Daunting

Daunting was a Valknut Team project to prevent the Ares Project from returning to Earth.

## Spoilers

### Prelude to Daunting

Daunting began when Violet spotted a trade deal in the Nikkei Undernet. The deal was for heavy transportation from Mars. Suspecting that it might be the Ares fat water, Cato had V Team track down the Yakuza who were present and learn their plans. They forged intel for the Yakuza that Zuhoor Sedaris was planning to undermine their mission, and followed the assassins sent from the project specific division of the Yakuza to kill them.

This led them to Ukiyo, where they monitored a meeting between Yakuza representatives and representatives of Pelamus Pluturus. They located Masamune, who held the info they needed. But at the same time, Hokkaido Joe recognized one of Wulfgar's spies, Yellow Boots, and a fight broke out. Varg and Veikko tracked down and beheaded Masamune, gaining his intel with the help of W Team. Violet fought Shika and died, and Vibeke wound up flying the spy to his safehouse.

Once back to Valhalla, Violet recovered and Masamune's head revealed that the Yakuza were indeed working to bring back the Ares. E Team was sent to monitor the Yakuza project, while V was sent to monitor the spy to learn if they were rivals or potential allies.

### Project Daunting

V Team headed to Türkiye where W was watching the spy. Weather and Violet posed as sex workers to get a cerebral bore on the spy. While they did so, The Elbow and Jimmy Pig Lips broke in on them and attacked, blinding Weather. Fahrenheit also came into the room, and was briefly interrogated before he they killed him. Weather headed back to Valhalla for treatment and V Team hacked the spy and learned of his plans to visit Mars.

V Team headed to Mars on another flight. Once there at the Barsoom Colony they met Niana, who guided them to a nuclear trigger worm set to detonate at the Ares water tanks. Varg took the worm and the team observed. Mishka then arrived, hunting Vibeke for the Wolf Gang after she delivered one of their men to the safehouse. She sent V Team running for Aureum Chaos.

There they met the PRA, who in exchange for a stolen rover gave them runners and support (Weasel and Spit) to reach the Ares at Vastitas Borealis. They traversed snow and fields of the white weed, fought guardthings and avoided robotic lookouts to make it. Once there thy prepared a mug-for-disguise operation, but found they had been beaten to it by the Unspeakable Darkness. As a war ensued between the UD and Yakuza, V Team boarded the rocket set to launch the Ares. There they fought Mishka, and with her found themselves stuck on board Enyo as it carried the Ares to Earth.

V Team entered Cryo for a month. Once they arrived at Earth they found that the UD had bombed space station UNEGA 07 to avoid the Yakuza capture of Enyo. Enyo entered the atmosphere where the UD Fang Freighter cut it in half and began to siphon the water within. The Battle of Prešov ensued.

The Battle ended when Violet, acting on orders from Veikko, hit the nuclear trigger and vaporized the Fang Freighter and water. R Team rescued them and brought them back to Valhalla, ending the project.

### Aftermath

The Geki came for Veikko and Violet, taking the former to their Citadel until the political effects of the nuclear blast were subdued.

The Ares however was not destroyed, as the Wolves had simply drank the water and flown home business class. Unfortunately they absorbed some of the payload and had to be liquidated.

The mission, its failure, and its means resulted in raised tensions between GAUNE and UNEGA, and in Veikko's attempt to nuke Valhalla.