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Entry tags:
TDM 003
| TDM 003: #BEACHBUMS |
I. BEACH  Welcome arrivals, new and old! The skies on Erku may be perpetually gray, but the weather has taken a sudden turn to summertime heat. Fortunately, soaring temperatures have chased away more of the strange fog that conceals so much of the island, unveiling a charming, sandy cove dotted here and there with rustic love shacks. These shabby little lean-tos are dusty and sparse, but they provide everything one (or two, wink wink) might need for a little relief from the sun. Just don’t wander too far... that fog has memory-loss properties. II. DRINKS  The 'bots are very apologetic about the whole fog incident, and they are trying to get on the new arrivals' good sides by giving out fancy drinks. Of course, they still haven't mastered the art of making things properly, so each drink has a little something... extra.
III. SNACKS  Lo! As you ask, the Augur shall provide. Thanks to the efforts of your organic predecessors in restoring the planet’s Eros energy, edible fishes and seaweeds have returned to the ponds and the shores of Erku. If you fancy yourself savvy to basic survival skills, why not fashion up a fishing rod and catch yourself dinner? Just be careful if you happen to hook one of the octopus creatures from the deeper waters - they can be quite forward with their tentacles! Or, if primitive angling isn’t in your repertoire, you can always trade some credits for a tasty catch from one of the food stalls along the coast. Most stalls are manned by 'bots, but there’s nothing stopping an enterprising arrival from setting up shop. No credits? No problem! The robots have also provided a bit of entertainment, and any volunteers to man the kissing booth, get dunked in the wet t-shirt dunk tank, or grill up some fish - among other opportunities - will find credits automatically loaded onto the payment app of their bracelet devices. The 'bots are recruiting especially hard for participants to work in the gloryhole tent! IV. SPARKLES  As dusk descends, the white sands of the beach suddenly come alive with glittering lights. It’s as if the darkened waters have carried a thousand shining stars from the depths of the sea to the shores of the cove. In actuality, each little twinkle is a bioluminescent plankton or jellyfish! Feel free to wade among them and admire their shine; even the sting of the jellies won’t hurt you... though they do pack a different punch. The tentacles of the jellyfish elicit a powerful aphrodisiac response, which gets the heart racing and the blood pumping for an intimate touch. The effects come on within a matter of minutes, and last for a few hours. Only time will relieve the symptoms, but a partner will help to make it more bearable. N A V I G A T I O N |
no subject
My mobile suit. I don't care if you choose to drown in the sea.
[ he narrows his eyes as at him. ]
It doesn't surprise you -- you have seen mobile suits before. [ whom does he belong to? he's spoken to many around the island, but most of them aren't even aware of the existence of neo-zeon at all. ]
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Yes, or at least things like them. [A "mobile suit," huh? It's nothing he's ever heard of, but there's no telling what other weapons might be lurking out there in the hidden corners of the world. It doesn't put him at ease to witness.]
Who built it?
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[ angelo looks at his surroundings with annoyance. ] At least, until I ended up here.
[ who's got time for manners? certainly not him. angelo's handler isn't here, so he's about as brash as a mad dog out of its cage is. brash, with the type that carries himself with such a formality and deference to his rank one would think he's hardly been removed from his fleet. ] I am Lieutenant Angelo Sauper.
You mentioned something like them. Far be it from me to demand information, but my faction has enemies. In the interest of safety and security, I would like to know what you mean by "things like them." You may respond with what you are comfortable with, but I must know: of these things "like them", do you mean the mobile suit known as a Gundam? Or any of its associated derivatives, for that matter.
[ as any good neo zeonist knows, gundam is the enemy. ]
no subject
No, I'm not familiar with anything by those names. I know nothing of the war in which you sound to be fighting, either. [He laces his fingers, resting his hands atop the table he sits at.] Rest assured I pose no threat.
[Besides, he's technically retired.]
no subject
Not at all? Perhaps some worlds have advanced enough to develop their own mobile suits. [ he clicks his tongue. ] How troublesome.
