3865/Fists+Science=

Fists+Science=
Date of Scene:	29 February 2016
Location:	Njorun Station - Ring of Philosophy
Synopsis:	Momoyo volunteers as the test subject for an anti-Elite railgun. What could go wrong?
Cast of Characters:	Eryl Fairfax, Ayako Hasekawa, 928, 942, 953

---

Eryl Fairfax has posed:
    The Ring of Philosophy is all a bustle with activity on this day. People in body suits of pure white with purple stripes around the collar, wrists and ankles are milling about an ugly beast of a mounted gun. Wires trail from it, plugging into exposed sockets the Ring has been configured to have. The base is low and wide, with several exposed power cores installed into it. Above that is the barrel, half of which is exposed. Along its outer length are the rails, six in number arranged in a circle, equidistant from each other. Two drum magazines have been put on it at the back, above the barrel, no doubt packed with the ferrous slugs it'll be firing.

    Among the ReGenesis engineers, there is a squat man with a slight bald patch. His suit has two purple stripes whereas the others only have one, no doubt an indication of seniority. He has some kind of machine strapped to his shoulder which projects holograms of the railgun before him. With a wave of his hand, he disassembles the representation, checking some aspect. Eryl is also in attendance in the stands, watching the whole affair intently.

    It's going to begin soon. They just need the test subject.

Momoyo Kawakami (928) has posed:
     Momoyo arrives, fifteen minutes early even. Seems she was excited most of the day in school and particularly antsy. Dragging her sister and a loitering water spirit along with her, she arrives in the Ring quickly using the rapid travel stations configured from the Union-JSDF headquarters.

    "Hmhmhm~. Looks like a nasty gun, doesn't it, Wanko?" she comments, loudly enough for the squadron of already nervous engineers to hear. Though, hearing the Northern Deva in person was helpful to make her sound tougher, she still looked like a gorgeous high schooler. Leaving her 'entourage' on the steps, thankfully not her entire fan club, she makes her way down to pace around the gun before stopping near the squat man. "Eryl Fairfax, yeah? Or is that 'Doctor?'" she asks, most likely towering over him, or at least as much as any Amazonian-looking Japanese girl would at 5' 8". "I'm guessing the Ring is telling you my vitals before we start, huh." All of a sudden her thuggish dumbass dialogue that didn't sound any different from Kenji's was remarkably formal, respectful and quite engaged. Not college educated, but she was quite articulate all things considered.

Kazuko Kawakami (942) has posed:
     It's really big... But isn't that gonna be kinda tricky to use without one of those tanks to carry it around?" Kazuko's not quite hanging off of Momoyo as she follows her sister into the ring, but she's definitely holding onto her arm a little defensively while still looking somewhat skeptical. She's not too worried about the weapon considering the location, but she still can't help but be a little anxious knowing her sister's about to fight a giant science gun.

     Letting go once Momoyo meets Eryl, Kazuko gives the latter a curious look as if trying to size him up. After a few moments, she nods once, then takes a position near the edge of the Ring to ensure that she's got a good seat for what's to come!

Ayako Hasekawa has posed:
    Ayako isn't loitering! She is just here because she was curious as to what has gotten Momoyo so antsy and excited. "That's... quite the gun."

    Ayako then blinks her amber eyes quickly. "Huh? No no, Momoyo, Eryl is..." She then glances about quickly... and then points over to Eryl, who is sitting in the stands. "He's over there!" And then Ayako waves hello cheerfully to Eryl! "Hello Eryl!" She walks over towards where Eryl is in the stands and sits down cheerfully next to him.

    "So! I'm guessing this gun thingie is what has gotten Momoyo so excited? What's going to happen?"

Eryl Fairfax has posed:
    The squat man laughs, offering a hand with surprisingly dainty fingers to Momoyo to shake. Should she accept, he would shave with incredible vigor! "The latter! Mister Fairfax is in the stands." Indeed he is, smiling and waving back to Ayako, scooting over to make room for her to sit. "I am Evan Olimander, head of R&D of the Eden Defence Force! I'm the one who conceived the AEMG-001, which you will be helping us test today. Damn good of you to do so by the way!"

    Looking around at everyone, he clears his throat before beginning his explanation. "Here's how we'll do this. We'll run this thing through its paces against Miss Kawakami here, taking it through its configurations, until it runs out of ammo, breaks down, or Miss Kawakami can hold out no longer, or no longer wishes to participate. I must stress that we can stop the test whenever you like," he says in a stern voice, looking up at Momoyo.

