“I do not believe we may be able to pull that stunt again, unfortunately.” She then looked around. “So what should we do now? I’m sure today has been a long day for you.”
Bucksden
"You're not wrong, it has been... I'm actually kinda tired, mentally that is. So I'd say we just... relax in the apartment for a while, and cool down after that adventure. Whew..."
Of course, Heidrun wasn't physically tired, since she still had enough charge for a while, but having a more human-based mind does come with some mental burdens, which were starting to show through her speech and mannerisms.
“This sounds like the perfect opportunity to test out the bed...for its comfort level of course.”
New united carolinas
Election season
It was a cold November night in New Raleigh. Ariana and her family had been keeping tabs on the election process for quite some time now. Astoundingly, Zara McCarthy of the cooperative democrats was in the lead.
It had been some time since the Cooperative Democrats won a Presidential election. The last president of the CD party was Landon Monroe back in the 2116 Election. He only had one term, and performed relatively underwhelmingly in office. A conservative candidate would replace him the next election cycle.
Still, the Cooperative Democrats were still a force to be reckoned with thanks to ranked-choice voting. The reasons were somewhat unclear to Ariana, although it could have to do with Zara's overall charisma and confidence. She was a no-nonsense candidate. And during the debates, she absolutely embarrassed Skylar Perry and Terry Hall by bringing up their mishandlings in their own provinces.
Not to mention her beliefs were very similar to that of Ariana's. Ariana joined the Liberal party mostly because of its broad appeal as a safe leftist party. Although, her belief spectrum was actually across the LP, CD, and African Diaspora party. It was common for parties and their candidates in the NUC to have overlapping views with multiple parties. This of course applied to the people as well, which is why the ranked-choice voting system was very much welcomed when it was introduced.
But now, a fresh wave of young voters was hitting the polls, and many of them could relate to Zara. She was the youngest candidate, close to turning 31. Yet you would almost think she's younger than that given her connection with young people.
Unfortunately for the NUC, her rise to prominence did not seem to sit well with the government of their southern neighbor, Greater Florida, or as it was officially known as the great confederacy. They've went as far as to condemn Zara for her Social Democrat views during the debates.
The Gulf Confederacy was a mixed bag of a nation. Carolinians know it as the last bastion of American conservative populism. One that still battled the effects of past systemic racism even more so than the NUC, and that's really saying something. The territory the nation consists of had been punch lines for decades upon decades. And because of the sheer lack of a consistent identity among the citizens of the nation, made even worse by the awkward shape of its borders, confederate government system, refusal to join the Pan-Amero zone, and their strongman leader constantly trying to pick fights with the Carolinas, it was clear Greater Florida was on a track destined for failure.
Yet Zara actually touched on the issue with Greater Florida. With a surprising pacifist stance. More conservative Carolinians preferred to tighten border control to Greater Florida, as well as start placing embargos on the nation. It made sense: Greater Florida has had some naval ships and submarines get dangerously close to the Carolinian coast. Not to mention the constant fear-mongering the nation has done towards the NUC. The National Party of the NUC even went as far as to call Greater Florida "the greatest physical threat to the Carolinas since Dunharrow." But Zara took more of a calm approach. Despite the drastic political division, Zara constantly reiterated that the Floridian government was not the people. She cited her many trips to Aerbourne, South Georgia growing up. Given Aerbourne's proximity to Greater Florida, Zara had many chances to interact with people from there. She even got to venture in herself to visit Orlando, Miami, and the Everglades. And she heavily sympathized with the poor communities in what used to be Alabama and Mississippi.
It was an interesting position to take. Ariana found that sentiment was quite important when talking about foreign policy, hoping that Zara would apply it to most aspects of her potential presidency.
Momo looked around with a somewhat noticeable smile on her face as she looked around the table at the girls that she had been with for the last couple of hours. The smile was quicly masked by the lovely waitress bringing the menu's for the girls to look over while drinks were prepared. Informing the group that she would return for their orders soon with their drinks as well. Momo observed the girls around the table, and smiled once again as she watched them conversing amongst each other, and seeing Sora smile made her incredibly happy inside, knowing that Sora seemed to be having a wonderful time. She admired the efficiency of the chefs working at other tables masterfully making meals for the other patrons of the restaurant.
"Sora, id like you to know that the Japan Sensha Do Federation has been overhauled since the events of the 64th National Sensha Do Tournament. In fact, when the Empress came to power, the first thing she did for our organization is overhaul the entire Federation management team. The old director has since been released from his duties. The new leader of the Federation is none other than the legendary Nishizumi Shiho, who im sure you know as the master of the Nishizumi Style, Matriarch of the Nishizumi School and Estate, and the mother of Crown Princess Nishizumi Maho and Princess Nishizumi Miho. Master Shiho is in my opinion a perfect choice for the position and since her assignment to the position, she has performed quite admirably and has changed the program for the better. She has eliminated most of the corruption that consumed the Federation and even through her hand, the MEXT team was restructured, and that is lead by Ami Chono, who you might know as the long standing instructor of the Sensha-Do program. Both women have been doing an amazing job in their respective positions and i assure you that as long as they are in these positions, Sensha-Do, Oarai, and the girls of the sport, will forever have a free, fair, and honourable Sensha-Do for years to come. If i may respectfully add, since both Nishizumi and Chono are barely in their 40's, Sensha-Do will be protected for decades, and Master Nishizumi has even named her youngest daughter Miho to take her position if she can no longer do it. I am sure that General Nishizumi would be happy to retire or take time off from her position in the military to do her mother's bidding. Their relationship has blossomed in a touching way." The gorgeous Headmistress of Oarai, Ami Suzuya, said to Sora.
