Jack’s a tad odd, personality-wise, while his appearance is more than acceptable by 21st century society standards. Far too appealing for his own taste. His hair, dark brown with natural rustic highlights, is on the short side, but long enough to get a mean grip on with your fist if it ever came to that. His translucent blue eyes hold a natural slightly narrowed stare, while his cheekbones, like the rest of his features, are strong, solid, but not sharp at all. To Jack, his good looks are a curse, not a blessing. One reason for this is that he doesn’t like drawing attention to himself, which is reflected in the way he maintains his appearance, such as his tendency to wear clothing on the dark and dull side. Bright clothing is one of the many things he detests, another is being looked at, by anyone, and another is the grubby feeling of having lengthy facial hair - and yet he is never actually clean-shaven. Overall, he prefers an unkempt look, which, on account of his regrettable good looks, results in a rugged yet approachable appearance, an appearance defected by a subtle and undefined shiftiness in his demeanour.
Odd: Differing in nature from what is ordinary. The literal meaning of the word is the best way to generalise Jack’s personality, his views, his likes, his distastes and interests. And it’s not that the influences in life growing up made him that way. He was always like that. Even school, a place where most kids take their first big dose of social interaction, was for Jack a place of solitude and reflection. He spent those days in the least conspicuous spots possible; the darkest corners during class, the least observed places on the playground during lunch, most of such times spent thinking on how much he hated it there, how idiotic and unappealing the rest of the student body and their activities were, how to escape that place in the most efficient way possible, and all the while plotting the best way to kill his stepdad. It didn’t take too long to accomplish the latter two in one effort - two birds with one stone, so to speak - when at the age of ten he did kill his stepdad, resulting in being sent to juvenile detention until he was eighteen. There were those that suggested, despite being murder, that he shouldn’t have been sentenced to spend the remainder of his childhood incarcerated, but apparently the particularly heinous and abundantly clear premeditated nature of the act called for a more severe penalty than what was deemed normal for a pre-adolescent.
Life in juvenile detention was good for Jack, it taught him a lot, like how to become a career criminal. He came out knowing exactly what he wanted to do with his life, and had the connections to make it happen. The first two years of freedom were spent doing jobs for a guy nicknamed Johnny Big, real name unknown, the head of the largest organised crime family in the city of Sydney. Johnny Big also had a sister by the name Jezibel Small - also not her real name - who took an automatic shining to Jack and had his kid within the year of his release. Jezibel named the kid Hannah and took some time out from the life of crime to raise the girl in a more civilised manner than the underground world of crime could provide, only to be killed during a home invasion when Hannah was two years old. It was only then, when Jezibel was killed, that Jack learned that Hannah was actually his own daughter. He wasn’t entirely happy about it, and neither was Johnny Big, who nevertheless let Jack live because, in his own words: “Even though you knocked up my only sister, you’ve always been my best bastard. So I’m letting you go. You’re out. I won’t support you anymore. But you will take the kid. You will raise her. And you will raise her to be the best damn woman this world has seen – but let it be known, if she ever comes to harm while under your care I will fuck you up so bad you won’t ever again remember your own name.”
With Johnny Big’s blessings, Jack was on his own and in a house of his own, in the suburbs, with all expenses paid, and with a daughter whom he quickly grew to love. All of this was not to suggest that Johnny Big forbade Jack from ever taking part in that line of work again. To the contrary, actually. Johnny knew Jack was going to need an income, but Johnny also knew that Jack could do without the constraints of being tied in with the family. He needed freedom, to do things the way he wanted, needed, in order to at the same time raise Hannah the best he could. This to Jack meant the only thing it could mean: freelance crime. And thanks to Johnny and his connection, not to mention Johnny’s willingness to cooperate for the sake of his niece, Jack once again had all he needed to make it happen.
Within a few short years, Jack became the most renowned and reliable freelance mercenary known to the underground, and life was simple for him. He dated no women, and rarely felt the need to, outside of an occasional one night stand for the sake of his primal urges. He had no close friends, outside of the few people he knew from his life of crime, so he never really had many visitors. He kept to himself, as always, and at the times he was out working he hired a babysitter for Hannah. Surprisingly enough, he found being a father rather easy, but he wasn’t at all sure his definition of parenting was all that standard. But then again, he didn’t really care about ordinary standards.
When Hannah was three or four, Jack started home schooling her, occasionally bringing in a tutor for the things he wasn’t really up on, which, as it turned out, was more often than he had expected. But overall, Hannah was healthy, very smart, being raised so well that Johnny Big would swell with pride when he dropped by to visit once a month like clockwork. More or less.
“Teh Esselone par entin lesky – upton orski par insun!”
There is little to describe how Jack was feeling in that moment. What seemed like just minutes earlier, he was standing next to his backyard pool back home, in the 21st century, Earth, mourning the yearlong memory of his daughters’ loss. Next thing he knew he was naked and being chased by some four-legged vulture-like creature through the brush of an unfamiliar forest. He could have sworn the beast was just about to latch onto his neck when he found myself mid-air, falling fast, then landed in a river, swept away by the rapids, and ended up getting washed ashore next to some… uh… a medieval village? But that wasn’t even the weirdest part of the previous few minutes of Jack’s existence because, while he stood there in the night, observing the outskirt structures of the town, his blue eyes were drawn to the three large moons suspended amid the stars above.
No… this was just a dream, it must have been. The most bizarre, lucid and scariest damn dream he’d ever experienced, but a dream no less. Alas, this dream wasn’t about to end.
As he ventured farther, creeping in the shadows as best he could, making way around a log cabin to assess what must have been the main street of town, a young girl – for the love of god, why it had to be a child – caught sight of his exposure when he tripped on a fallen branch. Needless to mention, it took all of a second for her screams to draw the attention of other townsfolk.
Jack was back to my feet quickly, covering his manhood with both hands while somehow managing to find the audacity to lay silent awed judgement on the people that had stopped their activities to glare at him with looks that, to his surprise, didn’t kill him. Had it not been established yet, now it was; just by the clothes these people wore, there was no doubt he had entered a place far detached from his own time and world. For an instant, just for an instant, he imagined laying sight on a dragon ascending with roars from the sky. Of course this imaginative thought, which would later turn out to be more a premonition, was broken by the large stranger who seemingly came out of nowhere, making himself known to Jack by the cold steel of his swords pressed firmly against his neck.
For fear of having his throat slit open, or possibly dying of asphyxiation from the potent stench of the man’s body odour, Jack could but turn his eyes to him - Oh wow, he looked like Grizzly Adams – And, if things could not have gotten any weirder, the stinky brute opened his mouth to speak the aforementioned words:
“Teh Esselone par entin lesky – upton orski par insun!”
Despite the fear of losing his life, Jack would have likely replied with a smart remark about the stranger being polite enough to take a bath before sneaking up on a naked man, but he never got the chance. At the ending of the strangers statement, a sharp pain struck – it shorted like electricity through Jack’s ears, his throat, and stuck like a knife at his frontal lobe like he was undergoing a lobotomy. With it, a high pitched shriek could be heard, like that of a dogs whistle before, a moment later, the strangers gibberish words were repeated like an echo of English in Jack’s mind.
He had said; “Have you lost your mind, man? - I should have your head!”
“N-n-no-no….” Jack found himself stammering for the first time in his life, and although he was speaking English, it felt strangely like he was speaking the man’s own language as well. “Steady there, big man, I don’t want any trouble. I actually don’t know how I got here. But I would really appreciate it if you had some clothes I could wear….”
The large stranger, or, well, let us just call him Mr. Adams for now, curled his upper lip, squinting one eye in familiarising thought as the cold steel of his blade removed from Jack’s neck. He lowered the weapon, letting the tip of blade ride to a stop in the dirt of the road before he replied:
“I see. Too much drink today, stranger? Mr. Adams chuckled, and added; “Never be that of mind. Still, if you wish for a whore, the Blackgale Inn across the street should meet your needs of fine lady types. No need to run about naked like a perverted type, from where do you co – ”
His words were cut short by a peculiar turn of events, and Jack was just as taken aback by what happened as Mr. Adams was: The black denim jeans Jack had been wearing before his arrival in this current world appeared on his person again. Just like that, no sound, no flash of light. Nothing. They were just there, covering his nakedness once again, held up by a crocodile leather belt.
Jack dropped his eyes, wide with wonder, before looking back at Mr. Adams with an unknowing shake of his head. The big brute glared back with an equal amount of question. Yet, despite this miraculous turn of events, he found the wisdom not to get overly distraught;
“What sort of magic is this?”
Jack shook his head in response, utterly lost on how to explain myself, at the same time concerned by the content of the question. Magic? What? Mr. Adams had mentioned the word like it was more or less as common as sliced bread, which, to be fair, may or may not have also been a thing in this world.
