass efficient version of hydrogen fusion, which is a massive amount of energy and should easily recharge the Onium batteries.
The only potential problem I see is that Anna's Efficiency is only at 60/200. This could mean it takes more energy to convert mass to energy then we get out of it, I imagine they'd break even at 100/200, or it could just be it's not very Impeller Efficient. For the latter case it might still be useful since weakened Impller might be a worthwhile trade-off for the ability to launch multiple alpha strikes in short order.
Your plates are no longer a pure, cold black, which is a side effect of your Solar Dynamos capturing all the electromagnetic light that landed on you. Now, there is a faint oily iridescence about the edges of the plates, light being distorted around your silhouette by your Energy Dynamos. With this, attacks of a low enough power density will be ignored by your Impeller and absorbed by your Dynamos instead, adding to your energy reserves. The component is not as important to you as it was previously, with how advanced your ability to convert energy and mass is, now, and your fusion reactor, but you will take every single shred of Impeller you can save.
Huh. This does, sorta, imply we can recharge by converting mass into energy however it could just be referring to the fact we've got a fusion reactor and can convert anything into Hydrogen to power it. Although the latter would mean the cost of "X -> Hydrogen" is less then the energy released by fusing it.
If that's the case then "X -> Energy" would probably cost less then the energy liberated. So it's really a question of if we can directly absorb that energy into Anna's Onium batteries. Worst case scenario would be producing a mixture of electromagnetic and kinetic energy and letting our Dynamos absorb it which would limit the power input.
"Well, you are the number one," Instructor Langston replies, rubbing the back of her helmet, "I mean, I'm not really much at all compared to the Valks in The Twenty and I'm not even a double digit rank anymore. I've really got to push the envelope to even challenge you. Uh, if I want to help, that is."
So I'm guessing she's probably around #100 and probably got bumped out of the double digits thanks to Anna. It's interesting that her first response is "I want to challenge her" not "I want to help her". Makes sense since from what we later learn she's fairly young and hasn't been fighting that long. She probably feels a need to justify her position as both an Ace and an Instructor.
You assess your own Impeller as the countdown continues. By default, your Impeller is organised into twenty primary layers. Ten layers are dedicated to protecting your expressed components and vital parts of your body, as few of the the latter as there are, five dedicated to defensive and quick reactionary techniques, and five more general-purpose layers for discretionary use.
You'd typically only use those last five layers for the formation of offensive techniques, but ever since coming to Perth, aside from practicing Wave Force, you've never found cause to use more than those five layers.
That was quite an interesting insight into the way Anna thinks and fights. 50% of her Impeller goes to passive defense, 25% to active defenses, and 25% for anything else. That heavy focus on defense shows, partially, why she lasted so long while all alone. Also explains why her Dynamos are designed to absorb incoming attacks, because she has a strong focus on defense above all else.
Hmm… maybe calling it a layer was somewhat inaccurate. The sections of your Impeller often intersected and rarely stacked on top of one another in the manner that layers implied.
Blob? Volume? Section? Weave? Perhaps Partition…
What did- hmm, the standard UN terminology was also layer… but then, the standard manner of maintaining multiple layers of Impeller Fields does not bear much resemblance to yours, being an onion like wrapping around the Valkyrie like actual, well, layers…
My guess is that standard UN terminology is layer because most people never learn the Partitioned Impeller Fields skill and get by with just the Layered Impeller Fields skill, because the idea of sacrificing part of your frame (see: body) to maintain combat capability isn't something normal Valkyries would ever consider. They'd retreat, or die, instead.
For reference here are the Layered and Partitioned Impeller Fields skills:
Layered Impeller Fields:
Precision: 200 (Mastered)
Speed: 200 (Mastered)
Efficiency: 200 (Mastered)
Allows the creation of multiple layers of Impeller Fields to prevent singular attacks penetrating the entire field at once.
Partitioned Impeller Fields:
Precision: 200 (Mastered)
Speed: 200 (Mastered)
Efficiency: 200 (Mastered)
Allows for the creation of Impeller Fields with limited coverage to prevent attacks from harming multiple areas at the same time. Reduces Maximum damage from one attack to a certain level of Impeller and Frame within reason.
Langston's Impeller warps and begins to twist the space around it, snapping you out of your contemplation. Was she planning to shift immediately as the countdown completed?
You push your own Impeller outwards and grab at the ether, preparing to intercept. Ten kilometers was within the interference range of your Interdiction.
Given that the time is actually 32 microseconds I'm pretty sure she actually thought it was 0 time. I highly doubt she was tracking time down to the microsecond.
You throw out your own Impeller, tugging at space to try and destabilise the spatial tunnel. It collapses- to no effect on Instructor Langston, who initiated the teleport but did not enter, and instead is now flying away at best speed.
That was rather sneaky. Shows there is a reason she survived all those battles with Type Zeroes.
As the Instructor evades, she pulses her Impeller, tugging at the space around her, several times on the cusp of teleporting but not going through with it. She is probably trying to bait you into wasting your Impeller, but you hold back. With the disparity in the speed at which you can initiate an Interdiction and that of the Instructor's ability to start and enter a Teleport, you can halt a teleport even factoring in reaction delay.
That would be Anna's 200/200 (Mastered) Interdiction Speed at work. Still crazy since I can't imagine there is that much of a window between starting to enter a spatial tunnel and entering it.
The space ahead of the Instructor pulls and stretches as she tries to use a spatial compression technique, but the path twists and snaps out of existence as the Interdiction you are maintaining degrades it. Standard spatial compression was many times harder to disrupt with Interdiction than a complex technique such as teleportation, but with you so close, it was a matter of semantics.
Now, you were only a kilometer away from the Instructor. Sensor ghosts race off from her frame, complex Impeller decoys, but this close, you can easily discern them for what they are and ignore them.
Heh. I suppose this was the moment the Instructor went "Shit she really is that good!". I fully suspect that casually shutting down spatial compression is far harder then Anna makes it seem.
Cold and frigid blue light washes across your vision.
I wonder. What stat counters Higgs use in teleports? My guess is having super-high Precision but it could be Efficiency letting you pump enough power in to counter the boost provided.
Here's a question though: What happens if your Range is long enough, or the enemy incoming, you can mess with the endpoint of the teleport?
Because going by:
You attempt a feint and release your general Interdiction. As the disruptions from your generalised Interdiction fades, the Instructor begins another teleport, begins to enter- and you slam it closed.
This time, there is a very distinct white flash of an Impeller reaction as the teleport fails and her Impeller saves her from being crushed as the tunnel collapses.
