• Nobles of Null is a forum based roleplay site where sci-fi and magic collide. Here, Earth remains fractured and divided despite humanity reaching out to the stars. Worse still, the trans-human slaves of one major power have escaped, only to establish their own Empire, seething with resentment at abuses of the past. Even the discovery of aliens, though medieval in development, has failed to rally these squabbling children of Earth together with its far darker implications. Worse still, is the discovery of the impossible - magic. Practiced by the alien locals, nearly depleted and therefore rare, its reality warping abilities remains abstract and distant to the general populace. All the while, unseen in the darkness of space, forces from without threaten to press in. For those with eyes opened by insight, it is clear that an era is about to end, and that a new age will dawn.

Chapter 2: Practice Makes Perfect

Renee seethed at Billhook, squaring her shoulders and moving slightly forwards as if she was planning to take a step towards him - she decided not to engage as Bee's words echoed in her head, causing her to clench her fist even more tightly, with another leather squeak. At this rate, Renee would be going through a pair of gloves a week, and this was not going to be fun. She noted the lack of reply to Caleb's comment, smirking under her mask - he hadn't liked that at all, she thought to herself.

Just before the craft landed, Renee grabbed onto a handle and tensed her legs to make sure that the descent was seamless in so far as she didn't fall over and embarrass herself. She focused briefly on the architecture, finding it reminiscent of the few records of Soviet architecture she had seen in her flatmate's history textbooks. It didn't mean that she liked it, however, finding herself feeling a little daunted by the great panels of metal over the windows. She shifted yet again, a clear expression of her discomfort.

As the group entered the building, Renee found herself a little more relaxed - from what she had seen of the interior so far, it was almost reminiscent of her flat back home. Although she was still on edge, she couldn't deny that it had made her feel more relaxed. She fixed Billhook with a terse stare as he spoke, before waiting for him to take his leave before unclipping her faceplate and breathing in fresh air. Her face seemed a little paler than normal, but the steel in her eyes seemed to compensate for that apparent symptom of anxiety. Her eyes searched around for a room, picking one towards the end of the corridor with the exit nearest, gently opening the door and depositing her pack on the floor. With that, Renee removed the entirety of her helmet, sighing and running a hand across her face, noting with frustration the few strands of hair that had fallen from her bun. For once, she couldn't be bothered to fix it.

Plopping down on the bed next to her helmet, Renee opened the data file and familiarised herself with the layout of the building. The tunnels seemed interesting, as did the shipping and receiving areas. The tunnels were an entry route, but they wouldn't be viable as an exit route if either the group or their entry break-in was discovered. They'd have to have a few exit plans, and they would all have to be some level of stealth - it would be impossible to take on the entirety of Omnigrow if some form of open violence broke out.

Her thoughts of strategy were interrupted as she heard talking outside her room - it sounded like Eberhard, and the bass of it moved into room close to hers. She moved slowly towards the door, poking her head out slightly and flitting her eyes up and down the corridor as she leaned in the doorway. Her stomach rumbled slightly, and she frowned. There was no way that she would be able to train on a semi-empty stomach, but she couldn't see a kitchen of any sorts. She wondered if there was a canteen nearby, and if they'd serve food to a loner in a Lancaster suit.
 
"Of course they have them," Mari stated, her interest clearly peaked even through the synthetic voice that was overlaying dozens of different ultrasonic sounds to confuse and disrupt electronic recording devices. "Public and Private spaces have not been free of listening devices since the late 1900s. Devices listen, observe, and record you in your home and in public from the moment you are born until long after you have died. Even now your own people observe your actions, your words, your very body chemistry. The Soyuz is no different than the GDW or Omnigrow. You should expect that upon entering their structure, your actions will be broadcast to Omnigrow's leadership just as your actions in public here are being broadcast to the Soyuz and GDW."


There would be a bit of a pause before Mari added, "This is meant to be a warning, not an endorsement of your fetishes."
 
