2272/Operation POSEIDON

Operation POSEIDON
Date of Scene:	18 May 2015
Location:	Scorched Earth
Synopsis:	Two teams of Elites work to restore clean water to the territories of ReGenesis, with only bull-headed men and sharks standing in their way.
Cast of Characters:	Kotone Yamakawa, 151, Eryl Fairfax, 632, Starbound Flotilla, 673, 747

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Eryl Fairfax has posed:
=TEAM ASHERAH=

     Consisting of Ainsley and Scarlet, the two are directed to Jefferson Airport for their transport. No big speech from the head of the military this time either, just an explanation that they'll be briefed on the way and some help in getting into the sleek black helicopter on the tarmac. There, they are joined by Staff Sergeant Lily Cooper and Corporal Philip Troch, both of whom don radio headsets, which are also offered to the two Elites.

     Eventually, the helicopter spins up and lifts off the VTOL tarmac, ascending up through the airport, the roof opening up to let them past. The early morning sun greets them as they begin their journey, heading west. Here, Lily begins to talk through the headset.

    "Okay! So, if we're right, and there are people on board, we have to deal with them. Our offer is that they can stay on board or come onto the mainland. Those that stay have to let our engineers get the place running again and dock it with the Hippocampus Tracks so it can give the mainland clean water. In exchange, they'll be treated as another ReGenesis-sponsored settlement. We'll give them whatever they can't get. If they get rowdy, try not to kill them, but worry about yourself the most. Any questions?"

Eryl Fairfax has posed:
=TEAM GRANNUS=

     The Grannus team, made up of Kotone, Rory, Septette, and whomever the Flotilla sends along is sent to the Port Absolon Shipwrights, which has undergone an extensive cleanup to get the place serviceable. Floating in the water next to one of its docks is an odd submarine. Small, sleek and black, the pilot sits up front with a dome-shaped window, two graspers situated under it. Those going on board enter through a ramp deployed from the back, which leads into a single room with seats bolted to the walls, and what appear to be collapsed machineguns attached to the wall and roof. They are joined by Private First Class Jamie Hsu who goes through the door into the pilot's cabin, as well as Sergeant Tabitha Reston, who has gone and swapped her big fighting body for a sleek swimming body, complete with multiple segmented mechanical tendrils.

     Once everyone is on board, the ship pulls away and begins to dive, the outside world becoming muffled as they dip into the grimy sea. Here, Tabitha begins to explain the mission.

     "Thanks for joining us folks. So, basic deal is. We go down there, find out how badly the place is fucked up-internal diagnostic systems should make that easier-and seal up holes with this stuff." She takes what looks like a hot glue canister from the wall. "Seals up instantly, good for five years. Plenty of time to do proper repairs. We also got deep-sea diving suits if any of you need them. Questions?"

Septette Arcubielle (632) has posed:
     Septette keeps her cloak wrapped around her shoulders as she steps into the odd submarine, though it'll have to come off before they head into the facility. She doesn't hesitate to settle down in a chair, but her glowing lavender eyes scan her surroundings with a look of intense interest and curiosity- a look that's turned on Tabitha and her teammates a moment later. The robot girl's triangular ears twitch as she listens to the briefing intently.

     "I have a question," she says in a quiet synthesized voice, and raises a clawlike hand with incongruous timidity. "My reactor core produces large amounts of sensor interference. Should I stay behind until diagnostics are complete, Sergeant?"

Ainsley (151) has posed:
    It's a short matter to get directed into the black helicopter, which leads to her taking a seat with the headset on her head and her gaze focused neutrally at Lily as she speaks, offering them the general mission parameters. She tilts her head slightly after everything is explained, and looks over toward Scarlet, briefly, someone she had never worked with before. The lizard woman blinks slowly in her visual assessment of the very magical lady there.

    "Firstly," Ainsley speaks up, "What are the benefits of moving to the mainland, as opposed to staying in their current position? I am not clear on how to explain such an offer to them yet. Also, I will need details on the process the engineers will take in order to get the Hippocampus Tracks back into working order, in order for us to clear up potential confusion or fear toward the process."

Scarlet Everille (747) has posed:
    A diplomatic mission forwarded by the Union definitely seems more Scarlet's style than the last one she had to attend. It helps especially that this one is set to take place in a relatively mundane iteration of Earth, in a roughly equivalent technological time period to her own, even if it has recently suffered from an apocalypse event of some kind. Truth be told, she's still a little hazy on the details, as she hasn't had much time to research the full extent of ReGenesis' background beforehand, but working with corporate sponsors is well within the bounds of her previous experience.

    She speaks into her headset almost absently, paging through the AR menu projected by her smartcollar with one finger drawing its way across the air in front of her, cycling through dossiers and portfolios on the subject. "And what happens to those that relocate to the mainland? Will they be assigned to a settlement, or find work somewhere else? I assume those on the facility itself will be considered employees." She looks up at the mention of killing. "Oh no, I wouldn't dream of it! Don't worry, I sincerely doubt this will come down to an exchange of blows." she says while surrounded by layers of wards and a pair of dematerialized familiars occupying Phase 3. Then again, it's not like she ever leaves home without being prepared for someone trying to kill her. It's part and parcel of being the social and magical elite.

Kotone Yamakawa has posed:
Kotone Yamakawa has thankfully got water operation mods to her current shell, and Rory was kind enough to produce extra gear for her tht would make her life a hell of a lot easier she clad in a form fitting we suti of oms sort and there's alos several hooked on porions that seem to be like minature propellors ain place she's got a pair of goggles up over her hed at the moment and is moving go fiddle with a rebarather unit of osme sort. She's also got various tool about her wiat and attached ot other parts of her hips.

"No problem and we came prepared."

This is her first chance of meeting Septette whom she gives a grin to.

"Humm it would leave of short handed, Septette."

Rory White (673) has posed:
    Rory White, well, she can't swim AT ALL in her Synth. Even if she hazarded a biomorph that's properly buoyant, that would probably just end up in flailing and drowning. Her solution...

    Her solution is the six-legged, dog-sized and elaborately equipped white-painted robot that's crawling towards the submarine. It does seem to be having trouble walking STRAIGHT as it keeps making zigzaggy course corrections but that's not slowing it down much. "Six-legged locomotion is more difficult than I expected!"

    The crawling-bot pauses perfectly however, and soon deploys a tiny holoprojector from its back. A flickering image of Rory in her TRON-inspired attire - a skintight white suit with glowing blue circuit lines - appears at half-size. "I am fully prepared to offer whoever is aboard Transhuman technology so they can establish a post-scarcity colony in recompense too. Well, they will see it as such. My Morph is as equipped as it can be for the repair work, too!"

Starbound Flotilla has posed:
    The STARBOUND FLOTILLA is here!

