[IC] Souls of Steel: A Giant Mecha RP

[Ariamis]

Everything was finally in place… those who were chosen for the project have all finally assembled.

“It’s so good to have fresh Cadets… especially those who hold such great potential, wouldn’t you say so, Irina?” spoke the gray-haired haired, wrinkly and rather thin scientist with a smirk as he looked over the papers.

The woman, whose build was slender yet toned, looked rather unenthusiastic about the old man's words. She was wearing a leather jacket over the shoulders, with her pilot's plugsuit visible underneath. "This batch won't survive a single battle...their statistics are abysmal. I think if we used sockpuppets we would get better results."

The slouching man smirked. “How dull… I’d expect you to at least be a bit livelier in my presence.”

“Sir-“

“Just call me Lorenzo, that’s an order,” spoke the scientist as he looked over the ‘thing’ being forced to kneel before them.

“…Lorenzo, are you sure we can be casually discussing things in front of ‘it’?”

“Why not?” grinned Lorenzo as he stared at his prized possession, “I would like to see what it has to say about us. Wouldn’t you like to know that, too?”

“…”

The thing kneeling simply continues to hang its ‘head’ as wires and tubes are protruded from… or into its body. From anyone else’s point of view, one would assume that the being is simply dead, but from what was heard from the conversation between Irina and Lorenzo, it is clear that isn’t the case. After bit of silence, Lorenzo simply laughed to himself.

“Nothing as usual… So this is what our little companion sees of us.”

“Come again?” Irina asked with a raised eyebrow.

“Even like this, it still sees us as nothing more than insignificant nuisances.”

“You’re saying that this thing, despite its condition, still believes it can win?”

“No...hee hee...it knows it can win.”

“Really now?” Irina crossed her arms and leaned on one leg as she glanced at the monstrosity with a bored expression.

“We’ve probed it, interrogated it constantly, and done so many unethical things to it that even serial killers of old would be disgusted at… yet this thing hasn’t flinched or winced once in pain. Hell, we’ve wasted so many truth serums that this thing should be a drugged mess, however, you can see that it is perfectly fine, yes?”

“That’s true. It’s still fine, the cheeky bastard... Why is that?”

“Hard to say, Irina my dear… but this is the difference between them and us… We would break easily as human beings were we to be enslaved, they however… I believe they would never break if we were to capture them.”

“So… what’s the point in keeping it alive if we aren’t getting anything from it? It's a bit too costly for target practice...”

“That’s where you are wrong! We are learning from it despite its reluctance to cooperate. They are the perfect soldiers, but their lack of emotions is something that holds them back. They don’t particularly seem to have much of anything that they’re fighting for from what I’ve noticed… they don't seem to have a clear objective. We all have our reasons to fight and that gives us strength.”

“I never thought those words would come from your mouth, sir.”

“I told you to call me Lorenzo.”

“I'll try to remember that… but still, what we learned from them isn’t much."

“I suppose… but we have learned something interesting… and that is that they are capturing humans, and I’m sure that this particular Cruxi has all the answers. I also intend to get those answers out of it one way or another.”

As he finished the sentence, light in the shape of an opened door poured into the dark room, and a hospital bed with a white sheet draped over a hidden body was rolled inside. It was brought before the beast that then immediately started eating the offering. Irina clenched her fist and twisted her mouth, visibly disgusted. "Lorenzo, is that one of the-"

Lorenzo nodded slowly. "Yes...What a failure Alpha was. But at least she can serve some kind of purpose now." Lorenzo observed without a hint of emotion as the bound monster finished its meal. "Now we'll have to see if the rest follow her fate..."

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

A group including both adults and children were escorted by a group of armed soldiers through the twisting corridors and countless intersections of a military base. While the base did resemble the headquarters of any regular Planetary Defense Force, it was a lot more advanced, with numerous rooms filled with machinery and resembling laboratories among the barracks and mess halls. Engineers and soldiers travelled back and forth in equal measure, and scientists in white coats too, to a lesser extent. The pilots were recently transferred from the facilities they were training at along with their Framewerks, and are only now meeting each other for the first time as their escorts led them to a briefing hall. The pilots were ordered to stand in a row, and inside the hall arrived a woman. The soldiers stood in a separate row from the pilots, saluted, and walked out of the hall.

"Welcome to Solaire, Cadets; home of the Framewerk Project XJ9." The woman in a Framewerk plugsuit spoke in front of the group. "I am Lieutenant Ritsu Kaname, and as of this moment you will be taking orders directly from both myself and-"

"Oho! So these are the Cadets!" blurted another voice as a tall gray-haired scientist practically shoved her aside. "Sorry Ritsu, I didn't notice you were there! I was so excited to see the new Cadets that I could barely contain myself, hee hee!"

"Hrmph...Attention!" Ritsu shouted, and then saluted to the old man as per military conduct. "Prof-mm, Executive Officer, shouldn't you have more pressing matters than to welcome the new Cadets?" The old man smiled. "Not at all... It would be rude of me not to. Besides, I'm interested to see what they can do already."

"I see... Anyway, Cadets, this is Professor Lorenzo, your superior in Solaire, and Executive Officer for the Framewerk Project. Most of his work is classified so don't bother asking about it. Just know that he'll be observing our progress periodically from time to time to see how well we do. You have all completed your pilot training in separate facilities, and now you will move on to developing advanced skills and training to be a single unit.
To achieve the level of squad skills you need to, we will be holding a mock battle between you Cadets in an hour to determine who will take up the role of squad officer among you. The objective of the mock battle is to defeat as many opponents as possible before you are defeated yourself. You will be observed and then evaluated based on how you performed before and during the battle, so I expect each and every one of you to give your all."

