"..." Korie sighed at Antwon's rage, for it seemed that their attack on them seemed to have given them strength instead. They were gladly going to finish the job on them, no, they were sure they could. Aester's defenses, speed, and strength were sharp enough to counter Perry's, even after the rubble fell, there was minor surface damage upon Aester's armor. Getting ready to charge towards Antwon and Perry, it was then that Korie noticed something far worse; Zan and his Framewerk along with a giant piece of debris that was flung their way.

"Antwon, I think we have bigger problems-" but they were cut off from their fellow pilot who was shouting at them and the loud music.

The red lights from Zan's framework, the incoming debris, and Antwon. Takeo repairing Sigma, Elora fighting Iskander... and that idol who really shouldn't be here all came to Korie's mind within a few seconds as a plan came to action.

Damn it... I guess it can't be helped. I wont be winning this then... it's just how I am...

"Takeo, Birdy," spoke Korie to both Sigma and Takeo before facing Antwon and Zan, "I'll buy you some time... so take down Goliath and win," they said, most likely referring to Zan and his Framework.

With that, Korie Impaled the debris falling with their stake and destroyed it with a shockwave immediately, before using their other arm to impale the rest of the ceiling while stretching out a leg and staking the floor as well. Spending most of match in the underground, Korie knew just how unstable these railroads were... and just how far they truly went down. Right as Zan landed behind the charging Perry, Korie immediately used a fully powered shockwave with all off their pendulum force that Aester could muster, collapsing not only the railroad tunnel, and the ceiling, but the floor as well that would lead into the old Framewerk arena bay a few floors down.

"This is going to hurt..." cringed Korie as everything began to collapse.

A blast of smoke suddenly erupted under Rilus's feet, and Elora screamed at the static she now got in her visual interface. She recognized it was some kind of weapon-jammer, and even her Combat Analyzer was taking pains to continue the data collecting process. Not only that, but the enemy turned out to have two swords after all: Elora was now starting to regret her charge a little bit by the time she hit the other Frame, who seemed to block the tackle.

After she transmitted the data she got from the contact, she realized Sigma was now fighting her own battles, which meant she was going to be alone for this battle against an enemy built for pure destruction. Elora didn't like her odds, and her earlier courage was starting to wane, instead filling up with fear. Even if Elora pushed herself and managed to get the scanner working long enough to get the data on the enemy, it would be useless since her weapon wouldn't be working, and even then she would be toting a cumbersome rifle in the face of a dual-wielding swordsman. She got a message from Sigma saying she should run.

In a state of tranquility, she made her decision, and opened a channel for the opponent to hear: "I'm sorry, I quit." Then, she activated her anti-grav thrusters and retreated from the smoke and the opponent inside, and using her jet booster headed straight in the opposite direction of all the explosions and ground tremors she spotted. The enemy could try to pursue her, but she trusted that the cover provided by the smoke trap would aid in her escape. As she was flying she heard one of the Framewerks blasting music across the ruins; at least someone was having fun, she thought to herself.

She continued flying in the direction of AGAS, and landed somewhere nearby in the field of pillars. She did notice the other Frame nearby, but at this point she just wanted a break from all the violence, and if the other Framewerk wanted a fight it wouldn't get one. She wrote a message to Sigma: "I left you behind. Please forgive me." Tears started to form up in her eyes at the realization of what she has done due to her cowardly nature. She thought she heard something, and after a moment of silently listening she thought she heard someone's voice. It was really quiet, barely reaching her earlobes, but it was there. Elora started to feel a bit better for some reason, but she was still sad at her weakness.

Sigma had barely time to react when the boulders fell on top of them, having activated the thrusters to put Takeo and her out of the way. A new frame with a menacing speed and power had dropped down the hole.We're so done for. Perhaps I can do a Mutually Assured Destruction attack. Her thoughts interrupted short when apparently, Korie had decided to play hero and win time for the framework. Why did you do that? You could've let us who are damaged take a last attempt to fight! Sigma slammed the keyboard, and a message came forth.

"I left you behind. Please forgive me." It was Elora. Apparently, the last of her allies had managed to cave in. Sigma began to type back.You did well. More than I expected. Cake later. She bit her lip, quickly relaying the information of Elora's scans to both Takeo and Korie as she also sent a message to the latter.

