Disruption (IC)

The Dracosian proceeded to remove his helmet, revealing a face that was somewhat flat, or rather, possessed a muted snout of sorts, very expressive. There were horns and spikes on the face, and it was scaly, as expected, but the eyes were what shocked most. The most beautiful eyes, in contrast with the flaming color of the scales, were a deep, celestial blue, and were large and wide, with a gentle light in them that was at odds with the armor the individual wore.

"We are passing through, nothing more, unless you might have the capacity to help us in any form or fashion, whether it be to re-connect us with our old allies, with whom our treaties still stand, or to wipe out the space-parasites that have stolen our home from us."

It seemed that the mention of space-parasites perplexed the individual, as though he was not quite sure what they were like, but was aware of their appearance, and what they could do. It was the kind of look of a soldier who had heard about war, but who had never seen the front-lines of it.

______________________________________________________

After a long, extremely tense period when the Commander Arachnarche could not seem to come to any sort of proper agreement, one seemed to say something, and the others finally drew a unified conclusion. They then turned to look at the Chimerosu, and somehow, the simultaneous fashion of it unnerved everyone. The seemingly-purposeful fashion of their stances made it even more suspicious. One of the Commander Arachnarche, distinguished upon closer examination by a squarish-set of mouth-parts, and a long, healed sort of scar over one side of its face, normally hidden beneath its horn, walked towards the group. It looked at Aarin, and its single, solitary message, nothing more than insect-like droning, came across the radio, somehow conclusive.

It then proceeded to turn, and look at Samir, before raising one of its legs, and pointing it out, with the sound being accompanied by another collective set of insect noises. The little leg extending past the scythe-like part seemed to wave to him, as though requesting that he walk over. It then stood only on its hind four legs, as it used its other leg to make a distinct gesture. It made little waves on its head, and it looked like it was trying to form the shape of a crown, perhaps made from raised marks like horns. Was it referring to the Queen? It seemed so.

Jiiran slunk carefully through the streets, and froze at the sound of Kradus' voice. The last thing Jiiran wanted was a confrontation. He peered cautiously around, but a small wall blocked his vision. However, he could tell Kradus was on the other side. Sliding on his belly like a lizard, Jiiran made his way forward, desperately hoping to escape notice. His heart hammered in his chest, and he barely dared to breath.
_________________________________________

Aarin looked at Samir, and then at the Commander Arachnarche.

"If I'm not mistaken," he said, "he seems to be saying that the Queen wants to speak to you." He turned to the Commander Arachnarche. "Is that correct? If it is, tap your left forelimb twice."

The Commander performed the motion Aarin had requested, tapping its left forelimb twice, and then looking at Samir, tilting its head, as though waiting for a response. Meanwhile, the other two seemed to be growing impatient, or perhaps frustrated, by the fact that they could not speak using verbal language. They seemed to be arguing with each other now, and it seemed to rile the Commander actively speaking with the group, the scar-faced one. After a long, extended period, with Samir not answering, Scar-face's mouthparts clenched together in a distinct expression of what could have been irritation, and it swiftly turned around and uttered a harsh screech across the radio waves, making the two who were arguing stop. It then shook its head, as though unable to believe it had to perform such an action at all, and turned back to the group, still patiently waiting for an answer.

"Uh, me?" Samir asked, "But I'm not one of the representatives..." He said over the radio.

Scar-face's response was to send another set of insect clicks across the radio, nodding its head, as though aware of such things, and tilting its head even further, as though to say in some form or fashion, that it intended to make sure it found a representative who wouldn't give its mother the Queen a general spew of information meant to persuade her to believe something false. Scar-face, unlike other Commanders, was a very wise negotiator, and it was also the oldest Commander from the nest, and therefore, the wisest by default. The Queen had ordered her most loyal subject to bring back a suitable representative of these strange creatures, without bringing their entire floating nest to theirs. The Queen enjoyed one-on-one discussions with aliens, although most didn't know this. She had once been friends with a faithful companion of an alien race, who had actually taught her international tongue, though he was a corrupt space pirate, in the end, and never told her what she did was right or wrong. He had passed away of old age a few planetary orbits after the Queen had met him.

Scar-face, who was female, intended to return to her mother with someone that she would enjoy speaking to, and that included finding someone who didn't seem to possess the great skills of an orator, as the others seemed to. The creature she had pointed out walked with a lack of confidence that drew her eye, so the male was the one she chose. One that didn't seem threatening or malicious in any way.

"Uh, I guess I can come..." Samir asked, before looking at the other members of his group, seemingly terrified, "Do I get a ship, or..."

Scar-face seemed to make a tense expression, and shook her head in disappointment, before walking right up to Samir, and with an obvious amount of care, lifted him up, and set her on her back, behind the rows of frills on her head formed by the exoskeleton, where he would not hinder her wings. It was clear she intended to just carry him to the Queen, although there was also an obvious factor that she meant no harm in doing so. When she did this, the other two Commanders tapped their forelimbs on the ground, seemingly impatient, as though waiting to see if they could go now.

Tevri started to move forward. "What are they doing?" he cried in alarm. Isbar started to raise his arms, but Aarin waved his arm at them.

"Wait! I don't think they mean to harm him!"

"What do they wan with him, though?" asked Mott

"A representative on our behalf, I presume," said Aarin, giving a questioning look at the Arachnarche Commander.

"Why him?" asked Isbar, a little unkindly.

"I don't know," said Aarin "I'm sure they have their reasons." He looked at Samir. "Stay calm. I don't think they mean you any harm."

Scar-face looked at Aarin, and gave a nod, another array of insect-like clicks coming over the radio. She drew the sign with her foreleg of the Queen again. She intended to carry Samir there; and there were several reasons why he couldn't take a ship. It would have been very complicated, trying to rally the Drones so they didn't eat it, although Scar-face wasn't quite sure why they needed an atmosphere. There was one in the nest, though, so he wouldn't have to wear one of those weird suit-things when he met the Queen.

"Uh...alright, I guess I'll talk to the Queen, then...hahah...." Samir sounded highly nervous, and nobody could really blame him for it. The concept of riding giant space-bugs through the void only sounded cool in one's own imagination. It was actually on a realistic level highly terrifying, and Samir did not know why he had to be the one to do this.

Having confirmed that she was going to take Samir to her Queen, Scar-face backed up, and the other two Commanders got on either side of her. The soldiers formed up around them, so that Scar-face and Samir were in the most protected part of the formation; a militaristic sort of escort to ensure his safety. They began beating their wings, and slowly, they lifted off the ship, flying off and vanishing quickly, as there was nothing in the void to stop their movement save for themselves.

After a moment, Ravage folded her arms in her space-suit, "Was Samir just kidnapped, or did they take him with our consent?"

"What a flattering pair of choices," observed Mott dryly.

Aarin could be heard sighing over the COMM. "I just hope it was the right thing to do, and that he'll be alright. . ."

""What's that?" interrupted Mott's voice. A smallish figure had flown away from the cargo bay doors of the Majesty, and was heading rapidly away in the direction of the Arachnarche had gone, using a jetpack.

"That looked like a Markovan," said Mott. "And if it is him, where is he going?"

Ravage took one look at the person following the swarm, and then heard the word 'Markovan' before a very ferocious snarl carried across the radio transmission. "Jessic," She hissed, her voice so warped by anger that people around her instinctively stepped away, wondering what she might do. "We need to get back into the ship and find Aolani, immediately! If he's leaving, that mean's he's taking action that we didn't consent to! You all know what his views of the Arachnarche are, and even though it's clear they want to negotiate with us, we already know what he wants to do!" She then started back towards the airlock, and people could hear her angry, yet alarmed and worried whispers, "Aolani, Aolani, what did he do!?" It was then that everyone would have been struck with the same dread that Ravage was feeling.

Having hastily unsuited, the group quickly made their way to where Jessic and Aoloni had last gone. And it wasn't long before they found the scene of murder.

The door to Mott's quarters was open, and the place was a mess, all the signs of a fight being present. A table and chair knocked over, papers and tools, scattered on the ground, and blood and feathers everywhere. Aoloni was lying where she had fallen. The small safe which had housed Mott's weapon was open, and the contents gone.

Tevri looked at Aoloni, and the word she had written with her own blood, and sunk down and began to weep in grief and shame. He had suspected Jessic might do something bad, but he hadn't taken enough precaution; why hadn't he asked someone like Isbar to go after Jessic, someone who could have dealt with him? Furthermore was the shame of knowing that it was he himself who had brought this murderer on board.

((This requires some skipping ahead))



"Behold - The Gateway."

Standing out against the highly dense clusters of stars that marked the inner reaches of the galaxy was an enormous silver space station like structure, glowing with searing red lights. In the distance, one could see a swirling, incandescent cloud of mass surrounding a bright yet infinitely black sphere. This was the center of Ravena. The Anomaly approached the Gateway with caution, as the Vrentus could be lurking anywhere. When it was apparent they were not present, however, the ship's auto-piloting system was directed to dock. A section of the structure, a hangar door, opened up and the ship entered through there, landing quickly. Though the Vrentus had not yet arrived, they could at any moment, and thus the group was to make haste.

After everyone exited Q'ren's ship, the Wanderer began to lead them through the labyrinth of the Gateway. It was huge, but they encountered no opposition along the way, oddly. When questioned on this by Rakluth, the strange Eldraunn answered, "They may not realize how important this place truly is." At the end of the puzzling, maze like tangle of hallways and rooms, the group came upon a large chamber, with a much longer length than width. At the opposite end was an elaborate door, and before that was a circular indentation in the floor. As they walked towards it, the Wanderer began to speak once more. "Beyond that is where the Seraph Catalyst is being held. However, it can only be accessed with the blood of a Krathunian held prisoner by the Vrentus, as a safekeeping measure." He turned to Q'ren. "I believe you fit those requirements, no?"

Q'ren nodded, frowning, recalling a particularly painful part of his past - The day when he was to be publicly executed by the Vrentus, and the day the Covenant won the war. He silently walked towards the indentation, using neurological components in his armor to cause his gauntlet to recede back into the rest of the plating. Grabbing his combat knife, he knelt above the indentation and cut ever so slightly into the side of his palm. Nonetheless, blood dripped down onto the circle, and the doorway opened to reveal a smaller room. The most notable feature of it was a window overlooking the surroundings of the Gateway, and the odd structure that could be seen from it.

