Gundam Crucible - [An AU Universal Century Quest]
- Thread starter TheBleachDoctor
- Start date
Trying to put a kill switch on her suit (bomb or otherwise) screams schmuck bait to me.
Especially the psycommu receiver.
Need i remind people that she's a far stronger Newtype than our main character? It's far more likely she does a UNO Reverse on us with the kill switch and subvert it. Especially since she is crafty and crazy enough to take huge risks for a chance at success.
Either observe her or put her in the suit without a killswitch.
Frankly trying to control her with a kill switch would far more likely to end up driving her into a sudden but inevitable betrayal than trusting her would.
Especially the psycommu receiver.
Need i remind people that she's a far stronger Newtype than our main character? It's far more likely she does a UNO Reverse on us with the kill switch and subvert it. Especially since she is crafty and crazy enough to take huge risks for a chance at success.
Either observe her or put her in the suit without a killswitch.
Frankly trying to control her with a kill switch would far more likely to end up driving her into a sudden but inevitable betrayal than trusting her would.
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Greek Fire
One of these days, I'll actually start writing.
- Location
- The Earth Sphere
[X] Let her pilot her MP Nu, but with the understanding that…
-[X] You'll disable her MS if she tries anything funny.
This aught to be interesting...
-[X] You'll disable her MS if she tries anything funny.
This aught to be interesting...
- Pronouns
- Reader
[X] Let her pilot her MP Nu, but with the understanding that…
-[X] You'll be watching her like a hawk, because you're responsible for her.
On second thought Cybele is kind of weak Newtype wise, and Lorelei is seeming Judau level. Not sure I trust a Psycommu link not to backfire
-[X] You'll be watching her like a hawk, because you're responsible for her.
On second thought Cybele is kind of weak Newtype wise, and Lorelei is seeming Judau level. Not sure I trust a Psycommu link not to backfire
I really think trying to use a kill switch based on psychoframe/psycommu tech on a mobile suit that'll be piloted by a Newtype *significantly* stronger than Cybele is a bad idea in all honesty. And Lorelei is likely crafty enough that what we've seen out of her as of yet is not all she can do. And what we know she can do now is significant already.
Given how strong she is I wouldn't put it past her being able to hijack any psycommu stuff if she has to.
If we can't trust her, keep her in observation. If we can trust her with piloting, don't use kill switch or bomb. Installing the kill switch will just poison the relationship from the start.
Given how strong she is I wouldn't put it past her being able to hijack any psycommu stuff if she has to.
If we can't trust her, keep her in observation. If we can trust her with piloting, don't use kill switch or bomb. Installing the kill switch will just poison the relationship from the start.
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[X] Let her pilot her MP Nu, but with the understanding that…
-[X] You'll be watching her like a hawk, because you're responsible for her.
-[X] You'll be watching her like a hawk, because you're responsible for her.
Shapeless Phobos
Filthy Casual
Heh, seems Kamille and I are on the same wavelength!
...
Wait is that a good thing or a bad thing? ...I might need therapy...
[X] Let her pilot her MP Nu, but with the understanding that…
-[X] You'll disable her MS if she tries anything funny.
Cybele: "There shall henceforth be a Big Sis Pecking Order in this Squad!"
Sicilia: "Yeah! Big Sis Cybele is #1!"
Cybele: *Nods sagely as she looks intently at an in-depth ranking chart made with construction paper and colorful stickers.* "Right, but looks like Lorelei is ranked #2?"
Eris: "WHAT?! But I have seniority! Let me see that list!"
Cybele: *Swats her friend's hand away* "Ah-ah! Only Number 1 and Sicilia can see The Ranking Chart."
Eris: *Mutters something about authoritarianism and nepotism.* "Am I at least #3?"
Sicilia: "Yep! Then Mort's #4!"
Theo: "I feel like I should be annoyed at that but in all honesty you can have it Mort."
Mort: *Near tears.* "I'll make all of you proud."
Cybele: "I wouldn't get too cozy you three cause once we extend things passed the squad things start to get kind of crazy. Christina's weirdly the one to beat."
Sicilia: "I like her hair! It reminds me of my other sisters..."
- Pronouns
- Reader
I feel like Camilla would rank above Christina, and given how Christina was having trouble getting Sicilia to listen, I'm not sure she's that highly ranked. Also, now that we are aware of Sicilia's Jealousy streak, is it possible that all of Sicilia's slip ups with Cybele's Amuro Fangirl stuff were deliberate attempts to prevent them from growing closer by making them both feel super awkward?
[X] Let her pilot her MP Nu, but with the understanding that…
-[X] You'll disable her MS if she tries anything funny.
-[X] You'll disable her MS if she tries anything funny.