You Idiot. Remember that no framework can work if the pilot dies so aim for the vital area. Also, no matter how powerful an opponent is, there are more ways to incapacitate them, like blinding. Do well, and I'll give you the reward I am going to give my comrades: Cake

Sigma sighed. It was hell already. And then she spotted among the rubble something. Battered, bruised, but still functional. Her sniper rifle. Grabbing it and reloading it with haste, she then forwarded to Takeo.

"No more prancing around. If you were alright, could your framework survive reentry?" Sigma thought, a zany scheme forming in her mind that implied Takeo."I want to try something."

Perry charged forward at Ant's command, blinded by his adrenaline. He could see Aester's pendulums swinging, preparing for another shockwave; Ant knew now how this one operated. He was planning on using most of Perry's remaining energy to attempt a leap above, back to the surface, where he had the advantage; but his plans were cut short by the massive boulder crashing down behind him. It was another close call... if Perry was only half a second behind, both the mech along with Ant would have very likely been crushed to oblivion. But even worse was the thunderous, powerful THUD that followed; not the kind of clumsy thud Perry had made when it tripped and fell under, but the kind of thud made by the landing of two feet... only much, much heavier.

Ant didn't even bother looking back, knowing that if he lost speed now he would be done for. He was thankful that Perry's legs were still near peak operation. That was all he really had going for him down here, especially with having only one of his pistols and no traps set below. He kept his eyes above; but saw with Aester's pendulums swinging even faster, and the ground shaking above him, she actually was going to send them all to Hell. So much for seeing the light again, Ant thought, as Perry 'holstered' its one remaining gun. He was nearing the two stationary mechs, first, and he needed to act fast. The big one going for its rifle? Or the... even bigger one with the freaking sword as big as Perry? What Ant was about to do was probably the last thing he should do, but he knew what was coming with Aester's lack of subtlety, and needed to act impromptu if he had any chance of surviving another downward, impending tumble.

Perry leaped forward just as Sigma Comet was in the process of reloading. With his remaining functional arm, Perry clutched around the unassuming mech as they collided, hoping Perry's momentum and the collapse to follow would be enough to bring them down... with Comet as his cushion.

Utano had shut off her communications link the moment that horrendous music came through.

She was prepared to die, not have her ears bleed from some trash music.

As expected, a mech came into the field of pillars, not too far from her. It was one of those bulky ones, though she had no idea who was piloting it. It seemed to look at her, unmoving, as if waiting for something.

"So...you're the one here trying to defeat me?"

There was no response, just that mech standing there. She was starting to feel uncomfortable with that mech sitting there. "What's this? Don't tell me you're afraid of me? Here, I'm defenseless here, I can't fight at all. If you just shoot me now, you'd get a free point, you know?"

Still no response. Her right hand gripped the lever on her right side, so tightly it turned her knuckles white. "Hey.... say something. Why aren't you attacking? Do you.. do you think I'm beneath you, is that it? So lowly that I don't even warrant a response?"

It was as if all her feelings just now was suddenly boiling up, her mind filling with white rage. "SAY SOMETHING!" Utano actually started screaming, her emotions all but contained at this point. "SHOOT ME! KILL ME, ANYTHING! YOU'RE TOO GOOD FOR ME NOW!?"

Though she had no idea what she was doing, anger knows no bounds, as a moment of fiddling finally brought AGAS into being combat ready. It's red eyes started to glow visibly, as it brought the machine gun attached to its back to bear. The small screens in her cockpit came to life, showing a myriad of information sure to be useful should she had the coherence to actually read through them. The actual view of the outside projected on the walls of the cockpit started filling up with information, the most important was that she had a lock and a clear shot at the mech.

With just a press of the trigger on the lever, AGAS started shooting the rifle, sending a veritable hail of metal in a cacophony of deafening shots towards the mech.

As Sigma maintained communications with him, Takeo turned his main visual feed to face a nearby rumble. He quickly identified Aester falling further into the chasm with another Framewerk nearby, and a third machine dashing toward Comet Sigma.

Iron Sparrow reacted as fast as it could, sliding across the rubble and turning to slam its shield against the assailant. The Frame had managed to grapple Comet Sigma, but Takeo met it at once, cutting its charge short as the machine stumbled to the side.

"You fool!" Takeo brought his sword up high to prepare for a downward stroke. "Don't throw your life away! You're outnumbered and damaged more heavily than either of us!" He simply held his blade aloft, hoping their opponent would choose a different course of action.