Lorenzo pointed to a device with a bunch of red buttons he held in his hands. "Your Framewerk will be remotely disabled once it has taken a certain threshold of damage, so you'll know when to stop before you ruin my precious beauties too much. The battle ends when only one Framewerk is left standing...or I get bored, whichever happens first, hee hee!"
Ritsu hesitantly nodded. "Perform admirably. That is all."

"Hoho, like so," grinned the XO as he looked at the Cadets. "Nonetheless, do well and try to get along, introduce yourselves to each other why don't you? I'm interested to see how this'll go...hee hee..."
With that... the two seniors left you all to yourselves in the hall as the door closed shut. Only an hour before the fight to determine who will be squad leader so might as well get to know one another while you can.

One of the girls, Elora, was trembling in fear, her legs shaking and her arms held close to her chest. She seemed to be out of her element as she desperately attempted to open her mouth and say something, but was unable to. She was like a lost puppy with her big eyes and sniffing nose, looking like she was going to start crying any second.

A...battle? Elora thought to herself. How could we do something like that? I can't fight these other pilots, I won't last a second out there! LG isn't a solo combat unit! Oh no, this is bad. Maybe if I ask someone to...no, they wouldn't want me, why would they? I feel like crying now... The young girl struggled to keep herself from sobbing on the spot.

[AtomicNut]

"Yes sir." The response came out automatically from her mouth as both her CO and XO exited the room, having done an explanation befitting their roles. Unpleasantness clawed in the back of her mind, as she stared at the man known as Lorenzo. Most gregarious animals had instincts that often triggered a response of reject, usually related to dangerous behaviour. Lorenzo with his mere presence was making Sigma shudder, even though grown soldiers could never create the same imposing effect on her.

Sigma straightened out her jacket for the ninth time in the room, glaring at one of the sleeves with her red eyes disapprovingly as it still refused to be put in the right place. The jacket was too big and ill-fitting for his tastes, but entering the room wearing nothing but the Framewerk suit would not have been acceptable. She had to uphold human etiquette, as even the most inane things could hamper the combat effectiveness and cohesion by creating unnecesary friction. Or at least that was what she had been told in the crash course in the past week. She tilted her head sideways slightly, examining the new room with scrutinizing eyes. Other pilots. One hour to decide the course of action before a free for all decided the position of squad leader.

A display, huh? I wasn't trained for this. Sigma pondered, raising a fist to her chin, still observing.

Why is everyone so freaking tall and developed? The young pilot pondered, quickly assessing that perhaps, she was the most childlike of the lot. She lamented with bitterness not having a better, more developed physical presence. Truthfully, she was never intended to be fielded this quickly, but her supposed elder model never met the expectations.

Well, we're after all disposable dolls, servitors of humanity. Artificial. Sigma mentally steeled herself, and stepped forward.

"I am Sigma, and I pilot the Eiswolf, well met." She said in a neutral, dispassionate tone, but being careful to sound polite enough. Others would make their pitch for leadership, they would lament their inability, they would seek to intimidate others perhaps. But Sigma did none of that.

There's no way a doll will ever be in charge of anything. But orders are orders, and so I shall comply.

It was then when she caught something in the corner of her eye. As clumsy as she was in social interaction, she recognized the hallmarks of tears in some other pilot's face. Troublesome. Normally she would not bat an eyelid, but wiping one's tears and possibly snot could leave a bit of a messy stain.

Sighing, she rummaged for a handkerchief, and she approached the other girl, her movements deft but devoid of emotion. Red eyes met Elora, as she offered her handkerchief. Sigma didn't say a thing, considering her action was clear enough.

[Mr Rage]

Zim went through the motions of the salutes, the yes sirs, everything else military that was required of him. When dismissed to mingle, Zim hated that term... mingle, the short man stayed put and crossed his arms over his chest, only changing his posture so that his legs were placed wider. Otherwise he kept the same blank expression on his face as he surveyed the room and the people around him.

As he stood there, waiting for someone to come mingle with him, he remembered the things that Fleck used to tell him about standing with his arms crossed. 'It makes you look like you think you are better then everyone else, that you are on the defensive and want nothing to do with the people around you.' With a small inaudible sigh, Zim Hero uncrossed his arms. Not sure what to do with them now, he awkwardly put them in his pockets as he looked around.

He was one of the older people in the room, this didn't bode well for his personal pet peeves, but they were in it together now. Despite this, Zim knew that he needed to keep his mouth shut, any disturbances socially can greatly affect the team work of the unit. Even worse it could affect an individuals performance even unto the point of risking their life. Zim knew to keep his mouth shut, normally this wasn't going to be a problem, but perhaps in this instance this was going to be a problem. He realized this as he scanned the room and saw the girl on the brink of tears. He then saw another young girl approach her and offer up a handkerchief. 'Great, another one is already flocking to her,' Zim thought.

[Apollosarcher]

Ariin looked at the other dropping his hood carefully, they all seemed rather interesting and tough in their own ways. He did silently wonder if they had all been chosen for a reason other than their age, as it seemed that all pilots had to be within a certain age limit. Perhaps it was about loss or personal drive? He decided not worry about things that he couldn't control at the moment. He came to his next idea, check a few pockets see if they had anything that might give him information of course they would be his teammates soon he figured it would be best not to piss them off, yet.

