• Starpath: Scoundrels of the Interstellar Highway - Thread 2
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Amelia coughed, "Uh, it was Porter." Porter looks down to Amelia and crosses his arms.
[QUOTE]"Uh, it was Porter."[/QUOTE] Valk looked to Porter. "You sound like a bitch."
While everyone was harassing the local pirate mechanic, Moloch took the opportunity to pack up every single bit of his and Chemosh's belongings. He had them all in boxes near the hangar doors, neatly stacked and arranged, ready to go when his people came to retrieve them both.
[quote]"You sound like a bitch."[/quote] Porter was shocked. He couldn't believe Valk couldn't tell the difference between a tiny girl and a burly man. "Thanks," he mutters, "but I think your music might be detrimental to your hearing. You should listen to it at a lower volume." he advises.
[QUOTE]Thanks," he mutters, "but I think your music might be detrimental to your hearing. You should listen to it at a lower volume." he advises.[/QUOTE] "Nah, music is fine. And I know it was Amelia that yelled. I just said [I][B]you[/B][/I] sound like a bitch." responded Valk with a grin.
Porter doesn't respond with words, but rather a glare through his mask. Amelia puts her hand up to her mouth and chuckles like a smug little fuck.
Valk's grin faded to a smirk. "But all you SDF grunts sound the same to me, so eh. Anyway, I'm probably gonna take a break from this, since I've armored up most of the drones till Eve gets back." she finally said, standing up and taking her goggles off. She ran a hand through what hair she had left, then turned the torch and such off. "Any of you have a cigarette by any chance? I'm fuckin' dyin' here." she asked, looking back to them as she grabbed her jacket.
He stood in front of the mirror in his quarters. Hands on the sink, he took a good hard look at himself. [I]18 years ago[/I] He didnt swing right. He could never do that. Not in the way it was expected of him anyway. "Come on boy!" His father yelled. "Swing like that again and you wont be coming home, you'll be meeting the saint at the gates!" "But father, I..." a smack across the face sillenced the boy. "When we are here, I am not your father. I am your teacher, your instructor and your mentor. Understand?" The boy looked at him, fighting back any tears that were forming in his eyes. "Yes." "Yes what?" "...sir." --- Looking at himself, he noticed that he had neglected to look after his facial hair over the past week. Mind as well capitalize on the moment of quiet and fix himself up somewhat. [I]10 years ago[/I] "Lad. The capt'n wants to see ya!" Smeggley's voice could be heard on the doorway leading to the kitchen. "Dont worry, she aint mad." He laughed for a few seconds. "...Yet." He sighed. "Be right there." Passing by Smeggley, he looked at him in the eyes. "I counted how many stakes I have left. If I come back and even one is missing, I'm gutting your pork belly and serving the entrails to the captain and crew." "OI!" Smeggley's face contorted to one of anger."Who do ye think you are? Talking to me like that. I'm the fucken first mate ya wee cross-bearing pisser!" "I dont give two shits if you were the god-emperor of tits and ass! I'm sick of shit going missing every time your gravitational ass comes down here! I have to feed you ungratefull fuckers so keep your fat paws off the food unless you want your head served on a plate with your dick stuffed in your mouth!" Smeggley lifted his hands and blubered out an ok before waddling off somewhere else on the ship. The captain's quarters were as always in a dissaray. Bottles of booze rolled arround on the floor, clothes thrown arround the place and she still hadnt cleaned out the stain of unknown origin that had been there for weeks. She was sitting in her chair, feet kicked up on the desk. The captain of the Iron Shelaylegh wasnt the cleanest person, but she made up for it in keeping the crew motivated. "Captain? You wanted to see me?" "Aye. Tell me lad, how long have you been with us now? Two years since we picked you up from that port?" "Havent been keeping track, but arround that time." "Then tell me, why in the bleeding hell, did you not say you were related to a Creed commander?" "I dont know what..." The captain stabbed the desk with a dagger to interupt him. "Don't play stupid. I had a good look on that tattoo on your wrist. Whoever spawned you or had a hand in it, is important to the Creed and so are you." "So are you going ot turn me over, is that it?" "Pff, noo. Lad, you know I hate the Creed as much as the next person."She looked at him with a sinister grin and a laugh to go with it. "I'm going to do one better. I'm going to raid your home." Several days later, he was running. The air was filled with the stench of decay and the sounds of a battle. The blade he carried was blodied. The gun that was loaned to him was long gone, discarded due to the lack of ammo. He hurried as fast as he could, nearly tripping over boddies of fallen fanatics along the way. He had to find her. He wasn't going to abandon her. Not like he did before. It didn't take long for him to reach their home. The building had suffered a hit but it was still standing. If there was a god, he was praying to them now. Please let her be ok. ---- He observed his manscaping so far. After some though, he went for the full clean look. No moustache, no beard, no nothing. Just a clean face. [I]9 years ago[/I] "Ladies, gentelmen and bloodthirsty degenerates. Welcome to the most fun, exilarating, heart-pounding and shocking display of violance and brutality you will see all year. Welcome! To the Murder mellee!" The crowd cheered as Kras gave his opening to the show. "Now, to run down for those, who are new here. 50 contestants. First two will start the mellee. Every 3 minutes a new one will join the fight. This will go on untill we reach number 50. The winner is the last man, or woman, standing. Now to spice things up, every 10 contestants, a weapon will be dropped in the arena. What is that weapon? No idea!" He had them eating it up. "Winner of the match will recieve the chance to go one on one with out champion whenever they decide. But enough talking, you came here for blood and blood you shall recieve!" The crowd started chanting as the first two entered. He stood in place. Waiting for his turn to go. Lucky number 13. This wasnt his best idea to get money, but it was either this or going back to work for pirates. Maybe the pirate crew was the better obtion. "Nervous?" One of the other contestants asked."Don't be. Makes you die quick. HEHE" It was going to be a long fight. By the end of the night, he was the one standing. Knuckles blodied and bruised. Body covered in scars. A broken ribb or two. A mess, but most of all, alive! The owner of the establishment had climbed down to the arena to raise his hand. "What's you name, son?" "Alexander." "Eh, that wont do. Give me a second." The kanad grabbed his hand and lifted it up. "Your winner and possible future champion, Alexander the red!" The roar of the crowd sounded like it was going to tear the roof off. --- Alex had nearly finished shaving when the loud "Hello" from down the hall made him nearly cut himself. Probaly for the best. The trip down memory lane didn't exactly fill him with good thoughts. After washing up, he went out to see what all the comotion was about.