[ he looks at him again and arches an elegant eyebrow. ] I have introduced myself. I do not like having to demand for the same respect.
no subject
My apologies, I've forgotten my manners. My name is Jeremiah Gottwald. [He very slightly tips his head in acknowledgement. No title nor rank to offer. Looking out across the beach for a moment, his eye ends up drawn again to his machine. No, mobile suit. As in a suit of armor? At that size?]
It's quite impressive. The vehicles I know aren't built on such a scale. [He looks back over with a mindful appreciation, hopefully one that won't raise any hackles.] May I ask the unit's name?
no subject
as for his question, well. he thinks about it, and then decides there's no harm in talking more about it, just leaving the more relevant parts aside considering this man doesn't really need to know the rest about it.
and, well. it is rather impressive, and angelo, for all of his cautiousness, is quite proud of his mobile suit. ]
.... this is the mobile suit YAMS-132 Rozen Zulu. It is a Custom Assault Mobile Suit. [ a pause. ] "Custom" in this sense only means that I have upgraded it to my own specifications.
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Smaller and lighter, the Gloucester could more readily don a cape and wield a lance. Not that this unit needs the latter, given that each claw on its hands is easily the same size.
He can imagine the scale of physical destruction this and other mobile units must be capable of, if he's right to assume many, many more exist. Home as he knew it had weapons that size, but they were once—well, twice for him—in a lifetime experiences.]
Custom units are always more meaningful. [Is there an air of nostalgia? Oops.] I can see why you'd be keen to guard it.
no subject
Mobile suits are created to fulfill a function. Cosmetic designs ensure personal touches of a pilot, but it is nothing if the performance is lacking. There are plenty of talented ruins in space. One has to have even a bit of pride.
[ or a lot, as in the case with angelo. ] What are these units called in your world?
[ because it doesn't seem like he recognizes the term used -- mobile suit. ]
no subject
Leaning forward a little, he pauses but for a moment. He could betray an alliance that would make him an enemy, but Angelo has practiced good faith by offering such information. His disposition is what it is, but he seems principled. Maybe to excess. Sound familiar?]
They're known as Knightmare Frames. Much smaller than your mobile unit, between four and seven meters in height. They were developed to be used as an anti-tank vehicle, far more agile and requiring only one person to operate, yet carrying equal if not greater firepower.
[A magnificent instrument of war, a testament to the greatness and ingenuity of the empire. He sounds proud, but it rings hollow in his ears. Good, he doesn't need to miss the "glory days" that much.]
no subject
[ angelo's face, highly expressive as it is, displays Doubt. anti-tank capabilities would put it at .... well, the ancient G-Defenser levels, probably, but that one was a plane on its own that was more of an attachment to a Gundam frame than anything else. or, of course, portable machinery which are exclusive to the mobile suits themselves.
still. that's tiny. what the hell is that, a mobile suit for ants???? jeremiah might as well be describing a regular fighter plane. he would insult the pun in the name, but angelo's captain is named full frontal. he loves his captain, but this is an error. ]
... and with such estimates on firepower! I highly doubt the accuracy of your statement. You haven't seen me in combat in order to compare, and I don't intend to just show you. [ angelo narrows his eyes. ] The rest of it, I will concede to your experiences.
Then again, in terms of mass production, anything that has such small specs would be a lot easier to maintain and find resources for, as opposed to mobile suits anywhere between twenty to forty metres tall in terms of overall height. [ there's some practicality in it, he thinks. ]
no subject
I assure you, it is very much the truth. Unfortunately, it seems the conditions aren't right for a demonstration. [Today, at least. Defensive as his tone still is, he's admittedly very curious as to what his Rozen Zulu can actually do. He'd like to see, should he wake up tomorrow and still find himself trapped in this strange place.]
You would be correct on mass production, however. The radioactive substance required to mostly power a Knightmare Frame is scarce most places in the world, but the other raw materials less so. They've become the standard field vehicle in modern combat, if that offers perspective.