    They're in their OCEAN EXPLORATION gear for today, most of which is provided by Moonfin and George. As such, the durasteel outfits that they have on are a mix between futuristic astronaut gear and diving gear, with HUDs lit up in their faceplates and bodies plated with simple metallic armor that glows between its plates. With oxygen nanoskins and well-made pressure-sealed environmental suits, they should be able to handle the depths just fine.

    "Reston, Hsu." Moonfin says, bowing to both. "We have not had the chance to work together, but I have worked much with your colleagues, and I recall your work in Operation APOLLO. The Starbound Flotilla is at your service." Speaking of the rest of the Starbounders, the other five are clanking and clonking their way in. They settle down when it's time, and each listens to the mission briefing attentively. Each considers a canister, and takes it without much ceremony once they're discussed, clicking them into slots on their Matter Manipulators!

    "Huh, good for draining at least. Matter Manipulators can get some of the proper hull shit done ASAP though, no worries or nothin'." George says, in a casual, friendly way. Then he peeks up. "You guys have any of those giant horrible space-fish we get around our galaxy down here?" It's not entirely clear if he's joking or not. "Well, whatever, ready to go when we need to hit it once we're down there, I think." When they're down there, the crew intends to all pile out pretty quick and get to work...

Starbound Flotilla has posed:
    Seft is the one who speaks to Septette Arcubielle. She seems like the one who works best with the Yggdroid. "Cheerful. No need to be a stranger. Sensors can be a benefit, but one's own eyes are what matters in underwater construction and engineering." Then a few pleasant beeps and her eye-visor shows that "^_^" face again, under the helmet. "Polite. I look forward to getting to work with our newest recruit. Please let me know if there is anything I can do to assist."

Starbound Flotilla has posed:
    Rory gets a grunt of greeting from the suited-up Albert. "Keep in contact with the diplomatic team via radio. But remember that manufacturing options here are more limited. Power less so." He makes a satisfied noise at that, recalling Operation APOLLO very positively. "A diplomat is like any warrior. They use every tool at their disposal."

Eryl Fairfax has posed:
=TEAM ASHERAH=

     Lily looks between the two as they ask the same question just about at the same time. Philip covers up his microphone to try and hide his snickering, but his body language makes it clear. "Well, I guess the mainland has a lot more opportunities? More varied jobs, new people and a new life. And at the very least they won't have to deal with all the engineering work that will be happening on-board."

     Philip chips in here properly, having recovered from his case of the giggles. "As for the engineering stuff, first thing is to get the engines running again, looks like it's been drifting a while. Then we do any repairs to the purifiers. We know the pipes are still okay. We'll need to fly in a team to handle all that, but Before Time stuff was built to go forever, so it shouldn't be too much hassle." He nods to Scarlet as she asks if those who come to the mainland will receive aid. "Yeah, ReGenesis will set 'em up with training and a job. Or they can strike it out in the Multiverse if they wanted. Gotta wonder if they have warpgates out there... they might not even know about Unification."

     As they fly out over the ocean, the color of the water below shifts from muddy brown to a proper blue. An hour or so later, the pilot speaks to them over the headsets. "Asherah facility is in sight, bringing it up on holoscreens." Said screens are emitted from projectors on the ground, displaying a massive structure on the surface of the sea. The main structure is shaped like a big bowl, the inside covered in pitch black solar panels. Built around the 'rim' and sides is rusting scaffolding and many buildings.

     There is also a helipad, which the pilot begins to approach. Down below, people can be seen emerging from the buildings, drawn out by the noise. They are looking up and pointing at them. A few of them have weapons which they level at the helicopter, but a woman in glasses seems to be shouting them down. Soon, everyone is waving at them, clearly trying to signal that they are peaceful.

Septette Arcubielle (632) has posed:
     Septette breaks into a smile when Seft greets her, her nervous demeanor subsiding, and pats an adjacent seat. "I look forward to working with you as well, Seft! Come on- sit down. The mission comes before chitchat, but perhaps we'll get to know one another a bit better in the process, no?" A moment later, she folds her hands in her lap and glances over at the Sergeant again, seeming not to notice that her shifting position has revealed the skeletal frame underneath that lavender cloak. Fortunately, the people here have likely seen much stranger things than that...

Scarlet Everille (747) has posed:
    Scarlet seems to be casting a few glances out of the corner of her eye at Ainsley, making sure only to look when the Quetzal isn't paying attention. It's not for her physical appearance however. Scarlet sees far stranger things on a daily basis, even well before unification. It's for the amount of raw magic she radiates just from sitting there, visible to Scarlet's augmented eyes even at the lowest setting of Phase 1. She spends much of the flight trying to assess how much of that is simply passive leakage, and how much corresponds to actual power, making a brief hobby out of theorizing what she might be capable of. By contrast, her own magic is exceptionally well hidden. It barely registers to even the most thorough attentions.

    "Got it~ That's a very generous offer, especially from someone with the ability to simply kick everyone off this thing if they so chose. Of course, I doubt they'll be very receptive to it at first. They've obviously been living here for a while. People begin to get attached to their surroundings after that length of time, and won't take kindly to intrusion, even from the most well-meaning of people. I'm sure we can handle it though." In reality, the magus had said "I" rather than "we", but that particular slip has been smoothed over by the subconscious spell she keeps on herself at all times. It seems she'll have the opportunity to crank it up into high gear here. She picks up her expensive messenger bag as the helicopter begins to settle, smoothing down her business casual attire and pushing her hair back behind her left ear. Time to rock and roll.

Eryl Fairfax has posed:
=TEAM GRANNUS=

     Tabitha looks to Septette as she asks her question, bringing a tendril around to rub her chin. "Hmm... I dunno! Before Time stuff was built to last, especially if it was gonna sit at the bottom of the ocean. I bet you that they have stuff built in that avoids an issue like that. We'll see how we go." She grins at Kotone and Rory's little... thing. "Glad to have you with us, we like people who come prepared! Though I hope you get the leg issue sorted soon, we can't have someone tripping over themselves down there." She looks to the Flotilla now, four out of five in fancy diving suits. "Heard good things about you folk! We need all the hands we can get down there, a lot could go wrong on a mission like this."

     After a long period of diving, Hsu talks over the intercom. "Grannus is in sight. Check the holoscreens."

     Said screens are deployed, showing a dome-shaped structure on the ocean floor, lit by lights on the submarine. It has a lot of transparency to it, the whole curved roof made of separate panels of clear material with a network of metal in between each one. Right away, it's clear that there are several holes in it. "Pulling into the docks. Suit up if you haven't." Hsu guides the craft down to the bottom of the structure, a panel in the wall opening up with a dull shriek of metal on metal. Skilfully, he brings the craft inside and sets it down on the flooded floor.