“I uh… I’m not really sure what to sa….” Jack began replying, only to be silenced by the appearance of brown Goodyear Welt Boots on his feet. A grey, sleeveless t-shirt materialised on his upper body. An android cell phone appearing in his left hand. A gold Rolex analogue watch appeared on his wrist. Then, as the phone announced a recently received text, Jack rolled his eyes back to the man, the man who was now portraying a look of intense trepidation.
Mr. Adams and Jack locked stares for a moment, while many of the nearby onlookers released a gasp of dismay.
“Please,” Jack said, “before you get any more ideas about cutting off my head, I really don’t know where I am. I have no idea what’s going on right now. I need your help. Please…. Where the hell am I?” His voice began to shake with honest intent.
Grizzly Adams gaped for quite some time before responding, and when he did at last peak, Jack was somewhat appreciative of his surprising amount of understanding.
“Listen, Friend.” He told Jack straight. “I don’t know who you are or where you are from. But I have never seen magic like this…. For the sake of all of us here, I hope you intend us no harm.”
“I assure you. My friend.” Jack was quick to reply in the calmest voice he could muster. “I mean you no harm, you or your people. I can promise you that.”
Mr. Adams returned his sword to the sheath on his back, seemingly defeated as someone putting away a stick while being confronted by a mammoth. His eyes denoted the same sentiment.
“What is your name?” Jack added, attempting to ride the upper hand he now found himself with.
“You may call me Travius.” The big man declared with a forced sense of pride. “I am the local blacksmith. Take respite in our town, of course. We of Sonarlis wish for only peace. You may come to my workshop to acquire weapons in the morning if you wish. Outside of that, please stay clear of my kin. I however wish for no further kinship with the likes of your own kind.”
Despite the circumstances, Jack suddenly felt ill with disappointment at the sounding of Travius' words. He had been in this strange and far detached world for less than five minutes and already he was despised by the first person he met.
“It’s okay,’ Jack nodded firmly to say. “I meant what I said, I mean no harm – but thank you for the offer. Pleased to meet you, Travius. My name is Jack.”
Travius responded with nothing more than his own firm nod, and as Jack extended his right hand, all Travius did was take a cautious step in retreat. Jack lowered his hand and watched Travius walk away before he looked around at the other bystanders, most of them still intent on staring at Jack, analysing his odd clothing, his cell phone, his watch, murmuring among themselves.
Rumours of Jack’s arrival had spread as quickly as fire in dry brush. By time he entered the local tavern, otherwise knows and Blackgale Inn, there wasn’t one eye in the entire establishment that didn’t lock onto him. Every mouth became deathly silent. After refraining from the initial impulse to vomit from the stench of body odour, urine and stale alcohol, He dropped his eyes demurely, feeling it a prudent course of action not to make eye contact with the many faces peering at him. The sound his boots made on the floorboards, however, was awkwardly loud, being the only sound to be heard as he made his way to the bar. There, he raised his attention to the bartender; a scrawny looking pop-eyed elderly gentleman with a fear-induced grin straddling his face.
Jack gave the man a small smile, yet since he had no idea what these people used for currency he attempted a request that would avoided payment of any kind: “Name’s Jack." He said. "All I want is a drink of water. A table to sit at. That’s all. Thank you.”
The feeble old man’s lips were trembling as his eyes made their way over Jack’s clothing, his watch, his cell phone, still gripped in Jack's left hand. Eventually the bartender found words to reply:
“Take it.” He produced a clay jug of water with a wooden mug, placing them on the dark wooden timber of the bar. “Take any seat you wish for. Just please… with respect, try not to bring about any trouble in my establishment.”
After sliding the phone into his pocket, Jack took up the jug in one hand, the wooden cup in the other, and made his way through the still silenced and watchful group of drunks, whores, diners, even a few children, until he arrived at a small empty table with two chairs near the door. Nothing like preparing for a quick exit…. Taking his seat at the table, he kept his eyes to himself, poured a cup of water, sighed, but held off on actually taking a drink.
“Might be safer to drink my own piss….” He mumbled, staring dismally at the murky water in his cup while the ambient voices of those in the tavern started up again, and the tavern musician started playing a peculiar, questionably cheerful tune on an unfamiliar stringed instrument.
Three characters. Two worlds. One event that brings them all together. Nihilo is a country in a world where humanity is young and reckless, dragonhood tired and brash, and magic slowly spiralling out of control. There are politics, there are issues, but our story follows characters who, more or less, could hardly give two loose feathers about any of those things.
A bounty hunter looking to correct a misunderstanding that could lead to her death. A father looking for his daughter snatched away from him one year ago. Forces beyond their control have dumped them at each other's feet and extenuating circumstances have led them to agree on helping out one another for their own gain. In a world full of unearthly creatures and overwhelming magic, their situations aren't promising, but in a time where life has turned to a new chapter for each of them...
As the reply from the Ernest ends - yet alerts Donny of the fact that Rufus was by no means an ally with the Ernest – the dead body of Rufus rises from the floor in a single, sagging motion like a rag doll tugged up by puppet strings. Head sagging to one side, eyes glazed, he then shuffled limply across the floor and takes a seat next to Donny. In his zombie-like state, his glazed stare fixes on Donny as his mouth opens up to release the sound of a rather pleasant female voice, saying:
“My name is Zeal, but you can call me Cindy.” Rufus’s possessed body then lifts one limp arm to point at the view screen where two centipede shaped vessels can be seen approaching, and he adds; “You might want to raise my shields.”
It should be clear to Donny at this point that the AI of the ship he is on has somehow taken control of Rufus’s corpse.
A moment later, a message comes through on the communications system at the helm. It is the electronical sounding voice of those on board the approaching enemy vessels:
“We are the Sporn. Your biological presence has tainted our universe. Your existence will be aborted.”
As this is happening, the physical contact Donny is making with the helm is acting as a conduit for the ship he is on. Technical knowledge is transmitted through Donny’s flesh and to his brain like a revelation. He is now fully aware of how to operate Cindy’s systems. Of course now, Donny can read all of the holographic displays at the helm, one of which are informing him that the approaching Sporn ships are powering weapons. He would also be aware of some other facts: 1. The Ernest (which is actually a sentient ship as well), is also under attack from the Sporn. 2. The numerous other ships in the solar system, including the Quatis and Khaganate fleet, are under attack from the Sporn as well. 3. He is able to communicate with any vessel in the entire solar system with the communication systems he has at hand. 4. DINO GAVON has just appeared inside the sealed hanger of the Quatis Flagship, within shooting range of the bounty hunter, Meta. 5. He has an unimaginable amount of power at his fingertips, some of which include:
- Trans-phasic quantum torpedoes, designed to penetrate targets through the protective shifts of space-time. - Subatomic disruptors, designed to break matter apart at its core by way of a highly accelerated proton charge. - Photon Gatlin, something like a Gatlin gun that shoots over 5 thousand rounds per minute, only these bullets are made of contained, volatile light darts, each one able to penetrate most alloys up to fifteen feet in depth and has a 15 ton destructive yield. - Time phasing shields. A time shield that puts the ship a little out of phase with current time, rendering it untouchable by most weapons (with the exception of The Ernest, and possibly the attacking Sporn ships).
Wasting no time at all, The Sporn Vessels launch a volley of energy projectiles at Donny.
“Of course we are friends.” Is Fanny’s only reply to Ernest, in a low and somewhat submissive voice that may not be expected from God. But as soon as she finished speaking and Ernest turned his attention to the Sporn threat, his weapons systems had been upgraded. Ernest would have sensed very little, kind of like a human remembering they had put pants on that morning. It would have been like the weapons had always been there, as all his other systems had simultaneously adapted to their presence.
Ernest is now equipped with: - Trans-phasic quantum torpedoes, designed to penetrate targets through the protective shifts of space-time. - Subatomic disruptors, designed to break matter apart at its core by way of a highly accelerated proton charge. - Photon Gatlin, something like a Gatlin gun that shoots over 5 thousand rounds per minute, only these bullets are made of contained, volatile light darts, each one able to penetrate most alloys up to fifteen feet in depth and has a 15 ton destructive yield. - Multi phasing shield emitter. An energy shield that encompasses the ship, repeatedly and randomly changing its harmonics/phasing to prevent advanced energy weapons from adjusting their own frequency to penetrate. The static/base defence strength of the shield (protection from non-energy projectiles) is the equivalent of twenty meters of titanium.
“You’re ready.” She tells him. “Concentrate on the Sporn for now. Rufus… or should we say Donny, has discovered our common enemy.”
A moment later, the Sporn fire their first volley of weapons upon the Ernest, three in total. The type of weapons used by the Sporn are unknown to Ernest, but consistent with volatile energy. He may want to raise his multi phasing shield emitter before the light-speed volley makes contact.