    In the background, the gun has been moving a little. Swivelling on the spot, moving the barrel up and down and the like. "Sir! All systems are functioning!" an engineer calls out. "Great! We're ready if you are Miss Kawakami. Stand before the AEMG-001 when you're ready."

Momoyo Kawakami (928) has posed:
     "Hmhmhm~. Don't worry about me." she quips, moving to take her position before the gun where indicated at the appropriate range. "Here's correct, yeah?" she replies, as if getting ready to practice her form. Then... she folds her arms with a wry smirk. That seemed to be the stance she was choosing to be ready, but... experienced Elites could tell she had no openings in her defense even in this stance.

    "Alright, then. Let's see what this thing can do!" she replies, her expression changing and shifting to a serious, eager sort as she looked down the swivelling barrel.

Kutsuuko Shiratori (953) has posed:
    First day in Njorun, first time in the Ring of Philosophy, and first time meeting any of these people at all, never mind on friendly terms. It's been a little bit of a head trip for Kutsuuko, but one she needs to get out of the way sometime. Hearing Momoyo rattle on the radio about being /deliberately/ shot with some kind of experimental gun honestly had her too curious not to, though whether it was just to see said gun, or to figure out what kind of psycho the girl is, is up for debate.

    She's actually been here a little earlier, the real loiterer amongst the group, waiting at the edge of the testing floor with one elbow propped up on something almost as tall as she is wrapped up in cheap, waterproof canvas. Her attention seems to be on some sort of miniature PDA or communicator in her hand, but she stows it away quickly in one of her pockets as she hears the others coming in.

    She doesn't respond immediately, eyes briefly trained on the gun at the sound of the mechanicall swivel, before sliding over to fix on who is obviously the suicidal, self-proclaimed 'warrior' of the bunch. This is where someone a little more casual might pop a bubble of chewing gum or light up a cigarette, but it seems like she is pretty dedicated to focusing on the event; seeing for herself what kind of nutcases the Union is hiring these days, and more importantly, if they're the kind of nutcase who can actually justify their level of detachment from common sense.

Eryl Fairfax has posed:
    "That's perfect! Alright everyone, places!" 'Places' turns out to be everyone standing around the gun with a fire extinguisher, just in case. Some engineers go around offering earplugs to all in attendance, warning them about the sonic booms the gun will generate. "AEMG-001 initial live testing will begin in 3!"

    The gun's internal computers lock on to Momoyo, and load a single slug, locking it into place.

    "2!"

    Coils around the loading point come to life, generating the initial magnetic field. The slug starts spinning rapidly in its place, so fast that it begins to glow red hot from friction.

    "1!"

    Electricity runs along the rails, generating the three secondary magnetic fields within the barrel.

    "Begin!"

    The slug is freed from its place, spinning forward at high speeds. Along the barrel it rapidly accelerates, going white hot from further air friction. Finally, it emerges. In the briefest moment it flies towards Momoyo, the air itself combusting into flames behind it. Travelling faster than the sonic boom it generates, which eventually reaches the ears of all in attendance.

    What is Momoyo's answer?!

Momoyo Kawakami (928) has posed:
     "Hmhmhm~." she takes a forward stance, her arms coming out during the countdown. Her hair flares behind her as the gun starts up, and she watches it wind up.

    However, her move doesn't start to wind up until after the slug exits the chamber. For the first run, she was going to wing the amount of ki that would be needed, since she couldn't read the gun with her natural abilities. Instead, she went with the loudness of the sonic boom!

    "Kawakami Style Forbidden Move: Fuji Smasher!!"

    Her fist protected with her own ki, it blazed around her as brightly as the gun itself, as her sharp eyes went to deck the slug coming at her straight on. There was a huge ricochet risk with this maneuver, and so everyone was stood away appropriately, but she remained unarmored herself as she meets the slug right before it meets her chest with raw strength, her jacket and hair flowing behind her as her punch flows with instantaneous speed and incredible force!

Eryl Fairfax has posed:
    At the point of impact, purple ki mingles with trailing red flames, creating a dramatic flurry of light and heat! While the slug was designed to withstand the heat it would generate in flight, as well as the impact with a target, it was not designed to withstand an opposing force.

    And Momoyo's Fuji Smasher is quite an opposing force.

    Fractures open up in the slug just before it shatters completely into shards, travelling quite a bit slower than the slug was a moment before, but still sufficiently fast for the sharper shards to be hazardous. Furthermore, like a steel chisel being used to break up a diamond, sometimes a smaller point of impact can break something hard. In this case, all the spinning force of the slug was concentrated into the point, a smaller area than Momoyo's fist. The bones and cartilage in her hand may fracture, not to mention the burn she would have from touching white hot metal!