As the group entered this area, the Wanderer sealed the door behind them with an odd dust-like matter emitted from his armor that became more solid as it fit into the doorway, somehow. He pointed to the large construction that could be seen from the window, which had the form of a ring. It sides burned with blue lighting, and its structure seemed to be almost too perfect of a loop. "The Gateway serves to deactivate that. It is a portal into another place in the universe." He rotated his head to another, smaller door, with a holographic lock system that required a hand to be used as identification. "In there, you will find the Seraph Catalyst. However, once it is removed, the Gateway's primary function will be shut down, and that outside will become usable once more." Speaking to Q'ren, he said, "There are risks involved with this. If you would like, you can leave the Catalyst here, but know that you will be doing exactly what Praedromus wants. I trust you will make the right choice, my friend."

((4:39 on video))

Q'ren advanced towards the other door, breathing slowly and heavily, as if he were troubled. He placed his hand on the green holographic lock, and after several seconds, the door inside was opened. As he came upon the sphere of energy that floated upon a pedestal, the final component of the Continuum Corrupter, memories screamed at him, now fully formed and able to be understood. "We will go back to the house, and mother will say a prayer so that the evil forgets our faces." His father had said to him, upon seeing an odd, blue orb that had suddenly appeared in front of them. "The Loccalians speak of an ancient nemesis that invaded Ravena long ago. Some say that, should they return, they will bring about another age of reckoning." The Wanderer, or a past version, gestured towards his ship, and the Continuum Corrupter, centuries ago. "It is the beginning of the end, Q'ren."

Q'ren desperately wanted to turn back, now knowing what would happen should he remove the Catalyst, but he was driven forth by some other force, as if he was taken over by someone else. He reentered the room with the window, holding the Catalyst in his hand, and anger upon his face. "You deceived us," he growled, walking towards the Wanderer. "This was to serve you alone, for some... purpose." A slack-jawed Theranis caught his attention, and he redirected his gaze to the window to see that hundreds of rings had appeared alongside the other one, all glowing with blue light. They would have been nearly invisible due to the Gateway's functions. Growing even more enraged, he turned to the Eldraunn and roared, "What have you done?"

The Wanderer was silent for a moment. "The Architects have returned to Ravena," He declared.

((5:35 on video))

Inside each of the gateways, a swirling black cloud could be seen, blue bolts of energy streaking through them. This turned into a cover of pure blue energy - an actual portal. Suddenly, from each came enormous silver ships, impossibly elaborate and perfect in their design, blasting outwards past the Gateway. There waere many kinds that emerged from the portals, but it was clear that they were created by the same entities.

The Wanderer continued to speak, his voice giddy with excitement. "At long last, I have accomplished my ultimate purpose. The strings I have pulled upon so many puppets to do this... Including yours, Q'ren." With that, Q'ren's anger got the best of him, and he screamed with fury, whipping out his SMG and firing a stream of rounds directly at the Wanderer's head. This was blocked, however, by a shielding device. "Now, now..." The Wanderer whispered. "I have you under my control." His four eyes began to glow, and Q'ren's anger turned into pain and fear as he, against his will, began raising his gun towards his head.

"You are mi-" The Wanderer was cut off by someone forcefully crashing through the structure he had created to keep everyone inside. Abarron smashed the Eldraunn down upon the ground with a powerful fist, continuing the pound him with plasma ridden punches. The Wanderer did not scream as he died, but instead laughed. The Vrentus did not look upon the Wanderer with the same grief as when he had killed the Wreae. "This way!' He shouted at everyone else, running back into the Gateway's labyrinth.

The group sprinted quickly through the Gateway and soon approached Q'ren's ship. "I took the liberty of putting my personal ship inside the Anomaly's docking bay, because it is the only way I will make it out of here with it." Abarron barked at the Krathunian. "Your vessel will go unnoticed among the Eldraunn, whereas mine would be destroyed in an instant." Everyone entered the ship, going to the bridge, and the former Vrentus Supreme entered coordinates into the piloting computer. "Go to these coordinates, now!"

The ship exited the Gateway to behold something that made even Theranis mutter, "Krathun..." An enormous fleet, likely the largest any of them had ever seen, filled with incredibly large ships, exited the portals and created new ones beyond the Gateway to another destination within Ravena. One could almost feel their power. The Anomaly weaved through the armada of Architect ships, and at a certain point, once they had left the area where most of the ships were, Abarron shouted, "Enter warp, now!" And so they did.

Dranus: Assimilation Hour

Nurthbix, the city which was the primary sight of the battle, was fallen. Fire fingered the skies and smoke blackened the air. The lights of airborne crafts desperately pushed through the smog. The sound of gun shells tapping the ground filled the air and the hot sizzling of heated lasers deafened those who heard. The ruined walls of the city were just in the horizon and barely visible from the gully. The purple-skinned Dranzoot were being herded down into a canyon where caverns opened up and led into underground chambers. These chambers were previously used as Dranus' major mining sites. Production had been halted.

There were several million of the purple-skinned creatures moving through the rocks and being violently crammed and squeezed into crowded areas by enormous mechs that monitored them in the darkness with blinding spotlights. The dire melodies of screaming and weeping filled the caverns to their heights. As the chambers bled into one enormous underground bowl, the Dranzoot were piled there. They were bloodied, beaten, and shamed. Many were soaking wet and cold while others were sweating from their desperate struggles. Blood seemed to touch their feet wherever they stepped. Many lie dead in the coal piles. The sounds of war echoed over their heads. Many hovercrafts flew below the high ceilings shining their white lights down on the crowds. They began to scream even louder when the hovercrafts lowered and released an abundance of horrors. Soldiers paid to torture, rounds of bullets, and chemicals designed to destroy all in a slow and painful process.

A large platform was pieced together by four hovering crafts, creating a circular pedestal. It hovered just a few meters above the heads of the Dranzoot, near the center of the room. It was approximately thirty feet in diameter. Another teardrop shaped craft lowered onto the platform and split into seven individual slices, all sliding up and dumping its innards onto the stage. It was a tall, tall figure. A black suit of metal and blazing blue eyes. It took the shape of a nearly robotic Zraak although it's muscular body could be implied beneath the armor. A black cloak enveloping its body and many small spikes that curved back along the head, like most Zraak.

Tarsus.

Holograms of him appeared on various corners of the arena and his voice was amplified tenfold. Tarsus raised his hand in the air, demanding silence. Anyone who remained speaking was fired at and the bodies began to pile up once more. The droids that buzzed over their heads shouted commands of silence and soon the entire arena was quieter than the dead night. Some Dranzoot had to hold their hands over loved ones' mouths to keep them from crying aloud from their horrid wounds. Excruciating and terrifying, the event was grimmer than any of their past wars.

"Dranzoot of Dranus..." spoke Tarsus. His voice boomed throughout the arena. "I would like to welcome you to the Dominion. Please, stand -- if your legs still remain -- and join me in the Pledge." A hologram of the Dominion emblem appeared in the center of the arena, huge and colored red. It was a cartoonish illustration of a beautiful, yet jagged and brutally crafted flower. It was unknown what the flower meant and what it symbolized, but it looked wholly bad. Tarsus placed his right fist on his chest. The Dranzoot were bidden to do the same. The verses of the lyrics appeared in the Loccalian language just beneath the emblem.

"I vow my life, my strength, my honor," Tarsus began. There was a delay and several detonators rid the crowd of slackers.

"I vow my life, my strength, my honor..." the Dranzoot repeated.

"To My mighty Dominion and all its Glory." Tarsus said. The Dranzoot repeated. "I swear my loyalty to Kradus, who is My Great Lord." He paused and waited for the repeat. The crowd seemed much more reluctant to repeat the third verse. "To my empire, under the Dominion. To this coalition, standing tall over all. Imperishable. Eternal. A new beginning and a new end. So be it in my soul."

The Dranzoot simply stared at Tarsus angrily and fearfully as he stood on the stage. The emblem above him disappeared. "As I said, welcome to the Dominion. Lord Kradus has been gracious enough not to completely eradicate your species. Please be aware that we could have easily followed through with genocide. Lord Kradus feels that this could be an exquisite learning opportunity, not only for the Dranzoot, but for opposing empires as well. Be thankful that he has allowed you to live, even after your bonding with that filthy Confederation."

There was an uproar from many loyal Dranzoot, who were then immediately shot. The arena grew quiet again. Tarsus folded his arms. "You continue to defend someone that deserted you? Interesting. It seems folly is persistent among your species. Now, onto business... Dranus, by the end of today, will be inhospitable from all of the nuclear weapons being used in the battle. It will be renamed a planetoid serial code and all inhabitants will be moved to Dominion ports and colonies. You will live your lives there. First though, you will be processed through several chains of concentration strings. We will assign you your clothing, food, medicine, and other elements to live by. The age-old belief of Athaki will also perish." An even larger uproar began. Shouts of the Dranzoot who were entirely faithful began. There were too many for Tarsus' drones to eliminate. He ordered several bombs to fire out to hush them and then continued to speak. "We will break you of your beliefs one way or another. You will follow the Dominion codes of science and become intelligent. All who oppose will themselves decompose."

The Anomaly shook as it went into warp. Abarron felt a tap on his shoulder. It was Zizo.

"Alright," said Zizo in a no nonsense tone. "I want some answers. What is going on? What just happened?"
________________________________________

Out in the reaches of space, two voices spoke to each other. The people to whom they belonged where separated by many light-years, but that was no barrier to them.

"Célindir, can you hear me?"

"I can, My Queen. What do you desire?"

"The Architects have returned, Célindir. Can you not feel it? Ravena reverberates with it."

The second voice fell silent as its source pondered this.

"What shall we do, my Queen?"

"I'm afraid there is nothing we can do at this time except watch and wait for the right time, as we have both done for so long."

"Indeed," said the second with what would have been a sigh, if there were any breath. "I have lived far longer than I ever wished. I would have laid my life aside by now, if were not for their sake."