"Kill the scum!" Yelled the knight as he laid down covering fire from the heavy laser repeater in his hands. Around him his soldiers opened fire with their rifles. Dozens of laser shots left the small room at an incredible speed with the hope that it would be enough to kill the enemies outside. Suddenly several loud [i]clink[/i] sounds could be heard as a pair of thermobaric grenades rolled into the room. The knight looked down and ceased fire. "Curse the spawn of Sa-" Before he could finish the grenades detonated. The first thing that happened was that every inch of air inside the control room was turned into fuel, fuel for the explosion to come. Chemicals and metals inside the grenades mixed and in a matter of microseconds everything inside the room was struck by two shockwaves with enough strength to pulverize a vehicle. Both the knight and his crusaders had their sealed armor systems pop like balloons. Their suits turned against them as the metal plates crushed bone and flesh alike. It was a quick death which left behind nothing but smoldering metal piles in the rough shape of several Human bodies. As for the rest of the room all access ports and computer consoles were annihilated, leaving the reinforced door leading into the actual generator room sealed shut. --- SDF soldiers found themselves fighting off the Creed forces with surprisingly weak resistance, mostly because of the air support provided by the Upyri forces. However the battle was not over yet and as the Apostle hovertanks coupled with infantry formed defensive positions of their own several Goliath- and Idris-class walkers emerged on the horizon. Captain Smith gestured towards the walkers. "Those heavy walkers are gonna tear us apart if we don't get some heavy weapons here!" She turned to a sergeant next to her. "Get as many rocket launchers as you can, if we cripple those walkers the fighters above can knock them out of commission!"
The detonation of the thermobaric grenades created a thunderous racket, as well as a fireball that burst from the open doorway. Followed by silence from inside the building. "[Hostiles eliminated!]" said one Marine, as he peeked through the doorway. "[Alright. Bravo team, move in. Secure the room, and prepare a pair of secondary breaching charges. Those thermobarics probably fucked the electronics in there, so we're gonna have to break into the main room.]" said the Lieutenant, waving the Marines in. Bravo team proceeded inward, as Alpha team finished up their task outside. "[All Creed defenders on the exterior of the shield building have been eliminated. Regrouping and linking up with SDF forces.]" said the leader of Alpha, before gathering everyone up and proceeding back down to where the SDF crew were. Back at the shield building, the Marines plugged each of the Creed corpses with a railgun shot, before moving to the reinforced inner door. Two charges were planted on the door, both rather large and resembling a common anti-tank mine. Though these were a bit more sophisticated than a mine. "[BREACHING.]" shouted a Marine, before they took cover and detonated the charges. - - - - - - - - - "Defender One, this is Blue One. Be advised, debris from enemy capital ship arriving right on top of us in one minute. Seek cover." said the leader of the Upyri fighters overhead. Hundreds of meters above, chunks of the large Creed capital ship that had detonated in orbit fell rapidly. Approaching the area surrounding the shield dome. The larger chunks would crush whatever they hit, SDF or Creed.
As Valkyrie, Amelia and Porter talked to one another, János spotted Alex walking in their general direction. He waved at him as to not interrupt the conversation the others were having.
"Lord Beherit! You must see this!" shouted a sorcerer running down the halls and into Beherit's office. "A message from Moloch! It is urgent!" 'From Moloch?' thought Beherit. Neither he nor the individual he brought in have been heard from in quite a while, and to him, that was a good thing. "Show me." "Dagon, tell the others to prepare the Shaitan for liftoff. Lord Chemosh is with us once again. He is here alongside me, and he wishes to return home to his people as soon as possible. Do not keep him waiting." A crooked smile formed on his face as he read the message. The news of their folk hero Chemosh once again coming back from the dead will no doubt fill his people with hope. And on the plus side, it would mean he'd be able to get back to work on his plans again. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- [quote]Days ago...[/quote] It was a grueling journey to escape, from the operating room to her gunship, and with every step just as painful as the last. But, Hanai had finally made it off the ark ship. Seated back inside her gunship, she took off as fast as she could while ignoring a few other captives trying to flee as well. Looking outside to make sure no one was following her, she saw the ship full of those horrible monsters both cybernetic and organic go out in a massive explosion. She gave out a sigh of relief, but her problems were still far from over. Her limbs were still replaced with cybernetics, and she lost her crew and ship on Karbala. She lost everything... almost everything. She still had her father and her brother, also a fellow pirate, who could probably help her out. [quote]Now...