Ainsley (151) has posed:
    Ainsley watches Scarlet's usage of tools and magic here and there, the lizard woman fairly simplistic by contrast. She didn't bring weapons, books, notes, nothing but a ribbon tied to the end of her tail and her wits. She smiles at the sight of the very prepared mage woman, evidently comforted by her confident demeanor. Otherwise, the lizard girl would've been worried about getting very seriously hurt out here.

    Ainsley's magic seems to bleed into her surroundings enough that she accidentally zaps her own hand on nearby metallic as she moves to look at one of the holoscreens. It doesn't seem to be power so much as inexperience, the scholar lizard evidently not very well-trained at managing her magical abilities.

    "Right," she says, softly, not having nearly as much to say about all of this in the way of observations. She just blinks slowly at the seemingly peaceful signalling gestures. When the helicopter prepares to touch down, the lizard woman unbuckles and gathers herself up to a stand. She gives her face a little wake-up slap with both hands, and then puts on a gentle smile, with lidded eyes, and clasps her hands in front of her. She's tall, but she tries not to seem too intimidating, just a strange, peaceful-looking lizard woman.

    "Ideally, we should assure those that will insist on staying that their homes will not be too deeply disrupted by the process, and we should work with their established governing body to smooth over everything for them." Her approach to the plan mostly given for Scarlet's benefit.

Rory White (673) has posed:
    "Nothing to worry about!" Rory's merry voice answers, courtesy of her Morph's integrated speakers. "The legs are secondary propulsion. This is designed for aquatic manuevering after all!"

    She's already snagged one of the canisters and attached it to her exterior.

    "Unique construction! I can't wait to see the materials in use. It's been down here for how long?"

Starbound Flotilla has posed:
    The Starbounders remain suited, peering at the Holoscreens on the way in, clearly very attentive to this. Though George has raised an eyebrow at Septette's skeletal form partially revealed by the cloak, but leaves that completely unspoken as he decides to head on out with the others. As soon as Hsu settles in and everyone's ready, Albert speaks up. "There are multiple breaches on the exterior. I expect water damage on the interior as well. We need to seal the exterior, clear debris, drain water, enact and confirm the repair of all systems necessary for the facility to remain hospitable for full repair crew, and that should suffice." He looks to Tabitha and Jamie for confirmation there.

    Assuming there's nothing much to wait for, the Flotilla will be exiting through whatever pressure-retaining systems are necessary to exit through, in practiced groups. The Core Fleet captains already have Matter Manipulators in their hands, and are entirely prepared to get to work. Pavo and Seft are going to pair up to look at power systems and similar matters, using Pavo's engineering skills and Seft's sensor suite to try to assess the interior systems necessary to keep the structure working. George and Biteblade will pair up as well, intending to hunt around for breaches. That leaves Albert and Moonfin to fuss with the people here and with the wireless computation on their matter manipulators. Moonfin's the one who speaks up here. "You mentioned the automatic diagnostic system? My friend here has some experience with hull-integrity diagnostics, could you please relay the relevant protocols to my allies?" Hopefully, Albert can link up with whatever's still active down here and snag some data... Rory and Kotone would probably be good to get that to as well.

Kotone Yamakawa has posed:
Kotone Yamakawa takes a moment to secure the last of her gear and hopes eveyrthing holds out this is going to be a heck of a stress test for her body. However it's time to go out and make like Nemo? Wait not quite like that. She makes ready to deploy now that her suiting up is finished. She looks over to Albert and tilts her head.

"That's how it goes Albert. Sepette? Rory? Lets go for a swim. Though honestly Rory you look like some kinda of mechanical carb."

"qutie the thing isn't it? So this should be more of a fun trip than our last major outting, right Rory?"

She's curious about how Sepette will handle her self under water herself.

"Centuries, Rory. So far as I know."

Eryl Fairfax has posed:
=TEAM ASHERAH=

     As the helicopter touches down, the helipad groaning in a somewhat concerning way as they do, Lily looks to the two Elites. "We'll let you two handle the talking. If there's anything you're not clear on, I'll jump in to explain." Philip pulls the door open and the two soldiers climb out, to be greeted by the crowd that has gathered around them.

     All of them are clad in tattered suits similar to what Lily and Philip wear, but all of them are the same, hideously shiny gray. Right at the front is one of the people that had a gun. He's bald with grey stubble and a look on his face like he sucked all the lemons on the tree.

     "Right, you folks had better clear on out if ya know what's good for ya," he says in an accent that sounds like a bad impersonation of a cowboy accent. Behind him, someone is pushing their way through the crowd, yelling in a stuttering voice. "F-For God's sake K-Kyle, cut the c-cr-cr-crap!" she says as she reaches the front.

     It's the woman in cracked glasses who seemed to initiate the peaceful waving from earlier. She also has that faux-southern accent as she stutters through her words. "W-Welcome skypeople, to Ash Ra F-Fac!" She gestures around at the rusting structure. "S-So, what b-brings you to our ne-neck of the woods?"

Ainsley (151) has posed:
    Ainsley first regards the rather surly old man with only a quiet and unflinching smile, when she steps off the helicopter and sees the crowd. Her smile is not completely genuine, though it'd be harder to tell on her distinctly inhuman face. She doesn't seem intimidated by him at all... though the fact is that she's making sure he doesn't decide to shoot her with that gun of his.

    The stuttering woman in glasses approaches, prompting a warmer look from Ainsley. She approaches at a slow step, and holds out her hand. She doesn't move TOO close, instead letting the potential handshake get accepted at whatever pace is comfortable. "I'm Ainsley. We are here for diplomatic reasons, representing the ReGenesis efforts," she begins, with a crystal clear voice. "This home of yours contains some very important machinery, and we are here to discuss how to get it in working order without disrupting your lives too much."

    "Do you have a better place to talk?" Smile~

Scarlet Everille (747) has posed:
    At getting into close contact with the opposite party, Scarlet takes the opportunity while she steps off the copter, waiting patiently for the rotors to cease so that they don't mess up her hair, to crank Circle Ceint all the way up 6 or 7 notches. By the time she steps out of the shaded cabin and into the sun, the magic hits everyone present like a brick. The effect is comparable to an especially sophisticate glamour of sorts, though it is more advanced than just showing what the caster wishes everyone to see. In addition to looking stunningly beautiful in the light, the first, split second snap judgement of anyone looking is immediately hit with the composite impression that she must be incredibly experienced and exceptionally intelligent if she can compose herself with that much confidence. It's basically cheating, but she'll indulge in it as much as necessary, because nobody is going to catch her doing it.

