[CENTER][h1][color=6082B6]Odessa[/color][/h1][/CENTER]
[sub][right][color=silver][color=6082B6]Location[/color] — Petrichor-8 System, Frontier Planet Alora[/color][/right]
[right][color=silver][color=6082B6]Interacting[/color] — [@Xiro Zean][/color][/right][/sub]
[hr]

[indent][color=silver]War was never something to be taken lightly. It was a difficult, costly affair for all those involved. Even the most legendary of warriors grew weary of it after a time. The rush of battle, the thrill of found in glory, of clashing against foes beyond the ken of mankind grew dull in the face of constant, unending repetition. Like howling wind against a mighty cliff, it wore one down bit by bit, piece by piece, almost unnoticeable, until they were made lesser for it. After a time, war became laborious. Tiresome. The campaign to defend the planet Alora from the encroaching forces of the Aberrants had long since transcended tiresome. 

Perhaps that was why Odessa chose the relative solace of solitude over the comfort of socialization. The burnt-out ruins of what must have once served as a hotel proved their meager force with a place to rest out of sight from the watchful eye of their foes, who circled the skies above like so many wild dogs, hungry for any scraps they might find amidst the desolation their packs wrought upon the surface. Most of their company had broken off into their disparate groups, the enlisted men trying to distract themselves from the gnawing dread of what was to come. The fighting to reach where they stood had been fierce, but the fight was yet to conclude. They were nearing their objective but not quite at it yet. The most ferocious resistance was yet to come, and already, they had lost so much. Those valiant survivors swept up in the orbit of a Red Giant on the warpath could be forgiven their discomfort. 

Odessa would not forgive herself for such things. 

There was nothing to be gained in ruminating on a fate yet to come. Those who dreaded the future to come—who allowed fear to turn their minds to the potential for imminent failure—already condemned themselves to an inglorious defeat. In lieu of such lamentation, the Constellation rested her body against what likely constituted a supporting wall during the hotel's heyday, arms crossed over her chest and her cap pulled down over her eyes, soaking in what rest she could manage between sorties. Some might have thought her to have been asleep. The more clever of them might have thought to get some sleep all their own, knowing what was to come. Such a luxury would certainly evade Odessa, if not for her responsibilities, then for the timely arrival of the group's 'commander'.

Ahkari Ganju was not a familiar face before Alora. To hear it told, she had been across the frontier on worlds foreign to Odessa, earning her place in the stars across what must have been dozens of planetary conflicts. Yet she hurried across the vast sea of stars when the archenemy threatened the world they now shared, and for good reason. Alora was more than just another front to Ahkari. It was home. Her home. And now, it was being made hollow by a parasitic host that could not be reasoned with nor easily repelled. Every day of the last six weeks, a little more of the planet's vitality drained away, used to birth the mechanical monstrosities that had swarmed over their ranks in the millions. A little more of Alora died with every second, minute, and hour. The specifics of how long a world could hold out against such a pestilence were lost to a woman who had steeped herself more in the lore of killing the disease than treating its symptoms, but it could not be very much longer.

Indeed, if Ahkari's very audible conversation was anything to go by, it [i]would[/i] not be long until the event horizon was crossed. Their commander did well to hide it, but Odessa could hear it in her voice. A need to find an end. To make the sacrifices make sense. Desperation for a cure. 

All understandable things to feel. How many could stand idly by and allow their homeland to be consumed? To have spent weeks on end, countless comrades, millions of lives, only to still lose the world that had birthed them? It was an easy thing to be objective about when it was not one's world. Could she be half-so-logical if Okeanos was threatened? If the lives of her daughter and her family hung in the balance? Perhaps she could. Perhaps, in her years of training, she had mastered herself enough to make the correct choice. For whatever else one might have said about Ahkari Ganju, however desperate she was to bring salvation to Alora, one could not question her instincts. Her choice was the correct one. The only one. To see their collective voyage to a conclusion—be it tragic or otherwise. 