"As we must both do, my friend. You have been strong and patient, but your wait is not over yet. Keep watching over them as you have done. The time is not far off, I think, when you will be able to show yourself and teach them what you can."

"It is a day I have looked forward to with hope and longing, my Queen. For their sake, I can wait." The second voice was silent again for a moment before speaking again. "Do you think the Architects will remember us?"

"I don't know. We shall see. Only time will tell"

Ravage knelt down where Aolani's body was, looking at her mutilated corpse, and then the word that she had written in her own blood, surely moments before she had died. Her face showed a bitterness to it, the appearance of countless brutal deaths that she had seen too much of over the course of her life, something she had come to regard as a curse. Ravage had grown accustomed to being the one who left scenes like this; she was the person who took the lives of soldiers, and butchered their bodies until they were so hideously disfigured, that there was no hope of a proper funeral. She had grown numb to it, to the point that she had forgotten what an injustice it was to the men that had fallen by her hand. Aolani's death, though, was an event that made her feel something else, aside from rage or anger.

Ravage, for perhaps the first time since she had chosen to accept friendship with others again, truly felt the impact of grief. It was true that she had grieved over an innocent life on Vathoris, but that life had been taken by an accidental thing, her body crushed under rubble, an instantaneous death. A quick death was a merciful one, because there was no time for someone to suffer. Aolani, though, just by the appearance of her wounds, Ravage could tell that her death had been slow, and agonizing. There was blood coming from her beak, and the wounds were not deep enough to make it swift; she had suffered, and even had enough time to warn everyone of who had done this to her.

Ravage's eyes narrowed, a faint misting to them, although her voice remained icily calm, "She drowned in her own blood." She said, knowing very well what the wounds would do to a Chimerosu body. It did not matter that a Vitisan had differently-aligned proportions, as they were all basely the same anatomically. It was then that Cipher, who Ravage now identified as Rune, her adoptive son, peered around the corner of the door, although he could not yet see the body. He did smell a reek of blood, though, that was a smell even a weak nose could detect. "What has happened? You rushed here without giving a report." He said, a hint of uncharacteristic alarm in his voice.

Ravage stood up quickly, spreading her wings to block Aolani's body from his sight, to keep him from taking in the grisly scene. "Don't look, walk down the hallway and wait there." She ordered.

Cipher’s natural curiosity, although tinged with a hint of dread, caused him to argue with her, “What is it? What are you standing over?” He asked.

Ravage now replied very sharply, a strong warning tone in her voice, “Go and wait, I will tell you later. Do not argue with me.” She said, her feathers ruffling, making her look almost twice her regular size.

Cipher, sufficiently warned, and hurriedly walked away down to the end of the hallway, freeing Ravage from having to loom over Aolani’s corpse. She folded her wings, and shook her head, sighing, “He has seen many horrible things on Maozhu, but one thing that he should still be spared from, even if he witnessed the death of his own family, is looking upon the body of another Chimerosu. It is always worse, seeing death among your own kind.”

She then turned to Tevri, "Tevri, I did ask for information from Cory, in my spare time, in regards to punishments for soldiers, as I have a squadron to command and should be aware of the procedures. When Jessic became an increasingly notable problem, I also inquired after our policy for treatment towards diplomats. It was the same policy that the old empire had, as unpopular as it was among foreigners." She said.

"Under Chimerosu law, as well as UCN law, all foreign diplomats who should commit the crime of murder, shall hereby be subjected to the death penalty."

Ravage's eyes had a sad, melancholy look in them, "Tevri, according to Chimerosu law, Jessic is to be executed at the soonest available time, but I still feel conflicted regarding that, because you should be the one to decide that. What would you have us do?"

Tevri sat for a moment without responding to Ravage, tears sliding down his face. At last he spoke, haltingly, in a choked voice. “The. . . the penalty. . . for what Jessic’s done. . . is death for my people also.” Tevri swallowed and took several breaths, making an odd sucking sound as he did so (Markovans, having no nostrils, breath through their mouths, so what would sound like loud sniffing in most species sounded more like sucking on ones teeth for a Markovan). Finally, he pulled himself to his feet, and stood up straight, striking his right side with his fist.

“Jessic has committed a terrible crime and dishonored himself forever. In so doing, he has also brought shame and disgrace upon the Markovan Empire and me, his superior.”

Tevri then drew his sword, and placed it on the ground. Bowing on all fours, he pushed the sword in Ravage’s direction, keeping his own eyes and head downwards. “I am deeply ashamed. . .” he began, and then choked a little, the words ringing all too true. “I am deeply ashamed,” he began again, “that I have brought such an individual into your midst, and that he should have committed such a crime and breach of honor against you. I pray that you ay pardon me, and grant only that I may be allowed to bring the dishonored one to justice. “ Tevri spoke this ceremonial speech with obvious difficulty. Aarin looked down at him with pity. The Markovan was still quite young, and this atrocity had cut him to his soul. Aarin looked at Ravage, and to most it would have seemed he was simply staring at her and moving his lips. But those with good enough hearing could hear what he was saying, deliberately lowering his voice so that no one else heard:

“The proper response is to push his sword back to him and accept his apology. Acquiescing to his request is also a good idea.”

Ravage never intended to hold any sort of grudge against Tevri, and penalize him for Jessic's actions. Ever since the Markovans had joined the UCN's voyage, there had been enormous differences between Tevri and Jessic, and Ravage could not see herself punishing both, when Jessic exhibited undiplomatic behavior from what seemed to be the very beginning. Ravage calmly pushed back Tevri's sword with the palm of her hand, careful not to cut herself, as she would no longer rapidly heal from her injuries. "Tevri, you are not guilty of anything, and if it is your wish, you should be the one to deliver Jessic's punishment." She looked regretfully at Aolani's body, looking as though she wished to cry, as her eyes were misty, but it seemed that she was unable to shed tears. She was not fully giving into grief, because she was also angry at herself for not seeing the signs of a murderer before he struck.

She looked around at everyone, "Nobody must let Cipher see this, we cannot afford for him to become involved in this. He would try to, and he does not have the strength to fight a trained soldier, or creatures as powerful as the Arachnarche, should they start to see us as a threat because of Jessic's arrival." She shook her head, pinching the bridge of her nose, "Just when we had a way of making peace with them and establishing diplomatic relations, he had to go on a killing spree..." She folded her wings, and started out the door of the room, "Someone send for the priest, so that proper preparations can be made for Aolani. Meanwhile, we need to reach the Queen so we can protect her. The Arachnarche are not hostile to us, and they will suffer if Jessic is allowed to kill her. We cannot let him succeed."

The same vessel, the Eminence, created a suitable response to this statement of vagabond philosophy from the alien ship.

"As you appear peaceful, what action would you take were our fleet to assist yours?"

Due to the outdated records which the ships' databases held, the translation was not perfect at all, and so it would have been heard in a simpler form.

______________________________________________________________________________________________________


Xej found his cousin rather active on the bridge, frantically attempting to gain control of the information reports nearly blurring in to the computer systems. Relief covered him like a veil as he saw Xej standing in the entrance to the bridge, and walked briskly over to greet him.

"Xerin. Feels like I haven't seen you in ages." Xej said.

"Impatience has probably replaced that feeling, for me, atleast." Xerin replied. He looked frustratedly around the Valence's bridge before turning back to Xej.

"What happened down there?" He asked, his tone of voice considerably lowered.

"Some new form of the Dominion is attacking Dranus..." Xej started.

"Yes, I gathered that-"

"But that isn't all." Xej finished, cutting Xerin off mid-sentence.

"Then what?" Xerin replied, eager to hear the answer.

"I didn't believe it at first, and you may not when I tell you."

Xerin tilted his head, very curious to hear what Xej would say.

"Kradus.. is.. alive. Alive and commanding this new breed of the Dominion." Xej exhaled this, looking saddened and slightly shocked.

Xerin's response was no less. He stood there, speechless, for several moments, before saying a word.

"Well." Was all he found himself able to utter.

"Then we have to return to Irooscin immediately." Xerin said this with sudden vigor. "We have too much news to keep waiting."

"Yes.." Xej said, sounding vaguely reflective in that moment.

Abarron looked about him to see the others had also gathered around, clearly curious in the same manner that Zizo was. Even Q'ren had put aside his past hostility towards the Vrentus in search of answers to what had just occurred. Abarron thought over this for a moment before beginning to speak. "I suppose I have no other choice but to explain, then..." He paused, as if hesitant, but then resumed. "Ravena is a rather old galaxy. Civilizations, by the millions, have risen and fallen, only to be forgotten to the entropy of time. This inevitable cycle is likely what Praedromus seeks to end, but that is beside the point. Nearly sixty thousand years ago, there was a faction known as the Novus Alliance." He stopped, recalling upon ancient memories, before continuing once again. "Back then, I was known as Admiral Rigniron Nevanes, of the Xarthon Republic, one of the societies that made up the Alliance. One day, I was patrolling the area in close proximity to the core of the galaxy, keeping watch on the border between the Alliance and the Loccalian Empire, for at the time there was much tension between our civilizations, when one of the most traumatic experiences of my life occurred."

"Out from enormous portals, the gateways you just observed, came ships more massive and dangerously beautiful than anything I had ever seen. They immediately began to attack my own fleet, and in a matter of mere minutes I was forced to retreat because whatever we had come across had such immense power that even our state of the art technology at the time could not stand up against it. And thus began the first invasion of the Eldraunn Architects."

"Within the first months, billions perished at the hands of the Architects. Their sheer power as a singular entity was unsurpassed in Ravena at the time. We were forced to temporarily put aside our differences with the Loccalians to fight this new foe as a unified section of the galaxy, and even then the situation was very bleak. After the first year, the Novus Alliance was on the brink of collapse. Two of our member civilizations, the Arcesiols and the Hra'at, had been completely exterminated by the Eldraunn, as if they were mere insects under the boots of a legion of marching soldiers. Another, the Drenorins, had been hopelessly scattered." At the mention of this particular name, Q'ren narrowed his eyes, but said nothing. "We Xarthonians had no other choice but to go forth with a project that I entirely opposed up until that point - Our conversion from beings of flesh to those of energy. We would essentially become immortal, the only possible tool that could fight the Eldraunn unless united in a despotic manner like the Loccalians. The military was to be converted first, and I was appointed the leader of our new forces, the first of the Supremes. From there on, I became known as Abarron."