Momoyo Kawakami (928) has posed:
     Momoyo's arm is still purple, certainly fractured, but other than all the purple, marred flesh, her fingers looked more or less in the correct place and her arm was in place. "Mmmh. Hell of a hit." she murmurs. It took a lot for a direct hit to injure her, and it was obvious this wasn't the worst the gun could do.

    She held her arms up in the air for the stand monitors to show. "You see this, Ayako?" she calls out, so the water spirit and the rest of the audience could note the kind of damage it did to her trying to deflect the blow. Then, she pulled her hand back down. "Restoration!" Her ki glows around her figure, restoring everything but her clothing back to it's initial state. "Alright... Again." she readies her stance, nodding at the team before they've finished recording the data.

Ayako Hasekawa has posed:
    Ayako winces a bit at the purple color of Momoyo's arm when she shows her it. That's not a nice color for an arm to be. And then she giggles with a hint of awkwardness when Momoyo shows her arm after the punch. "I saw, I saw, Momoyo! Although I think you're the first person I've seen who would punch a bullet head on." She just shakes her head and continues watching.

    "Oh? One bullet wasn't enough? She wants more?"

Eryl Fairfax has posed:
    Evan is obviously very impressed by the healing powers Momoyo displays. "All right! Quick check-up, how's the AEMG doing?"

    "Temperature is within safe limits!"

    "Electronics stable!"

    "Barrel is clear!"

    "Okay! Miss Kawakami, please try to dodge these next ones. Initiate area denial! 3, 2 1, fire!" The gun comes to life once more, firing another shot at Momoyo, followed by several quick motions to fire more shots all around her. In essence, this seems to be a configuration aimed at shutting down highly mobile Elites by filling the air around them with as many shots as possible!

Kazuko Kawakami (942) has posed:
     Kazuko bites her lip to keep herself from cringing too loudly, although the fact that all this testing is going on in the ring instead of anywhere else does reassure the younger Kawakami a little bit. Despite her apparent discomfort, though, there's still a look of pride on the girl's face. "You're doing great, sis! One day..."

     She'll catch up one day. Maybe.

Momoyo Kawakami (928) has posed:
     Nodding a bit, her eyes widen a little as she sees the pattern of the shots. She dodges the first slug, but then her reflexes kick in... she doesn't attempt to dodge. At least, not how the scientists were anti<span style="color:ipating.

    cxterm93">"Burst Tornado!!"</span>

    A large amount of wind erupts from her body into the surrounding, like that of a hurricane force. While some of the slugs would hit her, she was setting about disrupting the wind around her to ward off the trajectory of the remaining shots as she sends the slugs ricocheting everywhere! Abruptly after the tornado burst, she rolls through a few backflips and handsprings, before coming up to her stance again for the team to monitor the damage.

Kutsuuko Shiratori (953) has posed:
    Kutsuuko takes the earplugs, but declines to actually put them in. She'd be an exceptionally God Eater if she couldn't handle loud noises, and her own augments in particular include ones specifically designed to eliminate sensory shock. A flashbang grenade going off in her face wouldn't really phase her, and so hearing everything in action as well as seeing it seems more valuable. This has the upside of letting her pick out the nonsense phrase Momoyo utters right as the countdown terminates, as well as experiencing just how far ahead of the sonic boom the slug is, picking up on the astonishing lag even from a safe distance.

    The speed at which the projectile travels is significantly less astonishing than Momoyo choosing to meet it with her /fist/ however. The God Eater's eyes widen silently in self-admitted shock. From her initial stance, there's no way she should have been able to move fast enough to get a tenth of the way into a punch; no, the real flagrant issue is the fact that, even succeeding, an impact like that should have turned her inside out, not fractured her knuckles. Her seemingly ridiculous excitement to get shot at by this thing starts to gradually make more sense as she watches her subsequently heal the damage on the spot, without any kind of obvious external aid.

    Admittedly, she's almost equally impressed by the contraption ReGenesis has apparently whipped up. It's the first time she's really seen a remote weapon of that size and scale, and at first look, she had really expected it to be a powerful but slow firing cannon, not a massively oversized HMG. Knowing that Momoyo isn't about to be splattered all over the place as a red stain, she shifts her weight against the person-sized object she's chosen as a leaning rest, only to have to shield her eyes with the back of her hand as the preposterous air pressure hits her in the face. What the hell /is/ this girl exactly?

    She glances over to Kazuko at the word 'sis'. Related? They don't look anything alike. She'll have a chance to say something after the next volley.

