Group Log : Q&A Session 001

[inurhead]

Characters: Any/all
Location: The Meeting Hall
Date/Time: Sunday afternoon
Summary: Q&A with a Ranger. All Rangers and staff welcome to answer Q&A. All cadets are invited to the session, but attendance is not mandatory.
Additional Notes: Start your own threads, jack some of mine, go nuts. This is just another mingle post but it's also meant to be informative ICly. Other staff and Rangers showing up for interactions with the cadets is wholeheartedly encouraged.


The meeting hall, like every other area of the Shatterdome, has the feel of an industrial environment. The walls are lined with bleachers on three sides, while the forth side has a platform and podium. In the middle are rows of chairs, desks, and tables. It's clear that a large audience can be accommodated by the room when there's need, though the group that gathers there today isn't nearly enough to fill it.

Cadets will be directed to sit at some of the tables closer to the podium when they arrive, and given scratch paper to take notes on. Staff will be directed to the large table on the podium, which has a row of conference microphones, lamps, and water pitchers already set up. Everything is neat, cool, and professional. The fluorescent lighting and stern expressions of the support staff encourage a sombre attitude, but if anyone is looking up toward the podium they might catch at least one of the Rangers smiling as he peeks out from behind the curtains during the initial set up. He's wearing something like a wetsuit at the moment, though it won't be fully visible until he emerges for the demonstration.

Sharpen your pencils and have a seat, guys. You might even learn something.

Comments

Drivesuit demonstrations

[inurhead]

As the session begins, Yancy (and any other Rangers who volunteered) emerge in their circuitry suits, which look a lot like wetsuits but seem to have odd designs that appear to be circuitry sewn into the material. Those familiar with nerve systems may recognize the patterns.

They'll be undergoing the full suit up process to show the cadets what equipment they can expect to become familiar with when it comes time for their own Pons experiences. No actual bridging will take place this session, but feel free to ask about it anyway. All stages of the demonstration are open to cadet questions and concerns.

ooopen?

[suicidemission]

There's a reason Chuck volunteered and it's not to stand here in spandex on display for everyone else to stare at like some kind of goddamn zoo animal.

Course, the other volunteers are also in the skin tight circuitry suits, and that means he gets a great view of Yancy Becket's ass.

Plus, free food later, so. There's a plus here somewhere, just gotta find the silver linings.

[spareheir]

Yancy Becket seems entirely at ease in his own skimpy outfit, frankly. However, it isn't to him that Kou directs a question, raising his hand first as though they're in a classroom. It feels a little like a classroom, doesn't it?

"Do you feel the connections when the machine goes on, sir?"

'Goes on' being the closest approximation he can come up with quickly to the word he wants, which is more like 'activates' or 'engages.'

General Q&A

[inurhead]

After the Drivesuit demonstrations, Rangers and staff will hold an informal Q&A session for the Cadets to ask any questions they may have of the program. Questions can be directed towards staff, K-Science, Fight masters, Rangers, etc.

K-Science Q&A

[observationalhazard]

Perhaps a bit counter to the general mood on the stage, Hanji has had a warm smile on her face the entire time she's been up there. When the demonstration is finally finished, she opens herself up to questions.

"So, aren't any of you curious about the kaiju?"

[inurhead]

Unbeknownst to Hanji, a Ranger walks casually behind her to exit the platform now that his role is over here -buffet time!- and makes a sort of gesture with his hand across his throat.

Don't ask, guys. You'll never shut Officer Hanji up once you get her started on kaiju.

moves on over here

[counterattacked]

Is that a challenge Yancy. Even if it isn't Eren's going to rise to it, because that's just the kind of borderline suicidal bastard he is. He sort of frowns past Hanji as Yancy exits the stage and mimes the warning. When his attention snaps back to the Officer in question and the long silence that follows, it becomes clear that she's still waiting for one of them to answer.

And if anyone's going to have the nerve to temp fate—

"Ma'am—" a pause, just long enough for the honorific to catch her attention and for him to settle on what he'd meant to ask, "What do you mean by curious?"

Everyone here knows what a kaiju is. That's why they're here.

[overeducated]

"I'm very curious about the kaiju!"

... Wait a second. Hadn't this man up on the stage, too?

"How do you think they manage to function in a hive mind without going absolutely insane? Do they have a pre-programmed favorite color, for example?"