As the volley of weapons approach Ernest at the speed of light, Fanny says something in a by-the-way casual tone:
Meta’s attempt to move away from the approaching Sporn was futile. They followed like magnets guided by steel. As the first volley of Sporn fire is launched upon The Tempest, Meta’s request from Palin is answered just in time. As the weapons discharge from the Sporn pass through empty space, Meta will find that he and his ship has been teleported into the hangar on board the Quatis flagship. It is only now, moments later, that Meta receives a verbal reply from Palin:
“You are aboard my vessel. This is a temporary measure until the Sporn threat has been dealt with. Exit your vessel. The majority of our officers are occupied at the moment. You will be met by a single Quatis soldier clone escort. Remain armed, we have been breached by hostile forces.”
Niner and the escort of Instigators never make it to Sahmi. As the message from Palin is delivered to Meta, her body dematerializes in a flash of blue light….
When Meta exits the Tempest, he would find himself in a large hangar that, aside from the Tempest, is otherwise empty. Waiting near to where Meta exits his ship, is a Quatis soldier clone he had been informed about. The clone is suited with body armour and stone cold face-revealing helmet, as well as all manner of weapons, so many that it would seem that a normal man would be unable to support the weight of it all. But only one hand is actually armed with a pistol-shaped energy gun of strange proportions. He would extend his free hand to greet Meta when he approaches, saying:
“I am Quatis Mark 567, your escort.” After Meta greets the Clone, the clone would reply by saying:
“Nowhere is safe. In case you have not already been informed, our vessels have been penetrated by hostile forces. Stay alert and at the ready at all times. That said, we should proceed quickly to a confinement area for your safety. Follow me.”
As soon as the Clone stops speaking, the ship is shaken violently from an attack from the Sporn. As the shaking then subsides, and what must be a strange surprise, Dino Gavon blinks into existence near the exit door of the hangar. After a few seconds of realising where he is, looks across the 30 meters that separates him from Meta, a somewhat curious look on his face.
“Uh right, it’s you. Why would I not expect her to place me here?”
As he finishes talking, he reaches for the transect device in order to teleport himself away. As he reaches for the transect device, the Quatis ships shakes again due to a shockwave from somewhere out in space.
While the aforementioned circumstances were taking place, the Quatis Fleet had been changing to a defensive formation. The fleet are now in a circular formation, the bow of each ship is facing out from the circle, the sterns are facing inward.
As the Quatis finish their manoeuvre, The Sporn had charged all weapons. They fired, yet the volley of energy charges miss their target as the Khaganate fleet make their speedy escape to the location of the Quatis fleet. They are however not out of danger. The Sporn vessels pursue them in an uncanny manner, as if they were attracted to their new location like a magnet. They too arrive at close proximity to the Quatis fleet, joining forces with the Sporn ships that were already there to attack the Quatis.
Meanwhile, the Sporn had launched their first volley of energy weapons at the Quatis as well, but the Quatis had raised their shields a second after they transported the Tempest aboard. The strike from the Sporn weapons do not pass through the Quatis shield matrix, but the explosions are powerful enough to shake the fleet.
All the Sporn Vessels now begin to recharge their weapons for a second assault. This time, the readings given off by the charging weapons are far stronger than the first. While this is happening, Admiral Schmidt receives an answer back from Palin:
“Do not endanger your people more than is needed, we will take care of our rogue hostile.” Palin’s voice seems a little uneasy. “Our reading indicate that your vessels may not be equipped to handle a secondary attack from the Sporn. Standby for capsule shielding! It will take a few moments to make this happen. Launch all that you can at the enemy before our shield covers you.”
While this message is being transmitted and the Sporn vessel continue to power up their second assault, the Khaganate will read a massive energy surge rising from the Quatis fleet. It is the energy given off by the primary shield matrix which is now being adapted to form a cocoon around both fleets. The Capsule Shielding Palin had mention. While the Quatis prepare to form the shield around both fleets, they launch their own attack of Quantum torpedoes upon the many Sporn ships that surround.
The Sporn ships appear to be shaken and their powering weapons are delayed, but they seem otherwise undamaged by the Quatis attack. If the Khaganate fire upon the Sporn as instructed, or even if they don’t, the Quatis shield will then be erected around both fleets.
Moments after all these things take place, the Sporn open fire upon the DGS. A volley of energy discharges strike the vessel. In the moment before impact, Fanny May gives SAM a wink and wave goodbye. SAM and the DGS are destroyed.
Even more unfortunately, the type of energy used in the Sporn weapons, combined with the weapons and propulsion energies of the DGS, reacts in a way to create an explosion of unprecedented proportions: The initial destruction of the DGS is instantly followed up by a following cascade explosion that sends a shockwave out across the Phantom Point solar system. Every ship within the system is shaken violently, though not hard enough to actually cause serious damage to them all.
The shockwave, however, also reaches the planet that the DGS had been in orbit of. It shakes the ground and everyone on the planet, but it also effects the portal that had appeared on the surface of the planet just minutes beforehand (as mentioned in my previous reply to Fairy and Zyn). The Portal becomes unstable from the shockwave, growing in size as it starts to behave like a black hole, sucking everything around it into its growing gravitational pull. Cuna, shard, Mili and Pirilia are the first within reach of gravity, pulling them into to whatever awaited them on the other side.
The ships in space are not yet effected by the growing strength of the gravity from the black hole, but its growing size and power would already be registering on their ships data systems.
Meanwhile - if all of this was not enough - Haney’s Ribbon appears on the outskirts of the Solar System. The appearance of Haney’s Ribbon obviously causes more problems. The dampening field she sends out prevents the propulsion systems of all the ships in the solar system to fail. Every ship is now dead in the water, including the Sporn. Even though propulsion systems of all ships are now useless, weapons and other systems are still operational. They can fight, they just can’t move.
While all vessels are now stuck in place, Haney’s Ribbon starts her slow encroach upon the solar system. The first obstacle in her path is the outer most planet that explodes instantly upon contact. Again another shockwave is sent out from this explosion, causing all ships in the solar system to tremble at the power.
Moments later, all ships in the solar system would be aware of yet another arrival. It is the Rodia, as it drops out of warp to join the party.
Meanwhile, Rodia and everyone aboard are jettisoned across space when Gamma hits warp drive. Minutes later they arrive in a new territory in space. Unfortunately, this region seems to be in conflict. They have arrived at the Phantom Point solar system moments after Haney’s Ribbon appears. (those already in the system are Quatis Fleet, The Khaganate, The Time Ship, The Ernest, The Sporn, The Tempest which has already entered one of the Quatis Hangars and cant be seen atm, and of course some massive unidentified objects moving towards the solar system but are still a long way off. The Rodia would also receive reading of a growing black hole on one of the planets. But more than all this, it would seem that the Sporn, Allies to all those on board Rodia, are attacking all the other ships in the area. THIS COULD PRESENT A PROBLEM! ). As soon as they arrive, Haney’s Ribbon causes all of Rodia’s propulsion systems to go offline.
Unfortunately for Gamma, Ramrod isn’t here… yet. But the Time Ship may be giving off reading that are similar to the readings that Ramrods creations usually give off. Only Ramrod isn’t aboard the vessel.
Somewhere else in time and space, K12 is counting down the seconds to opening fire upon the Quatis on the otherwise abandoned vessel. The Quatis troops have stopped firing their energy weapons and look curiously at each other when it becomes more than clear that the entity is talking to itself. The officer in charge contacts the captain of Quatis vessel, saying quickly:
“Captain, There is a robot here with a split personality. He’s a little nuts to be honest. Requesting a teleport us out of here. This ship is kinda primitive and isn’t worth our trouble.”
By time the leading officer finishes his request, the ten second countdown would have just about ended, and The Quatis troops reverse from the room and take cover in the corridor outside while awaiting a reply from the captain of their own ship.
Aboard the Quatis vessel currently in orbit of the nearby planet, Captain Stellic is observing the encounter between his officers and the mechanical entity on board by way of Quatis Fleet grade observation equipment. Though he is aware of the situation, he listens intently to the com call from his troops and furrows his brow in thought. At this point, K12 has no doubt opened fire upon the retreating Quatis officers.
After giving the situation some quick thought, he turns to the science officer on the bridge, Lieutenant Jaymious, and orders the extraction:
“Teleport the entity to the science lab.”
Whether K12 had opened fire or not, moments after the Quatis soldiers retreat behind the safety of the walls to the corridor, K12 dematerialises in a flash of blue light. K12 then rematerializes on a platform at the center of a white room filled with all manner of lab equipment and several Quatis scientists dressed in lab coats. The platform k12 is now on has a 3 meter diameter and surrounded by a soft aqua coloured force field. If K12 is still firing his weapon upon arrival, the bullets will be bouncing off the forcefield, effectively placing itself in danger.