He saw one girl tell everyone who she was, he figured he'd step up next. "I'm Ariin Sorus, I'm from Mars, I pilot the Paladin." He said shrugging as if it didn't matter to much to him, honestly he was here because he owed someone and because he needed to protect his sisters and little brother. He stepped back into the crowd and saw the first thing he saw Sigma offering a handkerchief to another girl who looked scared and ready to start crying at any moment. Ariin sighed, growing up the oldest of five siblings meant he had to be their a lot to comfort them. Since most of these guys hadn't said a word yet, he walked over to the crying girl and crouched down giving her a soft smile as his electronic eye turned a soft shade of blue.

"I know the idea of fighting all us sounds pretty tough, but if you want I'll work with you on the battle field. Keep you safe and such, if you want me to." He looked up towards Sigma and nodded to her standing back up.

"Sigma your welcome to work with us as well, honestly you two kind of remind me of my sisters back home." He rubbed his head a little then shrugging he decided to sit beside Elora keeping a little distance between them as not to be rude.

He spoke softly now, to both of them if either were evening listening he didn't notice. "Yeah, I've got three younger sisters and a baby brother. We all left Gaius four together when were kids, since then I've had to do everything I could to feed and care for them all." He rubbed his head thinking of his criminal past before he joined the project. "Still I got job to do, I wouldn't mind working with you both. After all who would want a Kleptomaniac leading this team? Personally I'd rather manage to stay up for the duration of the exercise. Maybe pick off one or two of them before it ends." He looked between Elora and Sigma. "Offer stands, either I don't plan on fighting either of you if I don't have to, Paladin's main armament could rip limbs off most of you guys Framewerks and I rather not cause damage if I can avoid it."

[Ammokkx]

Serah was a tired little duckling, rubbing her eyes even still at the military base. She'd gotten up earlier than usual due to rules and hasn't quite yet recovered. She still did the whole military position, treating everyone with respect and the likes of that but not with heart and soul like she would on a normal day. Little bits od the day passed one at a time, and eventually, the girl found herself alongside other cadets standin' in line to listen to a middle-aged lady's instructions. With a bored look on her face, Serah let her eyes dart to the side to scan who she was actually with. Young girls, one young guy, and then a bunch of old dudes. Her hands were almost inside the pockets of that pink jacket she loved to wear, though official protocol prevented her from doing so. Eventually a higher-ranked old guy walked in, introduced themselves as Lorenzo, and couldn't help but be the cheeriest person on the planet whilst also sounding like a complete sociopath. Serah felt chills run down her spine, straightening herself out a bit more to not look lazy in front of her new boss.

The cadets got dismissed soon after, with the bluenette exhaling a sighof relief at being able to relax. She'd closed her eyes for a bit to relax, but they soon sprung open again when they heard a young girl named 'Sigma' introduce herself. Soon after, Ariin followed. What a weird name, Ariin. Normal people were called Arin, though Serah's name was also a bastardization of Sarah so she couldn't judge. The girl felt a huge smile creeping across her face, and was unable to help herself. "Heeeey! Heeey! Don't forget about me!" she flailed in the background, whilst giggling also. "I'm Serah, Serah Gene! Dont'chu forget it now!" she cheerfully introduced herself, calming down soon afterwards. "Atty's my Framewerk, and they're the coolest around! I'll show y'all what we can do in the mock battle, so you do the same alright?" the girl finished her long-winded introduction. She drew a heavy breath from that mouthful, then shot glances around the room to see who was there.

They noticed an older man in the group, someone futher back first. They didn't seem to be too pleased. The next to be noticed by Serah's all-seeing gaze were the group of three that flocked around Elora. Seemed like they were crying, but it'd probably be bad to overwhelm the girl. There was also a really pretty girl, little older than Serah, with long black hairs. They seemed interesting enough, but the teenager didn't feel worthy enough to speak to them for whatever reason. Those are all the people she deemed important enough on a glance. So, who did she bother? Why, nobody else but Zim Hero of course! The petite girl scuttled over to them, with a smile of childlike innocence on their face. "Hi mister!" she broke the ice, looking up to the noticably taller man. Something was obviously bothering them, Serah could tell. "Hey, hey. You don't look too pleased, what's wrong?" Serah asked, genuinly curious.

[Penultimate_Pi]

Standing before the professor had never ceased to bring a strange awkwardness within Lora. Within her years of training within the Framewerk program, learning all the little intricacies of the system and the commands revolved around them, Lorenzo had always been there in spirit. Now that she found herself in the actual company of the man once again, able to see the face of this entire operation, the cadet couldn't help but wonder silently - was a man like him meant to have total control over this company of young soldiers?

No use asking why, the pilot of the Dynasty rebutted herself as the executive officers finished his personal briefing to the cadets and left the room. You came here to serve a purpose, and nothing else.

Yet as Lora looked back to the handful of others, she couldn't help but let some doubt seep in. What was with this discrepancy in their ranks, anyway? The men were all men, and the women were all- no, not all children, but some still younger than they had any right to be here. One of the girls, the one who could easily pass for the youngest in the assembly, could already be found on the brink of tears for some reason or another. It brought some of the other pilots closer, people who were therefore reflexively willing to protect her from harm. Lora looked away, preventing herself from making any comment on the situation. She had no right to judge someone like that.