"We attempted to mask the project from the public for a long time, but this was an effort made in vain. What we had done to those within the military became known and was rightfully criticized heavily and marked as completely immoral. This is because the conversion process purged an individual of their memory, emotion, imagination, turning them into a mere machine unless certain procedures were made and specific requirements met. I was one of the lucky ones, and retained these. Those subject to the conversion process became known by the Xarthonian word for "monster" - Vrentus. It fit, rather poetically by my standards. Nonetheless, the Vrentus were a highly effective tool against the Eldraunn, but it was not enough. Eventually, our entire civilization was made into energy beings, a massive mechanism of war that sought only to stop the Architects from fully invading Ravena, as it was clear that the Loccalians had done exactly this, and it worked. After more years of bloody conflict, the forces fighting against the Eldraunn, particularly the Loccalians and the Vrentus Collective, had driven them back to the portals from which they came. We locked them away with a massive machine that we called the Gateway." Abarron lowered his head. "Even so, it appears as though they left behind a singular Eldraunn with the sole mission of opening the Gateway to bring them back, and he has succeeded. I suspect he followed a very intricate plan, one that may have involved the incitement of a war between the Vrentus and the Krathunians."

Everyone took that in for a while. Theranis was the first to speak. "So, where exactly are you taking us, then?" He asked.

"The Anomaly is heading to the planet of Xarthon. I set up a contingency plan in case the Eldraunn returned. It will not be as effective with Praedromus taking most of the Collective out from under me, but it will be necessary to fight the Architects."

______________________________

In a matter of seconds, before Kradus could properly attack those within the Valence, it took off, shooting into the atmosphere of Dranus and past into the void beyond before entering warp. The Confederacy had seen all it needed to, and escape was necessary. Netheun's ship followed closely behind.

Svar brought Lamor and the nonfunctional Unsilenced Retribution to a medical and engineering room near the bridge, where the Dranzoot was to be treated. The Wreae, however, did not need any treatment, as within minutes of being inside the ship, he was once more "awake." Quickly thanking Svar, he went to the bridge, where he witnessed the exchange between Xej and Xerin. "Irooscin..." He muttered. Turning to Xerin, he quickly saluted. "I apologize for this, Councilor. My orders were to bring you there immediately upon retrieving you from the Chimerosu, however the result of this... trip was beneficial."

The Dracosian seemed to think for a moment, as though trying to find the right wording, because saying anything, "The situation of our people is an extremely complex one, that might require further discussion than the details that I myself could provide." He began, "I do not have a full understanding, because the problem arose years ago, before I was born. According to the older generation that was born on our home world, we were suddenly invaded by strange creatures that came from space. They did not use the aid of spaceships, and instead traveled in the gullets of a different sort of organism that we believe is related. These great things landed on the planet, and proceeded to unleash more creatures from their mouths."

The soldier then rubbed his temples, as though confused by the whole prospect, and aware of how strange it sounded, "This may sound very odd to you, but it really happened." He assured the audience who was listening. "These smaller creatures, it seems, had one sole purpose: To carry even smaller creatures, which we quickly discovered to be a kind of parasite, and their eggs. There were other creatures, as well, all devoted biologically for the purpose of ensuring that these parasites successfully infected victims. Allegedly, these creatures were for the most part slimy and smooth, save for a concealed pair of fangs. These parasites would invade a victim through the mouth, afterwards which the victim was unable to induce vomiting. Any surgery that was attempted to remove the parasites triggered the creatures to use their hidden fangs to kill the host from within."

The soldier continued on, aware that it all sounded highly unpleasant, "These parasites, you see, did not at first cause any harm aside from severe stomach pain and discomfort, but we later found, that after about twenty-four hours, they had a darker effect. This second fact I am about to state is borderline absurd, but it is true. It turned the victims into a hypothetical kind of undead creature. These parasites took control of the brain, and turned their hosts into mindless zombies, which performed whatever function they were intended. The greatest function, it seemed, at first, was to further-spread the epidemic, but when we began to give up hope, and started abandoning the world for spaceships, they allegedly started to act strange. The entire planet was infected, but they had some other task, it seemed. The last amount of information we have is that the hosts began digging pits in the ground with their bare hands, but we are not sure why."

The Dracosian finally stopped rubbing his temples, "If you are willing to help us reclaim our home world, it would make you an ally of our race for perhaps the entire future, that much I would claim as a fact. However, in addition to saving our planet, we wish to track down where those creatures came from, and exterminate their place of origin. As far as we can tell, there is some source of the eggs that hatched those parasites and their fellows. We wish to kill it, before it spreads to someone else." He looked regretfully off at a place away from the screen that the viewers could not see, "Our race is badly fragmented, despite what you may think in accordance with the size of our fleet. We lose people to the lure of space-piracy as a way of life, and we are deeply ashamed of this, should Dracosians steal from other races, and give all of our kind a bad name."

He frowned a bit, and shook his head, "If you wish to discuss this further, you may prefer to speak to someone who knows more about these issues than I do."

It was a sad business, taking care of Aoloni, but very few had time to think about it. The Majesty was quickly getting under way to follow the Arachnarche, desperate to stop the murderous plans of Jessic. Mott put forward the idea that it might be a good idea to send a signal ahead to alert the Arachnarche, in the least, that they were coming; after having analyzed the sounds they had made, Mott had designed a recording that he hoped would be interpreted by the Arachnarche as a peaceful signal.

Tevri took little interest in what was going on around him. His thoughts kept coming back to the subject of Jessic; what was to be done? Kill him outright? It seemed better to Tevri that Jessic should be taken back to Markova and tried first, but was that safe? Tevri had heard rumors that criminals were increasingly getting away with their crimes. And then Tevri couldn’t help feeling responsible. After all, strictly speaking, Jessic had been under his own authority, and yet Tevri hadn’t been able to stop this.

Tevri started a little when he realized Aarin was standing behind him. “It’s not your fault, Tevri,” said Aarin, having guessed his thoughts.

Tevri hung his head. “I was responsible for him, though,” he said. “I was his superior. And a good leader is supposed to be responsible for the conduct of those he commands, or at least, that’s what my father always told me.”

Aarin smiled. “Your father is a good and wise man. But you needn’t flagellate yourself, Tevri. You are a responsible person. I’ve seen that for myself. You ARE taking responsibility for Jessic, just like a good leader should, by helping to bring him to justice.”

Tevri sighed a little, and nodded. “I suppose,” he said. “But I’m afraid, Aarin. I’m not sure I have the courage to . . . to . . . well, to do what might have to be done. I keep hoping we can capture him alive without having to, well . . .” Tevri fell silent.

Aarin patted Tevri’s shoulder. “I know,” said Aarin. “I hope we don’t have to kill him, either.” Here, Aarin’s face became serious again. “Believe me, it doesn’t take courage to kill.”
__________________________________________________________________
Admiral Lirr frowned at Abarron thoughtfully, wondering if this Vrentus could be trusted. Zizo read the Markovan’s thoughts, and then shrugged.

“I know what you’re thinking, but I don’t see any other alternative but to trust him.” He turned to Abarron. “Alright, what can the rest of us do?”

Kradus' eyes blackened. He was tempted to bulge energy from his back and grow a pair of wings to take after the Valence. But he fell to his massive knees. His new body was godlike, but after such a brutal fight he needed rest. His body was programed to save the aching for when the fight was over. He panted, watching the ship disappear. His body began to fade back into its original state. The extra tendrils and spikes folding back into his body and dissipating back into scattered cells. His muscles faded slightly, although even in his normal form his body rippled and seemed to be a simple mass of scaled waves. The films over his eyes faded and his red irises and black sclera were visible again, and his jet black elliptical pupil returned. He stood up, giving his telepathic command. The small receptor in his brain sent signals and instantly black boiling matter materialized all around his body, molding to it and forming sleek black armor with glowing red crevices and carvings. A long black cloak trailing behind him in the dirt. The cloak was blacker than the smoldering, polluted, war-stained sky. It was pure midnight and ragged along the ends. It fell from his shoulders and even slid about his arms a bit, following them as they moved. He had an iron collar that resembled a black flower bloom around his neck. It was on all accounts menacing. His feet were cases by huge metal "boots" that ran up his legs and his tail was cased in bending metal, like aluminum and the tail talon was cases by a huge blade with a steaming laser finish. It dimmed as Kradus wasn't using it and shut off, though. His scythe materialized as well just in front of him. The blade smoldered with red and black energy an he took it from its suspended location in the air.

He clutched it, angrily. His eyes narrowed and his pupils dilated somewhat as he stared into the red light of the blade. His fangs gritted. "Xej Therus, I swear by all that I hold dear, I will kill you..." he angrily slashed the scythe against the rocks, sending sprays of flaming molten debris everywhere. He let out his thunderous Jadel cry. A demonically horrible deafening shriek that would be heard miles and miles away. The sound stimulated every point of the brain that triggered fear, worry, despair, and sorrow. The sound spread its curse and Kradus his shadow.

***

Kradus walked past a plethora of soldiers about his sides. The powerful Eraak, Mortemalo and Tarsus guarding him from just behind. Kradus was silent and everyone knew better than bother him at the moment. A hulking black vessel at the end of his path. It was a Zraak Royal Carrier, a powerful ship that belonged to its mothering ship. Kradus boarded and was followed by his guards and an array of soldiers. Several pods holding the injured Shancar and Vekoni hovered at the end and were guarded as well. Kradus slipped into his personal quarters and shut the door behind him, locking it and sealing it so no noise could get through. This corridor was large and had many other rooms coming off of it. At the end of the room was a large chain of consoles and a resting portal just beyond that. The consoles were filling the room with nothing but red light. The rest was shadow. He came up to the console, gripping the ends angrily. He restrained himself from destroying anything. "Don't be angry, don't be foolish, that's what happened last time," Kradus told himself in a low voice. "You'll kill him. You'll kill them all. They have no right!" he raised his fist to pound down at the console, but caught himself in mid-drop and stopped.