    "Pleased to meet you Kyle and madam~" She glosses over the fact the woman hasn't introduced herself with an enhanced tone of respect in the title. "My name is Scarlet Everille, and I'm serving as a middleman to relay an offer from the ReGensis corporation, who are interested in revitilizing this particular area for the benefits it could provide everyone on the mainland. I'm prepared to negotiate terms with anyone you can forward, but I'm sure you'll like what I have to say~" The magic even alters her tone of voice, suggesting someone who is immediately affable and has a clear, unguarded lack of self interest. It's totally fabricated of course, but even without magic, Scarlet is exceptionally good at hiding her motivations.

Eryl Fairfax has posed:
=TEAM GRANNUS=

     Once they've parked, Hsu joins them from the pilot's cabin, already suited up. The ReGenesis diving suit seems to be a thicker version of their jumpsuits in a bright orange with a dome-shaped helmet. He takes one of the sealant guns from the wall while Tabitha uses her tendrils to take some others and offer them to Septette and Kotone. "Start by applying it in a circle around the edges of the gap, then spiral inwards. As you apply it, it'll meld together into a single piece, so if there are any gaps, you'll be able to tell," she explains. She then proceeds to hand out flashlights to anyone who wants one before her body deploys a head-encasing dome.

     As for Albert, he gets an answer from Hsu. "Ah, good point. Let's see..." He taps at the sleeve of his suit, and frowns. "Huh... there is still wireless down here, but it's like she said." He indicates Septette and continues with, "She seems to be jamming it. Looks like we'll have to rely on wired stuff." He doesn't look entirely pleased about this, but a stern glance from Tabitha keeps him from saying anything more.

     "Okay. Here we go," Hsu says over the radio, a slight nervous tremor in his tone. He taps his right wrist, and filthy, icy-cold water begins to sluice in the bottom of the ship. Once the sub is full, the ramp opens up once more, allowing egress into the flooded facility. Tabitha takes point, lights on her body glowing to allow everyone to see and follow her. In addition to swimming with her arms and legs, she uses tendrils to grab on to walls and pull herself along. Hsu swims behind, occasionally consulting a map that projects itself on the inside of the helmet. "Our first destination is the room under the dome. That's the main observation point, there should be banks of computers to use there." She begins to swim through the dock, which still contains a few other subs, and leads the way to an open passage.

Eryl Fairfax has posed:
=TEAM ASHERAH=

     Everyone gasps, and begins murmuring when they first see Ainsley. Even the woman in glasses seems a little taken aback at the sight of a lizard woman. Words like 'mutant' and 'contagious' are being passed around at the back. But then Scarlet steps out, and her social hacks hit them like a truck. Immediately, all concerns are put to rest, and even Kyle looks like he's not going to kill anyone right now.

     "M-My name is Louisiana, a r-real pleasure to meet you." She does accept Ainsley's hand in her own, giving it a firm shake. Though she stutters, it's clear that Louisiana is a sharp one, piecing together the vague words of the two women to realize what they're here for. "Y-You're here a-a-about the water puri-r-ifier, aren't you?"

     This immediately sends a ripple of murmuring through the crowd, one that seems to somewhat dispel the effects of Scarlet's magic. Kyle's face now looks like he wasn't satisfied with the lemon tree, and moved on to a lime one on top of it. "Louisiana, I told you. They're here to take everything from us and pitch our bodies into the sea. Let's have at them while they're surrounded!" The bespectacled woman rubs her chin for a moment, before nodding at the Elites. "Let's t-talk then, down by the purifier." She waves at the crowd to part, opening a path towards a catwalk that goes down the bowl, in between the solar panels, leading to a building at the centre. She begins to walk down towards it, Kyle muttering darkly as he follows.

Rory White (673) has posed:
    "Bipedal bodies aren't even close to optimal for operating on land, let alone in the water!" Rory protests, picking up that Kotone's comment might be a complaint of some kind.

    She enters the water with the others, and upon doing so all six insectile legs fold up into the 'crab' robot's body. A series of propellers and mini-pumpjets extend from all directions instead, as do manipulator arms covered in all kinds of tools. It's far too intricate for modern Earth tech, that's for sure.

    And once she's in the WATER, Rory proves much more adept.

    "Visual inspection is step one. Diagnostics should be the second. Third will be damage assessment and finally, repairs. There is no hurry, so let us be thorough."

    Of course she's already pinging the underwater establishment over the short range radio. And if there's nothing, she'll look for some kind of access port. Radio doesn't work too well underwater, after all.

    But she putters along the outside hull with great speed, cameras constructing a 3D grid with all visible punctures or otherwise suspect areas shaded in red.

    Lovely how useful AI-assisted analysis can be.

Ainsley (151) has posed:
    Ainsley smile fades slowly at the reaction the crowd seems to have to her. She lets out a sigh at the wave of distrust, but when Scarlet's (fairly distracting) social magic quiets them down and makes them more receptive, she looks over her shoulder at the mage, and thanks her lucky stars that something may have been defused. The lizard woman carefully shakes that offered hand, clearly happy about things going over smoothly.

    "The water purifier, yes," she says, softly, and then she begins to follow Louisiana down to the purifier, keeping her hands clasped in front of her. She glances back over her shoulder at Scarlet, and gestures with her hand lightly toward Kyle, "Could you talk to him? He seems to have his doubts, and you seem to have a disarming social grace." She smiles knowingly at the mage woman. Ainsley can't magic a crowd out of possible lynching mode, but Scarlet can, after all.

Starbound Flotilla has posed:
    The presence of other subs gets some consideration from Moonfin. He feels like their presence is meaningful in some fashion, and he makes sure to check their level of maintenance, but aside from that, he leads the swimming charge of the Flotilla members. Pavo is next behind him, swimming the way a bird might fly. Their original plan's not something to use for now.

    "We'll interface on-site." Albert says, agreeing. He's got his own water propulsion engine summoned out of the condensed space of his Matter Manipulator, and he and Biteblade chug along behind the group attached to it, while George just straight-up breaststrokes. Seft is currently walking on the flooded floor, just due to her robotic weight.

    Once they're on-site, Albert and Moonfin will immediately get to work, using direct interfaces on their Matter Manipulators to try to assess any available data, but they'll keep patiently behind Tabitha and listen to the ReGenesis operatives.

Kotone Yamakawa has posed:
Kotone Yamakawa says "I was making a joke."

The Crab thing was all about a joke, some horrible old meme that just wouldn't die. She sheugs a bit as she is starting to forget Rory's not human a lot of the time. Or maybe she's just not got any hang ups about the young AGI? She grabs one last bit of gear a small movment thing she can hang on it. IF she wasn't? She'd be more walking on the sea floor for the most part. Either way away she goes making reay to head out ionto the dephs with the rest of hte party.

"Ya lets get this done right till they can get larger repair effort out here. This is going to be drinking water for people who need it badly, let's not screw that up."