Eryl Fairfax has posed:
    The whirlwind is a pretty good idea, but there's a reason the slugs are spun before being launched. By spinning up the slug before firing, it gains a lot of aerodynamic stability, much more than what rifling the barrel could hope to achieve.

    As such, some of the slugs are able to punch through the winds and score a few good hits on the girl. Evan calls for a halt and a quick check-up. The repeated shots have pushed the gun's temperature close to the caution levels, but it's ready for more.

    "Okay, we need to reconfigure the Ring for this next test. Please hold." Words are spoken into a radio. And then, in a vertigo-inducing change, the engineers and AEMG seem to zoom away towards a growing horizon without moving in the slightest. Evan's voice soon comes in over the intercom. "This time, we are testing a long-range arcing shot. Please be prepared Miss Kawakami, and deal with it however you like! 3, 2, 1, fire!"

    Kilometres away, the gun points its barrel upwards and fires a single round. Due to the distance, more electricity was used to generate stronger magnetic fields, giving the slug more accuracy. A second or two after the command to fire, the slug comes arcing down towards Momoyo, leaving a trail of arcing flame, the sonic boom hitting another second later!

Momoyo Kawakami (928) has posed:
     "Restoration." she burns more ki, spitting the shells remaining deep inside her body out on the floor. The clink lightly while the scientists arrange a sniping scenario.

    Even with her eyesight, with the slug coming from that far away, trying to deflect the thing was pointless. If it was coming from that far away it was likely an explosive round...

    So she popped into the air briefly. Jumping as hard as she could, she quickly brings her knees up and crosses her wrists. At this distance, this was no time to try to take such a shot head-on, so it was as much a measure of her own decision-making as the gun's capabilities itself as she went completely on defense.

Eryl Fairfax has posed:
    The slug slams into the ground where Momoyo was standing a moment ago! It's not explosive, but the impact might make some think otherwise! Upon impact, a crater is made, and several chunks are launched skywards!

    Momoyo gets her guard up, which helps protect her from the bits of ground that strike her. Obviously, they have less force than the original slug, which is also good! By the time she hits the ground, the Ring has repaired itself and the engineers have zoomed back to their original position. There is now an obvious heat haze emanating from the barrel and engineers are swapping out burnt-out wires and fuses.

    "A fine dodge Miss Kawakami! The data on environmental impact of a missed shot is invaluable! Now, for this next test, we wanted to give you a chance to opt out for it. As you may have noticed, the slugs get very hot upon being fired. We have engineered a slug that would actually melt at those temperatures. Molten metal at high speeds would be terrifyingly effective against armour... but using it on a person would no doubt violate multiple ethical codes. Are you comfortable with such a test?"

Kutsuuko Shiratori (953) has posed:
    Alright, this is getting a little ridiculous, the incredulity of the situation only heightened by the way the Ring of Philosophy suddenly expands to be several kilometres in length. The simulator room back in the Den is only maybe thirty meters across at the most, and nobody spends their time in there punching cannon shells. For the first time since getting here, Kutsuuko finally speaks up, raising her voice a little to be heard over the expanded distance.

    "Alright, I take it back, I'm legitimately impressed." She claps her hands together a few times for emphasis. "So is this what a samurai is? Like a superhero on TV? And are they all as crazy as you~?" She looks waaaay over to the railgun assembly next. "I'd really listen to him though. Have you ever been sprayed with molten metal? It's an entirely different level of pain than being burned by fire or hot water. It'll stick to your skin and keep burning through you until it goes cold, and then they have to surgically remove it from your bones. I'd think twice."

Momoyo Kawakami (928) has posed:
     "Restoration."

     She brushes herself, off after landing, though the arena shifting back to standard size is disorienting.

    "Hmm. I can do whatever I want to deflect it, right?" she replies, making sure she was certain. "Kawakami City is steeped in samurai heritage. I'm a daughter of the Kawakami Family. Kazuko is adopted." she nods to Kazuko. "And I brought Ayako for a reason. I'm confident she can take care of any major issues till the Ring resets. The Ring prevents injury, but I'll still experience all the sensory data." she replies, tossing her hair and running her fingers through it.

    "Besides, it wouldn't be any fun if I wasn't under threat of unbearable agony. They have to test the limits of this weapon, right? There aren't very many Elites as tough as me to test this on that are willing." she replies, moving to the range indicated appropriately. "I can do anything I want. Right?" she confirms, before taking a combat ready stance.

Eryl Fairfax has posed:
    Evan nods! He seems far too eager to be doing this kind of thing. "Anything you like! Okay, load up the molten round!" The currently loaded round is ejected, and a new one is slotted into its place, obviously different due to its orange coloration and the fact it's partially encased in some kind of plastic.