[X] Let her pilot her MP Nu, but with the understanding that…
-[X] You'll be watching her like a hawk, because you're responsible for her.
-[X] You'll be watching her like a hawk, because you're responsible for her.
[X] Let her pilot her MP Nu, but with the understanding that…
-[X] You'll be watching her like a hawk, because you're responsible for her.
The last thing we want is New Boss Same As Old Boss.
-[X] You'll be watching her like a hawk, because you're responsible for her.
The last thing we want is New Boss Same As Old Boss.
Exactly. If we want to build trust we need to reach out in good faith as well. She gave us intel and asked to defect. And as far as the Fed is concerned she's dead.
Like, she's pretty well burned her bridges with the Federation (as shitty as said bridge was).
Either decide to not trust her with a mobile suit or trust her. Putting in a kill switch, explosive or otherwise is a bad idea.
More practically the psycommu kill switch sounds like a hell of a schmuck bait since you know, Lorelei is a far stronger Newtype than Cybele and I wouldn't put it past her to be able to do a Uno Reverse on us with it if she wants to.
Nottheunmaker
Altman be praised
- Location
- USG Ishimura
On the other hand, a traitor once is likely to be a traitor again. Nothing about her is trustworthy. Just because she can't go back to the Federation doesn't mean she's lacking in places to go.
There's a misunderstanding here. Trust is a two-way street, and she has a lot of levers over her. Right now Cybele shouldn't be worried about getting her trust, Lorelei should be proving she's worthy of trust.
Then don't take her along. Social pressure is useless on someone like her.
There's a misunderstanding here. Trust is a two-way street, and she has a lot of levers over her. Right now Cybele shouldn't be worried about getting her trust, Lorelei should be proving she's worthy of trust.
- Pronouns
- Reader
It's a little late to do a don't give her a mobile suit switch vote. Currently, both other options are leading by 9 & 8 votes, with kill switch being in the lead by 1.
So the question is, which girl do we think a Psycommu connection between their machines benefits more? Lorelei or Cybele? I think Lorelei is the one with the raw ability and training to make the best use of that. If we want Cybele to be a check on Lorelei's actions, watching her closely is more likely to pay off than a contest of Newtype abilities.
[X] Let her pilot her MP Nu, but with the understanding that…
-[X] You'll be watching her like a hawk, because you're responsible for her.
-[X] You'll be watching her like a hawk, because you're responsible for her.
[X] Let her pilot her MP Nu, but with the understanding that…
-[X] You'll be watching her like a hawk, because you're responsible for her.
-[X] You'll be watching her like a hawk, because you're responsible for her.
TheBleachDoctor
Secretly a Cat
- Location
- The Plane of Infinite Kittens
- Pronouns
- She/Her
Chapter 33: Growing Family
TheBleachDoctor
Secretly a Cat
- Location
- The Plane of Infinite Kittens
- Pronouns
- She/Her
[X] Let her pilot her MP Nu, but with the understanding that…
-[X] … you'll be watching her like a hawk, because you're responsible for her.
Lorelei looks almost surprised when you unlock the door to her holding cell and hold it open for her.
"Well, that was fast," she remarks as she steps out, "Am I part of your team?"
"Yeah, welcome to Cascadia team," you offer your hand, and once she takes it you grip hers tightly, "but I've got my eyes on you. I'm going out on a limb here and trusting you. Don't let me down, or it's my ass on the line."
"I won't let you down, leader!" She salutes you with her free hand. As for her grip strength, well, it's about equal to yours.
"I'll take that as a promise." You nod, releasing her hand after a few seconds, "Alright, first order of business, let's get you all squared away. We can't have you walking around in those Federation threads."
Bellerophon-Mess Hall
You pause mid-conversation when Sicilia pops her head up over the edge of the table, staring intently at Lorelei. From your side of the table, she looks a bit ridiculous…
The new member of Cascadia team gives the girl a smile before pushing her cup of pudding over to the Cyber Newtype.
"Big Sister Two." Sicilia mutters, picking up the cup and running off.
"…What was that about?" You stare off after her. She's been acting odd ever since Lorelei came on board.
"You have a very cute little sister." Lorelei says. Nice thing to say, not enlightening.
"-so from today forwards, Lorelei Vogel will be a member of Cascadia Team." You finish introducing the new girl to everyone else, much to the team's collective shock.
"I look forward to working with you all!" She takes a bow, all smiles and sunshine.
At first, nobody is sure what to say, but eventually Eris chimes in with, "Cybele, what the hell?"
"What? She's a defector. Besides, you all heard what the Feds did to her MS. They're also keeping her family hostage, so she's got no love for them."
"I have no desire to go back to the Federation." Lorelei reassures your team cheerfully, "You don't need to worry, Cybele is watching me closely to make sure that I'm not a spy or anything!"
