Sunny, with a chance of Heartache.

This is a space for in-character events that do not occur within the line of duty and/or did not fit into the "Daily Life" section as it played out. Threads herein are meant to supplement character development and flesh out the setting elements, but are not necessary to understanding the plot or characters involved. These events are to be considered canon unless otherwise noted.
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Kokuten
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Re: Sunny, with a chance of Heartache.

Post by Kokuten »

Elfriede surged forward, diving her hands under the ball in a panic, seeing the ball being cast aside so low. It was her ball, but she was too tall to really curl her hands under it and send it back. So, instead, it got bulleted in the unintended direction. The volleyball shot under the net and towards the knees of the opposing team, which gave them the ball, and the point. Meanwhile, Elfriede's face made a nice hard contact with the sand, giving her a mouthful of the stuff. With that, the entirety of Teal Squadron burst out into laughter, with the exception of Miyuki, who had just recieved a powerful strike to the knee by a volleyball. Even Hetzer, who usually held back such mirth at someone's expense was laughing. Of course, this sent Elfriede's face burning red with embarassment.

And anger.

"Mein Gott! Rote Mann!" growled the Team Captain, plowing her finger in Fred's direction, spitting sand out of her mouth "Quit sucking at this game! Before I switch you out for a hermit crab!"
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Straken
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Re: Sunny, with a chance of Heartache.

Post by Straken »

“Me sucking?! Last Ah saw, my placement was more controlled then yours was, and Ah was fendin’ off a spike. What’s your excuse, Lass?” Fred chided back at Elfriede with some light laughter to go along with it. The Irishman stood his ground with a defiant pose.
“Plus there ain’t no hermit crab around that coulda blocked that any better. Nor could any hermit crab bring my youthful exuberance to the game.” With that said, the Irishman stepped over towards the downed German and offered her a hand getting up.

Back on the other side of the net, Steven had picked up the ball again and made his way back to his spot. He chuckled openly at the display of friendship taking place on the other team, but figured for the sake of time he should get on with the game rather than the show.
“You two done chattin’ over there? I’m gonna serve the ball now,” he called over. Fred turned back and got ready to play again. With the teams back in place Steven gentle tossed the ball into the air.
“One to zero. Serving,” Steven called out, and as the ball came back down he brought his left arm up and landed a solid hit on the ball sending it flying towards the back row of the other team.
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Kokuten
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Re: Sunny, with a chance of Heartache.

Post by Kokuten »

"You just... Ugh." Elfriede begrudgingly helped herself up, despite Fred's proffered hand, he face still a little red. She simply slapped the hand away and shooed the large man back over to his spot. There was going to be vengeance, oh ho. Vengeance indeed. When that ball came soaring over the net, Elfriede rose up to meet it with her powerful legs and massive height. With her arm muscles bulging, she sent the ball down to their side in a vicious spike.

It almost singed through the air, and would have, if it met the ground.

Instead, it met Miyuki's face, knocking her on her back, but sending the ball back into the air with reasonable height. The young Japanese girl mewled in pain as she attempted to stand back up with a bruised nose and a slightly bruised knee.

"Bam! You see that Rote Mann? That's how you hit a ball." said Elfriede rather dominantly.
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Straken
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Re: Sunny, with a chance of Heartache.

Post by Straken »

The Irishman laughed at Elfriede’s competitive spirit. “Ya must not have been watchin’ Lass, but that is pretty much exactly what Ah did on the first serve. Ah just didn’t aim for tha’ poor girl’s face,” Fred to Elfriede after her spike.

Meanwhile, Steven had moved forward to keep the ball in the air. He simply caught the ball, forfeiting a point to the other team as. The team captain then knelt down next to his hurt player.
“Miyuki, are you alright?” Steven asked while he was close to his injured teammate. “Do you want to sit out for a little bit?”
CadetNewb
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Re: Sunny, with a chance of Heartache.

Post by CadetNewb »

"It's Johnathan. No biggie." He spoke, correcting his name when Elfriede first picked him for her team. He had entered the makeshift court and stood off to the side a little. Though he soon found himself in the midst of an intense game, the truth was, it was Elfriede and Fred's game. They were the stars of the show this time around, and Johnathan felt a little out of place. He just wanted to sit back and drink. Have a little small talk. Yeah, sure, he really wanted to go all in and have fun in this game, but that didn't mean he could. How long had it been since the battle? How long had it been since Rhiannon died? And here they all we, at a sunny beach playing volleyball in swimsuits and bikinis. It wasn't that he was complaining. No, it was just - he couldn't - It felt - Johnathan couldn't quite put the thoughts together as he vied to set up the ball for the others to spike.

And a loud smack sounded as Miyuki was downed. That bought him the time he needed to sort some of the mess out.