- except the Instructor teleports on the spot, choosing to maintain her location but inverting her course, exiting the shift in the same location but racing in the exact opposite direction.
Another sneaky sneaky maneuver from Instructor Langston. More evidence she survived all those Type Zeroes by outsmarting them.
You are again close enough to attempt an intercept, but yet again that damn blue light flares up again, allowing for a teleport despite your immediate usage of halting.
I think this was the point Anna really need to stop. This was where the lost sight of the fact it was a training exercise. Plus that slip should have been a massive warning sign.
@Avalanche - I think your counters are really screwed up. For starters all the post start timers are still negative when they really should be positive. Plus times keep switching between seconds and minutes. I think this:
[-00:00:10.00]
[-00:00:05.00]
[-00:00:03.00]
[-00:00:01.00]
[-00:00:00.000032]
[00:01:00.00]
[00:00:51.76]
[00:00:50.00]
[00:00:48.12]
[00:00:42.51]
[00:00:40.00]
[00:00:35.80]
[00:00:34.99]
[00:00:34.79]
[00:00:30.00]
[00:00:29.00]
[00:00:28.00]
[00:00:27.00]
You'd never be free to concentrate all of your Impeller on one task in any real battle, but this wasn't just any battle, was it?
Gathering and compressing your Impeller, you turn all of your nineteen remaining layers to one task.
To halt it.
Space ripples as you reach outwards and tug. The force of this technique is so much greater than normal that spatial gaps flicker around you, discrepancies ebbing and flowing away from you. This is past Interdiction; when so much force is exerted on the fabric of space time that it tears, this is spatial corrosion.
Well technically spatial corrosion is an subset of Interdiction. Also I find it curious it required all of Anna's Impeller to cause since spatial corrosion is described as requiring high Speed and Precision not Efficiency:
Interdiction:
Range: 41
Precision: 90
Speed: 200 (Mastered)
Efficiency: 32
At the expense of Impeller Field integrity or Higgs Particle expenditure, in a moderate radius around the Valkyrie, spatial manipulation effects are prevented. In a large radius, spatial manipulation effects have are slowed and degraded in performance. At high speed, this ability can mitigate some Spatial Manipulation damage. At high precision and speed, this ability can corrode spacetime, freezing and crushing all unshielded matter within the afflicted area.
Well as I mentioned above technically spatial corrosion requires higher precision. So from a certain point of view using it should train precision.
[Ex_rcise paused \ User $&^uest halt \ Mec)~^ical ?rror]
Time is… running out?
You blink as the pressure of the countdown suddenly disappears.
To your side, the drone, trailing white celluloid smoke, slowly falls from the sky, bodywork twisted by the powerful spatial shears. A dozen kilometers away, Instructor Langston hovers.
Hmm. I wonder what exactly triggered this response. Did one of those Type Zeroes she ran into throw spatial corrosion around? Is it just that high level a technique (Interdiction is an Advanced skill and spatial corrsion requires high rankings in 2/4 of it's stats)? Or did we really come that close to, somewhat accidentally, killing her?
What can you say?
The Instructor using Higgs to teleport… had reminded you far too closely of that one enemy. Of Sekhmet. Combined with the time limit...
You weren't- you still aren't good with time limits. Ones that work against you, at least.
"The use of Higgs against me reminded me of that- that enemy, Sekhmet… and I'm bad with time limits. I stopped thinking."
It says a lot about Anna's social skills, or rather her lack therefore of, that what she said is basically identical to what she was thinking.
"It's okay, kinda my fault for not asking. Right. So no Higgs. Time limits are off limits," Instructor Langston starts up again, abruptly, "Okay… so! Uh, restart, same rules but no time limits? End on catch and all that? Uh, also, no Corrosion, please. That's not something I can deal with. Maybe if you were practicing with someone else from The Twenty."
"A single Corrosion pulse wouldn't have gotten through when I still had Higgs, and you didn't even throw it. I'm okay, I was just really surprised," the Instructor replies with a flippant wave of her hand.
These two quotes really make it seem like we were milliseconds away from killing poor Instructor Langston. This probably didn't do her, already low, self esteem much good.
"You should join us Instructors for some group exercises on the weekends. Or watch us, at least. It's a good way to distinguish our Higgs use signature with that of the Types. I'd always thought- I mean, given what I've heard about your sensory skills, I… uh- anyway! It's probably more fun than just sitting around in your room."
Hmm. We really should join them. For the training (way higher level then anything else we could get), the experiences with friendlies using Higgs, and to find out just what she was going to say.
"I think… I think that I will be bludging the afternoon lessons."
You glance at Instructor Langston, who is sprawled out on top of your Impeller, hitching a ride as you fly back to Perth. She is slumped down, an arm thrown over her visor, her breastplate rising and falling rapidly as she pants in exhaustion.
"Sorry for making you miss your lesson," you say sheepishly.
"Joking. Just joking, I'm still going," Instructor Langston laughs, a little hollowly, "I can't set an example like that for my Third Years so early in the year."
"Besides, there's nothing for you to apologise for. That's the most practice with teleporting under Interdiction I've ever had," she continues, struggling to a sitting position, "I should be thanking you instead. Not many Aces can apply a targeted Interdiction as fast as you can or hold a general Interdiction as long as you can. Really gives me a sense of perspective."
@Avalanche - I really have to congratulate you for how well you managed to show the wrongness of the Wave Force here.
Wave Force Manipulation, a pulse of Static Wave. Shallow, noisy, not fully coherent, but it is undeniable that someone else managed to fire off the completed technique. Is… is that what it looks like from a distance? How scary.
Well. When Anna calls something scary you know it's fucking terrifying!
"- blithering idiot. Cyka. Dumbass. Dipstick. Puta. Ben dan. I am going to learn Afrikaans, Korean and fucking Finnish just to let you know how much of an idiot you are."
"An inefficient use of your time. Perhaps it would have been a good idea to wait for Anna to arrive before putting our theory to the test."
"Gee. You don't say. Is eight your Rank or your IQ?"
"My rank. Also, thank you for saving my life, I would kiss you, but I think you are not very pretty."
"… do you want me to throw you back?"
"Please do not do that, I have yet to tell Valkyrie Sanchez the good news."
Instructor Washington erupts out of the disturbed space, her Impeller barely intact, carrying in her arms Instructor Vivas, who is-
You teleport down, cocoon the pair in your Impeller, then teleport both of them away from the remains of the Wave Force technique, ignoring the strain as multiple partitions of Impeller fail from forcing the teleport in such hostile conditions.
