Ineffable shrugged and he was suddenly by Toy.
"I'll be coming with." Jake said as he approached the appropriate space, bringing his bots with him. "Anything to get to Rikti Terra A-sap."
"Mission: Continue: Ready," said Cher'tak as he mentally acknowledged Lk'Onik's desire to remain behind. "Ready: Willing: Able: Still."
Slinging his bladerifle, Cher'tak moved over to where Acid indicated and took up an at-ease position with both arms crossed in front of his chest.
Toy Dispenser, meanwhile, had slipped away from the gathering point and was fiddling with something on his chest right in the middle of the yellow and red star symbol of LMOUSVEV he wore. Archlich marched forward to meet the mastermind midway and together the two of them maneuvered in such a way so as to block anyone else from seeing what was going on. In actuality, Toy Dispenser was giving Archlich a small portable hard drive that he had taken out of a small compartment set into his chest. That hard drive contained a copy of Toy Dispenser's mind and could be used to rebuild himself should he get destroyed while out of the mediport system's range. For reasons that Toy never could figure out, he could have only one copy of himself floating around at a time. Whenever he made a new copy, the old one would start behaving like a normal program would if it's code was as jumbled as Toy's: It would stop working.
Archlich slipped the hard drive into one of the pouches he kept hidden under his armor and patted Toy Dispenser on the shoulder as the mastermind closed up his chest compartment. Straightening up, Toy walked back over to the gathering area as if nothing had happened, his bots meeting him halfway and then clustering protectively around their boss.
"I'm ready to go," Toy said in response to Acid's look.
"What's this about one place at one time, now?" Solid asked as he meandered over next to Cher'tak and copied the Rikti's pose. "Unless one splits himself in two, we're all generally in one place at one time."
Archlich dropped back from the group a suitable distance and then began pacing around the perimeter of the room. After getting a feeling for the area, Archlich would begin laying various mystical wards that would tighten up security while offering up no energy signatures that the Homeworld Rikti would be able to search for.
Statesman said let there be heroes, and there were heroes.
Lord Recluse said let there be villains, and there were villains.
NCsoft said let there be nothing, and there was nothing.
"The Rikti World?" Sheldon gasped, "Wow... My... I... Wow..."
"While he mulls that over, I volunteer wholeheartedly for the mission to the Rikti World surface," Ryat66 chirped, "If you'll have me."
"I see no reason to say no," Randall grunted, "I'm ready when everyone else is."
"I'd actually prefer to stay behind," Sheldon finally decided, "Not because I'm afraid of the Rikti world, mind you, but because I think I would do more good here. When the first war was over, my father was contracted to help disassemble and reverse engineer Rikti technology for the Pentagon. My contribution to the reconstruction effort was assisting him. I know my way around Rikti Engineering better than most on Earth. Having me around should help cut down on the time it takes to get that ship moving."
My Stories
Look at that. A full-grown woman pulling off pigtails. Her crazy is off the charts.
"Yeah, you'd think so, wouldn't you?" was the first thing Solid Shot heard upon rematerializing on board the Drop Ship, Acid's voice coming from ahead, "At least that's what common sense tells you. Like I said, go figure."
The vessel's interior wasn't much to look at. Function had won out over form, and the somewhat oval cross-section only allowed about enough room for one Rikti troop division. This wasn't to say that things would be getting cramped for the team, but they certainly wouldn't be spacious either.
Instead of seating rows that ran along the walls, port and starboard came with lines of harness mountings. From the looks of them, these had designed to form-fit and lock in the back sections of Rikti armorsuits, and ran from the aft bulkhead to the cockpit, where a trio of seats stood arrayed in a tilted delta configuration with apex ahead.
The frontmost obviously belonged to the pilot (the back rest of which Acid's head currently looked astern around), clearly visible flight controls like those in a modern human jet aircraft mounted on the armrests, while the more raised rearward chairs were clearly that stations of gunner and navigator, the equipment easily recognizable despite its Rikti architecture - targeting systems to port and astrogation panels starboard.
The cockpit windshield - technically just a large screen; the Rikti seemed to have gone with a monocoque hull instead of compound construction - allowed a good field of view from the bow, encompassing a somewhat forward extended area. Presently, the monitor showed the open hangar door ahead, a few stars twinkling about in the black of space, the light of not many making it through the interference of the hangar's saffron illumination.
Checking to be sure everyone who had wished to come had indeed done so - there wasn't any way they'd have left anyone behind - Acid then turned his attention back to the flight controls and let the laws of his left hand dance across a touchscreen that displayed several contact plates, "Ladies and gentlemen, welcome aboard flight VAA 007 to wherever the hell we feel like. Please take this time to familiarize yourself with your closest nonexistent emergency exit and return your seat backs and tray tables to their upright and locked positions. Our estimated time of arrival will be one minute form now, give or take, local time unknown."
Even as he spoke these words, the ship already moved, the telltale hum of some manner of reaction drive reverberating through the aft bulkhead. This remained the only clue, however, as the Rikti also knew the working principle of a g-force compensator. No motion translated into the ship's interior, and gravity remained firmly Terranorm.
Sah'Teece seemed to have no issues with letting the reptilian take the helm, taking seat in the astrogation chair to determine a good landing site. He'd caught on to Acid's question between the lines, and so set out to find an answer. Not possessing much knowledge about military strategies, however, the sites he suggested weren't exactly based on tactical value, Sah'Teece proposing them based on proximity to their primary objective: the Rikti capital. Two, however, stood out from the rest.
The first he called the Forgotten Sanctuary - an archeological dig site abandoned by researchers soon after the start of the Human War in favor of more immediate concerns. It sat in a range of very rough mountains, heavily isolated, and there certainly wouldn't be any Rikti around. In addition, some of the equipment left behind when research had halted might be of use to the expedition.
The second had been a coastal city before the war, Nemesis' Freedom Phalanx Automatons having done roughly the same thing to the place that the first Rikti attack had done to Baumton. It had been evacuated some time ago, and sat close to the capital than the excavation site. However, chances of finding anything helpful there also stood much lower. In addition, the plain-like characteristics of the surrounding lands made discovery upon landing a great deal more likely.
"Not entirely sure which of those is better." Acid told Cher'tak in particular, but his tone included everyone on board in the discussion, "My vote goes for that sanctuary thing, but I've never been that good with strategic analysis. Anyone got any thoughts on this?"
