Krayzikk

IC: What the Nui was this guy's problem he just took a hundred volts this is— The wire, taut and softened by heat, parted under Karmine's blade. The Sentinel's own muscles were coiled tight, ready to spring, but she didn't move. Didn't act. Caught between two priorities, Ruki bounced on the balls of her feet hesitantly. This lunatic couldn't hurt her— a Hau was the ultimate, perfect defense. She chose it for that reason. Standing around here being immovable didn't stop this guy, though, and he didn't have much regard for his own life. A big piece of her wanted to just electrify the flooring. Hit them all with zap enough to knock 'em out and let the Sarge sort 'em out. But there were friendlies, civilians, and the voltage to drop that Toa without seriously harming a Matoran was... Iffy. Just too chancy. It wasn't the Sentinel way. Wasn't the Toa way. "Alright, creep, if that's how you're gonna play it," Ruki hissed, flexing gloved fingers deliberately and balling her hands into fists. The uneven, flickering lights— still resolving their surplus charge from what had grounded out into the flooring— caught gleaming nodes on each of her fingers. "Let's play, then." The Sentinel came in low and she came in fast, right fist headed for her enemy's sternum. @Tarn@Jesse Pinkman *** "What favor is he doing you?" The Lesterin's brows furrowed, even more confused— and troubled— than before. She didn't bother to point out that his companion's 'rancid' manners were already aimed with lethal intentions. @Perp OOC: Additional posts for @oncertainty and @Vezok's Friend regarding Nota coming soon, along with a post for the folks at the back of the train. Wanted to get what I had done already posted first.

IC: "You're not quite that lucky," Something in Krayn's tone took on just a small hint of amusement; like there was a joke he was in on, and Jolek wasn't. Not just yet. "You're still junior to almost everybody here. You might not have been a very good guard, but that doesn't mean you're all set to be a good Aggressor yet either. But I expect we can fix that pretty quick." @Razgriz

IC: "Only person I answer to is the Captain." He said simply while Skyra handed Jolek a cup of water. "In the Gukko Force, I answered to my boss all the way up the line to Captain Kongu. And I was pretty independent as officers go. The group is mostly autonomous by design, so while we ultimately answer to the Koros that isn't a day to day concern." Especially not if they traveled as far as he suspected they might. @Razgriz

IC: Krayn suppressed a flicker of irritation at how Jolek talked about the job. It wasn't really anger at the other Toa personally, he knew himself well enough to recognize that. It was... not quite pride, but in the vicinity. He didn't like that the Sentinels had revived the name. He didn't like that the previous head wasn't in charge, even though he understood all the reasons why not— and suspected Dehkaz disliked them even more than he did. Whether it was their right or not it didn't sit well with him. It was disrespectful, dismissive, of the work they had accomplished as a team to apply the name to a new initiative with so many new members. And without so many old. None of which, however, had anything to do with their newest recruit. "Then you're in the right place." The Toa said finally. "I'm sure that somewhere there's an official mandate, but the purpose is to go find trouble before it ever gets the chance to find us. It's officially a joint, inter-Koro effort. If the locals will forgive me saying so, though, we work off of the Fowadi. Which is a Sentinels ship. Her crew are mostly Sentinels. The Captain is a Sentinel, so's the first mate. It really just means that the other villages agreed to let Po-Koro borrow people for detached service." @Razgriz@Snelly@otter@The UltimoScorp

IC: "Happily," she said, stepping onto the gangplank that lead down to the dock at which the Shinushya— rather than Gilded Dragon, as she had supplied to the dock officer— was berthed. The Menti set foot on the dock with some unconscious hesitation— no matter how much her mind understood that it was stable, strange though it seemed, her body expected it to give and shift underfoot like a floating plank. It gave some, yes, but that was down to the natural pliancy of the vegetation. It shifted under her feet no more than a crystalline dock would have at home. "Firstly I wish to see for myself the disposition of my people. I need to see the state of their ships, feel their state of mind upon the mental plane to understand their mood. Ga-Koro, on the other hand, is supposed to possess the largest navy that this island has. I want to see it for myself. I expect to visit this village regularly, so it makes the most sense to become familiar with it, yes? @Jesse Pinkman