Bread-chan gives no fucks about your petty spatial distortions. She'll teleport straight through them, grab two Valkyries, and forcibly (likely too fast for them to recognize her) teleport them back out.
"Oh, you need not worry about my missing parts," Instructor Vivas says distractedly, "I've got spares."
With that and a flash of white light, Instructor Vivas suddenly has arms again, the skin on the new limbs pale pink compared to her dusky complexion, the raw skin contrasting harshly against blackened and shredded plates of her Valkyrie frame. She tries to get up, but you firmly force her back down as you complete another complete scan.
...Why aren't we storing spare arms limbs and organs yet? Given the color differential I suspect she is using donated limbs, rather then my first thought which was she routinely chops off one of her arms and stores it for later use as a replacement, and we could probably get our hands, pun absolutely intended, on some relatively easily. Especially if we use "Practicing/demonstrating the Wave Force" as justification like Instructor Vivas likely did.
Then again given Anna, at least under the old system, could heal 1 frame damage, loss of a limb, in a day compared to everyone else's week:
Depends on how much frame damage you take. I'll probably hammer it down more later but as it is right now, it's a finagled fibonacci sequence. Seriously.
1 day for 1 frame. 2 days for 2 frame. 3 days for 3 frame. 5 days for 4 frame. 8 days for 5 frame. 13 days for six frame... etc, the more damage you take, the slower you heal. I doubt this will stay this way as the quest progresses though.
As for normal Valks, (people who aren't you or other main characters) losing limbs and stuff is basically a trip to the hospital, with prosthetics, regen tanks and therapy. A week minimum for 1 frame damage. 2 frame damage would need a month most likely. 3 frame damage would be multi month long leave from the front. 4 frame is career ending injury with retirement offered. 5 and onwards would have people declaring miracles that you lived.
The other main characters also have accelerated healing, but it would still be weeks of hospital for 3-4 frame damage.
Medical Module. Manifestation manner unknown. (Integrating. 43 days until process complete.) Allows for the fast recovery of physical body and the treatment of the physical bodies of other humans. Requires supplies.
although that is outdated, pre-intergration, information. Speaking of which:
@Avalanche - You need to update the OP when you wake up.
Destroyed internal organs, regrown or replaced. Missing limbs, replaced. Various forms of surface trauma, closed. Fatally low blood volume, currently replenishing, likely already prioritised for repair. CNS… completely unharmed, almost certainly protected with the last of her Impeller. However, despite the replacement of the many destroyed or damaged systems, almost every single biological process in her body was malfunctioning. Instructor Washington paces behind you, swearing under her breath continuously.
I guess this goes to show just how crazy durable Valkyries are. Anyone else would be dead dead dead from all this well before Anna got to them.
"I-" the Instructor chokes, her breath seizing, and resumes using radio instead of her voice, tone disconcertingly calm even as she suffers cardiac arrest amongst other issues, "I have noticed that and am working on it. I may have exacerbated the problem however, by choosing to substitute in grafts in such a manner."
With a silent snarl of frustration on your face, you retract your medical module, with so many biological abnormalities simultaneously occurring, the use of chemical remedies are out of the question and appropriate nanomachines would take too long to manufacture.
Hm. We should just mass produce all the relevant types of nanomachines and keep them in storage for the next time something like this happens.
Your Impeller suffuses the Instructor, easily pushing through her still weak field and you manually correct some of the major issues, manually resetting her heart activity, reinflating her lungs and reopening several major blood vessels that had collapsed and removing clots. If this was your own body, you could have resolved every issue with your Impeller, but lacked the complete awareness that you would have of your own body and you dared not use high band scans on an exposed human body, Valkyrie or not. Your Impeller is also obstructed from forming a higher fidelity picture of the Instructor's body by her Impeller as it constantly regenerates and the two fields clash.
We should look into ways to scan the human body in higher detail. Or at least how to shutdown someone else's Impeller long enough for a detailed scan.
There is a ripple of bulging space near you, announcing an imminent teleport. Warned in advance by Perth, you move your Impeller out of the way. Instructor Parks teleports in, tilts her head as she digests the scans you send her, then unceremoniously slaps one armoured palm against her fellow Instructors shredded breastplate, and the other over her visor in exasperation as she starts a Higgs assisted long range teleport.
I wonder if Anna did yet another impossible thing when she used her Impeller to heal Instructor Vivas? That would explain the head tilt.
"Dali, got inspired when we were reviewing the latest simulator results and sent you a message, but for some reason it failed to go through," the blonde Instructor explains distantly, shucking her helmet and continuing to stare into the distance, at the remains of the Static Wave, "We waited a little, but there was no response… Dali wanted to go through with it. Really should have stopped her… but honestly, if she hadn't gone through with it when she did, I probably would have."
That was exactly what I was thinking when I heard them bickering.
"W-we did it, we actually did it. We managed to use your bullshit space hack attack. With just our Impeller. One Valk's Impeller, no need for some Arcology sized megastructure," Washington stutters with a voice thick with emotion, her eyes almost wild on her face, "With a little more work, us, the Three Hundred at least, can now create an effect like the God Gun- like your Wave Force attack. We finally have an answer for all the crap the Zeroes keep throwing our way…"
Uh-oh! This is just inviting Murphy to make the Zeroes through some new kinda bullshit at us. Like a wave of A ranks.
"Well… at least once in our lives," she amends, equipping her helmet back on, her tone now controlled and subdued, "We can all take at least one Zero with us, if they stay in range long enough, if we live long enough to see the attack through…"
It says something that Washington is talking about the Wave Force like it's some kinda suicide technique. Sure it's dangerous and all but as long as it takes out the Type Zero it should be fairly easy to retreat as long as you've got some kinda backup.
As you say this, you review the files that Vivas sent you. Most of it is already familiar to you, the various proofs and equations that you and the Instructors worked together on describing the Zeroth, First and Second stages of accessing the Wave Force. The theory work that you were collectively building for the Third stage had been patchwork and incomplete the last you reviewed, but now it is completed. It simply feels right.
You know I bet all this research is probably helping out the development of Ginnungagap.
"One moment," you excuse yourself from Instructor Washington and teleport towards the devastated ordinance testing ground.
As the space beneath you ripples in and out as each Wave crest exhausts itself, Durga's underlayers slide over your stump and the colouration and texture of the black material change to that of skin.