@Dondude

Sigma let out a surprise yelp (which was heard by Takeo, as her communication was still open) when one of the framewerks that had been targetted by Korie's attack somehow was charging to drag her alongside their fall. However, Takeo was on guard, and she noticed a loud metallic sound as the shield went above her head and collided with the offender, while she was still being grappled. The barrel of her recovered rifle levelled against the offending arm of Perry, ready to shoot at a split second if he still insisted in dragging her down or do anything funny, jetpack revving up to fly if need be.

Nice try, you cheap bastard. But I can operate rescuing other framewerks, so even your weight won't drag me down. She thought.

While Zan was going down the giant hole, he noticed Korie destroy the chunk of rubble he threw. He also seen Korie starting to do something to what was left of the ceiling, and floor. When Zan hit the floor, he felt a shock-wave and the floor give below his Framewerk. Zan quickly tried to jump to the area to Takeo and Sigma, specifically Sigma, using quite a bit of power. If he made it, he would try to take down the three Framewerk.

If he was not able to make the jump, Zan then would use the rubble that would be falling down with him as platforms to jump from to get to Korie. Then he would grab onto the shoulder of Korie's Framewerk and try to make it so Aester would land on its back with addition weight and force from Пожертвовать.

Elora got the reply from Sigma, and she made a half-hearted laugh. At least she didn't openly despise her for deserting her, and the hope of friendship was still alive for Elora, even if barely. Still, she couldn't help but sigh once more as the other Framewerk now started moving, seemingly reacting to Rilus' appearance. Elora attempted to open up communications with it and explain that she wasn't going to fight, but realized that it was no use: the opposing pilot had it shut off. Well, there isn't any reason for any of them to have them on, after all it was a free-for-all, and Strawberry Team was just an exception.

At this point the opposing Frame's eyes turned red, and Elora found herself staring at the wrong end of a rifle. It was clear that the Frame was hostile at this point, but Elora didn't care. She could have started dodging, maybe get close and scan it, activate her own rifle and have a shoot-out, but Elora found it pointless at this point. She was going to get trounced on by the more powerful Frames once they were done with their scuffle anyway, and there was nothing she could do about it. She didn't have the will to fight like everyone else. She was done.

"Go ahead, give me your worst," Elora said to herself. "Might as well call this a makeshift stress test while we're at it." Rilus then spread its arms wide apart as a sign that she was going to bear every single round the Frame had to offer. The shots clanged against Rilus' robust armor as it stood in place and embraced them. The shots started to dent Rilus' armor, and Elora got warnings from the Combat Analyzer against taking sustained fire, but she shut the computer sound off. There was no need for that anymore. Then, with assistance from Rilus' anti-grav projectors, Elora let her Frame fall on its back with a loud thud, further proof to the rifle-toting Frame that she was easy pickings. If the opponent chose to continue shooting at Rilus, it would result in enough damage for her Frame to be shut down. Elora rolled to her side in her seat, took a fetal position, and listened at the endless clanging.

With a subtle sigh at the chaos ensuing, Lorenzo glanced towards Lt. Ritsu, before looking towards his remote. "Hm... I suppose it can't be helped, can it?"

"S-Sir... at this rate they're going to cause significant damage to the Framewerks..."

"Yes, yes... I know. Well, I might as well end the match now then. This is getting rather dull, and we've already gotten all the information that we needed to determine a winner. Oh well, night night!" yelled Lorenzo as he promptly flipped all the switches on his remote.

All of the Framewerks on the battlefield would soon come to a sudden tumbling halt as the crashed into the dirt, and their power halted, even Zan's Framewerk that had his ability activated would find it coming to a sudden stand still as it and all the others fell to the ground. All of the cockpits would go pitch black dark, with the power of every Framewerk being cut off. Korie's Framewerk was cut off just in time before it could collapse anything, causing it to go limp as well.

"Attention all Cadets, the mock battle is hereby over... you all performed as I expected you to do, which isn't saying much. Others performed better than I expected them to!" laughed Lorenzo over the intercom. "Leave your Framewerks where they are at, the mechanics will retrieve them. There will be choppers shortly to escort you all back to the base."

"Oh, and one more thing... You all failed the mock battle," spoke Lorenzo as he cackled over the intercom before turning off the communications.

"So, they performed exactly how you expected them to?" asked Ritsu as she looked over Lorenzo's data.