[/quote] An Ayr was sprinting down the halls of a docked Blackstar pirate ship, trying to get to it's crew quarters as fast as he could. He had heard his sibling was coming to Rook's Nebula, and he didn't want to waste any time in visitng her. "Hanai?... Hanai, are you present?" he asked as he knocked rapidly on her cabin room door. "It's me! Ryoto! The High Captain sent me! She informed me of your arrival!" At the far end of the cabin, a pile of seka bottles and bags of supicious white powder started to heave around as Hanai mustered the ability to get up from bed and answer the door. As she shuffled around the dark and junk she had laying about on the floor, she found the door handle and opened it. The light from the outside brightened the interior of the cabin, making it easier for Ryoto just to see how trashy the entire cabin looked. More liquor bottles, empty packets that once held drugs, and various other forms of trash littered the place. In the center of it all was some outline that was as tall as he was, all bundled up in blankets with one eye peeking out and staring right back at him. Ryoto was shocked to see how filthy his sister's living conditions were. She wasn't the kind of person who would ever want to be caught living in such squalor. Wanting to understand how his sibling ended up in such a dirty room, he started scanning Hanai's memories, only for her to interrupt him. "No! D-Don't do it!" she stuttered out. "Hanai... [I]what happened?[/I]" he replied. "You were missing for several days, and we were all worried about you! We feared that you might have died... but what happened?... and why are you living like this?" The bundle of blankets took a seat on a nearby couch, and stared blankly into the ground. "... I'd rather not talk about it." Ryoto sat down next to his sister. "Hanai, i'm your brother. You can tell me anything. If it's something-... what the hell?!" As he placed his hand on his sister's wrist in order to comfort her, he felt something... cold. Something hard, something metallic. He reeled back his arm in disgust. It was not her armor, as pieces of it were scattered on the floor. "Was that your hand?!" Hanai started to turn away. "Don't look..." But he didn't listen. He pulled aside part of the blankets to reveal a shining cybernetic arm. Aghast that his sister has succumbed to the craze of cybnernetics, he tries saying something, but he can't bring himself to. "It's not what you think! I... I didn't..." It was then Ryoto tried scanning her memories once more, and this time Hanai allowed him to witness what she had been through on board the ark ship. The forced amputations and replacements, the horrifying monstrosities created by the Transentience Cult and having to run from them, but that wasn't all either. There was more. Before he could see it, however, Hanai stood up and took off the blankets she had wrapped herself with, showing her brother the full extent of the TSC's work. "It hurts to move, Ryoto. I haven't been able to sleep because of the pain..." She started to weep as her brother moved in to hug her. After a few moments of Ryoto trying to console his sister, he spoke up again. "But... your crew? Were they abducted by them as well?" "...No." she responded. "Worse..." She took a moment to gather her thoughts, as well as to take a deep breath. "We went to the pit. I-I wanted to see if I could find it there..." "...Did you?" "I found something horrible... these people that were on the planet, they shot us down... they took me and my crew captive." Hanai was starting to shake a bit, uncomfortable and unwilling to continue telling her story. "What happened to them?" he nervously asked. "Wh-what do you think happened?! What the hell do you [I]THINK[/I] happened!?" She snapped and grabbed her brother by the shoulders. "They killed [I][B]EVERYONE!![/B][/I] They dragged us out onto a street and tossed [I]severed heads[/I] and [I]limbs[/I] at us! They forced us onto a slab and they [B]butchered[/B] and [B]gutted[/B] my crew like [I][B]FUCKING PIGS!!![/B][/I]" Beginning to weep once again, she let go of him and tried sitting back down. "Th-they threw me into a cage, and they started beating me... all I could do is hear my crew scream until I passed out." Ryoto wasted no time in hugging his sister. He couldn't believe this happened to her. What she went through on Karbala and what the TSC had done to her has left some very hefty scars not only on her body, but in her mind as well. He wanted If only she knew CoG did not forget about her... ---------------------------------- [quote]Meanwhile, only several hundred meters away...[/quote] "[...and she will [I]BEG [/I]for [I][B]DEATH [/B][/I]if I discover she had told anyone!]" gesticulated a pirate, walking down the hall with his three friends. "[Quiet, you!]" said another, next to him. "[Our mission is very simple. We find her, and we terminate her. There is absolutely no need for this to turn into a federal operation!]" "[Feh! I will desecrate her carcass then!]" came the response. "[Calm yourself! He's very right, you know. The more we delay our time here taking turns trying to make her feel pain, the more of a chance we have at being discovered. It's best if we just shoot her and be done with it.]" said one that was dressed very archaically. The group of pirates soon arrived at a gate that led deeper into the station. In full view in front of them was a land of pure vice. Brothels, bars, and other locations of decadence made their trigger fingers start itching. How they wished they could just open fire on everyone and everything. But, they knew not to as they passed several hanging corpses on their way in, one of which had a sign nailed to it which read 'SOL RATS, YOU BE WARNED!'. They undertood just how cautious they had to be, lest they end up like that. "[Well now, here we are! Ramman, you know what to do, yes?"] said the leader of the group, towards the archaic looking one. "[Of course, Amon. May God guard you, my friend.]" said Ramman as he went his own path away from the group. "[Same to you.]" The leader of the group turned to the other two still with him. "[Now, are your weapons primed?]" "[Yes.]" responded both. "[Equipment checked?]" "[Yes.]" "[And prayers completed?]" "[Yes!]" "[Excellent! Now...]" [t]http://orig14.deviantart.net/5360/f/2017/121/6/7/qudspirates3_by_ftfacepunch-db7t2zy.png[/t] "[[I]Let the hunt begin.[/I]]"
"Catch me up to speed. I've been...busy."
János retells what Valkyrie told him earlier to Alex, along with explaining what is happening right now.
