[center][img]https://i.imgur.com/oucpacU.jpg?2[/img] [img]https://i.imgur.com/HWhWXIx.png[/img][/center] [hr] [b]Sison Auditorium, Municipality of Lingayen - 10/11/2022, 9:26 UTC+8[/b] [hider=Necessity is the Mother of Innovation] The hour was late by the time Qingshe had managed to wrap up her consultation with Lotus Squadron, but in the end, she was mostly satisfied that they had squeezed in the bare minimum of considerations for modifications and sufficiently simulated tests done. A part of her would have liked to have gotten around to meeting some other members of this new "Task Force Obsidian", but she knew they would all most likely be getting what little sleep they could right now. For her own part... [i]Hah[/i]. Sleep was for the weak. For now, she had a more pressing issue to attend to. How should she overcome Myron's Noble Arm? A lyrically haunting lullaby hummed from her lips, as she idly sashayed through darkened and sparsely-populated halls. What few inhabitants were awake at this hour in preparation for the mission in only precious hours' time generally steered out of her path, as she contemplated this little hiccup. For, indeed, it seemed as though she might be put in a position where the "big tough Rear Admiral" would have to call her to task to get his way, and they couldn't have that, now could they~? After all, she didn't want to make it abundantly clear how much her participation was entirely at her whimsy than any pressing fear of consequences, and she was hardly looking to shake up the command chain. So... how to get what she wanted? Well, in theory, easy. Finding a secluded place to experiment wasn't too difficult, and Qingshe soon procured herself an otherwise unused room, sending her shadow rolling forth. Bubbling from the ooze, a familiar body, identical to her own lurched up into existence. Same predatory air. Same slitted eyes and coy smile. Same countless modifications bristling beneath the skin. But ultimately... lifeless. "Upstairs" anyway. The body was perfectly biologically sound, after all. [color=39b54a]"The Noble Arm is a reflection of the soul, they say,"[/color] Qingshe mused to herself, as she inspected her work. [color=39b54a]"And I suppose they aren't incorrect, but there's more to it, right?"[/color] She hummed. [color=39b54a]"Not that what I'm trying to do is dabble with souls, now is it, Ouroboros?"[/color] She grinned coyly, threading metaphysical fingers over her eternal partner, caressing it mentally with the surety of someone that practically knew everything about it, right down to the barest 1's and 0's. Her silent partner didn't answer, not that she'd expected anything less from her deliciously agreeable Noble Arm. It wasn't sentient, not like some other fascinating test subjects she could name. Ouroboros was a pure extension of her will, her ambition... and her [b][i]fathomless hunger[/i][/b] for knowledge and advancement. It had always answered to her whims with an ease and... lack of strict "adherence" to silly things others might like to call "limits" or "points we should have stopped". Case in point... She was about to feel very foolish if this somehow worked. So, what did she know about her ability's core form? Firstly, that it did not center on her Noble Arm. No, the Noble Arm still used her body as a conduit to deploy and expand her shadow from her position. She had taken that at... mostly face value as long as she'd had it. That was her hard limit, her finite -if impressive- range in that respect. She could only make a single gateway, centered on herself, and she could only make it so big. But... what if one of those facts was less absolute than the others? The question remained: was her shadow centered on [i]her[/i], on her [i]consciousness[/i]? ...Or was it centered on her [i]physical body[/i]? Time to find out. Her shadow withered away entirely, and for a moment, Qingshe shivered at its absence, staring at the meat-clone of herself intently, until eventually... A thrumming, bubbling ooze began to boil forth from the clone's lips, the portal forming inside one of the places with the most assured absence of light. Qingshe ignored the horror movie-esce sight, as she hummed in consideration, a bubble of excitement curdling in her chest. Rapping her false-clawed fingers on her left arm, she decided to test another theory. Glancing down, her brow furrowed, as she attempted to summon her shadow from her own position without closing the gateway centered on her clone. A sharp spike of aimless electrical energy was her response, setting her nerves on metaphorical fire, as the formation of the gateway seemingly collapsed as soon as it could congeal. Muscles twitching haphazardly, Qingshe wrenched her body back under control again, as she shook her head and moved to tidy her now somewhat frizzed, curly hair. Alright, so, [i]that didn't work[/i]. [i]But why?[/i] She pondered the answer, tapping her lip in thought, as a new theory rose to mind. Alright, so let's say that Ouroboros wasn't to be discarded entirely in regard to shadow formation. Ask herself, what did Ouroboros provide that allowed it to open one portal... but not two? Hardware? Yes... that sounded about right. The Noble Arm did the heavy lifting, and her body was the beacon and channel through which it acted, but that didn't change the fact that it only had the ability to support a single portal, no matter how big or small. The strain was the same. Which meant... [i]what[/i], then? She'd have to modify or duplicate Ouroboros in order to access more processing power. [i]Challenge accepted.