Still, however meek the act, it seemed to bring allies who would offer defense in this upcoming battle. Allies. With a hint of trepidation, the cadet realized the certain oddity that everyone present here were not strictly already comrades. Immediately, they were expected to fight among themselves to determine who among them would be their leader. With that being the case, Lora found herself hoping that the title would not simply be given to whomever won the fight.

Though, it probably would help if she didn't lose, either.

"Lora," she spoke at last, the first word coming from her lips being simply her name, "I pilot the Dynasty." A pause, and then she followed on her introduction, "I trust you are all good pilots to have gotten this far in the program; you have my respect for that." Lora wouldn't say so, but she wanted to exhibit some degree more expression than one of those military clones she heard rumors of.

[Evil Snowman]

With the officers gone Katya relaxed her stance having snapped to attention almost the moment it was called. She breathed a sigh of relief glad that for an hour they have a chance to mingle and at the very least learn a few names. Even if at the moment Katya didn't feel like talking. Finding the idea talking to someone she didn't know a little uncomfortable but she was determined to over come the issue. Plus these people where people she'd be working with for what she assumed would be quite some time. So she had get to them and if that meant feeling a little uncomfortable so be it. After it only be for a little while.

Looking at the other pilots in the room. Katya was quick to notice the one girls was already on the verge of crying.
"Whats up with her? I hope she's alright." she thought but became distracted when one of the other pilots spoke up stated what Katya assumed was her name and her framewerk's name, followed by another pilot and another. Thinking it be the best way to introduce herself she figured she'd do the same. Taking a breath she found this moment reminded her of her first day of basic training.
"I'm Katya, piloting Caretaker. I'm the one that will be fixing your mech's in the field. Pleased to meet you all." she stated with slightly plane tone. Thinking that was enough for an introduction for everyone Katya moved to the wall behind her and start to lean on it. Recalling one pilots was on the verge of tears she looked over again to see there a few other gathering around her.
Seeing that made her smile a little it reminding her of home for a brief moment. Something she had been away form for only several months and even then she was still in orbit or on other parts of her home world.

Pushing the thought from her mind she looked at girl with long hair as she spoke her name and framewerk name. Katya
"Seems like it's becoming a trend I wonder if the others will do it to?" she thought pushing herself away the wall, thinking she should try an intact with someone. Although picking someone to interact was quickly proving to be difficult. The girl who looked like she might cry already had couple of people around her and Katya feeling like she'd be of no help decided to her to the other already there. The girl who called her Framewerk Atty. Was interacting with someone who looked something was bothering him and the others she simply could pick out of. After running thought who might be deemed interesting enough to talk several times in her head Katya still couldn't pick. Frowning leaned back against the wall
"Agh... I give up. They think I'm a loner for all I care. I'll win them over later. They'll need there mech fixing mid fight at some point then they will be mine! Mwhahaha!" she thought amusing herself slightly as she looked around the room. For the moment she thought it be observe everyone. She might catch wind of interesting topic of conversation to join in on or at the very least glean something about the others. Outside of their name and framewerk.

[SillyGoy]

The entire time Harold had been lead around within the labyrinthine complex of the military base, he was taken aback by how unrelentingly bizarre his life had been since that fateful day at Bastion Alexandria. He had been wounded, awarded a medal, and promoted, but the golden bar of a Lieutenant, Junior Grade saw a life of only two weeks on his uniform before it was taken away. For some reason, he'd been demoted back to Cadet, although the red-and-black ribbon of the Knight's Cross was still proudly displayed on his chest. Was being demoted part of the contract? Maybe he should have actually read the papers before signing them. He didn't mind overmuch, though, as this was his chance to fight again.

Finally, Harold's column stopped. Out came a female officer and a scientist. Supposedly, the two were there to welcome them, but the old man appeared to care little for proper postures and rigid salutes and joked around a little. It made Harold smile - it was good to serve under such men. They raised morale. But then he and the officer mentioned a mock battle, and the smile on his face faded away. Apparently, the purpose of the whole affair was to decide an officer among the group.

His mates then started to introduce themselves. Then a terror rocked throughout his body. He thought that the kids were family of base personnel and it was Take Your Daughter to Work Day or some such, but never did he realize till then that they were going to be his squadmates. These were the people with whom he was going to take Cruxi fire with and the men and women who were supposed to watch his back - but one of the men was a boy and most of the women were girls.

"Hold up," his voice was uncharacteristically loud. "Hold up for just a minute. Excuse me, miss," he turned to Serah, "how old are you?" Then to Elora, whose sorry state he hadn't noticed. "And you?" And then to Sigma. "And what about you? Thirteen? Fourteen? What are you girls doing here..." his voice trailed off.

He stood rigidly straight, shoulders broad and trim to perfect level. He was in his Navy Blues, and though the uniform had only one medal pinned to its chest, it was a significant one. Scar tissue, mostly hidden by a sleeve, trailed to the fingers of his left hand. Harold was a veteran, and his blue eyes were lit up with monumental confusion, brow furrowed deeply.

"No offense, right? No offense intended. But you don't mean to tell me," a lump welled up in his throat, "that you're supposed to fight?"

[Dragoknighte]

After the top brass left, Rooney pulled out a pack of cigs and his old lighter lighting a smoke before really looking at everyone in earnest. As he inhaled, the shaking of his hands stopped and the noise in his head quieted a bit. There were a few kids here, way more than he expected there to be (which would be 0). Maybe they were scouted for piloting Framewerks on their home planets before they were even old enough to consider joining the military. Maybe other planets had lower age limits for doing this stuff. Or perhaps the PDF stopped giving a damn about ethics and child labor when it came to battling the Cruxi. Either way, it really didn't matter anymore.