Momo smiled and was quite close to blushing. Ami spoke with such eloquence and in a matter of fact style of speaking. Ami spoke of Shiho in a way that, perhaps a couple of years earlier, would have been seen as odd. Even now, it was hard to believe that Shiho had such a change of heart for her daughter. Or even to the point of ensuring the safety and honour of Sensha-Do the way she has. Though in hindsight, it would come as no surprise. Shiho considered Sensha-Do to be more than a sport. To her, it was a way of life, one that needed to be preserved in the best possible way for generations of future potential talent.
Xelha giggled when she observed Sora attempting her best to utilize the chopsticks that were often the standard utensil of the Far Eastern world. "Here, allow me to help you. Now watch closely and follow carefully. It takes practice to use them as skillfully as Empress Kawashima or Princess Hiei, but for simple eating, this should do the trick." Xelha said. "First take one of your chopsticks and put the chopstick between your pointer finger and thumb and balance it on your ring finger. Then place the second chopstick between your index finger and thumb and rest it on your middle finger. Then, using your thumb, pointer and middle fingers, youll grasp the second chopstick firmly. To use the sticks, your index and middle fingers do the lifting and gripping of the food." Xelha instructed. She then showed each step with her own silky fingers. "It takes some practice, but i am sure a woman of your intellect will have no issues in mastering the art of chopsticks."
Momo simply looked around the establishment and at the girls. She didnt require a look at the menu, as she had been here so many times, she had memorized the items, prices, ingredients, even the order in which each item is cooked, as well as drink selections and appetizers.
"Hey, if I get that vacation at some point, let's do this again." He finishes his glass as well. "As you said, any more and I probably wouldn't be able to see any of the flight controls tomorrow."
They go inside and the first thing Penny does is fall down onto the bed. “Hmm...soft and bouncy. I always thought firm would be bad for one’s back. Though technically we can’t get back problems.”
Markos smiles. "Hm. Guess we don't need a rematch then, eh?" To be honest, he wasn't feeling the greatest either. 5 glasses is a lot of wine, and the mild queasiness in his stomach and brain is showing that. Well, he wasn't just going to leave her here on the mess hall table. He stands up, walks over to the other side of the table, and hoists her into a one person carry.
He walks to the guest quarters next to the mess hall, and drops Adlez gently onto the bunk, gives her a small kiss on the cheek, and then silently walks out of the room, pumping his fist silently and feeling something near elation. He gets to his quarter a few minutes later, and hops onto his bed. A few minutes after that, he's asleep, thinking something like "Score!".
By the next morning, Adlez wakes up, her mouth try and head slightly spinning. It takes her a moment to realize where she is and she groans, feeling embarrassed. Hopefully she didn’t make a scene.
She got up and splashed some water onto her face. She was going to have to leave again, and while she knew Markos would be disappointed, she had no choice. Still, a quick shower never hurt and admittedly she needed one.
Bucksden
"I know some people like firm, but..."
She lays down on the bed as well, shaking the pillow as she moves it into a more comfortable position to rest her head on.
"...I do like it soft, if my memory serves me correctly. Which it probably does, since this is quite comfy."
“Fortunately we don’t have to worry about temperature,” Penny said as she laid on the other pillow. “It is actually nice to sleep on a bed instead of hooking up to a charger...”
Markos is at the pilot's seat of the Salamis. It's only been 5 days since he done it last, but it feels like it's been forever. Of course, he's not especially suprised. After all, a lot had happened in those 5 days.
At times he feels a splitting headache, but he's not too worried. After all, the only assignment for the next few days is orbit around Nea Konstantinopolis, which essentially meant sitting around and making sure that the ship didn't detach and crash into the space station somehow. A ping on his tablet alerts him to a message. He takes it out and reads it.
2nd Pilot Markos Kalamoutsos, please report to the Captain's Office at 1600 hours.
Phillipos Tsianakas, captain of the Salamis
Hm. Well, he supposed it was about that new hellish planet he'd just been to. It was 11:00 about that time, so he figured he could get rid of the splitting headache before then.
After a much needed shower, Adlez got dressed and as she was about to leave, she realized she didn’t know her way around the ship. Either she could wait for Markos to show up or she could attempt to find her way to the mess hall and then to the hangar.
While on Lunch Break, Markos figures he should check up on Adlez is doing. After finishing his lunch, he walks over to the guest quarters, and knocks on the door. "Hey, it's me, Markos. Just wanted to check how you were doing after passing out last night."
Bucksden
"There's something about the experience, you know? Getting your energy from a machine just isn't the same as laying down on something comfortable, maybe with something on top of you depending on the climate... and someone beside you, if that's how things have ended up. It's not something I'd trade away for efficiency, even if I've lost my need for biological sleep."
Heidrun looked down with a sad expression on her face before continuing.
"...well, enough about that. I'm glad you enjoy it, because you're gonna be sleeping in beds more often going forward."
The Systems Alliance of Ventus Prime
The Empire of The Nippon Teikoku
The Pacific Federation of Ryanius
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