WIth that she moves out along the hull laong ith Rory and will attempt to hook up Rory to share data and Septette if she's comptable as well to network. She feels kida odd as it hits her she's the odd one out the meaty bit of brain with two full on synethic lifeform she also activatge a built in light as she goes.

Scarlet Everille (747) has posed:
    "Louisiana then, charmed~" Scarlet gives a polite little half-curtsy. The frown doesn't even make it partway to her face at the reaction elicited from the crowd at the mere mention of the purifier. "I suppose there's no sense dodging around the word. Yes, we're here about the water purifier. Please forgive the fact that I don't know much of the situation here, since you'll have to explain the reasons you might have to be anxious about someone going near it." The most obvious idea is that they're so reliant on the thing that they're simply afraid of someone breaking it by accident or by deliberate sabotage, or else losing access to it once ReGenesis has laid claim to it. She keeps that conclusion to herself for the time being. You know what they say about people who make assumptions.

    She speaks to Kyle in a respectful, officious tone, striking a careful balance between being serious, but not talking down to him. "If ReGenesis was interested in taking the facility from you by force, I assure you they wouldn't have sent the two of us. I'm not ashamed to say that we wouldn't put up a fight if you decided to take it to blows." Also a bald-faced lie. She doesn't know much about Ainsley, but the fact she doesn't flinch at having guns pointed at her is probably enough to go by. "There will be no pitching of bodies going on either way." She smiles at Louisiana, following in her lead.

Eryl Fairfax has posed:
=TEAM GRANNUS=

     Looking at the other subs, any concerns Moonfin might have about other people should be immediately laid to rest. They clearly have been here a long time, totally rusted and decayed. Through the passageway is a flight of stairs leading upwards. Thankfully, it's wide enough to swim up in between the stairs. Tabitha leads the way, using her tendrils to knock aside debris, which includes office chairs, computer monitors and papers that disintegrate at the lightest touch.

     Past that, it's another swim through a corridor before they arrive under the dome. Here, some deep-sea life can be seen swimming about, but nothing too big or threatening. Most just scatter as the group swims past, over towards the monitors that have been bolted to the ground. Tabitha and Hsu go for different terminals from Albert and Moonfin. With their manipulators, they manage to get them running quite easily! Before Time technology standing the test of time once more.

     Between the lot of them, they manage to get a holo-display going again, albeit one that flickers a lot. It displays a 3D model of the facility, with red spots over where holes have been detected. "Okay! Let's start with this room folks," Tabitha says, gesturing her tendrils at the many holes on the domed roof. She and Hsu swim up to get to work on those, Hsu with his sealant gun while Tabitha just deploys the stuff from her tendrils.

     Meanwhile, outside! Rory breaks off from the main group to examine the station from the exterior. Her radio signals ping a lot of holes, as well as areas that should be looked at immediately. However, as she swims along, they pick up something else. Something big, and moving through the water.

Eryl Fairfax has posed:
=TEAM ASHERAH=

     The building only contains one thing. What once looks to be an elevator shaft, but no longer bears an elevator. The frayed rope hanging above may explain what happened. But thankfully, a rickety spiral staircase goes down along the edges of the shaft. Louisiana leads the way down it, each step squeaking in a heart-stopping way. Kyle is right behind her, occasionally glancing back at the party. Philip and Lily pull up the rear, keeping up the appearance of friendliness while their weapons are at the ready.

     Kyle meanwhile tries his best to maintain his sour disposition as Scarlet charms him, but he's clearly struggling. He doesn't smile, per say, but the frown lines on his face become a little smoother. "Yeah well... I still ain't happy with all this. No two parties can share something without someone gettin' the short end of the stick..." Louisiana just rolls her eyes and smiles up at Scarlet. "Oh I d-don't kn-know, if you could th-throw Kyle's body off, it would save m-mee a lot of headac-hes!" She laughs, and even Kyle manages a small chuckle.

    It's quite a long and emotionally exhausting descent, but they finally reach the purification facility. Machines and terminals stand all over, with more stairs going even further below. All around them is the sound of strained machines working, the slosh of water even further below as the tanks fill. "W-Well, here it is... a-a-as you can probab-b-bably tell, it's not working s-so hot these days," Louisiana says, having to yell a little over the constant groaning. The frown on Philip's face does seem to confirm her words. "S-So please! Make your p-pitch, if you think this place is still w-worth it!"

Ainsley (151) has posed:
    Ainsley doesn't seem concerned about their rickety pathway beyond keeping an eye on it and the people she's walking with. Glancing at Scarlet, at Philip and Lily, and at Kyle and Louisiana... She loses her smile in favor of a thoughtful look at the problems with favoring one person over another if the pathway were to give out from under everyone, like it's threatening to do the whole way down. Her tail wiggles nervously behind her.

    Once they reach the purification facility, Ainsley regains her warm smile. She steps up to one of the terminals, looking around and trying to get a feel for what's working and what isn't. She looks over to Philip, and frowns as well when she notices the look he has. She then lets her hands fall down at her sides. "Well..."

    "The purified water this facility would create would get pumped out to places that need it the most. The people remaining here, at this facility, would be allowed to stay as a sponsored settlement, relatively undisturbed but for ReGenesis personnel. Those interested in leaving would be ferried back to the mainland," she gestures to Scarlet, giving her a cue to handle that part of the explanation. "Those that stay here would need to live around the repair work done to the purification systems here for a time, but no one is going to be uprooted from their homes if all parties can avoid that." She looks at Philip. "How long might that take?" She wonders at him, in the hopes he can further specify the process, diminishing the fear that not knowing can generate.

Rory White (673) has posed:
    Without the physiology to support adrenaline and other chemical responses to danger, one might wonder just what gets Rory so uptight so quickly. Well, self-preservation is not limited to pure biological impulse! Already on the lookout for giant fish thanks to George getting her wary, something WEIRD AND HUGE coming up on her sonar!

    What do the optics aimed that way see, however?

    She flips on more external lights to try and illuminate what the heck it is, and also checks infrared!

    Thankfully she's able to multitask this. While keeping an eye out for danger she pulls up towards a small grouping of holes and extends the manipulator arms to begin work at sealing some of the holes. Oe of the arms also breaches through the gaps to check for any damaged wiring that might be exposed...

    Whatever's out there, she's not sure if she wants it coming closer!

Scarlet Everille (747) has posed:
    "Have you ever heard the saying, "a good compromise makes everyone angry"?" Scarlet asks Kyle, clearly joking judging by the smile on her face, but suggesting just enough seriousness that it definitely sounds like a real term of speech, if a somewhat cynical one. Cynical seems to be what the man is used to after all. It's probable that he'll appreciate that anger better than attempting to reassure him that everything will be just fine. Years of practice allow her to keep a steady, unconcerned expression as the stairs creak plaintively beneath even her slight weight, and as the din of the struggling tanks gets closer and closer. It's a depressingly rusty and degraded little hole in the ground, but she'd resigned herself to the odd job like this when she signed on with the Union.

