No Survivors.

That phrase brought Aura to a screeching halt as memories flashed through the veteran's mind. Countless times, UNF and OS infantry had spared the wounded and infirm, avoided chases into civilian areas, refused to raid military parades where civilians would definitely be caught in the crossfire, and never once intentionally assaulted anywhere serving as a medbay. There was a certain respect expected in war, a respect the Commander was asking her to forego. Aura felt the urge to grab her gun, to eliminate the evil words she'd just heard with a bullet, but that wasn't an option both for her own survival or to salvage how she'd felt about this op mere seconds earlier. Aware she may very well be visibly distraught, as she was boiling with anger on the inside, Aura carefully responded "Commander, I don't believe I heard you right. I believe you just ordered me to eliminate wounded and unarmed UNF personnel, in the event either should cross my gun lines. If that is the case, ma'am, then I'm sure you know that I want nothing to do with it. You're asking me to go out and gun down kids, when they're shooting at me that's fine, but anywhere the UNF is developing a weapon there WILL be unarmed, possibly civilian, personnel as well as armed guards. What the hell can we be doing thats worth stooping that low, Hale?"

Somewhere in the back of Aura's mind, she could feel herself running the numbers. The PHP-21 Heavy Pistol contains twelve .44 Magnum steel-tipped rounds, rated as armor piercing. Aura could empty that magazine in four seconds with acceptable accuracy, each shot hitting its mark most likely. Commander Hale was an easy shot, the guards would be expecting this from Yaz more than Aura so they would likely go down before they could kill her. Once they were down, it was elementary to get to Longshot and scramble. The issue became, of course, then what? The Ordo would be on the lookout for her and it was even money whether or not the UNF knew her face. Her home would be the first place the guerrillas would search, they'd ride her family to try and get intel out of them, maybe kill them though Aura still wanted to expect better of the others. It was then that a stray thought struck Aura, why hadn't she included Neil and Yaz in those very calculations? The answer was easy, obvious even, they were HER pilots, and she was their squadron leader. That was a sacred trust, one she couldn't betray, not even if it meant risking her life.

She shook herself loose of those thoughts, but now she could never escape the cold awareness that seeped into her mind. She could get out of this, kill the one in charge of this even, and get away alive, of that Aura was sure. Hale maybe didn't deserve it, she took care of her own after all, but giving that order made her a target if Aura were to snap her weapon up. This meant that, if Aura went along with this, she had no excuses to make. Of course, every life she took on every mission she'd ever been on weighed on her, but it was easier to accept what had happened when they were shooting at you. She may not be able to divorce the UNF into that vacuous category of 'enemy', inhuman and monstrous, that the rest of the infantry had but she still slept at night, honestly easier than the rest of them. However, this mission, this time, Aura couldn't help but wish she had done just that, turn the enemy into an inhuman monster, then this mission wouldn't have raised the red lights it did.

However, Aura never had, and she knew if she had to kill some wounded, terrified trooper crying for his mother, she'd never live it down. If she had to gun down some unarmed scientist running for cover, she'd see his face every night. Two things kept Aura's hands where they were, however. First, she could swear she distantly heard the sound of her dead comrades urging her forward, to win the fight at all costs, and let them rest in peace. Second, she was becoming acutely aware of what would happen to her pilots if she left. For sure they'd have to take the field without her, and if they died without her to protect them then it was on her. Out of combat, Neil would be fine without her, scatterbrained as ever no doubt but he'd live, probably move on before the day was out. What about Yazmin, however, Aura couldn't help but wonder. Sure, the younger pilot would doubtless be emotionally unhampered by Aura's leaving, after all they hadn't known each other long, but what about the men at the base? Would they leave her be, accept her? Or, without Aura to protect her, would they go after and eliminate the former-UNF pilot? Would they pursue her even more determinedly, perhaps to spite the Captain after she deserted, or perhaps they would believe the pilot had corrupted the Captain, killing her in revenge? Aura had no way of knowing, and that got to her more than she thought it would.