Regardless of which location would be ultimately chosen, the capital (and with that, both prospective sites) lay on the central southern edge of what resembled North America, and by the rapidly growing planet ahead, it stood clear this is where Acid presently piloted the Drop Ship toward.
Racing ahead of the vessel, however, was something else entirely: a pulse of low-energy radio waves. Traveling in an extremely narrow beam with hardly any scatter, the coded and chopped transmission of at most a microsecond's duration was nearly impossible to make out - especially considering there operated much more powerful equipment back on the Jade Moon, where the message had come from.
Still, energy was energy, radio waves were radio waves, and thus there always existed the remote possibility, no matter how slim, that someone might have picked up on it. Be that as it may, neither Acid nor the Drop Ship did...
--------------------
"Good to know." the Lady Grey gave Sheldon a nod of approval, "We shall leave you to your work then. If you intend to wander about, however, take at least two of Our troops with you. The interlopers are likely still about somewhere. Furthermore, a technical unit from Portal Corporation shall be arriving within the hour and attempt to restart operation of several portal generators in this facility. We are not certain of your methodology, but We felt you should know this if you wished to incorporate it into your plans."
"And while they get the portals working again, I'll try and teach your guys how to fly a space ship." Acid added to the conversation with yet another nod, most decidedly not having departed with the others when the group of volunteers had dematerialized in the Rikti teleportation field.
"Please do." the Lady Grey replied, turning to step toward Communications, "We shall gather any operatives with flight experience as quickly as We can..."
---------------------
((Muahaha...and now I finally get to start Act II. 
))
"If I had Force powers, vacuum or not my cape/clothes/hair would always be blowing in the Dramatic Wind." - Tenzhi
Characters
Nemesis Army Headquarters
Location Classified
"Atteeeen-tion!" the Colonel's hand practically shot to his brassen helmet with the barked order, the troops present in perfect synchronization with the officer of the Nemesis Army as the Prussian Prince of Automatons once m\ore entered the command center.
And what a command center it was. Pipes of steel and copper ran along the walls and ceiling in all directions, carrying the vital steam that so perplexed modern humans of science. No one quite understood how such archaic technology could compete, and even outdo in many aspects, the cutting edge of present science.
An assembly of grates and plates composed the floor, allowing clear, if limited, view to the workings below, the steam tech of the toy maker turned madman clicking and hissing like the gears of a clock as it worked - worked so flawlessly as if this clock had perfectly jeweled movements.
"At ease, my Nemesis Army." their master's mechanical word caused the soldiers to assume a normal stance once more as Nemesis turned to the officer to utter a short, "Report."
The Colonel nodded, steeping to the large chart table in the center of the room. Indeed, the Nemesis Army's command center bore more resemblance to the bridge of a submarine than anything else. The officer reached for a miniature of a Rikti Drop Ship that sat on the chart representing the Jade Moon.
"Passive sensors left on the surface indicate one of the Rikti ships has departed the satellite," the Colonel explained calmly as he moved the model across the table and to the chart that represented the planet, "with initial course for sector one-one-five before tracking was lost. The purpose of this maneuver is unknown, but strategic analysis suggests that if the present course is kept, the enemy will attempt to establish a foothold somewhere in this area."
Nemesis considered his officer's finger for a little while, the digit sweeping out a respectably large area. After a few seconds, the Colonel inquired on orders to move out.
"Request denied." Nemesis gave calm answer, knowing well that unless he could muster enough force to crush the expedition's head in one fell swoop, he would only delay them for a short time, as well as have to sacrifice assets he could not presently afford to lose. Many overestimated Nemesis' strength - it was through his cunning that he'd gained so much, not through raw power.
And cunning would be needed now more than ever. He'd taken only the elite of his forces; just what he could get through the Rikti supply base's portals. That meant he had quality, but not necessarily quantity. Lord Nemesis would have to be very careful this time around - else he stood to lose more than ever before...
--------------------
Sinister Happenings
Unknown Location
The spark.
The electrode.
The flux.
The sound of the arc.
This was all the Engineer perceived, his breath labored, but steady behind the thick shield of nearly black glass. Slowly but surely, the Engineer brought his hands along by sense alone, carefully caressing the two pieces with the arc, fusing them together into a single part.
He didn't even notice the sound of heavy boots upon the concrete floor, utterly absorbed in nothing but his work. But as he stopped for a moment to measure and check once more, he perceived a presence behind him.
"G'job." he heard the voice to his rear chuckle, the heavy Texan accent only too revealing as to the observer's identity. It was the Commander, "How long d'ya think?"
"Not much longer, Sir." the Engineer retorted, taking a T-square to the weld, measuring what he wished, then following up with various other tools of assessment, "It's almost done. Then we'll give those metas what-for."
"Yeh." the Commander's smirk translated into his voice, as the Engineer restarted his arc, "Yer gonna give 'em what-fer alright...Delta Five..."
--------------------
R. F. S. COLOSSUS
T'vryr System - Galactic Northside
Status: Under Attack
Passages of cold metal lay flooded with shadow, only periodically interrupted by the weakly flickering amber aura of a few malfunctioning monitors.
Bunkered behind crates and wall panels, all manner of being raised a rifle, from insectoid to molluscian, many different eyes nervously locked ahead.
The command deck lay dark and barren, its systems utterly demolished. Sparks sputtered feebly from shattered screens and blast-covered consoles.
All manner of corpses lay slumped where they had fallen, forming a ghastly, yet silent scene. The view outside, however, was anything but quiet.
Massive deltoids lay in combat with titanic spheres of copper hue, beams of neon blue lancing all about, setting space itself ablaze as deltoid shields failed and hulls tore apart in flame.
Fighter craft darted to and fro, assaulting one another and the larger vessels alike. Alas, all they could hope to add now was a bit more time, to buy a few more precious moments.
In a darkened hangar, a gray-suited humanoid worked partially inside the open cockpit of a trimaran-like heavy fighter that harbored a bound and rag-wrapped figure.
Without warning, the far blast door froze and shattered with thunderous cacophony, taking the bulk of the hangar's defenders with it in a swarm of ice missiles.