"Which she isn't, I'm sure." You nod, "Besides, the firepower she'll add to the team is something that I can't just pass up."
Mort winces at that, "Yikes. Our hangar is filling up fast."
Yeah, that's five Mobile Suits, and Pegasus-class hangars were only really meant to carry three a side. They could be packed much tighter, sure, but Mobile Suits were a bit smaller back during the One Year War…. Ah well, you'll make do. You'll just have to shuffle the suits around when necessary.
Speaking of moving suits around…
"Hey, Lorelei, why don't you show us your Mobile Suit?" You suggest to the girl, "We've never seen the guts of an MP Nu before."
She smiles excitedly, "I'd be happy to!"
"You know, for a Mass Production Suit, this thing has a lot of Psychoframe." Theo remarks as the whole of Cascadia Team looks over the newest acquisition. The MP Nu sits in the center of the hangar on its back, in the middle of a complete tear-down. You can all see the guts, wiring, and all the limbs and joints are disassembled. Inconvenient, but necessary, both to repair the damage you did and remove the explosive charges around the reactor.
Also, Londo Bell has never gotten their hands on an MP Nu until now. It's a valuable boon to LB Intel.
"Yep, Psychoframe throughout the whole Movable Frame." Lorelei nods, "Not nearly as much as the RX-0 or Sinanju series, but still enough to increase responsiveness."
Eris whistles, "Damn, that's nice. Do you ever have problems with how responsive it is? Theo here can barely handle the Sinanju Stein, and that thing has way more Psychoframe than this!"
She shrugs, "Nope, never had any problem. Have you tuned the Psychoframe to your friend?"
"Yeah, we did after his first sortie in the thing." You add, "Tuning Psychoframe is such a pain in the ass. Not like Psycommu at all…"
"Mmhm," Lorelei agrees, "Apparently, it's best to tune Psychoframe when you're manufacturing it. Tuning it afterwards is time-intensive and not as effective."
"Oh? And when was yours tuned?" You ask her.
"Mine was tuned during manufacturing." She answers, "That's unusual, though. Most of the pilots in the Newtype Division have MS that were tuned for them after being manufactured. I was in the right place at the right time. It just isn't practical to transport every pilot to a Psychoframe manufacturing facility each time they want to build an MP Nu, or so I hear."
So, Lorelei's MP Nu is a cut above the rest, is what you're hearing? You'd like to test that out sometimes.
Mort taps one of the Psychoframe panels in the leg structure, "I hear that Newtypes can do some pretty neat things with this stuff. Can you?"
She nods, "You know it! I'll show you the next time I get the chance!"
You want some Psychoframe… maybe you can bother Rhea about it next time. You're sure it'll benefit your Woundwort-Ra in ways that you can't even imagine.
The next day, after your team fixed and reassembled the MP Nu, the Bellerophon rendezvoused with a Columbus-class supply ship. It came from Londenion… and the contents are interesting, to say the least.
"Are those-?" You mutter as you watch the crew unload and unpack the containers that were sent over. A large sub-flight system that resembles the Zeta's wings is rolled onto the deck, and you can already see another in the process of being taken out of its protective container.
"Yep, Waveriders." Eris sits with you on one of the crates as the two of you consult the manifest that one of the crew gave you a copy of, "And look at this, Cybele."
One container is from Rhea, for you… and it's option parts for the Woundwort.
You look at Eris and grin. You have to see this.
The two of you quickly locate the container in question and open it, the air within hissing out as the pressure is equalized. It folds open, revealing…
"…What are these supposed to make?" You look at the curved option parts, and are those wings? What is the TR-6 even going to look like when you put these on?
Huh, wait, she left a note in here. You pull the piece of paper off of one of the option parts, noting the tape residue before reading what she wrote.
"Hope you like it," You read out loud, "These should come in handy on your next mission."
"Next mission?" Eris asks, "She already knows what it is?"
So, these are for your next mission. You're not sure what the round parts are for, but the wings are clearly only useful in a pressurized or atmospheric environment. HQ also sent you multiple Waveriders, sub-flight systems which are inferior to all its peers save for the fact that it's capable of atmospheric reentry…
"I think I know where our next mission is." You frown, "I don't know how to feel about this."
"Your angle of descent is too steep! Theo!" Eris shouts to no avail as you see his Waverider fall behind and below your formation. The flames around it intensify as the sub-flight system breaks up, sending the Cascadia Stein tumbling away, trailing debris as the heat of reentry rips it apart.
"Damn it!" You curse, trying to manage your own descent as the Woundwort rattles around you. Like the RX-78-2, your Gundam is equipped with a Coolant-Emission system that allows for atmospheric reentry. This means that you need to keep track of your hull temperature, as well as the remaining coolant. If the former gets too high, or the latter too low, then you'll break apart too!