He rubbed his eyes blearily. He was depleted from the fight. His emotions began to take control again. "Is this what it's like..." he said, looking down at his enormous sleek claws. They reflected a million shades of orange and red light from the glowing consoles before him. "I forgot about this." His snout wrinkled in a snarl and he looked at his reflection in some of the console's glossy features. "I can't lose control, not ever again. Learn from your mistakes, Kradus..." he began to think for a moment. "Perhaps my new body produces so much new chemistry that it causes me to have flashes of anger in moments like this." He looked back at his claws and then back at his reflection.

"Who am I..." he simply stared at himself for the longest time, before turning and looking at the ground. "I'll tell you who I am... I am Lord of All. Kradus Krylen, father of this new world...." He then gave another telepathic command and his armor, cloak, and weapons dissipated into the air, leaving him with no clothing or protection. He climbed over several makeshift stair rails to the large resting portal beyond the consoles. It was a large spherical bulb. It was halved into two pieces and angled slightly on axis. The too half was a mere hologram and the bottom was solidified energy, much like glass. Liquified energy filled the bulb, although this liquid may have very well also been gaseous. It swirled around the inside of the bulb as though it were alive. He climbed inside and was cushioned by the matter. It cooled him down and filled him with a serene sensation almost immediately. The top of the bulb solidified and sealed shut. However, oxygen continued to pass through the walls of the bubble. Kradus' final thoughts swam in his mind in that brief second. "And I know what I must do."

***

Cilask

Kradus sat upon his throne, an enormous thing that was frightening to even the strongest of warriors. The chair was perched up on a large "balcony" overlooking much of the throne room, the actual balcony running down to the floor in the shape of a massive Jadel face, the horns curving up all the way to the edges of the balcony, adding a certain looks of malice to it. The statue of the Jadel face was a fountain that pumped out some red liquid... blood, that poured out of the mouth and into a large pool which consumed a large strip that sliced through the middle of the room. It was unknown whose blood it was, only that it was a thick red and there were seemingly hundreds of gallons of it. Two large staircases swirled up to the balcony where Kradus sat. The actual throne itself was an enormous seat made of black metal, shaped in twisted fashions. The inner seat however was cushioned with dark red feathers. The upper seat was formed to make way for Kradus' horns, splitting in the middle and curing up to form a ring-like structure with several strands of glowing red strings that hung down. In front of Kradus was a very large set of consoles and terminals, but it was hidden to those who were viewing him from below. One would only see them by going up to the throne themselves, which was forbidden.

Large red banners were strung about the throne room, with large black menacing symbols printed on them. Zraak soldiers aligned the pillars the curved in upward arches, keeping the roof up. Statues of Jadels were fixed, gripping onto the pillars. There were several pits that blazed enormous flames scattered around the front of the throne, four to be exact. The enormous doors on the other side of the room were tall and black, but had many glowing red technological implants in them. Locks that looked like tendrils kept the doors shut, however now were loosed and not keeping the door retrained. They opened and many figures passed through. Skandalon followed by a company of Zraak, including Vekoni who had obviously recovered from his fight with Malefactor somewhat. There were many soldiers as well and finally they pulled through the young Miss Alyna Drangoz. Rana Avault held a gun to Alyna's head.

As the troop came to stand before Kradus, each but Alyna gave respectful bows and knelt in his presence. They gave the Dominion solute, the fist on the heart. Alyna was forced to cooperate and as she paid her forced respects to Kradus, she began to shed tears. She felt as though she were dishonoring her father. Vekoni rose up and was followed by the rising of the others.

"My lord," he croaked, his voice blistered and swollen with his injuries. "It is an honor to stand before you in your rightful place on Cilask. I bring you Queen Drangoz of Dranus, unharmed as you requested. What shall we do now?" he asked.

Kradus was silent and eyed Alyna for several long moments. Skandalon spoke up. "She will be taken to her execution immediately," he said. Kradus immediately spoke up.

"No," he said. His blazing eyes beamed a glare so fierce and vile into Skandalon that his very bones nearly caught fire. He felt his heart sink so far out of his chest that he thought he couldn't feel the blood circulating in his body any longer. He stepped back, letting Kradus speak. The horned giant looked at Vekoni and then eyed Alyna carefully. "Alyna, you don't have an heir."

"I am an heir," Alyna said. "This wasn't supposed to happen," she sobbed into her chest, hands bound behind her.

Kradus gave a thoughtful hum. "You don't even have a male companion, correct?"

"Dad was going to wait until I was courted to crown me... But I wasn't ready and he was just getting too old. He was kind enough to make the exception, but I know he resented it," she said. She gave many sad hiccups, her eyes red and her face swollen with a blue rash from her tears which made the skin of her head like the wet rocks that sit under a waterfall, gracefully being brushed and licked by the white, foamy waters that spray from the heavens. She couldn't feel her feet and her body felt cold and so afraid that she might die right there. From there on her voice caught and sounded choky, almost as though it may fail her at any given time. "P-please... D-d-don't do th-this..." he let out a wail of torment, loud and full of sorrow. One of the soldiers struck her in the side of the head with the butt of their gun, shutting her up. "Just kill me n-now if-f y-you're going to do it. D-d-don't torture me...."

Kradus tilted his head. "But Alyna, someone loves you, don't you know?" he cooed softly. She looked up at him, but pulled away as soon as her eyes met his. "Lamor Arius, the Dranzoot you assigned to care for you and your family. The same Dranzoot I fought all those years ago. He loves you, and loves you quite deeply...."

"He... Lamor?" Alyna asked, looking at the metal floor. Her tears slipped from her face and splashed against the ground. It was as though she could hear every drop hit like a sonic boom or the crashing of thunder. The impact nearly sounded like a massive splash in the ocean. She was terrified.

"Yes, Lamor loves you. It is for that reason that I know that he will push for the Confederacy to save you. But sadly they will have to chose between the Queen who is the daughter of the Emperor who was once their greatest ally and their most famous soldier, Xej Therus." Kradus smiled. "I know their minds. Many of them will believe that they owe Drangoz their lives for his contributions to the Confederacy. He found the location of the Blue Orb. He interpreted what the Orbs were. He even helped design a suit that utilized its energy for Emperor Whoster. Most importantly, he helped the Jorro'kil through every last battle and was so faithful to the Confederacy that some may call him married to those birds." Kradus paused before going on. He let that sink in. Alyna did not look up at him.

"But others will say that he abandoned them when they needed him the most. The Karthla distracted him and he could focus on no other thing but to defend his nation from them. But when they began to run off, enormous economic crisis took hold. Paying off the war damages was a taxing blow, Alyna. And there came the Dominion in the midst of that, ready to restore itself." Kradus leaned forward. "Then and there, Shancar stood looming over you...."

"No!" Alyna shouted, finally looking back up at Kradus, but not directly at his face.

"With one simple movement put a bullet in your father's head and mutilated his body beyond recognition. Need I mention how weak your defense on him was?" Kradus smiled. "I enjoy the Karthla. They always seem to eliminate what you want gone the most. They weakened you and when I took over Dranus, it was one of the easiest missions the Dominion has ever had. Sadly, the Karthla are no longer under my control...." Kradus looked at his hands. "Edus has been uncooperative lately..." he shot a brief glance to Skandalon who turned away. He then shot his gaze back to Alyna. "There will be a lot of Confederates opposed of the idea of trading Therus for you, especially since he is such an important figure. But I suppose I can 'guarantee' that he won't be harmed for a certain period of time. But in the end, they'll break. They will realize what you mean to their empire. I'm sure Xonoc would push for your release, especially since your fathers knew each other quite well. I know that Lamor will push too... And when the sun sets, so will the life of Xej Therus over the horizon."

"No! You can't do this!" Alyna shouted.

"Take her away," Kradus sounded. They picked her up by her arms, beat her with the butts of their guns, and lifted her out of the room.

Much of the area surrounding the core of the galaxy was considered the be completely uninhabitable by many species and civilizations, as only few would be unaffected by its conditions. The center part of Ravena, like that of other galaxies, was host to many cosmic events such as many more supernovae due to the density of the area and the supermassive blackhole located there that would render sustained life by organic species impossible. Colonization attempts, unless by something incredibly advanced or synthetic, were considered insane, irresponsible, and outright futile. One particular star system in this area, the host of which was named Rignun Lurri, or Dark Light, contained an unusual amount of cometary debris due to its closeness with the Oort clouds of nearby stars, a trait that was shared within these systems as well. Its planets were filled with largely untapped valuable resources. However, the system was desolate, as were the neighboring systems.

However, that characteristic was not to remain, for the Eldraunn Architects had arrived. Out of nowhere appeared enormous, ocean blue portals, and from these emerged mountainous ships. None were observing this event from the outside, but if they had been, they would have been absolutely amazed of the pristine and beautiful structure of these vessels, and their breathtaking grace as they materialized. However, one could also discern the awesome power and ill intent of the Eldraunn. The first ships through the portals were those designated as Constructors. Accompanied by swarms of smaller, military ships, as soon as they arrived in the system they immediately began to seemingly warp in structures and conjure other creations from nothing but dust. As soon as the primary structures were established, enormous and highly powerful military ships came in and began to organize. The Eldraunn planned a conquest of the galaxy, and they were very prepared for this task. In addition, ships designated for communications began to use their various tools to gather as much information as possible on the galaxy. Databases and networks of innumerable civilizations were accessed, many times forcibly, and knowledge extracted. What would take some species years to observe, gather, and determine, it took the Architects a matter of minutes. Afterwards, civilian and governmental vessels emerged from the portals. All retrieved data was sent to one particularly large ship, designated for the government, though it could be used as a highly effective tool of war. The data was translated and compressed into a language and form that the Eldraunn could very easily observe and quickly learn information from. All of this was compiled in a an immense chamber the shape of the interior of a sphere, with an elaborate center platform that had a large opening at its center. Here, the data took the form of a swirling holographic projection of Ravena - there was a particular way of accessing it, and once one did, the information would be shown in its entirety.