"Roger Rooney. I pilot Yeager." Not very well yet, but that was beside the point. He'd barely gotten ahold of the basics of moving the damn thing competently before getting shoved here. Did everyone have as little preparation as himself, or was it a potluck? Knowing his luck, everyone had years of practice and could work a Framewerk with their eyes shut. Well, everyone but the girl bawling her eyes out. She didn't look fit to recite a play in front of a class of teenagers, let alone pilot a Framewerk in the war. Rooney took another drag of his cigarette.

"So something's been bothering me. This test makes not a lick of sense. We're supposed to be working together as a team, right? Then why have us fight against one another for some leadership position? I get that it's good if we know what one another can do, but by making our first real interaction a cutthroat competition, we'll only be more disposed to hate each other. Not to mention that fightin' ability don't translate to being a good leader." Another drag of his cigarette. "Really seems like the worst way to introduce us, really."

[Penultimate_Pi]

Introductions went around, and Framewerk names were shared, though they mostly didn't mean much yet. Katya, one of the ladies not much younger than Lora herself, did subtly diverge her machine's ability, but was the only one to do so. In stark contrast, Serah set herself up as a hyperactive braggart with a supposedly very cool Framewerk- in Lora's opinion, a poor example of her female company.

The young adult rolled her eyes as the prospect, quietly hoping the girl would actually figure out how to be mature. Her feelings were emulated on an overly more dramatic scale when one of the men turned back, and with some incredulousness, asked the younger females if they were actually meant to take part in battle.

Following most of the name-sharing and barring most of the side conversation, Roger served himself a cigarette to ease his shakes (did he have an addiction?) and shared his thoughts on the operation: mostly confounded. Lora, willing to pick up his strike at discussion, turned to reply, "Didn't quite sound like a competition to me, but more like a test." When Roger's expression turned inquisitive, the cadet elaborated, "We're still expect to fight to the death, but they'll be measuring some of our other qualities, too. Ability probably helps, but like you said, there's more to being a leader than that.

"For instance-" Lora spared a glance toward the small crowd of Sigma, Ariin, and the crying girl, "-the capacity to reign in and control allies."

[Mr Rage]

@Ammokkx "Wrong?" Zim asked raising an eyebrow, "Nothing is wrong... I just have one of those faces I'm told."

Zim folded his arms in front of his chest again. It was a bad habit, and while distracted by conversation he forgot to not do it.

"You seem awfully excited about being here, though. I'm Zim Hero, by the way. I pilot the Black Star. It is kind of a hybrid machine, heavy armor up front when it is needed, pulls out of the way when it isn't needed. Close combat model. Hows Atty designed to work?"

@Dragoknighte "I suspect that it is more then meets the eye," Zim said, changing his focus to the other conversation happening near by, "But it isn't a bad idea either. We are all coming from different backgrounds, different training programs. I suspect that some of us have been operating machinery longer then some of us present have been alive, meaning no offense. A toe-to-toe test of ability is a good way to learn what each of us is truly capable from, rather then just a data sheet from our previous trainers. Often times the best way to develop a team is to make sure everyone knows what everyone else's strengths and weaknesses are, as so that way we know how to best compliment one another. Further more, we know so little about the Cruxi that we will never truly know what we are going to get when we go onto the battlefield. This battle among us is perhaps the best approximation of what we can expect on the battle field."

[Evil Snowman]

From her position Katya hear a couple of potential conversations starting to form although couple with potential to becoming interesting topics. It was only when one of the other pilots mentioned he piloted a close combat type framewerk did Katya found herself taking an interest. She since becoming a pilot she had wanted to give it a try but she never been allowed to. Pushing off the wall once again Katya moved closer to the girl pilot and that had introduced herself as Serah and the person she was taking to.
"Oh you Pilot a melee framewerk? I envy you. I wanted to pilot one like that. Anyone that can hold there own in melee fight in the middle of gun battle is worthy of some respect" she said with a slight bow of her head, only noticing the other pilot had moved on to another conversation.

Oh sorry didn't mean to interrupt. But he's right they I doubt they making us fight each other simply for leadership. I think the XO might taking a little enjoyment out of this. Then again who could blame him. I would say they won't pick simply the officer by who as the toughest werk or the best pilot." Katya said feeling a little embarrassed for interrupting but quickly got over it.
Even if it was odd to use mock battle to decided leadership, but then again it Katya saw it as the most fair, planets had different customs and what is considered a good officer. Well so she had been told anyway by her instructor. If that was true of not she was still yet to see> She had been told quite a bit form her instructor back home and her late father so be interesting to see how much of it was actually true and how much was just fairy tail.

[AtomicNut]

Sigma tilted her head, still waiting for a prompt of the wrecked girl to take the handkerchief. She was wasting enough time, as the world went by around the two. And she had managed to catch the attention of someone. An older boy. Ariin, he called himself. He prompted a supportive?...yes supportive response to Elora, and then proceed to try and propose a team with a healthy dose of self bashing. He also obviously included Sigma, because it was...polite? No, there was something more.

Patronizing older brother attitudes. Sigma's lips scrunched, and her eyebrows depressed in disappointment. She was not a little girl to be coddled nor someone who needed a brother. He would probably sell her frustration if her actual cheeks hadn't reddened a bit. She focused on the robotic eye.