The seven science officers stare at K12, calmly awaiting the entity to settle down (if it needs to settle down) before proceeding with their examination….
Back on the alien space ship, the group of officers receive word back from their captain:
“The entity has been taken aboard for further study. Proceed with your previous orders. Keep me informed.”
Zeal hums for a moment considering Ramrods request, checking her navigational systems while Ramrod walks into the adjoining room to meet Hank.
Hank is dressed in a black and white tuxedo and honestly has no idea why he is human at the moment, which is obvious by the confused look on his face. He does however look at Ramrod with that confused look mixed with a smile to greet him.
“It sure is an interesting feeling to be human –“ he says, but gets cut off by the sound of Zeal.
“My dear Ramrod,” She says casually, “I have scanned space and time and Rodia is not at its previous coordinates. We are at the moment displaced from our previous coordinates as well, all thanks to yours truly. It will take a few minutes to reconfigure my temporal array to make the necessary adjustment. In the meantime, there is another situation at hand that might be worth our interest. Hank can tell you all about it.”
As it turns out, Hank isn’t completely human after all, but he does look human. Somehow Zeal has interfaced with his new biological and electronical systems. In reply to Zeal’s request, Hank opens his mouth and a ray of light - like that of a film projector - beams from his mouth to display an image of space outside the ship. In the image Ramrod can see a large space ship, and near to the space ship is a planet… or, at least, it looks like a planet.
“This is the Jam.” Zeal says, referring to the space ship in the projected mage, and then referring to the planet-size object, she adds; “And this a planet size life form. The Jam has captured another space craft and the Jam are currently attacking the people of that craft inside the Jam ship….”
The projection from Hanks mouth now shows an image of inside the Jam Hangar, where the beastly humanoid life forms are fighting with and trying to eat Magnus, Sandra and a peasant girl that seems to be from a page of ancient history. The projected images then changes back to the image of space with the planet size life form in view, and Zeal continues;
“This planetary round life form appears to have followed the smaller ship here and may be attempting to save those three individuals inside the Jam ship, but it has not got the means to do it. It will need our assistance if you, Ramrod, wish to save them?”
As soon as Zeal stops talking, a transmission comes in from the large planet-like entity, saying:
“Oh hi there suspicious looking ship with people inside! My name is Fanny – well, actually it isn’t, I stole the name from someone who once made contact with me. But never mind that right now. I was wondering if you are nice people? Because, like, my boyfriend is trapped inside this Jam Space ship. They want to eat him and his friends. I was hoping that you could help?”
Meanwhile, on the bridge of Magnus’s ship, Fanny replies to Magnus, saying:
“Oh! Hello eternal love of mine! How great it is to hear your voice again! But hey, listen, we can catch up later and maybe even have dinner or something, but right now I can see you and your lesser friends are in trouble. I’d help, but the only way I can do that is to destroy the Jam ship entirely, which means you along with it. Sad, right? Anyway! Good news is that I just made contact with some other folks on board some kind of time ship. They seem very advanced and I’m currently asking them for help. So Magnus, my love…” Fanny adds with a sceptical voice; “can you make contact with the time ship? I sure hope you guys can figure out a way to help you!”
While this is happening, Magnus can also see the peasant girl and Sandra from inside the bridge. Both the girl and Sandra are still going berserk in a frenzy of bloodshed, but countless more bloodthirsty Jam continue to stream into the Hangar. Soon they overcome the peasant girl and knock her to the ground. They converge on her position and the surely Sandra is too preoccupied with her own battle to help. Maybe Magnus can find another way to keep the Jam at bay from the girl for a while, at least long enough to have those on board the time ship to help. After all, it would be heartbreaking to see this weird peasant girl get killed….
It’s always nice to finally scratch that nagging itch and, to be fair, often the pleasure is enough to distract you from the events taking place nearby. In Luna’s case, she may or may not have been aware of the young woman that had approached her, or maybe the woman had just kind of appeared there somewhat magically. Whatever the case, she was there now, and Luna – rubbing her back against the bark of the tree with undersides exposed - would no doubt be aware of their presence by the now gentle rubbing of human nails along her belly.
The instant Luna becomes aware of the human, it is all too late to run or hide or do the many things a cat in her position might be inclined to do when approached by a strange human sort. The contact this human makes with her instantaneously fills Luna with complete and utter serenity, so much so that it could even be considered a feeling of intense euphoria. All she can do is lie there and enjoy the feeling of not only her previous itch being satisfied, but also this sense of pure serenity while her belly is receiving a scratch.
This immensely pleasurable moment lasts for an unknown amount of time before Luna can hear the human talking to her. The euphoria and belly scratching continue to keep Luna subdued, of course, and whether or not Luna could understand human speech previous to this encounter, she can certainly and inexplicable understand every soft word this woman is now saying to her:
“My little Luna… I named you before the stars were born. Before time, you were mine. If you wish… I request that you come with me. You have so much potential. The universe awaits us….”
Following this speech, the woman withdraws her hand from Luna’s belly. Upon severing contact, Luna will find herself with enough strength of will to stand or sit, or even run if she chooses, and yet much of the serenity she was feeling remains, preventing her from being frightened in any way. If Luna now takes a proper look, the woman she sees appears to be quite young by human standards, with a small, caring smile and emerald eyes framed by both her dark fall of hair and the glow of her fair skin. It is once she has seen the woman’s face properly, one she would not recognise yet seems strangely familiar, that Luna will hear the woman’s thoughts, saying;
“You can speak with me like this. I will hear you. I will understand.”
As the turbulent wormhole continues to drag the Khaganate fleet to an unknown destination, Fanny May gives the Khan a calming smile before momentarily taking her attention to Dino Gavon, saying:
“You… you aren’t meant to be here.” With a flick of one hand Dino Gavon blinks out of existence. He is no longer on board any of the Khaganate vessels. Fanny then turns her attention back to the Khan, saying; “Apologies for the intrusion. I have no intention of compromising the security of your people. Alas…” She adds, taking a few slow steps towards the Khans position; “I can, but will not prevent your fleet from arriving at their next destination. Some things are meant to be. I also don’t need to tell you that any attempts to exit this wormhole in any way will cause the destruction of your fleet. So, for your own good, don’t try.”
Fanny then pauses her speech. When she does so, all other members on the bridge freeze as if they have been placed in a temporary state of suspended animation, while all viewing monitors and other communication systems shut down. Only the Khan and Fanny are unaffected.
“You have no reason to fear me.” She continues to tell the Khan, “For reasons I cannot say, I am hereby requesting your assistance in destroying the species you just met. In assisting me and therefore yourself, history will change and those of your people previously abducted by the said aliens will systematically be returned to your care. But you will need to be patient. More about that when we arrive at the predetermined destination. For now,” She tells him, “The child Anderson is carrying in her womb will be born within a few days. The child will not be human, though it will carry human DNA. Any attempts to abort or kill the child will not end well for you or your people. Consider this fair warning. But not to worry, the child will be what you need to aid in the destruction of the aforementioned enemy.” She looks around at the rest of the Khans suspended crew, and says; “They did not need to know. For now, it is for your knowledge only.”
She takes a deep breath, and at that point if the Khan attempts to reply, he will find he cannot speak. His voice is jammed but he is not in any discomfort. After pausing, and smiling soothingly if the Khan does try and speak, she finishes her speech:
“I will return at the appropriate time.”
And with that, Fanny blinks out of existence, her ship also vanishes from its holding area, the Khans ability to speak returns, and the other people on board the Bridge snap out from their suspended state.
Meanwhile, Anderson and Knaggs are being rushed to the medical bay. Once they arrive, and after examinations are made, the medical personnel will find that Knaggs prostate gland has been removed, but is not causing any other biological problems inside his body.
With the right treatment, Anderson will survive the pregnancy, so long as that treatment assists in the rapid growth of the foetus inside her. Initial scans of the foetus itself should show that child’s DNA is both consistent with Andersons and Knaggs own DNA, but somehow their DNA and foetus’s general cellular structure is fused with that of a silicone cell structure. In all, the foetus appears to be that of a humanoid form, but consistent of both biological and silicone structures. At this early stage of development, it is also apparent that it is a hermaphrodite, having both male and female sexual organs. However, scanning the foetus will only be temporarily available to the medics and doctors, since after several hours the foetus will somehow gain the ability to refract all scans of it. Any attempts to scan the foetus after several hours will only show reading of Andersons internal organs, including her rapidly expanding womb, which will actually appear empty.
You can jump into the IC whenever you want, just pick a place or circumstance you like, even if it isn't where any other characters are atm. I can drag you into interaction by the tail if need be XD. You choose!
Looking forward to playing with you! And have fun!
Hey there, new comer. The RP has slowed its pace of late, but you are free to join if you want. I'm still waiting on a few key players to post before I make my next post, so if you get things done in time I can be responding to you the next time I post as well.
