EliteCommander

The Cradle

The Agent was deflecting the subject, which certainly meant that he was on the right track. He just had to keep pressing in the conversation, rather than let her try to derail it. “I really do think this is worth discussing. We shared several memories when we looked into that beam of light, including one of mine and yours. It might help us both to discuss it.”

Vreta crossed his arms, briefly staring off at nothing as his mind went back to the memories. “I always thought you hid your name, operating behind a moniker to better maintain your anonymity. Now I see, though, that you don’t have your old name anymore. Agent 595 is who you are. It’s a strange ritual you have, but…I think I understand it, in a way. You might be in a better position than you think to understand what it is to be Rothian. You know what it means to serve something much greater than yourself. And what we serve doesn’t necessarily have to be at odds. If you truly do serve the best interests of your people, then we can work together. My people don’t want to hurt yours, and I think you know that. Or you can know it, if you remember.”

The Cradle

Even Vreta had to admit that his facade had grown rather thin by this point. For someone who was meant to be a diplomat, he had done fairly well diving off of a cliff in pursuit of a falling vehicle, weaving between falling debris while outrunning a giant worm. At this point, his excuse of being a former soldier was mostly just for official records. The unspoken truth was likely known between them, though it would have to remain unspoken.

“I think our peoples have very…different responses to near-death experiences.” Vreta remarked as he stepped into the Agent’s room, ignoring the armor entirely as he approached her. “I know not everyone is satisfied with how the mission went, but for what it’s worth, I am glad we were able to get everyone out alive this time. And I feel we still learned a great deal. I’ve already given my people my best report of my experiences, but, and I’m not sure about you, there is still some of it that I am trying to make sense of. I was going to suggest that it might help to talk through some of it.”

Vreta crossed his arms, staring ahead at nothing in particular for a few moments. “I remember being in that darkened room. I was…excited. The most exciting day of my life, really. As much as I tried to avoid it, I couldn’t help but to be a bit anxious. I didn’t show it, though, except for maybe a bit of sweat on my brow. But I stopped thinking about all of that as soon as the Director-General started talking. It was my time, and I was ready.”

Vreta finally looked more directly towards 595. “I remember all of that as clearly as if it had actually happened to me.”

The Cradle

Rareth turned her head towards Andersen. “That would be for the best. I believe we…” Her voice trailed off for a moment as she performed a quick search of the Rothian gateway network. “Yes, we do have a gateway that can get us closer, though it is still quite a remote system. No official survey of the system has been performed; only remote observations.”

In mind frustration, Rareth growled softly under her breath. “I doubt we will make much progress with our guesses. We need actual analysis of hard data. These scans would need to come through an FTL medium in order to react to the object at such a distance, and if they are persistent scans, as you suggest, then they would be detectable in historical data. Perhaps now we will be able to look back and find it, now that we know what to look for.”

---

In the evening after their excursion into the simulation, Vreta had personally debriefed with Rareth and Director Valic’Ans in Threria. Even without having yet completed their analysis of the data intercepted from 595, they had still learned enough to act. Rareth and Valic both had several ideas on how they might take advantage of the information, but Vreta first wanted to try a diplomatic approach. He was not sure how much success he was truly expecting, but it came with little risk to try. There was nothing he would be sharing that she did not already know.

It was during the next day that Vreta once again made his way into orbit as a guest of the Barbarossa. He was permitted in the crew quarters already, so he required no special permission to go seek out the agent. He wanted to speak to her privately. Although it was essentially guaranteed that nothing they spoke of would be secret, it was still prudent that they both be able to choose precisely who heard it. Regardless of what had happened to them the previous day, Vreta still doubted that 595 expected to see him when she answered her door. “Good day, Agent. There is a matter I would like to discuss with you. May I enter?”

The Cradle

Rareth had all of the relevant results from her people’s scans sent to her implants, as well as observing whatever the Barbarossa had managed to detect. The foreign signal had scanned the planet itself, but it had interacted directly with the Human ship’s internal systems, so they had at least been in position to get a close look at the signal. In any case, her people’s trace of the signal did agree with that of the Humans, so they had a likely location for a source.