    "Alright, molten shot! Get WELL CLEAR everyone, and we'll wrap up after this!" All the engineers back well away, some staying close to Momoyo with extinguishers in hand. "3, 2, 1, fire!"

    Within the barrel, the slug is spun up. The metal melts, but the plastic casing keeps it from splattering all inside the barrel. Upon being fired, the casing breaks apart, releasing the liquid metal! The spinning helps it remain as a cohesive shot as it flies towards Momoyo!

Momoyo Kawakami (928) has posed:
     Momoyo brings her fists back and... well.

    "Kawakami-ryu: HOSHI KUDAI!!!"

    Abruptly unleashes virtually the remainder of everything she has on the incoming slug. A violent, devastatingly large twisting yellow beam powerful enough to shatter a planet given it's name: 'Star Destroyer' causes the arena to quake! The beam slams into the protective walls of the Arena, slams into the molten round designed to survive such devastating force and potentially an opposing force (such railguns would need to be able to punch through opposing attacks after all) and of course... into the prototype where scientists are forced to dive to the ground or press for emergency teleportation out of the Ring in case of explosives.

    Basically, Momoyo being her usual, reckless self. If the molten attack was going to eat at her bones, why not attempt to obliterate it first so they could properly record structural integrity of their device...?

Eryl Fairfax has posed:
    Indeed, a liquid metal round would be devastating. But, because it is liquid, it is very easily broken up which reduces its effectiveness.

    And Momoyo goes several steps beyond 'breaking it up.'

    The beam annihilates the liquid projectile, as well as the prototype that fired it. The thing breaks apart into total scrap as the engineers dive for cover. After the attack fades, Evan gets to his feet and rubs the back of his head sheepishly. "... what I get for saying 'anything' huh?"

    But, he lets out a laugh in the end. "Oh well! If we didn't want broken prototypes, we wouldn't make them more powerful than what the final model would likely be!" He goes up to Momoyo and grabs her hand to shake vigorously once more! "A fine display, and very useful data! Thank you Miss Kawakami!"

Momoyo Kawakami (928) has posed:
     "WOOO! Yeah, that was fun. Now I have an idea what Ageha does." she laughs, shaking hands with the smaller man. "You know, I bet I could put you in contact with Kuki if you wanna work collaboratively and have a good legal team." she quips, sweat dripping off her figure. But thankfully, the molten metal didn't actually hit her. In some ways, Momoyo was still human, trying to bathe in napalm was still a ridiculous prospect.

    She had the biggest smirk on her face, however, just as excited as the scientists with the data evidently.

Kutsuuko Shiratori (953) has posed:
    Well. Now she just feels silly for saying anything. Momoyo saying something so blithely lacking in self-concern is one thing, but then completely obviating it by responding with such overwhelming force that it was never a concern to begin with, is quite another. That level of return fire is something she'd expect of an S rank Aragami, not an unarmed, ostensibly unremarkable human being. Where the energy is even coming from is beyond her. All she can really do is wonder if this is why the Union seems so hellbent on training at large. Is this girl what they're all aspiring to? That power surely couldn't be natural, right?

    "Did you really have to break the weapon too?" she asks in a faintly exasperated, but nonetheless impressed tone. "I thought you brought the other two because they wanted to have their turn with it. Besides, that thing looked expensive!" She runs her fingers through the back of her hair during the pause. "And that really doesn't tell me much? What even /is/ a samurai if you can learn to do . . . whatever that was? You don't look like a god or some kind of super robot to me, but that clearly isn't normal."

Kazuko Kawakami (942) has posed:
     "Wh... Whoa. That's... That was so cool!" Kazuko calls out as she hops into the ring, hurrying over to check on Momoyo and the remnants of the railgun. Any fear or anxiety that she had shown at the beginning of the testing is all but gone now, replaced with the usual carefree and excited expression that usually comes through her voice more often than not.

     "Even being able to fight back against a giant beam gun like that... And being able to make sis pull out those moves just to stop it? Amazing..." She's in awe at both Momoyo and the research team, glancing between them several times before laughing at Kutsuuko's question. "Nah, I wouldn't have stood a chance against that thing. Avoiding it, maybe, but...'

     Kazuko beams a bit as she looks straight at the Fenrir agent. "... Heeey. Maybe you could try fighting this weapon some time!"