All this happened in Aura's mind alone, while on the outside she fixed Hale with a dead stare. Everyone who knew Aura would know the look currently fixed on Hale's eyes was Aura's war face. She was told she had a certain face on when she went into battle, when she was about to fight and take another's life. Cool, calculating, yet completely free of tension, the veteran's cold eyes and steely expression were fixed on the Commander, awaiting an answer.

Kevin:
- UNF
- Terra

Kevin stood through the short briefing and looked at the file he had been given. While still formulating ideas of the possibilities of the man they had to transport, questions were being thrown out. All the questions Kevin would like to ask were already being asked and as such he kept his thoughts to himself and his ears open. It is good to hear the concerns of the team members since it would give him an idea o experience with command and who to go to in the future for questions on formalities and specifics after mission briefings.

After a few moments of consideration, he realized that the team did not have a formal means of communicating to each other and for a moment considered if it was even important since the channels would likely be open.

"Most of my concerns have been voiced already but there are a couple of items I want to have set in stone. Firstly, are we going to have a formal means of communicating that we have picked up the individual and package? I would like to know as soon as possible who to watch over as we transport the individual and package. Secondly, will there be a secondary rendezvous point in the case that we become separated and have to regroup?"

Where Kevin expected somewhat simple answers and to possibly be sternly talked to for asking basic questions, they were important in his mind since simple matters are often overlooked in operations. Learned that the hard way on building his mech and unlike at the junkyard, there is no time for mistakes.

Yazmin turned towards Captain Kalstov as she addressed her. It was still so strange having people look after her well being. She nodded. "Limbered up and already finished my daily morning exercises, ma'am. And I believe that Ordine is in top form as well. The Techs make sure of that," she nodded again, as if agreeing to her own words. "Thank you for your concern," she added. During her stay in Ordo Sanctus' base, she found that expressing gratitude made her appear more like a real human than an artificially created one. It also made people treat her better.

"You're a real human, Yaz. Don't let anyone say otherwise. Yes, you were born artificially in a laboratory instead of the natural way but that doesn't make you any less of a human than I am. Don't worry. At the moment, you might be surrounded by people who think otherwise but someday, there'll be others who'd think like me." These were the words of her father. Did he mean the people in Ordo Sanctus? Did he somehow foresee where she'd be after his death?

She looked towards dark haired Neil as he approached. She frequently heard the female engineers discuss the young sergeant. Words like cute, handsome and quirky almost always turn up in their conversations followed by giggles and then a sudden hushed silence whenever he passed by. As a result, she almost always studied him the same way she was doing now. He was definitely pleasant to look at but he had a very unusual behavior. Was that what makes someone cute and handsome? One of the female engineers, Angela, once asked Yazmin if she had a crush on Neil because of how she always watched him. She couldn't give a proper answer because she didn't really understand what she meant. But it seemed like her lack of an answer had its own meaning and Angela ended up saying something strange. "Welcome to the club." What club was she talking about? And how does one develop a crush? Was watching him as often as the engineers did qualified as that? These things weren't included in the things Anton taught her. She would have asked Angela but when Neil passed by, the girl's cheeks turned a bright shade of pink and she hurried away. Strange. Maybe it was better to ask Neil about it.

On a later time. She thought to herself as she turned her attention back to the Commander.

Fadio Ginsburg. An important name in Ordus. He was the leader and the one calling out the shots. Yazmin haven't met the man yet but she often wondered what he was like and how he founded the faction. She's heard a lot about him during her stay with UNF. But the gist of it was that he was a ruthless terrorist and deserved to be brought in and executed. That was what she grew up believing. That was what she was taught. But ever since she had 'woken up' from her programming, Anton had taught her a different way of thinking. Perhaps that was one of the reasons why she joined Ordus in the first place. She figured that what she knew about Fadio was probably tainted by how UNF saw the man. She was now in that position to form her own opinions by meeting the man... if that was even possible.

The Commander's words filtered into her head. Nearby UNF base. 2200. Bring back secret weapon. Cut all forms of communication. No survivors... Yazmin paused at that. The words weren't unfamiliar. She often heard it issued among the soldiers of the UNF and she had actually expected that, in time, she'll receive the same orders too. But that was when she followed all orders blindly. Hearing it now gave her an uneasy feeling. But despite that, a part of her argued that orders were orders. She was a soldier and was bound to all that the commanding officer ordered. Who was she to question it?

