**Finnegan's Trade House**

Alik simply stared at the Draconian pointing a weapon at him. What could it do. Upon being pushed aside by the bouncer, Alik sank deeper into the crew, intent on analyzing the situation. Hands moved discreetly, hidden from the Draconians by the mass of people. Such was his concentration that he did not hear the sound of the rifle go off or the subsequent detonation of the man's arms. Blood spattered his robes and face: he ignored the distractions, unaware of the commotion around him. Finishing his weaving, he muttered a word before running one of his hands over his face. A golden shimmer rippled down his body, encasing his body for an instant before disappearing. Drawing a small knife, he stabbed his own skin. Seeing the blade shatter, Alik nodded, content he would at least be somewhat safe if more violence began.

Looking up, he finally realized that the bouncer was being attended to by medics. Spotting the golden-clad Draconian, Alik began to move towards him but halted as a group of shielded individuals came around the side of the building, armed with rifles. *At least they're wise enough not to try shooting tanks,* Alik thought. With his translation spell, he was able to decipher the commands issued by the lead Draconian. So they weren't the bastards they initially appeared to be after all. Still bastards nonetheless but not quite as much as before. Quite a bit more violent than what any Sakari would do in a situation such as this.

The gold-plated commander began to stride forward with his purple-guard, beating their way through any that got in their way. Quite violent. A fascinating species none the less. They would be prime material for the Great Record if their technology was any indication. He just had to find some way to escape from wherever he had ended up in. Standing pensively for a moment he decided upon a course of action. Weaving three spells into standby- *I really should limit how much I use*- Alik cast the first, dazing all of those near him so that they would not notice his next two incantations. The first one rendered him invisible, although not in a true sense. Instead, light bent around him. Much less time consuming and easier on his reserves of magic which were being depleted. The second spell made him silent so that any noise he made would not be heard by any outside. Satisfied with his current protections Alik began to follow the Draconian commander.

Dashing ahead of the alien, he ducked behind an alcove before discarding his invisibility and sound-barrier. Gasping for breath, Alik recovered quickly and stepped out in front of the Draconian commander, hands up. Bowing, he stated, "I am Alik Rai, magus. There are easier ways to discover where you are and how you arrived here than smashing through everyone. I for one could tell you." A lie, yes, but if it saved him having to run then all the better.

---

**Task Force Odin, Expeditionary Fleet Arracus, Captain's Quarters of the *Sveyet* **

Rhone sat in his room, meditating as was his wont. Stripped of the C'ran uniform except for undergarments, his body shined with sweat as heat reflected throughout the room. A fire flickered on the wall opposite the door, the source of the stifling heat inside the room, crackling flames consuming small logs. Wood paneling covered the walls and a richly embroidered carpet of teal and lime green lay beneath the his bed. The only other furniture were a desk and two sets of armchairs, simple yet finely made by an artisan on his home planet, Forath.

Meditation was a common habit of many aboard the Expeditionary Fleets. Separated from C'ran worlds for possibly years at a time methods were devised by many in an attempt to relieve the boredom which would frequently take hold. Each ship had a central area with a park where all on the ship could gather and partake of the entertainment venues set up be enterprising soldiers or simply to talk. Various sparring courts were located on every ship, usually occupied by at least a dozen Sakari. Even with all of these other options, the three most common activities were meditation, the creation of art, and attending the sermons of the Synod chaplains. Some art contest would spring up every week and hundreds of entries would be submitted, fostering a more peaceful side of the C'ran military forces. The sermons were attended by virtually every individual except those required for necessary maintenance of the vessel: those attended private services later. Faith in the Patriarch grew stronger every day. Every day the Patriarch would visit one of the Task Forces if only temporarily. It had been approximately a month since Task Force Odin had hosted his journey.

A psycho-link intruded his thoughts. Recognizing the signature of the one connecting as that of Rear Admiral Guthan Erebus, a friend deployed in another fleet, he accepted the link. The message was simple, sent over massive distances by the cosmoseer. *Contact with two alien races. One fled site. Psychic ping received from fleeing ships.. Coordinates enclosed for resident cosmoseer.*

Unraveling himself from the position he donned his garments, adjusting the black synthetic fabric carefully before advancing to the bridge of the Cantarin battlecruiser. Locating the cosmoseer, one recently transferred from the Collegia Psychia, he uploaded the coordinates given to him by Guthan. Nodding, the cosmoseer interfaced with the ship and adjusted the course of the fleet towards the point.

**Unknown Roman System**

Exiting anti-space, the fleet waited as they took sight of the fortified world off in the distance, ships floating above the planet. Sitting there, Rhone accessed the Great Record and found the recent addition of Guthan's. Hopefully this new "binary" system would work with the alien species in front of them. Rhone's ship split off from the other twenty-one and transmitted a message to the planet reading: *This is Task Force Odin of Expeditionary Fleet Arracus of the Dominion of C'ran. Please do not be alarmed by our group, we seek to establish relations only.*

---

**Joraga System, Deep Space**

Al'za Kail sat stunned as she watched the planet below her. Massive beings of almost celestial size crouched over the world, absorbing the planet slowly. Simply watching them caused a painful resonance in her mind. It took all of her will to contain her psychic powers from exploding outwards. If the readings were correct, then these beings were of the same structure as the one found by the scouts of the 10th Expansion Front. Cracks scattered across the world, glowing patches of red bleeding magma onto the surface, draining the world of its lifeblood. All of the magi in the fleet had fallen unconscious upon entering the system. She could detect no psychic signature from them yet she was affected. If that was any indication then some of the magi might very well be dead. Scans onto the surface had shown no life, only countless numbers of the creatures.

The usually active room remained sober, shaken by the sight. The hundred-strong fleet which had entered simply gaped. There weren't even a hundred ships any more, three shattering as the fleet had been wrenched from anti-space and five more simply disappearing into a void. Whatever these things were they went against everything the Sakari stood for. They went against life itself. Yet she couldn't bring herself to do anything.

A golden light bathed the bridge, all shielding their eyes. Coalescing into an upright oblong oval, the light dimmed, indication that someone was utilizing magic to arrive here. Whoever it was most likely wielded vast reserves of power to be able to travel such a distance. Yet something was off. A dark purple vein crawled along the oval, expanding slowly. Al'za sat worriedly yet knew there was nothing any of them could do even if they had an inkling of what was happening. The light snapped and Jagar Hais dropped to the floor, face contorted with pain. Nearby Sakari immediately rushed to his aid, hoisting him up before setting him on a lev-chair. His eyes rolled into his head and his body began shuddering. Just as quickly it stopped.

Weakened, the Prime Magus looked up at Al'za a considering gaze. Drawing in a breath, he spoke a simple command, "Flee through the Fell plane." Once again his eyes rolled into his head, mouth lolling open as he fell unconscious. Alarms blared as the sensors took notice of one of the massive creatures floated towards the fleet. Horrified, Al'za took control of the fleet through the psychic-network, coordinating their turn. Two more ships shuddered before snapping, remains floating towards the monstrous creatures. Hastily charging the Fell portals, she opened the access-ways into the territories of Chaos, trusting herself to guide the fleet through the maelstroms of energy. If she failed then none would know of the impending threat until it was too late. By then, the galaxy would be lost.