And the handkerchief became suddenly more interesting. Ariin also went so far as to boast about his behemoth of a mech. Sigma formally tilted her head once against towards the pilot, but her look was a rather...neutral stance. Eh, I've seen worse.

"I appreciate your offer, Ariin... but I've been asked to not hold back and fight everyone. And I will do so. Twisting the orders and forming a team does not net me benefit yet." She added. Well, she would like to make it so it was not an individual effort, as she knew firsthand teams had a strenght on their own... but then again Lorenzo was Lorenzo, and she knew all very well the whimsical man threatened and -dunked- people in formalin for less, at least according to what the rumours said.

She resumed staring Elora and the handkerchief, ignoring another high pitched girly voice who had gone to poke the gruff, distant old pilot somewhere. Odd creature, was this her idea of being nice and cute? Social interactions were so odd.

"I don't believe how you passed the cut to be here." She blurted out to Elora, without any kind of tact or filter whatsoever. "Crying wastes energy. It is undesirable."

Two girls presented themselves while Sigma was fixated on the handkerchief again. One was a repair type... Hmm...

And then, just out of nowhere came a loud man who then began to round all the younger pilots, asking what seemed to be the obvious. Had he not been briefed? It would match his stupor and mannerisms. Probably the best course was to give the man an answer so his interference would be kept to a minimum.

"I am fourteen." Sigma announced with her still childlike voice. "The minimum age cut for the Framewerk project." She added, red eyes staring into his. For not too long, before her eyes narrowed on a little addon of his uniform. A Knight's Cross??? A veteran!

Sigma visiblely paled (if such a thing was possible) and flinched for a second. Veterans were crazy. Dangerous, and all of them had treaten her poorly even for a non human doll like her. She tried to brace herself, but managed to recover in time, turning the protective hug into a pondering hand in her chin.

"You don't look broken. Why are you not broken?!" She asked, her curiousness muddling her incipient sense of tact. She never realized what she done, and instead resumed tending the handkerchief. And then other pilots began wondering, and pondering what the XO was about. By letting us decide. They didn't realize, did they? Lorenzo was probably watching the whole time, each step they made. Not that she had worked much with him, but she had seen some of his sort back at the project. It would fit.

"Cameras." She pointed with her hand at the ceiling, in answer to the hesitant pilots. "We are probably being studied from the moment he left up until the point we finally end the exercise. Unfamiliar environment, stress test."

She was still waving the handkerchief to Elora.

[Ariamis]

While she was cowering in her place, trying to reel herself back from the emotional outburst, Elora didn't notice the handkerchief that was offered to her by one of the other girls. She looked up from her hands, and froze as her eyes met Sigma's gaze. She couldn't tell what she wanted due to her emotionless expression, but she decided to do as she wanted. Maybe she's just being nice...

She reached for the handkerchief, but stopped: She yelped in surprise as Ariin crouched down right next to her. His metallic iris stared straight at her, shining on her with a light that sent chills down Elora's spine. She shut her mouth, holding back the need to scream, and listened to what the martian had to say. When it became clear that he meant well, and actually suggested to team up, she calmed down as relief replaced fear. Elora sniffed, and then gave an adorable smile. "Th-Thank you for the offer, mister Sorus. I'm Elora Liu'un, and I, um, pilot Logic Gate. It's a scouting and reconnaissance unit, so it's bad at fighting alone." She listened as the older boy told about his own family, and she started to feel better knowing there was someone here who wouldn't treat her badly. "I'll d-do my best out there, I promise."

Elora finally took the handkerchief, and bowed her head to Sigma. As much as she expected a scodling from her, it stil hurt when it happened. However, she had a good point about not crying. "I-I'm sorry. I'm still new to all this. I won't cry again. Please don't be mad at me." She swore that she would grow stronger and become a valuable pilot. "I'm a-also fourteen..." She said, and then blew her nose on the handkerchief. She didn't add anything else for fear of being verbally attacked. The man looked irritated enough as is, and his attitude wasn't any different from the boys who bullied her back in her old home world. However, as bad as a first impression she made with her emotional blunder, at least she wouldn't have to face the coming battle alone.

[SillyGoy]

@AtomicNut

Fourteen, she said. So it seemed as if his estimation wasn't off the mark. It didn't serve to alleviate Harold's ongoing confusion however, so his reply was a curt and resigned "Okay."

He looked left and right, sweeping his gaze across the entire room and silently judging his squadmates-to-be while thinking of a reply to offer to the Sigma's offhand question. They all looked confused or anxious or both, though Harold was no exemption. The crying girl, Elora, as she introduced herself, looked as if she really had no place here. Serah, too, but for another reason. But then again, he reasoned, this was no conventional military unit. This was a batch that dealt in experimental weaponry. Harold wasn't sure whether to be worried or to be honored.

But hey - it's not like he didn't ask for this.

His gaze returned to Sigma's petite form. Her silver hair really caught the eye. She'd be beautiful, thought Harold, if she aged just a bit more. "You were asking why I'm not broken?" he finally asked, regaining his composure from the shock of seeing children. "I saw you eyeing this medal I have here on my chest. Yes, I've fought the Cruxi before. If you're talking about combat fatigue, I'll tell you," he smiled, and then shrugged. "That I don't know. Some men break and some men don't and I suppose some people just don't have the right stuff for fighting."