IC: "You're not," Krayn said frankly, matching pressure with pressure. The other Toa, close up, was clearly a younger man. It was in his voice as much as his face. Energy, ungoverned by the care or caution that came with even a few more years of life. But there was no deception to it. Aside from a— very passing— recollection that Dehkaz might have said something about a new recruit, he could hear it. He was an officer, a detective, with years of time on the job and he was a Toa of Sonics. Every little subtle inflection in the kid's— Jolek's— voice he could hear. It wasn't the infallible detection of a Rode, especially not without more of a background to compare it to, but it was close. If the kid was lying, he was the best liar in history. "You made enough of a scene that he'll be along when he's ready. If he offered you a job it'd be here, as part of..." The name tasted somehow unpleasant. "The Aggressors. What do you want explained?" @Razgriz

IC: "Everybody relax." He didn't raise his voice a decibel, but something in his tone cut through the growing tension. A little detour in the conversation was winding everyone tighter and tighter, no one more than the newcomer. Why he was expecting a fight to start Krayn couldn't say but he could see it. The way he was tracking everyone around him, noting every sound. Skyra hadn't meant anything by it but he'd ratcheted up a few more notches once she took a circuit. "Dehkaz is the captain. Probably in his office, or up by the helm." He gestured, mostly from the elbow, in that direction and held out his right hand. There was no disguising the way his coat shifted, revealing a glimpse of leather belts and holsters underneath. Ta-Koro was too hot to have it buttoned. But unless he was completely brainless he could tell a greeting from a threat. "I'm Krayn. Have a name?" @Snelly@otter@The UltimoScorp@Razgriz

IC: Rockwall had been fairly familiar, albeit populated by the strange and unknown. A coastal installation overseen by a military installation, docks, some small luxuries that grew up around any sailing village. Ga-Koro was at once more familiar than that and utterly alien. The waters were full- clogged, really, with the crystalline ships of the Dasaka. The local marines were working overtime to try and keep them organized, prevent collisions and generally avoid a maritime disaster. The flow of refugees on top of that required some kind of intake, medical attention, food... All the basic needs that a mass exodus over a nearly uncharted sea would have lacked. A foreign people required interfacing with the locals, the processing overseen by both marines and imperial Menti. A true coastal village- nearly a city- should have been even more familiar than the Rockwall. But in truth the sheer... Absurdity of it was enough to strain even Kiyaku's capable imagination. The whole village was built atop floating pads of vegetation, not unlike the water lilies commonly found in gardens across the archipelago. They were immense. One could hold a home, maybe even multiple, some held even larger structures. Where a single pad, however large, wasn't quite enough multiple had been gathered together. Similarly organic bridges connected the pads, and organic material composed the structures as well! The village held more green upon the water than almost anywhere back home on the land. She allowed herself, for a few minutes, to take in that alien landscape from the deck of her ship. Not that it had sailed towards the village under its own colors; it had not sailed to the village in its previous guise, either. The Umbralines would be here in force. It would only take one informed enough busybody to wonder why they had never heard of one of their clan's own ships, or her captain. No, the Shinushya had traded in her Umbraline livery for that of the Eiyu. Aligned with the Umbraline, but secluded enough to raise no questions among most of the refugees. In all likelihood, they wouldn't even have noticed. They had spent so long adrift, desperate, it would be the last thing on their minds. But it never paid to be careless. "Ela?" Kiyaku asked aloud, tearing her eyes away from the scene. The Menti, yet again, seemed to wear a different skin than before. Ela had been aboard for a handful of days, enough time to be introduced to the crew and travel to Ga-Koro, but in that time Kiyaku had never looked exactly the same twice. Recognizable, perhaps, but her features and build were a little different each time. "Would you accompany me into the village proper?" @Morgan Yu