    "Oh it's more than worth it." Scarlet opens with to Louisiana. "ReGenesis, as the world's leader in technology and restoration of Before Time hardware, is 100% confident that they can have this facility operating at peak capacity again. If it were otherwise, they would have written it off, and we wouldn't be here~" She lets Ainsley speak first, keenly watching for the reactions the two locals make in response to her prompts, before continuing.

    "Currently, the facility barely provides for the people on it, but were it to function at its original efficiency, there would be an enormous surplus. ReGenesis predictably wants that surplus to take to the mainland, and as part and parcel of that, they have the pressing need to fix this place up. This obviously benefits you to begin with, since it'll stop this place from falling apart around your ears, as it looks like it is going to do within the next couple of decades at most." It's a total bluff. She has no idea how long it's going to last, but she certainly sounds like she knows what she's talking about.

    "As Ainsley said, the people staying here would have to put up with the engineers until it's fixed. Anyone who doesn't like the idea of having to live around construction work, and doesn't want to join in for a ReGenesis contract, is free to leave for any of the company's mainland settlements, where they will find guaranteed placement and employment. We understand that you probably have reservations about anyone poking around in your home, no matter how good of a cause they say it's for, so let's hear them now shall we?"

Kotone Yamakawa has posed:
Kotone Yamakawa listens to the comments about nature she has a strange view. She fully gets it's actively trying to kill you most of the time or making horrors that need to die in fire. Either way she moves along taking note at this place she's honestly impresses the computers are still working. She's got the data now and is going to presson on ahead. She doesn't thinkg about this s she's keeping up with where the damaged area are she's going to pick one are with theole and get to work with the sealent gun and get to work on sealing the breaches. Once that is done God willing there will be a means to pump the water back out and get to work on some more seirous repairs on the wy.

"So I keep wanting to sing this old kids movie song about being under the sea..."

Starbound Flotilla has posed:
    Moonfin grabs some of that data from Rory over the Flotilla's network. "Hmmmm..." He says, swimming in his appropriately fishlike way further out. Seft and George get to work on recording the diagnostic data, trying to figure out interior and exterior engineering challenges they're about to need to take, while the remaining three mill about a bit and fuss, likely trying to figure out where to get started on the sealant and on their Matter Manipulator water-draining functions, but right now, this is Moonfin's spotlight.

    Heading out through the route to one of the unpatched holes near Rory, Moonfin -- a natural member of the Hylotl sea-people -- activates his HYLOTL EMPATHY and his BEAST-TAMING INSTINCTS, closing his lower two eyes and leaving only the third eye open. Taking a tranquil stance, he moves to sense what has Rory in such a stressed state, and assess its risks, its moods, and how much they need to worry about getting in a fight with it. This is enhanced by being in his natural environment, an underwater area, and targeting his natural target, mysterious underwater beasts.

Eryl Fairfax has posed:
=TEAM ASHERAH=

     Kyle and Louisiana listen close as Ainsley lays the groundwork for the deal. Louisiana nods along with it, but Kyle spits a loogie off the side of the safety rail. "Sponsored settlement huh? Sounds like a fancy way of saying you'll be bossing us around. Dangling the carrot so we dance to your tune." Philip scowls at him, but nods to Ainsley and begins checking one of the monitors.

     "Uh lessee... wow, uh. Okay, there's a lot of immediate fixes we can do to get more water going. Engines will need to be patched up, I think that would take maybe a couple months. Then the long-term structural fixes, and the stuff we gotta dive down to do... man, I think the whole package might take 9 months. A year tops."

     However, Kyle and Louisiana are paying close attention to what Scarlet has to say now. "So, you'll be a-able to fix e-everything? And we could l-l-leave if we wanted?" The idea of leaving seems to put a huge smile on the girl's face. And the idea of Louisiana leaving seems to put an even bigger smile on Kyle's face.

     "I always did say that a girl your age should have more in life. Maybe you could leave today with these folk, be our representative on the mainland?" The smug grin on Kyle's face is evident, but Louisiana fails to notice it, either due to excitement or sheer naivete. "Oh, that w-would be wonderful!"

Eryl Fairfax has posed:
=TEAM GRANNUS=

     Down in the murky brine, Rory's infrared picks up something swimming very close. Its general profile matches that of a shark! As Moonfin opens his third eye to the thoughts of the creature, the first thing he is hit by is the sheer hunger the creature has. The second is the smell of the party. A shark's nose is very sensitive, and the hunger has only given it an edge. It can sniff past the external suits, and smell the meat inside. Meat... meat! MEAT!

     As everyone gets to work with the sealant, something suddenly slams against the dome, sending a shuddering thud through it! The dark shape pulls away and begins to swim about, ramming again in a different spot! "Shit, what is it with me and having to deal with wildlife?!" Hsu yells over the radio, bringing a flashlight round to try and spot the figure, as it comes around for a third slam! Tabitha cranks up her own lights, giving everyone a better glimpse of the shark, and the dome. Which contains holes that look big enough for whatever is out there to get into. "Cover the big gaps! Don't let it in!" she yells, her tendrils swapping from sealant to long sharp blades.

Ainsley (151) has posed:
    Ainsley looks at Kyle, slowly losing all good cheer while she regards him. It's with a neutral gaze, though, and not an angry one. She carefully stares at him as if his words were being measured and carefully pared down in her mind in a way that keeps her from biting him. She doesn't like this guy very much, but she knows she isn't the only one. She gestures with one hand to Philip lightly, and smiles again at Kyle.

    "I admit, I do like dancing, Kyle, but dancing works so much better when both parties work together. If you don't want to work with us now, tell us how we can make this all better for you and your own." She tries her very, very best to give a big bright smile at Kyle. She's not being genuinely happy, though her attempt at diplomacy is quite heavy. She doesn't want the talks to explode because a paranoid skeptic things they want to chain him up like a slave.

Starbound Flotilla has posed:
    Albert immediately gets the crew into action, barking out orders to his fellow Starbounders to get them ready! Moonfin's already on the case, though. While George swims as fast as he can out there, and Biteblade and Albert chug their way ahead of him, Moonfin drifts with utter tranquility, his hand suddenly grasping the hilt of a blade kept in his Matter Manipulator. He tunes his instincts to that of the shark. "The Hylotl have an intimate connection with nature." He says, gently. "Our race grew in the oceans and has learned to understand them. Nature demands its toll of respect. If we are to take what we wish from it, we must first give nature its due."

