"Think you're ready, Ika?" She was trying her best to hype herself up. She was supposed to go out to the majority of the Evergreens today and talk to them about... something. She took the time to look presentable today - makeup's in order, her hair was washed and combed, tied back with a band, with a small green heart pin keeping the hair out of her eye. Instead of the usual green sweatshirt and jeans, she opted for something different - a long shirt that she had gotten at a tailor's once, it was minty, definitely complimented her hair, and some black leggings that were pretty comfortable, all things considered. She walked into the Main Stage, where, in front of all the strange screens, a decently sized black platform was set up. There were lots of people gathering - some sitting, some standing, some of them with dazzling mixtures of cybernetic and human-like features, some of them purely one way or the other. She breathed in and out, calming herself, walking up to the podium where Velvet was. She noticed a small chair, so she took a seat behind them. There wasn't much interesting going on, just some kind of head count that Velvet was undertaking. "Mhm, mhm... Okay, looks like everyone's here, all two-hundred-and-seven. Thanks for coming, of course! As you all know, I'm Velvet, and we've got a special guest joining us for today, can I get an 'Aw Yeah!'?" Silence from the crowd. Someone coughed. "Fair enough, I don't like those kinds of people. Uh, this is our newest team member, Ika! Come on up!" There was the occasional clap from the crowd, but they weren't much for enthusiasm. With mild hesitation, Ika walked up, and Velvet handed them a strange device of some sort. The handle was black, kind of like a cone, but at the bottom end was some kind of metallic pole with a small orb of red light. The top was a much larger sphere, maybe about the size of Ika's first, with a strange ratcheted pattern of small metal wires. Ika looked at velvet point blank. "I don't know what this is." "Talk into the larger end." "Like this?-" Ika heard her own voice booming, causing her to fumble back a bit. "S-sorry, it's still pretty early for me." She turned to face the audience, properly positioning the microphone this time. "Hi! Uh, like Vel said, my name's Ika, and I am your, uh... newest team member, yes. I'm normally accompanied by my partner, Mako, but she's currently out doing, uh, something..." Velvet nodded. "Good, good. Why don't you tell us a bit about yourself?" "Hm. Where do I start...?" Ika had to take a second to think. "I'm not like most of you, who are probably fighting for this cause for one reason or another. In truth, I'm not really much of a rebel at all. I awoke once in a forest, maybe an aeon or two ago, with no recollection of who I was. I had to reconstruct my life, piece by piece, and..." Ika sighed. "It's been a losing battle, sometimes. I've apparently done some bad things, *really* bad things, against a lot of people, so I'm- I'm here to fix that. I'm not here to try and set some standard, not here to 'stick it to the man', I'm here because... I want to do better." Ika realigned her focus on the audience. "Any, uh, questions?" There wasn't much of a stir, but a hand *was* raised. It was something metallic, like a <font color="#e64539"><u>Facsimile</u></font> of an arm. "Yes, you there!" The person stood up - they looked like some kind of unnatural human, made entirely of a chrome-like substance, a contrast between its material and its oddly bony appearance. They spoke as if a synthetic voice filter was put over their audio output. "Are you going to blow up our place?" Ika shook her head. "What? No. I would never. Any other questions?" Nobody else shot up a hand. The two stared in complete silence. Velvet finally spoke up. "Well, if that will be all, then you're all dismissed!" The crowd collectively groaned a sigh of relief, returning to whatever stations they had. Velvet and Ika stayed on the stage for the time being, while everyone else filed out. "Ika, you alright?" Ika nodded. "I'm good. Are *you* alright, Vel? Seems like you have a tough crowd." Velvet chuckled a bit. "I sure do, don't I? Well, it makes it easier to handle. Everyone does their jobs, working away on weaponry, tools, intercepting communications from The City... it's pretty nice here. We go day by day, just like anyone else." "Sure, but..." Ika knew she had to think carefully here. "I don't mean to demean your position, but it doesn't really feel like you're bringing everyone together here. The only person who asked a question wanted to make sure I wasn't some kind of double agent. Again, you *are* the one in charge here, but it doesn't feel like you're leading people towards the common goal of the Evergreens. What's your plan for when Mako and I ship out, for it to just be the two of us?" Velvet looked to the side. "What else am I supposed to do? They watch people like hawks there. We have no way of disabling their security systems. Do you know how advanced their technology is compared to ours, Ika? Whatever PSL is, it's letting them tap into some well of information that we simply do not have access to." Velvet looked to the side, grasping one arm with another. "I just keep up morale here these days, I just don't want everyone on each others' throats while the big guys go unchallenged. That's why I'll be guiding you and your partner myself." They swallowed. "I'm sorry if you expected more from me, Ika, I just..." Ika stepped forward and held out her hand. "It's alright. Like you said, day by day, right?" Velvet was a bit nervous, but eventually firmly grasped Ika's with their own, shaking it once, firmly. "Right! I think we'll have you two ship out tomorrow, after Mako comes back. Until then, feel free to [[Roam]] the facility."