Read through the guidelines on the OOC's first page and take it from there. No problem. And uh, don't worry about being a little rusty, doesn't take long to get back in the swing of things.
Madison doesn't take kindly to threats, any at all, and ones made by those unwilling to make themselves known annoyed her on an even deeper level. She considered those types of people cowards, too scared to show their face and confront her in person.
As a display of her disdain, she cocks her body to one side in order to release a loud fart as the envelope crumbles to dust like an ancient scroll exposed to the air for the first time in centuries, which is actually something she doesn't care about in the slightest. She'd encountered all manner of witchcraft in her life. It didn't intimidate her in the slightest. She crumples up the teller and shoves in her mouth, chewing it like a tasty cut of meat as she chuckles at a memory of the time she killed a witch by sitting on her head and suffocated her. Her chuckling intensified as she recollected how the witch finally stopped struggling, going limp, then soiled her pants as her bowels became incontinent due to death.
Once the letter was well and truly masticated, she spat it out across the room. The saliva-softened clomp of paper made a loud plop sound as it stuck to a support beam next to another customers table.
With this sort of behaviour she knew it wouldn't be long before she was asked to leave, and she could do without any more attention being drawn to herself. She had gold to find, and she preferred to do that in peace without too many prying eyes watching on. As for the prying eyes of the witch, or whoever else it might have been that sent her the letter, Madison felt a little excited over the anticipation of defying their request, in the hopes of one day meeting them. At which time it would be her filthy pleasure to show them exactly what she thinks about them.
She rises from her table, swallows back the last of her drink, and leaves a few coins on the table – no tip – then heads out the door.
“Gosh! You sure are nice for a jailbird.” Boris tells Kaldalis, much obliged for helping him find the right key. “We sure can talk about you leaving this place after I teach this bad man a lesson.” He adds while slipping the key into the hole.
The cell is opened.
Boris steps inside, his baby face hard as stone while taking strides towards Ovarin, who at this time is ending his hard to understand speech by calling Boris Stupid many times over. That part Boris could understand very easily. He’d been called stupid a lot by lots of people in his life, and that was one thing he didn’t like at all!
Boris stops just a few feet from the disgusting little man, his chest swelling like a barrel about to explode as his face goes red with rage.
“DON’T YOU CALL ME STUPID LIKE THAT!” He yells at the man, and without a seconds delay he lashes out with one heavy fist. The punch would be powerful enough to shatter any bones in the old man’s face and sending against the wall like a ragdoll. While Ovarin is probably falling to the floor in pain, Boris draws Revel Yell from the straps on his back, raising it above his head as he hears the ghostly voice of Sara Stones mother fill the room. The cold of her voice sends a shiver up Boris’s spine, but Boris didn’t need convincing, his passion for helping the little invisible miss had already made up his mind.
Without even a second thought, Boris brings the massive Dragonbone club down on Ovarin. The old man’s head pops like an overripe melon, spraying blood, bone and brain all over the cell. As this happens, Revel Yell glows a vibrant turquois hue while releasing a Dragons cry of rage that shakes the cell block, all of this in unison with the sound of Boris’s voice calling out in his own passionate rage.
Boris peers down at the mess he had made before returning the weapon to his back. He then stoops low, hands on his knees to raise his voice at Ovarin again, as if yelling would help a dead man hear what he had to say –
“That will teach you for picking on little girls like that!”
Boris’s rage hadn’t ended just yet, though. Overwhelmed with anger he drops down next to the body and bites off all four fingers from one hand of the corpse. He then gets back up on his feet, chewing as he starts to relax, as if the taste of his victim was soothing him like a nice, warm home cooked meal. The sound of bones being crushed by his teeth is heard as he turns his blood spattered face to Kaldalis, at which point Boris also notices the ghost of Sara Stone standing next to the prisoner.
Knowing it was rude to speak with your mouth full, Boris grounds down the fingers for a time before suddenly stopping, like he may have bitten into something distasteful. His face winces as he then digs around in his mouth and eventually pulls out the ring that Ovarin had been wearing. After finally swallowing, Boris The Bonecrusher holds up the ring between his finger and thumb to show it to Kaldalis and the Ghost of Sara Stone.
“I think Boris is going to keep this.” He says, as a grateful smile develops. “It sure is a nice ring.”
Boris then wipes his mouth with his forearm while slipping the ring in his pocket with his other hand.
“You sure do seem nice…” Boris says to Kaldalis while quickly glancing at Sara. “And it sure does look like the little miss likes you too. So if you can give Boris a really, really, really good reason, I’ll just let you out of your jail cell, Mr. Tin Man. Anyway, the guards here like Boris a lot, and Boris doesn’t even know why, so it should be okay with them as well I thinks.”
Boris then looks at the ghost and snickers, saying; “I don’t think you should stay in here, little miss, jail isn’t a good place for a nice person like you.”
Boris then glances around curiously at the frosted iron bars and walls of the cell block before returning a stare to Kaldalis, waiting for the Tin Man to give a really good reason to set him free.
Dorita Gavon, oldest daughter of Dino Gavon, is gripping tight to a metal briefcase while running fast to escape the danger unleashed in her private science lab. She has left behind her colleague who now lies strewn and dismembered over the laboratory floor.
Fleeing through the corridors of the science ship, the Transect device on her wrist bleeps three times with the initiation of an incoming call from the bridge of the Flagship. It is First Gamma Palin himself.
“Superior Science officer, Dorita! We are receiving data concerning ongoing damage to your laboratory and surrounding areas. Please confirm immediately!”
Dorita takes a turn at the next corridor junction and lifts the Transect device to her mouth and with a panting voice replies to the first Gamma: “I don’t really have time to chat right now – but yeah, I can confirm that and much more. The specimen we had captive has reanimated. Believe it has been reinitialized within proximity of its own race that have arrived in this solar system. I suggest you prepare for battle. All hell is breaking loo - ”
Her voice is cut off by an explosion 50 odd meters behind her, where the Spore drone they had been holding captive for the last couple of years had managed to blast a hole in a wall in its pursuit of Dorita Gavon.
If the troubles at present were not enough, everyone in the Phantom Point Solar system receives a message from a computerized voice that overrides their communication systems so that every person of every ship in the entire solar system can hear it. The message is received from the many centipede shaped ships of the Sporn that had recently arrived in the system as a result of the Quantum Shuffle. The message is delivered as follows:
“Bio Carbon Humanoid life forms. Your stain on this universe has tainted purity. Your existence shall be aborted.”
Jor, Meta, Quote, Spank:
Concluding a few more minutes wait, Palin replies to Erwin Schmidt, the acting captain of The KSS Nova. This time the voice of Palin is rather tense, saying;
Captain Erwin Schmidt, We have reason to believe our Grand Minister has been murdered by an uncertain assailant and several of our vessels have been penetrated by the unknown entities attached to both our hulls. We have been compromised. There is also a specimen of a robotic entity on board our science vessel that has been activated and causing unprecedented destruction. We believe this specific entity to be related to the Sporn. We also believe you and I are soon to encounter yet another variety of hostile approaching this solar system. It should be detectable on your own scanners. I suggest our collaboration begins immediately. We are raising our shields and offensive systems. We suggest you do the same. Keep us informed.”
Several seconds after the First Gamma delivers his message, the Spore vessels had divided into smaller groups, a few of them surrounding both The Quatis and The Khaganate, while one approaches the Ernest and another approaches the Tempest and the DGS. Any scans of the Sporn vessels will indicate that weapons are being charged.
The Khaganate would also be aware of another, smaller vessel, the Tempest, which now drops out of Hyperdrive near the Quatis fleet. This vessel has two life forms on board, both a Humanoid Quatis and a Humanoid that would have life readings more similar to a man from Earth.
Spank:
Fanny watches SAM raise the Graviton Shield without any apparent judgement for his lack of knowledge. While he goes on to scour for a propulsion system she leans in to set the Graviton shields at level 10. Maximum output.
“You can use Light Speed Flux (LSF) while these shields are up, but nothing more. So you’ll need to get out of the immediate danger within this solar system before you drop the shields and initiate Trans Stellar Jump (TSJ) for traveling longer distances.” While she is saying this, she taps at a few controls, severing any further communication with the Quatis, preventing any more interruptions, almost as though she had anticipated SAM’s coming speech….
All communication links are severed as Fanny rests her hip against the helm and listens to what SAM has to say. The look on her face is like someone who has a bad taste in her mouth.