The Bellerophon itself sits at the center of your formation, powering through reentry through the sheer endurance of its engineering. You were only supplied with three Waveriders, leaving four Mobile suits to defend the ship as it descended, and since Theo is gone that only leaves three. Most of the time, you wouldn't have to worry about enemies at this stage of reentry, but…
"They're coming back around!" Eris calls out as she fires her Beam Rifle and Beam Cannons at the rapidly approaching shapes wreathed in the fires of reentry. Lorelei joins in, and you would too, but your Woundwort can't pivot the Beam Rifle like this, you've had to keep it close to the body to keep it cool. You can only aim directly forward, and aiming the Woundwort like this is a bitch!
The two approaching enemies arrive, one firing at you and missing, while the other blows Eris's Waverider out from under her. Her swear is cut off as the Mk.III almost instantly comes apart at the joints.
If you use the Bellerophon as a shield, maybe you can transform back into MS mode and use your Beam Rifle? You angle towards the ship, only for the warning indicator on your coolant tanks to start beeping. Crap, you weren't paying attention to the-!
Your temperature gauges skyrocket as a stream of error messages rolls in, then your monitor goes dead.
God damn it. You sigh and slump in your seat. Another failure.
"I know you kids don't have much experience with this kind of operation," Captain Nouri speaks over comms, "but you haven't even reached the halfway point, and we aren't even simulating the communications blackout yet."
"Well, that's because this whole premise is ridiculous!" You protest, skin crawling with exasperation, "There's no way that the Feds are going to attack us during reentry! They'd have to know that we're coming, and what's the odds of them having two Delta Plus MS to attack us with?"
"As long as the chance isn't zero, we have to prepare." She counters, "Besides, HQ is counting on us to pull this off."
"It would help if we knew what 'this' is." You grumble, irritated. Seriously, why keep you all in the dark?!
"We'll tell you in due time, Ensign. This may surprise you, but there are some things that are above your pay grade."
Above your pay grade your ass, it's you lot that'll be risking your lives out there! You'd at least like to know for what, exactly!
"Alright, Vogel just went down." The Captain informed your team, "Get ready, everyone, you're doing this again, and this time we're simulating the communications blackout."
Ugh. Here you go.
Metis Colony-Unknown Address
The worn door slammed shut behind the young woman as she stepped into the warehouse, carrying a bag full of groceries. The inside was pitch-black, the windows long since having been covered or painted over. She didn't want anyone to see inside, after all.
"I'm home, my wings!" She happily announced, flicking a bank of light switches by the door. One by one, with resounding claps, flood lights came on and lit up the interior of the building. In the center of the expansive structure stood a single-horned Mobile Suit, its armor a shimmering gold.
The woman hummed as she made her way to the living space she'd built close to the warehouse walls, to the right of the Mobile Suit. Curtains hung on poles shielded her little indoor dwelling. A table with a hot plate, next to an old freezer box. A fruit bowl on the table, with crates of canned goods next to the table itself. A metal bed frame with a makeshift mattress. A torn couch opposite a scavenged television. This was what Rita Bernal called home these days.
She set the bag down on the table and began splitting up her haul, putting the perishables in the freezer and the canned goods in crates that sat next to the table. Those nice scavengers gave her a good amount of money for what she had brought in. She could live off of this for a couple of months, at least.
She really appreciated her scavenger friends. They looked at her a little weird, and had some shady vibes, but they never asked her where she got her wings from, or why the wrecks she'd brought in looked nearly new, save for the battle damage. They paid, and she got to eat food and maintain her wings.
Her wings… they were what she'd been looking for all her life. She just knew it from the moment she stepped into the cockpit. Her wings begged her to take them with her and fly far, far away. Far away from the bad men in lab coats who cut into her, far away from the adults in uniform telling her to fight. So, she destroyed them and ran, becoming the bird she'd always wished to be. She could fly free.
She paused. No, she wasn't quite free. There were those who wished to take her wings from her. The bad men with knives and the stern adults in uniform. They all wanted to chain her, to tie her down and tear her wings away from her. No, she wouldn't have that. She couldn't allow it.
Although, she never thought that Jona would become one of them…
Rita didn't remember much of her life from before the cutting, from before the orders. Trying to think back to them just made her remember the needles, the daze, of her doing things that she couldn't quite remember how to do.
But she did remember her friends. Michele and Jona. They were her closest friends, whom had been taken away from her by the bad men.
