ElfCollaborator

Michi seems to look forward to this mock fight, producing a tome from.....somewhere, possibly behind the large cape they were wearing. They also seem to be moving quite a fair bit quicker than their large armor seems to permit them.  "Ah! Now we'll be able to prove our mettle in a little friendly duel. Alright, comrades, onwards! Give them a good greeting!" O-8

"That was nothing, boy. Songs of war and bloodshed are something of a tradition among my people. Better songs were best left for worthier opponents. How are you faring, boy? You look nervous for someone who seemed to hold it together in a fight."

The planks suddenly shudder with the weight of a mountain of muscle, creaking, barely able to take the weight. A massive, bear-like, muscled arm suddenly warps itself around Aidan's shoulder, barring any hope of escape. Johan has arrived. "You can read that thing later, boy. You should get to know those who you fight with, shouldn't you? Your battle-brothers are just as important as that magical tome of yours in the middle of the fight."

Johan, for his part, was looking out across the sea. When he had first set out from Kahla, the sea had been unfamiliar to the Hammerhand. Through his journeys, however, the sea (and a lot more besides) had become familiar to him. Still, the seas were very different from the mountainous forests of Kahla, and so they still proved something interesting to the giant of a man. A fire still burned in his blood. He let out a deep, throaty chuckle to himself, remembering who had come for them yesterday. He clenched his right hand, gently placing it on the railing of the deck. "So, this mission takes us to fight the Pax. They think I'll back down from the prospect of another fight with them? I look forward to it."

 "You'd be surprised how deceptively mobile this set of armor is, comrade! Once you get used to the weight, it's rather flexible. Helps to get the jump on someone,; move as quickly as you need to, when an enemy assumes you can do nothing but lumber along."

Take 5% in Skill, promote to Bard.

 "Please, comrade. Call me Michi. And this armor is among the finest in Caliss; forged by the best armorers in Lenankamp. It was a gift. Your dragon has good taste."

 "My thoughts exactly, comrade. I know when a battle cannot be won." Indeed, Michi seems now more interested in the dragon, which they're lightly, cautiously, petting across the snout.

 "A compliment to introduce myself to a fellow fighter is no unearned praise, comrade. Respect must be earned, yes,- my family drilled that into my head- but that doesn't mean I can't be nice to the people I'm going to work with."

Despite the helmet obscuring their face, Rhian gets the distinct sense that Michi is frowning at them; not that they'll particularly care at all, but the thought counts. They don't grace Rhian's insulting question with a response, instead opting to turn to Ceridwen.  "Don't get on her bad side on my account, comrade. This is a fight not worth fighting, not for the moment." They seem to lighten up a little after that.  "So, is this everyone? I'd expected more for this endeavour!"

Michi simply lets out an uproarious laugh as the dragon pokes at them with his snout, moving back to keep from touching it and potentially enraging it; the armor was made to protect from humans, not necessarily from giant dragons trying to tear them asunder. Even if they were looking friendly. Michi wasn't exactly familiar with dragon behaviour; it wasn't as if they grew them in Kouan.  "He seems to like me already, ahaha! It's no problem whatsoever. And of course I mean it, comrade!"

  "So this is a Dragon Knight? I must admit, they seem far more impressive in person than I'd imagined!"

Michi remained silent at the newcomer's approach. They remained equally silent when they complained about being too noisy, despite having not really spoken all that much at all (save to say the exact same thing he'd decided to come over and chastise them over and then introduce themselves). How disappointing. Two rather unpersonable people already and they hadn't even gotten to meet the rest of the Guard yet. The giant armored person simply shrugs and crosses their arms, the sound of light clanking accompanying it.

A visible sigh can be heard through the helmet as they turn to the brunette for a moment. "Already, they noticed. I hope you know what you're doing, comrade. Making enemies so early on is not good for whatever you intend to be doing here." They wave at the newcomer, trying to be as polite as possible despite the fact that about half the words they just said flew right over their head. Somewhat. Growing up in Kouan kept them behind on fancy city slang a little bit, though they were catching up. Or maybe they just spoke a little quickly. "Please, call me Michi."

The tall armored person approaches the standoffish brunette. If they're frowning, smiling or glaring, it's impossible to tell through the helmet. "Don't be so tense, comrade. These are your coworkers! You can't possibly do your best if you're busy wondering how they got into the Guard with someone so clearly skilled as you."

A tall, armored person stands on the grassy field, seeming to breathe in the fresh spring air, judging from the movement of their chest; their face is obscured by a heavy black helmet. To the irritable brunette, they seem as if they're from Caliss; the armor is unmistakably the work of Lenankamp armourers, and skilled ones at that. They stretch their arms out behind them, shifting to accommodate the weight of the armor. "Ah, fresh spring air in the City of Flowers! Seems they weren't lying about its beauty. I'd take a rose brooch, if I weren't here on business."