[/i] Her shadow whirred to life, as she got to work, a template and mold beginning to form in the depths that she knew all too well. She would not, she decided, do something as reckless as haphazard modification at this time without serious consideration, so duplication would simply have to do. As the new Noble Arm took form and existence, Qingshe couldn't help but inhale sharply at a feeling like a great weight settling briefly onto her shoulders, nearly sending her crashing to trembling knees, before the moment passed, as she shakily straightened back up, feeling somehow... [i]heavier[/i] in a metaphysical sense. The Snake grimaced and rubbed her sternum, running a self-diagnostic that came back with results that generally read as "overworked" and "stretched thin". Her body was rapidly beginning to adapt to a point where she'd be able to function normally, but even so, it was clear that she wouldn't be doing [i]that[/i] again any time quite so soon. Still rubbing her aching chest, she glanced down and tried again. This time, obligingly, her shadow spilled forth beneath her feet, and glancing to the side, she could see the shadow by her clone still remained perfectly intact. Well, she no longer needed that. With a click of her fingers, the shadow violently swallowed the clone in a very Ouroboros-like manner, collapsing in upon itself, before whispering away into nothing. Qingshe's own shadow expelled a computer monitor and keyboard that she began to rapidly input data into. Doing so manually wasn't necessary, but the kinesthetic movements were nostalgic and soothed her with their rote nature. She noted everything she had observed so far about her experiment, the good, the bad and the unknown. She wondered about the sense of strain she had felt and posited a few theories, both why it took so much out of her and why she was able to pull it off. Looking at it one way, she had essentially created a second Noble Arm entirely, and the only reason it was probably compatible with her was because... well, it was [i]hers[/i], after all. But even if it was hers, there was some price to be paid. Even [i]if[/i] the Noble Arm were to be her biggest fan, it would hardly matter if her body couldn't actually handle its raw power. She was starting to grow more confident that the only reason she could maintain two of her already very strong Noble Arm was the [i]extensive[/i] modifications she had made to her body. Without her pursuit of evolution, without her extraordinary resilience, there was no small chance that doing what she just did might have killed her outright... or worse. She honestly couldn't say which. [color=39b54a]"The Noble Arm is a reflection of the soul, they say,"[/color] she muttered again, before shaking her head. Pulling back from the screen, she allowed the construct to collapse back into the goo, pursing her lips in consideration. The temptation to push her luck, to create a second copy of Ouroboros, was... strong, but common sense prevailed for the time being. She needed to test this carefully, allow her body and soul to adjust to the new weight of her power. There was no sense in getting greedy, not in matters like these. While the progress she'd made wasn't what she'd wanted, it was still better than she'd expected, and she would accept that gladly. Smiling slyly, Qingshe's expression of joy was a predatory thing, as her shadow split into two beneath each foot. She finally had her solution to Myron. [/hider] [hr] [b]Audience Hall, Sison Auditorium, Municipality of Lingayen - 10/11/2022, 18:26 UTC+8[/b] The pre-mission briefing was proceeding apace, and Qingshe sat amongst the small audience of Arms Masters with an expression like the cat that caught the canary written all over her demeanor. She had to make an effort -well deserved, she felt- not to send Myron and the Rear Admiral both looks filled with her most smug satisfaction, as she fiddled with one of her tablets, making notes of critical mission details. The briefing quickly began to wrap up, as the operation began properly. Titling her head and spying on the breadth of allied communication, Qingshe could see that Chinese resistance was already making things... troublesome. As much as she'd have preferred to stay on the backline, this was no time to play coy. This was for all the marbles, and it was time to earn her pay as a member of the QRS and demonstrate exactly how much their faith in her was worth. Shooting a smile in the direction of Privates Kaitlyn and Hannie, she wriggled her fingers in a parting wave and stood, eying the sight of the disappearing First Lieutenant Noel, rolling her eyes lightly at his own parting words. Striding up to Myron and the Rear Admiral, she said firmly, [color=39b54a]"Send me to the Australian supply ships. Either will do, but whichever is closest to the enemy would perhaps be prudent."[/color] She smiled glibly. [color=39b54a]"I will conduct a concrete and extensive defense of our mission's critical center. Also..."[/color] Her shadow bubbled up underfoot and to an area slightly to the side of the sitting area. [color=39b54a]"I'll be leaving that here. I had a bit of a.... Eureka moment with my abilities over the last couple hours, and I can now provide a slight solution -in case it was overlooked- to the fact that Myron's shield can only transport those it can touch. Notably, he cannot retrieve anyone he sends."[/color] She grinned, as a second Qingshe poked up from the surface of the shadow, lounging halfway submerged with a coy look her eye, like a mermaid resting their arms upon a rock... if the "rock" was the surface of her shadow. [color=39b54a]"My shadow [i]can[/i], albeit only from wherever I presently am, and I can only maintain a single gateway in this manner. Deployment and exfiltration will be possible with ease from the supply ships as long as I remain deployed."[/color] She touched Myron's shield and grinned predatorially. [color=39b54a]"Beam me up, Scottie~."