[b]Solarel[/b] “Zaldar didn’t write it!” she screeches, almost shouting. Her mask slips, and you can see an almost feral gleam in her eyes. One of the geists riding along with her stirs, and she puts a hand to her chest and stops it. She straightens, brushing down her cloak. Then she just looks at you, like she’s coming to grips with what just happened. She wanted to show you something, not say what she thought. She sighs and then returns to signing. It’s not quite so simple as that for all her mystique. She’s only got a few Hybrasilians with her, and two of them are still fighting the five Boatmen behind you who are sweeping into your position. They’ve got two of them down and bound, but the other three have circled up and are using their guns to advance. One of the two lionesses eats a shot right in her chest plate and goes flying past you, standing up groggily while the other one dodges to the side. Annika’s mecha must be here even though you didn’t see it on your trip over, there’s simply no way she’d be this vulnerable otherwise. The Boatmen, meanwhile, are not about to let you walk away. You also notice from the sudden geist activity that they’ve signaled back to their shuttle, so several more of them will be coming towards your area with shotguns. Annika doesn’t wait, she grabs you by the arm and pulls (dangerous though she knows that to be, her touch is soft even in force, expert in its positioning). She signals to the other lioness with her free hand, and you’re caught in the middle of the fight being pulled by Annika on one end, three Boatmen advancing you on from the other. *** [b]Isabelle[/b] Crescent snorts, loudly. “Wow, I did not see that one coming. Everybody has you pegged as the cold, calculating business girl and you’re actually a hopeless romantic. Oh this is too good.” Ponytail pointedly says nothing and fetches you the tea. It’s hot, enough that you have to blow on it and sip to avoid burning your tongue. It makes for a dainty look as you carefully sip it, the astringency making your tongue pucker in that good way that comes from a solid black tea taken straight. Ponytail makes a face, telling you that she’s the lots of milk and two sugars type. After another chuckle at your expense, Crescent smiles a feral smile, all sharp teeth and finishes her last bit of workout routine, coming to rest on her feet gently. “I’m Crescent, that’s Lilika, we’re part of the Ebon Claw, we’re taking you here, which is Roius in Aoi, mostly because Solarel was here and we really wanted her. You’re more like the control group of opportunity. And…no, I won’t ravish you, you’re not my type. Get a robot arm maybe and we’ll talk.” So the answer was yes, you do get the standard questions. Whether or not any of that was helpful is itself an open question of course, but Crescent seems so casual about the whole thing that it’s a little scary. Perhaps the note about the planet is the main point. They could take the restraints off and let you go and…then what. Roius is a mostly unexplored planet in a contested system in the middle of the Cerulean Belt light years away from Akar. As far as you know, the only transport off this planet is the shuttle you’re in right now (though you can faintly hear some fighting outside) and Crescent seems supremely confident that you couldn’t steal it from her even if you were unrestrained. So, it does make some sense that she’s casual about it all. *** [b]Mirror[/b] You can stay with Slate as long as you please. The Hangar is a secure space (or at least it was supposed to be) and is equipped for overnight stays. If you stay long enough, it will be your own belly growling to pull you out of your reverie ahead of Slate’s. The rest of the team can get the Whip mostly in order, replace the burnt out bits, check over all the controls to ensure no other sabotage was done, and leave everything for you and Slate to do final reviews in the course of time. You may perhaps want to investigate the details of the space as well, given what happened. A Zaldarian artificer would be the most knowledgeable person on the techniques that could have done the deed. Trosta, on Akar II, might be the most obvious port of call there. If you wanted to know more about where Solarel got the missiles, there are some members of the criminal underworld that enjoy high fashion and could be convinced to share their information. Perhaps stepping away from the immediate problem, if you arrive on Akar Prime in any reasonable amount of time, you’ll find that Valentina paid a courier to wait for you at the spaceport with flowers to celebrate your match (she assumed you’d come to the same planet on the regular, perhaps a quite serious mistake). If you go to Akar II, you’ll only find out about the delivery later via one of your engineers. You’ll also find that several reporters are frequenting both spaceports and are very interested in speaking with you if you’ll give them the time of day. All pilots are minor celebrities, but when there’s a truly spectacular match like yours, it does garner some fame and concomitant interest. The only other match of the series to come close so far was the Isabelle Lozano vs. Ada Smith match, where there’s already slow motion close up neural mesh options to view the ending where Isabelle nearly took down Ada and Ada overloaded her crystal fire drive. Only the Unseen Goose overloaded though, there were no convergent phenomena and the Emberlight’s drive remained fully safe in its core protections. Getting back to your match though, it was both a sustained exciting fight and has multiple airs of mystery. Popular speculation is centered around how Solarel got ahold of all her tricks and what your big attack might have looked like if you’d gone through with it. If you wanted to start finding out who was really paying attention, you’d probably do best going somewhere lively and simply listening to the conversations. *** [b]Jade[/b] It’s nice performing for someone new. Not that it’s bad performing for Dolly, she’s always adoring, but adding to the audience, that’s really something special. Ksharta is quite the audience too. She’s been great with Dolly of course. She eats voraciously, orders lots of food, is full of life and pep as she talks, telling stories of home, of food she made, some stories of the huntress lodges. Some of this could be your life, both directly and through Dolly, if you are even moderately successful in this tournament and return to a life serving in the Hybrasilian forces. Would it feel good to go on jackal hunts with the lodge? To luxuriate in Dolly’s adrenaline, the taste of blood? Perhaps to luxuriate too in Ksharta preparing the food afterwards and the taste of the fine cuisine, meat and spices in just the right balance. But then when you go all out upon the table, Ksharta squeaks, she meeps, she blushes in the best style and mouths “omigosh” in the most awed whisper. She answers in a flood of speech, her version of a mind blank being stream of consciousness. “Of course, I mean there was that one time when I was a kitten and my mom made crickets and I hate crickets even though they’re healthy, but they taste so bland and mom never used salt, so I didn’t really give thanks for my food, but then I still feel bad about that so that means I was already punished, and and I always offer some of my food to the goddesses, and I think that might count extra cuz people keep telling me it’s really good and that makes it a good offering, but how much salt would a goddess even want, I mean like, do they like salty food or would it be kind of offensive to offer them something that masks the natural flavors of the offering. I mean, you would know of course but you don’t have to answer and um…” The fluster is very real, and very cute. And from this, you can get two things clearly. The questions you have asked are on very easy and one very hard. Obedience is the simplest thing. Ksharta is a good girl and a faithful Hybrasilian who believes in all the rituals and practices. Just tell her what you want, maybe tell her it will be a fun game, and she’ll happily pounce Angela in any ambush you could come up with. But what she loves most. Oh, what a cruel and terrible question to pry into the mind of a young catgirl. Ksharta loves pleasure, and she loves joy, and she loves safety. But she’s so sheltered, so silly and full of life. She’s never questioned what makes for any of those things. She did what her parents said, and they offered her a life full of mostly good food and healthy living. She learned to cook and people were happy with her. She joined the huntresses and she cooked, she flew, she hunted, and these things were good. But Ksharta Talonna has never asked herself [i]what do I love? Me, just me, what do I really love?[/i] She doesn’t know yet, hasn’t found it, hasn’t found the things that would make her ask. You could give her those things, if you’re careful, oh so careful.