Harold stepped up, raising his voice to finally introduce himself. "Alright guys, I am Cadet Harold Buell. I graduated as a starfighter pilot from Bastion Alexandria and also participated in its defense some months ago. After that battle, I was promoted to Lieutenant and awarded a Knight's Cross, but due to this and that regarding the Framewerks, I'm back to my trainee rank - Cadet. Yeah, I know - the bullshit Command pulls at times; I'm surprised I even got to keep the medal. Anyway, I pilot the Rostosov. I think it's in this base. It's a heavy mech with big guns and heavy armor."

Then he added, "I've also been in the hospital for a time so I don't know jack about how it works yet. If they're looking for officers among our group - then hell, I spent two years as one and turned a batch of a hundred boys into thirty men worthy of fighting the Aliens as a starfighter instructor. Most of them died, but they died in glory and took at least two Cruxi bastards for each one of them."

It was turning into a speech. He raised his voice just a bit higher. Damn it, he thought - he wasn't good at speeches, but none of his mates-to-be had any combat experience. He felt an obligation to guide them.

"Let me tell you all something about this upcoming battle - the lady and the scientist did not mention that we were supposed to fight each other - correct me if I'm wrong. Since our Frames are all really diverse weapons systems, I don't think it would make sense either for pilots to fight each other. I'm thinking - that our mechs are complementary, that as a group they form an effective battle force, but individually they are weak. Now, I've lead men before, and I've fought before, and I've seen the same thing - really specific units that are useless on their own, but when combined with other specialist weapons systems, make a potent fighting formation. You don't tell a Bomber Squadron to attack a Fighter Squadron because those two types of craft have specific roles in the battlefield. Asking us to fight each other would be exactly as telling Bombers to engage Fighters - pointless."

"So in the case that we're going to be fighting with as opposed to against each other, I'll be able to help you guys. I specialize in piloting but I think I picked up a couple of things from the Marines about surface warfare before I got blown up and my arm got ugly." He rolled back his left sleeve to reveal the scars. "If the opposite happens and we do have to shoot at each other, well - I can't do anything about that. God help us all in that case."

[Apollosarcher]

Ariin stood up looking over the group, speaking up to them all. "It's a test, they want to single out better fighters, cowards, and those who would take advantage. This isn't about combat it's social experiment." He told his eyes looking between them all. "What they want is to see who here would be willing to work together and stand against those who want their own personal glory." He reached to his pockets, playing nervously with the coin he kept in it at all times. "If they have us fight each other, I say we don't do it."

He wait a beat gauging the response from the group before he kept going. "I'm not much in the way of experience but I grew up on Mars fighting over scraps and the right to sleep on street corner. First thing you learn if a guy beat you up and took your stuff, you never trusted him. So if their asking us to go out their and shoot each other whether it's about testing us, learning how we react, or just because they want to see how we handle combat I'm not doing it." The Martian finished shrugging.

"Honestly our best bet if they order us to attack one another, we refuse. I want to trust you people, I do but I find it difficult to trust any one who would attack because a mad man in a lab coat said to do it." He drew his coin and and flipped his natural eye focus on that while his robotic one pulled back to keep an eye on the others. "I'll defend myself and work with little Elora over there if you really think fighting is the best idea. Personally though? I say we don't budge an inch, were supposed to be able to work together and fight Cruxi not other pilots. Anyone else think this is bull shit let me know, if we all stand down when this starts then they can't touch us. They can't remove nine pilots from the program and we don't need to be treated like lab rats, were human. Well mostly." He smiled a little pointing to his robotic eye.

[SillyGoy]

"In contrast," Harold turned to Ariin, "I wouldn't trust a soldier who'd refuse an order from a clearly superior officer. But I do agree about the whole not-fighting part. The old man's words were pretty vague, and I wouldn't want to see us hurting each other, as much as that is possible. But let's remember our place - we're cadets, in the Military, in the Armed Service - and if the lady officer or the professor say 'Jump!', we bend our asses over for them and ask 'How high?'"

[Ammokkx]

The riffraff around the small Serah flew right over her head as she was focused on Zim, who looked a little surprised when she suddenly entered his cone of vision. She found his reply funny, with the whole 'I hear that all the time' shtick. The girl didn't have time to get another word out, though. The man she decided to bother quickly commented on her energy, and also disclosed a bit of info about their Framewerk. And Serah loved said info. "No way! You pilot one too?!" she burst out in astonishment. Their machines were practically the same from that rather vague description. "My Atty is also close quarters! It's uh... A little light, and I haven't quite nailed how to use the barrier yet, but they're also a melee fighter! Seems like we'll be sharing a role, huh?" Serah gleefully disclosed, feeling like it wasn't a big deal to share all this. Zim seemed to take his eyes off her though and talk with some other people, which left the small girl a bit disappointed. She carefully listened this time around, taking a step back at the same time.

Serah listened to pretty much everyone universally agreeing that they should be working together and not fighting each other, and while she agreed with it, the result was just a tad disappointing. She was really hoping to show off what she could do against everyone, not with them... Though this was fine in it's own way. Somewhere in all this, another girl walked up to the duo. She also had black hairs like the pretty one Serah spotted earlier, though this one looked a lot more... Rugged? No, that wasn't quite the word. Whatever, the lady wasn't as pretty. That's all it came down to in the little girl's mind. She noticed they were interested in melee framewerks as well. "I know, right? I wouldn't part ways with Atty's fighting style for the world, even if it's a little risky. If I can fight for you all up ahead, they won't need to attack those in the back!" she stated, and it was directed at Katya. Serah liked this person already, and scuttled a little closer to them. "You piloted Caretaker, right? I got briefed on that one!" she excitedly shared. "It takes a lot of compassion to pilot something like that framewerk... I bet you're great." the girl commented, with a hint of jealousy in her voice.