Sometimes she did dream of Jona and Michele finding her, of them gaining their own wings so that they could fly together. Who would have thought that Jona would get his own, but only to chase her down? How cruel…
She moved to place an apple in the fruit bowl, and winced as pain lanced through her head. This pain, it always kept coming back! She dropped the apple and staggered over to her wings, placing her forehead against the cool golden metal.
A soothing hum seemed to spread from the contact, wiping away the pain. She sighed in relief. She didn't miss the men in lab coats, but they used to give her drugs to make the pain go away. At least her wings could make the pain go away when it did come back, though. That wasn't all the drugs did, though, but she couldn't remember what else they did. Ah well, if she didn't remember, it couldn't be important, right?
As she stood there, Rita felt her wings begin to sing softly. What was this? She listened intently… it was another set of wings, coming here! Ah yes, the blackbird, the one that had clashed with Jona's wings back in the Shoal Zone! That blackbird was almost as strong as her wings, but one of its legs didn't sing. That leg dragged it down, so it couldn't catch her…
But now it was coming to her home. She had to drive it away, before it ruined everything!
"I'm sorry, my wings." She whispered to it, "We have to fight again."
She climbed into the cockpit, briefly noting the propellant levels as the bootup sequence began. She could fly a few more times before needing to get more fuel. That was fine. She had enough for now.
Her wings sang to her, it was ready to fly. But before she could, she had to do… that thing. The thing she always said before flying. She didn't remember why it was important that she say them, but she knew that she had to.
"Rita Bernal, RX-0 Unit 3 Phenex." She quietly spoke as she firmly grasped the controls, "Launching."
Conversion work on the Woundwort is progressing at a good pace.
The Hrududus had to go, sadly, but maybe you can do something else with them later?
The final configuration, as Rhea wrote in the schematics she sent over, is called the "Kehaar". It's a loadout meant to allow for increased maneuverability in atmospheric conditions. She even modified the new parts to help them survive reentry, which is good since although the Woundwort is reentry-capable, the same cannot be said of the Kehaar parts. Hooking them into the coolant system, along with heat-resistant coating, helps to manage that.
"Big Sis, I can fly with you again, right?" Sicilia asks from atop the Gundam's shoulder as you work on connecting the Kehaar head piece to the head, "The Lord Frith only works in space."
"Mmhm," You nod, "It'll be good to have you back, Lil' Sis. It was getting lonely in the cockpit."
You have to admit, though, this Kehaar configuration cuts down on the total amount of weapons you'll be bringing to the fight. A copilot is sort of unnecessary. Unless…
[] Rig the Hrududus with Psycommu control systems to let Sicilia fly them like support fighters.
[] Incorporate the Hrududus back into the Kehaar configuration. It'll put the TR-6 off balance in MS mode, but with Sicilia there to help you can focus more attention on managing that than you normally would.
-[X] … you'll be watching her like a hawk, because you're responsible for her.
Lorelei looks almost surprised when you unlock the door to her holding cell and hold it open for her.
"Well, that was fast," she remarks as she steps out, "Am I part of your team?"
"Yeah, welcome to Cascadia team," you offer your hand, and once she takes it you grip hers tightly, "but I've got my eyes on you. I'm going out on a limb here and trusting you. Don't let me down, or it's my ass on the line."
"I won't let you down, leader!" She salutes you with her free hand. As for her grip strength, well, it's about equal to yours.
"I'll take that as a promise." You nod, releasing her hand after a few seconds, "Alright, first order of business, let's get you all squared away. We can't have you walking around in those Federation threads."
Bellerophon-Mess Hall
You pause mid-conversation when Sicilia pops her head up over the edge of the table, staring intently at Lorelei. From your side of the table, she looks a bit ridiculous…
The new member of Cascadia team gives the girl a smile before pushing her cup of pudding over to the Cyber Newtype.
"Big Sister Two." Sicilia mutters, picking up the cup and running off.
"…What was that about?" You stare off after her. She's been acting odd ever since Lorelei came on board.
"You have a very cute little sister." Lorelei says. Nice thing to say, not enlightening.
"-so from today forwards, Lorelei Vogel will be a member of Cascadia Team." You finish introducing the new girl to everyone else, much to the team's collective shock.
"I look forward to working with you all!" She takes a bow, all smiles and sunshine.
At first, nobody is sure what to say, but eventually Eris chimes in with, "Cybele, what the hell?"
"What? She's a defector. Besides, you all heard what the Feds did to her MS. They're also keeping her family hostage, so she's got no love for them."
"I have no desire to go back to the Federation." Lorelei reassures your team cheerfully, "You don't need to worry, Cybele is watching me closely to make sure that I'm not a spy or anything!"
"Which she isn't, I'm sure." You nod, "Besides, the firepower she'll add to the team is something that I can't just pass up."
Mort winces at that, "Yikes. Our hangar is filling up fast."