“We have a source and a vector.” Rareth commented. “Our trace agrees with yours, so we know the star system of origin. The scan was carried through sophisticated FTL signaling, perhaps even somewhat faster than our own. What we need to determine is the reason. This scan was particularly directed at the object itself, and connected systems, but how would the source know of it? Neither my people nor yours were broadcasting about our investigation towards this remote portion of space, and certainly not along FTL channels. So how did this source know to scan us at all?”

Meanwhile, the Rothians did not delay in carrying out the next part of the plan, regardless of the interference of this outside scan. A gateway had been moved into position around the object, so once it powered on, they were able to send it through the wormhole in an instant to another that a Rothian cruiser had moved into position in orbit around the void star. Without delay, smaller tug vessels surrounded the object and started to carefully slot it into a specialized frame they had fabricated with thrusters to allow them to steer the object into its carefully calculated orbit. They had planned out its path and calculated the effects of relativity down to the second, so they knew exactly when it would be returning from its orbit.

The Cradle

In light of the unprecedented circumstances, Rareth had moved to the bridge of the Barbarossa along with the Captain to make sure she had access to as much information as possible, though she still stayed in constant contact with her people on the surface. As soon as she had confirmation that no more of their people remained in the simulation, she gave her orders to the engineers down at the FOB. “Do it now! Modulate the shield!” They could not block the signals while they still had people connected, but now, they could adjust the containment shield to block all incoming signals in order to protect it against whatever it was that was scanning it.

Now that the immediate crisis had ended, Rareth could not take a break in dealing with the next. A scan of unknown origin had affected the planet, as well as the object and everything connected to it. That in itself opened up a myriad of questions, and she hoped they would be able to get some answers. As soon as it was detected, Rothia directed an impressive array of sensors towards finding its source. Hopefully, the analysis of that data would give the answers they wanted, but nothing that happened would change their plans in the short run. As soon as she could, Rareth gave the go-ahead to power up the gateway they had moved into position around the object. They needed to get the object into its orbit around the void star as soon as they could.

Despite all of the unexpected events that had transpired, there was one aspect of the Rothians’ plans that had still proceeded uninterrupted. The data stream from the Barbarossa had been secretly intercepted and copied from the moment they had entered the object. Every piece of data that had been sent to the object, they now could analyze on their own time. Of course, there was one mind in particular in which they were interested. Agent 595 had secrets in her memories that could allay the Rothians’ fears, or confirm them. The data stream was immensely complex, of course, and they would have to discover how to decode the mnemonic impressions originally intended for the object. Though, the notion of digitized minds was something with which they had…relevant experience. Agent Vreta’Sori had already done a great deal to assist in isolating the memories they were specifically interested in with just a few words. As soon as they had entered the simulation, he had approached her to ask leading questions, not with the expectation that she would answer, but just to make sure she would think about the question. He had asked about her encounter with the entity, her experience in the cave, and even spoke about the motivations of the Director-General. His commentary would have ensured that the memories they were interested in passed through 595’s mind, and therefore were available to be intercepted.

The data intercepted from 595 was sent securely, to Threria. Nirann handled the virtual package momentarily, but he would not be the one to analyze it. The place the package was sent went beyond the clearance of even the Rahn’Masser, and into the care of a mind unlike any other.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Meesei’s expression held a slight grimace as she looked out over the area in the direction of the Daedra. They did have the high ground, being at the top of the hill, but it was about the only advantage they would have. The Daedra would have overwhelming numbers, and it would not be the fodder that would be rushing them. With the lycan and Dominion soldiers Ri’vashi had brought with her, they did have enough numbers to form a defensive line, but it would not be more than a few ranks deep.

Taking the Staff of Magnus in hand, Meesei turned her gaze up towards one of the pillars of magicka. “I know it would be easier to hold from inside, but I need to be out here if I want to drain the magicka from that pillar. I am going to need a lot of power to force a portal through this interference. The whole process shouldn’t take more than a minute or two, I just…need that time.”

Ri’vashi did not hesitate nor question Meesei, and she certainly did not waste any more time. “Form ranks and take positions to defend the Champion!” She shouted to her soldiers. “Allow none through, guard the men and women at your side, and refuse to die until that portal is open!”