Not wasting a moment, defenders returned fire, the humanoid sealing the cockpit as a hulking figure stepped through the gaping hole. The being grinned a grin most smug behind his helmet visor as the ship turned to space, engines ignited. The frigid hulk roared out in defiance, blasting a wave of frost at the vessel; but to no avail - the ship rocketed away, acceleration all-out...
"If I had Force powers, vacuum or not my cape/clothes/hair would always be blowing in the Dramatic Wind." - Tenzhi
Characters
Ineffable could detect energy. But only if it was close by. If it wasn't within a defined area, it might as well have been dead to him. Unless the transmission went directly through the dropship, the chances of him detecting it unless he turned intangible were zero.
He remained silent during the selection of their landing spot. He didn't care where they landed, as long as they landed at all.
"Not exactly first class..." Jake muttered as he looked around the room, temporarily teleporting his bots away in order to allow himself some semblence of personal space.
[ QUOTE ]
The first he called the Forgotten Sanctuary - an archeological dig site abandoned by researchers soon after the start of the Human War in favor of more immediate concerns. It sat in a range of very rough mountains, heavily isolated, and there certainly wouldn't be any Rikti around. In addition, some of the equipment left behind when research had halted might be of use to the expedition.
The second had been a coastal city before the war, Nemesis' Freedom Phalanx Automatons having done roughly the same thing to the place that the first Rikti attack had done to Baumton. It had been evacuated some time ago, and sat close to the capital than the excavation site. However, chances of finding anything helpful there also stood much lower. In addition, the plain-like characteristics of the surrounding lands made discovery upon landing a great deal more likely
[/ QUOTE ]
Jake pondered over the two choices, despite his mind already jumping to the former chioce. As he weighed the pros and cons of the two sites in his mind, Acid stated,
[ QUOTE ]
"Not entirely sure which of those is better." Acid told Cher'tak in particular, but his tone included everyone on board in the discussion, "My vote goes for that sanctuary thing, but I've never been that good with strategic analysis. Anyone got any thoughts on this?"
[/ QUOTE ]
"I think I agree with you, Acid..." Jake said, stroking his chin as he thought, his eyes still glued to the screen. "Detection should be avoided, and that particular site provides us with the most discretion, not to mention the amount of equipment that we could salvage."
I could salvage, rather... Jake corrected himself in his mind, his face giving no clue as to his thoughts.
Not to mention, the machinery could give them much needed insight into some Rikti technology. That coupled with the fact that they could easily set-up there makes it more ideal than the abandoned city.
OOC: Three stood out from the rest, besides the capitol? You only gave us two choices.
BIC: Upon teleportation, Cher'tak took a moment to orient himself, then nodded to no one in particular and sat down at the gunnery controls. He had been trained in the usage of dropships and could operate any station with some degree of competence but, being a warrior at heart, Cher'tak was most at home firing the guns. The Warmaster paused for a second and stared at Acid for a few seconds, some amount of surprise evident in his stance. But he brushed off the oddity soon enough and had just sat down when Acid asked for his opinion.
"Landing: Capitol city: Fastest: Obvious dangers," Cher'tak said, adding the mental equivilent of facepalming at Sah'Teece's first suggestion. "Landing: Balt're City: Unknown. Old plans: Construct: Monument, Grave marker. Plan: Accomplished: Unknown. Forgotten Sanctuary: Status known: Abandoned. Resumed excavation: Current political-state: Unlikely. Sanctuary: Best bet."
"Always takes you freaking forever to say things with all those little pauses," muttered Solid Shot as he looked over one of the ship's seats. "How the hell do these things work, anyway? Do they have some sort of automatic strap thingie or gravity field to keep you from falling out during maneuvers?"
"Considering that we'll only be maneuvering violently if we get attacked then it doesn't much matter," Toy said as he sat down, his smaller bots copying him and Combat Toy moving to stand at the end of the row. "Because if we get attacked so soon, then our whole mission is [censored] and getting knocked around will be the least of our worries."
"Getting home will, yeah yeah," Solid said under his breath before adding a couple of choice curses as he sat down across from Toy.
*******************************************
"I shall do as I wish," Archlich said as he walked over to Lady Grey and Sheldon. "Which shall not include interfering with your work, mortal, or the orchastration of your soldiers, Grey."
Focusing on Lady Grey, Archlich's eyes flared slightly as he continued speaking. "I am not under your jurisdiction, 'Lady' Grey and shall pursue my own goals which do not coincide with your own. Since a friend of mine is, however, I shall aquiese to aiding you if you require it of me and the need is suitably great. Also, I would suggest that your men or you do not attempt to restrain me as I leave for my blantant rudeness. I have a far greater task in front of me than this peacemongering."
Spinning around on his heel, his cape flowing around him, Archlich strode out of the room. Once he was a significantly far distance away from the base camp he would teleport onto the moon's surface. As a lich, he had no need of air whatsoever and the outside would be free of potential disturbances.
And Archlich would certainly need all of his concentration if he was going to succeed at contacting a god.
OOC: Bum bum BUM?
Statesman said let there be heroes, and there were heroes.
Lord Recluse said let there be villains, and there were villains.
NCsoft said let there be nothing, and there was nothing.
((Stuff got mashed together in post, that's why. Edited.))
"If I had Force powers, vacuum or not my cape/clothes/hair would always be blowing in the Dramatic Wind." - Tenzhi
Characters
(Reply coming soon))
((And here we go again...))
--Jade Moon--
Sheldon nodded to the Lady Grey and turned to Acid Zero.
"If you could get me to the engineering bay of the warship, it would be much appreciated. I should be able to run a full diagnostic as well as nearly operate the entire bay on my own..."
He produced a small device from one of his pockets.
"I call it an Aggressor... I simply set it up, and siphon speed from the gyroscope inside. Rather simple, except, since such powers are restricted to hostiles, it has to have this laser sight on me at all times..."
The small spherical device started leaving a red dot on his lab coat.
"See? As foolish as it may appear, this construct should be able to keep us in the game."
----------
--En Route to Rikti Earth--
"I'm all for the archaeological dig," Randall grunted, "Should serve as a decent staging point as well as be remote enough for us to disappear if need be."
"I concur with that sentiment," Ryat66 warbled, "However, I would like to point out that the closer we are to society, the quicker we can get the word out about Nemesis's plot to enslave the Rikti..."
