Page fault

[broken_puppet]

[Lamia is standing in the hangar after the disastrous turn of Major Pliskin and she appears to be unusually somber as she looks over the damage inflicted upon the Angelg.]

I don't understand why I am so bothered by what happened during that mission. Turns and defection are nothing new given the history of conflicts or even the past of the shadow mirrors. It was an act of treason that brought us here and even now we are building strength and information to betray the current Earth sphere government and install our own command structure.

But after all of this I wonder if that's right?

I broke secrecy of the mirage system and what it's capable of in a situation where I could have instead run or used other weaponry. Even mirage sign was to dangerous in that situation. If Ingram had been so inclined he could have easily destroyed me while the unit recovered and in that case it would have caused another of the pilots here to cover for me or even potentially suffer injuries like Ken to protect me...

[Lamia pauses as her mind wonders over this newest thought and as she continues to stare at the Angelg despite the chaos around her.]

Comments

[herodrawing]

Hey...

[Look, it's the kid who was drawing you later.]

I'm not spying or anything right now, just so you know.

[broken_puppet]

[Lamia looks up to notice Izuru and turns back to looking at the Angelg.]

How can I assist you, did you require more information or did you merely wish to add to your illustrations as you did last time?

[herodrawing]

No, it's not that! You just seemed... really worried for a moment there. What happened? Did you know Major Ingram personally?

[broken_puppet]

No, the mission just left me with more to think about than I expected. I feel more like we were left behind than we really forced him away.

[herodrawing]

Major Ingram... he said he wanted us to grow strong. You think he left you on purpose so you could get even stronger?

[broken_puppet]

I don't know why he did that. It felt in some ways like someone watching a pet or ants with only minimal interest. Even our strongest attacks did little to slow him in the long run.

[herodrawing]

If I were there, I'd...

[Definitely not save the day, even Izuru realizes that.]

I see why you seem so down, now.

[broken_puppet]

[Lamia nods but the look on her face seems to darken further.]

The mission was successful and there were no losses while we gained significant intel. By the parameters it was cleanly achieved but I still am unhappy and cannot figure out exactly why. If he understands perhaps I should just ask.

[Lamia's next words are quiet and seemingly unsteady.]

How would you deal with it in my place?

[herodrawing]

I... don't know. But it's not the first time something like this happened for Unity Group - that people who were on a mission returned with bad news.

I guess I'd be glad that no one got hurt or worse. Unlike that other time...

[broken_puppet]

Ah, the Zwei Wing concert where the noise attacked. You were part of the security personnel there and we have no reliable technology to make the Noise manifest. That report showed that it was a desperate battle compounded by similar battles which occurred around the same time.

I cannot imagine what so many disasters at once must have done to the unit's morale.

[herodrawing]

It was a pretty bad time. Everyone felt horrible.

But... we just have to live on, right? For the sake of everyone, even people who are no longer with us.

[broken_puppet]

For the sake of everyone including the fallen?

[Lamia seems to get particularly pensive after that statement.]

It seems counter-intuitive to worry about the fallen as it would distract you from the present and cost more people their lives. But perhaps there might be something to that given what you've come through thus far.

[herodrawing]

It's not distracting. Rather, I'd say it gives you strength to move on and not give up.

[mistaken_for_monster]

[Speaking of chaos, not long after a slight... incident involving Loni, Volya decided to scamper off and away from the hangar - which took him past the Angelg.]

Um... hello? Are you alright?

[broken_puppet]

[Lamia glances at Volya with a worried expression on her face.]

Just thinking about what happened in the last mission. Your contributions were noteworthy but I feel as if it was a test more than a battle from Ingram's part.

[mistaken_for_monster]

... That would make a lot of sense...

[Considering how much it took to even make a tiny dent in that thing...]

He could've just hit us with that death ray any time he wanted...

[broken_puppet]

The danger was real and I feel that if we had not risen to his challenge than none of us would have returned. The situation is unusual, and I can't come to terms with what really happened.

[mistaken_for_monster]

I think it might be the same with a lot of people...

But things get better... right? I mean... they should...

[At the very least that's what he hopes. Then again there are things that happened to him that clearly prove the opposite, but hey - he has yet to die.]

[broken_puppet]

Do they? We are beset on all sides by foes we cannot understand who want us dead or worse. We just barely escape disaster with the best possible result we could in that situation and I'm upset for a reason I can't fully understand.

We completed the mission and survived to fight again, isn't that all that matters?

[mistaken_for_monster]

...I don't know if I'm even the right person to ask... I'm not a soldier.

[broken_puppet]

Hmph, this coming from one of the most effective pilots on the mission? I think you're not taking appropriate credit for your deeds.