Momoyo Kawakami (928) has posed:
     She chuckles softly, a catlike smirk crossing her features as she ruffles her little sister's hair lightly. "My name is Momoyo Kawakami, Goddess of Martial Arts, Representative To Inherit The Kawakami Temple, Northern Deva of The Big Four." she replies with her titles. "Most students in my city all are descended from powerful warrior families of Japan. Usually the girls are stronger than the boys, but there's exceptions." she shrugs. "But even Kazuko here has gotten amazingly strong just through sheer force of will and hard work. It'll be hard for her to keep up with me being descended from superhumans... but I've been compared to dragons regularly." she replies. She didn't even look winded, but the fact that she was't raring to take anymore attacks after that last massive blast was enough of the clue that she was at least somewhat spent spiritually.

Eryl Fairfax has posed:
    "ReGenesis has a fine legal team, but our motto is to call on them as little as possible!" A company that doesn't want to break the law? What kind of world do they come from?! "Oh, it was rather expensive, but not to worry! You don't build a prototype if you're not comfortable with it breaking or being shoved into storage. We can salvage the EM17 by melting down the rail remains, so it's not a gigantic loss," Evan says to Kutsuuko.

    He's kind of distant about it though, as he is now engrossed in those holographic blueprints. "I wonder if we can prevent the flame trails? That might make the shot harder to track... maybe make the molten rounds only break apart on contact? But then the container might act as a shield, I'll need to run some simulations..."

Kutsuuko Shiratori (953) has posed:
    "Maybe." Kutsuuko flicks her eyes towards Kazuko. "Or maybe I can do one better~" Finally, she ceases leaning like a bored soldier on whatever that piece of hefty equipment is and properly stands up, alarmingly picking the object up and throwing it over her shoulder like an aluminium baseball bat, pacing towards the inner circle of the ring. "I wouldn't know about dragons, but naming yourself a Deva is a pretty big deal~ As impressive as it is to see, sitting on the sidelines and just /watching/ people fight is one of those things that gets unbearably boring. It's like watching someone playing a videogame; all it does is make you want to shove someone out of the way play for yourself. Don't you agree?"

    She finally stops a fair distance away from Momoyo, facing down the sighting line of the now-defunct railgun. "So now you've got my trigger finger itching. Kutsuuko Shiratori, captain of the Fenrir Far East Branch's 1st unit God Eaters, if we're getting the introductions out of the way. Do you think you have one more round in you? I promise, you won't be disappointed~"

Momoyo Kawakami (928) has posed:
     Momoyo takes a combative stance as she smirks, raising her hand. "Wanko. Go reset the Arena... she won't want to attack me if I'm not at my best. The rest of you? Clear out." she continues, setting one hand on her hip. "Cute, and vicious... hmhmhm~. I like it. Most people have the courtesy to challenge me formally, though." she teases.

    "So, if I finish whatever your point is with this round, I get to take you out for tea later, right~?" she quips, taking on the same playful tone as her challenger. She was still sweaty, but confident. Even so, she sent Kazuko to the console to get things ready as she stood where Kutsuuko gestured.

Eryl Fairfax has posed:
    When the two girls start squaring off, the engineers start chattering excitedly! But they also redouble their efforts to clear away the scrap so the two have a proper area to fight in.

Kazuko Kawakami (942) has posed:
     "A challenge? Alright!" Flaring her nostrils a bit, Kazuko scurries out of the ring to the control panel. It should be easy enough to reset it, right? She's seen it done loads of times before.

     Thankfully, the directions are fairly easy enough for her to follow with only a few hiccups in-between, the Ring changing appearance several times from a field to a space station to something resembling a wrestling arena before finally settling on... The classic Ring! Nothing fancy, but it's a good, even fighting arena.

     "The stage is ready! Clear out, everyone else~"

Kutsuuko Shiratori (953) has posed:
    "Sure, but who has time for formalities these days? Besides, you don't look like the type who gets offended over a little disregard for ceremony, right~? I can tell you're into it." Kutsuuko pauses briefly, flipping some of that dark hair out of her face with the back of her fingers. "Tea isn't usually my thing, but as long as you're buying, I don't see why not. I'll see if I can fit it into my schedule."

    That said and done, it seems the so-called God Eater is more than ready to get to the action. She swings the heavy machinery back up off her shoulder again, and then the canvas covering it is blasted to tattered shreds as the surface beneath it shifts, grey cloth explosively giving way to a blinding flurry of glossy black and incandescent gold, like metal hot out of the forge. There is a sound like a salvo of bullets buzzing dangerously close to someone's ear, adjoined by a stack of loaded magazines clattering down a flight of stairs, and then what Kutsuuko is holding in both hands is an assault weapon the size of what usually goes on a jet fighter as a main cannon; what must be easily a ton of black, red, amber and gold machinery that terminates into a massive, revolving barrel assembly, currently adjoined together to present only a single, oversized firing aperture that glows and shimmers like the heart of a furnace.