"Some know already..." Randall rumbled, "And the story's bein' killed by Hro'Dtohz and his Lineage of War. It's being passed off as the equivalent of a radical, insane conspiracy theory... Am I correct, Lk'Onik?"
----------
--Portal Corp Courtyard--
Matt sighed and stretched by holding his sword and scabbard behind his head and pulling down. Finally, he approached Unai Kemen and got his attention with a clap on the shoulder usually reserved for good friends.
"Okay, Mr. Kemen... It seems that the excitement has passed... The mission's going on, they've even found transport to Rikti Earth... I know, above my security clearance, but a guy can't help overhearing what's been getting transmitted. Can he?"
He shrugged and took a few steps toward his motorcycle.
"Now... I'm kind of wondering as to what was the deal behind that electronic ear, the mirror-black Lamborghini, and what it could have had to do with the portal here suddenly going all wonky. So! I'm gonna go patrollin' for a shiny black car that looks like it would take me nearly three lifetimes to acquire, and see what I can do to interrogate the people inside."
He walked over to his motorcycle and hopped onto it. Moments before trying to coax the engine to life, he turned to Unai.
"Of course, if you know somewhere I should start looking... So much the better."
My Stories
Look at that. A full-grown woman pulling off pigtails. Her crazy is off the charts.
((Was that a shot? *Clutches chest*))
Jade Moon
"We gotta get the hell outta here." Ghost commented in between pacing up and down the length of the room. The normally calm and patient sniper was beginning to feel a rush of anxiety, and he didn't like it.
"Concurance." the droid replied. Since their arrival in the room the team had been completely on edge. Once they though they might have heard a Vanguard patrol, but HK 48 shrugged it off as "Human Error."
Radiator had pulled off his helmet, revealing his scarred face and pale skin for the first time today. "Okay, let's think about this. Our boss sent us here to gather any items of signifigance we could find, along with any intelligence about the Rikti. To do that we need to go down to the homeworld. What we need right now is a ship."
Scarab had been sitting in the window sill, basked in the glow of several computer interfaces. "Isn't that a Rikti warship?" he asked somewhat casually.
Everyone turned to face the window.
"Okay...48, what are we looking at?"
"Commentary: A Rikti warship of unknown classification. Theory: This facility has been making ships. Perhaps the Vanguard Task Force took control of one of the ships while it was in dry dock."
"Hey what's that?" Ghost inquired, pointing at the small barely visible object that had just left the warship.
"Clarification: A Rikti Dropship. A warship that size must have a small contingency of dropships."
Radiator cracked his first smile all day. "Gentlemen, I think I have a way out of here."
Essex listened quietly to the discussion, and began to nod slowly.
"I agree that the sanctuary seems the safest place, for now..." she murmured, wringing her hands slightly in thought. "After all, it'd also be somewhere that it would take them at least a little while to notice us...and by that time we could have our defenses ready."
Noticing Toy and Solid sitting at opposite sides of the table, she fidgeted slightly before trotting over to Acid and standing next to the reptilian instead.
Japancakes.
Art - Theme 005 - Seeking Solace
((Lk'Onik isn't there. Neither is a table. 
))
"Guess that settles that." Acid returned with a polite nod, then pressed the ship into approach. A few vibrations came through upon contact with the atmosphere, the reptilian cutting their descent rate drastically in order to prevent the creation of a new fireball in the sky. Space-faring civilization or not, that would've been an attention-grabber like few others.
He then switched to aerobraking, letting the whims of conventional physics run their course as the ship bled velocity, soon embedded deeply within the gaseous portion of the Rikti homeworld's atmosphere.
Thick globs of clouds hung all about, meaning there wasn't much to see. Indeed, the upper atmosphere seemed turbulent and unstable, as if set in motion by some catastrophic event long past and still trying to rebalance itself. Visibility did not improve as Acid pressed the ship lower and lower, navigating by instruments alone. Indeed, the clouds only seemed to grow darker, telling ominously of the event.
Neither Cher'tak and Sah'Teece could not confirm what sort of event, however. These conditions had been present for much longer than a century. A modern Rikti's best guess reasoned to be a natural disaster more than half a millennium ago, but no one knew for sure. In fact, that had been one of the things the archeologists at the Forgotten Sanctuary had reported they might have found traces of. After all, the facility had been dated back to that time period.
And it showed.
The clouds didn't break until a very low altitude, but even before that, they stood for all to see - pair of towering flames in the mist, casting brilliant luminance into the dark, cloudy skies.
Lower and lower the reptilian took the vessel, until finally the clouds broke to a star-filled, if a bit hazy, night sky above, and a myriad of majestic mountains below and to the sides. Now the burning towers could be seen in all their blazing glory - standing at least a dozen meters tall, they blazed brightly from both terminators of a crescent-shaped landing platform that sat precariously over a massive chasm, dense mists hiding its floor. Already, all could see the platform a large example relative to the ship - it could've easily held five of them, perhaps more.
"Cool." Acid remarked as he eased closer, observing the parts of the Forgotten Sanctuary that could be seen from this angle. The place looked like a series of gargantuan cylinders carved from the solid rock of the steep cliffs that permeated its surroundings, and it was difficult to tell where a structure ended and the wall of a mountain or canyon began began, as bridges connected just about everything.
This also included the airdock: a cantilever, the landing platform had been attached to a narrow plateau between two slopes, some manner of road running from the foremost tower to the edge of the cliff, where it became a causeway that bridged the final distance to the platform. All in all, the skydock's beginnings hung maybe twenty meters from the wall, the bridge half as wide at its narrowest. In addition, the carried at its center a monolith of respectable size just beyond the junction point, which at one time might have been smooth as could be - weathering, however, had run its course, and presently the surface of the pillar resembled the rubble and ruin that covered the slopes to the road's sides.
Easing the Drop Ship to the edge of the airdock, it became clear the platform and its supports had been constructed not of carved stone, but of finely worked metal, artistically wrought to create patterns of natural, unimpeded flow. Additionally, the rythmic splashes of fine, slowly falling rain could now be seen, the platform's edge playing host to several slim trails of water. The ship's screen had compensated automatically, and so this was likely the first indication to its passengers of the weather outside.
It would not be the last.