IC: "Depends if he knows how to throw anything other than luggage." He'd shifted position a little, lifting his right leg to brace his foot on the railing. It wasn't nearly as difficult as it looked; the forces wanted to pull his body that way anyway. All he had to do was make sure his foot was hooked properly and allow, just for a second, that pull to gain a little ground. Much stronger position to keep. "Not sure yet, Luten." It really didn't take long to pull him in. The grappling gauntlet was meant to pull things in fast, even with the extra resistance from the water. It was a matter of moments before the swimming Toa was dangling against the hull, another moment before he was at the railing. The Toa's hands were on the cord, naturally keeping it from retracting the whole way, so he took the Toa's wrist and heaved him over the railing pretty easily. He was a little denser than Krayn was, but the relative mass didn't matter nearly so much without the winching mechanism involved. "Evening, there," He said, tone reasonable, to the dripping Toa. "Something we can do for you?" @otter@Razgriz@The UltimoScorp

IC: "You know, thought I'd see what I caught." For a second Krayn throught he would have to reevaluate the Toa's intelligence. What in Nui's name was he waiting for? He was about to shout when the idea seemed to register, and the swimmer grabbed the hook and gave two distinct tugs. "Grapple's going to do most of the work," he answered, double-checking his foot's purchase beneath the cleat before he triggered the reel-in. He wasn't concerned about the weight, the only challenge was that he was supposed to be the object remaining stationary. He would have liked to brace on the railing with his left, but... His arm didn't hang uselessly at his side, but it did remain purposeless. It wouldn't help. "Just make sure I don't go over instead. Lunatic weighs more than I do right now, I think." @otter @Razgriz

IC: He's really trying it. His Pakari throw— for that was clearly it— wasn't perfect, but with such an improvised payload it was a little impressive that it reached the deck at all. Not that some of the sailors nearly clobbered by it agreed. For a village so new to sailing they nailed how a sailor spoke very quickly. Maybe Ember's work? In any case, with his belongings aboard the lunatic— he'd had too much success to simply dismiss as stupid— dove in with equal strength. Despite his time aboard Krayn was not an experienced sailor. He'd asked once how fast the Fowadi could move and the answer had been unintelligible. Why a ship needed to be measured differently than anything else was beyond him, but rather than solve the mystery he was content to leave sailing to the experts. Close enough to shore with objects for reference, though, and he could eyeball the speed just fine. This Toa was moving fast, father than he could in the water. Not as fast as a Kakama would allow but sheer force, it seemed, behind each stroke made a difference. He'd taken too long, though. It was only a few moments of indecision at the end of the dock but Krayn suspected those moments to be crucial. The Fowadi, unlike this desperate swimmer, was still accelerating. Without thinking too hard about it Krayn slipped his foot underneath one of the cleats on deck; it was meant for tying things down in the event of a storm, but it'd hook on his foot just fine. Strictly speaking whoever this was shouldn't be allowed on board while underway, especially not without clearance. But if Dehkaz really didn't want him on board, they could just drop him back. He released a short length of slack and swung the hook in circles to build momentum while he watched, and waited, for the point that the Toa would get closest to the ship before it began to pull away. Not quite. Not yet. There. He released the hook, casting it out at the sea with every bit of precision his Sanok allowed. It'd make contact with the water an arms length ahead. @Razgriz

IC: "You know, I do believe he's going for it." Krayn almost didn't realize he'd spoken out loud, so caught up was he with a sudden curiosity. He had been watching the coast, what little of it there was to look at. It was still a part of Mata Nui, and he had been dwelling on the great journey that loomed ahead far out into the Endless Ocean. Far away from home. The gray Toa there on the docks had only caught his attention as a matter of habit; Krayn had watched him look to the sea, to the village, and back enough times to recognize someone trying to make a decision. What he hadn't expected was the Toa to turn and sprint like Makuta himself was hot on his heels. Was he really trying to catch the ship? That was his best idea? He wasn't wearing a Kakama, or he'd have made it already. Curiosity, and a little amusement, brought his focus into the present more than anything else. He shook his sleeve a little, a motion he'd been practicing, to make sure it was clear of his new grappling hook. He thought maybe he would have to go fishing, soon. See what he caught. @Razgriz