    It's at this point that Momoyo should be able to sense something other than the unremarkable aura of a human soldier. The weapon itself has so much more of a presence, as if not only alive, but dangerously powerful, and furthermore, it seems to extend into Kutsuuko's, and then fuse together with her in an almost perversely intimate fashion. As it does, something besides them can be faintly felt. A third presence suppressed beneath the other two, only fractionally awake, like the dark shadow of something moving under the water. Whatever it is, it's very faint, but even the barest impression of it is deeply unsettling; malevolent, alien, hungry and unfathomably violent.

    Whatever it is, Kutsuuko doesn't notice, taking her God Arc in both hands and momentarily busying herself with the chip selector. "So, player's choice. Roman, Hindi or Shinto?" She offers no further explanation for the bizarre question.

Momoyo Kawakami (928) has posed:
     "Hmhmhm~... interesting." she murmurs. The gun made her raise her eyebrows, but her stance shifts into the ready when she sees her aura /surround her gun/. The aura was so overpowering surely even Kazuko could sense some of it this close up. Of course... there was little choice. The easygoing nee-san disappeared completely.

    In her place, Momoyo's face shifted slightly. The malevolence Kutsuuko was so vividly concerned about... showed in Momoyo's right eye. Shadowed by her bangs, it almost became red for a moment. It was, however, most certainly a trick of the light. Abruptly, Momoyo was absolutely ready to kill in the face of that gun and the merged entities.

    "Shinto." she Northern Deva murmurs. Her aura was now visible to Kutsuuko, however. It was difficult to tell what that meant, but it most certainly crawled around her body like the sickening, inky dark aura of flames crawling out of a still-pumping heart.

Kutsuuko Shiratori (953) has posed:
    "Good choice~" Kutsuuko purrs, the edge that always seems to waver on the edge of her smokey voice suddenly rising in prominence, sounding just a little too excited to be healthy. Neural inputs transmitted to her God Arc's CNS do the rest, cycling through her bullet chips until they arrive at one in particular. An unnerving sort of smile spreads across her lips as she looks at the display, levelling her weapon with a menacing 'kachunk'. The heels of her boots grind hard into the ground as she slides one foot out behind her in a wide, stable stance, clearly expecting recoil.

    "Susano'o pattern: Ameno Habikiri" is the only explanation Momoyo is going to get. There is the faintest of whines as the God Arc's gun barrel spins up, and then a bright, hissing flash as it discharges, surprisingly quiet considering the roaring furor of the railgun from just a few moments ago, though Kutsuuko herself skids several feet back against the floor regardless. The projectile itself is fast, appearing as little more than a streak of pale lavender light, but is far slower than the hypersonic slugs of earlier, the kind of thing that Momoyo could easily bat away, especially since it doesn't even seem to be all that powerful. Enough to kill a normal person in heavy armour, but not even close to being on the same level as the AEMG-001 in destructive power.

    The issue is when it draws close enough that Momoyo actually could punch it, or even worse, if she makes physical contact with it. The bolt of light abruptly bursts like a grenade, glassing a space of a few meters, but ultimately not terribly harmful to the Deva of the North. The barest fraction of an instant later, the air directly /above/ her explodes, a vertical column of the arena as thick and tall as a radio tower instantaneously igniting into blinding pillar of incandescent divine energy, originating from nowhere at all and crashing into the ground like a meteor strike. The floor of the arena disintegrates on contact, cratering around the edges as the sheer weight of the pillar of light sends surges of tectonic shock through the ground, but the raw, overwhelming power of the holy bullet is only half the problem. The other half is that Momoyo can /feel/ it trying to seal her ki, forcefully pressing layers of shinto binding on top of her over and over, so that even should she survive standing in ground zero through the whole thing, she'd still come out of it with barely any power left.

    Kutsuuko grinds to a halt after her short backwards slide, pulling the grip lever of her God Arc and disengaging the revolving chamber, letting six glass and metal canisters the size of entire soda cans thunk to the floor, completely spent from one attack.

Momoyo Kawakami (928) has posed:
     Given the nature of the challenge, Momoyo was not allowed to dodge. She was forced to cross her wrists and take the blow... which only helped with some of the damage. After such an impressive explosion, one would expect most people to be an unconscious heap... the attack was a trump card. Powerful and disabling, even if the target was still standing, they shouldn't be able to retaliate.