"Yup... although I have chosen a Squad Leader. I'll just wait for them to come back to base for me to explain their scores."

"They all failed and performed exactly as you expected them to, but despite that you're still going to promote one of them?"

"I have to, someone needs to be in charge on the battlefield. There must someone in charge in order to resolve conflict."

And with those words, Lorenzo casually made his way back inside, waiting for the Cadets to return with Ritsu behind him.

The sound from the rifle belching out a few thousand rounds per minute was dampened by the interior of the cockpit, but her head was still ringing from the sheer sound the rifle made. Worse, the mech's structure shuddered with every shot from the braced rifle, her seat barely mitigating the stress it put on her body. The skintight suit she had draped on one of the side console slid to the ground, though she barely noticed it through the concentration needed to both operate the gun and stop her teeth from chattering and biting off her tongue.

Utano stopped shooting the moment she was reasonably sure the enemy mech was down.

"Hah...ha ha ha... Serves you right.... Who's laughing now?"

She sat back on her seat, her laugh echoing in the cockpit, not knowing why she was laughing as tears streaked down her cheeks.

Quite honestly, she had thought she'd be dead the moment she pulled the trigger on that mech. Whether it was blind luck, or that she had simply caught the mech off guard, Utano doubted her next enemy will be so polite to be just standing there. And it was inevitable that she would face one, as long as she kept living, and as long as they kept her here.

Like a doll that lost its strings, she sat there in her chair, looking blankly at nothing in particular, even as AGAS noted the lack of activity and shut down combat mode. A while later, AGAS fully powered down suddenly, opening the cockpit door as that person made the announcements again. Almost automatically she moved towards the wire extended from the top part of the cockpit door, hooking a foot through the loop at the end of the wire, and holding the grip attached to it tightly. Like a lift, she descended slowly as the wire extended, putting her safely on the ground.

With her mind a jumble of thoughts running over each other, she sat down on one of the huge depleted bullet shells strewn about the feet of her mech, awaiting for transport back.

And with all the tension that mounted between Takeo and the green Framewerk before him, Iron Sparrow's cockpit suddenly going dark and his sword arm dropping limp was quite anticlimactic. After a moment of panic, the XO's voice came over the comms in Takeo's suit and informed him the battle had ended. He breathed deeply, suddenly thankful for the chance to calm his mind, and opened the escape hatch above him.

Clambering outside into the sinkhole's musty air, Takeo's perspective was once again shifted. His head spun as his state of mind readjusted to his relative size, and for the first time he realized how truly massive the ruins around him were. Comet Sigma's size awed him as it stood dormant on the cavern floor, and he remembered again his own formidable giant. It's not me, he thought. I'm just the pilot.

Takeo stood atop the head of his Framewerk, spotting Sigma emerging opposite him. He gave her a smile and waved, hoping she would see him, and the buzz of helicopters soon loomed overhead.

Zan was about to attack the other Framewerks when all of a sudden Пожертвовать shut down, as it's power was shut down. Zan started flipping switches and pressing buttons, thinking something had gone wrong on his end. Zan was still in the extremely dark cockpit trying to fix a problem that did not exist. Then XO Lorenzo came over the intercom.

"Attention all Cadets, the mock battle is hereby over... you all performed as I expected you to do, which isn't saying much. Others performed better than I expected them to!" laughed Lorenzo over the intercom. "Leave your Framewerks where they are at, the mechanics will retrieve them. There will be choppers shortly to escort you all back to the base."

Zan got out of his Framewerk when he was order to. Though he was still able to hear XO Lorenzo through an earpiece.

"Oh, and one more thing... You all failed the mock battle," spoke Lorenzo as he cackled over the intercom before turning off the communications.

After he got to the ground, Zan punched a larger piece of rubble near him with his right hand. He was pissed at himself for failing an order. The other pilots near Zan could probably tell that he was pissed and probably knew it was best to not bother him at the moment. Zan waited for the chopper to pick him up.

While everyone else was engaged in intense combat, Ian had been watching with an equally intense craving for some popcorn. When Lorenzo shut everything down, Ian got up and opened the cockpit door manually, before walking over to where Sigma had placed Atty after she was declared to be disqualified. It was a bit of a hike, but he eventually made it over to the downed Framewerk. He couldn't help but feel a bit of pride in having been able to take at least one of them down, despite the overwhelming odd's against him. Thinking back, he probably should've cancelled the attack when his Kinetic thruster had gotten hit, but oh well, that's why you had these kinds of exercises. Better to make a mistake here and learn from it, then make a mistake on the field, and die.