As the door stopped existing the Upyri marines were met with the pulsating blue light of a large genertaor shielded behind a thick layer of transparent metal alloys. It was simple construction, obviously not meant to survive military force. A small console was positioned infront of it however it appeared to be out of order, if the Creed vibrosword lodged into the console itself was anything to go by. Above the console was a screen showing generator temperature and shield integrity. It was now up to the marines to decide the next course of action. --- Smith ducked as one of the Goliath walkers bombarded her position with heavy laser fire. She gritted her teeth. "Sergeant! Tell the Upyri pilots to knock down thos walkers ASAP! We're sitting ducks!" Over the comms the sergeants voice came to life. [i]"Yes captain!"[/i] She glanced upwards and spotted the debris from an enemy ship begin its slow descent towards the surface. "We need to get inside that shield and fast." She mumbled to herself. --- Captain Marshall observed the many screens on the bridge which included combat reports, planetary scans and even displays showing the rough number of hostiles currently engaging the SDF forces on the ground. He glared at one of the screens which showed a full planetary scan with points of interests marked in blue. He turned around, walked up to his chair and made sure that the comms line with Vedok was muted. "Tactical, have we located the SSOID objective yet?" "Yes captain. A small team was dispatched to the coordinates provided by the director. The Fists of Sol had turned it into a crater." Marshall nodded. "Comms, prepare a long-range transmission. Encryption program Zeta. Tell Zhaneys that we're almost done here on Gargas. Make sure to pass on a note thanking director Williams as well." He chuckled. "Would've been awkward if he had jumped in before the Upyri fleet."
It was late evening at Vostokrebh, an inhospitable concrete leviathan which seemed to take up an entire valley, with roadways, barracks, warehouses and pillboxes slashing and dotting the landscape like a Pollock painting. In the center, four large and nondescript industrial buildings rose menacingly over the landscape, casting their shadows over hundreds of soldiers and dockworkers. The pad crews were hard at work plowing the landing pads free of snow, keeping them ready for arriving and departing ships. Off to the side, the great repair platforms were currently hosing a handful of kanad ships in various states of wear and repair, with one especially battered frigate in the priority slot, closest to one of the hulking buildings at the center. It was the Viokhmar, which had limped itself in humiliating fashion into the port the previous day. On closer inspection, however, the base was more lively than one would expect. Unlike the UGC forces in the eastern border zone, whose trench coats were grey and saturated with mud and grime, the soldiers at Vostokrebh were wearing icy blue winter coats with high-visibility orange jackets on top, clearly more concerned for their own safety in the harsh conditions than they were for any sort of camouflage. It made good sense, considering that the UGC was not officially fighting any war on Rigel, despite numerous small-scale clashes and confrontations with the locals. The Viokhmar, for example, was raided by bandits during its brief stranding in the wilderness, and still bore the graffiti tags to prove it. Down in an open yard between an office and an indoor shooting range, some of the crew from the weary frigate had taken up a game of soccer against the base residents, white and red versus blue and orange. Others sought medical or psychological attention at the hospital close to the landing pads, where the Kaksyna had just arrived for service. Blackjackets were gathered in tight bunches like murders of crows, avoiding interaction with those outside the know. It was much like a small city, complete with districts and subcultures, all completely alien to the khergians who owned the world around it. Vixe stepped out of the base hospital and aimlessly shuffled over to the railing which overlooked the landing pads. She didn't feel like returning to the Viokhmar while it was in such ruined shape, especially with the shame of what had happened two days earlier. It was her fault that Commander Ryakir was dead and she wasn't; had she simply been honest about being forced to release the bandit Terika, the Orikodzek could've obliterated the Aurikha and all of its crew. And even if it hadn't, and even if things had progressed exactly how they would have otherwise, at least Vixe wouldn't be stuck with the survivor's guilt. The whole incident had landed her in the psyche ward for a thorough evaluation as the authorities tried to determine whether she should be held responsible for letting the enemy escape. "[Captain.]" Vixe was startled; the voice had come from a GKVR officer that had seemingly appeared out of nowhere. Her cap was pulled down hard so that her eyes were difficult to see, but Vixe could read the deep malice resonating from the stranger's gaze. A chill went through her; Vixe knew she had a bad temper and that weaker souls like Kovar had been intimidated on occasion, but her anger was hot... the blackjacket's aura of cruelty was freezing cold. The kind of cruelty that could destroy someone without a hint of motivation. "[Yes?]" "[I need a vehicle. Tell me where the motor pool is.]" Her words were flat and devoid of consideration. It wasn't a question, it was an order, and Vixe couldn't comply because she didn't know where the motor pool was. She was afraid to answer honestly. "[I, uh, I don't...]" "[I see. You're with the Viokhmar. You just arrived. You saw her then. Tell me about her.]" Vixe swallowed nervously. It was as if the world around her had faded into night and all that was left was herself and this... ghoul, standing in a spotlight. [I]What is she talking about?[/I] It took a moment for Vixe to process that the officer was asking about Terika. "[...she crept up on me in the snowdrift and held me at gunpoint. I didn't see her coming.]" The officer smiled as if Vixe had just said something funny. She cautiously continued. "[She was paranoid, but not beyond reason... she seemed offended at the way she appears in the media. I think she wanted to prove something by releasing me, especially since we had her lover to exchange for my life-]" "[Her lover?]" the officer snapped. "[She called him 'irreplaceable.']" The blackjacket's expression changed, briefly, her eyes darting to the ground for a moment while she thought about something. Finally released from the intensity of her gaze, Vixe realized how much her interrogator actually [I]looked like Yanim,[/I] although she sounded quite different, with a far less nasally voice. "[His name?]" she demanded even more fiercely than before. "[I don't know,]" Vixe said, her back straightened. "[He was a kanad, and had orange hair and eyes...]" "[I]Zhuka.