Part of me is nervous as to what we could possibly do to defeat Ingram in his unit should he emerge on the battlefield again, we only avoided disaster by a slim margin this time.

[mistaken_for_monster]

...I just do what I have to...

[Volya looks pretty nervous at the prospect.]

Maybe... maybe we'd have a plan when it happens? I mean it'd be a long time until then and he wouldn't show his face again so fast right?

[broken_puppet]

You're probably correct but we have no guarantees in that regard. The idea of a plan is a good one though. Do you perhaps have any ideas from your experiences? I wasn't able to pull much data from his machine.

[mistaken_for_monster]

I... that...

[Volya shuffles anxiously.]

I don't think I've got any good ideas...

All my plans whenever I go along always just end up being 'try to help everyone else' and 'survive...

Maybe you could ask someone who knows about fighting better than me...

[broken_puppet]

Well I think everyone is stuck thinking about this event as it occurred. The base security is being redone and almost all of our tactical level plans are being revised as we speak. I'm sure we're all going over the data recovered in Las Gias when we found the Grungust and Wildraubtier and how much of that is truly valid. At least the mystery between the latter machine and the data has been resolved.

[Lamia waits for a few moments in silence as she stares at the Angelg and appears to mull something over in her head.]

I also think I need to state one thing more clearly for the sake of clarity. Thank you for your assistance in restraining Ingram. I could not have fought him as well as I did without your assistance and I, appreciate, the effort you put forth.

[Lamia's expression seemed confused momentarily during her pause but resolves itself to a short smile as she finishes.]

[mistaken_for_monster]

[He doesn't have much to say about the security situation and nods slowly. Almost all of that was over his head anyway. Literally since it was the talk between all the officers who were older than him. Still, when Lamia offers her gratitude and smiles at him Volya lets out a soft and nervous laugh, turning a little red in the face and fidgetting.]

Ah.. you're welcome... 'm just happy to help.

[itbelongsinamuseum]

That's a very intense look at your robot. Is something wrong?

[broken_puppet]

[Lamia gives her fellow pilot a cursory look before returning her attention to her unit.]

The last mission was dangerously close to disaster. I feel more like we were allowed to live than we really had any impact on the traitor.

[itbelongsinamuseum]

I read the reports...Wasn't that pretty much his intention?

[broken_puppet]

But why would he do that? Why would he toy with us and leave? Why not kill or capture us?

I simply cannot understand why he did that or why I'm so dissatisfied that we escaped with our original mission successful and no significant losses.

1/2

[itbelongsinamuseum]

(Continuing this in case you care after a long hiatus like that.)

Isn't it normal to want to punch somebody in the face after something like that?

2/2

[itbelongsinamuseum]

Or more seriously...Who knows what else him and his people have planned or what he can do now that he's gone.

[broken_puppet]

That's the worst of it. I should accept what happened, take the lessons learned from what happened, and plan for what we will do next time. He showed us what he can do, how resilient he is and revealed himself in a minor engagement instead of tearing our headquarters apart from the inside. I cannot grasp why he'd do that and I find myself stuck looking for an answer that makes sense in the case of his stated goals.

And I find myself questioning my own orders now, which bothers me almost as much as Ingram's contradictions. Could he have been influenced in a similar manner as myself? Is that the real secret behind this organization?

[itbelongsinamuseum]

I think he wanted to preserve our ability to fight as much as possible. Tearing everything apart would be shooting himself in the foot.

I have no idea how he plans on making us support him just by being an asshole, though.

[broken_puppet]

I do not know either. Perhaps the best policy would be to take a wait and see approach. We have more to worry about besides Ingram after all.

I am curious as to what exactly is going to happen next.

[itbelongsinamuseum]

That sounds like a good idea. We have rogue states, terrorists and half a dozen alien invaders other than him to worry about.

[gold_four]

'Mirage system', eh...?

[Oh, look who was eavesdropping.]

Fitting you'd have something with a name like that.

[broken_puppet]

[Lamia blinks owlishly as Ataru speaks up and goes over the last few moments again in her head before frowning.]

My language processors are choosing to vocalize my thoughts without conscious control now? What else can go wrong with them. At least I'm not the only one here who apparently talks to themselves.

The system is a new development prototype custom installed into the Angelg. From what I understand it was part of the technology tied to localized gravitational forces to bend light that Dr. Bian Zoldark and Shu Shirakawa developed during their partnership in the DC war. It is in part responsible for Mirage Sign being an executable technique by containing the projected energy into a field so each mirage effectively wields a true blade.

Thankfully that much is true in our world as much as this one. Though why I volunteered it is beyond me.