Yeah, that's five Mobile Suits, and Pegasus-class hangars were only really meant to carry three a side. They could be packed much tighter, sure, but Mobile Suits were a bit smaller back during the One Year War…. Ah well, you'll make do. You'll just have to shuffle the suits around when necessary.
Speaking of moving suits around…
"Hey, Lorelei, why don't you show us your Mobile Suit?" You suggest to the girl, "We've never seen the guts of an MP Nu before."
She smiles excitedly, "I'd be happy to!"
"You know, for a Mass Production Suit, this thing has a lot of Psychoframe." Theo remarks as the whole of Cascadia Team looks over the newest acquisition. The MP Nu sits in the center of the hangar on its back, in the middle of a complete tear-down. You can all see the guts, wiring, and all the limbs and joints are disassembled. Inconvenient, but necessary, both to repair the damage you did and remove the explosive charges around the reactor.
Also, Londo Bell has never gotten their hands on an MP Nu until now. It's a valuable boon to LB Intel.
"Yep, Psychoframe throughout the whole Movable Frame." Lorelei nods, "Not nearly as much as the RX-0 or Sinanju series, but still enough to increase responsiveness."
Eris whistles, "Damn, that's nice. Do you ever have problems with how responsive it is? Theo here can barely handle the Sinanju Stein, and that thing has way more Psychoframe than this!"
She shrugs, "Nope, never had any problem. Have you tuned the Psychoframe to your friend?"
"Yeah, we did after his first sortie in the thing." You add, "Tuning Psychoframe is such a pain in the ass. Not like Psycommu at all…"
"Mmhm," Lorelei agrees, "Apparently, it's best to tune Psychoframe when you're manufacturing it. Tuning it afterwards is time-intensive and not as effective."
"Oh? And when was yours tuned?" You ask her.
"Mine was tuned during manufacturing." She answers, "That's unusual, though. Most of the pilots in the Newtype Division have MS that were tuned for them after being manufactured. I was in the right place at the right time. It just isn't practical to transport every pilot to a Psychoframe manufacturing facility each time they want to build an MP Nu, or so I hear."
So, Lorelei's MP Nu is a cut above the rest, is what you're hearing? You'd like to test that out sometimes.
Mort taps one of the Psychoframe panels in the leg structure, "I hear that Newtypes can do some pretty neat things with this stuff. Can you?"
She nods, "You know it! I'll show you the next time I get the chance!"
You want some Psychoframe… maybe you can bother Rhea about it next time. You're sure it'll benefit your Woundwort-Ra in ways that you can't even imagine.
The next day, after your team fixed and reassembled the MP Nu, the Bellerophon rendezvoused with a Columbus-class supply ship. It came from Londenion… and the contents are interesting, to say the least.
"Are those-?" You mutter as you watch the crew unload and unpack the containers that were sent over. A large sub-flight system that resembles the Zeta's wings is rolled onto the deck, and you can already see another in the process of being taken out of its protective container.
"Yep, Waveriders." Eris sits with you on one of the crates as the two of you consult the manifest that one of the crew gave you a copy of, "And look at this, Cybele."
One container is from Rhea, for you… and it's option parts for the Woundwort.
You look at Eris and grin. You have to see this.
The two of you quickly locate the container in question and open it, the air within hissing out as the pressure is equalized. It folds open, revealing…
"…What are these supposed to make?" You look at the curved option parts, and are those wings? What is the TR-6 even going to look like when you put these on?
Huh, wait, she left a note in here. You pull the piece of paper off of one of the option parts, noting the tape residue before reading what she wrote.
"Hope you like it," You read out loud, "These should come in handy on your next mission."
"Next mission?" Eris asks, "She already knows what it is?"
So, these are for your next mission. You're not sure what the round parts are for, but the wings are clearly only useful in a pressurized or atmospheric environment. HQ also sent you multiple Waveriders, sub-flight systems which are inferior to all its peers save for the fact that it's capable of atmospheric reentry…
"I think I know where our next mission is." You frown, "I don't know how to feel about this."
"Your angle of descent is too steep! Theo!" Eris shouts to no avail as you see his Waverider fall behind and below your formation. The flames around it intensify as the sub-flight system breaks up, sending the Cascadia Stein tumbling away, trailing debris as the heat of reentry rips it apart.
"Damn it!" You curse, trying to manage your own descent as the Woundwort rattles around you. Like the RX-78-2, your Gundam is equipped with a Coolant-Emission system that allows for atmospheric reentry. This means that you need to keep track of your hull temperature, as well as the remaining coolant. If the former gets too high, or the latter too low, then you'll break apart too!