    There's a gentle click in the water as he grasps the hilt more firmly. "Sixth Sea Hylotl Style:" His power katana revs with powerful energy. "The Shore Strikes Waves." With one fluid motion, his katana lunges forward.... Hilt first. He's maneuvered himself such that he will hopefully be where the shark will likely strike next... And it's timed to flashily strike right at the gills, a vulnerable spot for sharks. He's making a show, as always, but at least it's intelligent. They need to avoid drawing blood, and attracting more predators. Meanwhile, the rest of the Flotilla is hard at work. George, Albert, and Biteblade have leapt into action, immediately trying to seal holes with a combination of ReGenesis sealant and their own stores of prefabricated metal tiles. Seft is busy trying to get a more coherent sensor fix on the creature.

    Pavo may or may not be looting. Where did she go? Damn it.

Rory White (673) has posed:
    A SHARK?!

    This is at first relieving, especially with Moonfin coming. This isn't, after all, one of George's terrifying monster fish! It's just a shark, right?

    But then in a leap of far-too-straight logic, Rory realizes... a meat-eating predator is actually rather dangerous. "Moonfin, are you sure you're safe?! I'm the one who's all metal! You're a Biomorph!" She transmits over the radio.

    She of course, hasn't considered the idea that she might be considered prey just because she looks vaguely like a crab. Do Sharks eat crabs? Some do.

    She's made of metal. Probably doesn't smell at all appetitizing. But who knows?

    She also hasn't considered the creature smart - or crazy - enough to go RAMPAGING against the dome.

    "That is ridiculous!"

    unfortunately she is not particularly well armed in this form. Besides poking it in the eye or using a welding laser at point blank, not much is coming to mind.

    And it's not like her current Morph is super durable. Damage to more fragile components is certain even if her main fullerene-reinforced shell can probably take it just fine.

    For now she manuevers towards the Dome at a different angle, just in case there's a good opportunity to try and scare the shark with some kind of freakish display!

    A welding tool might be startling enough after all.

Scarlet Everille (747) has posed:
    "I can see you concerns." Scarlet says in her best understanding tone. "But allow me to put it this way." Then it's all back to business. "If ReGenesis hasn't sent a reclamation squad here to simply take the platform by force, they want to deliberately avoid destroying your way of life, or they lack the manpower to do so even if they wanted to. The facility will automatically provide water to the mainland once it has been fixed simply due to being built that way to begin with. In essence, you'll be stuck with a bunch of engineers, architects, and welders for a little less than a year. I think we can both agree that neither of those three things are particularly well suited to taking over and "reorganizing" an established settlement. Whether or not you believe in ReGenesis' good intentions, it stands to reason that they don't have the necessary resources to govern this place instead of you. Essentially, you'd be doing little more than registering as an active settlement on ReGenesis' ledger."

    She switches off the official tone of voice as if it were second nature, flipping her expression to something clearly pleased at Louisiana's enthusiasm. "If you so choose~ There isn't much point to forcing people to stay here if they don't want to. There's no shortages of places out there that could use a few more helping hands, so no matter where you relocate, it benefits everyone in the end. Ideally it'd be nice if a few people were to stay behind to help with the repairs, but I get the feeling there are more than enough individuals here that would rather keep close to their home."

Kotone Yamakawa has posed:
Kotone Yamakawa is working quick as she can the idea the shark is smelling her fully organic allies has her conerned. Normally sharks didn't consider people to be food. Then again this world was very advanced once and well suffered an apoc or two, right? So who knows what the suriving sharks of this world were twisted into? Shge does not wnat to think about that as she moves to keep patching things. She's worried about the others, only she and Rory are really likely not on the Shark's menu, right? Her Braincsase is sealed so tight it can't smell that last bit of meat in her, right? EItehr way she gets back to work trying to patch the holes.

"This is not what I expected! Being an extra in A jaws Remake!"

Eryl Fairfax has posed:
=TEAM ASHERAH=

     Kyle smirks at Ainsley and Scarlet. "Hey now, I'm dancing. I think you got a deal here actually. You take Louisiana here off to the mainland to represent us, and I'll take over as the chief here." Louisiana blinks and scratches the back of her head. "W-Well uh... I d-don't think you would be a good c-chief Kyle. Pa always said a c-chief needs to understand and be k-kind and you're sour to e-everyone. I do like your i-idea of me being a r-representative though!"

     That smug grin is certainly gone from Kyle's face, replaced with a look like a thundercloud. He suddenly lashes out, grabbing Louisiana and pulling her against him, pressing the barrel of his gun against her temple. "Don't try ta follow us outsiders! We got a local matter to discuss!"

     He begins dragging her, going down the stairs while keeping her body between himself and the soldiers, both of whom have levelled their guns in his direction. "Shit! Ladies, I don't want to shoot anyone today, least of all a hostage! Would ya mind working that wordplay on him?!" Philip yells as he slowly begins to pursue, along with Lily.

Eryl Fairfax has posed:
=TEAM GRANNUS=

     Moonfin's prediction is eerily accurate. The shark lunges again, but as it does, his blade slips through a small hole and catches it right in the gill, employing the shark's own momentum to hurt it more! It reels back in pain, flailing in the water. If Rory wanted to startle it, now would be a good time!

     The others continue to try and keep the shark out! Sealant pours from the guns, a chalky white substance that solidifies instantly, expanding as it does to meld with itself. With their frantic actions, the dome is nearly totally sealed. Only one remains, and Hsu is working on it. He gets to work on the biggest hole, discarding the spiralling technique in favour of creating bars of the stuff, to hopefully slow the shark should it try again.

Ainsley (151) has posed:
    All of the good cheer drains out of Ainsley's face once Kyle takes a hostage, putting him instantly several rungs lower on her list of people she tolerates. She doesn't pursue him, but the fury can be seen behind her neutral gaze as he walks back and away from them down the stairs. She lids her eyes when the step down out of sight, and then she starts to follow after the two ReGenesis personnel with the firearms.

    "Kyle," she calls down to him, trying to force back the tension in her voice, "Put away the gun. We were having a good talk, and I would very much prefer if you did not harm Louisiana. She did not mean anything malicious by what she said, so I counsel patience with her. Let her go, Kyle."

    "We're the ones you should be mad at. Not her. She doesn't deserve this," she continues. "Don't hurt her for something like this." She tries to move past the two soldiers to get in eyesight of Kyle. Her hands are up. "We can talk about making you Chief, and no one has to get hurt."

Rory White (673) has posed:
    Rory can do SCARY pretty well in her current Morph.

    This involves a rather coordinated bit of technological mayhem.