((1:36 in video))

Before this appeared a swirling orb of cyan energy, very similar in composition to what had been seen with the Wanderer. This grew brighter and brighter before it came apart, revealing a truly menacing figure. An Eldraunn, wearing astonishingly exquisite and intricate armoring, bearing many symbols of unknown origin. Blue lights scattered its surface in a very organized manner. The Eldraunn appeared to emanate huge amounts of a power all Architects shared, that of psionic abilities. Perhaps the most notable feature of this mysterious figure, however, was the incredibly intimidating mask worn on the face, so that only his four burning cyan eyes could be seen. The Eldraunn approached the holographic galaxy, placing his clawed lower left hand at its center. Tilting his head slightly, the Eldraunn whispered, in a voice so malevolent even some of the worst the galaxy has to offer would tremble, "Ravena... The home of the deceitful, unwilling, and criminally surpassed... Where my ancestors failed... You shall be mine." With that, he squeezed with his hands, and the galaxy swirled towards it, as if the supermassive blackhole had exponentially increased in power and all else within Ravena was pulled into, crushed and compressed by unimaginable gravitation. And he released his grip upon it, and the data was released into the chamber.

The Eldraunn rotated in place, scanning the room and rapidly taking in tons of information. That which had been absorbed was quickly replaced with something else. A voice sounded out within the Eldraunn's head, by means of telepathy and psionics. "Originator, I would advise that we attempt to join an established faction of civilizations, as Ravena is currently highly divided at the current moment between major groups."

Originator Wrenon, speaking aloud, responded. "I am in agreement, my Ascendant. Should we not at the very least attempt to do so, our glorious conquest will be, to be concise, short lived." At these words, three figures were holographically projected before him, one representing each faction. These were Emperor Xonoc of the Confederate Nations of Ravena, Lord Jiiran of the Terminus Pact, and Kradus Krylen of the Dominion. "I will not align myself with our ancient enemies, the Vrentus. Thus, the Terminus Pact will not be suitable for us." With this, the figure of Jiiran dissipated into dust, reintegrating with the rest of the data. He turned towards Xonoc, and spoke, "Though the Confederacy may provide us with our orbs more immediately, their values are conflicting with ours." With that, Xonoc disappeared as well.

A different voice emanated within Wrenon's head. "And what of the Dominion?" Wrenon paused for a while, staring into the holograph of Kradus. After some time, he turned towards the physical exit of the chamber and ordered, "Take me to Cilask."

The first steps of the Eldraunn's invasion of Ravena had begun.

One thing the UFIAI could have warned the remainder of the Terminus Pact was the unreliability of one of its members; the Jiiran.

As Kradus himself was exiting Dranus, every soldier and ship of the Imperial Despot was ordered to leave at once. This took a while. Mass confusion was the first reaction. Why were they leaving? Eventually, though, the retreat was underway. Every remaining soldier and droid was hurried back on board the dropships. The other representatives of the Terminus Pact would have observed the Despotic fleet suddenly breaking off from the battle, regrouping, and then retreating en mass, without so much as one message or communication to explain their actions. Jiiran himself had given the order to retreat. And Jiiran’s word was final.

Amiral Marr stumped to Jiiran’s quarters. He was rather put off. He had thoroughly enjoyed the battle, and was confident that they were winning, but then Jiiran had called everything off without so much a word of explanation. Marr’s fun was ruined. Well, at least there were those two prisoners. Marr smiled at the thought. During the retreat, the Mondarian soldiers had come across two stray Zraak soldiers. Under Marr’s orders, they were taken alive and were now being held captive. Marr grinned, pure cruely glittering in his eyes as he fingered the hand of his knife. He would have some fun later. But now was time for business.

Adopting his usual amicable face, Marr pressed a button on the door leading to Jiiran’s quarters, a sort of doorbell. No answer. Marr’s smile slipped a notch as he pushed the button again.

“M’Lord? It’s me.”

There was silence for a moment. “What do you want?” said a harsh rasp of a voice through the comm.

“I just want to speak to you, M’Lord,” said Marr. “I’m curious as to the sudden retreat.”

There was another silence, and the door opened. Marr stepped briskly in, and then stopped, a raised eyebrow the only register of his surprise.

Jiiran was standing at a table in the middle, on the opposite side of the door. His armor was still in place, except for the head, the helmet having been retracted. Jiiran’s face was filthy, covered in dirt and his own spittle. His eyes gazed at Marr, burning savagely, full of suspicion.

Marr swallowed a little. Marr usually did not feel afraid of Jiiran like everyone else did. He even felt something that could almost have been described as a fondness for the Warlord, even though he fully intended to kill him at some point. But even he had moments when Jiiran’s sheer unpredictability made him nervous, and this was one of those times.

“What do you want,” said Jiiran again, his usual deadpan voice having a strained and rasping quality to it.

Marr took a deep breath and smiled. “I was just curious as to know the reason as to our sudden retreat, Sir. It was a bit irregular, if I may say so. I trust there’s a good explanation, of course.” He looked questioningly, if a bit nervously, at Jiiran.

Jiiran did not answer, but simply stared down at the table for a moment. Suddenly, he straightened up and looked at Marr intently. “The Infinite Power Orb. Where is it?”

Marr blinked. “Sir?”

“The orb, you fool!” snapped Jiiran. “The one held by the Confederacy. I need it!” Jiiran began to pace back and forth. “I need that orb!” he went on. “The weapon cannot work without it. It must be found, or all my work will be wasted! I cannot, must not fail.” He whirled around to glare at Marr. “Get me that orb, do you hear me? Get it!” His last words were yelled out, as his one hand gripped corner of the table and began to lift it, as if he intended to throw it at the Mondarian.

“Yes, M’Lord!” said Marr. “Right away!” As quickly as he dared, he exited the chamber.

Later. . ..

The two guards stood nervously as Marr looked examined the dead bodies of the two Zraak. For a whole minute, he stood with his back to the two guards, hands akimbo. "So, these two somehow managed to commit suicide while you ere watching them? How exactly?" He raised a hand, silencing them before they could speak. "Never mind! I don't care."

The guards tried not to tremble. Marr had come just three minutes ago, looking grumpy, and had said that he wanted to see the prisoners, "for recreational reasons," he had said. He had not been pleased to find his toys ruined.

Suddenly Marr turned and looked at the two guards in what seemed strangely like an appraising fashion. As he did, a smile crept on his face, a smile so vile it would have done Kradus proud. Going to the door, Marr called in two more Mondarian soldiers. "Take these two, and disarm and dis-armor them. If the resist, shoot them."

The two Mondarians could do little but whimper in fear as they were stripped of their gear, and then, under Marr's command, secured into the very structures that had held the two Zraak prisoner.

"You've both done very badly, my friends," said Marr in his terrible cheerful tone. "You've both failed, and failure simply isn't tolerable in our little Empire." He then turned to the other to Mondarians. "Dispose of these two carcasses," he said, indicating the Zraak. "They're of no more use. And be sure to shut the door behind you."

Not daring to comment, the two soldiers did as they were told. The one who shut the door caught a brief glance of Marr facing his two terrified prisoners, his knofe held lovingly in his hand, before the door closed. Taking hold of the dead bodies, the two soldiers dragged them off in the direction of the airlock, willing themselves not to notice the horrible screams and sadistic laughter coming from behind the door they had just closed.
____________________________________________________________________

The Liirlith’s homeworld was a place unknown by all save the Liirlith themselves. Even the Architects knew nothing of it. The star it orbited was barely inside Ravena, all other stars far away, surrounding the lonely system in a sea of emptiness. Even so, the place was one of high security. Traps of every conceivable sort were present, from simple mines to vast illusion creating complexes. A system was even in place that threw sensors off, misleading them to believe that nothing was there. Thus it remained a closely guarded secret. With one exception, none knew where this world was, except the Liirlith themselves, and the one they called the Father.

Deep underground, the figure sat, surrounded by his aura of fear, reaching out with his mind, seeking to see all and know all. The coming of the Architects was known to him soon after their arrival. He felt there presence, and was displeased. He had sensed them when they came before. They too, with their psionic capabilities, had noticed someone watching them from some hidden location in Ravena. Neither, however, had made contact with each other, content to simply keep an eye on each other for the time being.

The figure shifted on his throne. He could not afford to simply observe them this time. His plans were almost complete, and he would not allow these interlopers into his galaxy interfere. He concentrated his mind, and in an instant, in response to his signal, the great transmitting device in the ceiling activated in response to his mental command. This cone-shaped apparatus allowed him to transmit his thoughts and words anywhere in the galaxy, to any communication device he chose. It could also act as a channel for him to focus his massive power to distant places he could not reach from where he was. He did not strictly need it to look out with his mind, but it gave him a far greater range than he would normally have, and it could also allow him channel his other powers, ones which were usually denied use on things that were too far away.

Silently, the one known to the Liirlith as the Father harnessed his mind into the apparatus and soon his mind was traveling outwards towards the center of Ravena, and he soon found what he was looking for. He reached out, searching, looking for a figure of authority, and soon he found one. Originator Wrenon. The Father didn’t need to be told this Eldraunn’s name. To him, Wrenon’s name was part of his very aura. It was a part of his being. So it was with every living thing.

The Father focused on this person, reaching out towards him. Slowly he began to speak, the words forming themselves in the separate plane that is the realm of thought.

Chá lí tavrin ú lí heliba í lí nuvre ú lí nu. Chá lí un cevitar lí pacadin óve. Chá lí nóli. Chá lí mali. Chá lí un ú chakra í ne’petrin. Chá Jin’tar.

Then the following words followed:

“You have no business here, Eldraunn. This is my realm.”

Arranging his left hand's claws in a thoughtful manner under his lower mandible, Xerin paced back and forth, pondering.

"If the Dominion truly has returned, then we cannot let the United Chimerosu Nations go.. unheeded. The High Councils must know of their more intricate workings, if we are to provide protection for them against this new threat. No doubt that if Kradus were to discover them, and in such a vulnerable state, he could- nay, would obliterate them."

Xej, altering his stance slightly so that his upper right knee locked and his weight shifted onto it, reached out a hand as if to ask Xerin to pause. "There were other concerns. During my engagement with Kradus, Unsilenced Retribution burst into the fight to assist.. or, takeover the fight, really... but I suffered from one of my hallucinations. The stress, I think, must have been the cause.."

"Ah no, not again-" Xerin started.