The Bellerophon itself sits at the center of your formation, powering through reentry through the sheer endurance of its engineering. You were only supplied with three Waveriders, leaving four Mobile suits to defend the ship as it descended, and since Theo is gone that only leaves three. Most of the time, you wouldn't have to worry about enemies at this stage of reentry, but…
"They're coming back around!" Eris calls out as she fires her Beam Rifle and Beam Cannons at the rapidly approaching shapes wreathed in the fires of reentry. Lorelei joins in, and you would too, but your Woundwort can't pivot the Beam Rifle like this, you've had to keep it close to the body to keep it cool. You can only aim directly forward, and aiming the Woundwort like this is a bitch!
The two approaching enemies arrive, one firing at you and missing, while the other blows Eris's Waverider out from under her. Her swear is cut off as the Mk.III almost instantly comes apart at the joints.
If you use the Bellerophon as a shield, maybe you can transform back into MS mode and use your Beam Rifle? You angle towards the ship, only for the warning indicator on your coolant tanks to start beeping. Crap, you weren't paying attention to the-!
Your temperature gauges skyrocket as a stream of error messages rolls in, then your monitor goes dead.
God damn it. You sigh and slump in your seat. Another failure.
"I know you kids don't have much experience with this kind of operation," Captain Nouri speaks over comms, "but you haven't even reached the halfway point, and we aren't even simulating the communications blackout yet."
"Well, that's because this whole premise is ridiculous!" You protest, skin crawling with exasperation, "There's no way that the Feds are going to attack us during reentry! They'd have to know that we're coming, and what's the odds of them having two Delta Plus MS to attack us with?"
"As long as the chance isn't zero, we have to prepare." She counters, "Besides, HQ is counting on us to pull this off."
"It would help if we knew what 'this' is." You grumble, irritated. Seriously, why keep you all in the dark?!
"We'll tell you in due time, Ensign. This may surprise you, but there are some things that are above your pay grade."
Above your pay grade your ass, it's you lot that'll be risking your lives out there! You'd at least like to know for what, exactly!
"Alright, Vogel just went down." The Captain informed your team, "Get ready, everyone, you're doing this again, and this time we're simulating the communications blackout."
Ugh. Here you go.
Metis Colony-Unknown Address
The worn door slammed shut behind the young woman as she stepped into the warehouse, carrying a bag full of groceries. The inside was pitch-black, the windows long since having been covered or painted over. She didn't want anyone to see inside, after all.
"I'm home, my wings!" She happily announced, flicking a bank of light switches by the door. One by one, with resounding claps, flood lights came on and lit up the interior of the building. In the center of the expansive structure stood a single-horned Mobile Suit, its armor a shimmering gold.
The woman hummed as she made her way to the living space she'd built close to the warehouse walls, to the right of the Mobile Suit. Curtains hung on poles shielded her little indoor dwelling. A table with a hot plate, next to an old freezer box. A fruit bowl on the table, with crates of canned goods next to the table itself. A metal bed frame with a makeshift mattress. A torn couch opposite a scavenged television. This was what Rita Bernal called home these days.
She set the bag down on the table and began splitting up her haul, putting the perishables in the freezer and the canned goods in crates that sat next to the table. Those nice scavengers gave her a good amount of money for what she had brought in. She could live off of this for a couple of months, at least.
She really appreciated her scavenger friends. They looked at her a little weird, and had some shady vibes, but they never asked her where she got her wings from, or why the wrecks she'd brought in looked nearly new, save for the battle damage. They paid, and she got to eat food and maintain her wings.
Her wings… they were what she'd been looking for all her life. She just knew it from the moment she stepped into the cockpit. Her wings begged her to take them with her and fly far, far away. Far away from the bad men in lab coats who cut into her, far away from the adults in uniform telling her to fight. So, she destroyed them and ran, becoming the bird she'd always wished to be. She could fly free.
She paused. No, she wasn't quite free. There were those who wished to take her wings from her. The bad men with knives and the stern adults in uniform. They all wanted to chain her, to tie her down and tear her wings away from her. No, she wouldn't have that. She couldn't allow it.
Although, she never thought that Jona would become one of them…
Rita didn't remember much of her life from before the cutting, from before the orders. Trying to think back to them just made her remember the needles, the daze, of her doing things that she couldn't quite remember how to do.
But she did remember her friends. Michele and Jona. They were her closest friends, whom had been taken away from her by the bad men.
Sometimes she did dream of Jona and Michele finding her, of them gaining their own wings so that they could fly together. Who would have thought that Jona would get his own, but only to chase her down? How cruel…
She moved to place an apple in the fruit bowl, and winced as pain lanced through her head. This pain, it always kept coming back! She dropped the apple and staggered over to her wings, placing her forehead against the cool golden metal.