    Wobbling a bit, she was still standing, as her arms fell to her sides. Bangs covering her eyes, it took a moment while the dust cleared to realize she was still standing, if trembling and covered in blood. Much of her skin was shredded as the powerful bind bottled up her remaining spiritual energy. That was, after all, what the attack was designed to do, suppress precisely this type of fighter.

    Unfortunately, when it seemed like she should have fallen over, she didn't. "Hmhmhm. You were hoping I'd pick that one, huh...?" she murmurs from inside the crater that was her new home.

    "Hey, Kutsuuko. I wonder..." Her head tilted up with a twisted, malevolent expression. It should never have been relevant in his experiments, but it was immediately obvious what was about to happen now, the worst of a petty schoolyard fight. "...Which can take more of a beating while I'm Sealed, you or that sentient gun!?" She stepped forward, an entirely natural response to the ichorous, violent aura her opponent was still emitting in kind. The fact that she had just allowed her opponent a free first strike hadn't even dawned on her weighing her next action.

Eryl Fairfax has posed:
    Eryl was always watching. Both to gather data for the experiment, and to make sure this little contest of bravado wasn't going to get out of hand. When Kutsuuko threw down the gauntlet, he had slipped down to the edge of the Ring, ready to step in at a moment's notice.

    A moment which has now arisen.

    Suddenly, he's between the two! Smiling benignly and applauding. "A fine display, both of you. To take such a devastating shot after enduring several others like that... the stories about you must be true Miss Kawakami. Who knows what might have happened had you done it before the trials." It's clear what he's doing here; diplomatically offering Momoyo a way to save face.

    He then turns to address Kutsuuko, still smiling. "That weapon is quite something Miss Shiratori. Indeed, that shot might have won you the fight. But let me ask you this... do you desire total victory? Because total victory does not arise from attacking a tired opponent. It comes from besting them while they are full of vigor, don't you agree?" And now he's offering Kutsuuko an excuse to challenge Momoyo at a later date.

    Preferably in a way that won't result in a breakdown of relations between Union members. It's the only diplomatic thing to do.

Kutsuuko Shiratori (953) has posed:
    Kutsuuko isn't sure what to be impressed by more. The fact that Momoyo had decided to stand there and take the entire thing rather than deflecting or dodging it like she had with the railgun, or the fact that she was actually still on her feet afterwards. That kind of attack is normally reserved as a decisive strike against a Deusphage class Aragami (and, in fact, stolen from one), not something any sane human would just let happen to them. "It /is/ one of my favourites." she says confidently enough, though much less than she normally would, her ruby gaze hard and appraising as she tries to figure out just what Momoyo is thinking. "I didn't expect you'd just stand there and eat it though. I think you've proven your point."

    It only occurs to her a moment later what button she might have pushed. She'd only been here two days after all. Momoyo had seemed too gung ho for her own good, but not legitimately mentally unbalanced so far. Now she is legitimately worried. Not for anyone's safety, since this is supposedly a simulator, as evidenced by how gleefully happy Momoyo was to risk being shot, but for what the girl climbing out of the crater in front of her might actually think about doing while exuding that pure, malicious glee. The God Arc bursts into another tumbling flower of black and gold, thrumming, sizzling and clattering as it reconfigures itself in the blink of an eye, the gun disassembled as a massive, six foot long blade snaps out in its stead, turning the assault cannon into a white hot, single-edged sword the size of a motorbike; one flickers and glows even when held still.

    "Alright, give it a rest." she intones much more evenly, that playful coyness abruptly gone as she readies her reconfigured God Arc, just in case. "You asked, I gave, you won your bet. We're done here. I'm not interested in throwing down while you're like this." 'Like this' doesn't particular refer to the damage Momoyo has sustained. It's much more concerned with her current state of mind. She can sense a risky exchange like this a mile away, and she doesn't enjoy the increasingly probable idea of getting involved with it.

    Thankfully, there is a diplomat on site. One brave enough to suddenly step between the two as soon as it looks like it might get hot. She lowers her weapon only slightly as Eryl interposes himself, still on guard just in case Momoyo decides to try and bull rush right through him. "I'm not here for a fight." she admits truthfully. "I came to see a weapon test, and to see if Momoyo was serious about taking it head on. I don't see an issue with fighting later, but right now I think we're done. I saw what I came here to see and I'm satisfied it's legitimately as crazy as it sounds." She then takes the risky move of lowering the blade of her weapon completely, trying to ease up somewhat out of her instinctive ready stance. "Wasn't there something about tea anyways?" An attempt to change the subject couldn't hurt.