"But before I could be noticed and killed by.. a nearly defunct Unsilenced Retribution, someone new entered the fight." Xej finished.

Xerin's narrow eyes widened slightly. "Wait, what do you mean 'a defunct Unsilenced Retribution?'" He said, and turned to gaze up at the Wreae.

"I suspect it was an issue with his programming." Xej was also staring at Unsilenced as he said this, but looked again to Xerin. "He has obviously recovered, but it was apparently due to the actions of the individual who joined the fight during my hallucination. He appeared to be a Ryun, but not like any others I've seen before. He was bigger, certainly stronger, and he came out of.. I don't know where."

"Do you remember anything of the fight, or of advanced Ryun soldiers in general?" Xej asked Unsilenced.

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________

Zjer was present on the bridge of the Anomaly as it jumped into hyperspace.

"What have we done?" He asked, staring into the blank primary viewscreen.

Alyna was suspended by strands of black clotted energy. She was kneeling and her arms suspended up above her. Such was the Dominion's signature style of suspended shame. The kneeling. She was sweating despite the fact that her skin was ice cold. She was sick with fear. She wore a simple gray cloth around her, as a prison garment and a robotic brace around her neck with many tiny needles just barely grazing her neck, each prepared to light her up with thousands of volts of electricity. Her arms were held in place by "chains" constructed of swirling black matter that was projected by two emitters along the walls. It was a lonely circular room with a single white light shining down on her. It was cold and unforgiving. But the horrifying part about it wasn't the fact that she was on Cilask with the worst of the Dominion crooks at every corner. It wasn't that she was caught in Kradus' claws, it wasn't even that she knew every form of torture in the book was waiting for its dark lord's command. The worst part of it all was that she was alone.

All alone.

Finally the double doors lined with neon red crevices slid open and the tall Kradus ducked his head as he stepped inside, keeping his horns from taking several feet of wall out from above the door. He came inside, two heavily armored Zraak soldiers taking posts in opposite corners of the room. The doors shut behind him. Alyna's tears formed a puddle in front of her and she clenched her eyes shut, her face tightening. Kradus simply stood and watched her for a moment. She could feel his hot reptilian breath beating on the top of her head even at this distance. He wasn't standing in the ring of light she was suspended in, but she could still see him. He was completely silent and his eyes were ever watchful. To most people it would have creeped them out beyond end, but Alyna was too torn to even think about it.

Kradus finally approached further and stood over her. His breath felt like hot air blowing from an old, rusty machine. It even carried an oily smell, but it's most prominent sent was that of rich blood and bone marrow. She didn't budge, until he spoke. "You know, it doesn't have to be like this. It didn't have to be like this. Ever."

Alyna looked up at him, the sclera in her eyes turned blue from crying. Her pointed ears drooped terribly and her lips trembled. "What do you mean?" she asked. Kradus sighed and knelt down in front of her. Her still towered over her, but at least now she wasn't breaking her neck trying to look at him. He simply stared at her for the longest time. His eyes still had that bloodthirsty look in them. His forked tongue slithered out from his mouth and licked his lips once. He then continued to stare and she finally gained the courage to look up at his eyes. They seemed even hotter than his breath and they stung her heart like the warn of an insect, fierce and filled with venom. Her body trembled as she tried to hold the gaze. For a while she wondered how Xej and Lamor could so bravely fight him. She felt like she might die just by looking at him. But for a fraction of a second she felt like she saw something in them... something that wasn't a monster. But it vanished just as quickly as it came. Kradus reached forward, Alyna lurching backwards, resisting. He halted, but continued forward and grazed her chin with the curved of his claws. They were oddly warm, as though she could still feel the heat of the fires of battle on them.

"Don't tremble, don't be afraid," he cooed. She knew that he didn't mean it. She knew that he wanted her to be afraid. He had what he wanted, why did he felt the need to toy with her? He examined her wet face closely and his breath seemed to bat it dry. "Your people don't have to suffer. They never did, and I didn't want to do this in the first place... but you defied me, and I will have none of that...." he drew his hand back, watching her expressions.

"W-we j-just w-wanted there to b-be peace..." she said. "My father...."

"Your father what?" asked Kradus. He tilted his head slightly, his neck scales clicking as he did so. She closed her eyes, shaking her head. Kradus blinked and looked at the ground for a moment, at his huge feet. "I want you to realize what your father was. Only a fool would deny that he was wise. He deciphered these Orbs so quickly and so perfectly... but despite all that intelligence he still proved to be a poor leader. I'm not saying that he's an idiot for defending his people. It's every man's natural instinct to fight for what he holds dear, but in the end he has to open his eyes and realize who is threatening him and what they can do. What I can do is make his worst nightmares come alive, flush him in a world of darkness and make him never forget his mistake." Kradus paused for a moment, letting that notion sink in. He held her chin up with the tip of his index claw, making her look at him. "And that's what I did. But that's over now." Alyna said nothing as she looked at him. She still carried with her a sad and scared look. Kradus was well aware of that and it seemed to feed him like food. "I think I can look past what the Dranzoot have done now that he is dead."

Alyna's face tightened and she spat out somewhat violently, "I'd rather die than join you!" She whimpered back almost immediately. He held a claw up to her lips, silencing her. He drew away his hand, but leaned forward towards her, closer.

"I have never been so merciful to a race before, consider my offer a gift from your god. But know this, if you refuse me I will kill you. What use will I have should you not be cooperative?" Kradus asked. "In the end the Dranzoot will become another gun for my gun cabinet. But if I can't control them, I'll kill them all. It's not the first time I've committed genocide, my queen. And it should be heeded that my attempts were never in vain. I always win."

Alyna looked up at him. "No," she said. "You were beheaded, Kradus. You lost."

Kradus' face tightened into a horrid snarl. It was the most frightening thing Alyna had seen and she quickly sprawled backwards, giving out a yelp. Kradus' pupils dilated until his eyes were nearly black. His voice rumbled with a reptilian purr that echoed through his throat and throughout his entire body, magnifying in volume with every millimeter it traveled. "It was chance," Kradus said, his voice demonic. "Fate took that day out of my hands. I was too weak to keep it in my hands. I was flawed then, see. I didn't have all of the knives sharpened just right..." Kradus' eyes looked off to the side for a moment, concentrating on more details. He looked back at her when he had them in place. "Things are different now. I'm stronger, smarter, cleverer than I was before. I won't make those mistakes again... I won't let my own lust for revenge get the better of my actions. No doubt I'll have what I desire in time, but only through careful planning. No more of this rail-jumping gun shows and random attacks anymore. Besides, there are more enjoyable ways to gain revenge than just death. Watch as I crush not only their bodies but their hearts and minds. Things have changed, and I know that you know that. You have changed as well. You were a little girl that last time we met. Do you remember?" Alyna nodded and Kradus leaned forward again, now just a few inches from her own face. "This is a new day. And my head will remain firmly attached to my body from this point onward, I assure you." Alyna said nothing as Kradus rubbed her cheek with his scaly palm. "I offer you my mercy again," Kradus asked. "Don't make me repeat myself a third time."

Alyna trembled to speak, but after many moments of trying to birth the words, her lips parted. "A-alright... b-but only on the condition that you not harm m-my people."

Kradus' bloodthirsty pupils shrunk and he smiled, the demonic roar in his body fading. "Agreed. Now, I already have your first act as my ally planned out..." she looked up at him.

"I wasn't finished," she said. Kradus pulled his claws away and moved back a bit, allowing her to speak. "I want Lamor to be safe. He deserves it, for all he's done for me."

Kradus nodded. "You'll find that he will be taken care of in time, your highness. Now as I was saying, we will first offer you back to the Confederacy in exchange for Xej Therus. I know that they will never give him up. It would cause great disruption in their government and military. But I know that those who still feel loyal to Drangoz will push for your rescue. Specifically, I know that Lamor will do his best to ensure your safe return. He will bicker and fuss and perhaps even take charge against Therus for not offering himself as trade."

"You don't want them to be close..." Alyna replied.

"Precisely. The closer they are to one another, the weaker I become. I cannot have them be such good friends, such powerful allies. As long as they are divided, my blood flows strong. Knowing Lamor, he will become very desperate. I'd say that if they don't act with a rescue mission, Lamor may even fall into a storm of depression and refuse to continue with the Confederacy. That can also work, because then he'll be all alone and I can take him that way. But, if they do attack me and try to take you, I will allow them to do so."

Alyna's face lit up. Kradus only grinned. "But, in order to ensure that you won't go turncoat on me, I will implant some... devices, into your body."

"W-what kind of devices?" Alyna asked.

"You'll see," he purred. "Now, when you are in Lamor's keeping, my goal is for you to become my mole and dig up any information you can find," said Kradus. "In the end, the Confederacy will find out and likely attempt to punish you. They may even wish to execute you. But by then my forces will be at your side, ready to protect both you and Lamor. Sound alright?" Kradus waited for her hesitant nod, before he stood back up. "Good. Now, we shall make the transmission."

Kradus walked over to a console along the wall and pulled a lever down, sliding several screens about and finally stepping back. His body blocked Alyna's. A spherical metal drone popped from the wall and began hovering in the air, a brightly lit lens began recording. Kradus stood straight and tall, but stood at a fashionable angle for dramatic atmospheric touches. "Confederates... It has been such a long time, has it not? When was the last time you saw this face? Perhaps it was in that monstrous pyre you tried to burn me in, but failed miserably. I'm sure the word is out that you failed to bind my soul to death. As I always told you, I am an imperishable being. You cannot silence my supreme will, a will that cannot be undone." Kradus grinned. "Dranus has fallen, and Drangoz is dead. Yes, shocking, is it not? Up until the Wreae's appearance, he was your most faithful ally. He was loved dearly by Confederates around the galaxy. He was often described as a generous, loving person. He had a warm heart and he loved to help people. He was always kind and comforting and looked at the best in others. He didn't judge them, and those that knew him say they never heard him speak ill about anyone -- other than me, of course." Kradus tilted his head. "But the Confederacy never came to his aid in the hour he needed them the most. Drangoz, Emperor of the Sovereignty was slaughtered in his own throne room by my men. But no one of the Confederacy made any true attempt to save him. But why is that? Is it because the Jorro'kil are still sore on the rump from Drangoz's unfortunate withdrawal from the war regarding the artificial intelligences? You expected Drangoz to help you when the Karthla were tearing his people apart?" Kradus smiled. "You hate him for something that was out of his control. I love it. Tell me now, is that why no one saved him? Do not mistake me, I know that the Confederacy arrived to save the day, but that was only after the Terminus Pact had already arrived to take on the Dominion. The Confederacy wasn't willing to sit idly by while their enemy grew stronger, taking a colony for itself." Kradus seemed to giggle, uncontrollably for a moment. He then lost all sense of humor and looked dead at the camera. "Now, the cost of your pettiness sinks in." He turned, allowing the camera to view Alyna.