A soothing hum seemed to spread from the contact, wiping away the pain. She sighed in relief. She didn't miss the men in lab coats, but they used to give her drugs to make the pain go away. At least her wings could make the pain go away when it did come back, though. That wasn't all the drugs did, though, but she couldn't remember what else they did. Ah well, if she didn't remember, it couldn't be important, right?
As she stood there, Rita felt her wings begin to sing softly. What was this? She listened intently… it was another set of wings, coming here! Ah yes, the blackbird, the one that had clashed with Jona's wings back in the Shoal Zone! That blackbird was almost as strong as her wings, but one of its legs didn't sing. That leg dragged it down, so it couldn't catch her…
But now it was coming to her home. She had to drive it away, before it ruined everything!
"I'm sorry, my wings." She whispered to it, "We have to fight again."
She climbed into the cockpit, briefly noting the propellant levels as the bootup sequence began. She could fly a few more times before needing to get more fuel. That was fine. She had enough for now.
Her wings sang to her, it was ready to fly. But before she could, she had to do… that thing. The thing she always said before flying. She didn't remember why it was important that she say them, but she knew that she had to.
"Rita Bernal, RX-0 Unit 3 Phenex." She quietly spoke as she firmly grasped the controls, "Launching."
Conversion work on the Woundwort is progressing at a good pace.
The Hrududus had to go, sadly, but maybe you can do something else with them later?
The final configuration, as Rhea wrote in the schematics she sent over, is called the "Kehaar". It's a loadout meant to allow for increased maneuverability in atmospheric conditions. She even modified the new parts to help them survive reentry, which is good since although the Woundwort is reentry-capable, the same cannot be said of the Kehaar parts. Hooking them into the coolant system, along with heat-resistant coating, helps to manage that.
"Big Sis, I can fly with you again, right?" Sicilia asks from atop the Gundam's shoulder as you work on connecting the Kehaar head piece to the head, "The Lord Frith only works in space."
"Mmhm," You nod, "It'll be good to have you back, Lil' Sis. It was getting lonely in the cockpit."
You have to admit, though, this Kehaar configuration cuts down on the total amount of weapons you'll be bringing to the fight. A copilot is sort of unnecessary. Unless…
[] Rig the Hrududus with Psycommu control systems to let Sicilia fly them like support fighters.
[] Incorporate the Hrududus back into the Kehaar configuration. It'll put the TR-6 off balance in MS mode, but with Sicilia there to help you can focus more attention on managing that than you normally would.
- Location
- A place
[] Rig the Hrududus with Psycommu control systems to let Sicilia fly them like support fighters.
We get drones.
[] Incorporate the Hrududus back into the Kehaar configuration. It'll put the TR-6 off balance in MS mode, but with Sicilia there to help you can focus more attention on managing that than you normally would.
We get firepower
What to do?
We get drones.
[] Incorporate the Hrududus back into the Kehaar configuration. It'll put the TR-6 off balance in MS mode, but with Sicilia there to help you can focus more attention on managing that than you normally would.
We get firepower
What to do?
Huh so in this timeline Rita didn't turn into a spirit possessing Phenex? She still has her body. And Jona is in the Fed new type Corp of course. But Rita is not working at 100% due to the damage her body and mind took from the various experiments on her and the limitations of the human body.
Edit: would be nice if Jona would defect to LB. Though without knowing where on his MS the detonator is it'll be difficult without Phenex or Unicorn level Newtype BS to dismantle the suicide charges.
Edit: would be nice if Jona would defect to LB. Though without knowing where on his MS the detonator is it'll be difficult without Phenex or Unicorn level Newtype BS to dismantle the suicide charges.
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- Pronouns
- Reader
[X] Rig the Hrududus with Psycommu control systems to let Sicilia fly them like support fighters.
Manning maneuverable craft remotely is precisely the tasks Ple's are designed for, and Cybele got some practice at the same back during Axis mission. Best stick with what they know.
Manning maneuverable craft remotely is precisely the tasks Ple's are designed for, and Cybele got some practice at the same back during Axis mission. Best stick with what they know.
Nottheunmaker
Altman be praised
- Location
- USG Ishimura
I know that nane, but I'm not sure from where. (Other then the Vogel river obviously). My distrust grows.
Though it seems she knew how to handle Sicilia fine.
[X] Rig the Hrududus with Psycommu control systems to let Sicilia fly them like support fighters.
- Pronouns
- Reader
The closest connection I can find is a moon gundam named Varguil, created neo zeon, defeated by londo bell, and later repaired by the Earth Federations Titan extremists. It's nothing clear, but it's a lot of coincidence for a girl from the moon to share a name similar to a moon themed gundam created by neo zeon, who she claims to have similar views too. Possibly family of engineers who changed their name to stand out less later?