žana was now unpacking her things in the room she didnt had too much on her anways so she just left some stuff in her bag still. as for the room it did looked ok for her and she did had privacy so that was nice she took off all her armor and only kept her t shirt and skirt on still for the bed she had to curl up on it so it would fit her and she did found a nice spot to sleep in she closed her eyes and thinking how tommorow would go so far she didnt minded how things were going as she also didnt had any hatred for the soyuz then she eventually drifted to sleep as the others prob did too.
 
Caleb smiled at Eberhards comments, and crisply saluted him as he continued forward into the facility. "Yes sir!" Caleb knew there were going to be bugs in the walls, ceiling, floors, and decided that its better to rip a bandaid off a wound then to peel it slowly, he took his helmet off his head, a small amount of sweat on the back of his neck, which he wiped away. He looked for an empty room with his helmet under his left arm, and his pack slung over his right shoulder. Upon entering the room, his helmet went onto his pack, and he lay down on the bed, planning their route into the compound.

If the main team was making their way in through the tunnels, perhaps a auxiliary team through the front door might be a good idea. At the very least, it could create a distraction upon exfiltration, allowing easier escape. He decided to get up from the bunk, and made his way to the open doorway. "Eberhard? Is diplomacy an option? They have been refusing to talk to the authorities here, maybe they will talk to us, since we are GDW? Well, everyone except me, though the difference seems inconsequential at this point"
 
“Sure, but now I know where they are,” Bee said, popping off her faceplate before checking the sightlines from the cameras and parts of the bedroom. “So now I can decide which camera I’m performing for,” she added, turning to Eberhard and Mari with a smirk on her lips. “Depends how much we’re going to practice our op, I suppose.”

Smile fading as Caleb brought up potential options, she asked, “I mean, does it matter? Pretty sure Soyuz wouldn’t settle for anything other than death on the field or a firing squad after interrogation.”
 
Jamison took the sight with his normal ammount of grace, he grumbled at Eberhards recomendation in a vaguely affirmitive manner as he contemplated the sleeping arrangments. On the birghtside he didn't have to remained hunched over, that alone was worth getting off the ship. The big man let his bag fall to the floor and he began removing the Juggernaut harness from his suit, doing it from a standing position wasn't the best but the small alcove style beds were never going to fit him, much less him and the exosuit equipect IVAS armour.

He gave up halfway through getting the exosuit portion detached and justed removed the suit as a whole, this did leave a half deflated IVAS suit standing in the corner as the now much less clothed man moved towards furniture realocation and a possible shower, one where he could move around more than the absolutely titchy ship board human washing machines.

The quick rinse got the man decently clean in a short amount of time leaving him with about ten minutes to spare.
 
"Common room is down the hall, then make a right turn." Eberhard gestured to Renee. Given his own time as a marine, he could tell if a fellow soldier was hungry an extravehicular jump away. "Don't worry, these folks act scary, but they're just like us. Just concerned for the family and country. I'm sure if you approached them like a human being, they'd respond as human beings as well. Just make sure you stay on schedule and act politely." He smiled and reassured her. Truth be told, he wasn't quite sure how they'd react either, but in times like this, it's best to assume the best of people and stay optimistic.

"Kinky." He then let out a chuckle at Beatrix. "I thought performance was Ju-- Bandit and Cowboy's job. Since when were you the performer type?" Eberhard then turned somewhat serious as Caleb chimed in. "That certainly is an option... that's partially why we're here." He mused, scratching his short, almost non-existent beard. He tapped away at his datapad. An ancient dialing tone, a relic audio when humans still had to dial into "telephones", was emitted by the datapad, before a familiar female voice came through.

"Hey Cobalt, how's it going on the surface?" It was Ulrike, calling Eberhard by his callsign, partially muffled by static noise.

"Doing alright, my sweet Rhodium." He smirked. "What are the odds that the Soyuz are going to let us talk to our fellow countrymen before we have to go in and shoot?"