With the conflicting thoughts tumbling around in her head, she tried focusing on the rest of Commander Hale's words.

Lastly, you cannot. I repeat. You cannot be caught. If you’re caught, if they get a signal out or survivor is left to return to the UNF… you didn’t come from the Ordo. We won’t be rescuing you."

No rescue. The words didn't come as a surprise. Even if the Commander didn't say it, it was an unspoken rule."Listen up, kids. I don't care if you have names. To me your designation are the numbers tattooed on your arms. You are soldiers now. And as soldiers, you willingly put your lives on the line to defend what your country and what you believe in. Everyday you will put yourselves in danger. If you die, you die. No one will mourn you. This is... She didn't really wanna remember the rest of the words her former commanding officer said to welcome her and the other 9 clones to the ranks. He should have cut it short and just said that their lives weren't important. She was used to this set up. No one will care if she died or lived. She was not indispensable. She was not then, she was not now.

Years of training pushed her to simply say yes and follow through with what she was told to do. But half of her mind rebelled. Her thoughts shifted to the people they were to kill. What about them? Were they not indispensable too? Anton's face loomed in her mind. Her scientist father had been gunned down unarmed. Would she be able to do the same thing?

She barely heard the rest of what Commander Hale said as Captain Aura spoke up. She looked up to her then to the Commander, her strict adherence to the respect military hierarchy demanded preventing her from speaking up.

---

"Other than their Valkinais, what other transports are at our dispossal, and..." He gave a second look at the file before looking at his Captain. "Would it be possible to request maps of the region? Perhaps with information regarding the enemy attacks seen so far?"

From Test Pilot to Pizza Delivery guy... Oh well... At least it looked like they were given enough freedom to act by themselves in case something happened, but he still wondered who would carry the blame if one of them caused the mission to fail?

---

Neil actually listened intently. Sure, his visage was more lighthearted than showing any intense concentration, but he processed all of the info and mulled it over accordingly. Bam, bam, bam, bam, in, out, done he thought to himself, then realized that he could have made an innuendo there to himself, which he supposed he just did since this entire conversation was within his head anyway and he could totally read his own mind.
Huh...he was a mind reader. Just not a very good one.

"Shut up. Focus." He muttered to himself. Sometimes he needed to be firm with himself, after all. Aura spoke up next, and he shrugged when he realized she had a point. Well she would if that was what Hale was asking them. They wouldn't be asking them to kill unarmed personnel, right? Ok, Neil loved a good dark humor joke. In fact, the darker the funnier, because it was wrong. But that didn't mean he'd actually murder someone who didn't deserve it.

He looked at the lovely Yazmin for her opinion, but she seemed to have buttoned her lip at the moment. She was always looking at him, and in turn he would stare at her confused often enough as she passed by. He enjoyed acting the part of a womanizer, but deep down he was as sweet as a pup if something ever came to that. Though yeah...he tended to jokingly flirt a lot too. Still, just like all the times he wasn't sure if she was or was not checking him out, he wasn't entirely sure what she was thinking here either.

"Ma'am," Neil said to Hale. "Pardon. Commander Hale ma'am. Listen, I am quite certain that you know something that we don't. Unless you're implying these scientists are apart of some-WHOA..."

Neil snapped when his mind thought up something pretty brilliant on the spot. "I would assume, Commander, that we should leave no survivors because we don't want them to trace anything back to us right? Why not just wear uniforms that lead them away from Ordo? Ew, then again I hate uniforms."

@Hell Coos@The 4 Winds@Valor@Marquise

=====


@POOHEAD189@Kyrisse@Deadnaut

Gregory scowled slightly as he thought over the information he was given. A tool to maintain the balance of power? That could only reliably be one of a small handful of things, which worried Gregory greatly. Taking the file assigned to him at last (Gregory usually bothered with questions first.) Gregory skimmed through it and the additional information he was provided while obviously preventing the others from reading it themselves since this information required higher clearance than they had access to.