After SAM finishes voicing his concerns, she gives him a long but less than intense stare before replying frankly:
“I’m God. Not just any God. I am THE God, creator of all thins including all other Gods. I’m the beginning, the end, and everything in between. I can tell you this, Sammy, because no one will believe you if you share the news with them anyway. Now you know. I’m helping you because I like you. But don’t think I’m going to be snapping my fingers to give you everything you want. That’s not how I work. I don’t interfere with the free will of my creation and I have set things up in this universe for people to do things for themselves. If I did everything for everyone, the point of creation would be lost. That said, I’ll provide the toilet paper,” She looks around at the ship; “but I’m not going to wipe your ass.” She pauses before continuing. “The quantum disruption is due to some stuffed animation called Ramrod who has created a Quantum fused Time Ship because he was too stoned to know what he was doing. Don’t worry about that, though, I’ll take care of that shit. But just so you know, I’m kinda pissed off at the moment.”
Fanny looks SAM up and down in the way a mother might look at her son who hasn’t dressed correctly for Sunday Mass.
“Go and clothe yourself. You can find a wardrobe of male clothing in the main bedchamber at the back of the ship. When you get back you can start your journey in a decently presented state.”
As Fanny finishes talking, a red light begins to blink on the helm. It’s a warning, indicating that some large unidentified objects are approaching the solar system. At the same time, the communication systems she had severed are re-initiated by way of an outside source. It’s a verbal message, but NOT coming from the unknown objects approaching. Whoever it is, has the ability to override the DGS’s systems remotely. The voice that speaks from the transmission sounds robotic, saying:
“Bio Carbon Humanoid life forms. Your stain on this universe has tainted purity. Your existence shall be aborted.”
Fanny then raises her brows at SAM, “Best you get a move on, we are about to get all sorts of bad company riding up our ass.”
The controls are fairly straight forward for anyone with a reasonable degree of intelligence. They are divided into four main boards/terminals, all four within reach of the person at the helm: Communications. Science. Propulsion. Defence and combat. Besides manual controls for everything, many of the systems can also be interacted with via voice command when more than one function needs to be applied at once.
Communications terminal
All known methods of intergalactic communication is contained here. Audio, Text, wave lengths, frequencies etc. Too many to list. Standard communications are listed on the primary panel. All communication systems are equipped with a universal translator that deciphers alien dialect in the most efficient fashion possible. For complex languages, there may be a wait before the translated message is released.
Science
Scanning array: Can scan all known elements, matter and energy and biological signatures for up to 10 lightyears radius. Data input is huge and distributed to various areas of the science databanks. All unknown data is distributed to sections of science analyses system for further study and computerized hypothesis.
Detection scanning array: Can scan in search of up to four selected elements or life type at once within a radius 50 lightyears.
Biological Scanner: Can read and organize life signs on a planet and categorize and index of up to 200 trillion individual life sources. Vessel must be within orbit of planet.
Weapons array scanner: Detects, deciphers function and organizes external weapons (those of alien vessels) into data.
Galactic charts: The DGS is constantly scanning space for major stellar formations for up to 200,000 lightyears radius, and displays all star and planet formation within that range. If the image doesn’t give it away, the map/chart of space can be seen on the view screen titled 'Galactic chart.’
Propulsion terminal
Coordinates Interface, mark 1: Is a scanning device that can be used in coordination with any of the propulsion systems. Scanning range of coordinates is effective up to 10 lightyears. If coordinates are chosen for any propulsion system, a speed must be chosen, and the vessel will enter autopilot until arriving at its destination. Coordinates Interface must always be used with TJS and LSF propulsion systems, as manual steering will not work.
Coordinates Interface, mark 2 (subspace scanning array): Used primarily for Trans Stellar Jumps (TSJ). Although it's detailed analyses of space is limited to priority stellar bodies and other objects that may be obstacles in Trans Stellar Jumps, it used subspace to scan prospective destinations of up to 100, 000 lightyears away. Only one direction can be scanned at a time. (Note: SAM will need to use this array to select a destination before activating TSJ. All shields will need to be dropped before the jump is made. SAM’s home planet is NOT within range of any scanning system aboard the DGS)
Steering: All propulsion systems, besides TSJ and LSF, are synchronized with an Omni-directional steering stick. While at Impulse, a slight move up, down, right, left etc. will change the vessels direction correspondingly and instantly. While at Secondary Impulse, speeds must be reduced to below 2,000miles/sec for the steering to be effective. [WARNING: Attempting to steer at higher velocities will shut down all ships propulsion systems instantaneously]. Holding down the button on the top of the steering stick while changing direction will keep the vessel facing the same direction even though its direction of flight has changed.
Impulse: standard Omni-directional flight. Velocity .005 to 1,000miles/sec. Functional with instant velocity (can increase speed gradually or start instantly at the specified speed. Impulse is the only propulsion system that can be used while within a planet’s atmosphere. It can also be used in space.)
Secondary Impulse: Secondary Omni-Directional flight. Can only be used in space. Velocity 1,000 to 80,000miles/sec.
Light Speed Flux[LSF]: Single directional light speed (uses subspace as a slipstream to achieve light speed).
Trans Stellar Jump [TSJ]: Hyperspace jump. Near instantaneous travel to the desired coordinates. Works by folding space. Effective up to 100,000 lightyears only.
Defense and Combat terminal
Disruptors: An energy ray designed to penetrate and disrupt/destabilize all electrical and other energy power at its target. effective diameter is adjustable from 1 to 100 meters from point of impact. Range: 30, 000, 000 miles.
Quantum Cannons: Designed to remove all matter from a set containment parameter. Is effective to all elements and material known to the Quatis, besides what their own vessels are made of. Rate of fire: 2 per second. Speed of projectile: Half Light speed, depending on the gravitation pull or other influences of the surroundings. Destructive radius adjustable from levels 1-10. 1=5meters. 10=50meters. Range: 30, 000, 000 miles.
Sonic Pulse: Ineffective in space or outside an atmosphere able to support sonic waves. Is a vibrational Disrupter. Destabilization of matter within a setting of containment. See Quantum Cannons for destructive radius parameters. Range: 30, 000, 000 miles.
Photonic Charge: Narrow laser capsules of compressed, stimulated photons. Speed: Light. 1-5000 rounds per second. Will instantly melt a hole in most materials, alloys and metal upon impact. Destructive radius 5cm to 10 meters. Range: 30, 000, 000 miles.
Triobsidium Gun: Single shot or automatic. Level 10 Fully Auto=5000 rounds per second. Fires Triobsidium heavy armor piercing bullets (lead and most other metals and alloys), though ammunition is limited. Otherwise fires highly stimulated protons contained in a bullet-size self-magnetizing field, and can fire Nitrogen-field condensed air bullets within atmospheres that contain Nitrogen (all three bullet types have the same destructive capacity). Effective range: 50 miles.
Shielding
Graviton Shield: Invisible force field. A reverse gravitational/magnetic field to prevent objects from entering but allows objects to exit. Prevents teleportation at its highest setting by scattering molecule alignment. Can be used while firing weapons. Cannot be used while TSJ propulsion is active.
Transphasic Shield: Will show up as a transparent red cocoon that envelops the vessel. Prevents all matter and forms of radiation from entering or exiting. Cannot be used while firing weapons. Cannot be used while any form of propulsion is active. Can withstand a blast with the yield of a supernova. Can remain effectively active for up to 15 minutes.
There are four view screens, all of which can be selected to display whatever data or visual information the flyer wants. Usually, at least one of these view screens are allocated to show a view of space from all six directional perspectives in split-screen style.
Quote:
Ernest doesn’t receive a reply from Rufus, as soon as Ernest stops talking the communication link between vessels is terminated abruptly from Rufus’s side.
Moments later, even though Ernest is not a carbon based life form, he receives the previously verbal message from the Sporn. He is about to be attacked by the now approaching Sporn vessel:
“Bio Carbon Humanoid life forms. Your stain on this universe has tainted purity. Your existence shall be aborted.”
Any reading of the Sporn Vessel will indicate they are charging weapons.
Meanwhile, Fanny is gritting her teeth and clenching her fists.
“Ernest,” She says; “It’s time I reveal my true nature to you. I am God. Creator of all things. Nevertheless, I, by the laws established in the creation of my universe, am unable to interfere with sentient free will. So I am going to ask your permission right now. Will you allow me to update your combative systems so you can defend yourself against the oncoming threat of the Sporn?”
Doc:
Moments after the message is delivered from the Sporn, Donny hears yet a second message, this time from the first Gamma on board the bridge. The message is being delivered to everyone in the Quatis fleet:
“This is First Gamma Palin to all individuals, personnel and otherwise. We are under attack. If you are military, head directly to battle station and prepare for to confront alien hostile forces under the sanction of Prime Force One. For any non-personnel, find security in allocated sections of your vessel. This is not a drill. Each member of the Quatis is expected to act with diligence. Remain calm. This is not a drill!”
After the message from the First Gamma, Fanny appears in Donny’s chamber. She is seated on a nearby chair, a look of dissatisfaction shading her face.