"Hmm... you might be able to convince them, but they probably want the doors busted down and the databanks captured." Ulrike pondered out loud. "Keep them away from that delicious data and all. Omnigrow might cooperate, they might not. I'd say prepare for the worst, but hope for the best."

"Roger that." Eberhard nodded. "How's it going up there? The flotilla fairing alright?"

"Affirmative. Though, it seems the local Kitezh orbital command got sloppy. I'm detecting a lot of debris up here. Based on my estimates we have to make maneuvers every three hours unless they give us permission to shoot the stuff down."

"Curious. Sounds like the Soyuz isn't as tight as they claim to be; no surprise there." He was reminded of Billhook's tacit admission that they let the other two GDW companies get off the planet. "Stay safe up there."

"You too." Ulrike replied, before hanging up.
 
Caleb nodded at Eberhard, and smiled. Making an obviously fake gagging noise at the "Sweet Rhodium" He liked the callsigns though.

"Best prepare for a diplomatic approach then. If we can get them to talk, and to hand over the databanks, that would likely be better for everyone involved. As companies, they want to protect the secrets they have, so that they can maintain the upper hand in their industry. If we go in, and kill them, and it turns out they were innocent of any wrongdoing, that would look bad on both the GDW, and us."

Caleb looked over at Eberhard, "That being said, if they refuse to cooperate, then we are left with no choice. This outcome is fine by me. It's their own doing, and it will be made clear that they have something to hide."

With that Caleb walks over and start to take off the IVAS, leaving it in the corner of his room, and takes a quick shower before donning his weapons and his regular armor beneath his Duster.
 
Renee nodded towards Eberhard in an almost-salute, feeling the invisible pressure of her knife at her side as she turned and strode, with an awfully large amount of confidence, towards the common room. Upon entering, she noticed a few Soyuz soldiers, and avoided them, acutely aware that she had left her helmet in her room. She steeled her face an expression into a mask of impassivity as she approached the vending machine that dispensed protein bars and various just-add-water dried snack packs. She fiddled in her pocket for part of the Soyuz-currency allowance that they had been permitted, placing the card on a scanner and dialling in the number for a packet of dried noodles. She half expected Marco to come up behind her and criticise her flavour taste, calling her bland - she smiled at those memories, before hearing a noise near to her and quickly dropping the grin. Her eyes flitted to the side as she waited for the water and noodles to mix, fixing on a few of the armour-clad but helmetless Soyuz soldiers. They didn't all look gruff and hostile, but Renee certainly felt like she was the outsider, a feeling that she wasn't particularly used to as a Commander.

The machine was too slow, and Renee gave it a heavy thump with her gloved hand, cursing under her breath in French. She just wanted some damn noodles. Almost as soon as she whacked the machine, a little styrofoam bowl appeared with a sizzling meal of noodles and fake-meat-and-veg inside. With that, she snuck back to her room like some sort of cat, wolfing the noodles down before readying herself for the training. She removed her greatcoat, hanging it by the door, before heading towards the ordained training area. Her helmet was not on, remaining by her side, supported by her forearm.
 
žana does slither her way to renee and sits next to her "hey there nice new day hmm?..." she did of course notice renee was nervus as Žana was next to her to try and calm her down "hey ignore them they're just doing their job nothing else we have a nice neutral part of course"
 
How old are you, twelve? Beatrix thought, rolling her eyes at Caleb’s gagging. Though, doesn’t their sweet talk negate somewhat the security of who exactly Cobalt and Rhodium are? She shrugged and said, “Guess we’ll see how that goes,” once Eberhard hung up. “Are we going to practice in IVAS or no?”
 
"Affirmative." Eberhard nodded. "Copperhead had the right idea. Go grab a bite first, I'll go talk to Billhook, see if we can come to an agreement on strategy." He made his way down the hallway.