Shaking such morbid thoughts from his head, he continued his leisurely pace until he made it over to where he thought the cockpit to be, raising his fist to knock on the outside of it.

"Oi Serah, looks like the test over and what not, so I was wondering if we could have a chat until they come to pick us up, get to know my comrade a little better. Let's start with something simple, what's your favorite color? Mines Black, because it goes with everything, without fail."

@Ammokkx

After the enemy Frame was done filling the outer shell of Rilus with dents, Elora now had peace and quiet to reflect on her actions in the mock battle. She thought back to the moment when she was fighting the Frame with the explosive weapon. It was there where she got scared and fled. And not only that, but Sigma was also fighting a big, scary-looking Frame too. She was regretting her decision.

I should have stayed there and fought with Sigma against the big Frame. I shouldn't have left her alone. I'm a coward.

The opposing Frame shut down, and the professor announced the mock battle to be over. Elora rose up from her seat, and started climbing out of Rilus. Her thoughts now went back to the moment she decided to charge at the high-energy Frame. She was brave that time, but where did the bravery actually come from? Was it the desperate situation, the only choice of attack for Rilus, or Sigma's kind words? Once Elora got out and slid off Rilus' round torso, she came to a conclusion: it was all three, in addition to Elora's desire to prove she wasn't as weak as she was. She learned a lot about combat and teamwork today, even without the CA, and decided that from this day forward she would try to change into someone more courageous, someone who never betrays her friends. It's not going to be easy, and she knows she's going to have a hard time, but she was now set in her path. Becoming friends with her co-pilots...that's what she wants the most.

She was standing near her own Framewerk for a while before she noticed that the pilot of the other Frame was also outside, and sat on one of the shells. Elora wanted to see who was piloting such a scary-looking Frame, and Elora ran closer. She soon realized it was the idol, since she hasn't changed to the pilot suit, which struck Elora as curious. She came into conversational distance and waved her hand a little bit.

"Umm, hello. I was the pilot of the Frame you shot down. I attempted to contact you, but you had your communications shut off. Not that it really mattered, since this was everyone against everyone." Elora made a weak smile, hoping that she didn't offend her. She took a quick look up towards her Frame. "You've got a really cool-looking Frame to pilot, with the red eyes and all. My Frame looks kind of goofy in comparison. Oh, I forgot to introduce myself. I'm Elora Liu'un."

Iskander blocked the incoming charge blades-first, A3ON's armor and shields taking the brunt of the damage. The sheer kinetic force of the two machines meeting pushed A3ON back a ways, but Iskander quickly advanced toward the enemy machine, preparing to first disarm it, then decapitate it. However, before it could get in range on his swords, he was channeled by the other machine, the (now apparently female) pilot issuing a hurried apology, and then retreating, flying away.

Iskander cursed A3ON's lack of proper flight capabilities. Had his weapons been online, he would have shot her out of the sky. As it was, he was stuck tailing her as she slowly got away. His ability to skim the ground compared to her flight put him at a great disadvantage, considering the amount of debris on the battlefield. It was then that they came under fire by another Framewerk, though the spotter seemed to attract the majority of the attention. As weapons were now back online, Iskander expected her to retaliate. Rather, she landed and ate the incoming fire, literally acting as a firing target.

Iskander's next plan was loop around and flank the distracted Framewerk. He doubted the spotter was much of a threat anymore, considering that as far as he could tell, her morale had been broken. How she would fare in actual battle, he couldn't tell, but that wasn't his problem at the moment. Once again, he initiated a cold-thrust flanking maneuver, along his path spotting another, hunched-over Framewerk with no visible weapons. He made a note to double back and destroy that one once he was finished with these two. Just as he came around the rear of the seemingly oblivious enemy, A3ON's power suddenly cut out, and he was hailed by his commander.

A few contradictory statements and a general description of failure were issued to all of them. Iskander couldn't speak for what the others had been doing, but as far as he could tell, he had been doing what he had been told to do. An ember of rage sparked in his chest. Who put this madman in command? Confusion and misdirection were not the makings of an effective leader, nor a productive environment. Perhaps he thought he was being clever and eccentric but in actuality he was sowing discontent and the possibility of disobedience. Iskander had literally been the pawn of a cult that lied to and manipulated him, and he still hadn't been jerked around this much.

