Day in the Life: Rescue from the Depths

[Uso]

Jun did her best not to look horrified but it was impossible to completely hide such a feeling of revulsion in her now very WIDE eyes.

don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it, don't think about it,

In their shared virtuality, Jun would abruptly summon a machete in her left hand and use it to CHOP off her right arm above the elbow, regrow a new arm, and then back away. She continued to try not to say anything. Certainly the princess' didn't need to know about this indignity.

 

[Ray of Meep]

"I'm done here." Wen pitied his fellow man, and stowed away his pistol. "Jun, you can have him all to yourself; maybe it'll help if he got himself dressed first, without a barrel pressing down on his pathetic organ."

He then turned to the doctor and the Chongwu, his gaze cold under the light blue visor. "Dr. Dai, was it? Forgive me, a brain injury has denied me access to virtual space. Do you know where Sakamoto the Merchant was heading off to? Why did she leave you two behind anyways?"

 

[Noodles]

The horse form shook her head, "Doctor Royama- and it is no worries. I have a preference for... physical communication as it were." She paused for a moment to mull over her just spoken words and shutters, "Not to be confused with the governor's preference for physical communication." The doctor fervently assured the bull- gods forbid.

"I would ask myself the very same question about Sakamoto, but the answer most often seems to be because she felt like it. As for where she went... that's precisely what we are trying to find out. We know for certain she's outside the city walls in the wildlands, but that's exactly why we were trying to negotiate with our esteemed governor for a rescue party." She tossed one hand towards the Governor with one swift, frustrated flick of her wrist, "He was being a hardass. He didn't expect Wu to agree to giving him his very own 'discontinued' chongwu- but here we are. Didn't stop him from attempting to get the same deal from me." Her polite tone was gradually becoming venomous the longer her eyes lingered on the quivering rooster.

 

[Soresu]

Koyama pinched the bridge of her nose as hard as she dared, then began to rub at her temples. The shitshow had officially begun. 'I swear, my people make me want to begin the termination all over again.' She thought.

"Governor," she began as the doctor spoke to Wen. "Whatever extortion scheme you were running on the merchant Sakamoto's associates for her location is now null and void."

Her scaled tail swayed lazily, "From what I have seen, you've taken advantage of your position." She gestured to the Chongwu, and then to the doctor. In truth, it seemed the Empress didn't give a piss if the merchant lived or died. Only what they had. Or knew the location of what their Mother desired.

It was a load of crap as far as she was concerned. Staring down at him, her face half turned until only one eye rested on him.

She did not consider this rooster lucky. Let alone prosperous right now. Her smile returned, small, pleasant, still not reaching that one visible eye. "But, I am grateful however that you are offering whatever we need to conclude our business on this world. As such, I will offer you a fair and equitable trade."

"A life for a life." Koyama drummed her fingers against her suit-clad thigh. "Access to undoctored footage of your meeting with Sakamoto. As well as information on their current or last known location." Any other day she may've even asked for an apology for Jun. But the Cow was already going mad with imaginary power.

Spreading her hands in an almost Rooster-like gesture. Right now she imagined his ass was puckered enough to bend space from fear and resignation alone."Would you accept this trade?" With what she'd put on the table he'd keep his life. But she did make the offer of counter-proposal. The gesture however was one he'd know quite well. His nuts were in the vice and he had little wiggle room. But he was welcome to try.

 

[Uso]

"KOYAMA NO!" Jun warned in their shared virtuality while maintaining her threatening position silently in the real world, "Don't shake his hand. You don't know where it's been..."

 

[Soresu]

Koyama gave Jun a flat look, "It isn't an offer to shake his hand," she sniped in their shared virtual space. But the princess did take the time to upload a small but comprehensive (At least for Jun-level understanding) manual of just what she was doing for the Cow. Her tail was raised, her hands remaining at waist level but her palms turned upward. It was a dare at his attempting to counter-offer when another Rooster form had them where they wanted them.

 

[CadetNewb]

Sephi:

Wu slid off and away from the governor as he was not-so-subtly threatened by the squad of Daqin soldiers, her 'use' to him exhausted. She sat on the floor, looking over at Royama helplessly and shrugging at the ridiculousness of the situation, especially as the governor shamed himself right in front of the squad. Wu resisted the urge to both face-palm and bury her face in her hands at the secondhand embarrassment, as well as being caught in the middle of her 'negotiations'.