Nodding to himself at the information contained within, Gregory closed the file immediately and returned it to the table. Since it contained heightened security clearance Gregory would ensure that it wouldn't leave the eyes of at least one person with the clearance needed to view the contents. it might not have been standard protocol, but it was how Gregory liked to work.

Gregory didn't have many more questions after reading the file, as everything was essentially answered. He had a feeling that The Fortress of Arrogance would be the likely vehicle used to tow the package they were dealing with. Hopefully this trip would be uneventful, but Gregory began to doubt it. Now with more information about the mission, Gregory sent a command to Ba'al to update the backup copy of himself to the secondary platform aboard the Terra. It would be pleasant to have a fresh copy on hand encase the Fortress of Arrogance was destroyed in combat or disabled without the ability to recover it.

Gregory doubted that this would happen, since The Fortress of Arrogance was quite the tough nut to crack, but it was nice to plan for something just in case since you never knew how sour a mission was going to go. Like the test run of a Valk that had been giving green signals all morning.

With nothing more to say, Gregory waited upon the others to make their own statements and leave before he would leave himself. With the file assigned to him not leaving the bridge, Gregory enjoyed being the last one out and making sure that nothing funny happened to the file. Being the first out typically allowed for someone to try something sly, like stealing files or trying to take a peek at them. Gregory wasn't going to allow this to happen under his watch.

Kevin:
- UNF
- Terra

Kevin felt a bit uneasy with the lacking information of what the package looked like, but Gregory seemed to have enough confidence in the information to stay silent. As Kevin milled over the information, he memorized the face and name of the vip in case Kevin would be the individual to find the professor. With that in mind, Kevin then also returned the file. Best to keep all information away from the enemies should the worst happen to him on the mission.

Kevin then saluted Dawn and Gregory. "I will be in your care sir. I will make some more final checks of my Valk before the mission starts. I trust you will give us more details about the package when the time is right. Sir." Kevin then made another salute and left the room with haste.

With that Kevin quickly made his way to the hangar in order to do another final check upon TT. If anything it was to make sure he would be safe in the cockpit and added a few amenities, such as water and some food in and emergency glove-box he installed into TT for storage of small items like food or entertainment. Afterwards he checked the main systems to make sure they were running appropriately, all systems worked as they should. It was a good sign as Kevin then checked secondary and tertiary systems to make sure all was well. He then made sure TT was charging properly before settling down outside his Valk.

After the final system was done being looked over, Kevin sat himself down and busted out his notebook and began to conceptualize a better power system for TT. It took a lot of energy to start up and the charging time is ridiculous in comparison to other mechs of its size. This would be the most important hurdle for him to cross before really considering his mech to be an optimal machine. He couldn't completely use the same power system other mechs used due to usage of mechs from different stages of development. The current power system would act as a good base to expand upon, but it would have to be the first item replaced otherwise TT would run a greater risk in missions that were closer together time-wise.

As Kevin worked outside of TT, it was fairly obvious he was milling over it and on occasion would smack the paper on his face or let out a small groan while looking at the paper. In the midst of this he was sketching, jotting down notes for himself, and in general just trying to let his ideas flow and noting where the science could back up his ideas. It was a painfully slow process, but one that would be worth it in the end. TT was standing proof of that.

Michi contented herself with reading the file that had been given to her, her face carefully kept mildly interested as she read. Subtler than a poker-face, the expressionless mask that revealed much of what its producer aimed so desperately to hide, a beacon to those who knew how to read faces.

The scowl at the hadean red shades of 'CLASSIFIED' and the redacted material, for instance, made no impression on her serene exterior; secrets were irritating. Perhaps, next time, a little money and a few favours in the right places might open some unofficial channels.

After all, preparation and planning were nine-tenths of victory, and being crippled by secret objectives wasn't helpful. Something to think on, certainly, and to definitely not mention to Captain Fietmaal.