So that's how she kept her friends form finding out she's testing the Wave Force. It's pretty cool and shows Durga really is a Shoggoth in disguise.
You absently flex your temporary replacement arm as you think about the price for using the Wave Force. Only near your body could your Impeller reach the densities required for activating Wave Force, and the minimum radius of the Static Wave as it forms means that you will always sacrifice your body part that is closest to the activation point.
I suppose the question is why can you only form the needed densities close to your body? We know Anna can extend the range of Durga's Impeller field by extending tendrils of Durga. Maybe Anna can use a number of tendrils to focus the Impeller to the required densities at a safe distance.
Coming down from your emotional high, you consider the matter in more depth, putting aside the problem of the attack cost. To expand Wave Force's range is inarguably more important than reducing the survivable damage taken for activating the attack.
Oddly enough this is completely true. Expanding the range from point-blank means it's far more likely to hit the enemy and thus your chances of survival go way up.
"Anna? So your verdict, does it work?"
You send back an affirmative ping and return to your deliberations.
"… don't tell me you got Inspired too."
You send back an affirmative ping and return to your deliberations.
"Dammit, don't hurt yourself- well, anymore than you have to."
You send back an affirmative ping and return to your deliberations.
"At least get some distance between… you know what, I'm just going to carry you for a bit."
You send back an affirmative ping and return to your deliberations.
You split your thoughts, putting a part of you in charge of your body to return yourself to the Arcology, while the rest of you continues with the modifications to the Static Wave.
Anna: "I'm just going to split my thoughts so I can keep concentrating on this while doing other stuff. Nothing to worry about."
Static Wave: 130+150+60(Two special events)+10(Late update conpensation)=350/350 Static Wave Level 1 > Static Wave Level 2:
Expend all available Impeller and take minimal frame damage to deal enormous damage at short range.
Static Wave:
Level 1: Upon success roll, remove all available Impeller Field, all available Higgs and take minimal frame damage to deal enormous damage at Zero range.
Weaponry: (Stat Maximum can be capped based on equipment characteristics and suitability to ranges involved)
Zero Ranged: <100 meters
*Snip Weapons* Short Ranged: 100m - 15km
*Snip Weapons* Medium Range: 15km - 100km
*Snip Weapons* Long Range: 100km - 600km
*Snip Weapons* Extreme Ranged: >600km
*Snip Weapons*
Blue Wave: Expend all available Impeller and take minimal frame damage to deal very heavy damage in a line at any range.
0/1050 for Level 1. Red Wave: Expend all available Impeller and take minimal frame damage to deal indiscriminate, enormous damage around you at short range.
0/1050 for Level 1.
Holy shit! Blue Wave deals heavy damage at over 600km, so it's really just a question if "Can you hit it", while Red Wave is an AoE attack that obliterates everything within fifteen kilometers. The only question is if Red Wave also hits the user, it would be hard to imagine it not since it's indiscriminate and there would be a damage free cone extending out from behind the user. Of course I suppose that's why they are each 1050xp away from Anna using them.
Given that the Colored Waves seem to deal with the range aspects I suspect further leveling Static Wave would probably involve solving the Frame damage problem or reducing the Impeller drain. Either of which would, again, be a massive improvement.
Demolitions was an extremely technical elective, geared towards Valkyries running sabotage deep strikes into Antagonist territory. It offered painstakingly detailed descriptions of Antagonist trends in construction of structures and the most efficient ways to disable them. You unconsciously nod in approval at a quote from a previous class lecture; "Operating deep, you have no resupply. Your ammunition is limited. Your energy is limited. Most of all, your time is limited. For these situations where normal flights of Valkyries would bug out, efficiency is king."
So basically this class is the story of Anna's life. Seriously if she wrote an autobiography, or if someone wrote a biography on her, it would be the textbook for this class and the post-grad version.
The data from the quiz indicated that the structure you are attacking is an underground network of large scale aerospace fabrication facilities, generally used for the production of space ships components. You'd attacked such facilities before and think you have a fairly good idea of the general requirements.
Heavy Particle Projectors fire to destroy power links and destabilise energy generation, follow with-
No presence of Antagonist Interdiction? Another check of the sensor data provided confirms that there is no presence of Interdiction at all inside the complex. Bizarre.
I wonder if Anna really should write that textbook. Because if she thinks there should be Antagonist Interdiction and there isn't that suggests either the scenario is dumbed down for cadets, possibly but odd, or the UN just don't have that much knowledge/experiance of deep operations.
Your mind immediately jumps to the only one of The Twenty who you've worked closely with, Instructor Dalisay Vivas, rank eight. Part of Type Zero suppression Squadron Last Word alongside with you. Call sign Blue March.
Huh. It's kinda cool that Instructor Vivas is also a member of Last Word. That said "Blue March" is nowhere near as cool as call sign as "Coroner" is!
Armed with Exotic Principle Weaponry HongShao from Class C Type Zero Guan Yu, use by Vivas causes interruptions in Antagonist control protocols at long range, causing units to berserk. The Type Zero is suspected to hold a grudge against her for the theft of its unique weapon and the two have met in five separate occasions after their initial encounter over Hawaii.
Damn. All the top Aces are total badasses. Seriously she stole the unique weapon of a Class C Type Zero. That might actually be more impressive then Anna's killing one. I bet part of the reason she's so focused on learning the Wave Force is so she can finally finish off Guan Yu next time they meet.
At your name, the entire Crafting elective class, as one, pivot to look at you, like a swarm of hungry fish.
… Nope.
"… I'll visit later," you excuse yourself and step back out of the room, closing the door after yourself.
@Avalanche - Is there something in quest history named Maginot Ring that, presumably, was overrun by the Antagonists? Because the RL historical fortification was called the Maginot Line.
"Seriously, I hear you used to have ten of these? Are you magic?"
"No fabricator on earth can maintain that level of granularity across the size of the quantum matrix we need!" snaps Cadet Sibel Neuer, who you remember is the president of the Crafting class, "You've got to send in requisition order to Armstrong base, and Armstrong has its quantum scale fabricators firing all cylinders on something or another and will be busy for like the rest of this year. To make such a computing matrix, we'd need to either upgrade a five state matrix or fold out the quantum structure with Impeller alone and either might take years."
"Um-" you start, then pause in surprise when the arguing ball of crafting class cadets actually stop and pay attention to you. They didn't seem like the type of people who would stop their arguing for anything.
"I have accessed the designs for the quantum computing matrix, and it is something within my ability to build, though the Crafting class is right in that this would take up some time for me. Firstly, I have to clarify some problems."