IC: Science scoffs at the concept of 'ancestral memory'. It was one of the dumbest opinions the scientific community held, which in Nikolai's considered opinion was saying something. No, the memories of his great-great-grandfather or whatever weren't buried in his DNA. But certain responses were hardwired into the human nervous system, responses understood before anything else. Over however many ridiculous thousands of years humanity had evolved its most basic, fundamental operating system for the most sophisticated organic computer ever created. Instinct. What is an instinct except the memory of the survivors? He'd be long dead, even with a Spartan's lifespan, before he knew what instincts the survivors passed on from the war with the Covenant. But he knew what his were saying— screaming— when he came face to face with Madrigal's Sangheilli representative. Markov didn't really hold grudges. It wasn't professional, and they only get you dead. But for his entire life— nearly— the Sangheilli had been dedicated to the eradication of humanity. Not to their defeat, not to their surrender, but to their extinction. It wasn't personal; it couldn't be when your enemy was an entire species. But it sure felt personal when the dust settled. "Miss 'Sakuai," He greeted, remembering the unfamiliar glottal stop that preceded the surname. He couldn't be certain what his face had looked like for just a moment, there, when his first impulse tried to take control; but he schooled it now into a friendly, casual looking smile. The hand that had drifted a few bare inches towards his holstered Magnum he extended in greeting rather than draw attention to what his instinct had been by moving it away. "Don't think I've had the pleasure." @sunflower@Vezok's Friend

IC: "Don't trust people who make that much more than I do." Banter aside, it was the God's honest truth. Nikolai knew who Vasquez meant as well as she did. Markov was a reformed troublemaker; he didn't go poking around places he wasn't supposed to be, snooping out files he shouldn't see, or squeezing information he wasn't supposed to have out of unsuspecting marks. Much. But that instinct didn't go away, and he wasn't the only person to be able to add two and two and realize they don't make five. Office of Naval Intelligence didn't always have the same priorities as everybody else. Spartan Program timelines were a big one, but not the only one. And after the war, that business he saw on Sangheilios... Point was, being on the side of the angels (and he wasn't prepared to say humanity was) didn't make you an angel. ONI was no angel. Some— even a lot— of what they did was necessary. But they had their priorities, and Nik had his. They didn't always line up. Even when they did there could be a string attached. He tapped his helmet against the plating on his thigh, unconsciously emphasizing the point to himself. ONI hadn't been displeased enough when he turned 'em down. And ONI's point man back when he was a 'jumper bringing him his 'graduation gift' after passing Spartan Ops' training? He could see the hook buried in that bait a mile away. But they didn't have to hide it, either. They knew he wouldn't turn it down before he even saw it. Angel or demon, good or bad, ONI kept the other demons at the door. Their one, inalienable priority above all else. He'd take whatever weapon they handed him, and they knew it. He just hoped he wouldn't regret that hook in his mouth. "Mad's a Halberd, right? They used to squeeze two squadrons of Nandaos in the hangar during the war. OF-9's not even a quarter the size. They've gotta still have that second Pelican in inventory." He scratched at his stubble thoughtfully. "We rigged one up on remote during New Alexandria. LOCUS'll take its HUD feed just fine. We set it up before we go I could probably guide it over once we pacify anybody on board. Won't do nothing fancy but all I gotta do is get it from hangar to hangar." @Vezok's Friend

IC: "Well, I haven't risked throwing up the galley's food for a while. I figure I'm due." Nik flashed an easy grin at the (slightly more) senior and (slightly) shorter Spartan to his left. He hadn't personally worked with her before Madrigal but she was alright in his books. They were all Spartans now and that spoke well for 'em but what they were before held a lot more sway with him. Vasquez was a 'jumper before she'd ever been a Spartan, and that was a standard to respect. Something was bugging her a little, though. Mixed crew, maybe? Nah, with a Valk probably... "I find anybody with a hole in 'em I'll keep 'em from leaking too bad before you get there, doc." He grinned again, then tilted his head a couple degrees. "Are you thinking this crew's as weird a mix as I am?" @Vezok's Friend