2010-07-30 - La Cena Delle Beffe

There is a new addition to the mechanics' hangar at Angel's Venezuelan branch today. Having arrived just today, apparently as an escort of some sort, the strange model stands lifelessly within the hangar bays, its four eyes, arranged in a diamond formation, staring dead forward. Given its size and design, it is quite obviously an ARM Slave, yet the production model is to one that should not even be in widespread production yet: the third generation Zy-98 Shadow, currently only in its testing stages in the supposed nation of its birth, Russia.

What a full model version of it is doing here is anyone's guess, but its pilot and the occupants of the transport it was protecting had left it roughly an hour previous to meet with Shizuka Tsuzaki. Angel's engineers say the pilot had been accompanying what looked like two giants and a girl with silver hair; others insisted it was a boy. There was great debate about this.

For now, though, both the shuttle and that ARM Slave remain unattended, the strange piece of mech technology standing oddly short compared to the Jinkis. Whatever the young girl/boy/boygirl and his companions have come here for, it seems to be taking some time to complete, leaving that AS completely open to inspection by any curious minds.

Girls, boys, whatever. While Aoba is a little curious about visitors, if they're going to see Shizuka, then she doesn't want to be involved at all. Now, these new robots on the other hand...

"Four eyes... is this an Arm Slave? I've never seen oen up close before..." She knows what they are, though. She's read the magazines. This one seemed much more advanced than the basic ones she saw in the articles, or even online. With the rest of the techs working on resupplying the ammo to her Nana-Two's guns, Aoba takes a quick look around, just to see if anyone is watching. Once she's mostly certain that nobody is paying attention to her, the girl sneaks up to the strange AS. Slowly, she lifts a hand to touch its foot. "I wonder if the optical camoflage makes the armor feel different..."

The metal alloys that make up the steel-gray Shadow are cold to the touch; smooth but quite distinctly metal, the make-up of the AS is still impossibly streamlined -- like staring at a giant human encased in armor rather than the cold, lifeless machine it is. Aoba is free to inspect, and see the faintest hints of what appear to be the musculature of the Shadow's Muscle Package system, before--

"Actually, the generators are placed on several key segments on the ARM Slave's armor so the composition is not drastically altered. But when it activates, it emits the smell of ozone as it ionizes the air."

The voice is calm, pleasant, and soft; still, somehow it carries clearly to Aoba's ears from just behind her. Should she turn around, she'll find a young man standing just behind her, long, silver hair framing his face and hands slipped into the pockets of his long, dark jacket. Behind him stands a black-haired man in what appears to be an AS pilot suit, and two massive figures dressed in thick, concealing trench coats. A good-natured smile tugs at Leonard Testarossa's lips as he tilts his head ever so slightly to the left.

"It's really a remarkable thing when you're watching it activate for the first time. Would you like to see?"

Jinkis have muscle cables inside the heavier armor to help them move in a more human-like fashion. It works pretty well... and in fact, the means of operating a Jinki aren't too different from an Arm Slave. Aoba has never piloted an AS before, but she'd probably get used to it rather quickly. "Aaaah..." A smile comes to the girl's face as she runs her hand over the cold armor. "It looks so cool.." Not as much as her Moribito, of course... but she hasn't seen that in quite some time.

Leaning over slightly, she tries to peek in between armor plates... and the sudden voice from behind startles her. Aoba lets out a squeak of surprise and jumps in the air, hair splaying haphazardly as she tries to turn around and land neatly at the same time. It's only partly successful... and she lands off-balance. Thankfully, there's a giant metal leg right there to lean against to regain her footing. "Ah! Um.. sorry! I was just looking and..." Somewhat sheepishly, she raises a hand to rub at the back of her head. "It's yours?" The man in the pilot suit is given a glance, but the silver-haired... man? is the one talking to her. "Or yours?"

Aoba's eyes widen at Leonard's offer, though. "Wow! r.. really? That would be great! I've seen them in action, but never using the camoflage!"

Leonard speaks, and Aoba squeaks. As she literally hops and spins in surprise, the silver-haired youth's brows lift in unison, his expression becoming not-all-too-convincingly apologetic.

"Oh, I'm sorry. Did I startle you?"

He pauses, here, allowing Aoba to make her apologies and explanations. His eyes drift back to the Shadow as she speaks, lips parting vaguely. "There's no need to apologize for being curious," he offers in a kind tone. "I think that sort of desire to learn about new things is an enviable quality to have." He looks behind him, towards the dark-haired man in the pilots suit.