[/I]" the officer spat, appearing disgusted. [I]Nonsense.[/I] "[And so she spared you, for [I]him?[/I]]" Vixe nodded. "Hyeh heh heh. [Imagine that... Alright captain, I need you to come with me to the motor pool.]" Vixe shook her head, genuinely terrified. "[But, but I can't- my commission is under review and they've ordered me to stay-]" "[Unless those orders came from Bureau III, I don't give a shit. Do as you're told.]" "...Yakka." The two kanads walked in silence down to the roadway which stretched along the side of the landing pads. Several large trucks had positioned themselves near the cargo hatch of the Kaksyna and dockworkers were now unloading the luggage of those who had used the ship as transportation, as opposed to the permanent crew, and placing them inside the trucks. The blackjacket walked up to the ahra-phi who appeared to be in charge of the team and addressed him, demanding her own trunk be set aside. "[Your name?]" the dockworker inquired. "[Lieutenant Damya Sidikan.]" "[Nothing yet,]" he replied, indicating that the barcode-style label on the trunk hadn't yet been scanned. "[Wait here; we'll find it.]" The workers continued to unload trunk after trunk as a flurry of other activity took place around them. Various shuttles and other craft circled overhead, waiting for their turn to land and refuel before the day's activities ended. Curiously, a single pad nearby was prepared, but nothing was cleared to land there until an unmarked shuttle touched down. Vixe, trying to avoid staring at the blackjacket who was currently leading her around, watched as the crew disembarked from the rear of the craft and cursed under her breath as she realized they were all GKVR. [I]Really?[/I] She thought. There was a thump as a heavy trunk hit the ground nearby. Vixe turned around and watched as Damya knelt and undid the clasps holding it closed, flipping the lid open to reveal something Vixe could only assume was a torture device. She only caught a glimpse before Damya slammed the lid shut again, but what she saw was a terrible mixture of blades, tubes, and electronic wiring harnesses. "[Nothing's been touched...]" the blackjacket said. "[What was that?]" Vixe asked, unable to control herself. The officer looked at her and merely smiled. "[I'll show you later,]" she replied, and Vixe regretted saying anything. Damya turned to the roadway and spotted a passing truck, and motioned for the driver to pull over. While she worked out the specifics for a ride to the motor pool, Vixe turned again to the blackjackets that had just departed the shuttle. One of them had removed his helmet, and the two locked eyes. "Ryvik!?" Vixe shouted with a smile. Ryvik, who had spent the last two days in isolation and emotional grief, was overjoyed to see a face he recognized among the fleet. "Vixe!" he said with a huge wave of his arm. Vixe nearly ran to him when she remembered her current predicament. Damya, meanwhile, had taken one look at Ryvik before hurriedly loading her trunk of horrors into the bed. "[I've changed my mind, captain. I won't be needing you after all,]" Damya said as she circled around to the cab. "[Not for now, at least...]" She slammed the door shut and instructed the human driver to pull away. Vixe was left standing in confusion as Ryvik approached. "[I haven't seen you since I was a cadet!]" he mused, checking out Vixe's uniform. "[You're a captain, now? Wow, that's...]" "[You came just in time,]" Vixe said, shaking her head. "[That woman was about to take me somewhere I don't think I want to go.]" "[Huh? Who..?]" he asked, staring down the long road at the now-distant truck. "[She was GKVR, right? Who was she?]" "['Damya Sidikan...' she's apparently a lieutenant, do you know her?]" "[I don't think so. Is everything alright?]" Vixe nodded, but her face showed confusion and worry. After a moment, she reconsidered. "[No, actually, it's not okay. I've been through a lot these last few weeks.]" Vixe quickly recounted her experience on Voyak and along the front, her reassignment to the Viokhmar, crossing paths with Terika-Belladonna twice, the death of Ryakir, and the possibility of her dismissal. Ryvik stood by, listening carefully, especially after the mention of TBC, and asked thoughtful questions. Vixe finished her story by explaining the unnerving encounter with "Damya." "[And now you're a blackjacket?]" she asked, somewhat disappointed in Ryvik's career choice. Ryvik and Vixe had known each other at the State Naval College on kanadys as members of different class years. While Ryvik was a fresh, unpolished cadet with a recently-abandoned dream to become an artist (and associated depressive episodes), Vixe was a member of the College's Honor Guard, a ceremonial position reserved for only the most proficient students. Becoming a high-ranking officer of the batakya was her life's goal. During field training exercises, Ryvik was often placed within the squad commanded by Vixe as a "grunt" while the latter issued orders, and the two became quick friends until Vixe graduated. She had hoped Ryvik would follow her into the Black Fleet, but apparently, circumstances had dictated otherwise. Ryvik nodded. "[Yeah, I never graduated... General Vorokar came for me one day and brought me in.]" "[Why?]" Vixe asked, obliviously. "[...Because he knew that I knew my sister better than anyone,]" Ryvik answered, sounding bitter. Vixe still looked lost. "[Yanim,]" he clarified. It took a moment for Vixe to finally put two and two together. She vaguely remembered Ryvik talking about his sister, Yanim, during their earlier friendship, but at the time, there was nothing to indicate anything special about her- just an offworlder working as an engineer somewhere. What was this about? And then she realized- Yanim Terika was a Sidikan. The Bloody Fox and Ryvik's sister were the same person. She went wide eyed, apologizing profusely. "[I had no idea, Ryvik. There are so many girls named Yanim, you know...]" "[It's fine,]" he replied with a shrug. "[She doesn't mean anything to me anymore. I'm going to find her and bring her in, no matter what it takes. I might have to kill her, but that's okay,]" he said, sounding more as if he were speaking to himself than to Vixe. "We have a war to fight and the amount of subversion going on is unacceptable. I'm already planning on forming a task force on Spirra, where I was-]" "[Wait, do you actually want to stay with the GKVR?]" she asked, shocked. Ryvik smiled with a strange tranquility. "[There's no greater service to the Collective,]" he said, and Vixe's heart sank as she could tell that Ryvik saw his own cause as worth dying for. But from her brief interaction, she could immediately tell that Damya was evil while Ryvik was not. Ryvik was merely determined to carry out his work, even if it skirted the boundaries of moral conduct. The ends would justify the