Without a word, Acid performed all stop, the ship's anti-gravity field anchoring the vessel in a solid hover. With a nod to the Rikti, the Khelari relinquished his seat to proceed aft. However, Sah'Teece was already ahead of him, explaining the workings of the ship's entry and exit mechanism to the others. The process really was very simple: one only had to grab hold of a harness on the wall, and then the command crew could give the ship the order to teleport them out individually or as a group. Furthermore, he and the Warmaster had in their armor devices that could remotely operate this, having synchronized with the ship's systems during the flight.
"Then let's mambo." Acid declared, and as soon as everyone had declared themselves ready, they found themselves assembled on the landing platform and facing the road ahead, the Drop Ship's bow hovering behind the group with a low hum of energy.
Almost immediately, Sah'Teece practically tore the helmet off his head, taking in the air of his verily missed home with appreciation untold as he felt the miniscule drops of rain upon his face. It had been a long time.
True, a human might very well have found the local environment disturbing, but at this point the Rikti couldn't have cared less. He was home - and for these few precious moments, that was all that mattered.
Even Acid seemed appreciative of getting some fresh air again, though in his opinion things were still freezing around here. In such surroundings, he had to admit, clothes really were a very good idea. Once again, he grealy appreciated his jacket.
Still, he couldn't help but be drawn to the closest towering flame, the warmth of the fire to him like light to a moth. It didn't take him long to stop dead in his tracks, however, eyes scrutinizing the area as they swept about, his combi-rifle practically leaping into the reptilian's claws.
"Everyone stay close." he warned with a snarl, whatever he'd noticed clearly upsetting him a great deal, "Something smells rotten."
Indeed, if anyone's nose had the same sensitivity as the Khelari, they would realize he meant this quite literally. While the closest comparison would have been a bloodhound, it certainly wasn't impossible for someone else to pikc up on the telltale smell in the air.
The scent of death...
--------------------
The Lady Grey bid Archlich goodbye in the form of an icy nod, then extended her hand to accept a PDA from one of her Colonels as the undead sorcerer departed. Glancing upon it for a few moments, she remarked, "Very well, Sir Archlich. We but hope it does not become necessary to extend Our 'jurisdiction'."
"Keep a watch on him." she ordered as she handed back Archlich's Freedom Corps profile to the officer, who responded with a quick salute. If it was at all reasonable to keep an eye on the lich, they certainly would.
"I don't think you should be that distrustful of the guy." Acid commented with a gesture of dismissal, "I mean, he's..."
"A known, confirmed, and very dangerous villain, Sir Zero." the Lady Grey finished the reptilian's sentence for him. She already knew how he'd want to counter this, not giving him the chance by adding, "And not a member of Vanguard. Therefore, his motives are suspect. While he is correct that Our efforts are to be focused upon dealing with Rikti affairs, We have no qualms extending them to disruptions of the task at hand. Now, if you will excuse Us, We have a flight crew to gather."
Acid shrugged to Sheldon, letting out a brief sigh. He knew when it stood a bad idea to start an argument. The Lady Grey had dipensed order for her troops to engage Arachnos, Nemesis, Malta, and other villains unrelated to the Rikti happenings before, and there existed little doubt she'd do it again if deemed necessary - one of the reasons Vanguard carried such a shady reputation. They didn't show much regard for legal boundaries when it came to getting the job done.
"A dangerous game we play." he told Wallace ominously, then returned to the topic with a bemused smile that came out a little toothier than he might have liked, "Run it all yourself, hm? Got a degree in Warp Theory, do we now? Well, if you want, fine by me."
With that, he vanished once again, air collpasing into the vacuum he'd left with the characteristic notions of teleportation. A few seconds later, an energetic construct that resembled the portal of a Rikti Communications Officer to a tee extablished itself in the geometric middle of the ops center. Some of the mentioned Vanguard had already drifted this way, not hesitating to step into the teleport beam. If Sheldon followed them, he would find himself face-to-face with Acid once again, this time on board the discus ship, in a room that much resembled a transporter bay fom Star Trek. Of course, the comparison was rough at best, as the Rikti had a mind for efficiency, not what 'looked neat'.
"You guys go and occupy the main areas." Wallace observed the reptilian already handing several transparency foils to the Vaguard operatives, "Bridge, fire control, et cetera. The shields are down right now, and with our renegades still around, I'd feel much more at ease with these sections secured."
Pointing the way for the first few teams, the Khelari didn't take long to arrive at Sheldon once more, "So then, you wanted Engineering? Pardon if this sounds stupid, but what exactly did you imagine under that term...?"
--------------------
Unai Kemen cocked a quizzical eyebrow at Matt McGinty. He didn't remember any black Lamborghini around here - a Ferrari yes, but as far as he knew there hadn't been any other recognizeable sports cars in or out of the gate today.
In either case, however, the Security Chief had no idea where to start looking for one.
"Got me..." he shrugged, but nevertheless tried to help, "Maybe ask the ferry operators? That's the only way I know of to get a car on or off the island. Someone there's bound to remember something that fancy, right...?"
"If I had Force powers, vacuum or not my cape/clothes/hair would always be blowing in the Dramatic Wind." - Tenzhi
Characters
Ineffable appeared outside. He hadn't touched one of the harnesses.
"Ten seconds in and already there is the prospect of mysterous deaths and violence. I like it here." He said dryly as Acid snarled his order to remain close.
--Jade Moon: The Rikti Warship--
"Well, rather literally, the engine," Sheldon replied, "No, I don't have a degree in Warp Theory. However, I've torn apart and put back together enough of these machines and similarly constructed ones to know their workings inside and out."
He pointed at a sign down the hall.
"I also have a rudimentary understanding of the language. Restroom. In any case, I should require only a few minutes to familiarize myself with the facility that provides for Engine Control and Diagnostics, and I should be able to help you keep this vessel running."
----------
((Shoot, that's right...))
--Rikti Earth: The Forgotten Sanctuary--
Randall emerged from the ship and winced. He'd seen some strange things in his lifetime, and it wasn't how Rikti Earth's "wilderness" looked that bothered him.
It was the feeling creeping through his feet and later through his legs. It was like the planet was clawing at him, begging for some kind of help. He'd felt it before in heavily polluted areas, but not like this. This world had gotten used to its changes, the problem, however, was recent.
The massive tanker reached for the ground and grasped a handful of soil. The same tingling sensation worked its way through his hands and arms.
"What are you trying to tell me?"