“Two things, if I may, sir, before I check on Kaiserin's shells and make ready? First, is the truck itself important in some way, Captain Dawn?” she asked, after a respectful interval, carefully closing up her own file. “I merely wonder if the VIP – no point in blurting out identities, even here - might be safer inside one of our vehicles, such as Captain Fietmaal's tank, for added protection.” She waited a beat, and then continued. “Second – I appreciate that details are sketchy, but do we know the size of the package we're to collect, sir? Is it something that can fit in the palm of a hand, or large enough to need a low-loader for transportation?”

Michi hoped, vaguely and without much in the way of expectation, for the former – a nice, simple, easy package that any one of them could easily carry, deep inside the armoured hull of their Valkinai. Maybe even a memory stick or a set of storage drives, perhaps with vital research data that, whilst important, wouldn't take up much space or leave them reliant on civilian equipment for transport.

Getting bogged down whilst transporting precious equipment was, after all, an ambusher's dream – a stationary target that forced its defenders onto the back foot. The defense had to be lucky every time, whilst the attackers only needed one chance.

It wasn't a comforting thought, even if Kaiserin's targeting systems could triangulate rapidly and accurately and her hellbore battery rain down fire and brimstone.

Gregory raised a finger in protest to Michi's idea that the VIP ride within his tank. He turned to Michi and politely corrected her, lowering his finger before he began to speak. "A correction, Michi. The interior of The Fortress of Arrogance is maintenance space only. Should the tank begin to operate in combat, there is no space within that will remain safe from the automatic loaders and other systems. Anyone within that isn't extremely small will be shredded by the machines. Better to ride on top of the tank with me, or to ride with someone else."

Gregory didn't think lesser of Michi for not knowing that the interior of his tank was rather small, but he did feel the need to correct her before she started to base the entirety of her plans upon an incorrect fact. Regardless, Michi was correct. Having the VIP secured within one of their vehicles would be an appreciated difference. Gregory knew better than to tell Michi much about the package. He knew exactly what it was, but knew for a fact that since the information was classified that it was better to let Capt. Dawn tell any details about the package, since talking out of turn could reveal something that was detrimental to the success of the mission, or reveal plans and specifications to the enemy.

It was a tricky thing, espionage. Turning up when you least expected it, and usually with exactly what you didn't want to have the enemy know. That's why Gregory didn't want to answer any questions on his own. It was better to leave the chain of command intact, as that usually produced the expected results. Intelligence was best kept on a need to know basis since telling everyone everything typically left severe security holes in your battle plans and internal security. Neither of these was pleasant to deal with when it came up in the field.

The most obvious example of this would be the ancient war between Spartans and Persians. They were defending a critical location to the entrance of their kingdom from the Persian army, and a local told the enemy of a passage around them and then lead the Persian army around the Spartan defense, thus circumventing what could have been an otherwise impenetrable defense for the time. This was a clear indication of internal security not making sure that secrets were well kept to only the people that needed to know about them, and why things being classified to most people was still relevant.

Gregory gave a shrug to the whole situation and said. "Frankly, Captain Dawn, I'd transport the whole lot by air. It'd be faster and safer for everyone involved. Unfortunately, we don't have any high speed cargo planes on hand. I might pull a few favors with some friends at home to get something designed for this purpose, among other more combat oriented purposes. Building something like that will take some time though, and it won't be available for this mission."

Gregory took another glance at the map provided and scowled once more. The distance was rather large and three days of land transport would be roughly one day in swift flight. Land transport also left many, many vulnerabilities open against them. The main one that Gregory was worried about was air firepower. His tank could dominate the land battle fairly easily, as tanks had historically done, but when put against air power, his tank would be found severely lacking. The only way he could logically shoot down a fast moving jet would be to have that jet's pilot be an utter fool and fly the jet straight at his tank, head on, without deploying any weapons. Then he could raise the main gun of his tank and fire directly into the nose, destroying the jet.

However, this was an extremely unlikely situation, and Gregory's estimate of such an event happening put the odds well below one percent. Frankly, as close to zero as you could get without simply being zero. That's why Gregory had raised concerns about air support in the event that they needed it. Unfortunately, his concern had gone unanswered and Gregory now factored in a zero chance of air support, which drastically changed how the mission was going to play out in his plans.