The basement of the Task Force's barracks consisted of a small room for an armory. In ballistic glass cases were Soyuz manufactured rifles and pistols, while cases contained grenades, flashbangs, and other utilities. Then there was a larger warehouse like area, the grey concrete walls and floor lit up by harsh white light as a small army of droids moved plastic panels in place to mimic walls and corridors inside a real building, presumably the building layout of Omnigrow's headquarters. Renee being the first one down in the training area, she could also see drones with human mannequins carrying paintball guns moving into position.

Of course, being a GDW citizen in Soyuz space, she was never truly alone, especially near firearms. The two soldiers Billhook pointed to as Toybob and Shephard were down here as well. They were still in their winter coats as they checked their weapons, but they had their goggles and hoods down, finally allowing Renee a good look at their appearances. Toybob was a man of Asian descent, most likely Mongolian, his hair cut down to nearly nothing. Shephard was a woman, pale, her brown hair tied into a bun, a scar grazing her right temple. As they watched Renee come into the armory, they spoke to each other in their mix of Slavic languages, before Shephard didn't so much smile, but nodded simply at her.

She set her rifle down, then tapped her datapad, a synthetic voice coming out of her coat following her speaking in her native tongue. "Are you going to use your firearms? You should take the time to learn how to handle one of ours." She stood up to pull what looked like a standard assault rifle with a red dot sight out of the cabinets, and handed it to Renee. On it was marked "SAk-94," with a production serial number. This particular rifle was painted dark grey, meant for indoor use.
 
Renee looked Toybob and Shephard up and down with her eyes, inclining her head backwards slightly at the latter's nod. It was interesting to see them both without their mask - neither one looked like how Renee had imagined, but she didn't let this surprise become apparent on her face, instead choosing to set down her helmet on a nearby metal counter. It dropped with a thud, and Renee set a thick glove-clad hand on the top of it. She wondered what they were saying in their language, not particularly fussed if it was about her - she was more worried that they would be plotting something to fuck the team up. Mind you, Renee thought immediately after, they had been accommodating. Any hostility had been nipped in the bud by Billhook, leaving Renee rather conflicted about what to believe.

At the sound of the Slavic mix instantly followed by English, Renee tilted her head sideways slightly to take Shephard in fully. Renee could appreciate the similarities between them both, both visually and in their apparently reserved behaviour. Renee mirrored her actions with the translator, deciding to speak in the language most natural to her - French. Why not? She barely spoke it nowadays, and it wasn't like Toybob or Shephard would care. "I'll show you mine if you show me yours," she said, tone devoid of any of the usual humour that would accompany a joke like that. She handled the gun expertly, as any soldier would, recognising it as one of the guns most civilians (and criminals) used. There had been plenty of criminal rings that she had stopped that entered combat with guns like this. Even though she knew it was created as a military gun, Renee frowned slightly, nestling the gun in her armpit as she shrugged off her rifle case. With her free hand, Renee tossed the cased rifle towards Shephard.

"I can use both," she spoke in French once more, finally handling the rifle in a firm two-handed grip that was recognisable from training as the stand-by hold. "Although, I would appreciate a..." the words began to die on her tongue as the sentence was forced through pursed lips, "a lesson.". Renee knew that she had to be nice to her gracious hosts, but subservience and admitting ignorance of a weapon did not willingly fall into that bracket for her. It was clear to see that she wasn't the most comfortable with the admission of needing a quick booster lesson either. With Renee on high alert, she was at her most volatile, like a dog with raised hackles... fully prepared to lash out if cornered.
 
žana would now be close with Renee just to make her feel conferrable, she looks at the weapon to check that was placed on the table SAk-94 she was pretty familiar with it tho some more training in firearms isn't bad.

"hey can i try out the sak 94? i think I'm familiar with these types of weapons since i used one in the police force." she would give a light smile. as for the slavic language mix žana understood most words they spoken and wasn't really a problem for her. she then looks at renee "hey reen wanna shoot at some targets together maybe?
 