Cory Simmons and Ryat66 emerged behind him. The warlock looked somewhat depressed suddenly, but the android kept walking without slowing.
"What's the matter?" he asked as he noticed the warlock wasn't with him, "Are you gassy?"
"No..." Cory smiled a little, "No, that's not it... It's the Aether... it just feels different. If I were to describe it, I would say 'sad.'"
"Odd," the android scratched the top of its head, "Applying an anthropomorphism to a force of energy..."
"Maybe if you feel it one day, you'll understand. In our world, the Aether is utilized by so many divergent individuals, and there's so much happening, it's like a rainbow kaleidoscope of emotions and sensations... It's like being alive in a whole different way. Here, though... It's similar, but has an undercurrent of depression, like a lack of potential."
"Could it just be here?" Randall asked over his shoulder.
"No," Simmons shook his head, "The Aether is not localized. It feels no barriers, from steel to earth, from wind and sky to deep sea. It flows through everything, from every man woman and child to every mountain and pebble, every ocean and every drop of rain. What one bit of it feels, every ounce of the Aether must experience."
"Sounds like another god," the tanker grunted.
"In a sense..."
----------
--Portal Corp Courtyard--
Matt blinked a couple times at Unai Kemen then grumbled something about being a waste of his time. When Kemen asked "What?" he replied with a loud "Not you!" and prepared to tear off.
Before the bike started, however, he felt a metal hand land on his shoulder.
"What is it Ninety-nine?"
"If you want, I can have the Ryats scoping the city for you. They can't get directly involved, mind you, but they can help you find where to go."
"Cool man."
A chuckle rumbled from Ryat99's head, "Just one question... Was it a Lamborghini, or a Ferrari?"
"It was a Ferrari!" Matt shouted, "Okay! I messed up, alright? Just go! Mirror-black finish!"
And the engine roared to life, startling the scrapper. The motorcycle wanted to go and was tired of waiting. Matt had barely gotten his hands on the handles before the machine roared off into the distance, headed for the ferry.
Matt didn't know it, but the bike was actually following a scent.
My Stories
Look at that. A full-grown woman pulling off pigtails. Her crazy is off the charts.
Earth
General Kaos quickly wiped the sweat pouring off his brow with the back of his hand. The assorted troopers next to him checked their weapons. A feeling of anxiety washed over the group.
Suddenly there was a sickening creak and groan as metal grinded against metal. Kaos gave a final, quiet prayer and then all hell broke loose. There was the roar of pressurized air rushing past, the room's emergency airlock having failed to hold back the invaders.
Kaos' vision was obscured as over a dozen assault rifles went off at once. Behind him there was a roar as two RPG launchers fired.
The general's eyes narrowed. "Cease fire!" he barked, barely audible over the boom of the weapons. It took a few seconds for the dust to settle, and in that time the general felt his blood pressure skyrocket.
There was nothing in the empty hallway whatsoever.
"Where the hell is he?"
Suddenly there was the familiar sound of air collapsing. A soft thud followed the air, and out of the corner of his eye Kaos saw what looked like black smoke billowing around him.
Kaos spun round, pistol out. The armored hero dropped three of Kaos' men without a second's hesitation before vanishing again.
"He's playing games with us....spread out."
Kaos' men complied, leaving him and his bodyguard in the center of a small circle.
Kaos nose picked something up though. There was a distinct smelll of ozone in the air that permiated the entire room.
He looked up just in time to see a glowing red ball of lightning drop from the ceiling, slamming into a group of his men. Behind him the vanishing brawler had returned, and had begun antagonizing Kaos' right flank.
Suddenly from the wrecked airlock came two more figures. Kaos spun round to fire upon them, but before he could pull the trigger there was the familiar FUMP of a grenade launcher. A beanbag round hit him squrely in the chest and Kaos went airborne, slamming into a metal pipe a few feet away. The last thing he remembered before passing out was the sight of four heroes cutting down his men, before yelling out "all clear".
Upon landing, Cher'tak followed Sah'Teece's example and removed his helmet, albeit in a more controlled fashion. Neither Toy nor Solid had seen the Warmaster with his helmet off despite the amount of time the trio had spent in eachother's company fighting in the Rikti War Zone. It turned out Cher'tak looked just the same as any other Rikti, psychic signatures being the primary way the Rikti distinguished one another, except that he had a long, jagged scar stretching from just to the left of his chin, curving up in between his eyes, and terminating at the edge of the right corner of his head. Breathing in the air with apparent relish Cher'tak closed his eyes and seemed to relax for a moment.
He snapped back into readiness once Acid cried out, however, and quickly tugged his helmet back on. It was impossible for him to communicate to the others without it and it would be very bad if he was caught without any means of translation.
********************************************
"Friendly place," Solid remarked as everyone disembarked and he got his first good look at the Rikti homeworld. "Reminds me of Mars with air on crack."
"How did you get that out of this?" Toy Dispenser asked as he took a few steps away from the group to get a good scan of things. "It's more like a hospitable Venus than anything Mars related."
"As long as it's not toxic and has air to breathe," Solid countered as he unlimbered his rifle and started looking around. "So you two have any idea who ma-"
Solid was cut off by Acid's announcement as he smoothly adjusted from casual viewing to scanning for possible threats. Toy's bots started fanning out in a semi-circle between Toy and the direction Acid was facing while the mastermind himself assembled his pulse rifle and started scanning for scents.
"I thought you said no one was up here," Toy said to Sah'Teece and Cher'tak after a few seconds.
"Searching for corpses now," Small Toy said quietly as it faded from sight and moved forward.
OOC: Archlich when I've had sleep and some more time to contemplate the god angle.
Statesman said let there be heroes, and there were heroes.
Lord Recluse said let there be villains, and there were villains.
NCsoft said let there be nothing, and there was nothing.
Essex quietly trailed in the midst of the group, looking about in silent wonder at the alien world.
"...This is...this is certainly different than anything I've seen before..." she murmured in wonder, taking in the sights. "It's almost like a naturalized Earth with an ecosystem built entirely on the propogation of toxins instead of a hydrogen-based system."
At that moment she visibly started, as though remembering. "Oh yes, toxins..." she murmured. Glancing around at the group, the android frowned slighlty. "Everyone is breathing all right?" she checked, opening a small vent on her right buster arm to collect some of the air and analyze it for substances harmful to the organic body.