"His or mine? Hmmm. I guess it'd be better to say it's ours. It's one of our mass production models: the Zy-98 Shadow, a third generation ARM Slave. The Muscle Package is the most advanced of any sort currently available." And it also shouldn't exist.

He pauses here, nodding once to the man behind him. "Turn on the ECS, would you, Lee?"

"... Of course, sir. One moment."

Walking calmly past Aoba, Lee Fowler takes hold of the black rope leading up to the chest of the AS. It begins its ascent, and soon enough, he falls into the cockpit of the machine, beginning to operate the controls.

"There are some limits to it, though," Leonard continues conversationally as the Shadow's four eyes each flash bright red. As the AS comes online, modules at its shoulders, legs, chest, all extend outward. There is a faint, electronic whine, before the air around the Shadow seems to crackle, warble, and waver -- before being replaced rapidly by faintly distorted, invisible air, the smell of ozone heavy in the air.

"It can't filter out ultraviolet radiation, so birds are able to see ARM Slaves through the ECS. Dogs are also able to pick up on the ionizing air fairly easily. But even so... it's quite an efficient system." A pause. Leonard flashes a gentle, charming smile, extending a pale hand outward.

"Leonard Testarossa. It's a pleasure to meet you, miss...?"

"Ah.. just a little! It's okay!" Aoba laughs nervously and shakes her head. "I just got a little too focused on it, I guess." She does that sometimes, when she's building models... Rui is -always- able to sneak up on her. "Mmm... yeah, though I hope you don't mind..." It doesn't seem like he does, at least.

"This one is mass-produced?" Blue eyes shift back toward the Arm Slave. "Zy-98 Shadow..." She repeats the name, committing the serial number to memory. Maybe she'd be able to look it up later. Then again, maybe not, considering what organization it belonged to.

When the pilot approaches, Aoba takes a few steps back, tilting her head up to watch the machine in action. "Wow..." Very carefully, she steps closer again, reaching one hand out to touch the invisible armor. "Even with drawbacks like that, it seems to useful! I wonder..." She tilts her head slightly to the side, thinking for a moment whether it would be possible to somehow incorporate an invisible mode into a plastic -model- of an AS... but after a few seconds, she lets out a sigh and shakes her head. Unlikely.

"Oh, um..." Turning back toward the man, Aoba smiles and extends her own hand. "Aoba Tsuzaki. It's nice to meet you! Did you have business here today?"

"Yes, it is," Leonard answers to that echoing of his statement, smiling faintly. "Though... they're not mass produced by anyone on the public market. Think of it like a... special mass production unit."

As soon as the Shadow fades, it slowly begins to re-appear, phantasmic lines of semi-transparent, glowing white shimmering and flickering away to expose the dark gray AS beneath. Leonard shifts a curious gaze toward Aoba as her thoughts wander, a single brow lifting. A daydreamer, is she?

"Aoba Tsuzaki?" Leonard asks as he takes that hand in his own, shaking it firmly but pleasantly. Releasing her hand, Leonard turns his gaze to the side, to look toward that Jinki being worked on in the distance.

"Oh, yes. I had a meeting with your supervisor here, Miss Shizuka?" He seems not to make any mention of the connection between the two, instead carrying on as simply as ever, "But our business today's been concluded for now." Leonard pauses here, steel gray eyes turning back to meet Aoba's curiously. "Though, I have to admit, I've heard a lot about you, Aoba. I've heard impressive things about how you pilot these Jinkis -- and that they've even given you a new model to make use of? You must feel honored, to be so valued for your talents here."

Not so much daydreaming as hopefully optimistic about her hobby. It probably isn't possible, though. "Special mass production... oh, like the White Rondo? I think I've only seen one of those so far." She knows it wasn't meant to be one of a kind, but that Jinki was more expensive and usually reserved for ranking officers to use. The sight of the camoflage system shutting down catches her attention, though. "Oh wow..." She -is- a bit distracted by new robots, though she can usually focus enough on the task at hand to not be -too- distracted.

Looking back at Leonard again, she smiles, following his gaze toward her Nana-Two. That smile fades, though, as she hears why he was here. "...oh. Shizuka-san." That is not the normal way that a teenage girl addresses her mother, even at a rebellious age. "If you're one of -her- friends then..." No, she shouldn't put this on him. He said he was just here for a meeting. Taking a breath, she slowly shakes her head. "Honored? Not really..." The girl gives a faint shrug. "I'm just doing what i can to keep everyone here safe." She isn't sure if Leonard was told about the Ancient Jinkis, but they aren't completely unknown to the Divine Crusaders. Most of the time, Aoba takes care of them by herself, though. "You mean the Nana-Two Way?" She glances toward the Jinki and smiles a bit. "Even though it's just here to test the new control systems... it's a good Jinki." She pauses, glancing back up at Leonard. "Unless you mean Kiribito." Her voice darkens somewhat at that. It's not hard to tell that she doesn't like that black Jinki.