[He looks to Angelo's mobile suit again. It can clearly fly, but what would a beast like that do on land? Stomp around? It could move more swiftly than he'd expect for its presumable weight, but Jeremiah somehow doubts it. Maybe the wheels are in the feet, large enough to not need a separate attachment for stability like the Landspinner provides, set within- wait, are those heels?
Wait a minute.] ... did I correctly hear you mention "in space," just a moment ago?
no subject
Do you have a mobile suit as well, is that what you're implying? [ angelo narrows his eyes at him. ] I'm not going to engage you in combat. But I would like to see your small Knightmare if you have it.
[ it feels ridiculous to call that a mobile suit and not a mobile worker or anything else, but whatever. apparently there are such things, and angelo isn't necessarily appreciative learning about this, but this is the reality of things now.
he has to remember that space is A Big Deal to earthnoids. some earthnoids have never even stepped foot in space, and there seems to be a lot of them in this stupid wasteland. how ridiculous.
and yes, those are heels. it's an angelo sauper custom (TM). ]
no subject
The world beyond what he thought of as his own, what he thought existed, really is stranger than he thought. Well, at least the scale of the unit makes better sense to him now, when combat can happen in zero gravity. So there's that mystery solved.]
I do not, unfortunately. My last unit was destroyed in battle. [More like he blew it up. At least he'd won the fight.] I've since retired. Civilians aren't typically granted access to such military-grade hardware, of course.
[He misses it, that's no secret. Once he stumbles across the hangar, he'll at least get to poke his nose inside and cash in on the nostalgia.]
no subject
though when Jeremiah talks about his unit being destroyed, angelo just purses his lips into a thin line. it is, after all, not surprising considering the smaller specs that it has. he just doesn't believe it can perform anywhere close to neo-zeon's mobile suits at all, but he won't press the matter anymore. what he asks, instead, is -- ]
How was it destroyed? It takes a certain calibre to do so given a mobile suit is supposed to withstand conventional attacks.
[ angelo scoffs at his mention of civilians. when he speaks again, all of his words sound like they're a familiar strain of ideology, somewhere, someplace, which is true: considering the zealotry of neo-zeon forces, and angelo being a devout and loyal lieutenant, he basically sounds like a propagandist. ]
Civilians have had access to illicit material regardless of how the military conducts itself. If they don't steal it, they recreate it. In war such actions are common and unavoidable. What is unacceptable is to maintain a kind of neutrality when in possession of such a weapon.
Having been retired, I doubt you've forgotten who you serve, whichever side of the fence you fall.
no subject
[Nor are they all so personally invested. Still, it's something Jeremiah was continually disappointed to find during his service. A lieutenant so impassioned as this one, surely, would be cut of a similar cloth. Yet his words again speak to such a scale and fervor of conflict, the necessity to utilize power. Not just a necessity, an obligation to, perhaps. A kind of war with no end in sight.
If other worlds such as this one exist, how many are plagued as his own once was? Is human nature so constant?]
As for my unit, I was caught in the beam of my opponent's cannon. She had been piloting a custom Knightmare as well, one outfitted with a much more powerful version of that weapon than on any other unit. It pierced right through once it hit a gap in my armor.
[He pauses. No other way of saying it.] What remained operational, I detonated in order to incapacitate her Knightmare.
no subject
That they aren't is a failure of character and conviction.
[ and that they continually exist throughout worlds and conflicts is a travesty. there is no greater power in neo-zeon than their leader and the personal sacrifices he has taken to maintain peace and order is immense, and yet people refuse to recognize or give him such credit by repaying him with their loyalty.
people, in general, are too weak and irresponsible. the war will only end once the second coming of the red comet gets his way; and this, angelo believes in with blind zealotry.
as jeremiah tells him his story, however, angelo nods in approval. yes, that is the way of things. ]
I am sorry for your loss.
That is the way of things, however, and it is nonetheless admirable. Were you able to escape death? I'm assuming so, but if not, then that sacrifice in itself is glorious and commendable.
no subject
Or at least, it had. His current state of fragility hadn't gone fully tested, and Jeremiah's not sure he'd care to yet.]