The daqin squad's ignoring and treatment of her didn't go unnoticed, but Wu was used to it with her past experiences. It just made her miss Sakamoto all the more, the way the woman took her seriously and cared about her even as a fairly useless chongwu. Wu kept silent, not wanting to draw attention to herself, and instead sent Royama a private message. At least it seemed that they were here for Sakamoto too, and Royama would be able to talk to them and be taken seriously at least.

"Royama," she sent in virtual space privately, "Let's try to make sure their focus stays on Sakamoto, not this asshole. I'm still not sure what might've happened to her while prospecting for relics, but if she's in danger, every minute counts..."

 

[CadetNewb]

The horror.

The absolute horror. Hoshiko had seen things that the little people wouldn't believe. She'd seen armies on fire before the gates of solitude. Ships on fire within the superluminal channel. Debauchery with boldness that lacked all credibility. And all these moments, were boiling down to one decision that she dread.

"Let me help you," the tiger princess spoke aloud, ignoring Jun's antics. Even though she knew where those hands had been, dreaded it, she offered her own hands to help the Chongwu up onto her feet. Hoshiko's voice calm and steady, she chose her words with care. "You seem to be very loyal to your master," the princess noted, careful not to mention just how loyal she seemed to be.

The governor finally caved in and wept, not even bothering to stow his once great lance, as his hunched over body shook with great sobs.

"It was never meant to go this far," the governor's virtual likeness kneeled, and then prostrated himself before Koyama. "I just wanted them gone, to not bother whatever is Out There. Of course I slighted them, insinuated that they were whores. But, I did not foresee this sheer amount of...Loyalty in a Chongwu," he went on, voice almost droning in their virtuality as he struggled to continue. "Regardless of whether or not you believe me, the merchant only spoke in generalities. This is the zone of operation I was able to negotiate out of her." The information they were given was scant, but it may have been all they needed.

It was far outside the city, and given the inventory of heavy ground vehicle and Chongwu laborers she had with her, something big was expected.

 

[Uso]

"Good, all according to KaiKAUGHC.... Oh I can smell it now..." Jun gasped in the private virtual space, summoning one of those old war 2 guns that Hoshiko loved so much and using it to blow her brains out. The virtual-jun's head exploding in a vibrant display of heavily saturated color as her body fell to the floor.

In the virtual space she shared with the governor, she remained the stern soldier.

Of course, neither of the princess' had told her to back off and being the unreasonable one seemed to be working. Jun dug deep on what she knew of military vehicles from the zombie games Hoshiko would play, "And WHERE is the tracking device for that vehicle?!" She asked. She was expecting to bet he bad cop for this situation but if she lucked into that being the right answer then it'd look great when this story got retold to the Empress!

Princess Jun!

She looked forward to the day it finally happened!

She jabbed with her gun again to drive the point home. It was already at maximum grossness so...

 

[Ray of Meep]

"'Out there', even with these coordinates you gave us, still has an error range of tens of kilometers." Wen replied with an annoyed tone. "You're this city's governor. With this place containing over 90% of the planetary Daqinren population, you have a lot of sway. How about this, princesses." The bull turned to his higher-ups. "If he gives us access to the planetary satellite constellation, we appeal for a lighter punishment on his behalf. If this Sakamoto is out there with laborers, her activity might be visible from orbit.

"I want one type of sensor in particular, besides cameras: gravimeters. Ever since I was assaulted by that Aos Si soul, I've been reading up on what the humans call magic and catonite fields. It's a possibility she might be looking for something called a node, a most exotic phenomena that would certainly be appealing to a merchant seeking to exploit new markets and sources of profit. These nodes are speculated to be the source of catonite fields or magic. While invisible, they warp spacetime around them. If we can match a spacetime anomaly to the coordinates the governor provided us, it's likely Sakomoto will be at that location."

 

[Soresu]

Koyama cupped her chin in thought. The information was scant. But Wen's suggestion did have merit to it. Her scaly tail swayed slightly her pose remaining unchanged.

"He's already said we can have whatever we want." She reminded Wen, which meant the grid as well.

While going about that her body in meatspace waved a hand at the governor's. Her real voice was neutral: "Make yourself decent," And then in their little group's private space on Wen's screen was a simple line of text: 'I said he could have his life. But not this life.'

He'd live. But he was humiliated and ruined. That was a light sentence in her mind. She even wondered if he'd parsed the meaning of her offer or not.