Overall, things were stacking up against them, and Gregory felt his mood sour as he planned out various situations. This mission was hopefully going to be a breeze with no hostile encounters, or else Gregory was going to have quite the headache as he constantly adapted plans to suit enemy encounters.

It was going to be a long day.

What did Hale just say to her?..Had she done what the infantry had done so long ago? She had made the UNF into faceless enemies, she had done the same thing her fellow soldiers did to stay sane. Aura shook her head and picked up Hale's pistol, one not dissimilar to Aura's own, and thumbed the magazine release, the mag hitting the table below with a dull thud. Aura now thumbed the safety, clicking it into place as she walked up to Hale and presented it to her, grip first, the only round in the weapon being the one in the chamber. Aura kept an iron grip on the barrel however, cautioning ""I'll go on your mission, Commander, but remember this. Those UNF soldiers pulling security? The ones we're supposed to kill to a man, to put down the screaming wounded? They're just like me, and each soldier in this bay. We've shot the ones they call family too, Commander, and you know what? I've got two bullet scars, one treated by one of our men, and another by a UNF medic." Aura noted, with no small amount of pride in her fellow infantry around the bay, that they'd thumbed their safeties and brought their weapons to bear. With her free hand, Aura gestured at them all, saying "I can't speak for the weapons scientists, I'm not one, but I AM a soldier, an infantrywoman at heart. Most of those troopers aren't in there to oppress the poor, they're only soldiers because they wanted to help, to do what they thought was right. They're eighteen and twenty year old kids, Commander, and now all they want to do is protect their comrades. If you think of them as monsters and not humans, just something to destroy for victory, then what makes us better than them? I joined the OS because we're the good guys, ma'am, let's keep it that way."

If Hale hadn't taken her gun by now, Aura set it back on the table and walked back to where she'd stood, adding "So you know Commander, if one of them drops their weapon and surrenders I don't think I can pull the trigger. If that's a problem, I don't need to be on this operation." Her anger clearing and her philosophical rant over, Aura honestly felt better. It was good to know these things still bothered her, that she was still human, an affirmation that war hadn't eliminated her moral code just yet. Aura the person was satisfied, so it was time for Aura the captain to have her go. Clearing her throat, Aura added "Presuming my little caveat hasn't put you off sending me on this operation, ma'am, I need to know what the package is. Are we trying to exfil with their entire project, just the data, something else? Also do we have any actual estimates on enemy security? Infantry, armor, valks, air support, the works."

"Undesrtood, Captain" John said giving back his file. "I will head up to the hangar now to see which vehicles are available." He saluted and left to talk with the mechanics to see what they had ready.

The current question was if he should take a machine to act as offensive backup, defensive backup, focus on transporting the VIP, transporting supplies or perhaps even just scouting around. He imagined his superiors, who probably already had a couple ideas of how they wanted things to go, had a plan already and s role for him. But, as always, it was never too bad to have a couple cards hidden in case the hand did not went as expected, so perhaps he could talk with the mechanics to give a bit of a plan B to whatever transport he found.

Yazmin looked at her team mates and her Commander. She heard their words and found that she was inclined towards the captain's opinions. She felt that she should at least say something. But what should she say when she was was torn between her more ethical thoughts and the duty of following her Commanding Officer's orders.

“In one way or another, the men and women who signed up with the Feddies are responsible for the deaths of many innocent people. They’re no children, and no random bystanders at this base. Purely military and tactical killers.”

The men and women who signed up with the Feddies are responsible for the deaths of many innocent people... What does that make me? I've killed before. I've looked people in the eyes as I pulled the trigger before. I didn't care if the men and women I've killed have families that would mourn for them. What does that make me? What am I? Did father make a mistake of thinking that I could be more than what I was created for? But would choosing not to kill unarmed people with the capability of producing weapons to be used against them be better than killing them and saving lives? Will the same people show them the mercy if their positions were reversed? Would any of them think twice?