Whether he had been or not, he'd be putting himself - smile and all - right in front of the woman, everything about him absolutely earnest.

Mix and Mingle at the Buffet

[inurhead]

There's a special brunch buffet set up in the far corner, which everyone will be dismissed to after the information sessions wrap up. The food there is better than the general cafeteria fare. Cadets will find that there are things like bagels with cream cheese, butter or jam, fresh fruits, juices, and many colorful local pastries. No wonder so many staff members volunteered, the food alone is worth sacrificing a few hours of precious free time!

Re: Mix and Mingle at the Buffet

[protagerrant]

"Catering?" It was obviously blurted out unintentionally, twice as obvious when Yuri guiltily checked his six to make sure no-one had heard that embarrassing outburst. And then realizing how much worse he was making matters, he just grimaced a little at himself and made a straight line for whatever portion of pastries looked like they had the most frosting and sugar involved. If the other cadets didn't recognize a windfall when they saw one, well, they'd be weeping over their folly after a week more of cafeteria food.

Grabbing a couple pastries, he only moved the bare minimum of polite distance away before taking a bite, sighing gratefully after he swallowed. "This almost makes me miss cooking," he said, apparently talking to the left over half of his pastry.

[boomerangarrow]

Kate picks up a pastry and some fruit. The cafeteria food is at least passable. But it's nowhere near the standards that Kate was used to back home. At least there was this.

"You cooked?" She didn't do much of that, she can do the basics but most of her food was take out. Mostly pizza if she was being honest.

[karearea]

Ngaio heard him, noticed the check, and was trying not to laugh, which translated into grinning at her plate of pastries. It'd be hypocritical; she'd had basically the same thought.

"Makes me miss the chef's", she replied, her smile turning nostalgic. "My parents own a motel - back in the day, summer breakfast could look like this."

[reengineered]

Lucy hasn't seen anything this relatively luxurious in years. She wanders a bit, looking everything over with the most indescribable look on her face. Occasionally she'll take a look around to make sure she's not in anyone's way, but then she goes back to looking at the food, indecisive, almost overwhelmed.

Eventually she picks up a plate and perches a bagel on it, then some fruit, and furtively glances around for somewhere to sit and enjoy it. All the while she looks vaguely uncomfortable, somewhat unaccustomed to the socialization and crowding. Hopefully no one will try to talk to her...

[observationalhazard]

Sorry, Lucy. That's a forlorn hope. Hanji spots the lone cadet and swoops in, cup of coffee and a bagel in hand. She offers Lucy a friendly smile as she settles into the seat next to her, "Lucy, right? How are you settling in?"

[inurhead]

"Excuse me, Cadet." Says one of the Rangers from the demonstration, now out of his drive suit and back in his uniform. He smiles and reaches past Lucy to grab one of the breakfast sandwiches while they're still there for the grabbing. "Bacon is like gold around here."

open

[inurhead]

Oh, sweet coffee. They got it catered in today. Yancy groans low in his throat when he takes his first tentative sip. It's not unpalatable sludge today. It's actual coffee.

Sweet mother Maria, it's good. If anyone else wants a go at the coffee urn you might have to remind this guy to step away from it, because he's in his happy place right now.

Coffee, sweet coffee. It's been too long since he's had a decent cup of coffee.

[righthemisphere]

"You're gonna need a snorkel if you try to get your face in there any further.." Raleigh notes as he approaches, lopsided grin tugging at his mouth.

Oh Yancy, always with the coffee. It does smell good, though. Like home. Like real coffee and easy mornings and pack lunches with notes on the inside. Snow days and warm beds and endless hours of amusing themselves with flashlights and lighters and super hero costumes.

Funny how one single smell can trigger a whole waterfall of memory.

Maybe that's why Yancy likes it so much. That or he's actually a complete addict with an absurd tolerance. Probably a bit of both.

open

[expect]

Really, there's no need at all for Rory to have come to this. He's not a cadet, and he's also not part of staff — well, not the relevant part of staff, in this case; Rory is a medical officer. Which, privately, he thinks is a sort of fancy word for 'school nurse.' (Not that he minds. It definitely has a nicer ring to it.)

In any case, provided no one had fallen off the stage during the demonstration, there hadn't been much of an obvious reason for Rory's presence at the lecture, but there he'd been anyway, sitting quietly in a corner. He is interested, don't get him wrong on that count — but to say he has an ulterior motive is, well, pretty obvious once the dismissal comes. Yes, he did only come for the food.