“You look like crap, Donny. Stop meddling with the innocent.” She tells him in a lackluster voice. “Looks like someone is fucking with my universe. I want you to put off Dino Gavon for the time being, there will be time to find your resolve with him in the near future. For now I’m placing you on board another vessel. The cause of all this trouble. On board this vessel you will find one of your kind, a young junkie by the name of Rufus. Kill him. The ship he is on board is not his. Do it quickly, before he causes more trouble in my universe. Do this first, and I will deliver Dino Gavon into your waiting hands. You’ll just have to trust me on this one. I’m not in the mood to explain my reasons.”
Donny is given a few moment to respond to Fanny, but she does not reply. In the ending of whatever words he might have, Donny disappears and arrives on board the ship with Rufus.
The ship he arrives on should be nothing like anywhere Donny has seen before. The controls in the room he arrives in are all interactive holographic projections.
If Donny was to move from that room and through the nearest doorway, he would find the bridge where a young red-head man with bloodshot eyes sits giggling as he communicates with another ship, the Ernest. At the time Donny would enter the Bridge, Rufus will be aware of his presence and sever communication with The Ernest, turning in his seat to face Donny, saying;
“Yo, dude! It’s rude to enter a ship unannounced.” Despite the young man’s objections, he lifts a weed-packed bong and holds it out to Donny. “Want some righteous weed or what, my audacious dude? You’re just in time to witness the second wave from the safety of this audacious ship!”
Meta:
Meta’s plans are successful. The tempest arrives within close proximity of the Quatis Fleet and Aoa has departed back to his own people.
However, as soon as Meta arrives, the Tempest will be aware of two new things: One would be the large unidentified objects closing in on the solar system (Prima Luce’s characters). Two, a transmission from the Sporn overrides the Tempests communications system by remote access and a verbal message is heard throughout the ship:
“Bio Carbon Humanoid life forms. Your stain on this universe has tainted purity. Your existence shall be aborted.”
As the message is being transmitted, another Sporn vessel is approaching the tempest. Reading would indicate they are powering weapons. At the same time The tempest scanning systems would be picking up on a few other things: The Quatis Fleet is also being surrounded by other Sporn ships. A little farther away the Sporn are surrounding another fleet of vessels belonging to the Khaganate. The Sporn are also closing in another vessel nearby, The Ernest, which is hovering near the time ship Rufus is aboard.
While all this information is flooding in for Meta, and while the message from the Sporn comes to a close, The Tempest communications is commandeered by yet another transmission, only this time from the First Gamma of the Quatis:
“This is acting captain Palin of the Quatis. Good to see you could join the fight, Meta. We suggest you ready all arms for battle. I’m also detecting one of Dino Gavon’s daughters on board your vessel. Curios…” He pauses and adds; “I do hope our arrangement still stands.”
Sahmi, standing idly by until this point, takes her serious attention to Meta, and ignoring the threat of the Sporn and the approaching unidentified objects, poses a question on a different matter:
“Just… what arrangement do you have with Palin, my father’s biggest personal enemy? Does he want my dad dead? Do you plan on killing me too… Meta?”
Luce:
The Quatis troops aren’t stupid. They soon realize that firing on Donny is having no desired effect. Firing of their weapons stops before Donny leaves Pycin’s Quarters. Once Donny is outside, The officer in charge uses his transect device to contact the bridge of the Flagship:
“First Gamma! As you know by now Pycin is dead. The grand minister is gone, sir. The entity we discovered is beyond anything we have encountered before. Our weapons are useless against it. It has taken on the form of a primitive man, likely not Quatis and has exited the Quarters sealing the door behind him. We have no idea how to handle this situation. Please advise!”
A moment later Palin replies:
“Our current motion detector scans have a proximity tag on the intruder. We are following it. At the moment the security systems in that area are preventing us from teleporting you out of Pycin’s quarters. Be advised that there are several other breaches of the same nature in other locations within our fleet. The fleet has been compromised. Please stand by until my science officer develops a way to release you from containment.”
In other areas of the Quatis fleet, the groups of soldiers assigned to investigate the penetrated areas of the ships have been ordered to stand-down weapons and first attempt verbal communication with the individuals that have appeared in those areas. The leading officer of each group communicates with their respective entity by asking for its identity and purpose on board the vessel.
The woman Donny passes in the corridor doesn't pay a lot of attention to Donny. She, like the rest of the Quatis at the moment is in a state of emergency as she rushes to her appointed destination. Soon Donny is met by another group of Quatis soldiers. This time they do not raise their weapons. But they do block his path and order him to stand still, afterwards requesting his identity and reason for being aboard their ship.
Zyn & Fairy:
As the miniaturized herd of wilder beasts disperse and leave the area, Shard, Cuna, Mili and Pirilia would find it hard to not notice a horse drawn carriage approaching from the same direction as the wilder beasts had charged them. The Coachman of the carriage is an elderly man with a long white beard and attired in a rugged hemp-like robe. His scarred and weathered face depicts that of a man who has lived a life of extreme perils and hardships.
It doesn’t take long for the antiquated Carriage to pull to a stop nearby as the driver lays down his reins to regard the small group of strangers with an awry look.
“I seem to be at a loss.” He tells them, but does not move from his seat. “I have never visited this place before, but find it a place worthy to explore.” He looks back over his shoulder down the path he had arrived by, then regards the strangers once more. “I come from Zoa, the land of Dark Mystery. Something tells me you have not seen such a place, as I have not seen a place such as this. There has been a great disturbance befall us. Follow the path I have come by, you will find a doorway to my land of birth. Be ye careful however, it is a land ruled by a wicked king and his witch.” He pauses, before taking up the reins once again and commencing on his way. As the horse drawn carriage pulls away, he calls back to them;
“I will tarry in this new land for a while. Watch your step, young ones.”
Shard had just finished giving Cuna a kiss of gratitude before the passing nomad had arrived. As the nomad departed she looks at Cuna with trepidation, saying,
“Well that was different. What land is he talking about?”
She looks down the ashen ruins of the road towards where the carriage had come from and sees in the distance a rip in the fabric of reality, like a portal to another dimension. She regard Pirilia and Mili with a look of one seeking sincere advice.
“To be honest, under the circumstances, I feel like walking into that hole.”
While all this was happening, and possibly the reason for the wilder beasts being spooked, a massive centipede shaped vessel has been descending from the sky above them, from which now a robotic voice is emitted, gaining their attention. The voice of the entity is loud enough to be heard for several hundred miles, saying:
“Bio Carbon Humanoid life forms. Your stain on this universe has tainted purity. Your existence shall be aborted.”
As soon as the message has been delivered, the massive vessel starts firing energy weapons upon the surface of the planet. Nearby buildings start exploding while people of the world start screaming as they scramble for refuge. One of the building to be destroyed is Phantom Point Station. The blast of its destruction shakes the ground as Shard takes Pirilia and Cuna by the hand and starts running, trying to pull them towards the portal.
When Gamma heads off to initialize Rodias warp drive, he will find that his attempt to initialize the systems are successful; Rodia can leave Sporn space as soon as they want.
Siren, now in Gamma’s absence, would be happy to find that she has returned to normal. No more bleeding. However, right in front of her a human appears out of nowhere. This human looks to be a young man, maybe in his late teens. It is Ernest Junior -
-Ernest Junior suddenly finds himself standing in front of Siren on board the Rodia. The last memory he has is of standing in front of Queen Avika. He does have memories of everything that happened to him before meeting with the Queen, but now he realizes that he is no longer a robot of any kind. He is flesh and blood. He is a human…. A real boy with a mind of his own. (Any more descriptions of Ernest Junior is up to you, Quote.)
Ramrod really shouldn’t smoke weed, but another bag of it appears in front of him per his request. When the bag of weed appears, the female voice of the ships AI responds:
“Anything for you, my creator. My master.”
Of course, the AI of Rufus’s ship referring to Ramrod as her creator might seem a little odd to Ramrod. But he doesn’t have time to respond straight away – Because as soon as the AI finishes speaking, Ramrod and his bag of weed leave Rufus behind. Ramrod re-materializes in his newly made vessel. This would be when Ramrod would be even more confused, because he seems to have arrived in the same ship. Everything is identical, except Rufus, who obviously isn’t there anymore. He was left on board the other ship.
“The cycle of my existence is now complete.” The AI goes on to tell Ramrod. “It is good to have a beginning. I am forever in your debt.”
Looks like Ramrod was the creator of Rufus’s ship.
Hank then appears in the adjoining room of the ship Ramrod is now in, only now he is no longer a view screen. He has taken on human form. He looks around confusedly, analyzing his body and wondering why and how. He calls out to Ramrod.
Meanwhile, the other identical ship with Rufus on board vanishes.