    Instead of wasting the sealant, she activates an UNDERWATER WELDING TORCH, casting a flaring blue plasma flame - extremely short, but HOT and BRIGHT - all over the place left and right! Another arm churns the water and thrashes up lots of bubbles. She turns ALL of her spotlights towards the Shark's eyes and wails a series of AWFUL squelchy noises in sequence at all kinds of different tones. One of them's SURE to be like nails on a chalkboard... probably to everyone, unfortunately.

    Last but not least she cranks up the HULL ELECTRIFICATION, generating several bursts of electricity certain to aggravate and startle most sea creatures!

    Oh yes. All this, she does WHILE CHARGING AT THE SHARK!

Scarlet Everille (747) has posed:
    Scarlet meanwhile, looks anything but angry. Her carefully managed expression reads nothing other than surprise, as if she'd just witnessed someone come out as a fan of something she'd never have expected, or at seeing someone finding a joke much funnier than it really is, or more pertinently, at watching someone get incredibly offended over absolutely nothing. She displays absolutely no signs of any other emotion, remaining as calm and politely casual as before, as if expecting Kyle to drop the gun at any moment as part of a failed attempt to psyche her out. Or rather, it's an invitation for him to play like it's no big deal while he still has the chance.

    She waves back at the two behind her as if irritated that they had pulled their guns out for such a trivial matter. "I don't see why we can't discuss it here." she says, completely even in tone. Having let it recede to a more passive level, she cranks up the magic once more, focusing it especially on Kyle. She can't attempt any kind of brute force mental persuasion to make him listen to her, but she can do the next best thing: come across in such a way that holding a gun feels stupid in that kind of relaxed, professional atmosphere. "That seemed like a pretty clear prompt to bring it to the table to me. If Louisiana wants to be a representitive of a ReGenesis affiliated settlement, and wants to leave someone officially in charge of it, she obviously has to bring it up now to run it by us. The same thing applies to you. If you have your own thoughts on the matter, forward them now. We came here to listen to them after all." The context is implicit rather than outright spoken: "the girl doesn't seem to think this is a big deal, you're kind of making an ass of yourself".

Kotone Yamakawa has posed:
Kotone Yamakawa wonders if she got the good end of the deal or the raw end. As if that shark gets in here? It's going to be a fight up close and not out in the open water like Moonfin and Rory are dealing with. She now is while not franticly? She is swiftl sealing everywher she can and trying to add some more support ot where the shark has been hititng the thing. She swims up and make use of her own gun to make sure the last one does get sealed or if the shark gets in it soon would find it self in a blast of sealent.

She's also watching the feed from rory's hud as she works and she's very concerned at this point. Still between that synth sleeve that Rory has and Moonfin whose utterly at home here she doesn't have much to worry about right?

Starbound Flotilla has posed:
    Oh hey, that worked! Moonfin pretty likely to get an arm bitten off, thank god for having the safety net of other people around like Rory. After slamming the shark roughly, he retreats, intending to come back around and bear down on it after it's caught further off-guard by Rory. By establishing himself as a threat by rising to the challenge, he intends to use his own instincts of herding and animal taming to press further, meaning to scare the creature off and back into the wilds by swimming after it for some time.

    Meanwhile, with a latticework of foam, the Starbounders are able to apply their pre-manufactured metal blocks to the space between the 'bars', allowing the rest of the Flotila to swiftly seal the gaps that remain. Their Matter Manipulators are also incredibly useful water draining tools, so without even a moment of delay, they begin sucking up water into their condensed spaces.

Eryl Fairfax has posed:
=TEAM ASHERAH=

     Philip keeps Kyle covered with his SMG as Scarlet and Ainsley try to talk him down with measured words. He only maintains an intense scowl as Ainsley leads, trying to convince him that he's being the unreasonable one. "Just making sure I strike first, missy!" But when she mentions talking about him being chief... it's very slight, but the look on his face becomes more receptive to listening.

     Which leaves him wide open for Scarlet's mental whammy. His expression shifts to one of confusion, like he just realized how foolish he was being. "I... sorry..." he mutters, releasing Louisiana. She runs up the stairs to hide behind Philip. Just in time too, as Lily vaults the safety railing to land on Kyle, knocking him hard onto the stairs. Even over the pained whirring of the purifier, the dull 'snap' of a bone breaking can be heard.

     Pressing her foot down on his neck, she looks up at Ainsley and Scarlet. "Good work, but I can tell you ReGenesis's position on letting this guy be chief: no chance in hell. We grant salvation, but not amnesty for past crimes. If everyone decides to join us, this guy gets taken in for rehabilitation."

     Philip meanwhile wipes his brow and shakes his head. "Goddamn, that was tense. Can we go somewhere not here and discuss this more civilly? Besides, these noises are giving me the biggest headache." Louisiana takes a long deep breath to steady herself, and nods, taking everyone back up to the bowl.

Eryl Fairfax has posed:
=TEAM GRANNUS=

     As the shark begins to come to its senses, something horrifyingly bright assaults its eyes! All this time down in the dark have destroyed the shark's ability to handle light, and all that Rory brings to bear at once is too much for it in its pained state. It begins to swim away; Moonfin's animal handling driving it to swim as fast as it can.

     Meanwhile inside the dome, with the Flotilla's help, the final big hole is sealed! When he sees what they're trying to do with the water, Hsu swims back over to a terminal and hits a few buttons. All the doors leading into the dome enter an 'airlock mode' where the space around them becomes enclosed by more of the transparent material that makes the dome. Now that any water from beyond the room can't refill what they suck up, the room begins to drain quickly.

     When it's dry, Hsu takes off his helmet and Tabitha retracts hers. "Alright, good job people!" Tabitha says, giving everyone thumbs up, while coiling the tips of her tendrils to also look like thumbs-up. "We'll have to start splitting up to seal and dry the rest of the facility. But for now, rest. It's going to be a long day."

Ainsley (151) has posed:
    Ainsley sucks in a breath through her nose when she notices that subtle change in body language, the change leading to Scarlet talking him down completely from the insane plan that must've cooked up in his mind. When Louisiana is released, she lowers her hands slowly, and puffs her feathers up. Then Lily falls on top of the man with a certain THWACK of his body against the floor.

    Ainsley, after the initial startle, looks down at Kyle for a couple of seconds. Then she looks up at Lily, the passive gaze offering a cool and calm demeanor, not bothered by the violent takedown at all. "If you had not done that, I would have, to be clear," she tells Lily, in a soft voice matching her face. She looks down at Kyle for a few more lingering seconds, her distaste for the man evident in that brief and mild look, and then turns to leave with the others.

    She pauses to check on Louisiana. "Are you okay?" she murmurs to the likely startled girl, reaching to touch one of her arms, creasing her brows to show concern. "I'm sorry about that. If I had known what he was going to do..." She frowns lightly. "Let's go."

    Ainsley is quite finished with this place for the day.