The Cradle

Ultimately, Vreta was not willing to follow 595 any farther this time. The rig’s anti-grav was failing, and the last place he would want to be was inside if it hit the ground at speed. Unfortunately, there seemed to be no dissuading the Agent, so all Vreta could do was to make sure everyone else got out alive.

Mercifully, there was nothing to actually stop them from evacuating. Vreta, along with Eti’s team, boosted away from the rig, back in the direction of the mountain. The worm was still in pursuit, but fortunately, it seemed to have its sights on the rig itself, rather than any of the tiny creatures flying around it. Vreta could only guess that it would end up disappointed in the end, but he would be long-gone by then.

The side of the mountain was mostly steep and jagged, but Vreta managed to find a space that was flat enough for their needs. As the worm fell past the group, Vreta did spare one more look over the edge while the transit station was deploying. Despite his rather strong distrust for Agent 595, he did hope she made it out of this alive. If nothing else, they were going to need to have a conversation soon. Regardless, once the station was ready, he joined Eti’s team in returning to the real world.

The Cradle

Nirann could not help but to feel some fear creeping up inside him. The rig did not have the power to control its descent completely, and sensor information from the outside was worryingly limited. He did not know how much time they had, especially once he started to feel the rig listing farther to the side. Fortunately, he did not have to wait too long. The lifesigns readout he was watching suggested that the others had made it to the common room, and he had no reason to wait for them to get their own transit station set up.

While he had not had enough power to transit everyone in every room, he could push the power he had available to transit everyone in a single room. Luckily, the fact that they had given him the responsibility of operating most of the rig’s systems meant that he could have a great deal of control over its power distribution. He was able to shift power to the common room and transit out everyone inside at once.

The sudden drain of energy would certainly affect the anti-grav, so Nirann wasted no time in doing what needed to be done. The whole rig started to list even more heavily, but the claws on his feet could pierce through the metal floor itself to give him enough grip to keep moving. Each step reverberated throughout the small room as he bent and crumpled the paneling beneath him as he steadily made his way up behind Freyr. She still held on tight at her her console despite all happening around them.

It would be quite impossible for Freyr not to hear Nirann coming, but all the same, she might have been surprised by his next step. All the sudden, he clamped his hands down around both of her forearms from behind. He did not squeeze too tightly, but his grip was like a vice all the same: unmoving, no matter how much she might struggle.

“Sorry, but we’re leaving.” Nirann said before pulling her away from the console into the scan area. He took a few steps back, then hit the button on the station with his tail to transit the both of them away.

---

Rhia guided Vreta in every step of the way to land on the rig. He was slower to reach the rig than 595, but he could be more controlled with his thrusters, so his landing was considerably better. Instead of smashing into the hull at speed, he matched its downward velocity and spin before landing and used his magnetic boots to touch down gently. Altogether, he even had a better landing than the rest of Eti’s team. Still, anti-grav on the rig had now weakened to the point that it was spinning out of control, and the worm above them had it in its sights.

”I picked up a pair of power spikes from the rig on our way in, consistent with the use of transit stations.” Rhia quickly informed Vreta. There was a great deal else that Rhia could tell Vreta about at the moment, but she was keeping any commentary brief and mission-critical.

“We just need to get out of here!” Vreta said through comms. “I picked up some energy readings on the way in; the others have probably already evacuated. We just need some stable ground to deploy my transit station.”

The Cradle

For now, Vreta had no problem following in 595’s wake. The weapon she used was effective for clearing the creatures, and any that remained could be burned away by bursts of his plasma thrower. Her thrusters seemed overpowered for her weight, but as long as he did not delay, Vreta could keep up enough to follow behind. The farther they moved away from the hatchway behind them, the more reliable sensory information Rhia could access. She observed each and every creature within her view as best as she could, calculating their positions and velocities to identify priority targets for Vreta and overlay their projected paths onto his HUD. She had done as well as she could, given the circumstances, to keep him from getting overwhelmed. His armor would not be threatened by the odd scratch from a stray creature’s claws.