Serah perked up her nose when she overheard Harold drumming off about something, though she already forget that guy's name. Weren't they the one who asked everyone how old they were? Ah, whatever. Minute details. Turning her head to the man, the bluenette listened a little half-heartedly. More of the same stuff about teamwork, really, which was getting old by now. "Ugh... Yeah, I get it..." she mumbled, trying not to have anyone overhear. The girl took a few steps back into the middle of the room, getting a good look of everyone again. Man, aside from Sigma and Elora, everyone was so very obviously older. ...And even then, Serah still looked younger than she was. "Muuu..." they whined, trying not to have people notice. She then straightened herself out again. "Erm, guys? The fight is important and all, and I don't mind talking about it buuuut... We're all new here, and don't really know much of each other. Why don't we get to know each other a little better first? Know your allies before your enemies or something, right?" she suggested, a smile on her face. "I'll go first! As I've said, I'm Serah, and I play cards in my free time. I know just about every card game in the universe, so you'd never have to explain the rules to me twice! I'm also a fan of the pop singer Utau, and come from the Hyvura academy on planet Dylia, before I got pulled away to train as a framewerk pilot."

Serah noddded to herself after that, feeling content. This would surely not backfire on her, right?

[Dragoknighte]

Roger listened to everyone talk for awhile and then thought over it, flicking away accumulated ash at the end of his smoke. Thinking over it, the implication seemed heavily towards the "you guys will have to fight each other" sentiment, but their words could be interpreted as fighting something else. Perhaps a set of arms drones? Not all that likely, but possible.

But if they were fighting each other, the offered justifications for it still didn't match up. There are ways of learning the combat abilities of everyone else without pitting them in a highly imbalanced situation like a 9 way free for all. For instance, Yeager while being fast didn't have too much of an offensive punch, certainly not one that would be able to effectively pierce shields, and one guy mentioned his guns being able to tear off the limbs of other Framewerks easily. The communicated intent didn't match up with the orders at all. Roger bit down on the cigarette filter, taking another drag.

"I don't really think we should out n out refuse orders. Even if we are to valuable to just throw out, I don't think going against the first set of orders we're given will set a good precedent. Not to mention that it's not good to overestimate how important you are. If if comes down to it, I am going to follow orders, even if they don't make no sense." Roger paused for a beat to take another drag of his cigarette.

"In any case, I should probably introduce myself in more depth since everyone else is. Cadet Roger Rooney, 18. 'Fore I joined the PDF I was training to be a pilot in the Relos Cargo Delivery System, it's one of the most important jobs on the planet. The Yeager is a Medium-Heavyweight Framewerk of a white color. I'm fairly certain that out of all the Framewerks here, when it comes to pure speed it's the top, bar none.

[Penultimate_Pi]

Lora shook her head, in regards to the other cadets present. They spoke about alternate interpretations to what Lorenzo had put forth for the mock battle, that maybe they were fighting something else together. That by itself was no major crime, but Ariin then put forth the idea of circumventing their commands in hopes of cheating the system. "Roger is right. It doesn't matter who or what we're going to be fighting, we are going to fight, no questions asked," Lora put forward with stern reverberation. "And in case you haven't been listening, this isn't going to be a matter of who fights the best or who has the strongest weapons. If just one of our Framewerks could beat all of the others single-handed, then there would be no point to a team of individual Framewerks, much less a team leader.

"Ariin?" Lora shifted an accusatory gaze towards the man defending the washed-up Elora. "You joined this program to become a soldier. If you're not going to follow the orders of your superior officers, then you've already failed. Maybe that makes me the inhuman one here, but it's the truth. If you really think you can make a stand by planting your foot down and doing nothing, then go right ahead- but don't expect it to end well.

"And you," the young lady turned to Harold with another bout of seriousness, "I think you have a bit of nerve. You don't just claim to have zero experience piloting a Framewerk and then immediately say you'd be a proper squad officer because you had experience training some pilots. You said it best yourself: you don't try and pit a Bomber against a Fighter. You may offer some good points, but that shouldn't make you any more capable a leader of a Framewerk company than those of us who have actually had proper training with the things."

Suddenly, rather exasperated with herself, Lora stepped back, taking a few larger breaths. She cupped her face in her hands, exhaling with a certain anguish that made the heat disappear from her face. No, no, bad, very bad. Not even a few minutes into meeting what would be her fellow squad-mates and Lora was antagonizing them over what they thought in the moment. Just because they were going to be fighting didn't mean they all had to start out as enemies, no.

"No... no, forget it," the cadet finally spoke again, returning her head upright. "Forget I said anything like that. I'm sorry - I've no right to talk like that. I'm as much a cadet as any of you." She shook her head visibly, long hair swishing subtly behind Lora's back while she held her palms forward in surrender. She could only hope her apology might be satisfactory- yet, an outburst like that couldn't so easily forgotten. It might take more than words to redeem herself.

With another deep breath, after silently taking whatever backlash the other cadet had to offer for her, Lora eventually pressed on with a new topic, "We- should get back to business. Focus on the battle."

She looked back to Ariin and Elora, then over to Katya, Zim, and Serah. "Whether we're going to be fighting each other or something else, I say we may wish to split up- divide and conquer, so to speak. Two or three groups, all balanced to hold their own. Does that sound fair?"