 

[Noodles]

The horror.

The absolute horror. Hoshiko had seen things that the little people wouldn't believe. She'd seen armies on fire before the gates of solitude. Ships on fire within the superluminal channel. Debauchery with boldness that lacked all credibility. And all these moments, were boiling down to one decision that she dread.

"Let me help you," the tiger princess spoke aloud, ignoring Jun's antics. Even though she knew where those hands had been, dreaded it, she offered her own hands to help the Chongwu up onto her feet. Hoshiko's voice calm and steady, she chose her words with care. "You seem to be very loyal to your master," the princess noted, careful not to mention just how loyal she seemed to be.

The governor finally caved in and wept, not even bothering to stow his once great lance, as his hunched over body shook with great sobs.

"It was never meant to go this far," the governor's virtual likeness kneeled, and then prostrated himself before Koyama. "I just wanted them gone, to not bother whatever is Out There. Of course I slighted them, insinuated that they were whores. But, I did not foresee this sheer amount of...Loyalty in a Chongwu," he went on, voice almost droning in their virtuality as he struggled to continue. "Regardless of whether or not you believe me, the merchant only spoke in generalities. This is the zone of operation I was able to negotiate out of her." The information they were given was scant, but it may have been all they needed.

It was far outside the city, and given the inventory of heavy ground vehicle and Chongwu laborers she had with her, something big was expected.

Royama rolled her eyes and planted her hands firmly on her hips, "Fortunately for him that sounds exactly like something Sakamoto would say and do. The woman does what she wants. You would think she was a princess with how... Ah- well. What I mean is the woman tends to do and get what she wants." She shifted her attention to the governor so she could roll her eyes in his general direction "The important part is we have a general idea of where she is and what she wants. We're burning time. If our esteemed governor here can assist our Imperial friends here in getting what they want we can be well on our way. My co-worker here and I can find our boss and the lot of you will have the honor of getting to have the ever sought after opportunity to speak with the illustrious Sakamoto herself. "

In spite of her near ass-kissing levels of speech, her voice was flat and sarcastic as she spoke. The doctor loudly cracked her knuckles on the governor's desk and leaned in very closely, "Please give these people what they want- and put your genitals away. If you continue to cry I will make a fool of myself in front of... a handful of princesses shoving my hoof in every orifice I can fit it in and I promise it will not be pleasant for either of us. Really, truly I'd prefer not to. You've been such delightful company for Wu and I. It'd be such a shame to leave on such a sour note."

She responded to Wu's private message with one in kind.

"When this is all over I'll make Sakamoto take us out somewhere for putting up with her silliness."

 

[CadetNewb]

"She insisted there be no tracking device," the governor answered the heifer in their virtuality. In meatspace, Shuǎng's sobbing began to taper off as he obeyed the two women insisting on decency, pulling his robes together. "She successfully disabled the ones I had placed as well," he added. Sobbing was replaced by thick, gooey sniffles. Hearing Wen though, a new data-feed appeared on the bull's HUD as the others looked to the faux-holographic screen that had appeared in their virtuality. I was exactly what Wen had asked for, and exactly what they needed. "She does seem to come off as that kind of person," Shuǎng admitted to Royama meatspace, his voice low with misery. "I submit to whatever fate you have for me," he bowed his head to Koyama.

"I'm not a scientist, but I don't think it should look like that," Hoshiko crossed her arms, less than reassured.

Empire of Daqin,
Pínqióng (貧窮) System
Planet Tiāntáng (天堂),
In-Flight Over Kǔnàn Forest (苦難)

The sensor readings didn't want to stay in one place. In fact, it seemed almost annoyed that it was being looked at. The more they adjusted their sensors, the more frustration arose instead. Sometimes it wiggled about like it wanted to leave, and when they thought they had a more solid fix, the anomaly would 'blink' to another nearby spot. The worst was when it seemed to simply fade away, only to reappear slightly elsewhere. But, it was still all good enough for what they needed to do.

A search and rescue operation.

"I still can't believe she had one of these made for you." Speaking over the thrum of the thrusters, Hoshiko patted the strange Chongwu down for the final checks. Even over the steady noise, she couldn't hide her disbelief at Wu having her own Type 4 Combat Suit. "Is everyone ready to rappel? Satellites see a pond next to a clearing up ahead. We can drop there and start the sweep," she remarked in their virtuality. Set up as a tiny FOB in a forest, the princess tapped one of the nearby wooden crates with her heel.