means... But Damya clearly enjoyed the means. The contents of her trunk told the story. Ryvik told the remainder of his own story as the two meandered around the base, eventually returning to the shuttle so that Ryvik could collect the remainder of his belongings. The other blackjackets were generally cold and unfriendly, but none more so than the team's medic, who seemed to take issue with Vixe interacting with Ryvik at all. Finally, an armored vehicle arrived to pick up the blackjackets and take them to their mission, which Ryvik refused to reveal to her. "[Surprise is everything,]" he insisted. "[Lots of people could be in a lot of danger if I were to tell you what we're planning.]" But the two said their goodbyes and Vixe made sure that Ryvik had her contact information, which he dutifully took down in his notebook. The APC drove away, once again leaving her alone on the landing pad, all except for the medic. "[You aren't going with them?]" Vixe asked. "[No,]" the medic answered flatly. Vixe stared for a moment. "[You should mind your own business, captain.]" "[Lieutenant Ryvik and I are old friends, doctor. I know it's hard for a blackjacket to understand what [I]friends[/I] are-]" The medic interrupted her with a sneer. "[That's not the friend you knew. And he won't be calling you when the mission is over, I can promise you that.]" Vixe paused for a moment, wondering what the medic was implying. [I]A suicide mission? Or is she trying to say that Ryvik isn't the same as he was at the College?[/I] Vixe knew the second part was true, but also knew that it didn't make much of a difference. Ryvik cared a lot more about the state and about the obedience of its citizens, but other than that, he was still approachable to a certain extent. She crossed her arms. "[He seems the same to me,]" she finally answered. "[In that case, I did my job. Now fuck off.]" Vixe was shocked, but held her tongue. It wasn't smart to get into any sort of fight, verbal or otherwise, with a GKVR officer. She took note of her name, however: Marinaya Rozel. Another lieutenant. But once the sting of the insult had washed away, the meaning behind it was suddenly clear. [I]He's a clone![/I] she thought to herself, spinning around to watch the APC depart. A wave of sadness washed over her. The Collective rarely used clones, but when it did, the clone was generally regarded as totally disposable. This "fake" Ryvik would be a perfect copy, complete with memories, hopes, and dreams that all meant precisely nothing. Whatever he was about to be subjected to, it was either too dangerous or too traumatizing to inflict upon the real Ryvik Sidikan. The clone obviously didn't know a thing, either, and even if he survived his task, he'd be destined to be disposed of. While Marinaya went about her business as if nothing was out of the ordinary, Vixe took a long walk and thought about the world. She hated the GKVR. She was beginning to hate the Collective, too. --- [video=youtube;eRb9oOhUOoE]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eRb9oOhUOoE[/video] [B]February 9th[/B] It was 10AM, the time the General and his protege had agreed upon to discuss the task ahead. Ryvik, still feeling sick from his mysterious illness, stepped into the dark, hologram-laden room and found a seat in the special section reserved for the GKVR, one of the features unique to the batakya's "strike craft." Vorokar, standing near the helm of the ship with the captain, turned around and with a polite nod, exited the conversation he had been having and seated himself with the young lieutenant. "[My boy, I hope you're doing better. We have quite a task ahead of us,]" he began, placing his tablet on a sensitive surface of the console before them. Data transferred from the device onto the holoscreen. A 3D map, displaying the topography and development of Rigel's surface, displayed several points of interest. "[I feel uneasy. I think you should know-]" "[All the same,]" Vorokar quickly interrupted, "[I'm sorry if I sound unconcerned because that's not my intent, but we have a job that we can't delay. I've already arranged for the medic to accompany you on your flight to the surface.]" Ryvik nodded. "[I understand.]" "[Then we can proceed...]" Vorokar said, using the hologram to identify the location of the previous day's battle, overlaying it with the Orikodzek and Viokhmar crews' reports of the Aurikha's movements, Stalnazyp and its connection to Iska Volgrim (a figure Ryvik was quite familiar with), and Ryvik's temporary base of operations, at Vostokrebh. The plan was elaborate, having multiple contingencies and plans for the TBC crew's evasiveness and creative thinking. The two men were confident that as long as TBC hadn't yet departed the planet by the time the trap was in place, that their plan would ultimately succeed. There was only one problem. Vorokar smiled with a hint of sadness. "[Ryvik, my boy, it's been a long road getting here, and you've made me very, very proud of your progress and development. One day you will be standing in my shoes, and I hope you'll be able to look back upon your work and be as proud as I am today. For that reason, I want to hide nothing from you. I want you to be in complete control of your destiny.]" "[Sir?]" "[If this mission fails, there exists an entire backup plan, which I'm sure you'll agree is nothing any of us wants to see come to fruition. You see, this can end in one of three ways. The first way is to simply accomplish your mission. The second way is through the use of our backup plan... the Perikal is equipped with cluster-tipped nuclear warheads, the same type which destroyed the Librarian. Should our plan fail, and Yanim is still on the planet, then we are prepared to wipe Stalazyp or any other safe haven she can find completely off the map. The Perikal is undetectable... it would be an atrocity beyond reason to the international community, but one which the Collective will not only disavow, but will blame on your sister as yet another act of terror. And if she somehow escapes, we'll follow her wherever she goes and destroy that, too. Sooner or later, she will be killed, she will be betrayed by those around her with a conscience, or she will take her own life out of grief. "[And... and the third way?]" Ryvik asked, turning pale with horror. "[We have specially modified your armor to include a miniature nuclear device as well. It's not enough to destroy a city, mind you, but it's enough that if you are within line of sight of your sister, if you're close enough to communicate, it would be enough to obliterate her. "[Should our plan fail,]" Vorokar continued, "[I want you to know that you have this option. If Yanim refuses to surrender, if she seems like she'll escape again, you can detonate the device and end this struggle before the Perikal is forced to use its payload. You'd be single-handedly responsible for saving thousands, possibly millions of