Shephard and Toybob gave a look at Zana leerily. Was it because she took the drastic Daqin modifications, because she was Slavic, or both? Regardless, as Shephard caught the cased rifle from Renee, Toybob handed Zana an SAk-94.

"You be careful with that." Toybob admonished Zana in his Russo-Mongolian accent, not bothering to use a translator with the snake-form. His tone was cool, professional, if it wasn't for what came out of his mouth next. "... Though, even a child can use such a weapon. Many have." Shephard gave a short laugh at the dark joke as she carefully drew out the GDW rifle from the case. She raised an eyebrow, looking back at Renee. "Is this supposed to be a rifle, or a tech demo?"

The CAR-15 indeed looked too tech heavy for its own good, a lot of bells and whistles. There was a suppressor in the case that had vents to aid in recoil control, a monitor that attached to the side of the rifle, a ranging laser embedded right above the barrel.

"I can't even use this." Shephard looked at the gun up and down, tapping where the trigger is supposed to be. In its place is a pressure sensor that did nothing when she tapped on it. Indeed, the rifle had to be linked up to the IVAS' the Lancers were currently wearing. "What is this? Stars," She scoffed, "Looks like there's a whole computer in this thing," displaying the rifle in front of Renee. "Caseless ammunition? You Commonwealthers go really overkill."

By comparison, the SAk-94 looked ancient in-comparison. None of the fancy gadgets strapped on, besides the red dot sight attachment, the fanciest feature on the rifle externally visible was the safety switch. A child really could learn to handle it in 15 minutes.

"Do we need to teach you how to pull a trigger?" Shephard asked in a genuinely concerned tone, but it could easily be misinterpreted as disdainful. "You better learn how to use our guns. You won't find the replacement parts for your tech demo here in Yasny space."
 
As the conversation regarding weapons continued, Mari would enter the training area. Her cloak-wearing body looked slimmer now, and moved a bit faster, finding a spot by the wall where her robe'd figure could stand while looking towards the training area. This concluded her necessary movement, the figure remaining mostly motionless aside from the slight movement of the black and grey dazzle painted robe due to the circulation of the air.

Questions were already brewing.

"Is it likely that your CAR-15 will suffer mechanical issues requiring maintenance within the short amount of time you intend to spend on this planet?" Mari would ask, her synthesized voice containing slight modulations to it that would make listening with an electronic ear difficult. Then there were the concerns about the people being sent on this mission, "...We already have an operations module for the SAk-94. Our drones can be configured to use local weapons in this operation. It would be faster to prepare them with such equipment."
 
Caleb walked into the armory, pulling on his gun belt as he did so, checking the weapons as he stood in front of the locker. He didn't know Zana very well, but didn't much care for the way that the soldiers were talking to them.

"It's clear to me that you know how to pull triggers of sorts considering how much you run your mouth." He looked directly at Shephard and holstered his weapons after loading them.

"So if all you are going to do is run your mouth, go herd some sheep or something, Shephard" With a great amount of emphasis on the name and its two sided meaning
 
žana examines the AK as she finds it familiar enough she then turns to sherpahed and says in a slight cheerful tone "haha yeah the Grau Lancers have their own weapons they are a bit high tech to the point they recognize the user too if I'm correct. oh and just so you know I understand the language you're speaking since well I am slovenian and I did study some languages becouse i was in the police force when I was a human..." žana looks at caleb with a shocked expression "uhh please be civil..." then back at shephard "haha ignore him please he is just a bit uhh childish at times...as for the gun I know how to use the sak-94 it's simple" žana was now a bit nervus since her team had to say some stupid shit
 
"Then demonstrate it for us," Mari asked, waving her gloved arm towards the entrance to the nearby kill-house and its multitude of disposable plastic walls, targets, and doors. Despite her synthesized tone of voice, one could make out that she was displeased with the current pace of training.

Of course, it still wasn't too late to use drones instead...
 
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