Now, he knew why it felt wrong. It was just too soon for him. 'Too soon guys. Too soon.' Like a bad joke spoken too early, the thought echoed in his head. Someone had just been scattered amongst the stars in a funeral pyre, and to throw a party so early, Johnathan felt like he was pissing on her grave. Yeah, they all deserved the vacation, but...not yet. Not for him anyways. 'Or maybe, I'm just an ungrateful jerk who doesn't deserve this rare opportunity.' he thought. Johnathan's lips quirked a bit at that; Rhiannon would likely be either laughing in his face, or teasing him for this. Or would she be angrily scolding him? He wasn't entirely sure himself to be honest; she wasn't here to tell or show him just what she'd do.

He glanced about and took in everyone's face, finally noticing Evelyn sitting off by her lonesome. If there was someone who deserved this break, it was definitely her, and yet, there she was doing nothing. Alone. Johnathan went over to Miyuki and spoke. "This is probably along the lines of typical stuff you'd hear at this point, but if you feel like sitting it out, go for it. There's nothing wrong with that, and I'll be glad to sit it out with you to keep it fair."

Truth be told, Johnathan felt like getting onto a water ski. Just go. It didn't matter where. The act of going in and of itself was enough.
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Kokuten
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Re: Sunny, with a chance of Heartache.

Post by Kokuten »

Miyuki groaned as she held her nose. Blood began to seep forth slipping between her finger, and her head quickly shot forward, narrowly missing Steven's chin as she rose. She hung her nose over something that wasn't her white bathing suit. A delicate white hand rose to pinch the bridge of her nose.

"H-Hahi. I think I'm just going to quit..." agreed the Japanese pilot to taking a bit of a time out. She looked up at him and frowned, before turning her gaze at Johnathan. With a free hand, she grabbed his shoulder and helped herself up. "Could you help me get something to wipe my face off? Since someone can't hit a ball with out letting her excess testosterone get to her."

"I heard that! Come say it to my face!" growled Elfriede, to which Miyuki answered by hiding behind Johnathan.
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Straken
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Re: Sunny, with a chance of Heartache.

Post by Straken »

Steven held onto the ball while Miyuki and John left the court. Once they had gone the teams were both down to four players each, one in each corner. Once resituated, Steven lobbed the ball over to the other team for their serve.
“Remember, this is a friendly game. No sense in breaking noses,” Steven called as he got ready to play again.

The game got back underway and the plays continued to get more intense. Both teams fought for every point gained, and both teams had powerhouses that became apparent. On Elfriede’s team, both she and Fred pounded the ball at full force, the German woman going for more brute force while the Irishman used a bit more finesse, with Hetzer and Allison providing good support and defense. On Steven’s team, Arcadia and Betty both had good experience with the game and became important for keeping the ball in the air to limit points scored on them and setting the ball up, Ruze proved to be quite nimble at recovering and blocking the ball, and Steven was quick making him good at completing spikes and flourishes.

Each point scored was hard won for both teams, and many times took long volleys to eventually score. The game went on for a long time and eventually started to attract the attention of some of the artificial constructs also present within this artificial world. Each team had picked up cheering sections as the onlookers took sides to support the intense game.

Eventually, after decent stretch of time, the scores were tied at eighteen points for each team. Steven, much like the other players, was breathing heavily. His suit was dry but his skin now glistened under sheen of sweat and sand. The team captain still had on a smile, but it was now one of determination as he thought of how long it had been since he had had this much fun. He stood ready for the next serve in his position in the front left corner of his side of the court, Arcadia was in the corner to the right, Betty was in the serving position with the ball in her hands, and Ruze was in the corner behind him. The other side of the court hand shifted around and was in its original position with Fred in the front left across from Arcadia, Elfriede was front right and face to face with Steven, Hetzer was in the serving corner, and Allison was in the back left.

“Eighteen to eighteen. We are almost there, c’mon Betty, give ‘em hell,” Steven called to Betty. As he waited for the serve he was strategizing how to get the ball passed the two largest players on the other team.
“Steven is right, the game is almost won,” Fred said to no one in particular before facing forward again.
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Re: Sunny, with a chance of Heartache.

Post by CadetNewb »

Johnathan looked about for something, anything, to help stopper the flow of blood. They were at the beach, so there wasn't much at hand...the FNG looked down at the sunset shirt that he wore, and things simply clicked into place. A loud tearing noise could be heard as he ripped a sleeve off and gently held it up to Miyuki's bleeding nose. "Here, use this. I can always 'get another one' anyways." Before he knew it though, the smaller pilot from Teal was hiding behind him, as Elfriede had sent a harsh and unapologetic reply. He simply looked at the other woman for a moment before ushering Miyuki away. 'Whatever problems she has, are her's. Not going to dig into it unless she risks getting me killed.' He thought cynically. Besides, someone else would likely take care of that well before that point anyways.

"Evey!" he called out to the temporarily diminutive and childlike Admiral of the galaxy's second most powerful warship in the known galaxy. "I hope you don't mind us joining you in the spectator's box!"

Soon enough though, things were neck to neck. The competition was ferocious; though both sides were tiring, there was no sign of either team giving up just yet. A small crowd came in, a trickle at first, but it grew quickly, and at a surprising pace. Johnathan had once read that the average Terran of today now easily outstripped Olympian Champions from times where genetic augmentations were not so prolific, or even non-existent. He wondered, just how did they look to to people of the past? Perhaps like children sired by gods?