"Hmm. I guess you could say it's like that. Though we have an even better model in the works for mass production." The silver-haired youth offers Aoba a knowing sort of smile as he says this, head tilting pointedly toward the Jinki pilot. "Maybe one day you can get a chance to see it in action as well. I think you'd be the type to really appreciate what it can do."

The coldness in Aoba's voice is heard, yet Leonard does not seem to make much comment on it. On the fact that Shizuka is her mother, or the fact that Aoba doesn't even try to refer to her as such. Instead, he just adopts a slightly more exhasperated look, his shoulders lifting in a helpless shrug. "I think 'friend' is a bit of a grand statement to make," he says, walking past Aoba to walk closer to the Nana-Two Way. He pauses halfway, glancing back to offer the briefest of conspiratorial smiles.

"I don't have to enjoy the company of all the people I have to deal with in life, do I?"

Still, Leonard's attention shifts, looking upward toward the Jinki. "They're interesting machines," he offers. "I hear you have to be quite skilled in order to pilot one. They require two pilots, correct? For the upper body and the lower?" He wonders, briefly, just how the control system of the Nana-Two Way might be different. He seems to be about to ask--

The coated man's words halt, though, as Aoba's attitude noticeably darkens. The Kiribito. "Is that it's name?" he wonders, before slowly pausing, looking back toward Aoba with an almost concerned stare.

"For a beautiful young woman who so readily embraces her passions, hearing that sort of hatred for the very sort of thing you so obviously love is too tragic." Leonard looks sympathetic as he turns around, considering Aoba with furrowed brows. When suddenly, almost at random, the young man asks:

"Do you have a dream, Aoba?" How cruel, tempting her with seeing new robots! "Ah... that would be really neat." Aoba can't help but smile faintly... and the coldness just fades away completely as he denies being Shizuka's friend. "Ah, well... yeah. It's just work, I guess!" Goodness knows that Aoba doesn't get along with quite a few members of the Divine Crusaders. Some of them are creepy, others downright evil...

As Leonard approaches the Nana-Two, Aoba trails along behind him. Now that she knows he isn't one of Shizuka's friends, she's quite happy and personable once more. "It takes a lot of practice to get used to the controls. It isn't easy. And you have to be strong!" Aoba gives the young man a bright smile. "If you don't have the stamina, you get worn out after just a few minutes!" She's experienced that firsthand. "Most of them need two pilots. My Nana-Two only needs me. There's room in the cockpit for a second pilot, though." She pauses, trying to decide how much detail she should go into. Well... it won't hurt. "Sometimes I miss having someone else with me, but I'm glad I don't have to put anyone else in danger when I'm piloting."

The girl pauses and lets out a breath. "Yeah... Kiribito... I don't hate it." She shifts her weight, glancing toward the hulking black Jinki. "B..but... it scares me, a little. I don't like it. It's like Moribito-01 but... more." There were a handful of instances where she lost control of Moribito-01, before it was taken away and hidden by an unknown party.

...wait. Looking back at Leonard, she blinks several times as part of what he said registers. "B..beautiful?" A faint blush comes to her cheeks. Nobody has -ever- called her that before. Cute, sure. Pretty... only her grandparents, and that was years ago. She averts her gaze slightly, looking toward the Nana-Two again. Despite the blush still on her cheeks, she smiles softly. "Mmm... I guess I do. I want to be able to keep everyone safe. I want to help make the world a place where my friends won't have to fight anymore..."

"It must have taken a lot of effort to get used to piloting it," Leonard says wonderingly, turning his gaze back to Aoba. "It's quite impressive." And the teamwork that would be needed -- at least, for most of them. Angel's operatives must have superb coordination, Leonard thinks to himself as he looks back up toward the Nana.

'Sometimes I miss having someone else with me, but I'm glad I don't have to put anyone else in danger when I'm piloting.'

"It's only natural to want to protect the people you care about, right?" he asks, eyes closing. "And it's only natural to derive strength from the support of those very people you care about -- and who I'm sure care about you, too."