I did survive. [He didn't even singe his coattails. The very same jacket sits draped over the railing, whole and immaculately clean as ever.] The sacrifice of my unit was unfortunate, as it always is, but it was necessary to seize victory. To that end, one should hold nothing back.
[Jeremiah spares another glance in the distance. Sentimental attachments were silly, but the loss of a unit was worth consolation. Interesting. Then again, Knightmares build quickly, are replaced quickly. He's not sure how many construction hours would have to go into something like the Rozen Zulu.]
I assume the defenses of a mobile suit to be significantly more robust. It wouldn't do to destroy a piece of machinery that large and complex every time you deploy into battle.
no subject
as for mobile suits, however, angelo is in his element once more, although he tries to be cautious given his loyalty. ]
... It depends. It is foolish to depend on one unit to do everything.
[ unless you're a gundam, and honestly, fuck gundams. ]
The Rozen Zulu is made specifically to support and protect the Captain's mobile suit. It is certainly a hardworking unit.
I am the head of the Royal Guard. You won't find me in smaller, tactical operations. My use is more for specific operations where the Captain himself has to get involved -- my job is to clear a path for the Captain or forfeit my life in doing so.
[ and the way angelo speaks of his role, it's very clear that he is comfortable in the idea of dying for his captain. in fact, he is very proud of it. ]
no subject
It would have to be hardworking indeed. That role is of greatest importance on the battlefield, second only to that of your commanding officer.
[It might seem excessive or mocking from the words alone, but there's a calm conviction in his tone. It was simply the way one had to frame things when placing someone else's life so firmly above one's own. It was a difficult thing to do, but not for everyone, and not with the right reasons.]
I can see now why you serve with pride, Lieutenant Sauper. You have every right to.
no subject
[ the way he says it with conviction suggests complete faith in his capabilities of doing so. ]
We have been fighting a war for far too long, back in my world. There is no forgiveness for a leader who does not have the will or dedication to be of service to the desires of the people to be free.
no subject
[And how misconstrued it is, when others assume it inherently means blind trust. Those who do unconditionally always have reasons. He is, however, clearly wrong to assume it's the same in all other ways. Chivalry had a heavy hand to play in their ways, the ones he's still mired in. The rules were different, elsewhere.]
Be it to an individual or a cause.
[Jeremiah looks to the surface of the table in front of him, unsatisfied. His fingers are laced, but the set of his shoulders offers no sense of ease. It's a worthy vision, executed in ruthless principles. Familiar, yet not. It seems there's little he can offer, even though he can't place his urge to do so.
Stuck in a new place, mired in the past the second he lets his thoughts stray. It's so hard to keep his head clear.]
If I may ask, when did you arrive here?
no subject
Also, that is another strange phrasing. "Individual, or a cause." [ angelo tilts his head and considers it. is that term an earthnoid thing? a human thing? irresponsible. ]
There should be no division between the individual and the cause. Individuals have desires and weaknesses which prevent them from furthering a cause. The individual should be above such things.
[ and the way that angelo speaks of it implies that his captain is, in fact, not quite human. ] Such transcendence is the only one which commands absolute loyalty.
no subject
[And then a haughty, proud smile returns to his face.]
Sometimes that comes from a lack of conviction, sometimes not. I know among the men and women I've served with, those who could dedicate themselves in such a way were the strongest. There was nothing, not even themselves, to hold them back. So I'd be inclined to agree.
[But not everyone would.]
As far as absolutes are involved, well. Few people are truly suited to that.
no subject
Well and truly.
True leadership invokes absolutes. There should be no middle ground -- only victory or nothing.
We seem to understand each other well. [ with minor differences, here and there, but nothing entirely glaring. ]
As we are in similar situations and of similar mind, I have no problem if you choose to call on me for help in this world. Whether that be to accomplish a goal in this card or in other matters needing aid.
Of course, such a favour will be withdrawn should you abuse it.
But for the time being, you may count on me.
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