L15

M-12, perform Anea

Empi Powderbelle Great. One of those types. The guy who has it all and wants to flaunt it all. That guy at work who thinks he's better than you because he's got a Porsche and you have a Toyota. That asshole neighbour who brags about getting two iPhones when you showed him yours. The guy who just has to have the best, biggest things around. Empi still didn't get why guys thought girls loved those kinds of people. Yeah, girls did; girls, in all their shallowness and immaturity, like assholes who flaunted their petty material riches. Women- older, wiser, more mature, more experienced- knew better; they went for the good ones, the ones who'd stick by your side through thick and thin, who loved you for who you were, not what you looked like and not what you had. Empi knew better, the kind of better that came only with 400 years of experience in the art of the pick-up. True, the guy was pretty toned, he had a handsome face, and a little bit of natural charisma. If he wasn't such a massive dickhead, Empi might even be interested; maybe even interested enough to ask him out for drinks. The key part there was dickhead. You could be good-looking, the most good-looking person in the world, but if you were a douche, Empi Powderbelle might sneak a peek for a moment, admit your good looks, but turn her nose up and walk away. She had standards, after all. He was probably one of those god wannabes. Annoying. Not like Mitsu. That woman had a body Empi could only dream of; nice, lean, muscles where you'd think there weren't any but suited her just right, face like a literal goddess (which she was) and the air you only got around prim and proper ladies (the type you knew were ladies in the street but freaks in the sheet). And a personality to match; Empi never got people who preferred loud and brash chicks over quiet, strong ones, she always liked them all for their respective strengths (she wasn't picky, long as they were nice). Hoo, boy, if she got over her issues- Empi caught herself almsot drooling. Damn that lady. She was way, waaaay too hot. Empi was almost jealous of Navin at this point. Almost being the key word. She could do without the collective thousand tons of issues both of those two had and needed to work out. Right, back on topic. Bad guy. Entitled, arrogant and dismissive. Needs to be taken down a peg. Or ten. That kid with the walking nuclear reactor seemed like a good idea to lend a helping hand; probably could use a bit of protection, given the world of trouble that was probably about to erupt. She could fantasise about the various attractive members of their party later. "Alright, kiddo. Hopefully, this'll make you not die for a few seconds while the actual experts figure something out. I'm gonna need someone to cover this kid while he and the other big batters take out these jokers." Lesson in Affection on Gabriel, using Flirtation Affection. Sharing is Caring's effect triggers on Empi, placing Flirtation Affection on herself. Flirtation Affection: Targeted ally takes (5+Empi's INT)% less damage from all attacks for three turns. Sharing is Caring: All buffs Empi places on allies are also placed on Empi herself. Empi has 5% chance to resist status due to Fairy Dust. Gabriel Kowalski For Gabriel, his thought process was far less cluttered and distracted. There was a bad guy who needed taking down, a friend he needed to watch out for, and things he needed to do. That was the thing, really; Gabriel wasn't a leader, he was a follower. He didn't expect to be some tactician, making up plans on the fly like some hero out of an action film; that was Malachi. He was a sidekick at best; he was content with that, not being at the front line, but being the guy who people could depend on. Especially Perlita. If she needed him, he'd be there for her. But he was damn good at doing what he did best; being right where his allies needed him. And where they needed him, right now, was destroying as much as he could. "Oppenheimer!" Use Mafreila to hit all enemies. Apply Sun Arcana to all enemies hit. Mafreila: Deals Syn+2d4 radiation damage to all enemies, 3 turn cooldown. Sun Arcana: All enemies hit with nuclear or fire attacks by Gabriel take SYN/2 piercing damage for three turns. Each subsequent attack adds an extra stack of burns. Enemies resistant to radiation and fire cannot be burned by Sun Arcana. Gabriel has 20% resistance to radiation attacks and 40% resistance to heat-based ailments. All ailments have halved duration on Gabriel.

Hold.

Gabriel shrugs, rubbing the back of his head and chuckling slightly. "Hey, gotta plan for the future, right? 'Sides, this has to end some day, and I'd like to think we'll be back in Roswell sometime."

Gabriel thinks for a moment, then he grins, wrapping his arm around Perlita all casually. "After this, when it's over, maybe we can hang out somewhere nice. Like that small cafe in town. N-not like a date, or anything, but you know, just to reminisce and chill a little, maybe enjoy a coffee, right?"

Gabriel shrugs, sighing and looking down, after giving Perlita a nice pat on the shoulder. He rubs the back of his head awkwardly again, his easy gait a little less so. "Honestly? I kinda know how that feels. I mean, Malachi was.....pretty much the leader of our own little group. Y'know, he kinda had that way of just.....kinda being that reassuring leader guy? Kinda crazy, but you know he knows what he's doing? I'd usually just follow the flow. But here? It's kinda crazy, I don't even know who the guy in charge is around here, if it's that cute girl with the talking vPad or that Japanese lady with the sword or that sorta short soldier guy. I feel like I need to do something, but at the same time, I'm not sure who I'd need to follow to get it done." He tries to muster another easy smile, for Perlita's sake. It blossoms into a genuine one. "But as long as I got you here, I got something to keep me grounded, keep me focused. I really should be thanking you."

"Aiming for heaven though serving in hell, victory is ours, their forces will fall! M9, Perform Bradwr