Japancakes.
Art - Theme 005 - Seeking Solace
--Rikti Earth--
"It takes a bit of effort, but it's not much different from the average toxin rate of our Earth's cities..." Cory answered, "In fact, this may be better than a lot of them. I may cough from time to time, but not to worry. I have an enchantment purifying my air as best as it can."
"I don't breathe," answered Ryat66, "Well, not in the traditional sense, but I don't require the oxygen and nitrogen blend that most carbon-based lifeforms... Wait, why am I explaining this? Of course you know that. I'm sorry."
Randall grumbled something, but it was unintelligible. It might not have even been words. He sounded like he was breathing perfectly fine, though.
My Stories
Look at that. A full-grown woman pulling off pigtails. Her crazy is off the charts.
"Don't let the colors fool you." Acid attempted to assuage the concerns of poisoning from the environment as he headed toward the platform's closest terminator, "If something around here was toxic, I would've at least sneezed by now."
"He is correct." Sah'Teece emphasized, having placed his helmet back upon his head as well, bladerifle at the ready, eyes scrutinizing everything as he trailed the reptilian with alert senses, "There are no more toxins present in our world than yours. Indeed, there may well be less. Not-human, what are you looking for?"
"Acid, if you please." the Khelari retorted, turning back to the group for a moment, "And I don't know yet. Something's really...guys, seriously. Don't. Go. Anywhere. I apologize if I'm unknowingly undermining someone's authority right now, but something's really wrong here. In fact, if this place wasn't such an opportunity for us, I'd already say we should just turn...oh, tarnation."
Acid silently cursed as he approached the column that supported the towering pillar of flame, damning his carelessness. Hadn't he said he'd think things through from now on? What had happened to that? Gone out the airlock again, huh? Of course.
"Here." he told Sah'Teece as the Rikti joined him at the wall of the column, pointing a clawed finger upon an inscription, the reptilian inspecting the work of stone and metal with interest, "What's this here say?"
"May these beacons of light serve to guide ships to safe landing in the harsh storm we have wrought - now and for all time." the Rikti read the age-old linguistics, followed by inquiring, "Why?"
"Because that's where the trail starts." the Khelari answered as he turned his sights on the viaduct that connected platform and plateau, "Or ends. Not sure which yet. It's so faint it's nearly gone. The rain's washed away so much I can barely tell it's even there, let alone what it is."
Depending on the sensitivity of Toy's sensors, the robotic mastermind might have found himself foiled completely by the nearly nonexistent concentration. Alternatively, however, he may well have picked up on stray molecules of iron oxide or fractured carbohydrate chains. Nevertheless, neither stood out in a respectable sense in the moisture-laden air.
"Guess we're headed this way." Acid informed the others as he pursued the faint scent back to the bridge, his eyes wandering to the monolith on the other side as well as the structure at the end of the short road. An entryway could be clearly made out, "I'm willing to grant this place everything, so watch out for and be suspicious of absolutely anything you see. Even the ground. Don't need any stupid Indiana Jones stones."
As he and any who followed proceeded across the bridge, however, it seemed more and more likely the reptilian had fallen victim to some manner of paranoia. Stable and secure, traversing the overpass couldn't even be described as uneventful.
"Set in stone a greeting for travelers." Sah'Teece read aloud the inscription upon the monolith upon being asked for its meaning, "Acid...I do not believe there is anyone here. I may not possess the capabilities of a Psi-Scout, but I sense no one."
Then again, that didn't necessarily mean anything. Sah'Teece's mental 'range' was limited, and the compilations of formerly sculpted rubble on both slopes to the sides of the road may have offered many a hiding place. Still, it looked more and more like the Rikti would keep right, as traversing the distance to the entryway would be just as uneventful as crossing the bridge...
--------------------
Acid let out a curt chuckle as he raised his clawed hands into the air, closing his eyes for a moment in a gesture of refusing conflict.
"Not trying to call you stupid or anything," he replied, taking a closer look at Sheldon as he proceeded to explain, "but no offense, I'm severely doubting that. In fact, I'm getting the feeling you've never been on a reasonably built starship before. Before you say anything, allow me to inform you there's six of those."
Bidding Wallace come with him, the reptilian continued to elaborate as the two set off down the corridor past the teleport bay, "I'm afraid real starships and most fictional ones have extremely little in common. Generally, there is no main reactor, exterior-mounted shield generator, FTL drive that goes down on the third shot, and the bridge doesn't start exploding because the shield got hit. Real ships are a lot more complex - you've got production stations for both drive and 'working' power, insulator junctions, field generators and emitters, and just generally a million or more pieces of stuff to ensure the ship can survive the hostile environment of space. And believe you me, that can be very hostile a times."
"I mean, even your species' rockets have so many parts it's not even funny." the Khelari brought up for comparison as he led the inventor away from the periphery, "Now then, this ship is a semi-standard discus, half-click diameter, maybe a hundred meters long, bow below us. Fairly straightforward. Six reactionless thrusters roughly at the midway perimeter, each with its own fusion reactor. Three more provide working power for the non-drive systems. In standard fashion, all systems are controlled from the bridge, or if the situation warrants it, from the fire control center."
"Were I to take you to one of the drive stations," Acid finished bringing Wallace up to speed on the workings of a ship designed with common sense in mind, "you'd be savagely wasting your time, as you could control only one engine from there. Of course, if you just want to see how the thing works, don't let me stand in your way..."
--------------------
Likely much to Matt's surprise, the motorcycle never even came close to the ferry. Instead, it tracked the Ferrari right back to the docks where the meeting Malta had surveilled had taken place.
From there, if McGinty pursued the same on, the vehicle would lead its rider a few blocks over and down a smooth gradient upon the beach. It seemed Matt had struck the jackpot - the tire tracks in the sand were even still fresh enough to follow without any sort of detection enhancement.
Nevertheless, actually doing so presented a rather significant problem.
The tracks led right into the water...
"If I had Force powers, vacuum or not my cape/clothes/hair would always be blowing in the Dramatic Wind." - Tenzhi
Characters
"I sense nothing myself." Ineffable said. "Although my range while solid is limited. If anybody would prefer it, I can give the general area a quick once-over."
--Peregrine Island--
"WAIT!" Matt shouted but the bike didn't heed.
