[sub][@Queentze][/sub] [hr] [b]March 8th, 2020 5:42 PM, PT DEO Lab, Coast City[/b] [center][img]https://i.imgur.com/sXgyM8e.png[/img] -_-_-_-[/center] Echo stared judgingly after the alien, which was unusual given how easily he’d made peace with other aliens he’d met since coming to Earth- and he was pretty sure this wasn’t even the first telepath he’d met here! There was something about him he found suspicious though, something that just didn’t add up that was nagging him in the back of his mind. He didn’t have time to dally though, so he fell in step behind Frakedi and Briggs before fading from view with a simple twist of his being, no longer standing in the third dimension, but hovering just on the edge of the fourth. His ability to do this came in short bursts though, so he marched ahead of them; walking straight through the nearest door and sending a message to Briggs from his own stolen DEO phone. [i]Glass -> Briggs: I’m in[/i] He quickly surveyed the entrance for guards, but there was only one woman at the end of the hall tapping away at an electronic pad. He quickly approached her and glanced over her shoulder, realizing she was playing some pointless brain training game. Since she was so handily distracted he left her to it and ducked into a small bright room by the entrance Frakedi would come through and became visible once more. [i]Glass -> Briggs: Guard at the end of entrance corridor Glass -> Briggs: She’s distracted tho[/i] He switched apps on the phone, pulling up the floor plan. It looked like both the AI and the main servers were down, but not too far, only the second and third levels. From this room he could probably phase through the next couple floors and immediately flee with the AI before anyone knew anything, but then he’d have to sneak in again to steal the records he wanted. Sorry Lightning Bug, information first, then AI. It was just more convenient, though he did feel a little bad about addressing his own mission first before rescuing an imprisoned arcon. He would get both, it was fine. [hr] [b]March 10th, 2020 12:24 PM, ET New York, New York[/b] [center][img]https://i.imgur.com/xwNFtcI.png[/img] -_-_-_-[/center] [Translations at the bottom for your convenience.] As he stood in the circle, surrounded by the seven chanting Magos, he hadn’t really thought much of it when Archemagos Cepheus mentioned he would need to stand still at the center of the circle for the portal to work. Now though, with Gigantes at the gates and Hades’ own furies, the Erinyes, descending upon them, being trapped in this invisible bubble while his brother fought to protect him was infuriating. But then, just as sudden as the attack had started, all he knew was light. The portal opened beneath his feet in a radiant explosion of brilliant light blue unlike any color he’d seen before, and he fell into glaring whiteness, new colors and endless radiance everywhere. Was this what day was like? Was this sunlight? He looked up, the ball of burning light so far away in the sky, that must be the sun? He looked away and fell to his knees, it hurt too much to look at, and he felt so drained by the process. How many had died during the ritual? At least four that he had seen, their lost energy had to come from somewhere in order to feed the portal, guess that somewhere was from him. He groaned and made his way to his feet, immediately noticing the smoking crater at his feet. The portal’s doing he imagined. There were shining colorful metal contraptions all around him, some of them carried people, others were empty, but all were stationary. Speaking of people, they were so strange! All around him a riot of color and unique fashions as people stopped to look at him. He must look as alien to them as they did to him, a whole other world… so much had changed from the stories he was told as child. There were no spears or horses in sight, massive pillars of glass and metal rose up on all sides of him, and he couldn’t see even a hint of forest, unless that piddly stalk of grass spurting from the hard gray ground was meant to be a substitute. Was this what Lord Ares had meant then? This was the blight on Gaia? He looked at them, measuring their skill, but they seemed so… weak. Was all of Earth like this? He shook the thoughts from his head, they were too different, the task ahead of him would not be simple, especially since he needed to educate himself first. Just as with the hellhounds, and the hydra, he would learn their skills and weaknesses first, then he would act. The portal suddenly flashed again over his head, and four of the Erinyes fell out screaming profanities at him in an archaic form of Arkosian. He sneered and whipped out his blade as the frightened humans suddenly began to scatter. The Warblade of Nemesis glowed lightly before transforming into a long-knifed spear, and he lifted Skyshield against their speedy approach, deflecting one lunge of sharp claws. Nemesis shot out in a whirl of activity, severing one wing and another’s head before plunging into the chest of a third. He yanked the spear back out and spun just in time to catch another set of claws on his shield. Nemesis shimmered once more even as he swung down, the spear becoming a sword and severing the assassin’s hand clean of. When he slashed next the sword was a spiked whip, shredding her throat. He faced the last one, the one who’s wing had been shorn off, and mercilessly plunged a spear tip through her heart. There was a loud wailing sound bouncing off the walls, and flashing lights atop fast moving metal-on-wheels were appearing around corners. It was time to le- The portal flashed once again, nearly closed now, and out fell Vel, clutching Zalim in it’s arms. Kassan gasped, “Brother!” He shouted, alarmed as he realized the blood covering his form was pooling out of a large wound, the knife still in his chest. He rushed forward, Nemesis falling into its sheath once more. [hr]