Still, he opened A3ON's cockpit, and disconnected himself from its controls. He sat inside of the machine, arms crossed and his braid blowing in the dusty wind of the battlefield.

"Owowow!" Serah rubbed the back of her head as the power'd stopped. She was just repairing one of the thrusters on Atty's shoulder when Lorenzo flipped the switch, causing Serah to fall straight off and bump her head. Then she saw Ian come along, and waved to him. "Heeeeeey! Ian!" She bounced over to the other pilot with a grin on her face. "Guess It's really over, huh? And hm... Favourite color..." She put her finger on her chin, acting as if she was thinking. Really, the girl knew the answer already, just wanting to act a little silly. "Orange! It's bright, sunny and colorful! Now's myyyyyy time to ask a question..." Serah giggled.

"Hoooow mannnyyyy... People have you kissed?" She blurts out, still with that stupid grin on her face. "I mean, you kissed Korie, right? She honestly can't be your first!" Going to sit on the foot of her mech, the blue pilot hums a litle while waiting on Ian's answer, blissfully unaware you don't ask people things like that.

Ian couldn't help but grin at Serah's answer, finding her upbeat energy to be very refreshing, a grin that only widened when she asked a question of her own. Ian looked off into the distance, scratching at his chin as he tried to think off a number. "I'd say . . . . 15 people, all of them having been kissed multiple times, barring Korie, and of them their were two that were guys. The reason for each kiss varied, but none of them were anything more than a target for pickpocketing or a passing fling that didn't go anywhere. That, of course, is only counting kissing on the lips. If you were to count all of the people I'd ever placed my lips on in that sort of way . . . you'd have a pretty long list, ranging from just plain gentlemanly things like a kiss on the hand to other types of things that are very much. . . less so." Ian took this moment to stretch his arms a little, before turning to Serah with a impish grin.

"Why do you ask, hmmmm, could you be hoping to be #16?" Ian was only joking off course . . . partially at least. If she actually did want to, then who was he to refuse; and if she didn't, then she didn't, and life would move on just as well as before.

@Ammokkx

Serah listened on with intrigue. She wasn't sure what to expect but... The boy definitely has some experience on the subject. She didn't quite get that last part though... What did Ian mean with "Less so"? A kiss was just a kiss, wasn't it? Then the older boy asked her if she wanted to kiss. "Well, I wasn't implying anything... But I'd be fine with it if you wanted to, I guess?" Serah questioned, really not seeing anything wrong with kissing. "People do it all the time, right?"

A voice called out to her, shocking her out of her revelrie. It seemed to be the pilot of the other mech, the meek looking girl who had went with that rather unexpressive one and the other who seemed incessantly happy all the time.

"Umm, hello. I was the pilot of the Frame you shot down. I attempted to contact you, but you had your communications shut off. Not that it really mattered, since this was everyone against everyone. You've got a really cool-looking Frame to pilot, with the red eyes and all. My Frame looks kind of goofy in comparison. Oh, I forgot to introduce myself. I'm Elora Liu'un."

Her eyes widened at that. Of course... she did turn off her communications because of that horrible music. It was just as well that Elora didn't hear her though. Blushing deep red, Utano pulled her cap over her head.

"...sorry...sorry for just now.."

Elora was surprised to see her blush like that, considering how she was a celebrity and all. Maybe she was wrong in assuming that idols were really sociable folks. There was one thing that bothered her though, and she couldn't help but ask.

"So, umm...not to be rude, but...I'd like to know your name, if thats okay with you."

Still keeping her face hidden as well as she could, she nodded. "Utano. Kiyokawa Utano. UTAU is what most people would call me though." It was her stage name after all. Taking in a deep breath, she looked at the girl, obviously filled with questions, but unable to put words to even one. "..ah..h..how are you able to do this?" she finally asked. "I mean.. how are you so calm about all this? The fighting, and the knowledge that you could just.. die."

UTAU...Elora tried to remember if she's listened to her music. She may have had one of her songs in her playlist playing when she was working on the computer, but she couldn't say for sure. But she was glad to know her real name in the very least. Then Utano asked her a question, and it was one she wasn't prepared to answer.