The contents ruffled.

That didn't seem to bother the tigress though. Koyama, Dai, and herself were all suited up just fine. Even in the case of the doctor, loading up the combat routines was a quick job. Same with the Chongwu, Wu, whom she momentarily forgot. Wen however...he was doing better. But, even so, Hoshiko looked at him with veiled worry.

"How's the connection?" she asked his avatar. It came in fits and spurts, but it almost felt like finally getting a breath of fresh air to him.

 

[Uso]

Jun had taken to figuring out the sensor information. "I think the connection is fine, but it looks like the sensors are dirty. Or miss-calibrated. Or just not sensitive enough. Can't we get more... uh... satellites? Where all is this information coming in from anyways?"

She had already setup a heat map for the data, using averages to show the most likely places for the thing they were tracking to show up in.

She also tried to figure out just how high up or how low down this thing was.

If it was underground. It would involve rocks.

And if it involved rocks, she'd be important!

In the virtuality, Jun was sitting at one of those Old War 2 desks with all the knobs and switches while wearing an old timey headset and a period-appropriate skirt and button down shirt. Her hands were flipping knobs and switching switches in a way that someone who'd never seen a vacuum tube radio before would.

In meatspace, Jun had already tied up her cables and set them up for her rappel as if it was second nature. She would also try to discreetly take a look at Hoshiko and Koyama's setup... after all if they died then SHE might not get promoted to princess which would be bad.

 

[Ray of Meep]

"How's the connection?" she asked his avatar. It came in fits and spurts, but it almost felt like finally getting a breath of fresh air to him.

"I'm not all here yet." Wen replied in the virtual space, parts of his body blinking in and out of existence. One second he'd be missing an eye with a black void in its place, the next all of his guts would be replaced by a transparent hole. "My neurons are still trying to pull themselves back together with the hardware. I think I'm going to stick to text once we start the mission, just for consistency. But it's good to speak again."

He sighed in real space, checking his own suit, his survival kit, and his armaments. His virtual avatar disappeared from existence as he stopped his work to press his head against the hull of the shuttle, clutching his chest at the same time. After a long pause, his swiss-cheesing form returned to virtual space. "I can feel her still, that angry Aos Si soul, she's screaming louder in her extinct tongue. She wants out, to unite with whatever thing is down there. It's like a... birthright to her."

Wen's own expression, between the constant, defective spasming and blinking out of existence, was one of permanent annoyance and frowning, a person forever diminished by a fatal wound. Having to share part of his broken mind with an angry spirit didn't help matters.

 

[Noodles]

Dai had seemed to relax considerably outside of the governor's office. Her posture was much looser and she had been content to listen quietely to the rest of the group while she did inventory over her supplies and made sure that she wasn't at risk of plummeting while on the descent. The actions seemed natural and practiced- but she still did two checks just to be on the safe side.

She stuck close to Wu- never any more than a handful of feet away at any given time. When Wu was regarded Dai would tilt her head just a bit while she continued on with her self-assigned tasks.

Wen managed to catch her attention with talk of neurons and souls. The doctor placed her palm on his chest to get his attention, "I'm sure you have whatever you have going on under control- but if things get wonky and you need something. I -am- a doctor, if you signal I'll be right on top of you. This seems like a bad place for you to have your 'neurons pulling themselves back together'." Only when she finished talking did she remove her hand from his chest.

"I don't particularly know any of you- but if you say the word I'll do what I can to help."

In virtual space the equine gave two thumbs up and a wink! She seemed to have found some humor in the idea of wearing a very old fashioned miner's uniform complete with coveralls and a little bit of soot on the tip of her nose.

 

[Soresu]

Koyama's sentence on the governor was just as she'd stated. He'd have his life. And naught else beyond that. With the none-too-subtle warning that once he was out of her sight he was on his own. Being stripped of his title. His assets. It smacked of what had happened to her. And felt appropriate for the crime he'd committed. Restitution would be paid to the Chongwu and the rest that had to deal with him. The rest returned to the city's coffers with a request for a new governor to be installed ASAP. Let the administration back home chew on that for a bit.

Afterward, the princess forgot the Rooster even existed.

--

"An Americanized Chongwu." Koyama put forward in the shared virtual space. Excluding Wu and Dai. "Really?" The strange company this merchant kept. Usually, Wu's kind were shipped out to the Humans as quickly as they could be produced. To be fair she knew it was not their fault. But also knew the why behind it. Her Mother had an axe to grind against the humans. But in doing so... That was an argument they'd had but once. And it'd been enough to let sleeping dogs lay.