"Remake! Remake! Remake-" "So ffffffforking done." "TFW you thought you were ahead only cause you were so far behind you couldn't see the others." "Bet Beijing doesn't know about that ahaha-" "-Remake! Remake! Remake-" "-if Santiago already knows about this and that's why they're taking so long?" "-away with it too, if it weren't for that meddling kid and her little cannon!" "Remake! Remake! Remake…"
The Legend of Bread-chan continues to grow I see. I can't help but feel sorry for the poor "Videos of various things that are often cute but sometimes rather scary." club knowing that they'll be the last to see us.
You send an acknowledgement and descend down. The boat is crowded, so you hover over it with your Impeller, pick out some gear marked for newcomers, then set yourself down in the water a little distance away from the boat.
Retracting Durga, you spread your Impeller and sit down on the water, throwing your line out and waiting.
I can see all the Valkyries crammed onto that trawler asking "Why didn't I think of that?" since it just seems so obvious a solution.
"We don't really have any other rules," she continues casually as she hooks and baits another line, sending a map of the surrounding waters to you, "Just don't tangle lines with the others and if you aren't going to eat it, toss it."
*snip*
You reel in a fish, a Yellowfin Tuna, seamlessly free it by taking in the fishing line and hook into your storage and cast out the line again. The line flies out, three- four hundred meters then plops into the water. You tug the line in at a moderate speed, then rapidly reel in for a few seconds before resetting to a slower speed, cycling between the two motions. Another bite on the line, pink snapper you confirm after reeling it in, and set it free. One of the sharks that have been lurking around under you snaps up the disorientated fish, vanishing back into the depths.
Hm. I wonder why Anna decided to keep the Yellowfin Tuna (presumably to eat) but not that Pink Snapper? Especially since while the former is a staple fish the Pinker Snapper is a high prized fish for eating.
A huge, rountound grouper fish swims up to you, it's more than three meters long, covered with black scales occasionally speced with white spots. To your surprise, as it approaches, an IFF signal chirps, identifying the fish as 'George; protected fish'. It inquisitively bumps you with its snout and then, apparently baffled by your Impeller field, turns and slowly swims away.
That was surprisingly adorable for a fish that looks like this.
Coming to a halt on the seafloor, kicking up gentle puffs of mud with your Impeller, you look at the source.
For a moment, you can't quite process what you are seeing.
On the third level of an ancient apart, it's foyers buried under layers of dark sediment, warm yellow light shines out from a window. Unlike the barren and cold rooms neighbouring it, the windows are still perfectly intact, holding out the water. Floral patterned curtains, tied back by frilly red ribbons, frame the scene through the window. A dining room, a long table set for eight, only one seat occupied.
Instructor Leonhart sits alone and still at the table, slumped forwards on her elbows, looking down at her hands. Steam gently rises up from dishes set in the middle of the table. She glances at the door, then back down again at her clasped hands, otherwise, she is completely still.
I wonder what effects these will have on Anna's character sheet.
That is not to say you learnt nothing thus far.
You have learnt that you are terrible at teaching.
After much talking in disjointed and stumbling English, wild gesticulations and transmission of electronic data that made Koujirou cross-eyed and forced Setsuna to clear her datapad's memory, you decided to surrender and simply sit in on the lessons that Yukari held for the two first years instead.
"- false expansion of volume inside your Impeller. Well, as usual for relative beginners, a visualisation of the technique is likely easier. Imagine you're holding a large balloon and it's trying to expand-"
You're familiar with the technique Yukari is teaching, but you usually visualise it as a snowflake, every tine another snowflake, with the more tines that you can see corresponding with the power of the technique.
You know I can't help but that Anna's visualization probably works better and Setsuna would do better if Anna hers.
Setsuna continues broodingly staring down at the ground, looking troubled. You're about to try to offer some advice on Impeller technique, as badly as that has gone in the past, when Setsuna abruptly shoots another furtive look over at you, then for some reason huffs out a self satisfied breath and a smug smile spreads over her face.
…The wide smug grin on the face of the other girl fills you with annoyance and you don't even know why.
Their profiles do list breast sizes however judging by the images I'm guessing Setsuna is deriving some satisfaction that while her breasts are smaller then those of Sandra and Shuri they are larger then Anna's.
...You know given that Anna shut down most her biology at some point and that she started fighting at age nine. I wonder what effects that might have had on her development. Plus it's mentioned in her background that food grew scarce, and Anna even mentioned having to fish to feed herself, so it's possible she never had the excess fat to devote to breast growth.
"Though… you aren't the first one to make use of your Impeller in that manner, shall we say. If you decide to prank Koujirou, make sure to record his reaction." Yukari chuckles.
*Looks at Yukari's image*
*Sees she's flat as board*
Yes. I imagine you have experience with this. Don't you Yukari?
As the two girls snigger behind their hands, trading significant looks with each other, a ping from Durga attracts your attention. You just received a message from… Sandra? Strangely, it's not from her as a position of Flight Leader, or even as a Valkyrie cadet. Neither is it addressed personally to you, rather, this looked more like a general announcement. It was addressed from United Nations High Commission for Refugees, Undersecretary of Humanitarian Affairs, Aleksandra Marianne Cambridge.
Looks like Anna's been slowly going stir-crazy without something to do.
A dig through your service details reveals that you are apparently under a 'Section 55 exemption'. That exemption is applied where if the birthdate of a person could not be officially confirmed to 'legal satisfaction', protections usually afforded by their age may be waived.
That's interesting. So you can apply for a frontline combat positions right as of right now?
See! Stir-crazy. Her first thought was "I can go back to combat!?"
A search reveals that Shuri is also under a Section 55 exemption, due to her circumstances of birth being unknown. As is Zoe Hermann, the other First Year Ace, the records of the hospital she was born at having been lost. In fact… every single Ace ranked cadet in the first and second years at Perth are under Section 55 exemptions, all their birth records apparently having been lost or not up to legal standard.
Kinda depressing that the UNAF feels the need to ensure all Aces are eligible to be deployed if needed. Also kinda nice that despite that ability they are making the underage Aces attend school. After all if you told Shuri, and a lot of those Aces, they could deploy right now if they asked they'd jump at the chance, just like Anna, because they'd feel it's their duty. So they don't tell them and just keep it as an ace in the hole.
You are just be glad to have the opportunity to do something. Aid in construction of refugee shelters, duration of mission is a maximum of two weeks. Specialised Builders are due to be shipped on site on final days of mission. Danger level; very low. A mission -any mission- you will gladly take. Departure in six hours via transport jet.