It dove straight into the waves, following the "scent" angrily, despite the scrapper's protests and attempts to wrestle control back from the seemingly possessed vehicle. Faintly, he considered that perhaps the Archlich had been right...
...
Nah.
The bike didn't dive under the waves though. It stayed above water (somehow...) and continued following the trail. The vehicle was in pain, and it had an inkling as to the cause. It was going to deliver its passenger to that cause and let the Hero deal with it. Matt figured something to that effect, and decided to let the machine do its work. Whooping happily, he decided to encourage it.
Hovering over Peregrine Island, Ryat99 watched his compatriot's tribulations.
"I don't know if he's truly crazy or truly stupid," he rumbled, "I've never seen anybody just toss their cares to the wind so readily. I better keep an eye on him."
----------
--Jade Moon: the Rikti Ship--
Sheldon pulled off his shades and rubbed the bridge of his nose.
"This must be a failure to communicate," he grumbled, "or maybe we're lost in translation in some way. Look, Acid, I've helped reconstruct ships just like this. If you please, take me to whichever facility is giving you trouble, either to man or to get running, and I will take it from there. I know how the systems work, and please stop condescending."
He thought on that a second as he replaced his glasses on his face.
"Or maybe you're not condescending. I hate science fiction, and that's probably what's aggravating me right now, that you'd assume I watched it, pored over it and based much of my life around mastering every little nuance of it. I'm not a nerd, Acid. I'm a mad scientist. I have better things to do with my life. Namely, help you get this ship functioning to transport these troops to the planet surface."
He smoothed out his trench coat and sighed.
"I believe you mentioned that we currently lack shielding... If you'd like, I could take a look at what the problem or problems could be."
----------
--Rikti Earth: The Forgotten Sanctuary--
Randall grunted a little as Sah'Teece continued to translate.
"Sounds like this was an ancient landing pad," he rumbled, "You know, it's odd... It doesn't follow the way a lot of Rikti speak, but it does sound like a precursor to it."
"Like haiku," Ryat66 warbled, "the phrases are so poetic."
"Yes, but what did that first bit mean, I wonder?" Cortland whispered, "Harsh storm we have wrought? Is that a reference to some form of war? The first war we had with your world, or this current (somewhat limited) one? Certainly they didn't use this place as an assault platform..."
My Stories
Look at that. A full-grown woman pulling off pigtails. Her crazy is off the charts.
"Agreed." Sah'Teece gave a nod as he helped Lk'Onik off the floor again, the HVAS units already assuming standby position by the remains of the blast door that led into the ops center to further secure Vanguard's position, "The Lady Grey's patrols shall find them eventually. There is more important work to be done elsewhere."
"Accepted." the Psi-Scout returned to Sheldon's apology and conclusion, "We believe so as well. Come..."
--------------------
"Feh." Acid answered Solid with a thrown-aside glance as he let his arms down again. At least the sentient mechanoid hadn't called him Iguana or something. With a shake of his head, he went on to clarify, "I'm afraid it's not that simple. Even with good automation, a ship that size needs a minimum crew of thirty or so. Even then, it'd be severely undermanned - no navigation, no sensors, no weapons. We'd be flying blind and deaf, not to mention practically defenseless. The only reason I even got it off the ground is because a good friend taught me everything he knows about piloting."
"And considering I like to think of him as the very best, I dare say I'm not bad either." the reptilian added with a toothy smirk, connecting to the channel to give Toy a response, "No worries, that's just me. I've never held much regard for 'laws of physics' or some such nonsense. Apparently, my pet peeve is one place at one time. Go figure."
As if to prove this, Toy rematerialized before them in the characteristic aura of a Rikti teleportation field. Instead of Acid pulling him in 'manually', as the Khelari liked to call it, the discus ship had run up its machines and redirected the robotic mastermind here. Incidentally, Toy's arrival coincided with that of the Rikti and Wallace at the ops center's entryway.
"Manners?" Acid gave a chuckle in return to Ineffable, then turned to Essex for a moment as the others crossed the ops center, "No worries, you'll do fine. And that's an excellent question. May I have everyone's attention for a moment?"
"I'm setting up a connection from one of the Drop Ships right now." the reptilian went on to elaborate once he had thus, "It looks like they can only be boarded and left via teleport. At least I haven't found any doors. Either way, once everyone's back here, I'll just pull yalls up and then we're off, alright?"
Sah'teece was quick to consent, planting the staff of his bladerifle in warrior's manner to signify his readiness. Lk'Onik, however, seemed troubled. The cause: C'Kelkah's absence from their small network. By all accounts, she should've been awake by now. The Warmaster's stimulant didn't put that much strain on the body, after all. Something else had to have happened to her.
"I shall stay." the Psi-Scout informed aloud upon a short mental inquiry by Sah'Teece. He intended to get to the root of the scientist's condition - not to mention he'd be the best early warning system the Vanguard personnel could hope for right now. If the four 'odd ones', as he chose to call them, decided to enter the area near the Psi-Scout, he'd pick their thoughts up without any trouble at all.
Luckily for them, Lk'Onik wasn't a full-fledged telepath. At more than about a hundred meters, his mental abilities reached their limit. He had no idea where the mercenaries had stowed away, let alone grab hold of their plan, granting them a certain amount of safety. The facility was huge, and even with Vanguard patrolling their sector, there remained a great many places to disappear in.
"A gesture greatly appreciated." the Lady Grey gave him a terse smile for an answer, then supplemented her part to the briefing, basing herself partly upon Randall's question, the other half of which Acid had already come back with, "We will not make light of this. On the planet's surface, you will not have access to any equipment in this operations center, including the emergency medical recall systems. While the plan is to join you as soon as possible, We cannot guess at the time it will take for Our forces to either reconstruct the portal devices here or learn to fly that contraption up there. You may be on your own for quite some time."
"She's right, guys." the Khelari's staid expression only underscored this, "Nobody's going to think any less of you if you decide to stay here and wait until we can start shipping out in bulk."
"That being said," he ended, extending a clawed hand to where Toy stood, "Your mission, if you choose to accept it, is to step right over here so I can pull everyone up in one go..."
"If I had Force powers, vacuum or not my cape/clothes/hair would always be blowing in the Dramatic Wind." - Tenzhi
Characters