For Eti and her team, it was clear they did not have to worry about being too protective of their civilians. They could focus more on protecting the unit as a whole. With 595 clearing the space ahead, Eti and Kelest focused their fire on guarding the flanks. They could fill the air with plasma to deny space to the creatures and prevent them from flying in behind them.

The Agent herself was intent on reaching the rig. Strictly speaking, they only needed to reach some stable ground to deploy a transit station, but the rig would serve that purpose just fine. Either way, they needed to get off of this cube, so diving off the side was a plan they could all agree to.

Vreta did not hesitate to leap from the side of the cube. Once finally free from the effects of the jamming field, Rhia could finally had an unclouded view of the environment through her full sensor array. Vreta’s HUD came alive with alerts to steer him clear of danger, recommendations on burn timings and strength for his thrusters, and a clearly marked landing area on top of the rig.

---

From his console, Nirann had at least some limited view of the interior of the rig through lifesign readouts. Provided they were still accurate, it seemed that at least some of the crew had managed to transit so far, though the Sacred Band still needed to make their way inside. The common room was close to most of their positions, so Nirann added on quickly after Thebes’ order. “The common room is close. You can set up your transit station inside. Anyone else who doesn’t have a transit station in front of you, get there quick as well.” At this point, he wanted to get everyone else who was left into the same room. The Sacred Band would certainly have a station of their own to deploy, so they naturally could use it, but Nirann saw no harm in hedging his bets with multiple escape plans.

Nirann muted his comms and turned back towards Marae. “I’ll make sure they get out. Go ahead and transit, love.”

“Nir-”

Marae could not get out so much as a word before Nirann interrupted her. “We talked about this. You know my mind has the best chance of handling the trauma. Just hurry.”

Ultimately, Marae wasted no more time. Regardless of her worries, she trusted Nirann wholly. He made sure he was out of the scanning area before she moved quickly to the station he had set up between them, then transited away. He no longer bothered asking Freyr to leave, as he had his own plan in mind for the evacuation.

The Cradle

With the two plasma throwers firing into the air, some of the creatures were outright incinerated, while many were kept at bay. Some were getting around the cloud of plasma with only minor burns, but they at least came in more manageable numbers than an entire swarm. Mar swapped her particle cannon to its faster firing mode to try and deal with as many as she could. Despite the speed of the creatures, she was still deadly accurate. The particle beams from her rifle traveled at near light speed, so she merely needed to point and shoot. She could cover at least one angle herself, though that still left plenty swarming around the cloud of plasma.

For this kind of threat, Vreta found the plasma throwers to be a good idea. He swapped his rifle to that same mode as well. While Mar covered one angle, Vreta picked another to immolate. These creatures were not made of stone, so they could be incinerated just as well as one would expect. Still, that did not stop some from reaching them. Agent 595, on her part, seemed intent on killing them with her hands, at least at first.

Vreta was surprised at first at the blinding glow from behind him. It was over in just a moment, but from what he gathered, 595 had some kind of electricity-based weapon integrated into her armor. He had not expected it, but it was pretty much the perfect sort of weapon for this situation. It gave them the space they needed to move, in any case. “Let’s go! We just need to get beyond the jamming field, then we can use a transit station.”

---

“It’s not worth dying over! If we don’t evacuate now, that ‘key’ will end up buried with you!” Nirann argued. He did what he could to keep the rig stable, but the limited power restricted his options. He did not have the power left to use the rig’s transit capabilities on everyone, but he did have one idea in mind. While Freyr was distracted, he rushed out to the adjacent storage room.

Marae, meanwhile, did not hesitate to make the call to evacuate over their team-wide comms. “Everyone, find your nearest transit station and use it immediately! And I mean everyone, soldiers included.”

It only took Nirann a moment to return holding one of the mobile transit stations under his arm. He said nothing to Freyr to call attention to it and instead simply started to deploy it in the center of the room without a word. With just a touch of his hand to the top, three sensors shot out from its rounded edges. They were suspended by anti-grav fields at first, until they attached themselves to the floor at three points, which encompassed most of the space in the small room. The sensors could scan in a triangular area between them as accurately as the physical platform of the larger version. It could not handle large objects, but it would be more than enough for a few individuals.