It's the things we say in a panic that reveal the most about us. Admittedly we already knew Yukari had issues about being left behind but that it's one of the first things out of her mouth when a friend mentions going on a mission...
Yukari's face goes through a range of emotions as you watch on, features twisting into something dark before she seems to deflate, looking crestfallen.
"Combat eligible? So that's how it's going to be," Yukari says flatly.
Poor Yukari. She's more then capable but I'm guessing she's on forced leave for mental health reasons. Or put simply; The UN psychologists are afraid she'll put herself and others in danger by engaging in suicidal behavior in a (likely unconscious) attempt to reunite with her dead team.
"Anna," Yukari almost shouts, reaching up and grabbing you by the shoulders, her face unreadable, then she hugs you.
Anna is too adorable. It's scenes like this that really make me wish we'd managed to end up with a Anna/Yukari duo going off and doing awesome things like some of the omakes have teased at. That would be been great!
"Wow Yukari. For such a poignant moment, you two sure can add on the unnecessary romantic undertones," Setsuna says frankly from behind you.
Yukari chokes out a startled laugh, "Setsuna, you watch too much anime."
I ship Anna/Yukari! Incidentally this almost certainly got the scene, or at least bits of it, into the anime. Mysterious character going off on a mysterious mission plus Yuri undertones make it a must see scene.
"… The details of that particular section is beyond my security classification. When was… how- Tell me Anna, what is a section fifty five exemption?" Sandra asks intensely, leaning forwards towards the camera, her eyes sharp.
It's really not surprising that the UNAF's get out of jail card for deploying under aged Aces is classified when you think about it. Still came as a slight surprise to me.
"A person is eligible for-"
"Stop," Sandra suddenly snaps, throwing herself back into her chair, a palm over her eyes.
"Sorry," she continues in a calmer tone, "My apologies, don't tell me, I could have landed you in serious trouble."
Apparently Anna doesn't understand the concept of classified. Or I suppose more accurately she doesn't care about minor classified stuff. She's done a good job keeping important stuff, like Wave Force and Ginnungagap secret when pressed so I suppose it's more she doesn't see why S55 should be classified and so doesn't care about keeping it secret.
"I'll meet you onsite at twenty hundred Perth time then, until then, I need to find and break some skulls," Sandra smiles tightly, then leaves the call.
I wonder if that is about recruiting people or yelling at people about letting an underage girl out on missions to areas where escalation to combat or redeployment to forward lines is possible.
However… a quick review of previously done work demonstrates a huge discrepancy of currently committed construction forces with those the economic power the UN has historically demonstrated. Even accounting for losses, the UN is short of at least a quarter of its construction capacity. Despite careful scouring, you can't appear to find those missing assets. Also, in spite of materials production increasing steadily, the relative lack of active construction has not resulted in a corresponding surplus of materials. As far as you can tell, the materials are simply missing.
I wonder if Anna's security clearance, or casual hacking abilities, are the reason she can so easily access this information or if the UN's infosec is just that bad. Because a discrepancy this large makes it obvious there is a massive classified project being worked on.
"No problem," you reply, "Anything to help other people. Others would do the same if they had the chance."
"Ears of rice bow deeply as they ripen," the Flight Lieutenant quotes a little bitterly, "Not that many cadets care about these kinda camps once they leave for an Arcology and take their families with them. Good luck, if you need any help, call us over TACNET."
Can't say I'm too impressed that most cadets stop caring about how shit life was in the camps when they move to an Arcology. Luckily Anna is here to help.
Your maximum Impeller range from expressed frame components is around one hundred meters, but your practical total reach with your Impeller is very easy to increase due to Durga's properties.
Durga's underlayers drip out, thin tendrils of material spreading outward. Using it only to expand your peripheral Impeller range like so, you keep the tendrils thin enough that they should be invisible from the ground. Your range expands until you are encompassing the entire town. You reach down towards the docks with one tendril and you take part of the the construction materials into your storage.
It's a Shoggoth I tell you! A Shoggoth! It explains everything. Especially the maxed out construction ability.
By now people have spotted you, there are are people pointing up at you and waving. A few jump up and down, cheering, mostly the children.
… You haven't really done anything yet. You hesitantly wave back in greeting. There is a fresh outburst of noise below as the children laugh and wave even harder. You again reply and for the next few minutes, you are stuck in a loop of waving back until the children tire of it and simply sit around, apparently waiting for you to do something else.
You're sorry to disappoint, but you doubt your work on the sewage system will be anywhere near as visually interesting.
This is (part of) why this was the perfect choice. While it brings up memories of the town, and how they turned on her, it also reminds Anna of the happiest period of her life, that year between finding Durga and the Antagonists arriving. Whenever Anna needs to relax and decompress this is what she should be doing. She won't be able to find solace in inactivity but in helping others in a peaceful way that no one else really can.
Next you turn your attention to the original combined sewage passageway. You divert the storm water drains into your new tunnels and now focus on converting the original dual purpose channel into a dedicated waste processing system, working to connect the individual houses as well as set up new channels
…
For all the praise that people give you about your sensory and data processing abilities, sometimes, it's rather unfortunate to intimately know basically every detail about what your Impeller is touching.
Heh. Poor Anna getting an intimate knowledge of human waste. Still the fact she can have nice normal reactions like this is a good thing.
To your surprise, there are some people, mainly children, who begin playing around as you work, jumping from one piece of furniture to another, pretending there is no floor under their feet. Others again stand on your Impeller and flap their arms, pretending to fly.
You smile, the cheer is really infectious. For a moment, you consider slowing down, but then shunt the thought aside. You might have time for this after you complete the rest of the renovations.
The other Valkyries approach slowly, swooping down in extended wing formation, they must have disembarked from the transport jet further south and have flown here in their Valkyries. You reel in Durga's under layers so that you won't interfere with the approach and watch on.
Framed by the setting sun, the other cadets glide gracefully to a landing in the field. You notice that more than one cadet have increased the refractive index of their Impeller, throwing out glitters and glimmers of rainbow light as they fly over the town.
Sandra steps to the head of the small procession, retracing Albion, revealing that she is dressed in an plain but sharp ensemble of blouse and skirt. The other cadets also retract their Valkyries as they form a short double column behind Sandra, and the two groups meet and exchange pleasantries. You idly note that unlike Sandra, the other volunteer cadets are in dress uniforms. Towns people are now crowding around, looking on curiously. Sandra finishes talking with the workers and expresses Albion back out, but leaves the helmet off. She hovers up on her Impeller and makes another speech, this one broadcast through the town on its PA system.