Her frustrations with the sensors were firmly tamped down when it came time to rappel to the ground. The Combat Suit was reassuring. Just not enough to get comfortable in tried and true Daqin technology keeping her completely safe.

"Oh, we are not wanted here. That I can say without a shadow of a doubt." Her response on the heels of Wen telling them about the Aos Si and even looking to the Ox as she spoke. Afterward, Koyama went quiet. Her avatar manifested a pebble to kick with the toe of a sandal.

 

[CadetNewb]

Sephi:

Wu seemed subdued in the presence of the squad, and stuck closely to Dai, just as the Horse-type did with her, the two coworkers quietly supporting one another in the absence of their usual leader. She flashed a small, uneasy, but genuine smile at Dai in silent thanks, before her expression went back to neutral but slightly worried, thinking about Sakamoto's situation.

With Dai's offer of assistance to the soldiers, Wu nodded in agreement, shifting awkwardly from her exposed situation and sending a message privately to her coworker.

"We should go with them to make sure Sakamoto's okay... I've got field gear back in our quarters, did she get sets for you too?"

 

[CadetNewb]

"Hm. You're really loyal to this...Sakamoto," the princess noted out loud. Despite the gloomy drone of the engines inside the shuttle, she couldn't help but be piqued about their...'American' friend.

It was still quiet, inside the shuttle. Even this far out into the wilderness, with communications being degraded, the motley group of Imperials still received their society's updates. Albeit, in old-fashioned text updates. Inside their shared realm, their virtuality, the teleprinter whirred to life, tap-tap-tapping out news from the 'home-front'. Latest trades with local Aos Si, wildlife spotting, a sex scandal in the government, the latest upcoming anime. All this, as they were gathered in their retro-base.

"The planet was mostly left alone after the Aos Si siege of the city some years ago," the tiger princess answered Jun in VR, briefly fighting the urge to say something more. "Because of that, we don't have a sensor net. Plus, the forest canopy makes orbital observation useless." Looking at her history, burning thee Aos Si en-masse was likely a fond memory for her, as was being all over the news at the time. "But, that's what I have these guys for." With a crowbar, she pried the box open, its contents silently fluttering to assemble on a crossbar on the roof. In meatspace, the shuttle bay doors opened as cage bells rang, the drab and camouflaged contents silently gliding out and into the forest below.

Zhànzhēng Dòngwù (戰爭動物). Owls.

"If she wasn't such a bitch, we wouldn't insist on you eating her up," Hoshiko pointed out to Wen...and this person who's name didn't matter. "Not our fault we were slave soldiers," she flatly noted. With a sigh, the princess changed tracks "Maybe try just audio, and guard our rear?" she suggested, placing an infantry radio on the table for Wen to speak through. In meatspace, she double checked Dai's gear too, and made sure the doctor was good to go. "The more help, the better. Everyone fights, no one quits."

The owls above their heads hooted.

"You heard them, the area's clear. Wanted or not Koyama, we're coming!" With that, Hoshiko leaped out, rappel cord in hand. Zipping to the ground, she landed on her feet, her gun at the ready. "Jun, you figure out if you want to dual wield assault rifles or use the GPMG yet? They're not clothing for a club, and you're on point!"

 

[Uso]

Jun would move closer to Dai so she could quietly ask: "Does that mean you can fix Wen? We haven't been able to do the usual good luck ritual since like.... last year and then some. That means we're having BAD luck for this mission and last time I had bad luck on a mission I got shot..." Jun then overheard that she was on point. Her attention would turn back to Hoshiko,

It was older slang, but Hoshiko liked the older things.

"Thanks! Though these skintight bodysuits look flattering on anyone who isn't human and fat. Skintight is Right or whatever!" Jun would make her move towards the exit, rappelling down and then not at all taking up the point position in the formation.

"Why would I carry two rifles? One is enough right?" Jun complained in a somewhat concerned manner. Was she supposed to bring more rifles? Or carry around that machine gun with the bags of ammo it needed?, "Its bad enough I've got to carry all these ground sensors, and food, and a sleeping bag... I'm not an actual beast of burden you know... and uh, we're not actually going to have to sleep out here right? Normally there's nicer tents and running water, not actual roughing it."