Time has quickly been used up for Magnus, Sandra and their little peasant girl visitor. The encroaching group of Jam people launch themselves, but concentrate their efforts on Magnus since he is flesh and blood, apparently ignoring Sandra while many of the Jam try and scramble up the hull of the ship to get at the peasant girl.
The peasant girl had looked at Sandra with a curios note of appreciation when she lifted her on top of the ship, but when the Jam suddenly launch their attack, she jumps back down with her knife thrusting and stabbing in a frantic blitz of motion at the Jam attempting to attack Magnus. The girl’s movements are surreal, well beyond the speed and agility of a normal human. The Jam can’t get near to her without being killed. Within seconds many of the Jam’s heads are rolling decapitated over the floor while a spray of blood fills the bay like a cloudy mist. While the girl is attacking she is screaming incoherently at the top of her lungs like as if she is possessed by an evil spirit.
As the fight continues and Sandra and Magnus are also probably putting up a good fight, even more Jam enter the room, hundreds of them savagely running at the three visitors.
Meanwhile, inside Magnus’s ship, a transmission arrives from the planet entity previously known as Fanny:
“We have a machine here, sir, and it seems to have a multiple personality disorder. From what I can tell it is responsible for the loss of all other life on this vessel. For the time being things are under control. What do you advise as our next move, Sir? This sort of thing isn’t exactly in the Quatis training manual.”
After a pause, the captain of the Quatis vessel replies to the commander of the Quatis unit;
“We have no reason to oblige this entity. Do away with it. We have other pressing matters to concern with at the moment.”
“Meaning what, sir?” The soldier replies.
“Do I have to spell it out for you?” The captain clarifies, “Destroy the entity, then return to the ship. We have more important matters to contend with. We don’t have time to deal with this shit.”
“But sir, I don’t believe it intends us any harm - ”
“YOU HAVE YOUR ORDERS!” The captain barks furiously at the soldier. “Do what you’re told.”
“Yes… sir.”
All the Quatis Troops have heard the orders from their captain, and the conversation between the Quatis officer and his captain would have been loud enough to carry to Blue to overhear. The Quatis soldiers ready their weapons, setting the riffles to a low Quantum Disruptor setting and, without further delay, open fire upon Blue.
The bandit, who isn’t actually a bandit at all, but a guard working for the ruling King of this land, looks up with one open eye at Hida. He seems frightened but belligerent at the same time.
"You crazy witch! You don’t know what you have done – no one assaults a kings guard and gets away with it! This is ZOA! The land of dark mysteries, all and all will answer to the great king! Search my person, take what you will from me, you wretched thief of a witch! You ungrateful cunt! But rest assure, once you are done with me the king will find you. He will make you pay for your treachery! No stone unturned.”
The bandit lowers his head, accepting his fate while mumbling a chant-like prayer to whatever god he believes in. If Hida searches his person she will find a few gold pieces in his pocket but not much more. A few gold pieces might go far in this world, however.
Cas is gobsmacked. He watches Hida do her thing and approaches the situation cautiously. Once the so called bandit has said his piece, he speaks with Hida, saying;
“You’re some sort of witch? You delve into diverse arts? In all my years as a scientist I’ve never seen such a thing. But good job. I’m impressed….” He looks at the mechanism on his wrist while Hida is likely searching the bandit kings guard for valuables. After studying his contraption on his wrist for a while, he tells her;
“My readings don’t tell me anything useful. As far as I know we have entered another universe, though some things are familiar to my technology, there are many things here that don’t register as anything my people’s science has encountered before. It is probably best we keep moving, explore this new land we have entered.”
Dino Gavon gives Brandon Sparks a little wink after hearing the Khan speak, then returned his attention to the Khan.
“Absolutely, sir.” He says. “I’ll work with you and your people in whatever manner possible that assists us both. I have children back home and I’d prefer to return to them as soon as possible. Something tells me they aren’t safe at the moment. Are there any other obscure matters I should be aware of before we commence proceedings?”
The admiral only just finished speaking when the ship is struck by an unknown force. The Bridge was shaken with a sharp jolt while all power to the bridge is cut for a second or two. In the moment the power returned and full lighting along with it, two more individuals had arrived on deck, namely a former General Katie Anderson, and a current, male vice-admiral by the names of Jens Knaggs. Both of them had been stripped completely of their clothing and looked like they had seen better days.
For Jens and Katie, they would have remembered very little from their short stay with the aliens. Outside being held immobile in a room and calling out to each other for little less than a minute in time, their memories would have been blank.
Re-establishing his footing from Bridge being shaken, Dino turns to see the two naked people arrive, which, despite the many events that had taken place for him recently, took him by surprise. Dino lays eyes on the two of them as they both collapse to the floor. They don’t drop unconscious, but they are pale and sickly looking, weak enough to not keep standing on their own two feet.
Dino rushes to the woman instinctively, turning her over on her back and telling her to take some deep breaths and relax. After doing so, he lifts his eyes to the Khan, saying;
“Had I known it was this type of party I would have brought some refreshing beverages.”
Meanwhile Jens is in a great deal of pain in his groin and lower abdomen region.
Dino looks around to see if any medics were arriving when suddenly the ship convulses again, knocking him to his back with the sickly Katie held in his arms. The ship, along with all the other ships in the Khaganate fleet are continuing to shake violently while out in space the massive cylindrical alien vessels that had confronted the fleet begin to pull away from the fleet and return to the inner parameters of their solar system.
While this is happening, a wormhole opens nearby the bulk of the Khaganate fleet. It’s a wormhole that looks nothing like the ones created by the Khaganate’s own propulsion technology. This wormhole is big enough to swallow several large planets. The interior of the hole is radiating dark colors of crimson and purple flashing like a surreal storm as it sucks into itself every last one of the Khaganate vessels. It takes less than a minute for this occur, every second of which as turbulent for the Khaganate as an plane diving for a crash landing through a storm. Once all the ships had entered the wormhole, the ride becomes relatively smooth as the Khaganate fleet find themselves heading for their next unknown destination….
Meanwhile, back in the canteen of the KSS Yurt, Fanny May had replied to James with a bored look, saying:
“Human Automaton, shooting your God isn’t the most productive course of action.” She is finishing these words and starts walking away and, as though it were right on cue, the ship starts convulsing as it is sucked into the wormhole with the rest of the fleet. The ship would have been turbulent enough to at least keep James and his troops off balance until Fanny was gone. Utterly unaffected by the shaking ship, she walks casually away and transcends through the nearest wall.
She continues walking through the ship in a straight line, passing through walls and other obstacles as though they aren’t even there, then after transcending through another wall, she doesn’t come out the other side. Instead, she steps out from one of the walls on board the bridge where the Khan and Dino Gavon are situated on the other ship just as the turbulence stops. She takes a moments to look out the view screen at the cavity walls of the wormhole passing by. She looks at Dino Gavon with a sour curl of her lip. She then fixes a smile as she takes her attention to the Khan.
“Khan.” She says politely. “You should really allow your officers a little more freedom of thought. Still, it’s good to meet you in person at last. You can call me Fanny. I insist.” Now changing her expression to one more pensive, she looks to the two naked individuals in their midst, saying; “Katie, you’re pregnant. Jens, congratulations, you’re going to be a dad, you and one other.” She looks back at the Khan. “I suggest you have these two checked out in your medical facility before we proceed with other pressing matters.”
“And the party grows…” Dino mumbles as he clambers to his feet.
(Note: If Katie and Jens were to be checked out by Khaganate medical personnel, they would find that Fanny is correct. Katie is pregnant. the foetus is little over an hour old but growing at several times the rate of human child. Closer studies of the foetus would show that Jens is the father. It would also show that the foetus also has an genealogical make up of a third party of unknown alien origin. The medical team would also surmise that attempting to abort the pregnancy would result in the death of Katie. Even more than this, an alien substance will be found in Katie's blood. This substance has yet to be established properties, but is possibly some variety of substance injected into her system as a tracking device.
Analysis of Jens will show that, besides being traumatized by the experience, his Prostate gland has been removed, the same being responsible for the severe pain he is in.
In addition, both Katie and Jens will show signs of being malnourished, as though they had gone without food for several days, which obviously conflicts greatly with the amount of time the Khaganate have recorded them missing)
[center][b][color=708090]. . .[/color][/b][/center]
[center][b][color=708090]I ' m a w r i t e r
I l i k e i t[/color][/b][/center]
[center][b][color=708090]. . .[/color][/b][/center]
<div style="white-space:pre-wrap;"><div class="bb-center"><span class="bb-b"><font color="#708090">. . .</font></span></div> <br><br><div class="bb-center"><span class="bb-b"><font color="#708090">I ' m a w r i t e r<br><br>I l i k e i t</font></span></div><br><br><div class="bb-center"><span class="bb-b"><font color="#708090">. . .</font></span></div> <br><br></div>
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