"We are all Valkyrie cadets of Perth. We are here to help," Sandra's voice rings out firmly, delivering the short and to the point message.
A slightly ragged cheer rises from the people of the town.
Well. At the very least Sandra knows how to make a PR statement. I'll admit i"m kinda torn on this. On one hand morale is vitally important for both the refugees and Valkyries, they won't keep coming to these things if they feel depressed afterwards, plus it makes recruiting potential Valkyries even easier. On the other hand however they are wasting time showboating and making a PR spectacle of the thing just feels wrong.
That being said:
"Anna," she beams at you, smile threatening to split her face, her cheeks slightly flushed, "Just amazing work- I could hardly believe- I mean, that is to say-"
Sandra pauses and take a slight breath, "Pardon me, I'm quite lost for words. You're quite simply the most capable Builder I've ever met in person."
"Ah- um, thanks," you mumble, taken aback. Sandra was usually upbeat, but right now she seems outright ecstatic.
Sandra raises a hand over her heart, closes her eyes and take a slight breath, when she reopens her eyes, she's still sunny in her expression, but no longer blindingly so.
This really shows that despite the PR crap Sandra really cares about these people and that she is probably the best person for the job of Undersecretary of Undersecretary of Humanitarian Affairs for the UNHCR.
It's nice observing how others build and it gives you a little time to recover.
While the work you are doing here would not tax you at all usually, the refinements for Static Wave's last two stages that you've been ticking away at in the back of your mind is hugely decreasing the amount of other tasks you can do.
Heh, it's quite amusing that Anna still rates as one of the greatest builders alive even though a significant portion of her processing power is focused on reinforcing her status as the greatest destroyer alive. Imagine how much better she'd be if she could focus her full attention towards the task.
"Anna," Sandra messages you, "You should come down too. The people here have all been asking to meet you. They want to thank you for doing so much for them."
You look down, at the cheering people, the smiling faces, the laughter. People here and there glance up at you, confirming you are still overhead, faces hopeful.
… A bout of dizziness hits you, memories, unwanted, rush to the fore of your mind-
"I'll continue working. We can complete work by midnight tonight."
Dammit Bold!Anna! Why'd you have to go interfere with such a great moment! I know you want Anna to be the greatest destroyer ever, hint she already is, but improving her mental well-being will make her better not worse. Still I'm quite confident this mission is doing wonders for Anna's mental health.
What do you need to do next? More light fixtures, planting some greenery, installation of recreational facilities, plant down baseball nets in field 1, soccer goals in field 2…
Seven days and seven towns, some in a similar state to Seosan, some worse off. Every one of them now almost gleaming. Cheering crowds left behind at the departure of your team every time.
Seven days and seven towns. That's quite the impressive achievement. I'm sure each and every one of the background twenty four volunteers is amazed and proud of the wonder they've accomplished here. I also suspect The Legend of Bread-chan will grow ever more amazing when this tale is added. Seriously seven towns in seven days sounds kinda biblical, probably due to the whole creating the world in seven days thing, and it's the source of a potentially amazing meme:
"Bread-chan could build Rome in a day."
Seven towns. Combined population, a hair over two hundred thousand people.
In the rolling river plains below, the sounds of festivities ring out distantly from Jixi town.
Two hundred thousand people in seven days. You turn the number over in your head, recalling the faces of the town populations. Irrelevant information, you discard the memories and concentrate on facts instead.
The total population of the UN sat at around one billion, two hundred million, six hundred and ninety thousand people. Last year, there were thirty six million or so newborn babies. You turn the numbers over your head, trying to envisage the scale involved. Enough new life to form half the population of Perth was brought into this world.
In the grand scheme of things 200k isn't much. A mere 0.017% the total population. But for those two hundred thousand people you made a difference. What you've done is something that not only will but already has changed their lives for the better. Hell if you get really optimistic Anna didn't "merely" improve the lives of two hundred thousand people. No she improved the lives of two hundred thousand people and all their future descendants.
If the Valkyries are thought of as the staunchest defenders of humanity, every single member of the United Nations Valkyries held sixty thousand lives in their hands.
…
Anna: "I couldn't even protect the eight thousand five hundred and three people of my hometown. How can they, how can I, protect sevenfold that number?"
Unlike the Third Year cadets, she couldn't make it through the week without sleeping until the end and you saw her occasionally catching cat naps here and there. Even so, from the hours she worked, she likely got less than ten hours sleep total this week.
Ann meanwhile almost certainly worked continuously for the full 168 hours and is only stopping because they have to go home now.
Despite the address of the initial mission offer from the UNHCR under Sandra's name, it's clear whatever actual criteria it was sent under did include Shuri or Zoe, despite both the other two eligible for the same section fifty five exception you have.
@Avalanche - I think you meant "didn't" here because the sentence doesn't really make sense as is.
"If those towns are to come under attack, my presence would help," you object.
"It's not so simply," Sandra shakes her head decisively, "The Armed Forces can call an attack and move up all strategic reserves, including forces in Line three and up areas. Then upon the Antagonist counter attack, the reserves can then be called to the front to 'repel' the attack. The Pakistani armed forces used-"
Well, well, well. I guess we know how the Pakistanis "justified" deploying Shuri all the time.
"It's not your skill that's the issue," Sandra sounds frustrated, "It's you, Anna. Your wellbeing."
"I am fine," you insist.
"You won't be. You'd never refuse a request to engage in battle and they- the other Valkyries might care about you, but that machine, STRATNET, it won't," Sandra leans forward, tone almost pleading, "You'll be deprived. Deprived of your humanity. Of your freedoms. Living a life set and regimented by others."
Bread-chan: "So basically my life since I was nine? Fighting day-and-night is nothing new to me Sandra. I have spent more of my life on alert then I have off. You say I'll be deprived of my humanity, I say I discarded that seven years ago when I took up the responsibility to protect eight thousand five hundred and three lives."
"I'm not here to-" your word stick in your throat, -run away, Anna. Do other, normal things. Live a childhood that I never could give you. Live on and be happy, please. You understand me right? You've always protected her. Will you remind her?-
Ha! I knew it was Durga sending us those messages! Admittedly the words are from someone close to Anna, presumably a parent, but it's still Durga sending them! Also more evidence that Durga is a person since it's choosing to obey a request from someone other then it's pilot.