Ordo Sanctus, a faction that was formed with the ultimate goal of ending the corruption and tyranny of the UNF. They were supposed to be the good guys. They were supposed to be fighting for good. But were they really the better people? Does being better mean being merciful even to your enemies? Were they really enemies if they were just acting on command or fighting for what they believed in? If the UNF killed, so did Ordo Sanctus. They robbed families of fathers, mothers and children. Was it justifiable to kill people of the UNF just because they killed people from Ordo Sanctus?

Revenge.

How righteous am I to think that what we're about to do is wrong when I joined them for the sole purpose of avenging my father's death? Yazmin shook her head and thought for once that maybe having the inhibitor chip was better. Life was simpler that way. There was no thinking what was right and what was wrong. The only real thing she needed to do was follow orders. Who would have thought there'd come a time when I'd want that chip back?

"So you know Commander, if one of them drops their weapon and surrenders I don't think I can pull the trigger..."

Yazmin looked at the Captain before she turned back towards Commander Hale. Still. Orders were orders. "I will follow orders, Commander. I would put all the effort needed in the completion and success of this mission but I cannot ascertain if I could really end an unarmed person's life. And moreover, my mak---father was a scientist. Placing me to shoot them might make me hesitate." It wasn't the most professional and appropriate thing to say but she felt like she needed to speak out. She waited silently to be reprimanded.

---

Neil puffed up his chest at that proclamation. It was something he prided himself on, to be the one to make an impossible situation possible. Often enough, people let opportunities slip by simply because the way to solve them seemed too crazy to work. That was where he came in, often enough. Though granted, seeing someone else lose it and solve something (or attempt to) gloriously was about just as fun.

He looked at the hesitation of his two teammates innocently, watching them with their back and forth. He was about to announce 'Cat fight' when the Commander took out here gun, but wisely he kept that thought and declaration to himself. "Listen, listen," Neil said, holding up his hands.

He didn't quite understand the entire argument here. Well, sure he understood it. But he took things one problem at a time. If it was just him here, he might have asked about unarmed personnel, but then again he might not. Honestly he would just go 'yessir boss man woman lady' and fly off and 'pwn some noobs' as the kids say™. And if he felt like he couldn't do a certain part of the mission, well he'd cross that bridge when he came to it. There was too much shit in the world for people to stress over every little thing or turn it into a philosophical discussion.

"Ladies, please. This is a mission that needs to be done, and these people aren't our friends. Now, if it seems like maybe there's some wiggle room to be-" he didn't want to say merciful. "-extra charitable to people who aren't out to directly kill us then BULLY I say, but let's go there first and see if we can do a flawless victory without getting caught by some tinkerer with his pants down, aight?"

Cadet Jay Jindaal

Jay made sure his combat knife and 1911 were firmly in place on his pilot suit. He shifted somewhat in his combat suit. The quarter master had outfitted him with protective knee pads, elbow pads, and a pauldron that gave him the look of a more ground combative unit. He felt his heart beat faster as the time of the mission drew near. He distracted himself by aiding the techs and engineers with prepping Fury, a habit he picked up in training. He thought it was a pilot's duty to be involved with the maintenance of the thing that would keep him alive. Jay walked around the large machine with his hands behind his back, pointing out possible flaws, things to check, and handing the techs and engineers the tools they need, doing the odd calculation. He had read over the briefing multiple times and was concentrating his focus on what it entailed. It was an honor for Jay, to be included on such a secret and vital mission and he would not screw it up.

Jay was always in awe when looking upon Fury, her power and lethality practically radiating off of her. He climbed the ship with strength and anticipation, dropping into the cockpit looking at all of her controls and devices. Three years ago, he made his decision to work towards this point. Three years ago a burning flame was lit and has only gotten stronger. His desire to fight was now more powerful than ever and he was so close. Three long years...

Three Years Earlier

"JJ what are you talking about?" his mother asked as she typed up a report. She had been promoted after many years of working as a low level drone. Jay stood there in front of her, fists clenched, eyes blazing. His hair was longer and unkempt and he was way chubbier, this was before he started his intense training.