When the Red Giant stepped forward looking for counsel from those who had fought beside, Odessa tilted her cap up and scanned the room with a single aureate eye, following the first to voice their opinions. The pilots seemed to have the requisite dedication to see the plan through. For that much, they could be respected. Most of those not born of noble warrior's blood did not dare to face such insurmountable odds without overt protest. Either they were cut of stronger cloth than most, or they had given themselves over to the stark reality of their situation. Death was a likely companion in such campaigns. But death would come for all in due time. Better to meet it on one's terms than allow it to come to their door unimpeded.

But that did not mean it should be met eagerly or recklessly. Pushing herself off the heels of her muddied boots, the Perseid made her way through the ranks and toward their impromptu commander. Approaching from the side, she offered the comfort of her voice before that of her gesture.

[color=6082B6]"I concur with this course of action. There is no such thing as 'playing it safe' in regard to our enemy. With every moment they grow stronger. If we wait any longer, we consign ourselves to defeat. All we have sacrificed will have been for naught."[/color]

The weight of her weapons might have been enough to drag a lesser woman to her knees, yet after years of their constant embrace, the bulk of Odessa's gauntlets weighed no heavier on her than skin. A similarly unfitting lightness might well have carried over in her touch, as she brought one of her metal-clad hands to rest atop Ahkari's shoulder. She squeezed with all the comfort one could manage in their position.

[color=6082B6]"If we are to do this, however, we cannot allow desperation to reach a swift victory to cloud our vision. We must act swiftly, but not recklessly. We must carefully plot our course before setting off."[/color] 

Her countenance bore both a gentle empathy, acknowledging her fellow Constellation's earnest wish to save her home, but also a desire in itself to see that want made real. A desire that she was confident could be made to come to pass, with the right direction.

She could feel the stiffening of the muscles even beneath her steel, the tensing that precluded battle. The Red Giant turned toward her, eyes searching, not for validation but for a purpose in her actions. It seemed she would take no comfort from the gesture.

[color=white]"Do you have an alternative?"[/color] Aurigae endeavored, her arms crossing as she glanced at the holographic display hovering a dozen feet away, slaved over by the handful of information specialists in the company. [color=white]"Be that as it may, this is a situation that calls for desperation. Our efforts must be swift if we are to minimize the damage dealt to the planet as much as we can. The mission is dire enough that the planet might have already been lost during this brief conversation."[/color]

The commander's words were straight to the point as ever. It seemed like she was all but ready to rush out into the streets with the company at her heels, prepared to go down in a blaze of glory if that was what was required to take the nest. All the more important Odessa had an alternative. Bravery was an expectation for those who called themselves Constellations, but there was a stark divide between bravery and foolhardiness. Such a line was blurred by the notion of caution equating to inaction.

[color=6082B6]"We do not have the resources to brute force our way to the nest [i]and[/i] proceed to take it after arriving,"[/color] The Perseid lowered her voice as she continued, offering a convenient excuse for their closeness when reassurance was placed out of the way, as well as keeping morale from crumbling any more than it already had, [color=6082B6]"We need to draw the Aberrants between ourselves and the Princess away if we are to make it in time and with sufficient force to kill it. Contact General Ackeroid and request he launch an offensive to cover our advance."[/color]

It was hard to say what forces the Brigadier General had at his disposal. It had been some weeks since their force had the mercy to rendezvous with anything greater than a few scattered platoons. Whatever he did have, though, was doubtlessly in greater number than their own company, and like as not to be fresher to the fight. As long as they could cause a significant enough disturbance to throw the Aberrant's equilibrium out of balance, it would be enough for them to land a decisive blow at the heart of their enemy. Once deprived of the head, the body of the beast typically collapsed in the days to follow.

[color=6082B6]"They need not take any ground. Only force the Princess to divert resources away from its protection to keep them at bay, opening a path for us to reach it. Of that much, he should be capable of providing us."[/color][/color][/indent]