"I have here, Queen Alyna Drangoz. The Empress and totalitarian ruler of the Dranzoot." Kradus crouched behind her, holding his claws about her cheek and neck. "Forgive me, I'm feeling a bit megalomaniacal at the moment. I've captured the entirely of the Dranzoot empire and have begun my assimilation process. This here is my little crown jewel, Alyna. She is the key to how this works. If the Confederacy truly respects and honors the memory of Drangoz, it will trade Xej Therus for Alyna Drangoz. If you wish not to insult the memory of Drangoz, if you wish him not have died in vain, spare his daughter, his only heir. Will you let his blood slip away?" Kradus grinned even more. "Any final words before we finish the message, Alyna?"

Alyna wept. Her face growing wet again as she looked at the camera. "L-Lamor..." she whimpered out. "Lamor... Lamor..." she said his nance once more, this time a bit chokier, before Kradus' brutal chuckling cut in again and the camera stopped recording. Kradus stood up and backed away. He looked to the soldiers and gave them orders to transmit the message immediately. He then exited the room, made his way back to the throne room, and sat down once more.

Kradus sat against his throne, relaxing on the soft feathery cushions. It could be argued that it was one of the most comfortable chairs on Cilask -- yet, perhaps the galaxy. He rested his head back and closed his eyes, still a bit tired from his work on Dranus. But before his eyes were fully shut, the lids quickly latched to his skin. His eyes squeezed shut and his head throbbed with enormous pain, like he had swallowed a thousand needles and they crawled up his throat into his skull. He opened his eyes. He saw around him only violence. A clash of forces. He was not in his throne room.

He stood, his body protected by no clothing or armor. He knelt, trying to go unnoticed. But then he realized they weren't after him. The fighting was a canvas spreading out before him, one force tremendously powerful and extraordinary. The other was just another enemy, not unlike those Kradus had fought on his own. Blood fell to the ground and splashed against every rock. Kradus stood, feeling as though this surreal atmosphere was not going to harm him. He then watched as the environment exploded into a vast collection of color, watching the galaxy of Ravena unfold before his very eyes. And many disks formed before him, hole that opened up huge portals. He saw a multitude of ships springing forward and their worlds emerging underneath, just out of his reach. And they were beautiful. Threatening, but he felt the ruthless beauty stirring in his heart. It was something to behold.

Then he found himself standing again, figures approaching him from a distance and coming out from the shadows... The Eldraunn. Although he knew them not by this name, and they were only aliens to him. He watched, looking at them curiously. He heard a voice shake the world around him.

"We come with an offer."

He opened his eyes. The pain in his head had ceased. He looked around, finding himself sitting on his throne. What did this mean?

Suddenly, the space above Cilask was distorted and its very fabric appeared to rupture as enormous portals materialized and expanded. From these emerged the same ships that Kradus had seen in his dream, perfectly capturing the concept of graceful, elegant force and power. From the surface of Cilask came an enormous amount of communication requests were sent to the Eldraunn vessels - The Dominion government, for the most part, was startled and stunned at this appearance, and demanded an explanation. A newly recreated society would not want to perish at the hands of an unknown enemy, especially so soon after it was reborn out of the ashes of its former self. After the ships came forth, however, they seemed completely devoid of activity.

Meanwhile, within the throne room of Kradus, two groups of brilliant blue spheres appeared out of nothingness, the same that had been witnessed with the Wanderer. They were organized to be on each side before the throne, leaving a middle section of the chamber directly in front of Kradus’ grand seat of power open. After several seconds, the spheres exploded luminously yet harmlessly outwards, and Eldraunn themselves took their place. Each was covered in pure white armor, shining with vivid hues of blue. In unison, they folded their four arms across their chests as they recited strange incantations from memory. A strange dust-like material flowed forth from their armors and created a wall at the entrance to the throne room, as to prevent anyone from entering or the lord of the Dominion himself from leaving. When this process was done, the Eldraunn all knelt as a final orb of energy became visible in front of the throne. From here came Originator Wrenon himself.

Wrenon slowly stepped forth towards Kradus, appearing to emanate sheer amounts of power, though how this was manifested aside from leading these Eldraunn, Kradus did not yet know. As Wrenon approached him, he responded to a strange message from a being he did not personally know, but had been able to observe, as one is somehow made aware of another staring at him or her. “Then unto your realm I shall cast my will, and with my hands alter and mold, so that I may find it suitable. In time, it shall not be recognized as your property, but my own, for the people of this realm shall know the Architects above all else, as they are meant to. This is my ordination, and your destiny.” Wrenon, finding himself to be directly in front of the throne and Kradus himself, performed a gesture signifying respect - stretching each of his four arms out diagonally and then placing all four hands upon the center of the chest.

“Greetings, Lord Kradus.” He spoke, each word ominously reverberating. “I am Originator Wrenon of the Eldraunn Architects. We have emerged once more within this galaxy, and wish to join your Dominion for the betterment of ourselves and you.”

________________________________________________________________________

Unsilenced Retribution shook his head, and would have let out a confused sigh if it were not for robotic form. “I cannot recall the details of the fight, nor anything of this unknown Ryun soldier. However, I do believe I know what you are referring to in terms of my… defunct.” He paused, looking between the two Jorro’kil. “Have you ever heard of Metan Rampancy?” When neither responded, though members of the crew associated with the Federation turned to the Wreae and began to listen, he continued. “As you may or may not know, the core programming behind the artificial intelligence of each Wreae unit originates from an event known as the Propagation. During this, the Metan intelligence essentially copied and spread key pieces of its mind to every single Wreae unit accessible to it. This process was refined until each Wreae was self-aware and incredibly intelligent. The Federation, as of yet, has not been able to create a new AI framework that operated in the same way. Thus, within each Wreae unit, the Metan lies, in wait."

"However, the Federation did manage to create safeguards programmed into each Wreae as to prevent the Metan from overtaking the projected, "normal," mind of the Wreae, as well as programs to completely distinguish the two. Essentially, a normal Wreae mind is a sort of extension of the Metans, though much of them are separate,"He continued. "Despite the presence of these safeguards and distinguishing programs, it is still possibles for the Metan to take over a Wreae. Under certain conditions and throughout a certain possible duration of time, what separates the two consciousnesses can deteriorate, and allow the Metan to fully make itself known."

Unsilenced Retribution looked to Xej, and nodded. "It's probable that what you encountered was this process. If that is true, then I am left to wonder if the changes made to my mind were able to facilitate it…”

______________________________________________________________________

“Netheun,” Vasorin spoke, his voice emanating from the hologram bearing an image of himself on the Ryun supersoldier’s ship. “What do you have to report?”

“Unsilenced Retribution is in powerful company,” Netheun remarked to begin, his sword sheathed behind his back and arms folded. “The machine is currently travelling within a stealth and reconnaissance frigate, the Valence. You may be familiar with it. It is accompanied by Jorro’kil Zealot Xej Therus, Krathunian Commander Svar Levantus, and now a Dranzoot. Lamor Arius.”

Vasorin’s right eye, the one which was not damaged, narrowed. “A Dranzoot?” He asked incredulously. “However, I do recall that name. He is quite the warrior.” His eye closed. “This is to be expected, though. A transmission was received from the Dominion earlier, and it would appear as if the emperor of the Dranzoot is dead, and their people are now within the palm of Kradus’ hand.”

“It is unlikely that any of the Wreae’s partners will be able to go up against me,” Netheun mused aloud.

“I do not doubt that,” Vasorin agreed. “However, I would refrain from taking action now. From the data on the tracking device, they appear to be heading towards Irooscin. Wait until they have departed from there, then you may retrieve the Wreae.”

“It will be done, sir.”

Kradus had not flinched as the Eldraunn appeared. He was indeed surprised, but not frightened. He gave out a thoughtful hum as he eyed each of them from his mighty perch. He tabbed his claws against the arm of the chair. Skandalon, who stood behind a pillar, was only waiting for Kradus to explode. Yet... somehow it was different. "You're quite the bold ones, pulling a stunt like this. But I suppose you have the right to do so, given the ability. It would be a pity for you to squander such an ability. I am impressed," Kradus said. He eyed them much more closely now, squinting his eyes and letting his pupils expand, his vision zooming in on them. "I haven't seen such advanced technology since the days of the Loccalians...." Kradus rested his chin on his palm. "

Kradus sat up, his skin expressing so that his horns and spikes perked up. His body was obviously getting worked up, he turned his head and blew off some smoke through his lips, his throat glowing dimly. He looked back at Wrenon. By this point Skandalon had stepped forward. "My Lord, the defenses are already taking their positions, what do we do?" Kradus shot him a horrid look, lurched up, and let off a gout of fire at a pillar in the room. He then gazed back down at Skandalon.

"Call them off! Fools!" Kradus said. "If aliens are capable of coming so deep into Dominion territory undetected and untouched by our defenses, they ought to be strong enough to take us into oblivion and back. So if a single laser flies, I'll have their heads," Kradus scowled. Skandalon nodded and ran back again. Kradus then leaned back against his heavily cushioned seat and interlaced his fingers. He looked back at Wrenon again. "Forgive the interruption, Originator Wrenon. Welcome to Cilask. I am honored by your offer." Kradus thought for a moment and gave a perplexed expression, but it hinted as though he was aware of something none of the other Dominion officials knew. Many could see it clearly in his eyes now. Something odd was going through his mind. "But tell me, Originator Wrenon, why does my little alliance perk your interests? With technology like yours you ought to be sustainable on your own. What would you hope to gain from us?"


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