Slowly, Leonard looks back toward the tremendous Kiribito in the distance. His brows furrow. He's heard reports on battles it's been involved with. To see it in person, even inactive--

"Of course," he suddenly says to the blushing Aoba, his voice disarmingly casual and quiet as he speaks his bold words. "With that strength and whole-hearted enthusiasm of yours -- how could you not be?"

But, perhaps thankfully, Leonard quickly moves on, focusing his gaze on the Nana-Two Way. Her dream, is it? "... That's an admirable dream," Leonard says after a moment, his voice sincere as he turns his gaze back towards Aoba, considerately. "It's a dream worth fighting for, any way you can. Too many people lose those sorts of desires to the deceit of the 'real world.' These view the things around them as tools," he glances back toward the Kiribito, "or weapons." A pause.

"But I've always felt these machines were the means to help make our dreams a reality before we can forget them. Don't you think?"

"It was a lot of hard work.." Hard work and videogames, to be specific. And lots and lots of running. "But everyone was willing to help me out." She was so out of shape when she first came to Venezuela. But now... gone were the noodle arms of a few years ago. While she wasn't exactly muscled, there was definitely some strength there now. "Y..yeah! Right! You understand." She smiles at Leonard, striding up next to him. Her gaze shifts toward the techs working on her Nana-Two. Even those people are her friends. Canaima base was small enough that she knew everyone pretty well. "It's really something I have to do." Some of her specific reasons are still kept secret. She hasn't told anyone yet. She doesn't expect most people to understand, and many of her friends have, seemingly, abandoned her. She knows they haven't -really-, but it still feels that way sometimes, especially when she has no choice but to fight against them.

Oh, he meant it -that- way! Aoba glances back at Leonard and gives a sheepish laugh. "Ehehe.. thanks. But I just do what I can, really." She tilts her head slightly as he looks down at her. "I could never see them as tools... They aren't even machines." One arm sweeps out, gesturing toward the Nana-Two. "They're wonderful friends who help me out!" Well, not Kiribito. She can't consider that one a friend. But the Nana-Two Way... she's become close to it. "I know they want to help me keep everyone safe, too. I can feel it when I'm piloting."

'They're wonderful friends who help me out!'

"Like partners," Leonard adds. "Partners who support your dreams."

Leonard looks toward the Nana-Two as it is so aptly gestured to. "That's a good way to see them, I think." The silver-haired young man looks behind him, towards the gargantuan 'men' still standing almost lifelessly by the shuttles.

"I don't think there's anyone more suited to piloting than a person with a heart like yours, Aoba Tsuzaki."

Slowly, Leonard turns again, facing Aoba fully once more. His brows lift faintly, before he offers, "I'm glad we had the chance to meet, Aoba. I think I've learned a lot from this talk." His hand lifts, pulling those almost strangely silver locks back behind his ear even as he continues to speak. "I'd like to see that dream of yours come to life one day. In the meantime, I'll have to settle for promising that we'll meet again soon. I still have to show you our new ARM Slave, after all." He walks, gesturing vaguely as he goes. As he does, those two figures turn, walking toward the shuttle.

"I think you should keep in mind, though..." the young man says slowly, considerately. "Even the scariest of partners will want to support your dream... if you desire it strongly enough. Dreams are worth sacrificing for. And I think your dream is strong enough to turn even the most intimidating to your side."

Casually, Leonard strides back toward his shuttle. He only pauses halfway, glancing behind him. "I hope we meet again soon, Aoba. And..." The faintest hints of a mischievous smile on his lips.

"I meant it when I said you were beautiful. Not only because of those strong qualities of yours."

And then, he begins to walk again.

"Just like partners." Aoba beams a bright smile at Leonard as he agrees with her. She gives him another laugh at the compliment. "Ehe.. thanks! Rui is just as good as I am, though." She'll give credit where credit is due! She just doesn't want to make her friend fight when -she- can fight instead. Part of protecting her friends means doing a little dirty work so they'll never have to.

"I hope so too..." It's part of her drema, after all. "Even if it takes a long time, I'm not going to give up." She smiles toward Leonard... but the smile falters a bit as he brings up what Aoba is sure must be Kiribito. She... really does not like that Jinki. Aside from not being able to control it when the Zai unit is active, something else about it just doesn't sit right with her. "I'll... yeah. I'll keep it in mind. Thanks."

Aoba walks part of the way back toward his shuttle with him. "Me too! I'm glad I got to meet you." Leonard seems like such a nice person. There were so few working with the Divine Crusaders that she could think that about.

And then he drops his line, and that blush returns. Aoba is left speechless for a moment, long enough for the man to get away.