"Umm...well, I'm not. In fact, I kind of gave up back there, if you didn't notice. I...left Sigma behind, and...I just couldn't do it anymore. When I tried to contact you I wanted to say I wasn't even going to fight." Elora made a meek smile. "But it doesn't matter, since we all lost, right?"

So not only did Utano mess up, she had also fired on someone unwilling to fight. It was good that today was only a mock, and not a real battle like she thought it would be, but still... What if this happened during real combat? What if she simply started killing everyone indiscriminately?

"Yeah... we all failed, didn't we?" She hung her head, and sighed. All of a sudden she stood up, a look of resolve on her face. "I'm sorry."

With that, she bowed apologetically to Elora. "I'm sorry for shooting you when you didn't want to fight. I don't know wha..what ...just now.. happened."

Elora didn't know what to say. She was usually the one to be apologizing, not the other way around. It seemed like she wasn't entirely happy with how this played out either, so Elora decided not to dwell on the subject any longer.

"No, don't worry about it, please. We were meant to do that, and I was in the wrong for refusing to fight, not you. So, umm...how did you get picked to be a pilot? I was picked because I survived a Cruxi attack, and I know a lot about computers so they gave me Rilus to pilot."

"Picked?" Utano seemed to regain a bit of her composure again. "I.. I don't really know. I was in the middle of writing a song when these people suddenly grabbed me. Next thing I know, I'm here piloting a robot. That's why I'm still wearing this SONG outfit. Its like a ministudio; I made most of my songs using this." From the tone of her voice, it was obvious that she put a lot of pride in her works.
"So uh... I actually have no real experience with these, or even how my mech is supposed to work. Back to what you were saying; what was that bit with the Cruxi? You actually met them and survived?"

She was abducted...Elora didn't know that was one of the ways pilots were recruited. She believed every word the adults said when she was brought over to Meridia, but thinking back, she may have been lied to on more than one occassion. This was cruel of them, and Elora sniffled a bit at hearing about it. Then Utau mentioned her outfit being a ministudio, which immediately got Elora's attention. She was about to ask Utano her about her software when she asked about the Cruxi attack. Painful memories flowed back to her mind, and she visibly shivered.

"Oh, I...I don't want to talk about it, sorry. They...were the stuff of nightmares. They just one day came to Epsilon V and..." Elora paused, obviously not wanting to continue her train of thought. "Let's just say that there's a reason they're feared. I only saw glimpses of them, but they're not something to mess with." She realized she may have been scaring Utano with her words, and shook her head.

"No, I'm sorry, I shouldn't have brought it up. But I want to ask about your ministudio; what kind of software does it run on? What's the storage capacity on it?" Elora attemtped to change the subject once more before things got too awkward.

Utano kinda panicked a little when she saw the girl's face scrunch up at the mere thought of her background. Again, she had no idea what to do in this sort of situation, so it was quite a relief when Elora tried to change the subject.

"Ah this?" Eager to bring the subject as far away from Cruxi as possible, Utano fell back on her persona. "This is SONG, the Studio Outfit: Noveau Grade. I have no idea what that means but..."

With smooth movements long practiced, she activated her suit, which shimmered to life as it drew out a hologram of a purple electric guitar with blue highlights. With a flourish, she strummed out a note on it, or more accurately, the suit detects what string gets interfaced with and how, then outputs a note appropriate to it.

"It could process several million songs, runs on the latest Macrosoft 29, and uh... That's all I know, but isn't this neat? I could stage a concert by myself if I need to." Temporarily forgetting her situation, she strummed out a tune happily on the hologuitar.

If Elora remembered correctly, SONG was the newest in the line of idol-dedicated music gear, right after SONNET which was popular with the last generation. She audibly gasped when the holographic guitar appeared and Utano played it, awed at how realistic the hologram was. She was really happy that she managed to get off to a good start with Utano, and her worries seemed to fade away with the strumming.
"I'd love to hear you singing one of these days," Elora said, and smiled. "And, I'd like to, umm, take a look at it, but not if you don't want to, that is..." Elora opened her mouth to continue, but then saw the helicopters arriving.

"It was great talking to you, Utano. I hope we can do it again."

Almost puffing out with pride, she strummed out a few lines from her songs. "Of course, you'd get a free VIP front seat to my concerts. If you like, I can also give you a few tips while you look over my outfit."

She looked over to the helicopter arriving. "Hmm. Talk to me anytime you like."