[/color] [hr] [b]War at Sea, Blockade Runners HMAS Supply and HMAS Stalwart - 10/11/2022, 18:37 UTC+8[/b] [hider=BGM] [youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hgkpsdf7bzM[/youtube] [/hider] Qingshe's clone manifested aboard the Stalwart with a glint of anticipation in her eye. Through her gaze, her real self, lounging back at the Lingayen base, explored the puppet's senses, making note of any delays in performance or overall strain... not that there was any, as she opened her shadow at the clone's location, now providing her a direct line to its position. As far as any should be concerned, there might as well have been no space between her puppet and her other body in Lingayen at all. As the thunder and flash of gunfire echoed through the night, Qingshe immediately got to work. From beneath her clone's feet, her shadow rolled over the deck of the Stalwart in a rippling, inch-thick wave of harmlessly crackling ooze, the buzz of static beginning to fill the air around her. Spilling from the ooze, several devices quickly began to interconnect wirelessly to the allied fleet, tuning her into communications, radar and sonar alike, quickly forming for her an image of the allied and enemy situation. Cannon fire rained down from above with a peal of thunder, but Qingshe was ready for it. Her shadow flashed up the outside of the Stalwart, angling itself against the attack, and any missiles or projectiles that actually would have hit would instead be swallowed into her shadow's depths, nullified and deconstructed into nothingness in moments. She clicked her tongue in annoyance at only being able to protect a single ship at a time in this way, hoping the Supply had gotten off lightly in the exchange without her cover. Feline, golden slits illuminated the darkness in her vision sharply, as she gazed upward into the distant night sky. Her shadow began to spill forth further devices, including high-quality range-finders and cameras, both technological... and [i]biological[/i] in nature. She avoided anything that might immediately give away her position; though she felt that might already be a lost cause, depending on if Mei had fired at the supply ships for any particular reason. Consulting both what her own sensors could acquire for her and the readings coming from the allied ships, Qingshe quickly put her creations to work building a movement profile of the obvious Arms Master-based ship currently soaring through the sky. As she did, her shadow began to bulge and crackle more intensely, as long, thick gun barrels began to boil forth from the abyss. Gleaming ebony metal thrummed with inner, eldritch power, as crackling green sigils and lines accentuated their forms with The Snake's aggressively cyberpunk aesthetic. A deep thrum briefly could be felt vibrating in the chests of those aboard the Stalwart, as the battleship-worthy main guns finished forming and angled towards the sky, guided by the data Qingshe was still collecting and calculating even at this very moment. And soon enough... [color=39b54a][b]"Target locked,"[/b][/color] Qingshe spoke with a thrumming echo to her voice over the ship's comms. [color=39b54a][b]"Distance judged. Vectors of evasion calculated. Durability: under assessment. Confirming intent to engage with enemy Arms Master."[/b][/color] The clone eyed the flying ship for a moment longer, confirming that it was staying its calculated course, and then... [color=39b54a][b]"Returning fire."[/b][/color] All along the starboard side deck of the Stalwart, protruding high into the air -somehow without adding any weight to the side of the ship, twenty separate 20-inch main guns opened fire in a cataclysmic roar of full broadside, sending a hail of massive shells hurtling on course with Mei Yuanyuan's Sloop-of-war. Somehow, in the doing, the barrels did not give off any flash of light to accentuate their position, the shadow having already swallowed the blasts of gunpowder to only allow the shells to fly free. Nor did the shockwave of the blasts harm the crew of the Stalwart, the propelling explosions again swallowed before they could ever escape the barrels alongside the shells. All that was left was the thundering, bone-deep roar of noise that shook the air with Qingshe's counterattack. Even after the first salvo had been fired, Qingshe didn't stop, the guns being loaded with a different kind of ammunition. The first round of shots had been armor-piercing, but as the guns roared again, this time, they were loaded with high-explosive. Another full broadside of twenty guns bellowed into the night air, sending explosive projectiles shrieking towards the flying ship. Qingshe still didn't let up, determined to unload so much unpleasantness into the enemy Arms Master that they wouldn't even be able to consider firing back. With any luck, they might even wither so much under her assault that they retreated far enough from the supply ships to be useless as a threat to them. The guns were loaded again, and this time, Qingshe decided to get a bit nasty. The ammunition was changed again, and this time, the shells she unleashed were not designed to do damage to the ship directly... but rather the crew. These shells were targeted towards the front of the ship, aiming for maximum misery, as any impacts would see the shells violently explode into massive chemical clouds of blinding, burning and blistering capsaicin. The clouds would flood through the ship, as it flew right through them. And just to be doubly sure, Qingshe made these shells into timed explosives. If they didn't detonate from an impact at the moment they were calculated to hit, they would explode anyway in the ship's general area, like a flack curtain of chemical irritation. Staring at the dark sky, Qingshe finally let her assault halt, eyes narrowing, as she waited to see what fruit her labors might harvest.