"I want to join Ordo Sanctus, to become a solider." he repeated, his face determined. She turned to him with an infuriatingly knowing look and says simply "No you don't, you're gonna stay here in Navitas and find a job once you're grown." She turned back to her computer, obviously thinking the conversation was over. "No, I'm not." said JJ defiantly, raising his voice ever so slightly. "I'm gonna join OS and make a difference, not rot away in this town." He turned to leave but saw something that sparked the fire bright enough to take him all the way. His own mother rolled her eyes, shrugged her shoulders, and went back to work. That sparked a fire that burned hot and bright and never faded.

Present

Jay was jolted back to the present by a blip on his PDA. He turned it on and saw the notification "Mission Soon, Get ready to intercept Captain Aura." Jay pocketed his PDA and climbed down from the cockpit, nodding to the leaving technicians and engineers. He made sure for the umpteenth time that his new armor pieces and weapons were in place, standing at attention. He had of course heard of Aura, the OS Infantrywoman turned Valk Pilot. He knew there was a possibility for out of mech combat on this mission, so he was grateful to have a veteran grunt leading things but he doubted his own ability to be as effective on the ground. Especially if he was face to face with one of the soldiers, more experienced ground combatants.

Upon seeing Aura's approach, Jay stood firmly at attention, giving her a precise salute at a 45 degree angle. He had to resist a smile as he knew Fury was standing proudly and impressively behind him.

@Deadnaut @Kyrisse @POOHEAD189 @Musaki Hajime

"Ladies, please. This is a mission that needs to be done, and these people aren't our friends. Now, if it seems like maybe there's some wiggle room to be extra charitable to people who aren't out to directly kill us then BULLY I say, but let's go there first and see if we can do a flawless victory without getting caught by some tinkerer with his pants down, aight?"

Yazmin turned her attention back to Neil and was amazed by how calm he seemed to be. Must be another one of his charms that made most of the women fawn over him. At the back of her mind, she wondered if he really was calm or if it was only a facade to cover up his real thoughts and feelings. Whatever it was, she listened to his words now. They made sense. He was right. The people in UNF's side weren't friends. Even when she had been on their side, they weren't friends. Acquaintances maybe? People she worked with. But they stopped being whatever they were to her the day they killed the only family she ever really had.

The directives stated that they were to eliminate all threats IF they get caught. There was still that chance of not needing to kill anyone. Even if they weren't really friends.

Funny that her thoughts have evolved this way. Once upon a time, she had had no problems staring into the eyes of the helpless and unarmed and then pulling the trigger. No amount of begging or groveling would have made her spare their life. Orders were orders and that was what she had been programmed to follow. Why was she hesitant now? Why was she questioning a direct order from her commanding officer?

She knew the answer even as she questioned herself. Because the inhibitor chip was removed. Without it, I've become less efficient. For the second time that day, she wondered if having the chip in her was better than having it out.

If the chip stayed then she would still be with UNF, probably sent out on a mission to hunt down and kill the very same people that was standing with her now. She would have done it with no questions and no thoughts. Even her own life held little meaning to her. If she lost it then too bad. Someone else would pick up where she left off. If the chip had stayed, she wouldn't have known Anton like a father. She wouldn't have met her team mates that seemed to care for her a lot more than the people in UNF did. She wouldn't be wondering if Neil's hair was dark brown or black.

The last thought made her realized that she was still staring at Neil. She shook the thought away and promptly averted her gaze and turned it towards the tablet that had been placed in front of her. Follow the objective and don't get dead, the words echoed in her head. She took the tablet and scanned the mission directives. As she did, a name popped out to her. Donovan Mars.

Donovan Mars, she repeated silently in her head. Where had she heard the name before? She thought back to all the scientists involved in the Samantha Project. She knew all their names and can remember all of their faces. There was no one by the name of Donovan Mars in the laboratory she had been raised in. So, why was his name strangely familiar? It bothered her but she figured that she'd know soon enough. She continued reading and glanced at the map of the base. She had been to the base once several years ago. She had stayed there long enough to at least familiarize herself with the lay out. She wondered how much had changed since she was last there.

As soon as she finished reading the mission details, she raised her head and looked at the Commander again. The announcement of a new pilot joining their team was good news but her thoughts were still on the name of the scientist she now hoped to encounter. "Commander, will we need to bring back this scientist with us?"