'More likely like Elves, all baddass, and going nowhere, fast.' he bitterly, playfully thought. He snerked in his mind. 'Ha. Elves. We're like Elves from LotR.'
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Kokuten
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Re: Sunny, with a chance of Heartache.

Post by Kokuten »

"Damn right it's almost won!" declared a tiring Elfriede, her stamina waning in accordance to the game itself. Normally by now, her leg would've been killing her, putting her out of the game. Mentally, she was giving thanks to the science division for virtual reality instead of real reality. It was what was keeping her up, and the thought of it added up her stamina a little bit. She wiped a little sweat off her brow and facial scar, before greasing the perspiration down her neck and her body, giving an almost oily sheen to her skin and frame, which made the far traveling scar on her body more evident. She could feel some eyes on her, and of course, why not? Despite her built frame and disfiguring scar, she was an attractive woman. An idea came to her on how to use this to her advantage. "Rote Mann." she called over seductively to the man, hands behind her head, "If you win this game for us, I'll give you a kiss!" And of course, there was plenty of suggestive weight on the word 'kiss' which made one wonder if she meant a kiss, or a 'kiss'.

"Ha ha! I always knew you were just a big skank, Elfriede!" called Betty, bouncing the ball on her hand up and down, her own darkened cali-girl skin glistening in the sun.

"Bitch! I'll claw your eyes out!" growled the giant of a woman, breaking her facade of a seductress and letting the angry come out. She snarled before looking back at Hetzer and Allison. "You two don't screw up either."

"Hey! I've only missed two so far!" whined Allison, thinking it was one of Elfriede's jabs.

"If you had used your ass, we wouldn't have missed any!" came the real jab from the woman in the black bikini, which caused to the Taggert to hunch up and try to hide her rounded bottom with her hands in embarrassment. What only embarrassed Allison more was how soaked her hands became with sweat after grabbing her butt. "Hetzer?"

"Of course." said Hetzer smoothly, standing like a stalwart defender in his serving position. He was also a bit sweaty, but his gloriously-groomed beard was more so soaked. To resolve this, he placed his fingers in the magnificent mane on his face and sweeped it to the left, sending out sparkly jewels of sweat through the air. As he came back to rest, so did his beard, as grand and full of life as before.

"Enough talking! Time for winning!" said Betty excitedly as her first bulleted underhanded to serve the ball, but slowing at the last minute for a deceptive pop up into the air. A master in beach activities, Betty's 'curveball' serve gave the opposite team the idea that the ball was coming over the center, when in fact, the spin would make it curve in Arcadia's direction, faking them out. It was a difficult technique, but Betty was also a space age woman. Anything was possible.

"Other woman on my team!" called Betty, not knowing Arcadia's name at all.

----

Meanwhile, Miyuki sat, holding a piece of Jonathan's shirt to her nose as the game persisted on. She had been silently taking in the game thus far, and had refused to start any conversation with the ship's admiral. Talking to such a high-ranking officer didn't seem like a smart move for anyone of her lowly rank. Though, as the game came closer and closer to it's conclusion, Miyuki had recalled she had never thanked Johnathan for tearing up his shirt for her. So, she did.

"Thanbks forb the tissueb." said Miyuki, sitting next to Johnathan on the side lines. She looked up at him, and nodded, affirming her thanks before turning her attention back to the game. "I'mb still sorry youb hadb to tear yourb shirtb." The small woman, curled her legs in and rested her chin on her knees. She seemed to relish the feeling of the sand between her toes in the way she dug them into it. "Youb know... Youb kindb ofb remind meb ofb Mariab. Sheb wasb alwaysb being really kind... Shbe..." She sniffed, sending the taste of copper down her throat, with tears building at the edge of her eyes. "Sheb always wanted tob seeb the beach..." The little Japanese woman broke up into quite sobs, trying to keep her hiccuping at a low volume. "I... I miss herb sob muchb..."
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Straken
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Re: Sunny, with a chance of Heartache.

Post by Straken »

It isn’t often that something catches Fred off guard, but Elfriede’s proposition had done just that. In light of her previous outburst at the Irishman at the start of the game, as well as her aggressive playing techniques, the sudden bout of amorous behavior was a red flag. Her tone of voice and expression also seemed really out of place on the woman’s rough face.

The burly ex-marine simply laughed and placed one of his large hands over his face, partially as a facepalm and partially to mask the slight involuntary blush he had. “Well then, I will hold’jya to that then. Jus’ remember, you are the one who offered,” Fred said to Elfriede after the woman had finished threatening her friend, which seemed much more in character.

A few moments later the ball was served and heading mid-court. It was anybody’s ball, so Fred moved for it. As he prepared his hit the ball swung off to the corner he had just moved from. With a reaction speed honed from years of flying and fighting at high speeds, Fred’s right leg pushed off as the Flying Irishman dove to get the ball. He planted his left knee into the sand and brought his arms up under the ball. The ball popped back up into the arm and flew in a low arc towards Elfriede as Fred quickly pushed himself back up onto his feet.
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