"To experience the full spectrum of life before being sent onto a battlefield and facing the spectre of your life cut short," Sandra declares, but her tone resolute, "We owe everyone whom we send to the front this privilege."
Bread-chan: "Facing the specter of death? Really Sandra? That's the best you could come up with? I've been doing that since I was nine! Death and I are practically best friends by now!"
"That's - that relies on the premise of vulnerability. If it is combat ability, then there is no way I am lacking. You know how much I can do. After that simulation in North America, you said," you hesitate for a moment, dredging up the unclear memories, "You said we influenced the Alaskan Offensive, greatly."
"How many people might be saved in the future?" you ask Sandra, waving your arms at the merrily blinking lights of Jixi in the distance.
Sandra looks out to the town and back to you several times, her mouth opening several times in false starts.
"Why- why do you want to- fight so much?" Sandra finally chokes out, her face scrunching in anguish, eyes glimmering in the moonlight, too upset to continue using comms, "I have always, always been trained to look at the greater picture, but- but I don't want my friends to die."
You rock back on your heels in shock as you watch Sandra's composure crumble.
Anna Uses Math and Logic! It's Super Effective!
Sandra Is Confused! Sandra Uses Emotions! It's Super Effective!
Seriously though Sandra lost the argument there and is resorting to emotional plays to try and convince Anna to back down. Admittedly it's all, probably, genuine emotions but still a loss.
Bread-chan: "I have Eight thousand, five hundred, and three reasons why. I was too late once before but Never Again! There are far too many people relying on me now. I can't fail again. I won't fail again!"
"You- not just you. Why does the UN desire you on the front so? That machine, STRATNET, is always demanding you be placed right on the African front, at the Gates of Hell itself. The Type Zeroes there, they- they- You'll die. Or you'll be maimed until you can't even remember your past, your friends, who you were," you flinch, but Sandra continues, tear trails faintly shining down her face, "No Ace lasts longer than a quarter there without injury. That thing wants you there on permanent station."
I find the bit I bolded most interesting. It sounds so very familiar. I guess we know what happened to Anna's memories, or at least the ones she isn't repressing.
Her shoulders shake and Sandra ducks her head, biting her lip.
"There is a reason, Sandra," you start slowly, "By the United Nations combat aptitude rankings, I am the first amongst all Valkyries."
Why was Sandra hopeful about her question as to whether Anna was responsible for taking Saskatoon down? Is it that she's hopeful Anna is really so strong, since it would mean she soloed a C ClassType-Zero and a breach Hive, Sandra doesn't have to worry about her dying?
There is a long and contemplative silence. The peaceful moment is eroded however as you hear the rising sounds of Castiglioni and Hasiholan in the distance arguing again. The crafting class members apparently simply unable to help themselves.
Annoyed at the intrusion, you thicken your Impeller and mute them.
"Anna, I see you hold a duty and responsibility far beyond my own," Sandra says, standing up and meeting your eyes, "However, can you promise me that you try to live your life out to the fullest, living as you wish, and not on the behest of others?"
"I can, so long as there are no concessions to my combat capabilities other than those absolutely necessary," you reply.
...goddammit organ vote! I knew it would come back to bite us. I still think it was the better choice then "Suffer this horribly unpleasant thing because it's normal." but it still hurts seeing Anna say this line.
Sandra smiles sadly up at you, then steps forwards and hugs you.
…urk.
She isn't letting go.
You awkwardly pat her back in return.
At that, Sandra wordlessly steps back, for a moment she looks up into your face. Before she takes a larger step back and turns around.
"In time, what you find to be absolutely necessities might change, Anna. For you, I hope they do."
Decide on a favourite food or favourite food type!
[X] Pancakes with maple syrup.
It just makes sense.
Which matches of the Squadron Vanguard tournament will you be going to see?
Accept Commentary request?
[X] No. Watch specific matches. You may choose multiple people. In case of clash, Anna will prioritise watching matches by number of votes received.
[X] Watch Koujirou and Setsuna. How have they improved?
[X] Watch Sandra.
Kind of want to see how they do.
Also seriously how highly does STRATNET value Anna if it want her deployed there on a permanent basis. Even the machine should be programmed for rotations and the like. Does it think she can handle it or even may have a large enough impact for it to be worth burning out the nr.1 Valk?
Someone tossed the idea before the OP is Anna doing and joining multiple clubs in the random shots.
The anime shows this also with occasionally Anna walking around and doing her own stuff with random things, maybe sometimes she's walking around talking with instructors, at times moving really fast as a whole crowd chase her and almost worship the very ground she walks, then you get those weird ones where's she giving another instructor a piggy back, flying past the background as a small dot in those blink and miss moments.
That'd actually be kind of fun. Also maybe a cameo of a club fan girl for Anna? She wants to know where she is because she has so many questions for Anna-whatever she's being called by them. Sensei?
[X] Pancakes with maple syrup.
[X] Yes. You will watch all the matches involving your squadron. As the matches take place simultaneously, you will only be watching the matches from your own squadron.
-[X] Preferably paired with another commentator. Perhaps an instructor like Meyer or Leonhart.
Decide on a favourite food or favourite food type! Doesn't matter if you classify them by region, type or anything;
[X] Pancakes with maple syrup.
Which matches of the Squadron Vanguard tournament will you be going to see?
Accept Commentary request?
[X] Yes. You will watch all the matches involving your squadron. As the matches take place simultaneously, you will only be watching the matches from your own squadron.
-[X] Preferably paired with another commentator. Perhaps an instructor like Meyer or Leonhart.
I can absolutely guarantee you that her ability deserves the rank. Also, need to talk to you, stop pretending to be offnet. I know you monitor these comment thread replies IRT. -Comment by user "Jatayu Sen" (Verified WAN Account, United Nations Armed Forces, Air Force Air Marshal, Valkyrie Ace Rank 2), highest rated response to above comment
I am pretty sure this comment IS meant to call out to Anna.
IRT probably stands for In Real Time, which is exactly what we set Durga to do whenever our name is mentioned.
So yes, Jatayu Sen was trying to talk to us. How she found out is beyond me but given her position I figured she just ask UN Intelligence department. I wonder what she wants though, maybe she wants to meet us face to face since she never really know much about us.
Which matches of the Squadron Vanguard tournament will you be going to see?
Accept Commentary request?
>[X] Yes. You will watch all the matches involving your squadron. As the matches take place simultaneously, you will only be watching the matches from your own squadron.
-- [X] Preferably paired with another commentator. Perhaps an instructor like Meyer or Leonhart.
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