lives, and you would ensure the continued, iron-clad dominance of the law in our peoples' domains. There's no greater service to the Collective.]" Ryvik's jaw dropped as he searched for words. He forced himself to remember the certainty he had felt about their plan and tried to reassure himself that there was no possibility of such a terrible retribution occurring, or of the ultimate sacrifice to avert it. "[And if... I could... if I could tell her what will happen if she doesn't surrender, then maybe it would be easier-]" "[Maybe. But remember what she is capable of. Remember that any offer to surrender could merely be a ploy to buy time. And if she knows what sort of attack will come, not only will she be better equipped to evade it, but she might be able to expose us, or somehow turn the strike against us. You know, from the reports, the sort of hackers she employs-]" "[Yes, I know sir, but... fuck.]" He fell back into his seat and looked at the ceiling of the bridge. He was breathing heavily, nearly hyperventilating. "[We can't really resort to... [I]this...[/I]]" "[We are doing far more in our efforts against the sanghvi. We evacuated a whole damned planet, boy! There are some things which matter more than the lives of a few thousand khergians or other sub-kanad scum out there, namely: the continued survival of the Collective state. If we can't bring Yanim Sidikan to justice through conventional means and we're unwilling to face her threat without all options on the table, then what hope do we have against the Mantle? We cannot surrender this battle and expect to win the war. And you know,]" Vorokar continued, breathlessly, "[that they know who she is, and what her followers have done. They know what they're harboring. While the galaxy will recoil at the sight of the slaughtered thousands, we'll know [I]the truth:[/I] that those who aided and sheltered one of the galaxy's top terrorists were destroyed for their own foolish ways.]" "[...Justice,]" Ryvik remarked, his mind fried by the horror. Deep within, he knew that this was not justice, but rather iron-fisted brutality. But he was helpless. There was nothing he could do if he turned back now, in fact, if he were to not proceed, then the mission would likely fail in his absence, and the bombs would fall regardless. "[Yes! You understand, delightful!] Vorokar roared, pulling Ryvik off his seat and embracing him. "[So you know the full truth of this operation. You know that what we are doing is fully just, and that you are fully responsible for your destiny. I'm certain, then, that you will know what to do when the time comes.]" "[I can't fail,]" Ryvik weakly replied, and he meant it. Either he would bring his sister down, or he would die trying. There was no chance that he would allow hundreds of thousands of innocents perish in a nuclear holocaust all to protect the Collective's authority. It was too much to bear, and so he sustained himself with reassurance that their main plan would work. --- The transition from general anarchy and small projects into a coordinated job wouldn't be an easy one, and Mattheus knew he was going to have to get it right on the first try, not just for his personal honor as an engineer, but for the sake of not getting wiped out by another ambush. CH Estimate: 1/4 x 2(Resourcefulness) = 1/2 [B]Actual: 2[/B] Roll Passed. Luckily, the intense studying and training, along with some good familiarity with the Aurikha's design, got him off on the right foot. Most critically, the SULP engineers, while not taken by Mattheus's charisma, had at least acknowledged his authority on the project and were willing to take orders from the relatively low-key figure. --- The Cataract was ready for departure. Owen and Ravis took their seats on the medical corvette's bridge and prepared for takeoff. --- Yanim and Arkadam walked around Stalnazyp cautiously, fearful that they would be mistaken for Collectivists. Most shop owners refused to speak with them, but some recognized Yanim as a notable criminal and enemy to the Black Fleet. Finally, they approached a salvage yard and peered through the chain link fence at the massive piles of scrap. The junk was categorized into dozens of categories which were readily identifiable. There were appliances, building materials, trucks, industrial machines... and motorcycles. Hundreds of them, in every imaginable state- some stripped to bare frames, while others appeared almost ready for immediate use. Yanim grinned. There was nowhere else in the world that she'd rather be.
As Yanim and Arkadam looked at the salvage yard a [url=https://vignette3.wikia.nocookie.net/starpath/images/b/b8/Ira_MRAP.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20170504185149]large grey military-styled rover[/url] drove up to the couple and stopped. As the engine turned silent the driver's door was opened. Iron jumped out and landed on his feet in the snow. The bounty hunter waved in a friendly manner before turning to close the door. He then walked up to Yanim. "Thinking of getting a bike, boss?" Meanwhile Karl, the most recent addition to the crew, pulled up next to Iron's massive rover in his [url=https://vignette3.wikia.nocookie.net/starpath/images/c/c0/Karl_Skiff.jpg/revision/latest?cb=20170115184550]custom skiff[/url]. Karl parked his skiff neatly and joined the others. "Ms. Terika." He said, nodding. "Arkadam." He nodded once more. Having only met Yanim and Arkadam the day before (after recovering from his hangover) Karl had managed to get him a simple deal. In return for giving him a temporary room and parking slot for his skiff onboard the Aurikha (or any other ship Yanim commanded over) he had offered a generous amount of credits to help TBC financially. Karl looked at the bikes and then back to Iron's rover. "You don't like a good bike Iron?" Iron grunted. "I used to. When I was younger I had my own." "My love for bikes got ruined when one of my more persistent bounties used a bike of his own to make my life miserable." He smiled underneath his mask. "The same bounty taught me that large, wheeled, armored vehicles make for excellent weapons against nutjobs on hoverbikes." Karl chuckled and shook his head.
Out of the other side of the large rover came Taylor, followed by Valk climbing out of the back. A junkyard? Taylor strolled around the side of the rover and stepped up next to the fence. "Helluva lot of bikes." she muttered. Valk stepped up next to her, a cigarette jutting from her mouth. She had finally managed to get one, after Eve had returned with what she had asked for. Valk grinned at the sight of the salvage and junk, eyeing the bikes especially. This was practically an engineer's wonderland. "We're getting bikes, eh?" she said, looking over to Yanim and Arkadam. She had already spotted the one she wanted. An [URL="http://puu.sh/vHFPI/aa7f4e4d70.jpg"]old hoverbike[/URL] that looked more like it belonged in a museum than anything.