/sidles up

[righthemisphere]

Can't blame him, really. Raleigh is only here for the food, too.

Well, that and it's an excuse to wiggle out of his daily duties. So taking it easy and as many bacon sandwiches as he wants in return for parading around in his circuitry suit and signing some autographs? Done. Deal.

The attention on him seems to have eased for the moment, though, and that's when he takes the opportunity to retreat a little, steal another sandwich, and sidle up to Rory with a nod before claiming a chair not too close by and looking out over the hoard of new cadets still playing school with his brother.

"I swear the recruits get younger every year." Almost makes him feel like an old man at the ripe old age of twenty-two.

coordinated Becket attack

[inurhead]

Yancy's there for the food too, and sure, alright, because some part of him loves to see the spark in the Cadets eyes when they really get on board with the cause. Or one of the other causes, sure, but he's fond of one in particular.

This staff member is unfamiliar, but hey, a lot of them still are. Yancy glances down for a name tag, but doesn't see one. Maybe the dude is dressed down. It's free time, technically. They're all volunteers and Cadets here.

"You gonna eat that, or...?"

The last of the lemon cremes being 'that.' He's usually not big on sweets, but those ones...they taste like childhood, ya know? So if Rory isn't going to call dibs, Yancy sure is.

[suicidemission]

Chuck's...sort of mingling. He's not the most social of people and most of his attention is on the other Rangers, but at the moment he finds himself alone (ish, there's a lot of people in here, hard to be alone), picking at the veggie tray and loading his plate up with his food of choice.

You know you wanna bother the surly Aussie asshole.

[chosethewar]

The spread was better than Tom was expecting, honestly. Maybe he'd come in with misapprehensions of what a para-military lifestyle would be thanks to one too many action and war movies over the years but the food honestly impressed. A cynical part of him wondered if it was all for show to do just that, impress the new Cadets who showed up expecting to meet modern day rockstars.

Were Rangers' egos as huge as they appeared to be on the tv? Surely the saviors of mankind deserved a little all-star treatment so maybe this rich spread was more for their benefit than the cadets. These musing thoughts occupied the young man as he filled up his plate. He snagged the last everything bagel and grabbed some cream cheese before its steadily dwindling supply was extinguished.

"Sorry," Was all he said to the person he accidentally reached around for said cream cheese. Offering a rueful smile he grabbing some fruit as well and backed out of the press of bodies. Wandering down the buffet he finally spotted some orange juice and topped the whole slightly off-balance breakfast with a blueberry muffin.

"This is some spread, huh? Wonder if we'll eat this good the whole time."

[secondtry]

Mike had a plate mostly full of fresh fruits and veggies and only a little bread, and he was consuming it slowly. He wanted to make this bounty last. But he was also smiling, kicked back and relaxing, and looked maybe overall too at home where he was sitting.

Open!

[righthemisphere]

Demos over and outer armor off, Raleigh peels himself out of his suit and reemerges in his flight suit. It's easy, comfortable, and still technically counts as uniform so that's his first choice.

Circuitry suits are tight. And sweaty. Can't blame a guy for wanting a little air, you know?

Besides, okay maybe wearing his leather jacket makes him feel like a rock star. Powerful. And why not, he's earned it. But with so many eyes on him all the time, it's also just nice to have something that makes him feel awesome. Something he can just slip on, pop the collar and saunter away in and everything is alright because he is actually on top of the world and a force to be reckoned with.

He was never one for dress blues, anyway.

Raleigh's picked through the buffet and scurried away with a napkin of sweets to plop down in one of the many folding chairs to just hang out, humming a tune he can't quite get out of his head.

You wanna talk? Because he will gladly talk about this job until he passes out. Kaiju Are Destroying The World, aside. Joining the Jaeger program is the best thing he's ever done in his entire life and he's not shy about saying so.

[suicidemission]

Oh, hey.

Of course Chuck wants to talk.

He's sort of sidling on over, that shit eating grin still on his face (he's had a decent day okay, all these Rangers in those circuitry suits? Score) and hey -- meeting and greeting with Raleigh Becket?

A fuckin' plus, man.

He's flopping in the chair next to him, a little plate of raw veggies in his hand, knee jiggling anxiously.

"Hey."

So smooth.