"If all goes well," Yanim said to Iron, "all we'll need is speed. No armor is necessary if the enemy does not catch you, no?" Arkadam chuckled. "I guarantee you, all will [I]not[/I] go well. It never does." "Well it's not like we can buy a tank-" Somewhere from within the lot, the sound of a cutting tool against metal suddenly stopped as the operator apparently had noticed the visitors talking. "[Wait there a moment; I'll be down in a moment," a voice called out from somewhere inside a stripped-down bus which had obviously been brought from another planet. Yanim turned to Valkyrie in the meantime, pointing at some of the old and industrial-looking [url=https://cdnb.artstation.com/p/assets/images/images/002/187/511/large/esbjorn-nord-esbjornnord-hovermotorcykle-1.jpg]Komet FE-26s[/url] arranged in a line near the edge of the property. Valkyrie immediately recognized the design; Komets were among the first human-built products to gain a large market presence in eastern space, with some making it as far as the satellite planets of the Collective. Known for their rugged and reliable compact sodium-nuclear turbines, Komets were known for their long, long, ridiculously long service life. With proper maintenance, some were said to break the 2 million kilometer mark. Still, they were quite heavy and slow, and contained almost no useful electronics. "Domova!" the voice yelled in rage. "Not welcome here! Go away!" Yanim and Arkadam turned to find themselves face to face with a khergian [I]child[/I] on the opposite side of the fence, who, annoyingly, was roughly their own height and probably much stronger than either of them. The cutting tool still hung from the boy's arm, heavy enough that it would make a decent weapon in a fight. While Yanim merely stood her ground, quietly, Arkadam turned to the others and motioned with his hands in a [I]do something[/I] manner.
Iron stepped forward. "[Greetings Master Engineer. Forgive us for intruding but we wish to do business with you.]" Said the bounty hunter in near-perfect khergian. He kneeled and nodded towards the distance. "[We are friends of Clan Volgrim. Iska herself spoke very highly of you and the treasures which may be found here. Was she wrong?]"
The khergian flashed his teeth and grabbed the cutter with both hands, "[You think I'll just believe any off worlder who comes here?! You got goblins with you, cocksucker, and you ain't coming in with them.]" He started the cutter briefly, making a jabbing gesture towards Iron, "[You spoke to Glavniy, eh? You got any proof, outsider?]"
Iron glared at the child. "[How about I put you ten meters into the ground you angsty dwarf.]" He tilted his head. "[Incase you didn't notice we don't exactly look like the average jackboot thug from the Black Fleet.]" Iron gestured towards Yanim. "[This is Yanim Terika, your best fucking hope of ever seeing the Collective ditch this rock for good.]"
"[How about I cut you a few feet shorter so we can fight on the same level?]" he snarled, brandishing his cutter yet again. He glanced towards Yanim and then back to Iron, "[If she is as high and mighty as you say, maybe she can speak for herself, no?]"
"Iron, don't piss the kid off, alright?" said Taylor, with a sigh. Meanwhile, Valk was chuckling. "Fucker's gonna get his ass shanked by a kid with a knife." she said, exhaling a puff of smoke from the cigarette. "I like his style."
Iron grunted and stood up. He glanced at Taylor briefly before looking back. "It's not good to beat up kids anyway." Karl meanwhile simply chuckled. "Khergians are a very interesting people driven by their emotions. They don't take bullshit either." He coughed slightly as the smoke from Valk's cigarette hit him in the face. [i]"Nej, fy fan."[/i] He said, cursing in his native language.
Uninterested in anything further Iron had to say, and more interested in Valks cigarettes, he changed his focus over to her. "You. Have smoke?" he asked, making a smoking gesture with his free hand.
[QUOTE]"You. Have smoke?" he asked, making a smoking gesture with his free hand.[/QUOTE] Valk smirked a bit, then pulled the pack of cigarettes from her jacket. She knocked two out of the small plastic pouch, then stepped over to hand them to the kid. One for now, one for later. "Need a light?" she asked, swapping the cigarette in her mouth around to the other side with her tongue.
The kid took the two cigarettes and put one behind his ear and one in his mouth. Not bothered by valks offering of a light, he picked up a small welder that was hanging from his belt and lit the cigarette with it. He took a drag, not really impressed by weaker cigarettes more suitable for humans, but beggars cant be choosers so he shrugged and then looked at Valkyrie, "You here. Domova with you. What you want?" he asked in a more friendly but still suspicious tone as he eyed Yanim and Arkadam.
Amy climbed out of the rover, her brother close behind. They looked arround the scrapyard while the others were busy arguing. A [URL="http://i.imgur.com/BAC4xlh.png"]HB-45[/URL] caught her eye. It was in relatevly good shape by the looks of it. Maybe one of the engineers could take a look at it. "What do you think of that one over there?" "Dunno. Not a bike guy. Hate the fucking things." "Since when?" "Fighting a biker gang on Duroma doesnt leave you with good impresions. Still have the chain scars." "Not all bikes, Alex." She said with a mocking tone. "You're one to talk miss I dont want to be in a truck ever again." He snapped back. "Point taken. Lets go to the others, huh?"
[QUOTE]"You here. Domova with you. What you want?" he asked in a more friendly but still suspicious tone as he eyed Yanim and Arkadam.[/QUOTE] "Well, lookin' to buy some bikes." said Valk, motioning towards the various hoverbikes and motorcycles on the other side of the fence. She propped her shoulder against one of the fence posts, then glanced over to Yanim and Arkadam. "They're friendly. Killed a bunch of those Black Fleet fuckheads just outside of town. As for the big armored guy, I can't really excuse him. He's just a fucking dumbass." she said, chuckling as she spoke of Iron.
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